She agreed to Sakura Mai's request.
Su Yuzu and Sakura Mai settled on it — tomorrow morning, she would accompany her on a visit to the Sakura family.
Truth be told, the matter wasn't actually as simple as all that.
The Sakura family, just like the Soga clan, was one of the great houses with deep-rooted influence within the Tokyo metropolitan area.
The Sakura family's old master — who had long since withdrawn from worldly affairs — was, moreover, one of the very few Sixth Sequence overlords in the Tokyo metropolitan area.
Soga Yura and Su Yuzu had only just finished their coming-of-age ceremony, and they were already choosing to pay a visit to the Sakura family — and a visit to the Sakura family's old master, no less.
For quite a number of people within the Tokyo metropolitan area, this was a rather alarming signal.
Even more alarming than the marriage alliance once forged between the two houses.
Soga Yura and Su Yuzu had grown far too close to Sakura Mai.
Su Yuzu, of course, wouldn't trouble herself over that kind of thing; and as for Soga Yura — though she had a thousand and one misgivings — those misgivings... in front of Yuzu, amounted to absolutely nothing.
After lunch, she kept Soga Yura and Sakura Mai company strolling the entire afternoon down the commercial street within Imperial Capital University.
Once she'd tapped confirm on [Operator Development], Su Yuzu boarded the train to return to Keigunen Private Academy.
Originally, Sakura Mai had wanted to drive Su Yuzu back herself.
Sakura Mai, a few years older than both Soga Yura and Su Yuzu, had obtained her driver's license quite early on.
But... it hadn't been very long since Yuzu had upgraded 「Primary Combat Records」 into 「Intermediate Combat Records」.
Lady Fate's Heavy Blow — even the holder of the 「Sword of Will」 found it more than a little hard to withstand.
The words on the verge of leaving her lips had all turned into whimpers.
All Sakura Mai could do was mask her own unease and help support Soga Yura back to the dormitory to rest.
To be honest... Sakura Mai had already begun, faintly, to sense it. That deity's blessings were, in some manner or other, connected to Sister Yuzu.
Almost every time — only when she was being affectionate with Sister Yuzu, or else when parting ways with Sister Yuzu — would that deity descend a blessing.
And what's more... his moods were always wildly capricious.
He would always wrap up this kind of sweet gift like a bomb engineered to shatter a girl's defenses in an instant, and would often deliberately pick — right in front of Sister Yuzu — the most awkward... the moment when she could least afford to embarrass herself, to send down a blessing.
Or else... he would launch a sudden ambush in the very instant Sister Yuzu was about to leave.
Every single time, Sakura Mai had to summon every ounce of strength to keep herself in check — to prevent the moments when she couldn't help but let little whimpers slip out under this blessing... from drawing Sister Yuzu's attention and making Sister Yuzu worry.
And she often had to also prop up Soga Yura, who was enduring the heavy blow right alongside her.
[Anxiously,] all Sakura Mai could do was support Soga Yura, watching Su Yuzu — who had turned back, concern showing on her face — and waving her hand in farewell toward the girl.
Watching the girl board the train.
"Lady Fate truly does favor Sister Yuzu, doesn't she..." After biting her lip and softly whimpering for a moment, Sakura Mai glanced at Soga Yura beside her, and said it with a thoroughly complicated expression.
Soga Yura simply stared blankly at the departing train, and at the Yuzu pressed up against the train's window seat, waving farewell — and nodded her little head along in agreement.
Su Yuzu watched the platform gradually shrink and slip behind obstructions in her field of view, then slowly settled down into her seat.
Outside the train window, the scenery flew past.
Su Yuzu could see the sun slowly setting.
The distant sky had already begun to take on a nearly resplendent shade of orange.
By the time Su Yuzu returned to Keigunen Private Academy, even the first-year students — the ones with the heaviest course load — had already been let out of class.
All the way there, she tactfully declined invitations from the girls who wanted to share dinner with her — along with any other requests, such as leaving her signature on their forearms or their thighs — at most just snapping a group photo with a few of them.
Su Yuzu arrived in front of the Healing-type academic building.
She glanced at the time.
The delays along the way had been a bit too long; she might already be running late.
She had come to inform the little rabbit about the operation three days from now.
For this academic exchange with Imperial Capital University, the students Keigunen Private Academy had selected to dispatch were Yuzu — serving as the main combat strength — and the increasingly less-than-prim Healing-type Esper, Saotome Yukina.
Compared to notifying the little rabbit directly by phone or by email, Su Yuzu much preferred making a trip in person to find the little rabbit.
Not to mention... it gave her an opportunity to check in along the way.
You see, every single 「Combat Records」 was, for Su Yuzu, a rare and very real boost in combat strength.
So long as time permitted and the situation wasn't quite like Yamabuki Nanako's loli body type — which she found rather criminal — Su Yuzu would never let a single 「Combat Records」 slip through her fingers.
What's more, every time she came looking for the little rabbit, it was practically guaranteed — bundled in like a package deal — that she'd snag Lyudmila too.
How could Su Yuzu possibly waste such a perfectly upright and aboveboard excuse to come find the little rabbit?
She was preparing to call and ask the little rabbit where she was at that moment.
Just at this point...
"Senpai!!!" Saotome Yukina's bubbly voice suddenly came ringing out from inside the Healing-type academic building.
Su Yuzu watched as the little rabbit, her face beaming with excitement, came bounding and bouncing all the way out of the academic building at a small jog — then latched directly onto one of Su Yuzu's arms, as though intent on plunging Su Yuzu's arm right into a soft little rabbit-bosom.
"Senpai~~~"
Su Yuzu gently stroked Saotome Yukina's little head, and then smoothed down the cheerfully swaying ahoge atop the girl's brow.
Then she lifted her gaze and looked off in the direction of the academic building.
Sure enough, just as Su Yuzu had anticipated.
Biting her lip, her whole face twisted up... yet forced to put on a perfectly normal appearance in front of her friend, the Saintess came pacing slowly out of the academic building.
Honestly, the kind of expression the immaculate Saintess was wearing really was just too provoking.
There was always this illusion that some weakness had been seized by Su Yuzu and was being used to coerce her — Lady Saintess, ah... you wouldn't want your roommate to know either, would you...
"Student Lyudmila~" Su Yuzu smiled at Lyudmila, and Lyudmila could only return the smile in kind.
But... Su Yuzu could not help noticing... beneath that flowing, soft white long dress of Lyudmila's, the toes of the girl's feet — clad in Roman sandals — had already curled tightly inward, the arches of her feet hunching and curling like a drawn bow.
"Really now... she's making it look as if I'm some sort of villain."
Thinking this, Su Yuzu skillfully swiped open the [Operator Development] panel, and then — over Lyudmila, whose mood had already shifted into something visibly nervous — tapped down on 「Intermediate Combat Records」.
Confirm.
The Saintess's stance — at first holding her schoolbag at her side — instantly shifted to clutching it close, her embrace tightening around it.
That pair of brilliant golden eyes... in a single instant seemed to grow dazed and helpless.
Lyudmila, drawing on every ounce of strength she had, could at best — in front of her friend — manage to preserve her original persona as much as possible.
And at the very same moment——
Beep, beep, beep, beep... inside the Laboratory, an alarm suddenly began to blare.
____
________________________________________
🌸 Help Love Bloom!
Our girls need a little push... and you can help!
💖 Gift for Everyone: Once we hit 50 Powerstones, I'll release +1 bonus chapter to warm your hearts.
🚀 Community Reward: If we reach 20 supporting members, we'll have a +5 chapter marathon across all stories! The romance won't stop.
👻 Come to our secret corner: Search for GirlsLove on (P). You know that's where the magic happens... 😉