Seraphim is a Bystander

School Trip – Day 2: Morning Assembly
 
After finishing my morning walk, I met up with everyone in my room and helped tidy up the futons.
Apparently, they’d stayed up chatting even after I fell asleep—everyone was rubbing their sleepy eyes as we headed down to the hotel lobby.

“Hey, how late did you guys stay up?”
“Ugh… what time was it again…? I think I passed out after hiding during the teacher’s second room check.”
“Don’t you dare say you want to nap during the tour later.”

“No worries there. By the way, what’s today’s schedule again?”
Ken asked while slapping his cheeks to shake off the sleepiness.
I recalled the contents of last night’s class leader meeting… even though I did explain it yesterday.
“Today we’re visiting the Divine History Museum and the Dragon Calamity Archive.
I told you all last night, but I guess you weren’t listening.”

“Ah, my bad!”
“Well, I figured as much…”
It’s more academic than yesterday, so I guess they didn’t really care.
But if you dig into it, the exhibits are actually pretty useful and interesting.

As we entered the lobby, about half the students were already gathered.
What felt off, though, was that only about half of the teachers from the earlier morning meeting were present.
“Huh? Did the teachers oversleep?”
“Nope, when I was out walking this morning, they were all gathered for a meeting.”

“Oh really…? And hey, if you were going for a walk, you could’ve invited me.”
“I was just doing my morning routine. You didn’t wake up, remember?”
“Yeah, true… Oh hey, Nishi-zono and the others just got here.”

Following Ken’s gaze, I spotted Runa-chan and her group entering the lobby, now changed out of their tracksuits.
I waved at them, and when they noticed us, they waved back and came over.
“Good morning, all. And you too, Aoi-kun—again.”
“Morning, you three. Though it hasn’t been long since I saw you.”
“‘Again’? What do you mean, Aoi?”

“Oh, that’s because earlier I saw Runa-chan, Saotome-san, and Tsubaki-san—”
“Aoi-kun! Can I talk to you for a moment?”
Just as I was about to tell Ken they’d been out practicing, Saotome-san suddenly grabbed my hand and pulled me away from Ken and Rei.

“Saotome-san? What’s the matter all of a sudden?”
“Ah—sorry for pulling you like that out of nowhere…”
“It’s okay, but…”

When I gently encouraged her to continue, Saotome-san began to mumble in a small, hesitant voice.
“Um… I’d really appreciate it if you didn’t tell Katsura-kun and the others about earlier…”
“Huh? Why not?”

“Well… we were all sweaty in our tracksuits… practicing during the trip and all…
Honestly, I didn’t even want you to see us like that…”
Blushing deeply, she spoke in a whisper so quiet it was almost inaudible.
That gap between her usual calm demeanor and how flustered she was now actually made her seem kind of cute.
…I see.
For girls our age, being seen like that is probably embarrassing.
I guess that explains why they ran off earlier when I bumped into them before my walk.

“…Got it. I won’t say anything to Ken or the others.”
“Thank you… That’ll help Kana and Runa too.”
“…But honestly, I don’t think it’s anything to be embarrassed about.
I think you all looked cool—working hard like that.”

“…Really? Thank you.”
“Ahaha… Shall we head back?”
…Did I say too much?
I mean, I get all sweaty too after training—it’s not a bad thing.
Still, Saotome-san turned her face away and hurried back to the group.

“Aoi? So what ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ was that all about?”
“Hm? Oh, nothing really…
Ah, more importantly—it looks like the morning assembly is about to start.”
“Huh? Even though not all the teachers are here…”

“Alright, everyone here~?”
Right on cue, one of the teachers’ voices rang out in the lobby, and the students all quieted down.
Just like Ken said, some of the teachers were still missing—but regardless, the morning assembly for day two of our school trip had begun.
Yesterday was full of trouble…
I hope today goes smoothly.

“Okay, everyone!
This is a bit sudden, but—today’s schedule is going to change!”
…Wait, what?