"Shiori, trade with me too!"
Tohka, who'd been feeling left out at the side, voiced her discontent with a pout.
Not every family was in a position to prepare a homemade lunch.
Some parents left for work even earlier than their kids, and in those cases, they'd usually give the children some pocket money to buy something from the school store or have lunch at the cafeteria.
That being said, the majority of students in this classroom did bring their own lunches.
Right now, thanks to Tohka's loud exclamation, quite a few people were openly or covertly casting glances in their direction.
"And so it begins again, the jealousy round. As expected, that Itsuka girl really does have some inexplicable appeal to transfer students, huh?"
"Basically a daily performance. But it's the first time in a few days, weirdly enough, I almost missed it."
"Honestly, unbearable."
The murmurs from all around reached Shiori's ears, and her blood pressure instinctively spiked. But then she remembered Tohka wasn't exactly well-versed in human society, and that wave of embarrassment receded somewhat.
Taking a deep breath, Shiori turned a helpless gaze toward Tohka. "We both have the exact same lunch. There's no point in trading, right?"
After all, she'd made them both herself.
"Hmph! That's all Shiori ever says!"
Tohka pursed her lips, then shot a fiercely protective look at the short-haired girl across from her, as if transforming into a beast guarding its territory.
The smile on Black Amber's face didn't waver. "In that case, Tohka can trade with Seele instead."
As she spoke, she picked up a soy-braised egg with a soft, golden yolk using her chopsticks and offered it to Tohka.
"Th-this… what is this?"
Tohka had seen eggs before, but never one this brown color, oozing golden liquid. Its soft, bouncy, glossy appearance instantly captured her attention.
"It's a soy-braised egg."
Shiori hadn't planned to interject, intending to let the short-haired girl explain herself.
But noticing the other girl didn't seem to know the name either, Shiori spoke up. "It takes about four or five days to prepare this, and the process is a bit troublesome. I've never made it myself."
"Mhm. But I didn't make it. A friend helped prepare the lunch."
Black Amber said.
A food that needed that long to prepare? It must be incredibly delicious!
Tohka's curiosity grew, but the moment she thought this person might steal Shiori away from her, she immediately reined in her eager expression, turning her head away. "I don't want it!"
Hearing this, Black Amber tilted her head, then put down the braised egg and picked up a piece of meat patty instead. "How about this then?"
"No!"
Tohka's guard wasn't lowered in the slightest.
On the contrary, she grew even more wary of this short-haired girl who could so easily rattle her resolve. She declared, "I won't eat a single thing of yours!"
"Eh…?"
Black Amber made a somewhat flustered expression, looking a bit hurt, but soon wore a not-very-convincing smile. "Then… next time, Seele will try to make something Tohka likes, okay?"
"Tohka…!"
Seeing her like this, Shiori couldn't just sit still. She quickly tugged on Tohka's sleeve, signaling her not to go too far, then turned an apologetic look toward Black Amber.
"I'm sorry, Seele… Tohka's situation is a bit… special…"
But this only made Tohka more convinced that Shiori was angry with her because of another human.
It hadn't even been half a day.
Whenever the three of them were together, Shiori kept taking this human's side. Tohka, always used to being the favored one, felt utterly wronged.
"Stupid Shiori!"
The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. Even her lunch didn't seem appetizing anymore. After shouting at Shiori, she hung her head and ran out of the classroom.
"Tohka!? Sorry, Seele, I have to go after Tohka! You… please don't come for now!"
Shiori hadn't expected such a strong reaction from Tohka. Apologizing to Black Amber, she immediately gave chase.
From Shiori's perspective, Tohka's tantrum was completely unreasonable. But Shiori knew that reasoning came from her own, human point of view.
To Tohka, she was her anchor. And as the Spirit sealed by her, Tohka was her responsibility.
Having taken on that responsibility, Shiori could teach Tohka, she could help Tohka understand, but she absolutely could not grow annoyed or start disliking Tohka just because she was immature in human social interactions.
"Seele understands."
Black Amber nodded, a dejected look on her face, but inwardly she was quite satisfied. After all, this current situation was something she had orchestrated.
While Amber had said to protect Shiori during this time, the specifics of how to do it were up to Black Amber. And based on Black Amber's understanding of DEM, or rather, of Westcott, she was quite certain he would strike at the earliest opportunity.
So, the best chance would be the upcoming school trip.
The reason the school trip was the best opportunity was because of the large number of unrelated people providing cover for their operations, plus the trip's location being outside Tengu City, meaning Valkyrie support couldn't react immediately.
On regular days, Tengu City wasn't just the garrison for the Immortal Blades, but the streets during commute times also didn't have the massive crowds of a school trip destination.
Trying anything would likely get them arrested by Schicksal right away.
But the current situation was different. Tohka's thought process had been explained through a whole anime season.
Where was the first place she'd go after a fight? Of course, it was that halfway-up-the-mountain running track where they'd sealed her powers. Even Shido knew to look for her there if something happened.
That place was remote, with no outsiders around, making it a perfect spot to make a move.
For the rats hiding in the shadows, Black Amber's favorite tactic was to let them show themselves. But she also knew she wasn't some infallible master strategist.
Anyway, this was just an inconsequential move. Even if DEM was cautious and didn't take the bait, she could also get back at Tohka a little for her repeated rudeness.
No loss either way.
--+--
Just as Black Amber had thought.
After Tohka ran out, Shiori knew exactly where she'd go.
But remembering the place was several kilometers away made Shiori's scalp prickle. She thought about contacting Ratatoskr via her earpiece for help, but got no response at all.
She could only guess Kotori and the others were busy with something.
Well, this was her responsibility. With a sigh, Shiori gritted her teeth and started running. No choice—if she took a car, she might miss Tohka on the way.
But the Tohka Shiori was worried about wasn't actually on the road halfway there.
Instead, about halfway, she was pulled into a side alley.
Grumbling, Tohka let herself be led by the other's force into the alley, her face still plainly angry.
Seeing the other person remain silent, Tohka grew even more upset. "Why did you chase after me? Don't you already hate me?"
Hearing this, the blue-haired girl walking ahead paused, then turned around, wearing an apologetic smile.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you angry. Can you forgive me? Tohka."
Her eyes held a depth of emotion Tohka had never seen before.
Facing this 'Shiori,' Tohka felt her cheeks heat up as if they were being roasted.
Not only that, but this 'Shiori,' not getting a response, kept closing the distance, backing Tohka all the way against the alley wall. The increasingly close proximity made Tohka's head feel like it was steaming.
Shi… Shiori, why are you suddenly acting like this?
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.