Chapter 216

"Teacher, um, actually I'm..."

She mustered up a little courage.

But in the end, it was as if he suddenly lost his voice; his voice grew softer and softer until he couldn't say anything at all.

Haihara didn't react; she just sat there, seemingly listening quietly.

Silver Feather said "I" several times.

She's a Magic girl, probably braver than Kirishima Ai, but she still doesn't know how to speak up in this situation.

The woman's calm and composed demeanor made Silver Feather feel somewhat frustrated.

"The reason I did those outrageous things before was because..."

Silver Feather tried to organize her thoughts and spoke awkwardly.

Just as she was feeling at a loss, Haihara suddenly raised a hand, causing Silver Feather to instinctively look at Haihara.

The woman raised a finger and gently pressed it to her lips.

She gave a soft shush.

Silver Feather didn't understand what it meant for a moment, but when she met Haihara's gaze, she had a strange feeling.

It's as if Haihara knew everything all along.

But in fact, after Teacher Haihara did that, Silver Feather suddenly noticed that in the distance, a thin beam of light rose into the sky, initially just a faint, imperceptible spark.

This, however, caught Silver Feather's attention.

With a whoosh, the beam of light condensed into a bright point of light against the night sky. In an incredibly reassuring silence, the girl's silver-blue eyes reflected the moment a spark ignited.

Colorful streams of light bloomed and scattered, initially silent, so dazzling and radiant, like the most brilliant Magic.

Silver Feather had never seen such beautiful Magic.

As the flames lit up the night sky, the "whoosh" of fireworks broke the silence, enveloping the square where only the two of them remained.

Then, one burst of fireworks after another, blooming like this.

Sparks fell back to the earth like raindrops.

The sound of fireworks drowned out the silence, as if words themselves had become pale.

The girl gazed longingly at the fireworks, then heard the woman's voice beside her:

"What were you about to say, 'Why'?"

Silver Feather Yu wanted to say something more.

But when I want to say something, I forget what I wanted to say.

So, Silver Feather shook his head.

"... nothing."

For some reason, Silver Feather's face flushed slightly, and her eyes, illuminated by the fireworks, drifted towards the woman.

She suddenly cried out:

"Teacher."

At that moment, Haihara didn't understand what she was thinking, so she casually replied.

"Um?"

Fireworks burst forth one after another, their sounds drowning out all other noises. In this silence, looking at the person beside you, it felt as if they were the only one there.

Silver Feather leaned closer, rested his hands on the bench, then looked up at the woman and whispered:

"I like you..."

The sound was quickly drowned out.

Haihara could only see the girl's lips trembling slightly.

However, Haihara's eyes widened slightly, as if she was stunned for a moment, unsure of how to respond.

However, upon seeing the girl's appearance, Haihara's first instinct was not to answer.

The woman blinked, then unconsciously laughed.

It seems they hadn't anticipated this at all.

Silver Feather looked at the woman's smile with a mixture of curiosity and shyness, and was momentarily stunned.

That's incredible.

What does that smile mean?

She had seriously mustered up the courage to confess her feelings, but this awful woman just laughed happily.

Never mind, let's leave it at that.

It was a very enjoyable trip after all.

In the end, Haihara seemed to say something, but Silver Feather didn't hear anything clearly. Her eyes had changed from silver-blue back to a bewildered black, and she blinked at her teacher.

---This journey ended with these fireworks.

Chapter Twenty-Two: Stop Talking to Your Fantasy Friends. jpg

The next morning, after having breakfast at Tachibana, Haihara took Kirishima Ai home.

Actually, after Haihara took care of her all night, Kirishima Ai's low-grade fever had almost subsided. However, for some reason, after watching the fireworks, Kirishima Ai remained silent and didn't say anything.

And her face was so red that Haihara thought her fever had gotten even higher.

This trip was indeed full of surprises for Haihara.

Not only was she confessed to by one of her students, but she also had her contact information asked for by the hotel owner, whom she had only known for a short time.

I heard that the landlady will be returning to Maple Plain City for a while before the hotel officially opens, and maybe she'll have a chance to have dinner with Tachibana then.

Just kidding.

"... Um, Teacher Haihara."

Now, on their way back, Kirishima Ai remained in a daze, as if in a dream.

Finally, she seemed to have mustered up her courage and asked the question.

Haihara raised her head slightly to listen to what she said.

Kirishima Ai lowered her head, her head looking as if steam was about to rise from it.

"Last night, I... confessed my feelings to my teacher, right?"

She spoke as if she had absolutely no idea what she had done last night.

In fact, Kirishima Ai only vaguely remembered that yesterday, for some reason, she suddenly entered a transformation state, and after that, she became extremely excited.

As a result, she became overconfident and, in the end, it seems...

Why was she so direct back then?

However, despite what happened, Haihara seemed quite calm:

Yes, that's true.

Kirishima Ai opened her mouth, wanting to find a place to crawl into, but she was currently sitting in the passenger seat of the driver's seat, with nowhere to hide.

She wasn't sure what she was thinking either—was she embarrassed or something else?

However, after the fact was established, other thoughts popped into Kirishima Ai's mind. She couldn't help but glance at Teacher Haihara, who was driving, and whispered:

"So... what's the answer?"

Although she anticipated that there would likely be a disappointing outcome.

But the teacher had already agreed to come to the hot springs with her, and they had even slept together for the past two days. She had seen a little bit of what she should and shouldn't have seen.

Maybe, perhaps...

"What kind of answer do you want from me?"

At this moment, Kirishima Ai would realize that Teacher Haihara was indeed an adult, always saying things that someone like her wouldn't expect.

In other words, she had to say it herself?

"I mean, things like... dating, or rejecting someone..."

After Kirishima Ai uttered those words, she suddenly felt powerless. After all, there seemed to be no chance of success in saying such things to Teacher Haihara.

How could there be any chance of success?

However, Haihara stroked her chin, as if thinking for a moment. She didn't answer immediately, but instead replied:

"If I agree, what do you plan to do?"

She spoke as she drove.

The roads on both sides gradually receded, slowly driving into the distance.

Kirishima Ai was taken aback for a moment, because she didn't think she had actually considered such a question before.

If the teacher really agrees, what will they have to do...?

"Like... hugging, kissing, and... and what happened afterward..."

Kirishima Ai awkwardly tidied her hair, trying to tuck the stray strands behind her ears to stop the itching from her face, but this only revealed her small, bright red face, as red as a ripe apple.

Whether it was her imagination or not, Kirishima Ai suddenly felt the car was going much faster, as if she had accidentally floored the accelerator.

Fortunately, this situation was only temporary.

Seemingly confused for a moment, Haihara blinked.

Even if we were dating, I would basically have no time to spend with you on weekends, and you also have to work, so you probably wouldn't have time to do these things.

To be honest, Haihara feels that her weekends are quite busy these days. After all, she has to meet up with high school girls every week and occasionally go on dates with her girlfriend, so she simply doesn't have time to spend with Problem Child.

However, she soon heard the Problem Child's answer:

"It's possible... to do it in the office."

Kirishima Ai inevitably recalled what Takanashi had done some time ago.

Haihara said expressionlessly:

"Are these kinds of thoughts always on your mind during class?"

She remembered that Kirishima Ai always daydreamed in her class, partly because her classes were boring, but Kirishima Ai never did that in other classes.

Moreover, Haihara really didn't want to delve into what to do after kissing and hugging.

"... yes."

Haihara simply commented on this.

"You lecherous brat."

Since Haihara is always very good at controlling her expressions, no one knows what she's thinking right now.

However, although she didn't know how to answer the question, Haihara herself had a very enjoyable time on the hot spring trip.

While waiting at the traffic light, Haihara glanced at Kirishima Ai, noticing the Silver Feather Crystal she had been wearing in her hair ornament lately.

I wonder how long this peace can last...

Before we knew it, the three-day holiday was over. It was evening, and Neon lights replaced the sunlight, enveloping the entire city. Tomorrow, it will be another day of the same routine.

Compared to everyone else's holiday, one Magic girl is much busier.

"You've worked hard, Ms. Tachibana Aeruru. You're very cute today too."

After completing part of the recording for her latest song, Maple Plain City idol Tachibana Aeruru retreated from the set-up stage to the dressing room, where a staff member handed her coffee and milk that had been prepared in advance.

Today, Tachibana Aeruru also showed a bright smile, thanking and saying goodbye to each of the staff members.

As a popular active idol, Tachibana Aeruru has been much busier lately than before, and she didn't have a moment's rest during her three-day weekend.

Fortunately, all the activities were within Maple Plain City, and Tachibana Aeruru's recordings were always completed very quickly.