The day after returning from the beach,
I paid a visit to the headquarters of the Justice Task Force.
"Oh my, Sensei, it's been a while."
The vice pres and tactical commander of the club greeted me warmly.
I asked in confusion, "If I remember correctly, the last time we met was three days ago at Mille-Feuille Coffee, wasn't it?"
Hasumi's face reddened slightly as she stubbornly replied, "Y-You must be mistaken… after all, you're very busy with official duties…"
Even if I had been swamped catching up on paperwork after our beach vacation, I wouldn't misremember something like that.
But then it clicked. Most likely, Hasumi's recent dieting progress hadn't been very encouraging, so she'd started denying reality to comfort herself.
"Ahem." She cleared her throat to hide her embarrassment. "Thank you very much for leading this trip. I wonder if the seaside excursion was enjoyable? Tsurugi and Mashiro are out on committee business today…"
She smiled gently. "Tsurugi seems to have regained quite a bit of her energy. I'm truly glad, that's all thanks to you, Sensei. And Mashiro as well, perhaps I should say she looks more at ease now, less tense. I hope the other two also had fun… What do you think, Sensei?"
"How should I put it… overall, I suppose it stayed within the bounds of 'happy.'"
"Hmm?" Hasumi looked puzzled. "What do you mean…?"
I handed her the task list I had received from Hifumi and Azusa. "There were… some complicated misunderstandings."
The moment she saw the list, realization dawned on her face. "Ah, I see. I did wonder whether making this might be unnecessary. So it caused trouble after all…"
"I wouldn't say that. Without this list, things might have been even more troublesome."
On the bright side, Hasumi's checklist had indeed provided direction, prevented chaos, and even nudged Hifumi and Azusa into interacting with Tsurugi.
Recalling something Azusa had said, I added, "If you live without any plans, it's easy to accomplish nothing. So a certain amount of planning is necessary."
"Hehe, thank you for saying that."
Hasumi's lips curved upward, clearly in a good mood, as she carefully explained her intentions:
"To some extent, it was intentional… I thought it would be difficult for those two to get along well with Tsurugi. Of course, including Mashiro, it would be wonderful if the four of them could all become good friends… but perhaps that was just wishful thinking. If I made them nervous, I'm sorry…"
"There's no need to apologize. Whether they felt nervous or not didn't really have much to do with the list. You don't have to take it to heart."
After all, Hifumi and Azusa had already caused trouble before and held certain biases toward the committee, they would have been nervous no matter what.
"Hehe~ Hearing you say that puts my mind at ease." Hasumi continued, "If possible, could you pass along my thanks to those two? I think it might be more appropriate coming from you than from me."
"Of course."
"Then thank you again, Sensei." Hasumi smiled and nodded. "Until next time~"
She turned to leave.
But I couldn't help calling out, "Hasumi."
"Hmm?" She turned back. "Is something wrong?"
Thinking of Hifumi's heartfelt confession yesterday, I said sincerely, "Next time, you should come too. And Ichika as well. It would definitely be even happier that way."
Hasumi looked surprised. "Hmm… me as well? Hehe… I'm rather tied down here at the moment… As for Ichika, perhaps after this busy period passes."
As the soul-like figure of the Justice Task Force, Hasumi carried far too many responsibilities.
I looked into her crimson eyes. "That's alright. Even if not now, someday, it'll be fine to step away for a while, won't it?"
"Mm… I hope so. Honestly, just hearing you say that makes me very happy. It would be wonderful if that day truly comes."
"It will."
Hina believed that once the Eden Treaty was successfully signed, the workload of the Prefect Team would lessen, giving her a chance to step down. Likewise, wouldn't the Justice Task Force, whose duties were similar, also see their burdens reduced?
"Hehe, I'll take that as a good omen." Hasumi smiled. "Now then, was there anything else?"
"I do have a small question. It's about this list."
"Oh? What about it?"
I decided not to beat around the bush. "The items on this list… they're actually things you wanted to do yourself, aren't they?"
The line about "learning to swim" had already given her away.
Hasumi first looked surprised, then admitted it openly. "Hehe, you found out. It's a bit embarrassing… Yes, this was something I wrote down while imagining what I'd like to do when I'm exhausted. In that sense, it really is my own wish list… But as long as everyone could happily enjoy themselves following it, I'm satisfied."
Like Tsurugi, Hasumi was a very gentle person.
No wonder she and Tsurugi were close, their personalities aligned so well.
Given my growing fluency in "Tsurugi-ese," that must mean I'm indirectly compatible with Hasumi too. At this rate, it's probably only a matter of time before she falls for me.
Then again, with my charm, I could probably get along with any student.
"Oh, that reminds me," Hasumi suddenly said with interest, "Did you manage to take good photos? Even if becoming true friends was wishful thinking, at least seeing happy smiles would be nice…"
"Of course. I captured some wonderful moments."
I placed the prepared photos on the desk.
"Thank you very much. Let me see… Oh? There are more than I expected."
She murmured as she examined the commemorative photos, then her pupils contracted slightly. "This is…"
"I don't think it was wishful thinking," I said softly. "The wish list was properly fulfilled."
After a moment of contemplation, the girl who had entrusted her difficult wishes to others with kindness looked at the photos with each one filled with radiant smiles. Gradually, a warm smile spread across her own face.
"…Hehe, I see."
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SAUCE