Chapter 219: Ayane steeled herself.

"Are you saying you no longer want to capture him?"

That question from Reina made Ayane fall silent, even though the answer she was supposed to give was simple.

As the leader, she had the duty to follow her superiors’ orders, but when she tried to say it, she remembered Noah once again.

His smile, the kindness with which he had treated her, and the fact that he had never asked for anything in return.

’Do I really want to hand him over to the organization?’

The answer appeared immediately.

’No.’

Ayane clenched her fists under the table.

"That’s not what I’m saying."

Misaki looked at her.

"Then what *are* you saying?"

Ayane took a deep breath.

"That we need to reconsider how we deal with Noah."

Reina raised an eyebrow.

"As a target or as a future husband?"

"REINA!"

"I was just clarifying!"

Misaki sighed, but she didn’t press the issue. She had already noticed Ayane’s hesitation and understood that this conversation was far more important than their leader wanted to admit.

The meeting finally ended, and Reina left first after claiming she had important matters to attend to.

Misaki asked what those were, and Reina answered that she had seen a cupcake promotion near the station, but Ayane didn’t scold her.

That made Misaki sigh one last time before gathering her things. Just as both of them were about to leave, Ayane spoke.

"Misaki."

The sniper stopped.

"Yes?"

"I wanted to ask you something."

Reina immediately poked her head through the door.

"If it’s about Noah, I want to hear it!"

Ayane looked at her.

"Out!"

Reina grinned.

"There’s our leader!"

Then she disappeared down the hallway, and Misaki waited until her footsteps could no longer be heard.

"What is it?"

Ayane glanced at her phone and then looked up.

"Do you think I should talk to Noah again?"

Misaki stayed silent for a few seconds before answering.

"If you have something pending with him, yes."

Ayane nodded.

"I understand."

"But this time you should talk to him without letting someone else decide for you."

Ayane blushed.

"That was an accident."

"I know."

"..."

Misaki picked up her documents.

"And, Ayane."

"Yes?"

"You don’t need an organization-related excuse to talk to someone you like."

Ayane’s eyes widened.

"I wasn’t thinking of using an excuse!"

Misaki looked at her.

"..."

Ayane looked away.

"Well..."

Misaki sighed.

"Do what you think is right."

Then she left the room, leaving Ayane alone. Ayane looked at her phone. She had Noah’s contact.

She could text him, call him, or even look for him at the high school. In theory, it wasn’t complicated.

She opened the conversation and began to type.

[Hi, Noah, I wanted to talk to you about what happened yesterday.]

She read the message. Her face turned red, so she deleted it and tried again.

[Good morning. Would you have time to talk?]

She stared at it.

’It sounds too formal.’

She deleted it and tried a third time.

[Hi. Are you busy?]

Ayane frowned.

’What if he thinks I want to ask him for something?’

She deleted it and made a fourth attempt.

[Noah, about Luna...]

She stopped immediately.

’I can’t start with that!’

She erased everything, set the phone on the table, and covered her face with both hands.

"Why is this so hard?"

She had led operations far more complicated than this, yet writing a message to Noah seemed to require preparation she simply didn’t have.

Finally she lifted her head.

’No.’

She picked up the phone again.

’This time I’m going to do it.’

She opened the chat and typed carefully.

[Hi, Noah. Thanks again for having us over yesterday. I wanted to ask if we could talk another day, whenever you have time.]

She read it once, then again, and again, but her finger hovered over the send button.

’Is it too direct?’

She thought about changing it, but then she remembered Misaki’s words, and Luna’s.

’The girlfriend spots are already taken.’

Ayane frowned.

’Noah still hasn’t answered me.’

She looked at the message again.

’And I want to hear his answer.’

Finally she pressed send. The message vanished from the input bar and appeared in the conversation.

"..."

Ayane stayed completely still. A second later her eyes went wide.

"I SENT IT!"

She stood up so fast the chair slid backward while she stared at the phone. Then she looked at the door, then back at the phone.

’AND NOW WHAT DO I DO?!’

The screen remained unchanged. Ayane began pacing back and forth.

’Calm down.’

She took a deep breath.

’I only asked to talk.’

She stopped.

’It’s not a confession.’

She looked at the phone again.

’But it could turn into one.’

Her cheeks turned completely red. She sat back down and then remembered something.

’The organization.’

If her superiors found out she was approaching Noah again without authorization, she would probably have to explain herself.

Especially considering her unit’s track record. Ayane looked at the documents she had left on the table.

For the first time, the idea of reporting every contact with Noah to her superiors felt unpleasant.

’I don’t need to tell them everything.’

The thought surprised her. For several seconds she remained silent.

That wasn’t like her. She had always believed that hiding important information from the organization was a serious offense.

And yet...

’It’s a private conversation.’

She looked at the phone again.

’It has nothing to do with the mission.’

She tried to convince herself of that, but she knew it wasn’t entirely true.

Noah was still a target of the Great Mother, and she had just decided she wanted to see him again.

Not to capture him, not to monitor him, not even to get information about the magical girls, simply because she wanted to talk to him.

Ayane held the phone with both hands.

’I want to know his answer.’

For the first time, her personal desires and the duties of her unit seemed incompatible.

Although she still wasn’t ready to openly question the organization, something had begun to change.

Then her phone vibrated, and Ayane gave a small jump.

"Ah!"

She looked at the screen. It was a notification from Noah. She opened the conversation immediately.

[Hi, Ayane. Sure, we can talk. Just let me know when works for you.]

"..."

Ayane read the message, then read it again, and a third time. Her cheeks started turning red.

’He accepted!’

She pressed the phone against her chest.

’Noah agreed to see me!’

For several seconds she stayed there smiling, until she remembered one small detail: she still had no idea what she was going to say to him.

"..."

Her smile slowly faded. She looked at the message, then at the organization documents, then back at the phone.

’How am I supposed to confess after what happened yesterday?’

And for the first time that entire morning, Ayane reached a definitive conclusion.

She needed help, even if that meant making the worst possible mistake, which was asking Reina for romantic advice.