Chapter: 117. S-Class Inheritance (4k4) (20/46)
For Nagino, this month felt like a dream.
It was as if he had suddenly received a long-overdue paid vacation in his corporate slave life.
He didn’t have to face the worries of the End’s erosion.
Nor were there extraordinary disasters to resolve.
There was no need to consider so-called lifelong regret plans.
He was merely living a stable and ordinary daily life as an ordinary ability user at Ark Academy.
Nagino couldn’t help but wonder if, when he first crossed into the world of “Star Pull,” if he hadn’t executed any world-saving plans but instead lived on as an ordinary protagonist, following the storylines of the original game, would he have experienced such a daily life back then?
It was clearly many years since he had entered the galgame world.
During this month, Nagino finally felt that he was in a galgame world.
If the “Star Pull” series were just an ordinary waste of a galgame, perhaps if he had only played “Star Pull 1,” he could have lived a very happy and fulfilling life?
This month of vacation reminded Nagino of the elopement route in “Star Pull 2.”
He knew all too well that the crisis was not over and that there were many issues waiting for him to resolve in this world, but he disregarded them, simply taking his beloved heroine with him, escaping the main storyline, and living a warm and happy life in an unknown remote city. Even knowing that a doomed future awaited them, it seemed that as long as they held hands, they could march forward, even into the apocalypse.
In countless moments, Nagino wanted to prolong such a daily life.
But this was a kind of betrayal.
A betrayal of himself, and a betrayal of this world.
There had to be some reason for him coming to this world.
This was a pitiful world, everything felt so despairing, and if even he, an outsider, turned a blind eye, no one would be able to save this world.
The so-called holiday would eventually come to an end.
This trip to the Infinite Academy symbolized the end of the vacation for Nagino.
…..
…..
“Do we have to sit for more than ten hours?”
Upon arriving at the departure station, Kanade looked at the train schedule on the large screen and couldn’t help but ask.
“I see, that’s why it’s a sleeper seat.” Beside her, Uemon nodded as if understanding.
The train would depart at noon and would only arrive at the nearest coastal city to the “Infinite Academy” the next morning. From there, they would take a maglev train to the island, making it a very long journey compared to a direct flight.
Normally, even if they were worried about the “potential new protagonist” Kanade being attacked by fantasy monsters and affecting ordinary people, they could easily reach the Infinite Academy by chartering Ark Academy’s private jet, significantly reducing the risk of being attacked along the way.
However, this plan was abandoned under Nagino’s careful planning, and they were reluctantly forced to choose the longer yet relatively safer route of the long-distance train.
The reason for Nagino’s decision was simple.
After all, if they were to fly, there wouldn’t be enough time or opportunity for him to retrieve those extraordinary items hidden from his past life. In contrast, traveling by sleeper train at night allowed for much easier actions.
But evidently, neither Kanade, nor Mana, nor the recently joined Kurokawa would relax and give him time alone.
So, Nagino had already made preparations in advance—
“I’m going to sleep with Mimi-chan tonight!” After boarding, Nagino said to Kanade while hugging the petite Midelash.
During this month, Nagino had developed a good relationship with Midelash, making them as close as sisters. If he slightly leveraged his “innocent and carefree” persona, no one would care even if he suddenly made such a request.
At the same time, Midelash, being the strongest fighting force present aside from Kanade, undoubtedly made it “safest” for him to be with her.
This would dispel Mana and Kurokawa’s concerns and create an opportunity for him to slip away at night.
“No way… eh? Is it really with Midelash-chan…?”
The moment Nagino spoke, Kanade instinctively tried to reject it, but she immediately realized her mistake upon speaking.
“Eh? Did you think Tsukimi wanted to be with you—” Uemon was just about to tease but was promptly silenced by Kanade covering his mouth.
“That’s not it, don’t say things randomly—” she argued, while secretly glancing at Mana behind her.
Mana’s cold gaze seemed to carry a hint of murderous intent, sending chills down Kanade’s spine.
Kanade felt that recently, Mana was increasingly acting like Nagino’s mother, taking care of her meticulously—“Are you a daughter-con?” Although Kanade wanted to retort, she knew that if she said it out loud, the outcome would be disastrous, so she kept it to herself.
“Mimi also wants to sleep with Onee-chan Nagino!” Midelash joyfully raised her arms and shouted, her long hair bouncing with excitement.
“…..Fine by me.” Kurokawa reluctantly agreed with an expression of annoyance.
Everything was proceeding just as Nagino planned.
The sleeper train they were on, though old in model, had been completely transformed after being repurposed for tourism. Each carriage was converted into several private rooms, decorated to look like a small hotel.
Kanade and the others even booked all six rooms of one particular carriage.
The arrangement from left to right was: Kurokawa, Uemon, Kanade, an empty room, Mana, Nagino, and Midelash.
After everyone had placed their luggage, they collectively moved to the carriage designated as the dining area, enjoying a meal prepared by the chefs while gazing at the scenery outside the window.
“I wish we could go in winter…” At the dining table, Nagino lamented a bit, forking a piece of fried chicken, “Kanade-kun, ah~”
“Winter? Is there any special significance?” Kanade replied curiously, opening her mouth wide to eat the chicken Nagino offered.
“After all, if it were winter, we could see snow, right? I’ve heard that Hokkaido’s snowy scenery is beautiful, with the white expanse—don’t you want to see it, Kanade-kun?” Nagino showed an excited and yearning expression, leaning slightly forward, opening her mouth wide to take the spoon Kanade offered.
…..
At another table, Midelash was happily devouring a children’s meal prepared specially by the chef.
Uemon, after shivering, turned to face Mana and asked, “I want to ask something, do those two always show off their affection in public like this?”
Hearing this, Mana lowered her head a little shyly. She almost saw that table of childhood sweethearts every day at the Shiki Hall’s dining table, but she still couldn’t adapt. Each time she saw them, she would get goosebumps, which was why she suggested everyone eat at separate tables.
The first time those two showed affection at the dining table, Yukino would excitedly tease the shy pair, but gradually even she found it unbearable to see those lovey-dovey lovers, while the two seemed to have gotten used to feeding each other while chatting during every meal.
“Looking at those two, I can finally understand the feeling of wanting to burn couples to death.” Uemon said while watching the foolish couple sit on the same side of the table unknowingly, sharing a drink through the same straw, and laughing at each other afterward.
Uemon couldn’t help but shiver again.
“Uh, teacher, is this kind of interaction between the opposite sexes really allowed?” Uemon couldn’t help but ask Kurokawa in front of him.
The latter just averted his gaze, pretending not to see.
……
……
Time passed imperceptibly.
Night quietly fell.
Tonight was a starry night without a moon, with starlight shining through the windows.
“Kanade-kun, goodnight kiss, I want~~~” Nagino cooed towards Kanade, just like she used to in the Shiki Hall.
And hearing those words from afar, Mana coolly put on her headphones and returned to her room.
Uemon initially didn’t understand, but upon seeing Nagino suddenly tiptoe and embrace Kanade, he felt unease rising in his heart and hurriedly retreated back into his room.
As for Kurokawa and Midelash.
“Eh? What’s happening?”
“Yes, yes, yes, kids shouldn’t watch, go back to your room and wait.” Kurokawa covered Midelash’s eyes while tossing her into the room before retreating back into his own.
After all, he was a teacher, and it was necessary to intervene if he discovered any “unwholesome interactions” between the opposite sexes—but if he didn’t see it, then it couldn’t be helped.
Perhaps some might question why a “goodnight kiss” was deemed unwholesome.
But—
“I, I got it…” Kanade said, closing his eyes and slowly lowering his head.
In the darkness, what Kanade felt in the next moment was an intensely passionate kiss just like that night.
Though they had been lovers for so long, they had never even had a simple, pure kiss.
As soon as their lips touched, all Kanade could feel was a passionate and aggressive kiss, as if it stirred some primal instinct within him. Though he didn’t dislike it, he had even begun to get a bit addicted to it, every time he couldn’t help but complain internally—
—Is little Nagiko overly perverted!? Is it normal for a girlfriend to always use her tongue during every kiss with her boyfriend!?
—Is this kind of behavior really normal for couples?
As it was his first time dating a girl, Kanade had no answers in his heart.
“Kanade-kun, I like…” During a break for air, he even expressed such suggestive thoughts.
At this time, Kanade could only hypnotize himself desperately in his heart—”This is all normal; these are very common actions between couples.”
What should have been a simple goodnight kiss went on for an indeterminate time, and as both parties, Kanade lost all sense of time.
Until their lips, as usual, connected by a silver thread, and then separated, he gradually came back to his senses.
“Well then, goodnight, Kanade-kun~”
“Ahh…” Kanade let go of his embrace on Nagino and waved her back to the room where Midelash was.
It was only then that Kanade slowly returned to his own room, and after locking the door, he finally couldn’t help but cover his flushed face with both hands and squat down.
—Isn’t this really strange!? Is this kind of contact between couples really normal?
The contact Kanade was referring to was not just the earlier goodnight kiss but also included various public displays of affection in the carriage. Although Kanade maintained a calm exterior, internally he was incredibly tense every time. But when he thought he was already Nagino’s boyfriend, he could only affect an air of calm as he responded to her.
—Truly, couples are impressive…
To stop himself from overthinking, Kanade sighed and immediately climbed into bed, forcing himself into sleep.
Time unknowingly slipped into deep night.
In the stillness of the night.
“Listen, Mimi-chan must absolutely keep this a secret for Onee-chan~” Nagino lowered her voice, addressing Midelash, who was being bribed with an ice pop.
The latter, with a blissful expression, licked her ice pop and nodded.
As a hardcore player of the “Star Pull” series, Nagino naturally knew all of Midelash’s habits, and handling her was extremely easy.
After gaining Midelash’s consent, Nagino discreetly activated the magic power within her.
After a month of investigation, she had grasped the minimum threshold for the perception of magic fluctuations by everyone present.
As long as she carefully controlled her magic power to be below that minimum threshold and slowly released it, she could evade everyone’s perception and utilize her abilities.
“If anyone comes looking for us, remember to remind me to come back, okay?” Nagino added before leaving.
————————————-
Using the power of the Mirror Flower, Nagino suddenly appeared high above the train without breaking any windows.
A gentle breeze lifted Nagino’s slender and graceful figure, she hovered in the air with her back to the starry sky, watching the train carrying her companions gradually depart from her.
“……Alright, it’s time to check on the various treasure troves I built back then.” Nagino moved her body in midair as if doing some warm-up exercises, adjusting her body and magic state to the best condition.
What she intended to retrieve this time were the various extraordinary items she had collected in her past life as the “Elemental Sovereign.”
As a hardcore player of the “Star Pull” series, Nagino knew very well where in this world the powerful extraordinary items were hidden. Whether they were items she wouldn’t need for the time being or those that posed a potential threat to her, she had collected and hidden them away in certain secret places in advance.
These extraordinary items had a special name in the extraordinary world—”S-Class Inheritance.”
They were the objects of desire for all ability users in the entire extraordinary world.
For example, the “black card that can open anything” she had previously given to Alice was one such “S-Class Inheritance.”
This item didn’t appear in “Star Pull 1” but rather in “Star Pull 2” and was a unique item belonging to the personal route of Ayakashi Mana. Her father Fenrir had used this extraordinary item to smoothly open the many doors of the “Stellar Association” and destroy the deeply hidden experimental data within.
Players could acquire this extraordinary item in the middle to latter part of Ayakashi Mana’s route, and through save inheritance, they could use this “artifact” in multiple playthroughs.
In the original “Star Pull” game, many items exclusive to certain routes had to be obtained in this way.
But in the real world, Nagino, already aware of its existence, had obtained it ahead of time.
“Since Kanade-kun has awakened, should I give him the exclusive weapon…?” Nagino looked up at the sky full of stars, pondering.
That weapon specifically for the male protagonist of “Star Pull 2,” Tsukimi Kanade, had been secretly acquired by Nagino in her past life. While its power was incredibly immense, it could only be wielded by Kanade.
At that time, Nagino had never anticipated becoming the second female protagonist one day.
She was merely worried that one day she might have to oppose the second male protagonist, “Tsukimi Kanade,” so she had hidden the weapon away, preventing Kanade from obtaining it.
That blade, named “Life,” with its colorful edge—
