For some reason, the saint of our school drops her façade when she's with me (GL) - Chapter 22

“…Why are you here?”

“I heard from someone that Yukie, who was supposed to have gone home, suddenly ran back to school while waiting for her. So I just came on a whim.”

“I see.”

“Are you crying?”

Mizuki asked bluntly as she saw my unstoppable tears.

“Is it about the Saint?”

“…Yeah.”

“You like her, don’t you? You finally realized your true feelings.”

“…Yeah.”

“I don’t know the details, but something happened between you and the Saint… or rather, something happened to the Saint, right?”

“…Yeah.”

As my tears continued to flow uncontrollably, I hesitantly started talking to my best friend, showing her my pathetic self.

Mizuki listened silently and, after a brief pause, let out a sigh before sitting down in front of me—and then, with a snap, she flicked my forehead.

“Ow!”

“That’s punishment for stupid Yukie.”

“Stupid… Well, you’re not wrong…”

I assumed she was calling me an idiot for my own helplessness, but Mizuki saw right through me and immediately denied it.

“No, that’s not it. You’re an idiot for misunderstanding.”

“Misunderstanding…?”

“Do you really think that cunning woman, who went through all the trouble to leave something behind and carefully draw out your feelings, would just say something meek and give up?”

Her words were harsh.

And yet, for some reason, they didn’t sit right with me.

“Sure, she’s a minor, and maybe she can’t go against her parents. But do you really think she would go to such lengths to make you realize your feelings only to then tell you to forget her, as if her feelings were so shallow? Do you think she’s that weak?”

No, I don’t.

If anything, I can’t imagine her ever giving up, no matter what happens.

“I see. If she told you to forget her because she was thinking of you, playing the tragic heroine, that would be something. But is that the kind of person you know the Saint to be? Is she some delicate, reserved maiden who passively endures her feelings?”

Mizuki asked, her tone slightly angry.

“She’s not, right? Yukie, you know that better than anyone.”

“…Mizuki. What should I do?”

Before I realized it, for the first time ever… I had voiced such a question.

Even when I was uncertain or confused, I never usually said things like this.

But Mizuki, ever true to herself, grinned and declared:

“Just trust the Saint you believe in and act on it.”

“The Saint I believe in…”

“If things truly become hopeless, then just run away with her or do whatever it takes to get her out of there.”

Mizuki’s blunt words pushed me forward, telling me not to waver, not to hesitate.

“Both you and the Saint are idiots, so no matter what you do now, I’ll still be your best friend.”

“Mizuki…”

“Don’t hold back in front of the person you love. Especially if she’s not holding back either.”

The restraints binding my heart cracked audibly.

“Think about it—compare all the fears you have. What scares you more? Everything you’re afraid of… or losing the Saint?”

Like breaking through a curse, Mizuki delivered those words as if kicking me forward.

“If you know the answer, then act. I won’t comfort you or pity you. I’ll just watch over you as your best friend. Everything you’ve been holding back, all your feelings—just go and dump them all on the person you love.”

Thinking too much about it feels foolish.

Rather than worrying, I should just move forward—Mizuki pushed me onward.

“Don’t cry anymore.”

And before those words even finished—my tears had already stopped.

Without hiding my reddened, bloodshot eyes, I smiled awkwardly at Mizuki and said:

“You’re really ruthless.”

“Of course. How many years do you think we’ve been best friends? Even the Saint would be frustrated to hear this, but when it comes to understanding Yukie, I know you better than she does.”

Mizuki grinned widely and raised her hand—so I stood up and gave her a high-five.

“Thank you, Mizuki.”

It’s not like all my fears have vanished.

My doubts and hesitations haven’t disappeared, and my fear remains unchanged.

But Mizuki tells me to move before I overthink it.

The cowardly part of me, the ghosts of my past, still whisper in my ear—Is this really okay?

But I chose to ignore them.

I chose to be emboldened by my best friend’s words.

At least for now, I will cast aside my fears and doubts.

And at the same time, I made up my mind.

I will confess my feelings to the Saint.

For that, I will disregard other people’s inconveniences, forget about the future, and push all my feelings onto her.

I will surely cause trouble.

Her family and her fiancé will probably despise me.

I will trouble my uncle and Mizuki as well.

But I don’t want to run away anymore.

I don’t want to lose the Saint—

I don’t want to lose Aizen Karen.

To achieve that, I will summon every last ounce of courage and become her one and only hero—just this once.

Even if I am called a fool, even if I am ridiculed for being reckless, I don’t care.

With my own selfishness, with my own feelings, I have decided to steal the Saint—Aizen Karen—from her pedestal, from the highest vantage point.

Like my mother, I am a burdensome, troublesome woman.

And if she ever regrets being loved by someone like me, I will make her so happy that she forgets that regret entirely.

That is why I will take action.

The sun had long since set, and night had arrived.

There were only a few students left on campus, and as Mizuki and I left the clubroom, we were scolded by a patrolling teacher, told to hurry home.

“At the clubroom again.”

Mizuki, perhaps unknowingly, had conveyed the true meaning behind the Saint’s message in the park.

She might not have outright said, “Take me away,” but she was waiting—telling me to come for her.

How troublesome… and how incredibly precious she is.

The thought brought an involuntary smile to my lips.

I am not a knight rescuing a captive princess.

I am neither a prince on a white horse nor the one who wakes the sleeping beauty with a kiss.

I am just Suzuki Yukie—an unbearably troublesome, emotionally intense, and utterly ordinary high school girl.

Being a hero doesn’t suit me, but I can at least be the reckless, irrational, and impulsive nobody who charges in and smashes everything apart.

So be ready and wait for me, Aizen-san.

As my tears dried, I smirked confidently, and Mizuki watched me with an immensely satisfied look.

I wouldn’t call her my accomplice.

Rather, I would say she is the one responsible for all of this—the best friend who pushed me into action.

Thank you, Mizuki.

For becoming my friend.

It is clear what I must do for the day to come.

I only worry that this tiny courage of mine will wither away.

But with the overwhelming love I have for her, I will keep it burning.

I absolutely, absolutely.

Will not lose her.