A laugh filled the room as a woman in an apron moved about, arranging flowers and placing them in a carefully crafted vase. Each flower had a different color to it, but none of them overlapped or overshadowed one another. It was a work of art that had Mogami staring wide eyed and fan over mouth in shock over.

With experience in seeing beautiful works of art and all kinds of flower arrangements she had liked to think she had a keen eye on what looked good and what did not.

And the vase full of flowers before her was unlike anything she had sen before.

"Oh, my! What a lovely display you have here! How ever did you come up with something like this!?"

"Fufufu. It is not much, Mogami-chan. I only did what I normally do and truly made it look as it was described to me by the one who had ordered it."

"Please remind me to have you make a bouquet when I visit my son next time."

"I will make sure the two of you enjoy it. It will truly be on the house as well."

"Oh, I couldn't just take them from you like that. It wouldn't be right for a fox not to pay back what they owe."

The mother before her waved her off with a soft smile and closed eyes.

Misaki Seihana was always a kind woman, but not one to be messed with. While she herself was a gentle soul, the ones she was around would be ready to strike whenever they sensed danger heading for the woman. Mogami included.

Her daughter is also in Border, so there is no doubt that it would extent to others who don't even know her.

It was a frightening thought to think that a single person held so much power. The good thing was that she would never abuse that power unless her children were in harm's way.

So she let out a sigh from behind her fan, glad that she would never have to face that kind of trouble herself.

"Who wanted such an eloquent display? Sure this is for some important occasion. I know that I will want some as well once that Tamakoma boy decides to come and visit me."

"Oh, has Jin-kun not visited you today? I will talk to him again about that."

Mogami fanned herself for a moment and looked to the side.

She was both looking forward to and dreading that conversation, but she knew that it had to happen at some point.

There was someone they had to discuss.

But that was for a different time.

"There is no need for that. I am sure he has his reasons for not doing so just yet. I want him to come to me himself instead of having someone tell him to visit me."

"I see. Then I hope that it is soon so that the two of you can come to a conclusion."

It sounded nice, but there was a high chance that it would not be so easy.

She was well aware of that fact and so decided to give him both time and space for the time being.

"Well, moving back to the main topic." She closed her fan to look at the vase and flowers once more. "Do you happen to know the occasion? Was the one who asked for these a regular here?"

The shop itself was rather small, and anyone who wanted to stay would either go outside or sit at one of the small tables placed around the shop. It was quaint, but that was why Mogami found that it was homely and very much to her taste.

Seihana's smiled widened as she placed the final flower in the vase. Once that was done, she began organizing it to how she saw fit.

Mogami was amazed when she saw this. The flowers alone had made the display look beautiful as it was, it would only look even more so once she finished organizing it.

"They are not a regular here, but they are truly an old friend I had met while they were in Mikado City. She was such a lovely woman, and now she is returning to Mikado City. Her daughter is already here, being watched over by some trusted people, but she does come here from time-to-time so that she can play with my youngest daughter."

"Now that I think about it, doesn't that young boy also play with them?"

"He does," she nodded. "He is such a good child, but I hear that his parents are truly something else. I have yet to meet them, though, so I will refrain from saying anything."

Mogami nodded. She understood that they should not speak about someone's parents when they didn't know the circumstances.

"Well," she began.

She was stopped by the bell hanging above the door rang. The two of them turned to the opening door and that was when Mogami saw a woman walk in. Her brown hair matched one of her eyes while the other eye was a shining blue. The contrast was impossible to miss, but Mogami found that she could only continue to stare. The woman's beauty was not something to look over either as she walked forward with grace and elegance.

She opened her fan over her mouth again, this time trying to hide her surprised expression as the woman walked forward.

She gave Mogami a kind smile that was not unlike Seihana's own as she made her way to the counter.

"Oh! You came by much earlier than I expected! I had thought you would be here tomorrow instead of tonight!"

"That had been the plan, but I was excited to see you and your beautiful bouquets again."

"Did Jonas-kun come along with you as well?"

"Yes, he did. He had been looking forward to seeing Michelle again."

"I see. A pity they are not here right now, but Michelle-chan and Mistubachi are currently enjoying Mikado City's festival with a friend of theirs and a responsible man. They are all in good care, but they will likely be tired once they return."

"Will they be coming here then?"

"I believe they will go to one of Border's branch offices afterwards. Rather, the man taking care of them will bring them there. He tends to look out for children, so he will make sure they are fine before going to sleep himself."

Mogami found this to the be time to join their conversation.

While she was not feeling left out of it, she had thought that better clarification was in order.

"Do you mean that large man who they have taken in, or are you speaking of that boy they put in charge of the branch?"

"You should give him more credit. Akasora-kun is a man at this point."

"Ko ko ko. He is still a boy in my eyes. The way he flushes whenever praised or how we tries to help us whenever we ask, it is very lovely to see."

She could see Seihana laughing lightly at the image of Akasora trying his best as if he was in school again. It put her at ease while she turned to the new woman.

The heterochromatic woman looked over as well, smile still in place, as if it was simply her resting expression.

"Mogami Yoshiko. It is a pleasure to meet you. I am sure you are friend Seihana-san has spoken about."

"Of course she has."

There was no malice in her words, so Mogami gave another "ko ko ko" while moving her fan out of the way.

The heterochromatic woman held out her hand. Mogami took it gently in greeting.

"I am Yasuko Schneider. It is also a pleasure to meet you."

I can't believe them, thought Miwa as he waved his right hand dismissively.

...I didn't think they would get involved just because they owed someone a favor.

Maybe that came with being so reckless at times. Or maybe they saw it as a true part of the festival that they could enjoy.

He appreciated it either way. But...

"You know."

"Yeah? You got a problem with this?!"

"You were planning on rubbing in Tachikawa's face once he was taken out and had to go to the base, right?"

And...

"Once he was taken out, you thought it would be easier to say he isn't much when others gang up on him, right?"

The two boys in front of him grew defensive.

"N-no! W-we weren't doing this for anything like that, Shūji!"

"Yeah... We were just called in for support, so we got aggressive. That's all."

"Just leave us alone, ya got that!? Do that again and we're not gonna owe you any favors either next time! Got that, dude!?"

Katagiri slowly turned toward Miwa.

"Why the effeminate pitch to the voice?"

"He's so busy trying to hide his embarrassment I think he went crazy."

It was embarrassing for Miwa as well.

…They must think they were doing all of us a favor while they attacked.

There was truth to that, but only somewhat at this point.

They had gotten a lot better about it since the second large scale invasion. But…

"And you. Now, I know we didn't ask for your help here, but…"

Miwa addressed Svantje Köhler.

...She really didn't get involved this time.

He had seen her doing things around the city while looking for the Yagura Branch Representative.

Svantje had been doing something or other, but overall had done nothing to help either side during this entire day. He understood that she had done nothing due to no one asking for her help, but he felt that she could have done something by her own want to do so.

That did not seem to be the case this time, though, so she may have been holding back.

"Hey, this isn't my fault. No one thought to ask me, so I kept to myself here."

"Something you hardly ever do considering your curse..."

She shrugged as she got closer to him.

"You all had fun today, didn't you? Besides, other things got done that wouldn't have happened if I did join in. So doesn't that mean it all works out in the end?"

That was how she saw it, so he decided to just go along with it for now.

Arguing with her on this point would only involve him with something he would rather not deal with.

"The sky sure is taking its time."

Kanzaki heard Mitsuteru say that while they walked down a major road in the center of Mikado City.

The two of them and Kimura were carrying the foods they had bought at the festival stands.

After hearing about everything that happened, they had figured that it would be a good idea to speak about it, as former squad members to both Yuki and Mei.

"It should take about half an hour longer, so we should have time for a short break," said Kimura who was in a similar state. "Will you be on your way to your house as soon as that is over, Ariake?"

"Yeah. According to the message Shigeko just sent me, the festival is almost over. She also said she's met up with Seiji-san."

"I heard Meishō-dono and Hokari-dono put on quite a show earlier," said Kanzaki. "That does not seem to be much when compared to Kiyo-... No, he has accepted himself as Yuki-dono. The same for Mei-dono now."

She had also heard the result.

…So all of the fighting up until that point was not for nothing.

Yuki was quite skilled. He had managed to make it through the entire day without being caught and ended up resolving what he needed to. However…

"I do wish I could have met and spoke with Kiyoshi-dono just once more."

"Kanzaki, you did go to see them, didn't you?"

With that, Mistuteru held out a grilled chicken skewer.

"Are you sure?"

"I didn't really know the current Yuki-paisen."

"Right," said Kanzaki before a thought occurred to her.

She and Kimura could tell the boy about the current Yuki. And…

"—!"

Down the road, a fight was breaking out between some people who had been helping on both sides during the day.

The commotion was already growing as a ring of onlookers began to gather around.

"This certainly is awkward," said Kimura.

"We were fighting a battle not long ago," said Mitsuteru. "I had to wander around a bit before I found a place where I wouldn't be hounded by anyone not on the net."

That was not too surprising.

…I imagine scuffles like that are a way to let off steam.

Kanzaki approached the fight. She slipped between the people but entered through the back of the group.

"What is the meaning of this alarming commotion?"

They all turned toward her to complain, but they shrank back once they realized who she was.

She looked toward the people who had been on Yuki's side and one of them scratched his head and nodded.

"They were the ones that started it, saying it was what happens when Tsukiko-san gets involved."

"Is that true?"

The other group nodded, but when they saw the nearby regular agents ignoring them and cleaning the road…

"But how do you expect us to act?"

"We were pseudo-enemies just a bit ago."

"You can't just tell us to get along and expect it to happen!"

In that case, thought Kanzaki.

She sat down.

"I will not ask everyone to get along."

But…

"I can tell you how everything had done during today and what the fights were like, including how skillful even the strangest of people were. Would anyone be interested in hearing that?"

.

"Will anyone listen to my stories? And does anyone have their own stories to tell?"

When Kanzaki asked that, everyone exchanged a glance.

They did not seem to be ignoring her, so she continued.

"I would like you to listen. And I would like to listen to you. Because we can ensure everyone lives on in some way by telling their stories."

That is very true, she thought.

She could never again fight Taiyōko Kiyoshi. The same was true for Shitokei Fuji.

She had greatly tested herself against them and gained so very much from them a year or so ago.

She belatedly wished she could have told them how thankful she was and how strong they were.

And she felt the same way about all the other people she knew would be retiring from Border soon enough.

She wished she had spoken with her former squad about so much more before she left them.

Those who departed never said much to those who were left behind. That had to be because the departed already felt fulfilled. But those left behind…

"We can only tell their stories and hold the memories in our hearts. So…"

"Tell me."

Someone stepped forward from the crowd. The opposing group spoke his name when they saw who it was.

"Bakuto Denji-san."

"I would like to hear about Kiyoshi and Fuji. That was a needed person's final battle. I would be honored to hear the story." He looked to everyone around him. "Are you not fighters and Border members too? If you are, then take a seat and be regaled with tales of battle. Warriors should be honored to experience the vicarious awe of a good fighting story. And if you are not, then leave and get some sleep. …What do you have to say to that?"

Everyone gasped. And…

"—"

They all sat down. Some were a little slower than the rest, but the others pulled them down onto their butts.

Kanzaki bowed when she saw it.

"You... Thank you. Many of us probably faced each other out on the battlefield - even if it may have been in spirit only - so let us discuss what we did and accomplished. This is a brief respite provided by the Mikado City citizens. So instead of ruining that with more fighting, let us exchange stories of how we fought."

Everyone exchanged another glance at that.

And finally…

"I was to the west. I only saw the actual fighting from a distance, but I can tell you what both sides did there."

A C-Rank trainee said that while raising her hand. Kanzaki then saw a nearby Ema join the discussion with the ones who had been to the west. The C-Rank trainees were quite surprised when they saw him.

"Ehhhh!? The one who pulled off those cool snipes was this little kid!?"

The agents from the other directions clicked their tongues in frustration.

Seeing all that, Kimura nodded toward them all.

"I can discuss the internal battlefield. What about everything else?"

"Oh, I can tell you about the one between Kageura-san and someone else, so feel free to ask me if there's anything you don't know. I can probably tell you. Also..."

Mitsuteru released a breath through his mouth, but seemed that there was no tension to speak of in his position.

"Ohh," someone said upon seeing that. "Is it good to do that before a fight?"

"Can we learn from B-Rank who had the guts to harass both Suzunari and Ninomiya Squad?"

They all laughed. Border's agents in their entirety realized both sides were smiling together.

"Well, whatever."

They allowed themselves to laugh and smile together. And they all leaned forward.

"Hey."

With comments of "yeah", "listen", or "you see", they started talking.

There were questions, explanations, groans, and surprise.

"That idiot before he became #3 would have loved to see this. No matter what he said, he loved people. The fact he has changed to accept that part of him means that he is better off now."

Denji said that and then lowered his head toward Kanzaki. And…

"Don't tell anyone I bowed to you."

"Of course," she agreed.

"Oh?" said Kimura while looking her way.

Manager: "Kanzaki, you finally smiled."

Did I? she wondered before looking up into the night sky.

The bright moon shone over them all with all of the stars lining the sky as if a curtain for them to look at. No clouds were out and the street lights were turned off. It made the entire thing feel somewhat surreal and brought back memories.

But if she made the most of the present…

…Yuki-dono and the others would be delighted with what we are doing.

"Now, let me tell you about my battle with a strange girl and Tachikawa-dono."

Kanzaki began the story. She recalled her memories of the earlier battles. And she wondered if was too much to hope this applied to the person who had departed and not just the person she now had to get to know better.

—I have chosen a troublesome life.