Akaimo and his friends had school the next morning. They planned to meet Shinji before class, but with limited time.
Thoughts of the battles the professor mentioned kept them up all night, leaving them restless.
The group gathered, but Akaimo took too long to arrive. By the time he showed up, they only had about 30 minutes to talk with Shinji.
They arrived at Shinji's house. He wasn't expecting them so early and was busy working on a complex machine. He paused, curious about what had brought them.
Shino: "We just wanted to see you and thank you for the history lesson."
Shinji: "Say no more. It was the least I could do."
Shino: "By the way, what's this machine for? Also, I wanted to ask you something else... but it's slipped my mind now!"
Shinji: "This helps me with a task I was assigned."
Shino: "A task? What kind of task?"
Shinji: "Well..."
Just then, a man knocked on the door. He had come to ask Shinji to sign a deal for a research project. Shinji told him to return after the school day.
With their time cut short, everyone headed to class.
Shino: (Walking to school) "A task? What kind of task could it be? It must be related to some research."
Shizuku: "Come on, forget about it for now. We can ask him later, you know?"
Akaimo: "Yeah, we should listen to Shizuku. After all, she is the smartest among us."
Jeisuke: "And clearly, you are the stupid one here."
Akaimo: "Hey! Don't say that!"
Shino: "Well... he isn't wrong. Sorry, but you were completely useless in the battle against that Kaito monster..."
Akaimo: "It's just because I've never faced a monster before! And I don't have any powered eyes..."
Momoshimo: "Come on, guys. Drop the argument. Let's just head to Shinjibukai's house after school."
After classes ended, they returned to Shinji's house.
Shinji had prepared a meal for them all. As they began to eat, he spoke up.
Shinji: "So... I've given you a great deal of information for nothing. In return, I want something from you."
Everyone at the table stopped eating, looking at Shinji with sudden suspicion.