As expected of an elite all-girls school, there are three cafeterias in this Otori Magic Academy.
In this world that is dominated by Score, there is a unique rule that divides where the student can eat depending on their score.
The first cafeteria is available for those whose score is over 10,000.
The second cafeteria is available for those with a medium score on the scale of thousands.
And the third cafeteria is available for those with scores lower than a thousand.
The first cafeteria is more like a ceremony hall than a cafeteria. Even the Ojou-sama who enter also wear gorgeous dresses, likely following the dress code.
Even the third cafeteria is more like a restaurant than a cafeteria. There is no such thing as self-service there, after all. There is a waiter and a chef at each table, who will serve you if you try to sit on any table.
The area around the table is divided by a circular partition, and if the glass in your hand is empty, the waiter will pour the drink without the need for you to say anything. You could also enjoy breakfast to dinner there, and the price is also reasonable.
They could even provide a multi-course dining at night. But honestly, for me who is not familiar with table manners, I probably wouldn’t use such a service (I also don’t have spare money to do that).
“….”
“….”
And, I, who was brought by Lapis, now was sitting at the table in the corner of the third cafeteria.
“….”
“….”
By the way, since Lapis drove the waiter away by saying, 『Just let us use this table.』, we have been sitting in silence for about 10 minutes.
“….”
“….”
What the heck is this atmosphere?
When I was about to open my mouth because I couldn’t stand the heavy atmosphere– I heard a bittersweet voice from the side.
“Alright, say a~n!”
“S-stop it, I’m not good at something like that… It’s embarrassing…”
“It’s okay because there is no one around! Come on, a~n!”
“A-alright… A-a~n…”
With that, I concentrated all my consciousness on my ears.
“Is it delicious?”
“Yes, but…”
Loading Ad...
Even though it was just a voice, when I imagined it in my mind with my eyes closed, I could clearly see a boyish girl blushing.
“I-it’s embarrassing…”
Hearing that, I silently shed tears.
Ah… the world is so beautiful… I wanted to express my gratitude to Lapis who brought me here… No, I want to convey this emotion to her… Lapis, the world is this beautiful, you know… can you hear it… this passion….
“Hiiro, ano, that, er… There is something I want to give– Wait, why are you crying?!”
“Don’t worry (crying).”
“Of course I would worry! Is it hay fever?! Come on, wipe it properly! You made it look like I was the one who made you cry, you know!”
Lapis gently put her handkerchief on my eyes and wiped my tears with a smile on her face.
Then, she took out a pink bundle and handed it to me.
Loading Ad...
"
"
“…H-here.”
With her cheeks dyed in pink, Lapis abruptly pushed the pink bundle with one hand.
And while being confused, I received it.
“A new kind of magic device…?”
“S-stupid, it’s a bento. No matter how you look at it.”
“A bento?”
I tilted my head and opened the wrap. And as Lapis says, a small oval bento box appears before my eyes.
The pastel colored two tier bento was wrapped in a bear character bento band.
“So, should I give this to Tsukiori?”
“Ha? Why did her name come up here?”
Eh, scary… She is seriously snapped… W-well, it’s true that the relationship between Lapis and Tsukiori was terrible in the early game, but… is it just my feeling, or I can sense a murderous intent when she said that…?
Then, Lapis, who changed her mood, hummed while fidgeting.
“C-come on, you’ve been training with Astemil since early in the morning, right… So I think you might not have time to eat breakfast… That’s why, I made you a bento… W-with this size, at least you could satisfy your hunger a little before class, right…?”
“….”
I stared at the bento closely.
“This is for me?!”
Loading Free Tools Ad...
“O-of course.”
“You made this yourself?!”
“U-un… There is someone who is good at cooking among the elves… So, I learned from her… I think I made it well, maybe…”
With a look of despair, I looked at the sparkling handmade bento.
T-this is bad… a handmade bento is bad… this is completely a romantic comedy… However, Lapis shouldn’t have romantic feelings for me… that’s certain… I have to find out why this happened by saying I have a fiancée…
“I have a fiancée, you know? (Strong personality)”
“Un, I know.”
“Eh, ah…. hmm… (loser)”
Loading Ad...
"
"
Then, with my quivering hand, I opened the Pandora box (bento).
The first tier is rice. And on the second tier, there are fried eggs, meat dumplings, ohitashi2, meat-wrapped asparagus… Looking at such complicated dishes lined up, I subconsciously closed the lid.
T-this is bad… this is a serious one… I can feel how the princess who has never cooked properly before made this bento with great care… To the extent most people might willingly pay tens of thousands of yen for this bento…
“I-is there any food you don’t like, Hiiro?”
“A-a man who gets sandwiched by Yuri.”
“I-I see. T-then, I will not put that in.”
The conversation was not established at all, probably because we’re excessively nervous about each other. Even so, things continued to move forward.
Lapis then urged me with upturned eyes.
“Y-you aren’t going to eat…?”
Why…
Why did this happen?
The reason… I have to find the reason… How could the situation worsen even though I have declared that I have a fiancé…. There must be a reason… If I don’t grasp the cause and take action, it will be bad…!
“W-why did you make a bento for me all of a sudden? We are friends, right?”
“W-we are not, right?”
Eh?! (The sound of heart stopping)
“We are rivals, right?”
O-OK!! OK!! GOGOGO!! (Sounds of heart moving)
“Is it strange to make a bento for a rival…?”
“I think it is… There are indeed words that say ‘send salt to your enemy’, but if you send a handmade bento to your enemy, won’t the nuance become a romantic one?”
“R-romantic…?”
Did you finally realize it?
Lapis opened her eyes wide while her pure white skin dyed bright red.
“I-it’s not…! T-this is not like that! I-I! Ano!!”
“Okay okay, it’s fine, calm down.We’re finally on the same page. I’m really relieved. Of course, it’s not a handmade bento that was made for that kind of purpose, you are not the kind of girl who will seduce a man who has a fiancé, after all.”
“U-un… I, ano… Because, Hiiro suddenly said you have a fiancé…”
Loading Free Tools Ad...
She put her tightly gripped hands on her lap.
Then, while staring straight down, Lapis begins to speak stammeringly.
“I have thought about various things… going out together, challenging you…. I wonder if I shouldn’t do those things again because it would trouble you… In the first place, I was the one who pushed it to Hiiro by saying 『I challenge you!』 every time… Then taking advantage of Hiiro’s kindness, I was allowed to stay in your villa, but… in the end, I couldn’t do anything for Hiiro…”
In front of me, Lapis, whose face was pale because of guilt, continued to say something with a serious expression.
“I don’t have any friends at the school… And Hiiro is the only person I can talk to…. I know I can’t get close to a boy with a fiancé, but… if possible, I wanted to get in touch with you like usual… That is why, with all those things put in a basket… I tried to make a bento for you… I am sorry…”
Looking at Lapis who is about to cry at any moment, I opened the bento, and quickly ate those delicious-looking meals.
Then, in front of Lapis, who was taken aback, I, who just finished the bento, smiled at her.
“It was incredibly delicious. You have a talent for this.”
“Hiiro…”
“We are rivals, no more, no less. In that case, there should be no problem if we act just like before.”
“Then…!”
I nod to the smiling Lapis.
“Just like before. I will occasionally accept your challenge, and if you want to play together, I welcome you anytime.”
Hearing that, Lapis’s face brightened, and I smiled at her.
“We are rivals, after all. Rivals. No more, no less, rivals. If there is a girl that you like, I’ll support you, and you’ll support me and my fiancé’s love. Because we are rivals. In this world, men and women will never have a love relationship. Because they are rivals. You and I are rivals–”
“Then, I’ll make a bento for you tomorrow too!”
“Eh?.”
Loading Ad...
When I thought that talks were over, Lapis quickly rewrapped the bento, then ran while waving at me with a bright smile.
“Tomorrow, at the same time! Do your best, Hiiro! I will support you! Because we are rivals!”
For a moment, I was captivated by her cuteness.
When I regained myself, I went to the A-class classroom with something heavy in my stomach.
Slowly getting to my seat, I covered my face with both hands and whispered to Tsukiori next to me.
“Help me, Tsukiori… Before it becomes something that can’t be returned… quickly… Help me quickly… Tsukiori… Help me… I beg you… Tsukiori… help me…”
“Nn? Yoshi yoshi, it’s okay, it’s okay.”
Don’t easily and smilingly pat my head…! Aren’t you supposed to be a cool character…! Don’t touch the head of a man with that beautiful hand…!!
Loading Free Tools Ad...
Watching our interaction, the miss underdog on my left laughed scornfully.
“Fuu, to think you even touch a man in the morning. As expected of a commoner. Tsukiori Sakura, do you not know common sense?”
“Yoshi yoshi (Fully ignoring).”
“L-listen when people talk!!”
These two are really like dogs and monkeys. Even now, sparks seemed to flutter between Ophelia who seemed to want to bite and Tsukiori who ignored the other party (In other words, me).
I sincerely wish from the bottom of my heart they can interact thoroughly without sandwiching me. Because by doing that, there should be a bond, or Yuri, created between the two (shining eyes).
I really don’t want to be sandwiched between the two, and end up getting in the way… Which means, I have to stay still between them so as not to get involved as much as possible.
As I made that decision again, Marina-sensei entered the classroom. As usual, she nervously started homeroom class.
“A-about the groups for the orientation camp… I-I thought it would be hard to leave that to everyone who still doesn’t know each other very much. T-that is why, we decided it for you.”
Loading Free Tools Ad...
Saying that, Marina-sensei hung the group table on the black board… and looking at that, I stood in despair.
“Ah, yay! I’m with Hiiro.”
“H-ha?! I am in the same group with a commoner and a man?! You’re telling me to move together with these two?! E-excuse me!! Call the person in charge please!!”
“…”
Sanjou Hiiro, Tsukiori Sakura, Ophelia von Margeline. Looking at the three names organized as Group 5, I smiled and nodded.
Yup, there is nothing I can do about this (resignation).