What exactly were Himari and Rio thinking?
Clearly, both of them wanted to investigate Aris's true identity. The only point of disagreement lay in whether to invite me to participate.
The reason for this disagreement could probably be traced back to one of Himari's remarks.
Rio is the big sister type who wants to control everything, while Himari is the far leftist who opposes controlling everything.
Of course, given Himari's extreme aggressiveness when talking about Rio, as well as her tendency to embellish herself intentionally or otherwise, she might have exaggerated a little. But overall, it was not far from the truth.
In other words, one believed that I had the right to know and to intervene, while the other leaned toward solving the problem through her own strength alone.
Even though this was just my speculation, based on my current understanding of the two of them, it was relatively accurate.
There was no need to dig any deeper.
Once I understood their thoughts, one thing became clear.
I said sincerely, "I understand this matter now, and I'll keep an eye on it. If during this time there's any need to make use of my status as Aris's teacher, or my authority as the person in charge of Schale, please don't hesitate to ask."
"Oh my, what a sly way of putting it. Is this the way adults navigate the world?" Himari covered her mouth and laughed softly. "Hehe. But this is enough. What do you think, Rio?"
Rio hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "…In that case, we'll be counting on you, Sensei."
Just as I had thought, at least regarding this matter, Himari and Rio had not yet reached an irreconcilable conflict. I could easily offer terms that satisfied both of them at once.
Himari successfully drew my attention to the issue, Rio could make use of my strength when necessary, and I gained a legitimate reason to interact with two beautiful girls.
This was a complete multi win situation.
Delighted, I said, "Then, to celebrate the friendly cooperation among the three of us, may I ask you a question?"
"Huh? You're not trying to take this opportunity to pry into my private information, are you?"
Himari teased, "Hehe. Well, it's understandable. After all, Sensei is a man. It's not hard to imagine you harboring admiration for a rare beauty like me."
…She was really something else.
Though, admittedly, I was a little curious.
Compared to her, Rio's reaction was much more normal.
Rio frowned. "Himari, that's enough. Sensei isn't the kind of person who'd be interested in that sort of thing."
That felt like I had been shot by a stray bullet.
"Oh? That sort of thing?" Himari raised an eyebrow and sneered. "You're talking about yourself, aren't you? What an ugly sense of jealousy. Hilarious. Just because you're not popular, you start projecting onto others."
Seeing the two of them about to argue again right in front of me, I hurriedly stopped them.
"Wait, please listen to my question first."
Himari returned to her gentle smile. "Mm hm, sorry for losing composure in front of you. Go ahead. As long as it's not an ungentlemanly question, it's fine."
Rio's expression also softened slightly. "Sensei, are you trying to learn about our guesses regarding Aris's true identity?"
"It's not that serious a question. Besides, we can't be sure yet anyway."
I cleared my throat, pointed at my own face, and asked with a trace of unease and anticipation,
"Um, I'm actually pretty handsome, right?"
The moment those words left my mouth, the Veritas Club room fell completely silent, leaving only the low hum of the computer tower.
This should not be happening. My looks, my charm, were they not an obvious fact acknowledged by all students?
Even the card had certified it.
I quickly stepped in front of the utterly bewildered Rio, placed both hands on her fragrant shoulders, leaned my face closer, and asked urgently,
"Rio, as the seminar president, you should be able to answer from a rational and objective perspective, right?"
"…I I still have work to do, so I'll excuse myself first."
Rio, who usually gave off a calm and unflappable impression, actually panicked. She slapped my hands away and rushed out the door.
But before she turned away, her reddened ears and wavering gaze had already given me my answer.
So I curled my lips into a smile and shifted my gaze to Himari, just in time to meet her light purple eyes.
Himari guardedly clutched her chest with both hands. "Y-you, what are you trying to do? Doing ungentlemanly things to a pure type beautiful girl is also a point deduction."
I walked up to her and knelt on one knee. "Himari, as Millennium's pride, the super genius pure type frail beautiful girl hacker, you must understand me, right?"
"…Ah ahaha, Sensei, you really remembered that clearly. But I wanted to say earlier, this line is kind of my personal trademark, so you can't just use it casually…"
Himari's voice grew quieter and quieter.
"Then may I have your consent to use it now?"
"Uu… since it's Sensei asking, I'll grant special permission. Um, you're a little too close, Sensei. That, um… is this what they call personal space?"
I realized that although Himari usually acted so confident, her defenses were actually this low.
Just by moving a little closer, she got shy and showed a timid side.
That was simply too cute.
Unable to control myself, I reached out, wanting to take the frail girl's slender hand clad in a black glove.
But in the next moment, Himari quickly pressed something on her wheelchair. In the blink of an eye, it shot backward several meters.
"That's way too fast. Way too fast. This is only our first meeting."
Himari shouted in a panic. At the same time, the wheelchair traced a semicircle around me, then fled at full speed.
Looks like I had to add one more trait.
A bit timid.
It felt like… she was less confident than me.
I stood up from the ground, patted my knees, and began thinking about a new question.
After conquering both of these girls, who stood at the very top of Millennium yet were both pure hearted maidens, what kind of authority would I obtain?
More importantly, what kind of scenery would await me then?
If these two, who were so sharply opposed to each other, could be reconciled through my mediation, turning enemies into friends and fighting alongside me in unity on the battlefield…
It was truly something to look forward to.
And so, I left Millennium alone.
Just after returning to Schale and preparing to handle some administrative work, I received a Momotalk message from a rare sender.
Hina: Sensei, this may be abrupt, but there's something I'd like to discuss with you.
Hina: After I finish work late tonight, could you meet with me?
Me: Working late again? You've worked hard.
Hina: I'm really sorry for setting the time so late.
Me: That's not what I meant. If you want to meet, I'm fine with it.
Hina: Okay, then the meeting place will be…