Chapter 49: A Pitiful Day

"Cough… cough cough… t-today too… peace and tranquility…"

It was a morning like any other.

Mari Iochi, a member of the Sisterhood, had braved countless traps to finally reach the study room of the Supplementary Lessons Department. But what she saw there was…

"Hey, come on! Give it your all! This isn’t even your limit yet!!"

"N-no… my fingertips are already at their limit…"

"Then use your mouth to write!! Don’t worry! We’ve got supporters, painkillers, and energy drinks ready!!"

"Eek!"

"...Wha… whaa…?"

It was nothing short of hell.

At the center of it all, Asiri’s eyes spun wildly as she instructed members of the Volunteer Activities Club on how to study. Meanwhile, in the Supplementary Lessons Department, everyone except Hanako—especially Koharu and Azusa—looked completely drained.

For some reason, Azusa had a stuffed animal on her lap. Every so often, the light would fade from her eyes, only for her to glance at the plushie and resume writing with renewed determination.

"Uh, um… well…!"

"Ah, Mari. Good morning… are you okay?"

"S-Sensei! Good morning… um, what’s going on here…?"

Mari accepted a glass of water from Sensei, then looked toward the chaotic scene ahead. The heat radiating from it made her wonder if this might actually be a literal inferno.

She coughed lightly, then turned her damp gaze back to Sensei.

"…As you can see."

"I-I can see, but I still don’t understand what’s happening…"

Mari knew the Supplementary Lessons Department held study sessions—that was why she had come here in the first place.
But no study session she’d ever seen involved firearms or bamboo swords.

"T-that explosion earlier… um, that uniform… is that the Sisterhood…?"

"No slacking off!! Breaks are fine, but make sure you set a timer!!"

Asiri’s sharp, spinning eyes caught even the slightest attempt to slack off. She immediately grabbed Hifumi, who had tried to step away from her desk, and began dragging her back.

"W-waaahhh! N-no, it’s not that!! We have a guest!!"

"Hmm… then let’s take a break. Twenty minutes."

The moment Asiri announced it, everyone collapsed onto their desks.

"F-finally… a break… Um, what happened? Actually, what was that explosion sound earlier…?"

"Ah, that? That was a booby trap I set up to prepare for intruders."

"Azusa-chan!!?"

Hifumi’s eyes widened in disbelief.

"…Sorry. I only set them up along routes an intruder might take…"

"Ah, that’s probably because I got lost… I’m sorry too. This area’s technically under the Volunteer Activities Club’s jurisdiction, and Sisterhood members aren’t too familiar with the layout."

"Volunteer Activities Club…"

At the mention, everyone’s gaze turned toward Asiri, as if to say, Oh, it’s her.

"Everyone, what’s going on? It’s break time—relax more!"

"Relax more…?"

The three nearby girls exchanged puzzled glances and formed a small circle.

"Um, you’re Asiri, the head of the Volunteer Activities Club, right…?"

"Yes."

"Well… you seem more reserved, or calm, than I expected."

"She used to have a timid personality."

"Y-yeah… right…?"

Momentarily thrown off by Azusa’s blunt comment, Mari sneaked another glance at Asiri.

"Everyone!! Prepare the next materials!!"

"Club president, you drank an energy drink again. I told you not to!"

Mari quickly looked away from the escalating chaos.

"How… did it come to this…?"

"Um… it’s a long story…"

Hifumi began explaining: since this morning, Asiri’s energy had been off. When she saw the test results, she became strangely fired up. She grabbed an energy drink, chugged it all at once, and her studying intensity skyrocketed. That had been only two hours ago.

"Th-that much…?"

"Yes… it’s already gotten quite out of hand."

"…Asiri seems to get overexcited on caffeine."

"Ah, that happens sometimes…"

Clutching a nearly-forgotten Momofure plushie, Azusa analyzed Asiri, her slightly resentful gaze hinting that the topic had almost been forgotten.

"Oh, isn’t it Mari-chan? What brings you here?"

"Ah, H-Hanako-san… you’re here too?"

"…Yes. My grades aren’t very good either."

"I see… yes…"

Mari felt a subtle tension but decided not to comment.

"Hanako, you two know each other?"

"…Yes, a little."

The same went for Hanako.

"Today, I came to visit Azusa Shirasu of the Supplementary Lessons Department… and Asiri Amakawa of the Volunteer Activities Club…"

"Half of break time left!! Everyone!! Get fired up!!"

Mari gave up on explaining any further, as if to say, You can see for yourself. Everyone around her seemed to get the message and sighed in quiet agreement.

"Me and Asiri…? Okay, wait here. I’ll bring her over."

Azusa stood and headed toward Asiri.

"Azusa-chan!? What’s wrong!?"

"…"

Azusa didn’t reply. She knew reason wouldn’t work on Asiri right now.

"Huh!? You mean you’re already studying again!?"

"…Hmph."

She tested her footing, bent her knees sharply, and jumped.

"I-I know breaks are important, but… fine!! If you insist, Azusa-chan, I’ll follow your lead!"

"Hmph!!!"

"Ugh!?"

Azusa leapt up and brought her fist down on Asiri’s head with a sharp smack.

"Fuu… alright. Got her."

"That’s fine. See you later, Club President."

The Volunteer Activities Club members gave casual waves as Azusa carefully lifted the now-slumped Asiri and carried her back.

"I brought her."

"Wait—hold on!! There were definitely some issues with what you just did!! That move!!"

"No problem. It was the only way to calm her down. There won’t be any lasting effects, and the damage was minimal. She’ll wake up soon enough."

"...Mmm… ugh…?"

As Azusa spoke, Asiri began to stir.

"...Huh? Everyone? Good morning… what a lovely morning…"

"…Tch. She’s already awake."

"You just clicked your tongue!!"

Asiri loudly protested Azusa’s thinly veiled irritation. It was, after all, her own fault for nearly forgetting about her beloved Momofure merchandise despite being a fan.

"Ouch… ouch… my head… the back of it hurts…?"

"Azusa-chan? I thought there wasn’t any damage…"

"…It’s fine. It’ll heal quickly."

"But there is damage!!"

"U-uh, um! The reason we came to visit Azusa Shirasu and Asiri Amakawa today is…"

If this kept going, the conversation would never progress. Sensing that, Mari raised her voice to steer it back on track.

"Eh, m-me too?"

"Haa… haa… y-yes…"

Panting from the effort, Mari nodded at Asiri’s question.

"The Sisterhood… wants to, um… help me?"

"No, not exactly. Actually, the other day, Azusa-san and Asiri-san helped a certain student. That student wanted to express their gratitude, but due to circumstances, I’m here on their behalf."

"The other day…?"

Asiri wracked her caffeine-clouded brain until the memory surfaced. Ah, that child—she remembered now.

"Wait a second… what do you mean by ‘also’…!?"

Though she hadn’t been much help herself, she muttered it with teary eyes.
Because of her club’s dealings with the Sisterhood, Asiri knew Mari’s kind nature. For someone like Mari to say “also” could only mean one thing: Asiri hadn’t been very useful.

"I-I… I’m just repeating exactly what the student said…"

"Ugh…!!"

She hadn’t helped for the sake of thanks, but even so, she couldn’t quite shake the uncomfortable feeling creeping up inside her.

"Gratitude… you say…?"

Hifumi, unaware of the circumstances, spoke quietly.

"Apparently, that student had been bullied by classmates. I heard she was even called out behind the building that day."

"Th-that… really…?"

"Bullying!? What is that—I can’t forgive it!"

Koharu, pure-hearted and fiercely righteous, had never heard of bullying at Trinity. That made her outrage all the stronger.

"…Well, it’s not unheard of. People can be cunning and subtle, so it doesn’t show much on the surface."

"Y-yeah… sometimes even the Volunteer Activities Club gets consultations about that. But I didn’t notice it this time…"

Both Asiri and Hanako had seen the darker side of Trinity.
Asiri’s timid nature had once made her nearly a target herself. And though Hanako’s situation wasn’t exactly bullying, she had endured malice no less cruel.

They both knew that beneath Trinity’s peaceful surface lay shadows few wanted to acknowledge.

"We only learned about it afterward, when the student came to us. That day, Azusa-san happened to pass by, and Asiri-san helped her too."

"‘Happened to’? What’s that supposed to mean!!?"

Asiri bristled at Mari’s casual phrasing, understandably.

"…Still, you did that, huh," Koharu murmured, a bit surprised.

"…Now that you mention it, yes. I just couldn’t stand seeing people use numbers to oppress someone weaker. Ignoring it would’ve left a bad taste.
After that, the perpetrators must’ve contacted the Justice Realization Committee—probably misreporting the whole thing. Then Azusa-san and I were falsely accused, Azusa stole and used tear gas during our escape, and we accidentally blew up the gunpowder storage…"

"Ah…"

Asiri gave a thin, bitter smile as the memory came flooding back.

Yes, that’s right.

They had been walking toward the classroom when someone from the Justice Realization Committee stopped them. There was clearly a misunderstanding, and Mari tried to defuse it peacefully—but when the other side grew more forceful and threatening, Azusa fired her weapon.
At that point, Asiri had been half in tears.

Once reinforcements arrived, the two fled, collecting tear gas canisters as they went. They used them to reach the gunpowder storage, and… well, what happened after that was better left forgotten. Asiri cut off the memory before it could go any further.

"That… that was from back then? …S-sorry, I didn’t know and said something awful…"

"…It’s fine. I don’t mind. Actually, that was almost impressive. Using the explosion for both offense and escape wasn’t a bad idea… there was even a chance it could’ve worked. The damage was just… greater than expected."

"Have you ever thought about how I felt being dragged into that!?"

"Ah, ahaha…"

Tears welled in Asiri’s eyes as she protested, while Azusa somehow still looked ready for battle. Even Hifumi, used to the madness of the Supplementary Lessons Department, could only give a strained smile.

"And so, we came to report all of that—and to convey our gratitude. Also, Asiri-san hasn’t been around the club much lately."

"Ah—yeah… sorry about that."

Asiri reflected a bit, thinking she should check in with her club members later.

"…But I see. It’s not like I did anything worthy of special thanks. In the end, I got caught anyway."

"Me too…! I was just trying to settle things peacefully…!!"

"I know it seems unfortunate, but we can’t stay oppressed forever. Even if it feels hopeless, we shouldn’t stop resisting."

Azusa spoke firmly, turning her gaze aside.

"But you need to think about your methods. Otherwise, you’ll just end up more oppressed. You have to act with care."

"…That may be true. Yes, I’ll tell her that too."

"Azusa-chan…"

Asiri felt oddly moved by Azusa’s awkward sincerity—but also found it strange. Her words carried genuine kindness, untainted by pretense. Even Koharu’s earlier apology had been phrased gently, to avoid worrying the more innocent members.

"“……”"

"…"

Asiri and Sensei exchanged glances and nodded faintly. It was that same faint feeling of contradiction again—the thought that if Azusa had truly been one of the Arius students bent on revenge, her actions now didn’t fit at all.

"There were rumors that Azusa-san is the 'Ice Witch' who worships violence… but as expected, rumors are just rumors."

"…?"

"Hey, hey… what am I supposed to do about that rumor?"

"…Well, it’s hard to say… a sacrifice, maybe."

"Not even an ally!!?"

Why was she being treated so terribly today? Being dragged into chaos was one thing, but this was starting to feel personal. Asiri swallowed her tears and slumped, her energy sinking even lower than usual.

"Hehe, but she does kind of fit the 'Ice Witch' image. Her expressions are hard to read… and she poured cold water on us this morning."

"…"

"Hanako-san…"

Mari glanced toward Hanako, who had made the teasing comment, while Azusa looked visibly irritated.

"…I’m glad Mari-chan seems cheerful."

"Yes… I am… but…"

"I’ll see you to the entrance."

Not wanting the conversation to go any deeper, Hanako quickly stepped forward to escort Mari out.

"Come on, let’s go together."

"Ah, yes… th-then, everyone, thank you for your time. See you again."

"‘Yes, take care.’"

With that, Hanako led Mari from the room.

"Club President, break time’s already over!"

"Eh…!? Ah, r-really!? …E-everyone!! Let’s go!!"

"A-again…? And you’re still keeping up that act…?"

Asiri, regaining a bit of composure and blushing faintly, braced herself for the hellish study session to resume once more.