TEASER
Side Story: A Birth Record of a New Breed of Cat
Late afternoon on a
holiday.
Nozomu had finished
cleaning his room in the dormitory which he had been doing since morning and
was heading to the commercial district for lunch.
The roadside is lined
with a wide variety of stalls, many of them selling food, of course.
Especially today, a
holiday. The merchants lined up in line were shouting more vigorously than
usual, taking advantage of the time when the purse strings were loosened during
the holidays.
As Nozomu walked
through the busy downtown area, he saw a girl in an Ecross uniform about 10
meters ahead of him.
"Eh?
Somia-chan?"
Her beautiful black
hair, trimmed to her shoulders, definitely belonged to a girl he knew well.
She scurried her eyes
around as if looking for something, and then disappeared toward a back alley.
"What is she
doing? There's no sign of Iris nearby..."
Seeing that there was
no Iris around, it seemed that Somia was alone.
Nozomu, while tilting
his head at her suspicious behavior, stepped into the back alley and followed
her for the time being.
The back alley was
quite dimly lit due to the disorderly rows of houses and stores around it, and
it was difficult to see.
The back alley was
like a maze, and if he were to lose his way for a moment, he would definitely
be lost in no time.
Nozomu looked down the
alley and saw Somia about 10 meters ahead of him.
"O~i,
Somia-cha~n!"
"Eh? Nozomu-san?
Is something wrong?"
After Nozomu called
out to Somia, she came running up towards Nozomu, while looking surprised.
Upon closer
inspection, she was carrying a handbag, which was quite large and bulging, as
if it had something in it.
"I was just out
walking to get some lunch somewhere ....... What are you doing in a place like
this, Somia-chan? And you're even wearing your Ecross uniform. I thought today
is your day off..."
"I ... I'm on my
way home after studying at school..."
Nozomu tilted his head
at Somia, who was mumbling something.
It was true that she
had been doing independent study at Ecross. Irisdina had told him that Somia
had been studying hard recently.
However, her house is
in the administrative district in the northern part of the city. Even if she
were to return home from Ecross, which is in the center of the city, she didn't
have to pass through the commercial district.
And even if she were
to take a detour, it would be suspicious to go to a back alley like this,
regardless of whether she went to a store or a stall.
“…………”
“…………”
Nozomu remained silent
and turned his skeptical gaze on Somia. Perhaps because she knew that her own
statement was unreasonable, she averted her gaze like a kitten whose mischief
had been discovered.
Somia, no longer able
to bear Nozomu's silent stare, slowly opened her mouth.
"U-, umm. Can you
please keep it a secret from my sister?"
"That depends on the content..."
