532 532. Green apple




No, no!

 Nihonium's voice echoed through the salon.

 If you looked at him, he was red-faced and embarrassed.
 So the sight of Nihonium denying out loud got everyone's attention in a different way than before.

'Really?'

 The one who went to it was Sakura.
 She tilts her head with a mischievous smile and asks Nihonium.

'It's true!'
'But you want to be mean to your uncle, don't you?
Yeah, it's...
'You want me to be mean, to embarrass you, and to look out for myself.
'Yes, but ......'
So you're in love with him.
-Oh!

 Nifonium let out an unwritten groan, frustrated as if he was about to step out of the ground.

 Sakura flippantly chased it down.
 Should we stop ......?

'No, sir! That's not true!
But...
No!

 Anyway, Nihonium just calls out "no" and runs out of the salon, interrupting Sakura's pursuit. Sakuya chases after them and leaves as well.

 It was a split second and no one could stop the girls in time to see them off.

 Nihonium is gone, and there's a delicate air in the salon.

'I think you're teasing me too much, that one.

 I cleared my throat deliberately with a gohon and went to Sakura to regain my composure.

'Mmm, that's fine, that one.'

 Sakura was smiling.

'No, but--'
Look, she looked really down. You know, you should freak out if you can, but you can't make someone upset.
...... hmm?

 I was about to chide Sakura, but her words stuck with me.

'What's that all about?'
Is there some kind of panic attack or something? What is that supposed to mean?

 That seemed to be the case for everyone else as well, and Emily and Celeste asked Sakura as if she was speaking for her feelings.

It's the heart that stops," said Sakura. Once it stops, it will stop endlessly and you will continue to be depressed. Panic and anger is 'movement', people cannot keep moving. You can get angry and tired of being angry, but you can't get tired of being depressed.

""............"

 All of my friends, including me, went blank and listened to Sakura.

'It's better to move your mind, even if you have to, than to be depressed endlessly. Of course, only if you can move it, or if you are a person. It's not good to force a situation that you can't move, either.
Sakura ...... you're awesome.
I know, I don't need any more praise than that.

 Sakura put her hands on her hips and shielded her chest with an "ehem".

 The way you look, though, ...... well, maybe you do.
 Rather than being depressed, I thought you liked it. I thought "Oh yeah, that's not true" was much better for me.

     ☆

 The next day, Nihonium was still dragging her panic with her.

 When I met her in the morning corridor, she ran away as soon as she saw my face.
 She didn't even come to the morning cafeteria, but snatched Meeke and quickly went to Nihonium's dungeon.

 Yeah, I knew it was the right thing to do now, I thought, and thanked Sakura for that.
 She's avoiding me, but it's a hundred times better than being depressed.

 If this changes anything, I'll think about it again, but as long as she teases me that she likes me and avoids me with it, there's nothing wrong with that.

 I decided to sit tight until things changed.

     ☆

 The situation changed very quickly.

 That night, Margaret came to visit me after being granted access to the dungeon.

 With a graceful gesture, she pulled something out and put it in front of me.

'Have a look at this.
Is this ...... green apple?
'Yes, sir. It's a green apple.
What's wrong with this?
I tried to build an airbox, but this one dropped.
Hmm ...... is an airbox!
Yes, the airbox.
...... in nihonium?
Nihonium, sir.

 She nodded and took out several more green apples.

 Not just one, but multiple identical drops that showed it wasn't an irregularity.

'Nihonium has a ...... drop?'

 Things were moving as fast as they could.