Chapter 26. Funyan!

 

“Yuu-sama, look over here~! Yes, so cute♪”

 

(Click click click!)

 

The sound of a camera shutter echoes inside the Soul Armor Research Club room.

 

“Hey, Hayami-san, hurry up…”

 

I plead with Hayami-san in a barely audible voice.

 

“Yuu-sama, how old are you now?”

 

Hayami-san, holding a hefty SLR camera, stops snapping pictures energetically and looks up at me, asking with a serious expression.

 

“Huh? I’m turning 16 soon…”

 

“No-no-no! You’re 1 year old, right?! A 1-year-old doesn’t say such things! Now, repeat after me!”

 

“I’m 1 year old…”

 

“Hehehe! Well said! Yuu-sama, you’re amazing~! Oh, oops, drool alert!”

 

I simply want to die.

 

You might wonder why, despite holding such a high rank as a Major General, I’m feeling like my soul is dying in this unbearable situation worse than any battlefield. There’s a good reason for that.

 

[Master, someone is coming to the club room.]

 

“⁉”

 

As soon as I hear Kon’s voice, I quickly tear off the baby hat and bib at lightning speed, throwing them into a cardboard box along with the rattles and plush toys scattered on the tatami mats.

 

I’d rather not explain what I was doing with these items earlier.

 

“My apologies… oh”

 

As Kotomi enters the Soul Armor Research Club room for a nap, she seems puzzled to find Advisor Hayami-sensei present.

 

“It’s okay, Hinoura-san. I’ve heard from Kamiya-kun. The student council helps each other out, being neighbors, so we often come in and out of this room.”

 

“Oh, I see.”

 

Kotomi glances briefly at me, and I nod vigorously to assure her that everything’s okay.

 

“Well then, Kamiya-kun, please lock up before you go.”

 

“Yes.”

 

Hayami-sensei happily leaves the club room with his SLR camera.

 

I wonder if there’s any way to completely erase the photo data from that camera.

 

“Thanks, Yuu. Thanks for talking to Advisor Hayami-sensei for me… but why did she turn a blind eye to a rule violation?”

 

“Oh, that’s nothing. Hayami-sensei is just a kind and understanding teacher.”

 

Next time, I’ll suggest to the higher-ups to enhance the “No Bribery Allowed!” training for officers.

 

“Well, shall we go to sleep now?”

 

“Yeah, let’s. Oh, don’t forget to lock the club room.”

 

I stand up from the tatami, put on my indoor shoes, and say.

 

“Um… umm…”

 

“Yeah, what’s up? Don’t you have the student council master key today?”

 

“It’s not that, but um… do you have plans after this, Yuu?”

 

“No, nothing special.”

 

“Then, um… would you like to… sleep together?”

 

Blushing and hiding her face shyly, Kotomi looks at me with expectant eyes, making her request.

 

“Oh, do you have a blanket too? Great, let’s sleep.”

 

I’m pretty tired from missing sleep this morning.

 

I happily climb onto the raised tatami area, took my indoor shoes again, and lie down.

 

Since it was a pillow earlier this morning, it’s much more comfortable now.

 

“Um, there’s only one blanket… so…”

 

Seeming hesitant, Kotomi holds onto the blanket.

 

“I’m fine without a blanket.”

 

“No, it’s not that! Please, use this!”

 

Kotomi insists on giving me the blanket, but she’s blushing red for some reason.

 

Ah, maybe Kotomi feels hot easily, so she doesn’t need the blanket?

 

“Oh, I see. Then please use this.”

 

I take off my uniform jacket and hand it to Kotomi.

 

“Huh?”

 

“This should be lighter than a blanket, right? Don’t worry, I just sent it for dry cleaning last weekend.”

 

“Um… um, well, okay then.”

 

“Hm? Did you say something? Let’s sleep soon, Kotomi. Lunch break will be over.”

 

“Yeah…”

 

“Thanks for the blanket.”

 

I wrap myself in the blanket and quickly fall asleep, being used to taking naps during field exercises.

 

As I drift off, I hear a soft “Ehehe…”

 

But whether it’s a dream or reality, I’m not sure, as my consciousness sinks into sleep.

 

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

 

“Whaaat! What are you doing, you brat!”

 

A loud voice wakes me up instantly, pulling me from the depths of sleep.

 

Even on the battlefield, I might wake up to an enemy attack during a nap, but in such crisis moments, Kon would alert me… but this time?

 

“What’s the situation…”

 

I quickly understand the situation in front of me.

 

“Let go of Yuu-kun’s jacket!”

 

“Don’t touch it! You’ll ruin the smell!”

 

My uniform jacket is getting fought over by Mina and Kotomi.

 

My jacket is quite popular, huh?

 

“Stop, both of you. Pull any harder, and my jacket might rip.”

 

I address the two of them, but they’re too excited to notice me waking up and continue to argue animatedly while holding onto the jacket.

 

“Yuu-kun! This girl from the student council was doing something indecent while you were asleep!”

 

“I wasn’t doing anything indecent! Yuu lent me this jacket!”

 

“Yuu?! Why are you calling him so familiarly!”

 

“We’re classmates, so it’s fine, right? Or do I need Kohou-senpai’s permission to call Yuu by his name?”

 

The tension rises, and the jacket keeps getting pulled until it makes a squeaking sound.

 

I wonder if the seam around the sleeves gave out? I should mend it later.

 

“Mina, I lent this jacket to Kotomi for a nap.”

 

Mina must have misunderstood that Kotomi was messing with my jacket while I slept. Hopefully, this explanation will satisfy her.

 

“Y-yes.”

 

Kotomi agrees with my explanation, but her defense seems weak.

 

“Ohhh, you borrowed it for a nap… I see. Then why was Hinoura-san wearing Yuu-kun’s jacket and frolicking around when I entered the club room?”

 

“Huh?”

 

Wait, wasn’t it being used as a blanket replacement?

 

I look at Kotomi, who is blushing like a boiled octopus.

 

“Hinoura-san was wearing Yuu-kun’s jacket with a blissful expression.”

 

“It’s not like th…”

 

“Most likely, you were murmuring things like, ‘Boys really are big…’ or ‘It’s like being embraced by Yuu-kun…’ to yourself, right?”

 

“Eek!”

 

Seems like Mina hits the mark.

 

Kotomi screams and clutches her head, squatting down in embarrassment.

 

“Mina, that’s an impressive deduction.”

 

“Well, she was just a middle school girl until recently, so it’s easy to figure out what she was up to in front of a boy’s uniform. If we had more time, she might have done even more questionable things.”

 

With a triumphant look, Mina looks down on Kotomi, who is still crouched on the floor like a dumpling.

 

“Oh, so Mina knows about girls’ behavior in these situations.”

 

“Yes, I do.”

 

“…Have you ever done the same thing, Mina?”

 

“Eek!”

 

Seems like I hit the mark now.

 

Mina also screams, clutching her head and crouching down on the spot.

 

“Anyway, maybe I should send this jacket for cleaning again.”

 

“Wait, it’s different, Yuu-kun! I didn’t do anything to dirty your jacket!”

 

What does she mean by dirtying it?

 

Like eating curry udon without a paper apron over it?

 

Mina insists, clinging to me in desperation, while Kotomi is still crouched on the ground, resembling a dumpling, lost in embarrassment.

 

Amidst this chaos, the chime signaling the end of lunch break rings.