When I awoke, I found myself back in my room. If I recall… I managed to corner Clément…
A thick fog seemed to cover my memories. I took a look around my room, but didn’t notice anything out of place. The bunk bed, with bedding only set in the bottom bunk, and just one desk and dresser for furniture. It was just my usual dorm room, where I had been living alone.
I could already see the sun shining through the curtains. The sun’s rays had a warm hue which suggested that rather than morning, it was closer to noon.
“Claire-sama~!”
Without giving me even the chance to respond, the door swung open. The one who rushed into the room was, of course, Rei.
“Hey, Rei! Even if it may be you, to the very least you should still knock.”
“Even… If it’s me!? Does that mean… That I really am special to you after all?”
“Krh… Lately… You’ve been getting a little too carried away.”
“Tehehe, my apologies. And so, how are you feeling?”
With a drastic drop from playful to serious, Rei cast me a worried gaze.
“How am I feeling? No different from usual.”
“That’s great…! For a while I was really worried.”
“Did something happen?”
“What do you mean? Don’t you remember?”
Rei placed her hands on her hips and leaned forward angrily.
“My memories seem to be a little vague. I’ll need you to explain.”
“I found you on the ground in the alley just outside of the concert hall. I was just starting to wonder where you had gone… What were you doing at a place like that?”
“What, of course I was… Hmm, what was I doing?”
I couldn’t really seem to remember. I do seem to remember chasing someone out of the hall…
“I suppose lapses in memory even happen to people as sharp as you, huh, Claire-sama.”
“Well I mean, of course. I certainly am confident in my memory, but there are limits.”
“That’s true~ By the way, Claire-sama, I remember all of the different clothes you’ve worn, and hairstyles you’ve had ever since the day I first met you!”
“What a huge waste of headspace!”
Just what enjoyment did she get from doing something like that?
“But I mean, aren’t there just some things you never want to forget?”
“Of course.”
“To me, that’s any and all information about Claire-sama. I want to remember it all. As much as I can, and as long as I can.”
“Yes sure, that’s all fine and well.”
In response to my exasperation, Rei’s face momentarily lit up as though she had realized something.
“Hm, what was it…”
“Is something the matter?”
“No, well, I can’t quite place it, but I feel like I’m forgetting something…”
“That’s a coincidence, I seem to feel the same.”
“Oh, you feel the same way! Alright then, it’s time for our good morning kiss―”
“Something like that should just be left forgotten!”
I threw my pillow at Rei.
“I’m just kidding. After all, I’d much prefer our first kiss be from you, Claire-sama!”
“Something like that will never happen, so don’t worry about it.”
“Claire-sama, you’re so cold~ But that’s exactly the part I love~!”
“Y-You truly exhaust me…”
When I let my fatigue show,
“But well, you really did collapse, so please make sure to get proper rest today. I think it would be best if we take a day off from our special duties tomorrow as well.”
“There’s no way we could. We still need to investigate Salas-sama, not to mention my own father.”
“Even just apprehending Clément is a huge achievement. I’m sure the King wouldn’t mind it if we just took a day.”
“But…”
“Listen to me, Claire-sama.”
With a serious expression, Rei pointed her forefinger up.
“Good work stems from good health.”
“R-Right…”
“Even if you push yourself while you’re feeling unwell, the only one that would be happy seeing that is a sleazy boss.”
“You wouldn’t happen to be referring to Rodd-sama, would you?”
If so, she really must learn to rein her disrespect in.
“Ah, no, it’s an entirely different matter.”
“But your words definitely seemed to carry some weight.”
“Well… I just have some strong opinions when it comes to worker exploitation.”
“I-Is that so…”
I didn’t quite understand exactly what she was referring to, but from the context I got the gist of it.
“In any case! Please just take it easy tomorrow. For now, we should have breakfast… No, I suppose it would be lunch? Either way, I’ll bring it right away.”
“Thank you.”
“Claire-sama, are you feeling hungry?”
“Yes, as I normally would.”
“Great, then please just wait a little longer.”
“Thank you, I appreciate it, Rei.”
I saw Rei off as she left the room to prepare my meal.
“That said, it doesn’t feel right for me to lie back down when I’ve just gotten up…”
If Rei were to see me, she might say something, but I wanted something to read so I stood and approached my desk.
“? What’s this…?”
There on my desk was an unfamiliar pot of candy. I thought perhaps Rei had purchased it, but when I opened the lid and looked, there was only one left inside.
“This is… Licorice?”
Its very unique scent seemed to tickle my nostrils. I certainly wouldn’t say that I liked the scent, but for some reason, as though by reflex, I put the candy in my mouth.
“… Eh?”
Suddenly, I found myself crying. I didn’t understand why, but no matter how much I wiped away the tears, the stream kept flowing.
There was no proof of it, no traces of it, and no memories of it either… And yet, somehow, I couldn’t help but feel that someone precious to me, that was and should have been here by my side, was missing.
“Just what’s happened to me…”
I simply stood still, working away at the candy. By the time it was gone, the storm of emotions I felt had passed too.
“Sorry to have kept you waiting, Claire-sama―wait, that’s no good, you need to be resting.”
“I only just woke up, so it’s not like I can simply go back to sleep―wait, wha!?”
The moment Rei saw my face, she placed the tray she was holding down on the desk and leaned in very close.
“Claire-sama, did something happen?”
“S-Something? Hey, wait, Rei! You’re close! Way too close!”
“Your eyes are red. Were you crying?”
“It’s just because I just woke up.”
“But you were fine just before. Didn’t I tell you? I don’t forget anything if it’s about you, Claire-sama.”
“Don’t know and I don’t care!”
Where did all of those tears come from? Why did I suddenly feel so sad? I really didn’t understand it myself.
“Either way, I am doing just fine, so let’s eat. What are we having?”
“I’ll make sure I ask for all the details after then. Today is―”
After that, we returned to our usual selves.
And, just like that, I had lost the memories of someone very precious to me. Without even being able to realize what I had lost.
When I awoke, I found myself back in my room. If I recall… I managed to corner Clément…
A thick fog seemed to cover my memories. I took a look around my room, but didn’t notice anything out of place. The bunk bed, with bedding only set in the bottom bunk, and just one desk and dresser for furniture. It was just my usual dorm room, where I had been living alone.
I could already see the sun shining through the curtains. The sun’s rays had a warm hue which suggested that rather than morning, it was closer to noon.
“Claire-sama~!”
Without giving me even the chance to respond, the door swung open. The one who rushed into the room was, of course, Rei.
“Hey, Rei! Even if it may be you, to the very least you should still knock.”
“Even… If it’s me!? Does that mean… That I really am special to you after all?”
“Krh… Lately… You’ve been getting a little too carried away.”
“Tehehe, my apologies. And so, how are you feeling?”
With a drastic drop from playful to serious, Rei cast me a worried gaze.
“How am I feeling? No different from usual.”
“That’s great…! For a while I was really worried.”
“Did something happen?”
“What do you mean? Don’t you remember?”
Rei placed her hands on her hips and leaned forward angrily.
“My memories seem to be a little vague. I’ll need you to explain.”
“I found you on the ground in the alley just outside of the concert hall. I was just starting to wonder where you had gone… What were you doing at a place like that?”
“What, of course I was… Hmm, what was I doing?”
I couldn’t really seem to remember. I do seem to remember chasing someone out of the hall…
“I suppose lapses in memory even happen to people as sharp as you, huh, Claire-sama.”
“Well I mean, of course. I certainly am confident in my memory, but there are limits.”
“That’s true~ By the way, Claire-sama, I remember all of the different clothes you’ve worn, and hairstyles you’ve had ever since the day I first met you!”
“What a huge waste of headspace!”
Just what enjoyment did she get from doing something like that?
“But I mean, aren’t there just some things you never want to forget?”
“Of course.”
“To me, that’s any and all information about Claire-sama. I want to remember it all. As much as I can, and as long as I can.”
“Yes sure, that’s all fine and well.”
In response to my exasperation, Rei’s face momentarily lit up as though she had realized something.
“Hm, what was it…”
“Is something the matter?”
“No, well, I can’t quite place it, but I feel like I’m forgetting something…”
“That’s a coincidence, I seem to feel the same.”
“Oh, you feel the same way! Alright then, it’s time for our good morning kiss―”
“Something like that should just be left forgotten!”
I threw my pillow at Rei.
“I’m just kidding. After all, I’d much prefer our first kiss be from you, Claire-sama!”
“Something like that will never happen, so don’t worry about it.”
“Claire-sama, you’re so cold~ But that’s exactly the part I love~!”
“Y-You truly exhaust me…”
When I let my fatigue show,
“But well, you really did collapse, so please make sure to get proper rest today. I think it would be best if we take a day off from our special duties tomorrow as well.”
“There’s no way we could. We still need to investigate Salas-sama, not to mention my own father.”
“Even just apprehending Clément is a huge achievement. I’m sure the King wouldn’t mind it if we just took a day.”
“But…”
“Listen to me, Claire-sama.”
With a serious expression, Rei pointed her forefinger up.
“Good work stems from good health.”
“R-Right…”
“Even if you push yourself while you’re feeling unwell, the only one that would be happy seeing that is a sleazy boss.”
“You wouldn’t happen to be referring to Rodd-sama, would you?”
If so, she really must learn to rein her disrespect in.
“Ah, no, it’s an entirely different matter.”
“But your words definitely seemed to carry some weight.”
“Well… I just have some strong opinions when it comes to worker exploitation.”
“I-Is that so…”
I didn’t quite understand exactly what she was referring to, but from the context I got the gist of it.
“In any case! Please just take it easy tomorrow. For now, we should have breakfast… No, I suppose it would be lunch? Either way, I’ll bring it right away.”
“Thank you.”
“Claire-sama, are you feeling hungry?”
“Yes, as I normally would.”
“Great, then please just wait a little longer.”
“Thank you, I appreciate it, Rei.”
I saw Rei off as she left the room to prepare my meal.
“That said, it doesn’t feel right for me to lie back down when I’ve just gotten up…”
If Rei were to see me, she might say something, but I wanted something to read so I stood and approached my desk.
“? What’s this…?”
There on my desk was an unfamiliar pot of candy. I thought perhaps Rei had purchased it, but when I opened the lid and looked, there was only one left inside.
“This is… Licorice?”
Its very unique scent seemed to tickle my nostrils. I certainly wouldn’t say that I liked the scent, but for some reason, as though by reflex, I put the candy in my mouth.
“… Eh?”
Suddenly, I found myself crying. I didn’t understand why, but no matter how much I wiped away the tears, the stream kept flowing.
There was no proof of it, no traces of it, and no memories of it either… And yet, somehow, I couldn’t help but feel that someone precious to me, that was and should have been here by my side, was missing.
“Just what’s happened to me…”
I simply stood still, working away at the candy. By the time it was gone, the storm of emotions I felt had passed too.
“Sorry to have kept you waiting, Claire-sama―wait, that’s no good, you need to be resting.”
“I only just woke up, so it’s not like I can simply go back to sleep―wait, wha!?”
The moment Rei saw my face, she placed the tray she was holding down on the desk and leaned in very close.
“Claire-sama, did something happen?”
“S-Something? Hey, wait, Rei! You’re close! Way too close!”
“Your eyes are red. Were you crying?”
“It’s just because I just woke up.”
“But you were fine just before. Didn’t I tell you? I don’t forget anything if it’s about you, Claire-sama.”
“Don’t know and I don’t care!”
Where did all of those tears come from? Why did I suddenly feel so sad? I really didn’t understand it myself.
“Either way, I am doing just fine, so let’s eat. What are we having?”
“I’ll make sure I ask for all the details after then. Today is―”
After that, we returned to our usual selves.
And, just like that, I had lost the memories of someone very precious to me. Without even being able to realize what I had lost.
