From the next day, two first-year students were absent.
One of them was sentenced to indefinite house arrest punishment, and that was Shizuno.
The other person was Leshya who was staying in bed in her apartment, her wounds weren’t healing after her she had fought against Shizuno.
A 40 year-old apartment. With only a single room on the first floor.
A simple bed with a frame made of pipes placed against its will in the tatami mat room.
Leshya was suffering, looking upward on top of it.
The frostbite of her whole body ached.
The direct damage was reduced with Taimatsuu. She was taking care of her health using Naikatsutsuu to enhance the healing capabilities of her body now, but Shizuno’s ice Dark Art affected Leshya adversely like a disease.
Furthermore, that wasn’t the only source of her pain.
『Are you listening, Leshya!?』
A black cat that intruded into the room sat close to one of her ears and raised a thick voice made by the vocal cords that made it grate.
It raged with a human-looking expression and continued yelling in Russian.
『Failures done by us won’t be forgiven! Do you understand me? Or do I have to say it again? <Her Highness Lightning Empress> Vasilisa Yurievna will never forgive our mistake!』
Despite that, Leshya wanted to concentrate on Naikatsutsuu and rest at ease.
The black cat yelled all that it liked in a way that anyone from the Russian Division would understand.
『… I know that already, Kondrat』
『No, you don’t! If you knew that already, then you wouldn’t be acting so leisurely! You were badly damaged by a normal student, but if that one were Haimura, he also would have ended up seeing your cursed sword! Haimura is Sir Edward’s favorite, no? In the unlikely event that he gets information of the cursed sword from Sir, then Leshya being “man-eater” would end up being revealed. While this happens, the Japanese Division may have a plan to making progress to defeat you completely with all their strength!』
『… however, I think that’s something I could do nothing about』
『Certainly, it was beyond our calculations that Urushibara had hidden an ability of that level. To think she attacked you all of a sudden, it was surprising that she was also the owner of an extreme thought. I felt the same as you, so I sympathize with you even when you drew the cursed sword. That was inevitable, there was nothing else that could be done』
『… then, what wasn’t a good thing? 』
『That you didn’t kill Urushibara! I know that there was that teacher called Tanaka. But if you sealed their mouths, then there was absolutely no chance that your identity would be revealed』
『… but isn’t she the favorite of Haimura Moroha? … If I kill such person, wouldn’t then an impediment to the important condition of the plan, “to gain his trust”, end up emerging? 』
『The priority is other! Hiding your real identity is something that should be obvious!』
The black cat yelled in a rough voice.
『I would have fabricated killers of Urushibara and others as many as you like! I would have summoned suitable persons from Russia and made them behave as the culprits! You were really unsatisfactory, you took the initiative and retaliated, you even thought of a plan to stir the goodwill of Haimura by doing everything by yourself!』
『… I couldn’t think that the scenario would go to that extent in that situation』
『That’s why I’m telling you, you were imprudent! I’m reprimanding you for being careless!』
Leshya continued being scolded as much as the black cat wanted until she finally lost the will to refute.
Kondrat was a tactician that laid out various schemes every day as the fount of knowledge of Lightning Empress.
Compared to him, Leshya was nothing but a simple knife.
Her job was to erase all emotion for the sake of her little brother’s happiness and to kill the target just as she was told.*
*TN: Eliminate all emotion was originally written as “kill her heart” in Japanese.
The difference was that she was being conscious about it and that her understanding especially about the「it can’t be helped」differed.
『For the sake of whom do you think that I’m assisting you? Count on me for a little, you know?』
『… I made a mistake』
『If you get it then reflect on it! And also, heal that wound doubly faster. It hasn’t become a trend that demands urgency for it, but depending on the attitude of the Japanese side, it’s absolute necessary to consider a decisive short battle with Haimura』
『… I get it』
『Even you want to make this mission a success, right? You want to live happily with your little brother, don’t you?』
『… I said that I get it already. Please… don’t reproach me anymore. I’m doing my best too…. That’s true… believe me…』
Leshya supplicated while enduring the pain of her heart and the pain of her whole body.
At such time, and this without any kind of exaggeration, she wished to die.
But when she thought about her little brother, she couldn’t do that.
Leshya had to continue living in pain and killing in pain for eternity.
『If that’s what you have properly resolved, then it’s fine. I went a little too far as well』
The black cat dropped the tone of its voice as if feeling satisfied.
『With everything that has happened, you haven’t eaten anything since yesterday, I assume? This country is full of home delivery, so is there anything you want?』
『… I’m fine. With this pain, I don’t have appetite』
『But――』
The black cat rebutted, but Leshya put her index finger on her lips.
She muttered with a low voice while bearing the pain that tormented her the moment she moved.
『I sense that someone is coming』
A cheap-looking chime sounded the very same moment when the black cat made its body stiffen in surprise.
Who’s that?
No way, is it an assassin who really came to attack “man-eater”?
Was it an attack done by the Japanese Division?
Leshya tried to get up to hide herself but she failed. The pain her whole body had was terrible. It was heavy. Strength didn’t come at all. She felt that the symptoms worsened rapidly even when using Naikatsutsuu. At that moment, she blamed herself that her prana was C-Rank. She wanted to die. But she couldn’t.
When she crouched, writhing in pain, the black cat meowed and meowed with a worried-sounding tone. Her eyes connected with its round and cute eyes. Kondrat seemed he「had to leave」already.
『This is dangerous』
She pointed towards the opened window facing the back of the building with trembling fingers.
The black cat guessed the meaning of it and ran away.
However――
A shadow appeared by the window all of a sudden.
And also from the entrance side? Is this a pincer attack…!?
Leshya immediately stretched her hand to the ID Tag near her pillow──
– Hey, Moroha. We can get in from here.
– Don’t you know that peeking through the window is a violation of privacy?
──She got exhausted and fell prostrated.
It was Ranjou Satsuki who stood by the window. Since there was no answer even when the chime sounded, she got tired of waiting and headed to the back of the building. She appealed for her existence and waved her hand like a puppy waving its tail.
There was another voice, it was Moroha’s voice.
(Don’t frighten me…)
Leshya prompted Satsuki to get inside without having her sneak a look at her room like that while not revealing the dissatisfaction in her mind.
She threw herself down, looking upward and feeling relieved that this wasn’t an attack.
Then, she suddenly noticed.
(Why is she and Haimura Moroha in my…?)
“That” was enough to deserve such amazement.
– Sorry for the intrusion!
Satsuki opened the front door energetically and Moroha came next.
They were wearing the academy uniforms and carried supermarket shopping bags in their hands.
They immediately went into the kitchen, the interior was a typical 1DK building structure with a 6 tatami mat room in the back.*
*TN: 1DK means an apartment with 1 room, dining and kitchen space. They usually have between 25-sqm and 30-sqm of floor space.
Satsuki spotted the refrigerator on the left-hand side of the entrance,
– Can I borrow it, Leshya?
– … I don’t mind.
She opened it and stored the contents of the shopping bags there.
– Look at this, it doesn’t surprise me! You just have bentos of convenience stores in here.
-Don’t say it out loud.
– There are not enough kitchen utensils or tableware… she looked like the type that can’t cook, so having prepared a lot of things was the right thing, huh?
– The discerning eyes of Satsuki have me admired. So umm, I’m sorry, we are in your hands.
– Isn’t that right? Isn’t it? Fuuu fuu fuu fuu.
Moroha also left the shopping bags to Satsuki and went to the 6 tatami mat room where Leshya was.
A cold room where no personal effects could be seen satisfactorily.
Moroha found it similar to his own room (Though now it has become considerably colorful thanks to the belongings that my roommate has).
It was still hot at this hour of the day. There was no air conditioning, so he opened the window to enjoy the cool breeze.
As he did so, there were two things that strangely called his attention.
There was a high-end laptop on the worn-out tea table and the bed with a frame made of pipes forcibly placed in the Japanese-style room.
Leshya was lying down over there, stretching out her limbs. Bare hands and feet were extending from the tank top and the leggings. She had a casual appearance, but even at a time like that she didn’t take off the pendant with the black gem.
Both her breath and complexion were bad, she seemed to be suffering badly.
He was worried because she was absent from school, so it was a good idea to come.
– Why have you come to my apartment, Haimura Moroha?
– I’m sorry! Shizuno did a bad thing yesterday.
Moroha kneeled to the side of the bed and begged, facing Leshya.
– I’m not saying that you have to forgive her. But she promised that she will never do it again and I was hoping you to let me treat your wounds as an apology at least. And I thought that you wouldn’t be able to have some food, so I brought a remarkable chef with me.
– A brilliant chef!
Satsuki did a V sign while storing the foodstuff in the refrigerator.
– Sounds like an odd conversation to me. That the ones coming to atone for it are you and her and not Urushibara Shizuno herself.
– Now, now, don’t tell me a hard thing like that.
Moroha came near Leshya by kneeling, casted his eyes off her and took her left arm.
The skin had its color changed everywhere by the frostbite and there were also several hideously burned spots that looked like burns.
They didn’t get to be fatal wounds thanks to Naikatsutsuu, but the healing gave an unsatisfactory feeling.
The eyes of Moroha that saw that understood so.
An ominous aura like a shadow was coiled up around Leshya’s body, affecting her adversely.
– A curse addition arrangement of a Dark Art of Ice? Shizuno was very heartless…
It was impossible for her to recover herself unless she was a strong Shirogane with a particular prana like, for example, Isurugi Jin and Sophia.
– This will tickle a bit, but be patient, alright?
Moroha held the arm of Leshya with his left hand and traced the wounds with his right index finger.
– Write――
A bluish-white line was drawn on the skin of Leshya in accordance with the trajectory that the index finger ran over it.
And so, Moroha put into written form ancient magic characters.
Leshya let leak a particular tranquil long breath.
Her facial expression changed, like she was comforted.
Dark Art of Ancestral Arts, Healing the Scars.
「It will take time because the curse gets in the way」, the diagnosis of Moroha said it would take 5 days. 「Since I’ll bear the responsibility of healing you, will you manage to forgive her?」
Moroha put a smile on his face while Leshya alternately looked at her arms receiving treatment.
And then, it was difficult to hear her, like she was being apologetic,
– I want you to tell me something, if it’s not confidential. Is this your “The Origin”?
– Haha, this isn’t a grandiose thing like that. Isn’t it possible for anyone who is a Kuroma to use it?
When told that it was a basic first-rank Dark Art, Leshya said with a fleeting voice while looking something at a distance with gloomy eyes.
– Is that so? It was my first time seeing it. There were lots of Kuromas in Russia, but not a single one of them used such a Dark Art.
Moroha was speechless because of the cruel organization and the cold-hearted human relations that were worse than he expected.
(Leshya could never trust in nobody but in her young brother…)
He hesitated, it was too sad to say it.
He remained in silence for a while and concentrated on Healing the Scars.
– … thank you.
Leshya thanked him and nodded.
She heard the sound of the kitchen knife of Satsuki, who borrowed the kitchen, hitting the cutting board.
The rhythm of the mincing mixed with her humming became a pleasant music.
The movements of Moroha’s index finger that traced the wounds also unwittingly matched such rhythm.
Leshya closed her eyes, relaxed her body and received the treatment.
She yielded herself to him.
The look in her eyes that was always grim softened as if getting tired of it.
She’s a beautiful girl, isn’t she? Moroha thought once again.
The worn-out and tasteless room of Leshya was now full of brightness and in a tender atmosphere.
– Hey, hey, Nii-samaaa.
Satsuki, who was using the kitchen knife, gave a shout to him while she was pretending not to see.
Can I add soy sauce to bring out the flavor of the risotto?
– That sounds tasty, but let’s ask Leshya what she likes, alright?
To whom is she cooking for? Moroha smiled wryly.
– Is rice al dente fine? Or should I go with what Nii-sama likes, like a zousui*?
*TN: rice gruel containing vegetables, fish, etcetera seasoned with miso or soy sauce.
– I told you, don’t go with what I like, but with what Leshya likes.
Moroha put his eyes back on Leshya and asked her which one was better.
Then, and before he became aware of it, Leshya was opening her eyes, looking at them.
– I was wondering, is she really your younger sister?
She probably wondered so when listening to his exchange with Satsuki.
As she remembered about it again,
– She self-proclaimed as that when we met for the first time. However, your surnames are different, and you told me the other day that you do have relatives because you have your uncles.
The doubt of Leshya was reasonable.
– Simply speaking, Satsuki and I were siblings in our previous life.
Moroha explained and Leshya put a grim look in her eyes.
And with a doubtful-looking gaze,
– Even though I thought you weren’t the type of person that makes lies.
She criticized him as if sulking a little.
– I didn’t lie.
– I can’t believe that such a miracle actually exists in this world.
– I give up…
Moroha had a really troubled face because he didn’t have the means to prove it.
Leshya, who stared at such facial expression for a while,
– I understand. I believe in your words. When carefully thinking about it, I realized that you gain nothing from making such lies.
She slowly relaxed her gaze as if apologizing,
– Haha, certainly there’s no benefit to get from that.
Moroha laughed, the expression of his eyes became less tense.
– I get that it’s hard to believe it so unexpectedly. I was also surprised when I enrolled, it was impossible to believe we could meet again.
The scene of the entrance ceremony crossed his mind.
He misunderstood that Satsuki would kiss him but instead he received a head-butt abruptly――he clearly remembered so even now, it was strange to think back upon that.
– Yeah, I think the same. Not only Satsuki, Shizuno is also an irreplaceable person for me. I was able to meet fortuitously with them in addition to Maaya and the senpais of Strikers because I came to this academy. How could that happen when there are billions of people? Even if you say it’s not a miracle, aren’t these great encounters in themselves very precious and very wonderful things?
The eyes of Leshya looked up at Moroha, they were slightly narrowed.
Just like looking up at a dazzling thing.
– I also wondered what was going to happen at first, but now I’m glad that I’ve enrolled in Akane Academy. I made a lot of friends and companions and some of them were part of my family. While that is true, it doesn’t mean that my feelings that consider my aunt and her family important will grow weak. Not at all. The only thing that will increase is pure rejoice. Don’t you think so too?
Leshya turned her neck to the left and right nervously to the words of Moroha.
It wasn’t a brisk gesture for a woman, but a feminine one.
(Well, it’s not something that she’ll understand when explained with words like these)
Moroha, who erred, scratched his head and said nothing else.
Leshya was a sharp girl, like the knife of a naked drawn sword.
It didn’t especially mean that she would slash at random, hurting the ones around her.
But she was revealing a stabbing watchfulness towards everyone, she was always like that, it made her look unhappy and also like she never felt at ease.
I wish Akane Academy becomes the scabbard of Leshya――
Moroha stopped the treatment briefly and strongly held one of the hands of Leshya with both hands.
– I’ll do my best so you can go to school quickly.
He smiled sweetly at her.
Leshya tried grasping back the hands of Moroha while looking at him with serene eyes but she hesitated and stopped over and over again.
Moroha didn’t rush her at all.
– Gee〜z. You came to treat her, don’t you? Nii-sama is being negligent, so stop that and continue right now!!
Satsuki, who was in the middle of cooking, stomped the ground while reprimanding him.
– You have a kitchen knife in hand, so don’t be violent.
-Moroha, resume the treatment ASAP! Leshya is in pain, you know!?
– Yeah. You’re right, sorry.
The kitchen knife was thrust at him by Satsuki who had a serious face. With that, Moroha resumed Healing the Scars while scratching his head.
He continued curing her with the uncomfortable feeling that he was being monitored with reproachful eyes from time to time after that.
Leshya gave the minimal help, but she looked like she was feeling good.
Eventually, a good smell from the kitchen came to where they were.
Leshya made her nose twitch, and that was a bit cute.
– I kept you waiting! This is good for digestion and the nutrients are right on the mark! Satsuki-chan’s special risotto is ready!
Satsuki carried servings for three people on a tray in high and proud spirits.
She took the laptop and placed it away from the low dining table that had unsteady legs and put two plates on it, and the other――
– Leshya, can you get up? If you can’t, will you let me feed you?
– Hold on a minuteeeeeee!
As if she was going to let her be fed by Moroha, Satsuki decided that she was going to make Leshya eat it.
She took a spoon and held it out.
Leshya, who stared at that sort of thing, began to suspect them.
– I thought that you certainly disliked me.
– Maybe! But the moment a companion is hurt, the story is different. Being kind to others is something natural, don’t you think?
– … I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s natural.
– Oh, right. But in Japan it’s natural, you see. When in Rome, do as the Romans do, right?
*TN: She says: If you got in a hometown, then do what they do in that hometown.
Satsuki thrust the spoon at her again with a blunt attitude.
Leshya hesitated for a little, but she put the spoon in her mouth as if readying herself,
– It’s hooooot!!
Together with that, she covered her mouth, writhing in pain.
– S-s-s-s-s-s-so―――rry!
– You really hate me. This was an elaborate harassment.
– I never thought about something like that!
Satsuki explained, but Leshya didn’t hear her.
She put a pessimistic look in her eyes, dropped her eyes to the opposite side and let her shoulders be cladded in a cloud of gloomy prana,
– I’m depressed. I’m about to die.
She whispered in her natural tone of voice.
It seemed this sudden change of Leshya certainly surprised Satsuki because she now had teary eyes.
– I said that I’m sorry! Forgive meeeee!
She took a spoon again and blew on it to cool it down with utmost effort.
She soothed and humored Leshya who turned a gaze of suspicion while lying down and gallantly made her taste it this time.
– What did you do in the end?
Moroha spouted out while putting his palms together, giving his thanks for the food.
It was a lightly seasoned risotto soup that had summer vegetables and chicken in it.
The chicken was carefully fried with olive oil, leaving its exterior crunchy. With each bite they gave, the savory and healthy meat soup overflowed in their mouths. The eggplant that absorbed the oil nicely seemed to melt, the tomato refreshed their mouths, the bitterness of the green pepper tightened the taste, and together with how unripe it was, it made them feel as if it was cleaning their bodies from head to foot. The rice was moderately sodden to be able to be swallowed smoothly to then reach the stomach.
It was a splendid execution.
It was Sophia the other day, and it was Moroha today, they just relied on Satsuki if they were troubled with cooking, but she was incredibly reliable, she had no rivals in that matter.
It was difficult to ask her a favor because it was about Leshya, but when he explained the situation to her, she accepted, giving a favorable immediate reply.
(I may have been blessed for having a skilled「little sister」)
Moroha, who was watching Satsuki feeding Leshya diligently, thought so while seeping out the sweat.
The Saviors, all of them, had strange dreams.
The frequency varied depending on the individual, but they were in such a way where they relived events of their previous lives.
Leshya also had those strange dreams.
And not only the events of her previous life, but other ones too.
Although it wasn’t frequent, this dream she had happened once every few months.
In that dream, Leshya never stopped hearing the sound of a snow storm.
Her field of vision was covered in a pitch-black darkness, moreover she couldn’t even move in the slightest.
She was cold, distressed… and alone.
Leshya was always sobbing.
As long as I’m here, I’ll keep screaming to the limits of my voice.
In the end, my body is deprived of heat and becomes completely chilled, then my spirit is deprived of hope and loses motivation, then when it wouldn’t be strange to die at any moment──I’m barely saved.
Somehow or other, it was practically a narrow escape from death.
A haggard old woman picked me up.
In the night of a snow storm, Leshya, a newborn baby, was abandoned in front of an orphanage as if it wasn’t a problem if she were to die.
She shouldn’t have memories before reaching an understanding of what was going on around herself.
Since she was just born, her discernment shouldn’t be developed sufficiently.
Then how did she remember it and had that dream even now?
It had been a long time since she had that strange dream.
When she opened her eyes, she saw the ceiling of her apartment, she looked up at it absent-mindedly, her thinking hadn’t settled yet.
Was this reality? Or was she still dreaming? The boundaries were vague… she couldn’t recover very well from the silent confusion.
After all, the reality was no different from the dream when she was a baby.
The world was just an indifferent thing for Leshya.
When she was having that terrible feeling──she suddenly realized.
That her right hand was enveloped by a very warm feeling.
She only moved her eyes to that direction.
Moroha.
He was there, he kept holding her right hand this whole time.
And she remembered the situation.
She ate the dinner that Satsuki had prepared, she was treated by Moroha a second time and ended up falling asleep just like that.
– It’s only 21:00, but you can continue sleeping, alright?
Moroha casually wiped the eyes of Leshya with his index finger.
It appeared that she ended up crying again while having that scary dream.
– What happened to Ranjou Satsuki?
– She came back earlier. She got annoyed when I said I was going to stay a little longer, but she calmed somehow.
Moroha shrugged his shoulders, looking surprised.
– I’ll return in a little bit. So I’ll watch over you until then. Now continue sleeping.
When he told her so, Leshya felt relieved for some reason.
At that moment, there was neither caution nor suspicion in her heart.
She closed her eyes obediently.
– I’ll come tomorrow. And I’ll bring another person with me this time. And so on.
Believing those words and nodding without distrust, Leshya fell asleep.
She didn’t have more scary dreams.
Next day was Wednesday. In the evening.
As promised, Moroha came again to cure her after school.
It wasn’t Satsuki who came with him but an adorable little child that was like an angel.
She introduced herself as “Maaya”.
When Moroha wasn’t next to her, she stealthily asked her “what was her relationship with him”, and she secretly whispered into her ear.
– I am the required person for the future harem nanodesu.
That was too advanced to be understood by Leshya.
But this small girl was a pretty good Kuroma, Moroha and her where the ones in charge of curing her.
She was amiable and got along even with the poor talker Leshya.
She was young, but she was immensely smart, and when she saw that Leshya was sweating a lot, she dried her body with a wringed wet towel.
During that time, Moroha prepared dinner. A dish of fried pork and vegetables to prevent summer heat fatigue.
– I prepared a larger portion today. Heat it up in the microwave oven so you can have it for lunch tomorrow.
Leaving those words with her, Moroha and Maya returned home.
On Thursday, he came with a female senpai that looked like a handsome boy.
– Since I’ll be devoting myself to cure her, can I ask Momo-senpai to prepare dinner?
– Le-leave it to me.
Momo-senpai said so, looking enthusiastic about it and stood in the kitchen.
However, her cooking skills where to the extent of a novice. It could be said that even Leshya would be better at handling a kitchen knife.
Her fingers turned blue and red cutting with the kitchen knife, the pot began to spill; she had a look of being at the limit on her face already.
But still, it was transmitted to him that she was doing her best effort, that was both admirable and cute.
What she cooked was a blackened gyudon, and served it, looking fearful.*
*TN: A dish consisting of a bowl of rice topped with beef and onions.
– The looks of it is rather unique but it tastes good.
– I find it tasty too.
When she praised her with Moroha,
– Unique you say!?
Momo-senpai shouted, making her cheeks go red like apples.
But she didn’t seem to be herself, because she peeked at them by covering and showing her happy-looking face.
That was charming.
When she looked at her, she somehow was a person who warmed her heart.
Leshya was surprised that such person also existed in this world.
Satsuki came with him again on Friday.
– Leshya’s been studying abroad for a week! So I think that she’s missing Russian food. And so I practiced doing borscht!*
*TN: Eastern European and Russian soup usually made with beefs.
Satsuki put a hand on her waist and bragged about it.
There were no lies in her words when she said she had practiced, she prepared a well done borscht and treated them to it.
– How is it? I’m not so confident about it, but does it have the taste of your hometown?
Satsuki asked with upturned eyes while feeding her again.
Leshya put the spoon that was presented to her in her mouth, tasted it well and shook her head in denial.
– Seriously!? It doesn’t make you feel nostalgic at all…?
The upturned eyes of Satsuki became teary, but Leshya shook her head in denial once again.
– That’s not it. I only ate fast food in Russia.
It had nothing to do with cooking something slowly like borscht, the time and effort when cooking were unrelated to that.
Fast food had the upper hand there, but Satsuki’s home cooking was way more delicious.
– Phew! Then eat a lot, alright? If you don’t get well faster, then how am I going to let you keep borrowing Nii-sama?
Satsuki put an evil smile on her whole face as she made her eat it diligently.
– You sure aren’t an honest girl, you know…
Moroha smiled wryly looking at her.
– Okay then, while I’m feeding Leshya, is it fine if Moroha feeds me, or is it a no?
– Sure, sure.
Moroha held the dish of Satsuki and took a spoon while trying not to burst into laughter.
– Can you cool it down properly please?
– Are you a child or something?
He cooled it down while complaining and put it into her mouth.
– Hmmm 
it’s so good even if I say so myself! Foo foo foo foo.
– Wait, you haven’t tasted it…? Well, it’s not a joke that it tastes good. Thank you.
– Fuuh, I’m glad that I came today because I was able to be fed by Moroha as a reward.
Leshya felt strange looking at the intimate exchange of the two.
(In the end, the words of Haimura Moroha weren’t a lie. These two were siblings in their previous life)
While she felt so,
(But I wonder if they look more like a pair of lovers…)
That sense of distance and their relationship, she didn’t get them well.
But it didn’t mean she felt displeasured looking at them. It was rather the opposite.
It wasn’t because of a reason, but rather because of impulse that she even ended up feeling that she wanted to be part of that circle.
She looked at them, making her eyes go narrow for a while──then came to her senses and shuddered.
(What am I thinking!? Haimura Moroha is my assassination target, and yet I…!)
She succumbed to her guilty conscience.
But there was also a feeling of protest even bigger towards her self-admonition that was secured in a corner of his heart.
It was the first time in her life that she embraced this description, this complicated and mysterious emotion.
Saturday. Moroha brought a tall, brown-skinned senpai with him.
The woman named Sophia who had been studying abroad from the American Division.
Even Leshya, who didn’t get too much information, saw beforehand that she was shown in a list beforehand as a「person requiring special attention」.
The decision of Kondrat was to not incite other divisions that were holding back behind him so that other overseas students had nothing to do with them.
Leshya thought of trying being obedient today, but Sophia barged in her apartment without her being prepared for it, then she looked into the room and raised a shout of joy.
– Wow! Such a simple room we have here. I don’t dislike rooms like this.
She ended up speaking bluntly without being afraid of what others may think, maybe it was typical of Americans.
In fact, didn’t she have a rough personality?
– Sophie-senpai… I asked you to buy a pancake mix, didn’t I?
Moroha, who was storing in the refrigerator the contents of the shopping bags that she brought, sighed.
– … why did you buy okonomiyaki flour?
He lamented how she could make a mistake like that.
– If pancakes aren’t a possibility, then we should eat okonomiyaki.
– We didn’t buy ingredients or sauce for it. We only have syrup and jam. Because Sophie-senpai said we don’t need a recipe for that.
Moroha closed the door of the refrigerator, feeling tired.
– If it were ordinary flour at least… anyway, I’ll go buy pancake mix.
He went out to buy those things while muttering.
– My mistake.
Sophia shrugged her shoulders exaggeratedly.
Leshya was puzzled because she was left behind with an unpleasant American who, to make it worse, was an unknown person.
Despite that, Sophia showed her white teeth and laughed,
– Hey, Elena. We both are overseas students, so I hope to get along with you.
She asked for a handshake with her big hand, turning it towards Leshya who was lying on the bed.
After she hesitated for a while, Leshya――shook her hand――while being heavily cautious.
Her wounds were almost healed thanks to the treatment of Moroha. So now she didn’t feel pain, just a bit heavy when she moved her body.
Because she seemed to thought of trying to go to the school today somehow, she was strongly told by Moroha the following last night:「Since it’s weekend, you should take care of your health and wait and see」, so she just obeyed him.
– Did you get used to Japan already?
Sophia talked to her without stopping, her nature didn’t allow her to be calm.
– No. not yet.
– But do you also think that Japan is a nice country?
– ……Yes.
– I’ve been enjoying Japan too much, to the point that I thought of getting in the Japanese Division after graduation.
Sophia said that incredibly risky statement quite indifferently.
Leshya was shocked.
Not because she was worried about Sophia’s political point of view.
– How is it compared with Russia? I suggest you to give it a thought as well.
But because the words of Sophia that she was hearing――were tempting, enticing, alluring and seductive.
She ended up listening to them.
Reality was nothing but a cold hell for Leshya.
Japan was a warm paradise from Leshya’s perspective.
A country with no sense of reality, like a dream.
But… what if Leshya decided to live in Japan?
If the dream became a reality and her days of hell turned into days of paradise..?
Instead of killing Moroha, and be always with him…,
– I can’t betray Russia!
When she became aware of it, Leshya answered when she was being absorbed in it.
– Don’t say something exaggerated like betrayal. I want you to consider it more relaxed.
– I can’t betray my little brother!
She was tormented by her feelings of guilt because she was about to yield to temptation. Her heart roared violently to the point of almost exploding.
– Sorry. I got too carried away. But if you come to like even more this country and come to like even more the people of the school, then I have no doubt you’ll want to live in Japan. Yeah, it will happen at this rate! I’m predicting it already.
Sophia winked pompously.
– …
Leshya couldn’t――attempt to object her right away.
The circulation of her blood was getting faster.
She could hear the sound of blood flowing gushingly behind her eardrums.
Sophia was still talking about something, but everything was drowned out.
(“The plan” missed, Kondrat…)
Leshya casted her eyes downward and bit her lips, almost making blood stop flowing to them.
In the plan of Kondrat, Leshya was going to fawn on Haimura Moroha expecting that he would become attached to her, making his sword grow dull; that was the arrangement where she would carry on the assassination.
But in reality, it was the opposite.
Right now, it was Leshya who became attached to Moroha.
Meaning that it would be Leshya whose sword would end up growing dull if she were to stay with him any more than this.
(This plan is a failure…)
It was no longer an option.
If she was going to assassinate him, she had to hurry up.
She couldn’t postpone it any longer.
The evening of September. Leshya hugged her body while trembling in the humid room facing the setting sun.
She kept glaring at the direction of the entrance with grim eyes.
Maybe because she was being ghastly, Sophia just stood stock still as if she couldn’t say anything, and kept staring at Leshya.
– I’m back!
Eventually, the figure of Moroha who returned from shopping appeared at the front door.
– Welcome back.
Leshya got out of the bed and hurriedly met him.
– Hey, it’s good you are in good spirits, but don’t force yourself too much.
– This much is fine for me. If you cure me today, then I think I’ll be completely recovered tomorrow.
– That’s true. I think the same.
– That’s why I have something to ask of you. I want to have a date with you tomorrow.
– To celebrate the recovery of Leshya?
– And to simultaneously give you my thanks.
– Hmmm…. Alright, but where should we go?
Moroha put a hand on his chin and began to think.
Despite of the sudden proposal, there were no signs of going against it at all.
– If that’s the case, then I have the right thing for you.
Sophia, who remained as a spectator in the six tatami room, interjected with a smile.
Two sheets of paper were being grasped in her hand before they became aware of them.
– These are tickets for the leisure park that I received when I helped at the church. I don’t have a boyfriend who will go with me, so I’m giving them to you.
– Are you sure, Sophie-senpai?
– I am. In exchange, I’d like Moroha to accompany me in a private training next time.
– Sure thing. In that case, then I accept without hesitation. Is that okay with you, Leshya?
– If I can enjoy myself with you, then anywhere is fine.
The negotiation was completed.
– Okay then, this is the last treatment for tomorrow, so don’t put resistance, alright?
– Please do so. For the sake of tomorrow.
– I’m going to bake pancakes. And bake and bake.
She laid down on the bed, Moroha sat close to her and Sophia remained in the kitchen.
(This is the last day… of this farce)
Leshya erased all emotion, released the tension from her body and surrendered herself to the treatment.
She was going to defeat Moroha in a flawless condition tomorrow.
She had to defeat him.
From the next day, two first-year students were absent.
One of them was sentenced to indefinite house arrest punishment, and that was Shizuno.
The other person was Leshya who was staying in bed in her apartment, her wounds weren’t healing after her she had fought against Shizuno.
A 40 year-old apartment. With only a single room on the first floor.
A simple bed with a frame made of pipes placed against its will in the tatami mat room.
Leshya was suffering, looking upward on top of it.
The frostbite of her whole body ached.
The direct damage was reduced with Taimatsuu. She was taking care of her health using Naikatsutsuu to enhance the healing capabilities of her body now, but Shizuno’s ice Dark Art affected Leshya adversely like a disease.
Furthermore, that wasn’t the only source of her pain.
『Are you listening, Leshya!?』
A black cat that intruded into the room sat close to one of her ears and raised a thick voice made by the vocal cords that made it grate.
It raged with a human-looking expression and continued yelling in Russian.
『Failures done by us won’t be forgiven! Do you understand me? Or do I have to say it again? <Her Highness Lightning Empress> Vasilisa Yurievna will never forgive our mistake!』
Despite that, Leshya wanted to concentrate on Naikatsutsuu and rest at ease.
The black cat yelled all that it liked in a way that anyone from the Russian Division would understand.
『… I know that already, Kondrat』
『No, you don’t! If you knew that already, then you wouldn’t be acting so leisurely! You were badly damaged by a normal student, but if that one were Haimura, he also would have ended up seeing your cursed sword! Haimura is Sir Edward’s favorite, no? In the unlikely event that he gets information of the cursed sword from Sir, then Leshya being “man-eater” would end up being revealed. While this happens, the Japanese Division may have a plan to making progress to defeat you completely with all their strength!』
『… however, I think that’s something I could do nothing about』
『Certainly, it was beyond our calculations that Urushibara had hidden an ability of that level. To think she attacked you all of a sudden, it was surprising that she was also the owner of an extreme thought. I felt the same as you, so I sympathize with you even when you drew the cursed sword. That was inevitable, there was nothing else that could be done』
『… then, what wasn’t a good thing? 』
『That you didn’t kill Urushibara! I know that there was that teacher called Tanaka. But if you sealed their mouths, then there was absolutely no chance that your identity would be revealed』
『… but isn’t she the favorite of Haimura Moroha? … If I kill such person, wouldn’t then an impediment to the important condition of the plan, “to gain his trust”, end up emerging? 』
『The priority is other! Hiding your real identity is something that should be obvious!』
The black cat yelled in a rough voice.
『I would have fabricated killers of Urushibara and others as many as you like! I would have summoned suitable persons from Russia and made them behave as the culprits! You were really unsatisfactory, you took the initiative and retaliated, you even thought of a plan to stir the goodwill of Haimura by doing everything by yourself!』
『… I couldn’t think that the scenario would go to that extent in that situation』
『That’s why I’m telling you, you were imprudent! I’m reprimanding you for being careless!』
Leshya continued being scolded as much as the black cat wanted until she finally lost the will to refute.
Kondrat was a tactician that laid out various schemes every day as the fount of knowledge of Lightning Empress.
Compared to him, Leshya was nothing but a simple knife.
Her job was to erase all emotion for the sake of her little brother’s happiness and to kill the target just as she was told.*
*TN: Eliminate all emotion was originally written as “kill her heart” in Japanese.
The difference was that she was being conscious about it and that her understanding especially about the「it can’t be helped」differed.
『For the sake of whom do you think that I’m assisting you? Count on me for a little, you know?』
『… I made a mistake』
『If you get it then reflect on it! And also, heal that wound doubly faster. It hasn’t become a trend that demands urgency for it, but depending on the attitude of the Japanese side, it’s absolute necessary to consider a decisive short battle with Haimura』
『… I get it』
『Even you want to make this mission a success, right? You want to live happily with your little brother, don’t you?』
『… I said that I get it already. Please… don’t reproach me anymore. I’m doing my best too…. That’s true… believe me…』
Leshya supplicated while enduring the pain of her heart and the pain of her whole body.
At such time, and this without any kind of exaggeration, she wished to die.
But when she thought about her little brother, she couldn’t do that.
Leshya had to continue living in pain and killing in pain for eternity.
『If that’s what you have properly resolved, then it’s fine. I went a little too far as well』
The black cat dropped the tone of its voice as if feeling satisfied.
『With everything that has happened, you haven’t eaten anything since yesterday, I assume? This country is full of home delivery, so is there anything you want?』
『… I’m fine. With this pain, I don’t have appetite』
『But――』
The black cat rebutted, but Leshya put her index finger on her lips.
She muttered with a low voice while bearing the pain that tormented her the moment she moved.
『I sense that someone is coming』
A cheap-looking chime sounded the very same moment when the black cat made its body stiffen in surprise.
Who’s that?
No way, is it an assassin who really came to attack “man-eater”?
Was it an attack done by the Japanese Division?
Leshya tried to get up to hide herself but she failed. The pain her whole body had was terrible. It was heavy. Strength didn’t come at all. She felt that the symptoms worsened rapidly even when using Naikatsutsuu. At that moment, she blamed herself that her prana was C-Rank. She wanted to die. But she couldn’t.
When she crouched, writhing in pain, the black cat meowed and meowed with a worried-sounding tone. Her eyes connected with its round and cute eyes. Kondrat seemed he「had to leave」already.
『This is dangerous』
She pointed towards the opened window facing the back of the building with trembling fingers.
The black cat guessed the meaning of it and ran away.
However――
A shadow appeared by the window all of a sudden.
And also from the entrance side? Is this a pincer attack…!?
Leshya immediately stretched her hand to the ID Tag near her pillow──
– Hey, Moroha. We can get in from here.
– Don’t you know that peeking through the window is a violation of privacy?
──She got exhausted and fell prostrated.
It was Ranjou Satsuki who stood by the window. Since there was no answer even when the chime sounded, she got tired of waiting and headed to the back of the building. She appealed for her existence and waved her hand like a puppy waving its tail.
There was another voice, it was Moroha’s voice.
(Don’t frighten me…)
Leshya prompted Satsuki to get inside without having her sneak a look at her room like that while not revealing the dissatisfaction in her mind.
She threw herself down, looking upward and feeling relieved that this wasn’t an attack.
Then, she suddenly noticed.
(Why is she and Haimura Moroha in my…?)
“That” was enough to deserve such amazement.
– Sorry for the intrusion!
Satsuki opened the front door energetically and Moroha came next.
They were wearing the academy uniforms and carried supermarket shopping bags in their hands.
They immediately went into the kitchen, the interior was a typical 1DK building structure with a 6 tatami mat room in the back.*
*TN: 1DK means an apartment with 1 room, dining and kitchen space. They usually have between 25-sqm and 30-sqm of floor space.
Satsuki spotted the refrigerator on the left-hand side of the entrance,
– Can I borrow it, Leshya?
– … I don’t mind.
She opened it and stored the contents of the shopping bags there.
– Look at this, it doesn’t surprise me! You just have bentos of convenience stores in here.
-Don’t say it out loud.
– There are not enough kitchen utensils or tableware… she looked like the type that can’t cook, so having prepared a lot of things was the right thing, huh?
– The discerning eyes of Satsuki have me admired. So umm, I’m sorry, we are in your hands.
– Isn’t that right? Isn’t it? Fuuu fuu fuu fuu.
Moroha also left the shopping bags to Satsuki and went to the 6 tatami mat room where Leshya was.
A cold room where no personal effects could be seen satisfactorily.
Moroha found it similar to his own room (Though now it has become considerably colorful thanks to the belongings that my roommate has).
It was still hot at this hour of the day. There was no air conditioning, so he opened the window to enjoy the cool breeze.
As he did so, there were two things that strangely called his attention.
There was a high-end laptop on the worn-out tea table and the bed with a frame made of pipes forcibly placed in the Japanese-style room.
Leshya was lying down over there, stretching out her limbs. Bare hands and feet were extending from the tank top and the leggings. She had a casual appearance, but even at a time like that she didn’t take off the pendant with the black gem.
Both her breath and complexion were bad, she seemed to be suffering badly.
He was worried because she was absent from school, so it was a good idea to come.
– Why have you come to my apartment, Haimura Moroha?
– I’m sorry! Shizuno did a bad thing yesterday.
Moroha kneeled to the side of the bed and begged, facing Leshya.
– I’m not saying that you have to forgive her. But she promised that she will never do it again and I was hoping you to let me treat your wounds as an apology at least. And I thought that you wouldn’t be able to have some food, so I brought a remarkable chef with me.
– A brilliant chef!
Satsuki did a V sign while storing the foodstuff in the refrigerator.
– Sounds like an odd conversation to me. That the ones coming to atone for it are you and her and not Urushibara Shizuno herself.
– Now, now, don’t tell me a hard thing like that.
Moroha came near Leshya by kneeling, casted his eyes off her and took her left arm.
The skin had its color changed everywhere by the frostbite and there were also several hideously burned spots that looked like burns.
They didn’t get to be fatal wounds thanks to Naikatsutsuu, but the healing gave an unsatisfactory feeling.
The eyes of Moroha that saw that understood so.
An ominous aura like a shadow was coiled up around Leshya’s body, affecting her adversely.
– A curse addition arrangement of a Dark Art of Ice? Shizuno was very heartless…
It was impossible for her to recover herself unless she was a strong Shirogane with a particular prana like, for example, Isurugi Jin and Sophia.
– This will tickle a bit, but be patient, alright?
Moroha held the arm of Leshya with his left hand and traced the wounds with his right index finger.
– Write――
A bluish-white line was drawn on the skin of Leshya in accordance with the trajectory that the index finger ran over it.
And so, Moroha put into written form ancient magic characters.
Leshya let leak a particular tranquil long breath.
Her facial expression changed, like she was comforted.
Dark Art of Ancestral Arts, Healing the Scars.
「It will take time because the curse gets in the way」, the diagnosis of Moroha said it would take 5 days. 「Since I’ll bear the responsibility of healing you, will you manage to forgive her?」
Moroha put a smile on his face while Leshya alternately looked at her arms receiving treatment.
And then, it was difficult to hear her, like she was being apologetic,
– I want you to tell me something, if it’s not confidential. Is this your “The Origin”?
– Haha, this isn’t a grandiose thing like that. Isn’t it possible for anyone who is a Kuroma to use it?
When told that it was a basic first-rank Dark Art, Leshya said with a fleeting voice while looking something at a distance with gloomy eyes.
– Is that so? It was my first time seeing it. There were lots of Kuromas in Russia, but not a single one of them used such a Dark Art.
Moroha was speechless because of the cruel organization and the cold-hearted human relations that were worse than he expected.
(Leshya could never trust in nobody but in her young brother…)
He hesitated, it was too sad to say it.
He remained in silence for a while and concentrated on Healing the Scars.
– … thank you.
Leshya thanked him and nodded.
She heard the sound of the kitchen knife of Satsuki, who borrowed the kitchen, hitting the cutting board.
The rhythm of the mincing mixed with her humming became a pleasant music.
The movements of Moroha’s index finger that traced the wounds also unwittingly matched such rhythm.
Leshya closed her eyes, relaxed her body and received the treatment.
She yielded herself to him.
The look in her eyes that was always grim softened as if getting tired of it.
She’s a beautiful girl, isn’t she? Moroha thought once again.
The worn-out and tasteless room of Leshya was now full of brightness and in a tender atmosphere.
– Hey, hey, Nii-samaaa.
Satsuki, who was using the kitchen knife, gave a shout to him while she was pretending not to see.
Can I add soy sauce to bring out the flavor of the risotto?
– That sounds tasty, but let’s ask Leshya what she likes, alright?
To whom is she cooking for? Moroha smiled wryly.
– Is rice al dente fine? Or should I go with what Nii-sama likes, like a zousui*?
*TN: rice gruel containing vegetables, fish, etcetera seasoned with miso or soy sauce.
– I told you, don’t go with what I like, but with what Leshya likes.
Moroha put his eyes back on Leshya and asked her which one was better.
Then, and before he became aware of it, Leshya was opening her eyes, looking at them.
– I was wondering, is she really your younger sister?
She probably wondered so when listening to his exchange with Satsuki.
As she remembered about it again,
– She self-proclaimed as that when we met for the first time. However, your surnames are different, and you told me the other day that you do have relatives because you have your uncles.
The doubt of Leshya was reasonable.
– Simply speaking, Satsuki and I were siblings in our previous life.
Moroha explained and Leshya put a grim look in her eyes.
And with a doubtful-looking gaze,
– Even though I thought you weren’t the type of person that makes lies.
She criticized him as if sulking a little.
– I didn’t lie.
– I can’t believe that such a miracle actually exists in this world.
– I give up…
Moroha had a really troubled face because he didn’t have the means to prove it.
Leshya, who stared at such facial expression for a while,
– I understand. I believe in your words. When carefully thinking about it, I realized that you gain nothing from making such lies.
She slowly relaxed her gaze as if apologizing,
– Haha, certainly there’s no benefit to get from that.
Moroha laughed, the expression of his eyes became less tense.
– I get that it’s hard to believe it so unexpectedly. I was also surprised when I enrolled, it was impossible to believe we could meet again.
The scene of the entrance ceremony crossed his mind.
He misunderstood that Satsuki would kiss him but instead he received a head-butt abruptly――he clearly remembered so even now, it was strange to think back upon that.
– Yeah, I think the same. Not only Satsuki, Shizuno is also an irreplaceable person for me. I was able to meet fortuitously with them in addition to Maaya and the senpais of Strikers because I came to this academy. How could that happen when there are billions of people? Even if you say it’s not a miracle, aren’t these great encounters in themselves very precious and very wonderful things?
The eyes of Leshya looked up at Moroha, they were slightly narrowed.
Just like looking up at a dazzling thing.
– I also wondered what was going to happen at first, but now I’m glad that I’ve enrolled in Akane Academy. I made a lot of friends and companions and some of them were part of my family. While that is true, it doesn’t mean that my feelings that consider my aunt and her family important will grow weak. Not at all. The only thing that will increase is pure rejoice. Don’t you think so too?
Leshya turned her neck to the left and right nervously to the words of Moroha.
It wasn’t a brisk gesture for a woman, but a feminine one.
(Well, it’s not something that she’ll understand when explained with words like these)
Moroha, who erred, scratched his head and said nothing else.
Leshya was a sharp girl, like the knife of a naked drawn sword.
It didn’t especially mean that she would slash at random, hurting the ones around her.
But she was revealing a stabbing watchfulness towards everyone, she was always like that, it made her look unhappy and also like she never felt at ease.
I wish Akane Academy becomes the scabbard of Leshya――
Moroha stopped the treatment briefly and strongly held one of the hands of Leshya with both hands.
– I’ll do my best so you can go to school quickly.
He smiled sweetly at her.
Leshya tried grasping back the hands of Moroha while looking at him with serene eyes but she hesitated and stopped over and over again.
Moroha didn’t rush her at all.
– Gee〜z. You came to treat her, don’t you? Nii-sama is being negligent, so stop that and continue right now!!
Satsuki, who was in the middle of cooking, stomped the ground while reprimanding him.
– You have a kitchen knife in hand, so don’t be violent.
-Moroha, resume the treatment ASAP! Leshya is in pain, you know!?
– Yeah. You’re right, sorry.
The kitchen knife was thrust at him by Satsuki who had a serious face. With that, Moroha resumed Healing the Scars while scratching his head.
He continued curing her with the uncomfortable feeling that he was being monitored with reproachful eyes from time to time after that.
Leshya gave the minimal help, but she looked like she was feeling good.
Eventually, a good smell from the kitchen came to where they were.
Leshya made her nose twitch, and that was a bit cute.
– I kept you waiting! This is good for digestion and the nutrients are right on the mark! Satsuki-chan’s special risotto is ready!
Satsuki carried servings for three people on a tray in high and proud spirits.
She took the laptop and placed it away from the low dining table that had unsteady legs and put two plates on it, and the other――
– Leshya, can you get up? If you can’t, will you let me feed you?
– Hold on a minuteeeeeee!
As if she was going to let her be fed by Moroha, Satsuki decided that she was going to make Leshya eat it.
She took a spoon and held it out.
Leshya, who stared at that sort of thing, began to suspect them.
– I thought that you certainly disliked me.
– Maybe! But the moment a companion is hurt, the story is different. Being kind to others is something natural, don’t you think?
– … I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s natural.
– Oh, right. But in Japan it’s natural, you see. When in Rome, do as the Romans do, right?
*TN: She says: If you got in a hometown, then do what they do in that hometown.
Satsuki thrust the spoon at her again with a blunt attitude.
Leshya hesitated for a little, but she put the spoon in her mouth as if readying herself,
– It’s hooooot!!
Together with that, she covered her mouth, writhing in pain.
– S-s-s-s-s-s-so―――rry!
– You really hate me. This was an elaborate harassment.
– I never thought about something like that!
Satsuki explained, but Leshya didn’t hear her.
She put a pessimistic look in her eyes, dropped her eyes to the opposite side and let her shoulders be cladded in a cloud of gloomy prana,
– I’m depressed. I’m about to die.
She whispered in her natural tone of voice.
It seemed this sudden change of Leshya certainly surprised Satsuki because she now had teary eyes.
– I said that I’m sorry! Forgive meeeee!
She took a spoon again and blew on it to cool it down with utmost effort.
She soothed and humored Leshya who turned a gaze of suspicion while lying down and gallantly made her taste it this time.
– What did you do in the end?
Moroha spouted out while putting his palms together, giving his thanks for the food.
It was a lightly seasoned risotto soup that had summer vegetables and chicken in it.
The chicken was carefully fried with olive oil, leaving its exterior crunchy. With each bite they gave, the savory and healthy meat soup overflowed in their mouths. The eggplant that absorbed the oil nicely seemed to melt, the tomato refreshed their mouths, the bitterness of the green pepper tightened the taste, and together with how unripe it was, it made them feel as if it was cleaning their bodies from head to foot. The rice was moderately sodden to be able to be swallowed smoothly to then reach the stomach.
It was a splendid execution.
It was Sophia the other day, and it was Moroha today, they just relied on Satsuki if they were troubled with cooking, but she was incredibly reliable, she had no rivals in that matter.
It was difficult to ask her a favor because it was about Leshya, but when he explained the situation to her, she accepted, giving a favorable immediate reply.
(I may have been blessed for having a skilled「little sister」)
Moroha, who was watching Satsuki feeding Leshya diligently, thought so while seeping out the sweat.
The Saviors, all of them, had strange dreams.
The frequency varied depending on the individual, but they were in such a way where they relived events of their previous lives.
Leshya also had those strange dreams.
And not only the events of her previous life, but other ones too.
Although it wasn’t frequent, this dream she had happened once every few months.
In that dream, Leshya never stopped hearing the sound of a snow storm.
Her field of vision was covered in a pitch-black darkness, moreover she couldn’t even move in the slightest.
She was cold, distressed… and alone.
Leshya was always sobbing.
As long as I’m here, I’ll keep screaming to the limits of my voice.
In the end, my body is deprived of heat and becomes completely chilled, then my spirit is deprived of hope and loses motivation, then when it wouldn’t be strange to die at any moment──I’m barely saved.
Somehow or other, it was practically a narrow escape from death.
A haggard old woman picked me up.
In the night of a snow storm, Leshya, a newborn baby, was abandoned in front of an orphanage as if it wasn’t a problem if she were to die.
She shouldn’t have memories before reaching an understanding of what was going on around herself.
Since she was just born, her discernment shouldn’t be developed sufficiently.
Then how did she remember it and had that dream even now?
It had been a long time since she had that strange dream.
When she opened her eyes, she saw the ceiling of her apartment, she looked up at it absent-mindedly, her thinking hadn’t settled yet.
Was this reality? Or was she still dreaming? The boundaries were vague… she couldn’t recover very well from the silent confusion.
After all, the reality was no different from the dream when she was a baby.
The world was just an indifferent thing for Leshya.
When she was having that terrible feeling──she suddenly realized.
That her right hand was enveloped by a very warm feeling.
She only moved her eyes to that direction.
Moroha.
He was there, he kept holding her right hand this whole time.
And she remembered the situation.
She ate the dinner that Satsuki had prepared, she was treated by Moroha a second time and ended up falling asleep just like that.
– It’s only 21:00, but you can continue sleeping, alright?
Moroha casually wiped the eyes of Leshya with his index finger.
It appeared that she ended up crying again while having that scary dream.
– What happened to Ranjou Satsuki?
– She came back earlier. She got annoyed when I said I was going to stay a little longer, but she calmed somehow.
Moroha shrugged his shoulders, looking surprised.
– I’ll return in a little bit. So I’ll watch over you until then. Now continue sleeping.
When he told her so, Leshya felt relieved for some reason.
At that moment, there was neither caution nor suspicion in her heart.
She closed her eyes obediently.
– I’ll come tomorrow. And I’ll bring another person with me this time. And so on.
Believing those words and nodding without distrust, Leshya fell asleep.
She didn’t have more scary dreams.
Next day was Wednesday. In the evening.
As promised, Moroha came again to cure her after school.
It wasn’t Satsuki who came with him but an adorable little child that was like an angel.
She introduced herself as “Maaya”.
When Moroha wasn’t next to her, she stealthily asked her “what was her relationship with him”, and she secretly whispered into her ear.
– I am the required person for the future harem nanodesu.
That was too advanced to be understood by Leshya.
But this small girl was a pretty good Kuroma, Moroha and her where the ones in charge of curing her.
She was amiable and got along even with the poor talker Leshya.
She was young, but she was immensely smart, and when she saw that Leshya was sweating a lot, she dried her body with a wringed wet towel.
During that time, Moroha prepared dinner. A dish of fried pork and vegetables to prevent summer heat fatigue.
– I prepared a larger portion today. Heat it up in the microwave oven so you can have it for lunch tomorrow.
Leaving those words with her, Moroha and Maya returned home.
On Thursday, he came with a female senpai that looked like a handsome boy.
– Since I’ll be devoting myself to cure her, can I ask Momo-senpai to prepare dinner?
– Le-leave it to me.
Momo-senpai said so, looking enthusiastic about it and stood in the kitchen.
However, her cooking skills where to the extent of a novice. It could be said that even Leshya would be better at handling a kitchen knife.
Her fingers turned blue and red cutting with the kitchen knife, the pot began to spill; she had a look of being at the limit on her face already.
But still, it was transmitted to him that she was doing her best effort, that was both admirable and cute.
What she cooked was a blackened gyudon, and served it, looking fearful.*
*TN: A dish consisting of a bowl of rice topped with beef and onions.
– The looks of it is rather unique but it tastes good.
– I find it tasty too.
When she praised her with Moroha,
– Unique you say!?
Momo-senpai shouted, making her cheeks go red like apples.
But she didn’t seem to be herself, because she peeked at them by covering and showing her happy-looking face.
That was charming.
When she looked at her, she somehow was a person who warmed her heart.
Leshya was surprised that such person also existed in this world.
Satsuki came with him again on Friday.
– Leshya’s been studying abroad for a week! So I think that she’s missing Russian food. And so I practiced doing borscht!*
*TN: Eastern European and Russian soup usually made with beefs.
Satsuki put a hand on her waist and bragged about it.
There were no lies in her words when she said she had practiced, she prepared a well done borscht and treated them to it.
– How is it? I’m not so confident about it, but does it have the taste of your hometown?
Satsuki asked with upturned eyes while feeding her again.
Leshya put the spoon that was presented to her in her mouth, tasted it well and shook her head in denial.
– Seriously!? It doesn’t make you feel nostalgic at all…?
The upturned eyes of Satsuki became teary, but Leshya shook her head in denial once again.
– That’s not it. I only ate fast food in Russia.
It had nothing to do with cooking something slowly like borscht, the time and effort when cooking were unrelated to that.
Fast food had the upper hand there, but Satsuki’s home cooking was way more delicious.
– Phew! Then eat a lot, alright? If you don’t get well faster, then how am I going to let you keep borrowing Nii-sama?
Satsuki put an evil smile on her whole face as she made her eat it diligently.
– You sure aren’t an honest girl, you know…
Moroha smiled wryly looking at her.
– Okay then, while I’m feeding Leshya, is it fine if Moroha feeds me, or is it a no?
– Sure, sure.
Moroha held the dish of Satsuki and took a spoon while trying not to burst into laughter.
– Can you cool it down properly please?
– Are you a child or something?
He cooled it down while complaining and put it into her mouth.
– Hmmm it’s so good even if I say so myself! Foo foo foo foo.
– Wait, you haven’t tasted it…? Well, it’s not a joke that it tastes good. Thank you.
– Fuuh, I’m glad that I came today because I was able to be fed by Moroha as a reward.
Leshya felt strange looking at the intimate exchange of the two.
(In the end, the words of Haimura Moroha weren’t a lie. These two were siblings in their previous life)
While she felt so,
(But I wonder if they look more like a pair of lovers…)
That sense of distance and their relationship, she didn’t get them well.
But it didn’t mean she felt displeasured looking at them. It was rather the opposite.
It wasn’t because of a reason, but rather because of impulse that she even ended up feeling that she wanted to be part of that circle.
She looked at them, making her eyes go narrow for a while──then came to her senses and shuddered.
(What am I thinking!? Haimura Moroha is my assassination target, and yet I…!)
She succumbed to her guilty conscience.
But there was also a feeling of protest even bigger towards her self-admonition that was secured in a corner of his heart.
It was the first time in her life that she embraced this description, this complicated and mysterious emotion.
Saturday. Moroha brought a tall, brown-skinned senpai with him.
The woman named Sophia who had been studying abroad from the American Division.
Even Leshya, who didn’t get too much information, saw beforehand that she was shown in a list beforehand as a「person requiring special attention」.
The decision of Kondrat was to not incite other divisions that were holding back behind him so that other overseas students had nothing to do with them.
Leshya thought of trying being obedient today, but Sophia barged in her apartment without her being prepared for it, then she looked into the room and raised a shout of joy.
– Wow! Such a simple room we have here. I don’t dislike rooms like this.
She ended up speaking bluntly without being afraid of what others may think, maybe it was typical of Americans.
In fact, didn’t she have a rough personality?
– Sophie-senpai… I asked you to buy a pancake mix, didn’t I?
Moroha, who was storing in the refrigerator the contents of the shopping bags that she brought, sighed.
– … why did you buy okonomiyaki flour?
He lamented how she could make a mistake like that.
– If pancakes aren’t a possibility, then we should eat okonomiyaki.
– We didn’t buy ingredients or sauce for it. We only have syrup and jam. Because Sophie-senpai said we don’t need a recipe for that.
Moroha closed the door of the refrigerator, feeling tired.
– If it were ordinary flour at least… anyway, I’ll go buy pancake mix.
He went out to buy those things while muttering.
– My mistake.
Sophia shrugged her shoulders exaggeratedly.
Leshya was puzzled because she was left behind with an unpleasant American who, to make it worse, was an unknown person.
Despite that, Sophia showed her white teeth and laughed,
– Hey, Elena. We both are overseas students, so I hope to get along with you.
She asked for a handshake with her big hand, turning it towards Leshya who was lying on the bed.
After she hesitated for a while, Leshya――shook her hand――while being heavily cautious.
Her wounds were almost healed thanks to the treatment of Moroha. So now she didn’t feel pain, just a bit heavy when she moved her body.
Because she seemed to thought of trying to go to the school today somehow, she was strongly told by Moroha the following last night:「Since it’s weekend, you should take care of your health and wait and see」, so she just obeyed him.
– Did you get used to Japan already?
Sophia talked to her without stopping, her nature didn’t allow her to be calm.
– No. not yet.
– But do you also think that Japan is a nice country?
– ……Yes.
– I’ve been enjoying Japan too much, to the point that I thought of getting in the Japanese Division after graduation.
Sophia said that incredibly risky statement quite indifferently.
Leshya was shocked.
Not because she was worried about Sophia’s political point of view.
– How is it compared with Russia? I suggest you to give it a thought as well.
But because the words of Sophia that she was hearing――were tempting, enticing, alluring and seductive.
She ended up listening to them.
Reality was nothing but a cold hell for Leshya.
Japan was a warm paradise from Leshya’s perspective.
A country with no sense of reality, like a dream.
But… what if Leshya decided to live in Japan?
If the dream became a reality and her days of hell turned into days of paradise..?
Instead of killing Moroha, and be always with him…,
– I can’t betray Russia!
When she became aware of it, Leshya answered when she was being absorbed in it.
– Don’t say something exaggerated like betrayal. I want you to consider it more relaxed.
– I can’t betray my little brother!
She was tormented by her feelings of guilt because she was about to yield to temptation. Her heart roared violently to the point of almost exploding.
– Sorry. I got too carried away. But if you come to like even more this country and come to like even more the people of the school, then I have no doubt you’ll want to live in Japan. Yeah, it will happen at this rate! I’m predicting it already.
Sophia winked pompously.
– …
Leshya couldn’t――attempt to object her right away.
The circulation of her blood was getting faster.
She could hear the sound of blood flowing gushingly behind her eardrums.
Sophia was still talking about something, but everything was drowned out.
(“The plan” missed, Kondrat…)
Leshya casted her eyes downward and bit her lips, almost making blood stop flowing to them.
In the plan of Kondrat, Leshya was going to fawn on Haimura Moroha expecting that he would become attached to her, making his sword grow dull; that was the arrangement where she would carry on the assassination.
But in reality, it was the opposite.
Right now, it was Leshya who became attached to Moroha.
Meaning that it would be Leshya whose sword would end up growing dull if she were to stay with him any more than this.
(This plan is a failure…)
It was no longer an option.
If she was going to assassinate him, she had to hurry up.
She couldn’t postpone it any longer.
The evening of September. Leshya hugged her body while trembling in the humid room facing the setting sun.
She kept glaring at the direction of the entrance with grim eyes.
Maybe because she was being ghastly, Sophia just stood stock still as if she couldn’t say anything, and kept staring at Leshya.
– I’m back!
Eventually, the figure of Moroha who returned from shopping appeared at the front door.
– Welcome back.
Leshya got out of the bed and hurriedly met him.
– Hey, it’s good you are in good spirits, but don’t force yourself too much.
– This much is fine for me. If you cure me today, then I think I’ll be completely recovered tomorrow.
– That’s true. I think the same.
– That’s why I have something to ask of you. I want to have a date with you tomorrow.
– To celebrate the recovery of Leshya?
– And to simultaneously give you my thanks.
– Hmmm…. Alright, but where should we go?
Moroha put a hand on his chin and began to think.
Despite of the sudden proposal, there were no signs of going against it at all.
– If that’s the case, then I have the right thing for you.
Sophia, who remained as a spectator in the six tatami room, interjected with a smile.
Two sheets of paper were being grasped in her hand before they became aware of them.
– These are tickets for the leisure park that I received when I helped at the church. I don’t have a boyfriend who will go with me, so I’m giving them to you.
– Are you sure, Sophie-senpai?
– I am. In exchange, I’d like Moroha to accompany me in a private training next time.
– Sure thing. In that case, then I accept without hesitation. Is that okay with you, Leshya?
– If I can enjoy myself with you, then anywhere is fine.
The negotiation was completed.
– Okay then, this is the last treatment for tomorrow, so don’t put resistance, alright?
– Please do so. For the sake of tomorrow.
– I’m going to bake pancakes. And bake and bake.
She laid down on the bed, Moroha sat close to her and Sophia remained in the kitchen.
(This is the last day… of this farce)
Leshya erased all emotion, released the tension from her body and surrendered herself to the treatment.
She was going to defeat Moroha in a flawless condition tomorrow.
She had to defeat him.
