Survive in Azure Files

Why is it Makoto who is such a beautiful woman that suits my taste! ?

I couldn't help but sigh.

Perhaps, God is so fair that when he gives a gift to someone, he will inevitably take something away from him as compensation.

Even for someone like me, whose appearance and character are almost flawless, isn't it the same?

I think my biggest shortcoming is that I still lack confidence.

"Ok?"

After calming down, Makoto seemed to finally realize that something was wrong and frowned slightly: "By the way, why is the teacher here already..."

"Well..." I planned to find a random excuse to deal with it.

However, before I could even think of an excuse, Makoto's eyes lit up and he laughed strangely:

“Hehehe. I see… That’s how it is.”

What is it like?

Makoto smiled as if he saw through everything, and looked at me with deep appreciation and recognition in his eyes: "It's just a formal ceremony, it's meaningless... Instead of wasting time on this kind of thing, why don't we get down to business!"

Although I didn't quite understand how she used rigorous reasoning to come to such careful conclusions, I was greatly shocked.

But this is exactly what I want.

"That……"

“Hahahaha! As expected of you, you’re the one who captured my, Makoto-sama’s heart!”

Makoto became more and more excited as he spoke, as if immersed in his own world. He said intoxicatedly: "Ah! Only this is worthy of me, Makoto Hanuma! As expected, my vision was not wrong!"

When I opened my mouth to speak, I was choked by her. Then I remembered the engagement she had mentioned and couldn't help feeling a little uneasy.

Oh no, is Makoto really coveting my beauty?

Because her train of thought was so bizarre, I had thought it was just a sudden whim.

I then felt sincerely sad.

Even Makoto was easily captured by my charm...

"Okay, it's decided!" Makoto nodded solemnly, "Tell the members to stop all activities. Let the teacher and I have a secret meeting today."

After making this decision, she told me in a familiar tone: "Then, wait outside for a while. I will call you as soon as you are ready."

Because I came to discuss something this time, and I knew that Makoto might not be very smart, I didn't pay much attention to her slightly presumptuous attitude.

So I stepped outside the office and waited.

But this waiting process seems particularly long.

It's not that I lack patience, but there are constant noises coming from Makoto's Speaker's Office that make me have to pay attention.

The sound of talking to oneself, the sound of putting things away, the roar of the cat, and the sound of threatening the cat...

What on earth is Makoto doing in there?

Finally, the sound died down.

"Haaaa...Haaaa..." Then, Makoto took a few deep breaths and calmed his breathing, "Umm, come in."

After hearing this, I couldn't hold back my curiosity any longer, so I pushed open the door. What greeted me was this somewhat indescribable scene -

A beautiful girl in military uniform was sitting cross-legged on the chair behind the desk with a smug and confident smile on her face. With one hand, she was gently shaking a wine glass filled with unknown purple-red liquid, while with the other hand, she was caressing a short-haired cat lying on her.

Just looking at this scene, Makoto did show a bit of calm and majestic feeling, which was very different from the impression she gave me before.

However, combined with the sounds I heard while waiting outside just now, I can easily imagine what kind of hard struggle she had gone through to successfully create such a situation.

If you take a few steps closer and look carefully, you will find several things wrong:

The liquid that looked like red wine could be found in the trash can behind the desk, and the grape juice in cartons sold in supermarkets could reveal what it actually was;

The other hand that was not holding the goblet seemed to be caressing the cat, but a closer look revealed that the cat was biting the finger;

Even the pair of translucent black stockings showed signs of damage.

Because of all these things, Makoto's majesty, which was not much in my eyes, only existed for a few short breaths at most, and then it was completely gone.

The Speaker of the Pantheon Hall seemed completely unaware of this, and she smugly laughed her usual strange laugh and spoke:

"Hehe, teacher, I've seen how active you are. You've helped others and solved many problems... This has greatly improved Xialai's reputation! The most prestigious schools in Kivotos all have extremely high opinions of you!"

Following Makoto's praise, my thoughts went back forward, and after a trance, I was shocked to realize that I had indeed established so many connections in Kivotos.

"Hehehe, now that it has come to this, I have no choice but to admit it—" Makoto said loudly, "Yes, you are already a powerful person who is on par with me, Makoto-sama!"

...My teacher Xia Lai is a good man, but how can he be on par with someone like Makoto?

I inexplicably felt that I was being insulted.

But then I thought again, and felt that this might be her way of expressing her longing, and I felt that I was somewhat wrong.

In fact, I would like to hear what Makoto wants to say to me that would make Iroha make an evaluation that Makoto and I might agree on.

"To show how highly I think of your abilities... let me make you a proposal you can't refuse."

Makoto's tone became more and more passionate: "Xia Lai's teacher, join forces with our Pandemonium... no, with my Lord Hanuma Makoto! If we unite, conquering Kivotos will be easy! If that happens, give half of Kivotos to Xia Lai..."

She shook her head again to deny it. "No, let's just sign a marriage contract and form a more unbreakable alliance. Let Pandemonium and Xialai become one, and let the two of us rule Kivotos together!"

I seriously suspect that conquering the world is just a cover, and the last part is Makoto's real purpose -

Rather, if you succeed in trying to monopolize me, it would be essentially the same as conquering Kivotos, right?

But I'm not interested at the moment.

"How about this proposal? Isn't it good?"

Makoto took a deep breath and shouted loudly, "Come on! Teacher! Come with me! To realize this lofty ideal!"

After issuing her heartfelt invitation, she burst into laughter.

At this moment, it was as if an illusion, as if for a moment I really saw some of the shadow of an excellent leader in her.

Unfortunately, not long after the laughter gradually died down, Makoto's true colors were revealed again.

"Hehehe, what do you think of my proposal? Teacher, I believe you also have the same ambition, so you took the initiative to accept my invitation——"

Makoto spoke faster and faster, and finally couldn't hold back his expression anymore, and cried out in pain to the cat in his arms: "Oh oh!? Shishimaru! You, you bastard!? Stop biting!"

…So you really have been talking to me while enduring the pain!?

From the perspective of being willing to suffer for the sake of saving face, it is indeed admirable, and it reminds me of an old friend who was also from Gehenna.

“…Ha, ha, ha, ha, sneeze!”

For some reason, maybe it was some chain reaction, Makoto sneezed loudly again after being bitten by the cat.

Taking advantage of the time when she couldn't speak normally, I spoke carefully:

"I'm sorry, but I don't intend to accept this proposal."

“W-what…!?” Makoto, who had just put the cat aside, looked at me with disbelief written all over his face. “My, my lady Hanuma Makoto’s attractive proposal… was rejected so easily…!?”

What's so attractive about it? Not to mention whether the conditions offered can impress me, it's just empty promises.

Makoto frowned again and asked in confusion, "Then why did you take the initiative to respond to my invitation? Could it be that I have been sending messages too frequently recently and you are fed up with it? Well... I can't help it. I originally wanted you to feel my sincerity. If I used the wrong method and it backfired, I am willing to apologize for it."

She was even willing to apologize.

However, I usually let Alona handle the emails from Pandemonium, so they don’t bother me much.

I shook my head. "That's not the case. In fact, I came here this time to propose a proposal to you that you may not be able to accept."

"Roar?"

Makoto raised his eyebrows and smiled with interest: "How interesting. Knowing that I, Makoto-sama, might not be able to accept it, you still have the courage to propose it in the face of my authority? Hehehe! I really didn't misjudge you! Teacher, please speak frankly! I promise here that no matter what proposal you make, I will never get angry!"

I was skeptical about this, but deep down I had a slightly changed opinion of Makoto.

"……wrong."

Suddenly, Makoto seemed to have thought of a possibility, his eyes became sharp, his expression became quite ugly, and he shouted angrily:

"Ibuki is still just a child!"

"Wait a minute, what are you thinking about!?"

"What, isn't it?"

The momentum that Makoto had gathered instantly dissipated into thin air. He nodded meaninglessly, but still reminded her with concern:

"Ibuki is still young, at least wait until she grows up... Iroha, Satsuki, Chiaki or other members are all fine, but Ibuki is not allowed yet! Of course, the prerequisite is that they agree voluntarily."

I was still confused. Although I had some guesses in my heart, I still asked tentatively because it was too bizarre:

"When you say 'can', do you mean...?"

"Hmm?" Makoto frowned, but still explained patiently, "After I conquer Kivotos, in order to transform the world into what I envisioned, I will definitely not be able to spare the time to fulfill my wife's obligations on weekdays. This is a mistake that I cannot make up for."

Why is she already calling herself a wife?!

Moreover, judging from her tone, could it be possible that...

"So," Makoto said as a matter of course, "in the days without my company, you can find other members of the Pandemonium... No, as long as they are not the ones who disobey me, they can become your concubines, relieve your loneliness, and give birth to heirs. I promise here that I will never ask any more questions."

...Is the salary really that generous?

Although I don’t know Satsuki and Chiaki mentioned by Makoto, Iroha and the grown-up Ibuki are enough to make me interested.

Damn, Makoto's attitude seemed really sincere. From her words, I deeply felt her magnanimity.

But thinking back, if you don’t offer such conditions, how can you move my heart?

What's more, I will not give up other forests for the sake of one forest.

The conquest of Kivotos can basically be regarded as nonsense.

But no matter what, Makoto succeeded in changing my opinion of her with just a few words, and even made me like her a little bit -

She allowed me to have someone outside right from the start?

Although it is also possible that she just wanted to have a deeper interest in me, and there was no personal relationship. Or maybe she didn't think that much at all.

Anyway, I calmed down my fluctuating emotions and did not forget the real purpose of my trip:

"Actually, what I want to talk about is the Disciplinary Committee... No, it's about Hinata."

"……oh?"

As soon as he heard the name, Makoto's expression quickly darkened, but he was not angry.

She stared at me with her snake-like eyes flashing with cold light, and her tone was unpredictable: "What exactly is it?"

Subconsciously, I changed my words to something more euphemistic:

"I was just wondering...is the burden Hinata is carrying a little too heavy?"

After saying this, I was prepared for the worst-case scenario that Makoto would get furious and break his previous promise, or even use force against me.

However, nothing of the kind happened.

"Jie Jie..."

Makoto fell into deep thought, and after a while, he actually let out a low laugh.

Then, her laughter became louder and louder: "Hahaha! I see! You are worthy of being someone I approve of! Very good, very good!"

Was she being sarcastic? Or was she misunderstanding something?

Makoto said with emotion: "You are right. I was blinded by hatred before. I should reduce Kurosaki Hina's workload so that I can truly regain the authority of the leader of Gehenna... Why didn't I think of it before? Hehehe, for the sake of our lofty ideals, we can indeed put aside our prejudices and reduce the frequency of causing trouble for her... But we can't let her be too free... It's really hard to grasp the limit."

I seem to understand the meaning of Iroha's words at that time.

In addition to Makoto's excellent understanding ability, she and I actually have the same interests to some extent -

I hope to give Hinata more time to herself, while Makoto hopes to take this opportunity to reduce the power in Hinata's hands.

However, in contrast, I became a little uneasy.

What would Hina think if she knew about my self-initiated kindness?

My original intention was of course just to save Hina from so much hardship, but what is the difference between me now and the Yazi who sent troops to break into Abydos?

After thinking about it, I feel that I am still a little too concerned. It would have been better if I had discussed it with Hina herself beforehand.