The short-statured maid, who had earlier been so hostile, upon recognizing me, her face full of dissatisfaction, instantly broke into a cheerful smile and, as though we were old friends, came up and patted my shoulder.
"Yo, isn't that you! Long time no see! What are you doing here?"
Was it unexpected yet perfectly understandable?
I should've known: at Millennium Science School, someone walking boldly in a maid's outfit, with the swagger of a delinquent girl and the exact look and aura of one, was unlikely to be merely ordinary.
Still… how to put it… I was a little surprised.
I looked at the maid I vaguely recognized, Nero, and couldn't help but say, "What a coincidence."
I meant precisely this was the first time we'd met.
"Hahaha, what kind of line is that," Nero suddenly remembered something, tugged at the embroidered jacket she was wearing, and asked excitedly, "By the way, did you ever go to that clothes shop I told you about? They've got jackets like this one of mine, and a lot of other nice clothes too, you should totally check it out!"
"Work's been busy lately. I'll go when I've got time."
Then Nero frowned, paused for a moment, and asked a bit hesitantly: "Say… though I'd rather not think this way, you wouldn't be brushing me off, would you? You seem awfully free to be hanging around here on a weekday, attending this boring exhibition we held just to show off club achievements and ask the seminar for more funding."
This clingy little maid, maybe she never had any style-savvy friends before.
I replied patiently: "I'm not here for fun; you could say it's more of a necessary duty."
"Oh, speaking of that." Nero became serious. "Just a heads-up: something's about to go down here. Whatever your reason, if you don't want to get hurt, I suggest you leave now."
"I told you, I actually have business here." I shook my head in exasperation, cut to the chase: "I was the one who informed the seminar that an attack was about to happen."
"…Huh?"
Nero's expression shifted awkwardly; she studied me up and down. "You're saying… you're the hostage?"
Hearing that, I too made a weird face. "I don't know exactly what info you got, but theoretically, that'd be me."
Nero stared at me for a moment, then laughed dryly. "…Ha, whatever. That's actually kind of funny. Never mind. Bottom line: your mission is to suppress the delinquent students who're planning sabotage, don't let a big incident happen, make it look like it was just an accident, and keep yourself safe… That about covers the whole thing, right?"
I nodded. "Yes."
"Alright then, watch how it's done!"
Nero's eyes narrowed in a confident grin; her thick lashes and the beauty mark under her eye stood out even more. "Not to brag, but this is our specialty."
Us… huh?
A flicker of expectation stirred inside me.
,
Exhibit Zone B.
In the center of this zone, Akari strode about with a gentle expression, glancing left and right, occasionally stopping at a display booth, taking a selfie portrait with it and then walking on.
Just like any perfectly normal visitor.
Until the cue of the designated time sounded in her ear.
Then Akari raised a rifle fitted with special attachments and aimed at the ceiling. After all, her task was merely to create chaos and shoot at security; the normally mild-mannered Akari thought there was no need for unnecessary casualties.
She pressed a certain button; the progress bar on the rifle's side filled steadily. Akari smiled and said:
"Here comes a piping-hot grenade!"
From the attachment under the barrel aimed at the ceiling, a grenade shot out with a whistling roar, traced a high arc through the air, landed on the floor, and exploded with a thunderous boom.
"Mm~ this much should do∼"
Just as Akari felt quietly satisfied with the effect she had created and began loading another grenade to deal with the arriving security.
A graceful gentle voice sounded a short distance away:
"Oh dear, good day off, and yet something like this happens. What to do?"
Akari turned toward the voice and saw a quiet, kindly‐looking girl in a maid outfit, wearing black-rimmed glasses, gazing at her with a troubled expression.
Then the troubled look shifted to resignation:
"Well then, although I'm not on club duty, I'll start cleaning up anyway."
Akari blinked, her expression suddenly changed, looked down, and found that several detonators with fuses almost burnt out had rolled to her feet.
'Which side is supposed to be causing the chaos exactly?'
No sooner did that thought occur than a series of explosions erupted nearby. The flame that rose enveloped Akari completely as she instinctively took a step back.
The maid in glasses smiled and calmly raised a pistol.
,
When the first explosion rang out, Haruna's mouth faintly curved upward.
Yet when more explosions followed in the same direction, the smile she was just about to form stiffened on her face.
Something unexpected had happened over at Akari's location.
Haruna instantly made a decision, her gaze sharp, she raised a sniper rifle and aimed at the aquarium.
A bullet pierced the glass in an instant, this surprised Haruna even more, but now there was no time to ponder further.
Silver hair flowing in the wind, the girl hurried to the leaking aquarium, flipped the rifle and smashed the gun butt hard at a crack.
Immediately the glass cracked widely; with repeated butt strikes and jabs the hole grew large enough.
Haruna didn't wait for the water to finish draining; she plunged her hand into it, caught the blue lobster, drenched half her sleeve in water.
Then she spun around and handed the rare ingredient to Junko who had just arrived behind her: "Target acquired, retreat quickly!"
Junko took it with both hands. "Wait a sec, aren't we going to support Akari?"
"In this situation, we must trust Akari to escape on her own. If the tables were turned and Akari were in our shoes, she'd make the same decision."
"True enough, there's no choice now. And besides, I've got no free hand … Ow! It pinched my finger!"
In this crisis, Haruna and Junko, in pursuit of the true meaning of gourmet food, had no choice but to mournfully and reluctantly abandon Akari, resolve in their hearts to inherit her will, and enjoying the dish together on her behalf.
Then the two fled along the only corridor; midway they bumped into Izumi who ran toward them in a panic.
Izumi, out of breath, asked: "What happened to Akari's side?"
Haruna cut to the chase: "Don't know, we can't deal with that anymore. Akari will understand our decision. First our priority is to link up with Sensei and protect the ingredient!"
Junko handed the lobster to Izumi: "Izumi! Hold on to it!"
"Oh oh… ow! It's pinching my hand!"
As the three were about to move on tactically, Haruna's phone beeped. Haruna looked at the message on the screen; her face changed slightly.
"What's wrong?"
"It's a message from Sensei," Haruna frowned, tone heavy. "We've spotted a maid-costumed student. Looks like one of the maid agents of Millennium year. Why would she show up in a place like this?"
Izumi gasped: "What? Ah, we have no choice but to use the time Akari saved us to slip out fast! If we split up for withdrawal our survival odds will definitely be higher!"
With that said, Junko dashed ahead toward the exit.
"This kind of thing you'd only say when there are multiple paths to take? Well that's true. Fine, I'll go too!" Haruna quickly said, and also ran for the exit.
"Eh?! Wait… wait! Hold up! Don't leave me behind, okay?!"
Izumi belatedly realized, took a step, then slipped on the slightly slick floor made wet by a few droplets, and tumbled heavily.
While falling, Izumi didn't forget to raise the lobster high to protect it.
"Ugh! I told you don't leave me behind!" Izumi wailed with resentment. "I'll get you back for this one day! You'll remember!"
But even before Izumi could get up from the floor, she saw a pair of black high-heels in her vision.
"Izumi, how could I almost forget?"
To Izumi's ears, Haruna's voice was the most beautiful she had ever heard, like a heavenly sound.
Tears of gratitude welled in Izumi's eyes, she sobbed: "Sob sob… Haruna, I knew you wouldn't just leave me behind… One day I'll repay you…"
Izumi suddenly felt the weight in her hands lighten.
"I'll take care of the ingredient. I hope we can all meet again in victory outside. Do your best."
After cheering Izumi on with admirable loyalty, Haruna escaped alone with the precious ingredient they had fought so hard to secure.
A moment of silence passed, followed by a wail loud enough to echo for days.
"Uwaaah! Haruna! You just wait! I'll get back at all of you one day! One day!"
Izumi's voice grew distant, and with it, Haruna's guilt faded, replaced entirely by deep gratitude.
'Izumi, thank you for your noble sacrifice. I'll make sure to savor this dish for your sake as well.'
At last, after rushing down the long corridor, the moment Haruna stepped into the main hall she heard a shriek.
"Ahh, don't come any closer!"
It was Junko, backed into retreat again and again, overwhelmed by a short maid who was chasing her down like a cat playing with a mouse.
Even from dozens of meters away, Haruna and Junko locked eyes.
Junko's expression lit up with desperate hope, as though she had seen a savior.
Then Junko shouted without hesitation:
"Hold on a second! That's our president over there! She's got the Breton lobster! If you want to catch someone, catch her! Please leave me out of this!"
But the short maid didn't even glance back.
"Huh? What Breton lobster? Who cares about that. No running! Ora ora ora!"
"Ahh! President, save me!"
Haruna seized the chance and slipped away immediately.
Holding the deep blue lobster tightly, she ran toward the parked pickup truck, her heart full of gratitude toward the companions who had sacrificed everything to help her escape.
'Akari, Izumi, Junko, I won't forget what you've done. Even if it's just me… no, even if it's just Sensei and me left, we will pour our whole hearts into finishing this precious dish!'
With this in mind, Haruna sprinted with all her strength, the wind roaring past her ears and whipping at her coat. Soon, the familiar pickup entered her field of view.
Almost there, almost there. All she needed was to reach it…
Bang!
A large-caliber bullet fell from the sky, cutting through the air and striking Haruna with perfect precision as she ran.
On a rooftop not far away, a tan-skinned, golden-eyed maid knelt behind an anti-materiel sniper rifle, calmly adjusting her aim. She pulled the trigger again at the staggering target.
Haruna finally collapsed just a little over ten meters from the pickup. She struggled to rise, reaching toward the deep blue… paint?
In stunned disbelief, her pupils narrowed.
◇
"Wait."
I frowned, puzzled, at the girl on the phone. "What do you mean losing that lobster doesn't matter?"
I called Yuuka because I heard Haruna had escaped with the expensive lobster, and I was worried something had gone wrong. But Yuuka sounded completely unconcerned.
"Just what I said. Even if that exhibit is damaged or lost, based on my calculations, it wouldn't even be one percent of the property damage caused by C&C's rough approach today. Honestly, all of you just keep causing me trouble."
Yuuka let out a long sigh and complained.
I paused for a moment. "But wasn't that the legendary ingredient, the Breton Blue Lobster?"
"…What?" Yuuka sounded confused. "Wasn't that just the gimmick of the exhibit? It's a dyed lobster that looks like a Breton Blue Lobster."
"…What?" I was stunned. "Dyed?"
"Yeah. I knew something felt off. No way the Gourmet Research Society would target such a small exhibition otherwise."
Yuuka explained, "What they were actually displaying was a new waterproof eco-friendly biocoating."
I was at a loss for words. After a while, I asked, "Then why put it on a lobster?"
"For the gimmick, obviously."
Fine then.
After hanging up, I looked up at the sky and sank into deep thought.
So, just what was the Gourmet Research Society even doing…
Meanwhile, elsewhere, Haruna stared at the bright red scratches showing through the deep blue of the lobster's shell where it scraped the ground, and at the blue smears staining the floor, and fell silent.
The weak security… the glass shattered in one shot… even the unusually sparse visitors…
One clue after another connected in her mind. In moments, she understood the truth. Her emotions surged, her head tilted, and she fainted on the spot.
◇
Several blocks away.
Izumi finally stopped running and bent over, hands on her knees, gasping for air.
"Huff… we should be safe here… Ugh, where is this? Where is everyone?"
Just as Izumi felt tears welling up, a handkerchief appeared in her view, offered by a hand gloved in white silk.
"You okay? Want to wipe off a bit?"
"Thank you…"
Izumi gratefully took the handkerchief. When she looked up, she saw a blonde, blue-eyed maid smiling brightly at her.
"Well then, once you're done wiping, you're coming with me."
"…Huh?"
And with that, the Gourmet Research Society was completely wiped out.