Satsuki-chan's smile now was different from the one she used to keep up appearances; it had become a smile from the bottom of her heart. Nothing had been resolved, but if she was feeling a little bit better, then there were results in pressing her and listening to what she had to say.
"Thank you very much, Sakuya-chan."
"——uh!"
She said that while… smiling so brightly… her smile pierced my heart.
It wasn't that I felt s*xual excitement for her, nor saw her as an object of romantic interest. No matter how much I liked yuri, I wasn't a lolicon or a p*dophile. But Satsuki-chan's smile and words just now held huge destructive energy. If no one was around and everything could go my way, I'd be hugging her tightly and giving her kisses.
"…I-I shouldn't be thanked, but Azami-chan instead…"
"…what do you mean?"
Satsuki-chan looked a little puzzled at what I said and asked me to confirm. She probably couldn't understand what I meant just from that sentence.
"Yesterday, while I noticed that Satsuki-chan was acting strangely, I thought that if Satsuki-chan didn't want to talk to me, I shouldn't force myself to pursue it, so I left. Then, even if the other person seems to be difficult to say or hesitant, I will listen and consult with you."
"Oh really……"
He stares at the table with a slightly pondering expression. Right now, it's hard to say that Satsuki-chan's faction and Azura-chan's faction are on very good terms... but will the two of them get along a little better?
At least Azami-chan looks like that, but she cares about Satsuki-chan. Let her tell you just that.
"Azura-chan asked me why Satsuki-chan was acting strange. And when I said that Satsuki-chan didn't answer when I asked her, she got angry. Azura-chan is watching over Satsuki-chan, and she's also worried about her. Please remember that."
"Understood... Thank you, Sakuya-chan."
In reality, nothing has been resolved, but I can't be of any help to you, but when I look at Satsuki-chan's expression, I feel like I'm glad I talked to her even if I had to hold back. She really looks like Azura-chan. Now I have to go and say thank you to Azami-chan.
In the Five Norths Association salon that day after school, Azami-chan was restless. It was really easy to tell. She probably wanted to ask how my conversation with Satsuki-chan turned out, but she was currently surrounded by her faction. If she came to me again, they'd definitely think that something had happened yesterday and wonder what it was.
Let's go lend Azami-chan a helping hand. Thanks to her, Satsuki-chan was feeling a little better. Since that happened because I'd taken Azami-chan's advice, maybe I should give her something like a report on how it turned out.
"…"
I looked over at Azami-chan and she noticed, looking back at me. After checking that no one else was looking at us, she made a small gesture. Then, I stood up from my seat in the back and got out of the salon.
We could've actually done everything without getting out of the salon. And by 'everything', I mean anything you'd need to do. If you wanted to go pick flowers, then you could open a door in the salon to head to the attached establishment. We didn't really need to exit the salon.
Of course, that didn't mean that no one ever went out. There were people who went outside when they wanted to have a phone call or conversation that they didn't want anyone to hear. Just because they were all Five Norths Association members didn't mean that they had to stay inside the salon at all times; they were sometimes in other places too.
But if Azami-chan exited immediately after I did, then, blatantly speaking, that was really blatant. That didn't mean there was any proof, though. If Azami-chan exited right after I did, people might think that we had some sort of secret conversation, but they wouldn't have proof that we had a secret conversation or indeed any sort of conversation.
We could conduct a conversation someplace secretly where no one could see or hear us, so no matter how suspect others thought we were, we could say it was just their imagination since they didn't hold any evidence or conclusive proof. That was what I assumed, but…
"Hang on! Wait!"
Azami-chan said that loudly as she quickly ran after me. She was a mature child, so I thought she'd understand the need for silence, or rather, be quick on the uptake, but maybe I'd overestimated her…
"Azami-chan… let's… move quietly…"
"I told you to wait!"
I lowered the tone of my voice to tell her to be quieter, but Azami-chan, with a loud voice as usual, noisily followed after me.
I entered an empty balcony and turned around to see Azami-chan, who was following behind me. She was clearly mad.
"Wait! People might hear, but you still! Don't ignore me and just walk off!"
"Haa… Azami-chan… if you talk that loudly, there is no need to exit the salon, is there not…"
If she called towards me that loudly the moment we exited the salon, then everyone inside it could clearly hear her. Since Azami-chan had got out right after me and told someone to stop the moment she got into the hallway, no one would be wondering who she was talking to.
"Azami-chan, you were also doubting whether to talk inside the salon as you did not think it would be good for the factions to hear us, correct?"
"Exactly! So I signaled to you to get out and go to the hallway, but you're already leaving! You didn't get what I meant at all!"
No, no… I did understand, you know?
"Were you planning to talk in front of the salon? That is the same thing as telling those inside to please listen to your conversation. I had thought we would exit the salon as if we did not know each other, then go different ways and have our discussion afterwards, so I created enough distance for you to follow me…"
I explained my plans to Azami-chan. A short while after I exited, she would leave the salon too. I would be waiting in the hallway outside, and Azami-chan would pretend she didn't know who I was as she followed me. We'd then walk until we made it to a place where we could peacefully talk. After that, we'd have our conversation.
Even so, she exited the salon quite early and yelled at me to stop right in front of the salon. She also called out to me as she was following me… at this point, it was already very obvious that we'd arranged to exit the salon so we could talk about something outside. I explained that to Azami-chan.
"I-I knew that!"
No… if you knew, then you'd definitely exit the salon a little later, or at least not pointlessly call out to me in such a loud voice and instead stay quiet, right?
Did you get it? No, you just charged into the situation, right? All the excuses in the world couldn't justify that… I didn't want to say something so inelegant, but… it had to be said, you know?
"More importantly, how did it turn out?"
She changed the subject… well, alright, but… it wouldn't matter if people knew that we'd gone outside to have a conversation. There wasn't any reason why I couldn't talk to Azami-chan, and everyone had one or two things they didn't want anyone to hear.
"She did not tell me what she was specifically worried about, but I had listened to her. That seemed to relieve her."
"So you don't know a single thing?! What even is that? Huh? Huh?"
Was she… really worried about Satsuki-chan? I wanted to ask that. She sounded like just a curious onlooker…
"Even if I had heard the full story, I would not tell you. If you would like to hear it, you should ask Satsuki-chan yourself. It is not something I will discuss at a whim, and it is a mistake for you to ask that information from me."
"That's… well, that's true… I am sorry."
She was a good kid… would a normal first-grader listen to my admonishments and just apologise? Instead, they'd normally say 'It's fine, isn't it?' and question me further. But Azami-chan realised her own mistakes and apologised. That was something adults couldn't easily do. No, maybe they couldn't do it because they were adults.
"I cannot tell you the details, but I was able to face Satsuki-chan thanks to you, Azami-chan. Thank you very much. I also think that a weight was lifted off Satsuki-chan's shoulders. Perhaps my conversation with her made her feel slightly reassured. That is also thanks to you."
"W… well, yes? I'll accept your thanks. If she's better, that's great. Please think about your friends properly from now on."
"Yes… that is painfully true…"
I told myself I was thinking about how Satsuki-chan was feeling, but instead just distanced myself from her. I was just using the excuse that she might've not wanted to talk about it, or might not have wanted me to ask so I could conceal my fear of plunging into her soul.
What would I do if she didn't want me to see her truest self? What would I do if she hated me? I worried about those things, and couldn't ask her about it. I told myself that she didn't want to say what she was worrying about too to fool myself.
But could you really call that being a true friend? Wasn't that how an 'acquaintance' who you knew superficially would act? Thanks to what Azami-chan said, I understood that.
"From now on, I will be with Satsuki-chan… and you too, Azami-chan, even if you do not want me to be there, are feeling down, or I have to force my way in."
"What?! Why're you including me too!?"
Azami-chan, looking slightly embarrassed, abruptly turned her head to the side. That action was also cute.
"Of course… because to me, both you and Satsuki-chan are my precious friends."
That was why I squeezed both Azami-chan's hands with my own. I squeezed those hands like I was wrapping them inside my own…
"Y-You're an idiot! Why would I ever wanna be…"
"You are my important friend."
"…"
I stared at her, saying that. Her face became red and she stiffened up. She really was shy. If I could do whatever I wanted and follow my delusions, I would've definitely hugged Azami-chan. I thought that someone would see me, though, since it was a school balcony, so I restrained myself, but…
"I-I don't care!"
"Oh…"
Azami-chan shook off my hands and ran down the hallway.
"Azami-chan, you cannot run in the hallway."
My warning, which I said in too small a voice to be heard, echoed in the empty hallway.
"Sakuya, did something good happen for you to be grinning that much?"
"Huh? No, well…"
At the dinner table, dad said that, and I used the right words to evade. I could say that a lot of things had happened, but if I said that it was a normal day when nothing in particular had happened, then it wouldn't be anything more than just another day in my life.
Even so, was I grinning that much? Maybe I was unconsciously smiling. I felt like Satsuki-chan and I had started to become closer friends, and I had gotten closer to Azami-chan as well. At this rate, it'd be like in 'Love Flowers', no, even better; maybe we'd really get to the yuri romance I'd imagined.
I didn't really want physical contact. More like… I wanted to laugh and flirt with girls about my age… I'd like that.
"Thank you for the meal."
Mom was looking at me strangely, and dad was smiling with me too, maybe because he was happy I was in a good mood. In that weird atmosphere, I left the dining room hurriedly and went back to my room.
"Lady Sakuya… Lady Sakuya, you are…"
"Hm?"
As I returned to my room, Momiji started saying something to me, so I turned around and asked her to repeat.
"No… is there anything else you would like me to do?"
"Hm~… no, you can retire for today. Thank you, it is much appreciated."
"Yes… excuse me."
Did she just want to ask me about work? I thought she was going to say something else, but… well, she'd probably tell me again if she had something to say. There was no way I could tell what she wanted to say, or what she had to say.
I went to bed, happy that I had become one step closer to Satsuki-chan and Azami-chan
Recently, my school life was going nicely. Too nicely; I couldn't stop smiling. I was able to slowly close the distance between Satsuki-chan and I. She was slightly guarded in the beginning, but maybe now I could really call us normal friends. I could say the same with Azami-chan.
She actually replied when I addressed her now. Compared to the beginning, when she was definitely ignoring me, we had become remarkably closer.
At this rate, maybe the future in my imaginations, no, my delusions, when I played 'Love Flowers' would really be waiting for me: the future where I laughed and flirted with everyone.
"Ufufufu!"
"…"
"…*cough*"
In the car going to school, I let out a laugh and my brother and Momiji looked over at me. They were looking at me weirdly, so I tried to cover it up with a cough for now, but I couldn't really cover it up after all…
Momiji usually sat in the front passenger seat, but when she helped me dress, she was in the back seat with me. The mornings were busy and there was no time, so that had become routine.
"Have a nice day"
"See you"
After getting out of the car at the roundabout, my brother and I were sent off by Kaba and entered Fujihana Academy. It's been a month since I started coming here. After a month, I got used to various things, and I became a child who went to school as a first-year elementary school student without any discomfort.
"Good mood"
"Huh?! Good day!"
When I called out to them, they all looked surprised and returned the greetings and immediately left. This is something I've gotten used to doing every day...
Why do you seem to be avoiding me so much? It doesn't bother me at all. I'm not acquainted with the current child, and I shouldn't remember doing anything to her...
Right now, the only people who talk to me normally are Satsuki-chan, Azura-chan, and members of Gohokukai. The other students, regardless of their class or grade, are just leaving in a hurry with the same attitude as before.
I had no idea why. I didn't do anything, nor forced anyone to do anything. Of course, my only friends were Satsuki-chan and Azami-chan, so I wasn't really close with the other girls. Wasn't that how you started out with everyone, though? You gradually become closer from your original relationship as strangers. But if people avoided you like you were someone suspicious while you were still strangers, there was no way you could get closer.
I was just trying to be friendly, say hello, and talk to people, so why was everyone avoiding me?
I wasn't really being bullied. I wasn't being completely ignored either; once I greeted people, they responded to me. However, they ran away immediately after that.
By 'run away', I didn't mean that no one was around me. I just felt everyone looking at me from far away. They weren't bullying or ignoring me; they were just looking from a distance.
Why'd it become like this… I was seriously beginning to think that maybe it was because of the Lady Sakuya curse that happened because everyone hated her for being so arrogant towards everyone. Unlike me, the in-game Lady Sakuya had many followers but also many enemies.
She met a disastrous end because of those enemies… The ending felt light and funny, but it was supposed to feel final and disastrous… so, I acted as friendly as possible and didn't make any enemies to avoid that kind of ending… Well, I tried to do that, but it hadn't gone well at all.
"Hmm…"
"Sakuya-chan, greetings."
"Satsuki-chan! Greetings!"
As I entered Class 3, Satsuki-chan greeted me. It was early in the morning, so there weren't many people inside. That didn't mean that no one was inside, however. But, even after seeing my interaction with Satsuki-chan, no one tried to greet us. They'd give a sort of response if I greeted them, but then they'd look bothered afterwards.
Azami-chan told me that I should get involved with the other person even if I had to force myself to. I could apply that principle to someone who was my friend, like Satsuki-chan, but applying it to even my classmates might make me seem like too much of an annoyance, so I didn't do that.
"Good morning, everyone!"
"Azami-chan, good morning!"
"Greetings, Azami-sama."
After a while, when the number of people increased, Azami-chan came in as well. She stood at the entrance, greeting everyone, and got replies coming from here and there. Everyone really did love Azami-chan… completely different from me.
"Azami-chan, greetings."
"…morning."
I greeted Azami-chan as she walked near my seat, and she returned my greeting quietly as she passed. It was definitely a huge development compared to how she'd ignore me before with a "Hmph!". The Azami-chan who spoke quietly as she turned away from me and didn't even take a look at my direction was cute too.
People were gradually coming into the classroom, but it didn't get as noisy as a normal elementary. There were a few students having conversations, so it wasn't completely silent. However, there weren't any kids playing excitedly like in a normal elementary school.
Some people might've thought that was lonely, while others may have thought that it was the result of a very good upbringing. But, I thought it felt a little lonely.
When I was a kid, both I and my surroundings were way noisier. Children were like that, for better or for worse. But at this Touka Academy, the students didn't play like kids, and were instead polite. They grew up like that, and they were attending that kind of school, so it was normal, but… the indescribable gap between this life and my previous one made me feel lonely…
While I was sorta ignoring class and doing homework for Raihoukai, solving their texts, and doing lesson preparation and review, it had become after school. Today I had to go to the Five Norths Association salon, even though I didn't want to.
When my brother would graduate, I'd be the only one in Touka Academy's elementary division, so maybe mom wouldn't notice if I skipped. But, since my brother was here this year, I had to go even though I didn't want to.
…more precisely, I'd noticed something super unpleasant…
My brother would graduate next year, so even if I didn't attend the Five Norths Association, there'd be no way for him to verify that. The chances of my mom hearing that information from my brother were very low.
However, the parents of the Five Norths Association members might talk about how I didn't show up at the salon, and what if people from other families secretly told my mom? I wouldn't know when or where my mom would hear that information from, so I couldn't control that at all.
…uh-oh. Did that mean I couldn't skip going to the Five Norths Association from here on out?
My brother had said something. Something like 'If you don't have a good relationship with Ibuki and the rest, it'll be hard for you when I graduate next year'… was that basically pointing towards this reality? My brother graduating didn't mean that I could skip going to the Five Norths Association, instead meaning I couldn't receive his support any longer.
My situation might get worse after my brother graduates, but it couldn't get better. So my brother was trying to get me to establish my own position somehow while he was still in elementary…
Woah! What was I talking about? Was I stupid? Did I really even think like a first-grader now?
My sixth-grade brother Yoshizane-kun could understand that and advised me on it, but me, who'd even graduated university and was a functional member of society in my past life, didn't notice that and was just super nonchalant…
What should I do… this was a big problem… I couldn't ask to enter some faction this late…
The factions in class and in the Five Norths Association were already set. In class, the biggest faction was Azami-chan's group, and then there was Satsuki-chan's group, quiet but definitely united. Apart from that, there was the group that kept their distance from everyone, which included the people who in my past life would be called non-normies, unpopular, downers, and otakus.
Of course, I was someone who didn't belong to any one of those groups, a lone wolf. Right, a lone wolf.
The factions at the Five Norths Association were a tad more complex, not like in class where Azami-chan and Satsuki-chan were leaders of their respective factions. Of course, the Saionji family and Tokudaiji family, both of high family rank within the Seven Shining family, held large influence and were the leaders, but there was no way the sixth-graders would entrust the position to first-graders who'd just entered the school.
It was complicated, so I'd have to think carefully every time I needed the full details, but for the prestigious families entering Touka Academy, not just those in the Five Norths Association, something called 'vassals' existed. You could say that 'vassals' were retinue, or, simply put, a master-servant relationship. You might've been thinking that there's no way a master-servant relationship could exist in this day and age, but in this neighbourhood, it did.
Also, even if it was called 'master-servant', that didn't mean it was a relationship like with the past samurai, who always obeyed their master's orders and would commit seppuku1 if they disobeyed. It was a looser group; using modern terms, something like a faction. It had become something like what house would enter which faction, and who'd become the head of said faction, the ones at the very top being the Five Norths families.
The Konoe family held the largest number of vassals, and it was number one both in it's conglomerate power and faction power. Next was the Kujou family… I'd like to say, but that was unfortunately wrong. The Kujou family was second-place in terms of family status and family business, but the Ichijou family held more vassals. Their family status was almost the same, with the Kujou family being nominally superior, but there was no real difference.
The Ichijou family was lacking in family business and conglomerate power compared to the Kujou family, but it could be said to surpass the Kujou family because of its vassals, or basically, because it had so many people in it's faction. At the very least, were a decision to be made using the 'democratic' majority vote, the Ichijou family would have more voters than the Kujou family.
The Kujou family was the third-ranked after the Ichijou family, considerably inferior to both the first- and second-ranked families in the amount of vassals they had. The size and power of a conglomerate being otherwise, family status wasn't absolute in this day and age. Now, when something had to be decided, the Kujou family was definitely in the dust with the amount of vassals they held; basically, the amount of people in their faction.
Well, that was fine. Yoshizane-kun could do something about the Kujou family's troubles; he said so himself. The problem was that I couldn't casually ask to join some faction now.
Basically, I was a lone wolf who didn't belong anywhere. Yes, a lone wolf.
How'd it become like this?
The situation at the Five Norths Association was still okay. In a way, I brought it on myself. But I had tried to have conversations and get along with everyone in class, but it wasn't going well at all. Everyone just looked at me from afar, like they were staring at a particularly rare animal.
What should I do? It'd be hard to start my own faction now. I also couldn't enter a faction. Huh? I was trapped, right? Trapped right before a destruction flag in the elementary division…
"Oi!"
"…"
Maybe I could recover somehow… I hated destruction flags, but I hated being alone even more. I wanted to live my youth laughing cheerfully with other cute girls!
"Oi!"
"…"
Right now, it was going well with Satsuki-chan and Azami-chan… wait, hold on a second? One month had already passed, you know? Wouldn't elementary schoolers who were classmates for a month already be friends? They'd talk at school and even go on play dates, right?
But I was still only kinda greeting and having small talk with Azami-chan and Satsuki-chan, right!? Wasn't that pretty bad?
Normally, if you were friends with someone, you would've gotten much closer to them after a month. But what had I been doing for that month? Had I zoned out a little too much?
This was bad… if I didn't do anything…
"I said 'Oi', right!?"
"*sigh*… I have told you multiple times that my name is not 'Oi'; can you comprehend that? Or is that too much to remember for you, who has extraordinarily bad memory and a worryingly low intellect?"
Good grief… I was seriously worrying over stuff, but this annoying kid came over to my seat and kept being noisy. There weren't generally any rewards when I got involved with this guy. I'd stand out too, so I didn't want him to ever talk to me. My plan at the Five Norths Association was just to quietly be a shadow.
"—agh! You!"
"Ibuki… restrain yourself. Didn't you come here for that thing?"
"Tch!"
Ibuki, who Enju was restraining, clicked his tongue loudly. What in the world was he planning to…
"Oi! Sakuya! I'm having a party, so come!"
"…yes?"
What? What did he say just now? The Konoe family was having a party, so come? He said 'come' like it was an order and not an invitation, though? Who'd go when he said it that way? And what's up with him casually addressing me without honorifics? Who said you could call me by name, huh?
"After hearing the date and time, I will check my schedule and reply to…"
"It was a 'yes'. That's great, Ibuki. Kujou-san's coming too. Everyone heard, right?"
Enju!!!! You idiot! Whose side were you on!? Wait, you're on Ibuki's side! That was fine. But I didn't say 'yes'!
"Hmm, well…"
"She definitely said 'yes'…"
Even so… the other members nodded their heads in agreement towards Enju when he brought it up.
Scary… I was set up. Maybe I shouldn't have carelessly answered, but I definitely didn't say yes. All I did was ask 'What?' back.
But it was too late to say that now. Everyone else already thought that I'd accepted the invitation.