Wakamo flinched as the student grabbed her by the collar. The student glared down at her and, seemingly deciding that wasn't enough, raised a hand. I tensed, thinking the unthinkable was about to happen, but the student's hand was aimed not at Wakamo, but at the other students in the hall.
"I won't blame you for what didn't happen. To speak of how our students could have died would be to render the hard work of the SRT Special Academy members who were dispatched there meaningless. But everyone here has lost their precious home. Our cherished belongings, filled with memories, are now lost forever, and the school ship where we walked, laughed, and talked will never return! And for that, your responsibility is immense."
"...You are absolutely right."
"Hah, if you knew that, you shouldn't have done it in the first place." The girl ground her teeth, then released her grip on Wakamo's collar and stepped back. "Fine, I'm sure you feel wronged, too. Right? You were just doing what you always do, and this whole mess happened because those tin cans at Kaiser lost their minds. Even if you hadn't collaborated with them, they would have hijacked our ship anyway, and we'd still be here, blaming someone… or hating some faceless person who never showed up, swallowing our anger."
"…No, that's not right. Accepting their proposal was entirely my choice. Therefore, any discussion of what might have happened if I had refused is meaningless. This was all my own doing, and I am simply receiving the karma I've earned… Yes, there is nothing to feel wronged about."
"Well, aren't you high and mighty."
Hearing Wakamo recite her conclusion on the matter in a steady voice, the girl scowled in displeasure.
"And another thing. Why are you here and not in the Correction Bureau? We would have been fine without you coming here to apologize. Just hearing the news that the Fox of Calamity, the mastermind of this incident, had been imprisoned would have been enough for us to laugh and say it served the damn bitch right. But you had to come here, and now we can't even do that."
"That's…"
"You know what? There are few things in this world more disgusting than receiving an apology from someone you have no intention of forgiving. I will never forgive you, not even if I die, and I'm sure most of the people here feel the same way. But it's also human nature to feel uncomfortable not accepting an apology. Do you get what I'm saying?"
The girl poked Wakamo's forehead. Then, in an icy voice, she spat.
"For you to seek forgiveness just to ease your own conscience is to look down on us. It's treating us like absolute fools. You know, you should have just acted brazenly, like you always do. Instead of putting on this half-assed show of repentance. Then you wouldn't have had to stand here and listen to me say all this, and I… we… wouldn't have had to waste our time on something so meaningless."
Every word was a calculated insult. And yet, Wakamo endured it. She was now controlling her anger so skillfully that even her hands had stopped trembling.
"Hey. Do you want our forgiveness that badly?"
"...Yes. It is shameful, but I must receive your forgiveness. Only then…"
"Ah, shut up. If you want forgiveness that badly, then… fine. Why don't you start by licking the bottom of my shoe?"
…This was wrong. Wakamo was undoubtedly a sinner, but I hadn't come all this way just to watch her be used for someone's catharsis. I understood their righteous anger. But it shouldn't be expressed this way. If they had resorted to violence, I might have understood, but I couldn't stand by and watch them trample on someone's dignity like this.
"...Wait, that's enough—"
Just as I was about to step in, Wakamo's knees bent. As she knelt to the floor, her hand reached out. What could she have been thinking in that moment, as her hand extended toward the offered shoe? What was the reason she had resolved to change, to the point of enduring such humiliation to seek forgiveness?
One thing was certain: her sincerity had even taken her opponent by surprise.
"Are, are you crazy? Why would you actually try to do something like that? You're supposed to get angry here!"
Startled, the student recoiled, snatching her foot back as she yelled at Wakamo. But Wakamo didn't even blink.
"I believed that if I did not receive forgiveness, even in this way, I, Kosaka Wakamo, could never move forward. For a girl like me, who was betrayed, hurt, and went astray, to return to the straight path, an ordinary resolve would not suffice. That is why I decided to let go of everything. The day you all forgive me will be the day I can finally take the first step toward a new beginning. To that end, it is only natural that I should be willing to cast aside this meager pride, is it not?"
"…You're completely insane. We have no reason to forgive you."
"Even if that is so, it is alright. The heart exists to be conveyed, and if it is not received, to be conveyed again and again. Therefore, I am prepared to keep trying until I reach you… I will do everything in my power to earn your forgiveness."
"You lunatic. You say you want to cause us trouble with such confidence. How can a person be so selfish?"
The student sighed, looking at Wakamo as if she'd had enough. The venom in her eyes had considerably faded.
"I'll say it again: we don't welcome this behavior. We can't possibly look kindly upon you seeking forgiveness just to satisfy your own conscience, without any consideration for our feelings."
As the student spoke for the Nereus crew, it seemed Wakamo still had a long way to go to earn their forgiveness. But seeing Wakamo's resolve today… I couldn't help but think that the day might come when she is forgiven by them and starts anew.
"I don't know how long that grand resolve of yours will last, but I can promise you this one thing. Your feelings will never reach all of us."
Hmm, that road seems not just long, but completely broken off halfway.
Leaving Wakamo's likely long-term rehabilitation project behind, I headed for the festival grounds in a helicopter. I tried to ignore Wakamo holding out her hands to me, but after ten minutes of it, I couldn't ignore her any longer.
"Hey, Wakamo-chan. If I put you in handcuffs here, you'll just draw everyone's attention, you know?"
"But Mika-san, how can you trust me enough not to handcuff me? I am a heinous criminal whose infamy as a terrorist pierces the heavens. Just last night, I was filled with the impure thought of ruining this very festival. To let me roam so freely is absolutely not a good idea. So please, the handcuffs—Ouch!"
Ah, a sandbag I can hit whenever I feel like it is truly the best. The satisfaction of flicking Wakamo's forehead, who only whimpered after a seven-flick combo, was on a whole different level from Seia. When I flick Seia's forehead, I always have to hold back, worried she'll just collapse and get trapped in a daydream.
But with Wakamo, I didn't have to hold back at all, which was nice. Plus, she was the jerk who put me through so much trouble these past few days, so I felt no guilt, which I liked.
"Owwie. Mika-san, if you keep hitting me like that, I'll become an idiot one day."
"You're already a clumsy idiot, so what's the difference? Yeah, I don't think much will change."
"You're so mean… Honestly, you're such a tease."
"Ah, right. Come to think of it, I don't really care if you draw attention. I was planning on leaving you with Yukino-chan anyway…"
"What? You can't be serious, you're really going to leave me with that baby fox? You're joking, right?"
"Well, I have plans with some other people today, so I can't really take you with me… Ah, right."
Click.
"Let's put on the handcuffs so Yukino-chan doesn't have a hard time☆"
"...?! Wait! That girl, she definitely has some pent-up feelings about me from yesterday…!"
"Hmm, but that's all your fault, isn't it, Wakamo-chan?"
After cuffing her wrists, I tucked the key into the front pocket of my uniform. I could just give this to Yukino.
I glanced out of the helicopter and saw the festival grounds getting closer. The marine competition was underway. A little curious about the match, I took out my phone and launched the video streaming app. Thankfully, no ads plagued me this time.
The first thing I saw was Hinata, clutching three flags and holding her ground. As expected of a girl renowned for her monstrous strength, she wasn't giving up the flags even with four Gehenna students clinging to her. A little ahead of her, Mine was blocking the path to another platform, a banner unfurled. She was like Zhang Fei at the Battle of Changban, giving the charging Gehenna students a full-body bath in the sea. The sight of her suddenly lifting one Gehenna student and swinging her around like a shield made me dizzy just watching.
With about five minutes left in the match, Trinity held four flags—the three with Hinata and one that Azusa was running around with. If things continued like this, Trinity's victory was certain…!
Just as I was getting excited about finally escaping the slavery bet…
Mine was breached.
And with Mine now one with the sea, more Gehenna students poured through the path she had been guarding. The four students surrounding Hinata became eight. It was too risky to bet everything on Hinata holding out; I could clearly see her being pushed closer and closer to the edge of the platform.
Seriously, where were the other Trinity students? What were they doing instead of helping…
The moment I saw Makoto, darting through our side like the wind, my brain shut down.
"Wa-oh…?"
Who the hell gave Makoto protagonist power? I thought we all agreed that protagonist power doesn't exist in our Kivotos…!