"Wha-What is this? A sensation unlike anything I ever experienced before… My heart… It is screaming so loudly… It feels so heavy, no words can describe it… Yet, I have the desire to explain it to you in great detail. It feels as though the only thing that could make the pressure go away would be being pressed against him, or he against me, to the point where I am unable to move at all… Yes, only that could make it go away, my desire for closeness… My heart is racing, oh, Master, you did this! What am I supposed to do? A mere kiss is not enough, although it would be the fitting gesture for the moment… Ah, if only time would still stand still for everyone but us… I could give myself to you to my hearts content! Why, oh why can we not be alone right now! For you, my love, I will suppress it, until it's just us…"
Yuki ended up passing out due to the intensity of her feelings and the inability to release any of it. Yamato caught her before she hit the ground and laid her down next to the twins. Which apparently was where he would stay too for now as Yuki even unconsciously refused to let go of his hand.
"Ah… Well, whatever… So, Lucy, since we have to wait for an hour now anyway, do you think you could give me details as to how you met Natsumi in the first place?"
"Y-yes, of course…"
She did feel a little misplaced here, especially during and now after Yamato's confession, she felt like she was getting in the way of them. The fact that Yuki just passed out was also the most normal thing that happened today, so she made no remarks on it since it seemed like she was fine otherwise.
"Well… I was always very religious. Maybe a little too much, as I'm beginning to realize now… While I was praying in the church of my home town, a small village on the border to the Naru Empire, she appeared in front of me. An angel, bright light shining behind her, which reflected beautifully in the stained glass windows, truly a sight which screamed divinity. Coincidentally, the priest which we… Fought earlier entered the hall at that moment. Dropping to his knees immediately as he saw what was happening in front of him, I felt even more reassured that what I was seeing was in fact not my imagination, but divine revelation! She told us about a mission, which she was sent here for. She had to save her sister from a man, born in pure evil, who might as well be the devil himself. Looking back at it, her emotional investment seemed suspicious since the beginning… Anyway, she asked us to help her find and safe her sister, while removing the evil that traps her, which would refer to you, Yamato. From there the plan to send me to the school was formed. Getting me in was pretty easy since the priest was had a lot of influence and connections, so I was called gifted to help my cause, even though I only have below average magical talent… My primary objective was isolating you and giving you that pill as a precautionary measure. It was also so Natsumi could time her teleportation magic after she stopped time and made you able to move despite the time stop. Even if it didn't seem like it, I think she did want to talk to you and hear what you had to say… After all, otherwise she would have just stopped time for you too."
"Or maybe it was to maybe she wanted to make sure Yuki wasn't with me, ir something like that. Not the best plan, I have to admit… But it would have probably worked if it weren't for Yuki… Though you played an important part in it as well. I can't express my gratitude enough, for you believing me. That must have been difficult."
"Well, you did safe my life… I'm very thankful to you too."
"Well, I did what I could… I'm almost sad that we will part ways now."
"H-huh? What do you mean, part ways?"
"I'm going to leave this school."
"Are you sure? Why would you throw away your education like that…"
Yamato looked down at Yuki, whose head was resting on his thigh. She seemed so peaceful, when she was sleeping. Well, everyone does, but in her case it was somewhat different since whenever she was awake it almost always seemed to be the opposite of peaceful.
"It's just not safe… For both us, and those around us. I don't believe it will be the last we see of attacks like that… So I will take Yuki with me and look for a more controlled environment than a school."
"Like what?"
"We'll see. What about you? Will you stay? You only came here to kill me in the first place, right? And you said yourself you don't have much talent for magic."
"Ah… Yeah, I guess it wouldn't make much sense for me to keep attending this school…"
"What about your home? I'm sure you'd want to go back to your family, now that you have no more business here."
She looked away, her expression becoming blank and unreadable to most.
"Oh… Yeah… I guess…"
"Or… You could come with us."
"W-with you?! No, I can't! I would only be a burden…"
"I don't think so. I think you would be very useful. However, I can't force you to come with us… I just want you to know that whatever you do from now on, it's your own decision. Not some angel telling you someone is bad and you need to hunt them down as according to the will of god. You decide who you follow and why. I cannot promise you that if you follow me, I won't ask you to do things similar to what Natsumi wanted. Actually, I will most definitely do that. But you right here and right now, I want you to willingly choose this."
"I… That's a bit sudden!"
"Well, like I said, I can't force you. Yuki and I will be gone tomorrow, so you think about it until then. The right here and now wasn't meant literally, more as in, the moment you live in, if that makes sense."
"I-I see… I will think about it…"
"Great. Now let's wait until we will be brought back."
Yamato absentmindedly petted Yuki's head, which was still resting so peacefully on his lap. It usually was the other way around, but that was not all that had changed today.
"What a hustle that was… This exam was only meant to serve as a board for a playful competition between Yuki and me… Fascinating how things can escalate into much more complex situations in the blink of an I, don't you think, Yuki… You and I will be on our own again. I'm sure you will be very glad… Well, not entirely on our own, if everything goes according to plan. Getting a grip on Lucy was more exhausting than I had anticipated, yet, I got there in the end just as planned. From the moment I met Lucy, I had to act in a later justifiable way. Her intense hostility was an obstacle at first, but ultimately only helped me manipulate her into feeling guilty and as if she was owing me something. That the twins were with me probably helped as well… All I had to do was pretend to care for them, which was easy as it aligned with my personal goals to keep them safe anyway. People often confuse help as a sign of care, which is when they overlook who gains the most out of something… For example, when my goal still was winning the exam, it made sense to keep the two around simply so the identity of the target would be a mystery to Yuki's team. After all, if only I were left, brute force would be more viable then if there were multiple possibilities for the target. However that was ultimately irrelevant anyway since I was able to switch target cards with Arina, and therefore could have ended it right then and there. Everything after that moment was simply me goofing around… But maybe if they would have noticed I could have lost at any moment to, so it made it a little more exciting. The real problems started to arise when I was teleported to Natsumi… I guess I got lucky there with you watching over me… But it really couldn't have went any better. Fighting against that priest was the push Lucy needed to make her final decision between her religious beliefs, and her trust in me. By giving her unclear instructions and having her wait for a sign I never gave, I was able to see her act on her own while still directing her decision favorably to me. Although it slightly backfired when she threw that knife into the attack I wanted to reflect, it was ultimately better that way. Not only did she protect me out of her own free will, she also put herself in a life threatening position in doing so. Even though I did contemplate letting her fall down… It would have been such a waste. And by risking my own life, I won her over completely. Even now, when she is directionless, I'm her option out. It was clear to me from her reaction alone back when I threatened her and now too, when I mentioned her family, that she has nothing back where she came from… Who just drops everything to go with some angel anyway? You gotta be someone who has nothing to lose in the first place. Religion was her only direction… And that's gone now. Instead, she has me, the one who saved her life and supposedly gave her a free choice when everyone else seemed to force their way onto her. However even though she believes I'm letting her choose to follow me, in reality I just remind her of everything she doesn't have, and everything I seem to be able to give her. Purpose."