Tale of Discovery

Chapter 287: School Trip (1/4)

Exiting the bathtub alongside the deeply flushed and now-sparkling Tohka, the two of us proceed to dry ourselves.

Well, so I say, but it's more accurate to say that I was the one that did most of the wiping. Seeing Tohka squirm in embarrassment was a rather wonderful sight, so it was a matter of minutes before I found myself teasing her once again.

"Hey Tohka," I say while putting on the school uniform I just created, "Are you excited for today's school trip?"

Hearing my inquiry, Tohka's mood takes a turn for the best as she excitedly nods her head a few times while saying, "Yes!"

Seeing her like this, a dubious look covers my face as I ask her, "What do you suppose the trip will be like?"

"My friends told me all about that!" she responds almost immediately as her excitement seems to grow by the second.

Knowing that she is going to be giving me a long briefing in regard to the trip, a wry smile forms on my lips as I wait for her to do so.

---

"Good morning, Jeanne," I say to the solemn girl sitting on the sofa, to which she simply responds by getting up on her feet and bowing.

Releasing a sigh, I say, "Sit back down on the sofa."

Expectedly, Jeanne does exactly as I tell her to without so much bothering to utter a single word.

Knowing that it would be pointless to get her to talk like a normal individual, I shake my head in mild exasperation before shifting my attention over to the lone figure in the kitchen.

"You're finally out," a somewhat irritated voice reaches my ears as soon as I take a step toward them.

Tohka, who is right behind me, moves closer to my body and uses me as a wall to block Kotori's view.

"Oh, come on," I say while looking over at Kotori who is seated at the dining table, "It didn't take us that long."

Hearing my words, Kotori shifts her focus over from the hiding Tohka over to me as an odd glint shimmers within her ruby-red eyes.

"What's this?" I say in a teasing tone, "Could it be that you wanted to take a bath with your big brother as well?"

"What?!" Kotori immediately exclaims as a red hue gradually creeps up her face, "Why would I want that?"

"Your reaction says otherwise," I respond while grinning.

"Ah, whatever! Like I care!" she hastily exclaims as the blush on her face grows.

Deciding to let her off with just this much for now, I shake my head before turning around to face Tohka.

"Act normally," I whisper.

Having said that, I turn back around before walking toward the facilities available in the kitchen, leaving a stunned Tohka behind.

"Kotori," I say while beginning to use telekinesis, "Are you going to have Yoshino and Natsumi head over to that ship of yours?"

"Yes," she responds after taking a moment to cool her head, "That would be the safest choice."

Safest, she claims I am rather inclined to doubt that statement of hers. Nevertheless, that's still better than leaving them here.

Besides, I believe I can depend on Jeanne if anything out of the norm occurs while I am away.

---

"Shido," Origami calls out just as I'm about to take a seat.

Looking over, I find her sitting on her chair with the usual impassive expression plastered to her face.

"Good morning," I greet with a smile.

"Mhm. Good morning," she responds before taking a moment to seemingly deliberate on something.

Finding her behavior peculiar, I squint my eyes and ask, "Is there anything that you'd like to tell me?"

The moment my voice fades, Origami's expressionless seems to have become serious as she gazes at my face and says, "I received new orders earlier."

As I thought. It seems like my foes are planning to take advantage of this school trip.

"Is that so?" I respond casually, "Were they anything along the lines of keeping me busy?"

Mild surprise becomes apparent within Origami's eyes as she says, "You knew already?"

"Not at all," I reply while looking over at the students currently present in class, "It's just that I was already expecting something like this."

That settles it. Something is bode to occur on this school trip, and it most likely isn't going to be pleasant.

What I'm unsure of right now is if they're going to attempt to ambush me or something else. Hopefully, it's the former. It would be much less troublesome if that's the case.

Still

Focusing back on the silent Origami, I begin to consider the relationship between her higher-ups and those that belong to DEM.

It's plain clear that there is a connection of sorts between the two.

"So," I say, deciding to investigate the matter further when I have a proper chance to do so, "When are we going to be leaving?"

So far, all that we've been told, or, at least, all that I'm aware of is the fact we're going to be traveling using a plane.

Fortunately, Origami seems to be more aware of the situation as she explains, "We're going to leave school after a lecture from the homeroom teacher regarding the trip."

Finding her explanation satisfactory, I nod my head once as confirmation.

---

"Finally, it's over!" Tohka dramatically exclaims as she sets her forehead against her desk.

Hearing her words, I laugh for a few seconds before saying, "Did that drain all that excessive energy away from you?"

Raising her head, Tohka is about to respond to my question, but before she can do so, the classroom's door which was closed shut abruptly slides open as a dark-haired figure enters the classroom.

"Ms. Tokisaki," the homeroom teacher, Tamae, says in an exasperated tone, "You're late!"

As a response to the young-looking teacher's nagging, Kurumi simply bows a little before saying in an apologetic tone, "Forgive me, but an unexpected event transpired while I was on my way here."

"This again," Tamae says while shaking her head, "Now that you're here, you can have someone everything to you briefly on the way to the airport."

"I'm afraid that's not possible," Kurumi replies as she straightens her back, "I won't be able to partake in the trip."

"Eh? Why?" Tamae asks with slightly widened eyes.

"There some problems that require my direct presence."

"By problems, do you mean there are issues with your transfer papers?"

"Indeed, something like that," Kurumi responds with a smile.

"I see," Tamae says with a saddened expression on her face before she continues, "And? Why are you here right now?"

Hearing her inquiry, the smile on Kurumi's lips grows as she glimpses at me for a split-second and says, "I would like to hand something over to Shido, that's all."

The moment her voice faded, a commotion plays out as multiple students begin to share their strange ideas regarding what she just said and the 'hidden meanings' that could be behind it.

Ignoring them, I focus my sight on Kurumi's face, only to find her beaming a smile while looking back at me.

What is Kurumi planning? If there is anything that I've gotten to know during my interaction with Kurumi, it would be the fact that there always seems to be a hidden objective behind everything she does.

Now, here she is, claiming to have come over with the intention of handing me something.

Whatever that thing of hers is, if it exists in the first place, that is - It's definitely not going to be simple.