"Ophelia, I think you could shift some of your firepower away from that guy Beryl. There's someone here who likes fooling around even more, you know."
Unable to quite handle Peperoncino, Kadoc could only keep a cold expression and stiffly steer the conversation toward Ophelia.
"...No. Well, Peperoncino is sort of an exception, isn't he?"
Ophelia's gaze shifted slightly away.
"Or rather, that should be the default. That's the personality Peperoncino ought to have—the serious side of him, and all that."
She, too, seemed unable to deal with Peperoncino.
"You can say whatever you want to Peperoncino, right? I know that feeling."
Beryl also chimed in.
"Otherwise, he wouldn't have picked a fake name like Peperoncino."
"Someone like that is either a thoroughgoing optimist or a lawless criminal who sends chills down your spine. Either way, if Peperoncino ever got serious one day, I think he'd be absolutely terrifying, you know?"
Scandinavia Peperoncino.
There was no doubt that it was a fake name. Even among the former Team A, now the seven Crypters, that was common knowledge.
Ordinarily, however, no one brought that fact up openly. Beryl was an exception.
From what he said, it was easy enough to tell that, despite his unfavorable situation, he was still in a rather playful mood.
Kirschtaria frowned, but said nothing.
"Still, I reckon Peperoncino won't show his true colors until the world's about to end."
Beryl's gaze seemed to carry a hint of deeper meaning as he glanced at Peperoncino, who ignored the discussion concerning himself and sat there smiling, perfectly at ease.
"...Whatever. It's not like the world is about to end right now."
Apparently bored by the lack of a response, Beryl shrugged and leaned back against his chair again, resting both hands behind his head with a relaxed expression.