The Start of Our School Festival!

Ooarai school carrier – school entrance – 08.40h Saturday

Coming to a halt at the entrance to the school ground, Miho and her friends took in the sight of the massive sign that had been erected over it, welcoming all guests to their school. This was definitely something that had not been here when they had left yesterday.

"Whoa…!" Yukari beamed as she marvelled at the sight. "We didn't have that last year! Wow, the student council is going full out on this don't you think?"

"Yeah," Saori let out in a nervous tone. "I don't even want to think what else they've got in store for us tomorrow. I'm getting a bad feeling in my stomach if you know what I mean."

That was the cue that Mako had been waiting for and she wasted no time, "You sure that isn't because you skipped breakfast because you worry about your figure too much?"

Saori had a look on her face as if she had been slapped with a wet fish, her mouth opening and closing in a fraction of a second. To the girl's credit, she was able to make a surprisingly quick recovery, feigning her annoyance.

"Not buying it. Nope." Mako replied, deadpan.

The other girls could not help but laugh and chuckle with equal measure as they were about to be treated to a bout of verbal sparring and bickering between two good friends That was until one girl from the student council, in particular, made her presence known.

"Good morning to you all. I'm glad to see you're already here," Momo said to them as she came over to greet them though she kept it rather short and to the point. "You can all go to the room we've set aside so you can get changed without being disturbed. Nishizumi, there's something I'd like to talk to you about. Could you come with me for a moment?"

"Oh… ah…" Although hesitant at first as Miho was uncertain what to do, her friends were gesturing for her that it would be alright and that they would see each other later in the tank sheds. "… Sure, I guess. What is it that I can do for you, Kawashima-senpai?"

"Just a quick rundown of what you can expect today. As this is your first festival at Ooarai the president felt that it would be best for me to inform you about it forehand. And also because we're all expecting a lot from you."

"It's okay Miho-san, we'll go to the tank sheds and meet you there when you're done. Take good care of yourself," Hana was quick to mention, letting her friend know that it would be alright for her to leave. They knew that they would get to see each other again later.

"We'll see you later Miporin!"

"Good luck Nishizumi-dono!"

Following the older girl, Miho had her doubts about that but at the moment she did not mind, although she could not shake the uneasy feeling that the student council was going to spring a surprise or something on her. She had spent enough time at Ooarai already to know how things worked here.

"Kawashima-senpai, is everything alright?"

"Of course," Momo answered while the two of them kept walking through the hallway. "We have a lot to look after as it is a big festival. I personally have my concerns about it being two days instead of the usual one day but it is the decision that the president took."

That was something that Miho had already guessed, school festivals were normally just a single day occasion and often would take place on Sunday to have the least amount of interruption to its education though somehow Anzu had been able to get the principal to agree to a two-day festival.

"Naturally it goes without saying that everybody on the student council will be very busy in the coming two days. The same goes for the people in the Public Morals committee and the Festival committee; there is a lot on our hands to make this festival a success."

"Kawashima-senpai, can I ask you a question?" Miho dared to ask something that was on her mind.

Coming to a halt Momo turned around and gestured for her to ask her question. "Go ahead."

"Please don't get me wrong, but what exactly do all of you mean with success?"

Nodding her head in recognition of that question, the black-haired girl merely adjusted her monocle without answering it. With Momo adopting a thinking pose it became clear that Miho had asked a question that even the older girl had trouble with finding an answer for.

"I see, so you would like to know what we would define as a success, am I right?"

"Ah yes," Miho said quickly. "I don't really know what would constitute success or not, and if that should really matter for the festival. And besides shouldn't we rather focus on making sure that people are having a great time?"

"Of course we should," Momo answered, nodding her in agreement. "However, to answer your other question; if it should really matter to us if this festival will be a success or not. It most certainly does, don't be mistaken here Nishizumi but for the school's future a lot is going to depend on how many potential students we can convince to come here."

Although Miho could understand that line of reasoning it was something that she could not entirely agree with, it just felt too cold to her; too businesslike.

Scraping her throat before taking a step forward Momo placed her right hand on Miho's shoulder before addressing her, "I can understand that this may be a little unpleasant for you, Nishizumi. But you shouldn't let that prevent you from seeing the facts, our school desperately needs this. Otherwise, we'd be back at square one in a year or so."

Miho had to swallow as she heard that, feeling a knot in her stomach but it was true and as much as she wanted otherwise she could not deny what Momo had said. For their school to prosper it was going to need an influx of new students, and it was going to need a lot of them.

"Understandably, you might find this to be the kind of information you'd rather not hear, Nishizumi," Momo stated as she turned back, not even facing Miho before she continued. "But the reality is that while we have staved off the immediate threat, we have not entirely saved our school despite what some people seem to think. There still is a lot that'll need to be done before we can say with any certainty that our school's future is secure."

Feeling a lump stuck in her throat Miho had to swallow, knowing well that Momo was right. It was a bit of a bitter pill to swallow but Ooarai would not be fully saved until it would see a large increase in new students. And that meant that this school festival did indeed have to be a resounding success.

"So why did you ask me to come with you, Kawashima-senpai?"

"Because Prez told me to go and inform you that at all times you should be in a location where it will be easy for us to find you should we have a sudden need for your presence."

That really sounded a bit too cryptic for Miho's tastes, and again the uneasy feeling she had before began to creep up on her. There was definitely something going on.

"Well," she said in return. "I'm going to be staying mostly at the tank sheds anyway so that shouldn't be a problem."

"Good, please stay there until further notice," the other girl merely stated.

"Still, I don't see why you asked me to come with you all this way just to let me know I'm supposed to stay at the tank sheds. Couldn't you have told me this when we met? "

"I'm afraid not Nishizumi," Momo answered, her voice cold and to the point. "What I'm telling you is all confidential so we don't want you to discuss this with your friends."

"But why?"

Momo adjusted her monocle before she answered, "Because this is a sensitive matter, which is all I'm willing to disclose for the time being. We would very much appreciate it if you would keep this to yourself."

"Ah right," Miho acknowledged that last part by gently nodding her head. Now she knew for certain that her hunch had been correct, the student council, Anzu in particular, had something planned for her this festival and it was something for which they were going to need to find quickly; that did not bode well.

"Just follow me to the provisional office; there are a few matters that I'd like to discuss further with you. Once that is done you can return to the tank sheds but please keep in mind that we may require your presence later today."

"What sort of need if I may ask?"

Momo just kept on walking, not even stopping to give her answer. "Unfortunately that matter is confidential at the moment and we are not yet privy to the finer details. Rest assured that once we find out we'll be certain to inform you.

"C-Confidential?" Miho asked in confusion. That did not make any sense to her, and why was it that even the members of the student council did not seem to know? Trying to shake the uneasy feeling she could not help but wonder what her school had gotten itself into this time.

"Yes, confidential. That is about all you need to know at the moment," Momo answered before coming to a halt and making a quick spin on her heel to face the girl following her. Reaching out with her arm and letting her hand rest on Miho's shoulder she said, "I can understand that you're feeling nervous about this Nishizumi, to be honest, I feel the same way but that isn't important. You just focus on enjoying the festival to your heart's desire."


Ooarai school carrier – tank sheds – 09.20h Saturday

Sitting by herself in a corner inside the tank sheds, Yukari was minding her own business in an attempt to deal with her disappointment. She was unhappy about knowing that Miho had been called away by the student council but there was not much she could do about that.

"Nishizumi-dono should be here with us, she needs to be here when the guests arrive…" she mumbled underneath her breath while she kept reading one of her books.

So engrossed was she in the book's content, that she did not notice the sound of the approaching girl's footsteps until she was standing in front of her.

"Hey, Akiyama."

"M-Minase-dono?!" Yukari blurted in surprise, jumping up straight, as she saw who it was. "W-What are you doing here? W-Why are you here?"

The other girl let out a disgruntled huff. "Good to see you too Akiyama, I came to check up on how the Sensha-Do team's doing. We don't normally get the chance to have a look in the tank sheds so it seemed like a good opportunity to come."

"Uh-huh…" Still, a little surprised, not to mention being confused Yukari shrugged her shoulders; sure she could kind of understand what the girl meant but it was not like the building was off-limits to people outside the team. "So uh how's it going with your club?"

Dressed in her school uniform, Maika had her school bag hanging from her shoulder. She picked a spot and sat down next to the brunette. "Well, it's a little quiet at the moment but that's not really a surprise is it. How's it going with the team, I heard you were all pretty busy?"

"Ah that," Yukari said in return. "We've done a lot of practicing in the last few days though it's not been easy for us. I take it you heard what happened, Minase-dono?"

A disapproving sigh signalled that the girl in question was still not happy about being addressed that way but it did seem that she was at least getting used to it. "Yeah, we did. We were there watching the match, the match was really great and all. You were all awesome in how you took them out bit by bit in the rail yard, the people were on the edge of their seats!" she said.

Feeling relieved that Maika and her friends had been able to enjoy the match, Yukari could only hope that they had not caught on at what had happened after the match.

"We heard what happened later, we didn't want to believe at first. It goes against the spirit of the sport."

And there was just what Yukari had been worried about more people learning what had happened after the match. To be honest, the fewer people knew the better, not just for Ooarai but for the opposing team's sake as well. "So you did find out…"

"Yes…" Maika said before scraping her throat, she was feeling uneasy about it. "… Though to be honest I'd rather wish we didn't, I don't like it when such things happen in this sport. This isn't what Sensha-Do is supposed to foster…"

"… I know…" the brunette acknowledged, sharing the sentiment that behaviour like that had no place in the sport. "… Just thinking about it makes me so angry at them… why did they do that… what did we ever do wrong to them?"

Shrugging her shoulders the black-haired girl felt the same. It had felt so wrong to her, as in her opinion it went against what the sport stood for. "Are you alright Akiyama, you look like you don't feel so good?"

Waving her hand Yukari just said, "I'm fine, it's… just that I don't like to think about that. It was an unpleasant moment for all of us. I'd rather just forget about it."

Nodding her head the other girl agreed with her.

Turning around so she could have a look at the M3 in its current state she could only imagine how its crew had to be feeling. "Well, I guess that kinda explains why the poor thing still looks like this…"

"… Yeah… nobody liked leaving it like that…"

"Well, maybe I've got something that ought to help you feel a little better, or at least give your mind something else to think about. Now, have you seen the latest news?"

"Huh, what news are you talking about? You mean on the TV or in the newspaper?"

Pinching the bridge of her nose Maika gestured for Yukari to be quiet, for now, allowing her to regain her composure. "Alright, rather than telling you about it, why don't you have a look for yourself. It'll be easier that way. Honestly, I'm a little disappointed that you didn't catch on to this when it went up yesterday."

Reaching for the bag she pulled out her own laptop as there was something on it that she wanted to show the girl opposite of her. "Let me just get the page for you, you've got to see this! I've already bookmarked it."

"What is it you want to show me?"

"You just wait and see. This is so awesome I tell you!"

Waiting with bated breath until she was handed the laptop Yukari felt a wave of excitement wash over her as she found herself staring at just the title at the top of the page.

"Wow, so they're really here? I can't believe it? And there's already a match? Whoa…"

"Yeah!" Maika beamed as she leaned forward to have a look for herself. "We've all watched it several times in the club already this morning. Look over there; it says here that even before the start of the match they already did something spectacular! Can you imagine that?"

Sitting next to each other the two girls were giggling with excitement, their common interest in the sport unifying them in their enjoyment of what the page had to offer them. For either of them, it was the kind of thing they had always been hoping they would get to see, something that neither of them thought they would ever get the opportunity for but there it was.

"This is so cool don't you think Akiyama? We're already looking for when the next one is planned so we can go and watch it!"

"Wait, you're actually planning on going there in person Minase-dono? That's so cool!"

The other girl was smiling. "I know!"

"… But what if it's on a school day?"

Maika merely shook her head in response. "We'll see that when we get there. Not much point worrying about it when nobody knows when their next match might be. Ah, I can't wait for it!"

"Same here, Minase-dono, I'd love to go and visit the next one."

"Hey, do you want to come with us next time? You've got to, it'll be great!"

"I uhm… I'll think about it."

"Sure."

Just looking at the images and the shorts bits of video that had been uploaded Yukari could barely keep her excitement at this news in check, her foot tapping nervously on the concrete floor as she was taking it all in.

"Pretty exciting isn't it?" Maiko asked her as she took notice, chuckling as she did.

"You bet! I've got to show this to Nishizumi-dono immediately!" Shooting up straight she came just as quickly to an abrupt halt as she realized that the girl she was looking for still had not come back. "… Ah… that's right, Nishizumi-dono isn't here…"

"Oh," Maika remarked as she looked up from the screen. "Now that you mention it. Where is she, I haven't seen her here?"

"She got called away by the student council."

"I see, I guess they must have something special in mind for her," Maika remarked while adopting a thinking pose. "Well, that does make sense. I mean she's after all the legendary Nishizumi Miho."

"…"

"For that matter," Maika mentioned as she was looking around as if she was trying to look for somebody in particular. "Where are the others for that matter? I mean you're normally with a few other girls, am I right? Where did they go?"

Not even having to bother looking up Yukari answered the question. "Isuzu-dono and Takebe-dono are in the room getting changed I think, as for Reizei-dono she's somewhere I guess…" Honestly, she did not really want to think where that girl could have gone to have a secret nap.

With an awkward expression on her face, Maika just said, "Ah right." Before turning in the other direction, no doubt put off by what she had just heard as she began shaking her head in disapproval. "… Ugh, these people…"

Laughing nervously Yukari was not bothered by it, at least not as much as the other girl was. She had come to know these people and their oddities well; she knew that they would be here in time, besides that she actually liked having some time to herself.

"Anyway," Maika stated as she reached out and picked up her bag again. "I'll be going back to my club, you can come and visit us if you want to but I'm not sure if it's gonna be easy for you."

Yukari nodded her head, visibly elated about the invitation. "I'll be sure to come to visit it, Minase-dono! I promise!"

Extending her hand to give the laptop back Yukari froze as she just realized something, if she just handed the laptop back she would not be able to show what she had just discovered to Miho on her return. "Ah wait, Minase-dono!"

The girl was startled. "W-What is it?!"

Jumping up from her spot Yukari approached her and said, "I need to write down the site's address otherwise I can't show this to Nishizumi-dono when she returns! Do you have a pen and paper?"

Her eye twitching Maika let out an undignified, "Huh?!" This was all too quickly followed by her shaking her head in disappointment. "I'll send you an email with the link in it; just give me your address and I'll send it over."

Turning beet red in the face Yukari was feeling, unsurprisingly, embarrassed of her for not having thought of that. "… A-Ah, you're right… s-sorry about that Minase-dono…"

"It's okay. Now as for your mail address, I'll put it in my phone so I'll have it at hand. Also, do you mind if I pass it on to the others back at the club?"

"Ah, I ehm," Yukari got past her lips before she slammed shut as the thought of more people having her number or mail address was a daunting one, to be honest, she was a little scared. "... Ehm Minase-dono, c-could you rather keep it for yourself… it's uh… well…"

"Alright," Maika grumbled in response. "I won't pass it on to the others, I'll just keep it to myself if that makes you feel any better."

"Ah thank you so much Minase-dono!"

"Ugh, you're such a pain…"

"S-Sorry," Yukari was quick to apologize before she gave her address to the other girl, allowing her to send a message with the link later on.

Letting out an exasperated sigh as she accepted the laptop and placed it back in her bag Maika said her goodbyes. "It's okay. Take care of yourself Akiyama and have a good day."

"You as well Minase-dono!"

Waving her classmate off and watching her disappear when she went past the gate Yukari was by herself again, her fellow crewmates were still absent, and of the girl she idolized the most there was neither sight nor sound.

Well, at least she had something to be looking forward to. "Nishizumi-dono, I hope you'll be with us soon, we're all waiting for you to come back…"

Looking through the open gate she was wondering where her cherished friend could be at the moment.


Ooarai school carrier – school hallways – 09.35h Saturday

Walking through the hallway on the second floor Miho was simply marvelling at the sight that greeted her. Taking it all in, she was simply left devoid of words to express her amazement. Truly this was nothing like what she had experienced in the past, this felt more akin to a great feast, something to be celebrated, how different it just felt compared to her former school.

"Still I don't really know if I can enjoy this festival…" she said under her breath as her mind began to think back to her conversation with the member of the student council. "Just what is going to happen?"

Looking around again she saw that the hallway was alive with people, mostly students of the school who had a job to do but also some who had simply come to visit. It was a hive of activity, and everywhere she looked there was something that caught her interest.

"Oh I didn't know that the school already opened to the public, I guess that means that the first guests may already be here…" she remarked in surprise as she caught sight of a trio of girls going into one of the classrooms.

Miho had not been expecting to see any visitors so soon already, with it being a Saturday she had been under the impression that only a small number of students would be able to come to visit as many would still have their responsibilities on their respective schools.

Then again these could just be girls who already attended Ooarai and were just coming to check up on how some of their friends were doing.

Well, she would find out anyway as the day would progress, and right now there was no reason for her to worry about a minor point such as this. "That's right; I went because I want to see more of the school. I wonder if it would be alright for me to go and have a look inside?"

She was curious to learn for herself what had prompted those girls to go into the room, a part of her really was keen to find out but on the other hand, she was wondering if it would be alright for her to step inside.

"The others might also be waiting for me," she said as she turned around towards the way she had come. "If there are already visitors here then there have to be some already at the tank sheds. I wonder if the others are going to be alright."

Looking over her shoulder again Miho was indecisive on what she was supposed to do. She did have a responsibility to promote Ooarai's tankery team and be there for people to see, but on the other hand, she was also curious to learn what other classes and clubs were doing.

Not to mention that this would also offer her a good opportunity to see a bit more of her school than usual, and she was really keen on that, as she wanted to experience more of what her precious school had to offer this weekend.

Looking at the clock that hung in this hallway Miho was hazarding a guess at how much time she would have before she would have to go to the tank sheds. She knew that the first guests would be here soon but that did not tell her when any of them would come and visit the tank sheds.

"I should have some time left," she told herself, nothing that she would still have time left to do a little bit of sightseeing before she would have to go back. As the tank sheds were more or less at the back of the school she did not believe that her friends would have too much on their hands. Most of the guests would likely go have a look at the actual school itself before continuing towards the tank sheds.

"It's going to be alright, there's nothing for us to worry about," she reminded herself, making a quick mental note that she had been told by Momo on behalf of the student council to enjoy the festival. "I know that I'm supposed to enjoy the festival, no doubt they really want me to enjoy it to the fullest but it's kinda hard to do when there's…" she trailed off.

"That's right, I shouldn't let that keep me down." Clenching her fists, Miho made a promise to herself that she was not going to let what she had learned earlier stop her from enjoying this festival, she had been looking forward to it far too much. "Besides I can imagine that the others would say the same, so I shouldn't let this keep me down, I need to have fun!"

Imagining her friends' words of encouragement she knew that it was the only right way to go forward, to be unrelenting, to not compromise on her desire to make the most out of today.

"That's right, I should have fun. Right, then that's what I'm going to do!"

With newfound determination Miho turned around and went in the other direction than she had originally planned, making her way towards where she knew there were going to be a lot of events and projects set up by various classes and clubs.

"I'm going to do this, I'm going to enjoy my first real school festival!"

Quickening her pace the girl was keen to find out for herself what wonders would be waiting for her further into the building. Turning right at the end of the hallway instead of going down the stairs Miho was about to start her wonderful journey throughout the school.

After having walked for a while now and having seen several classrooms she came to a sudden halt as she caught the scent of something delicious, Miho began to turn a little in order for her to get an idea where it was coming from. "Hmm, that smells good… I wonder where it's coming from…"

Moving further she stopped all of sudden when she thought she heard the distinct sound of people talking, which was a little odd as she was unaware of there being anything here but it did pique her curiosity once more. "Could there be a club or such just up ahead?"

Going in the direction of the noise Miho continued her track, going up a set of stairs that took her to the next floor, the sound of people getting louder and more recognizable, it was not only laughing she could make out now, but there was also although talk, high spirited and joyous talk. The kind of talk one could expect from people enjoying themselves.

That only spurred on her desire to learn the cause, her curiosity driving her ever forward up the stairs. Reaching the top she stopped for a brief moment to get her bearings straight.

It was to her left, she was sure of that.

Rounding the corner she halted as a sign caught her attention. "Huh, what's this?"

Kneeling in front of it, Miho read out loud what it said. "Play games from around the world in our café, huh." Below that she could read the prices that were asked for what this café had to offer but the last item on that list puzzled her - games.

Having another glance over the sign, something at the back of her mind was stirred but for the life of her, Miho could not grasp it. Having already fully given in to her curiosity she figured that she might as well have a look inside and see what it was all about.

"I guess I might as well have a look, I'm here anyway," she said while smiling.

Walking past the sign she would take a few steps before she came to a halt just in front of the door, taking a deep breath to calm her anxiety Miho took a brave step forward and entered the room.


Ooarai school carrier – tank sheds09.55h Saturday

Getting themselves changed into their tankery uniform Saori and Hana were wondering what was keeping their friend as they had not seen her in a while, not that either of them had not anticipated this as they knew that the chance was high that Anzu had something in mind for their friend.

"I hope that the student council isn't going to force Miporin to do something embarrassing."

Hana shook her head. "Even if they were there's little we could do about it, and besides I don't think that Miho-san would fall for it that easily. That said, I'm fairly confident that the student council will seek to make the most out of Miho-san's presence at our school."

"They shouldn't," Saori said, her eyes betraying her disapproval of such a tactic. "They should use the school itself, not a particular student, to promote it to the public."

Hana nodded her head in agreement, she shared the sentiment. "You're right Saori-san but sadly our school doesn't have much to offer other than its Sensha-Do team and that is in large part due to Miho-san's efforts."

"Yeah, that's true."

"You're worried about her aren't you?"

"How couldn't I be? Miporin should be here with us enjoying the festival, not be out doing who knows what the student council dropped on her shoulder!" the girl said, the melancholic in her voice apparent. "… I was really… and I mean really… looking forward to celebrating the festival together with Miporin…"

"I know," Hana said in return as she shared the sentiment. Much like her friend she too had been looking forward to getting to enjoy this school festival together with her dearest of friends. "It would be nice if she was here with us but just because Miho-san isn't here at the moment doesn't mean that we won't be able to enjoy the remainder of the school festival when she does."

"I guess so…"

"Isuzu-dono, Takebe-dono, have the two of you already changed?" Yukari asked as the messy-haired brunette came into the room to look for her companions. "There are already some of the first visitors coming to look at the tanks so you should hurry."

"Ah right. Thanks, Yukarin."

"Thank you for informing us Yukari-san, we'll be ready in a moment."

"Yes, Isuzu-dono!" The girl said in acknowledgment before leaving again, going back to greet the first of the guests that were arriving.

Looking at each other, the two girls who were left understood what it meant; for them, the day was about to begin in earnest. Getting themselves finished up they both closed the lockers before they made their way towards the door.

"Ah, I'm so nervous right now," Saori complained as her anxiety was getting the better of her. "I don't know what I'm supposed to say to people. This is not like last year you know."

"I know but I'm certain that if we do our best it'll all work out," Hana said in return and although she was feeling a little nervous herself she was better able to remain composed unlike her friend next to her.

The distressed girl sighed before saying, "… You're right…"

"I'm certain that Miho-san is going to appear soon but until then we'll just have to make do."

Taking a deep breath before taking a hold of the handle and encouraged by her friend's words Saori told herself that it was going to be alright, they could do this and there was nothing for her to be afraid of.

"Shall we do this?" Hana asked with a kind smile on her face, it was obvious that she was sincere about her concern. "I'm sure that Yukari-san and Mako-san are going to be happy to see us."

"Ah crap! Hana, we need to hurry! There's no time to waste!"

Seeing her Saori's sudden change in demeanour the girl did little other than letting out a bemused, "Oh?" Now she was curious to find out what had caused her friend's sudden fright, likely she might have found something to entertain herself with.

"It's Mako and Yukarin! Mako is likely dozing off somewhere and Yukarin is gonna scare the guests with her rambling on about the tanks! They'll scare away all of the guests if we don't hurry, Hana!"

As amazing as it was to see Saori agonizing and panicking in such a lively and entertaining manner Hana had to admit that they could not let that happen. As sad as it was they were going to have to go and sort things out, even though she would not have objected to enjoying her friend's distress for just a little longer but alas.

"Yes, you're right, we should be going to help out our friends. I very much doubt the student council would look favourably on us if we were to allow that to happen don't you think."

"That's not funny! Why do you have to say that?!" the girl cried out, burying her face in the palms of her hands.

And another treat for Hana, she chuckled while offering a silent prayer of gratitude for the feast. Quickly scraping her throat she had one last look at her friend, after that she merely said in a calm and collected manner, "Right, we should get going then. Let's go Saori-san."

"Ah yes Hana, we should!"

The two girls went through the door, making their ways towards the tank sheds where they knew their friends and fellow tankers were no doubt waiting for them. Odd to think that the festival had barely started or already they had their work cut out for them.

Hana could not imagine what other sorts of fun she might yet get to witness before this day would be over, just thinking about it made her body feel fuzzy all over.


Ooarai school carrier – school entrance – 09.55h Saturday

Stepping inside Miho was surprised, to say the least by what she saw, it was some kind of café alright but as she gazed over the table at the back she could not help but notice that they were all sorts of games stacked there, but she did not know what kind of games.

"Hmm…?" It was odd and she did not understand it but she had to admit that her curiosity had not yet been satisfied, unaware of the fact that a girl dressed as a maid was approaching her. Furthermore, it seemed that there had yet to be any guests here, not that it surprised her, but it did make her question whose voice she had heard.

Making a bow the girl welcomed her. "Welcome to our café miss."

Looking in confusion at the girl in front of her Miho at first could almost swear that Saori had gone and enacted her proposal but on a further look, it seemed that the girl had nothing to do with her friend. More likely that it was just a coincidence that she was wearing a maid outfit.

"Ah thank you," Miho said before making a bow in return. "Are you one of the girls who set this up?"

"Ah yes, I'm Takayashiki Aya!" The girl introduced herself in a rather cheerful and excited manner, in a way she reminded Miho of her friend Saori. "Oh I'm Nishizumi Miho, pleased to meet you," she said as she returned the gesture by introducing herself. Once she had done that she had another look at the girl she had only just met, her long brown hair styled into two pig-tails with her bangs covering her forehead. Notable were the cute four-leaf clover earrings.

"So what kind of café is it if I may ask? The sign outside something about playing games…"

The girl, spotting a wide grin, answered, "Why this is our little board game café, miss."

And then it hit Miho, she knew where she had heard this before. It had been when she had gone to the student council earlier this week to propose her plans for what to do with the M3, there it was that she had heard about this board game café. Now it all began to make sense.

"But the one who came up with the idea and organized most of it is Midori-chan standing over there," Aya began to explain how they had come up with the idea for this café and which one of her friends deserved the credit for coming up with the idea. "We weren't really sure if the student council was going to accept the idea but Midori-chan didn't give up!"

Hearing that a second time Miho had a look and sure enough standing near the board was another girl with chin-length brown hair, her bang kept in place with a red hairpin. As the girl in question caught her eyes she merely adjusted the matching pair of glasses she wore.

Taking a step forward she came to greet their guest, making a before saying, "Welcome to our café Nishizumi-senpai, I'd like to say that it's an honour having you come and visit our humble little café. I'm Oono Midori, pleased to meet you."

"Ah please don't mention it, to be honest, I didn't know that there was going to be such a café until I stumbled on the sign you have outside the room, it looks really cute."

"Thank you for your kind words, senpai," Midori said in return. "It's really nothing."

"H-Hey!" Aya shot up while pointing at her friend with an accusing finger. "I put in a lot of effort to make it as cute as possible! That's pretty mean of you Midori-chan!"

"Please ignore her, senpai."

"Ah right…" Miho remarked while she had a look over her shoulder at the girl she told herself that Aya really did remind her of Saori, the way she had such a similar and lively reaction to a jab from a friend was telling. It was fun to see and she could easily imagine that these girls had to be close friends.

"So while you're here would you'd like to try a game? We've got like a ton to pick from so there's bound to be one you'd like" Midori explained as she guided her guest towards the table situated underneath the blackboard where all of their games were put on display.

"Wow, you sure have a lot of them," Miho remarked as she saw all of the boxes arrayed here, there were a lot of them and it made her wonder where these girls had even been able to get all of these. "To think you have all of these to play with the guests, I'm really surprised that you were able to get so many in one place. Do you all play these games often?"

"Yep! We often play after school and on the weekends we play at Midori-chan's place! Hey, Nishizmui-san would you like to come and play with us?!"

"… H-Hey Aya-chan you can't to her like that, it's rude. She's our senpai you know."

"Ah, but Miki-chan." The girl rebuked while puffing her cheeks. "Booo…"

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Nishizumi-senpai," another girl with short light brown hair and wearing a similar maid outfit as Aya said as she came forward to introduce herself. "… I'm Takekasa Miki from Class 1-D and um… thank you for coming to visit our café.

The short-haired girl made a rather shy and soft-spoken impression on Miho but she could tell that the girl was also kind and well-mannered, and there was something else that Miho had caught one, both of these girls had a certain accent but it was subtle.

"Takekasa-san was it, right?"

"Ah yes, senpai," the girl who had introduced herself as Miki answered. "Is there something I can get you?"

Miho nodded. "Could you perhaps show me one of these games you have? If it isn't too much of an issue I wouldn't mind giving it a try."

"Of course senpai, let me just get one for you," Miki answered in return, much to the chagrin of her friend Aya who was still pouting. At the same time that was also earning her a rather disapproving look from Midori.

Taking it in, Miho got the idea that Midori was the more astute and serious of the three girls present in the room, she could see why this girl had been the one to get everything organized for this little board game café.

After a moment Miki came back to show her a game that she had picked from the table. "This is a French card game called Dobble," Miki explained. "Please have a look at these two cards. These two cards share only one symbol with each other. Can you tell which one?"

Looking at the two circular cards that the girl was holding for her to see Miho had a good look at them both, noting that each of them had eight different symbols printed on the, she made out a lock, carrot, scissor, a droplet, and four-leaf clover to name but a few of them.

And then it hit what symbol the two cards had in common. "The clover?"

"Correct," Miki mentioned before she grabbed a new set of cards and presented these to Miho. "Now how about this one?"

Again each card held eight symbols printed on them, an exclamation mark, a cactus, and a purple cat to name but a few. Studying them for a moment Miho finally saw what symbol these cards held in common with each other. "Oh, the purple cat."

"Yes, correct." With a smile on her face, Miki explained further. "There are in total about 55 cards in this game. If you take any two cards, they will always share just one symbol with each other."

"What? Always just one pair?" Feeling surprised by that, Miho felt that it was rather impressive that the makers of this game had been able to pull off something as complicated as that, she did not think it would be possible. "Wow, that's pretty awesome. I guess that must mean that the people who made this game must've put a lot of effort into it."

Nodding her head in agreement Miki continued with her explanation. "The goal in Dobble is to find the common symbol faster than the others. The cards themselves can be used to play five different games. Today we will play the variant called Hot Potato."

Listening to it Miho was becoming a little fascinated, who could have known that so much time and effort had been invested in a simple card game, although perhaps calling it simple might do it a disservice.

"First, play your card facedown like this," Miki explained as she held out a facedown card for Miho to see. "On the word go you turn it face up. If you find a symbol on your card that is the same on another person's card, say the name of that symbol and force the card on that player."

She could well imagine that such a game would have for a group of friends, especially with how it seemed that one would not need much space to play. Perhaps that could explain why board games were becoming so popular again.

"The last person to have cards in their hand loses."

That said, this was definitely the kind of game that one should play with a group of people, with just two or three people it did not seem to Miho that it would be as enjoyable. Nevertheless what these girls had set up here was truly amazing and she could only pray that as many people as possible would come and pay them a visit.

"If you'd like senpai we can play it with you, it's more fun to play with more people," Midori remarked as she seemed to be aware of what might be an issue for their guest.

"But won't that cause you any problems, what about the guests? I'd feel bad if you'd get into trouble just to keep me busy."

"It won't be a problem senpai. And besides, there are no other guests here at the moment so it wouldn't be a problem for us. Plus we also have a few others coming to help us out, they should be here soon."

Barely had Midori finished her sentence or the sound of approaching footsteps could be heard coming from the hallway, and looking up from the cards Miho saw a girl entering the room.

Looking at the newcomer she was amazed by how pretty she was, her long blond hair, blue and Caucasian features gave away that this girl was not from around here.

"That's Emmy, she's from Germany!" Aya said in return as she wasted no time in introducing the blonde-haired girl who had just entered the room to Miho.

"Hallo, freut mich,' she said in German as she came over to greet Miho before she came to realize her mistake. "… A-Ah… sorry about that. I'm happy to meet you."

Despite coming over as an awkward girl with her entrance one could tell that she also had an easygoing and kind demeanour, one that was well suited for what these girls were trying to accomplish this weekend.

Smiling as she came to talk further with the quartet of girls, Miho came to understand what this festival was all going to be about from the perspective of the student. This was going to be a nice weekend and one she would treasure for a long time.


Ooarai school carrier – tank sheds – 10.50h Saturday

"Yes, thank you for showing an interest in our school, enjoy the festival," Saori said as she was waving at a pair of girls who had been interested to know a bit more about the school's tankery team. Credit due, she had been able to answer most of their questions to the best of her ability. "Well, I hope they'll be able to enjoy the festival…"

"Wow, Takebe-dono, you're really good at talking to people aren't you?!"

It made Saori blush. "Ah, you weren't bad yourself either Yukarin, the way you were able to answer all of those hard technical questions was just amazing! I've never seen someone explain something so complicated with so much enthusiasm!"

"A-Ah, you think so?" the messy-haired brunette asked, scratching the back of her head as she did. "… To be honest it wasn't all that complicated… and… well… you know…"

"Uh-huh?"

"…"

A moment of awkward silence fell between the two girls, neither of them feeling sure about what to say next. For some reason, it felt a little embarrassing to them.

"Ah Yukari-san, Saori-san, how did it go with the guests?" Hana asked as she came over carrying a tray with some refreshment and snacks for her two companions. "Here, I brought you two something to eat, and because I think that your throats might be dry I also brought you some drinks."

"Thanks, Isuzu-dono."

Taking a glass from the tray Saori gave thanks for the refreshments, she really could do with these at the moment as they had been at it for the past hour or so, at least she thought so as she had no idea of what time it was. "I'm all spent I'll have you know, ah, I could really do with a break."

"Takebe-dono, are you already tired?"

"Saori-san doesn't have a good condition," Hana whispered to her, although she made sure that she was within earshot of the other girl so she would hear her. "In fact, I don't think she has any condition at all."

"Hey! Why do you have to go and say that?! Meanie!" Pouting Saori gave off the impression that she was a little upset about that. "I'll have you know that I'm not the last in class when it comes to PE!" she stated with an accusing finger pointing at Hana.

"I know," the accused girl merely said in return. "You're right, you weren't on the last tests we had but you did come awfully close if I recall."

Saori's face had turned pale white, her skin was devoid of all colour.

Yukari opted to stay quiet but the expression on her face said enough on how painful that might just be. "… I guess we kinda lucked out so far with the tank don't you think?" she asked as she sought to steer the conversation towards a different topic.

"Huh?" The other girls said in unison as they were bought unaware of what the messy-haired brunette was talking about. "Ehm could you perhaps tell us what you mean with that?"

"Oh, I was talking about Rabbit's M3. See."

Following the girl's finger, the other girls turned around to have a look at the tank in question. It was standing there without anybody even giving it attention, although one could view it as a blessing that nobody had seemed to notice but it was also some unpleasant to see it being ignored entirely.

"To think of all the trouble the Automotive Club went through to get it all set up…" Saori complained as the effort almost seemed to be a wasted effort. "It's really a shame if you ask me…"

"We've only begun," Hana remarked. "The day is still long and there is always tomorrow."

"Yeah," Yukari said in agreement, they would have a long day ahead of them.

Appearing from behind one of the tanks Mako was rubbing her eyes, as if she had just awoken from a pleasant nap, prompting the other three girls to let out a collective sigh.

"We still have our homework to take care of," Mako said, prompting another sigh from her friend. "Mafuyu-sensei did promise us extra work to make sure we won't fall behind."

"Ah sheesh, I don't want to do even more maths!" Saori protested, giving voice to her complaints. "Nearly every other teacher understands the pressure we're under with this festival. Everyone except her! It's not fair! Not fair I'm telling you! Mako, please help me out here?!"

Letting out an exasperated sigh Mako turned to her other associates as if looking for understanding and if possible some compassion to her plight.

"Hang in there Reizei-dono!"

"Good luck Mako-san."

"Yes, I'll help you," the diminutive girl said in return, rolling with her eyes as she did. "As if you even had to ask."

"Yay! Great!" Saori grinned before she quickly flashed the others a victory sign, prompting them to gently shake their heads.

Letting out an irritated sigh Mako now rolled her eyes a second time, this time in response to the gesture. It was not as if she had not been assisting the girl with a sizable part of her homework for the past decade or so. Not to mention the myriad of evenings that she spent in the past providing said girl with additional tutoring.

Rather than voicing this irritation, Mako simply settled on her more traditional response whenever it came to Saori's over-enthusiasm; snark. "After all, it wouldn't do the team any good if we'd have to delay practice because you're struggling with-"

"Hey!"

The other two girls would continue to watch and let out the occasionally bemused giggle as the pair of Mako and Saori traded banter with each other as only the closest of friends could. For them, the amicable bickering was in a strange way comforting, soothing their nerves and pushing whatever concerns they may have had to the back of their minds.

But alas, this tranquillity could not last forever, and after a while of chatting and relaxing the girls knew that they had to get back at work as more guests could be seen approaching the tank sheds.


Ooarai school carrier – school hallways11.05h Saturday

Making her way once more through one of the many hallways of her school Miho was experiencing a sense of guilt about having taken so long at the board game café, having been so immersed in the games she had played she had completely lost track of the time.

"I really shouldn't have done that," she told herself as she turned left at a corner, quickening her pace whenever possible. "The others got to be worried about me, I shouldn't have spent so much time there but those girls were really kind, and the games were a lot of fun."

Well, there was nothing she could do about that anymore, all that was left to her was to make her way to the tank sheds and meet up with her friends. Plus there was also the issue that she had not eaten anything since breakfast this morning and right as she passed the school canteen her stomach rumbled loudly in protest.

With a sense of embarrassment washing over her, Miho came to an abrupt halt, looking around frantically as if she was verifying that nobody had noticed her little moment of distress. Satisfied and somewhat relieved that the hallway was devoid of people she let out a deep sigh, her hand pressed against her chest.

She was safe, for now, at least for a few precious moments before a new and unexpected turn of events caught her on the wrong foot.

"N-N-Nishizumi Miho-sama!" echoed throughout the canteen, looking around in a somewhat confused manner Miho wasn't sure what to make of this when all of a sudden... "Nishizumi Miho-sama! Nishizumi Miho-sama! It's you! It's really you!"

Turning just slightly to her left Miho could just catch a glimpse of a red-haired girl who came running towards her, bridging the distance between them in a fraction of a second, and there was something about the look in the approaching girl's eyes that made Miho flinch for a second.

"… C-C-Can I help you…?" Miho could only stutter as the girl was almost literally in her face and that was simply far too close for comfort. Taking a cautious step backward, she put some distance between herself and the red-haired girl.

"H-H-H-H-H-Hey…" the other girl said clumsily in return, her face taking on quite a few hues of pink as she did. "… Y-You're… N-N-Nishizumi… M-M-Miho-sama, right…? I-I-I mean… t-t-t-the N-N-Nishizumi Miho-sama, r-r-right?!"

Miho looked like she had been slapped with a wet fish, her mouth opening before shutting again in shock. To her credit, she recovered admirably quickly and feigned her calmness.

"… Ah yes, I'm Nishizumi Miho, pleased to meet you and welcome to Ooarai Girls Academy."

Doing something that could best be described as hyperventilating the girl gave off a rather nervous impression as if her anxiety had already gotten the better of her. Somehow it left Miho with the idea that for some bizarre reason this girl might be scared of her.

"…Oh…ah…r-right… I-I-I'm…" The girl stopped for a second as she had to swallow. "… I'm Yoshimura Iona, b-but you can call me S-Shannon if you want… everyone does so…"

Fidgeting with her fingers and throwing awkward glances at the floor.

"… I'm from Shamrock School for Girls," she explained to her. "I came here with a few friends to see your school… and your Sensha-Do team… we were… kinda hoping… we… I-I… ehm… see…"

Seeing the girl, who had introduced herself as Shannon, fidgeting like this reminded Miho of the first time she met Yukari. That girl had been so nervous back then, and this poor girl did not seem to be all that different in that regard. Come to think of it she might be even worse.

"So Yosh-"

"No, huh… p-please N-Nishizumi Miho-sama, p-p-please… call me Shannon!"

Miho blinked as she processed that. "Oh right, if that is what you prefer, Shannon-san."

The poor girl's face turned beet red within an instant, giving her the backside as she turned on the spot to hide her face and buried it in the palms of her hands. Letting out a whimpering sound in the process.

Having another look at her Miho could not help but notice the somewhat haphazard appearance of the curious girl standing in front of her, what really drew her attention here was the peculiar pink T-shirt Shannon was wearing with a depiction of Ooarai's school insignia. That was a rather weird choice to wear.

'I wonder if the student council went ahead and made these. I could kinda see them do that,' was the thought that ran through her mind. It was something she could envision Anzu orchestrating in order to get additional funds, at the same time it was also somewhat weird to look at. Even so, Miho did not believe that this girl had any wrong intention by wearing one.

Then her gaze came to fall on the various pins that were plastered across the shirt, each of them in the shape of a school's insignia. She could see Kuromorimine, St. Gloriana, Saunders, but the last one, in the shape of a three-leaf clover, was one that was unfamiliar to her.

"Is that one from your school, Shannon-san? It looks really cute."

"… Ah yes, it is Nishizumi Miho-sama!" the girl snapped to the attention all of a sudden, blurting out her reply within a fraction of a second. "… L-L-Like I said… I'm f-from Shamrock School for Girls… a-a-and I was hoping… that maybe, perhaps, possibly, if it's not too much trouble… w-we could learn a thing or two from you…?"

"Learn from me? What do you mean with that?"

Averting her eyes for a moment the girl replied, in a soft-spoken tone, "… Your Sensha-Do… you see we kinda started our own Sensha-Do team, b-because of what you did in the Nationals… i-it was inspiring… I-I couldn't take my eyes off the screen! Nishizumi Miho-sama you were so wonderful! So amazing! Y-You were so cool!"

Leaning forward and reaching out with her hands the girl grabbed Miho's before she continued, "Y-You've inspired me! Inspired Us! Y-You! Your team! Your school! I-It's inspired so many girls to pick up the sport! … You're an example to us all, Nishizumi Miho-sama!"

"… Uh-huh…" Left in a somewhat confused state Miho could do little other than blink as her mind sought to digest what had just been hurled against it; from what she had been able to puzzle together it seemed that this girl was a fan of her, a very big fan to say the least. Perhaps she had more in common with Yukari than Miho had initially given her credit for.

"Would you like to come and visit us, Nishizumi Miho-sama? Oh, please come and visit us! We could have a match, or some training, or whatever you want. Or you could come for just a drink? Would you like some tea? Or perhaps cake? Or how about tea and cake? It would be such an honour to have you visit us Nishizumi Miho-sama! Bring your friends if you want as well. Bring anyone in fact!" She rattled off at blistering speed.

"… I uh… um…" Miho was reeling under the verbal assault as this was just a bit too much for her to handle. Nevermore had she been so keen to have one of her friends here to help her out. Just what was this girl talking about; she could no longer make heads or tails of it.

"Um… Excuse me, Shannon-san," she said as she sought to calm the other girl down a little. "… Do you think you could give me a moment to process all this, I mean it's a bit much. I'd really like to talk with you about you and your team but right now, I can't understand what you're saying. I'm sorry Shannon-san."

The effect this had on the unfortunate girl was instantaneous, frozen in place, and with an awkward expression etched on her face, it became clear that Miho's words had dealt a critical hit on Shannon. Mumbling something that was incomprehensible, the girl made for a poor sight.

"Um… are you alright, Shannon-san?" she asked as a sense of guilt came over her at realizing that she may have said something that had shaken the poor girl. She did regret that it turned out this way as she had not meant to hurt the girl's feelings.

Blinking silently with her eyes for a moment it was clear that the girl was deeply affected.

"I guess I said something that I shouldn't have," Miho muttered as she would cast her eyes down, feeling the guilt again.

"... N-Nishizumi... Miho-sama... I..."

"Yes?"

"C-Could you do me t-the plea-?!"

Attracted by the raucous a quartet of girls turned around to see what all of the commotions behind them were about, as it would turn out they were fellow companions of the redhead who was nailed to the ground the moment she realized her friends were her.

"Oi Shannon, what's keepin' ya? We've been lookin' for ya!" one of them asked. "I'm tellin' yer a hassle to look after."

That was the hint for the girl in question that it was time for her to leave, even so, one look at her face made it clear that the poor girl did not want to leave. Her eyes betraying a certain kind of sadness

"... I've got to go now but thank you. Goodbye Nishizumi Miho-sama! I-I won't forget about this, I promise!"

"Take care Shannon-san, and have a good day." Waving until the girl and her associates eventually disappeared from her sight Miho could at least relax a little, after that run-in with the girl she could do with a little bit of rest; as enjoyable and exciting it had been, it had also been exhausting.

Letting out a gentle sigh of relief she told herself that by now she had spent more than enough time walking around, it would be best for her to make her way back to the sheds. "The others are waiting for me to come back, I've kept them waiting long enough."

Her stomach rumbling once more in protest reminded her that she still had not yet gotten herself something to eat. With a nervous laugh, she hung her head as she would be going nowhere anytime soon until she had a bite to eat. "… I guess I've got no choice… everybody, I'm sorry."


Ooarai school carrier – student council office11.40h Saturday

"Yes, I understand that. Thank you for informing us, we'll be taking it over from here. You can inform our guests that they may proceed." Putting down the phone Anzu turned around and addressed the other two girls who were present in her office, "Our guests have arrived. Koyama, can I ask you to accompany me to greet them on behalf of the student council and escort them to the meeting room? Kawashima, I want you to go and get Nishizumi-chan for me, she needs to be present at this meeting as well."

"Yes, prez." Both of the girls said in unison.

"It's finally come to this," Anzu remarked as she leaned back in her chair, her eyes staring at the ceiling. "Now we're going to find out the reason for why they're here and as much as I'd prefer not having to deal with them I'm afraid we don't get to have a choice in the matter."

The two other girls were exchanging some concerned looks between them.

"I know that you're worried about this," the small girl said as she was all too aware of the concerns that her two associates were having. To be honest, she shared those same concerns. "I'm worried about it myself, but that doesn't mean that we should look the other way. Our time here at this school is coming to an end but until that day comes we still have a responsibility to do what's best for the future of the school and its students."

"Even so, do you think that we can trust them on this?" Momo asked, voicing her concern. Like most others on the student council she was not fond of representatives of MEXT coming to their school once more to discuss a matter, the last time one had set foot on the carrier they had not only lost their school but their homes as well. "I don't like dealing with them again."

"As do we all Momo-chan but that doesn't mean we can ignore them."

"Please don't call me that," the other girl grumbled in protest.

Turning around in her seat Anzu found herself staring back over the city, pondering on what she could expect from here on. Earlier she had gotten a short message from Ami Chōno telling her that everything was in order as well as wishing her the best of luck.

"Prez, are you okay?"

"Me?" Anzu remarked. "I'm fine, it's just that… well, I'm kinda feeling sorry for poor Nishizumi-chan. I didn't tell her about this because I didn't want to ruin the school festival for her but now I'm kinda wondering if perhaps I should have…"

Yuzu could understand how the girl was feeling; to be honest it did not sit well with her that they were springing this on the unfortunate girl.

That made Momo somewhat curious, prompting her to ask the question, "Do you believe telling her beforehand would've made a difference?"

"Nope~"

That sounded a little too carefree for either Momo or Yuzu to take seriously and neither of them was all too happy about hearing that reply. Well, at this point there was little either of them could do about the situation. As much as they hated to admit it they would have to go with what Anzu had set up for them.

Pinching the bridge of her nose Momo let out another frustrated growl before she adjusted her monocle, she was not keen on having to step away from her duty of making sure that everything would run in order, this whole meeting was going to take her away from other important tasks that needed her attention.

"So Prez, excuse me for asking," Yuzu stated, raising her hand in the process. "How long do you expect this meeting to last? I know that it's Saturday but that doesn't mean that we've got nothing to do around here. The number of guests is steadily increasing."

"I'm aware of that," Anzu replied.

"Then why?"

Averting her eyes for a moment Anzu spoke, "Because this is just as important, maybe even more. We don't yet know what it is that MEXT wants to discuss with us but the fact that they've gone and made a normal appointment instead of just showing up out of the blue gives me enough reason to listen to what they have to say."

"I can understand that…" Yuzu replied but she could not shake off the uneasy feeling she was getting. It was already a lot better than their previous dealing with MEXT but that did not make her feel any less concerned about this one.

"I'm with Yuzu on this one, their timing is most unfortunate. It would not be an issue if this meeting had been scheduled for Monday but to do so when we have the festival in full swing," Momo chimed in as well to voice her complaints. "It shouldn't be an issue for the three of us to be absent for a short period as long as nothing serious happens but I'd hate for us to be occupied and something bad happens."

"Believe me," Anzu agreed. "I don't want that any more than you do."

Exchanging looks, the pair of Momo and Yuzu was glad to hear that answer, at least the three of them were on the same page when it came to that.

"Well then, with your permission, I'll be on my way to go and collect Nishizumi. I will meet you again at the meeting room," Momo stated as she bid her farewell and got ready to leave the office.

"Make sure that you don't scare Nishizumi-san, Momo-chan."

Anzu had to chuckle as she heard that remark and sure enough, a lively reaction from the other did not take long, feeling a little better thanks to the outburst the diminutive girl leaned forward. Reaching for a drawer she pulled out a bag of her usual snacks she told herself that she would just get one of them as she felt a craving for them.

Seeing it happen Yuzu said, "I don't think you should do that."

"Huh, why not?"

"Because we have to go and greet the representatives from MEXT remember."

Pulling out a sweet potato and taking a hefty bite from it Anzu just shrugged her shoulders. "Ah, we still have some time left before they get here, I reckon that I have at least eight minutes left, maybe even ten~"

Shaking her head in disapproval Yuzu began to ask herself what she could have possibly done to deserve this. Letting out an exasperated sigh she asked herself how she was going to make sure that Anzu would not get too immersed in enjoying her snacks.

"Are there going to be any other people present at this meeting other than us and Nishizumi-san?"

Nibbling one of her sweet potatoes, Anzu merely said, "No, it's just the four of us as it'll mostly be related to our Sensha-Do team. Also, a pair of representatives from the Federation will also be present, you can already guess who one of them is."

"Instructor Chōno you mean? Well, that is good to hear."

Anzu nodded. "She's been passing whatever information she could over the past week to me but it's not much as she's been placed under an NDA for this. From what she told me this applies to several officials and other people connected to the matter, heck it might even apply to us."

"Wait, you think they'll make us sign an NDA?"

"Wouldn't surprise me, from what Chōno-san told me I got the impression that both MEXT and the Federation are pretty touchy about it. Kinda makes you wonder what has them so worked up

Letting out a troubled moan Yuzu now knew why she had been feeling uneasy about the entire matter and Anzu's explanation was not doing anything to make her feel any better.

"… I think I'm going to faint."

"Yeah, it's all pretty exciting don't you think?"

In response to that remark, Yuzu could do little other than to let out yet another troubled sigh.


Author's note: Here you go folks, a new chapter for you to enjoy.

Not much else to report on the daily struggles that is called life, not all that much going on, to be honest. Work has been picking up steadily over the past few months, much to my annoyance as work is already a hassle with clients not taking note of delays in processing orders due to Covid-19 regulations, yeah, it's a lot of fun (not).

Odd to think that it is already October, even my 3 week holiday was gone in the blink of an eye. On the plus side, I did have the time to go visit the boys of the Nashorn restoration project (look them up on Facebook or YouTube) on one of their fan days at the museum at Overloon, I was planning on visiting the museum anyway due to the cancellation of Militracks this year (still unhappy about that) so I went to see them. I had a great day, a wonderful talk with Robby and the rest of his crew, saw the Nashorn go through its paces, and I even got to sit in the driver's position for a bit. And yes, I was smiling ear to ear thank you.

Other great news, depending on your point of view and where you live, is that we got our first PV for the third episode of das Finale showing us that the fight between Chihatan and Ooarai is only going to get even more intense. It also told us that it would have its cinematic release in spring 2021 which is terrific for those of you in Japan, for the rest of the world, a bit less but oh well.

At Least a lot of other great animes will appear next year, really looking forward as I'm already spoiled for choice with what has been announced.

On to different thingies.

Now, more astute readers amongst you may have spotted a somewhat familiar character making her appearance in this chapter, for those of you who may not know who this character is, the girl is called Shannon and she is a character created by a fellow writer who goes by the name of Sharkycast.

Sharky has been a tremendous help to me over the past year, being a great support for me in more ways than one as well as doing various artworks of the girls from Tarczay's more famous (or should that be infamous?) characters at his Pixiv page Sharky (users/6695073). You should check it out.

It only felt right that I did something for him in return, and so his band of merry Irish wannabees have now also wormed their way into this story. Though only Shannon has made her debut at this point while the rest just have a quick cameo I feel it is only fair to warn you all that we haven't seen the last of her and her friends.

They'll be back, real soon. I promise.

Until next time folks, take care.