--Night . Pasta's home.

　Leafy, who had yawned, left the dining room.

　The mild climate typical of the cherry blossom season kept the chill away even at night.
　The soft scent of the tea leaves was the sprouts of the tea being served. The first flush of the tea was a fine treat.

　The gentle sweetness of the freshly baked cupcakes added a touch of color to the after-dinner experience.

"Grass juice and flour thrown into the fire.
Let's try to make it look good. ......
It's so good.

　It'll taste good anyway.
　It's a good idea to have a cupcake in your cupboard.

　It's a great way to make sure you're getting the most out of your vacation.

"Hey, hey, hey!
Yes, yes, what's wrong?
What's wrong with the noodles?
"What's wrong with those noodles?

　Glimpse. Glance.
　The maid gives me a deliberate glance.
　She looked at the scroll in her hand and seemed to be going about her work without the two of them present.
　She's here because of the cupcakes, and the atmosphere makes you feel the walls more than ever.


　--The split, the crack, was yesterday.

　It's easy to forget in the intensity of the main competition, but it was only yesterday that she was chased by Conrad. It's only been a day since she overtly distanced herself from Huta.

"Meido ......, what should we do, Master Futa?
What kind of squeal is that?
That's not what the maid wants to hear!
What, am I going to get scolded?
Be serious!
Oh, I'm sorry. ......
I don't blame you, Mr. Futa. What a jerk. That's why the pasta is still dry.
"What kind?

　The maid crosses her arms and pretends to be angry.
　But the maid's expression is completely the usual maid smile, so there's nothing to be afraid of.

...... Huh.

　You may have overheard the exchange.
　One annoyed sigh. The girl slowly got up from her seat.

Good night.
"Oh, good night already, sister?
I can't work with ...... bothering me. Thanks for the food.

　She didn't sniffle or curse irritably as she usually did.
　She walked out of the cafeteria with only a basket of cupcakes and a scroll in her hand, as if she had lost all interest.

　The door closes, and the cafeteria is silent for a moment.

The door closes and the cafeteria is silent for a moment. ...... Hmm, she's totally keeping her distance. What did you do today, Master Futa?
Today it was sword fighting and commentary. ......
That's not what I meant!
No, I know, I know. I know, I know. ...... But I don't know. It's sword fighting and commentary. ......

　I put my cheekbones down and bit into my cupcake.

　I think back to today.

　At first, she was just playing the role of a real-life sister, giving off a "don't come any closer" vibe.
　In fact, I think that was the case all the way until the third game.

　However.
　The fourth game, which remains in Futa's mind.
　For the first time in his life, he received enthusiastic cheering and praise after the game.

　And.

"Get a move on, swordsman!

　The smile on his face with those words.

"Good for you, big brother.　

　The emotion in his voice.

　And after the match, when our eyes met, the expression on his face, which was somewhat ridiculous yet friendly, was not that of someone who had distanced himself from me.

I can't figure out what he wants.
"......

　Keep your distance, she said.
　Don't come any closer, she said.

　The way she pushed me away, I could tell she meant it.
　I knew what she was going to do in the runoff.

　But I didn't know what to do if she showed such an opening. I wondered if it was okay to go back to the way things were.

　But as it turned out, it was just the two of us in the cafeteria.

　When I look up, I see a smiling maid.
　She looks as happy as ever, as dependable as ever, and just a little bit lonely.

　Corona always pushes Futa to do what he wants.
　However, because she approached him with what she wanted, she has created a distorted relationship with her sister.



　Rather, Futa couldn't figure out what she wanted to do.

　Let's go get the win.
　Even when he declared that, her answer was to ignore him.
　I don't want to think that she didn't feel anything.

　If she really wanted to have a business relationship with me, I was going to be selfish and say that I didn't want that.

　But the way she sometimes acted and behaved made Futa hesitate.

"...... No, Master Futa.
"Corona?

　The two tufts of gold swayed loosely.
　She lowered her eyebrows in annoyance and told him.

"Pasta is.

　She smiled sadly, but kindly.

"It's not about what I want. It's not what I want.

　It's not what I want.
　There's nothing I can do.

　What did he mean by that?

I want to push him away and go back to our original working relationship. But I can't. I just can't.

　Oddly enough, just as Futa can no longer be Pasta's enemy.

"Pasta likes you, Futa-sama.
"......?
It's not love. ！！！！！！！！！！！！
"Oh, yes.

　It hit the table with a thud.
　I'm not in love with you.

It's ......, so there's nothing I can do about it. But I feel like I have to push him away.
"...... That's... I wonder if it has something to do with Master Lilac.
The biggest one is probably that. But .......

　I'm sure you'll be able to understand why.

　I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to do it.

　At that time, Corona protected herself by letting go of her own emotions.
　But Corona protected herself by letting go of her emotions.

　She's not used to having someone next to her.

...... All right, Corona.

　When Huta stood up, Corona looked up at him.

Are you going?
Yeah.

　At times like this. I'm sure you'll agree.
　The first thing you should do is to look at your eyes.

　I suddenly think that selfishness is the coolest thing.

　He probably doesn't understand half of what Pasta is feeling.
　But that's okay. It's easy to be human when you try to understand.

　Futa says to Corona, who looks up at him.

"I haven't said good night yet.

　You see, I'm still selfish.


















You weren't in your room at ...... or in your study, so I looked for you.
What a nuisance.

　When Futa finally found her, she was standing with her back to him.

　I'm not sure if you've heard of it, but I'm sure you've heard of it.

　But...

Thank you.

　That was the first thing Futa said to me.

　I came here because I haven't said good night.
　But it's too early to say that.
　But it's still too early to say that, because nothing is over.
　You can't end today yet.

　Because today was the best day of my life.
　I have to end it like the best day of my life.

　That's selfish.

　But that selfishness is what it's always been.
　I've touched the hearts of people for whom pity and compassion are not enough.

I thought I told you not to thank me for .......
Sorry. I did. But I can't. Your business and mine are out of balance.
"......

　The reply was mute.

　You're a pain in the ass, Futa exhaled.

　I'm not mocking you or ridiculing you.
　It's not troublesome to Futa.

　He could tell what she was thinking right now.
　Whether she is on the same page or not. I guess he thought it was something to consider.


　Her business would certainly be a great contribution to the Orba Chamber of Commerce.
　But she already knew the weight of the debt that Huta owed her.

　So, she admits that she is not in balance.
　"As a manager, she's sincere.

　That's why it's troublesome.

I owe a lot to a lot of people. I owe a lot to a lot of people, and there are three big ones.
"......3?

　That's when I got my first response.

　She must have thought it was two.

　I stepped forward.

"The first one saved my life. One, you saved my life. You pulled me out of a place where I thought I wanted to die and you validated my worth.

　One more step forward.

"One, you saved my heart. One, it saved my heart. I had forgotten how to laugh and cry, and it gave me a normal life.

　When he reached the center of the room, he stopped.

"......

　Her small back, still not looking back.
　I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to do it.

"One. You made my dream come true. The dream I've been struggling to reach. He said he would make it come true. ...... He made it come true today.
"......

　--I didn't tell you. No, you didn't.

　He said he owed me. That I'm happy. I told her that.
　But I didn't know how heavy it was. Maybe I thought I was telling you, but I wasn't.

"...... The first two are better.

　The reply was a cold retort.
　But somehow. I wondered why I could even feel her emotions.

"That's not true.
"Of course not. Because I saved two of them.
...... Maybe so.

　Affirmative.
　Maybe it was the first two that saved us.
　But that's meaningless now.

But if the last one had come true from the beginning, I probably wouldn't have even ended up in King's Landing. I wouldn't even need to be rescued.
"......
I couldn't have done it all on my own. That's why I'm here now. For me--

　All three are really big things.

　I was just about to say that.

"So long.

　The girl's resonant voice, which never looked back.

　The girl's voice sounded as if it was interrupting Futa's words, and Futa involuntarily fell silent.

　Her murmur cut through the silence for a moment.

"You...

　I wonder what she's doing when she sucks in her breath. Is it tension?
　It's as if she's releasing something that's been binding her deep inside.
　It was a kind of confession.

　I wanted to say it, but I couldn't, and yet the way I said it, as if I were trying to hold it together, was surely the same as the way you say your feelings.

"If Lilac told you to kill me, would you protect me?

　You don't look back.

　Futa is silent for a moment.

　Because he knew that this question was what she was really afraid of.
　Because she knows that this question is a big deal to her.
　Because she knew that the question was a choice.

　But apparently the silence was seen by her as a denial.

"...... That's a terrible thing to say. Forget it.

　The words he muttered were too much.

　It was too sad.
　This choice to transform the thin membrane of the wall into something solid.
　The question she posed, whether to break the wall or to make it visible like this, must have been as frightening to her as the choice itself was to confess.

　So.

　I took a step forward, as if stepping over that wall.

"I gave my life to you, Lilac.

　The first word was a denial.

　The look on her face as she bit her lip was not something you could see from behind.

"I've decided to fight for her.

　That declaration was a clear answer that threw her off.



So...
--no more!

　The screaming voice echoed through the small room.
　A moment of silence descends.

"...... Okay, okay. Enough.

　Enough answers.
　There's no need to hurt me any more.

　I felt miserable and cried at the sound of her cry.
　No need to hurt me?　What are you talking about?

　I've done enough to deserve to be hurt.
　I've lived my life prepared to be hurt no matter how much.

　And yet... How could I just throw up my hands over this?
　I'm crying from pity.

　--From this guy.

　Why does it hurt so much just to hear him say it out loud?

I won't stop.
I won't stop.

　That's why it hurts even more.
　The words pierce me like a blade.

　A sickening sound, as if the air were rushing into my throat by itself.

Because I haven't said what I wanted to say yet.
...... Then ...... already.

　I wonder how long it's been since I stopped the work I was doing at hand.
　Her hands were lowered listlessly.
　He stood behind her as she stood still.

"Just say what you want.
"...... Ah.

　Affirmation.
　Exhale.

　I'm ready. I don't know how much it's going to hurt.
　Still, time is a wonderful thing.

　One day, it will pass.

　That was-- that was a sad hope.

　But...




"So. Suppose Master Lilac told me to kill you. Then I can at least die protecting you.




　--Yeah. And.
　I don't know what color of emotion the words that spilled out showed.

　But...

I'll try not to let that happen in the first place. The worst of the worst will have to do.
"You gave your life to ...... Lilac, didn't you?
So if you don't want me, I don't want you. I'm just one of your pawns.
"...... You're fighting for Lilac.
It's not in Mr. Lilac's best interest for you to be gone.
"...... You.

　The response to the trembling voice.
　The reply to the trembling voice was as plain as day, as if it were normal.

　But it was all about Lilac.
　But it was all about lilac, which was natural since she herself had mentioned lilac.

　--She just can't help it anymore.

　She didn't even know what she really wanted.

And...

　So.

"I have the most fun when I'm fighting with you.

　The most.

　She froze.

"That's why.

　Huta told her.

　He stood next to her, who hadn't turned around.


　He extinguished the fire in his hand.

　


Don't make lemonade by yourself," he said.





　In the kitchen.
　I stood next to her with my back to her.
　I poured the boiling water into her cup.

...... Shut up.
"Wow, how much sugar do you put in it?
Shut up.
You're gonna eat a cupcake on top of that.
Shut up.
I don't know what you're doing, but it's the middle of the night.
Shut the f*ck up!

　I turn around.

　What an ugly face.


　He couldn't hold back his tears and stared at her with an irritated look of hostility on his face.

　But when Futa saw that face, he laughed.

"You're finally looking at me.
Shut up. ...... What? ...... What the hell are you doing?
It's my new dream to be able to say something cool here.
"Die.

　A fist flies at her.
　It hit her in the abdomen and she brushed it away painfully.

......1 Tell me about it.
......What?

　It's what you should do to repay the favor you received.

　It is always the same reason why Futa lives.

　She was always struggling.
　She was always fighting, always struggling to survive.

　She didn't want to lose, and that was the first time she let her feelings out.

　So... There's only one thing Futa can do.



"What's your win?"


　That's all I can do.


Now it's my turn to make your dream come true.