I stepped out of the helicopter as if in a trance. Yukino had told me she would be on Trinity's side of the beach, so I led Wakamo in that direction. People would occasionally glance at Wakamo's handcuffs, then at my uniform, before losing interest. A few seconds later, they would look back, a flicker of confusion in their eyes. And why wouldn't they? The sight of Trinity's great leader in an SRT Special Academy uniform, escorting a fox beastkin who couldn't look more innocent, was bound to feel out of place.
But the image of Makoto from moments ago refused to leave my mind.
There was no way that was her own ability. This wasn't me just trying to belittle her; it truly didn't seem like a situation she had created intentionally. A Trinity mob student, aiming for Makoto, slipped and passed right over her as she fell; another student tripped over Makoto, who had slipped while trying to get up, and fell into the sea; Hasumi got hit in the eye by Makoto's flailing arm, her wings blocking the vision of other students, leading them to get hit by Satsuki's kamikaze attack.
Makoto was a storm, a hurricane. An unstoppable disaster. Yet, there was nothing in that display that could be called her own skill. It was, without a doubt, protagonist power.
…But, come to think of it, Makoto's eyes had looked a little glazed over. She wasn't on drugs, was she?
In any case, the feeling of the sky falling did not come. Since I hadn't had any expectations to begin with, my disappointment was minimal. I felt like I could just accept losing the tournament at this point… Just kidding. Please, please let us win…
The problem was that Hina was armed and ready for a revenge match. In a naval mock battle fought on two separate ships, Hina's firepower would be absolute. I knew it would make more sense for me to participate instead of Tsurugi. In that case, I was confident I could bring us victory, or at least a high probability of it. The problem was, you can't change the roster on the day of the match, unless it's for an unavoidable reason like an injury. And it's not like I could injure Tsurugi, send her to the infirmary, and take her place, could I…?
It was time to accept reality.
I was destined to be sold into slavery in Gehenna. The contract even had a clause preventing insubordination, so there was no getting out of it. If Makoto told me to jump, I'd have to jump.
But thinking about it now, wasn't this a bet where I lose either way? I'm not just trying to cope with my impending defeat. Even if I had won and taken that problem child Makoto as a slave, how badly could I have treated her? I probably would have ended up working even harder just taking care of her.
Still, it was obviously better for me to be the one in charge, so the loss in the previous match was a bitter pill to swallow.
Anyway, in a state of semi-resignation, I walked on, looking for Yukino to hand off Wakamo. After a while, I found her, lying on a sunbed, sunglasses perched on her nose, leisurely reading a magazine. Though, from the way she spoke the moment I approached, it was clear she was paying more attention to her surroundings than to her magazine.
"...Mika-san, may I offer you my completely unfiltered, honest opinion?"
"Nope☆"
As if that's going to happen, Yukino.
The way she frowned the moment she saw the handcuffed Wakamo told me she knew exactly what I was planning, but unfortunately for her, she didn't have a choice in the matter.
"Here, the key!"
"..."
"Yukino-chan, what's wrong? Aren't you going to take it?"
"Mika-san, I could handle anyone else, but this woman is, on a physiological level, impossible for me. We are far too incompatible. Wouldn't it be better to entrust her to FOX 2 instead?"
Trying to dump her on Niko? Not a chance. Niko gave me delicious inarizushi. For that reason, starting today, I pledge my eternal worship to Niko.
By the way, the contrast between me in an SRT uniform and Yukino in a bikini was quite stark. The dissonance of me, a non-SRT member, wearing her uniform while she, an actual SRT member, was dressed for the beach was considerable.
"...Understood."
As I just smiled at her silently, Yukino yielded to the unspoken pressure and took the key. Wakamo, tail wagging, approached her and presented her cuffed hands.
"...What is it?"
"Kind little fox, would you mind unlocking these for me?"
"Why should I? Stay in those and quietly reflect on your actions."
Yukino tossed the key into a nearby bag. Wakamo clicked her tongue and dragged an empty sunbed under a parasol. The sight of her struggling with her hands bound together made me let out a small laugh.
"So cold-hearted. Mika-san, I can't use my hands, so… could you please put some sunscreen on me?"
"...?"
What. Why are you asking me to do that? And besides, why didn't you put it on earlier when I told you we were coming here? You saw me putting mine on.
"...Now you can use them. Stop bothering a busy person and put it on yourself."
Suddenly, Yukino's expression hardened. She fished the key out of her bag and tossed it to Wakamo. Wakamo easily caught it, unlocked the cuffs in an instant, and flopped down on the sunbed.
Don't tell me… she used the "I can't use my hands" appeal just to get the key from Yukino? I really don't understand why Yukino didn't just ignore her. Well, either way, I needed to finish our business quickly and get going, so I was grateful she had cut the unnecessary time-wasting short.
"Thank you, kind little fox."
Hearing Wakamo's playful words, Yukino shot a resentful glare in my direction. Her eyes screamed, Why did you have to bring her here? And to me, of all people?
"Ahaha, what can I do? You're the one I trust the most, Yukino-chan. By the way, you haven't heard anything from the GSC President, have you?"
"No, I have not. Has a decision been made to proceed with an important operation immediately?"
"No, no, not right away. But we are proceeding with an operation. For this mission, command of FOX Platoon is with me, so I'll be counting on you, okay?"
"…Pardon?"
"I never thought the General Student Council President was such a coward. I heard she was an individual capable of intervening in the internal affairs of other academies and quelling the inevitable complaints that followed, but seeing her in action… I'd say she felt more like an ordinary student."
As Yukino questioned me, Wakamo had to open her mouth and provoke her. I see now, these two really are like oil and water.
"Do not speak ill of the General Student Council President. It is not a topic a criminal like you should discuss so freely."
"Ohoho… but it's the truth, isn't it? She acted so frustratingly that Mika-san couldn't take it anymore and finally exploded."
"...Is that true, Mika-san?"
"Mmm. Well, I don't intend to speak badly of the GSC President. I'm not so narrow-minded that I can't respect a difference of opinion. It's just that, for this incident, I felt it was necessary to resolve things in the way I believed was right."
"Could you explain in a little more detail?"
At Yukino's request, I decided to give her a concise summary of our conversation from the video call. I had no intention of badmouthing the GSC President in front of her, so I excluded my personal opinions as much as possible and just relayed the flow of the conversation. Yukino's expression was strange.
"...Do you happen to remember what you told me before, Mika-san?"
"Ahaha, well. I'm not sure if I say it like that. What are you referring to?"
"You said that the standard for SRT's justice is the General Student Council President."
"Ah, right. That. I remember."
"If what you saw from the General Student Council President today is true, then it means that even she was not as perfect as she seemed."
Come to think of it, from Yukino's perspective, this was a situation where the GSC President, the very arbiter of the justice she believed in, had been the first to turn her back on it. She might even feel a sense of betrayal.
"Like I said, I don't intend to speak badly of the GSC President. She's surely seeing a different picture from ordinary people like us. But as someone who experienced last night's events firsthand, I can't rest until Kaiser's evil deeds are punished. Yes, that's why I had to force the issue and get her permission."
To be blunt, if the GSC President had opposed me to the very end, I would have had to back down. Either that, or prepare for an all-out war with Kaiser. Honestly, even now, I desperately want to completely destroy Kaiser. But if the GSC President is so insistent that they must be spared, I feel a certain degree of respect for her position is necessary. I have no doubt that she, who knows more than I do, has an important reason for making that judgment.
With that in mind, my plan is to cut off the thickest of Kaiser's octopus tentacles first, to drastically weaken their power.
"If you wish for us, FOX Platoon, to take the lead in that, we will be sure to deliver results that exceed your expectations."
"Ahaha, hearing you say that gives me a lot of confidence, Yukino-chan! My other kids are skilled too, so I doubt Kaiser will even know what hit them."
"...'My other kids,' you say?"
"Ah, that would be Arius Squad. They're what you might call the elite of the elite who follow me… They've been through some incredibly harsh training, so—"
"Mika-san."
Yukino pushed her sunglasses up, sat up halfway, and looked at me with an intensity that was double her usual seriousness.
"I swear to you, we will deliver results greater than anything that group called Arius Squad can produce. Yes, I swear it."
...It seems that hearing about my cherished Arius Squad has ignited a fierce rivalry in Yukino.