On Boxing Day.
Early in the morning, in a rare occurrence, the entire Arius Squad gathered in one place. Even Misaki, who usually woke up and went to school as early as Saori, was with them for the day.
The gifts the squad members exchanged were, in fact, quite similar to one another. Not only was this the first time they had ever exchanged Christmas presents, but they had also known each other for so long that they were all well-aware of each other's tastes and interests.
If anyone's tastes had changed among them, it would be Misaki, who had transferred to the Relief Knights.
Thus, Atsuko and Hiyori used the allowance they received from Mika, while Azusa and Saori used money they had earned themselves, to gift her books on the medical field.
Misaki grumbled that such gifts were useless upon receiving them, but she couldn't hide the twitching corners of her lips.
Unlike all Christmases past, this year's held a special meaning for them. As the squad members' circumstances and mindsets had gradually changed, they finally had the capacity to care about the day of Christmas and its meaning for the first time.
In particular, Azusa and Saori would occasionally enter the mercenary market, using their skills as weapons to earn a considerable amount of money. Compared to when they first received an allowance from Mika, they were now financially well-off.
Using these funds, Saori had used Mika's connections to purchase the same SRT-issue neck mics and weapon lights for the squad members, which she had also gifted to Mika.
"So, you gave this to Mika-unni as a gift, too?"
"...Yes. Is there a problem?"
"Leader, you're an idiot..."
"...?"
"...She's right. Maybe it would be better if Mika just took our leader with her."
"Wait, Misaki. I don't understand. What did I do wrong?"
"If you don't know, then never mind. You two still have a long way to go..."
Misaki shook her head as she looked at Saori, who had a '?' floating above her head, and Azusa, who similarly had '???' floating above hers. Saori was one thing, but for Azusa, who hung out with other students more than even herself, to be like this... what on earth?
"I think it's very like you, Sat-chan. Mika-unni wouldn't be expecting some grand, expensive gift. Yes. I learned that it's the thought that counts in a gift."
"W-Well, if you say so, I'm relieved."
"So what did you give her, Princess?"
Misaki posed the question to Atsuko, who took something out of a gift box on her lap and placed it on her head.
"I gave her flowers that suit the Christmas season. I think she figured it out because it was cold and I had to tell her some precautions... but I was happy she liked it."
"Mika probably expected you to give her flowers anyway, Princess. But what on earth is that flower crown...?"
Atsuko adjusted the crown on her head, then took out a memo from the box and unfolded it.
"A crown for the Princess (lol)...?"
"Hmmm. It's not made of real flowers. I suppose it's good that it won't wilt."
With a gentle smile, Atsuko picked up the next gift box.
"Ah, this is from Mika-unni. Let's see..."
The moment Mika's name was mentioned, the gazes of the other four converged. While pretending not to be interested, Misaki also subtly glanced over. No matter what, Mika was the one who had gently pushed her onto a new path, so she couldn't help but be curious.
"...A badge?"
The first thing to come out of Atsuko's hands was a badge bearing the emblem of the Tea Party. It was a clear sign that Mika had already earmarked Atsuko as a member of the Tea Party, but Atsuko nonchalantly placed it back in the box and took out the real gift.
It was a small booklet detailing the care instructions for growing various flowers like forget-me-nots, roses, and cornflowers, along with packets of seeds.
After skimming through the booklet, written entirely in Mika's handwriting, Atsuko smiled softly and hugged it to her chest.
Seeing this, the other girls silently began to open their gifts from Mika as well.
"Eh, ehhh?"
"What's wrong, Hiyori... hmm?"
"This is... the latest A-Pad, I think."
"There's an A-Pencil, too."
"Schematic Drawing from A to Z: So Easy Even a Gorilla Can Master It?"
Hiyori's eyes trembled violently. No matter how you looked at it, this was a clear push for her to study clothing design.
Sure, besides her studies and the training Saori semi-forced her to do, the only other thing she did was browse fashion magazines! And she had absolutely no vision for her future, but for Mika to decide her career path for her like this...!
"Ehehe... can't I just live off Mika-chan forever...?"
"...Her mindset is rotten. In this, it seems Mika certainly did the right thing."
Though Hiyori said that, she clutched the box containing the A-Pad to her chest as if it were a treasure, immediately casting her other gifts aside to tear open the packaging of the book.
Sitting opposite her, Saori was half-dazed as she looked at a pouch packed with cosmetics that were clearly expensive, and the note inside.
[Misono Mika's Handpicked Collection☆]
[If you want to learn how to do makeup, you can come to me anytime, OK?]
Saori tried to figure out when Mika could have possibly caught her showing interest in cosmetics, but no answer came to mind. How could she know that Mika had abused her transmigrator privilege?
"S-So cute...!"
Everyone's attention focused on Azusa's sudden outburst, but that interest cooled in less than a few seconds.
Everyone had been secretly curious about what was inside the gift box, as large as Azusa herself, that she had received, but...
Once its contents were revealed to be a custom-made, extra-large Skullman plushie, it was astonishing how quickly everyone lost interest.
Hifumi, who had received a similar Peroro plushie at the same time and nearly had a heart attack, would have been able to sympathize with Azusa... but unfortunately, the Arius Squad's reaction to Momo Friends was truly cold.
Regardless, Azusa, who was hugging the plushie and rubbing her cheek against it, discovered a second gift.
[This is a birthday present♡]
[Happy birthday, my little squirrel!]
Come to think of it, was today her birthday?
The squad members themselves didn't really celebrate birthdays, nor did they have the means to, so even Azusa herself had forgotten. But it seemed Mika had remembered. Or perhaps she had checked in advance on Momotalk.
Thinking that it was more likely Mika had just remembered, Azusa opened the box.
What popped out of the box was...
[Starting today, you are banned from the Bamboo Forest for 3 months.]
"...?!"
Azusa's eyes shook violently. A note with a completely unexpected message had jumped out of the box. The Trinity Bamboo Forest was her life; how could Mika do this...
[If you succeed, I'll grant you one wish.]
Exactly 30 seconds later, a message appeared on Azusa's phone screen, confirming that the Bamboo Forest app had been deleted.
Finally, Misaki, after checking her gift from Mika, wore a peculiar expression.
Two tickets to a hot spring inn.
[Go and relieve some stress with Serina-chan☆]
...Was there even a hot spring inn in Trinity?
Pushing that question aside, Misaki closed her eyes as she saw the small and large smiles blooming on everyone's faces.
To Saori, who had not let her be consumed by a life of endless pain.
To Mika, who had broken that chain of suffering.
And to Serina, who had cared for her so she could escape from that shadow.
I am endlessly grateful... Misaki thought to herself.
***
"Uhe~ Shiroko-chan, look at this. A fish-patterned scarf! This old man is a little moved by Mika-chan's taste. It's as practical as the whale cushion this old man sent her. But... hmm. I don't really get what she means by 'return the stolen scarf'~?"
"...?"
"She says this one is for you, Shiroko-chan— ugh, ptui! Pffft. Ugh, the sandstorms just keep getting worse..."
While Hoshino spat out the sand that had flown into her mouth, the wolf-eared girl accepted the gift and tilted her head. Her name was Sunaookami Shiroko, a girl with distinctive heterochromatic eyes. She was a student who would one day become Kivotos's greatest bank robber.
"I needed a new scarf anyway, so I guess it's fine... *yawn*."
As Shiroko said that and yawned in front of Hoshino, her body suddenly lurched forward. Someone had hugged her from behind.
"Oh, Shiroko-chan, you got a present too? Mika-ssi is more thoughtful than she looks!"
"...Than she looks?"
"Yes, than she looks. On the surface, she's like... hmm, the type to make strange mistakes in unexpected places? That's the feeling I get."
None of them knew just how accurate Nonomi's assessment was. In fact, Shiroko had never even met Mika, so it was only natural she wouldn't know.
"So, what did you get, Nonomi-chan? If it's even half as cool as the scarf this old man got... Uhe~?! What's that?!"
"Hm? What do you mean, Hoshino-sunbae? It's obviously a present from Mika-ssi☆"
"Th-This is discrimination...!" Hoshino exclaimed playfully, seeing the clover-shaped earring on one of Nonomi's earlobes. It wasn't that she was unhappy with her own gift; besides, accessories like earrings were just cumbersome in a fight, so she wouldn't wear them much even if she received them.
"Alright, alright! Now it's your turn, Shiroko-chan~☆"
"...Mm."
*Riiiiip.*
With a small nod, Shiroko tore the wrapping paper roughly.
"...Uhe?"
*Rip. Riiiip.*
"..."
It was a detail that Mika, the sender, probably hadn't cared about at all, but for some reason, the sight made the two people watching feel needlessly awkward.
Shiroko's eyes widened slightly as she opened the box. For some reason, the item inside was perfectly to her taste.
"Nonomi-chan, this old man is a little... worried about Mika-chan's mental state."
"Oh, you too, Hoshino-sunbae?"
Those two knew nothing. How could they have such an impression after seeing such a magnificent gift?
[The Marauders]
From the title to the cover art depicting the protagonist on a motorcycle, bursting through an explosion—it was a movie perfectly capable of setting Shiroko's heart ablaze.
"...Ah!"
"Hmm?"
"Come to think of it, I completely forgot to send her a gift."
"How did that happen? Even this old, sick man doesn't forget things like that, Nonomi-chan."
"Sigh, you're right. I was planning to use Mika-ssi as a model for our school uniform ad to attract new students, but I guess I'll have to scrap that plan now."
Awaiting Abydos was, surely, a bright and brilliant future.
...Probably.
***