“Mmm… Delicious~~ I’m so happy~”

 

Next to me, Mina puts a roasted marshmallow in her mouth, savoring it with a blissful look.

 

Seeing Mina so happy makes me smile without thinking.

 

“Thank you, Mina.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“For bringing me on this trip to Okinawa. Thanks to you, I’m having an amazing time.”

 

Saying thank you face-to-face is usually a bit embarrassing, but somehow, in the light of the campfire, I can speak my mind.

 

“Hehe… Then it was worth all the effort planning this trip instead of studying for tests.”

 

“Were the tests okay?”

 

“Yeah, no problem. I usually understand the classes well, so my ranking might drop a bit since I didn’t study as much.”

 

“That doesn’t sound okay… You’re usually at the top of your grade, right?”

 

I ask Mina in a bewildered voice.

 

Even though Kotomi helped later, Mina did most of the planning and arrangements for this trip, and I realize now how much of a burden it must have been for her.

 

“You know, I used to push myself hard until the end of first grade. After discovering my soul equipment ability, my parents worried about me because I’d often overwork myself and collapse.”

 

“So, your grades at the academy are important to you…”

 

“My grades were just a means to an end: to get into the military’s core. My goal was to save you, Yuu.”

 

“…To save me?”

 

“When you were suddenly taken by the military on our way home from school, I could only cry and feel powerless. I couldn’t forgive myself for that.”

 

Mina grabs the sleeve of my T-shirt tightly.

 

As if to make sure I’m really here.

 

“But… you were just an elementary school student then.”

 

“I’ve dreamt about that moment many times. Each time, I remembered my anger and worked harder. That’s how I became the top student in our grade.”

 

“So… it’s because of me that…”

 

Seeing our separation distorted Mina’s years…

 

What if I was taken somewhere she couldn’t see?

 

What if we hadn’t been close friends?

 

Maybe she wouldn’t have chosen this path.

 

“Yuu, you feel guilty about this, don’t you? Don’t. The ones to blame are the higher-ups in the military.”

 

Mina sees right through me and smiles.

 

“That’s true, but…”

 

“I’m happy now, every day because you’re here with me.”

 

Mina leans her head on my shoulder.

 

The warmth I feel isn’t just from the campfire.

 

I silently poke the campfire with the tongs in my other hand.

 

The fire doesn’t need stoking, but I do it anyway.

 

“The five years we couldn’t be together won’t come back. The Yuu I’ve reunited with is so much stronger. Instead of lamenting, I want to enjoy the present Yuu.”

 

Mina playfully presses her head against my shoulder.

 

Her hair smells nice, tickling my nose.

 

“Physically, maybe… but I’m still just a kid inside.”

 

“That’s the mystery. You’ve been surrounded by adults and hold a high rank like Major General, yet you’re so carefree.”

 

“See? Giving a kid the rank of Major General is bound to lead to this.”

 

“But it seems like you’re doing it on purpose.”

 

Crack! The fire pops.

 

Maybe there was some moisture in the wood.

 

“…Sharp as always, Mina. You’re my childhood friend after all.”

 

“At first, I thought you were just confident because of your strength. But lately, I feel like there’s another reason.”

 

“…………”

 

I can’t look at Mina, so I stare at the fire.

 

Mina stares at the fire with me.

 

The flames constantly change.

 

Just like people.

 

We’re different from yesterday.

 

And tomorrow…

 

“I don’t know what’s bothering you…”

 

Mina looks straight into my eyes.

 

“But I’ll always be by your side.”

 

Her determined, green eyes meet mine.

 

“Always” and “forever.”

 

Mina’s determination was evident without further words, understood by simply locking eyes.

 

“Oh… the marshmallows got cold, huh? Let me toast them again… like this, maybe?”

 

It was Mina who couldn’t withstand locking eyes first.

 

Perhaps to hide her embarrassment, she approached the campfire with the marshmallow skewer in hand and began to toast them.

 

“Mina.”

 

“Hm? What is it… mmm!”

 

I grabbed Mina’s shoulder, and somewhat forcefully pulled her towards me, bringing our faces close. At that moment, I felt Mina’s body tense up in my arms.

 

It must be nearing midnight.

 

In the darkness of the night, only the faint crackling of the firewood could be heard, as if time had stopped for the two by the campfire.

 

I savored the soft sensation against my lips.

 

“Softer than I thought.”

 

The sweetness of the roasted marshmallow I nibbled on spread throughout my mouth.

 

“Oh… um… that way…?”

 

Mina’s face turned bright red.

 

As if disappointed, she suddenly lost strength in her body and slumped in my arms.

 

“What way?”

 

“It’s nothing… Well… nothing!”

 

Saying so, Mina pressed the remaining marshmallow against my lips.

 

“Hey! Mina, be careful, there’s still a skewer attached.”

 

“Stop it! It’s punishment for toying with a maiden’s heart!”

 

Mina, still blushing, lightly tapped my chest with her fists.

 

Her tapping was weak, so it did no damage.

 

“It seems you’re having quite the enjoyable time.”

 

“Uhya!”

 

A voice came from the living room, and with a ‘pop!’, Mina leaped out of my arms.

 

“Ma-Marin-chan. You’re awake?”

 

“I woke up to use the bathroom and noticed Torao-senpai wasn’t in bed, so I thought he might be sneaking off to Goda-senpai’s for a tryst.”

 

As she said that, Marin-chan came out onto the wooden deck, wearing a lace nightgown.

 

She’s still as composed as ever, not at all like a middle schooler.

 

“A… a tryst? That’s… absurd…”

 

“Well, with such a cute and wholesome pajama, I didn’t think so, but…”

 

Mina was mocked by Marin-chan, unable to retort in front of Marin-chan’s feminine nightwear.

 

He’s sleeping with Marin-chan dressed like that, huh? That Suou-senpai.

 

Amazing he can keep his composure.

 

“Marin-chan, you always tease Mina, huh?”

 

I reproached Marin-chan, subtly hinting disapproval, and she responded, “Oh, are you telling me not to bully my girl? My apologies, I’ll be more careful from now on.”

 

She joked, but Marin-chan understood our intentions clearly.

 

At least on the surface.

 

[However, this is also for your sake. Well, primarily because I don’t want to end the world where my brother and I exist. But becoming Adam and Eve alone in the world at its end might not be so bad, right?]

 

[…………]

 

Ignoring Marin-chan’s inner thoughts conveyed through Espio.

 

While the latter part borders on dangerous delusion, as for the former, I currently don’t have an answer.

 

“Here, Marin-chan, want some roasted marshmallow?”

 

“Yes, please. Growing kids need their nutrition.”

 

Marin-chan brought a chair to the fire and sat down, taking the marshmallow skewered on the iron rod from me.

 

As if nothing had happened internally.

 

“Oh, I thought Marin wasn’t in bed.”

 

“Ah, onii-chan. Do you want some of Senpai’s roasted marshmallows too? It’s delicious.”

 

Stretching out the nicely melted marshmallow, Marin-chan invited Suou-senpai, who had just woken up.

 

“It’s late, kids, go to bed.”

 

“I’m not a kid anymore. Didn’t I confirm that with onii-chan in bed just now?”

 

“Wha…?”

 

Mina and I were struck by a thunderous shock.

 

“Is… is Suou-senpai finally…?”

 

“Marin-chan! Wait, next time, let me know your thoughts during our girls’ meeting!”

 

Mina and I exclaimed in astonishment, but Suou-senpai, even at such a time, immediately denied it seriously, saying, “Marin, that’s an overinterpretation. Such misinterpretations will be heavily penalized in the entrance exams, so be careful.”

 

Hmm… there are several points to nitpick, but for now, it seems Suou-senpai’s chastity is intact.

 

“Why’s everyone so loud in the middle of the night…”

 

“Oh, Kotomi’s awake too now.”

 

Holding Chuusuke in her pajamas, Kotomi rubbed her sleepy eyes as she came out onto the wooden deck.

 

“When there are this many people, just marshmallows won’t cut it.”

 

In a panic at the sudden arrival of guests, I hurriedly skewered marshmallows onto the iron rod, but it didn’t seem like enough for this many people.

 

“How about we go out to eat? Eating steak late at night is a culture in Okinawa, right?”

 

Mina excitedly proposed a late-night escape plan she just come up with.

 

“If you’re out underage at this hour, you’ll get picked up by the police.”

 

“What? You’re still so uptight.”

 

Mina sulked immediately as Suou-senpai rejected the plan.

 

Seriously though, having steak for a late-night snack after barbecue dinner, even high schoolers’ stomachs might find that heavy, right?

 

“Come to think of it, there was cup soba with pork ribs that Sensei bought at the supermarket because she wanted to eat it the day after drinking.”

 

“That’s it!”

 

As Marin-chan mentioned the option, everyone else immediately agreed as if saying “That’s the answer!”

 

After a barbecue, with slightly tired stomachs and the outdoor air becoming a bit chilly even in summer, warm soup somehow tastes twice as delicious when eaten outside.

 

Just imagining it made my stomach growl.

 

“But, is it okay to eat it without telling Sensei since she bought it?”

 

“When I got up, Sensei was sound asleep… mmm.”

 

Still a bit sleepy, Kotomi informed us that the enemy was currently in a deep sleep.

 

“That old lady, she bought five cups of soba. It’s annoying how she’s just slightly short for everyone.”

 

Mina complained while taking out the cup noodles from the supermarket bag.

 

I’m sure she deliberately bought this amount to not give Mina, who always calls her old, any.

 

“Should we thank Sensei tomorrow morning?”

 

My stomach is already in cup noodle mode, so there’s no way we’d choose to put it off and go to bed.

 

In the end, we finished the cup noodles neatly with the hot water boiled over the campfire.

 

During the trip, we had various local dishes, all of which were delicious.

 

But the taste of these cup noodles, eaten while chatting with everyone in front of the campfire on the wooden deck late at night without any adults around, became a lifelong memory.