Maria-sama ga Miteru:Volume26 Chapter4

A Shortcut and Dropping In on the Way

Part 1

It was 4:10pm, and about half of the time allotted for the treasure hunt had elapsed.

The "elegant tea party" continued on the second floor of the Rose Mansion, although it had probably dropped the "elegant" qualifier.

While the event itself was about half over, the tea party had only been going for about ten or fifteen minutes, since the time it took to read the rules and the hosts' sœurs' handicap had to be factored in. Not much time had passed since Sachiko-sama's declaration that she was "Waiting for Rosa Chinensis en bouton to reveal her faults."

Anyway.

"Rosa Gigantea, what's this 'ru'?"

"What about 'ta'?"

The Rose Mansion was now busy with the clatter of treasure hunt participants as they came and went.

"It's a hint, so you have to come up with the answer yourself."

This was how Shimako-san would answer whenever she was asked. Even though Shimako-san was never going to just give the answer away, the number of people in the Rose Mansion had swelled as treasure hunt participants found the hints and rushed over. So it continued, with new groups rushing in and some staying for the tea party.

All up, there were seven white cards with hints. The "1/7" indicated as much, although there was always the possibility that some girls may have misread that as "January 7" and were running around the grounds looking for the plants used in the Festival of Herbs that took place on that date. All that could be said about such a conclusion was sometimes a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.

On another note, Sachiko-sama was, obviously, still there. Yumi considered this to be a given, since she hadn't revealed her faults yet.

Yumi felt like she was being watched from all sides, as Sachiko-sama once again weighed on her mind.

A little while ago, Sachiko-sama had jotted something down in her student notebook, but Yumi didn't think she'd done anything particular noteworthy. All she'd done since the tea party started was sit in her seat and listen to the conversation going on around her. Naturally, she'd respond when someone talked to her, but she wasn't volunteering any topics and she had to shut out the repeated pleas from the first-years: "Give us a hint."

(That's right. Reveal my weaknesses?)

It left her feeling a bit strange.

What fate would befall the red card she'd hidden as treasure? She tried thinking about what she'd like to see happen, but she couldn't clearly define one single outcome as the one she wanted.

As a petite sœur, she wanted Sachiko-sama to find it.

As a host, it would be no fun if it was found easily.

But if the event ended with no-one finding it, then it meant that she hadn't chosen a suitable hiding spot, and that wouldn't have been "fun" either. So in that case, where was the person who would find it? She idly wondered what Touko-chan was doing right at that moment.

The more she thought about it, the more complicated her feelings became.

"Yumi-sama, should I refill your teacup? It must be cold by now, right?"

Noriko-chan whispered in her ear.

"Thanks, but I'm fine."

Yumi cupped the teacup in her hands.

Cold though it may be, there was still about half a cup of black tea in there.

"Now that I think about it, you haven't been drinking much tea, Yumi-sama."

One of the first-years pointed out.

"Is there some sort of reason for that?"

"A reason?"

There was indeed a reason.

"Oh, it's not just Yumi-san."

Yoshino-san said, seated a little distance away.

"Shimako-san and I are holding back too."

She walked over and held out her empty cup, saying, "See."

"I carelessly drank the whole lot, but I've been avoiding getting a refill. If we drank too much, we'd have to go to the restroom, right?"

Hearing this explanation, their guests nodded in comprehension. This was then followed up with a, "But."

"But we're in the same boat. What should I do? The tea was so good I've already had two cups."

Yumi hastily waved her hands at the perplexed first-years.

"You girls are free to get up and go to the restroom whenever you like. But for us … the people that hid the cards, if we recklessly left the Rose Mansion, how to put this … it'd just cause confusion, right? That's all it is. Okay?"

Yumi looked to Shimako-san for assistance, but Shimako-san was looking in a completely different direction.

"Shima—"

Before Yumi could finish calling out to her, Shimako-san started speaking.

"What is it, Noriko?"

(Noriko-chan?)

Hearing that name, Yumi also looked towards the sink. Noriko-chan had just been offering her tea a moment ago, but now she was back at the sink, by the electric kettle. This was her "home" position for today, but at least she had a chair to sit on.

"What's the matter?"

Shimako-san asked again. At that point, Noriko-chan finally noticed the gazes directed at her and, a bit surprised, said, "Ah, nothing." It felt like she was there in body but not in spirit.

"Sorry, but can I be excused for a little while?"

As she spoke, she made her way over to the so-called biscuit door, indicating that she was asking whether it was okay for her to leave the room.

"Fine by me?"

Mami-san gave her permission.

Noriko-chan had originally intended to participate in the treasure hunt, but kindly volunteered to assist instead, so she had plenty of work to do thus far. There was no way she would be denied a short break.

"My deepest apologies, when you're refraining from this, onee-samas."

Noriko-chan bowed apologetically then exited the room.

"She really must have needed the bathroom."

Mami-san mumbled, looking out the window.

Noriko-chan had carefully descended the staircase to avoid making any noise, but as soon as she stepped out of the Rose Mansion she had started sprinting, flat out, towards the school buildings.

Part 2

"It looks like the hints are only for Shimako-san's card...."

Seven hints, apparently.

While she hadn't yet encountered a second hint, she'd more or less figured it out by catching fragments of conversations between students that were walking around the grounds looking at their maps. While some of it may have been bogus information, she heard the word "hint" paired with "White Rose" numerous times, but never with "Red" or "Yellow Rose."

("Ta" is the "ta" from Tanuma. "Ma" is the "ma" from Tanuma. Yeah, right.)

Chisato smiled.

It was fun. A year ago, she never would have believed that the treasure hunt could be this fun.

Last year, she'd approached it with a win-at-all-costs attitude, thinking that she absolutely had to get Rei-sama's card and the half-day date that came with it. She hadn't allowed herself the luxury of enjoying it, instead she'd cast off her pride and adopted the tactic of following Yoshino-san, who seemed most likely to know where Rei-sama's card was. This idea had also occurred to some other fans of Rei-sama, and they joined forces.

In the end, while Yoshino-san made a baffling stopover in the library, they'd combed through some likely looking books and found the yellow card. Chisato then won the game of scissors-paper-rock, granting her the ticket for a half-day date. Ah, youth.

(Last year, I was thinking it didn't matter how I got it.)

Naturally, the game of scissors-paper-rock had been above board. She hadn't waited until she saw her opponent's move, or anything like that.

"I heard there was a 'ku' in the old greenhouse."

As Chisato walked towards the library, a lively pair of first-years dashed past.

("Ku." … That's another one for the list.)

With lots of people moving around, the chances of this sort of information leaking out were high. Those girls were chatting normally, seemingly unaware that a rival was nearby and that they'd just handed her a clue.

In a similar vein, they'd be better off acting independently. In the rare event that they did happen to speak to themselves, it would only be to themselves, and wouldn't be loud enough to carry to someone else. Plus, if they did find the treasure, they'd have it all to themselves and wouldn't have to play scissors-paper-rock.

(What a pity. There's no "ku" in Tanuma.)

Well, she knew from the outset that that wouldn't be the solution. At any rate, the characters she knew were "ta," "ma," and "ku." If the seven characters were all collected and placed in the correct order, they'd probably point to the hiding place.

(Ta/ma/ku, ta/ku/ma … ta/ku/ma/shi/i (strong)?)

That wasn't right, it only used five characters.

(Maybe something like ta/ku/ma/shi/i se/i/to (strong student)?)

She counted this out on her fingers. That wasn't right either, it had one character too many. But more than that, what would "strong student" mean? How would anyone get the hiding place from that?

(Let's just pause this.)

Chisato suspended her speculations and entered the library. If she had the other four hints, then she might be able to come up with an answer — but she had absolutely no confidence that she would be able to.

Aside from that, Chisato's preferred target this time around was Yoshino-san's yellow card.

However, with all due respect to Yoshino-san, Chisato wasn't absolutely desperate to go on a date with her, unlike last year. But it would leave everyone gobsmacked if she found the yellow card two years in a row. Just thinking about it brought a smile to her lips, so she'd taken it on as a challenge. Adding to the entertainment was her own opinion that last year's finder of Shimako-san's card, Rosa Canina, had felt the same way.

Now then.

There were a lot more students in the reading room than usual.

That was to be expected. The yellow card had been found in the reading room last year. It seemed obvious enough that the students that knew this would want to check here, just in case.

(That's pretty much why I came here too.)

But Chisato ignored the not-for-loan books on prices in the Edo period, where the card was found last year. Whatever the circumstances, having the card hidden in the same spot two years in a row was uninspired. Even if it was meant as a double bluff, enough time had elapsed since the start for it to be found.

(Instead of that.)

Chisato walked over to the "How-to" section.

(If I remember correctly....)

Last year, Yoshino-san had been looking through books in this area. Chisato followed Yoshino-san's actions from last year and flipped through the books in the cooking and handicraft shelves.

It had stuck with her ever since then. Why had Yoshino-san been fixated on this section? What made her think that the card was hidden in one of these books?

That pair had such a unique relationship, it might be they alone could answer those questions.

Even so, Chisato couldn't help but look. And since it was Yoshino-san's turn to hide the card this year, perhaps she had chosen this location.

"Oh, is that you, Tanuma Chisato-san?"

A voice called out to her from behind, just as she'd established that her search had been in vain.

"Ah...."

She turned around and there was —

"Gokigenyou."

The Photography Club's ace, Takeshima Tsutako-san, was standing there, holding her trademark camera and smiling. She was accompanied by a first-year, and Chisato asked if this was her petite sœur, to which Tsutako-san replied in the negative. Although, from the outside, they did look like a close pair of sœurs.

Tsutako-san gently raised her camera and said:

"It must be fate that we met here. Do you mind if I take a photo? I'll call it, let's see, 'Last Year's Winner.' You wouldn't be opposed to it appearing in the Lillian Kawaraban, right?"

"Not at all. By all means, take the photo. It'll make a nice memento."

Chisato happily agreed. Then she followed along as Tsutako-san indicated where she should stand. They were still in the reference section, but the different lighting or background probably made for a better picture overall. Although Tsutako-san said that when she captured the decisive moment she didn't concern herself about such things.

"Although, if possible, I'd like to drop 'Last Year's' from that title."

Chisato said as she looked straight at the camera lens.

"Oh, that's good. In that case, I'll have to change the title. 'Back to Back Winner' … no, how about, 'Winner Again This Year'?"

A flash of light and the sweet sound of the shutter clicking overlaid Tsutako-san's voice. Just like she'd said earlier, the flash and the shutter only went off once. But, because of that, Chisato had the feeling that it would be a good photo. Every single one of Tsutako-san's photos was the real deal.

"Thanks for your cooperation."

"I'd like a copy of that, okay?"

"Of course."

A couple of students were attracted by the flash, but most of them didn't notice as they kept searching for the cards. Tsutako-san had probably been taking photos before Chisato had arrived and they were used to it by now.

It looked like Tsutako-san and the younger girl had hit upon a likely hiding place and were combing the area as thoroughly as possible. So even if they didn't capture the moment of victory, they'd still be able to get lots of good pictures of students searching for the cards.

Tsutako-san said that she'd turned down all the requests for commemorative sœur photos in front of the statue of Maria-sama for the duration of this year's treasure hunt, so that she could dedicate herself to the event.

Then Chisato floated a question:

"You're not part of the event staff, Tsutako-san?"

Tsutako-san was holding the exact same map that Chisato had. The one that was printed along with the entry form; the half that the participants were left with. Since she was holding that, it meant —

"No."

Tsutako-san confirmed this.

"I'm not an organizer, just a regular participant. Although Mami-san did tell me that the Lillian Kawaraban would print any good photos I took."

"But surely it would have been better if you were involved in the event."

If she knew where the cards were, she could wait nearby and get a great shot. But apparently that was thinking too shallowly, because Tsutako-san said:

"Sure, I'd love to get a shot of the moment a card was found. But, because of that, me being in a location would instantly reveal to the participants that it was a hiding place, right?"

"I see."

Chisato clapped her hands together. Tsutako-san knowing the hiding locations would spoil the treasure hunt.

"Besides, even if I knew where all three cards were hidden, I'm only one person."

Tsutako-san folded her arms and let out a sigh. She seemed to be seriously considering this scenario, even though it was only hypothetical. Asking herself where she would wait, in that situation.

— Indeed, it was quite the conundrum.

Part 3

After parting ways with Tsutako-san and her helper, Chisato returned to the school building.

Going to the library and looking at all those books had reminded her that she'd borrowed a book from Yamamura-sensei. It was a kendo manual from when Yamamura-sensei had been in school that was written in a very easy to understand manner but was now out of print, and the library didn't have a copy.

Chisato had borrowed it a week ago and Yamamura-sensei had told her she should return it whenever she was done with it, so it didn't have to be done today. But Chisato had decided that she would definitely return it today.

She was incredibly grateful to her teacher for lending her such a precious book and she wanted to convey those feelings one way or another.

Whenever her mother borrowed something, she'd return it with a small no–strings–attached gift. Chisato wanted to mimic this behavior, to be more adult, but she was inexperienced in this sort of thing and the no–strings–attached gift was tricky. And her target this time was a teacher at her school, and her club's adviser. Even if she said it was to express her gratitude, she wasn't sure whether or not it would be accepted.

But today was different. Public gift giving was permitted today. Chisato intended to also hand over a small box of chocolates when she returned the book.

Typically, the teachers wouldn't accept presents. But Yamamura-sensei was a graduate of Lillian's, so she understood the students' feelings and didn't outright reject the gifts. Chisato had actually been to the staff room at lunch time but there had been such a crowd around Yamamura-sensei's desk that she didn't have an opportunity to jump in.

Of course, it wasn't just Yamamura-sensei — Katori-sensei and Hoshina-sensei were in a similar situation too. In general, the female high school teachers were more popular with the students, which was most unfortunate for the male teachers on this particular day.

With all that going on, she hadn't completed her task at lunchtime, and then she'd got caught up in the treasure hunt after school. On reflection, everyone probably wanted to hand over their gifts at lunchtime because they expected they'd be busy after school.

(The teachers are probably still in the staff room.)

The teachers would probably stay at school until the treasure hunt finished. So if she wanted to return the book, it had to be now. If she went as soon as the event was over, that small delay could be enough for Yamamura-sensei to leave. So even though it was in the middle of the game, Chisato took a break to go and see Yamamura-sensei.

(Yoshino-san's card has to be hidden in the library.)

She'd originally come up with a couple of possible locations. Like, Yoshino-san was a Kendo Club member, so maybe she'd hidden it in the martial arts building — under the tatami mats, or on the ceiling, for instance.

But now she'd completely ruled out those possibilities.

When all the participants had gathered in the courtyard, and Mami-san read out the rules, there were no other Newspaper Club members anywhere in sight. Chisato guessed that they were using that time to hide the cards.

There were three cards in total. But it wasn't just the cards, they'd also placed hints and warnings here and there.

How many members did the Newspaper Club have? Five? Six? Something like that. Not enough people to do anything too crazy. Since each card would be entrusted to just one or two people, it couldn't be hidden anywhere that required a lot of effort or complicated setup. Since they had such little time, it was hard to imagine them hiding it under the heavy tatami mats or on the high ceiling.

Since there wasn't anywhere she desperately wanted to look, she wasn't even slightly reluctant to suspend her search. So, for now, she headed to her classroom to pick up the book she'd borrowed and the chocolates.

There was no one in the classroom.

The treasure hunt excluded certain areas that would favor specific students, as well as places that would cause a nuisance to non-participants, like inside the toilet blocks, the school infirmary, or the principal's office.

(Right, right — inside the staff room too.)

Chisato retrieved her bag with the book and chocolates from her locker and left the classroom. The hallway, which was "in-bounds," was a lot more lively than the classroom. Everyone was holding a print-out with the map and searching high and low.

Which colored card were they looking for? Surely one of the cards should have been found by now. She was pondering this sort of thing as she walked when suddenly her eyes were drawn to a solo student walking past.

(Hm?)

Why was that? Out of all the students, she was the only one that had captured Chisato's attention.

She was wearing the same school uniform as everyone else. Carrying the map in the same way. Her body wasn't distinctive either, being neither conspicuously tall nor fat.

How was she different to the other students? What about her had caught Chisato's attention?

(Ah, that's it.)

It was her eyes.

From this distance, Chisato couldn't make out the girl's pupils, but she could tell that her gaze was fixed on a specific point. Right, it was her gaze.

Amidst all the girls whose eyes wandered as they searched for a card, she stood out because she was the only one who moved with a definite purpose.

(Where could she be going?)

Chisato found herself following the girl. The staff room was getting further and further away, but she was slowly closing the gap on her. Chisato couldn't leave until she found out where that girl was going.

Eventually, she stopped in front of the social studies prep room. After determining that it wasn't locked, she turned the knob and opened the door. That was the first time that Chisato saw the girl's face clearly.

(Matsudaira Touko … !?)

Chisato stood frozen to the spot in the hallway, before she finally remembered Yamamura-sensei and turned back towards the staff room.

As she walked, Chisato smiled to herself.

Matsudaira Touko had gone into the social studies prep room to look for a card. But that couldn't have been all it was.

She'd been so pumped up about something.

Part 4

It wasn't part of the search area, but that didn't mean they weren't allowed to go in. If those two concepts were equivalent, then it would mean that no one would be allowed in to the toilets, for example.

"Oh, you didn't have to do that."

Yamamura-sensei's desk was so quiet it was like a completely different place to lunch time.

It wasn't just Yamamura-sensei's desk — Katori-sensei's area was the same, and the situation was probably the same for Hoshina-sensei in the school infirmary. The fact that the male teachers' desks were also unchanged was a bit sad for them.

"I told you that no thanks were necessary. I always lend my books freely, especially to my darling students."

"What if that darling student said she wanted to give her teacher chocolates?"

"Not as thanks for the book?"

From her seat, Yamamura-sensei glanced up at Chisato's face. She seemed to be enjoying this theatrical haggling.

"Because she really likes you."

"In that case, I'd gladly accept."

Yamamura-sensei said, "Thank you," and took the bag containing both the book and chocolates.

"Well then, I'll take my leave."

Chisato thought she should return to the treasure hunt, since there was still about twenty minutes left. She turned to leave but Yamamura-sensei grabbed her by the sleeve and stopped her, saying, "Wait."

"You know, I mightn't look it, but I'm actually kind of absentminded."

"Uhh."

Well, Chisato wasn't really sure about that "mightn't look like it" part, but she'd sort of got a sense of the absentminded part. Yamamura-sensei was typically quite level headed, but very occasionally she would break down in tears. It wasn't a fatal flaw so everyone just smiled and accepted it. Her imperfections made her more likeable and easier to approach, so she was popular with the students.

"There it is."

Yamamura-sensei had rolled her chair back a little bit and stuck her head under her desk, before pulling something out of a paper bag under there and offering it to Chisato.

"Here."

"What's this?"

There were various colored candies wrapped up in cellophane and tied with a ribbon.

"It's a bit early, but it's a White Day present."

"Huh?"

"It'll probably slip my mind in a month's time."

Yamamura-sensei smiled and added, "Because I'm so absentminded, you know."

"Y-you don't have to do that."

Flustered by this unexpected present, Chisato took a step backwards. Her mind had been so full of thoughts of giving a gift that she hadn't considered receiving one, so she had no idea how to handle the situation. What would her mother do at a time like this?

Making matters worse, Yamamura-sensei took Chisato's hand and slipped her the bag of candy.

"See, I like you too, Tanuma-san."

So that was it. Hearing those words, Chisato's shoulders slumped.

"In that case, I'll gladly accept it."

"Good."

Chisato didn't know how many of those candy bags Yamamura-sensei had prepared, but every student that had given her chocolates had probably received one. She was convinced that it wasn't because Yamamura-sensei would forget about it by White Day; it would be difficult for her to go around to the classroom of every student that had given her chocolates. Announcing over the school PA system that students should come and pick up their chocolates would be totally out of the question as well, so she must have decided it was better to have White Day today.

Yamamura-sensei, you're so cool.

Chisato thought that this sort of thing was why she adored Yamamura-sensei.

"You'd better get going now."

Yamamura-sensei lightly tapped Chisato on the shoulder.

"?"

"The map. You're in the middle of the treasure hunt, right? Give it your best."

"Okay."

Chisato answered energetically, and once again started to leave the staff room. She started to leave, but on the way to the door something caught her eye and she turned back again.

"What's the matter?"

Yamamura-sensei asked.

"The window...."

The curtain was caught in the closest window. She could see the part of the curtain that was caught on the outside flapping in the breeze.

The windows were opened during cleaning time and it had probably been accidentally caught there when they were closed. Chisato didn't know who had done it, but they'd probably been so cold that they quickly closed the window and not noticed.

"I'll get it."

Chisato opened the window and pulled the curtain inside.

"That should do it … oh."

Looking out the window, Chisato spotted someone that she knew quite well walking past on the path below.

"Rei-sama!"

Chisato rolled up her map to make a bullhorn and shouted through it.

"Have you finished your exams for today?"

It looked like her senior in the Kendo Club, Hasekura Rei-sama, had just arrived at school, since she was wearing her school coat and carrying her bag.

Hearing Chisato's voice, Rei-sama stopped and looked around. Then she spotted Chisato leaning out of the staff room window and waved by way of response. Then, with that, she walked off towards the school entrance looking downcast.

She looked sort of, no, really downbeat.

More than downbeat, she seemed completely drained.

"I wonder if she bombed her exam."

* * *

However, Chisato's concerns were entirely misplaced.

The cause of Rei-sama's exhaustion was something completely different to her exams.

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