Infinite Stratos, Volume 2, page 9
“I’m back. Huh...? Charles, where are you?”
As I wondered, the sound of running water echoed from the shower.
“Ah, he must be in the shower.”
—Now that I think of it, didn’t he say we ran out of body wash yesterday?
As I remembered what Charles said, I pulled a spare bottle out of the closet. I’d thought I would take the first shower today, so I could just bring some with me when I went.
—He probably wishes he had this now. I’ll bring it to him.
The shower room was with a door between the shower and the changing area.
—I should bring it to the changing area and then yell to him.
I thought as I entered the shower room.
Click.
Click? Hmm. I’d already opened the door to enter, so why did I hear that? Oh, right, Charles must have opened the shower door. He must be looking for some body wash.
“Oh, good timing. I brought another bottle of—”
“I-I-I-Ichika?”
“Huh?”
The person who entered the shower room was a girl I’d never seen. How did I know it was a girl? Simple. She had breasts.
Her damp hair was a wavy blonde, soft and supple. Sleek and long-legged, her slender waist accentuated her breasts, making them seem even larger than they were. With blonde hair and amethyst eyes, I knew she couldn’t be Japanese. Perhaps that was why her—around C-cups?—were still exceptionally perky. The droplets of water perched on her young skin like gems, almost like she was set with precious stones.
And she was naked. Completely naked. I knew inside my head that I had to look away, but my eyes were fixated as if pinned down.
“I... Er, uh...”
Somehow, I felt like I’d seen the naked girl before me somewhere before, but I was so confused I couldn’t think.
—Hmm, blonde... Blond?
“Eek!”
Slam!
The girl had overcome her shock, and covered her breasts immediately while fleeing into the shower. The loud slam of the door brought me back to my senses, and I listened to the flowing water.
“Um...”
“.........”
There was no response from beyond the door. She was probably as speechless as I was.
“I’m leaving the body wash here.”
“O-Okay...”
With an exchange that may or may not have been a conversation, I placed the bottle by the shower door and left.
“.........”
—What’s going on here? I’d thought Charles was in the shower... Wait, was that him?!
Now that I thought about it, it didn’t seem too far-fetched. If he let his hair down, it would probably be about like that. But that wasn’t the biggest problem.
—Something’s not right here. Why does Charles have breasts? Mmm, breasts...
The sight was still burned into the inside of my eyelids.
—Those... were some beautiful breasts.
There was no way. It couldn’t be. Though, I couldn’t rule it out completely...
—It’s better to just not think about it. Clear your mind, and let troubles fade away.
Click.
“......?!”
A quiet, almost apologetic click as the door to the changing area opened. Yet to me, it was the loudest sound I’d heard in my life, and I involuntarily cowered.
“I’m coming out.”
“Okay.”
The voice I heard from behind me was definitely Charles. I tried to ignore my heart pounding in my chest as I turned around.
In front of me... Was a girl.
◇
“.........”
“.........”
We had spent an hour like this. I, and the girl in front of me—Charles’s true identity—sat on our beds, facing toward each other, but silently avoiding each others’ gazes.
“Well, um...”
I decided to break the ice. As I spoke, she—Charles, trembled.
—C’mon, it shouldn’t be that shocking...
“Would you like some tea?”
“S-Sure. If you don’t mind.”
It seemed we both agreed that a drink would make it easier to talk. At least we were finally on the same page about something. Anyway, I boiled water in the electric kettle and poured it into my teapot.
“.........”
“.........”
As we waited for the tea to steep, the silence returned. As much as I wished I could, there was no rushing the tea leaves.
“It should be good now. Here.”
“Oh, tha— Eek!”
As I passed the mug, our fingertips brushed together, and Charles, flustered, pulled back her hand. Unthinkingly, I tightened my grip on the mug to keep from dropping it, and in response tea sloshed out on my hand.
“Ow, that’s hot! Water! Water!”
I ran to the sink, and opened the tap as far as possible. The rush of water cooled my hand, and it seemed the crisis was mostly averted.
“S-Sorry! Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I should be fine. As long as you cool it off quickly, you don’t really get burnt.”
“Let me see it... You’re bright red. I’m really sorry.”
Seemingly a little bit panicked, Charles had rushed to my side and pulled my hand toward her, staring at the part where tea had splashed with a pained expression.
“I’ll go get some ice!”
“Wait, wait. You can’t go out like that. I’ll get it myself in a moment.”
Charles was wearing her tailored track jacket like usual, but maybe it was because I knew her secret, that she had dispensed with the special corset she used to hold down her breasts. With how tightly her jacket fit, her breasts were obvious.
“But...”
“Actually, uhh. Your breasts... They’ve been rubbing on me.”
“......!”
As if she had only realized her own position after it had been mentioned, Charles leapt backwards, her arms crossed over her chest.
“.........”
Even if it was just a little bit, her eyes carried that accusing stare only women were capable of.
“And here I was worried about you... Ichika, you pervert...”
“What?!”
Impossible! I was being treated as a villain. How absurd! Such falsehood! Maybe I was imagining things, but for a moment I hoped that maybe it wasn’t accusatory, but a mix of embarrassment and a dash of joy. Yeah... I must have been imagining things. What girl would be happy about a guy she didn’t like touching her?
“Phew. It’s cooled down enough, I should be fine. Anyway, let’s try that again.”
“Okay.”
This time, I managed to pass the mug to Charles, and we each took a sip of our tea. After we moistened our throats, I made my way to the question I’d been turning over in my mind.
“So why have you been pretending to be a man?”
“My... my family made me do it...”
“Huh? Your family, as in the Dunoises?
“That’s right. My father is the company president. It was a direct order from him.”
What? Something didn’t seem quite right here. When the conversation turned to her family, a gloom descended over Charles’s face.
“An order? From your father? How does that...”
“I... I’m the daughter of one of his mistresses.”
“.........”
Silence, again. Being 15, I was old enough to know how the world worked. I wasn’t so innocent and sheltered enough to not know what that meant.
“I was adopted by my father two years ago. Soon after my mother’s death, his employees came for me. After rigorous testing, they determined that I was highly-suited to pilot an IS, and I was assigned as an unofficial test pilot for Dunois.”
Charles was bravely working her way through a story she probably didn’t want to recall, so I listened intently, letting her finish.
“I’ve only met my father twice. Only spoken a few sentences with him. We lived in separate houses, and just once, he called me to his. It was terrible. His wife even hit me, and she called me ‘that homewrecker’s brat.’ It really ate at me. If Mom had told me a bit more, at least I wouldn’t have been so bewildered.”
Charles let loose a forced chuckle, too dry by far to have been a true laugh. I didn’t return it. And I suppose she didn’t want me to. For some reason, anger welled up inside me, and I clenched my fists to hold it back.
“Shortly after, Dunois entered a financial crisis.”
“Wait, what? Don’t they have the third highest global share of mass produced IS?”
“Yes, but the Revive is still a second-generation IS. IS development is incredibly expensive—most companies in the industry receive direct government support. And France had withdrawn from the EU’s joint ‘Ignition Plan’ defense project. The need for a third-generation IS was urgent. Yet, no matter how necessary it was for our defense, a country with neither an expansive budget, nor first-mover’s advantage, inevitably suffered.”
Now that I thought of it, Cecilia had talked about the development of third-generation IS a few times.
“The European Union is currently conducting testing to determine the primary supplier of its third-generation Ignition Plan IS. The proposals under evaluation are our Tears, the German Regen, and the Italian Tempesta. Ours is currently the closest to production-readiness, but it’s by no means decided yet. Therefore, I was sent to IS Academy to gather data under field conditions.”
Or so I recalled. That was likely why Laura transferred here from Germany, as well.
“Back to the point. Therefore, while Dunois began development of a third-generation IS, it was in fact based off a very late second-generation project. Extremely short on both time and useful data, the project failed to take form. Then, a notice arrived from the government that the budget had been trimmed significantly. And that if it wasn’t selected at the next trial, all further funding would also cut completely, and Dunois’ IS development license would be stripped.”
“I think I get it, but why did you come posing as a man?”
“It’s simple. As a billboard for our product. And—” Charles avoided eye contact, her voice betraying a bit of frustration. “It would be easiest to get close to a similar example in Japan if I also posed as a boy. If possible, I was to get data on both his IS and him himself.”
“Meaning...”
“Yes. I was sent to steal data on Byakushiki. That’s what he told me to do.”
From what I was hearing, Charles’s father was just taking advantage of her. The sort of “She’s good with an IS, so let’s use that!” and nothing else. Surely she felt it much more intensely than I did, though. That must been why she was talking about her own father as if he was unrelated to her. In her mind, he wasn’t “Dad,” he was just some guy.
“And that’s how it is. Now that you’ve found me out, I’m sure I’ll be called home to France. As for the company... I’m sure it will either collapse or be bought out, certainly never be the same, but I don’t really care.”
“.........”
“That took a real load off me. Thanks for listening. And sorry for lying to you.”
Charles bowed deeply, but when I realized she was doing so I reached out to her shoulders and pulled her face back level.
“Are you okay with that, though?”
“Eh...?”
“Are you okay with that? You can’t be. It doesn’t matter what he says. Why does someone have the right to take away your freedom just because he’s your parent? That isn’t right!”
“I-Ichika?”
Charles’s face was a bit puzzled, and a bit frightened. But, I couldn’t find the right words. More than anything, I couldn’t get a hold of my feelings.
“I mean, you wouldn’t be here without him, that much is true, but it’s absurd to think that that should give him absolute authority over you. Everyone has the right to choose how they’re going to live. And your parents don’t get to say any different!”
As I spoke, I realized I wasn’t really talking about Charles here—I was talking about myself. And I couldn’t help but think about Chifuyu, who went through so much because of them.
“What’s wrong? Is something bothering you, Ichika?”
“Ah, yeah. Sorry... I got too worked up there.”
“That’s okay. Just tell me what’s wrong.”
“I was—Chifuyu and I were abandoned by our parents.”
“Oh...”
Charles looked at me for a moment, with a face that implied she had recalled something tragic, and then looked down apologetically.
“I’m... sorry to hear that.”
“Don’t worry about it. Chifuyu is enough family for me. I wouldn’t even care to meet my parents. Anyway, what do you want to do now?”
“Well... it’s just a matter of time. When the French government finds out the truth, they won’t be able to stay uninvolved. My status as National Cadet will be revoked, and if I’m lucky, I’ll only be jailed.”
“And you’re okay with that?”
“It doesn’t matter if I’m okay with it or not. I don’t get to choose. It’s going to happen.”
Charles’s faint grin was filled with pain. It betrayed her despairing resignation. I couldn’t forgive anyone who made her feel like that. At the same time, I was angry at myself for not being able to do anything. Not being able to help a friend filled me with frustration.
“Then why not stay here?”
“Huh?”
“According to Article 21: While enrolled, students are not subject to the authority of any nation, organization, or group. Outside interference without their consent is not permitted.”
—That’s it. That’ll work.
As it sprang to mind, my anger receded, and I recited the text so smoothly I was almost disgusted with myself.
“Meaning... as long as you’re here, you’re safe for at least three years. That’ll give you time to figure out a solution. You don’t need to rush into one.”
“Ichika...”
“Huh? What?”
“You remembered well. There are, what, fifty-five articles?”
“I... work hard.”
“You sure do.”
Charles finally laughed. Her expression was the carefree smile of a 15-year-old girl.
My pulse is pounding again... Looking again, what I noticed most wasn’t even her beauty, but her kindness. That must be what made her look so adorable to me. Seeing her unguardedness made my heart beat even faster.
“Anyway, it’s up to you to decide, so you should think it over.”
“Sure. I will.”
It seemed like we were moving on from the more awkward topics, but maybe I should have pressed a bit harder. Thinking this made me turn my eyes to Charles again, and our gazes met.
“Huh? What’s wrong?”
“Oh, nothing.”
Charles peered at my face. I was unsure whether she knew what I was thinking or not, and now it wasn’t just her vulnerability. The top of her cleavage peeking out from her neckline was enough to make my heart beat like a drum.
“Anyway, uh... Could you back up, Charles?”
“Huh?”
“Well, uh, your breasts...”
At their mention, Charles blushed a bright red.
—She was like this before, too, wasn’t she.
“Ichika, you keep talking about my breasts... Do you want to see them?”
“What?!”
“.........”
“.........”
I was nervous, unsure of what she really intended. For some reason she fell silent, her face still beet-red, and a different kind of awkwardness set in.
Knock, knock.
“......?!”
“Ichika, are you there? You haven’t eaten yet. You aren’t sick or anything, are you?”
Charles and I each froze, stock still at the sudden knock.
“Ichika? Can I come in?”
—This is bad. Really bad. Really, really bad. Even a moron would be able to tell Charles was a girl if they saw her now.
“What do we do?”
“Just hide for now.”
We whispered quietly back and forth. Our faces were quite close, but we didn’t have time to think about that.
“Okay. I’ll just sneak into here...”
“Wha— Why the closet?! Use the bed! Just cover yourself up with blankets, you’ll be fine!”
“Oh! Good idea!”
Charles and I each scrambled.
Click. The sound of the door opening echoed.
“Oh, hey, Cecilia! What’s up? What’d you need?”
“Did I interrupt something?”
What she saw was Charles, who had just dived into bed, and me, lying on top while pulling a blanket over her. It was certainly an unusual sight to open a door and find one resident lying on top of another over a blanket. Cecilia gave a doubtful expression, as if trying to make sure she was really seeing this.
“Oh, Charles thinks he has a cold, so I was tucking him in. No big deal, right?”
“And... is lying on top of a sick person a traditional Japanese cure?”
Of course not. It wasn’t a traditional anywhere cure. Who the hell would come up with something like that?
“Anyway, uh, Charles isn’t feeling well, so he’s taking a nap. He isn’t hungry, so I’m just going to have to go alone.”
“That’s right.”
Charles’s voice leaked out from under the blanket.
—C’mon, put a little more effort into sounding sick!
“Cough, cough.”
—Could you make it any more obvious that you were faking? This isn’t going to work, is it.
“Oh, is that so? I still haven’t gotten supper, as well. Shall we go together? Indeed. Such an unusual coincidence.”
We had seemingly fooled Cecilia, and she turned her attention toward dinner with me. I needed to remember to bring a meal back for Charles, though.
“Cough, cough. Enjoy.”
“Sure.”
“Take care, Dunois. Ichika, shall we be off?”
As she spoke, she took my arm. The British were naturals at gestures which Japanese shied back from. I was uncomfortable with such close contact, but endured it as to not aggravate the situation. We left my room, and walked toward the staircase. As we were about to descend, I heard a shout.
