After surviving Nagisa's 13-octave scream-attack, the second ride our group found ourselves at was the spinning teacups. It's the kind of ride where you grab the handle in the middle and spin it as hard as you can to pick up speed.
Wait, shouldn't this be in the kids' section?
"It seems this teacup ride doesn't have a maximum speed limit!"
My question was immediately answered by Hifumi. I wasn't sure if it was even possible to put a speed limit on a ride like this, but… it was an interesting piece of information nonetheless.
It's true that some students in Kivotos have exceptional physical abilities… they could probably spin this thing so fast that they wouldn't be able to stand up straight for a while after getting off. And since we had a perfect test subject right here, maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea to experiment a little.
"Ahaha, alright. Let's ride it!"
"…Wait a moment. Mika-san, you're not thinking what I think you're thinking, are you?"
"Hm? Nagi-chan, how am I supposed to know what you think I'm thinking?"
"No. Mika-san, you are not to touch the handle. When one steeps tea, one needs a delicate hand that stirs elegantly."
"…Hmph. I see. Alright."
I nodded at Nagisa's words.
After skipping the line with the power of money, we split into pairs and sat in the teacups. It seemed our dear Nagisa was worried I would start shouting something like, 'Ahaha, Nagi-chan! Look! It just keeps getting faster and faster, isn't it amazing?!' while spinning the handle like a madwoman.
Honestly, I'd be fine with that, but I wouldn't mind if we didn't, either. When it comes down to it, I enjoy doing anything with Nagisa, no matter how trivial. Besides, this, too, will become a memory that fills the pages of our album. Literally. I saw that the amusement park automatically takes pictures on the rides and sells them at photo zones. I thought that was usually only for rollercoasters or log flumes, but an employee told me that almost every ride has one.
That's why I already bought two copies of the photo of Nagisa wailing like a siren on the merry-go-bulls. Watching her tremble with shame while still treasuring the photo is probably enough to make anyone fall in love.
"Alright, maximum speed, please!"
"…I'll say it again, Mika-san. Don't you dare touch it."
"I'll decide after I see how well you spin it☆"
"If you touch it, I won't forgive you."
Sitting across from each other in the teacup felt completely different from when we sit opposite each other while working. This is what dating feels like, I thought. A smile wouldn't leave my lips as I sat with my hands folded neatly.
"I'm not falling for that provocation."
I had subtly thrown down the gauntlet, challenging her to try and break my composure, but she wouldn't even pick it up. Our Nagisa really is a scaredy-cat.
As the teacup slowly began to move, Nagisa placed her hands on the handle, but she didn't actually turn it. Perhaps she was debating just how fast she should spin it.
Watching her struggle, a smile bloomed on my face and spread to my eyes. A mischievous urge bubbled up.
"Is it because you were raised as a proper young lady… Hmm, you're not very good with physical tasks, are you, Nagi-chan☆"
"…D-Don't underestimate me. It's not that I can't spin it, you know."
Nagisa tried hard not to react to my words, but I could tell she was holding back from snapping. When it comes to the political arena, it's a different story, but this had nothing to do with politics.
Finally, Nagisa put some force into her hands, and the teacup slowly began to rotate. A moment later, I burst out laughing.
"Pfft… Ahaha! Ahahahaha!"
"Wh-Why are you laughing like that?"
"Ahaha… It's just! The way you're spinning it is so awkward…!"
She was turning the handle with the stiff, rigid movements of a basic robot. I couldn't help but laugh. Considering her reaction just now, she must have ridden this before…
"The last time we came here, I was the one who got too excited and did all the spinning, right?"
"…"
"Oh, was I wrong?"
"…No, you're right, Mika-san. It's just… I was a little surprised, that's all. Yes, that's all."
With a reluctant expression, Nagisa nodded, affirming my strange-sounding words.
The day I told Nagisa the truth, I had changed my mind about something I had been secretly harboring: 'There's probably no way for me to go back.' I decided that even if I could return to my original body, I wouldn't.
Nagisa's promise to see me for who I truly am had completely shattered my resolve. If someone had offered to send me back to my original life, under the assumption that the kids I helped would continue to live happily… I probably wouldn't have been able to refuse. I had simply been avoiding it because I had no method, and the person most likely to help me find one was too shady to deal with. If I were given the choice to return, how could I not agonize over it?
But the moment I found someone precious who saw me for me, that dilemma vanished. I realized that the regret of leaving this girl, of leaving Nagisa, to return to my original body would be far greater than the regret of staying.
And so, I decided to fully accept the name Misono Mika, and this life, as my own.
My mentioning the Mika from before I arrived was an attempt to help Nagisa overcome her sense of loss and move forward. Even if she had told me she would see me for who I am, the fact that she could never see her old friend again would surely eat away at her tender heart. So I couldn't help but be considerate of that.
However, that didn't mean I should try to erase the real Mika.
…Thinking it over, from that perspective, what I just said might not have been the best approach. That was a mistake.
"I'm sorry, Nagi-chan. That was out of line."
"What…? Why are you apologizing, Mika-san?"
You can't un-spill water, but you can at least apologize for spilling it. With that in mind, I apologized first, but Nagisa was the one asking me why I was apologizing.
"Well, um… it's just…"
"Even if it sounded a little strange, I know you only said it for my sake. I don't mind, so please, finish what you were going to say."
Thankfully, Nagisa graciously overlooked my blunder. I'll take this as a lesson and be more careful next time.
"…Okay, I will. What I was trying to say earlier was, you've probably ridden this before, but you've never spun the handle yourself. Right?"
"Yes, that's right… Wait, I told you not to touch it!"
"Ahaha, don't you trust me, Nagi-chan? I'm not going to do anything weird. Here, just follow my lead."
I started to slowly turn the handle. As Nagisa copied my movements, the speed of our teacup gradually began to increase. I didn't put too much force into it, so the disaster Nagisa feared did not occur.
Honestly, more than the teacup itself spinning at a moderate speed, I was just happy to be sitting across from Nagisa, doing something together. If it ended like this, the ride itself would probably get a low score for fun, but…
"Ahahahaha…!"
Just then, a laugh from the side made me turn my head. A blurry shadow was whizzing past. Of course, it was Azusa and Hifumi.
Seeing me watch them with interest, Nagisa sensed something was wrong and quickly shook her head, trying to stop me.
"Mika-san. Don't. I really won't forgive you."
"But, Nagi-chan, doesn't that look fun…?"
"No, not at all. It does not look fun in the slightest. So please don't…"
"Hmph…"
If Nagisa was that insistent, maybe I should hold back. But just then, I felt a fleeting illusion that my eyes met Hifumi's. That look, as if she were mocking me, and that distorted smile.
Ajitani. Are you challenging me…?
"Mika-san, no. I don't want to! Please, don't do it…!"
There was only one thing I could say to Nagisa.
"They say it's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission, Nagi-chan☆"
And with that, my hands began to spin the handle in earnest.
Amidst the exhilarating speed that made the surroundings blur into afterimages and the dizzying sense of weightlessness that made me feel like I would be flung out by the centrifugal force, Nagisa glared at me and shouted something.
I'll kill you, Misono Mika…?
As Nagisa, who had reached a state of enlightenment, began to scream, I gave her a sweet smile and mouthed my response.
But… you love me, right?
When the ride stopped, Nagisa couldn't get up on her own, so I had to help her out. Afterward, there was an incident where she bought a churro and tried to shove it into my mouth. But in the end, I think Nagisa forgave me. Probably.
The next ride we got on was a rollercoaster. This one, however, was designed to be thrilling not because of steep drops, but because the track was mostly made up of 360-degree loops and corkscrews.
Naturally, my ears reached their limit during the ride, and I was granted permission by Nagisa to switch partners. Even while being wary of and keeping Azusa in check, Nagisa couldn't help her fundamentally kind heart, and so she briefly yielded her spot to Azusa, who had been hovering by my side with a look of longing.
"Let me be clear, just twice. After that, we're switching back."
"Okay, thanks. If you want, I can give you my treasured Skullman keychain as a reward. Hifumi said it's a limited edition and you can't get it anymore."
"…I will politely decline."
As Azusa approached with a much brighter expression and shyly took my hand, Hifumi, with a natural smile, dropped a bomb on Nagisa.
"Ahaha, then I guess it's my turn to sit with Mika-senpai next!"
"Ah…?"
Nagisa, who had made an expression as if her grand plan had half-failed at seeing me paired with Hifumi, quickly recovered her composure and cleared her throat.
"Ahem… Well, I suppose that wouldn't be so bad…"
I'm not sure if I've mentioned it before, but Nagisa doesn't have a very wide circle of friends. As someone who is deeply involved in the political snake pit that is Trinity, I suspect she intentionally keeps her distance. Just as she had seemed happy when I introduced her to the innocent Hifumi, Nagisa's reaction now, while she pretended not to, was not bad, even as she glanced at Azusa.
See, our little squirrel is adorable. Once you get hooked, you won't be able to get away, either, Nagisa.
"So, what's the next operation?"
At Azusa's question, Hifumi, who had been scouting out the next ride, said,
"Next up is…"
Grrrroooowl—
"Ah, awww…"
Or rather, Hifumi's stomach said.
"Fufu… First, shall we grab a quick breakfast and lunch, Hifumi-san?"
"Yeees…"
Seeing the two of them getting along so well, even with me between them, put my mind at ease. If their relationship had been worse than in the original story, my conscience would have bothered me a lot.
…By the way, because of that churro attack earlier, I don't think I can eat much. I'll just have to share with Nagisa.
"Kufufu. Are you really going to do it, Aru-chan? Your target is a Trinity student council president, you know? If you mess with her, you'll make an enemy of all of Trinity! Wow, a true villain among villains… You might just become famous overnight as the hard-boiled outlaw of Aru-chan's dreams~?"
"…It'll be a miserable life with the Justice Task Force on our tails. Hah… No matter how I think about it, the level of this first job is just too high."
"I-I believe in you, Aru-sama…!"
"Th-That's right! If we succeed at a huge job like this, our Problem Solver 68 will become famous in this industry overnight! Then it's inevitable that we'll be flooded with high-class requests! It's the perfect debut for Problem Solver 68…!"
Hidden in the shadows of the crowd, the leader of the four-person group, which was watching my party enter the most expensive restaurant in the amusement park, exclaimed in a confident voice.
"By the way, a Magic Pass… Just as you'd expect from Trinity girls. They have so much money."
"H-Huh? Is the Magic Pass that expensive?"
"It's probably 100,000 yen per person for a day…"
"Th-That's an insane price!"
The numerous problem children of Gehenna Academy. The name of the club, or company, that was boldly throwing down the gauntlet to them on this day was Problem Solver 68.
'…By the way, what do I do? A request to kidnap a Trinity student council president… even I think the level is too high! But the pay was too good to refuse! And like Mutsuki-chan said, to become a hard-boiled outlaw, it's only natural to take on a job like this… right?!'
Hiding her trembling inner thoughts, Rikuhachima Aru, the president of Problem Solver 68, exclaimed bravely.
"Hmph, hmph. Anyway! Let's pull off this job and get a proper office in the D.U.!"
'…Most of all, that client… no matter how I think about it, their voice and laugh sounded familiar! But they just pushed their own agenda and deposited the money right away, so I couldn't even meet them in person…! Doesn't this whole thing seem super shady?!'
It was the historic moment that the first footprint of Problem Solver 68 was imprinted upon Kivotos.