In the aftermath of the incident. - 28

As soon as we heard that Nito and Serika seemed to be missing, we immediately set off.

When I asked Arona to track Nito's phone location, a strange wasteland appeared.

Arona was never wrong, so we trusted her and headed to the location.

When we finally arrived, we saw...

"Ugh... Nito... Wake up..."

Serika was crying and hugging Nito, who was lying on the ground and bleeding.

The deeply hollowed-out area where Nito was lying, and the collapsed Goliath with half of its body missing showed how intense the situation had been.

"Serika-chan! Nito is..."

"Ah..."

"..."

"Ugh..."

"...Let's take her for now."

I have too many responsibilities to share in the sadness.

-Sensei... Nito will be okay, right...?

"Yes. Don't worry, Arona. Nito will be fine."

Arona must 'know' that Nito's condition is serious, based on the data.

She just asked me because she couldn't 'understand' it.

Even from the outside, Nito's condition looks serious.

There were wounds all over, but there were no traces of blood.

Except for one place, the bloodstain that seemed to have come from Nito's mouth.

It's not an external injury, but an internal one.

As soon as we realized this, we ran even harder.

After running so hard that I don't even remember how we got there, we arrived at Schale.

While running, I regained my senses and contacted Serina, asking her to come to Schale, so we could start treating Nito as soon as we got upstairs.

"Is Serika okay?"

"I, I'm fine... It's nothing compared to Nito..."

"Still, let's go together."

"That's right, Serika-chan. Just in case, don't be stubborn and go upstairs."

"I think that's the right thing to do too."

"Nito will be sad when she wakes up and sees Serika-chan hurt..."

"Yeah, this old lady also thinks it's best for Serika-chan to go up and get proper treatment."

"Then..."

It was decided that Serika would go up with us.

The time it took for the elevator to go up felt too long.

Haa- haa-

Fortunately, Nito is breathing properly, but she looks like she's in a lot of pain.

Seeing that, Serika and I became even more anxious.

Eventually, the elevator arrived at the floor with the infirmary where Serina was waiting, and the two of us immediately rushed out.

"Sensei! What brings you here at this hour...?"

Serina couldn't continue speaking when she saw Nito's condition.

"...Let's start with the treatment first."

Serina laid Nito down.

Judging by her expression, it seems like we're not too late.

"Haa..."

Thud-

"Sensei?!"

Thank goodness.

Really, thank goodness.

Nito still hasn't opened her eyes, but Serina's words that she can be treated gave me relief.

Sniff- sniff-

A familiar breathing sound can be heard.

Wake up soon, Nito, I'll buy you sushi.

ㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡ

...Is that the best those thugs can do?

Even with the support of a strategic tank, this is the result.

As expected, the only ones who can deal with students are... other students.

Then I have no choice but to ask a professional.

Ring- ring-

Click-

-Yes. This is Problem Solver 68, we solve anything.

"I have a request, Problem Solver."

-...

The details of the request have been properly conveyed.

Why are things not going my way these days?

The game center that Millennium was ambitiously preparing was blown up by a mysterious terrorist.

And now I can't even deal with that one school that's about to collapse?

Haa...

It's frustrating.

Meanwhile, at the Katakata Helmet Gang's base...

"Haa... Haa..."

"Grrr-!!"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

A Helmet Gang member was being chased.

"Ugh-!"

Bang!

Thud-

The Helmet Gang member eventually fell.

"Ah, we're done here."

"We've taken care of them here too. Boss."

The mysterious figures who subdued the Helmet Gang sent a signal to someone.

Then someone appeared from the darkness.

"Guh, Guh... Who are you guys..."

"...Fufufu."

Stomp-

"Guh, Guahhh-! D-don't tell me! Are you from Abydos? How dare you..."

"Haa. This smelly and filthy place is your base? You guys are pathetic."

The figure that appeared from the darkness seems to be displeased with something.

Then, as if bestowing mercy, they began to speak.

"...Alright. Now I'll allow you to be freed from labor."

"W-what?!"

"Simply put, you're fired. We're taking over Abydos now."

"W-what are you talking about! Who do you think you are..."

"..."

The clouds that were covering the moon passed, and the moonlight illuminated the street.

In the brighter street, four figures could be seen.

"We are Problem Solver 68, we do anything for money..."

Whoosh-

"We're the problem solvers."

After that night, the Helmet Gang was never seen in Abydos again.

ㅡㅡㅡㅡㅡ

My body feels so light.

Did I... Did I die...?

Blink. Blink.

When I opened my eyes, I saw a pure white ceiling.

Do they have ceilings in heaven these days?

"Nito! You're finally awake!"

"Nito-chan! We were so worried!"

"Are you okay?"

"Uhe~ This old lady was worried too~"

"Nito, finally...!"

"Nito, are you okay?"

Uh... What's going on?

"Um... Everyone, what happened, cough! Keuhk!"

Ugh... It hurts like hell...

"Nito-chan! B-blood!"

"Aaaaaah, Serina!"

"Yes! I'm coming!"

It's my first time coughing up blood... It feels really strange.

It's unpleasant...

"It's just the blood that was pooled inside came out... But you need to rest completely, so talk to her one at a time."

"Yeah, we will."

"Thank you~♤"

Serina, who had briefly entered, went back outside the curtain.

"Now! Let's decide the order to talk to Nito!"

"Okay..."

"Uhehe~ Serika-chan. Don't you have a lot to say? Why don't you go first?"

"W-what?! N-no! I mean... Um... How about Sensei goes first...?"

"That doesn't seem like a bad idea."

So, only Sensei and I were left inside the curtain.

"Uh... Um... Are you okay, Nito?"

"Yes..."

"Okay... Thank goodness... Really..."

It feels strange to be worried about to this extent...

Ah, not in a good way, but in a bad way.

I don't need Sensei's concern.

"Nito, is there anything you want to eat? Anything, just tell me. I'll buy it all."

"Hmm..."

"Sushi." "Sushi."

Ah.

"Haha, I guessed it."

Yeah... Congratulations.

But did I make it too obvious that I like sushi?

Hmm... I thought I ate it in moderation...?

"Okay, then I'll go buy some sushi, so just wait a little."

Sensei got up from the chair next to me and disappeared beyond the curtain.

-Serika~ Now it's your turn~.

-I, I know already?!

After a brief conversation outside, Serika came in.

"Hello, Serika."

"Uhm... Hello, Nito."

It seems like Serika safely returned after breaking through the death flag she had set up.

Wow... But how did she avoid that death flag?

"Nito, are you feeling better?"

"Yes. I'm really fine."

"Really...?"

Why is it so awkward?

Should I try to lighten the mood a bit?

"Serika~ Were you, worried~?"

Teasing Serika is the best way to lighten the mood.

But why is Serika acting like that?

It's time for her to say something while being really embarrassed?

Instead of being embarrassed, Serika hugged me tightly and said.

"Yeah... I was really worried..."

I was taken aback by the unexpected reaction.

"I, is that so...?"

"Yeah... Thank you for coming back, Nito."

Serika hugged me for a long time like that.