Chapter 1
Today was another day of hard work. Not only did Yanagi have to support the members of Section 6, who had strong personalities, but she also had to collaborate with other departments and attend meetings nonstop, so she was busy without a moment to breathe. The work didn’t end until the sun set, and Yanagi ended up having to work overtime. Since she thought that she would be late due to overtime, she sent Soukaku home first, then groaned while holding onto my documents. As the night grew dark, Yanagi got up from my seat, worried about Soukaku who would be waiting for me. She quickly finished up what she was doing, grabbed her coat, and left the building. Most of the stores had their lights off, leaving a quiet atmosphere. She sighed. The day went by so quickly. Today wasn’t the only time she was particularly busy. This was the daily life of Tsukishiro Yanagi, the deputy chief and information officer of Section 6 of the Great Collaboration.
Yanagi arrived at the house, opened the door, and went in. Given the time of day, she naturally thought Soukaku would be sleeping. However, what greeted Yanagi wasn’t the thick darkness.
"Yanagi."
"Nagi!"
The living room was brightly lit and the shadows of two people were lively. Wait, two people?
"Chief, you're here again..."
Recently, Miyabi had been staying at Yanagi's house more often. This was something that bothered Yanagi more than the dark circles under her eyes. Since she often left Soukaku in Miyabi's care when she got home late due to overtime work, it wasn't surprising that she came to her house. However…
"The chief bought us a lot of delicious food earlier!"
"Soukaku, did you eat and brush your teeth? Now, it's late, so let's go to bed quickly."
As soon as she finished speaking, Soukaku yawned and rubbed her eyes, and Yanagi patted her on the back. After sending her into her room, she was able to take off the coat she was wearing. Now, only Miyabi and Yanagi were left in the living room.
"Are you staying over today too, Miyabi?"
"Yes, that's right."
"Well, it's late... Thank you for watching Soukaku."
When Yanagi entered the space called home, she felt like her muscles were creaking as if she had let go of her tension. Yanagi should wash up and go to bed quickly. After entering the bedroom and changing her clothes, she went into the shower room. As she was washing her body as usual and soaking her body in warm water, a thought suddenly took over her mind.
...It seems like she is living with Miyabi too.
She came over to her house to sleep over twice a week, so at some point Yanagi naturally left the seat next to her empty. Yanagi still couldn't figure out why Miyabi was visiting her house regularly to stay over. When Yanagi asked Miyabi, she would only answer with incomprehensible metaphors, and wouldn't tell her exactly. It's not that Yanagi didn't like it. Rather... Anyway, she didn't want to be nervous even at home.
"Whew, feel better... Miyabi?"
When Yanagi came out after showering, there was no one in the living room. It was quiet. After drying her hair leisurely with a gentle breeze, she went into her room. Yanagi stopped trying to turn on the light. Miyabi was lying on her bed. She was crouching down, her eyes closed in a somewhat uncomfortable position. Yanagi muffled her footsteps, wondering if she was asleep. There were a few rustling sounds as she moved to the side of the bed, but Miyabi’s tightly shut eyes showed no sign of opening. How could she be so defenseless, even detecting small sounds that no one else in the community could hear? Yanagi went to the seat next to her that Miyabi had left empty and carefully lowered her waist. The bed mat sank to her weight, but Miyabi didn’t move an inch.
The youngest Void Hunter.
A genius loved by swordsmen.
The strongest elite in New Eridu.
She was defenseless to the point where such a fancy title was meaningless. Even though she was responsible for the well-being of the city and the safety of its citizens, she was so ordinary when she was asleep. Yanagi stared at Miyabi’s sleeping face for a long time. No matter how much you trust her, isn’t she too defenseless? Yanagi barely swallowed the words that almost came out of her mouth without her realizing it. As Yanagi stared at Miyabi's face, it was so quiet that she doubted if Miyabi was really sleeping. Yanagi could hear her breathing, but she couldn’t tell if her heart was beating. Yanagi impulsively brought her face to Miyabi's chest. When she put her ear to Miyabi's left chest, she could naturally hear a regular heartbeat. Thump, thump. Hearing her heartbeat steadily and without any disturbance, she was overcome by an inexplicable feeling. Could it be that at this moment, she could monopolize everything about this person? The desire that was slowly rising in her heart became a black stain. Couldn’t darkness cover everything? That’s what Yanagi thought.
Then, at that moment, a thick arm wrapped around Yanagi’s shoulder.
“Eh...?''
Yanagi looked up in confusion. Her eyes met Miyabi’s, who was looking in her direction. Thanks to her accustomedness to the darkness, she could see her expression clearly. Just opening her eyes, the atmosphere was completely different from before.
"Chief.. I..."
Their faces were close. In fact, it had been like that since earlier. Yanagi's heart started beating so fast that it felt like it was going to burst. Because of that, her chest was tingling. Yanagi had thought that she would do whatever she had done just a moment ago. However, when her eyes met with Miyabi's at close range, she realized how foolish that thought had been. This person, Hoshimi Miyabi, seemed to be completely consumed by her momentum. Even though they were just looking at each other from up close.
"Miyabi, can't you sleep?"
Miyabi opened her mouth. Fortunately, there was no question about why she was in her arms. However, the question about whether she couldn't sleep was more difficult to answer.
"Well, I was going to sleep. Just now."
"I see."
She answered as if she was going to let go, but the strength in Yanagi's arm around her shoulder didn't seem to loosen. It seemed like she had to make it clear that she wanted Miyabi to let her go. If this continued, she felt like her heart wouldn't last long.
"Yanagi, your heartbeat is faster than before. Why is that?"
Why are you asking that? This person always picks out questions that are difficult to answer. But there's no way Yanagi could answer that by lying in the same bed as Miyabi, holding her in my her, smelling her scent, and listening to er heartbeat. Tsukishiro Yanagi is a very careful person. If she say something carelessly, it might overflow, so the other person might notice the emotions she has been holding back. While Yanagi was trying to organize her confused thoughts, she caught a familiar sound in her ear. Miyabi's heartbeat. However, it was faster than before. It wasn't an illusion. Furthermore, the strength in the arm holding her was increasing. In other words, Miyabi was shaking unexpectedly.
...Why? Miyabi, why, what.
It was quiet. No one spoke. Only the sound of her ragged breathing filled the silence. Yanagi's hand, which had no place to go, tightly gripped her clothes. If this continues.
"Yanagi."
Yanagi flinched at the voice coming from her ear. She seemed to pull out one arm, then naturally brushed back her side hair. Her fingertips brushed against her ear, causing her to shrug her shoulders. Oh, really. She couldn't help but feel strange. Anyone would do that if their name was called in this situation. However, contrary to her expectations, Miyabi released her arm and turned around.
"Let's go to sleep now. It's late at night."
Yanagi couldn't help but be dumbfounded by the sudden change in attitude. Maybe nothing had changed, and she was just mistaken. Miyabi was just the same as usual, but she couldn't think straight because she was swept up in the atmosphere. But it wasn't like she had expected. With nowhere to lean on, Yanagi turned around and laid down. She clutched her chest, which wasn't calming down at all. It seemed like it would be hard to cool down her cheeks that were so hot. It seemed like she wouldn't be able to sleep easily tonight.