I didn’t want a hole opened inside me, and I no longer had the energy to deny her, so I went to Aomi via monorail with Aria tagging along beside me. Aomi district, which used to be full of warehouses, had gone through redevelopment and was now a stylish city with expensive condominiums and high-end boutiques lined up one after another.
“So? You said you were going to look for a cat, but what kind of deduction are you going to use to find it?”
“None, really. I’m just gonna walk around every place a cat is likely to go. What about you? Why don’t you suggest a plan? If you’re asking me, you must have something in mind.”
“Nope. I’m not good at deduction. It’s kind of weird, but I didn’t inherit his most distinctive trait.” Aria said somewhat listlessly, looking up at me from underneath that well shaped forehead of hers. “Anyways, I’m hungry.”
“Lunch break just ended a little while ago. Didn’t you eat anything?”
“I did, but I’m still hungry,” Aria whined.
This girl sure has poor fuel consumption.
“Treat me to something.”
“You’re gonna start getting in my way already?”
That reminds me…I skipped lunch myself today since I was busy selecting a suitable job. I suppose I can just get her something while I’m at it. Plus I don’t want to get shot at again. Guess I’ll head over to McDonalds.
Being the slave that I was, I went to buy the little princess the Giga Mac Set she requested, and when I got back, she was staring at the well-figured mannequin of a high-class boutique. Aria was looking back and forth between the sparkling sunny dress the mannequin was dressed in and her own body. I chuckled. That look in her eyes. I get it. So she admires that sort thing, huh? With her curve-less body like that of an elementary school student’s she’s gonna have to keep dreaming.
“Hey.”
“Ah.” Turning around, Aria must have been able to discern the traces of a smile on my face. Her cheeks instantly turned red and she starting swinging her fists in the air.
“I-It’s not like that! T-This is what you call being slender! I’m the slender type!”
“I didn’t say a word.”
Leaving her behind, I headed towards the park across the street. After finding a nice bench and placing the McDonald’s bag on top of it, Aria came and plopped down next to it, looking like she had something to say. Her red Butei High skirt rose into the air slightly, giving me a brief glance of the holster underneath it. It was a phenomenon that Muto called “not quite a panty flash but more of a gun flash.” I’m convinced he’s a complete idiot. The female students of Butei High concealed their pistols underneath their skirts, and because it was necessary for them to draw their pistols quickly in an emergency, the skirts they wear were generally short. Aria’s skirt was no exception and was also rather short. But the reason that didn't make me the least bit happy was probably because she had the body of a grade school student.
“Aria, you should put some distance between us when we go around this park looking for the cat.”
“What for?”
The words coming out of our mouths were almost incomprehensible as we spoke to each with our cheeks full of meaty hamburgers.
“Just look around and you’ll see.” I placed my half-empty Giga Cola on the bench and looked around in the direction of what I was referring to.
This park was a constant gathering place for countless young couples. It was close to the ocean, the scenery was pretty, and it was newly made—all of which were factors that made this place a well-known date spot. Of course, the reason I chose to start our search at this park was because it was the only park in Aomi and thus, a place we were likely to find a cat, but I was also hoping Aria would see what kind of place this was and decide not to walk too close to me. It seemed like my calculations were completely off.
“Ah…” Aria saw a couple of lovers, who appeared to be college students, sitting on the bench across from ours and clinging to each other like pieces of a puzzle. For a brief moment, Aria froze up as she held a French fry between her lips like a cigarette. She then switched her gaze from the couple to me, then back towards to the couple again, and one more final time towards me. Aria’s face turned bright red.
This girl blushes too easily.
“Unhh…Unh!” Aria groaned.
Upon seeing a coupled walk past us holding onto each other’s arms, Aria became further unsettled and crossed her arms. It was as if she wanted to be certain there was no chance her arms could link up with mine.
“See? You should probably head back to school, Aria. If we walk around together in a place like this, people are going to be convinced we’re dating again. I don’t want to attract any attention. It’ll cause problems for you as well if a guy you like happens to be around and misunderstands.”
“There isn’t a guy I like!” Aria’s ruby colored eyes were open wide as she made a display of that anime voice of hers.
“T-T-There isn’t! I couldn’t care less about r-romance! It’s just a waste of time! I honestly don’t care! I’m serious!”
…Don’t overreact so much. You’re not a kid.
Apparently, Aria was quite the sensitive type when it comes to conversations about love and romance. I’ve found one of her weaknesses.
“But you don’t want your friends to get any weird ideas, do you?”
“Hmph! I don’t have any friends. I don’t need ’em. If people want to start gossiping, just let them. Who cares what other people say?”
Aria tried to hide her embarrassment by sticking the straw of her Giga Cola in her mouth and taking a long, hard sip.
“Well, I do agree with you about not being concerned with other people, but there is one thing I want to say.”
“What?”
“That’s my Cola.”
Aria spit out the Cola that was about to make its way down her throat.
That’s gross. This is a “beautiful yet bashful high school girl”?
As I looked at her, she responded by blushing again.
“You pervert!” Aria then threw a punch at me, knocking me off the bench—an unreasonable outcome, no matter how you look at it.
Evening.
We finally found the lost cat we had been searching for. It was at the waterfront near the edge of the park. Specifically, it was some sort of ditch or canal. Crying softly, the cat had all the characteristics mentioned in the documents I was given, and was wearing the small bell that could be seen in the picture I was provided as well. It was definitely the cat I was after.
“Okay, little one. Be a good kitty...”
The cat, which was inside a garbage can that had fallen into the canal, mustered up all the strength it could and hissed threateningly at me as I drew near.
Don’t be like that. I’m not your enemy. I’m here to save you.
I stuck my hands into the pile of crumpled papers and empty cans and pulled out the kitten, which had its fur standing on end.
“That a girl. Aren’t you happy? You’re safe now.”
I wonder if my smile, which I hadn’t put on my face for some time, was awkward and unpleasant to look at. As soon as the kitten’s eyes met mine, it cried out and struggled to get away.
“H-Hey… W-Whoa!”
Still holding the cat in my hands, I spectacularly fell over backwards into the shallows of the canal. My saving grace was that I left my cell phone and pistol on the bank just in case.
“That’s odd…” Aria said to herself. I noticed Aria sigh as she looked down at me from atop the tetra pods she was sitting on.
I received one-tenth of a credit for finding the lost cat and the day came to an end.
“Riko.”
I had sent Riko an e-mail asking her to meet me, and there she was, waiting in the greenhouse in front of the girls’ dormitory. By greenhouse, I mean a huge vinyl greenhouse that’s always deserted and convenient for meeting someone in secret.
“Kii-kuuun!” Near the rose garden, Riko spun around and greeted me.
Riko was just about as small as Aria, but she belonged to what you would call the “pretty little girl” category. She had two large sparkling eyes and her wavy hair was done in dog ears. It was an audacious hairstyle that incorporated twin pigtails into the long, soft hair flowing onto her back.
“Still wearing that custom made uniform, I see. What is that white fluffy mess?”
“It’s the Butei High school uniform arranged in a white Lolita fashion! Kii-kun, you really need to memorize all the different Lolita styles.”
“No thanks. Geez, exactly how many uniforms do you have?”
While watching Riko start counting with her fingers all the different types of custom-made uniforms she had, from my bag, I pulled out a paper bag that I used to carefully hide some video game software.
“Riko, look at me. Listen, keep this a secret from Aria.”
“Oh, you got it!” Riko stood to attention and saluted with both hands.
I handed her the paper bag with a bitter expression on my face and she ripped it to shreds in the process of opening it while breathing so heavily through her nose that it was audible.
She’s just like a wild animal.
“Oh my God! It’s, White and Black, The Tale of White Clover, and My Goth!” Riko cried out.