National Okinawa Spirit Armor Research Institute, Director’s Office.

This room, where meetings and consultations resembling conglomerates of cutting-edge technology are conducted daily, is equipped with soundproofing, anti-bugging, anti-eavesdropping, and all other security measures.

In that room, the master of this space, after shooing everyone away, gazes at the webcam mounted on the top of the PC monitor.

“Hello~! Colonel Touji, how are you doing?”

In the quiet director’s office, a lackluster voice echoes.

“As annoying as ever, with that irritating way of talking… And Kirigaya, you’re older than me, you know.”

On the other side of the screen, Lieutenant Colonel Kobako grimaces at Director Kirigaya’s irritating banter, already looking bothered.

“Even if you’re a lady~! And besides, despite being colleagues, I outrank you as a Major! Use respectful language~!”

“Yeah, yeah, the senior among colleagues, Director Kirigaya. It seems your annoyance only increases with age.”

“You can’t just say anything in respectful language~! Hmph!”

“You’re so rigid… Think about your age.”

A sharp knife of sarcastic words from Lieutenant Colonel Kobako, who stopped using respectful language for Director Kirigaya, who puffs out her cheeks with a closed fist on her temple, flies in one turn.

“I told you, don’t talk about age. It’s your lack of delicacy and your overly straightforward nature that’s why Colonel Touji doesn’t attract the opposite sex.”

“…If you have time to analyze me, worry about your own marriage prospects.”

“Oh, using cliché retorts means it hit home! Hey, hey, Colonel Kobako’s getting flustered~!”

“You’re drunk, aren’t you? If you can’t hold a conversation, I’ll hang up.”

“Ah, wait! Please calm down, Lieutenant Colonel Kobako. I have a message regarding Major General Kamiya.”

Seeing him reaching out to turn off the webcam, Director Kirigaya hastily waves her hands exaggeratedly to catch his attention.

“How is he?”

Asking about the matter, Lieutenant Colonel Kobako continues the conversation.

“Why don’t you ask him directly? Are you his father dealing with a teenage daughter?”

“…He shouldn’t rely on me any further.”

“Well, um… yes…”

Director Kirigaya reluctantly agrees with Lieutenant Colonel Kobako’s uncommonly dull consent, both wearing distant expressions.

“However, Major General Kamiya seemed to enjoy the company of his fellow students.”

“That’s a favorable trend. The higher-ups in the military probably admitted him to the academy with that in mind.”

“Perhaps… ”

“We can’t predict what will happen in the future to anyone.”

“……….”

“……….”

Both remain silent, imagining an ordinary future full of uncertainties.

The potential worst-case outcome is not a low possibility but one with a significant impact on the world’s fate.

“There are times when ignorance is bliss in this world~”

The sound of Director Kirigaya’s headset creaking as she leans her head heavily against the leather gaming chair’s headset is heard through Lieutenant Colonel Kobako’s headset.

“I wouldn’t think those words would come from the forefront intellectual researcher, the pioneer of soul armor research.”

“…The more you know, the more you despair. We’ve concluded that when the time comes, we’ll have no choice but to give up.”

Director Kirigaya responds self-deprecatingly while looking up at the ceiling.

Her demeanor was the result of numerous thoughts and experiments leading to resignation.

“Still, if the world’s fate is at stake, we cannot simply sit back and leave it to fate.”

“There’s no need for Lieutenant Colonel Kobako to exert himself unnecessarily.”

“If there’s someone capable, it doesn’t have to be me.”

“As expected of the hero who once saved the world from the brink of destruction, impressive~!”

“…I’ll hang up. Thanks for the report on Yusuke.”

With that, the web call was disconnected.

“…That’s why, even though you’re excellent, you’re unable to get married alone, Touji.”

In front of the “No Signal” message displayed on the PC monitor, Director Kirigaya mutters.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

“Thank you very much~”

“Thank you very much for your service~”

We thanked the chauffeurs who parked our rental car in the parking lot of the pension where we would be staying and saw them off.

“This is the pension where we’ll be staying during our Okinawa training camp!”

Mina, acting as the organizer, spread her arms wide with a “ta-da!” sound effect, introducing the accommodation to everyone.

“Too bad it’s dark and hard to see.”

“The reason it’s so late is because of that middle-aged woman taking forever.”

While glaring at Hayami-san, who was sprawled on the ground, Mina spat out her words.

Well, one reason for getting drunk quickly was probably because we were all tired from the consecutive missions, so please cut us some slack there.

“Wow, it looks like a renovated old Okinawan house, but the interior is beautiful.”

“The kitchen space is spacious and nice.”

Kotomi and Marin-chan, who entered first, exclaimed in admiration.

Taking out the key from the dial box installed in front of the entrance according to the pre-communicated dial number, we entered the pension from the entrance.

This pension doesn’t have a resident manager, and check-in and check-out are quite relaxed and flexible.

While it can be inconvenient without staff at the accommodation, not being seen in embarrassing situations like this is also an advantage.

“Suo-senpai, please don’t be embarrassed and hold onto Hayami-sensei properly. Drunk people are as heavy as unconscious injured soldiers, so be careful.”

“Ugh… I see.”

While blushing, Suo-senpai awkwardly stacked Hayami-san’s legs on his arms.

I lifted Hayami-san’s upper body by passing my arms under her armpits from behind, with Suo-senpai holding her legs, and we carried her into the pension.

Since the corridors were narrow for a fireman’s carry and it seemed like we might bump Hayami-san into walls or corners, we chose the method of carrying him with one person in front and one behind.

“Mina, which room should we put Hayami-sensei in?”

We asked where to put Hayami-san as we entered the living room.

Since it would be troublesome to lift him again, Suo-senpai and I kept him lifted.

“Let’s put the middle-aged woman in the single room at the back. It would be the worst if she vomited in the same room as us.”

“Well, if she vomits in her sleep, she might choke and die, so it’s better if someone stays in the same room. If the ladies don’t want to be in the same room, I’ll…”

“Have more awareness, Yuu-kun! Sharing a room with a middle-aged woman who’s intoxicated and could do anything is dangerous!”

It’s a harsh thing to say, but well, the momentum of someone drunk can indeed be formidable, as Mina says.

I’ve seen many colleagues in the field getting completely wasted on their days off, turning into broken toys.

“Well, that’s unavoidable. For the middle-aged woman, let’s put a mat on the floor in the girls’ bedroom.”

Grudgingly, Mina laid down a spare mat in the girls’ room.

“To be prepared, it’s better to lay newspapers on the mat. If something happens, it’ll be easier to clean. Also, if you sprinkle a lot of salt on what’s been spilled, it’ll solidify and be easy to scoop up with a dustpan, so it’s good to keep salt by the pillow. And sports drinks too.”

Since this pension already had some basic seasoning in the kitchen, salt was provided, which was helpful.

“Why does Yuu have so much experience dealing with drunk people?”

“It’s because I’ve always been on the side of the sober one in such situations.”

As advised, Kotomi laid newspapers on the mat, looking uncertain whether she should praise me or not.

Well, it’s not like I enjoy dealing with drunk people, but with a long experience on the battlefield, you inevitably gain this kind of expertise.

“Then, this is the girls’ room.”

Lowering Hayami-san onto the mat lined with newspapers, we finally took a breather.

“Since Hayami-sensei is here and it’s cramped, I’ll stay in the same room as my onii-san. It’s not a problem since we’re siblings. There’s one queen-size bed in the room, but since we’re true siblings who share blood, there’s no problem sharing a bed. Because we’re real siblings.”

Marin argued rapidly about the room allocation.

“You’re emphasizing ‘true’ siblings too much…”

“What? Kamiya-senpai?”

“N-nothing…”

Faced with Marin-chan’s intimidating smile, I sheepishly retreated.

“Well, Marin still says, ‘I watched a scary video, so I’m lonely sleeping alone at night…’ and crawls into my bed. It’s bigger than my bed at home, so there’s no problem sleeping together.”

While casually dropping a bombshell, Suo-senpai, when it comes to his sister, Marin-chan, has various ethical and moral standards all twisted, so those of us on the sidelines have no choice but to ignore it.

Marin-chan, who was making a small victory pose, was also left unaddressed.

“In that case, I’ll take the single room.”

With the room allocation settled, we unpacked our things and took turns showering, and before we knew it, exhausted from the journey, our eyelids grew heavy, and the first day ended.