"Alright, this should do it."
Standing in his kitchen, Shido looked at the bento box in front of him and nodded with great satisfaction.
In this small bento box lay delicious dishes shaped like various cats: a white cat shining with the gloss of rice, a calico cat covered with seaweed and filled with bonito flakes, a tabby cat drawn with at floss, and so on. Looking at those cute, clingy appearances, one might even feel bad about digging in with chopsticks.
This was the item Shido had woken up at 3 AM to prepare, specifically ant to handle Kurumi.
Even for Shido, after sealing the Spirit power of as many as eleven Spirits, he had gained quite a bit of experience in the thods of conquering them. To raise a Spirit's affection, catering to their preferences was undoubtedly the best choice.
By pure coincidence, due to a few accidents, Shido had learned the intel that Kurumi was a massive cat lover. That was why he poured all his culinary skills and creativity into making this cat-thed bento.
—Ding-dong.
Right then, Shido heard the doorbell ring from the entryway.
(Did Tohka and the others co over for breakfast?)
"Okay, hold on, I'm coming."
Although it felt a bit early, Shido didn't suspect anything. He untied his apron and went to open the door.
"Hello, Shido-san. What a beautiful morning."
However, waiting at the door were not the Spirits from the Spirit apartnt, but Kurumi, wearing her black school uniform and holding her schoolbag with both hands.
"Ku-Kurumi...!?" Faced with Kurumi's sudden visit, Shido was inevitably a bit shaken.
"Hehe~ Shido-san's expression is so cute." Seemingly just wanting to see Shido's surprised face, Kurumi laughed out loud very happily.
"...It's because you scared . Did you need sothing coming to my house this early?" Letting out a long breath to regain his calm, Shido looked at Kurumi and asked helplessly.
"Mhm... I thought it would be quite obvious seeing this situation." Kurumi sighed softly and explained. "I wanted to go to school together with Shido-san, so I ca to invite you."
"Just the two of us?"
Kurumi nodded affirmatively. "Mhm, I want to be with Shido-san. Even one extra second makes incredibly happy."
"Ugh— I-I see—" Hearing Kurumi casually say such embarrassing lines, Shido's cheeks heated up, and he turned his head away, answering sowhat awkwardly.
I let my guard down. Shido couldn't help but curse himself in his heart. This competition wasn't just him conquering Kurumi; Kurumi was also using her own thods to conquer him.
The first one to fall for the other person loses.
On the very first day of the competition, Kurumi took the initiative swiftly and decisively, successfully catching him off guard.
"...I understand. I'll get ready and we can head out."
Going to school with Kurumi was actually a pretty good developnt for Shido. So, he put away the extra bit of pride in his heart and started treating Kurumi seriously.
Shido went back inside. Fortunately, he had already prepared everyone's breakfast in advance. He just needed to grab his bento and schoolbag, leave a note in the living room saying he went to school first, and he was ready.
Although he knew Kotori was still sleeping at this hour, just in case, he still put on the communication earpiece so he could contact Ratatoskr in ergencies.
"Sorry for the wait, Kurumi."
"It is fine." Once Shido ca out, Kurumi showed a moving smile. "Then, let us get going."
Saying that, Kurumi walked to Shido's side with brisk steps and wrapped her arms around his arm.
"Ku-Kurumi?!" Feeling Kurumi's soft, girlish body pressing closely against his own, Shido's heart couldn't help but pound like a deer in headlights.
"Yes?" Kurumi looked at Shido with a smile.
"...It's nothing, let's go."
After hesitating for a long ti, Shido still didn't point out Kurumi's sowhat excessive physical contact. After all, it wasn't actually harming him. If he really pushed Kurumi away, it would only lower her affection for him.
When a man chases a woman, there's a mountain between them. When a woman chases a man, there's only a veil. Right now—Shido had to admit that this saying indeed made so sense.
(Form is emptiness, emptiness is form, form is...)
Repeating this phrase in his mind, Shido pretended to be calm, his body walking stiffly like a robot.
"Hehe..." Seeing Shido's reaction, the smile on Kurumi's lips grew wider, and she pressed her body even closer to him.
As a result, Shido's movents beca even stiffer.
Arriving at the intersection in District 2, through the morning mist, they could vaguely see the traffic light across the crosswalk blinking red.
So Shido stopped walking, finally getting a mont to catch his breath.
"...Hey, Kurumi! Do you think we look like an intimate couple in other people's eyes right now?"
Unable to just keep falling behind Kurumi's pace, Shido launched a counterattack.
"Mhm, definitely." Kurumi nodded affirmatively.
However, the effect was minimal.
"So, why did Shido-san ask this question? Could it be—you are interested in ?" A triumphant smile rising on her lips, Kurumi asked cheerfully.
"Eh? I-I—" Shido froze, clearly not expecting to be outmaneuvered by Kurumi.
"My, who knows?"
"Hehe, you are truly not honest, Shido-san." Kurumi chuckled, looking at Shido who was trying to brush it off.
As they chatted, the traffic light at the intersection turned green, and the two walked forward to cross the street.
Just then, a sound suddenly rang in Shido's ears—the sound of a vehicle driving.
In an instant, an inexplicable chill spread throughout Shido's body.
It was just a tiny, insignificant difference, but after the training in the virtual world, Shido sharply noticed it. Not only was this car not planning to slow down and stop, but its speed was actually increasing bit by bit.
"Kurumi! Watch out!!"
"Eh?!"
Before Kurumi could react, Shido grabbed her body and violently lunged back onto the sidewalk.
The next second, a large truck sped past right where Shido and Kurumi had just been, as if going on a rampage, crashing straight into the wall ahead.
"—Haniel!"
In the nick of ti, Shido summoned the Angel inside him, turning the wall into soft mud to absorb all the impact of the truck.
"Phew... that was close." Seeing that a traffic accident had been averted, Shido breathed a sigh of relief with lingering fear. He turned to Kurumi and asked worriedly.
"Are you okay, Kurumi? Are you hurt?"
"Mhm... I am fine." Standing up from the ground, Kurumi nodded, showing she wasn't seriously hurt.
"I truly did not expect there would be a day when I would be saved by Shido-san."
"Well, I've practiced how to react to situations like this before. It's better than getting hurt." Shido shrugged with a smile and walked over to the truck to check on the driver.
(Shido-san's shoulders... are surprisingly broad.)
Staring blankly at Shido's back and recalling the mory from just now, Kurumi couldn't help but sigh in admiration.
"Eh? Isn't this the owner of the fish stall? Hey! Wake up!" After returning everything to normal, Shido woke up the unconscious driver.
"Ugh... The Itsuka boy?" Opening his eyes, the middle-aged fish stall owner shook his head, clearly still a bit dazed.
"Are you alright? You just ran a red light and crashed here."
"Is that so... How strange... I rember I just finished stocking up and was heading back to the store... then when I reached District 2... I inexplicably lost consciousness."
"You were probably driving fatigued. You need to take care of your body while working, driving like that is very dangerous."
"Ahaha... How embarrassing. Sorry for causing you trouble, kid. Next ti you co to the shopping district, I'll give you a few fresh fish as thanks."
"I appreciate the thought. Anyway, I still have to go to school, so I'll be going now."
After saying goodbye to the fish stall owner, Shido returned to Kurumi's side.
"Alright, let's go, Kurumi."
"Mhm, let us go."
Then, to Shido's surprise, for so reason on the rest of the way, Kurumi didn't press closely against him like before. Instead, she seed a bit reserved, keeping a slight distance as they walked side by side.
Although this ant Shido didn't have to be as nervous as earlier, it also made him feel slightly hurt.
(Did I do sothing to make Kurumi hate ?) Shido thought gloomily.
anwhile, in a dark spot no one noticed...
[It failed.]
[Damn it! Why did he manage to dodge! He should have just been run over and killed!]
[He is more troubleso than expected.]
[What do we do now...]
Such whispers echoed in the shadows.
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