A Seasoned Actor

"Early morning training is tough, Commodore Gion."

"Of course I know that."

Momousagi smiled. "But aren't you already used to it, Half-Past-Five Man?"

"Please don't just make up such weird nicknames. People will easily get the wrong idea."

"Sorry, but what does that have to do with you showing up at my door?"

"It does have something to do with it. I haven't eaten anything since last night, so I'm starving. I don't have much strength to train either."

"Then go to the cafeteria and train after you eat."

"It's too early. They haven't started serving food yet," Noah said. "So at a time like this, I urgently need some spiritual nourishment to inject energy and motivation into this weak, skinny body of mine."

"I don't have anything that strange here."

"You're too modest, Commodore." Noah spoke with righteous conviction. "Just seeing you has already filled me with motivation. Forget training—even if I had to fight that giant bear again, no, a hundred times, it wouldn't be a problem."

Momousagi looked at him expressionlessly. Then she suddenly took a step back and placed her right hand on the edge of the door.

"Don't, Commodore!"

Noah panicked and immediately stopped her. "Can't I just tell the truth? I really did come specifically to see you about something. I just knew you hadn't gotten up yet and couldn't bear to knock and disturb you, so I quietly waited outside your door."

He was an honest man. Of course he would never say that he had only arrived less than a minute ago.

Momousagi sighed, stopping herself from closing the door. She looked at him helplessly. "Wouldn't it have been better to say that from the start?"

Skipping straight past the sweet-talk routine?

Where would the fun be in that?

Noah coughed, took