After Reaching the Happy Ending, I Was Locked up by the Extremely Possessive Heroines I Had Conquered - Chapter 52: The Person in the Hat

Chapter 52: The Person in the Hat

“Senpai, good morning…… there.”

“Good morning.”

About four hours passed after that.

I checked out of the hotel and waited for the two of them in front of the lobby. When they didn’t show up at the meeting time, I started to worry, and then Toa Watarase appeared with her energy obviously low, and

“……………………………………”

Mahiru Akiyoshi came along, clinging to Toa with her eyes still closed.

“You two both look sleepy.”

“Yeah. I’m so sleepy my brain isn’t working at all. As for Mahiru-chan, she’s still half-asleep.”

“Indeed.”

Mahiru staggered toward me with her eyes closed. Then she buried her face in my chest as if covering it over and sniffed at me with a soft snuffling sound.

Even in her half-asleep state, her sibling love was as strong as ever. As I gave a wry smile at that,

“……………… Big brother?”

In the next instant, Mahiru’s eyes snapped wide open.

“What does this mean?”

“Huh?”

As if the sleepiness from moments before had been a lie, Mahiru’s eyes sharpened like she had suddenly awakened to something, and she thrust her face close to mine to demand an answer.

“Why does big brother smell like another woman?”

“…Another woman?!”

For a moment, I couldn’t process Mahiru’s words, and my thoughts froze.

“You wouldn’t have met another woman, would you? No, did you choose a single room just to meet another woman?”

“No, no, no, that can’t be.”

“Then why do you smell like a woman?”

“That’s what I want to know.”

I had no idea at all. An unknown fear started to creep into my heart.

—Maybe the dream was real after all.

No, that couldn’t be. Realistically, it was impossible. Impossible, right?

“Anyway, let’s get out of the hotel quick. If possible, I want to reach Tokyo by tonight.”

“Big brother, the conversation isn’t over yet.”

“No, really, we should leave this hotel as soon as possible.”

“Big brother, wait!”

I bolted out like I was fleeing, and Mahiru chased after me with fierce speed.

“You two walk way too fast.”

Toa still looked sleepy toward Mahiru, who had awakened. With those two, we headed back to Kochi Station again. When we arrived at the station, we consulted at the ticket window about routes to Tokyo.

There seemed to be two realistic options.

The first was the route using only trains. From Kochi Station, we’d take the “Limited Express South Wind” to Okayama Prefecture, then switch to the Shinkansen. It would take time because of two transfers, but since the Shinkansen had unreserved seats, we wouldn’t have to worry about finding spots, so we could definitely reach Tokyo.

The other was taking a plane from Kochi Airport. The flight from Kochi Airport to Haneda Airport took about an hour and a half. It was overwhelmingly faster than going by land. If we were traveling between Tokyo and Kochi, I’d definitely choose the plane without a doubt.

But on the other hand, there was the fatal problem that we couldn’t even board without reservations.

If seats were available, it would be fine, but there was no guarantee we could book a same-day flight now. Since I wanted to reach Tokyo by tonight no matter what, I judged the first option was better.

So, we’d spend the whole day on trains.

“The Shinkansen is really fast, right?”

“I think it’s about three hundred kilometers per hour.”

“Three hundred?! That’s exciting!”

To Toa, who was thrilled about the Shinkansen’s speed,

“…………Hiss hiss fuu—…… hiss hiss fuu—”

Mahiru started abdominal breathing as she imagined herself riding it.

“…Limited express? …Shinkansen?”

Mahiru, who even feared regular trains, could she handle the strain of three hundred kilometers per hour? I was a bit worried, but in this state, she’d probably faint if she got on a plane.

I thought choosing the train route was the right call after all.

“Anyway, let’s buy some bento and get on the train.”

From Kochi Station to Okayama Station was about two and a half hours.

If we boarded now, we’d arrive right around lunchtime. We could eat there, but to be safe, we decided to handle it on the train.

We picked some random bento at a souvenir shop in front of the station, clutched our tickets and limited express tickets, and entered through the gate.

With plastic bags in hand, we waited on the platform for the train, and then it arrived with the announcement.

—The Limited Express South Wind.

The side of the car had vivid red and green lines, giving a dynamic impression. It evoked nature and wind, and it would stand out even in a forest thick with trees.

“Unreserved seats are in car three!”

The unreserved seats on the Limited Express South Wind looked just like Shinkansen seats. Two pairs of two seats side by side.

That meant four per row, so with three of us, one would be left over.

“I’ll sit next to big brother!”

“I can sit there too, you know.”

Suddenly, a fight over seats broke out. Following last night’s room assignment, the two were at it again.

“I’ll sit alone, so you two sit next to each other.”

“No way! I want to sit next to big brother!”

“I don’t want to sit next to Mahiru-chan either. Her breathing sounds are noisy, and I can’t relax.”

Breathing sounds? Oh, the abdominal breathing. Yeah, next to her, it’d be pretty loud for sure……

“No helping it. With three people, one gets left over.”

I said it to soothe the two, who looked dissatisfied.

“…And I’m worried, you know. If some random old guy sat next to one of you, think about that. So, come on? Please.”

When I pleaded desperately, the two stared at each other in silence. Then they reluctantly agreed.

“If big brother insists that much, no choice.”

“Senpai! From now on too, please keep cherishing me, okay?”

“…This is embarrassing, so sit down quick.”

There are other passengers, you know. Unlike the island, there are people around, so it’s embarrassing. After a bit of fuss, we sat in our seats, and while the two chatted happily up front, I gazed out the window.

I wondered what Satori was doing right now, where she was.

We left the island, reached Kochi Station, and now headed to Okayama. And finally, we’d take the Shinkansen to Tokyo.

As time passed, the distance from Black Tide Island grew farther and farther. That meant the physical distance from Satori was increasing.

“………………”

Honestly, I didn’t regret it.

But at the same time, there was loneliness. For better or worse, I’d planned to go to the capital with Satori.

Now that we were apart, it felt lacking, like a hole had opened up in my heart……

It felt like I’d left something precious behind on the island.

“…Satori.”

The train was about to depart.

The engine roared, and as my body shook slightly, I ended up calling her name.

It was in that instant.

“…Excuse me for the seat next to you.”

The words were muttered so softly I almost missed them. When I turned at the sound, there she was……

A gray parka and denim pants. The person with the hat pulled low.

It was the person in the hat from the bus yesterday.

She gave a quick bow, then sat primly next to me. She kept her head down in silence, not even glancing my way.

“Um…”

The moment I tried to speak, the train unluckily started moving.

Clack-clack, clack-clack, the sound of the rails echoed, but silence dominated everything.

Pretending to check my backpack, I stole a sideways glance at her.

But the hat’s brim was too deep, and I could barely see her face.

The outline of her cheek was refined, and the faint glimpse of her lips was soft; just that told me she was beautiful.

But I couldn’t see her eyes, so I couldn’t confirm my hypothesis.

—The person in the hat isn’t Satori, is she?

Every time I tried to peek at her face to verify that idea, she predictably looked away. As if avoiding being seen.

“Um…”

I tried to speak again. But once more, something interfered right then.

The train entered a tunnel, making a loud noise, and the view outside the window turned pitch black.

In the instant I glanced at the outside view, her reflection appeared in the window.

Her figure in the window was still mostly hidden by the hat, but it seemed like her gaze was turned my way,

“Ha—”

I caught my breath and turned, but she had her head down. Was it just my imagination? It couldn’t be, but……

When we exited the tunnel, light flooded the car. The outside view returned, and the vista opened up.

Surrounded by deep green, I was aware only of her, just her. I observed her every move with sideways glances, not missing a thing.

This made me seem like the stalker instead.

I inwardly sighed at myself, but still, I couldn’t look away.

……

“D-Don’t look.”