episode_0091

After getting together in the cockpit of the red moon until quite late.

morning.

“Good morning, Lavender.”

“……Instructor?”

During a 1:1 class with Lavender, I felt a strange sensation in the way Lavender looked at me.

“Why are you doing that?”

“No. Well, did you hurt your neck?”

“Thursday?”

“Yes. It looks a bit red.”

Lavender’s eyes are on my neck.

When I looked in the mirror, I saw a sharp scratch on my neck.

“Oh, it’s no big deal. It looks like you scratched it while you were sleeping.”

“…….”

“I’m just a little restless because I couldn’t sleep, so don’t worry.”

“Your health is our top priority, instructor.”

“Ah. of course. But I would like to ask the instructor the opposite question.”

I appreciate your concern for my health, but I walked up to Lavender and pressed my thumbs under her eyes.

“Hi…?!”

“Did you stay up all night?”

“Well, that.”

“It looks like they practiced mock training all night long.”

“Well, is that possible?”

Lavender blushed and took a step back, but as always, Lavender avoided eye contact.

“You. The expression and eyes now are exactly the same as back then.”

“Well, that time?”

“The expression on his face when he was caught secretly eating ether biscuits by himself, hiding the presence of Chang Se-su.”

“…Do you think I’m lying or hiding the truth?”

“Of course.”

Lavender looked up at me with half-closed eyes, but I lightly flicked my finger on her forehead.

“Ayat.”

“This instructor may not know anything else, but he knows things related to the Creation Tree the best in the universe, so I’m afraid he doesn’t know.”

“…….”

“There will be no connection records in the simulator. The body must have been in the room. However, if you use Fenrir, you could create a virtual simulation even in your room. Was I wrong?”

“…I’m sorry.”

Lavender obediently bowed her head and apologized.

“Well, I guess I was nervous.”

“It’s too much or too little. A new palace may suddenly arrive today and give us a chance to win, so we must always maintain our best condition.”

“But I heard that the instructor also had trouble sleeping at night.”

“I had a good reason for that, and you did it because you trained too much when you should have been sleeping.”

“What was the reason?”

“…….”

It’s a reason.

Nothing much.

“I just enjoyed alcohol lightly.”

“…Do you drink alcohol too?”

“Then you can drink even though you are an adult.”

“Did you eat it alone?”

“No.”

“……Who did you eat it with?”

“Instructor Aria.”

It wasn’t anything to hide, so I told Lavender the truth.

“…Why?”

“Why do adults drink alcohol?”

“Did you drink it with someone else? Maybe Captain Edmund too? Or call someone else?”

“You and Instructor Aria drank together. Instructor Aria seems to have a lot of concerns.”

“Are you saying that you discussed your concerns while drinking?”

“Yes.”

I want to change the topic, but Lavender’s questions are strangely persistent.

“What kind of information did you discuss? Is this something I shouldn’t know? If so…”

“It’s related to you.”

“Yes?”

“I don’t mean to burden you, but knowing this is Ace’s fate, so it would be okay to tell him.”

Although Aria and Lavender have differences as a teacher and a student, they are on the same level in that they are the owners of the Creation Tree.

“Instructor Aria raised the need for insurance. Lavender Whitely said we should prepare for when we are defeated by the Shrine.”

“…….”

“I know it’s unpleasant. It’s natural. You are confident that you will win, and preparing insurance like this may seem like you do not trust your skills.”

It’s up to you to think about it, but those who took pride in being ace pilots were bound to feel slightly offended by the situation.

In particular, there were so many aces who thought that without them, this unit would just be a floating object floating in space, an enemy target, or a coffin containing the bodies of waste-level organic life forms.

“There was a time when I had that thought too.”

“Instructor too?”

“Okay. I was aboard a friendly medium-sized battleship and became adrift, and there was only one AS that could fight. Even though I was the only one who could control it.”

“Uh….”

“Still, the crew members were all capable and able to overcome the crisis in their own way, but there were many problems in many ways before joining the main Galaxy unit.”

Without me, this unit will be annihilated.

Because of that keen sense, I made many mistakes and had many troubles, but I realized many things at that time.

“I thought about it at that time.”

“…Everyone must get through this together?”

“No. It can’t be done without me.”

“……Yes?”

Lavender’s expression was strangely distorted.

“I am needed here. This organization cannot function without me. If I leave, this place will definitely become X.”

“Hey, over there. Instructor…? In situations like this, isn’t it usually necessary to talk about the strength of everyone, the power of unity, and the love for colleagues and comrades?”

“Ace is different.”

Lavender’s words can certainly be said to be correct, but the SSS-level ace pilot’s story is different.

“Lavender student. If you want to be treated better than Instructor Aria or me, wherever you go someday, you will have to have the ability to solve the problems there on your own.”

“……I know it’s still not enough.”

“What is lacking is not skill or experience. Attitude, mindset.”

“What mindset do I lack?”

“Self.”

It is usually expressed as ‘ego’, and among aces, it is also called ‘ace pride’.

“We’ve been talking about this for a long time. Ace must be stubborn. Do you remember what I said as an example?”

“No matter what everyone says, he wears a mask, or he doesn’t want to kill people, so he has the ability to completely disarm his enemies so that none of his allies get hurt…”

Lavender calmed her voice with a serious face.

“As a Virgo, I can’t help but feel a sentimental sense of fate.”

“It’s slightly different, but yes. You have to have their mindset.”

“Is it the romance of remodeling and repairing an old, outdated airframe while everyone is using a new generation airframe?”

“Okay. What’s important is your skills and achievements that no one can say anything about even if you show your ego.”

Lavender has gained some experience.

Although I do not have perfect practical experience, I am still growing through simulated data.

“Lavender. What you lack right now is the ego to push through your skills…lack of experience.”

“Skin, experience….”

Lavender swallows her saliva with a meaningful look on her face.

“Until now, I have shown an overwhelming difference in skill while dealing with weak enemies, but this is my first time dealing with a strong person who may be stronger than me.”

“Yes. This is my first time.”

“Okay. But rest assured. With the help of this instructor, you will definitely have the experience of defeating a strong opponent.”

“……That.”

Lavender scratched her cheek and smiled slightly.

“If possible, I would like the instructor to be my first partner…”

“Lavender.”

I flicked my finger on Lavender’s forehead one more time.

“Ayat. Well, I’m sorry. I am too good…”

“It’s 10 years too early for you to beat me to AS.”

“……..”

“And ask someone who can’t even drive AS to become the recipient of the experience of defeating a strong player for the first time? Isn’t it impossible to begin with?”

I can’t deal with Lavender even if I want to.

“…Ha.”

Am I too discouraged?

Lavender sighed deeply for a moment and looked blankly out the window for a moment.

“Is there something?”

“No. just. …Huh?”

Lavender was surprised as she looked at my hand.

“Did you cut your nails short?”

“…Huh? Ah, this. what. I woke up in the morning and tidied up.”

“…….”

“You seem to be very interested in this instructor.”

I patted Lavender’s head lightly.

“More than that, don’t forget Ace’s mindset. Just as you think that you will win against Shingung, Instructor Aria has also come to think that ‘I will win unconditionally only when I step up.’”

“…Even if it were the other way around, it would be the same, right?”

“Of course.”

Now, it seems like he has vaguely realized Ace’s mindset.

“If you are in a situation where you have to take care of someone who is comparable to you, then in a situation like this where one person has to step up and solve the problem, such pride is absolutely necessary.”

“Okay, instructor. I will not forget that attitude and remember it well.”

“Okay. Please be careful so that it doesn’t come to me.”

“What are you talking about? What reason is there for the instructor to step forward? I won’t lose, but even if I suddenly have an upset stomach or something and can’t fight Shingung, Instructor Aria will go on my behalf.”

“The instructor is also leaving with us.”

“……Yes?”

Lavender’s eyes calmed down somewhere.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Unlike you, Instructor Aria has not yet adapted to the Creation Tree. Unlike you, who were purely chosen by Fenrir, Instructor Aria was chosen by Red Moon through me.”

Aria is not yet able to perfectly bring out Red Moon’s full power because she received my suggestion rather than being truly chosen by Red Moon herself.

“So, when Instructor Aria came out, the instructor decided to ride with her.”

“……In the same aircraft, two people together?”

“Yes.”

“…Yeah, right? Like different aircraft combining into one, one cockpit on the head and one cockpit on the chest?”

“No?”

What’s new?

“As Instructor Aria is from Virgo Colony, she decided to follow the two-seat cockpit that she is most familiar with.”

“…….”

Lavender immediately lifted the panel and began looking for the Virgo Colony’s double-seat seats.

‘Your passion for learning is amazing.’

ah.

Note that.

To compare the two-seat configuration of Virgo Colony, it is similar to a motorcycle.

It feels similar to two people riding together on one saddle.

‘It’s a little uncomfortable, but it’s unavoidable contact for victory.’

“……Instructor.”

“Why are you doing this, Lavender?”

“I.”

Lavender smiled broadly.

“Unconditionally, I will win.”