Amagi Brilliant Park's
V2 - Chapter 2 Part 4
Just then, a stone pillar in the back of the room shifted open, the staff door opened, and Sento Isuzu appeared.
“Sento?” Seiya blinked. “You okay?”
Macaron out after Isuzu. They were followed by an unfamiliar mink-like mascot.
“Kanie-kun,” Isuzu greeted him indifferently. “This may surprise you, but they are telling the truth.”
Now that he mentioned it, he remembered seeing a document or project sheet for something like this: twelve or thirteen years ago, he said, there are already proposed plans for the second park area—other than stadium—whose development has stalled due to lack of funds.
It would simulate the world of computer RPGs, which were quite popular in its time, and let the visitors feel the underground adventure. The project name is ‘Final Quest (temporary).’ His name really sounded cheap so Seiya could not help but remember it.
That's all he knew about the project. Then, the fact that the project should have been discarded, and the land abandoned, when their financial problems proved difficult to solve.
“If the project is discarded, then what is it doing here now?” Seiya asked the moody Rubrum and his staff.
《Oh, well.. Actually, I was only hired, so I don't know much about the place personally..
“I'll explain this, mog.” It turned out that the monsters were played by a large swarm of fairies like mole rats, which seemed their current leader was stepping forward.
Although it was a little too late to discuss, Seiya could now see that the weapon they were carrying was a well-sculpted urethane foam. All of his traps were definitely made in the same way; there was never any danger of anyone getting hurt.
The leader of the three-headed mole rat (for some reason, he was wearing a tie and a safety helmet) continued:
“I am Taramo, son of Dorumo. I am the head of the Mogute clan, and the chairman of the Mogmog Building Union!”
“Um, which means..?”.
“That means I'm in charge here, mog.”
“Nice to hear it,” said Seiya agreed. “So, Taramo, please explain to me; what are the outcast attractions doing here?”
“I have to start with the tragic history of our Mogute clan, mog. Everything started 2,000 years ago—”
“Ah, no. Please abbreviated.” Seiya waved both hands and cut off Taramo's words.
“Huh? But this is a long and epic story that is on par with the history of the Tolkien elves. You're so petty, mog.”
“Summary course in three sentences.” Seiya ordered.
“...We have long since escaped from the tyrants who seek us for our exceptional carpentry skills,” explains Taramo. “Thirteen years ago we were fed up with all that, and asked the park manager to let us use this land. They needed it to be an attraction in theory, so we set this up, and we've been living here ever since. That's her! Three sentences.”
Everyone other than Seiya clapped, impressed that he had succeeded.
“Hey, wait a minute!” Seiya. “Are you guys satisfied with that explanation?”
“You are the one who asked for it summarized in three sentences, ron.”
“I think the explanation is very clear, fumo.”
“Kanie-kun, are you secretly stupid, mii?”
Why is everyone treating me like a fool here? Seiya was just about to refute when Isuzu interrupted. He holds a laptop in his hand, and appears to be using cloud data to check his story.
“I just checked our past expenses... and it seems to be true,” he concluded. “Managers at the time conspired with various other department heads to accommodate the Mogute Clan. There is even an inexplicable diversion of money.”.
“In other words, ‘atraction waste’ is actually tangible, and already using the park funds?!” Seiya offended. “Without bringing guests?!”
“...Is that right, Taramo-san?”
Urged by Isuzu, Taramo nodded. “Yes, we received funds to build the attraction. But we have not taken a single cent from the park since then, mog. We did tap you for electricity and water, but only in very small quantities, mog. We have already dug up our personal funds for all other living and operational expenses.”
Macaron and Tiramii turned pale after hearing that.
“Wait, ron! Digging into your personal funds, you mean..”.
Taramo. “This room used to be full of treasures. but everything is almost gone now, mog.”.
“You use everything, mii?!”
They had cared for dozens of members of the Mogute Clan for over a decade, however. It is easy to imagine that it costs millions, maybe even billions of yen. As expected, the legend of the treasure labyrinth was a dead end.
“Of course, we've been thinning lately, so over the last few years we've all been working part-time. Shopper, family restaurant, late night street work.” It seems like a gloomy life.
“So you guys are gone from here?” Seiya asked.
“Quite often. We've got secret roads all over the park, mog.”
“Hmm..”
Taramo stared into the distance. “We want our existence to remain a secret, mog. So if you guys can go and pretend you never saw us, we'll really appreciate that, mog.”
“……”
“The managers we met were very kind. We've been hired by the rulers of the Polytear Kingdom to dig a secret escape tunnel from their palace. Then we were buried alive so we could keep quiet about it. Of course, we won't sneak underground forever!”
“Isn't it from The A-Team?” Seiya asked.
“I can't believe you realized it! …So, of course, we dug a tunnel to escape. But wherever we went, they chased. We had no choice when your manager gave us a way out, mog. We were even given this land to hide, mog!” Tears began to spill from Taramo's eye bags. Seiya checked and saw that the rest of the Mogute Clan were shedding tears of gratitude at ‘manager.’
“Please, Mr Managing Manager! Please let us, mog!”
“What a pity, mii. Let's do it, mii!”
《I'm begging you too. Please, please!》
All eyes were on Seiya. They wait for five small words: ‘Alright, I'll let you guys.’
“Hei, Sento. What ‘manager’ are they talking about this..”.
“...Yes. That's right.”
He looked at Moffle. Moffle nodded seriously.
“So...” Seiya more or less understands what has happened. Taking that into account, he had a lot to think about. He ran some calculations in his head, as fast as he could and without taking sides. And the answer he got was—
“No.”
The room broke out in a cry of disbelief.
“Why, mii?!”
“That's cruel, mog!”
“Tell us the reason, ron!”
Stepping back from the group as they interrogated him, Seiya repeated himself.
“The answer is no! No, gotcha?! And for the reason—” Seiya check the time. He can't stay longer. He had to go back to the administration building. “Begini, I'll explain later! Just take me to the exit for now!”
The red dragon Rubrum moved to block their path. 《I-it won't let you! I won't let you go until you guarantee that we—》
“Moffle!”
“Moffu!” Moffle stepped forward. His gaze made Rubrum retreat, terrified.
《K-You don't have to look at me. I just want you to realize how desperate I am. I'm not really gonna stop you. So please, please, don't hit me!》
“Prepare to go, okay?! Moffle, you stay here, okay?!”
“Hmm. Not sure how I feel about being treated like an errand boy, but.. all right, fumo.” Moffle nodded reluctantly, perhaps realizing that Seiya must have had a good reason for all of this.
“Oke, let's go! Damn it.. it would be a disaster if we were late.”.
With Isuzu catching up, Seiya ran outside the room.
...----------------...
Really... Why did you give something so stressful to the head of the PR department? Tricen, sitting in the conference room in front of the row of men in suits, let out a long sigh. He was wearing his Amulet Lalapatch, so he looked like an ordinary human to them, but that was not the reason he was so tense.
From left to right: sitting head and branch manager of a real estate company, branch manager of a large bank, new representative and director of the Amagi Developer company, and clerk of a third-party agency. It was a gathering that would make him nervous even at the best of times, but other than that, they joined the ranks of the executives and managers of Malmart Stores.
Malmart! The famous American supermarket! Worldwide sales are over thirty trillion yen! The meeting was a contract negotiation with the Japanese branch of Malmart.
Tricen knows that Kanie Seiya, Sento Isuzu, Ashe and several others have held secret meetings and sent emails about unspecified matters, but he does not know exactly what they are. Now that he knew—yah, he did not know what kind of magic they used to get this far, but the scale was too large. A huge worldwide supermarket chain coming to our remote amusement park? thought surprised. What has this young man achieved?!
Tricen is rethinking the events of this morning: “Can't be trusted. Exorbitant! I can't lead negotiations with those important people! I graduated in Japanese Literature; I don't speak English! I, Tricen, was forced to bend over due to a severe stomachache!” That was the reason for Tricen that morning when Seiya ordered him to attend the meeting.
“School students like me cannot lead negotiations,” Seiya insisted. “So we have to present you as deputy director. Be unimportant and unobtrusive, then Sento and I will solve the problem as your secretary.”
When he said that, Tricen could barely resist.
The meeting will start at 4:00 p.m., but it is now ten minutes past. They started out with a business card exchange marathon (which surprisingly caused stress on its own, and already took up most of Tricen's mental strength), and now he's making small talk about tomorrow's weather, his teeth were grinding with a smile.
The guests did not look happy at all. Some people seem confused as to why they are there.
“...So, emm. I am sure that the low pressure system will bring rain to the eastern part of Japan tomorrow. The sky will be cloudy in the morning, with 80% chance of rain during the day. If you go out, don't forget your umbrellas. …Well, about the temperature. Although today is cool, tomorrow will average down about eight degrees, so dress as you want for mid-March—”
“We have heard enough about the weather, Toride-san,” said developer director Amagi (‘Toride’ is the Japanese name Tricen), cutting Tricen's boring talk.
Developer Director Amagi is a man on the verge of 70 years, with sunken bulldog eyes as well as long, bushy eyebrows. He was an MLIT bureaucrat before he took his current post.
Amagi developers have long been hostile to their park, and the director is among those who want to turn the park into a golf course. Although he is not very aggressive about it at the moment; he seems to think that if he leaves Amagi Brilliant Park with their own plans, he could easily destroy it next year. Meanwhile, he is quite satisfied collecting ‘ executive compensation’ eight figures of his to come to the office several times a week, sip tea and play mahjong computer—In other words, sip, he is a former government bureaucrat in corporate leadership.
The old bulldog continued in annoyance: “We have given you this precious time from our days, and all you have done is talk about the weather. It's time we finish this.”
“Ah, yes, you are right. But I don't have all the documentation on hand, so. em, the managing manager.
Kanie Seiya, the most important person in the negotiations, has still not appeared. Tricen's been calling her a few times since before the meeting started, but the calls aren't connected. He also could not contact Sento Isuzu, although he saw them working in the office that morning?
He gave an imploring look to Ashe, who was sitting at the table with him, but all he did was shrug his shoulders. “We can prepare the documentation later. This is the main proposal, so we should probably move on from small talk.”
“Y-Yes, of course! W-Then let me explain what makes our garden special. I want to give you all deep levels—”
“We don't need to hear that,” said Developer Director Amagi flat. “We know it's not special.”
“Oh, don't say that!” Tricen. “This is a very nice park!”
“Toride-san... did you play around with us?”
“T-Of course not, ah, em...”
The executive's expression had already gone from being vexed to being devoid of feeling at all. Tricen's own face turned deathly pale. Pushed into despair, he was just about to talk about his favorite idol, when the door of the conference room opened violently.
“Sorry we are late!”
Kanie Seiya and Sento Isuzu enter. They both wore suits, shoulders up and down, and carried documents and tablets beside them.
“Sorry for our delay, Deputy Director of Toride. We have the documents you requested. Please confirm the contents.” They sat on both sides of Tricen and pressed the archives into his hands.
“Ah, yes. Oh my, what a problem. You guys keep everybody waiting, you know? Now, let's see... yes, yes..” He leaned in feeling right himself and opened the archive that Seiya gave him there was nothing in it other than a few supermarket brochures.
What am I supposed to do with this?! He wanted to cry, but Seiya closed Tricen's mouth with his hands, then smiled kindly at the various representatives present.
“Everything, I'm so sorry to have kept you all waiting. If you allow it, I would like to discuss some details on behalf of Deputy Director Toride. Is that acceptable?”
The rest of the observer group nodded, looking ready to listen to him.
The strangest aspect, to Tricen, was that no one seemed to have just met Seiya for the first time. He and Isuzu did not even have to introduce themselves. What the hell is going on here? he wonders. Can you handle this, Kanie-san?!
“I appreciate that. Then... let's start the final negotiations for the sale of the second part of Amagi Brilliant Park.”
Tricen almost screamed in shock, but this time Isuzu silenced him.
...----------------...
Developer Amagi has already filed opposition, but Malmart Stores is enthusiastic about the proposal. They are the largest supermarket chain in North America, but their last attempt to enter the Japanese market has ended in a painful failure. Although it was thanks to a new trade agreement to be signed, they planned to try expanding to Japan again.
This time, their plan was to open a large shopping mall that would be filled with various brand stores. But to do so, they need a lot of land.
“So...” thought Isuzu, “but how did you know their plan?” Three weeks earlier, when Seiya told him about his plan to sell the land, Isuzu asked a reasonable question. He may be their managing manager, but Seiya is still a High School, and has no true connections in the financial world.
“I didn't chase Malmart at first,” Seiya explained to him. “I just want to find someone, anyone, who wants to buy a second garden land. If the worst really happened, I would let Developer Amagi turn it into a golf course like they wanted—but I hope to find a better deal, he said, better yet a facility that will bring in a huge crowd. So I started making contacts.”
He went on to explain the unpredictability of the process: he started with a large network of discounted furniture stores, headed straight to their headquarters in the city and spoke to a secretary. Then, he made progress with sub-headers, section chiefs, department heads, and company directors, questioning whether or not they would buy his land.
“Do you use your magic?” Isuzu wants to know.
“Of course I wear it,” reply Seiya. “There's no way I can get that far with just negotiation. First, I looked at who the secretary was cheating with, and used that to get the subheading influence. Then I used the same method on him to gain the influence of the section chief. Then I found out about the hobby of trading insiders section heads to go up to department heads. SM club heads departments are frequented, and let me tell you, it was a difficult read..”.
“I understand. You got to this level through blackmail, then.” Isuzu is shocked by Seiya's initiative and madness. It flashed in his mind how precise he was because he had already made her use her mind reader magic on the day after he got it. If he didn't do that, he wouldn't be able to work with him because he was always worried.
“Violence is a bad word,” protest. “I just got a little information about them and asked for their help.”
“Most will call that blackmail.” says Isuzu.
“...OK, fine. Anyway, what I learned was that blackmailing a few elements wasn't enough to affect a big company. The first furniture store I visited was in no mood to open a new store, so I gave up.” Still, for some reason, the director of the place had already decided he liked Seiya, and invited her to a local restaurant to eat ginger pork.
“I'm glad he's so understanding..” Isuzu commented.
“Yes. He said, ‘work for us once you graduate from university.’ After that, I tried the same trick on company after company. There were more than a few cases where I used my magic at the wrong time, or I could not utilize what I learned to climb the next rung… I feel a little like a student struggling to find a job.” he admits.
“What happened after that?” Isuzu.
“I took a walk before ending up in a large domestic shopping mall company. You know which one. Branches in each area—”
“Ah, yes. I'm aware of that.”
“They have been trying hard lately, and are not in the mood to open a new branch,” Seiya sighed. “They are actually planning a reduction of employees..”
But then, in the midst of the discussion, Seiya realizes that the man he is talking to thinks he is a spy from a rival company.
“And that rival company is a Japanese Malmart affiliate?” Isuzu.
“Yes. There are rumors circulating at the management level that Malmart is trying to expand into the Japanese market again. It was good information, so I went straight from there to Shinjuku Malmart Headquarters.”
He then explains how he solved the problem from there; Malmart has been looking for a great location in the suburbs of Tokyo. They had several candidates, but they all had their own issues: too expensive, too remote, too far from the city, too many negative responses from local merchants…
“Meanwhile, although AmaBuri is an ugly amusement park, the location is good,” Seiya explained. “Less than one hour by train or bus to Shinjuku, and only ten minutes drive from the highway. There are untouched hills on each side, there are no residential or shopping districts near there. In fact, it is an ideal location for a large shopping mall.”.
And so, he introduced himself to someone who would talk to him and offer a fair price for his land. Of course, that doesn't mean everything went smoothly from there: there is doubt that it was too good to be true, and Seiya was at a disadvantage during the price negotiations. He could only use the power of his mind reader once per person, so he had to time his use carefully.
“Next,” he concluded, “his negotiation went well. Now we just have to make the Amagi Developer agree to it.”
As a large shareholder in the park, Amagi Developers have a lot of influence in what they do. They also want the park closed. Will they actually give permission to sell the second park?
When Isuzu discussed the matter, Seiya simply shrugged.
“They will accept it,” he said easily. “They will also earn a lot of money if the sale is approved. I'm sure Developer Amagi is in a troublesome financial predicament, just like us.”
“If Kurisu Takaya's people are still with them,” Isuzu predicts, “ia will never allow it.”
Timeless thorn on their side—Kurisu Takaya, from Developer Amagi—disappeared abruptly since revealing ‘real identity’ himself on them recently. They don't know why he disappeared, but without him, the Amagi Developers don't have shrewd negotiators; they can't move aggressively to destroy them.
Anyway, he made a sales plan according to plan. With the help of Isuzu making all the details resolved, it will probably come true.
“But... are you sure you want to do this?” Isuzu asked Seiya after they compiled the details in the office that night. “Maybe it is not used, but the second park is part of AmaBuri, and the land we sell includes the stadium that saved us last month. Don't you..” Isuzu shrinks the voice with doubt.
“What's bothering you?” he wants to know. “Once the final negotiations are over, but before they take effect, I will explain them to the cast. If they don't accept that, it's a pity, I guess.”.
He could find a little something to resist in Seiya's words. Rather, it was an incredible achievement that truly demonstrated his ability. At the same time, the land where the second park is located is the area of the park that is now. Selling it was like giving up half of the park itself.
“Perhaps there are many cast members who think, subconsciously, ‘Once the business returns to its original state, maybe we can expand our attractions to a second park to create the best amusement park in Japan,’” said at last. “Wouldn't this steal that hope from them?”
Moffle, in particular, tends to get angry. He will shout: “How dare you! You'll pay for it, fumo!” and lunged at Seiya before he could explain. Maybe that's why he didn't tell her about the sale.
“Expand to second park? Sorry to destroy your fantasy, but that will never happen,” whispered Seiya firmly. “More likely if the park will be closed first. Sorry I repeat myself, but the drowning man can't pick where he'll arrive on land.”
“Indeed, but..”
“We will never reach the point where our biggest problem is the inability to expand,” Seiya insisted. “I promise you that.”
“I... sense no,” Isuzu reluctantly agrees with him.
“In addition, if the park manages to survive until next year and the following year, that's when this sale will really pay off.
Think about it,” he told her. “We'll have a big shopping mall open next door, right?”
He talks about synergy. Families who shop at the mall will also stop by the park, and guests who come back refreshed after a day at the park will come to the mall. Not a bad deal at all for Malmart.
“When it happens—must say, if we manage to live that long—it will greatly extend the life of the park. You can sleep quietly for a while even after I leave,” explains Seiya. “No regrets, okay?”
...----------------...
Final negotiations have been concluded, and an official contract will be signed as early as next week.
Tricen and Ashe were surprised by Seiya's relaxed way of handling those stone-faced important people, but it was easy to explain. During his days as a child actor, he has done countless auditions for eccentric directors and producers. If he messed up, his mother would scold him and beat him up. Compared to the unease he felt back then, a conference like this was nothing.
One crazy card in all this—Amagi— Developer has also agreed to the talk.But, gaining their approval means the park is now facing a new challenge: the annual surge of arrivals they need. It was a difficult condition to accept, but he had no choice but to take it.
...----------------...
That night, just before closing time, Seiya headed for the towering roof garden of Maple Castle in the center of the park. It was late April, close to Golden Week. A gentle breeze blew through the garden, moving the flowers in full bloom.
“I've been waiting for your arrival, Kanie-sama.” Latifah Fleuranza was waiting for her, with her usual set of tea on the usual garden table.
“Ah.. true.” he stuttered.
“Surely you have had a long day on display,” he said. “I can get some very quality tea leaves today.I hope it might help.”.
“Mm... well, thank you, I guess.”
Latifah had already lost her memory of everything before this month, and things had become awkward between them ever since. Although he did not treat her harshly or coldly, she was clearly not the Latifah she knew: she did not know about her promise to her, nor about her acrophobia. He may also not know the full story of why he took on such a stressful task as managing manager.
“You smell the ground today,” said Latifah, her little nose twitching. “Have you finished working on the ground? Her eyes are so bright; I hope you don't get a heat stroke.”
“Ah. And we did encounter some dangerous situations.” He said it in a joking manner, and he laughed a little. Then, he brought his face closer to Seiya's chest. “A-What?” tanyakanya.
“You are like Isuzu-san,” Latifah observes. “Like his favorite shampoo..”.
“Huh? Why me... what?” Then, he recalled: After all the chaos in the labyrinth, they ran back to the administration building, changed clothes, and then met in the elevator to the meeting room. At that moment, Isuzu realized that his tie was not straight, and when he leaned in to fix it, Isuzu's bangs tickled his cheeks. It made her a little nervous at the time.
“Oh, I remember..” he stuttered. “It was, uh.. He was just helping me. I mean, there was a bit of contact between us, but it wasn't serious.”.
Latifah laughed again. “I'm just teasing. She is your secretary; it is natural that you will smell like her.”
“...Y-Ya.” Feeling a little suffocated, Seiya loosened his tie.
Her sense of smell is particularly impressive if she can catch a brief contact from hours ago. He should be aware of his scent from now on.
“But I admit.. I do envy her who is always with you.” Latifah.
“B-REally?”
“Yes. Very.” This time, it was hard to tell if he was serious or joking.
Seiya wondered how he should react to his comments. As kindness, as temptation, as seriousness…? I don't know, he realized. A few minutes ago, he had negotiated with an adult with perfect confidence. Why is dealing with this girl always completely undermining her belief in herself?
Just as she was beginning to worry that she might hear her heart pounding, Latifah moved in a very natural way. “What's the negotiation worked?” tanyakanya.
“Huh?”
“You have important negotiations regarding the second park today, don't you?” Latifah has given permission for the sale of the second park. He was a bit sad about it, of course, but in the end, the livelihood of his cast members was more important to him than any land. After explaining the situation to her, she could not say ‘no.’
“Oh, the?” Seiya remembered. “I think we've agreed.”
“I'm so happy to hear it.”
“But... they raised our annual arrival quota,” he admitted. “That means our situation is more difficult than before.”
“But money won't be a problem, at least?” Latifah asked.
“No, for a while no,” she replied to him. “Dan... well, before the negotiation, I checked the second park.”
“Ya?”
“And. I dug something in there, you could say so. It put myself in some kind of difficult situation.”.
“…?”
He talked about the Mogute Clan and the underground labyrinth. More than ten years ago, when they ran out of countries to come to as refugees, the manager who saved them and gave them land secretly was, obviously, Latifah. Even so, thanks to his curse, he had already lost his memory of this situation, which left him perplexed as to how exactly he should explain everything to her.
“What's up?” tanyakanya. “Is that something that would hurt if I heard?”
“Hmm... well, that sort of thing. Say, Latifah..
“Ahh?”
“And you let some refugees stay in that apartment. And then, for some unavoidable reason, you have to throw them out. Uh, let's say the apartment is aging and has to be torn down, or something. And, um.”.
“Ah,” Latifah confessed, “I'm afraid I don't understand..”.
Uhh, that's very annoying. “Look, I'll just tell you directly. What happened was—” Seiya decided to get rid of his analogy and tell him only.
Latifah listened to him until the end, whispering and nodding politely at all appropriate points. “You mean, I'm the one who offered protection to this Mogute Clan?”
“Ya,” he admits.
“And today, you made the decision to expel them. Is that what you mean?”
“Ya.” He uses the term ‘refugee’ in his analogy, but that is not far from the truth. He did not know exactly what political situation existed in their magical realm, but the fact was that they had already lost their homeland and they were in trouble. And now, he had to demolish their new home and sell it.
But Latifah's reaction is far from being blamed for each other. “I'm sorry..” whispered, looking sad. Her wavy blonde hair dangled on her face, covering her expression. “My irresponsible actions are what forced you to make this painful decision.”.
“T-No...” Seiya denied. “It's not too painful. And you who are now have done nothing wrong.”
“I can't agree. Even if I don't have any idea about it, I'm the one who made that decision. I don't know this Mogute Clan, yet I definitely feel pity, and postpone the matter without thinking about the future. That's not the right thing to do. How can I make it up to you?” Although his voice was firm, he could not hide the fact that he was shaken.
Seiya did not reply to anything. Can't help that silence, maybe, Latifah started whispering again intermittently: “...I'm sure.. this happens every year, and again I. …I tried to act in a way that suited my royal position, but I was haunted by the shadows. I can only wonder what unforgivable mistakes I have made in the past.Maybe I even treated you very badly last year.”.
“You don't,” he convinced her. “Really, you don't. You're very good.”
“Your kindness is much appreciated. But I can't get that thought out of my mind. It scares me,” Latifah admits.
To live in constant fear of things you don't remember ever doing. Maybe a heavy drinker like Moffle would understand a little better, but a drinking party can make you forget one night in the best of circumstances. The thought of forgetting a full year is terrible.
“So when I heard things about like this.. about the Mogute Clan. ‘That's not me. Surely, the present me will handle the situation with greater skill and dignity.’ Of course, I knew it couldn't be true, but I wanted to believe it so much. I can't forgive myself.”
Seiya did not know what to say to her. He always acted so boldly, with his friendly smile always there, that he assumed that nothing was bothering him. He never realized that he felt so conflicted, deep down. All this time, should he regard the girl he met three months ago and the girl before him at the moment as a different person? He doesn't know what to say. All he knows is that he is suffering.
They remained seated in their place, in silence, until the steam stopped billowing from the freshly poured tea.
“I... I know that I have to take responsibility, even so,” he confessed. “But I don't even know how I can start doing it..”.
“Ah, hey, come on..” said Seiya, forcing excitement in his way of speaking to the discouraged Latifah. “J-Don't worry about that. I'm gonna plan something. Employee cafeteria, warehouse. I could at least find a place for them to sleep tonight.”.
“But they're being hunted, aren't they?” Latifah. “We can't give them asylum.”
“Yah... umm..” He does not know the political relationship between the magical realms, but maybe it is difficult. What would happen if the ruler who was trying to bury the Mogute Clan heard that they were here, and demanded their return? What if some kind of magical gate opens, sending enemy troops to storm the park? Seiya had no frame of reference for such things; he could barely even imagine it.
...----------------...