"…Yeah, well, apparently this place can make it all the way to space. According to the manual, the final phase of the emergency escape system involves detaching each lower floor one by one. They say it can reach the moon and come back. Though… only the sixth floor at the top will be left by the time it returns."
That's what the manual says, anyway… but seriously, that has to be a lie, right? I'd really like to believe that.
"That's… quite the grand design," Sona Shitori said, clearly at a loss for words after bringing up the topic herself.
Normally, it'd be easy to dismiss something like this as just a joke—but when names like Azazel or Grigori, The Watchers of the Children of God get involved, it's hard to shrug anything off.
Not that I've got some burning desire to travel into space, but I wasn't planning to turn my own house into a launch pad either.
Time to change the subject.
"Rias-senpai, Yuuto… and even Azazel-sensei aren't here today, but it'd be nice if we could all hang out like this together someday."
Maybe even invite Koko-noe along, if possible. It's hard to plan anything like that with terrorism running rampant lately, but once the whole Khaos Brigade mess is settled, things might ease up. I'd like to do something about Trihexa eventually… and after that, if I recall, there's a threat of some army of eldritch gods from another dimension attacking in twenty or thirty years?
"Yes, I imagine once Rias hears we all gathered like this, she'll take charge and organize something similar herself, even if I don't plan it."
"Indeed, Rias-sama tends to go all in when it comes to events like this," Akeno added with a teasing smile.
"Oh my, speaking of events… Ravel-chan, you had one just yesterday, didn't you? How was your first date with Ikki-kun?"
"Wha—!?"
Ravel turned beet red and became visibly flustered as the spotlight hit her out of nowhere.
"Oh? That's news to me. Would you mind filling me in on the details?" Sona leaned in, clearly intrigued.
So even the prim and proper ones enjoy a little romance gossip, huh? Alright then, I see how it is.
"A-ah, well, I guess I'll go for a swim now—"
I tried to make a clean getaway, but Ravel grabbed my right hand, and Akeno my left. Even Sona, sitting directly across from me, locked me in place with a pressure-filled Gendo Pose.
"Arima-kun, I said I wanted the full story. So I'm afraid leaving isn't one of your options."
"Ikki-sama, I'm certain the girls would pry it all out of me later anyway. So at least stay with me while I endure this."
"Ufufu♪ It's not very gentlemanly to abandon a lady on the battlefield, you know."
Battlefield!? This is a battlefield now!?
And that's how I ended up having to recount our date from yesterday… This is emotional damage—no doubt about it.
==========
~ Flashback: The Date ~
It was right after the mage attack, and just before the mock battle with the student council. While we were relaxing at home after school and club activities, I had brought it up to Ravel.
"Hey, Ravel. Got any plans this weekend?"
"Plans? Nothing specific, no."
"Then… wanna go somewhere together?"
When I posed the question, both Ravel and Shione (who happened to be nearby) froze like startled animals.
"Wha!? I-is this… possibly… a date invitation!?"
"For real, Ikki-senpai!?"
I gave each of their heads a gentle pat to calm them down.
"Yeah, pretty much. I mean, I went to an amusement park with Shione before, but we've never had a proper date since we started officially going out, have we? With the school trip, the intensive training for the match against Sairaorg, the crisis in the Underworld, and then the attack from the mages and Grendel… we've just been so busy. And who knows when the vampire problem will escalate? But if I'm your fiancé and I still haven't taken you on a proper date… that's just pathetic. So yeah, Ravel, would you like to go out with me?"
I also thought a date might help her shake off the heavy feelings she got after seeing that mage factory.
"I… I'm truly honored by your invitation! But wouldn't it make more sense to take Kuroka-san, your first girlfriend, on a date first?"
"Aah, I'll pass on that, nya. I do want to go on a date with Ikki eventually, but I'm almost done crafting a new spell. I can't focus on anything else until it's finished. So! You two have fun without me, okay~?"
Actually, I had already talked to Kuroka about going on a date, but she turned me down for that exact reason. When I visited her room, she had a massive, intricate magic circle laid out—so complex it looked like something Ajuka Beelzebub himself had made during that time he broke through the Dimension Lost barrier.
I'm not a magic expert, so I couldn't make heads or tails of it, even from a glance.
I did try asking her what it was for, and all she said was, "That's a secret~ But once it's done, you'll totally understand why I chose it over going on a date."
She looked so confident. Maybe she's crafting a god-killer spell? After all, she couldn't land a finishing blow against god-level opponents like Loki or Thanatos. And since she is part of the Nekomata warrior race, it makes sense that she leans toward offensive magic.
"Well, in that case… I would be honored to go with you, Ikki-sama."
Ravel smiled so brightly it was like a flower blooming. Yeah, inviting her was the right call. Even Shione gave me a supportive nod. Hopefully, after Kuroka and I get our turn, we can plan a trip with everyone. I wonder if we could even bring Kokonoe along?
Ravel hasn't really had a chance to prove herself in a major way yet, but if it's me, Kuroka, and Shione together, we might be able to get permission for a longer trip. I'll ask Yasaka-sama when the time comes.
"So, have you already decided where we're going?" Shione asked, tilting her head.
"Yeah, we're going to Okinawa."