1-2
the three schools: St. Miator Girls’ Academy, St. Spica Girls’ Institute
and St. Lulim Girls’ School. It was located across from St. Spica,
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almost directly behind Astraea Hill, in a corner of the eastern edge of
Maiden Park.
The Strawberry Dorms were built to look as if a rectangular building
had been cut to form an equilateral triangle shape. The center was a
courtyard. The three buildings were separated according to school: a
Miator dorm, a Spica dorm and a Lulim dorm. Each was independent,
the dorms only connected by three skywalks that passed over the
In the Strawberry Dorms, going between the different schools’
dorms was forbidden. In order to go to the dorm of a different
school, a student needed to get permission from the dorm mother.
That was why the Bell Walkways started at the second level, close to
the dorm mothers’ rooms, which jutted out above the front
entranceways located in the center of each of the dorms like lookout
points.
The stairs that led to the walkways were built to be hidden, and the
entrance to each walkway, which abruptly appeared in the stairwell
wall, seemed as strange as one of Escher’s optical-illusion pictures
and gave them an atmosphere of forbiddenness.
When a student crossed one of the Bell Walkways, she rang a large
bell by the entranceway and gave her name.
“St. Spica Girls’ Institute, Third Year, Class Un, Konohana Hikari,
passing through.”
A student was supposed to perform this ritual in order to clear
people from the walkway. No one knew exactly what purpose it
served or when it started, but it was a strict rule of the strange Bell
Walkways.
***
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Hikari had been crying. Looking back on it now, she had probably been
homesick. Several days had passed since Hikari had come to St.
Spica Girls’ Institute and started living in the Strawberry Dorms.
She was the only new student who had transferred into Spica that
year.
In the Spica dorm, new transfer students stayed in a one-person
room for the first two weeks.
The nun who had showed Hikari around was nice, and the dorm
mother was kind too. The fifth-year student who was the dorm
leader had seemed very wise, and Hikari felt like she wanted to get
closer to her. She had treated Hikari so politely it was hard to believe she
was an upperclassman.
She had said, “If there’s anything you don’t understand, you can ask
me.”
The room was of a style that gave it an air of having a long history, but it also had a very beautiful art deco floor lamp. It was just the
kind of atmosphere Hikari liked.
Of course, it was lonely being in a room all by herself, even though
she had been totally fine being alone in her own room back home. In
fact, she had loved being alone in that room, drinking tea and looking at
her collections of beautiful illustrations.
But here…
She grabbed her favorite book from the bookshelf. Gustave Moreau.
Usually, as soon as she opened the book she would be sucked right
into it, captivated by the pictures. But she wasn’t moved at all today.
While her mind was someplace else, a single tear fell.
Drip.
Hikari just couldn’t stay still, so she left the room. Before she even
realized it, Hikari stood in front of the entrance to the bell walkway.
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She had no reason to go to one of the other dorms, of course, but when
she stood there she could see the front entrance of the Spica
dorm.
The door to the outside world.
People are always coming and going from that entrance, and if the dorm
mother or one of the nuns found out, I’m sure they’d worry.
When she stepped onto the Bell Walkway, she was surprised there
wasn’t anyone there, but it seemed like no one would notice her.
There was a thick, dark peach-colored carpet on the floor of the
walkway. The lie of the carpet’s long fibers was beautiful, and there
wasn’t a trace of anyone’s having walked there.
It looks like this walkway isn’t used very much.
Hiding in the shadow of the wall, Hikari stared at the front
entranceway.
I know standing here like this isn’t going to help anything, but still… If I go out that front door, I can go home. It’s not like I hate this place, but…
Everyone here is wonderful, but…
Hikari felt she couldn’t blend in. It was probably because of her
simple, shy personality. There were a lot of refined and sophisticated
students at Spica, and they were all so dignified. Hikari felt she would be
bothering them if she talked to them. She gazed at the glass
entranceway below with its steel ivy growing over it and let her thoughts wander. The light from the entranceway, reflecting off the
glass in front of her, began to blur.
Even though she didn’t think she was that sad .
Even though there was no reason she could think of.
Drip.
Another tear fell.
Ring ring ring.
The sound of a handbell came from the entrance directly below her.
In a panic, Hikari stepped back to hide against the wall.
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Next came a voice. It was slightly low, mellow and dignified.
“St. Spica Girls’ Institute, Fifth Year, Class Trois, Otori Amane, coming in!”
Hikari’s heart jumped. Oh no, she’s coming this way…!
She hurriedly looked for a better place to hide. What do I do?
There’s no place to hide. It’s just a walkway.
Tmp tmp tmp. She heard the sound of someone climbing the narrow stairs to the walkway. From where Hikari was, she couldn’t see the
person.
Quick, quick, I have to hide somewhere!
At the end of the walkway was another school’s dorm. There was no
place she could go. She was trapped like a rat.
The sound of footsteps stopped.
Aaugh, what do I do… I’m going to get yelled at!
Hikari ducked her head and covered her ears. She heard someone
murmur in a husky voice. “An angel…?”
Amane was on her way to Lulim’s dorm. She had been called by St.
Lulim’s Student Council President, Minamoto Chikaru.
I don’t have a very good feeling about it, either—it’s probably
about THAT. This year’s Étoile competition. Chikaru wants to try and
convince me to enter this year, I just know it. What a pain.
Even though Amane was half resigned to it, she still felt dejected
over it. Chikaru was a friend; they used to go horseback riding a lot
together. But she had a meddlesome personality and she worried
about Amane even though she was from another school. This time
Amane thought she was going too far and she should mind her own
The Étoile title, a beloved cadette —I don’t need either of those.
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Just as that thought went through her head—
Ktnk.
—There was a loud sound.
She sensed someone moving in the Bell Walkway. Who is it?
She felt something wrong and raised her head.
Standing there was…
An angel.
She crouched directly under a warm arc of light in the walkway, her
waist-length golden hair shining, casting a halo-like ring of light
above her head. Her small, pale face shone like a dream shrouded in
delicate silk gauze. Her short build was adorable and her slender
shoulders trembled innocently. She looked exactly like a messenger
from God who had been found by a savage person on earth and
been struck with surprise.
She knew they weren’t really there, but Amane was certain she saw
them: large, white, shining wings behind her back, spreading out
above her. Peach lotus-flower petals of light fluttered down,
overflowing from the heavens, church bells rang and the sound of
angels’ singing echoed.
An angel had descended in front of Amane.
When Hikari timidly opened her eyes—
Oh no, I squeezed my eyes shut without even realizing. I always
do that. When I get scared, I end up like a turtle shut inside its shell.
The image that struck Hikari’s eyes at that moment was…
The…Prince?
Amane had certainly earned her nickname. Most Spica students who
saw Amane for the first time got the impression of royalty, even
without knowing her or her nickname beforehand.
12 1
Before Hikari’s eyes was a prince wearing a skirt.
It wasn’t details like her height or her hairstyle. It was her demeanor, her
very existence that told Hikari a prince had arrived. There was
also the funny story that said Amane was under the “curse of the
prince.”
Hikari was dumbstruck. Up until a moment ago, her heart had been
full of fear because she was in the Bell Walkway without permission,
but that was completely forgotten. She was fascinated by the person
who had appeared before her.
Amane thought, This is the first time I’ve seen such an adorable girl.
She’s just like an angel. It’s more than her being cute… For some
reason I don’t understand, I feel myself strongly attracted to her. Both my
body and my heart. I can’t take my eyes off her.
She couldn’t stand still; she began to fidget. Otori Amane, seventeen
years old, experienced a sensation she had never felt before in her life.
She might have been the White Prince of the Stars who was loved by
everyone, but—though she didn’t yet realize it—this was her first
love.
“Are you lost?” Amane asked.
With that one question, Hikari suddenly relaxed and felt like she
wanted to laugh.
Ah! Oh yeah, now that I think about it, this is a relief.
“Yes, I’m sorry… I just moved in…” The thread of tension was cut and
she was able to talk smoothly.
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“I see. I heard there was one transfer student this year. I guess it’s you,
then?”
For some reason, the fact that Amane knew about Hikari delighted
“What year are you in?”
“Third.”
“What class?”
“Class Un.”
“What is your name?”
“Oh…Konohana Hikari.”
“Hikari, huh? That’s a wonderful name. It fits you well.”
“Th-thank you very much.”
Their conversation faltered. Suddenly Amane said, “If you’re a
transfer student, you’re still in a one-person room, right?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Come with me.”
“What?”
“I will show you the way.” Amane reached her hand out to Hikari.
Hikari was startled for a moment, but, for some reason, she took
Amane’s hand without even a hint of shyness. Gently, elegantly, like
Cinderella being invited to dance by the prince.
The two looked into each other’s eyes. Hikari felt like her body was
floating, like she was in a beautiful dream. Still they gazed at each
other—they couldn’t take their eyes off each other.
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In a corner of this aging walkway, they had the sensation of being
surrounded by a glimmering red bubble, floating away from the
world together, just the two of them. They felt like they could go
anywhere, holding hands, soar to limitless heights.
When Hikari saw Amane’s dark, burning eyes staring at her, her body
got hot and her heart pounded. Everything in the world around
Amane and Hikari seemed to shine. Hikari felt her cheeks soften, and
it made her happy.
With Amane holding her hand, she walked the path to her room.
Along the way, Amane talked unfalteringly about the school, still
holding Hikari’s hand the whole time.
Back then, Hikari hadn’t realized how incredible that was.
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Chapter 4
The Cock Crows Three Times,
Late afternoon, St. Lulim Girls’ School. Most of the students were in the bright courtyard, playing and enjoying the glorious spring
sunshine, when a poster was put up on the Astraea bulletin board in
the center of the yard.
“Oh, a new poster. I wonder what that could be?”
“What? Did something change?”
In this carefree moment of relaxation after lunch, girls in light pink
uniforms who had been walking with their friends in groups of twos
or threes went to the board, seeking something unusual to talk
about.
“Oh my!”
“Ooh, now that I think about it…”
“It’s that season again.”
***
NOTICE
THE NEXT ÉTOILE
WILL COMMENCE NEXT WEEK!
Étoile • Aînée
Étoile • Cadette
1 Person Each
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The method of competition will be Trois Lumières.
The final selection and coronation
are planned for July.
From this point on, events related to the Étoile Competition will have priority over all other events and activities in all schools, so that the listed students may contend in this contest, in which lies the pride of all students in all three schools on Astraea.
– FIRST ROUND –
L’Ouverture Brillante
Month of the Virgin Mary
Held in the two days before the advent of St. Ranael
TWO DAYS PRIOR:
Cadette Competition: Undecided*
Location: Chapel Hall or Maiden Park
*We are currently in the process of choosing the
event. It will be posted the day of the competition.
DAY PRIOR:
Aînée Competition: The Fortress of Promises
Location: St. Spica Girls’ Institute,
Riding Grounds
— Étoile Competition
The notice was followed by a list of the seventeen couples who
wished to participate in the competition. Included in the names were
St. Spica Girls’ Institute’s Otori Amane of Fifth Year Class Trois and 127
Kenjo Kaname of Fourth Year Class Deux. At the end of the list, the last to apply, were St. Miator Girls’ Academy’s Hanazono Shizuma,
Sixth Year, Snow Class, and Aoi Nagisa, Fourth Year, Moon Class.
***
“What? The notice for the Étoile competition! Oh, this is that ‘Star of the Campus’ contest Remon-chan was just telling me about, right?”
said a short girl reading the bulletin board, her conspicuously short,
pleated pink skirt fluttering. Her short hair, pulled up in two ponytails,
swayed, and a sailor collar lay on her small back. “Let’s see. St.
Lulim Girls’ School has…one, two, three… Huh? Only three
couples!”
The girl next to her, with her hair in buns, gave a wry smile as she
automatically pushed up her glasses, which had slipped down.
“‘Star of the Campus’ contest, huh? Well, you could call it that too, I guess.” She scanned the bulletin board with a very curious look on
her face. “Étoile means ‘star’ in French, and the Étoile competition is the event that decides who is the most wonderful couple in Lulim,
Miator and Spica, so calling it the ‘Star of the Campus’ contest would be
right, but…the Étoile, who wins the competition that runs for three months—
it starts in April when the new school year begins—is
a HUGELY prestigious position! The Étoile always appears as the main
guest at all of Astraea’s events, like the Culture Festival and the
Sports Festival and Christmas. And the school that the year’s Étoile
attends gets excited no matter what the event.”
“Hmm… It’s really that significant?” asked Hyuga Kizuna from Second
Year Class B with admiration in her voice. She had just recently
entered the school, so didn’t know much about it yet.
The serious girl with glasses and her hair in buns was Natsume
Remon, also from St. Lulim Girls’ School Second Year Class B. She was
a very common-sense type of person, but a little timid. She turned
her eyes from the bulletin board, struck a triumphant pose and answered
knowingly.
“That’s right! There are going to be three competitions to officially
decide the Étoile. Each time, the couples in the lowest positions are taken out, until one couple is chosen during the last competition in
July. In the meantime, there’s a fierce battle between schools, and
the feeling of competition is just incredible! Even girls who say
they’re not interested get caught up in all the excitement. Of course,
everyone hopes her school wins. Oh, but there’s a rumor…since
Prince Amane from St. Spica Girls’ Institute is entering this year, the
winner has pretty much already been decided. It looks like Lulim has
already given up; there aren’t many entries.” She leaned in close to
check the bulletin board. “They’re saying it’s not going to be very
exciting this year, but… Whoa! There really aren’t very many.
“Yeah, it sure does look like Lulim’s giving up,” said Kizuna. “It’s too
bad. But you know, what you just told me is incredible! Spica has a
Prince?! Wow, I really want to see! Is he blond? I wonder what
country he comes from. I’ve never seen a real prince before, so I just have
to…”
Just as she was about to finish her sentence…
Slap.
Someone hit her lightly on the head from behind.
“Silly, I can’t believe you said that. ‘Prince’ is just her nickname, of
course. No, I guess it’s closer to a term of respect than a nickname.
Just like we call our adorable second-year student Kizuna the ‘Peach-
Colored Sleeping Beauty.’”
“Ah, Chikaru-oneesama!” Kizuna turned to Student Council President
Minamoto Chikaru, standing behind her.
Chikaru smiled at the two of them with her strikingly kind eyes. The
scent of flowers drifted from her flowing black hair with its
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trademark braids. The Student Council President’s sudden entrance made
Remon so nervous she unconsciously blushed and rubbed her
inner thigh. Kizuna, however, was completely unconcerned and left
herself wide open.
“Ah! Oh yeah! I guess you’re right. I mean, why would there be a real
Incredible! I think I really want to see her!”
Remon timidly responded to Kizuna’s words in a modest voice.
“Yeah, she’s handsome and gallant and valiant, just like a real prince!
But she’s really popular, so it’s not like underclassmen from a
different school, like us, have a chance to get close to her. She’s even
beyond the reach of the Spica girls.”
Chikaru laughed, like she was making fun of Remon’s dreamy tone.
“My, you like Amane-chan too, Remon? This is certainly
unexpected.”
“Oh, n-no! N-n-n-not at all!! It’s just, umm, I saw her up close, at the
opening ceremony, and I thought, ‘Wow, she has a strong aura about
her.’”
Remon’s face turned bright red, her eyes immediately clouding up.
How adorable! She looks just like a little red tomato.
With that thought, Chikaru really started to enjoy herself. “Well, if
you like Amane-chan that much, Remon-chan, then please cheer for
her too, okay? Everyone is saying that Spica is certain to win this
year’s Étoile competition, but it looks like the winds might have changed last week. Actually, I also think Amane-chan should be the
Étoile once, for her own sake, so—”
“What? The winds have changed? Did something happen? Did a
strong rival candidate come from somewhere? Does this mean you
will be entering, Chikaru-oneesama?!” Remon yelled. Then she was
stunned speechless, her mouth hanging open.
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Kizuna was completely flabbergasted. She froze with her head tilted to
one side and a stunned look on her face. Her two ponytails tilted
as well, one up and one down.
Chikaru gave a bitter smile.
Dear me, to think Shion-chan said that same thing to me, and now
Remon-chan too—I’m so naughty. I need to be a little more careful.
She embraced Kizuna lovingly from behind. “Heh heh heh, I would be
happy if that were true, but I’m sorry. Instead of wearing the lovely
robes of the Étoile myself, I would love to place those robes on the girl I like,” she said with a wink.
“I see,” Remon said. “Hey, why don’t all of us go to the club building
together? I’m sure Kizuna-chan hasn’t chosen which club she wants to join, right? Many of the girls that go to Lulim have hobbies, so
there are a lot of clubs. There are plenty I could recommend.” She
nodded her head proudly.
Chikaru looked at Remon with a bright smile; she also seemed to be
suppressing a laugh. “Good idea. The art department Remon-chan is
involved in is pretty large, and they have a lot of activities too, so if you
have a recommendation, then please share it. But since you’re at
Lulim—what about joining the club I formed, the Costume Club?”
Remon had been smiling up until then, but when Chikaru impishly
made a little peace sign in front of her lips, her brow wrinkled.
“Bring Kizuna-chan into the Costume Club? W-was that what you
planned from the beginning, Chikaru-oneesama?”
“Huh? What do you do in Costume Club?” Kizuna asked innocently.
“It’s a club where we have fun transforming together. You can
become a cat, an angel—actually, you might look cute as a little bear
cub or something. Anyway, it’s really, really fun!”
“Wow—that’s like magic!”
13 1
“Yes, that’s right! I will put my spell on you. It’s even more fun than the
Étoile competition! Hey, come on, let’s do something fun
together!”
When Chikaru reached out her hand, Kizuna happily took it and
innocently followed her. Chikaru smiled at her kindly, like the Virgin
Mary. Remon saw the expression on Chikaru’s face and felt a twinge
of worry.
However, she didn’t have the courage to be left behind.
“Wait for me!”
In a mad rush, she noisily chased after them.
***
“Unforgivable! Unforgivable! Unforgivable! I absolutely hate, hate,
hate, hate this!”
A din spread through the hallway at lunchtime. Amane marched
quickly down the passage, a demonic look on her face.
“Oh, it’s Amane-sama!”
“So you are going to enter this year’s Étoile competition after all, right?”
“Now we will win for sure!”
Not a single one of those whispered voices reached Amane’s ears.
She stormed down the hall with a suppressed anger that made the
girls’ hair stand on end. She headed for…
Baaaam!
With a loud noise, she opened the giant double doors.
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“Hey, Shion! Would you explain exactly what is going on here?”
Amane rose to her full height and held out a crumpled piece of
paper—the Étoile competition notice, which looked like it had been torn from the bulletin board.
The object of her glare was Tomori Shion, who tapped the
documents in her hand on the desk to align them neatly and softly
cleared her throat. Her long chestnut hair fluttered.
The usually calm Amane had stormed in, yelling. Shock and fear
spread through the Secretary, Treasurer and the other Student
Council staff in the immediate area. They were in the St. Spica Girls’
Institute Student Council office.
Shion controlled the commotion in the room with a gesture of her
hand. “Oh my, I see you made your arrival early today, Prince
Amane—or should I call you the future Étoile?” she asked with a
chuckle. Despite her calm tone, she looked a little worried.
“The future Étoile…” Cht… Amane made a sound in the back of her throat and gritted her teeth. Then she clenched her fists as if holding
something back and continued in an even lower voice.
“Yes, I did consent to entering the Étoile competition. Momomi came and asked; she knew I didn’t want to, but she begged me to do it.
She asked me to do a favor for the White Star of Spica. Momomi
pleaded with me, and she was serious, which isn’t usual for her.”
Amane lifted her head to the sky and closed her eyes. That
unguarded expression made her seem even more determined; sighs
of admiration went up from the Student Council staff who were
watching her.
“People told me to accept the fact that I should enter. I thought it
might be unavoidable this year. Even I like Spica that much. When
people told me I had to enter so Spica could win, I didn’t really think it was true, but—when even the usually goofy Momomi asked me so
seriously, I thought, ‘Well, okay, I don’t have much of a choice. I’ll
endure it for one year.’”
“Yes, I heard the same thing from Momomi. We humbly accepted
Prince Amane’s cooperation, and we were just now formulating a
plan to make the greatest possible use of it,” Shion replied coldly, in
response to Amane’s intensity. She hoped Amane would lose that
dense aura of hers that looked like white particles of light she just
couldn’t turn away from.
Amane almost shouted in response, “Then WHY! Why, of all people,
does my partner have to be that…that—”
Amane’s hands shook. She couldn’t continue speaking.
Kchak.
A small sound came from the Student Council reference room, in the
back of the office.
The door opened. A student appeared, spouting exaggerated lines
with exaggerated gestures, as if she were an actor playing Hamlet on
stage. “Are you really unhappy, entering with me? What…what
sadness. What misfortune! I see that my feelings still do not reach
you, Amane-sama.”
The student was a little smaller than Amane, but still tall, with short hair.
The darkish shade of her skin, her long limbs and slim body, and her thin
lips, high-bridged nose and well-defined features made her
look even more androgynous than Amane. Moreover, she had an
aura of fearlessness that made her appear masculine.
“Kaname! What are you doing here?” Amane shouted.
“You should know that without my telling you, of course—because
your feelings, my beloved, are always clear to me,” said Hamlet, glaring at Amane. “At least, I wish that were true, but…” She glanced
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at Shion. “The Student Council President called me here. She said to
come during lunch break.”
Shion put her head in her hands. “I asked you not to come in, no matter what, did I not? I said for you to initiate our secret plan for the Étoile competition instead of Amane, because she hates petty tricks—”
“But while I was waiting, I heard my Amane-sama’s voice, and she
sounded really fired up. I thought, ‘Ooh, my precious Prince Amane is
having a crisis, I can’t just stand here silently,’” the exaggerated dark Hamlet—Kenjo Kaname from St. Spica Girls’ Institute’s Fourth Year
Class Deux—said, with theatrical gestures.
“That’s why…” Amane took a deep breath and yelled again. “That’s
why I said I didn’t want to enter this thing!! Of all people, why is my
partner Kaname?! I refuse! I absolutely refuse!! I withdraw!! If
Kaname is going to be my partner, I am absolutely not going to enter
the Étoile competition!!”
“Ahh, what a rejection. The only one who can thrust me, one of the
Five Stars of Spica, into the depths of despair like this is you, my
Prince,” Kaname remarked to Amane, who was breathing heavily.
Contrary to her words, Kaname looked completely impassive as she
slowly drew closer to Amane.
When Amane tried to shoo her away with her hands, Kaname drew a
single red rose seemingly out of nowhere and offered it to Amane.
“Please give up; this is our fate. It’s all right. It only hurts in the
beginning… Please leave everything to me. If it’s for your sake, then I,
Kaname, will use every technique I possess to give you the greatest
happiness. I make this promise to you: I will give you such pleasure,
you will feel as if you were in heaven itself.”
Amane let out a single word. “Idiot!”
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The Student Council room went dead silent.
Shion finally opened her mouth. “Ahem. Umm… Uh, well, I can more
or less understand why Prince Amane doesn’t want to do it.”
“If you understand, then WHY?!” Amane asked, flabbergasted.
“Princes never get to choose their partners.”
“I thought as long as I entered, my duty would be fulfilled. And the
one who came to talk to me was Momomi, so I thought she was
going to be my partner.”
“Yes, of course we considered that. Kiyashiki Momomi is one of the
Five Stars of Spica, so she is fully qualified. However, considering that
our primary responsibility is to capture the Étoile title this year without fail, for the sake of our school, we in the Student Council
thought this would be the best choice.”
“How is it the best, even for your purposes?! I thought my cadette would be feminine and cute, like Momomi. But with Kaname as my
“Yes, exactly.” Shion nodded deeply.
“Two boys—” Amane repeated weakly. She was bewildered.
“Having a masculine couple is pretty popular these days, Prince.
Were you not aware of this?”
Amane was speechless. Shion smiled broadly at her and continued.
“Prince Amane participating in the Étoile competition was joyous news
for all the students at Spica. However, I couldn’t possibly
imagine that Prince Amane, who hates these kinds of events and has
always refused to take part in the Étoile competition, would suddenly be so ready and willing to compete, simply because.”
With a look at Amane, who had hung her head in disgust, Shion
stood and reached her hand out to Kaname.
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“The Étoile competition is a serious and surprisingly tough fight, with the honor of all three schools at stake. Even with Prince Amane’s
merits, there is still a small possibility that something could happen to
hurt our chances, even if your partner were to be Princess
Momomi, who is one of the greatest of the Five Stars. So, as
insurance against that…”
Shion pressed on Kaname’s shoulder. “We decided to place Kenjo
Kaname as your partner. Her unshakable, optimistic self-confidence,
her fighting spirit and her strength in competition will be a plus in
this battle. She will make the fight a lot easier for you, Prince. She herself is a core fan. And we do not want to see Prince Amane, who
is adored by the entire school, fall to a girl. That is the wish of the entire school. We cannot allow it to come to nothing.”
Amane became even more bewildered. They don’t want me to
fall to a girl? But…I’m a girl too, aren’t I?
Kaname sneered. “Aah, my Prince Amane. This is fate! Come, please
take my hand!” She held out her hand. It was wild and angular for a
girl’s, yet still beautiful.
Amane felt a lump in the back of her throat. I guess I don’t have
a choice. I have to endure it. To me, becoming the Étoile is nothing but a pain. But just this year, for Spica…
And here she had planned to go to Miator’s library to do some
preliminary research—which was totally out of character for her—to
“Come now, why do you hesitate? Let us engrave our names in
history as the Star of Astraea, a binary star, the greatest Étoile of all time!”
Kaname took Amane’s hand. I…I will become the Étoile, as the Star of Spica. With Kaname…?
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Something inside Amane exploded. “No! Not in a thousand years!”
She slapped Kaname’s hand away, and a sharp sound rang out, as if
Amane were parrying in a fencing match.
“Amane-sama.” Kaname was dumbfounded by Amane, who hardly
ever showed any emotion and absolutely never did anything violent.
“Do you hate the thought of entering with me that much? If you’re
sad when you appear with me in the Étoile competition, no one will take us seriously as a couple. Yet if you still refuse…” Kaname said
without thinking.
Maybe looking at Kaname, who trembled during her lament, calmed
Amane down a little bit; her voice was clear and quiet when she said,
“No, that’s not it. It’s not that I hate you, Kaname.”
She gave a slightly bitter smile. “Even I didn’t know the reason
clearly until now.”
It feels like a dense fog, covering the ocean, has lifted…
Amane faced Shion.
I wonder what happened… Kaname thought. The look on Amane’s
face at that moment… Even Kaname, the former captain of the now-
defunct bodyguard troop and self-acknowledged long-time Amane-
watcher, had never seen that expression before.
Amane continued, her voice soft, “As long as I enter the Étoile
competition seriously, and we win, then that’s good enough, right,
Shion?”
“Y-yes…” Shion was also overwhelmed.
“I will choose my partner. I have a partner in mind whom I have
complete confidence in, and who I think can win.”
“Of course I don’t mind,” Shion said. “But you did not have a special
partner yet, Prince Amane, so we just looked at the qualifications of
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the girls in the school and picked a suitable partner—and of course it had
“A special partner—I have one.”
“…And of those, Momomi is too feminine, so if you say you don’t
want Kaname, either—wait, what did you just say?”
“I said, I have a special partner. Well, actually, it’s not that we’ve made
any promises to each other yet or anything. I’m the one who
wants the relationship, but still…”
“Whaaaaaat?!” Shion shouted in surprise, and the entire room
joined her.
“Amane-sama has a partner, and not only that, it’s a one-sided
relationship?!” Kaname looked like she was about to faint.
“W-we didn’t know that. Of course, if you have a partner like that,
we will investigate immediately. Now then, what is your partner’s
name?” Shion asked sharply as she signaled with her hand for one of
the Student Council staff to hand her the student directory. She
couldn’t control her curiosity—or the adrenaline rush that came with
the sudden change in the situation.
“Hikari,” Amane said bluntly, and then blushed. Even she knew her
face was red, so she spun around to hide her embarrassment.
“Konohana Hikari. I’m pretty sure she said she was in Third Year Class
Un.” With that, Amane rushed out of the Student Council room.
***
Hikari pointed to the bulletin board with a trembling finger. “Yaya-
chan… Umm, I think this is it…” Even here in the Third Year
hallway, the notice of the Étoile competition caused a stir. The gossip flew: “Which couples are major contenders?” and “Which couples are
Amane and Kaname’s biggest enemies?”
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“I guess there’s nothing we can do. Since Amane-oneesama is in her fifth
year, everyone wants her to win the title of Étoile,” Yaya said.
“No matter how much she doesn’t like to stand out, I had a feeling
she was going to be in the Étoile competition this year. It’s just that, no matter how you look at it, Amane-sama doesn’t have a special
partner. Everyone was talking about who might have been her
partner… There were a lot of girls dreaming about it. I always
thought Momomi-oneesama would be her partner, though. For it to
be Kaname-sama—the Student Council made a bold move.” She had
Seeing Yaya’s behavior renewed Hikari’s impression that Amane was
the school’s number one star, and it made her a little sad. Looking at the
bulletin board made her feel small and pitiful, like a tiny grain of sand
washed up on the beach. She hunched her shoulders timidly.
Next to her, Yaya also looked at the bulletin board. Without noticing
the tears that had welled up in Hikari’s eyes, she gave a satisfied
smile and gently hugged Hikari’s shoulders.
“Hey, Hikari-chan, did you know? The cadette is the younger sister, and theaînée is the elder sister. Of course Amane-oneesama is the aînée, so…
Hey, on the day of the aînée competition, let’s go and cheer for her! If Amane-oneesama’s favorite person, Hikari-chan,
comes, I’m sure she’ll get fired up and win!”
I don’t want to just cheer for her, I want to stand next to Amane
as her cadette, if I could.
The thought was vain, but she couldn’t help imagining it. And, of
course, she couldn’t actually say it out loud. It took everything she
had for Hikari to reply in a frail voice, “Yeah…”
Yaya finally suspected something was wrong and was trying to take a
peek at Hikari’s face, when…
“Hikari-oneesama!”
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She heard running footsteps and someone yelling in a loud voice from far
away. “I recognize that voice… ahh, she’s running so fast!”
In the direction Yaya looked, squinting, a small girl was running
toward them. She was going much faster than was proper according
to Spica’s strict rules. Her hair flew every which way and she was out of
breath.
“Jeez, Tsubomi, don’t run!” Yaya scolded. “Even if you are on the
Student Council staff, if you run like that, you’ll get yelled at by one of
the nuns, you know? I thought you’d had enough of doing early
morning duties.”
***
As the girl got closer, Hikari remembered. Tsubomi-chan!
Hikari knew Tsubomi from the early-morning lectures she’d had to
take in the first two weeks she was at the school. Tsubomi had been
a small first-year student, and even though she had just recently
entered the school, she was on the Student Council staff, which had surprised Hikari. It seemed that when Tsubomi had heard that an
oneesama she had been friends with since kindergarten was going to
be Student Council President this year, she’d decided, even before
entering the school, that she was going to join the Student Council.
The day Hikari had first met Tsubomi, the younger girl had been
helping the nun prepare for the lecture. She happened to meet
Hikari’s eyes and walked up to her with a smile.
“Excuse me! Umm… I haven’t seen you at Spica before. Are you a
transfer student?”
Hikari was surprised that a girl who seemed younger than her would
suddenly come up and talk to her, but attracted by the girl’s cheerful,
adorable smile, Hikari answered with a smile of her own.
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“Yes, I’m Konohana Hikari. I just entered Third Year Class Un. Nice to meet you!”
When Hikari said that, the girl seemed so happy she could jump for
joy. “Ah! I knew it! You’re the transfer student who moved into the
Strawberry Dorms, right? Wow, I heard rumors about you in the
Spica dorm. Yaya-oneesama said she was going to be sharing a room
with a transfer student this semester… Wow, I’m so happy! I got to
meet the oneesama everyone’s talking about on the very first day!”
Completely ignoring how dumbfounded Hikari was, the girl jumped
and clapped her hands. When she suddenly noticed the wide-eyed
look on Hikari’s face, she grabbed both of Hikari’s hands tightly and
started jumping again.
“I never imagined you would be so pretty! I’m Okuwaka Tsubomi,
from First Year Class Deux! I hope we can be friends!”
She’s a really friendly girl, isn’t she? thought Hikari.
***
“Oh, thank goodness, you’re here!” Tsubomi panted, interrupting
Yaya’s scolding. The first thing Yaya asked was why she was in such
a panic.
“Huff huff… Um, we’ve got a big problem! Hikari-oneesama!!”
Tsubomi said, her long, glistening pink hair bouncing behind her as
she recovered from her run. Under the thick headband she always
wore to hold back her excessive hair, her large, slightly droopy eyes
expression, she looked at Hikari.
“Hikari-oneesama, a-aaaaare you…really…” She swallowed. “Are you
really…going to enter the Étoile competition with Amane-sama?”
The moment she finished, Tsubomi dropped to her knees.
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And commotion erupted in the crowd around them.
***
“What exactly are you trying to do?”
But even when she was called out and blamed, Shizuma didn’t say a
single word in reply.
They were just outside the courtyard, in a lonely place that almost no one
ever passed through, probably because it was behind the faculty
room. It was nicknamed the Garden Grave.
Shizuma turned her back on the two girls who had confronted her.
There was a small stone monument which was almost buried in a
thicket of wild roses that scattered a sweet, refreshing scent. The
monument itself was a square stone slab, half buried in the ground,
with a stone cross on top. It only reached knee height. Shizuma
gently touched it with her hand and thought about what she should
say.
“I don’t have any…particular purpose.” The words that fell from her
mouth were even more emotionless than she’d thought they would
be.
The words only enraged the girls even more. One, Togi Hitomi, stared
straight at Shizuma’s back. She took a step forward and raged, flames
of anger shining in her eyes. Her short haircut, which was unusual for
Miator students, exposed the nape of her neck, which was slightly red
from anger. Her body was supple, like a slender, quick antelope, and
it was obvious she was furious.
“It’s not like you to enter the Étoile competition with a…a transfer
student who just entered Miator, Shizuma-sama! You were
bestowed with the Étoile title so spectacularly with Mizuho last year, and you were both so happy your names would go down in Miator
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history, and yet… Were your words of thanks for supporting you all just a
lie?! Even we, your admirers who served you, thought it was a
perfect year, and after it was over we felt like a weight had been lifted from our shoulders. This is a stain on your reign, Shizuma-sama!”
“A stain? Now, Hitomi-chan, that’s going too far.” A little worried she
might be seeing the flame of hatred, Kano Mizuho, who had been
standing off to the side, shielded her eyes and chided the other girl in a
small voice. “I’m sure Shizuma-sama has some sort of plan.”
Mizuho’s kind voice calmed everyone a little bit. She gave a gentle,
tranquil smile as her soft, slightly quirky hair billowed in the spring
breeze. However, when Mizuho used her hand to try to keep her hair
down, it looked to Hitomi like she was fidgeting to sooth herself,
which made Hitomi even angrier.
“Come on, Mizuho, are you really okay with this?! Shizuma-sama is
so worthy, of course she’d become the Étoile as soon as she even tried, but as her cadette you worked so, so hard to get the title, didn’t you?! You said, ‘It’s incredible that I’m Shizuma-oneesama’s
partner!’ and did things like study Astraea history all night and
practice dancing whenever you had a break, all so you wouldn’t
embarrass Shizuma-sama. I know exactly how much effort you put
into it. Are you willing to let some silly transfer student ruin that?”
With every word she spoke, more anger welled up inside Hitomi. “No
one actually said it, but everyone worked hard together and fought
the best they could, didn’t they? No matter how sad it was, they did
it for poor Kaori—”
“Hitomi! Don’t mention that!” Mizuho screamed when she heard
that name.
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Twitch. Hitomi froze for a moment—but quickly regained herself and
said bitterly, “No one will say it, so I said it. Because this is too much,
Shizuma-sama! It’s just too much!”
Her voice grew progressively weaker, and it sounded like she was
about to cry. She thought, Why is Shizuma so quiet?
I knew it. So this is why Hitomi called me here. Shizuma’s eyes fell on the stone monument again. The ancient stone relic, called the Garden
Grave because the students saw it as being like Christ’s sacred grave, was
buried in a profusion of roses. With one hand touching it,
Shizuma let her mind drift back—not even trying to offer any
I’m sure she’s resting peacefully right now, buried under the lavender
flowers she loved so much. Remembering made Shizuma’s chest
ache, but kindness filled her heart—much more than she had even
imagined she had in her. Up until now, Shizuma had tried not to
think about it.
It might be time for me to face it—yes, it is. This might be a
good opportunity.
Shizuma looked over her shoulder and gave a sweet smile.
The two girls always thought of Shizuma in whatever they did. They
were Togi Hitomi and Kano Mizuho, both in their sixth year, like
Shizuma. Hitomi could be a little difficult at times, but Mizuho was
always kind. The two were childhood friends, and they made a good
team. Ever since elementary school, they had tried to get involved
with Shizuma in one thing or another. Before they’d realized it, the
two of them were like Shizuma’s closest relatives.
Shizuma herself thought that having such good childhood friends had
probably had an influence on her personality. There were times
when other people treated them like just another pair of Shizuma’s
admirers. Yet Shizuma was fully aware that if she had a comfortable
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school life despite having a lot of fans, that was largely due to these two.
But they even called her Shizuma-sama, even though they were in
the same year.
They really are serious, aren’t they? So soft-hearted, my
precious, adorable ones.
Shizuma always looked out for number one and was always fickle,
but…
I really do love these two. Just like I loved HER. Now that I think about it, it was these two who brought her to meet me the first time, wasn’t it? They said, “We know this adorable girl who really admires you, and on top of that, it looks like she would suit you.”
Sakuragi Kaori.
I’ve changed since I met Nagisa, haven’t I… Heh heh heh.
Despite herself, a laugh escaped her lips.
“What are you laughing about, Shizuma-sama?!” Hitomi yelled
furiously.
“Now, now, Hitomi. Please don’t get so mad,” Shizuma said, smiling as if the entire previous discussion hadn’t even happened. Hitomi
was dumbfounded.
This was the first time she had ever argued with Shizuma like this.
Shizuma was strong-willed, so when Hitomi had decided to speak her
mind, she had been fully prepared for however much Shizuma might
yell at her or hate her—or push her away or tease her. She knew full
well she might never be able to talk to Shizuma again after this.
Shizuma continued, “It’s not that I don’t understand how you feel,
Hitomi—my year as Étoile ended, and…that was such a tough time.
There were so many events, and I couldn’t even ask any cute girls out
to have some fun. If I hadn’t had the support of you and Mizuho, I
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really might not have been able to handle it. Thank you; I’m truly
grateful. Especially to you, Hitomi.”
She reached out and gently stroked Hitomi’s hair.
Augh! It was so gentle it tickled and Hitomi cringed.
Now that I think about it, we’ve been friends for a long time, but I think this is the first time I’ve touched her like that, Shizuma thought.
Hitomi was astonished by the gesture.
“Mizuho was able to be center-stage as my cadette, but you were content to work behind the scenes—and I think it may have been
much more difficult for you than for her.”
When Shizuma drew close, she seemed to give off a fragrance more
intense than the wild roses that bloomed around their feet.
“But, you know, now that I’ve finished my time as Étoile, and I’m free…
I’ve been thinking about my last year here at Miator. I’ve
already fulfilled my duty, so I can do what I want; I can enjoy every
day however I please, with all of the adorable girls here at Miator.”
Shizuma laughed and looked at the sky. Even in this deserted, lonely
place, the blue sky stretched above them, and white clouds floated
lightly overhead.
“Even I didn’t expect this. I never expected to feel like this. Heh heh
heh… It’s strange, isn’t it? Even I don’t understand how it turned out this
way. I’ve only just met her, so I don’t really know what kind of
girl she is, either. I don’t know about her home, her family—nothing.
She just suddenly showed up in front of me, on the road to Astraea
Hall, and I took an interest in her. Ever since then, I’ve felt myself constantly thinking about her. So you see, that day, when I saw her
and Tamao playing around, for some reason I just couldn’t stand it. I
ended up having as much patience as a little child.”
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Hitomi became even more bewildered.
“Please understand, okay? I just want to try, that’s all. It’s not that I want to deny the Étoile title I won with you. And it’s certainly not that I’ve…
forgotten Kaori, either. But…”
Shizuma smiled, an unusually diffident look on her face, and she
spoke in an unsure voice.
“It feels like if I take my eyes off her, she’s going to fly away
somewhere. Then I got the idea that if I become the Étoile with her, I’ll be able to be with her forever.”
Why would she think that? It’s not like there’s any girl who
would leave Shizuma-sama, Hitomi thought, although she couldn’t
actually say it.
Shizuma turned her back on the girls, as if she were embarrassed.
“This isn’t for Miator or anything like that, I’m just being selfish—so I
don’t expect the two of you to help me. I want you to…let me be,
just for a little bit. If you ever actually met her, I’m positive you
would understand, too,” she said, and she left them there.
“I think that was the first time I’ve ever seen you with such a soft
look on your face, Shizuma-sama,” Mizuho muttered in a troubled
voice.
***
Diiing dooong…
Around the same time, in the classroom for St. Miator Girls’
Academy’s Fourth Year Moon Class, after-school cleaning was about
to begin.
“Sigh…”
“Sigh…”
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The sound of the young ladies’ sighs echoed through the classroom,
although there were only two there: Nagisa, holding a mop with a
weary look on her face, and Tamao, next to her, pushing a bucket full
of water.
“I’m sorry, Tamao-chan. It’s my fault we ended up cleaning by
ourselves,” Nagisa said innocently, not even realizing Tamao had the
easier job.
Tamao grinned. “Oh, that’s all right, don’t worry about it. I’m really
happy just being alone together with you, Nagisa-chan.”
“…Right. Thanks.”
Tamao was a bit surprised Nagisa didn’t respond more to what was
just one of her usual little jokes. Oh dear, is she really that shocked?
***
The Étoile competition notice had been posted in the fourth-year
students’ hallway at Miator in the middle of fifth-period class.
Tamao heard shouts coming from students who had just finished
Classics and gone into the hallway. She didn’t pay any particular
attention to it, though; she just kept messing around with Nagisa,
who was in the next seat.
Then a first-year student charged into the room. “Listen! Listen!
Listen! Listen!”
The girl, Iohata Momiji, made a beeline for Tamao’s seat. Momiji was
famous for being the biggest gossip-monger in Moon Class. Both her
naturally wavy dark hair and her famous luxurious eyebrows flew up
as she yelled.
“What’s wrong? Did something happen?” Tamao slowly turned
around—but Momiji wasn’t even looking at her.
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Huh?
Her gaze went right through Tamao and…
“What in the world is going on here?! How could Aoi-san possibly be
in the Étoile competition? She just transferred here!”
Momiji’s frightening stare wasn’t directed at Tamao, but rather at
Nagisa.
“Huh? The Étoile competition?” Tamao said, confused.
“Don’t give me that!”Momiji beat her fists on the desk as if she
couldn’t take it any more.
“Not only that! Not only is her partner that transfer student of all
people, but this is Shizuma-sama we’re talking about! Exactly what in
the world is going on here?”
Ah, I guess the notice for the Étoile competition was posted. So Shizuma-oneesama really did decide to enter the Étoile competition with Nagisa-chanafter all. Tamao suddenly realized something. And she did it without saying a thing about it to Nagisa-chan, too… Heh heh heh, that’s just like Oneesama.
“The kissing-Shizuma-oneesama-in-the-hallway incident has even
been hushed up. But this is the perfect opportunity. Since we’re
here, shouldn’t we have Aoi-san explain about that?”
Momiji’s voice echoed across the classroom; there was the sound of
chairs scraping the floor and the crowd pressed in on Nagisa.
***
“Well, when I’m with Nagisa-chan, it’s never boring and I always
have fun.”
“Oh, not at all…”
With a bucket in her hand, Tamao tried as hard as she possibly could
to comfort Nagisa, who was hanging her head. “Look, it was the
same that day Shizuma-oneesama and you got the holy water. And
besides, I got to see something interesting—”
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“Yeah.”
Oh dear, she is depressed after all. Tamao tried to lighten things up a little. “Besides, if I had never met you, I’m sure I never would’ve seen a
storm of jealousy that came from an entire class, or been made to
do all the cleaning with just one other person.”
“Oh…I’m sorry… Well, but even that was because you couldn’t stand
to see me all flustered trying to do it on my own, so you came and
helped me, Tamao-chan.”
It wasn’t so much that I couldn’t stand watching; it was more
because I just couldn’t let the chance be alone together with Nagisa-chan
slip by.
Tamao stuck her tongue out in her mind, but pushed the bucket with
a gentle, angelic smile. “Come on, let’s work hard and get this over
with fast. I’m sure those girls from class are regretting what they said
right about now! If we clean up quick together, I just know they’ll
start to respect you more.”
“Th-thanks, Tamao-chan. You really don’t have to be so considerate
of me…”
“Oh, no, it’s all right. Don’t worry about it. I’m sure it was God who put
If we don’t hurry up, I’m sure a bunch of Shizuma fans will get in the way and try to suck up to Nagisa-chan by pretending to help her.
The fact that Nagisa didn’t see her hidden intentions was Tamao’s
joy.
“Yeah, I’m really glad I could be in the same class as you, Tamao-
chan. So, the Étoile competition, huh? I still don’t know much about it at all, but…if I really do have to enter it, I wish it could have been with you,
Tamao-chan. Then I’m sure I wouldn’t feel so anxious,”
Nagisa said in a tearful voice.
15 1
Tamao thought, Oh, how adorable she is, and had trouble fighting back the urge to hug her. She looked off to the side to hide her
embarrassment. “I really do wonder what Shizuma-oneesama’s
intentions are. I can’t believe she forced innocent you into the Étoile
competition—an intense battle of pride between all the schools. It’s
a festering pile of trickery—and on top of that, she did it without
even asking you!”
In contrast with her statement, Tamao was thinking, If Nagisa-
chan enters the Étoile competition, more people are going to find out how cute she is and try to go after her!
Twitch twitch twitch.
Nagisa huddled herself up as much as she possibly could. Is the Étoile
competition really that incredible? She thought back on how
everyone had acted when they’d stopped by earlier—and the blood-
curdling looks on their faces.
They all asked, “Why are YOU entering the Étoile competition,
and with Shizuma-sama, too!” And they all looked so serious.
Uuugh…I’m scared.
“You know, Tamao-chan, I told everyone this, and it was the truth. I
didn’t do anything, you know? I never applied, of course. I never
even knew there was something called the Étoile competition until just a little while ago. And besides, I was never even asked if I wanted to enter with Shizuma-oneesama.”
Even as she was speaking, Nagisa realized the truth of the
words. That’s right—I never DID say anything about entering the
Étoile competition.
“That’s right! Hey, Tamao-chan, I wonder if this is some sort of mistake? That’s it! Hey, hey, hey, hey, that’s it! That has to be it! I never
did anything, and no matter how incredible a person Shizuma-152
oneesama is, it’s ridiculous to enter it so suddenly, when I didn’t even
know about it!”
Tamao looked at Nagisa with pity, and Nagisa sensed something
from Tamao that made her stop talking. Tears welled in her eyes.
Tamao hugged Nagisa’s shoulders to comfort her. “I think it’s a pity,
too. It’s like…you’re being made into a sacrifice, you know?
But…since this is Shizuma-oneesama we’re talking about, there’s
nothing we can do. There aren’t many people in Miator—or in all of
Astraea for that matter—who can go against her.
“No, don’t cry—it’s all right. If you’re that unsure of yourself, you
won’t get past the first round. To tell you the truth… The first cadette
competition is the Examen sur l’Astraea, a quiz on your knowledge about Astraea Hill. It’s a preliminary test to see if the cadette has enough knowledge about all three schools to represent them, and to
eliminate the weakest contenders. So it’s okay. Since you’ve just
transferred in, there’s no way you can win. Which makes me wonder
what in the world Shizuma-oneesama was thinking.”
Nagisa reacted by jumping into Tamao’s arms. “R-really?! Is that
true, Tamao-chan?”
Oh my, her mood certainly changes quickly! Tamao thought.
Nagisa gazed at Tamao, tears of relief glistening in her troubled eyes.
She’s just like a cute, loyal pet dog that’s just been forgiven by its master.
Tamao was so mesmerized she dropped her guard—and
involuntarily said what she really thought.
“Yes, because there are seventeen couples in the first competition.
Everyone who entered is popular, and has been enrolled in this
school since kindergarten—but I still think at least half of them will be
eliminated in the first contest. I think, since you’re a transfer
student, it will most likely be a hundred percent impossible for you
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to make it through, so probably… I don’t think Shizuma-oneesama
seriously thinks she can win the Étoile competition. I think she’s just using it as a way to be with you, or doing it for fun. She’s the kind of person who
believes life is all about doing flashy things. She probably has feelings for
wants to say, ‘Look at my adorable little Nagisa-chan!’”
“I see, so she’s not serious.” Nagisa was starting to think of it as just a
short ordeal she would have to deal with. After what Tamao said
about Shizuma’s expectations, Nagisa was overjoyed.
Aahh, I’m so relieved. Thank goodness! If Miator lost because of
me, or I caused problems for Shizuma-oneesama, I don’t know what I
would do! If I’m an embarrassment to myself, I can’t help it, but I don’t want to cause other people problems.
Nagisa didn’t quite realize other people were actually causing
problems for her. But even as she thought about how relieved she
was, she started to feel just a little bit lonely.
I see. So she’s not…serious. I guess that makes sense. There’s no
way I could become a representative for the school. I’m so relieved! It did have me worried. Being blamed by everyone—being forced to
report every single word Shizuma-oneesama said—if it’s something
so incredible everyone reacts the way they have been, just thinking about it makes me scared. My heart races, I break out in a cold
sweat.
Just a little bit, in the deepest reaches of my heart, I’m actually kind of excited—now I can see Shizuma-oneesama again. A sixth-year student and a fourth-year student. The Queen of the School getting together with me, the transfer student who seems like she only got into this school because of some sort of mistake—that’s impossible.
Or at least it should’ve been. Now that I think about it, it makes me kind of sad. My nose is tingly.
Tamao sensed Nagisa was downcast and tried to look at her face.
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Nagisa turned away. I don’t want anyone to see my face like this.
When Tamao realized what Nagisa was thinking, she put her hand on
Nagisa’s chin to force her to face her.
Clatter clatter clatter clatter… There was a loud noise, then the door to the classroom opened.
“This is horrible! This is horrible! Nagisa-oneesama! If you don’t
hurry up, Shizuma-oneesama’s fans are going to—oh! Tamao-
oneesama is here, too!”
The one who had burst in was a small first-year student with bobbed
“What’s wrong? Why are you in such a panic?” Tamao asked calmly
and maturely as she whipped her hands away from Nagisa.
“Oh! M-my apologies! I was in a hurry, and I just…”
“It’s not like you to just barge into a room without asking if you can come
in, Chiyo-chan. Like I always say, when you’re visiting another
classroom, you have to stand outside, give your name and ask if you
can come in first.”
It wasn’t like Tamao to lecture. Even she didn’t know whether she
was giving one now because of the flustered state Nagisa was in or
because she was embarrassed Chiyo had seen her with her hand
gently on Nagisa’s face.
“Y-yes, my apologies, but…” Chiyo was bright red, and she was
constantly looking over her shoulder.
Is someone coming? Tamao was worried for a moment, but she
continued on. “I also told you that if nobody answered, you shouldn’t
go inside. If you let manners like that slide just because this is a girls’
school, it’s all downhill from there…”
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“R-right!” As Chiyo cowered from Tamao’s unusual scolding, she kept
stealing glances toward the door.
“What in the world happened? What are you so jittery for?” Just as
the words left Tamao’s mouth—
Tromp tromp. It sounded like a huge crowd of students was making their way down the hall.
“Ah! Ah! What’ll I do?” Chiyo sounded like she was about to cry.
“What happened?” Nagisa and Tamao asked in surprise.
Clatter clatter clatter clatter—pssshak!
The classroom door opened again with a flourish. A crowd of girls
wearing “Shizuma-Oneesama Is My Life” headbands surged into the
room.
“This is Aoi Nagisa’s classroom, right?”
“What do you think you’re doing, entering the Étoile competition with
our Shizuma-oneesama!”
“We are so going to tear into you for this one!!”
“Aaugh, Nagisa-oneesama, run!” The words turned into a little
scream in Chiyo’s mouth.
Chapter 5
Tell the Truth Before the Sea God
Intermission: Nagisa-chan’s Miator Diary
I’ve just gotten called out again, during lunch break today.
Fourth Year, Moon Class, Aoi Nagisa-sama.
There are a few things I would like to ask you regarding the
Étoile competition.
Today during lunch break, come to the roof of John Hall.
We will discuss the particulars then.
President of the Association for Conveying the Love of Lady Shizuma andKaori
Fifth Year, Flower Class, Yamashina Sen
Eek… This is a letter of challenge!
Waah. I’m scared!
Tamao-chan, who’s sitting next to me, is pointing and chuckling,
though. ‘Goodness, Nagisa-chan, you got called out again? The same
thing happened yesterday too, didn’t it? Wow, you’re really popular,
aren’t you! You’re so popular with the upperclass oneesama—I’m
jealous!’
Uugh—she doesn’t have to tease me like that. It’s only been a month
since I came to Miator, and I feel like I’m between heaven and hell.
By hell, of course, I mean being called out by scary oneesama.
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It seems weird to say this, but ever since the Étoile competition
announcement, it feels like I’ve suddenly become the center of
attention of the entire school. Just walking down the hallway, I can
hear people whispering about me.
‘Hey, look. It’s that girl Aoi Nagisa!’
‘She doesn’t look like anything special at all.’
They whisper stuff like that as if they don’t even care if I hear it. I feel so small.
—They’re right, though. I’m really not anything special. I want to
scream at them that it’s all some sort of mistake, but I can’t do that,
either. But I can understand how everyone feels.
When I transferred in, and I happened to meet Shizuma-oneesama in Maiden Park…I didn’t know she was such a special person. I just
thought Miator had some really pretty girls in it.
That’s right. Now that I think about it, there’s no way there’d be
many people like her. I still remember the beautiful hand of the
goddess, reaching out to me. I felt like if I took her hand, I could float all the way to heaven. I had no idea she was the number one
goddess in Miator. And when other girls saw her paying attention to
me, a really normal girl who had just transferred to Miator…
It wasn’t funny.
I guess the only thing I can do right now is do my best to endure
being called out—just like I did yesterday, and the day before that,
and the day before that—every day this week.
Tamao-chan says I’m being soft. But I feel like I can’t calm down,
even when I’m alone.
Shizuma-oneesama is falling in love with me, and it’s kind of like, it
just…doesn’t seem real. It feels like I’m having some sort of self-serving
dream.
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And when I get called out by scary oneesama, I suddenly realize it isn’t a
dream.
Tamao-chan offers to go with me every time, and I’m grateful for
that, but I turn her down. There’s absolutely nothing I can do except
bear with it and try with my whole heart to explain it to them—and
hope they understand.
Doesn’t that sound like I’m hopeless?
Ahh, the door is opening. It’s another upperclassman—
“Excuse me. I am Ebisawa Koharu from Fifth Year Snow Class. Where
is Aoi Nagisa-san, the girl who is entering the Étoile competition with Shizuma-oneesama?”
Waah, I’m scared…
Somebody help me—!!
***
Patter patter patter patter patter patter…
The distinct sound of flat shoes against the floor echoed through the
pitch-black hallways of the Strawberry Dorms.
10:45 P.M. The blurry light of a flashlight moved dimly past the
“Room 218…no problems,” Sister Catherine muttered with a smile.
Yawn…
This isn’t good. If I’m not careful, I’m going to fall asleep. I guess I’ll end my night watch here and go back to my room to get some
rest.
She had been reading The Legend of St. Francis, a thick book, every night of late, so she was a little sleep-deprived.
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It was a quiet spring night. When she glanced through the window, she
saw a big, round, yellow moon shining in the sky.
***
“Try your best not to make a sound, all right?”
“Yeah!”
Tiptoe, tiptoe, tiptoe… Nagisa repeated it in her head, like a spell. She nervously left her own room, her body shivering in the pleasantly
cool air, and followed Tamao.
Wearing a gown over her pajamas, holding her shoes in her hands,
breathing as softly as she could, Nagisa looked down the silent hall
and sighed in relief.
Thank goodness—somehow we’ve managed to get this far
without being caught. Only a little farther to the courtyard, she thought, then suddenly started to worry again.
Doesn’t it kind of seem—a little too quiet? It’s really tonight?
“Hey, Tamao-chan, is there really a midnight party tonight?”
“Shh!”
“Ah, sorry, sorry.” Nagisa lowered her voice even more. “But it’s so
quiet… It’s like there’s no one here—or, actually, like everyone’s
sleeping, but—”
“You’re going to be shocked when we get to the courtyard. Oh, hey,
try listening very closely.” Tamao put a finger to her mouth to silence
Nagisa.
Nagisa listened with a serious look on her face. A faint din reached
her ears from across the silence. “Oh!”
“Did you hear it?”
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“Yeah! But the Strawberry Dorms have someone patrolling at night,
right? This is the first time I’ve ever been invited to a midnight pajama party, but won’t we get yelled at if we get caught?”
“You don’t have to worry about that, Nagisa-chan. We’ve got
everything arranged.”
“Oh, okay. I just transferred a month ago, so that’s not something for me
to worry about, huh?”
“Oh, come on, don’t be like that. Your naïveté is the best thing about you.
Besides, you might not have noticed, but we let the nun on
patrol pass by us just a few minutes ago, you know? Sister
Catherine’s on duty tonight. She’s a heavy sleeper and she’s nice.
We’ll be fine from here on out!”
“Oh, I see! Then I’ll relax. I’m such a klutz, I’ve been afraid I’m going to
mess up and make a loud noise.”
As soon as the words fell from her mouth, Nagisa’s shoes fell out of
her hand.
Ktnk bthd clop!
“Ssshh!”
Nagisa cringed.
“You are seriously clumsy, Nagisa-chan. Come on, let’s get out of
here fast. I’m sure the party’s in high gear by now. I don’t think your
coming will cause many ripples. But just in case, you’d better not get too far from me, okay? Don’t go by Shizuma-oneesama! Tonight is a
really important celebration, the eve of the Étoile competition. It’s the most important social gathering for the Strawberry Dorms. If you
cause some sort of trouble tonight…the oneesama are going to do a
lot more than just call you out, you know?” Tamao said with a wink.
16 1
She picked up the shoes Nagisa had dropped and looked around to see
whether the coast was still clear. Then she took Nagisa’s hand as
if she were a lost kindergartner, squeezed it tight and walked on.
***
The sound of elegant music—a three-beat song, maybe a waltz—
came softly from somewhere. Someone had snuck a CD player into
the party.
The courtyard of the Strawberry Dorms spread out in front of Nagisa.
In the center were several large tables, decorated with white crosses
and piled high with cakes and sweets. Lit by countless candles, there
were dishes of various colors and even warm teapots. It was like an outdoor party. Around the tables were groups of girls talking and
playing games, wearing different colored pajamas and negligées,
enjoying the party.
“Wow, I never knew you did stuff like this in the courtyard at night.”
In an effort to hide, Nagisa sat on the stairs in the shadow of a
fountain. She was about to mutter something about high-class girls’
schools like this being in a completely different league when
someone spoke to her.
“What’s wrong? Why are you sitting in a corner all by yourself?”
“Oh, Tamao-chan said she would go get something to drink, so I’m
waiting for her. She said that since all that excitement about me
entering the Étoile competition hasn’t died down yet, it would be best if I didn’t go near the tables in the center… Ha ha ha ha.”
Nagisa had thought it was someone from her class, but when she
turned around, her jaw dropped.
“Umm, umm, umm…”
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“My, was there really that much excitement? It must have been horrible
for you, Nagisa-chan. And now you can’t even enjoy the
party, you poor thing.”
In her mind, Nagisa yelled, “I-I-I-I wasn’t the one who started it all!”
Standing in front of her was Shizuma. She wore a velvet gown of
deep crimson over a glossy off-white negligée. She gave Nagisa a
flowery smile as if to ask “Would you mind if I sit here?”—and sat
next to her.
She kindly offered Nagisa a glass filled with a clear liquid that
sparkled with golden light. Tiny bubbles burbled through it.
“How pretty.”
Shizuma laughed as if she could tell exactly what Nagisa was thinking
and took a sip.
“It’s all right, it’s not alcohol.”
Now that Nagisa looked again, she saw that Shizuma also held a
glass. She went through all the trouble of bringing it to me… Nagisa
blushed a little when she realized what that meant.
I wonder if she was looking for me. When the thought crossed
Nagisa’s mind, she got a strange buzzing feeling in her chest. I
Nagisa blushed, and to hide her embarrassment, she gulped down
some of the golden drink. The bubbles tickled her mouth as they
burst.
Along with the buzz of the crowd, which was getting even more
excited as the night wore on, Nagisa still heard the faint sound of the
waltz.
I wonder what time it is.
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Shizuma, though she had intentionally come looking for Nagisa, for some
reason kept quiet. Eventually a comfortable silence settled
between them.
Her beautiful profile as she gazed quietly at the party, the distant
buzz of the crowd…
Nagisa just sort of…wanted to hear it from Shizuma. The words flew
out of her mouth, straightforwardly, without any embarrassment.
“Shizuma-sama, why did you decide to enter the Étoile competition with me?”
Shizuma responded in a soft voice, “So, you really don’t want to do it
after all, Nagisa-chan? You really don’t want to be in the Étoile
competition with me?”
She hadn’t answered Nagisa’s question, but asked a question of her
own. For the first time, Nagisa honestly, seriously faced what was in
her heart.
“Well…at first… At first I thought it was ridiculous. I never would’ve
even dreamed of entering on my own. And that’s still what I think.
For a transfer student like me to enter is absurd. Ever since the
announcement, I’ve been called out by so many of the older
students—and they all told me the same thing. If I entered, I would
only drag you down. I have absolutely no idea what I should do. I
don’t even look right sitting next to you.” Even as she spoke, Nagisa
wilted at the sound of her own words.
“Oh, I’m sorry about that,” Shizuma said. “I just did it on the spur of the
moment. I didn’t think there would be such a big reaction.”
“Oh, you just did it on the spur of the moment? That makes sense,
sure. That’s what I told everyone. This is just Shizuma-oneesama’s
whim, she just did it off the top of her head, there’s no way she’s actually serious about making me her partner.”
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As she spoke, Nagisa’s voice got smaller and smaller.
Up until then, Shizuma’s tone of voice had been unusually kind, but
now she raised her voice as if she were angry. “That’s right, I just did it
off the top of my head—but I am serious!”
Shizuma-oneesama…
Shizuma’s face was so serious it was almost scary. Without even
looking at Nagisa, she began to talk in a faltering, completely un-
Shizuma-like voice. But she was so forthright about everything,
Nagisa felt like she could feel Shizuma’s very being as she made her
unexpected confession.
“To tell you the truth, ever since then…people have been saying
things to me, too. ‘What in the world are you thinking?!’ they say.
There are some who think it’s selfish of me to try and take the title
when I’ve already won it once. And there are some who think it’s
absolutely impossible for me to win with a transfer student, just like you
said, Nagisa. I’ve even been asked if I intend to defile the sacred crown of theÉtoile.”
Nagisa couldn’t believe what she was hearing—there were actually
people who would say things like that to a noble Queen of the
School?
“Of course, I don’t care what they think. No matter what other
people say, I will do what I want. Even if it’s something that began as a
whim, now it’s what I want most in the world. It doesn’t matter
how it started. I will get what I want. I will do what I want. There are
times when even I think I’m impulsive. But that impulse always drives
me. That is the way I live my life. There’s not a single thing I regret.
But…”
She suddenly stopped moving. “I don’t want to…cause you problems,
Nagisa-chan. And I don’t…” She turned toward Nagisa. “I don’t want
you to hate me, either.” She had a pained look on her face. “So
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please tell me the truth. If you really don’t want to do it, I will drop out of theÉtoile competition.”
Nagisa looked at the expression on Shizuma’s face—and was
“Oh, no! I would never hate you, Shizuma-oneesama!” She shook her
head. “I don’t think there’s anyone in this entire world who could
feel like that!! I… If there’s anything I can do to help you, and I mean
anything, I’ll do it! If you want to enter the Étoile competition or whatever, then I’ll enter it! Umm, actually, I’m really happy! It’s
really intimidating to me, but if I can be by your side, Shizuma-
oneesama, it makes me happy. Because I love you, Shizuma-
oneesama,” she said earnestly.
Nagisa gasped. That sounded like I was confessing my feelings
to her! She hastily put a hand over her mouth.
“Thank you. You’re such a sweet girl,” Shizuma said, lowering her
eyes. “Are you…disappointed now?” She plopped her hand on top of
Nagisa’s head and smiled with a touch of self-derision.
“N-not at all! Shizuma-oneesama, you’re… Shizuma-oneesama,
you’re absolutely gorgeous and stunning, like a goddess. Not only
that, you care so much about everyone, even someone like me.
You’re really such a nice person.”
Nagisa wanted to cheer up the downhearted Shizuma, but she was
frustrated that those were the only words she could say.
“Thank you. But I knew you would say something like that, Nagisa-
chan. I don’t know exactly why. I’m completely different when I’m
with you. I didn’t realize it before, but I feel like this is the real me,”
Shizuma said, drawing closer to Nagisa. “Hey, would you mind, just a
little?”
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Nagisa had absolutely no idea what she was talking about, but Shizuma
didn’t even wait for her to answer. She just suddenly rested
her head on Nagisa’s knee.
“Shi-Shizuma-oneesama—”
“Sshh, be quiet…”
Shizuma’s face, looking unusually vulnerable, her eyes closed in
rapture, was directly below Nagisa’s face.
Nagisa could feel the weight of Shizuma’s head, and her warmth, on
her thighs. She couldn’t move. Through the thin cloth of her pajamas,
she felt Shizuma’s warm breath on the hollow of her stomach. She
prayed Shizuma wouldn’t be able to hear her heart pounding.
Some time passed with the two of them in silence.
“Shizuma-oneesama, are you asleep?” Nagisa murmured timidly.
“Just a little more—let me stay like this just a little more, please. This is
the greatest…” Shizuma’s eyelids were still lowered. “This is the
greatest feeling I’ve ever had.”
***
“Here’s to Spica’s victory in the Étoile competition! Cheers!” Tomori Shion gave the toast.
Loud shouts rang out from the ring of Spica students surrounding
her.
“Cheers!”
“Here’s hoping Amane-sama is crowned Étoile! Cheers!”
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168
In the center of the ring stood Amane, looking incredibly uncomfortable.
She downed her drink in one gulp and whispered
into Shion’s ear, “Can I…leave now?”
“I understand how you feel, Prince Amane, but this is the long-awaited eve of the Étoile competition… So please stay, just a little
longer,” Shion replied with a smile, her face not showing a hint of the
screaming going on inside her.
Amane went silent, a bitter look on her face. Somehow she managed
to stay.
Shion bit her lip in frustration. For heaven’s sake! She has so
much star potential. Her attitude is so disappointing. If she wasn’t so shy,people would get even more fired up about her.
But Amane usually didn’t even come at all, because she said she
wasn’t interested in this kind of midnight party—this kind of open-
yet-secret fun and games. So the fact that she had even showed up
to the party probably made everyone admit Shion’s methods had
some merit.
Now if Shion could just get Amane to stay until the circle of admirers
broke up to enjoy the rest of the party, she would have fulfilled her
mission.
Just as the thought crossed Shion’s mind…
“But still, are you really so sure we’re going to win the Étoile
competition?” Kenjo Kaname suddenly asked loudly. She grinned
maliciously and gulped down her red drink.
Momomi, next to her, tried to interrupt. “Honestly, Kaname!”
Kaname didn’t even slow down. “Now that Prince Amane is finally
entering the competition, everyone seems to be getting caught up in
the excitement, but I’m…worried…whether we can really win like
this. Hanazono Shizuma-sama from Miator has decided to enter for
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an unprecedented second term. They say Miator Student Council
President Rokujo Miyuki, sharp girl that she is, is putting together
some serious strategies. But we at Spica are relying on Amane-sama,
whose cadette is just a regular third-year student.”
“But that was…” Shion rushed forward. “That was because Prince
Amane insisted on her. With Amane-sama as the aînée, it doesn’t matter who the cadette is, Spica’s victory is certain. All of you acknowledged that already, didn’t you?”
“That’s right! What in the world is wrong with you? You’re acting
strange, Kaname!” Momomi went to take Kaname’s glass. Kaname
Kaname’s rant continued. “Shut up! Do you really think I’ll actually
allow something like…like this? I’ve been waiting for this since
elementary school, yet…my Prince chose that…that obscure third-
year transfer student over ME!”
A single student moved out of the ring.
“I-I didn’t mean it!” The small girl’s eyes were full of tears and her
slender shoulders shook horribly. She didn’t say another word
before— tmp tmp tmp tmp— she ran off.
“Wait, Hikari!” Without a moment’s hesitation, Amane chased after
her. She didn’t even glance at the people around her; it was like
Hikari was the only thing she saw.
“Kaname-sama, you made her cry!” the long haired girl next to her,
Nanto Yaya, said teasingly.
“I didn’t realize she was there!” Kaname spit out, trying to hide the
little regret she had.
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“Hikari-chan is small and adorable, so she must not have stood out
enough for you to see her,” Yaya said in a sing-song voice. Yaya and
Kaname appeared to have known each other for a long time.
After Hikari and Amane left, Kaname lost all of her energy. However,
in spite of the conversation between Yaya and Kaname, the can of
worms had been opened. The rest of the Spica students reacted
predictably, voicing their opinions on Amane’s actions.
“What is going on with Amane-sama? The way she just acted, it
looked like she was actually serious about that girl!”
“Amane-sama is adored by all the students at Spica. We can’t let that
transfer student monopolize her!”
Just as someone said they should go after Amane and find out what
the situation was, Shion clapped her hands and frantically made an
announcement.
“This ends the toast for our celebration! Everyone please enjoy the
party! However…” The Student Council President tried to live up to
her nickname of Snow Queen by putting on the coldest smile she
possibly could. “Regarding Prince Amane’s actions, from now until
the end of the Étoile competition, the Spica Student Council forbids any
It was a spur-of-the-moment decision. Everyone fell silent.
“Our dominance of the Étoile competition has been the dearest wish of all Spica students for many years. Now that Prince Amane has
finally made the decision to enter, please be aware that if anyone
interferes in Amane’s personal affairs, or displeases her, the Spica
Student Council will use all the power at its disposal to pursue
punitive measures.”
Somewhere in the distance, there was the sound of a waltz coming
to its climax.
17 1
***
Amane eventually caught up to Hikari in the dark back yard of the
Spica dorm. “I’m sorry…I’m sorry, I’m sorry, Hikari!” she said,
hugging the girl, who was in a daze. “I didn’t mean to hurt you,
Hikari. It’s just, if I absolutely have to enter the Étoile
competition…you’re the only one I can think of as my partner.”
Hikari silently trembled in Amane’s arms.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t think it would be like this—that this would
happen to you. It’s all my fault, Hikari.” Pain ripped through Amane’s
body and she held Hikari even tighter. Her cheek, which had been
exposed to the wind, brushed Hikari coldly.
The shock brought Hikari back to her senses.
Her heart began to beat fast. I’m being held tight by Amane-
sama. Up until now, I thought I shouldn’t be Amane-sama’s partner…
I think it was a mistake for me to come to this school. I wish I
hadn’t…met Amane-sama, either… If I hadn’t, I never would’ve felt
this hurt.
Thoughts like those had swirled through Hikari’s mind as she was
running.
But she had been caught by Amane, who had held her without even
being told if she could or not. And she was apologizing to Hikari over and
over again, almost pleading with her in a fit of passion.
Hikari couldn’t think any more. She finally spoke in a fragile voice.
“…It’s all right… I’m all right now.”
Hikari squirmed and lifted her head, and right in front of her was
Amane’s face.
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173
“Hikari—” Amane looked like she was about to cry.
Hikari wanted to cry, too. But something stopped her.
Hikari forced herself to smile. “I was weak. I’m sorry. I-I might not be
able to be any help, but if you say so, Amane-sama…” She smiled, but
her eyes were full of tears. “I’ll try as hard as I possibly can! I want to
help you, Amane-sama, even if it’s just a little bit.”
“Hikari!” Amane didn’t know what else to say. She just held Hikari
tight. Even after something like this, she just couldn’t bear to let
Hikari go.
She simply thought, I must protect her.
***
“Chikaru-oneesama, these sweets are so good, aren’t they?!”
At the site of the midnight party, Minamoto Chikaru, the St. Lulim
Student Council President, who loved dressing up, and the cheerful-
as-always second-year student Hyuga Kizuna tasted the sweets
Chikaru recommended.
“Oh, really? That’s great. These galettes are made at the convent in
Nagano. The Astraea Hill order has a facility there. They’re special
pastries, not usually sold. Only people from Astraea can eat them. I
guess you could say they have a homemade taste because our own
nuns made them,” Chikaru responded, smiling as she prepared a
fresh pot of tea.
“Oh, I didn’t know that. They’re so good. I wish they were sold
regularly so I could eat them whenever I want.”
“These galettes are almost always delivered for events and
celebrations at Lulim, so you’ll be able to eat them again soon. For
the time being… Oh yeah, when the Étoile competition’s L’Ouverture 174
brillante is over, there’s the first Petite couronne presentation ceremony, so I wonder if they will be there…?”
“Petite galette?!”
“Heh heh heh heh… Petite couronne. It means ‘little crown’ in
French. The Étoile competition is designed to have three
competitions, after which only one couple is left. But the couple that
places first in each of the other two competitions receive small
crowns. The couple that places first in the last competition becomes
the Étoile, so the Étoile must get at least one crown, but in the first and second competitions, several of the top couples can pass on to
the next stage even if they didn’t place first and win the crown for that competition, so the couple that eventually becomes the Étoile might not necessarily have gotten a crown in one of the first two
competitions.
“If a couple places first in all three competitions, they get to place three
crowns on the large scepter the Étoile carries, and they are highly honored—
I’m really looking forward to seeing if Amane-chan
can accomplish it this year,” Chikaru added, glancing at the group of
Spica students in the distance.
“Oh Chikaru-oneesama, you’re talking about the Prince again! I
know! You love the Prince too, don’t you? Oh, I just had a great idea!
Why don’t Chikaru-oneesama and Prince Amane—”
With the galette still stuffed in her mouth, Kizuna hopped up. She was about to say “enter the Étoile competition together…”
Cough cough cough cough!
She started choking.
“Oh no! Here, drink some tea.” Chikaru picked up Kizuna’s cup and
held it out to her.
Kizuna drank the tea, her face bright red.
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As she looked fondly at Kizuna, Chikaru thought, What suits me isn’t a prince, it’s a princess… No, it might be an adorable girl like you.
***
The next day, and the morning of the first cadette contest of the first of the Étoilecompetitions, L’Ouverture brillante, had finally come.
The hallways of St. Spica Girls’ Institute were abuzz with
conversation.
“Hey, did you hear?”
“Yeah, I did!”
“Is it true today’s cadette competition isn’t L’Examen sur l’Astraea?”
“It looks like it! They said for just this year, they’re going to go with the
Mouth of Truth.”
“Why?! They should first have to test the cadettes to make sure they have the minimal amount of basic knowledge about Astraea—they
do that every year, don’t they?”
“Well…see, this year there are transfer students…”
“Ooh, them! Oh yeah, Miator’s Shizuma-sama’s and our Amane-
sama’s partners—both new students who just transferred in this spring. They would definitely be at a disadvantage in L’Examen sur
l’Astraea… I can’t say this out loud, but that’s—”
“—Yeah, I think so, too.”
“What, I haven’t even said anything yet!”
“But I could tell what you were going to say! ‘Favoritism,’ right?”
“Yeah.”
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“You’re right. I want Amane-sama to get the Étoile title, and it’s for Spica, so I don’t like mentioning it, but—”
“—It seems like favoritism, doesn’t it.”
“Yeah.”
“I wonder if the other contestants are mad. Most of the members of
the executive committee are from Spica this year, right? Spica could
be criticized for going too far, but—”
“—I agree.”
***
Diiing dooong diiing dooong diiing dooong…
The special bell announcing the beginning of the cadette competition
rang at 1:00 in the afternoon. Today, all afternoon classes were
cancelled at all three schools on Astraea Hill.
Although it was part of the glorious Étoile competition, L’Ouverture brillantewas nothing more than the first of three competitions. Not only that, the cadettecompetition was just the warm-up.
In any other year, some students not actually involved in the
competition would simply go home, but of course there would still
be a lot of students who would stay to watch. But this year, with the
dream standoff between Amane and Shizuma becoming reality, all of
the schools were filled with excitement.
And it wasn’t going to be the typical, plain Examen sur l’Astraea, the paper test on knowledge of Astraea Hill, either. This year, it was
going to be the more dramatic Mouth of Truth.
The Mouth of Truth.
The nickname came from the famous Mouth of Truth3 in Rome. The
Astraea version, part of the relief carved into the wall close to the
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entrance of Maiden Park, bore the images of angels and saints instead of
No one knew when and why it had been made; it was simply part of
history, along with Astraea Hill.
A single large shining star—a pentagram—was carved deeply into the
center of it. Young ladies who passed by jokingly called it the Mouth
of Truth. This had continued for a long time, and at some point it had
started to be used in an oath ritual between friends and lovers.
There were many different legends about it. One said that if two
people placed their hands in the star-shaped hole together and made
their oath, and one of them lied, that one would have her hand cut
off, or be hit by a meteor and die. Another said that if two people
made an oath there, they would be blessed by a holy archangel.
Of course, most of the young ladies used their judgment when they
heard those legends. But there were some who really believed them.
There were even some who insisted it could be used like a lie
detector. And some went so far as to say it made everyone face the
truth in her heart, and that anyone who faltered, even a little, in
front of the Mouth of Truth was not trustworthy.
And yet those same young ladies grew into fine women.
Today, students gradually gathered in front of the gate to Maiden
Park.
A white ribbon had been placed across the Mouth of Truth, as if to
seal it off.
***
Tmp tmp tmp tmp tmp…
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Nagisa ran down the empty hallways of Miator, blushing so badly it
seemed as if steam would come out of the top of her head any
moment.
I have to hurry, I have to hurry, I have to hurry—I’m going to be
late for the cadette competition! But before the cadette competition, Iabsolutely must…
I absolutely must go to the library!
As she hurtled down the hall, Nagisa remembered the spell Tamao
had placed on her with a smile as she left their room this morning.
***
“It’s all right, I’m sure the first competition will be easy for you. Of
course, I don’t really want to accept your coupling with Shizuma-oneesama, but…I’m a Miator student too. I want you to do your best
for Miator.”
With those words, Tamao tossed a handful of rose petals and rose
water over Nagisa just before she made her usual mad dash from the
room.
“It’s just a little spell we use here in the Miator dorm. There, now
everything will be fine. The scent of the roses will always calm you.
Good luck, Nagisa-chan. When you get nervous, you get giddy, so I’m
just a little worried…”
Tamao remembered when Shizuma had kissed Nagisa, and she
chuckled.
Nagisa laughed nervously, smiling in an effort to show she would try
her best. The truth was that she felt like she was under unspeakable
pressure, and she had left the room with her shoulders slumped.
It occurred to Nagisa that if Tamao had been her usual self, she
would’ve said it was a given Nagisa would lose, and that the ruckus
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would thankfully end today. Even though Tamao was normally quite
cynical, saying things like Miator was a school for high-class girls who didn’t know a thing about the real world, she had another side as
well, one that wasn’t so depressing.
“Right, even if you are a transfer student, you can still enter to
represent Miator. If it gets ugly, well, that’s the way it goes.”
Sigh.
Nagisa’s sigh faded away, as if absorbed by the quiet hallway of the
Strawberry Dorms.
***
Then, at the very end of morning classes, which had begun so
gloomily, the letter had come from someone behind Tamao.
“This is from someone behind me,” Tamao said as she handed it to
Nagisa. Miator green paper folded in the shape of a small star—a
pentagram.
Nagisa looked behind her, but no one gave any kind of signal
identifying them as the letter-writer. She didn’t sense any kind of ill intent from the folded paper, which had “To Nagisa-chan” written on
it.
Nagisa—who had gotten called out every day for days—opened the letter without any trepidation, read it, and…was shocked.
Aoi Nagisa-sama,
Before the first cadette contest begins, there is something I
would really like to show you.
Without you seeing this beforehand, it will be impossible for
Miator to win. Even though you are a new transfer student, I have
been deeply moved by your heroic efforts. The way you went forward 180
undaunted, heeding none of the great deal of wise advice given to you byupperclassmen! Ahh, the only word for it is heartbreaking.
We would like to assist you from the shadows, so that you may
survive today’s cadette competition and make your debut in Astraea
stardom.
Please, you must, must meet me before the cadette
competition.
I will be waiting at the library. At the noble green Miator star.
There you will learn the truth behind this year’s Étoile competition andShizuma-sama.
I pray Shizuma-oneesama and the honor of Miator’s victory will
be protected forever.
From one of your fans.
Wise advice? Heartbreaking? There are a lot of parts I don’t really
understand, but… Ahh! This means the person’s cheering for me,
right?
Of course the people in her class were nice to her, but ever since the
confusion with Shizuma had started, Nagisa had been the frequent
recipient of both open and concealed jealousy and spite from the
students who attended Miator. This was the first time someone she
didn’t even know had reached out to her and shown her warmth.
Yeah! There are people who support me, like this, too! The note
was really polite and a little mysterious, so there were parts that were hard to really understand, but still… Anyway, I’m really happy!
I’ll do my best!
When lunch was over, she barely evaded Tamao, who urged her to
hurry to the site of the contest.
“Sorry, I forgot something, so I’m going to go back for it, okay?”
18 1
***
Murmur murmur…
People gathered and the air filled with enthusiasm.
Bcht!
The microphone was switched on and Shion’s voice echoed around
the crowd.
“Thank you all for coming. It is now time to begin the cadette contest of this year’s first Étoile competition, L’Ouverture brillante. All candidates please gather here.”
The noise of the crowd that had gathered in front of the gate to
Maiden Park grew louder for a moment. Within the throng were
Shizuma and Chiyo, talking about Nagisa.
“That Nagisa-chan, I haven’t seen her yet. I wonder what in the world
happened?” Shizuma said.
“She’s late, isn’t she… I’m worried. Nagisa-oneesama might even be
lost somewhere,” Chiyo said, standing beside Shizuma. Since the day
Nagisa had been in charge of the holy water, Chiyo and Nagisa had
become friends.
“Yeah, I should have gone to meet her after all. Nagisa is so clumsy,
you know? She’s the type who would make a huge mistake right at
the most important time!” declared Shizuma.
Chiyo thought it was so funny to see Shizuma in this state, she
couldn’t help laughing.
“Ahh, I wonder if entering the Étoile competition with her was a mistake after all?”
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Chiyo responded to Shizuma’s little joke with a nod. “But it is because of
Nagisa-oneesama that you entered the Étoile competition for the second time, right? To tell you the truth, I saw it in a
photograph—Shizuma-oneesama wearing the Étoile crown last year.
It was so sublime, it almost brought me to tears—it was truly
splendid. Even though they say a moment like that comes only once
in a lifetime, to think you are going to try again… You must truly love
Nagisa-oneesama.”
When she realized what she had said, she gasped. “Oh, umm, I-I
didn’t mean it like that. I’m sorry, Shizuma-oneesama…” Chiyo
Shizuma stood quietly, then finally said, “No, it’s all right, don’t worry
about it. That was the truth of who I was then.”
Even though that’s what she said, Shizuma’s face still stiffened
subtly.
Togi Hitomi, one of Shizuma’s followers, hid in the shadows,
watching the Étoile competition that was about to begin.
***
Huff huff huff…
I finally made it.
Standing in front of the large library doors, Nagisa caught her breath.
She’d been to this giant building—this Secret Garden—only once
before, when Shizuma-oneesama had brought her. She was a little
scared to go in by herself, because she was afraid she’d see
something like she did last time. But there wasn’t time to think about that.
“All right, here I go!” She psyched herself up and placed her hands on
one of the doors.
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Creeeeak… There was a heavy, dull sound as the door opened.
The now-familiar black and white checkerboard floor lay before her.
Chk chk chk…
Nagisa walked forward timidly, her footsteps echoing through the
building. Once her eyes adjusted to the dim light inside, she saw
several people in the hall. She didn’t feel the air of excitement she
had before, though. The place had the atmosphere of…a quiet,
deserted library.
“I guess there aren’t many people here today,” Nagisa muttered.
“Because the cadette competition is today; everyone went to watch it,”
someone answered, right beside her.
Waugh!
Startled, she looked in the direction of the voice and found she stood next
to the checkout counter. Sitting behind it was library committee
member and previous Étoile cadette Kano Mizuho. With a grin, she explained her presence in the library to this underclassman she had
never seen before.
“Hello. If you are here for something specific, please ask. Since today is
my day to be on duty for the library committee, here I am, unable
Oh yeah, I have to hurry. There’s someone here who’s cheering
me on! I have to be useful to Miator, even if it is just a little. Then I’m sure everyone will understand me, I just know it!
This upperclassman member of the library committee, who
complained she couldn’t see the Étoile competition but looked like she didn’t care anyway, seemed nice, Nagisa thought.
“Um, I’m waiting for someone! I got a letter saying that someone had
something she really wanted to show me before the cadette
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competition. Umm, I ended up being a little late, but do you know if
anyone came here looking for Aoi Nagisa from Fourth Year Moon
Class?”
“Aoi Nagisa from Fourth Year Moon Class?! Then you’re—” Mizuho
stopped mid-sentence, her mouth wide. “But why are you here?! By
now the cadette competition has begun,” she said frantically.
“It’s all right! No, I mean, that’s not the point—there’s something I
absolutely have to see before the cadette competition! Because the way things are now, I have absolutely no confidence I can win,
so…umm, so once I see what I came to see, I’ll run as fast as I can, so
it’ll be all right. I’m sure I’ll make it in ti—”
Something leaped into Nagisa’s vision. A green pentagram. The
Miator star, the exact green color of the necktie of Miator’s uniform.
The words of the letter came back to Nagisa.
“I will be waiting at the library. At the noble green Miator star.”
This star was on the cover of a thick book, sitting on the counter
where Mizuho sat, with special large print and shiny foil leaf. It was
placed between the white star of Spica and the red star of Lulim.
The book was the Astraea directory.
“Excuse me, is that—”
“Yes, they’re the Astraea Directories. They contain the history of
each of the three schools—”
Carried away by an urgent impulse, Nagisa grabbed the book,
completely ignoring the rest of Mizuho’s attempt to explain.
Between the pages of the book was a green slip.
The words “To Nagisa” were written on it in small cursive letters.
185
When she opened up to the page where the slip was, she saw a large
picture that took up the entire page. The picture was of Shizuma-oneesama,
wearing the Étoile crown and smiling so elegantly, so beautifully, it was almost scary. Next to her was a pretty girl wearing a small tiara.
“Ooh, is this—” Nagisa’s thought faded away; she was speechless.
Mizuho peeked at the page Nagisa had opened to and smiled wryly.
“Oh, that. That’s right. Shizuma-sama asked me to be her partner, so I
didn’t really have a choice—you know. It was an awe-inspiring thing,
though.”
Mizuho noticed Nagisa’s expression and hurriedly continued, “But
it’s not what you’re thinking! You don’t have to worry about it. I…
I’ve known Shizuma-sama for a long time, since elementary
school…so we get along, but I’m not the kind of person who can be
her partner. Come on, relax. She is out of my reach. There just wasn’t an
appropriate partner for her back then, either.”
Mizuho let her eyes water. “I happened to be by her side by
chance…so it’s nothing you need to worry about. Besides, this is
something everyone who was at Miator last year knows,” she said,
and smiled weakly.
Deep down, Mizuho sympathized with the underclassman. No, you
might even say she was…cheering for her. And for the one she
loved—the goddess she adored.
The sunlight pouring through the skylight reflected beautifully off
Mizuho’s soft chestnut hair. Nagisa was drawn in by her kind aura,
and she knew, instinctively, that this girl really did love Shizuma-
oneesama.
She’s much more important and beautiful than I am. If Shizuma-
oneesama is out of reach for HER, then someone like ME and
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Shizuma-oneesama must be like a turtle and the moon, a mole and a
goddess, a stone and the galaxy!
As she was thinking, she caught sight of some very small writing—the
text that went with the picture.
***
“Okay, next couple, come forward, please.”
At the entrance to Maiden Park, Spica’s Student Council President, Tomori Shion, presided over the cadette competition, which was
progressing smoothly.
The two candidates called forward by Shion stood in front of the
star-shaped hole in the center of the angel relief.
Shion placed transparent white veils on their heads. Then the two
knelt, joined hands and put their hands in the hole.
“Go further in…”
Following Shion’s instructions, the two of them put their hands in so
deep they couldn’t be seen from the outside. Then the questioning
began.
“I ask the aînée candidate, Yonogi Maya of St. Miator Girls’ Academy,
Fifth Year, Moon Class. Do you swear to protect and help the cadette
candidate next to you, no matter what?”
It seemed that, as a general rule, the correct answer to the question
was “yes.”
“Yes, I swear,” the aînée candidate answered.
“Then please give a sign of that oath,” Shion continued.
The Miator aînée candidate took her hand out of the hole, stood up,
summoned the cadette candidate close to her and whispered
something in her ear. The cadette candidate’s face went bright red.
187
Then she lifted the cadette candidate in her arms.
Murmurs of approval ran through the crowd.
“So cool…”
“Protect me, too…”
Tumultuous applause rose and many flowers were tossed into the
wicker basket that had been placed in front of the spectators. Vases
of flowers were placed around the site, and when the spectators
thought a couple was good, they threw some of them.
“Next, I ask the cadette candidate, Takeda Estelle of St. Spica Girls’
Institute, Fifth Year, Class Un. Do you swear to protect and help the
aînée candidate next to you…?”
At the most, there would be five questions. If the basket was not
filled with flowers by the end, that couple had to drop out. Almost all of
the “star” candidates would remain, but generally, about a third of the entries would be eliminated at this point in the competition.
The ranking of the couples who remained would be determined in the aînéecontest the next day. The couple who placed first would receive the first small crown, the first Petite Couronne.
Usually, the Mouth of Truth was used as the second competition. It
was essentially a popularity poll.
***
Tamao appeared among the ring of spectators surrounding the cadette
competition without a single worry on her mind.
“Oh! I found Chiyo-chan!”
“Ah! Tamao-oneesama!”
For an instant, Chiyo looked so relieved she might cry. However,
when she realized Tamao was alone, she looked even worse.
188
“Nagisa-oneesama is… Nagisa-oneesama is missing!” Drip. Chiyo
couldn’t hold it back; a tear fell.
Tamao was shocked. “Whaaat? Oh no! But just a few minutes ago,
she said she forgot something, and we separated—she said it was all
right, she would be coming soon. Ahh, and here I was so happy
because she was more excited than I thought she’d be, like she had
some secret plan or something, so I thought she’d finally gotten fired up
about the competition…”
No matter how scary things get, she’s not the kind of girl who
would run away.
Tamao remembered Nagisa’s smile, which had never faltered as she
had bravely endured being called out by so many upperclassmen
over the past few days.
“I wonder if something’s happened?” Tamao’s face suddenly became
serious, which made Chiyo even more uneasy.
“What should we do? It’s going to be Nagisa-oneesama’s and
Shizuma-oneesama’s turn soon. Once Shizuma-oneesama gets
called, it’s all over,” Chiyo said, trembling.
“What number couple are they on now?”
“They’re almost halfway, number seven. Nagisa-oneesama and
Shizuma-oneesama are number ten, so…”
“We don’t have a choice; the only thing we can do is try and get
them pushed back in the order. I’ll go and try to work it out. Chiyo-
chan, after I do that, let’s go look for Nagisa-chan together. All
“S-sure!”
Looking at Tamao’s strong profile, Chiyo was able to relax a little, and
her heart gently warmed. Tamao-oneesama is so reliable.
189
***
Nagisa still stood in the library, looking at the page of the Astraea
Directory. The text that accompanied the picture of last year’s Étoile
coronation was written in small letters.
The Étoile aînée Hanazono Shizuma-san, from St. Miator Girls’
Academy, Fifth Year, Snow Class, and her cadette, Kano Mizuho-san,
also from the Fifth Year Snow Class. At the coronation, Hanazono
Shizuma-san looked to the sky and confessed, “This Étoile title is
dedicated to our irreplaceable friendship and to my adorable little sister, thelate Sakuragi Kaori, who truly should have been standing with me as my cadette. I give all of my love to you…” The speech
brought every Miator student to tears and the day went down in
Étoile history.
Nagisa felt like she had been shot through the heart.
The words of the letter came back to her:
“There you will learn the truth behind this year’s Étoile competition, and Shizuma-sama. I pray Shizuma-oneesama and the honor of
Miator’s victory will be protected forever.”
What in the world is going on…?!
At that moment, the library’s clock rang.
Gong gong gong gong…
The hands of the clock pointed to 2:00.
***
“I ask the aînée candidate, Otori Amane of St. Spica Girls’ Institute, Fifth Year, Class Trois. Do you swear to protect and help the cadette candidate next to you, no matter what?”
190
Instead of the noise that had come from the crowd during the previous
couples’ questioning, the spectators watched this couple
with bated breath. Despite the dramatic shift, Shion had asked the
first question calmly.
In front of the entrance to Maiden Park, kneeling at the middle of the
Hikari knelt beside her, trembling. She didn’t even try to look at
Amane, just faced forward with her eyes closed.
Amane felt sorry for her. She must be nervous. In the next moment, she thought, Ahh, how adorable she looks! Other feelings like that bubbled inside her, and Amane laughed to herself.
Shion said, “Then please give a sign of that oath.”
Amane wasn’t the kind of person to think up some kind of
sophisticated performance at a time like this, so, just like the
previous couples, she helped Hikari to her feet and said, “I swear to
protect her, like this.”
She embraced Hikari proudly, as though she were a princess.
The sight of Amane standing with her face to the sky—simply
embracing Hikari to her chest, gently, without any kind of trick, her
tall height and gallant face magnificent—was refreshing.
Amane’s indescribably bright, relaxed smile, unusual for her to show
in a public setting, overflowed with her sense of euphoria. The
happy, loving couple’s golden aura—which was apparent even to the
people who watched—shone brightly in the spring sunlight.
Shouts that weren’t quite cheers and weren’t quite angry roars rose
from the spectators at a terrific volume several times higher than for any
couple before.
“Aaugh!”
“Stop, I can’t take any more!”
19 1
“But it’s too incredible!”
“Prince Amane!”
“Hold me, too!”
“I don’t want to see that!”
The Amane fans didn’t want to see any more, but they tossed many
flowers, which flew around and into the basket. At first, Shion smiled
wryly at the response. “That was…to be expected, I suppose… Heh
heh.”
She asked the spectators for silence. “Everyone, I understand how
you feel, but please quiet down. Now for the next question.”
One group of Amane fans, who had been suppressing their desire to
toss their flowers of praise in order to watch Amane’s proud moment
Shion, feeling as if she were tossing food to carp in a pond, smiled
broadly and asked the next question.
“Now then, I ask the aînée candidate, Otori Amane. Do you swear to love thecadette candidate next to you always, and offer her your unchanging love, even if either one of you should take a husband, for
as long as you both shall live?”
Otherworldly screams rose from the crowd.
“Aaaugh!”
***
Nanto Yaya stood in a corner, grinding her teeth. Honestly! I can’t
believe that Shion-oneesama, pulling a trick like that. It’s no fair
changing the questions during Amane-oneesama’s turn.
192
“If Shion-oneesama keeps doing stuff like that, Hikari-chan’s going to
fall even more in love with Amane-oneesama! And if innocent little
Hikari-chan does fall in love with that awkward Amane-oneesama,
they’re just going to get hurt! No one understands that!” she
muttered.
From behind her came the sound of laugher.
“I feel exactly the same way. The star of the campus and a transfer
student—yeah, right. This isn’t a novel. It’s obvious they’re going to get
hurt. But it seems this particular ‘illness’ is more severe in your couple,
doesn’t it?”
When Yaya turned around, Tamao was standing there grinning, with
an expression on her face that showed her pity for her fellow
sufferer.
“Oh, I didn’t mean…” Tamao started.
“It’s just for now. Once the initial fever goes down…even Hikari-chan
understands. If she stays with Amane-oneesama, she’s going to be
hurt, more likely than not. She’s going to be hurt and suffer. I want
to be there for her when that happens,” Yaya said.
“You have a lot of patience, unlike me. I’m jealous,” Tamao said, and
pointed to the front of the crowd. “If you let your guard down this
time…you might not be able to recover, you know?”
High-pitched, lovely voices and an even bigger commotion raced
across the site. When Yaya frantically spun around, there was Hikari,
slumped in Amane’s arms. She had been about to receive a kiss on the forehead from Amane, to seal their oath, when she had fainted.
“Aaugh! Stop, I can’t take any more!!”
With shouts that were closer to screams, the students scattered
countless flowers into the sky.
193
***
“Ah! Nagisa-oneesama! Thank goodness! I’ve been looking for you.
Where have you—” Chiyo couldn’t finish the sentence. She was
struck dumb by the strange, unusual feeling she got from Nagisa.
Chiyo had been watching the intense scene between Amane and
Hikari from between her fingers, her heart pounding. She had been
surprised when Nagisa had suddenly appeared, and had run
frantically to meet her.
Nagisa apologized, embarrassed, with a stiff expression on her face.
She didn’t even look at Chiyo. “Did I make it on time?”
“Just barely! Tamao-oneesama negotiated with them and got them
to change you to the last couple! Shizuma-oneesama is getting
ready, down front. She said she knew you would come…”
Nagisa thanked Chiyo in a small voice and headed toward the
administrators. She looked incredibly lonely as she walked away.
“Excuse me, Oneesama,” Chiyo called from behind.
“What?”
When Nagisa looked over her shoulder, Chiyo didn’t know what to
say.
“Good…luck.”
Nagisa gave a weak smile. “Thanks.”
In front of the relief, a sharp voice called her. “Over here, Nagisa.”
Someone pulled on her arm.
Nagisa was surprised, but Shizuma didn’t care, or even give Nagisa a
chance to speak. She just quickly fixed Nagisa’s hair, put the veil on her
head and gave her a complete once-over, a stern expression on
her face.
194
“That should do it,” Shizuma said, and relaxed. “I was worried, you
know? What happened, did your stomach get upset? Did you
suddenly have to go to the toilet?” She poked Nagisa’s cheek.
“Come on, it’s our turn. It’s all right, you don’t have to do anything,
Nagisa. If you just follow me, it’ll be fine,” Shizuma said,
misunderstanding Nagisa’s stiff expression.
They stepped forward, toward the Mouth of Truth.
“Now then, I ask the aînée candidate, Hanazono Shizuma of St.
Miator Girls’ Academy, Sixth Year, Snow Class. Do you swear to
protect and help the cadette candidate next to you, no matter what?”
The first question was the same as the other couples’. However,
Shizuma, who loved theatrics, didn’t take Nagisa into her arms like
the other aînées. She surprised Nagisa, kneeling to make her oath.
Nagisa accepted it with a dumbfounded, aimless gaze. Both loud
cheers and boos rose from the crowd, and of course countless
flowers flew through the air, but it wasn’t enough to fill the basket in
front of them.
And then, the second question. Shion cleared her throat. Just like she had
with Amane, she said, “Now then, I ask the aînée candidate, Hanazono
Shizuma.”
Here her voice wavered, and her breath stopped. She was hesitant
after all. It was cruel, what she was doing. She had felt like a demon
when she chose the question. Now she asked herself whether she
should really do this to Shizuma.
However, Shion’s hesitation had made the spectators even more
expectant. Passions flared as they waited for the next bit of
excitement. Shion’s goal was to drop a bomb that would blast across
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the entire site in one swoop, and also, as a natural consequence, lead
Spica to victory, but—
When she looked at the sight of Nagisa, her expression rigid—
probably out of nervousness—and Shizuma kneeling beside her with
a charming smile, Shion unconsciously lifted her face to the sky and
closed her eyes.
Shizuma-sama, please forgive me for being so sinful.
“Do you wish to be bound to the cadette candidate next to you as your
one and only partner, both in this life and the next?”
“Waaaaaah!”
That cruel question, which asked Shizuma to declare that she wanted
to become one and only lovers with Nagisa, who would be together even after they were reborn, caused a thunderous storm of shouts
and applause from those gathered at the site.
Somewhere along the way, Nagisa became confused about what was
going on. The only thing she heard was something about being one
and only partners, even in the next world.
Shizuma’s hand, which held hers deep inside the hole of the Mouth
of Truth, shook badly. The picture of Shizuma as the Étoile jumped into Nagisa’s mind. Her incredible beauty, her strong will and her
dignified smile, like a queen’s—and the text: “To my adorable little
sister, the late Sakuragi Kaori… I give all of my love to you…”
Ahh, now I understand. No matter how thickheaded I am, even I
can understand this. Shizuma-oneesama had someone once who was
much, much better matched to her than me. Someone much more
appropriate. She had a real, steady partner…
But I didn’t want to know about it. Everybody probably thought
I was weird, being so sure of myself…and some people are angry at
me, too. That’s it. That has to be it. Someone like me with Shizuma-196
oneesama? Now that I think about it, the idea was strange from the start.
Nagisa’s mind went completely blank and she froze.
Shizuma stood. Still holding Nagisa’s hand tight, she pulled her to her
feet. Shizuma faced the crowd, almost as if she were challenging
them, raised Nagisa’s hand high and shouted, almost in a roar.
“I do—I swear it. I take Aoi Nagisa as my one and only partner for the
rest of eternity.”
Even before Shizuma finished speaking, the loudest swirl of screams,
roars and shouts that day rose from the crowd.
“Oh, please don’t say any more!” the young ladies screamed.
The sky was dyed crimson with flowers, thrown about like a defeated
fighter’s towel.
***
“Nagisa, you were so great today! I’ll forget all about the toilet thing.
Let’s do our best again tomorrow, in the aînée competition, okay?”
Once the cadette competition had ended, Shizuma said those parting
words, joined some girls who seemed to be her followers and quickly
disappeared from Nagisa’s sight.
Without telling Nagisa a single thing about the truth.
Left behind, Nagisa lost all her steam. She almost thought the whole thing might have been just her imagination. She watched,
dumbfounded, as the spectators left, and then spotted Chiyo
standing alone. She ran over to her.
“Chiyo-chan!”
“Nagisa-oneesama! That was so…so splendid!” Tears welled up in
Chiyo’s eyes.
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Now that I think about it, Nagisa thought, remembering, Chiyo is a
member of the library committee.
Chiyo had been sitting at the counter on the day Nagisa had been in
“Um, Chiyo-chan. Could I…ask you something?”
As if she had anticipated this, Chiyo silently nodded. Then Chiyo told her.
She didn’t know everything that had happened, because she
hadn’t been at the school yet back then, but…
What she did know was this sad story.
Chiyo and her friends had been upperclassmen in the elementary
school—the age when little girls experience the joy of moving to the
middle school they’ve always longed to attend, the feeling of
wanting to grow up and the desire to get even just a little bit taller.
These little girls felt they would be getting a glimpse into the world of
adults—the world of the oneesama they admired.
It seemed like no matter how many times Chiyo and her friends had
talked about it, it had always produced sighs.
Shizuma had still been a fourth-year student then, and the center of
the Astraea universe. Everyone was expecting Shizuma to become
the Étoile the following year, and she had a partner accepted by
everyone.
Sakuragi Kaori of Third Year Snow Class.
They had said she was just as incredible a beauty as Shizuma, but
that she was delicate, giving the impression she was made of glass so
fragile she would break if you touched her.
She had worshipped Shizuma completely. Many girls had even said
she wouldn’t be able to live without Shizuma. She totally relied on
the oneesama, but from an outsider’s point of view, her position had
been an enviable one.
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“It’s just that…” Chiyo said timidly to Nagisa, “Kaori-sama’s devotion
to Shizuma-oneesama was obvious to everyone. As for
Shizuma-oneesama… Well, ever since she was very young she’s been
popular, so she wasn’t like that with Kaori at first. But there was an
incident… Kaori became sick and collapsed. It was tragic.”
It seemed that within a month after she’d become friends with
Shizuma, Kaori had discovered she was stricken with an incurable
illness. Filled with despair, Kaori had tried to withdraw from the
relationship.
“I don’t know if it’s true or not, but that’s the rumor,” Chiyo said
apologetically. “It made Shizuma flaming mad, and from that point on, Shizuma was constantly by Kaori’s side. If she saw flowers, she
would give them to Kaori. She would always be looking for delicious
food or pretty things for Kaori. A sick room was set up inside the
Strawberry Dorms as a special exception. Because Kaori wanted to
stay at school until the end. As much as possible, anyway. And she
wanted to be with Shizuma.”
She had started showing signs of her illness in the fall. And in the
middle of winter, with the cold wind blowing, she had left the school.
In the spring, news of her death had arrived…
“That’s what I heard,” Chiyo said with a sorrowful look on her face.
“Everyone said that when Shizuma-oneesama entered the Étoile
competition that spring, she had truly become an adult. That is all I
know. But I’m sure Tamao-oneesama knows more about it than me.”
Chiyo smiled demurely.
Lured by her infectious smile, Nagisa was able to smile herself, just a
little bit. It was the kind of story that made her cold to the very core of herbody, but…
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“Yeah. I have a feeling Tamao-chan would be too worried about hurting
me to tell me the truth. Thank you so much…Chiyo-chan. I
forced you into a position you didn’t want to be in. I’m sorry.”
Seeing Nagisa’s weak smile, Chiyo had doubts about whether this
had been the right thing to do.
***
That night, in the large Roman-style bath of the Strawberry Dorms…
“Oh no, what’s wrong, Nagisa-chan? What are you moping for? You
don’t look very happy…”
Sploosh sploosh sploosh—Tamao sent some of the bath water flying.
“At times like this…” She jumped into the large tub with a big
sploooosh.
“Aaugh!”
“Stop it!”
“Jeez, Tamao!”
The shouts came from all over and echoed around the mist-filled
room lined with brightly colored terra cotta tiles.
“Come on, it’s okay to swim like this, right? You can’t do it in your
But no matter how happy and playful Tamao was, Nagisa just
couldn’t get into the same spirit. She fumbled with the soaking wet
sponge in her hand, but didn’t wash or rinse herself off, just sat there
absentminded and sighed.
“Yeah, thanks. But I don’t think I will today; I’m kind of tired,” Nagisa
said with an exhausted look. Nagisa put on her best smile, but it
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came out stiff. After all, Tamao-chan is going through all the trouble to
cheer me up!
“A lot happened today that I wasn’t used to, so I’m sure I’m just tired
from being so nervous. Ah ha ha ha!”
“Oh Nagisa, what am I going to do with you…” Tamao’s heart
twinged. Even she couldn’t do anything. “Yeah, I understand. Then
today, as a special service, I’ll wash your entire body!”
She stood up to her full height.
“Whaaat? You don’t have to do that!”
“Don’t be shy. It’s all right.”
“Aaugh! That tickles!! Stop it, Tamao-chan! Ah! Not there!
Aaaaaaaahh!”
Across the mist, bubbles flew into the air.
***
In another part of the Strawberry Dorms, another girl stood worrying.
“I wonder if it’s okay this way?”
Standing on the balcony alone, gazing at the moon, which had
passed through the full moon of the pre-competition party and was
now entering its last quarter, was Otori Amane, age seventeen, who
lived in the Spica section of the Strawberry Dorms.
Spring love… Amane had been hit hard by this powerful sickness. The
look on Hikari’s face when Amane had kissed her on the forehead,
and when she had fainted from the strain… Amane still couldn’t get it
out of her head.
Whether she liked it or not, the conflicting emotions of terror at
making her faint and rapture at the sight of Hikari’s face when her
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eyes were closed had controlled Amane’s body—and now she writhed in
“Aah! This is almost like—” It’s like I’m the same as Yaya.
She remembered her kouhai, who was well-known for being a
“genuine lesbian,” who hated men and was only interested in girls.
I wonder if I’m strange, Amane pondered.
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Chapter 6
A Rainbow Shines in the Valley
The weather on Astraea Hill the next day was gorgeously sunny,
almost like an early summer preview. It was the morning of the
second half of the premiere contest, the morning of the aînée
competition.
“Wooow…look at the crowd!”
Spica Student Council Secretary Okuwaka Tsubomi, a first-year
student with long, shiny, peach-colored hair, was making preliminary
arrangements. When she entered the horse-riding grounds, she was
startled at how many people were there.
Even though the competition was being held early in the morning,
before classes started, there were a lot of girls there who wanted to
see the race.
Yes, the first aînée competition was a horse race.
What else could be expected from a famous school for high-class
girls? The aînée candidates must know how to ride a horse or else they
were completely unfit to represent the schools.
In a corner of the horse-riding grounds, which lay to the west of St.
Spica Girls’ Institute, the aînée candidates were lined up, each riding herfavorite horse.
The horses, all of them large thoroughbreds with shiny coats, all
pampered and obviously highly valuable, neighed loudly.
One white horse stood out from the many chestnut-colored ones. In
the saddle of this horse, named Starbright, was Otori Amane.
Wearing white riding pants, a white jacket and a royal blue tie,
Amane looked exactly like a Prince.
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Next to her was a jet-black horse with a white star on its forehead—
L’éclair noir. Riding him was Hanazono Shizuma, wearing a riding
jacket that matched her steed’s coat. Her silvery hair was tied up,
which was unusual, but it looked attractive against the black of the
horse.
Sighs flowed from the spectators as they watched the Prince and the
Queen. Suddenly a light fanfare sounded, signaling that everything
The horses, warming up in one corner, had been waiting for the
signal, and leapt into the riding area as soon as they were given the
okay.
They were ready to go.
The noble young ladies—all of them elite and capable enough to be
more than a match for any ordinary male—turned their horses
toward the “Tower of Captivity” set up in the center of the riding
area.
Just like the scaffold used during Festivals, the Tower was a simple
tall framework with four pillars and a platform with a light roof. The
platform was high, higher even than the roof of the nearby stable. In
one part of the base, there was a slope even a horse could climb, but
that was only one meter high, and the only way to get any higher
was to use a set of narrow stairs.
The cadette candidates climbed to the platform, each dressed in a unique
costume. There was a Snow White wearing a red ribbon, a
Cinderella with glass slippers and even a long-haired Rapunzel. They
were the “captured” princesses.
The costumes had been chosen and designed not only for style but
for ease of movement. None of them were grandiose, but each had
been made with the help of the couple’s supporters, and they were
all the kind of costume that would tickle a girl’s fancy.
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Every young girl who saw them sighed and thought, I wish I could wear a
costume like that and be saved by the oneesama I adore so much.
The way the competition would go was that the captured cadettes
would stand on the platform, held at a height that could only be
reached on horseback. There they would wait, expectant, for their
gallant princes—their aînées—to come and rescue them.
In yesterday’s cadette competition, twelve of the seventeen couples who
had entered had been able to get their baskets filled with
flowers by the end of the five questions. In order to reduce the
original number by half, only the top nine after this aînée
competition would be allowed to go to the next competition.
The second fanfare blared: the starting signal. The gallant horses
dashed from the riding grounds all at once and galloped toward
The aînée candidates would leave the riding grounds, ride down the
narrow horse trail that wound its way through lush Maiden Park, and
return to the riding grounds and the Tower.
This course, used only on special occasions, was quite long—one full
lap around the vast Maiden Park—so the start was more elegant
than frantic.
The spectators stood in the small area set aside for them, which
encircled the riding area, and enjoyed ogling the elegant aînée
candidates on their horses to their hearts’ content. Among the
spectators was a student with an opera glass in one hand, looking as
if she belonged at Ascot.
The Tower of Captivity was rather small. The platform where the
young ladies stood had a guardrail with a single white ribbon wound
around it, but it was flimsy and swayed in the wind. Not the kind of
thing they could grab onto in an emergency.
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The twelve cadette candidates pushed and shoved each other in the center
of the platform and waited for their aînées to rescue them.
While they waited, a restless atmosphere hung over the crowded
cadettes.
“There’s not enough room!”
“It must be because there are two last-minute entries here who
don’t belong.”
They didn’t exactly make a big scene, but it did make some wonder
where the crowded princesses got their ideas from.
“The transfer students stood out; that helped them.”
“They used force to get the format of the first competition changed.”
“They have no idea how many years we’ve been trying to be chosen
as cadettes.”
“They’re seriously annoying!”
Ahh…they’re talking about me, aren’t they? It sounds like there are some
people who are really angry after all… Still not able to think quite clearly, still shocked by yesterday’s events, Nagisa listened to the girls from a corner of the platform, not knowing what to do.
Tamao and Chiyo had asked their classmates to help them make
Nagisa’s costume. It was an angel outfit with lots of real white
feathers. Tamao had said that everyone’s a sucker for a pretty costume, and had put everything she had into making Nagisa’s.
Shizuma’s black riding clothes had been designed to look demonlike.
Tamao’s idea was that the couple would bring the theme of
Forbidden Love to life.
Although Nagisa was grateful for Tamao’s help, she was somewhat
sad as she absent-mindedly gazed over the area.
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It’s not like I’m going to win anyway. And it’s not like Shizuma-oneesama
was serious when she invited me. She just did it for fun. I don’t care aboutanything any more. I just want this aînée
competition to be over with soon, Nagisa thought.
The other cadette candidates kept up their chatter.
“Her partner is Amane-sama, so it’s a given that no matter what
happens, she’ll make it to the final competition.”
“Kenjo Kaname-sama, one of the Five Great Stars, was really
supposed to be Amane-sama’s partner.”
“A lot of people really wanted to see those two paired together, you
know?”
“And yet look who ended up her partner!”
“Yeah!”
When she heard the talking, Nagisa looked to her side—and noticed
a Spica student who looked like she wanted to run away. Hikari,
wearing an ephemeral mermaid-princess costume, stared at her feet,
trembling.
Oh, I see… It’s her, huh? I feel sorry for her. No one expected
Shizuma-oneesama to enter when I was made her partner—so I’m
sure this poor girl is getting treated a lot more harshly than me.
Nagisa had heard a little about the situation in Spica from Tamao.
Forgetting her own situation, she completely sympathized with
Hikari. Despite the tension of the race, Nagisa’s thoughts turned to
the poor girl beside her.
That’s right… Even I’ve heard about Spica’s Prince. That’s what
all that fuss was about yesterday… Yeah, if she’s not careful, people
might be even more jealous of her than me. Poor thing… If I get
kicked or stepped on, I’m strong, I can handle it, but this girl’s different.
She seems pretty weak-spirited. She looks like she would 208
burst into tears if she got shoved or fell. I’m the kind of person who can smile even when stuff like that happens!
Thinking about it got her charged up and she scratched her nose.
Ah ha! I got a little embarrassed, just saying it to myself!
With those thoughts in mind, Nagisa turned to Hikari. She was about
to ask whether she was all right and tell her not to worry so much
when…
“Waaah!” Cheers rose from the spectator area.
The gates to the riding grounds opened wide.
The horse at the head of the pack, kicking up an impressive amount
of dust, was…
White. Starbright, ridden by Amane! Close behind her was a
glistening jet-black horse, L’éclair noir, with silver-haired Shizuma on
his back.
Just as most people had expected, it had come down to a one-on-
one battle between Amane, Spica’s ace of the horse-riding club, and
Shizuma, who came from a powerful ranch-owning family.
Loud cries rose from the spectators.
“Yay! Amane-sama, keep going!!”
“Shizuma-sama! Please pass that white horse!”
Now comes the real battle, was what they were all thinking.
The cadettes in the Tower of Captivity crowded along the edge of the
platform, each leaning over to try and see what place her beloved
aînée was in.
“Augh!”
A small scream reached Nagisa’s ears.
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Nagisa looked for the source of the scream and saw Hikari right next to
her, just about to slip off of the edge of the platform. She also
caught a glimpse of a single arm reaching out through a gap in the
crowd.
The edge of the platform was as crowded as a packed train, so
Nagisa couldn’t tell who it was, but whoever that arm belonged to
pushed Hikari. She was going to fall from the top of the Tower of
Captivity.
The scene seemed to unfold in slow motion before Nagisa’s eyes as
she had a sudden thought. This girl was loved very much by the
other girls, so much that one of them would do something like this to
her. Yet she was also loved enough by other girls to be on this
platform in the first place. If Hikari failed here, Nagisa had no idea what kinds of things they would say to her…
“You got in the way of Spica’s chance to win!” or “You’re just a
burden to Amane-sama.”
Compared to that… They’ve accused me of using “strong-arm
tactics” and said I only entered “on the spur of the moment.” But it was
Shizuma’s idea in the first place. I don’t seriously think I could become theÉtoile. And Shizuma-oneesama has already been the Étoile once. And she hasreally precious memories of a girl who was more beautiful and wonderful
than me, and…
Then everything seemed to happen in an instant. Nagisa didn’t know
what to think any more. Before she even realized it, she had started
to move. She launched herself into the panicked crowd…and saved
Hikari.
But she started to fall instead. Nagisa wasn’t concerned about it in
the least. She suddenly felt like she wanted to fall.
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I wonder how much easier it would be for me if I fell from this stage. If I had never met Shizuma-oneesama, I never would have
suffered so much.
Such despair might have been what threw Nagisa off balance.
“Aaaugh!”
When they saw Nagisa about to fall, all the cadettes panicked. In a split
second, Nagisa had launched herself at Hikari and pushed her
toward the center of the Tower, but her momentum had destroyed
her balance. She had knocked over the flimsy guardrail and was
slipping right off the edge of the platform.
It was obvious that if she fell from that height, even if she wasn’t
critically injured, she certainly wouldn’t come away unhurt. More
importantly, Nagisa dangled over a route traveled by horses, and the
horses were just about to arrive. If she fell…in the worst-case
scenario, she would be trampled before she could escape.
Despite the panic around her, Nagisa managed to hold on to the
platform with the tips of her fingers. She smiled weakly at Hikari and
said, “Don’t worry, it’s okay… I’m fine. Unlike the other princesses, I’m strong, so I’ll be fine even if I fall from here. Even if I get
disqualified for this, I’m sure Shizuma-oneesama won’t be angry.”
“Oh, no, you mustn’t. If you do, then you’ll… Your oneesama will be
sad, I just know it!” Hikari cried.
As she looked at Hikari, Nagisa remembered how Shizuma’s face had
stiffened at the second question of yesterday’s Mouth of Truth. And
how she had turned away from Nagisa and left with her followers.
And then there was that picture she had seen at the library. The
words beside the image: “I give all of my love to you.”
“No, that would never happen,” Nagisa said feebly. “Right about
now, I’m sure Shizuma-oneesama is regretting entering the Étoile
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competition with me.” That was all Nagisa said. She felt weak, like she
had a fever.
Just as she was about to intentionally let go of the platform, a gust of
wind arrived at the Tower of Captivity.
“Ahh, she’s not going to make it!” and “She’s falling!” rose from the
nervous spectators.
From the slope at the base, a horse like a white wind jumped into the
air. The mounted Prince reached her hand up to the white princess.
Seizing Hikari’s arm, she snatched her off the platform.
Not noticing the situation, Amane just kept going. But from within
Amane’s arms, Hikari tried desperately to reach Nagisa, tears in her
eyes. She yelled, “Help her, please help her! Please help that girl
from Miator! She’s going to fall instead of me.”
When Amane heard Hikari’s screams she looked back and noticed
Nagisa about to fall from the edge of the platform. Nagisa was tired,
barely hanging onto the edge with one hand.
Amane no longer cared whether she were first to the goal; without a
moment’s hesitation, she pulled the reins and turned the horse
around. She cantered up the slope again, but at the moment she was
about to grab Nagisa from underneath, she heard a sharp yell.
“Idiot! Stop it right now, Amane! Are you trying to take something
that belongs to someone else?!”
Trrmp trrmp trrmp trrrmp… The galloping got closer.
“Get your hands off her!!”
A black figure leapt into the air, and before Amane could even turn to
look, Nagisa’s body was floating.
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“Stupid girl… You really are stupid, my angel.” Held in Shizuma’s
arms, the only thing Nagisa heard was Shizuma’s soft murmur—such
a soft voice no one else could hear it. The scent of Shizuma’s body,
which was sweaty from riding, enveloped Nagisa.
Before she even knew what was going on, Nagisa had found herself
on a horse, saved. The only things she could see were the vast blue
sky and a face looking into hers. Half-blinded by the backlighting,
Nagisa couldn’t see Shizuma’s face, beautifully fringed by her long,
silvery hair.
But she did see a single, shiny teardrop.
No, it might be just sweat…
The release from all the tension was sudden and Nagisa felt
overwhelmed. Shizuma squeezed Nagisa tight, and suddenly
corrected her body position. The momentum she had needed to save
Nagisa had carried her in front of Amane, who had been leading,
before she even realized it. She turned around and yelled again.
“You let your guard down, Amane! Now Miator has the win!! My
strategy has paid off!”
“Hmph… That’s just like you, Shizuma-sama.” Amane was stunned by
how admirable it was for Shizuma to decide to cover for the disgrace
committed by a Spica student.
Hikari was the one who was falling first. If Shizuma-sama had said that,
people would suspect jealousy from the other Spica students. That Miator
cadette saved her—she saved my Hikari. On top of that, Shizuma-sama
shifted the blame to herself, to make it seem like this was planned from thebeginning.
After a moment, the corners of Amane’s mouth curled into a smile—
and she told Hikari to hold on tight, stood in her stirrups and used
both her whip and spurs.
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I understand, Shizuma-sama. Now that it comes to this, I will fight
seriously too. From now on, I will protect Hikari with my own hands!
The neighing of her horse echoed across the sky. The two of them
took one final lap around the grounds in a dead heat. Everyone there
held their breath and strained their eyes to see the outcome.
Which one would win?
Shizuma?
Spica?
Miator?
Which one would grasp victory?
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Chapter 7
The Crown of the Most Beloved Blesses
the Two with its Holy Light
A gentle breeze blew across the garden in Maiden Park. Enveloped by thequiet spring sunlight, Shizuma sat next to Nagisa. “Thanks for
your hard work. It was a really fun Étoile competition, wasn’t it?”
Shizuma said.
“Yes. We had just a little bit of trouble, but still…” Nagisa
remembered how she had almost fallen off the platform and grinned
wryly.
Shizuma looked lovingly at Nagisa. “I’m truly thankful. Thanks to you, I
was able to have that much fun again.”
“Not at all—it wasn’t me. You’re such a wonderful person, wonderful
things always happen around you. You have such a spectacular
school life, yet you chose someone like me…someone like me…”
I can’t let myself get drawn in by Shizuma’s relaxed attitude. I
can’t let myself become arrogant. Nagisa hung her head. She smiled,
biting her lips the whole time.
“I’m sure I misunderstood a little. I didn’t know anything. I had just
transferred in, so I didn’t know anything. I didn’t even know how
popular you were at this school. Or that someone like me doesn’t
even deserve to be next to you.”
Or that you used to have someone who you loved, and that you
made such a perfect couple with her no one could help but admire
you…
That was what Nagisa wanted to say more than anything, but she
couldn’t say it, and it echoed in her heart.
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With a sad expression, Shizuma said, “I don’t know how much you know
or what people have told you. I don’t want to know, either. I
have a feeling it’s better if I don’t. But I do want to say this.”
Ahh, she really is an undeniably beautiful goddess, Nagisa
thought as she gazed into Shizuma’s eyes.
“When it comes to my personal affairs, please believe only what I tell
you. I am Hanazono Shizuma. I do not lie.”
Nagisa nodded.
“I have memories of days that were like a dream, fun and beautiful,
and memories of days that were so painful and sad they tore me
apart inside. And together they make up all the wonderful memories
that live inside me. Of course, there are some I would rather not
remember ever again.”
Days that were as fun and beautiful as a dream, and days that were
so sad they tore her apart inside—something about those words
pricked Nagisa’s heart a little.
“Even so, I don’t want to deny those memories. I don’t want to erase
them. Because no matter how bitter they are, they make up a part of
the life I’ve lived. They’ve made me who I am now—Hanazono
Shizuma.”
Shizuma looked off into the clear blue sky, her gaze unwavering. Her
profile gave off a deep, profound silence.
Nagisa was filled with new feelings toward Shizuma—a little different
from the sadness she’d felt since learning about the existence of the
girl named Sakuragi Kaori.
Painful memories she doesn’t want to ever remember again… I
see, Shizuma-oneesama lost someone very…very precious to her.
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Nagisa suddenly realized something. Maybe I’ve been thinking only about
myself all this time. I’m positive Shizuma-oneesama loved Kaori a lot morethan she does me. Why would she pick someone like me to take her place?
I’m sure she just wants to have fun with me, and I can never replace the oneshe lost.
Nagisa felt sorry for herself.
I wonder what it feels like to lose someone you love. No matter
how much you miss her, you’ll never be able to see her again. No
matter how much you want to hear her voice, you’ll never be able to talk
to her. No matter how much you want to touch her, you’ll never feel her
warmth. All that’s left are memories that grow hazier and further away as
Nagisa hadn’t lost anyone that important to her yet, but…just
imagining it made her body tremble.
Shizuma lives with memories like that—and such painful
feelings—inside her.
Shizuma-oneesama…Shizuma-oneesama…waaaaah! I feel so
sorry for Shizuma-oneesama!
Nagisa wanted to cry.
Looking at the sky, Shizuma spoke.
“What I love is…right now, this very moment, the one I want to have
with all my body and soul is you and only you. The person I’ve been
up until now never had such a feeling before.”
The person she’s been up until now… Which means…
A faint sense of expectation arose deep in Nagisa’s heart, but she
worked desperately to suppress it.
“I don’t want to compare people… I don’t want to compare the
person I was in the past with the person I am now. But there’s
something I want to tell you. No matter what other people have
said.”
218
Shizuma brought her face close to Nagisa’s. “I love you. Even right now,
even being together like this right now, I’m afraid that you’re
going to jump out of my arms and leave. You’re the only one who
can make me feel so vulnerable.”
Nagisa had a feeling she already knew what was coming next, but…
“May I? Nagisa?”
For some reason, today she was able to relax.
If it can make Shizuma-oneesama happy, even just a little,
then…I’ll do it. I can only do a little bit. If that’s what Shizuma-oneesamawants, then no matter how much of a mismatch I am,
even if people laugh at me, I will stay by Shizuma-oneesama’s side.
Until the day when Shizuma-oneesama can truly shake off those
painful memories…
On top of the bright, lush hill, the two figures became one.
Flower petals fluttered on the spring breeze.
***
Shizuma lay on the slope of the green hill and gazed at Nagisa’s
She murmured softly, “It couldn’t be helped this time, because you
weren’t used to it. But the bond between us is stronger now, so we
absolutely must clear the second competition. You’d better prepare
yourself.”
As she grinned, a yawn came out of nowhere. The brilliant spring
sunlight shone down, warming Shizuma’s body.
“But, well, this is enough for today.” Because I got what I really wanted.
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Shizuma turned on her side, stretched her hand toward the bright sky,
and closed her eyes. She felt like she could enter Nagisa’s dreams.
220
Epilogue
The main gate to Maiden Park was open wide. A shower of flower
petals danced and fluttered from the gate and through the sky. The
spring sky, which was once again clear and blue.
A hymn, sung by a chorus of young ladies, echoed across the clear
blue sky.
Sacred
Skylark in the sky,
Sacred
White lily in the field.
The Lord’s glory fills heaven and earth.
It rains down upon us.
Hosanna
In the highest!
The couple, finished with the ceremony, appeared in front of the
church in the middle of the young ladies. Accompanied by thunderous
applause and cheers, enough flower petals to bury heaven were
scattered through the sky.
“Congratulations.”
“Congratulations!”
“Congratulations, holder of the Petite couronne! ”
In the midst of the congratulations stood a Prince, wearing a jeweled
white crown small enough to fit in the palm of her hand, holding
hands with a princess who wore a pendant with identical jewels.
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The couple gazed into each other’s eyes, blushing. And just for today, no
one said anything mean or spiteful to them.
The prince was cheerful; the princess looked shy. Together, they
shook hands with some of the audience, then gently placed their
cheeks together and gave their best smiles.
They were smiles from the heart, and everyone who saw them broke
into a broad smile of her own.
Afterward, a grand party was given by the Spica Student Council. Tea
and sweets were passed around.
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