A white bandage was wrapped around her head. Silence Suzuka opened her eyes.
What happened to me…?
She sat up dazedly, her eyes wandering blankly around the room.
Her body was covered by a white duvet, curtains drawn on both sides of the bed partitioning the space, and the faint smell of disinfectant hung in the air.
The infirmary? Why am I here?
She had no memory of entering the room at all. Silence Suzuka held her head, pushed the covers aside, and slowly got out of bed.
Rustle—
As if hearing the movement, the center curtain was pulled aside with a swift swish, revealing a black-haired girl sitting on the bed behind it, a clipboard resting on her lap for writing.
The moment she saw the other girl, it was like touching a scene that struck straight into her soul. Silence Suzuka's eyes widened abruptly.
It seemed… she remembered something.
A long, long time ago, when she was still very small, she had heard, imagined, seen… a similar figure.
And just a while ago, she had relived it all over again.
She had once more experienced the profound emotion of that time.
"Silence Suzuka, are you alright?"
The other girl asked with concern.
"Yeah… I'm fine."
Wearing a slightly disoriented expression, Silence Suzuka replied.
"Um, Manhattan Cafe, what happened to me?"
Why was she lying in the infirmary?
Hearing her question, Manhattan Cafe's brow twitched uneasily, her face taking on a 'did she hit her head too hard?' look.
"The school vending machine is old… and it accidentally fell on you…"
"An old vending machine? How?"
"When it was originally installed, they propped it up with a few rocks underneath, so it was a bit unstable. When the screws got old and gave way, it lost its balance and toppled over."
Mentally apologizing to the academy over and over, Manhattan Cafe fabricated a relatively plausible lie.
After all… she couldn't very well tell her that there'd been a spiritual disturbance over there, and she'd accidentally gotten this ordinary girl caught up in it.
The truth was even less believable than the lie.
The machine, loaded with canned drinks, was frighteningly heavy. Even for an Uma Musume, it wasn't an impossible weight to lift, but having it fall directly on her with no way to brace herself was genuinely dangerous.
By the time several girls had rushed over, Silence Suzuka had already knocked her head and passed out.
The cause of this situation was partly 'Friend,' and partly Copano Rickey.
The reason the two had come to blows wasn't clear yet, but one thing Cafe was sure of:
She couldn't let them run into each other again.
Letting Copano Rickey harm Friend was absolutely out of the question, but taking forceful measures against Copano Rickey wasn't something Cafe, in her position, could do either.
She couldn't just expel her from the academy.
Doing that would affect the relationship between Central Tracen and the local Tracen branches, and in the end, Symboli Rudolf would be the one to bear the consequences.
So Cafe could only maneuver carefully, preventing Friend and Copano Rickey from meeting alone.
Well, fine. It gave her another reason to keep Friend by her side.
After seeing that someone had been hurt in the accident, Copano Rickey had also looked remorseful.
She pressed a lucky charm into Silence Suzuka's hand, said she'd apologize properly next time they met, and then left the room.
She didn't seem intent on causing any more trouble.
Later, Cafe got a text from Maruzensky saying Copano Rickey had already returned to the dorm.
Only then did Manhattan Cafe relax.
And not long after Copano Rickey left, Friend, who had been sitting by the bed squinting at Silence Suzuka, also spoke up, saying she had something to attend to and needed to leave first.
Considering that Friend's form had been visible to Silence Suzuka for a moment earlier, and afraid she might bring it up after waking, Manhattan Cafe had no choice but to nod and let her leave the room.
Before she left, Cafe repeatedly reminded her not to go anywhere near Copano Rickey.
She was terribly afraid Copano Rickey might use her spirit-banishing methods on Friend again.
If something really went wrong, she'd regret it forever.
Now only Cafe remained in the room, keeping watch over the unconscious Silence Suzuka.
Fortunately, the other girl was rather guileless. Hearing Cafe's explanation, she didn't question it much and simply believed her.
"If you're feeling unwell, it might be best to go to the hospital…"
It seemed she'd said something similar not long ago.
Right, back when she'd accidentally knocked her over.
To think she'd caused Silence Suzuka to get hurt twice in a row! Especially when, while she was unconscious, Cafe noticed she was still clutching the armband Cafe had dropped—Cafe realized it instantly.
Her good intentions had led to nothing good in return; it was all her fault. Cafe felt deeply guilty.
"It's okay… I feel alright…"
Silence Suzuka replied, touching her forehead.
Her gaze shifted slightly, looking at Cafe again.
"Could it be… that you've been here the whole time I was out, Cafe?"
"Yeah, right next to you."
"I see…"
Silence Suzuka nodded.
"Maybe… it's because you look so much like her… that I had that dream…"
That figure, standing far ahead, poised for running.
"Hm? Like who?"
"It's nothing." The girl shook her head. "I just randomly remembered something from a very long time ago. It's been so long, I'd almost completely forgotten about it."
She smiled.
It was like someone who'd been sleeping soundly was suddenly awakened.
Silence Suzuka felt a sudden, crystal-clear sense of clarity.
"Maybe things that seem unfortunate… actually bring lucky results in the end. Who knows."
"…Indeed, there is a saying like that."
After all, no one could know what consequences their actions would bring.
Good and bad often rested on a single thought.
Just as Manhattan Cafe set down her work log and was about to thank Silence Suzuka—and apologize—
BAM!
The infirmary door was flung open violently.
A girl with a short bob and white highlights rushed in, shouting before she even saw anyone, "Suzuka! Are you okay?!"
Special Week, having gotten the news from who-knows-where, searched anxiously.
Spotting Manhattan Cafe by the bed and Silence Suzuka sitting up on it, Special Week immediately ran over, grabbed her shoulders, and started shaking her.
"Suzuka! You're alive, thank goodness—"
The words, combined with her tearful expression, somehow lacked any moving quality and instead made both girls' eyebrows twitch violently.
"Uh, Spe, calm down a little…"
"I heard in the cafeteria that something happened to Suzuka! They said you got crushed flat by something! I was so scared I ran right over! It's so great you're okay!"
"Crushed flat? That's way too exaggerated. Who's spreading such unrealistic rumors anyway?"
"Gold Ship told me."
"Ah… with her, you only need to listen to a few words. Maybe you don't even need that many words. It's better to just ignore her."
"How rude! Don't just dismiss what people say like that!"
A tall figure charged into the room right after.
"While I was searching for a Oddish, these wise and perceptive eyes saw everything perfectly clearly!"
"There was a loud 'BAM' from the training grounds, followed by a whole lot of crashing and clattering! When I, the great Gold Ship, arrived on the scene, I saw some mud-covered weirdo casting a spell!"
"For a moment I thought my cover as a spy from Planet Tulip was blown, so I immediately got into a defensive stance. But who knew they'd miss and blast the vending machine open instead, pinning Suzuka here underneath!"
Spreading her hands, the girl explained matter-of-factly, "Geez, it scared me, the mud monster, and both Cafes half to death! Seeing Suzuka lying there not moving, anyone would think she was dead!"
This girl's mouth was like a machine gun, rattling off things nobody could understand.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.