Volume 4 Chapter 3 (2/2)

”Huh? Yumi-chan?”

As she thought of Rosa Gigantea, all of a sudden she had an auditory hallucination of Rosa Gigantea But when she turned around, the real Rosa Gigantea stood not ten meters behind her, so she became doubly surprised

”Well, I shall be going now”

shi+zuka-sama tapped Yumi's shoulder in a ”see you” way, and walked toward the , now that soantea had appeared

Well, shi+zuka-saantea, the onee-sama of shi+ht have been the prudent course of action to call it a ”near-h she spoke to Yumi quite defenselessly

”Was I a third wheel?”

Said Rosa Gigantea as she crept closer, and then she said so unbelievable

”What a beautiful girl Yumi-chan's friend?”

”Eh!?”

”My, what a voice The student that ith you just now”

”… Is that a joke?”

It wasn't like she could say anything about other people, but Yue she wouldn't remember the name of someone as her sister's enemy

”A joke?”

But Rosa Gigantea was serious She was seriously pondering over why Yuantea was a comrade”

Yumi slid into a relieved smile Here was another person who didn't store data on other people Right, not everyone in the world is perfect Everyone has things they're weak at

Yes, yes, she agreed with herself Then the chorus

”Let's go somewhere else”

Yuantea's hand and walked down the closest stairs It wouldn't be proper to gossip about the ene next to their headquarters, the music room Even if the ene

”What is it, Yumi-chan?”

”That was the rumored Rosa Canina”

After going doo flights of stairs and stopping in front of the science room, Yumi faithfully reported

”Oh”

And then Rosa Gigantea added, ”What's that?” Perhaps you begin to neglect the world around you when you're busy studying for exa shi+zuka-sa before the exams

”U Kanina shi+zuka-sama's name?”

”I feel like I've heard it soh I don't think I'd have left her unchecked if she was that beautiful … Oh, I get it, the second-year that wanted to take part in the Yamayurikai audition, it's her?”

Co Yumi's hasty departure froossip, Rosa Gigantea seeether

”Well, yes”

But that's an election, not an audition

”Mht?”

After antea leaned against it

”Wait a second, Rosa Gigantea, that's not how you're supposed to react!”

Rosa Gigantea's si for complaints

”Hoas I supposed to react?”

”You're supposed to cheer for your sister, shi+mako-san!”

Isn't that obvious? Yumi puffed her chest

”Maybe But shi+ her candidacy, is she? So wouldn't it be better to let someone ants to, do it?”

”No! I want Rosa Gigantea to persuade shi+mako-san”

”Did shi+mako say she wanted me to persuade her?”

”Of course she wouldn't”

Why would that shi+mako-san complain to Yumi?

”Right? Then I won't talk to her about it”

”Why!?”

”Third-years are fundamentally supposed to stay out of the election process”

”Huh?”

”That's why the election takes place while the third-years are busy with exaet to vote, ould we bother ourselves with it? Even I' for exams, okay?”

Why would they bother theantea

”Why are you so cold?”

When Yuhed

”I can't help it Every student titled a ”Rose” at Lillian went through this period without depending on their onee-sama”

She said proudly, but of course, when they ran, they were the only ones up for election, so it wasn't right, co their situations equally

”Think about it Student presidents need to lead the students And the election tests your ability to do that, right? You fail, if you need to rely on your onee-saht she antea after me If she wants to, she can find a way to do it If she doesn't, she doesn't have to run It's simple”

Well, that was true But it was hard to explain, that even if it didn't ical sense, they were sisters, so they needed to support each other

”So are you saying to just silently watch?”

Truth be told, she was disappointed She was so disappointed she wanted to cry

Because they were sisters, Yumi wanted to support Sachiko-sama Onee-sama and little sister, they were on different sides of the relationshi+p, but she believed Rosa Gigantea would feel the saantea would show the way

But she rong Rosa Gigantea was completely unreliable

”I never said you have to just watch”

Like she was talking to a child, Rosa Gigantea peered into Yu her head

”I' So if Yus, that's Yuative”

”What?”

”See you”

Abruptly cutting the conversation off, Rosa Gigantea stopped leaning against the science room door and stood up

”See you? Rosa Gigantea, didn't you have so-”

Yuun walking away Coantea was in school, and near the music roo such a busy time

”I was looking for Yuotten the general gist of as going on, so it's alright”

Bye bye, waved Rosa Gigantea as she turned the corner in the hallway and vanished

”What was that?”

She couldn't figure out what people close to her were thinking

For so that almost all the time lately

shi+mako-san announced her candidacy after school, the day of the deadline Apparently she turned in her registration 15 minutes before it closed

She was so punctual that she never once forgot her homework, and always submitted her reports with plenty of ti until the very end was proof that she agonized over the decision for a long, long time

She expressed a clear fighting hen she first heard about Rosa Canina, but she changed herthe decision until the very end, and finally fortified her resolve to run Some criticized her for her indecisiveness (of course, the second-year wisteria-class students), but this was a result of her personal agonizing for ten days, so in a way it didn't ned up on the first day or the last day

”You're not running?”

During lunch on the last day, Yumi invited shi+mako-san to the Rose Mansion for lunch There were too many outsiders in the classroo outside wasn't an attractive option Fortunately, no one seemed like they were on the second floor of the Rose Mansion Yoshi+no-san's class after lunch was physical education, so she was probably eating lunch in her classroom And without Yoshi+no-san, the probability of Rei-sa dropped For the Yaathered at the Rose Mansion for lunch and plenty of days where no one came Of course, before school festivals, for instance, when there was a coather

So even today, there was the chance of so in later But they could deal with that then Yumi was prepared to persuade shi+mako-san, today, for the first and last time, as her classmate

She could drop out any tin up to buy herselfthe conversation But, shi+mako-san had probably delayed her decision even to this day because she didn't want to make such a careless decision, so it would be difficult to sway her

”It's quiet”

Placing the earlier question aside, shi+ in through the

”… Actually, I'm perplexed”

After a minute, shi+mako-san finally answered

”May I ask why?”

”I haven't been able to sort things out, myself”

”Yes”

Even so, she urged shi+ handkerchief she was using as a luncheon

”I don't know about Yuantea's sister because I wanted to become a student president”

”Me, too!”

Yumi was about to stand up and lean into shi+ across from her

”Me, too I just like Sachiko-sama-”

”… Yes Yes Even if onee-sama wasn't called a Rose, you would accept her rosary And that is the proper sisterly relationshi+p”

”shi+antea, too, don't you?”

”Yes And that's why I assisted the Yamayurikai, to be of soraduates, I'll feel no obligation toward the Yamayurikai I did feel like I would follow in onee-sama's footsteps, but that was because I assumed, as usual, no one else would try to step in”

”Eh-!?”

When Yumi cried, shi+mako-san chuckled and said, ”I'm sorry”

”To me, an ”attachment” is just a burden I simply wish that I can keep o anywhere whenever I want”

”Then, you dislike school?”

”I don't dislike it … But it's not a question of dislike or like”

”Hard”

”Really And because this is my personality, my father sends me to school, worried about me, and onee-sama probably pulled me into the Ya alone, so I naturally gravitate toward isolation That's why people that knoell always try to force roups”

Finally, although it was just a tiny bit, Yuantea and shi+antea understood shi+antea understood her well, shi+mako-san accepted her rosary Because in her sixteen years of life, not many understood her like that

”Then, wouldn't it be better if you remained in the Yamayurikai?”

”If that is onee-sama's intent That's what I felt, at first As I walked in and out of the Rose Mansion, as I assisted the Yaantea en bouton by people I didn't knoell Before I knew it, rown And sometimes I think fondly of that sensation And I became Yumi-san and Yoshi+no-san's friend”

”I'lad I became shi+ether h?”

”I never said it wasn't, did I? But, there are other things I think about”

”Like?”

”I'm not the type of person who can lead students”

”What are you talking about?”

She laughed shi+mako-san was so reliable, everyone adored her, she was kind, and was good at studying, so when someone who could be the perfect anecdote for a leadershi+p book says so like ”I'm not the type to lead students,” that meant no one could try to become a Rose As proof, shi+antea and Sachiko-sama

But shi+

”That's not all”

She looked serious

”What else?”

”Lillian, without me”

”Eh?”

”If I had not entered Lillian Girls' Academy”

”What do you mean?”

shi+h a middle-school exam, Yumi remembered

But still

People like Yuarten, from when they first beca about ”if” they hadn't come to Lillian made sense But at twelve, you're certainly conscious of the world, so your oill is acting in some way, however small

”I mean, if”

”If”

”Yes Then Rosa Gigantea wouldn't have chosen me as her sister, correct? Even if it may have taken time, she may have chosen a second-year student, as tradition holds”

”And that would be shi+zuka-saantea?”

That's wrong, Yuantea may have taken quite so separation with a dear friend But it wasn't a question of tier than her It was because there was no student ”capable of beco her little sister”

”Indeed She may have never found a sister”

shi+mako-san nodded, and continued

”Then let's iine a scenario where she never had a sister Then what happens?”

”What happens?”

”In the end, it becomes an election Just like it is now”

But that didn't

”But in reality, shi+mako-san is here”

”That's why it's an 'if'”

But what did she want to say, talking about an ”if” scenario? It was like she was hinting that the ”if” could turn out to be true

”shi+, are you?”

shi+mako-san curled her lips up a bit, to that question

”I do not desire such a thing, but-”

But she never finished her sentence shi+mako-san stopped

”Is someone there?”

”What?”

Yumi also listened carefully

Creak, creak, creak, she could hear the stairs creaking

”But, who?”

She was still inexperienced at figuring out whose footsteps they belonged to, but she could soroup of Sachiko-sama, Rosa Chinensis and Rosa Foetida Or maybe like a hurried Yoshi+no-san or Rei-sama That was about it

Her teht into her footsteps was very conscientious, or prudent It only creaked about a third as much as Rei-sama's footsteps Only shi+mako-san walked like this, but she sat in front of Yumi

When she finished cli the stairs, she knocked on the biscuit-shaped door

It was an effective staccato A pretty sound, like a xylophone

But, strange

The usualIt felt like she aiting for them to respond

”I wonder who it is?”

Yu,” stood up and placed her hand on the knob Really, she was still thinking lightly about it, assu so heavy and couldn't spare a hand for the door, or soh to realize such a person wouldn't really be able to knock, either

Click clat

The door opened with a familiar, click clat sound

She opened a jack-in-the-box Someone unexpected stood there

”Gokigenyou, Yumi-san”

Rosa Canina, or Kanina shi+zuka-saht and presented a polished smile

(What's going to happen-!?)

Yumi forced a smile as she screamed inside

shi+mako-san is in the room!

”I tried calling out downstairs, but no one responded, so I let myself in”

After being lead to theon the tea she was given, the visitor asked, ”Was it a bother?”

”Not at all Actually, we're sorry When we're on the second floor, we often don't notice anyone knocking on the door So it helps us greatly that you walked in”

Incidentally, it was shi+mako-san that lead shi+zuka-sama into the room, pulled a seat out for her, and then poured her tea Yumi was frozen in place, stuck between Rosa Canina in front of her and Rosa Gigantea en bouton behind her, so she was rendered immobile

shi+zuka-sa accoues, she entered the Rose Mansion, the nesting place of her ene how many could be inside As proof, she was actually surprised it was so empty

The visitor took another sip, very elegantly

So at this table and sipping tea It felt mysteriously natural, but it also felt a bit odd

She blended into the roo in Even so, a part of Yu to find a ht have just been that she was unused to the sight

But if shi+zuka-sama won the election, this would be the norine that with the addition of shi+zuka-sama, someone else would vanish

”There's not much time, so I'll leave the pleasantries aside I came here today to speak to shi+mako-san”

So to thaw herself, Yumi looked at her wrist-watch There were only about fifteen minutes left until lunch break ended

”Then, shall I… shall I take my leave?”

”That would be unnecessary On the contrary, please remain, Yumi-san”

shi+zuka-sama stopped her shi+mako-san nodded, too They were both calm They looked so amicable to each other that it was difficult to believe they were actually enemies Of course, itthem to be enemies

Yumi sat down in a seat that saw them from the side In truth, she was more on shi+mako-san's side, but she felt it would be aard if she chose a side here Plus, she couldn't say it aloud, but she didn't dislike shi+zuka-sa her

”May I ask what you want?”

shi+ personality had vanished, and now she was completely locked in

”You are aware, I believe, that I've announced my candidacy for the student council”

shi+zuka-saan

”Yes” shi+ently In this case, Yumi was basically just a spectator, so she kept silent

”But it's not out of nonconfidence in you or the other boutons Will you believe me?”

”Of course”

shi+zuka-sama didn't decide, ”I'll do it,” because she felt shi+mako-san and others weren't up to the task, in other words And shi+mako-san basically replied, ”I know that already” Yuht about the possibility of people being dissatisfied with the boutons, so the confirmation took her by surprise

”Then, why have you not registered? Wouldn't you have registered with Sachiko-san and Rei-sama if I hadn't?”

”I may have”

”The deadline is today, after school”

”Yes”

shi+mako-san understood that perfectly well, without the need for shi+zuka-sama to point it out Because Sachiko-sa her every ti about it with Yumi

”What are you going to do?”

”I don't think I aed to tell you”

Surprisingly, shi+mako-san used a harsh tone Of course, this reaction ildly different from when Yumi asked essentially the same question

”… Indeed”

While shi+zuka-sans of backing down as she continued to speak

”I have come simply to present you with another road, because you seem to be lost”

”Road?”

”I think you're hesitating over running because you're not the sae as the other boutons You've done well as a bouton despite being a first-year And now, after working harder than anyone else, I can also sy even harder for your second, and third, years”

”What do you want-”

shi+lad I', Yuht

”If you want to become like Yumi-san, use me -That's all”

It was still beating around the edges, so shi+mako-san rephrased shi+zuka-san's words quite directly

”Are you saying I should step aside and let you becoantea next year?”

(What!?)

She didn't think shi+zuka-sa, so Yumi al, aren't you? was how Yumi felt as she searched shi+zuka-sama's face, but she, in turn, simply stared at shi+mako-sama, with a benevolent smile

”Of course, but I have no intention of kicking you out of the Rose Mansion Fortunately, I have no sister, either Once Rosa Gigantea graduates, I have full intention of welco you as my sister”

”shi+zuka-sama, you liked shi+mako-san!?”

She was trying so hard, but finally Yumi burst out

”No, Yu that”

Please stay silent a bit longer, shi+ain shi+zuka-salanced at Yuic was off She thought shi+zuka-sa because she wanted shi+

”I don't think it's a bad proposal for you, at all”

shi+zuka-sama repeated Yumi nodded inside, ”That's true”

That way, shi+ain And she would take up the same duties in the Yamayurikai And then when she becareat It sounded too great, so it was scary

”Think about it”

The fifth period bell rang, so shi+zuka-sama stood up

”Wait, please”

shi+mako-san followed her

”I have not , yet, but I must answer this now”

”What is it?”

”Noyour sister Of beco anyone's sister My onee-sama is Satou Sei-sama and Satou Sei-sama alone”

”… I see I understand”

shi+zuka-sama simply nodded, quietly

And then, shi+mako-san announced her candidacy after school In the end, you could say shi+zuka-sama took it upon herself personally to bloay all of shi+mako-san's worries And only Yumi, who'd been present at their conversation, knew about that