Hikaru Sakurai
~A certain month in 1902, Conneticuit~
...There are many instances where one just cannot do anything.
...For example. For example?
In the case of the young Elysia Wentworth, it was a moment of extreme embarrassment or shame. Usually it was done by her own hands. It was simply a lack of knowledge, carelessness in her behavior and speech, lack of observation, and so on. Even so. Since Elysia never realizes it until the moment arrives, there just wasn't anything she could have done with it. Thus, a fundamental solution was needed. Yes, such as a moment that she was unable to do anything about.
For instance, she was talking to someone she likes (to begin with, it was that of her ongoing love who is her first love so she knew well of who that other person was) or rather during a private tutor class, she suddenly asked a question that got her on something unrelated to her studies. Of course, she wasn't trying to take them by surprise and the conversation itself still had a flow to it. At that time, he was a young but brilliant Scholar. They were a research staff member of the E Foundation, a senior from the high school Eylsia attended, and a private tutor. He went on about "surveying through the applications of functions" as a part of breaking down examples in the math book she had opened up. As usual, she was repeatedly nodding her head. That seemed to have gotten him excited, and he started to discuss about code breaking and applying them before softly concluding with the following words:
"...Do you understand it?"
"...U-uhm..."
She had no idea what he was saying.
But as expected, his voice wasn't just gentle but nice and pleasant. Despite attempting to catch up on what he saying, Elysia was unable to due to how incomprehensible it was to her. All that Elysia could do was simply shake her head. Indeed, it was a helpless moment.
But. But. Even if she was aware of her own ignorance and idiocracy, there was many such things that the people around her weren't concerned about. Even if she were to permit him to teach this to people who weren't particularly well at mathematics by using examples of its applications, no one would blame Elysia for suddenly and naturally (in a gentle voice) discuss the prospects of the highly difficult latest encryption method she and her colleagues created, which would later be known as the Zodiac Cryptography, as a joke for one of its applications.
However. What if, for example, the problem was truly on Elysia and not on his fault? What if Elysia was constantly looking down, unable to express her intentions properly but her body showing clear signs of that problem?
"What's wrong, Elysia?"
"..."
"Elysia?"
"..."
Was it chance or luck that he was able to notice Elysia's biggest "emergency" when all she did was merely shake her head slightly and look down while not looking at him?
Given she always acting the same way (or more precisely, right after they met), there was just no way he wouldn't have noticed. However, he knew that Elysia had gotten over her timid shyness two weeks ago and just sensed something unusual with her presence at that time, which led him to saying the following words gently. In other words...
"Perhaps you might need to use the restroom?"
And that's exactly what happened.
Not only had she not finished her tutoring lesson before it can even start, but she had repeatedly drank the tea she had brought from the Scholar's flash (what you would refer to as a thermos bottle from the world) in order to escape the ripples of tension. As a result, Elysia's modest water tank had finally reached its limit.
Indeed.
This was a hopeless moment.
The fact she was able to avoid escaping reality by fainting from embarrassment was a miracle as praised by her best friend Vivi, who later got upset and asked "Why didn't you properly finish it?". This moment was the greatest display of Elysia's hard working bravado yet...
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~1908, March. Marseille~
"This is all of it. It seems to be a fragment of encrypted information the Lightning Lord salvaged from the Alexandria Library's information archives."
"May I ask you a question, Golden King?"
"What is it?"
"Why are you obsessed with New York case no. 201?"
"It's quite simple."
"Yes?"
"That poor Man of Thunder. He's reflecting on what he has and hasn't lost."
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~1907, December. Underground World~
...Sometimes. There's just moments where you can't really do anything about.
...For example. For example?
"I don't think this is good."
"Yes."
"I know you sometimes like to make a joke, but this isn't alright to do that."
"Yes."
"Hm. Don't do that again."
"Yes."
"Stop doing that."
"Yes."
"..."
"What is it?"
"...I was just wondering if you really understood it."
"Yes. I know of it."
"Really? Have you truly reflected on that, A?"
There was a moment of silence.
"...reflect?"
He didn't understand it. None of it.
Maybe it was an illusion that made him think he understood it. Perhaps it was wrong to think he was even joking to begin with. Lily was dumbfounded for a few seconds at the tall conductor's reaction as the sole subway car gently sways about, having even forgotten to scold or hit him right away. She even vaguely figure that this man, this tall man who only gave his name of the initial A, wasn't really Human.
There was a clanging sound. Right as soon as Lily was at a loss of words, the only sound being made in the subway room was the sound of the train running. The silence (albeit accompanied by rattling sounds) was something she normally wouldn't have taken notice of. However, it started to bother as of this moment. Could such a helpless, or rather unbearable second brought her humiliation and shame to Lily? Perhaps it did. It was embarrassing. And quite the feeling of shamefulness. Even more, she hadn't realized that she wasn't even wearing underwear for half the day!
"Are you upset?"
"W-what makes you think that?"
"No. It's nothing."
"W-w-what!?"
Lily had not yet acquired the feeling of "anger", so she wasn't able to really be angry. But what would have happened if she did? No one really knew. Not Lily herself, nor the God who created the Underground World, and not even the Black King who was kind of the same species as that God yet almost completely different. Thus, Lily tried to resolve this situation by taking action in this helpless moment albeit with some irritation.
So she quickly snatched up his hat.
Lily's hands would have obstructed by the black shadows stretching from his shadow had he truly desired it, and had that really happened, her thin wrists would have easily been torn off. However, that didn't happen. Lily already knew that this wouldn't happen even if it was done subconsciously as he was on her side as he wouldn't have done something intentionally to be mean. Thus, her irritation didn't turn into anger and she was able to easily take his hat. Yes, his hat. She had swiftly taken it.
"Lily."
"I'm not giving it back unless you truly reflect on your actions."
"If you wish for me to reflect on my actions, I will do so."
"...You act like you don't really need to do it."
"For instance. I would have had no choice but to take it off were you to be wearing underwear when you go to the bathroom."
He had just said something she didn't want to hear. As expected, Lily was blushing and tried to say something only for her tongue to be twisted so she was unable to get the words out. All sorts of things were twisting and swirling around, as was her tongue being tied.
"...~~!"
"Calm yourself, Lily. Listen. If you're not wearing anything, then there's no need to take them off. It's perfectly reasonable."
"T..."
That's not what I meant...
That's not what I meant!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"...And that's what happened. It was so awful!"
"Hihihi. You dumb child. Lily being stupid is just so cute to look at."
"It's not cute. I mean it's just underwear, right?"
"Hihi. It's just so easy."
"Easy?"
"It's just something you can't do about unless you don't wear it."
"???"
"How about just not wearing it in the first place? You have no underwear on. Just pretend it doesn't exist in the first place."
"Eh??"
"Simply pretend that underwear doesn't exist."
...Pretend that it doesn't exist?
"So what happens after that?"
"You just don't have to worry about underwears anymore."
"Oh. I see!"
"Right, indeed. Hihihi."
...Huh?
"Wait wait, what does that mean?"
"Hihihi."
"...Huh? Hey, Mao. That doesn't seem to really solve anything, does it?"
...It doesn't.
"It does solve it."
"B-but then I'm right back where it all started."
"Hihihi. You sure?"
"Yes, exactly!"
"That's not something cats really know about, nya."
"Ah, but you just said nya."
"Nya~?"
"Hey, don't lie to me."
"Hihi. See you around, Lily."
"W-wait, Mao!"
And then.
And then.
How exactly does Lily resolve this issue regarding the stuff with underwear?
It was...
"...Guess I'll just wear them properly."
(End)
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