Chapter 22.1. Mina’s Affection

“So? How much do you understand about Yuu-kun?”
“Hmm… about Kamiya?”
Facing Mina in the women’s restroom, Hinoura Kotomi couldn’t fathom why she, a 2nd-year student, was being confronted by the top student of the second year, Kohou Mina, like this.
“Using his first name…”
“Well, we’re classmates. Besides, I’ve only been with Kamiya during the student council duel and today’s practical training.”
Mina, being half and tall, exuded an intimidating presence, but petite Kotomi wasn’t intimidated for no reason. She looked Mina straight in the eye without bending herself.
“I see. Then let me change the question. What feelings do you harbor toward Yuu-kun?”
“What do you mean…? It’s more like wanting to seek revenge since I lost in the last duel.”
Feeling like her answer wasn’t much different from the previous question, Kotomi still responded to Mina’s inquiry.
“I see… So you’re not aware of the special circumstances.”
Finally, the pressure Mina had exerted eased off. Konami breathed a sigh of relief. Although she had no clue about the so-called special circumstances Mina mentioned, she was relieved that Mina had eased her guard.
“Oh, by the way, there’s something about Kamiya that bothers me. Is he really just a new student…?”
Mina’s pressure, which had momentarily eased, swelled even more, leaving Kotomi stuttering at the end of her words.
“Why do you think that?”
“Eek!”
Mina, now looking even more formidable with her distinctly non-Japanese appearance, caused Kotomi to succumb to her pressure, and a voice akin to a scream escaped her.
“Well, I mean… he seemed quite accustomed to battlefield tactics during today’s training, so he doesn’t seem like a newbie at all.”
Kotomi had initially intended to talk about something completely different, but perhaps due to the pressure from Mina, she ended up praising Kamiya on the spot.
However, she didn’t dare to tell Mina about that incident where she inadvertently saw private information about Kamiya’s salary on his smartphone.
“I see. you assumed… You must have realized Yuu-kun’s greatness as your partner too.”
“Y-yes.”
Convincing herself, Kotomi agreed, and Mina’s pressure diminished once again. Konami breathed a sigh of relief and gave a vague nod of approval.
“Yuu-kun and I are childhood friends. Even though I’m the older one, he’s always been there to protect me since we were kids.”
“Wow… So, Kamiya protected Kohou-senpai, who’s the top of the second year and an offensive soul-armored ability user?”
“At the outbreak of the World War, my mother’s homeland was forcibly annexed by the neighboring superpower hostile to Japan. But kids don’t understand complex international situations, right? So he protected me, who was being bullied by other children because of my distinctive silver hair and blue eyes. For example…”
After that, Kotomi listened to Mina’s nostalgic stories about Kamiya for quite some time.
Although she wasn’t very knowledgeable about romantic affairs, she understood well that Mina had harbored feelings for Kamiya for many years.
Kotomi felt relieved that she didn’t mention the incident where she inadvertently saw Kamiya’s excessively high salary amount on his smartphone’s banking app to Mina, and she decided to keep it to herself for the time being.
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