"Where are we going today, Shido?" Mikoto asked with a smile.
"Umm, how about the bookstore?"
Shido thought about it. Mikoto went to the bookstore often. Although it was mostly to buy "textbooks" to expand her knowledge on how to act like a girl, it wasn't wrong to say the girl enjoyed reading. And besides...
[When I pretend my stomach hurts later, Senpai won't get lonely easily.]
Even if he had to leave, Mikoto could pass the ti by reading. Or so Shido thought.
"Okay."
Although a bookstore was a strange choice for a date, as long as she was with Shido, Mikoto didn't really care where they went.
"Welco! We just got the new sumr fashion guides in today! Would Yakumo-chan like to buy a copy?"
This was the sa bookstore where Mikoto had her first silent manifestation. Because of the whole reading without paying incident, the owner clearly rembered this quiet-looking girl. After that, Mikoto frequently ca here to buy books that girls needed. Over ti, she had beco a regular custor.
"Oho? Could this be your boyfriend?" The owner noticed Shido standing next to Mikoto.
"N-No, that's not it." Shido smiled wryly and waved his hands.
"Mhm, I'm just on a date with a boy who is completely not my boyfriend~" Mikoto tilted her head and said with a mischievous smile.
As a result, Shido once again almost tripped on completely flat ground.
"Oh man, that won't do, young man! If you don't take the initiative as a man, a cute girl like Yakumo-chan is going to get snatched away before you know it! A date, right? Perfect! You can read any book in the store for free today! Don't be shy!"
"Ahaha..."
Looking at the owner, who was slapping his back and laughing heartily, Shido forced a wry smile.
The two walked around the bookstore for a while and eventually stopped in the cooking section. Since they both loved to cook, it gave them a lot of common ground to talk about.
"Co to think of it, Yakumo-senpai doesn't cook Western food much, do you?"
"Yeah, my specialties are Japanese and Chinese cuisine."
Mikoto nodded. Chinese cuisine was her native talent—especially Jiangsu and Sichuan dishes—while she learned Japanese cooking later on.
"Do you want to take a look at this Traditional Japanese Cooking book? I highly recomnd it."
"Mhm, it looks really good. The steps for each dish are very detailed, and it's perfect for ho cooking."
As expected of Shido, who was also great at cooking. He didn't recomnd one of those books that were just full of food pictures but ignored the actual cooking details.
"For Chinese food, this one seems pretty good too. If you want to try Western food, I recomnd 'Basic Western Cuisine for Beginners'."
The two chatted about cooking while browsing through various books that made them hungry just by looking at them.
"What does Shido like?"
"Eh?"
"I an, if I'm going to try making a new dish, I definitely want to make sothing that suits Shido's tastes."
Looking at Mikoto's expectant gaze and her completely unfiltered affection, Shido's face quickly turned red.
"Oho! As expected of Yakumo-chan! If you want to grab a man's heart, you have to grab his stomach first! Make your choice, young man! Whichever book it is, I'll give it to you for half price today!"
The owner jumped out at the perfect mont to assist.
"Ugh... then this one!"
Faced with Mikoto's expectant eyes and the owner's chants of "Hurry, hurry, hurry!", Shido gave up thinking and just pulled a random cookbook off the shelf.
Instantly, the area grew completely silent.
"Umm, this..." The owner scratched his cheek, not knowing what to say.
[Are you an idiot, Shido?] Kotori's exasperated voice ca through the earpiece.
Shido looked at the cookbook in his hand and froze. Printed on the cover were the words: 'The Complete Encyclopedia of Kyoto Kaiseki Cuisine'.
Kaiseki cuisine... that was a style completely unrelated to normal ho cooking. No matter how good Mikoto's cooking skills were, it was incredibly hard to reach the level of a professional Kaiseki chef.(TL:Kaiseki's chef is Japan's highest form of traditional dining chef)
"Kaiseki cuisine... If I ask Kotori and Ratatoskr for a favor, studying under the master chef at Hyotei might not be completely impossible..."
What was even more despair-inducing was that Mikoto was actually seriously considering the feasibility of making Kaiseki cuisine.
"Sorry, Yakumo-senpai! I grabbed the wrong one! I grabbed the wrong one!"
In the end, after clearing up the misunderstanding, Shido chose the book '50 Different Styles of Curry.'
Leaving the cooking section, the two wandered aimlessly around the bookstore. Mikoto pulled out a very scary looking occult book from the shelf, flipped through a few pages, turned pale, and quickly put it back.
Watching the girl want to read ghost stories but being too scared to do so was incredibly cute, making Shido chuckle.
Just then, his eyes swept over a strange book: 'Anima: The Temptation of Death'. Since it was on the occult shelf, it was probably a story about a succubus trying to seduce and kill the protagonist.
Shido didn't really care about the story itself, but what caught his attention was the synopsis's explanation of the word Anima. Anima refers to the unconscious feminine inner personality in n—the feminine component of a man's soul.
[Is the current Yakumo-senpai also a so called Anima?]
Even though Mikoto claid she was a boy before crossing over, honestly, Shido didn't feel that was the case at all. If Shido had to pick the person with the highest feminine power among Tohka, Yoshino, Kotori, and Mikoto, Mikoto would probably be the strongest contender for the #1 spot. Gentle and considerate, it was as if she were an Anima perfectly portraying the ideal feminine image in a boy's heart at all tis.
[What would a boyish Yakumo-senpai look like?] Shido wondered curiously as he placed the book back on the shelf.
But right at that mont, an alarm rang in his earpiece.
[Shido, Tohka's mood is starting to get unstable!]
"Ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch—!!!" Shido grabbed his stomach and crouched down.
"Are you okay, Shido?"
Seeing Shido looking like he was in pain, Mikoto jogged over and helped him up.
"Sorry, my stomach hurts really badly."
"Should I call a doctor? Oh right, Kotori! Let's have Kotori take you to the Fraxinus for a checkup!"
"I'm fine! I just need to go to the restroom! Just read a book for a bit, Senpai!"
"Y-Yeah..."
Parting ways with Mikoto, Shido rushed toward the restroom. Seeing the girl's worried face, Shido's heart filled with imnse guilt.
As a result, during the rest of the schedule:
Shido t up with Tohka outside the aquarium and ate conveyor belt sushi.
He went to a lingerie shop near the station with Kurumi, and thanks to the AI's bombshell choices, Kurumi tried on sexy, see through black lingerie.
He played fighting gas with Mikoto at the arcade.
He ate takoyaki with Tohka.
He went to a pet store with Kurumi.
He went shopping with Mikoto.
He ate ran with Tohka.
He ate Western food recomnded by Ratatoskr with Kurumi.
Because of Tohka's massive appetite, and the fact that it was exactly lunchti, Shido was forced to consu an ungodly amount of food. By the ti he t up with Mikoto again...
"Hey, Shido. It's about ti we grab so lunch, don't you think?"
Looking at the girl's smiling face, Shido's stomach let out a cry of absolute despair.
User Comments
0 comments from readers