I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

"Let's have a 'private vacation'."

Chapter 52 Hina VS Hoshino, the strongest against the strongest!

"You want to know... what happened in Abydos back then, right?"

"Ah."

The white-haired girl gave a simple reply, her purple eyes looking at Amamiya with a complex emotion that was somewhere between exploration and longing.

How did Sensei manage to navigate a life of constant danger, where a single mistake could lead to utter ruin?

How Sensei helped Abydos overcome his previous predicament by stealing desires;

How Sensei gradually became a beacon of light in the hearts of so many students;

She was curious about all of this.

Although Hina doesn't constantly monitor Abydos's current situation, she has certainly noticed their changes.

It was precisely because she could see everything in Abydos that she was so curious.

— I'm curious about what kind of beauty and dangers are hidden in that world that is said to be made up of the "collective unconscious".

What kind of feeling would you have if you walked through it?

"Since Hina is curious... let's go take a look?"

Amamiya's words left the girl momentarily stunned, followed by a mixture of anticipation and surprise: "W-Is it okay?"

"I won't bother Sensei..."

Before he could finish speaking, Amamiya had already reached out a hand and touched Hina's horn.

“After all, it was a private date with Hina…” Amamiya teased, winking at Hina who was tilting her head slightly. “…So it’s perfectly normal for Hina to take the lead.”

"A...a date?!"

"Sensei... what are you saying...?"

Amamiya took in the girl's sudden, unexpected shyness, as well as her flustered little movements as she frantically flapped her bat wings, almost as if she could fly off the ground. Amamiya smiled and did not tease Hina any further.

"Hina, who usually stays at Gehenna, probably doesn't have many opportunities to visit other academies, right?"

Still reeling from her racing heart, the girl tried to calm herself and responded softly, "Mmm..."

"To be more precise... if I act as the 'Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee' in any territory other than Gehenna, it might cause trouble..."

At this point, Hina hesitated for a moment, unable to finish her sentence.

However, even without her saying it, Amamiya could roughly deduce the potential consequences of Hina's actions from Pandemonium's modus operandi.

The workload of the disciplinary committee has increased dramatically, while the budget has been cut again.

Upon returning to Charlemagne, Amamiya immediately took a bicycle with a back seat out of the garage.

— Theoretically, it would be better to travel to Abydos by car or train.

The reason I chose cycling wasn't to "tough it out," but to experience the unique atmosphere of Makoto Shinkai's animations...

"A boy rides a bicycle with a girl on the back, wandering along the road. The wind gently carries time"—this 'unique and evocative' feeling.

Hina was clearly surprised to see that the vehicle Amamiya pushed out was a bicycle, but then a rather subtle sense of novelty and excitement arose in her heart.

Her eyes gradually brightened like starlight and the bright moon. Upon seeing this bicycle with its slightly unique paint scheme, Hina immediately conjured up a unique image in her mind—

I sat sideways on the back of the bicycle, hugging the waist of an adult that I had always longed for, and then slowly moved forward, enjoying the breeze blowing from the road, amidst a tranquil natural landscape...

'Childhood sweethearts...or rather, "girlish charm"...'

After carefully searching her vocabulary, which had been riddled with holes by all sorts of office documents and paperwork, Hina finally summarized the words that brought her instant joy.

'That's a... unique way of making contact.'

I never imagined... that I would experience such a "special" day in my life.

Amamiya, holding onto the red and black painted bicycle handlebars with "phantom thief style stickers" that made it look cool and eye-catching, patted the back seat with his other hand: "Get on, Hina."

The girl did not hesitate or refuse; she simply moved her feet shyly and hesitantly, and sat sideways on the bicycle.

Then, she folded her wings, making them like hands, and wrapped them around Amamiya's waist from back to front.

【~???~】(Hina)

"Please, Sensei..."

Amamiya nodded slightly, rang the bicycle bell, and with a crisp ringing, he rode the "Phantom" with Hina, whose mood had unconsciously relaxed, towards Abydos.

The weather in early summer was not clear.

Fortunately, the weather was not clear, and cirrus clouds blocked most of the sunlight—otherwise, riding under the scorching sun would be a unique kind of torture for both the cyclist and the 'passenger'.

There's no such thing as 'girlishness' anymore; you have to do everything you can just to resist the dryness caused by the sun's rays.

Amamiya maintained a leisurely riding pace, listening to the girl behind him whose words, which became noticeably more lively as time went by and she adapted to the situation, would occasionally reach his ears.

“Sensei, look over there… the flowers in the park are blooming beautifully.”

"The flowers are beautiful, but Hina is as beautiful as a flower, and she also has a more distinct resilience and a loveliness that is more worthy of care than a flower."

"sen, Sensei..."

……

“Sensei, the lake over there is so beautiful... I’ve never seen a lake shimmering like that near Gehenna.”

"If Hina likes it... I can take her to the beach later—the scenery at the beach is different from that at the lake."

"Eh...the seaside...the beach, and..."

"I want to see Hina in a swimsuit."

"……Eh?!"

……

"Is that the Abydos Desert ahead...? Although Sensei helped solve the debt problem, as expected... the environment can't be changed immediately..."

What kind of environment does Hina like?

"Hmm... it'll probably be a few rainy days in a row... because on rainy days, there will be far fewer students causing trouble in Gehenna, and the Disciplinary Committee will be much less likely to go out on patrol."

"I see... Then let's go out together on a rainy day next time? If we stroll together in a rainy alley, and I hold the umbrella for Hina... that would be quite romantic, wouldn't it?"

"...I think so."

"Even so... I feel that Ayako might be somewhat..."

“If we do that, Ayako might hold Sensei accountable afterward…”

"I care more about Hina than Ako."

"If Hina likes the feeling I described... how about we sneak out together sometime?"

"Even if we are held accountable afterward, it's really nothing as long as it's for Hina's sake."

"……Um."

As they chatted about everything from the environment to life, Amamiya could clearly sense that, under his continuous 'little stimulation,' Hina in the back seat was like an electronic device that was gradually being recharged.

Both the frequency with which they initiate conversations and their reactions to being teased have shown significant changes.

As she became more accustomed to being teased with words, the girl spoke more frequently.

If Hina disliked the fleeting, slight shyness and racing heartbeat she felt when being 'teased' in this way, she could simply refuse or remain silent.

But she started speaking more frequently...

That means that she subconsciously enjoys the feeling of being "praised," "cared for," and "teaseed," that she experiences as a "lightweight" sensation.

After the bicycle entered the neighborhood near Abydos's campus, Amamiya deliberately slowed down.

Next, there's a good chance you'll run into someone you know... so be prepared.

As the bicycle entered the yellow sand, the road surface became noticeably rougher, and visibility was reduced by the scorching sunlight and the yellow sand whipped up by the wind.

Because the visibility and riding experience would immediately drop by a significant margin, Hina frowned slightly, worried that speaking rashly would result in swallowing a mouthful of sand, and temporarily swallowed back what she was about to say.

If it weren't for this sudden sandstorm, Hinai would actually have wanted to ask about the current state of Abydos's campus.

—Especially, the student Hoshino Takanashi.

Each academy has a benchmark-level combatant.

The benchmark of Gehenna Academy is Hina herself.

And Abydos's benchmark combat power... without a doubt, is Hoshino.

Hina had always regarded this Abydos student, whom she had never met but who was said to have great fighting ability, as a 'potential threat'.

"Sensei..."

As the sandstorm subsided, Hina, who was about to speak after tidying up her wind-blown white hair, was suddenly greeted by a flash of pink light.

Immediately afterwards, a lazy, complaining voice came from the sandstorm.

"Hmm..."

"Ugh...this desert weather is awful~~"

Amidst the grumbling, a pink-haired girl with a single ponytail, carrying her shotgun and hunching lazily forward, appeared from the street corner.

Upon noticing the conspicuous bicycles on the street and Amamiya pushing hers forward, Hoshino's languid expression immediately vanished, replaced by surprise.

"..."

"Hey?"

She quickly regained her composure and went over to say hello, then invited Amamiya to "visit" the Countermeasures Committee.

Good morning, Sensei...?

When Hoshino noticed the white hair fluttering behind Amamiya and the figure of the unfamiliar girl sitting sideways in the back seat of the car, she stopped in her tracks. Her gaze lingered for a moment on Amamiya's waist, which was surrounded by wings, before her aura suddenly sharpened.

"...What's going on?"

Amamiya felt slightly embarrassed, clearly sensing the intention and pressure conveyed by Hoshino's gaze.

At the same time, Hina leaned forward slightly and carefully examined the 'pink-haired, short' student who gave her a vague sense of pressure.

—This must be the legendary Hoshino Takanashi…

Thinking it over, Hina decided to say hello.

Unexpectedly, Hoshino quickly stepped forward and rushed to Amamiya's side, questioning her in a tone that, though smiling, clearly carried an unfriendly undertone.

"Sensei..."

"What exactly is your relationship with this 'short, white-haired student'?!"

Chapter 53 You are all my most important students!

The campus in Abydos is gradually regaining its vitality.

At least... it has shed some of the desolation it had when it was covered by yellow sand.

The clean and tidy floors are bathed in sunlight, showing no signs of having been exposed to wind, sand, or temperature differences between day and night.

The "sun" of Abydos protects this place, so it no longer has to endure endless sandstorms or be in danger of being destroyed at any time.

The sun can be obscured by clouds, resulting in a very rare phenomenon called a solar eclipse.

"Sensei..."

The pink-haired girl's eyes were slightly gloomy, and her sharp gaze concealed a chilling edge and danger.

What exactly is your relationship with this "short, white-haired student"?

Facing the increasingly heavy emotional pressure from Hoshino's gradually expanding gravitational field, Amamiya quickly thought for a moment.

Given the current situation... it's clear that we need to treat everyone fairly.