NOVEL NEXT I decided to put off thinking about complicated things like being a host for now. After hearing that story, I felt that choosing the amnesia concept was a stroke of genius.
If I had unashamedly tried to act like Mika and then found out that the current host of the T-party was me… shudder, I really don’t even want to imagine that!
Basically, it’s said that among the higher-ups at the Trinity General Academy, it’s an everyday affair of checks and politics against each other. General students aren’t included, but looking at their actions in the story, you can’t help but feel these guys have serious potential for it. They are all schemers fit only for a dirty political arena.
Anyway, even I can see that Mika and the T-party host position aren’t compatible. If you ask if Mika has a political skill of 0, that’s definitely not true… um, rather than that, judging by the original work, it seems she has political maneuvering skills but just lacks the luck to support that.
Huh?
Now that I think about it, the decisive factor for Mika going off the rails was ultimately the ‘Eden Treaty.’ If we assume Mika’s host term ended before the Student Council President pushed the Eden Treaty, it wouldn’t be completely out of the question that Mika was the host.
Excluding her blind hatred of Gehenna, it’s hard to assert Mika has any disqualifications as a host. She’s playful and chatty to the point where it’s hard to argue against her being considered frivolous, but that doesn’t directly translate to being unsuited for a leadership position.
That one disqualification just happened to lead Mika to ruin, so aside from that, there’s no reason she couldn’t finish her term as a host. No matter how strong the Pater Faction leader is, with Nagisa and Seiya, they could’ve pumped the brakes.
This isn’t some sudden bolt from the blue where I’m desperately trying to convince myself about the current situation. Absolutely not.
Ah, enough of that. Let’s put those distracting thoughts away.
Based on my experience living alone, I divide the vegetable fried rice I made into bowls and set them on the table. Listening to Nagisa’s explanation made me realize it was already well past dinner time, so I unconsciously volunteered to whip up something simple.
“…Surprisingly, it looks decent on the outside. I honestly didn’t expect you to complete it without any issues. I feel like I’m seeing a side of Mika that I didn’t know about, which is a bit fascinating.”
I recall Nagisa’s flustered expression when I suddenly offered to make dinner. She kept asking if it was really okay and if she didn’t need to help; it was honestly quite cute.
When she picked up the knife, she was a bit tense, but would a knife even be a problem for students who could endure bullets or bombs? I wasn’t particularly keen on figuring that out in front of Nagisa. Hmm, now that I think about it, I wouldn’t want to experiment with my body whether she was there or not.
“Hehe, I put in ingredients that just caught my eye☆”
“…Why does hearing that make me worried that while it looks fine, the taste will be anything but normal?”
“No way! Of course, just in case, I took a bite first. I wasn’t sure myself.”
You might ask how I can cook while embracing the amnesia concept, but that would be like knowing one thing and forgetting two. After all, the concept of amnesia is that it’s a convenient one where only things you want to forget selectively go away.
My name? Maybe I could forget that. That means I surely wouldn’t remember other people’s names either. I don’t know how to shoot guns anyway, so I can casually brush that off if I forget. Basic common sense? I don’t know any of that either!
But then again, I naturally handle phones and speak just fine. So what should I do when I remember this but not that? What can you do about it? The essence of the amnesia concept is exactly that~.
Unless you have the ability to look into my head, if I say so, that’s how it is. The other person has to believe it; what can you do? Unless I outright drop clues, Nagisa can never come to the nonsensical conclusion that someone else is possessing Mika’s body. If that happens, then she’d just be delusional.
“I don’t think it was necessary to volunteer to cook without any certainty…”
“Yeah… but I was so grateful that Nagisa-chan came all the way to see me, I wanted to do something for you. Honestly, I was a bit scared because I didn’t really know what I was doing.”
That’s not a complete lie. It was because of the possession, not the amnesia. When I first saw Nagisa was coming, I nearly hit panic mode, but now I feel lucky she showed up. Not only did I grasp the situation much quicker than I thought I would, but I also had a smokescreen ready to protect me until I finished adapting. Being exposed to this information early, which could have turned problematic later, felt like a stroke of luck.
“No matter how much of a Mika you are, you wouldn’t just skip school without contacting anyone for fun, so I was really worried. Knowing the situation, I’m glad I came to see you before things got serious.”
The friendship between Mika and Nagisa was perhaps even thicker than what you could see in the story. Since Nagisa generally has a polite character, even her relaxed attitude towards Mika indicates just how close they are. But now that I’m in the position of being Mika, it feels even closer than I initially thought. I even feel a bit guilty for deceiving her.
Ah, suddenly I have something I want to see. I put my utensils on the table, sit down across from Nagisa, and while suppressing a smile that’s trying to escape, I casually ask.
“By the way, Nagisa-chan, didn’t I say I was your longest friend?”
“Aside from my parents, yes. I’ve known Mika-chan for over ten years.”
“Wow, since we’re 16, that means we’ve known each other for ages! But even after being friends for so long, why do you still use honorifics? It feels a bit distant, and it’s slightly worrying.”
“…Ah, I tend to use honorifics, no matter who the person is. I was taught to maintain decorum anywhere, anytime from a young age.”
“I see… so you mean you’ll continue using honorifics moving forward…?”
Feeling something was off, Nagisa’s reply comes a bit slowly. I seize the chance to deliberately pout and strike back.
“If that’s what’s comfortable for you, then I can’t argue with that. Sure, I’m a bit disappointed, but…”
“Haah. Mika-chan, you’ve tried this before and failed, right? I won’t be fooled.”
“I don’t remember that… So, I’m not asking for much, just once, can you call me Mika-chan? Please?”
“…I’ll have a good meal.”
Ah, I was ignored. If I had pushed just a little more, I feel like I could have succeeded. If I kept messing around, would she spoon some fried rice and shove it into my mouth here?
Still, watching Nagisa munch on the dish I made feels pretty good. I don’t have the confidence for anything grand, and this is honestly the best I can do for cooking something simple, so I’ve hardly done anything for anyone else before.
“So, Nagisa-chan, how is it? Is it edible?”
“Yes, it’s surprisingly delicious enough to be hard to believe that Mika-chan made it.”
…Huh? Did I just mishear something?
“Actually, before I lost my memory, Mika-chan never cooked for me, so it’s a little surprising… Anyway, I’m glad to hear there aren’t any major issues with Mika-chan’s daily life.”
“Hey, you just called me Mika-chan, right? I didn’t mishear that, did I?”
Oh my gosh, I had some hopeful expectations, but for Nagisa to actually say “chan”? Hearing that is way better than Mika-san. I kind of want to hear her call me just Mika without the chan one of these days.
“What are you talking about, Mika-chan? You definitely misheard.”
“Wah—oh.”
Oh my, is Nagisa the type who turns red when embarrassed? It’s absurdly cute. At this point, it feels like she could easily surpass 0.5 Mika in terms of adorableness.
Would it be strange to say I want to tease Nagisa in a slightly different way than the original Mika? I definitely want to see her embarrassed face instantly turn beet red. It seems a bit too challenging, but if you’re a man, you’ve got to dream big!
…It’s not urgent right now, but that’s a detail.
“Mika-chan, you should eat too. I have heaps to share with you that I haven’t told you yet.”
“If you shove too much at once, I might forget it all…”
“I’ll repeat it as many times as I need until you remember, so don’t worry about that.”
What in the world, Kirihouji Nagisa. Are you truly an angel in front of me?
…Oh right, she technically is an angel. But having angel wings at Trinity doesn’t equate to having an angelic heart. At this point, can I just call her a fake angel beneath her?
After finishing such a simple meal, Nagisa had finished cleaning the table while I was briefly away in the bathroom. What a surprising level of domestic skill…?
Then we moved on to another session of general knowledge. Since I hadn’t really learned much about the history of Trinity, there was a ton of new information, so I had no choice but to concentrate fully on every word Nagisa spoke.
Since the academy has deep connections with religion, for an irreligious person like me, it didn’t seem like something that would be easily understood in just one go. Just the thought of having to study it separately later is already giving me a headache.
“…Ah, it’s already this late.”
Hearing that, I checked the time on my phone; it was indeed approaching 10 PM, quite late. Maybe it’s because Nagisa explains so well that time flew by.
“Yeah… should we start heading back? Do you want me to walk you?”
“What if you can’t find your way back? Also, Mika-chan, didn’t you say you’re not sure how to handle guns right now? If some thugs come, it’ll just be a hassle. Rather, I think it’s better for me to stay here for the night. After all, you won’t remember the way to your academy anyway.”
“…I don’t mind, but are you okay with it, Nagisa-chan?”
“It’s happened before. If you’re fine with it, then I’d feel more comfortable sleeping here too. In that case, let me wash up first. Oh, and I’ll borrow a pair of pajamas. I know where they are.”
Now that I think about it, Mika and Nagisa’s body types are quite similar. Nagisa is a bit taller, but overall there isn’t much difference.
…But Miss Nagisa, isn’t this moving way too fast? At this rate, I won’t be able to sleep tonight…