"Work, no end."
"That's because it piled up so much."
"Should be less, why more...?"
"It's due to the cases involving the Sensei who turned into a baby, the adults who tried to target Sensei, intelligence on mercenaries, and so on."
"...Saori-san, no going to play 'again'."
"Not this time. If you don't finish it now, you'll struggle later."
"Ugh."
"...We'll help too, come on, get your hands moving."
"...My hands are moving."
"What good is just moving your wrists? No excuses, get to it."
"...Understood."
One day, Mash was doing his usual work in Schale. Recently, the workload had been relatively lighter compared to when he first arrived, but with the sudden rush of handling the recent "baby incident," Mash found himself struggling.
"...Oh, come to think of it, where are Hiyori-chan and Atsuko-chan?"
"Hiyori was just taken away by Wakamo. Apparently, she got caught rummaging through the fridge in the middle of the night yesterday."
"So that's why the fridge looked like that... And why Wakamo-chan was so angry."
"As for Atsuko... I don't know. Misaki, do you know anything?"
"I saw her skip out happily."
"Happily... gasp, could it be a boyfriend!?"
"No way, are you still stuck on that 'game of life'?"
"Until they come back... well, I guess I'll do my best... abandon worldly desires... ahem."
"Worldly desires aren't something you just 'abandon' like that."
Mash straightened his back, activated "Sensei Mode," abandoned his worldly desires, and focused on his work... Nothing, absolutely nothing, could distract Mash's concentration now.
"Sensei, I hear there's a cream puff eating contest at the nearby market, want to go?"
"Go." [Sensei Mode deactivated]
"Yay!"
"Didn't you just say you were abandoning worldly desires!?"
Worldly desires were no match for cream puffs, and Mash, switching off Sensei Mode, immediately got up from his seat and rushed over to Atsuko.
"No, Sensei!! The eating contest can wait until work is finished!"
" "Eeeh~" "
"Don't "Eeeh~"! Don't both make the same face! And you two really have started to resemble each other!"
"It's fine. I'll finish everything later."
"And how many times has that resulted in this? I told you before, if you don't finish it first, you'll definitely regret it later..."
"Ugh!"
"In any case, you absolutely cannot go today."
"..."
Saori and Misaki's eyes were serious... or rather, it was more like a mother telling her son, "Finish your homework before you go play with your friends!!" Such was the force, ready to stop them by any means necessary. If that's the case, then the solution is simple.
"...!!" Dash!
"Ah, wait, hey!!"
CRASSHHHHHH!!
At the same time, both of them dashed backward, smashing through the window glass and escaping outside. Mash landed, holding Atsuko in mid-air, and then ran off towards the eating contest venue.
"Hey, you two!!...They're gone..."
"...Atsuko, she's become quite aggressive, hasn't she? Is it Sensei's influence?"
"...No, perhaps she was always like that. The emotions she had suppressed for so long must have been unleashed all at once after meeting Sensei."
"...That's a good thing, isn't it? We can be happy about this, right?"
"Yes... —However, the thought of two people with the same mindset as Sensei... and there's Azusa's case too. It's unsettling, somehow..."
"That's... well."
"—But if the Princess is happy... then perhaps that's all that matters. Let's get Nina and Team Custard to help us too."
Saori sighed, yet felt relieved seeing Atsuko, who now constantly smiled. If Atsuko was genuinely happy and enjoying herself from the bottom of her heart now, then that was enough... but.
"Atsuko becoming muscular like Sensei... is a bit, well, I resist that!"
"Anyone would feel that way."
"Ahhh, I'm full, full."
"That was easy."
"Cream puffs are practically a beverage."
"The audience and our opponents were utterly disgusted the whole time, but I'm glad we won."
After leaving Schale, Atsuko and Mash successfully triumphed in the cream puff eating contest. The rules were simple: eat all the cream puffs piled high, and you win.
"I throw cream puffs at Sensei, and Sensei eats and swallows them in one bite... Hehe, it was a good idea to go with this strategy."
"Efficiency is important in everything, isn't it?"
"Exactly... Hehe, I wonder if everyone will be happy."
"I'm sure they'll be thrilled."
The winning prize was a voucher for cream puffs made with limited edition custard—enough for everyone in Schale. Atsuko had wanted to get this, which is why she enlisted Mash's help with the eating contest.
"...Sorry, Sensei, even though you were working."
"It's a Sensei's duty to grant a student's wish, so it's fine."
"Weren't you secretly happy to get away from work for a bit?"
"Hahahaha, no such thing."
"...Sensei, you really are a child."
"Hm, I feel somewhat underestimated."
"It's not like that... It's just, you're not that much older than me, but you can do so much, it's amazing."
"So much?"
"You know, Beatrice, and fighting that red god."
"...Oh, right, that happened."
"You clearly had a pause before remembering, are you perhaps already forgetting?"
"N-n-n-n-n-n-n-n-n-n-n-n-no such t-t-t-t-t-t-thing—"
The battle in the Basilica where Mash first felt the breath of death, the fierce struggle against Beatrice and Yaldabaoth. It was an incredibly intense and brutal fight, with extraordinary magic and abilities, astonishing truths revealed, and for the first time in his life, Mash fighting seriously without his wristbands.
"It's good that Sensei was safe... but to get so beat up just to save me and Arius... If I ask again, weren't you scared?"
"Not at all. In fact, I was so furious that everything else flew out of my head."
"...That's just like Sensei."
"Ah... but, I might have been a bit anxious too. I thought, 'I have to save Atsuko-chan quickly'."
"Was that as a Sensei?"
"As a friend."
"Not a prince or anything?"
"Oh right, that too... what?"
"Hehe, it's nothing at all~"
Humming cheerfully, Atsuko walked ahead, turning around. Then, standing in front of a certain shop, she suddenly stopped and stared intently at it.
"Huh, I didn't know there was a flower shop here."
"...Sensei, I like flowers."
"Flowers?"
"Yes, I like all kinds of flowers... Back in Arius, I wasn't even allowed to look at flowers, or pick them."
"..."
"But now, I can see them up close as much as I want... and touch them."
"...Want to buy some flowers?"
"Really?"
"Yeah, let's buy tons!"
Drawn by the flower shop, Mash and Atsuko stepped inside. Various types and colors of flowers were arranged everywhere, captivating Atsuko's eyes.
"This one's nice... but so is this one... Hmm..."
"It's hard to decide."
"Yeah, they're all so beautiful and lovely... Oh, Sensei, can you choose for me?"
"You want flowers for yourself, but you want me to choose?"
"It's more romantic if Sensei gives them to me as a present, right?"
"Well, I guess..."
"So please, choose for me?"
"...If you put it that way."
Mash diligently searched for flowers to give Atsuko as a present. He had seen many plants in the magic world, but he had never experienced choosing flowers that would suit a girl.
(Sunflowers... don't quite fit... Camellias? These also feel a bit... Hmm...)
"...♪"
Atsuko watched him, enjoying herself. She couldn't help but feel happy that Mash was trying so hard for her. It was a truly maidenly reaction.
"...Alright, I've decided. Excuse me, I'll take this and this."
"Coming right up~... Oh, customer, you have good taste~"
"Do I?"
"Ah! These flowers are... hm? —Ah, no, no, hah hah hah! You two are really passionate!"
" "?" "
"Big service! Take ten of them!!"
"Eh, really? Yay!"
"Is that okay?"
"It's fine, it's fine!! It's a grown-up thing to want to cheer on young people~"
The flower shop clerk seemed to have misunderstood something, but regardless, Mash received five of each of the flowers he had chosen, and the two left the shop.
"...Sensei, what kind of flowers did you choose?"
"These two... Uh, Sasanqua and... roses."
"Red Sasanqua... red... roses..."
"The color scheme, or maybe the beauty... It's just a feeling, but I thought they'd suit Atsuko-chan, so I chose them."
"—Sensei, do you know about flower language?"
"Not at all."
"...Right, you're Sensei... after all."
"?"
Atsuko loved flowers and had researched many different kinds... and of course, she remembered the flower meanings associated with them. —Which is why her face naturally turned red.
"...Sensei, you dense, ignorant man."
"Eh, why suddenly?"
"—Thank you, Sensei, I'll cherish these flowers... for life."
A gift from someone of similar age, of the opposite sex... a gift from a benefactor. In Atsuko's eyes, Mash was the benefactor who saved her, and also the prince who awakened her from her slumber.
"...Eih!" Hop
"Whoa... That's dangerous, Atsuko-chan, suddenly jumping on me like that."
"I trusted Sensei would catch me."
"Even so..."
"I'm tired from walking... Can you carry me back to Schale like this?"
"What's gotten into you all of a sudden?"
"Just do it, just do it."
"...Oh well, alright then. Make sure you hold onto the flowers tightly."
Atsuko jumped onto Mash's back, holding the flowers firmly as he carried her. Mash ran at a pace that wouldn't make her dizzy, heading back to Schale.
(...Sorry everyone, but just for this time, I want him to be my prince.)
Atsuko was also just a girl, a princess of a certain age... It's not unreasonable for her to want to monopolize a prince loved by everyone. This was her own cute selfishness, and.
(—Next time, maybe I'll give him an Angraecum.)
It was her own possessiveness.
Next time... It's Misaki-chan's story.
Yes, as you all imagined... it feels quite humid and heavy. I don't think it's melancholic, but please look forward to it.
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