Blue Archive story · Volume 1: Foreclosure Task Force, Chapter 3, Episode 9
Vol. 1 Ch. 3 Ep. 9: Abydos Student Council 2
1 scenes, 197 lines
1. Abydos Desert, Restricted District Sector 35-9
197 lines
There's nothing here, Yume.
*sigh* No luck here, either? Waaah, another failure!
I'm sorry, Hoshino. I've been crushed by frustration and despair. This is where it ends for me.
Please get up... You're embarrassing me.
I simply can't go on! Take care of yourself, Hoshino. I'll never forget everything you did for me.
Will you please STOP?!
This might've been a failure, but maybe the next one? Success could just be one stop away...
There won't be anything there.
It's going to be the same no matter where we go. If this "Abydos Presidents' Exhibition Hall," with all those valuable treasures, actually existed...
...the previous student council members would've found it and sold everything off ages ago.
Hm... I guess you're right...
Let's go back. This was a waste of time. We shouldn't have gotten excited about a fantasy treasure hunt.
But you were so excited! You rushed over here super fast when I told you about it.
You're just back in grumpy-mode because it was a dead-end!
Gah?! My notebook!
Phew! I almost lost your precious notebook, Hoshino... What a close call!
Don't associate me with that notebook! More importantly, don't lie on the floor like that again! What would people say about the student council if they saw you?!
Y-Yes, ma'am...
Look, Hoshino! It's a water bottle you can wear like a backpack! Should I get one?
No way. It's too expensive for what it is. And it's going to be bulky if you need to make quick maneuvers.
Aw, really?
Eek! 10,000 yen? Th-That IS pricey...
Our money would be better spent on ammunition. We're always in short supply.
That's true!
...I have a question.
Yes?
How did you become the student council president? Not to be rude or anything, but I didn't hear any news of an election. And you're the only member of the student council to begin with.
Don't worry, you're completely right! I didn't become president through any kind of formal procedure.
R-Really?
Heehee. You see, before the previous student council left, they conducted a show-of-hands vote and, ta-da! I became the president.
Huh?! You became president off of some raised hands? I can't think of a more informal way for you to be elected!
Yup! I guess, since Abydos doesn't have any sort of administrative infrastructure, that's how they've been electing presidents for a while!
Those people didn't care about running the student council at all. They just offloaded the dead weight onto you and ran away?!
No, Hoshino. It wasn't like that at all.
I didn't become president by matter of convenience. I wanted it. I wanted to be president.
R-Really...?
Really! I thought I might be better equipped to protect Abydos if I had more authority and responsibility.
Although, now that I'm thinking about it, becoming president didn't exactly give me all that much power! Hahaha!
But I worked hard in my own way, to prepare for the position!
Prepare?
Ta-da! The Official Abydos Student Council President Notebook!
What was that big sigh, Hoshino?! Believe it or not, I'm being super serious! I've been keeping a daily activity log!
You're telling me this 150 yen kiddie notebook is your preparation?
I-It's not just a kiddie notebook! I told you! It's the Official Abydos Student Council President Notebook! Although these days it reads more like a diary...
D-Don't make that disapproving face! It doesn't change how I feel! And one day, this precious log will be yours, Hoshino!
No way. Not in a million years.
Wh-Why not?!
R-Right... You're not even an official member... I'm sorry for overstepping...
You turned down all my invitations to join the student council...but...for some reason, I thought you'd always be by my side.
Wha, Really?! I thought it was really cute...
...What about a banana is cute? You've got terrible taste!
Hm! Maybe you're just not into fancy stuff, Hoshino. Oh! Or is it because it's not a fish?
Huh?! I-I don't like fish! What're you talking about?
I saw a sparkle in your eyes when you were at the market, looking at that whale notebook! You just couldn't tear yourself away. You should know, Hoshino, nothing escapes me!
I so was not! And more importantly, whales aren't fish!
Really? Huh. But you think they're cute anyways, right?
...
Yume!
Ah. Hoshino?
What're you spacing out for? We've gotta hurry and find this thing so we can head back. The temperature in this area drops fast once the sun goes down.
...Mhm.
Look over here, Hoshino. Isn't Abydos' night sky...just so bright?
It's because we're out in the middle of nowhere. There's no light pollution from the city to dull the view of the stars.
I see...
More important than stargazing, redirect your attention to the ground. We need to find that citizen's lost item and get back home.
According to their information, it should be somewhere around here. Geez. Why're you always accepting these pain-in-the-butt requests?
Well, because...it's wrong to turn away someone in need of help, isn't it?
Ah?
The wind's picking up!
Hoshino! It's a sandstorm! We need to leave right now!
Th-The way back...the compass... Where...?
Ah?! I forgot to bring the compass again!
Again?! I even reminded you to pack it! We're screwed if we get lost in the desert!
I know... I-I'm sorry.
It's okay. I had a feeling, so I brought one.
Wow! You're the best, Hoshino! My amazing, dependable...
There's no time for compliments! Run! Hurry!
*sigh* I really can't get a hold of Sensei or Hoshino. How long do we have to wait here?
Mm. Can you hand me the welding rod, Serika?
Nonomi and Shiroko got bored of waiting and wandered off.
Hammer, please, Serika.
The former student council president... What happened to her?
...I wonder.
Hoshino really didn't wanna talk about it.
Does your back hurt, Ayane?
It's okay. During times like these, keeping my hands busy helps me clear my head.
Clear your head?
Huh? You sound like Shiroko right now. Isn't that the classroom they used for storage? It's always locked...
There has to be answers about the student council president there.
Probably...but Hoshino might get mad. Maybe we should ask her.
...If it was just a regular storage room, it wouldn't be locked up the way it is.
We've regarded it as Hoshino's personal storage and left it alone...but if there was nothing to hide, it wouldn't be locked up.
...Yes. We have no choice. We need to go see.
W-Wait! Ayane!
*sigh* I guess I'm here.
Huh? Why's the Water Cloud outside?
Uh-oh. Ayane must be real mad.
I guess I should stop dilly-dallying before I get in more trouble.
We're here! Hoshino! This is the brand-new Abydos!
You can market it that way, but we're just being forced into one of Abydos' annexes...
You're not wrong there...
And all the other students left! It's just you and me now, Hoshino. The last students of Abydos High School!
They were gonna leave eventually anyway. I don't care about them.
We can't blame the people who were just looking to ease their suffering, Hoshino. It's really the natural disasters' fault!
...
Consider how hard it must be to leave the place they called home, some of them for their whole lives!
It doesn't matter! Not a single person decided to stay and protect Abydos, their so-called home!
You did, didn't you, Hoshino?
...
And I'm here, too! Right?
...When you put it that way, yeah.
Yup! So the last two students of Abydos will have each other's backs! More so than ever. Right, Hoshino?
I'll protect you, no matter what! You never seem to mind getting hurt, but you can use me as a shield...
No way. You're the weak one, so I'll protect you.
Huh? W-Well, you're not wrong, but...
...it's only because you're especially strong!
The senior is supposed to look out for her junior, you know...
Yeah. I get it. That's why...well, I just feel like I should put in more effort.
So, here. Take it.
Huh? What is it?
A student council membership form?!
You mean it, Hoshino? You changed your mind?!
I didn't change my mind, more so... I just... I don't have anywhere left to run.
It's not about the student council. It's just, being with you feels... It feels natural.
I don't really see any other option than staying with you...but that doesn't mean I'll take the notebook!
Wow! WOW! There aren't words to describe how happy I am, Hoshino! I'm beyond happy!
Is this a dream? Or maybe a miracle…? Yeah! That's it! It's definitely a miracle!
...I can't breathe. At this rate, I might die before this miracle plays out.
Wait, that's right! I can't let this moment slip by! We need to take a picture! A commemorative pic to remember this moment forever!
C-Commemorative picture? I don't think this situation really warrants that... Yume?
What're you even saying?! We're celebrating! Of course we need to take a picture!
Come here, Hoshino!
Perfect! Next, look over there, Hoshino!
Close... Too close! We're...We're definitely touching!
Not yet! Come closer! C'mon, don't be shy!
You're holding me way too tight, Yume! I'm gonna suffocate. Back off!
Ta-da!
This is our new student council office! What do you think, Hoshino?
...It's small.
It really is! But still...!
This is a new beginning for the Abydos Student Council. I know, I know, it's just the two of us, the president and vice president, right now, but someday...
Someday?
Heeheehee...
Someday, this whole place will be filled to the brim with our underclassmen and fellow members, right?
Excuse me?
One sec, Ayane. No one really uses this room anymore, so it might be super...dusty...?
Huh?
Not a speck of dust... I was expecting it to be a disaster in here.
You're right. It appears it's been pretty well-maintained.
Do you think it was Hoshino? But what reason would she have to keep an abandoned room clean?
Hm...
Whoa?! Shiroko?!
Wait...? Shiroko and...
...N-Nonomi, too?!
Are those...brooms and dusters? You were the one cleaning?
Y-Yes, that's correct. But what are you two doing here?
...I see. So everyone came to the same conclusion about the situation.
Mm. If Student Council President Yume's halo was really destroyed...we need to know why.
...
Yes, I agree entirely. But...have you been maintaining this room all this time?
Well, yes. Just here and there, when it crossed my mind. I...I never told Hoshino.
...
However, it appears to just be a collection of odds and ends in here.
There's something here.
Cabinets...?
Ah. Those...
"3rd Year, Kuchinashi Yume" and "1st Year, Takanashi Hoshino"... Must be their lockers.
They probably used it during their time as student council members.
That's what I'd assume. The Student Council President's cabinet is empty, but Hoshino's...
...Locked? Let me try.
What the heck is that, Shiroko?! Why is a high school girl carrying around a lockpicking set?!
Um. Consider it a hobby?
It's okay. It's already open, anyway.
Mm.
Phew. I got scared that you were gonna get in trouble with Hoshino.
We did still open it without her permission... I wouldn't say we're in the clear.
What's inside?
...Weapons and equipment.
A bulletproof vest...extra sidearms... All this equipment...
Mhm. They're probably Hoshino's, from a long time ago. They're well-maintained, though.
H-Hoshino?!
W-Whoa?! Busted!
H-Hoshino... U-Um...
U-Umm...
Whoa! What're you rascals up to?