gyaxa | Cards — They Huddled Shoulder to Shoulder 6

(A few days before the upcoming live)

Aira: I’m glad the roses are still in full bloom~♪︎

Mayoi: Since we had to leave in the middle of our visit last time, so I’m glad we could this park a visit once again before live…♪︎

Tatsumi: There’s just a couple days left until the live. We’ve just about wrapped up our lessons and such, so today should be a good opportunity to refresh.

Hiiro: Yes. Today, I want to have a look at all the different breeds of roses they have!

Aira: ….Speaking of which, didn’t we study Alice in Wonderland together in preparation for the live?

You really get a sense of scared of the queen the soldiers were when you realize what beautiful white roses they were willing to paint over.

Tatsumi: The more you learn, the more you’ll appreciate the world around you. It might be a blessing in disguise that we get to enjoy the rose garden at this point in time.

Mayoi: We’re about to enter the maze, so how should we proceed?

When Hiiro-san and I got separated the other day, I panicked and ended up taking a look at a map of the maze, so I have a vague idea of how it’s laid out.

It seems that it splits into a couple of routes at the main entry point.

No matter which path you choose, you should be able to reach the goal…

Hiiro: So it’s a matter of if we all take the same route, or individual ones.

If we’re all going to reach the goal in the end, I think it’d be interesting if we all took different routes.

Aira: I’m kinda worried about getting lost…

But as long as there aren’t any dead ends, I’m totally fine with that.

Tatsumi: Then why don’t we each take a separate route? It sort of reminds me of how the stage for our new song is set up, too.

Mayoi: Ah, now that you mention it…

Aira: Then it’s settled! See you guys at the goal ♪︎

(A few minutes later)

Hiiro: (...Hm. I’m pretty sure I’ve been faring rather well up to this point.)

(The estimated time to complete the maze was 15 minutes, so if I keep going like this, I should reach the goal sooner or later.)

… At any rate, these roses are absolutely breathtaking. It feels like I’ve really wandered into Wonderland.

Alice must’ve been a very brave girl, what with how she continued on with her journey, despite having suddenly ended up in some world she knew nothing about.

… Was I like that too, I wonder?

(When I first left my hometown to come to the city, everything I set my eyes on seemed strange and foreign to me, and the customs of the city confused and bewildered me.)

(But because I set my mind on bringing my brother back to our hometown, I feared nothing.)

(I no longer have any obligation to fulfill that objective….)

(However, I’ve become painfully aware of just how inexperienced I am, so I don’t want to lose the enthusiasm and sense of duty that drove me at that time.)

(A strong will to push forward in order to achieve something…)

(For ALKALOID and my future self’s sakes, I want to ignite the flame that dwelled within me back then.)

… Maybe I should bring this up to everyone later. It’d be nice to hear their views on the matter too.

Taking note of my unit members’ opinions will help make me an even better leader, after all…♪︎

Mayoi: Ah, Hiiro-saaan! Look over here!

Hiiro: Huh? I didn’t expect to run into anyone before reaching the goal.

Mayoi: It appears the routes connect and open up into a clearing.

I wasn’t sure if anyone else would pass through here, so I could’ve just went ahead on my own…

But if possible, I’d like to go the rest of the way with everyone else—

Aira: Huh? Since the two of you are here, does that mean this is the goal?

… That can’t be it. There’s still roses everywhere you look. What’s got you guys stuck standing here?

Hiiro: Nothing, really. We’re just waiting for everyone to gather here.

It’d be more fun if we walked the rest of the way together, and I’d be happy if we all got to reach the goal together.

Don’t you agree, Mayoi-senpai?

Tatsumi: —Don’t you, Mayoi-san? ♪︎

Aira & Mayoi: YEEP!?

Tatsumi: I caught sight of your backs, so I thought I’d try joining in on your conversation.

Aira: Oh, geez, that scared me. Tatsumi-senpai, you can be really mischievous sometimes, y’know?

Mayoi: (taking deep breaths) I thought my heart was going to leap out of my chest…

Tatsumi: Fufu, I hadn’t meant to cause you such a big shock.

That aside, the goal should be close, yes? Given how we’ve managed to reconvene together.

Hiiro: I believe so. This clearing has five different paths branching off of it, and each of us four came out of one…

That means there’s only one path left that leads to the goal ♪︎

Mayoi: Then does that mean that, had we all taken the same route, we would’ve been confronted with four different paths to choose from?

Aira: I guess that means splitting up was the right call ♪︎

Tatsumi: All we need to do now is take the remaining path.

But since this is such a big maze, I’m starting to suspect that there may be some kind of trick lying in wait for us.

Hiiro: Given the time, I’m pretty sure the goal is right up ahead. Let’s just all proceed ahead, even if there’s some kind of trap waiting to throw us off guard.

If the four of us are together, we should be able to overcome any difficulty thrown our way ♪︎

Aira: Ahaha, that sounded kinda cool. Then let’s have Hiro-kun take the lead…