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"Could it be that you are a Student Council President candidate?"

"Yeah. I'm Samiraya Mirke, nice to meet you."

"Ah, nice to meet you."

They shook hands, following the recent habit of this place. Not knowing what to do, they sized each other up, the two of them feeling a bit awkward.

"Hah...."

The two both sighed. This time it was really a meeting that would surprise people.

"....What?"

historical

"No, no, what's wrong, it's clear that there's something just from looking at Senpai."

"What, you want me to apologize because your mood is down?"

"That's not what I meant, um, I, uh, how should I say it...."

"Really, don't just get depressed whenever."

Even if he mouthed protests, he didn't know why, but he felt that Layfon's depression had nothing to do with Samiraya.

"What? Was there something that made you lose heart in the previous battle?"

"...."

"Ah, never mind, never mind."

Looking at Layfon's expression, which had become gloomy during the chat, Samiraya felt anxious.

"Um, sorry."

"It's okay, it doesn't matter. Feel free to sit down."

"Okay."

The two people sat in a row on the bench.

But, he regretted it after sitting down. The two were very gloomy, but even if they sat together, it wasn't any use. They silently prayed that they could quickly return.

"So, do you have some kind of problem?"

"No...."

"You already don't want to talk?"

"Sorry."

"Fine!"

If she wanted him to return, she shouldn't have asked him to sit. Samiraya pouted and looked towards their front, devoid of people.

"If I may ask, does Senpai have a problem?"

"What? You don't want to talk about your own trouble, but want to listen to other people's situations?"

"Um, sorry."

They went silent again. But Samiraya was quickly unable to endure this kind of silence.

"So, was the battle this tiresome?"

"Hmm?"

"Us normal people have no way of understanding the emotions that people hold in the middle of battle. I want to hear about your way of thinking."

"Speaking of that, indeed it feels tiresome sometimes."

"Ah, is that so...."

Samiraya muttered in a small voice. She had not really thought about it before this.

"It really is choking. The people next to you can just easily disappear...."

"No one's left?"

"You, could it be that you can't say any comforting words?"

"Sorry."

"It's alright, I'm not the only one like this. Rather, I don't have the experience. But, perhaps I haven't experienced any situation more painful than this."

"...."

"Because I hold it and understand it, when I don't say anything it instead makes me suffer more."

"That...."

"Ah, well, I understand. Even things are that way I should still keep living on. Especially for me who has set becoming the Student Council President as my target, I have to consider the people who are living. There are no adults in Zuellni, so we all must be adults, so I can't ignore the reality placed in front of me.

Afterwards, she let out a big sigh. She sorted out her thoughts for a moment, selecting suitable words.

"However, the people who were once in the Academy City have been long gone. They all leave because they graduate. This place doesn't have death. If we follow the rules of the Academy City, graduation is like dying. We have no way to request the aid of those people. We can't see them again. Maybe. Some people think that people who were born in different cities won't encounter each other again, but that is rational thinking. It's just the same as dying. Because they will already only appear in your memories."

"...."

"But memories are a form of solace. It's nothing more than that. That's how things are. That, that...."

When had this started, it wasn't her thoughts about Gorneo, but rather her own situation.

What was the reason for her longing to become the Student Council President?

"It's right in front of us. But I'm not bound by it. I don't want to be smug towards everyone, I want to be able to be sure of everything. That's where the problem lies."

"That...."

"Ahh, how embarrassing. I've just been spouting my head off. Anyway, that's all."

Samiraya satisfactorily said she understood her own thoughts.

"The problem is that right now if other people see me I won't feel any shame."

"Huh."

She saw that in Layfon's eyes flashed an inexplicable meaning. There were shadows. But, was this normal and commonplace for him, or had he been guided by dark things? She had no way of judging. Because she didn't understand the ordinary him, this was something she could do nothing about.

So, Samiraya had no way to hold back the things she had noticed and not said.

"In this Academy City, people get replaced every year. I myself had been here for six years. This world endlessly advances. In that kind of environment it's not possible to live leisurely. One needs to have something they want to do. If you have something you want to do then you will quickly and straightforwardly go do it. So we have to act."

"....But, you might be defeated, or nothing might happen, so then what do you do?"

This was something that Layfon disclosed from deep inside his heart. But to Samiraya, this was impossible to comprehend, and she really didn't understand Layfon's situation.

If Nina and Felli were there, perhaps this dialogue would not have been interrupted, and they would have understood.

But, Samiraya didn't know. Even if could see some desperate signs in his words, right now was not the time to hesitate.

"Losing isn't anything bad. Wasting time on regret is too much of a pity. Since you can't find it, why not try doing something else. My fundamental problem is that I don't know whether I have the ability to serve as the Student Council President or not. I have times when I want to rely on my friends or when I don't feel that many people support me, and I don't know if I can win the election. But I still want to try. So I'm doing it. When I feel that it won't work, then I'll think about looking into something else. That's why I always know what I want."

Layfon was overwhelmed by the momentum of her language, and Samiraya stood up. Even for the petite Samiraya, when she stood up she could look down upon the seated Layfon. However, the shadows swayed in his eyes as he looked upwards.

"Perhaps it's only because I don't have any responsibility that I act when I want to act. But, isn't it good to be able to rest when you want to rest? Even if it doesn't really match what I just said, even though you've lived in an Academy City for six years, your life definitely won't end in only six years."

"But...."

"The Military Arts Competition has already ended. Zuellni's crisis has already passed. Next year is a year to rest."

Samiraya announced this, but didn't stop her steps, since she had found something that she wanted to do. All that was left was action. Samiraya Mirke's thought of a question while simultaneously running and pondering.

It had to do with Layfon Alseif.

It had to do with having him become the Military Arts Head.

(It won't do. I feel like he's not very reliable.)

But, she also thought the reason for that kind of unreliability was because the shadows of things were binding his feet. Even if he didn't become the Military Arts Head, it would be good if some day those shadows disappeared.

Either way, he was a student of Zuellni.

But, this way of thinking lasted nothing more than a moment.

Flying aboard the tram that had just stopped in front of the station, no matter what she wanted to convince Gorneo. She had been thinking of that situation all along.

Later, the name Gorneo Luckens was impressively written in the Student Council supplement that the Samiraya faction published.