ANIMT - Episode 55

ANIMT - Chapter 55. Confession Dissolved in Air

I Got An Extra Six Months of Life Expectancy, And Now It’s My Time

It has become a routine for me to check the number on the back of my hand first thing every morning.

Wrapping myself up tightly in my blanket to stave off this morning’s peculiarly piercing cold, I gazed at my death timer with a sleepy gaze.

Seven days remaining.

Before I knew it, I had a week left to live.

Today marked the middle point of finals week, and I had a full day of general subject tests awaiting me. After today’s exams, I will practice my magic in preparation for tomorrow’s practical magic exam.

Tomorrow’s exam will not be as serious as the mock battle tournaments, which test teamwork and magical strength. Instead, it is a simple demonstration of all of the basic spells we learned in class for the teacher to grade. It goes without saying that each demonstration is done as a team.

As for Kitora and I, who got a ranking in the November mock battles, the results of this test would not really affect our grades. We automatically received a high grade for our magical studies based on our results in the mock battles. For the majority of students, tomorrow’s exam is more of a formality than something to worry about. It’s more akin to extra credit than anything else.

That being the case, I still wanted to do my best to get a good result, and I didn’t want to skip out on anything. I had resolved to do my best at everything I could, no matter how trivial it was.

This last-minute practice session also served as an excuse to spend a little more time with my partner.

As unfortunate as it is, I rarely get to spend much time with him. Even when I invite him for lunch, he usually doesn’t show up. On the rare occasions when he does come, he ends up fighting with Kokomi and wasting the entire lunch break.

Today, Kokomi is busy with a committee meeting, so the battle between the strongest magical girl and the evil magical delinquent, which has been getting more and more intense lately, will not take place today. As long as he turned up, I should be able to spend this rare moment with Kitora.

With moments like these to spice things up, I will enjoy my ordinary student life with a smile on my face.

“Let’s go!”

I jumped out of my bed, stretched my arms high, and prepared for the day. One of the few I had remaining.

* * * *

“I found it! I knew you were here. What are you doing in the cold? Come on, let’s head off to the training room!”

My exams had ended, and just as I was about to pigeonhole Kitora into joining me in a training session, he quickly disappeared from the classroom. I had let him know beforehand, but a quick chat with Morido and my other classmates gave him enough time to slip away.

While the thought crossed my mind that he had gone to get us both permission to use magic, I quickly discounted it. It was more likely that he had gotten in trouble and ran away. Either way, I would have to check for him at his usual spot, and I mentally prepared myself to use force and pull him along. I said as much to him when I made the appointment.

Saying goodbye to my classmates, I hurried off to Kusaka-sensei to get the necessary magic-use permission before setting out to find Kitora.

Pochitaro had disappeared again, and I caught Kusaka-sensei just as he was stepping out to search for him. With a desperate look on his face, he told me to let him know if I saw Pochitaro as he walked at a near sprint down the corridor. He was a teacher, after all, who never ran in the hallways.

It may be a bit late, but maybe it’s finally time for Kusaka-sensei to reconsider his measures against Pochitaro escaping.

So, I asked another teacher for permission and finally started to look for Kitora.

Today was the first sunny day in a long time after a streak of snowy days. The temperature was warmer than usual. Knowing Kitora, with it being such a fine day, there was a good chance that they would be in that big tree. Not that the weather would stop him; even in the winter, he would spend time in trees all the same.

I kept my eyes peeled for any heaps of snow at the bases of a tree, a tell-tale indicator that someone had cleared out a spot to sit in the branches. Kitora would surely use his signature wind attribute magic and leave such a mound behind.

Near the training building, around the garbage dump at the usual area, among the trees standing in a row, there was one large, familiar tree that was blanketed in white snow.

And as expected, a mound of snow lay at its base.

“… If you think about it, you don’t need to practice for such an easy exam. It’s a pain in the ass. I’m going back to my dormitory after I kill some time here. You can either give up and practice by yourself or head back first.”

Standing at the base of the tree and calling out to him, this was his reply to my invitation.

I was not so good-natured that I could just back down with an “I see” or an “Okay!”

Suddenly reminded of a recent event, my mind brought up the pinky promise I had done with Kokomi a few days ago, and I activated a spell.

A while ago, I could only use movement magic and material manipulation magic, limited to my Shiratama doll. Since then, my mastery of magic has expanded considerably.

Casting levitation magic, something I had finally learned a month ago, I floated up to his branch through the leaves in one go. Then, stretching out my long legs, I balanced myself exquisitely on the branch, leaning my back against the trunk to relax, and while still floating, I called out, “Hey!”

Kitora looked at me, his golden eyes wide in amazement as if he had seen a ghost.

“… What are you doing?”

“Well, I thought it would be nice to visit Kitora’s favorite spot for a chat once in a while. Oh, I’ll take you to the training room later! For now, I want to sit down, so move your feet out of the way!”

When I tapped my foot and indicated that I would sit down, he clicked his tongue and immediately made room for me.

Finally, sitting on the same branch, I released the spell. During my trip up, some of the powdery snow left on the leaves seemed to have caught on my hair. I shook my head lightly and brushed it off.

“You’re always doing the unexpected… ”

“Really? I, on the other hand, can usually read most of what you are thinking. I think you’re just a bit naive.”

“I’m gonna kick your ass.”

I’m not at all afraid of his growl because I know he would never do such a thing.

But this might be a good opportunity.

I kept my eyes on the distant sky, and in a casual manner, I mentioned a topic that Umetaro-san had just recently discussed.

“Hey, have you heard about the period where we can make an application to switch teams?”

“Oh? Switch teams?”

“Yeah. You see, in this school team system, you are supposed to be paired with the same person for a year. When you move on to the next grade, you can change teams. I was wondering if they are going to start accepting applications soon.”

“… What does that have to do with us?”

“Oh, nothing? Just for example, really, hypothetically, you know? I tried to imagine in my spare time who would be paired with whom. I also thought about who else you and I could pair with. Personally, I think you would make for a fun pair with Kokomi. I think you two are perfect for each other.”

When I suggested it as lightly as possible, making it sound like a silly ‘what if’ conversation, he blurted out, “You’ve got to be kidding me,” as if he was really opposed to it.

“I don’t want to be paired with the little runt, And I’m sure she hates it, too! Especially since she always looks at me as an enemy because of you.”

“Kitora-san, Kitora-san. There is a wonderful saying, ‘The more you fight, the better you get along… ’”

“If you tell me the rest of the story, I’m seriously going to kick your ass.”

Yeah, let’s stop mentioning Kokomi here. Don’t succumb to his threats! He’s just in a bad mood.

But I still wanted to keep the topic going a little longer, so I asked, “Well, if not her, do you have someone else in mind?”

I felt the roughness of the branch with my palm and waited for his answer with bated breath.

Then, after a pause, Kitora opened his mouth somewhat mysteriously.

“… Why do I have to answer that? You’re acting funny today, aren’t you?”

“Yeah? I might not be like our classmates, but it’s just who I am. There’s nothing weird about how I’m acting.”

“I can’t tell what it is, but you’re definitely off. You’re a carefree idiot… What’s troubling you? If you have something on your mind, there’s nothing I can do to help you, but I can at least hear you out.”

“What do you mean, off?!”

You are as honest as ever, but I can’t help but laugh out loud at such an awkward offer.

My laughter reverberated through the branches and leaves, as I fell into a fit of giggling.

“You’re the one who asked me such a weird question. What about you? Is there anyone else you’d rather be paired with besides me?”

“Eh… ?”

His voice was so sharp and serious that I was at a loss for words.

----Kitora thinks anyone else could be my partner than him?

I’ve already declared this before, to Umetaro-san, but I would only have one partner for the rest of my school life.

But he will need a new partner after I’m gone.

Knowing this, but being unable to voice it, I wonder how I should answer…

“Oh! I guess you just don’t want to be my partner anymore.”

“What? That isn’t true! I only have one partner, and that’s you, Kitora!”

I was so intimidated by the thought of him leaving that I answered without thinking. And as I returned to my senses, I was struck with a fierce sense of shame at myself and what I had said.

But in contrast to me, Kitora’s mood relaxed, and glancing sideways, he raised the corner of his mouth in an unusually satisfied manner.

“Then there’s no need to talk about who else suits us, is there? I’m not going to go through the trouble of switching partners now… ”

“Hey, what are you… ?”

----Oh, no.

I would have preferred to have asked Kitora if there was any other candidate he was interested in…

His blunt declaration of not changing partners made me so happy that I missed my chance to pursue the matter. He shared the same kind of feeling as I did.

It’s really annoying that Kitora, who is usually so shy, can be so unexpectedly charming at times. When it really matters, he can be so dependable. He always helps me out in any way he is able to. While not always honest with himself and others, he’s actually a cool guy.

It’s because of him that I…

----Huh?

“What’s wrong?”

I was too busy to give a proper answer to her question.

Oh, you’re kidding, right? Wait, wait, wait.

Oh, no… wait… wait… wait… wait… wait… wait.

Because… I’m your precious partner, but…

“What!”

Something had been quietly smoldering in the corner of my heart for quite some time and it seems that I have finally recognized what this feeling was.

“… Oh, you’re acting really funny. Are you okay?”

Kitora leaned over toward me out of concern. I didn’t want him to see my face, which was now hot and downcast (probably too red to cover it up), so I bounced my shoulders excessively to affirm that I was alright.

When I reacted in such a way, Kitora raised his eyebrows and tried to get even closer, so I quickly activated my levitation magic again and fled to the ground in a hurry.

Above me, I could hear him making confused noises. But sorry, my level of confusion is higher.

Surrounded by a light dusting of snow, I exhaled slowly to calm my pounding heartbeat and clear my head.

It’s no use thinking about how long I have left.

“I’m a terrible person. In the extra six months of life I was given, I managed to fall in love with you.”

I let out a mumble in a small voice no louder than the buzz of an insect. The dry smile fell unnoticed to the white ground and disappeared, as I kept my back to the tree.

I have one more week to live, but I don’t think I’ll be able to tell him how I feel now. It’s a difficult thing to say at this point in time, and from my perspective, but I’m sure that he is very fond of me as his partner. I don’t want to make things awkward by telling him and ruining this friendship.

With that being the case, I choose to remain… partners… until the end of my life.

Did I realize this too late? Not necessarily.

It is probably because I am now so close to death that I may have found the answers to my most important feelings.

I’m not sure though…

It is enough for me to have realized my feelings before I die. But I still think I should write something about it in my final letter.

I know it’s a cop-out, but I’ll sneak this thought into one of the messages I’ve already written. When Pochitaro returns, I’ll make the change. Hopefully, he’s back tomorrow.

That will be for the best.

“… What are you doing? No really, what’s wrong?”

His bright red hair was flowing, and he swore as he jumped down. Unlike me, he didn’t use any magic and the sight of his landing made me nostalgic. It made me recall the distant incident when I rescued Kokomi from those punks.

At that time, I hit Kitora in the head with a twig and said, “Damn delinquent!”

Thinking back, I had started out with a negative or sub-zero likability rating of this guy, but I never thought things would change so much. I was strangely amused by the change in myself, and combined with the nostalgia, my cheeks loosened subconsciously.

“You’re going to the training building, right? Let’s head off, quickly!” he said.

I saw his back again when I was crying on the rooftop after that.

Deep down, I once again reconfirmed my feelings.

I slowly moved my lips as I watched Kitora’s back before scraping up enough courage to step forward.

“Hey, Kitora.”

“Oh? What?”

I like…

“… I’m glad you’re coming with me to practice, but I’d appreciate it if you’d be a little more honest with me. As a partner, I sincerely hope that now that we are entering into second year together, our relationships will expand and you can act a little more amicably towards me.”

When I teased him as I usually do, I could see a blood vessel snapping in his forehead. No longer able to restrain himself, he left me behind with a thump on my head.

Well, our destinations are the same anyway, so I’ll just take it easy and make my own way there.

----

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TL Note: Mald Frogs Club tries to capture the intent of the author when translating these chapters. This is not a literal translation and we can not guarantee the accuracy of it. We re-structure sentences to improve the flow and if we spot what appears to be an obvious error, we fix it as we go.