Apart from its religious nature, Christmas is a day filled with happiness celebrated almost everywhere in the world. Of course, there are a few exceptions... but the percentage of places that don't celebrate Christmas is overwhelmingly small, so it's not really my concern.
This is not much different in Kivotos, which shouldn't be surprising considering the background of Trinity's founding and the fact that its faith shares the same roots as Christianity.
In the lead-up to this Christmas, I found myself faced with a momentous dilemma.
The connections I had built over the past eight months or so were by no means trivial. I didn't expect all of them to give me gifts, but I wanted to give something to each of the students I had formed a bond with.
I had started preparing presents as the calendar turned to late November, but when the number of people to account for went from the dozens to the hundreds, I was about to lose my mind.
Among them, I put a great deal of thought into what to give my closest friends and those with whom I maintained a reasonably good relationship. For the rest—the students of the Pater Faction, Arius, and the Tea Party—I had no choice but to give them a standardized gift.
I hadn't actually planned on going this far, but a girl named Chiyo, who had left a deep impression on me during the summer festival, kept weighing on my mind. I realized that rather than showing favoritism by only giving her a gift, it was my duty as the head of the faction to take care of everyone in Pater.
Once I decided that, I couldn't leave out Arius either. After a bit more thought, I was overcome with the feeling that I had to get something for the students who worked so hard as escorts for the Tea Party.
I decided to give the students of Pater and Arius each a custom-made brooch engraved with the emblem of their respective factions.
I had to compromise on the price considering the number of students in both factions, and it required a custom order, but... well, it's the thought that counts, right?
I enclosed a memo with some slightly embarrassing words with their gifts, and it was a huge pain to write each one by hand. I only did it because I had plenty of time, but I think next year it would be wiser to just print them.
"Ugh, to think the day would come when I'm getting a gift for this rascal."
Getting gifts for the Gehenna students was relatively easy, but I had no idea what to give Makoto.
In the end, I decided to give her a solid gold nameplate with her name written in my own calligraphy. I just really, really hope she doesn't do anything to sabotage the Eden Treaty.
I placed a memo on the carefully wrapped gift box indicating who it was for and pushed it to the side. My escorts would have to work hard to ship these out.
As for the others, while trying to confirm delivery addresses, I was surprised to learn that Problem Solver 68 was now operating out of a proper office, thanks to the initial funding they had extorted from Makoto. Thanks to that, the gifts I prepared for them should be delivered safely.
Unexpectedly, I still didn't have much of a connection with the Hyakkiyako Alliance, but honestly, I found myself thinking, 'Do I really need to?' I knew there was some foreshadowing related to a student named Kuzunoha, but Hyakkiyako didn't hold a critical position in the current state of affairs, nor was it fated for some unhappy future that would require my intervention.
Millennium. Abydos. Shanhaijing. And our hard-working girls from the ETO's FOX Platoon.
I wondered if I had really made this many connections, but then I remembered there were still more people I had missed, and I fell back into 고민 over what to give them. (TN: 고민 (gomin) means 'worry' or 'dilemma'.)
Based on what I could vaguely recall, high-quality coffee beans seemed like a good gift for Kaya. But I had no clue what to give Nanagami Rin or the General Student Council President.
I eventually decided on a famous perfume called "The Beyond" for Rin. As for the General Student Council President...
Why bother getting a gift for someone who's about to pull an Itachi? (TN: "Pull an Itachi" is Korean internet slang for abandoning one's post or group, referencing Itachi Uchiha from Naruto who deserted his village.)
The thought of giving a gift to our dear President, who was in the middle of enthusiastically preparing her escape, made my insides twist. But not giving her anything seemed too cold.
Still, she's a busy person who'll be working right up until she disappears, so maybe a luxurious pillow would be a good teasing gift. It's not like she'll get much sleep anyway.
But the moment I remembered that esteemed individual was planning to desert her post, a problem I had forgotten suddenly surfaced.
The critical issue was that the entire administration of Kivotos was scheduled to be temporarily paralyzed from the moment the General Student Council President went missing.
I could probably handle security-related issues to some extent within Trinity, but realistically, there was nothing I could do about the larger problem.
If I made a move right before she disappeared, all arrows of suspicion might be pointed at me.
How on earth did I know she was going to disappear in advance?
Was there some kind of connection between her disappearance and me?
It could lead to an attack on me in some form, and in any case, it was an incident that would end in temporary chaos. Making any politically compromising moves during that time would not be a wise choice.
Anyway, that was that. The gifts that required the most thought were for the two people... well, actually three people, who were more precious to me than anything.
I had a general idea for Nagisa's gift for a while, but I agonized over Hina's and Haruna's presents even after I had decided on everyone else's.
Through many twists and turns, I managed to finish preparing the gifts with less than a week left until Christmas, so I suppose that was good enough.
...Ah. Come to think of it, I still haven't written the short, handwritten letters for those two.
Tea Party duties. Schoolwork. Training for our idol debut. Gift preparations.
"Whoa..."
Today, of all days, I could keenly feel Hina's sentiment.
Everything is such a bother...! Aaargh!!!
***
Time flew by like snowflakes scattering in a fierce wind. Finally, the morning of December 24th, Christmas Eve, arrived.
At Trinity, not just Christmas Day but also Christmas Eve is treated as a holiday, but unfortunately, the same was not true for Gehenna. Therefore, despite Hina getting the day, the time we could spend together was originally limited, but...
"Ako told me she'll handle all my work for today, so I shouldn't even dream of coming back to the office..."
"Hmph. I'll have to pass on my thanks to Ako, then."
Thanks to Ako's noble sacrifice, Hina was able to spend the entire day with me.
Well, it was obvious that Ako would have secured what she wanted, saying something like, 'Leader, in exchange, you have to spend Christmas Day with me, okay? You promise!' Despite her considerable clumsy side, the brakes on her desires for Hina had disappeared at some point.
It would be a lie to say I wasn't concerned at all about Hina and Ako's relationship...
Hmm, I don't know. I think I still need to think about this a little more.
"Hina-chan, have you thought about where you'd like to go?"
"...How about karaoke?"
"Hmm?"
I had fully expected Hina to say she hadn't thought about it. My plan was to follow a course I had prepared if she said no, so this was a bit unexpected.
"Well, we have to practice singing consistently. I've looked up a few good songs to practice with."
"...Hina-chan, I'm so sorry."
"Huh? What are you sorry for...?"
To think she was worried about that even on a date... this was all my fault for suggesting the idol project in the first place.
No wonder her singing skills were improving by leaps and bounds every time I heard her. I hadn't realized the workaholic side of Hina was pulling the strings behind the scenes.
"Um, Mika? Don't misunderstand. The practice is more of an excuse. Singing helps relieve some stress, and... to be honest, more than anything, I want to hear you sing."
"...Ah."
I... barely know any songs from this world...
But I think there were a few carols similar to the ones I knew. Maybe I could manage if I stick to those...?
"...Would that be okay? If you don't like the idea, we can go wherever you had in mind."
"N-No, let's go! Yes, how could I not do what you want, Hina-chan? I'll sing as many songs as you want with all my heart☆"
With Hina's destructively cute appearance erasing the option to refuse, there was no way for me to escape my all-too-powerless situation.
How many people could bluntly refuse this cute girl in an oversized sweater and pleated skirt, with a plaid scarf wrapped around her neck, fidgeting as she pressed the tips of her fingers together? At the very least, I wasn't one of them.
...Right, I can just put the sheet music on the screen. As I always say, it's the thought that counts. The thought.
***