The Sword Maiden of Endless Dreams (II)
2147.
The stairwell connecting the second floor with the third floor, Tachikawa Station.
“…Are you sure this is the right place?”
“Yes, that’s what the person on the call told me.”
After Honami had let them escape, Suzuran discovered the number that Honami had left hidden within the bag of cookies she had given her; of course, she wasted no time in calling that number, much to Noa’s disapproval. Following a five-minute conversation, Suzuran informed Noa that they would meet up with the mysterious helper at Tachikawa Station and so, the girls took the train there from Harajuku Station. They arrived a bit earlier than the promised meeting time and were simply waiting for the person to come. As they were waiting, Suzuran took the opportunity to once again scrutinize the note. [This note… It isn’t in Honami’s handwriting… yet it was in her bag of cookies…]
“Well, be on guard,” Noa said. “It might be a trap.”
“Hmm… I really don’t think it is because Honami gave me this letter… but I can’t deny the possibility, huh?”
Glancing at her, Noa silently nodded in agreement before suddenly tensing, her hand poised over the zipper of her guitar case, ready to extract her okatana at any moment. “Ah, there you girls are! Whew, you sure are absolutely soaked!” Eyeing each of the girls as she talked, she added, “You must be Noa-chan and you are Suzuran-chan.”
A bit surprised at how all-smiles the lady in front of them was, Suzuran could only stutter her reply, “U-Uh, yes, that would be us.”
“Alright,” the lady beamed. “My name is Kyouko Nagamine. Nice to meet you! In the meantime, have this to bowl you over.”
The lady handed Suzuran a plastic bag with two brown paper bags inside of it. She looked over at Noa and back at the paper bags. [This must be food, right…?] she asked with her eyes.
Noa replied, [Probably… For now, she seems harmless; let’s go with her. She’s the only one that can help us right now.] Their course of action decided, the two girls followed the bubbling older woman to her car whereupon they both climbed in to the rear cabin and sat down.
For most of the trip, Suzuran and Noa sat besides each other in complete silence as Kyouko drove the vehicle. Resting in Suzuran’s lap was the plastic bag of what was most likely food. Mulling over whether or not to speak, Suzuran worked around the saliva in her mouth. Swallowing, she steeled herself and broke the ice. “Um, would you happen to be acquainted with Principal Serizawa?”
“Yup,” Kyouko replied. “I’m an alumnus of Osafune Girls’ Academy after all.”
“E-Eh!? Wa-Wait, then that would make you my [senpai]?”
“Uh-huh. By quite a few years now but yes, I’m your senior. Since I’m still on good terms with Principal Serizawa even after having graduated, she came to me on the phone and asked me to take care of you girls in her place.”
“Wait… Then that means the note—” Suzuran started.
“—is from the principal, yes,” Kyouko finished, looking at them through the rearview mirror with a smile to ensure that they understood that she was not lying. After a few more minutes of silence, Kyouko turned off the car and said, “Alright, girls, we’re here.”
“It’s… big,” Suzuran mumbled. It was a high-rise apartment building and it seemed to have a high rent due to how modernly designed it appeared.
“Alright, now come on in. It wouldn’t do any of us any good for us to stay outside for any longer.”
““Thanks for having us over.””
Suzuran and Noa thanked her at the same time, looked at each other, then stifled a simultaneous laugh. They followed Kyouko through the building and into her apartment, hauling their suitcases with their clothes with them. Opening the door and leaving their shoes behind and entering (not before a simultaneous “Excuse us for entering…” as it was simply required etiquette), Suzuran removed her hoodie and asked, having noticed the plastic bags stacked in the corner of the room of what she assumed to be trash, “Do you live by yourself?”
“Yup,” she replied. “It’s a pretty good place to stay although it’s a tad far from the place I work.”
While Suzuran had lowered her guard, Noa hadn't relented yet. She was calmer than before but her hand was itching to open her guitar case. “If you’re an alumnus of Osafune, then that makes you…”
“Yes, I’m a former [Toji],” Kyouko asserted. “I retired last year though so I’ve returned my [okatana].”
At that, Noa immediately unzipped her guitar case, her hand grasping the okatana inside. “Don’t tell me you’re from the Sword Administration…!?”
“No, no,” Kyouko denied in perfect English. “I’m not related to them at all so don’t be so stiff, Noa-chan.”
Suzuran then used the break in the conversation to squeal, stars glowing in her pupils, “What swordsmanship school did you practice while you were on active duty, Kyouko-senpai!?”
“Ahaha, you don’t need to call me senpai, I’m not a [Toji] anymore after all! In any case, aren’t you girls cold like that? Go use my bathroom first. I’ll leave out a fresh pair of clothes—”
“Ah, no, it’s fine,” Suzuran said, cutting her off. “We both have changes of clothing.”
“Okay, then after you shower, we’ll eat.” Kyouko pointed to the table where she laid out all of the healthy food choices she had picked out from restaurants before picking up the two girls. There was quite the selection of salad, ramen, and udon among other foodstuffs.
Suzuran used the lavatory first, reporting to Noa after doing so. “The bathroom is really nice!”
Having not yet loosened up, Noa grumbled, “…You should be more suspicious. You should’ve taken your [okatana] with you to the bathroom.”
“…Um, what? I really don’t think that’s necessary…”
“The situation is what it is,” Noa insisted. “I will be taking my [okatana] with me.” Suzuran could only hang her jaw open in confusion, her gaze following Noa’s guarded back.