Since we had already reached the millennium, there was something that was absolutely indispensable.
The matters of the Game Development Department wrapped up earlier than expected, right around dinner time, so I decided to invite Yuuka out for a meal.
After dinner, surely we would at least take a walk to digest the food, right?
And once you are walking together, naturally you chat. Talk about life, talk about ideals, talk about the future, talk about all kinds of vague yet romantic things.
When the atmosphere is just right, your hands naturally link together, then you turn into a quieter place, and what happens next hardly needs to be said.
My calculations were flawless as well.
Unfortunately, I overlooked one tiny problem.
Yuuka: "Sorry, Sensei, I am busy with seminar work tonight. I already ordered takeout with Noa."
I overlooked the fact that the person I wanted to invite was a textbook science girl.
Damn it, Yuuka is way too unromantic. At a time like this, she should have pretended she had not ordered any takeout at all and happily come on a date with me instead, right?
And if she was not coming herself, fine, but she even dragged Noa along with her…
Though, even if I had actually invited Noa, the brilliant and principled secretary would probably have refused with the same reason.
If I had known, I might as well have stayed in the Game Development Department and ordered a pizza like last time, playing games while enjoying the twins feeding me…
Even if we were still playing Myth Lore Chronicle, it would have been worth it.
Going back now would be a bit awkward.
Night had already fallen. Walking through Millennium Science School, where there were few students around, I thought about where to go next.
The Veritas Club? The Engineering Club? Or should I just visit C&C directly?
Even if they mainly function as a special operations organization, they are still maids after all. They should be quite skilled at cooking.
But if I happened to run into her, would that not make things awkward…
Thinking back now, Toki probably did not harbor any ill will toward me.
After all, given my fairly friendly relationship with Neru, I could first rule out the possibility that C&C had taken on some commission targeting me. Toki lacked any motive to be hostile toward me.
Moreover, I could visit C&C at any time. In other words, even if Toki deliberately disguised her identity in front of me, it could be exposed at any moment.
So what exactly was Toki thinking?
Just then, I happened to pass by Millennium's athletic field. The scene that entered my peripheral vision seized my attention, interrupted my thoughts, and made me stop in my tracks.
On the track, illuminated as brightly as day by the lights, a girl was jogging alone.
Her long ponytail fluttered behind her, her breathing steady, her fair skin faintly flushed and covered with fine beads of sweat. The fullness wrapped in her sports top swayed with her movements, while black tight-fitting athletic pants outlined the perfect shape of her legs.
A graceful body paired with a posture of earnest effort formed a breathtaking sight.
Clearly, this was a sports-type beauty, relatively rare in Millennium, which revered intellect.
Should I buy a bottle of sports drink from the nearby vending machine and go strike up a conversation?
"Otohana Sumire, head of Millennium's Athletics Training Club."
A cool female voice suddenly sounded by my ear, startling me.
I turned to look at the blonde girl who had appeared beside me at some point, dressed like a country bumpkin, and instinctively called out her name.
"Toki?"
"Hello, Sensei, we meet again."
Yes, and only after a single day.
Was she really not going to hide her intentions any longer?
Through those bothersome glasses, Toki and I met each other's gaze. The moment I saw her exceptionally clear eyes, I felt that perhaps I had misunderstood something.
Toki might indeed be deliberately approaching me, but even so, it was probably only because she simply admired me.
After all, as a super upright, herbivore, sunny young man whom Schale was proud of, it was entirely reasonable to receive the attention of many students.
Imitating Himari's perks, I preliminarily designed a self-introduction for myself. Though I was not confident enough to say it out loud with a straight face like Himari, just thinking about it made a sense of self-satisfaction well up inside me.
In comparison, a bit of shyness seemed utterly insignificant.
All in all, as a member of C&C, Toki probably caught a glimpse of my handsome face when I stopped the Gourmet Research Society from robbing the exhibition last time. From then on, she could not forget me, thinking of me day and night, eventually developing an obsession with me, even enduring the guilt of deception just to get close to me in this way…
Seeing that I did not respond for a long time, Toki tilted her head and waved her slender white hand in front of my eyes.
"Sensei?"
I awkwardly cleared my throat. "Toki, what are you doing here?"
"Just passing by."
Good, she really is secretly in love with me.
Cut. Where is my new authority? Why has it not been issued yet?
I shouted internally, while outwardly keeping my expression unchanged, looking toward the striking figure on the field.
"Were you talking about the student who is jogging on the field right now?"
"Yes." Toki nodded. "She is famous in Millennium for her eccentric obsession with exercise and her exaggerated training volume."
Sumire… I silently repeated the name, feeling that it suited her well.
White, purple, yellow, and green tones in her outfit, just like an ordinary yet beautiful cluster of pansies.
"I did not expect Millennium to have a club like this."
Half sincerely sighing with emotion, half trying to hint to Toki that my staring at Sumire earlier was purely out of curiosity toward beautiful things, I spoke.
Toki's reaction was rather flat. "Yes."
After pondering for a moment, I tentatively asked, "Toki, are you free later?"
Toki nodded. "I am."
"Then… have you had dinner?"
Toki shook her head. "I have not."
"…I know a pretty good family restaurant. It is not too far from Millennium. Want to go together?"
Toki nodded. "Okay."
Why so calm?
I was surprised, and after rigorous logical reasoning, arrived at a reasonable explanation.
Could it be that Toki was so excited deep down that she could not show it on her face?
I really do not know what to do with this little admirer of mine.
In any case, as long as she agreed, that was fine. Next, we would happily deepen our relationship...
However, just as I was about to invite Toki to set off now, heading to the family restaurant Yuuka had recommended to me when I first arrived in Kivotos, I faintly heard a dull thud, as if a heavy object had fallen to the ground.
Toki turned her head faster than I did. I was half a beat slower in looking toward the source of the sound, only to see that Sumire, who had been jogging just moments ago, had collapsed on the rubber track, motionless.
My body moved even before my mind could catch up. I rushed to Sumire's side at top speed, turned her over, and could not help frowning at what I saw.
The girl's eyes were tightly shut, her face and lips devoid of color. Judging from her faintly rising chest, she had probably only lost consciousness.
Without time to think, I scooped her up and asked Toki, "Where is the infirmary?"
I did not expect that what happened next would make my blood pressure spike.
The calm, unruffled expression on Toki's face finally changed.
"Aren't we going to eat?"
Ignoring the unconscious Sumire, Asuma Toki asked in confusion.