School classes ended at around 5 PM. After that, it was free time until the dormitory curfew, and students could choose whether to spend their time at school or go out into the autonomous district.
From the moment they entered middle school, Nagisa and Mika had chosen the latter without a single exception.
They had followers who had latched onto them during their school life, but they only spent time with them inside the school. Once outside, the two of them always went to the place where one person worked.
Angel 24.
A franchise convenience store with branches all over Kivotos. Nagisa and Mika's childhood friend worked at the Trinity branch of that convenience store.
It was quite a distance from the middle school, so it took some time to get there, but the two of them never failed to stop by the convenience store around the time he got off work. However, due to the physical distance, by the time they arrived, Kenji's shift was usually already over.
But Kenji always waited for them and they would leave work together. Nagisa liked that about him. Even though he could have left earlier, he waited to be with them, and in the winter, his gesture of buying them hot chocolate from a nearby shop made her heart pound.
A small act of consideration.
Come to think of it, he always lived his life wrapped in consideration for others. Even when they were young, he often shared his food with Mika, and when she asked him to have tea with her, he would do so without a word of complaint. When cleaning the kindergarten, he would handle most of it himself without anyone asking, and if Mika or she cried, he would do his best to comfort them.
Whenever they had to move together, he always walked on the side closer to the road, and despite being weaker than them, he would step up and handle difficult tasks without showing any signs of struggle.
She had noticed his consideration for others after she entered the upper grades of elementary school. It was also around the same time she had realized her feelings for him.
When did it start?
Perhaps... it was from the time he woke up in the hospital room after Mika had shot him.
He must have been in pain, he would have been justified in hating them, and no one would have blamed him for lashing out with harsh words. But he just smiled and hugged Mika and her. He only chided them, saying it wasn't anyone's fault and to just not do it again.
At the time, she didn't know the name of the emotion she felt then, but she did now. She understood this emotion better than any other in the world, and she was aware of it. But she didn't show it on the outside.
What if she openly expressed her feelings for him and their relationship soured?
A terrible outcome. Just imagining it made her want to throw up. Her hands and feet would tremble, and tears would stream down her face endlessly. It was just a delusion of him leaving her, but she felt a pain as if her whole body was being torn to shreds.
So she chose to maintain the status quo. Someday... someday, when she had the confidence or the courage, she would confess. That's what she thought. And she was confident that until that day came, Kenji wouldn't meet another woman.
But her expectations were betrayed.
[I'm on a date with a girl right now hehe] - 17:26
The reply that arrived via messenger.
For a moment, Nagisa doubted her own eyes.
A date with a girl? Who? Kenji? No way. It must be one of his usual mischievous jokes. A lie. But what if it was true? What if he was really on a date with another girl, abandoning her?
All sorts of questions muddled her head. But she soon reached one conclusion.
'I must have misread it.'
She smiled serenely and nodded her head. Yes, there's no way Kenji would abandon me and go out with another girl. Besides, the only people he's close to are me and Mika, right? So with us here, who could he be on a date with? Yes, so I must have misread it.
Escapism.
Nagisa gently closed her eyes, then composed her breathing and opened them again.
But the text on her smartphone remained unchanged. She closed and opened her eyes again, rubbed them, but it was the same.
Only then did Nagisa realize the reality.
"What?!"
"Eek! W-why are you suddenly shouting, Nagi-chan!"
Mika, who was walking beside her, shrieked, but Nagisa didn't hear her. Her face twisted into a grimace as she rapidly tapped on her smartphone's keyboard. But Kenji only gave strange replies and wouldn't answer who he was on a date with.
-Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap!
"N-Nagi-chan? What's with that expression? It's really scary..."
"..."
-Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap!
"S-stop it, Nagi-chan! I don't know what you're doing, but people are staring!"
"...Grrr. Who are you with..."
"W-what did you say?"
-Clack-clack-clack-clack-clack!
"Why aren't you answering me!"
Crack.
A hairline fracture appeared on the screen of the smartphone, unable to withstand Nagisa's grip. Mika shrieked at the sight, and Nagisa panted heavily. The frantic words of Mika beside her didn't register in her ears at all. Thoughts about the woman Kenji was on a date with filled her head.
'Who is it? Who. Which bitch is after Kenji? I don't like it. I don't like it at all. What should I do? That damn bitch. Does she even know who she's targeting? Is she prettier than me? Does she have a better personality? A fellow middle schooler? Or a high school senior? Surely not an elementary schooler, right? What should I do? Is Kenji going to leave me? Is he going to abandon me and date another girl? No. Absolutely not. Yes, let's kidnap him. Confine him and make it a fait accompli—'
"Nagi-chan!"
Mika's hand on her shoulder brought light back into Nagisa's dazed eyes.
What... what was I just thinking? Kidnapping and confinement. Thoughts that only Gehenna students would have, and I, a noble student of Trinity, had them?
Nagisa trembled with self-loathing. Even so, she didn't correct her thoughts about the fait accompli. It was because she had an unconscious belief that it would happen eventually anyway.
"Nagi-chan, are you okay? Have you calmed down?"
"...Thank you, Mika-san. I've come to my senses, thanks to you."
"Hehe, that's a relief! But what was that all of a sudden?"
Nagisa stared at the tilting-her-head Mika for a moment, then ground her teeth and said heavily.
"Kenji-san. He says he's on a date with a girl."
"...Huh?"
Kenji.
Girl.
Date.
The three words danced above Mika's head. And then, her face contorted into that of a demon.
"Ha?"
Her halo began to spin rapidly.
*
Yurizono Seia.
She had gone through countless trials and errors for this day.
She memorized the opening day of a newly opened dessert cafe, and over several days, she researched the nearby walking paths and popular restaurants. She even visited them in person and meticulously read the online reviews.
That's how much she was looking forward to today. She had told Kenji that she just wanted to go to a cafe, but that wasn't the truth. As someone who enjoyed being alone, her suggestion of going to a cafe together was merely a pretext.
What she really wanted was a date with Kenji.
That was all.
Otherwise, why would she have sought him out at the awkward time of five o'clock instead of on a holiday? It was all a ploy. A ploy for a classic, novel-like date: meeting near evening, having a meal together, taking a walk side-by-side, and then chatting at a cafe.
They were already close, but Seia wanted to get even closer to him through this date.
Not in the sense of a friend. As a member of the opposite sex. She wanted to lay the foundation today for the development of their relationship as lovers.
She hadn't harbored such feelings for him from the beginning. But after their first meeting, through their daily encounters, friendship had turned into affection.
What provided the biggest catalyst was, as always, her 'prophetic dreams'.
A smiling Kenji, a happily smiling herself holding a small child, and a visibly pregnant belly. A light peck on the lips and a vulgar kiss before bed. And to top it off, the dream version of herself, as if aware that she was dreaming, giving a knowing smile.
When she first had that dream, Seia had woken up with a start, gasping for breath. It was a dream she had often, but the dream she had that day was much clearer and more detailed than any other prophetic dream. It was to the point where the emotions of her dream self were conveyed to her completely.
From that day on, Seia saw Kenji as a man. As time passed, his presence in her heart grew larger, and eventually, affection blossomed into love. In her mind, Kenji was already no different from her husband.
The moment she realized this, Seia's world transformed into something beautiful. The passing birds seemed to be wishing her happiness, and the sky was painted in shades of pink. Even when she was just idling away her time, just thinking of Kenji's face would bring a foolish smile to her lips.
She had already looked into clothes, toys, and even a bed for the child. The formula... she decided to think about that later. Who knew if she would be able to produce breast milk, despite her modest chest.
The fortunate thing was that she had given birth to one child and was pregnant with another. It meant that despite her small frame, she had no problem giving birth. The child she saw in her dream had black hair and golden eyes, so the child in her belly would surely have golden hair and black eyes.
'Prophetic dreams always come true. That dream will be no exception.'
But she couldn't just do nothing. Just as she had come to see Kenji as a man and nurtured her love for him, she had to make him see her not as a friend, but as a 'woman', for a smooth marriage to be possible.
Today would be a glorious day, the first step towards that great and blessed conclusion.
Or so it was supposed to be.
"...Who are these women?"
Suddenly, vixens who bewitched her husband had interfered.