CHAPTER 26
unedite!
_______ And so we welcome the star festival Tsubaki's gazed were immediately stolen by the sight of the bamboo leaves that were placed right at the center of the hall. After seeing the bundle of bamboo grass, Tsubaki concluded that around three hundred tanzaku can be hanged there. It's not like having too much will be a bad thing but it would be better to think that there'd be as many people around as the number of bamboo leaves available. After the students that gathered in the hall were separated by their class and grade, the opening of the event finally started. It started with the principal's speech and then the special guest. It seems like no matter where or what world it is a speech done by some important person is the same as always, it's way too long. Tsubaki thought to herself as she rubbed her foot that is starting to cramp while reminiscing about her previous life. Thinking that it will drag on some more before the speech reaches its conclusion, right from the introduction, to the whole process and its conclusion, Tsubaki has long decided to ran away from reality as she just went straight to her daydreams. And then after the second greetings, the floor was taken by one of the teachers and an explanation regarding the even was finally made. It seems like only the middle part will be used as the tanzaku corner and that you can receive some tanazaku from the teachers situated near your table. It also seems like it doesn't matter if you decided to tie the tanzaku yourself or ask one of the hoteliers or the staff to hang it up for you. The dishes were divided into three places since there seems to be a designated place of where to eat, depending on your grade level and then after telling us more about the don'ts, the teacher ended his explanation and at the same time all the students seem to have dispersed to do things on their own pace And when Tsubaki turned around, she saw Anna standing behind her while holding a plate of cake with the shape of the star. "Tsubaki are you not planning on writing on your tanzaku?", Anna asked. The talk had just finished and yet she's fast. Tsubaki thought while being quite impressed with Anna. "Yes, but before that, I'm looking for someone" "Ah, Just a while ago I think I saw him being surrounded by girls" "... ...So over there huh." "Good Luck~" Anna said as she waved her hand that was holding as she prayed for my survival. Amongst the crowd of girls, there's Kyousuke right at the center of it all. Surprisingly though, there's still quite some space left and that he hasn't been crushed yet by them. Well, I guess it is as expected of the strictly disciplined to be prudent young ladies of rich families. "Kyousuke-san." Of course, even Tsubaki didn't dare to get in the middle of that crowd, so all she can do is call out for Kyousuke outside the encirclement he is currently in. "What's wrong?" "Kyousuke-san won't you go and do your tanzaku?" "I don't wanna" "But I'm embarrassed to do it by myself... ...I'm also not good if people suddenly start talking to me. I can't go if Kyousuke-san isn't with me." Tsuabaki said with a downcasted expression and then she placed her fingers over her lips to give off a 'fragile-looking' girl. She always thought of this since before but this pattern of his where he always go, 'I don't wanna do it but if you tell me you badly want to do it with me then I'll do it' of Kyousuke is really troublesome Ever since they came inside the assembly hall and during the long speech and greeting, despite acting all uninterested about it, he's been nonchalantly looking at the bamboo leaves. Even though it is so obvious that he wants to do it "What about Yakumo?" "Anna is still in the middle of eating together with another girl from the same class. It's not like I can bother her or anything" Now, this is a lie. But it's somehow like a white lie so I hope I'll be forgiven. After hearing that Kyousuke seemed quite reluctant but still went and listened to Tsubaki's wish. "...Well, it can't be helped. If you badly want it then I'll come along with you." "Oh my, thank you very much! Kyousuke-san is indeed really kind" "It's not like even if you praised, I can give you something." Even though he's saying it like that, Tsubaki can see that Kyousuke himself is quite excited as the corners of his mouth trembles. Tsubaki positioned herself beside Kyousuke and as they headed to the writing-table, a teacher welcomed them there and handed them some writing materials. After receiving two pieces of Tanzaku, Tsubaki handed the other one to Kyousuke. But just right when Tsubaki is about to write down on her tanzaku, Todo came towards the two of them. "Asahina-san, even though you are his cousin and his fiancee, I just can not let is pass when you are forcing Mizushima-sama, who dislikes it to do tanzaku with you." And the girl around them said, 'that's right, that's right', in support of her words. You've got it wrong. This is only some sort of ritual. For this to happen is already something predetermined. This is what Tsubaki wanted to say but she can't since the problem lies with Kyousuke's pride. And with this, she'll be infamous for being "the selfish cousin-slash-fiancee-of Mizushima-sama, who drags him and force him in doing things." It is probably all due to exchanges like this that most students think of Kyousuke as being forced by the selfish Tsubaki and thanks to that Kyousuke's image has gone up for being "The kind person who listens to his selfish cousin/fiancee" while Tsubaki's image has plummeted down the drain since long ago. She did worried about what might happen to Anna since it would be bad if she drags her down but it seems like the others just came into their conclusion that since Tsubaki is Asahina's daughter and they're cousins (not by blood), she is also being forced by Tsubaki. Though after hearing that, Tsubaki couldn't help but feel let down by that. "It's fine. Since Kyousuke-san is kind, he'll always listen to my selfishness. Right?" "It doesn't matter since I'll just be going along with you" "Bu-But..." For Todou, she might have thought she's doing him a favour but for Kyousuke that's a bad move. Tsubaki walked towards Todou and then once she got closer, she placed her face close to her ears. Making the latter flinched and guarded against Tsubaki. "Wha, what do you want" "Todou-san are you perhaps curious about what Kyousuke-san's wish will be?" She whispered. And then she moved a step back from Todou, who seems to be quite shaken and then she met her eyes with hers but as expected of the young lady from the Todou family, she was able to control her expression fast. "It would be better if you don't push your luck to much no matter how kind Mizushima-sama is." She said through gritted teeth but despite her words and actions, it seems like she has no plan of moving away from Tsubaki. Perhaps, she is actually quite interested in knowing what Kyousuke will write. Tsubaki then handed another pen to Kyousuke before she started doing hers. After writing 'absolute security and safety', she asked one of the hotel staff to hang her tanzaku as high as possible on the bamboo leaves. (Eunie: if you've read the previous chapter, seen the manga page about Gakuen Babysitter, they explained why it's better to hang it on a higher branch) Now then, Kyousuke who is everyone's focus seems to have trouble in writing on his tanzaku but after a few minutes, he seems to have finally decided on something as he smoothly wrote on a piece of tanzaku. "Kyousuke-san, what did you wish for?" When Tsubaki asked him, brimming with confidence he showed his tanzaku to Tsubaki. Just when she was about to read it and without anyone noticing, it seems like Todou has moved behind her and so both of them read it simultaneously. " "A thriving business?" " For some reason, the mood of the hall has cooled down a few degrees lower** and Tsubaki can feel Todou's strong gaze of the blame for creating this situation. **it means that it suddenly got all awkward, please don't take it literally~ my non-native english readers. ^^'" "Geez! Just what are you going to do with this mood, Asahina-san" "... ...Well err...really, I'm sorry" With the unexpected wish, Kyousuke had made, Tsubaki reverted to her usual self. Even Todou herself was quite surprised upon hearing her not so usual un-lady like speech. " Ah, Tha..that was..." "For someone like you to apologies... ..." Eh? That's what you were surprised about? Tsubaki inwardly sighed in relief, since she's truly glad that she didn't get caught when she slipped up a bit just a while ago. But then again she came into a realization that she seems to be infamous for being a lady who never apologies. "Even I will apologies if I think I did something wrong" " Ah, no. I just thought it was quite unexpected. ...Ah, everyone why don't we also head out and eat something?" "Your right." "Let's go Chidzuru-sama" (**Eunie here: the name or rather the characters used are read as Sengen. But at the same time, it can also be read as Chidzuru. So, I'm gonna ask you guys if you want me to stick with Chidzuru or Sengen. I'm a sucker for names seriously. It's confusing cause there are all sorts of ways to read Japanese characters. it is extremely cool but *_*) Maybe she was taken aback about what just happened or she started feeling bad as Todou hastily departed away from there. Unbeknownst to Tsubaki, With just that small exchange that happened, it seems like Todou initial opinion of Tsubaki has changed. And now the problem lies with Kyousuke. "A flourishing business? Sigh, Kyousuke-san..." "...I know" I'm sure he was troubled on what wish he'll write down but then after calming himself down and thinking of it rationally thus an obstacle-free wish like that came about. Tsubaki wished for absolute safety and Kyousuke for a thriving business, these two sure are lacking in the dreams department. "I'll just get some bamboo leaves on the way back." "That's right. Doing it inside the house is the better option. I wonder if we leave it near the entrance hall Uncle would also write down something. "That's also a great idea!" Kyousuke sure loves Uncle, Tsubaki thought to herself, seeing the smiling and enthusiastic Kyousuke. It seems like things are going smoothly as he deepens his bond with his family. While thinking of things like that, Tsubaki realized that her hand seems to have been stained by the ink, therefore, she bid farewell with Kyousuke for a bit as she decided to head towards the lady's room to wash her hands. Upon entering the ladies' room, what welcomed Tsubaki is a girl who appears to be an upperclassman and is currently leaning towards the sink. Surprised, Tsubaki immediately came towards her and was shocked to see how pale she is. "Are you alright? You don't look so good. Is it some sort of chronic disease or something?" "...No, I think... it's only anemia." " But it doesn't look it's only anemia. Can you still walk yourself towards that chair? Please hold on to me for a bit" Tsubaki held on to the girl's waist as she helps her walk towards the couch while straining herself to hold out the weight of the older girl. The truth is it would have been better for her to lie down for a bit, but this is the comfort room so it is impossible. After coming into a decision that it would be better to seek out the help of an adult, Tsubaki adjusted the body of the upperclassman and made her lean back to the chair. "Please wait here for a bit, I'll just go and immediately call for a teacher" Tsubaki hurriedly left the ladies' room and went to look for a female teacher and told her about the situation. The female teacher Tsubaki found, immediately informed her co-teacher and after that, they immediately rushed the student to a waiting room. After having the female student lie down comfortably on the sofa, the female teacher went towards Tsubaki and gave her thanks. "Asahina-san, thank you for informing me" "No. it's nothing much. By the way, is she okay?" "It seems like she'll be fine if she just rests for a bit" "Hearing that is really such a relief." "The play prepared by the sixth graders will soon start so Asahina-san please return back to the assembly hall" "Yes" After being told by the female teacher, Tsubaki left the waiting room and headed towards the hall, while thinking to herself that maybe the reason why she suddenly got sick is because she might not have eaten anything and considering the time now, maybe her stomach is still empty. That's why Tsubaki decided to bring back some Tanabata themed jelly and with a spoon on her other hand, she went back to the waiting room and handed it to the teacher. And then after a few more moments, Tsubaki returned to the assembly hall and it seems like the tanabata themed play of the sixth graders has started. While watching the play a sudden thought came into Tsubaki's mind, 'maybe Orihime is the leader of the girls' clique of the sixth graders and Hikoboshi is played by the school's idol'. The play itself it the story of the star crossed lovers, Orihime and Hikoboshi. While thinking that in the far future, Tsubaki and the others would also be the one in charge of the play, she made sure to properly observe and learn about the know-hows for the play. For sure Hikoboshi will be played by Kyousuke, even though he'll hate it and then she'll definitely be stuck in pacifying him. While thinking about this and that the play has already ended. As expected of a prestigious school, the level of the set and the costumes are on a whole another level. It didn't even look like a school play. And considering that they're only elementary students and despite the acting abilities, everyone was serious in doing it and it looked so fun. Though they do forget their lines from time to time, some students near them whisper the lines so things worked out well. But every time that happens, Tsubaki can feel her palms sweat out of nervousness for them. Seeing the state she's in, she kneeled in defeat as she somehow suddenly got reminded of the gaze that her mother usually gives her . EUNIE HERE~ I THOUGHT THIS WAS SHORT BUT ACTUALLY IT'S NOT. HA.HA. IT JUST FELT LIKE THAT CAUSE THE PREVIOUS ONE WAS LONGER~
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