Please accept this.
Kisaki-san, what is this supposed to be?
I wish to enter the summer tournament.
What?!
H-Hold on a second.
C-Celia?
Hm? What's wrong?
Mio's entry wasn't accepted quickly because
in the entire long history of Winford Academy's summer tournament,
no normal student had ever tried to enter.
Kisaki Mio, huh?
She's a second-year student. Takahiro Mizuno served as her begleiter.
How should we handle this?
I don't think there's an issue here.
Kisaki did defeat Bertille the other day.
And there are no regulations which state that normal students cannot participate.
I did it!
Kisaki-san!
I got permission!
I'm going to participate in the summer tournament.
Thank you, everyone!
Kisaki Mio will do her best!
Girls Without Their Armor
I'm glad for you, Mio-chan.
Thanks!
But it's going to get harder from here on out.
I've just started jousting.
I need to practice as much as I can.
That's right.
Right!
Hey, Takahiro-kun...
Hm?
Could you...
Could you help me again?
I'm sorry. I don't...
I-I'm sorry!
The agreement was to be my begleiter
until the duel with Bertille was over, right?
I know, right...
Mio, the three of us can practice together, starting tomorrow.
Huh?
Sure...
But now that Mio's going to be in the tournament, she's also my rival.
I won't go easy on you.
I know!
Noel-chan, Akane-chan, thank you.
Kisaki-san.
Yes?
Do you have a moment?
Sure...
Noel-chan?
She's not here, I guess...
Mio, what's wrong?
Oh, Takahiro-kun!
You're going to have tea with Celia-senpai?
Yeah...
She invited me.
It's in the student council room.
They told me to bring friends if I wanted,
so I came to invite Noel-chan, but she wasn't here.
Are you coming too?
Sure.
Tea, huh?
I'm a little nervous.
But you almost never get an opportunity like this.
Yeah.
Um...!
C-Could I...
I... I mean, I couldn't help but overhear...
Y-You know, it'd b-be nice
if I could g-go with you guys...
Of course you can come!
Really?!
The more the merrier!
Lisa-chan, Fiona-chan!
Mio-senpai...
Tea?
You want all of us to...
Hmph.
I don't want to drink tea with that many people.
I'm passing.
What about you, Lisa-chan?
Let's all go together.
Come on.
If you insist...
Lisa-chan...
Thank you!
That just leaves Noel.
Oh, yeah.
I wonder where Noel-chan went.
Étoile, it's going to get harder because the tournament's coming up,
but hang in there for me.
Come in.
Excuse us.
Thank you for coming.
There's bears all over...
They're pretty cute!
Do you like stuffed animals?
Teddy bears are nice.
They're strong, round, soft, and fluffy.
They are!
They are soft and fluffy, aren't they?
Soft and fluffy...
I-I-I'm in the s-student council room...
With the s-student c-council president, C-Celia.
D-Drinking t-tea.
Stop it.
Pull yourself together, Akane.
I'm surprised you like stuffed animals.
That's wonderful.
Calm down.
Pull yourself together.
This is the tea that Celia made for you.
I need to at least take one sip.
But...
Akane... senpai?
She won't come back to Earth for a little while.
But she looks really happy.
There's no need to be so reserved, Lisa Eostre.
You know...
...her name?
I'm the student council president.
It seems like this year's summer tournament will be more competitive than usual.
You may be a new student, but you've got real skill, Lisa.
Ryuuzouji has made great strides in improving her skills, as well.
There's a lot of other strong participants out there.
But everyone's saying that you're the top favorite, Celia-senpai.
Do they?
Of course, I want to win,
but you cannot predict the outcome of a joust.
That's why I've invited Mizuno to be my begleiter.
I need Mizuno to help me win.
Takahiro-kun was...
Have you made up your mind yet?
I'm sorry.
If you're worried about my older brother,
I assure you that he won't be involved.
My brother is my brother, and I am me.
No, I'm still not as good a begleiter as I need to be.
I'm still not sure if I can truly be of use to a knight.
I see.
I'm sorry.
It seems that I'm always in a hurry to get a response from others.
Reina yells at me a lot because of that.
No, that's not...
Aren't there many who would become your begleiter
if you asked?
That's true.
I get requests constantly.
But I want to make the selection myself,
so my companion will be someone I've chosen.
And Mizuno-senpai is that person?
Yes.
I will win.
Lisa-chan...
I will not lose to anyone.
Let us both do our best.
But I feel I must say this.
In jousting,
winning is not everything.
In defeat, one may gain greater wisdom
than any victory might reveal.
No.
Winning is everything.
U-Um...
Why did you invite me to tea?
I was curious.
I wanted to know why a normal student would want to enter the tournament.
W-Why...?
I just happened to joust, and...
I haven't really done it much,
b-but...
I see love's in the air.
What?!
I-It's not like that...
I mean I want to be with him...
B-But... that's not it!
I meant your love for jousting.
Huh?
Y-Yeah.
I love... jousting!
Now I understand.
Would you like another cup of tea?
Please!
I can't take it anymore...
But it's not fair to have fun all by yourself.
B-But...!
I wanted to go to tea too!
But you weren't around.
I was looking for you.
I've seen Celia at several parties, but...
Parties?
Oh, due to my father's job.
But I've never been in the student council room.
I see.
Well, then I'll have to bring you next time.
Oh, I know!
Why don't you come visit me at home on our next break?
A visit?!
I'll go!
Bring Takahiro-kun too.
Sure! Got it!
Yay! It's gonna be so much fun!
By the way...
Senpai... pai, pai...
What's wrong with Akane?
Hey, Mio.
Y-Yeah...
I-Is that really Noel's house?
This is a really large mansion.
I didn't know Noel had so much money.
Noel Marres Ascot...
As in the Marquis of Ascot!
They're well-known, even in Helen's Hill,
thanks to the family's great wealth.
What?!
Welcome.
Thank you for coming, you two.
So you really are the heir to a marquisate!
I'm not like that.
That's my father.
And I'm just me.
Now let's go in.
Right!
A helmet and lance...
That must have been a statue of a knight.
You're right.
I wonder why it's broken.
Make sure you don't break anything.
R-Right.
Sorry for the wait.
Let me introduce my beloved little sister,
Mireille.
Yes, Onee-sama.
H-Hello, everyone.
Mireille Marres Ascot.
It's very nice to meet the two of you.
Same here.
Your sister's really nice to all of us.
Mizuno-san and Kisaki-san, correct?
My sister tells me all about you.
You can just call me Mio.
You can call me Takahiro, as well.
Sure, Takahiro-san, Mio-san.
This is good.
I'm glad!
Ayako-san taught me how to bake them.
Ayako-san?
Winford Academy's school doctor,
and the manager of TART TIME.
Noel-chan works there!
Shh!
Oh yeah, you have to keep it a secret from your family.
What did she mean by work?
Nothing!
Don't worry about it, Mireille.
What is it?
What came up?
Takahiro's love fortune.
Hey.
Oh, this is...
What is it?
In the near future,
signs point to him falling in love with someone close to him.
Someone close to him?!
Takahiro...
...is that true?
Don't ask me!
That doesn't ring a bell?
No, I'm afraid not.
B-But you know,
this one manga said that sometimes you fall in love without even realizing it.
I wonder who it could be.
Who do you think is the person closest to you?
Closest, huh...
James-san, I guess.
Yo, Takahiro.
What?!
A guy?!
You couldn't be...
I didn't know you swung that way.
Why are you assuming...
Okay, if it's not James-san, then who?
I don't know...
Could it be a horse?!
I do love horses, but...
Not like that.
I understand.
I also love horses.
They were born to run, and they have graceful, perfect bodies.
I believe they're works of art.
Mireille loves jousting and horses.
I see.
When horse and rider become one,
and they risk everything on one strike, taken in a single moment...
I can only think of how noble a sport jousting really is.
Those are English primroses.
These are snowdrops.
They're so pretty.
Mio-san, you're a knight, correct?
Yeah.
I'm just starting out, though.
That's so great.
It's my first time seeing a garden this beautiful.
Mireille takes care of it.
That's amazing.
I see.
Mireille has complete authority over this entire garden.
I'm sure this garden is so pretty
because the person who cares for it has an equally beautiful heart.
No, I...
You sound like a poet today, Takahiro-kun.
R-Really?
Today was a lot of fun.
Please come by again.
I will, for sure.
I'll be back again. It's a promise.
I'll be here.
Thank you, both of you.
I'll take you partway back.
Father...
Welcome back, Father.
I'm back, Noel, Mireille.
Are you Noel's friends?
Yes.
Mizuno Takahiro.
Kisaki Mio here.
I see.
Thank you for taking care of my daughter.
So how did you become friends?
We go to Winford Academy with Noel-chan...
Winford Academy?
Does that mean you two joust?
Father!
I invited them.
Mireille had a lot of fun, too.
Please be on your way.
I apologize for my father's rudeness.
You don't need to apologize.
Yeah, don't worry about it.
Mireille has loved jousting since she was little.
But then I let her get hurt...
She said she wanted to be a knight too.
Noel-chan...
I joust for Mireille.
The stronger I become, the happier she is.
That's why I can't
lose to anyone.
So how was it?
What was Marquis Ascot's mansion like?
So you knew about Noel's family?
Of course.
I know about every student's family. It's part of being Winford Academy's doctor.
I see.
It's possible the Marquis doesn't think well
of jousting because of Mireille's injuries.
Hey, Mireille.
Yes?
It's going to be fun.
I'm going to win the summer tournament for sure.
Onee-sama...
Right!
Injuries, huh?
The joust is like a good woman.
Once you fall in love, you'll never forget her.
James-san.
Hm?
I love jousting.
I tried to forget, but I can't.
I'd like to dedicate my life to jousting,
but...
I can't whole-heartedly devote myself to becoming a begleiter.
You have regrets about your time as a knight.
Well, it's fine.
Huh?
Worry your heart out.
The rest of your life is ahead of you.
And everyone spends their life worrying about something or other.
If you think you've made the wrong choice, you can just make another one.
Humans always have the chance to start over.
Two choices lie before me.
I could try to become a knight again,
or I could support someone else as a begleiter.
Both choices will be perilous,
and I cannot foretell their outcomes.
But both of these choices have the same name.
They are both called jousting.
It is the holy land where every knight wishes to be,
and the place a tired knight calls home.
That place is called Helen's Hill.
Next time: Time Off in Helen's Hill.
Next Time: Time Off in Helen's Hill
Please watch it.