Unification by Force - Seamless Composure - 2

[verdantgrove]

 Location: Cafe COCHI

<Afternoon the next day, in Cafe COCHI on the ES grounds>

Souma: —And it is precisely because I acquired such a concern that I have been pondering it. 

Leo: Ah, yeah. I getcha. You’re a pretty dedicated kid, huh?

Souma: Mmh. I am deeply humbled by your kind words— I do believe my dedication to such matters is one of my strengths.

Leo: They do say that a noble king should have both the strength of a lion and the wisdom of a fox.

But well, I don’t think you’re really aiming to be a king, so you should be just fine with what you’ve got now.

Souma: Mhm. I am no king, and in accordance with such a truth, I acknowledge my place as a loyal warrior who lives to serve.

Leo: It’s not like that mindset is unpopular these days — it might actually be the norm.

Every now and again I’ll hear stuff from working adults at award ceremonies and things like that, and they all seem to be pretty serious about their dedication to their company.

They’ll complain about how they’re in a toxic work environment, or how they’re in the middle of a recession, and hearing that many complaints just makes you think it’d be better for them to quit their jobs.

I wanna live my life just having fun; am I the only one?

Souma: Fufu. It is quite likely that those who would be able to live in such a manner are few— all of them being people who are endowed with talent.

Leo: Hm, yeah… A genius can go on and on about how hard it is to be a genius, but it seems like all the normal people out there have it waaay harder.

But as for me, on the other hand, I think I’m really lucky to be a genius!

Thanks Mom and Dad for bestowing me with so much talent! No no no, I’m genius-ly sorry for being so talented! Wahahaha ☆ 

Souma: Though it may not be my place to speak, I believe that it would be wise to refrain from saying such provoking things as that at such tremendous volume.

Leo: Yeah. Well, you might be doing this without realizing, but it’s not exactly good manners either to sit criss-cross applesauce on your chair in a coffee shop. C’mon, behave~ Chairs and tatami mats have different etiquette to go with them.

Souma: Ah, I see. I am not sitting “criss-cross”, but rather in zazen1. Such a method of sitting is most effective to put one’s mind at ease, and thus it allows for clarity of thought.

Leo: For real? I tried copying Keito by doing that before, but my legs just started hurting! It was the worst! They got all tangled up in each other, and I couldn’t move!

Souma: That is because it requires that you train your body to some extent.

...More importantly, Tsukinaga-dono, you called out to me with the intended purpose of giving me a warning in regards to some specific matter, am I correct?

At the moment, I am quite preoccupied with my thinking.

Leo: Ooh, this is the first time I’ve seen a guy who can say, “Alright, I’m gonna think about this!” and actually go through with it! You’re a pretty weird kid too; I love weird kids like you!

Keito’s probably the same way, so I bet that’s why you’re able to get along so well for some reason, even though your personalities are polar opposites, huh?

Souma: Well… I am not Hasumi-dono, so I cannot make such a determination.

Leo: Yeah. But if you don’t use your imagination, no matter how hard you think, it’s gonna be useless, totally useless!

“The Great, Wise Hasumi-dono” only exists in your mind— take off the rose-colored glasses and look at the real Keito.

Actually, speaking from experience, nothing’s gonna come out of your thinking if you agonize over this alone.

Rather, it’s more like… When you’re stuck in your imagination, your mental image of someone you should have loved is gonna stray too far away from who they really are, and morph into a monster or something.

So that’s why when you actually meet Keito, you’re gonna be shocked that he’s a person! Wahaha ☆ 

Souma: Just whatever do you mean…?

Leo: I’m telling you not to waste your time in a place like this— if you have something you wanna know about Keito, ask him face-to-face.

That’s why I’m looking for Rittsu, but as usual, I don’t have a clue where he is.

Souma: Rittsu?

Leo: Sakuma Ritsu. You seen him lately? He contacted me for some reason, but he’s been totally MIA since then— I’m worried, y’know?

Souma: Well. Though we are in the same year at school, I have had little interaction with him. However, I believe that Isara-dono may have some idea as to his whereabouts, so how would you like for me to attempt contacting him on “Hooruhanzu?”

I have been helping the student council quite often as of late, so I am able to contact Isara-dono relatively free of reservation or hesitation. He is far from the type of person who would find such a thing to be bothersome, after all.

Leo: Ah, that’d be a huge help~ Unlike all these other guys, I don’t really have much of a connection with my juniors— probably because I was gone from school for so long.

It’s a huge pain in times like this… But I guess I’m reaping what I sowed.

Souma: Hmm. So it seems that somehow you do come across some “toraburu” occasionally as well.

Leo: Yeah. That’s a natural part of life.

With a bunch of immature, unstable brats all crammed into a cruel industry like this crossing swords, it’d be more surprising if there weren’t any troubles.

Maybe one of these days everybody’ll find a way to stabilize themselves.

But if that’s a part of growing up, then it must be pretty lonely to get old.

Souma: …?

Leo: Ah, Sena just messaged me. Says he’s on his way over here, and he’s making haste… Sure has had a lot more work than usual these days, that guy. 

Maybe it’s because he said he’d take charge of managing me in front of our juniors, but it feels like he’s been worrying about me way too much. He’s been even more of a nagging mother-in-law lately, and it’s hella annoying.

Souma: I believe that alone simply means that he loves you.

Good and earnest children are, on the contrary, thought to manage quite well, even when left to their own devices. Thus it becomes the case that they receive little attention.

Leo: Ah yeah, you seem like you’d be that kind of guy. Selfish, spoiled brats get more attention from their parents and such. Really shows how unfair the world is, even these days. Wahaha!

Anyway, sorry to get in the way of your thinking like that. I gotta head out soon too.

Go ahead and give me the contact info of that “Isaradono” guy you mentioned earlier, yeah? I just wanna ask him where Rittsu is.

Souma: Umm… I cannot simply provide you with his contact information of my own accord, so I would quite like to obtain the consent of the other party in this matter before proceeding.

Thus, I shall first provide you with my own “Hooruhanzu adoresu” and nothing more.

Then I shall explain the situation to Isara-dono, and upon the occasion that I obtain his permission, I will contact you once more.

Leo: Gotcha. Thanks a lot. You’re suuuch a reliable guy, Bun-chan— Good boy, good boy ♪ 

Souma: I am grateful for your kind words. Now, I trust there are no other matters you require my assistance with, yes?

Leo: Nah, I’m all good. I’ll take care of this one myself. This is a problem for Knights to deal with, and you’re not really in a place where you can spend time worrying about other people’s issues either, yeah?

Souma: …?

Leo: Huh? Did you not hear? Well, this might just be a rumor, but I heard that Akatsuki’s standing within the long-established agency RhyLink is subtly headed downhill.

Keito and Kuro are both friends of mine, so this whole thing has got me worried. That’s the reason I reached out to you in the first place— to get serious and take a look into what’s really going on.

Souma: …

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TL Notes:

1: Zazen refers to cross-legged seated meditation.

 

Proofread by allegiantheart and Amagiiz.