That's Not How It Works / A Stand-In of the Same Type

"You two work together pretty well..."

Chapter 39: That's Not How It Works

Watching the girl across from him smile warmly, Mikage Touji fell into thought.

Why did they keep coming one after another?

Was this some necessary step to obtain a legendary Pokémon?

At first, he'd only gone to feed the pigeons.

Then he'd run into Horikita Manabu, passed his test, and received the quest reward.

After that, he'd triggered Manabu's request and taken on the quest to escort Horikita Suzune to the infirmary. After a series of difficult maneuvers, he'd finally reached the ideal ending.

And at the end, without even a moment to mourn Horikita Suzune's departure, the next one to arrive on the battlefield was—Kushida Kikyou!

After dealing with her, would a few more human-like creatures from Class D show up?

Maybe one of them would act like a jerk, capture my Wild Pigeon, and make me go rescue it or something.

Mikage Touji furtively glanced behind her.

"Hm?" Noticing his gaze, Kushida Kikyou looked back too, wearing a puzzled expression. "Is something wrong, Mikage?"

"No, nothing."

Mikage Touji breathed a sigh of relief, then turned back to Kushida Kikyou to find out what the current quest was.

"Did you need something, Kushida?"

"Huh? Does that mean I can't chat with you unless I need something, Mikage?" Kushida Kikyou launched her big-eyed, adorable attack.

No, don't do this, Cha Cha!

I preferred the you who used Kick-Rail. Please go back to being her.

"I just finished dealing with a really troublesome girl, so I'm a little exhausted, mentally and physically."

Mikage Touji took another sip of coffee. A few pastries sat on the table, too. Cha Cha was really pulling out all the stops to keep him there. She didn't have nearly as many points as Horikita Suzune.

Still, he could more or less guess why Cha Cha had come looking for him. It was probably because of Horikita Suzune—the girl she hated but couldn't have, who'd fallen in love with her out of hatred, only for Horikita to completely ignore her.

Faced with the bait Mikage Touji had dangled, Kushida Kikyou bit without the slightest hesitation.

"Was that girl Horikita?"

Aha, there it is, Cha Cha!

This is outrageous! If you were still your old self, you'd have asked how I was feeling first, all sweet and concerned. You'd have asked if I was doing okay, if I felt all right, and if there was anything you could do for me.

Instead, you're worried about that cold Horikita-imouto. So you really do have some special feelings for her!

It was the same in the woods last time. You insulted Horikita-imouto far more than anyone else.

"Yeah," Mikage Touji said, rubbing the tip of his nose. "That girl's kind of fierce."

"I'm sorry. If Horikita did anything rude, I apologize on her behalf." Kushida Kikyou clasped her hands together. "I'm sure she didn't mean it that way."

No! I'm absolutely certain that Horikita-imouto was trying to send me to the hospital just now.

"That's just how she is. I wasn't planning on holding it against her."

"Are you close with Horikita?" Kushida Kikyou put the straw in her drink and probed further.

"Not really. I only met her today. We just added each other as friends, but I get along pretty well with her brother."

Crack—!

Mikage Touji could almost hear something breaking.

Kushida Kikyou lowered her head. She bit the straw until it bent at a right angle, and her brown hair hid her gloomy expression. The spoon in her hand bent under her grip.

Horikita Suzune! You bitch! I've been licking your boots for ages, and you still haven't accepted my friend request. But some guy you've known for less than a day gets added as your friend just like that? What was all my effort this month for?

"Is something wrong, Kushida?" Mikage Touji asked, suppressing a laugh and keeping his expression neutral.

"No, it's nothing." Kushida Kikyou took a deep breath and clenched her fist, digging her nails into her palm to force her smile back onto her face. She lifted her delicate features. "Actually, I wanted to ask how you managed to add Horikita as a friend. Do you remember? I want to be friends with everyone at school."

As she spoke, she took Mikage Touji's hands in hers and held them to her chest. "But Horikita still hasn't accepted my friend request, so I wanted to ask how you became friends with her."

Give it up, Cha Cha! You can't even deal with Yamamura. Once she uses her Spirit Concealment skill, you'll never be able to add her as a friend.

"How I added Horikita as a friend?"

"Mhm." Kushida Kikyou looked at him expectantly.

Mikage Touji rubbed his chin and thought for a moment. Then he tilted his head. "I'm not sure. She was the one who added me..."

In an instant, the whole world fell silent. Only the café's gentle music echoed in her ears.

Horikita Suzune had added him first?

What on earth was he talking about?

Kushida Kikyou's smile vanished. It was as if a veil of gray had fallen over her eyes as she stared blankly at Mikage Touji's calm expression.

"Moshi moshi~" Mikage Touji pulled his hands away and waved them in front of Kushida Kikyou's vacant eyes. "Kushida-san~ Daijoubu desu ka?"

A moment later, Kushida Kikyou came to and gave a dry laugh. "You really know how to joke, Mikage. Horikita always keeps to herself in class."

Impossible! Absolutely impossible!

I don't believe it. This has to be fake!

That was Horikita, the bitch who'd gone all three years of middle school without making a single friend. Horikita Suzune had added him first?

This guy must've beaten it so much he was hallucinating!

Kushida Kikyou vigorously shook her little head and pinched the flesh of her thigh beneath the table.

Watching Kushida Kikyou lost in her own world, unable to pull herself out, Mikage Touji figured she might need some time to calm down, so he ordered her a cold drink.

A minute later, Kushida Kikyou came to her senses a little. The cold juice slid down her throat, restoring some of her rationality.

She bit her straw and discreetly scrutinized Mikage Touji, who was fiddling with his phone across from her.

Apart from being handsome, there was nothing special about him.

Word was, he was the oddball in Class A who kept apart from the rest of the class. Could this be a case of birds of a feather flocking together?

Kushida Kikyou decided she needed to get to the bottom of this. At the very least, she had to make him explain how to get close to that bitch Horikita.

"Um... how did you meet Horikita?"

"I was sitting in a chair drinking cola. She kept staring at me, and when I ignored her, she came over and struck up a conversation." Mikage Touji summed up how they'd met in a few words.

"..."

Kushida Kikyou's brain went offline again.

I must be dreaming. I've never even tried such a direct way of making friends. And now Horikita Suzune, with her whole "don't come within five meters of me" personality, is just walking up to him and talking?

No! There's another possibility—this guy's been lying the whole time. Maybe he just happened to bump into Horikita Suzune, and she just happened to say a few words to him, and then I just happened to see it.

Stay calm, Kushida Kikyou. How many times have you seen this kind of thing in Class D?

People get so lost in their own fantasies, like they've been smoking too many strange leaves from the West, that they blurt out whatever they've imagined without thinking.

The only difference is that this time, it's some handsome guy instead of the bunch of fat pigs in class. Maybe that's how he got his reputation as an oddball. His friend nickname says it all, doesn't it? Who uses weird nicknames like that these days?

Kushida Kikyou convinced herself again. Given her persona, she should've laughed it off, ignored it, and carried on talking with a smile.

But this was about Horikita Suzune. She couldn't worry about whether this jerk liked her right now. First, she needed to get to the truth. If she got the chance later, she'd invite him out, reel him in, and boost his affection for her.

Once she'd sorted out her thoughts, Kushida Kikyou's smile returned.

"Ahaha, Mikage, you can't joke about things like that. Horikita hates it when people talk about her behind her back."

Mikage Touji clutched his chest and put on a wounded expression. "Kushida-san... you think I'm lying?"

"Of course not. I trust you, Mikage. It's just..." Right! You are lying. You have to be lying!

"But I'm really not lying."

"You can't just take someone's word for it."

By now, most of Kushida Kikyou's disguise had slipped. Her sweet smile could no longer hide the tea-like aura around her.

"All right, then. I'll call her." That casual remark wiped her mind clean again.

Huh? What did he just say?

Kushida Kikyou, frozen like a plaster statue, stared stiffly as Mikage Touji calmly took out his phone, set it on the table, and turned on the speaker.

After a few beeps, the call connected with a click. A cool voice came through, accompanied by the sound of something frying in a pan.

"Are you bored? We only just parted, and you're already calling?"

"I'm quite free, actually. After all, Class A doesn't have as much going on as Class D. Anyway, are you making dinner?"

"So what if I am? If you'll let me send you to the hospital, I'll make you a portion while I'm at it."

"Where's that heartfelt apology?"

"There isn't one."

"You sure changed your tune fast. It's only been a little while, and you've already taken back what you said. Still, never mind dinner, because..." Mikage Touji smiled confidently. "I'm a better cook than you."

"After hearing what comes out of your mouth, I have no expectations for anything you say."

"You're a cold one."

"I've always been like this. Hang up if you don't want to listen."

Five minutes later, after arguing with Horikita Suzune about the best way to fry crucian carp, Mikage Touji hung up and looked over at Kushida Kikyou, who had completely shut down.

"See? I wasn't lying, was I?"

"..."

Kushida Kikyou said nothing as she raised her hands and covered her ears.

That's not how it works! That's not how making friends works!

First, you're supposed to smile warmly and introduce yourself. Then you tell her she can come to you if she needs help. After that, you greet her cheerfully every morning to make yourself memorable, and you chat with her every day, rain or shine, until you've found your way into her heart. Then, one night when she's feeling vulnerable, she opens up to you. You comfort her, and only then do you become friends.

How are you already so close with her right from the start? That's not how making friends works! I refuse to accept this!

"..."

Mikage Touji furtively glanced at Kushida Kikyou, whose expression had crumbled and who seemed out of her mind, then quietly shifted one seat to the left.

Oh no! I think I took the joke a bit too far...

She seemed about ready to snap. If she showed her true colors here, wouldn't all that video recording have been for nothing?

That's enough. I can't provoke her any further.

Mikage Touji slipped his phone under the table and sent Kito Hayato a message asking him to call his phone in three minutes.

Three minutes later, Kito Hayato called right on schedule.

"Kushida-san, I have a few things to take care of, so I'll be going."

Without waiting for Kushida Kikyou to respond, Mikage Touji got up and walked away.

Bye-bye, Cha Cha. I'm sorry for messing with you like this, but I'm doing it for your own good. If Horikita-imouto teases you again someday, won't you blow up? So use the Qi Cultivation Technique—

"Smack—!"

A soft, pale hand grabbed Mikage Touji by the wrist.

"Mikage, stay and chat a little longer." Her sugary voice made goosebumps spring up all over Mikage Touji.

"Haha, Kushida-san, is there anything else you need?"

Mikage Touji broke into a cold sweat and turned back stiffly. In Kushida Kikyou's shadowy eyes, he read a single message.

You're not leaving until you explain yourself!

Chapter 40: A Stand-In of the Same Type

Watching Kushida Kikyou across from him, her hands cupping her cheeks and her face beaming with smiles, Mikage Touji fell into thought once more.

This scene... why did it look so familiar?