Seraphim is a Bystander

School Trip – Day 2: Morning Walk
 
…It’s hard to breathe.
Something’s pressing down on my mouth.

The sensation is enough to remind me of the suffocating tension I once felt while standing in front of a black-clad attacker, protecting Yuna on my back. Combined with the strange heaviness in my body, I could feel my heartbeat steadily accelerating.
“...!”
Suddenly, I snap into full [N O V E L I G H T] consciousness.
Even though I’ve opened my eyes, everything remains strangely dark.
As I try to gather my thoughts, memories of last night slowly come back to me.

After returning to the hotel from free time, I had dinner, then went looking for Yuzu, who had suddenly disappeared. After finding her, I attended the class leader meeting, took a bath, exchanged messages with Yuna-san, and fell asleep in my room like normal.
I try to feel around—my hands and legs move fine, and aside from the darkness and the difficulty breathing, it feels like I’m simply under a blanket.
“…?”

I’m not tied up or anything, so what’s going on?
I raise a hand to my face, wondering if someone had put a bag over my head or something…
But the texture I feel is completely different.
“...Fufu—Yuzu, can you move over?”
“Nya?”

The voice that replied to my muffled words belonged to the cat I’d met yesterday.
The thing I was touching wasn’t my face or a bag—it was the soft, fluffy body of Yuzu.
…Right. I remember now.
Even last night, Yuzu refused to leave my side and had curled up next to my pillow.
She must have crawled on top of my face sometime during the night.
“Alright… off you go.”

“Nya.”
I gently lift the sleepy Yuzu off my face and sit up.
As the blinding morning light floods my previously dark vision, I activate the nanomachines and check the time.
It’s thirty minutes earlier than when I was planning to get up.
The sun is already out, but everyone in the room is still asleep.

“…Guess I’ll get ready.”
“Funya.”
Yuzu, who had given me quite the scare, curls back up on my futon.
Unlike her, I’m fully awake now, so I quietly step out of bed to get ready before everyone else wakes up.
Not wanting to wake the others, I grab my towel from my bag and head to the sink.
I wash my face, fix my hair, and change clothes, just like I do at home.
Once I finish my morning routine, I feel something soft at my feet.

“Oh? You’re up too, Yuzu?”
“Nya.”
“We should thank the hotel staff later for letting you stay in the room.”

“Nya?”
Still looking half-asleep, Yuzu lets me pick her up.
Craving some fresh air, I leave the room and step outside.
It seems the other students are still sleeping—only the distant sounds of hotel staff moving around can be heard.
I walk down the quiet hallway toward the lobby.
Passing by some rooms, I see the teachers holding a morning meeting, and the staff are preparing breakfast.
When I reach the lobby, I realize someone’s already there.

“Huh? Good morning, Runa-chan, Saotome-san, Tsubaki-san!”
“Aoi-kun! Good morning—and you too, Yuzu-chan!”
The three of them, in tracksuits and slightly sweaty, were clearly up even earlier than me.

“You’re all up early. What’s going on?”
“We were just out for… club practice… W-we’re in a hurry, so we’ll talk later—!”
“Eh? S-sorry for stopping you!”

After a few exchanged words, their expressions suddenly change, and they rush off toward the girls’ rooms in a panic.
I wonder what that was about?
They mentioned club practice, so maybe they had something planned?
If I remember right, those three were in the volleyball club… oh well. Let’s go for a walk.
“Practicing even while traveling… must be tough, huh Yuzu?”

“Nya?”
Talking to Yuzu while holding her, I head toward the back of the hotel—where I’d gone looking for her last night.
Club activities, huh…
“Because of my family circumstances, I’ve never been able to join a club.
…A little envious, maybe.”

“…Nya.”
Ever since it became known I’m the future head of the Futaba family, I’ve had to learn all sorts of things at Grandpa’s place.
After school, I often go straight there, and between training under Master and helping with virtual-related matters, there’s no time left for clubs.
“Well… I do want to do all of this—family duties, training, helping fight virtuals…
So it’s not really a problem.”

Even though I know Yuzu won’t give any meaningful reply, I mumble the words anyway.
It’s true I chose this path for myself, but sometimes I wonder if I’m missing out on things that can only be done while I’m a student.
“…Speaking of which, maybe I should exercise a bit too, like Runa-chan and the others.”
“Nya?”

“Hmm? I do work out quite a bit, you know?”
“Nyaa~”
Yuzu lets out a disinterested yawn at my words.
…Okay, maybe I’ll play with her a little and use it as a warm-up.
Might as well practice using Purifying Flame too.

I set Yuzu down in a nice open spot and begin generating small fireballs of Purifying Flame, carefully adjusting their heat so they aren’t hot to the touch.
Then I make them dance and flicker in front of Yuzu’s eyes—catch her attention…
“Nya!?”
“Hehehe…”

Still a bit sleepy, Yuzu’s gaze locks onto the tiny flames darting about.
She raises her front paws, clearly struggling to resist the urge to pounce.
“Nya-nya! Nya!”
“Hehe, you’ve got a cute side too, huh Yuzu?”

As Yuzu swats the fireballs away with cat-punches, I keep summoning new ones.
Controlling both the flame and my abilities is surprisingly good training.
Since I’m still not used to Purifying Flame, and Yuzu’s quick, this actually makes for a great drill.
“Nya-nya-nya!”
“Fufufu…”

Watching the most playful and lively Yuzu I’ve seen yet, I continue my training, feeling refreshed and content.
Thus, the second day of our school trip begins peacefully.