Surviving in Blue Archive Chapter 432 6: It Doesn’t Matter, I Feel the Same Way about

The next morning.

I stepped out of the new office of Problem Solver 68, rubbing my lower back.

Squinting against the harsh sunlight, I felt a strange sense of being in another world, as if everything had changed while I remained the sa.

If it hadn't been for that strangely impulsive question the day before, maybe things wouldn't have escalated this far…

Tracing back to yesterday morning, Aru, Mutsuki, and I had been completely absorbed in our lil ga, almost losing ourselves in it, when Kayoko suddenly returned and caught us red-handed.

The scene was, to put it mildly, extrely awkward.

Even Mutsuki, usually confident and playful, fell silent, unsure what to do. Aru felt a sudden tension in her chest, and sensing this, I shivered slightly as well.

Kayoko was first shocked, then opened her mouth to speak, but after hesitating for a while, she finally managed:

"…You guys really should pick a better ti and place."

The little devil Mutsuki forced a laugh:

"Ahaha… well, we didn't really plan for it to get this far…"

I instinctively looked up at the ceiling, thinking this wasn't entirely my responsibility.

Even if it was partly because I had used that strange ability, is Aru, who gave that ability, blaless? Or the card, which was written so badly, isn't at fault? Or Mutsuki, who had already planned ahead with her own "gun holster," isn't to bla?

All things considered, this was truly just an accident, a happy one.

The black-and-white streaked girl scratched her head, hesitated, then with a long sigh full of mixed feelings, finally said in a low voice:

"Just pretend I didn't see anything. I'll go for a walk, call when you're done."

With that, Kayoko turned to leave.

But for so reason, perhaps my judgnt was still clouded, looking at her sowhat lonely back, I blurted out:

"Want to co with ?"

Kayoko, who had just taken a step, froze, then turned sharply. Her normally composed and mature face showed a rare look of astonishnt:

"Huh!?"

I had a feeling this might be her overwheld joy at receiving an invitation from the one she secretly liked…?

I felt a bit guilty for so reason.

"Se-Sensei!?" Aru, just coming out of her daze and slightly relieved, called out anxiously, "This is way too forward, isn't it!?"

Mutsuki, after a brief mont of surprise, teased:

"Ku fufu∼ Aru-chan, feeling shy? So cute∼ But if it's Kayoko, I guess it's fine, right? Or does Aru-chan think she's not close enough to Kayoko for this?"

Aru vehently denied it:

"No! That's not what I an! Kayoko is also an important friend… No, isn't her own opinion more important?"

"Ah∼ about that… isn't it obvious already∼?"

As Mutsuki said.

If Kayoko had any real resentnt, she would have slamd the door and left long ago. Instead, she stood there, studying with a peculiar expression.

Finally, she hesitated and said:

"…I thought maybe I was overthinking. So you really do look at like that, Sensei?"

How was one supposed to answer a question like that?

"So… even I'm allowed…?" Kayoko teased, face slightly flushed. "Sensei, should I say you really don't discriminate?"

I retorted indignantly:

"What are you talking about!? Anyone who can't see Kayoko's charm is the one lacking perspective!"

"Hm… I think I get it. That's… pretty rock 'n' roll… I an, really a bit too rock 'n' roll."

Kayoko muttered in wonder, shook her head, and sighed lightly:

"Alright then. I got a bit sweaty, so I'll go take a shower first. You guys continue."

She put down her bag, took off her shoes and socks, and walked to the washroom as if no one else existed.

…Honestly, I thought Kayoko herself was pretty rock 'n' roll.

After her shower, she raised a constructive question:

"Just to clarify, what are you planning with Haruka? Let her see what we're doing on purpose, then drag her into it too?"

I thought her choice of "we" was spot on. But the problem was…

I protested:

"What do you an 'too'!?"

Kayoko rolled her eyes in a perfect gesture:

"At this point, don't pretend. Aru, sure, but Sensei, how could you not have thought of it with Mutsuki?"

From her attitude, it seed she was rely asking casually. No matter where, it didn't matter much, just give a reasonable excuse.

"…Actually," I carefully said, "Haruka probably likes too?"

A strange silence fell.

Kayoko's mouth twitched, she seed kinda speechless.

"Eh?" Aru said dumbfounded. "R-Really?"

"Y-Yeah?"

Bla Aru, she made even doubt myself.

"Ku fufu∼" Mutsuki laughed. "We'll know when Haruka cos back∼ Besides, leaving just Haruka alone now would be so lonely!"

I nodded quickly:

"Exactly. Problem Solver 68 always moves together! Besides, Haruka and I share mutual feelings…"

"…Fine, whatever you guys want." Kayoko said, pausing, then nodded slightly:

"That's alright. Haruka… she tends to bottle things up, not very proactive."

Mutsuki smiled sweetly:

"See∼ From another perspective, we're helping her too∼"

I nodded along, nearly moved to tears by the sincere friendship at Problem Solver 68.

Only Aru hesitated:

"Well… isn't this a little… hmm."

I covered her mouth to silence her. With tongue, of course.

That afternoon, Haruka returned to the office, nearly fainting at the scene before her.

Once she recovered, tears in her eyes, she repeatedly apologized for barging in without checking the atmosphere.

As I expected, when I asked if she wanted to join, she admitted timidly that she didn't dare.

With encouragent and reassurance from the rest of us, she finally confessed her true feelings:

"Ac-Actually… I've always wanted to do this with Sensei… I was just afraid you'd hate …"

See? Haruka and I are mutual.

…Although from her strangely anxious smile, I couldn't shake the feeling that sothing was a bit off.

But it didn't matter.

In short, I ended up spending the entire day, playing 'gas' with everyone from Problem Solver 68.

Even I, wronged by Yoke Fiasco earlier, nearly couldn't keep up. Still, getting to deepen my relationship with these cute girls was incredibly rewarding.

Except… I still had one small problem.

Retreating to a quiet corner, I took out a card and fell into deep thought.