Volume 4, Interlude – 1

Volume 4, Interlude – 1

“You look like you’re in a bad mood. Not that it’s anything out of the ordinary these days.”

“We have a parent-teacher conference tomorrow.”

Sitting at the kitchen table, Nodoka stared at a printout sheet and sighed. Seeing that, Khalija smiled wryly.

“Parent-teacher conference… Oh, it’s that, right? Career counseling.”

“That’s right.”

“Don’t tell me you wrote something like ‘Magitech Knight’ on the form.”

“I didn’t write it. I wasn’t thinking about writing that either. That’s just generally lame.”

“That’s a relief.”

“……Khalija-san, how did you decide on your career?”

“Don’t use me as a reference. You already heard it, right? About what happened in my life to make me end up like this…”

“But not just anyone can become a Colonel, right? Does everything just work out for the best if you have talent and do your job properly?”

“I don’t know yet if it was for the best or not, but…”

“That’s right. You wouldn’t know that, right? Besides, this career counseling itself is like some sort of game where you match your grades against some safe occupation that the adults would like, it’s just horrible.”

“I won’t deny that you can also look at it that way. If it’s just about finding a dream and building up the zeal to work towards it, you can still do it on your own. But looking at things objectively is hard to do even after you become an adult. In that respect, I feel like that sort of coercion is also necessary.”

“Logical harassment.”

“Eh?”

“…It’s nothing. I already know that. I know that it’s just part of the system. But coming from our homeroom teacher, who somehow grew up without gaining any objectivity, that sort of thing really pisses me off. Everyone in our class knows about how he scolded a boy who wanted to be a horse jockey and a girl who wanted to join the SDF to the point of tears in April.”

“……That sort of thing also only lasts for a moment. For both of them.”

“I still think I have more talent to live in Ante Lande…”

“Nodoka……”

“Ah, that’s right. Mom and I are going shopping after the parent-teacher conference tomorrow, so you should take some time to relax, Khalija-san.”

“Ah, got it. I’ll do that.”