By the time Tatsuya passed through the school gates, holding several cloth bags filled with heavy loads of chocolate, the sun was already beginning to set.
"Hey, Tatsuya... are you actually going to eat all of that?"
Lina peered into the bags and asked in a voice that sounded slightly repulsed. Had a third party seen Tatsuya holding this sheer volume of confectionary, they likely would have asked the exact same thing.
"I intend to. Though, I have no idea how long it will take."
"I bet... Even if you ate one a day, that amount would take over a month..."
"Please, don't say the numbers out loud. I was trying not to think about it..."
Hearing Lina's calculation, Tatsuya sighed in genuine exhaustion. Of course, he only let out that sigh after verifying there were no girls nearby who had given him chocolate.
"Onii-sama is very popular, after all. There may even be women who wanted to give you some but couldn't."
"True. Tatsuya looks like he'd have fans outside of school, too."
Lina meant it as a joke, but Tatsuya and Miyuki both wore identical bitter expressions.
"What's wrong?"
"No... I just recalled that there was a fan of Onii-sama among the girls at Third High as well."
"Since she is in Ishikawa, she wouldn't come to hand it over in person..."
"Oh, really... The hardships of being popular are surprisingly tough, huh."
"Are you really the one saying that, Lina? The boys were desperate for chocolate from you."
"Oh my, the same applies to you, Miyuki. The gaze from your male classmates was intense."
If a third party—an ordinary friend—had been present, they might have gone mad with jealousy at this casual discussion of overwhelming popularity. Unfortunately, there were no unpopular mortals present to object.
"So, are you not giving chocolate to anyone, Lina?"
"If I gave some to someone, it would just cause all sorts of trouble..."
"Major! ...Ah, Lina-san."
"Mia?"
Cutting off Lina's sentence, Michaela Hongou came running up. Perhaps out of habit, she called Lina "Major" before remembering they were in public and correcting herself to her name.
"Aren't you supposed to be under Saegusa's supervision right now?"
"I am being properly supervised. Right over there."
In response to Tatsuya's question, Mia smiled and pointed behind her. There stood Mayumi, waving cheerfully.
"Senpai, it is troubling if you let her wander outside too freely..."
"I know, I know. But look, today is an important day for girls, right?"
"Sigh... However, does she even have anyone to give chocolate to, considering she just arrived in Japan?"
"Are you asking that on purpose? Or are you truly that oblivious?"
"…So, you are chaperoning her? Just as a convenient excuse?"
Mayumi, who technically had free attendance and didn't need to be at school, hadn't come solely to give Tatsuya chocolate. She had used Mia's supervision as justification.
"Actually, this was the convenient excuse."
Tatsuya's deduction was correct, but he had the priority backward. Mayumi had taken on the supervision duty as an excuse to come give Tatsuya chocolate.
"So, Mia, what business brings you to a place like this?"
"Um, this is for you, Tatsuya-san... as a thank you for saving me."
"Thank you."
Tatsuya accepted the chocolate with a polite tone suitable for addressing Mia, who was older than him. However, seeing the box—which was far too large for a simple "thank you" gift—Miyuki, Mayumi, and Lina all wore expressions of displeasure. Mia, however, had no leeway to notice their looks.
"Tatsuya, receiving this much... isn't this 'a man's greatest honor' (otoko myouri)?"
"You know some difficult Japanese terms. Even Japanese people rarely use that phrase these days."
"Hmm... Well then, I'll give you this, too. As thanks for saving Mia."
As if to say 'since I'm already here,' Lina pulled a small box from her bag. It was beautifully wrapped, leaving no room for misunderstanding its nature.
"I thought it would be a problem if you gave it to a specific individual?"
"No one is watching, and besides, it's Giri-choco."
"I know."
While conversing with Lina, Tatsuya's gaze shifted slightly away from her. But since it was only for a fraction of a second, Lina assumed he was just hiding his embarrassment and didn't question where he looked.
"Well then, Mia-san, shall we go?"
"Y-Yes... Then, Lina-san, and Tatsuya-san, excuse me."
Urged by Mayumi, Mia hurriedly gave a small bow, climbed into the Saegusa family car, and departed.
"Shall we head home as well?"
"Yes, Onii-sama."
"Yeah. I'm tired, too."
Neither Tatsuya nor Miyuki asked what Lina was tired from. Tatsuya knew from the atmosphere around her, and Miyuki knew because she shared the same feelings as a fellow girl, that Lina had been on pins and needles waiting for the right timing to give him the chocolate.
High above, a member of the USNA military monitoring Tatsuya from a surveillance satellite let out a startled voice as he watched his monitor. Colonel Balance addressed her subordinate.
"What is it?"
"It's... it appears he noticed the surveillance..."
"Don't be ridiculous. It's a surveillance satellite in low orbit. There is no way he could notice it with the naked eye."
"But, Tatsuya Shiba's eyes definitely looked right into the monitor."
Thinking with common sense, Balance was right; it was impossible to detect a satellite from the ground with the naked eye. Yet, the subordinate stubbornly insisted that they had been spotted.
"Replay the footage of that moment."
"Yes, ma'am!"
Balance didn't fully believe it, but something about it bothered her, so she decided to verify it.
"…It certainly looks like he noticed, but it was only for an instant. It could be a coincidence."
"However, inferring from the context of their conversation, it could be interpreted that he is aware we are watching him."
"That is true... By the way, why are Major Sirius and Michaela Hongou present at that location? I suppose the Major is on her way home, but..."
"Is it not a Japanese custom? Today is February 14th."
"…I see."
Colonel Balance nodded in tentative understanding of her subordinate's explanation, but if that were true, it was a concerning development.
After all, harboring romantic affection for a target was an emotion that Sirius absolutely must not possess.
(Lina managed to hand over her chocolate under the guise of gratitude for Mia. Will this finally reward her efforts...?)
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