Mornings on the Hyperion were Principal Theresa's favorite time. Himeko would be leading the students of St. Freya High School in their morning exercises, and the crew would be starting their checks on the various instruments aboard the warship to ensure safety.
At this time, Principal Theresa was the most idle person on the entire ship. She could openly lock her office door and secretly sip black tea while reading the latest issue of the manga "Adventures of Homu." Life couldn't be more comfortable~
"Haha~" Theresa laughed at a funny plot point as she turned a page of the manga, swinging her little legs from her large principal's chair. Underneath her black and white nun's habit were a pair of slender, fair calves.
However, joy often leads to sorrow…
"Bang!" The office door was thrown open, and Murata Himeko walked right in.
"Eh?!" In a flurry, Theresa dropped the manga in her hands. It landed right next to her desk, revealing half of its cover.
"…Hmph." Murata Himeko glanced wordlessly at the manga on the floor, then looked at Theresa with a teasing expression. "Still reading manga at your age… And you even do it in secret…"
"Wuu!~" Principal Theresa's little face turned bright red as she let out a small, animal-like whimper. Then she raised her head and tried her best to maintain her dignity. "This is to uphold my authority as the principal!"
"You lost that the moment you started reading this kind of book!" Himeko sighed. She really couldn't understand the principal's hobbies…
"Alright, I didn't come here to talk about you reading children's manga…" Murata Himeko's face turned serious again.
"It's, it's not for children…" Principal Theresa protested weakly.
"Alright, take a look at these two documents!" Himeko shoved the two files she was holding into Theresa's arms.
"What's wrong?… This, this is?!" Theresa's small hands suddenly clenched the files, her breathing becoming a little ragged…
"The organization dug up a weapon from the Previous Era at the bottom of Lake Baikal, a 'Holy Relic'?!" Theresa was thrilled. The Previous Era was the most mysterious of ages, with technology so advanced that even their old rival, Anti-Entropy, couldn't match ten percent of it!
"That's right… The Archbishop has decided to store it on the Hyperion for now," Himeko said with a smile.
"Oh?! That's great! We can run plenty of experiments! Maybe we can even create some imitations to make more powerful weapons!" Theresa said excitedly, clenching her small fists. She had no intention of trying to replicate a Holy Relic, as the difficulty was immense, but even studying a few scraps of its technology would be enough for them.
"Alright, put the good news aside for now…" Himeko's smile vanished. She pointed expressionlessly at the other file. "This one is the principal's responsibility…"
"Hmm?!…" Theresa picked up the other file and nearly threw it away after just one glance.
"Th-th-this… what is this terrifying number?!" Theresa asked, her hand holding the document trembling slightly.
"It's correct. The organization places great importance on that academy, so they hired multiple construction companies to work together. It was built in just half a month…" Himeko said with a business-like expression. "The labor costs are a bit steep…"
"But what does this have to do with us?! Why does the Hyperion have to pay for it?!"
"Because the Archbishop said, 'We'll be using it in the future.'"
"…" Theresa was speechless, an expression of utter despair on her face.
"Starting tomorrow, everyone's living expenses will be cut in half, and the instructors' salaries will be delayed…" A spark of inspiration hit Theresa, and a "just-as-planned" smile appeared on her face.
"Hmm?! Mine is delayed too?…" Major Himeko revealed a "friendly" smile.
"No, no… Don't tell anyone else, and be sure to keep everyone's spirits up," Theresa said, slinging an arm over Major Himeko's shoulders.
The integrity of the two went up in smoke like dry grass in a fire…
(End of Chapter)