Endless Silver Machine

Both of them were able to stay in the room during the afternoon's subject-specific time.

Professor Cocona is in the Holy See, and Lolo extended his vacation through tutor Letika.

Afterwards, the two took a shower, made a simple lunch, and spent a leisurely afternoon.

There are still many troublesome things waiting for Aika to solve, but now she only needs to consider Luoluo's affairs.

The aviation magic ship coming to pick up Brad will arrive tomorrow, and he will make his decision clear to his family and senior Lilith tonight.

This time, he was not going to ask for the consent of Principal Felice, but chose to "go his own way".

In fact, it's more that Principal Phyllis doesn't care much about this kind of thing. She has always been such a casual person.

"Brother, I want to talk to classmate Brad."

"What to talk about?"

"I still want to go to the Imperial Capital with everyone. If I stay here, I won't be able to wait any longer."

"..."

"Besides, this ability can definitely help everyone! I no longer want to avoid this ability."

"...Are you going to go alone?"

Aika knew that Luoluo would definitely make this request at this time, and he did not intend to stop it too much.

"Brother has already made a promise to Brad, and it seems inappropriate to go back on it now... So I'll go alone."

Luoluo found various reasons, but in fact, she had already decided to go alone to convince Brad.

While waiting for school to be over, Aika told Luoluo his general plan.

Although Luoluo had some objections to Aika's recklessness, there seemed to be no better or faster way.

If it goes as planned, the rescue of the princess will be half successful.

"I have already communicated with Brad via text message. He will be waiting for me in the classroom after the Pharmacy Department is over."

"Well, ask me again when you encounter something you can't decide by yourself. Speaking of which, yesterday I promised to pick up Ling after school."

"Is the place where Sister Ling has classes in the outer forest? There is a section of road in the middle that we can walk together."

The two of them had been together all afternoon, and now they suddenly said they wanted to separate. For a while, they were still a little reluctant to leave.

But this was only affected by the atmosphere at the moment, and both Aika and Luoluo knew it well.

"Well, let's go out together."

This kind of time will always come to an end. At least we can say goodbye temporarily under the sunset, which is also a good choice.

…………

After Aika and Luoluo said goodbye in front of the Pharmacy Department building, they reminded themselves to get rid of distracting thoughts and walked towards the place agreed with Ling.

Everything on Brad's side is left to Luo Luo. At least for Brad, Luo Luo's words carry more weight than his own.

Walking through the intricate paths of the school, all the people who met us were students returning from school, which made Aika, who had just come out of home, feel a little ashamed.

Walking from the administrator's hut to the outer forest where the Assault Section conducts practical training is equivalent to crossing the entire Shigetsuki Academy.

Professor Cocona's laboratory is also nearby. We used to come here from the school building, which reduced the distance by nearly half.

So Aika deliberately left twice as much time to go out today.

On the way, I saw three girls walking out of the school building of the Enchantment Department with Wei Xi from a distance, and Wei Xi also noticed Aika.

Those three girls must be her friends. One of them is Ronak, a classmate in the twin class, and there is an eldest lady who looks troublesome. The one next to her left a weaker impression.

Wei Xi said something to the three of them, and then trotted towards Aika.

"Brother Aika..."

"Sorry, it was Luoluo who was supposed to pick you up, but she is in a hurry now..."

"No way..." Wei Xi shook her head vigorously and tried her best to deny, "I didn't expect to meet you here..."

For some reason, Wei Xi seemed very excited about the chance encounter on the road.

The long pure white hair hanging down on both sides danced slightly like lop ears, and Aika unconsciously reached out and touched her hair.

She looked up at the girls waiting for her not far away. Ronak was waving to Aika, looking like he was teasing her. The girl who looked like a young lady seemed to be biting her fingers impatiently.

It was too far away to see clearly, but they couldn't be kept waiting forever.

"Are you going to a 'moon bath' for dinner?"

"No... classmate Anivel invited me to their dormitory..."

"Over there in the girls' dormitory..."

When the time comes, Luoluo or Ling will be asked to pick her up, but now he hasn't said anything.

If Wei Xi was told to come back early in the evening and have something to say, she would definitely not be in the mood to enjoy time with her friends.

The person Aika is most worried about not being able to make friends with is Wei Xi. Now that the situation has finally improved, Aika certainly hopes to continue to develop.

"Brother Aika...have you contacted Xiaoyin?"

"Well, I contacted you while you were sleeping in the classroom."

"Ugh...I thought Brother Aika didn't see it..."

"You can sit in front of me and you can see me when you get back to the classroom." Aika patted Wei Xi's little head gently, "Go, they are still waiting for you."

Looking up again, Ronak was cheering even more. The girl who wasn't impressed seemed to be trying to persuade the girl who looked like a young lady to calm down.

What's going on with this small group of girls? Their personalities seem to be totally incompatible...

Wei Xi ran back with a bang, and the girl who looked like a young lady seemed to be bullying her...

Aika turned around and saw that there was probably a world that she couldn't understand.

I looked at the time displayed on the PDA and found it was already a little later than agreed.

"Oops……"

I checked my mailbox and didn't receive any text messages urging me to do so.

"On the contrary, it's even more terrifying..."

Accepting the reality with a wry smile, Aika put the PDA into the pocket of her uniform and quickened her pace.

…………

The Assault Section of Shimozuki Academy has an enclosure specifically for training combat skills in the surrounding forest, but it is still within the surveillance range of the large barrier.

The fourth level of monsters will not appear once every few years, and the third level of monsters will occasionally break in. It is such an area that wanders on the edge of danger.

There is a large building specifically for students to prepare outside the training area. It is said that there is a shower inside, because the students do not want to face the sweaty time after school.

Except for the initial choice of specialization subjects, after everyone and Ling visited the area twice, they basically never came here again.

Aika came to the agreed flower bed. Since there is only one flower bed of this color nearby, it was easy to find it.

"Ling, I'm here to pick you up. Sorry, I bumped into Wei Xi on the way, so I'm a few minutes late..."

"It doesn't matter. It seems to be the current male style to make women wait. I learned something good. I forgive you."

Ling, who was sitting by the flower bed, said generous words with a smile on her face, which sounded like candy in front of a whip.

However, Aika and Ling have been together for so long, and there is really no sign that she is angry.

"Where did you hear this kind of knowledge? I was late so it's my fault and I admit it, so I'm really sorry!"

"...Okay, okay, I understand. I just don't want to waste time on this kind of topic, so I forgive you. Why do you keep apologizing!"

Ling put away the forced smile, patted her skirt and stood up from the bench in front of the flower bed, folded the doily and put it into her carry-on bag.

Her long blond hair fluttered as she stood up, emitting a shampoo scent that was different from the scent of flowers.

Take a closer look at her uniform, which is also spotless and neat.

"Did you just take a shower?"

"!"

The movements in Ling's hands stopped for a moment, and then she lifted up the bag that looked like it couldn't hold a change of clothes at all.

"The Assault Course ended very early, and everyone went back after taking a shower."

Ling pouted, but her cheeks turned red as she answered Aika's question.

"Oh, is it so……"

"Do you think I did this specifically to wait for you?"

"No, I've never said that."

"...That's good. I won't forgive you if you have weird fantasies."

Aika really didn't know how much of her words were sincere.

"Leave now?"

"Oh, um."

She responded to Aika awkwardly and took a slightly hesitant step.

…………

Ling held her bag behind her back with both hands and walked beside Aika.

This was the first time I came to take Ling home, but the atmosphere was not as warm as expected.

If there wasn't such an emphasis on the background, the relationship between Aika and Ling would be more natural.

"I said, are we too stiff..."

Aika unconsciously began to pay attention to whether her arms and legs were swinging in the same direction.

"...Wouldn't it be better to imagine that we are shopping?"

"Then let's talk about something."

"What to talk about?"

"By the way, Wei Xi went to the girls' dormitory for dinner tonight. Could you please pick her up later?"

"Why do you have to mention Wei Xi's matter!" Ling finished losing his temper at Aika angrily, then turned away, "Although it's okay to say it's okay..."

"You also know that I'm actually very bad at chatting."

"Because your head is made of wood. Really, you really don't have any strengths except energy."

"What do you mean by 'besides energy'? My advantages are things that ordinary people cannot observe."

"Okay, okay, I'm just an ordinary person."

Although it was just a boring conversation, it also eased the slightly stiff atmosphere between the two.

"Ling, you used the Light Flame Sword in the ruins, right? Did you feel different at that time than usual?"

"If you are talking about the personality in the Light Flame Sword, it has never come out again. It is basically still the same as before."

"I was wondering why my magic costume never appeared."

"Eye of Fiery Flame?"

Ling naturally raised Aika's wrist and looked at the wrist wheel that shone with silver light in the sunset.

She herself didn't seem to care about this action, but the one who cared about it was the passive Aika.

"That's right... My Light Flame Sword and Luoluo's Orchid Heart seem to have spoken, but yours haven't responded yet?"

"I think it's not just your magic costume that's a special case."

"Maybe I need some opportunity."

"Opportunity?" Ling's statement was not impossible. "By the way, what is your opportunity?"

"Is it my opportunity..." Ling's voice suddenly became much softer, "It must have been that time when I was in coma for a long time, and the sword of light came out through my body."

"To be honest, even though I already felt something was wrong at that time, I didn't expect that the consciousness was not my own."

"...Don't mention that matter again."

All the problems that should be solved in that incident have been solved, and Ling, who was the central figure in the incident, also felt very embarrassed.

"Well, I contacted Liuyin this morning. I didn't have time to tell you because I was looking for Luoluo."

"I saw your text message. Is it okay now for Luoluo?"

"Well, she's going to the pharmacy department now to see Brad."

"Brad? Is he the boy who confessed to Lolo before?"

"He can help us smuggle into the Bisi Empire, but Luo Luo is required to stay at Frost Moon Academy."

"This exchange condition seems completely disproportionate..."

Smuggling was against the laws of the empire, and Ling couldn't imagine how the two things were equated.

"That guy liked Luo Luo. He probably didn't want the girl he liked to be in danger."

"... Speaking of which, you were like this in the beginning, so it's understandable."

"What does it have to do with me?"

"When we didn't know each other for a long time, wasn't the thing you said most often, 'If there's danger, don't follow me'?"

Ling imitated Aika's tone of voice, but it was completely different.

"I said that, at least no boy would be willing to watch a girl take risks, right?"

"I know I'm taking care of my family." Ling blocked what Aika was going to say next, "But you, haven't you ever felt a little different?"

"What's the meaning?"

Aika didn't know what to answer to the ambiguous question raised by Ling.

"As you just said, boys don't want the girls they like to take risks. This feeling is different from taking care of family members, right?"

"How do I know this?"

Aika has never been so passionate about a girl she likes, so naturally she has no personal experience.

"But you..." Ling seemed to have said a bit too much today, "You should have someone you like, right? Someone different from family members."

Aika is not too dull to detect this kind of induced inquiry.

"Then I will ask you this question. You answer my question first."

"!"

Ling did not dismiss Aika's question, but she also did not make any answer.

"Actually, there is an issue that I have been very concerned about before. Although you may not want to mention it, I still want to make sure."

"Sorry, I don't answer any personal questions."

Ling quickened his pace, but Aika had no trouble keeping up.

"When the Magic Sword went berserk before, she said it would be painful for you to stay by my side. Is that true?"

“Ah—didn’t I say that I can’t even answer personal emotional questions!”

"This is of the same nature as not wanting to put your family in danger. I also want to know whether what she said is true."

Before Aika could say anything, the only thing left was the confession made by the Light Flame Sword on Ling's behalf.

If the confession was really brought up now, Ling would have no way out.

On the contrary, the stiff atmosphere between them will return to the previous one, or even worse.

"So what? What can you do?"

Ling stopped, and while shouting at Aika, tears welled up in the corners of her eyes.

She knew everything the Light Flame Sword had done, and she also knew Aika’s purpose in pursuing her.

"I like you. We are not blood-related family members. Is this normal? At the beginning, you always found various excuses to deal with me. Now you seem to be a different person and cling to me. You should also consider my feelings!"

"Because after the Light Flame Sword said those words, I started to care. If it were you, you would definitely not say it in ten years."

"Didn't I say it before, but you used 'we'll talk about it later' to get rid of it!"

In such a remote place, there are no other students around, so Ling venting his feelings to Aika will not cause rumors.

Not sure if he was finally tired, Ling silently walked forward again. Of course, Aika couldn't continue to stand where he was.

Was that a confession just now? I guess, but it seems a bit too casual.

If I have to describe it, it's like it has already become an established fact, and now I'm just saying hello again.

"Ling, I know how you feel. Is this why the Light Flame Sword said that you would become miserable if you stay by my side?"

"I said not to care about what the Light Flame Sword said. At that time, the Light Flame Sword and I occupied my body just to let you know about this..."

After telling the most important thing, other details seemed to be unimportant to Ling.

Aika still remembers the conflict between the magic power of Ling and the Light Flame Sword, which led to the final magic rampage.

"However, there shouldn't be anything you like about me, right? Just now you said that I am nothing but..."

"Why do you remember it so clearly? You don't need to be so clear about what you like, right? You fell in love with it the moment you noticed it."

"Yeah……"

If you say this, Aika has no reason to refute.

The pace of the two of them was still at the original speed, and the pace that Ling had speeded up to hide her shyness had now slowed down.

"Have Luo Luo and Wei Xi said it?"

"Um?"

"That's what they said. They should have said it before me, right?"

Ling plucked up the courage to make an agreement with them, but she was the only one who didn't take the step forward.

If Aika hadn't been chasing after her today, I don't know when this feeling would have been conveyed to him.

"Well, I may have said something similar..."

"Have you answered everything?"

"Not yet, at least for now..."

"Are you going to say that you'll think about it after you settle down?"

"That's not what I meant. I admit it's my own problem... Anyway, I'm really happy to know how you feel today."

"Scumbag."

The Light Flame Sword also used Ling's body to condemn Aika in this way, and now she said it in person, making Aika feel like a lump in her throat.

"I will give an answer after Lan Ming's problem is solved."

"Did you decide so rashly?"

"No matter if I can answer or not, you are still going to hurt me."

"Hmph..." Ling never let go of her condescending tone in order to cover up her shyness, "It's been a year, and you should have adapted by now."

The purple swallowtail headband Aika bought for her as a birthday gift has become a part of her.

At that time, Aika didn't know Ling's preferences, but now she thinks she can understand part of her.

As for why I said I only understood part of it...

"Let's agree first, don't tell Luoluo and Wei Xi about this..." As he was about to reach the door of the administrator's cabin, Ling suddenly turned around and told Aika, "Even if I say... those words, I won't There will be the changes you expected. So...it’s still the same as before, you know?”

"In the end, you went out of your way to tell me something like this. It's really your style."

"I want you to take care of..."

That's because this heavy book called "Girls" is always filled with new chapters, so she can never be fully read.

…………