The Day of Fire and Ash (3)
Bang!
I fired my secret shot at Saori. The bullet hit Saori. Saori's posture faltered from the impact. The aiming line that had been pointing at Hina also went astray.
The Emergency Breakthrough 11 didn't miss that opening. It spun sharply in a fierce drift, drawing maximum propulsion.
Then, like a sudden leap, the Emergency Breakthrough 11 charged into the center of the battlefield.
“Hina! This way!”
I reached out my hand to Hina. Our hands overlapped, and I pulled Hina into my arms.
“Don't miss!”
Saori tried to stop the Emergency Breakthrough 11's movement. Unrestrained gunfire rained down on the vehicle.
But the Emergency Breakthrough 11 broke through the escape route like a bullet. The enemy fell behind, and the gunfire ceased.
I had rescued Hina from Arius.
“Hina, are you okay!?”
Hina leaned on me without moving.
Hina's breathing was faint. Her body temperature was cold, as if she might collapse at any moment.
“...Sensei...?”
Hina asked me in a thin voice.
Hina had prioritized my safety. She had faced Arius with the resolve to protect me.
“Sensei is safe. She's with Manma-jeon now.”
“I-It's... Good...”
Hina slumped her body after hearing my words.
The tension had eased after confirming Sensei's safety.
Hina closed her eyes in my arms. Hina had lost consciousness from exhaustion.
“Emergency Medicine Department Head, please take Hina.”
I entrusted Hina to Sena.
“Of course. Please leave the Prefect Team to me. I'm the Emergency Medicine Club.”
Then, Sena bowed her head to me.
“And thank you personally for saving the Prefect Team.”
Sena expressed gratitude to me.
It was conveying my heart as Hina's close friend before rescuing the injured.
“The Prefect Team always pushes herself too hard. If I hadn't rescued her, she would have been in danger.”
Sena seemed blunt on the surface, but she was genuinely worried about Hina.
“That's why I might need someone to stop the Prefect Team sometimes. Maybe...”
Sena stared at me blankly while speaking.
A sudden expression of doubt appeared.
“By the way, I heard the President hates the Prefect Team terribly, but that's surprising.”
Sena suddenly mentioned the relationship with Hina.
It was a frank and direct question, making the listener feel awkward.
“By the way, the Prefect Team also hates the President terribly. I've heard that reputation from the Prefect Team often.”
In other words, they hate each other without mercy.
It was a ruthless expression, making my heart ache.
“But when I last met the Prefect Team, it seemed the nuance was different.”
“Re-really!?”
Sena was lost in thought as if reminiscing about the past.
I had a glimmer of hope for Sena.
“Umm... She said she hates the President.”
“Wait! There's something else!”
“It would be quite different. There were no such adjectives as 'terribly' or 'fiercely' like usual.”
Even a slight difference would make me happy.
We are still on the side of not crossing the line of hatred.
......Yeah, that must be it.
It's about Makoto and Hina's relationship.
It's fine. Being a villain is familiar. ......Puff.
I entrusted Hina to the Emergency Medicine Department and rejoined Manma-jeon's headquarters.
I received a scolding from Natsume Iroha due to the sudden departure, but my mood was refreshing. I had protected Hina.
But Hina, who was transported to Gehenna's relief center,
After regaining consciousness, she suddenly disappeared.
After that, the situation entered a brief lull.
Thanks to Shirasu Azusa weakening the Trinity as in the original story. As a result, the Arius Squad faltered.
The aggressive faction of Trinity that wanted to declare war on Gehenna was stopped by Sensei.
Trinity gained time to recover from the damage.
And Gehenna was the same. The situation was much better than Trinity.
Trinity has mostly lost its center of gravity, but Gehenna is different.
Manma-jeon was firmly holding on in Gehenna.
As the President of Manma-jeon, I was performing my original role.
I received a promise from Trinity not to invade Gehenna.
The answer from Urawa Hanako, the acting head of the Sisterhood's convent. Gehenna also expressed the same intention.
Since the Sisterhood can't represent all of Trinity, it's an incomplete promise.
That point couldn't be a variable.
Trinity's priority was to fix internal divisions. They wouldn't have time to worry about Gehenna.
If it's war, Gehenna would be more proactive.
Compared to Trinity, Gehenna's damage was minimal.
As a result, the radical faction of Manma-jeon was advocating to declare war on Trinity.
If Makoto hadn't stepped in, Gehenna would have been quite chaotic.
The radicals were resolved by Makoto.
Especially Makoto's scheming was showing its true value.
Impressive. I didn't think you'd induce factional infighting within the radicals to make them destroy themselves.
Makoto's performance shone.
Thanks to that, Gehenna maintained a moderate stance from Trinity.
What I need to do next is......
There were a lot of tasks that needed to be handled in an emergency.
Locked in the office, I turned my eyes to the pile of documents.
Yeah, it's better to bury myself in work.
If I stopped thinking, my mind would be filled with worries about Hina.
How much time had passed since then.
“Makoto.”
Sensei visited the office of Manma-jeon.
“At the moment I found where Hina is.”
The moment I heard Sensei's words, my heart dropped.
That meant Sensei had met Hina. As per the original flow.
Sensei was comforting Hina, who had her heart broken.
He was telling her that he was grateful she could continue to try in the future. That was Sensei's role.
“I see...... Good.”
There was relief, but at the same time, my chest was throbbing.
Conflicting emotions crossed. I suppressed the petty jealousy befitting a villain.
It's impossible for me. Only Sensei can lift Hina up.
The role that suits Sensei, whom Hina admires, rather than Makoto who is hated by Hina.
I know that much.
That's why I had desperately immersed myself in other tasks.
So I was—
“Will you bring Hina to Makoto?”
Sensei's request came in the middle of resignation.
“......W-what did you just say?”
“Would you bring Hina to Makoto? I'll tell you where Hina is.”
I was startled. I was fidgeting with my hands so much that I scattered the documents.
“It's not okay for me! Hina relies on Sensei more than me......!”
“I want to ask Makoto.”
Sensei continued with a firm tone.
“Makoto likes Hina.”
That was the reason Sensei was asking me to bring Hina.
“Ah......?”
I finally realized.
The fact that I had revealed the pure love for Hina to Sensei.