The moment I saw Kasumi, I couldn't help but remember how she had been sobbing just now.
No matter how confident and spirited she appeared now, or how sharp the contrast made by her earlier state, the fact that she had been scared to tears by Hina would probably take root in my mind, impossible to forget, always vivid…
From now on, I probably couldn't look at Kasumi the same way as before.
Could it be that her reason for meeting me here was exactly that? Realizing this, she wanted to use the hotel room (the perfect setting) to threaten me with, "Sensei, you wouldn't want the Prefect Team president to find out you're hiding things," imprinting an even deeper impression and taking revenge on Hina in the process!?
Thinking this, I narrowed my eyes and resolutely closed the door behind me, ready to sacrifice even more for Hina's vacation.
"Kasumi," I said, keeping my agitation and… sorrow in check, "what brings you here? And why are you at this hotel?"
Hina's mischievous Hot Spring Development Club president gave me a sly smile and countered.
"Oh? Wasn't it sensei who graciously invited me over? Hmm, at first glance it looked like a simple intrusion, but those stubborn Prefect Team members only attacked the small-time delinquents? Moreover, the Gourmet Research Society and Problem Solver 68 aren't exactly here just to watch the fun! Seems like all your handiwork, sensei?"
As she spoke, she came up to me, laughing, standing on tiptoe to pat my shoulders hard, teasingly.
"Hahaha! Sensei! Next time, don't leave such obvious flaws! If a rigid person noticed, they might not forgive you so easily like I do!"
So that was all she wanted to say…
I felt a bit disappointed, but then I suddenly wondered if there was more to her words.
She was trying to stir up my relationship with Hina again, wasn't she?
"Sorry about that. But, although it looks like I'm passing the buck now, I never intended to completely hide things from you, Kasumi."
All that talk about "defending the right to freely develop the hot spring" was just a pretext, a barely plausible excuse. The students were willing to intervene ultimately because of my influence.
"Hmm hmm…" Kasumi pondered for a moment, smiling, "You're right! It was I who was being inconsiderate, breaking our unspoken understanding! Please forgive me, my feelings are just so excited right now!"
I nodded, completely understanding.
After all, opportunities to be alone with me in the same room didn't come often.
"Hmph~ Though I had guessed most of it when the Prefect Team appeared, confirming it directly with you wasn't impossible, and coming over on my own was risky… yet effort yields results! From the way the Prefect Team president treated me, my guess was correct—
"Sensei, you and the other Prefect Team members are working together to use the summer training camp as an excuse to let that workaholic Prefect Team president finally rest, right? That's why you're keeping it from her, to prevent her from returning to her annoying work state~"
At this, Kasumi's eyes began to sparkle. "In other words, the era of the Hot Spring Development Club has arrived!"
…I had to admit, Kasumi was indeed smart.
But I felt her excitement was a bit premature.
"Well," I cleared my throat, giving her a friendly reminder, "the summer training camp only lasts a few days. And if things get out of hand, I couldn't just stand by. At the necessary moment, I would have to tell Hina, you know?"
Private matters are private, official matters are official. And even private matters have their own hierarchy.
"Hmm..."
Kasumi's excitement abruptly halted. She pressed her lips tightly, showing discomfort, sweat forming at her temple.
She couldn't have really gotten so carried away as to ignore that possibility, could she?
After a while, she grunted, indignantly blaming me.
"Sensei, you're really so heartless! It's not like I can't think of this myself, why can't I just be happy for a little while!?"
Why did Kasumi sound so self-righteous that it made me feel like I'd actually done something wrong?
I awkwardly rubbed my nose and muttered, "Sorry, sorry."
"Sigh… but you're right. I can't overdo it. Normally, it wouldn't matter, but this time the intel came from you. If it dragged you into trouble, I'd feel guilty!"
Though her words moved me slightly, why did it feel like she was implying I was her accomplice?
If you want to make trouble, make trouble! Don't drag me in!
Just as I grumbled inside, Kasumi's lips curved again. "Ah, sensei, remember the promise we made before?"
"Of course I do."
It was nearly two months ago, before the second evaluation exam with the make-up gang.
To pressure me into finding the "Traitor of the Trinity," Nagisa not only set the exam in Gehenna but maliciously told the Hot Spring Development Club that there was a hot spring beneath the exam site, hoping to sabotage the papers.
Kasumi, as the club president, warned me in advance and even helped me buy time.
The cost at the time had been negligible.
I paused, looking into Kasumi's meaningful gaze, and said slowly. "To help you choose the hot spring location… right?"
"Hahaha~ Exactly!"
Kasumi laughed heartily, pulling out a rolled-up map from somewhere and spreading it across the hotel floor.
"Sensei! Now is the perfect time! Come on, choose a hot spring that will satisfy me and allow the Prefect Team president to enjoy her vacation, let you be my advisor!"
"…Can't we wait until the training camp ends?"
Even knowing it would probably be futile, I made one last attempt.
Kasumi said decisively. "Of course not! I can't suppress my desire any longer! Hmm... if you refuse, I might really have to search for the underwater volcano on the nearby beach with everyone! Are you okay with that?"
I sighed inwardly, thinking that at least if I helped her plan, I could guide things a little.
Unfortunately, it seemed I wouldn't be returning to Hina anytime soon.
"I understand," I said. "Then let's go to the bed first."
Hearing this, Kasumi, who had been excited moments ago, froze in place, flustered.
"…Uh, sensei," she said cautiously, "the desire I mentioned... is that the desire for explosives?"
"What did you think it was?"
I deliberately said something ambiguous, to get back at her for earlier scheming!
Seeing Kasumi's reaction so adorable, I felt a small thrill, but pretended to be oblivious, glancing at the black-haired girl.
"The bed's probably more comfortable than the floor, right?"
"…Y-Yeah. Ahaha…"
Kasumi hastily picked up the map, feigning composure. "Then we shouldn't waste time, let's get started!"