That evening, after returning from Plum Blossom Garden, I was handling paperwork alone in Schale as usual.
Just as I was deeply considering how to deal with a certain document in front of me, a Momotalk notification interrupted my thoughts.
Kazusa: Sensei, are you free right now?
Kyouyama Kazusa of the After-School Sweets Club was one of the first students I met in Kivotos, and we had remained in contact ever since, just like I had with the other members of her club.
Whenever I had free time, I would occasionally go out with them to try newly released desserts. Our relationship could already be considered quite close.
Still, the thing I talked about most often with Kazusa was helping her study.
Kazusa's grades were not particularly good, but I felt that the way she occasionally came to ask me about problems was probably just an excuse to talk to me and use "repaying the favor" as a reason to buy me drinks.
In any case, if Kazusa was contacting me about studying again, then this might happen to be a good opportunity to test the Authority I obtained from Shun during the day.
I immediately recalled the new content I saw on the card after coaxing Shun to close her eyes and spending some time admiring her sleeping face.
——
Solidify Authority: [The Way of the Great Learning]
Description: The holder will receive enhancement to their teaching ability.
Source: Successful conquest of Sunohara Shun
——
When I saw that name at the time, my first reaction was...
Then would her younger sister's Authority be called The Way of Elementary School?
[To illuminate bright virtue, to renew the people, and to rest in the highest good.]
Although I had no concrete proof, I somehow felt the whispering voice was mocking me.
Unfortunately, Kokona was still too young. As someone who upheld principles firmly in this regard, I regretfully abandoned my desire to investigate further.
Instead, my curiosity turned toward the card's usual vague description regarding the exact effects of this so-called "enhancement to teaching ability."
Thus, in the Schale office, after glancing at the still towering pile of documents, I tapped my phone.
Me: As free as ever. What's up?
Kazusa: Um, this is probably hard to explain through text...
Kazusa: Would a video call be okay right now?
Staring at those words, I briefly suspected that she simply missed my handsome face and gentle voice, which was why she made such a request.
After tidying my appearance a little, I gave an affirmative reply. The other side thanked me and immediately sent the invitation.
To my surprise, Kazusa was not the only one who appeared on screen.
Airi, Yoshimi, and Natsu, the members of the After-School Sweets Club, were all gathered together at this hour...
No, on closer inspection, Natsu, who seemed to be quietly sniffling on the other side, was only appearing through a video feed connected to Airi's call. She herself was apparently not physically present.
As for the expressions of the other three girls, one looked worried, another speechless, another awkward. Not a single one wore the restrained smile girls should naturally show upon seeing the secretly admired me.
Seeing this scene, I was utterly confused.
"What happened?"
Don't tell me Natsu annoyed someone again and they specifically called me in to mediate.
But that didn't seem right either. Whether teasing Kazusa or Yoshimi, Natsu would usually join forces with the other party. Even if she ended up getting beaten after pushing someone too far, she could at least share some of the incoming fire.
"Um, in that case, I'll explain everything."
Airi volunteered, then began telling me what had happened.
Because of the traditional festival called the Feast of Divine Revelation that was approaching, Trinity students were about to receive a four-day holiday.
Natsu, who always pursued romance and adventure, naturally could not sit still this time either. She proposed that everyone use this rare opportunity to embark on an "adventure to find the legendary dessert."
Of course, Natsu was not acting entirely without basis.
She had obtained information claiming that on a mountain some distance away from the Trinity Downtown District, there was a cave that maintained subzero temperatures even during summer, allowing icicles to form year-round.
And those icicles were not ordinary ones. They were formed from the sap flowing from sugar maple trees growing inside the cave, freezing into shape, effectively making them a kind of natural maple syrup.
As for the source of this information...
It came from the occult section of a magazine.
"I told you already, all those rumors are completely made-up stories!?"
Yoshimi could not help complaining.
"But Natsu believed it completely. When we refused to go with her, she ran off there by herself. In the end, not only did she fail to find any maple syrup icicles, she got herself lost inside too!"
Natsu swayed her head side to side.
"That just shows you don't understand. Desserts themselves are important, but the process of searching for desserts also has value. In other words, failure itself is a form of romance."
"Is that so?" Yoshimi sneered mercilessly. "Then why don't you stay inside that cave and enjoy that romance by yourself?"
"Don't be like that." Natsu blinked innocently. "I believe everyone wouldn't abandon a friend, right? Besides..."
The pink-haired girl smiled faintly, meaningfully.
"Especially in front of sensei."
Hearing this, Kazusa's mouth twitched, while Airi awkwardly laughed it off.
Yoshimi, meanwhile, froze briefly before clutching her head in frustration.
"Ahhh! I knew it, asking us to contact sensei for help definitely meant you were plotting something!"
She had used everyone's affection for me against them, forcing them to save her stubborn self in order to maintain their image in my mind.
Natsu truly was a schemer among pink-haired girls.
"Uuu... sensei, save me..." Ignoring Yoshimi, Natsu turned to plead with me. "It's really dark here. I can't see anything at all. It's so scary..."
"Anyway, sensei, that's the situation." Kazusa, who had contacted me first, sighed. "It's already this late, and we're still bothering you because of this idiot. I'm really sorry."
"It's fine. If anything, I'm happy that you were willing to come ask me for help when something like this happened."
I smiled, then became serious.
"Everyone except Natsu is already at the dorms, right? Get ready to head out first. I'll come pick you up immediately. Natsu, stay where you are and don't move around. Send me the cave's approximate location. As for curfew issues, I'll handle them."
Natsu nodded thoughtfully.
"So this is what adults are like. It's really reassuring."
Yoshimi frowned suspiciously.
"You're not implying something weird again, are you?"
After giving all the necessary instructions, I ended the video call. While contacting a Tea Party executive I knew for assistance, I boarded the Schale helicopter and headed for Trinity.
After picking up the three members of the After-School Sweets Club and greeting the dorm supervisor, who for some reason looked at me strangely and most likely harbored feelings of admiration toward me, I officially set out with them to rescue the lost Natsu.