Kamuro Masumi's Void

Xu Nuo left.

The girl with violet-red hair stood at the entrance.

Kamuro Masumi stood with her arms crossed, leaning against a stone pillar with a look of utter boredom, yet her violet-red eyes remained fixed in the direction of the pavilion.

Seeing him walk out.

"Hey."

"...Why did it take so long?"

Her voice was stiff, carrying a clear note of irritation.

Immediately after.

Kamuro Masumi scanned Xu Nuo from head to toe, attempting to find some clue in his clothes and expression. "That woman... Sakayanagi."

"What did that person say to you?"

She had seen it.

The two of them had been chatting and suddenly leaned in very close.

And there were suspected intimate actions!

This made Kamuro feel as if her heart were being scratched by a cat; while curious, she couldn't help but want to investigate.

Could they...

Be a couple?

Kamuro Masumi was startled by her own thought, yet she also felt a faint sense of excitement and schadenfreude.

Hahahaha...

Never expected this guy to actually be Sakayanagi's boyfriend.

So there is someone who can handle her!

"Nothing much."

"Mm... let's just say we reached some sort of consensus." Xu Nuo didn't stop walking, merely brushing her off with a casual remark, showing no intention of going into detail.

"Instead of worrying about that."

"You'd be better off soaking up some sun. The UV intensity is quite good today; it's perfect for sterilization."

"Ha? What kind of nonsense is that..."

Kamuro Masumi muttered.

But her expression quickly stiffened, and the realization of being teased caused a flush of annoyance to rapidly redden her cheeks—

She had been played for a fool by this guy!

"Do you take me for an idiot?!"

She bared her teeth and hissed, stepping forward to grab Xu Nuo by the collar, but she stopped herself halfway, ultimately forced to shake her hand in frustration.

"Fine, don't tell me then!"

"Who cares anyway? Disgusting! Go to hell!"

After delivering this triple-threat, the girl let out a cold snort. As if to vent the displeasure in her heart, she kicked a pebble off the side of the path.

She then turned her head away.

Wearing an expression that clearly said, "Get lost already, I'm very angry."

"See you later, Masumi-chan."

Xu Nuo didn't mind at all; he simply shrugged with a smile, waved his hand, and strode away.

He prepared to leave this place of trouble.

One step, two steps...

His figure showed no sign of lingering.

"...Hey."

Just as Xu Nuo was about to exit the path, an unnatural call came from behind him.

What now?

Xu Nuo was a bit puzzled and paused slightly.

Soon.

The sound of hurried footsteps approached from behind, and immediately after, the distinct, sweet scent of the girl Kamuro Masumi wafted into his nostrils.

"That thing from last time..."

Kamuro's tone was awkward, even stuttering slightly. "I mean, that... magic trick from last time."

As she said this, her voice suddenly trailed off.

Xu Nuo turned around slowly.

He saw the cold, beautiful girl who usually kept a straight face, her eyes darting around everywhere—

She looked at the ants on the ground, the bushes nearby, and the clouds in the sky, but she simply dared not look at Xu Nuo's face, caught in a contradictory state of wanting to run away yet holding herself back.

"Magic?" Xu Nuo raised an eyebrow, feigning confusion.

"Is there a problem with that?"

He vaguely guessed the girl's purpose; he figured that little princess must have some designs on him.

"Tsk!"

Seeing him play dumb, the shame in Kamuro's heart was slightly suppressed by irritation.

"Don't play dumb. It's that thing from the supermarket, the one where you made things disappear... or whatever other sleight of hand it was, that's the one!"

She was somewhat incoherent, yet unusually persistent.

"What are you trying to say?"

"Teach me."

The two words were as hard as stone.

"I, I want to learn from you." Kamuro Masumi bit her lower lip, her gaze revealing embarrassment; the way she looked, it was less like she was seeking a master and more like she was extorting one.

After saying it out loud.

She felt much better and simply blurted it all out in one breath:

"You said my technique wasn't up to par before, right? That low-level trick that could be seen through at a glance... I want to learn your way—the kind of technique where even the surveillance cameras can't capture it, and no one can discover it."

The air went quiet for a few seconds.

No way.

Seeking a master? Was this girl actually serious?

Xu Nuo's expression was strange. He didn't immediately agree or refuse, but instead looked her over, lost in thought.

Then he asked:

"Is this, too... an order from Her Highness the Princess?"

Given Sakayanagi Arisu's personality, having her subordinate tool approach him to act as a spy by his side, so she could keep track of his actions at all times.

That fit her character perfectly.

However.

Was it really necessary to seek a master for that?

"..."

Having her purpose pointed out so bluntly, Kamuro Masumi's body stiffened noticeably. She opened her mouth, subconsciously wanting to make a final, desperate rebuttal.

But at that moment.

She saw the darkness in Xu Nuo's eyes.

It was as if he could see through everything.

This gaze made her feel panicked, as if all her defenses had been stripped away.

Completely seen through!

But strangely enough.

Following that panic, a bizarre sense of relaxation welled up, one that the girl found herself somewhat indulging in.

Since he already knew, why keep up the act?

"Sakayanagi did, indeed... tell me to approach and monitor you. She told me to figure out what you're planning, and then report your every move to her."

Kamuro Masumi kept a straight face, dumping everything her superior had ordered her to do and selling her out completely.

That awkward tension vanished.

Replacing it.

Was a sense of honesty that bordered on self-abandonment.

After speaking.

She lowered her head, looking at the full curve of her chest, her voice gradually becoming faint.

"However."

"Wanting to learn that... seeking you as a master, that was my own idea. That girl doesn't have the spare time to let me learn these useless tricks, that's the truth!"

The girl looked up abruptly, her expression extremely earnest.

Immediately.

Her violet-red eyes dimmed, a certain hollow emptiness surfacing within them, yet it wasn't frightening; instead, it carried a pitiful, shattered quality.

"I just, I just felt..."

She faltered.

She only felt that... if she possessed such an ability, she might find a different kind of thrill?

Or perhaps.

Would it make her seem a little more valuable?

Or was it merely a hope that this would fill that... fear, the one constantly devouring her heart, the one named "I am not needed"?

Why exactly, the girl could not tell.

But.

If she did not obtain something.

If she did not do something dangerous to prove her own existence, Kamuro Masumi felt she might suffocate to death in this boredom and mediocrity.

Stealing was for the thrill.

Learning from him.

That, too, was for a thrill that transcended the norm.

At this moment.

Standing before Xu Nuo, Kamuro Masumi had no desire to reveal her inner thoughts, for it was too embarrassing.

He would hate her, wouldn't he?

A me like this...

But that craving was truly real, like the hand of a drowning person reaching for a piece of driftwood.

Quietly listening to the series of words.

"Heh..."

Watching her expression, Xu Nuo suddenly laughed.

He laughed in a way that left the girl at a loss, her face flushing with shame and annoyance as she glared at him with dissatisfaction.

Yet she couldn't say anything, only pouting with a stiff face.

"Deal."

Then.

Without making her wait long, Xu Nuo snapped his fingers.

"It just so happens I'm lacking a cute assistant lately—or perhaps I should say, a straight man?"

"..."

Kamuro froze.

She hadn't expected things to go so smoothly; in the girl's expectations, even if she weren't mocked mercilessly.

She would at least be given a hard time.

After all.

Her attitude toward this guy had been so terrible.

"No, don't you need to ask Sakayanagi..." she murmured subconsciously, her tone still filled with disbelief.

"That doesn't matter."

Xu Nuo interrupted her with a smile, his tone shifting.

"But Kamuro-san, there is no such thing as a free lunch. Since you want to learn my unique skills, you can't do so without paying some tuition."

As expected!

His goal was exposed!

Kamuro Masumi became instantly vigilant, asking hesitantly, "How many points do you want? I should state in advance that I can't give you much, because that Sakayanagi..."

As she spoke.

Her expression turned displeased.

Clearly.

Her points had been forcibly requisitioned by that person.

"I don't want money."

Xu Nuo raised his index finger and waved it gently in front of her. "I only have one simple request."

"What?"

Kamuro swallowed, her mind beginning to rehearse some unpleasant developments, such as becoming a slave, or some even more lewd demands...

After all.

Even though this guy looked decent enough on the surface.

Like Sakayanagi, he had a streak of wickedness in his bones, and he had even teased her in the supermarket before.

"What a bottom-tier woman!"

Seeing her expression shift, Xu Nuo was speechless. He straightened his face and began to explain.

"Starting tomorrow."

"You are to bring me breakfast every morning. Remember, none of those cold rice balls from the convenience store; go to the cafeteria and buy something freshly made and hot."

"Of course."

"You can also buy the ingredients and make it yourself."

"Besides that, if you could add a cup of warm milk or coffee, that would be even better."

"Huh?"

Kamuro Masumi's brain crashed.

She even started to doubt if something was wrong with her ears, and couldn't help but ask for confirmation.

"Just... just this?"

"Breakfast?"

"What, is it too difficult?"

Xu Nuo retorted, speaking with complete seriousness:

"This is a very rigorous task. It tests patience, punctuality, and the control of details..."

"This is the training of a Phantom Thief!"

Of course.

This was all nonsense.

Xu Nuo was simply lazy.

However.

For a girl like Kamuro Masumi, whose heart was filled with emptiness, being dominated by specific tasks actually provided a strange sense of security.

Every day there was a clear mission, and every day there was someone waiting for her who needed her.

Even if it was just breakfast.

This could fill the void in the girl's heart better than any grand goal.

"...Pervert."

After a long while.

Kamuro Masumi snapped out of her daze, turned away her flushed face, and muttered a soft insult.

But her tense body had completely relaxed.

Immediately after.

Without agreeing or denying, Kamuro Masumi tried hard to keep a straight face, turned around, and walked quickly toward the pavilion, her steps much lighter than before.

Her figure carried a hint of the awkwardness of someone fleeing in a panic.

In the passing breeze.

Came the girl's tsundere voice, "If you oversleep tomorrow morning and don't open the door for me..."

"I'll pry your door open!"

"Sigh."

Xu Nuo sighed, his expression somewhat helpless.

Then.

He also turned and walked away.