Cecily smiles at me, folding her arms in a relaxed manner.

'I'm sorry to interrupt you so abruptly. Did I frighten you?

　Once he gave us a questioning look and then Ray asked.

'Well I thought I just heard you say you'd love to join us if you're allowed to?
'You didn't mishear me, did you?　Kurohiko told me about the defeat mission. This includes the confrontation with Phibruk and his team. So I thought I'd like to join your team, if you'd allow me to be a part of it.

　Miss Cecily looks at Ira.

'Of course, if that's okay with you.
Oh, I'm not...

　Ira stammered.

'Does it bother you that we're house-to-house?'

　Cecily-san asks, but Ira-san remains silent.
　Judging from what the instructors said during the mock game, Bashkata's remarks, etc., it seems that the Arkwright family and the Horns are not on very good terms....

''What about yourself, Ira?''

　Again, Cecily asked the question.
　After some time, Ira-san finally opened her lips.

You know, personally, I don't dislike you. It's just that I have a certain amount of admiration for you. If it weren't for the house, I'd want to get to know you better.
I'm flattered. I don't hate you, either, you know?
Thanks. I'm glad you're lying.
Huh, he wouldn't have said he wanted to join us if he wasn't lying.
Haha, I see...

　Isla clucked her cheeks toothily.

''Then, may I understand that there is no problem for me to participate in the operation?
Yeah I guess I'd rather be helped in this situation, wouldn't I?

　Isla let out a resigned smile.

'Also, you don't have to worry about the house. Although they don't say it outwardly, the people at home have half given up on the generation you and your siblings are in.

　Does that mean that Cecily and her brother are the most talented in the Arkwright family's history?
　At least enough to make a competitive family give up.
　Cecily-san, who had received distant praise, however, had a look on her face as if something was caught in her back teeth.
　One could somehow deduce her inner thoughts from that expression.
　Regardless of all the rhetoric, the woman who is said to be overwhelmingly superior to her older siblings in the Horn family was completely crushed by a devilish man named Hibigami just the other day.
　Even though she has recovered, she can't accept the compliment in a straightforward manner because she was reminded of the fact that there's a higher upside-down person right afterwards.
　.............
　Personally, though, I think Cecily-san is the winner by a huge margin in terms of looks and personality alone.

The Horns will not look good if they hear that you and I are working together on this mission.
'Do you mind?　It's not like the house can't take care of itself.
'I know you said earlier that you were halfway there, but I've heard that the pressure from the Horns has been considerable?
Uh, yeah...

　Ira, who ministered gloomily.
　Cecily smiled and clasped her hands together and suggested.

''There, but if the Horns say anything about teaming up with me, please say 'I used the Arkwright family's daughter to capture the Holy Ruins'.
Well, it's not...
I'm willing to be honest with you. Don't worry about it. The Arkwrights have nothing to worry about. After all, I'm his favorite. If the family has something to say, he can get them to stop it as much as he wants. My mother and father are bigots, but they don't listen to him, and my brother is a very understanding man.
Cecily, you don't have to...
'I don't admire you for caring too much about the name of the house, but you should use what you can. From what I've heard, though, I think Bashkatha is taking too much credit for the house's name.

　Isla thanked him, probably for Cecily's concern.

''Well Cecily, thank you.

　After a slight pause, Ira-san, who had been silently pondering, asked Cecily-san.

''You know what ... can I ask you one question?''
What is this?
What made you decide to join us?

　Hmm," Cecily said, letting her gaze swim in the air as she thought about it.

''Is it because I don't like the way Fibruk and the others are doing things either?
What ... is that the reason?

　Ms. Ray is stunned.
　Cecily tilts her head.

'Strange?　I think it's a noble cause, though.

　And Ira turned to me.

'The story of the operation ... did he tell you about it?
Yeah, Blackie told me.

　In answer to Ira's question, Cecily gives me a look.

''I think anyone would want to be on our side after being spoken to like that, though.

　Hmm.
　I was just telling it like it is.
　No, maybe it was because I told it like it was that I struck a chord with Cecily-san.
　It's not like I didn't know about her relationship with the Horn family, so I wouldn't have dared to say anything to encourage her to participate in the mission.......

　Ira-san crumpled a hand through her hair and pondered for a while.
　Then she smiled at me.

"I see........even here, I was saved by you.
'I didn't do anything. The decision was made by Miss Cecily.

　...........
　Ugh.
　There, I noticed Cecily-san's eyes, which were lit up with dismay, were turned towards me.
　Even without saying it out loud, I could tell.
　It's the eyes that say, ''You're trying to get people to like you like that again...''....
　Yah, it's hard to do........!
　Mr. Cecily makes my words seem strangely hypocritical to me!

I'm just being honest!

　Ira responds to my desperate excuses with an awkward smile.

Uh, yeah ... um ... uh, what?

　Oh, shoot.

It's nothing.

　I looked at Cecily with resentful eyes.
　But she was easily swept away with her usual nice smile.
　Ugh........it's really hard to do.
　Is this the harm of revealing our true feelings to each other?

Will you guys be joining us?

　Mr. Ray asked Zeke and Miss Hyrgis, who were standing behind Miss Cecily.

'If Lady Cecily joins us, we'll join you.
That's how it should be.

　They both replied instantly.

'It's settled,'

　The person who said this was Currier-san, who had been silently watching the outcome of the case until now.
　Then Cecily-san walked up to Currier-san.
　She placed her hands on both of Currier-san's shoulders from behind.

''Even though it's temporary, you've decided to form an attack team surprisingly quickly, Curie?
'Humph, it wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for Kurohiko.
Yeah, I know.

　Mr. Currier pulled up a chair and stood up.

　Currier Versteen.
　Cecily Arkwright.

　Once again, when the two of them stand together like this.......................it's a picture.
　....................
　Shouldn't the two of them form a unit together and start working as idols or something?

You ... you have something stupid in mind, don't you?
Hmmm, we must have been thinking about something wrong, haven't we?　Kurohiko is quite a lady, you know.
...Is that so?

　Currier-san's sharp eyes pierce me.

　Hii!
　Is it a sin to just imagine two people in idol costumes!

No, no, no!　Well I've been thinking about a plan!　The next mission to take them down--

　They looked at me with disdain.

'You're lying,'
Yeah, that was a lie.

　Yes, I'm being read to..........

...........

　Anyway, it's hard to believe that they've become so close until just the other day.
　In fact, seeing the way they're being so thoughtful, I'm getting a little worried that they're going to rapidly develop a rapport with each other and I'm going to be thrown out of the loop.

　

　　　　　　　　　　*.

　After it was officially decided that Cecily and the others would join Aila's team, we discussed various aspects of the plan in the cafeteria.
　As a result, it was finally decided that the plan to defeat the Titans would be carried out by the seven of us.
　I was also relieved to see Ira-san completely restored to normal.
　Rei, sitting next to me, was also relieved to be able to breathe a sigh of relief.
　Speaking of which, I looked at Ray-san again.
　The other members of Ira's group had left, but she was the only one who stayed behind....
　I'm a little curious as to what kind of relationship we have.
　When the members other than me and Rei-san were receiving explanations from Ira-san, I casually decided to ask her about it.
　By the way, what Ira-san is explaining right now is known to me.
　The fact that she didn't participate in the conversation suggests that Ray-san already knew about it.

I've been friends with Ira since we were one year apart. I've been around longer than most, and I like her a lot more than most people.

　Ms. Ray looked at Ira-san as if she were compassionate.
　They also introduced themselves to each other, and it turned out that Ms. Ray was a second year student.
　In other words, she was the only senior in Ira's group.
　Or rather, she was a senior........
　Yup.
　That's right, from now on, I'll call you Rei-senpai.

"Rei, may I call you Rei-senpai?
Haha, you're my senior....

　He had a somewhat boyish vibe to him, I thought.
　Partly because of the way he spoke, if he wasn't wearing a uniform, I might think he was a boy.
　Would it be more appropriate to describe him as a beautiful boy rather than a boyish one?
　No, it's not polite to be boyish to a woman.
　But I think that's what makes her so attractive.
　Ray-senpai had a different type of meekness than Cecily.

'But you're a strange girl, aren't you?　Sometimes?　For just a moment, the way you behave can make you look much older than you are.
What?
Ha ha, weird, right?　From the way you introduced yourself earlier, you're one year younger than me.
Yeah, yeah...

　This is the first time I've ever heard someone say that to me.
　Is he a man with a keen sense of intuition or something?
　Are you a very observant type?

You're right, you can think of me as your sister. It's a good thing that you're an elder sister of mine. You're not the only one who can help, but you can also help me as a senior. So if anything happens, you can count on me, okay?
Oh, hi.

　I take the offered hand.
　A slightly wet hand.
　Hmm.
　Rei-senpai is a lovely person too.
　...........
　And my girl was real.

　Then we took care of the arrangements for now and left the cafeteria.
　By the way, this school finishes its afternoon classes around 2:30 in the afternoon, so there's a good amount of time after classes before the sun goes down.
　Compared to the average school in the previous world, it can be said that classes end earlier.
　This is probably because the time to capture the Holy Ruins has been taken into account.

　And that's when we started walking out of the cafeteria.
　We saw a group of more than ten students walking towards us from the front.

　Bashkata was leading the group, with Asaro and Beoza at his side.
　Also, the faces on the other side had changed by half compared to when we met in the cafeteria before.
　They must have added a new student with a high Little Saint rank and replaced him with a lower one.

''Oh, well, well!　Isn't it Ira Horne who has been disgraced by his friends!

　Bashkatha stopped, held out her hands and laughed.
　Gulp, Ira choked on his words.

'Hm?　Is that Cecily Arkwright there, then?　Oh, yeah?　Ira, did you succeed in recruiting Cecily Arkwright?
Yeah.

　Ira glares at Bashkata.

'The Arkwright family I didn't expect. I didn't expect you to team up with the Horne family's daughter.''

　When he said that, Bashkatha met with Fibruk once and then turned to Cecily-san.

''So, since you've come to compete here.......will Cecily-dono also be the 'object' of the match?
Yes, do you mind?
What, Cecily?

　Cecily-san answered immediately, and Ira-san shouted in surprise.
　When I looked at them, I saw that Sieg and Hyrgis-san also looked puzzled.
　Cecily, however, looked at Bashkatha with a smile on her face and her eyes narrowed with her twin eyes.

I was wondering what kind of backbone he had when I heard that Bashkatha Troia was the younger brother of Vanstos, the Eight Sacred Trees Sword, and I was wondering what kind of backbone he had.
"What do you mean by 'I see' now, Cecily Arkwright?
I mean, manly enough not to know that?

　But Bashkatha laughed off Cecily's provocative manner.

'Ha, you're right!　But I do know, okay?　I mean, you were just humiliated and humiliated by the killer the other day, and then you fell asleep in a coma and cried like a baby!　Who are you crying to?　To the Holy King's favorite grandfather?!
..........

　The cronies followed Bashkatha's words with a sneer.
　But Cecily was unperturbed and only sighed while shaking her head loosely.
　It was like she wasn't dealing with them.
　As if she didn't like the way he looked, Bashkatha changed her mind.

It's a good thing that you're able to have a good time with them. Hey, don't you think that's what you need to do?

　The call from the Bashkatha was met with a flurry of support from the crowd.

'So you're willing to do anything to win, right?　The Horns' daughter has fallen, too.
The Arkwright that rides on it is an Arkwright, though.
"And by a curse user... you know, that silver-haired man, what's his story about being from the sixth house?
'There's no conviction in the way you collect them... well, you just have to win, right, Ira Horne?
Oh, it's so ugly.

　...........
　Huh.
　I'll bring a mirror for you.
　I guess people who look like this kind of thing get together........
　Only Beoza-san and a couple of students look uncomfortable.

'I mean, one guy and the rest are women?　I don't know if it's cool to have a girl with a guy all by herself.　Good for you, Conjurer!　Just savor a good eye for a moment!

　After a long time of bickering, Asaro has finally joined the fray.
　He's really a lively guy when he's trying to stir people up.
　.......................
　Well, I know what Asaro wants to say.
　I know what you mean.
　Asaro, do you have something to say?
　Honey do you remember Zeke?
　Look, Zeke's looking incredibly subtle.........
　If I had aimed for his mental damage, it would have been the most effective verbal attack I've ever flown, but.......

''Hahaha, well, no matter how many cowardly moves you guys use, we'll play fair and square, so don't worry!　Not with your lowly hand of weeping and scenting, not with your lowly hand of crying down and scenting, but with the totality of my humanity ... including my humanity!
'Yes, yes, yes!　I won't let those cowards get me down!
'Let's smash him down with a straight shot!
'So this time it's a showdown between the righteous and the wicked!　This guy needs to spread the word throughout the school!

　Wow, I'm even starting to justify myself....
　What do I do?
　It's like you know the outcome, and everyone else is silent, so it's better to just ignore it and let it pass here--

　At that time, I heard a voice that was chuckling.

　The owner of the laughter was........Currier-san.
　She was laughing over her head.
　The attention of everyone here who noticed that, turned to her.

''The idiots have come this far--so much more refreshing.
Hmm?

　Bashkatha furrowed her brow.
　Currier slowly looked up.
　It was as if he was glaring at Bashkatha and the others.

''I can't help but wonder how you can be so mistaken at heart.

　The stinging sound of their voices seemed to have given Bashkatha and the others a sense of what was going on.
　Their attempts to speak disappeared.

'Seeing the guys I've missed lately again, I've realized once again how dwarfed the guys there are. I've recently reunited with some of my old friends, and I've realized how small they are. They don't see anything, they don't feel anything ... they don't know anything.

　'Kukuku,' laughs Currier.

'I, you see, believe that good intentions should be returned with as much good as possible - but I believe that bad intentions should be returned with thoroughness and malice. So I have no compassion for those who have bad intentions.

　Ms. Currier takes a step forward.
　The bashkatas are swallowed up by the intimidating feeling she gives off, or maybe they are just trying to get out of the way.
　As they walked down the corridor, Curie-san said, "I'd rather you guys be out here," she said.

You guys might want to focus on that Titan countermeasure rather than just chirping here.　Why do they think they can beat the giants like they deserve?　The top of the Little Saint rank was crushed in a heartbeat, right?　Why?　Why do you think you're the only one who can win?　Why do we think we're the only ones who can make it work?　The answer is simple--you don't know what you're capable of.

　As we passed through the group of Bashkatas, Currier called out to us.

'Let's go. Talking to these people is a waste of time. If you ask me, it's a hellish waste of time.

　We'll pass through the vashkatas, too.
　And when we're about to leave.

Hey, hey, hey!　Do you think you can beat us?

　Asaro stopped Currier.
　And.

Three days.

　Mr. Currier said, not turning around.

'Oh?'
'It's the day of the mission. We'll be hiding in the Holy Ruins for three days on the day of rest. You're going to join us on this date, right?　So I was kind enough to teach him a lesson.
　I'll make you bark!　Over here, we have the top of the Little Holy Order, the 6th ranked Bashkata, and most importantly, the strongest in the school, Beosa!　I'm going to show you that you're the one who's misjudging the power differential!

　The Vashkata's large hand was placed on the shoulders of the exasperated Phiburg.

The Vashukatha's large hand is placed on the Vashukatha's shoulder. "Well, don't worry about it, Phiburg, they are only soldiers after all. They don't understand that this is a war. You can never win a war with one or two men strong. Yes, this is war, Phiburg. It's a game of totalitarianism.
Well I guess I just got a little carried away with the whole thing. Bashkatha's right.

　'Hmph,' snorted Bashkatha.

''Don't worry. I have already asked my mother-dono to arrange the holy and magic swords for you. Moreover, in addition to the 'name holder', I've also asked her to order the holy and demonic swords from a certain route.
"False, the Holy Demon Sword!　Awesome!
And I've already arranged for a spell.

　The crowd, which had been quiet for a while, suddenly regained their momentum.

Well, that's the Trojan dukes!
This is total power!
We're not like the squad with a woman whose only advantage is to intimidate them!
No, I mean, that silver-haired guy is beautiful, but he's scary!

　Bashkatha looks at us with a smug look on his face.

''This is the total power. Hmph, the Arkwright family and the Horn family can also use the power of the house to their heart's content if they can. Well, that's why they can't do that, that's why they called out to the forbidding curse user in name only and the mouthpiece who calls herself the 6th house. And then you'll be defeated by a murderer, a hapless genius who crawled into the ground, a dropout with nothing to show for it but his scent, and his slimy cronies who are bewitched by her...hahahahaha, let's use the power of the Trojan dukes to turn you into the stars of a comedy tale! ?　People are going to laugh at you!
Hey, you.

　I stopped Ira-san from stepping out of the way with anger on her face.
　Asaro grinned and gave me a look of satisfaction.

'Oh, what's with that face, Kurohiko?　You don't look too happy, do you?　Haha, I don't like how you've been acting all day!　But you know, it looks like you're starting to come around.　Huh?
'Yeah, complaints are complaints too. I'm not going to allow you to say anything bad about me, but about my people. You say too much every time, dude.
Ohhhhh, what would you do then?　Do you want to do it here?　I don't mind.

　Asaro couldn't finish his words until the end.
　Because I moved in front of Bashkatha's eyes in an instant - it looked like I had moved in front of him.

''Nuh, you........''

　Bashkatha frowns.

'You said earlier that overall strength is important.　Well, I'm not denying it. But - there are enough people in this world to change the course of a battle with just a few people. I know at least two of them.

　Currier Versteen.
　Hibigami.

　I think those two could even change the state of the war.
　No.
　I'm pretty sure.

'And one of the two is in Isla Squad. So don't take it too personally.
Who the hell are you?　I've heard that the only thing he's got going for him is a curse...
'Yes. If it weren't for the ban, I'd be a normal, average person.
Then the move was....
It's just that there are so many more powerful people out there that it seems like a stopgap. As someone says, I'll give you a word of advice: If you're going to get in someone's way, you should at least be able to measure their strength. If you're going to get in someone's way, you should at least be able to gauge their strength.
You think you can beat us?
Yeah, I'm going to win.

　I said and turned myself around and went back to everyone.
　As expected, I was pissed off at Bashkatha for saying it like that.
　There's a limit to how much you can stir people up.

''..........''

　And I've been brilliantly agitated?
　Is this a reflection course?
　Ah.
　Everyone's expression is kind of indescribable....

''S-Sorry, I'm sorry, I got agitated.

　It was Currier-san who responded first.

''Hmm ... maybe everyone is surprised that you got angry?　Honestly, that surprised me too.
"Yes, I'll be more careful from now on...

　I was despondent.
　Everyone else was holding back, but I accidentally got provoked....

'No, you misunderstood something, didn't you?
Am I really such a misunderstood bastard?
It's time to go. Let's go.
Yes.

　I disappointedly slumped my shoulders and followed Currier-san.
　Everyone, including Cecily and Ira, said kind words to me, probably as an attempt to comfort me.
　On the other hand, maybe the advice I gave them a little bit earlier paid off, and Bashkatha and the others didn't act like they were trying to stir things up this time.
　It was just that Asaro shouted one last time to us who were leaving the place.

The only thing you can do is to make sure that you don't lose this game.　We'll give you three days to figure that out first!　I don't care if you're relying on the cowardly power of a forbidden curse, we'll beat you fair and square with our combined strength!　Have fun!

　　　　　　　　　　*

　The reason why I decided to set the date for the operation to be three days later as a rest day is because the day before I finish repairing my sword and because of my new forbidden spell trial date.

　Also, Ira's team doesn't put as much emphasis on defeating the giants as the Phiburg team does.
　The other team is obsessed with defeating the giants before we do, but in the opinion of both Curie and Cecily, this is probably Beoza's idea.
　After listening to it, it seemed to make sense.
　Considering the way he talked before, he thinks that Beosa-san is not sure if he can beat us or not.
　However, due to our position, we want to have some flowers on the Bashkata side as well.
　So, let them only get the credit for defeating the giant that caused the school's students' attack on the Holy Ruins to come to a standstill - that's what they think.
　That was the view of the two of them.
　Well, there's no guarantee that that giant won't appear again, but if it doesn't appear again, even if Bashkatha and the others lose the battle, ''It's because we defeated the giant! So you could argue that.
　I feel like that's not fair, but I'm sure those guys would do it.
　Beoza-san may have a lot of trouble with that too.

　On the other hand, Currier-san seemed to think that if the defeat of the giants was done by Bashkatha and the others, that was fine.
　Even before, she had a feeling that she was more concerned about the giants than the game.
　When I asked her why, she said she was concerned about the fact that I had fallen to a lower level due to the earthquakes before.
　Rather than giants, it seems that Currier-san is more wary of the holy ruins that are whispered to be strange.

　And as for me, I've just now come out of the Holy Ruins with Machina-san, having created the cause for concern.
　Today is the day after Cecily and the others joined Aila's group, and it's the day after the day of the dispute with Bashkatha and the others in the hallway in front of the cafeteria.
　I headed to the Holy Ruins with Makina-san and Clarice-san as my escort, taking the Demon Eater and the spellbook in hand.
　I went to the headmaster's office to learn the forbidden spell.
　Without a problem, I successfully learned a new forbidden spell - the eighth forbidden spell.
　And as planned, after finishing the procedures for the 'non-strategic investigation' at the hall, I immediately went into the holy ruins and used the forbidden spell against the demons of the upper levels.

''Oh, welcome back!　How did it go?

　Clarice-san, who was waiting for me in front of the Holy Ruins Plaza, waved her hand to greet me.

''Ahhh, I think I can manage to use it.......''

　I asked Makina, brushing the powder off my skirt.

'You did know how to use it, didn't you?'
'Yes. But are you okay with the fatigue?　
Well, there's still some left over, but...

　It turns out that unlike the ninth forbidden curse, the eighth forbidden curse leaves you fatigued.
　You can't just use it as much as you want to with the idiot.

''More importantly, you........I hear you're in some kind of trouble with Duke Troia's son?

　That's my girl.
　I can already hear it.

'No, no, it's a healthy competition between students. It's a 'fair' competition of individual and overall strength.
... hmmm.
Oh, you don't believe it, do you?
''Believe it or not, as headmaster, I can't put my trust in either of them. As long as there are no excesses. It's just--

　And then Makina-san put her hand on my back.

"Don't do anything rash.
'Yes, I know. I don't want to make you sad, Mia.
'What?　Am I not in it?
'Huh?　Do you want me to let you in?
Don't get cocky, you son of a b*tc*!
Ow!

　I was lightly pinched in the flesh of my armpit by Makina-san, who laughed and laughed.

'Well, I'm not worried about you. You're starting to feel a little more dependable, too.''
Is that so?
Yeah.
'Hohoho, so the headmaster liked people like Kurohiko-san?

　Suddenly, Clarisse-san interrupted.

"I thought you were not interested in the opposite s*x because you never talk about anything frivolous, but I see.
'What?　Was it?
I don't know!

　Phew, Makina-san turns away with her cheeks turning cherry red.
　And Makina-san, who folded her arms, sent me a sidelong glance.

It's a good idea to go for it, at any rate. I can't support you as the headmaster of the school, but I'll support you in my heart as Makina Renowskaia personally.
Thank you.
Now, Mr. Kurohiko!　Let's hear about your new forbidden curse as soon as possible, shall we?
Yes, yes....

　I responded to Clarice, who was moving her hands suspiciously with her eagle, with an awkward smile.

　　　　　　　　　　*

　Then the date was changed and it was the day of rest.
　Finally, it was the day to decide on the mission to defeat the enemy.

　We gathered at the Holy Ruins Hall at eight in the morning.
　All seven of us were present without a single person missing.
　The square and the hall have been deserted recently due to the anomaly of the Holy Ruins and the giants, but today, unusually, many students were present.
　I suppose it's because Bashkatha and his friends spread the word about our confrontation while spreading the word that it was a bad idea.

　From what I heard in the hall, the Bashkatas dove in about an hour ago.
　It looks like they really got in time with us.
　Are they planning to make us brag about it when we catch up with them after defeating the giants in the Holy Ruins?

　We parted for once and made preparations carefully in the hall.
　And then--

　After we finished our preparations and left the hall, Ira's group and I passed through the square and stepped into the Holy Ruins.