The next day, I did not head to Millennium, instead choosing to stay and work in the Schale office.
As thanks for helping retrieve Koyuki, Yuuka volunteered on her own initiative to supervise the Game Development Department girls while reviewing their studies during her spare time.
As the seminar's treasurer, Yuuka could be called a model student among model students, with outstanding academic performance. I believed that Yuuka was far better suited than I was to help improve the Game Development Department's grades, so I gladly accepted her offer.
Along the way, I deliberately kept an air of mystery and did not inform anyone in advance.
I was sure that when Yuuka showed up at their door early in the morning and told them the good news that she would be tutoring them during the days leading up to the exam, they would be genuinely surprised.
What kind of expressions would the girls make then? Just imagining it was enough to lift my mood.
After working alone for a while, a polite knock sounded at the door.
"Please come in."
The next moment, a blonde girl with purple eyes pushed the door open and entered.
I was about to greet her when my attention was drawn to the object she was holding in her arms, causing the words at my lips to change.
"Kotama, what is that you are carrying?"
Otose Kotama from the Veritas Department subconsciously hugged the oversized plush bear tighter. "Um, this… well…"
Seeing her evasive manner of speaking, I realized things might not be so simple, and my thoughts drifted to the messages she had sent me on Momotalk before.
Kotama: Sensei, Sensei.
Kotama: Does Sensei have something you have always cherished?
Me: Of course I do.
Me: Students like you, Kotama, are treasures I cherish dearly.
Kotama: What, the Sensei is the type who can casually say such frivolous things?
Me: Ahaha, I really mean it.
Kotama: Is that so… but that isn't what I meant.
Kotama: I mean, is there something Sensei especially likes, something you have always been collecting?
Kotama: Something you really like, that you carry with you every day?
Kotama: Something you keep on you at all times, and feel uneasy if it leaves your side even briefly. Do you have anything like that?
Me: Hmm… does a keychain count?
Kotama: Let me see… the size of a keychain… no, that doesn't count. Is there anything else?
Me: How about a tablet?
Kotama: Um, anything else?
Me: I can't really think of anything else right now.
Kotama: I see… that is troublesome then.
Me: What's troublesome?
Kotama: Nothing, it is nothing.
After that, the conversation naturally came to an end.
At the time, I did not think much of it, but now that I looked back, it really was suspicious.
My gaze sharpened. Could it be that Kotama harbored feelings for me, and in order to win my favor, planned to appeal to my tastes, but became too shy to say it outright at the crucial moment?
No. It was also possible that because she could not find out what I liked, she bought such a large plush toy to give me instead, but felt anxious, not knowing whether I would like it.
Yes, that had to be it.
After all, judging from the contrast between her taciturn demeanor in real life and her eloquence online, it was not hard to see that Kotama had a somewhat reserved yet passionate personality. It was perfectly natural for something like this to happen.
I smiled confidently. "Could it be that this is a gift for me?"
Kotama blinked, then hurriedly replied, "Ah, yes. This is a gift I wanted to give to the Sensei. Please accept it."
Just as I had expected.
Feeling playful, I pretended to hesitate. "Hmm… but I have not really done anything that warrants receiving a gift, have I?"
"That is not it. Just being able to hear the Sensei's voice already makes me extremely grateful."
What was she saying? Had she gotten so emotional that she was speaking incoherently?
"Even if I don't fully understand, since you say so, I'll accept this gift."
I stepped in front of Kotama, took the plush toy that still carried the warmth and scent of the girl, and held it in my arms while gazing into her eyes. "Thank you. I really like it, and I'll treasure it."
Kotama nodded, then could not help adding, "Ah, please do not hold it too tightly…"
Could it be that she was projecting herself onto this plush toy?
Thinking of that possibility made me unconsciously hold it even tighter.
Kotama's eyes widened, her inner turmoil clearly reflected in her tone and expression.
"Sensei, it might break, so please be gentler."
…What kind of awful line was that?
Feeling rather embarrassed, I loosened my grip. The girl immediately patted her chest in relief.
Then, Kotama made another request. "Sensei, if possible, could you place this bear plush in the Schale office? Th-there is no special reason. It is just… I think the plush would be happier that way."
Sigh, it seemed she really had entrusted her feelings to this gift she gave me.
There was no need to go through such trouble. As long as the useless card in my pocket reacted, I would be able to fully understand how deep Kotama's feelings were.
My expression grew even gentler. "Of course."
"And also, I hope it can be placed somewhere with a clear view of the entire office."
"No problem."
I felt that I had completely understood the girl's subtle and awkward feelings of love.
With her requests being approved one after another, Kotama grew more and more excited. "And then, there should not be anything placed in front of the plush that blocks its view, and please pay attention to humidity and electromagnetic interference as much as possible…"
I had been nodding along when I suddenly sensed something was off. I interrupted the hacker girl's explanation and repeated the key words she had just said.
"Humidity and electromagnetic interference?"
Kotama's expression froze. After a long silence, she finally looked away and denied it in an extremely low voice. "You must have misheard."
But that explanation no longer worked.
I could still find excuses to cover for her regarding the previous doubts, but combined with that last remark and Kotama's guilty reaction, the truth was already obvious.
"S-Sensei? What are you suddenly doing?"
Ignoring Kotama's panic, I directly started feeling around the bear plush, flipping it over as I searched. Sure enough, I found something that should not have been inside a plush toy.
I removed a small device hidden behind a button. "This is…?"
Seeing that she had been exposed, Kotama's eyes darted around wildly, her words tumbling out incoherently.
"Th-that is, um… it is not anything suspicious. It is just… just a device that records the surrounding sounds."
"…What?"
Even I, who had seen a lot, had never encountered such a situation. Staring at the listening device in my hand, its red light blinking rhythmically, I was at a loss for words.
What was she trying to do?
After pondering for a long time, I asked bluntly, "Why did you want to install a listening device in the Schale office?"
If I could clarify the reason, that would be best. But if Kotama truly refused to explain, then despite my reluctance, I would have no choice but to contact Himari and ask her to look into it.
Leaving aside my personal right to privacy, as the person in charge of Schale, some matters simply had to be taken seriously.
Kotama suppressed her disappointed expression and spoke with a serious face. "I was not trying to eavesdrop. I just wanted to record the Sensei's voice."
That reason was not convincing at all.
"If that is the case, would it not be easier to just record it directly?"
"Well, that is…"
Faced with my question, Kotama looked troubled.
I simply watched her calmly, waiting for her true reason.
Finally, as if steeling herself, Kotama spoke. "…Because I wanted to know the Sensei's secret, something that other students do not know."
So that was it… wait, what?
Before I could recover from the sudden shock, Kotama continued. "I thought that if I monitored the Sensei's office twenty four hours a day, I might be able to find out the Sensei's secret…"
She admitted it, did she not? This was already admitting to eavesdropping, was it not?
"Hold on…"
I raised a hand to signal her to pause. After taking quite some time to sort out the logic, I said,
"So what you are saying is that you secretly admire me but are afraid of being rejected if you confess, so you wanted to use my secrets to blackmail me into dating you?"
"Eh?"
After a brief moment of confusion, Kotama's cheeks rapidly flushed red. "Wh-what are you talking about?"
Realizing I had said something outrageous, I awkwardly rubbed my nose.
"Ah… sorry. I added some of my own assumptions…"
"From beginning to end, all of it, right?"
"Ah… a-all of it…"
I… I would not become discouraged just because of something like this…
Still, I inevitably sank into dejection for a moment. Then I mustered my spirit and spoke to the still blushing Kotama.
"Ahaha, what I said earlier was just a joke to lighten the mood and ease the awkwardness. Looks like I messed it up. Do not worry about it too much."
"Ah, it was a joke…"
Kotama muttered, then explained earnestly. "I did not intend to do anything strange. I just wanted to have a normal conversation with the Sensei."
"I see. But are we not having a normal conversation right now?"
"That isn't it. There are strange moments too… no, precisely because of that. To me, the Sensei is a somewhat strange but overall flawless and perfect adult. The difficulty of having a normal conversation with someone like that is simply too high."
So that was how it was.
If that was the case… then it could not be helped. I could completely understand.
"Actually, I also have flaws," I let out a long sigh and said in a deep voice. "My flaw lies in being too perfect… and too modest…"
Kotama was momentarily left speechless. Perhaps she thought I was belittling myself too much.
"In short, I thought that if I could know a secret of the Sensei that other students do not know, it might make conversation easier… that is what I thought."
At that point, Kotama paused. "But now that I think about it… it seems unnecessary?"
Did she give up because it felt too difficult?
I thought for a moment. "Speaking of which, there really is a secret that other students do not know, but that I would not mind telling you."
Kotama instantly perked up. "Eh? What is it?"
"Actually…"
Just then.
A thunderous explosion resounded from above.
The ceiling exploded.