Staaare—

Realizing this, Air Groove began to seriously scrutinize this strange Trainer-san who, for some unknown reason, insisted on hiding every inch of his body.

Previously, she'd been so single-mindedly focused on finding the mysterious man who'd appeared before the Three Goddesses' statue that she'd overlooked just how suspicious Trainer Mizuno himself was.

Trainer Mizuno: identity unknown, appearance unknown. All she knew was that he was a friend deeply trusted by President Rudolf, and the Trainer whose name Tokai Teio constantly babbled about…

Most notably, he'd claimed to be the mysterious man's enemy, wanting to help fulfill her wish and lure out the culprit so they could capture him.

From this point alone, the chances of Mizuno himself being the mysterious man seemed slim—after all, he had Rudolf's absolute trust.

Besides, Air Groove thought, surely that mysterious man wouldn't be foolish enough to knowingly approach her when he knew she was hunting him down, rather than fleeing immediately…

Yet Air Groove still held a tiny suspicion deep down: was the face hidden beneath that dark mask identical to the one from that day?

Staaare—

Air Groove stared Mizuno up and down, as if trying to see through his clothing to the truth beneath.

"W-what is it…?" Feeling Air Groove's penetrating gaze, Mizuno instinctively took two steps back, widening the distance between them.

But this reaction only intensified Air Groove's suspicion further.

Why was Trainer Mizuno so afraid of her? Could it be that he really was hiding something from her?

"..." Air Groove furrowed her brow, her heart conflicted.

Though she desperately didn't want to doubt this kindhearted Trainer-san who had volunteered to help fulfill her wish, even the slightest chance to catch the mysterious man couldn't be ignored.

Thus, Air Groove stepped forward, closing the gap again, gripping Mizuno's coat hem tightly so he couldn't escape, before finally speaking:

"Um…Trainer Mizuno…I have a question…Are you male or female?"

"Ah, well…" Mizuno looked at Air Groove's solemn expression, then down at the coat hem she'd grasped, alarms immediately blaring inside his mind.

Initially, he'd planned to truthfully say he was male, but an overpowering survival instinct made him blurt without thinking:

"Actually, if you must know, I'm female."

"…Really?" Air Groove eyed Mizuno skeptically, looking up at him—he was a full head taller than her, easily 180 cm. She found it difficult to believe his words.

"Of course!" Mizuno lied smoothly, heart steady and face calm. "I just eat a lot, so I grew tall. Makes sense, right?" Read complete version only at noᴠelfire.net

"But…" Air Groove's gaze drifted down to Mizuno's flat and utterly unimpressive chest.

"Uh…there's a tragic backstory involving cup size…" Mizuno said mournfully, clutching at his own chest in feigned sorrow.

Air Groove: "And your name…"

Mizuno: "Girls can have masculine names, it's quite normal."

Air Groove: "The style of your clothes…"

Mizuno: "These are gender-neutral, perfectly suited to anyone."

Air Groove: "…"

Mizuno's responses flowed so effortlessly, so naturally—as if these really were facts—leaving Air Groove unable to find any flaws. Even though her suspicions lingered, she had no choice but to accept Mizuno as just a rather masculine girl.

"Alright…" Air Groove released Mizuno's coat hem, bowing her head apologetically. "Sorry for doubting you were a man…"

"It's fine, really, I'm used to it." Mizuno waved a hand dismissively, acting as if countless others had mistaken him for a man before. So many misunderstandings, he implied, had made him indifferent to the confusion.

Just as Mizuno thought he'd successfully evaded suspicion, a sudden clatter erupted behind him.

Clang!"

It seemed a shovel had fallen to the floor, accompanied by Tokai Teio's shocked voice:

"Huh?! Trainer-san, you're a girl?!"

Tokai Teio, who'd just stepped into the experimental greenhouse, had overheard something that completely shattered her worldview.

Trainer Mizuno…was actually female?!

"This can't be right…"

The revelation was so overwhelming that Tokai Teio felt her mind spinning, strength draining from her body. She feared that if she weren't careful, she'd collapse right onto the ground.

Tokai Teio's intuition screamed that Mizuno was absolutely, one thousand percent male. After all, she'd dreamed so vividly of a future wedding with him…

But…Trainer Mizuno had, indeed, never explicitly told her what gender he—she?—was. Perhaps the idea that Mizuno was male had merely been her own assumption…

"This can't be…" Tokai Teio refused to accept the reality, pinching her own cheeks in hopes she was dreaming.

But the pain in her face told her clearly—this wasn't a dream; it was reality…

"Uuu…" Tokai Teio felt her heart ache even more painfully.

"Teio?" Mizuno finally noticed the girl standing stunned by the doorway. Seeing her look so crushed she might collapse any second, Mizuno quickly stepped forward and caught her gently. "Are you alright?"

"Trainer-san…" Tokai Teio clung desperately onto Mizuno, grasping his hands, and pleaded pitifully:

"Please tell me it's a lie, Trainer-san. You must be a boy! If you're a girl, how are we supposed to get married in the future?"

Mizuno: "…"

Tch, Mizuno thought. Seeing Teio so heartbroken, I was going to secretly tell her the truth, but now I'm even less inclined to admit it…

"I'm sorry, Teio…" Mizuno sighed heavily. "I'm really a girl."

"But…but…" Even now, with Mizuno explicitly claiming this, Tokai Teio refused to believe it. Something just felt terribly wrong.

After racking her brains, Tokai Teio finally found solid proof that could prove Mizuno's true gender:

"But Trainer-san, if you're a girl, why does Rice Shower call you Onii-sama?"

"Ah, that…" Tokai Teio's soul-penetrating question instantly rendered Mizuno speechless.

That's right. If he were female, Rice Shower would have addressed him as Onee-sama, not Onii-sama.

Of course, Mizuno knew the solution to this problem was simple: he just had to tell Teio that Rice Shower's "Onii-sama" was a misunderstanding, and have her switch to calling him Onee-sama instead.

But…

Only this…

Only this reward of being called "Onii-sama" by Rice Shower…

For Mizuno, who had already become a proud older brother, this was something he absolutely could never abandon!

"This…this…" Mizuno's inner self fiercely struggled, the words stuck at his throat and refusing to come out.

"I…I'm the Onii-sama…" Mizuno trembled all over, as if enduring torture. To him, this torment was at least nine or ten times scarier than being Uma Pyoi'd by an entire crowd of Uma.

"Hahaha! I knew it! Trainer-san, you're definitely lying—you really are a boy~" Seeing Mizuno rendered completely speechless, Tokai Teio took it as silent confirmation.

Wonderful! Trainer-san really was a boy, meaning their wedding in the future was still entirely possible!

Her shattered dreams restored, Tokai Teio excitedly rubbed her cheek happily against Mizuno's chest.

Behind them, Air Groove, noticing Mizuno's total inability to explain himself, saw her earlier self-blame vanish in an instant, replaced by a renewed seriousness. Slowly, her hand reached out once more, tightly grasping Mizuno's coat hem…