Chapter 46

"Uh... What do you mean?"

After school, in the club room.

I was facing I-chan, my junior, across the desk.

On the desk, there was a simple envelope with only the words "Resignation Letter" written in I-chan's unique round handwriting.

"...Well, I'm thinking of quitting this club."

I-chan said this with a guilty look, twirling the tip of her hair with her index finger.

"No, no! There's only you and me in this club! I've been trying to persuade the teacher to put the club's dissolution on hold... and we were planning to work hard from next year... That's what I've been thinking, at least."

I had made up my mind, but I hadn't said it out loud.

I had come to a conclusion on my own. It's a bad habit of mine.

"To be honest, I didn't think it would get this serious... I mean, it's the Black Magic Research Club, right? I thought it would just be a bunch of people gathering to chat, you know? You even said something like that before you joined, didn't you? This is practically fraud. I should be able to get a cooling-off period. The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare is on my side."

As she said this, I-chan pointed to our club's bookshelf, which was packed with suspicious books that I and the senior, Mr. Yamashita, had ordered from overseas.

By the way, Mr. Yamashita had quit the club two months ago to focus on his entrance exams.

"It's not that serious. I mean, we don't even participate in national competitions."

I tried to make a light-hearted comment.

Persuasion would come after the heavy atmosphere was lifted.

If I could create a relaxed atmosphere, I might be able to smooth things over.

"No, it's serious. The Black Magic Research Club is seriously dangerous. It's a breeding ground for bad religions. The school should take the lead in shutting it down."

My joke was ignored, and she moved on to specific criticisms of the club.

It's no good. This girl is determined to quit.

"I've been dragging my feet for almost a year, but... I guess it's not working out..."

This girl, unlike me, a magic addict, is a perfectly normal person.

Even when I was enthusiastically drawing magic circles, she would look at me with a very cold eye.

It was probably too much to ask for her to continue the club.

However, I shouldn't give up easily.

Is there anything, any leverage?

Why did she suddenly decide to quit?

She hasn't been taking a lot of time off recently, has she?

Usually, if someone wants to quit, they gradually stop showing up.

Indeed, this club probably didn't suit her, but there were times when she was quite enthusiastic about certain things.

At least, that's how it looked to me.

There might be a decisive reason that led her to decide to quit.

If I could find out what it is, I might have a chance to persuade her.

"...And, Senpai, you were so nice when I joined, but lately you've been doing weird things like saying 'I feel like I can do alchemy, pretty seriously,' and you don't pay attention to me... I mean, it's not related, but... well, if you could consider that... I might... well, I might reconsider..."

She said this, trailing off.

Lately, I've been ignoring her when she talks to me, focusing on creating pure gold.

Just the other day, when she showed me her phone screen, I said with a serious face, "Don't distract me right now," and she yelled, "Then do it by yourself!" I wondered if that was the problem, but she denied it.

So, it's not related.

But then, what's the cause?

No, I have one idea.

Come to think of it, Mr. Yamashita just quit the club recently.

So, she liked Mr. Yamashita?

Mr. Yamashita, who often made tasteless jokes like "My right hand is my lover, my left hand is my mistress, and I'm a cheater," finally had his spring of life.

I remember I-chan often criticized Mr. Yamashita, saying things like "He might get arrested someday," "He sometimes smells weird," "He has no tact," and "He's physically uncomfortable." I thought she was exaggerating, but maybe those were signs of her affection.

"Oh, that's it! It's Mr. Yamashita, isn't it? You liked Mr. Yamashita! I understand, I'll mediate for you..."

I-chan slammed her hand on the desk and stood up.

"Then, I'm going home now."

Her eyes and voice were cold.

I-chan picked up her bag and headed for the exit.

It seems it wasn't Mr. Yamashita after all. Honestly, I had a feeling it wasn't.

"Wait! Uh, what about Nobunaga's care!"

As I said this, I ran to the window and brought back a potted plant to I-chan.

This was a plant that was advertised as "The World's Most Mysterious Talking Plant" and sold online.

I-chan had been taking care of it.

Nobunaga was a name she gave it, being a history enthusiast.

"Look, Nobunaga is saying, 'Let's conquer the world together!'"

I pushed Nobunaga forward, calling out to I-chan.

"Hey, that's so annoying! Ah, my skirt is dirty now! Senpai, you idiot! That thing can't talk!"

I-chan pushed me away.

I stumbled and dropped Nobunaga on the floor.

"Honnoji!"

The pot shattered with a crash.

Nobunaga was burned to the ground. Damn Akechi.

I-chan frowned slightly, looking a bit apologetic, but quickly averted her gaze and left the club room.

"Hey, wait!"

I opened the club room's refrigerator, took out a PET bottle, emptied it, washed it thoroughly, and cut it in half. I made a few small holes in the bottom with a compass.

Then, I collected the soil scattered on the floor with a broom and dustpan and put it in the bottom half of the PET bottle.

I replanted Nobunaga in this makeshift pot and placed it on the balcony.

Of course, I wiped the floor with a mop.

I carefully filed the resignation letter and closed the window, turned off the lights, locked the door, and returned the key to the staff room before chasing after I-chan.

I tend to be overly meticulous.

Now that it's over, I think I should have chased after her immediately.

I ran after I-chan.

When I finally caught up to her, she was on the sidewalk in front of the school gate. It was quite close.

For some reason, she was standing in front of the crosswalk even though the signal was green.

Maybe she didn't notice the signal change. Maybe she forgot her contact lenses.

"Hey, wait!"

"...Isn't it too late?"

"I don't want to be bullied by the student council again for forgetting to lock the door."

A few months ago, the student council president tried to shut down our Black Magic Research Club, citing my failure to lock the door as one of the reasons.

I struggled to avoid it, but the conflict escalated, involving the entire school, and we ended up crying and fighting on the riverbank.

As a result, both the student council president and I suffered significant (social) injuries, and the story became a tale of a conflict with no winner. But that's a story for another time.

"Basically, Senpai, you're just trying to stop me because you don't want the club to be shut down, right? It doesn't have to be me, does it! Is the club that important to you!"

"Well, but... yeah... it is... important..."

We've been getting along for a year, and I would be sad if I-chan left.

But the main reason I'm bowing my head now is that I don't want the club to be shut down, so I can't completely deny it.

If I lie, maybe things will work out, but that wouldn't be honest.

The fact that the club is important is an undeniable truth.

I have the confidence to quit high school if the Black Magic Research Club is gone.

I was thinking of at least keeping my name on the roster, but in this atmosphere, it's hard to say.

Seeing me hesitate, I-chan narrowed her eyes.

"Well, I've already submitted the resignation letter. Thank you for everything."

I-chan turned and headed for the crosswalk.

The pedestrian signal had just turned red.

"Hey, wait!"

"Hmph!"

I-chan ignored my call and quickened her pace.

She wasn't paying attention to the signal.

"Hey! It's really dangerous!"

I reached out to grab her shoulder, but she quickly shrugged me off.

I-chan ran onto the crosswalk.

A loud horn sounded. I-chan turned her head to the right.

"Ah..."

A large truck was approaching I-chan.

Before I knew it, I had run out onto the street.

I felt a strong impact, and my vision went dark.

It was hot. My whole body was burning.

I managed to open my eyes, but my vision was blurry.

It seemed my brain was damaged.

The surroundings began to stir. It was noisy, but I thought about it as if it were someone else's problem.

Someone was hugging me.

"---N, No! I'm sorry, I'm sorry! It's all my fault, this..."

I could hear I-chan's voice, broken and intermittent.

Good. She's safe.

If I had run out and we both died, it wouldn't have been a cool ending.

With that thought, my consciousness faded.

The next chapter will start the urban part of the story.

However, the runaway incident is in a half-finished state, so it might be integrated into the first two chapters of the 16-year-old part.

I would appreciate your feedback on whether to move the 16-year-old part to the next two chapters or keep it as is.