Epilogue

The morning after making up with Yuri.

Hinako and I, leaving the hotel a bit earlier, were exchanging light farewells with everyone.

“Well then, we’ll take our leave.”

I bowed my head at the hotel front desk.

The bag slung over my shoulder nearly slipped off. Inside were textbooks from the summer course and swimsuits used at the beach. The weight of it seemed to reflect the fulfilling week we’d had.

“Thanks to you all, I spent a truly meaningful week.”

“The pajama party and the beach were so much fun. I want to do something like this again!”

Tennouji-san and Narika both seemed to have made happy memories.

Sharing those feelings made me grin with joy.

“By the way, where did Konohana-san go?”

“She forgot something and went back to her room, I think.”

That said, I might end up leaving the hotel before Hinako returns…

There were still other students from Kiou Academy staying at the hotel. So, just like when we arrived, we’d head back in separate cars.

I was told a car would arrive soon if I waited here. Shizune-san had instructed me to leave without waiting for Hinako if the car came. After all, Hinako and I couldn’t ride in the same car, and we’d meet up later at the Konohana estate anyway. It was a reasonable order.

“Izuki. If anything tough happens, you can always talk to me, okay?”

Yuri, who apparently ditched her part-time job to come here, said with a hand on her hip.

“Yuri, just to be clear…”

“I know, I know. I’m not trying to be useful to you anymore, Izuki. …But let me at least meddle a little.”

Yuri flashed a fearless smirk as she spoke.

“Because I’m—your Onee-san, after all!!”

Seeing Yuri’s smug face, I replied with a mix of relief.

“…We’re the same age, you know.”

The Yuri of now wasn’t trying to be useful to me.

In other words, she just wanted to act like an Onee-san.

If that’s the case, I’ll let it slide. …Though it’s a bit complicated.

Glancing outside, I noticed a sleek black car had pulled up. When my eyes met the driver’s through the lowered window, he gave a slight nod. It seemed to be the car arranged by the Konohana family.

With one final bow to everyone, I got into the car.

“That’s right… I’ll meddle just a little.”

Just as the window closed, I thought I heard Yuri mutter something like that.

◇

Hinako, who had gone back to her room to retrieve forgotten items, was walking through the hotel grounds with Shizune.

The forgotten items were textbooks from the summer course. She might not use them again, but they felt like part of the memories from this week, and leaving them behind seemed wrong.

They walked along a shaded path, avoiding the sunlight.

Partway through, Hinako suddenly stopped.

“Ojou-sama?”

Shizune tilted her head.

“Shizune… can I be alone for just a moment?”

“Alone, you say?”

Perhaps because it was an unusual request, Shizune looked slightly surprised.

“Mm. Just need to think a bit.”

“…Understood. I’ll step back.”

Shizune nodded respectfully and put some distance between them.

Though she stayed at a distance, she kept her eyes on Hinako. As expected, she wasn’t about to let her guard down completely. Still, the way she tried to avert her gaze showed a kindness, as if to say, “Don’t mind me.” It was Shizune’s way of being considerate.

Hinako sat on a nearby bench. A sigh escaped her lips unbidden.

The summer course was supposed to have created happy memories. The pajama party, the beach—those were extraordinary experiences she couldn’t have had at the academy, and she should’ve enjoyed them.

Yet, day by day, Hinako’s heart grew heavier.

(During the pajama party…)

She recalled what Yuri had said.

The kindhearted Izuki often prioritized others over himself, neglecting his own needs. Because of that, Yuri had said, he often carried burdens without realizing it.

(When we talked by the sea at night…)

After enjoying sparkler fireworks, she remembered asking Izuki something.

Did he want to see his old friends? When she asked, Izuki had nodded.

(When Izuki chased after Hirano-san…)

When she asked if Hirano-san was important to him, Izuki had answered immediately, “She is.”

She couldn’t forget the serious look on Izuki’s face then.

“Konohana-san, what’s wrong?”

Someone had approached her without her noticing.

Turning around, she saw a petite girl standing there.

“Hirano-san… no, it’s nothing.”

“Really? You looked a little down.”

It was a sharp observation.

A faint crack appeared in the perfect mask of the refined Ojou-sama.

From that crack, her true feelings seeped out.

“…Tomonari-kun seemed happy to see you, didn’t he?”

“Well, it’s been a while since we last met.”

“Is reuniting with an old friend truly such a joyful thing?”

“I don’t think about it so grandly, but… isn’t that how it usually is?”

Usually—that word gnawed at Hinako’s heart.

Who had stolen that “usual” from Izuki for so long?

Izuki lived every day so desperately that he neglected himself. Who had forced that desperate environment on him?

Who had kept Izuki away from his old friends?

Who had separated Izuki from Hirano-san?

“Could it be that what I’m doing is…”

Her chest ached.

If Yuri weren’t here right now, tears might have spilled.

She could feel the blood draining from her face. The solid ground beneath her seemed to crumble, and a sorrowful fear gripped her, as if she were being dragged into an empty darkness.

She couldn’t understand why she felt this way.

The nature of this emotion was beyond Hinako’s grasp.

“—I was a little mistaken, you know.”

Seeing Hinako’s pale face, Yuri suddenly began to speak.

“I thought the people at Kiou Academy were all stuck-up. But talking to you, Tennouji-san, and Miyakojima-san made me realize that was a misunderstanding. You’re all so serious, working so hard to live, and… just like us, falling in love in the most ordinary way.”

Yuri continued with a gentle smile.

“Still, for someone of your status, Konohana-san, falling in love the ordinary way seems tough. It might not be a full-on arranged marriage, but complete freedom in love is hard… Tennouji-san said something like that.”

Yuri, who had been gazing at the sky, now fixed her eyes on Hinako sitting on the bench.

“That’s why I can’t help but want to cheer you on. I’m not giving up, but it just feels unfair otherwise.”

What wasn’t she giving up on?

What was unfair?

Hinako didn’t understand anything.

Nothing—

“Konohana-san, I’ll tell you why you’re so troubled.”

To the ignorant, unaware Hinako—Yuri declared:

“Konohana-san, you’re in love with Izuki.”