Before truly heading home, Jun stopped by a fairly crowded family restaurant. Warm lights, the clinking of spoons and plates, and the mixed aroma of sweet and savory filled the air. He sat alone in a corner near the window, enjoying a simple dinner before closing a long day.
In front of him was a tall parfait, layers of ice cream, fruit, and chocolate sauce nearly finished. Jun scooped the last portion with a satisfied expression.
"…delicious," he murmured softly.
But the calm did not last long.
A familiar aura—not from Rias's group—touched his sixth sense. Jun did not turn around. He stayed focused on his spoon, as if unaware of the presence of two people who had just stopped beside his table.
They were Sona Sitri, the second overseer of Kuoh City, together with her queen, Tsubaki Shinra.
Sona stood with a neat posture, her sharp gaze fixed on Jun. Tsubaki stood half a step behind her, calm yet alert.
Jun finished the last bite of the parfait, then placed the spoon down with a small sound.
Only then did Sona speak.
"Excuse me," she said formally, "am I disturbing you?"
Her hand pressed lightly but firmly on the table—enough to draw attention.
Jun finally raised his face, glanced at them briefly, then let out a long sigh as if tired of the world.
"Oh my," he said casually, "a lot of people are coming to see me today. Am I really that famous?"
He gave a small grin. "Sorry, though—no autographs."
Tsubaki blinked.
Sona froze for a fraction of a second.
"…Were you just joking?" Sona asked, her voice flat but clearly carrying pressure.
"No," Jun answered without hesitation.
Sona's brow twitched sharply.
For a moment, the atmosphere around the table hardened. Some other customers felt a vague pressure, though they did not know the cause.
Without saying anything else, Sona pulled out a chair and sat across from Jun. Tsubaki sat beside her, her demeanor calm as if she had expected this.
Jun, on the other hand, leaned lazily back in his chair, arms crossed, not looking bothered in the slightest.
The two sides fell silent.
"From what I know, Rias and several of her nobles know you. Don't you feel ashamed hiding your identity like this from them?"
"Hmph, why should I be ashamed. Honestly, there's nothing wrong with what I did—for the good of all of us. I was freed from all kinds of supernatural threats that would come from Rias and her companions, while they were freed from burdening me, who was still weak."
Jun looked at Sona with a flat gaze, neither offended nor smiling. He merely let out a soft sigh and leaned his back against the chair.
"Hmph… defeating the Vanishing Dragon in that condition and being called weak?" he said calmly. "If that's the case, your standard for strength is far too loose."
Tsubaki glanced at Sona, noticing Jun's tone was not defensive at all—more like stating facts.
Jun continued, his voice low but clear.
"Have you ever read the tale of Sun Wukong in Journey to the West?" he asked.
Sona frowned. "Of course. The Monkey King who challenged Heaven."
"Right," Jun replied. "When he emerged from the Eight Trigram Furnace and rampaged through the Heavens, everyone thought he was invincible. But what happened after that?"
Sona fell silent.
Jun tapped the table once with his finger.
"He was pinned beneath the Five Elements Mountain. Not because he was weak," Jun continued, "but because his power was not yet mature, his will was wild, and his path was incomplete."
Jun's gaze sharpened slightly.
"I'm in the same position," he said. "What you saw in Kuoh wasn't my stable strength. It was power that was forced out, full of risk, and nearly beyond my control."
He glanced toward the window, the reflection of Kuoh's night lights shimmering in his eyes.
"Defeating Vali isn't proof that I'm strong," he said softly. "It's only proof that I was lucky not to die."
Sona remained silent for quite some time.
"You call yourself still weak," she said at last, more quietly than before.
Jun nodded lightly.
"Because if I were truly strong," he continued, "I wouldn't need to hide, wouldn't need to choose timing, and wouldn't need to gamble my life every time I fight."
He looked back at Sona.
"And if I revealed my identity too early," he added, "I wouldn't be given the time to become like Sun Wukong after the mountain was lifted—the version truly worthy of standing alongside the gods."
Silence settled over the table.
For the first time since sitting down, Sona Sitri did not refute him.
Tsubaki looked at Jun differently now—not merely with caution, but with reassessment.
"…You're quite self-aware," Sona finally said.
Jun gave a thin grin.
"If I weren't," he said casually, "I'd have died a long time ago."
"So… what will you do going forward?"
"Why are you so eager to know about other people's business—are you a stalker?"
Sona's face flushed visibly, the color rising all the way to her ears. She slapped the table with her palm, her voice lifting slightly—something rare for her.
"W-what! No—!" she said quickly. "I am the overseer of this territory. You live within it, and it's my duty to determine whether you're dangerous or not! It's the same as letting a predator roam freely in a crowded place!"
Some other patrons glanced over briefly, but the subtle aura released by Tsubaki made them quickly look away.
Jun showed no exaggerated reaction. He simply scooped up the remaining bit of his parfait, ate it slowly, then wiped the corner of his mouth with a napkin before speaking.
"I won't," he answered calmly. "I'm not someone that low—someone who causes chaos everywhere just to satisfy lust or ego."
He looked straight at Sona, his gaze honest and unchallenging.
"I'm not a battle maniac either," he continued. "What happened before wasn't because I sought it out. It was because the situation forced me to move."
Jun leaned back slightly.
"My goal is already clear," he said again, his tone steady. "I said it at that conference. I do not want power. I do not want domination. I do not want chaos."
He paused briefly, then concluded with a single, simple sentence.
"I just want to survive. That's all."
Silence fell between them.
Sona remained quiet, her lips pressed together. The anger that had surfaced earlier slowly faded, replaced by a thoughtful expression—calculating, analyzing, as was her habit.
Tsubaki glanced at her queen, then looked back at Jun.
"If that's true," Sona finally said, calmer now, "then you exist within my territory as… an unusual variable."
Jun shrugged lightly.
"Call me whatever you like," he replied casually. "As long as you don't label me an enemy from the start."
Sona let out a soft sigh.
"…I will be watching," she said.
Jun smiled faintly—not a mocking smile, but the smile of someone who had already expected that outcome.
"That's natural," he replied. "I'll be doing the same."