Miku, Aren't You a Little Too Familiar?

The white cat purred contentedly on the ground, letting Qian Huanyue pet it. Qian Huanyue sat cross-legged beside it, her fingertips gently combing through its soft fur.

The white cat happily ate the cat treats Qian Huanyue had brought from Kurumi's house.

Kurumi had already gone out. Before leaving, she had only said, "I have some things to take care of," without even giving a definite return date, nor had she allowed a clone to stay behind.

So boring!

Qian Huanyue could roughly guess what Kurumi was looking for—the Second Spirit, Nia Honjo, the one who possessed the all-knowing Angel, Ratziel.

Though theoretically, Ratziel could not directly uncover the truth about the First Spirit, Kurumi did not know that. Even if she did, she clearly would not let any clue slip away.

As for where Nia was being held, Qian Huanyue did not know. She planned to join the operation after Kurumi found concrete information.

Since she did not need to return to the neighboring world recently, she stayed at Kurumi's base. Though it was simply furnished, it had every daily necessity she could need.

Qian Huanyue leaned back and sat on the bench. The cat came over and rubbed its head against her leg.

Kurumi paid for her food, Kurumi paid for her lodging, and even the cat treats and canned cat food she fed the cat had come from Kurumi's home.

Had she already become a freeloader? This felt so nice... No, wait. How spineless.

Just as Qian Huanyue absentmindedly scratched beneath the white cat's chin, an overly sweet female voice, Hibiki, suddenly rang out behind her:

"Oh my~ There's such an adorable young lady here~"

Qian Huanyue turned around and saw a girl in an exquisite dress standing behind the bench. Her silver-purple hair gleamed like pearls beneath the sunlight, while her pale silver eyes stared fixedly at Qian Huanyue—or rather, at her face.

"This little kitty is so cute. Can I pet it?" Before Qian Huanyue could answer, the silver-purple-haired girl had naturally taken a seat at the other end of the bench.

The white cat warily raised its tail and nimbly leapt into Qian Huanyue's arms.

"It seems a little shy around strangers."

"What a pity~" The girl withdrew her hand, but leaned a little closer to Qian Huanyue without the slightest hesitation. "My name is Miku Izayoi. What about you?"

Faced with someone whose nature resembled her own but was even more outgoing, Qian Huanyue felt as though her true nature had been suppressed in comparison.

Like an extinguished flame, she became especially shy in response to Miku's enthusiasm.

If she acted enthusiastic too, this girl in front of her would really eat her alive!!!

"Qian Huanyue," Qian Huanyue said calmly, not daring to be enthusiastic.

"Qian Huanyue... What a beautiful name~" Miku's gaze lingered over her face. "Do you come to this park often? I've never met anyone this pretty before~"

"No." She answered briefly, wrapping herself in a layer of aloofness. "I only arrived here recently."

Miku seemed completely unfazed by her coldness. Instead, her smile grew even brighter. "Would you like to have tea with me? I know a wonderful shop nearby. Their strawberry cake is especially delicious~"

Warning bells blared in Qian Huanyue's heart. Eek!

Seeing that the other girl had not reacted, Miku leaned closer again and placed her other hand over Qian Huanyue's left hand.

—Over the bandages.

Right. Qian Huanyue was still dressed in the somewhat overly "fashionable" style Kurumi and her clones had put her in.

Her smooth long hair had been tied into two braids that fell before her chest, adorned with black lace hair ornaments. Her left hand was wrapped in a long bandage. On closer inspection, the bandages were not wrapped haphazardly but followed a certain pattern, with small decorations such as crosses, so no one would mistake them for an injury.

To Miku Izayoi, Qian Huanyue was a type of girl she had never seen before, and she was especially fond of Qian Huanyue beneath that appearance.

"We only just met, didn't we? I can't agree to a sudden invitation from a stranger to go eat at a shop."

Qian Huanyue, who had enthusiastically shared Kurumi's drink upon their first meeting, righteously refused.

Miku was somewhat surprised by the refusal. She began to use her Spiritual Power and said, "How cold~ But I really want to be friends with Huanyue-chan. Don't refuse me, okay?"

Qian Huanyue felt a faint wave of spiritual power flicker before her eyes, but she was not affected by it in any way.

"I'm really sorry," Qian Huanyue said as she picked up the white cat and stood, completely unaffected by the spiritual power of Miku's Gabriel.

"I'd rather watch the cat here."

The sweet smile on Miku's face instantly stiffened slightly, revealing a complicated and faintly surprised expression. Her Gabriel's ability—Solo, the power to command others through voice and Spiritual Power—had failed on a target for the first time!

That was impossible! Unless...

Miku's gaze changed, becoming tinged with curiosity and scrutiny, along with a negligible hint of vigilance.

She swiftly rose to her feet and blocked Qian Huanyue's path. Though the smile remained on her face, it carried a touch more appraisal.

"Oh~ What a surprise." Miku's voice was still sweet, but her tone had changed. "Huanyue-chan... you're not an ordinary person, are you? My 'request' has never been ignored like this before."

"Forcing others to follow your wishes doesn't make you a good girl." Qian Huanyue smiled without warmth, her voice turning sugary as well.

Miku shifted her feet and blocked her path again. She leaned even closer, nearly pressing herself against Qian Huanyue, her bright eyes fixed on her. "Tell me, who exactly are you? A magician? Or could you... also be a 'Spirit'?"

She lowered her voice on the last two words, with probing excitement in her tone.

Qian Huanyue stopped walking. Her pale purple eyes calmly met Miku's as the latter nearly pressed herself against her.

"Is that important?" Rather than answer directly, Qian Huanyue tossed the question back. "No matter what I am, I still have the right to refuse an invitation, don't I, Miss Miku Izayoi?"

She neither admitted it nor denied it.

That ambiguous attitude, coupled with her complete immunity to Spiritual Power, was practically an admission.

Miku's eyes instantly lit up.

"Oh my~ So it really is!" Miku's voice carried the delight of discovering treasure. Not only did she fail to step back, she grew even bolder and reached out, wanting to touch Qian Huanyue's silver hair.

"This is wonderful! I was wondering whether there were other beautiful and special beings like us besides me! Huanyue-chan, we're destined to become friends!"

"Huh?!" Qian Huanyue bristled a little, crossing her arms with a rather tsundere attitude and shutting one eye as she retorted, "Who said we're destined to be friends?"

"Don't say that~" Miku's smile grew increasingly radiant, but also increasingly dangerous. "We'll get along wonderfully, I promise. Look, we're both so cute, and we both possess powers ordinary people don't have... We should be together~"

Miku simply could not hear words of refusal right now. Or rather, her worldview probably did not contain the option of "being rejected."

This girl was completely obsessed with herself.

Looking at Miku's self-enamored, utterly impossible-to-communicate expression, Qian Huanyue sighed.

"You're making this difficult for me."

"..." Miku's perfect smile paused for a moment before returning to its elegant, composed appearance. A baffled sort of incomprehension appeared in her pale silver eyes.

"Why not?" she repeated, her tone carrying a trace of confusion. "I like you, and you're special too. Isn't it only natural for us to become friends?"

Faced with words that sounded like a confession, Qian Huanyue found things interesting again. The Aha in her mind reconnected to Bluetooth.

Qian Huanyue's slightly tense shoulders relaxed, and a glint of amusement flashed through her eyes.

She leaned forward slightly, her silver hair swaying gently with the movement as her purple eyes met Miku's confused gaze:

"Only natural?" she softly repeated the phrase. Her eyes curved as the corners of her lips lifted into a half-smile. "Miss Miku, then by that logic—wouldn't it also be only natural for me to refuse you?"

"And besides..." Her fingertip lightly touched her lower lip as she pretended to think. "Shouldn't something like 'liking' only count when both parties are happy? Right now..."

She deliberately paused, her gaze meaningfully sweeping over the overly close distance between them.

"It seems like you're the only one enjoying this."

Qian Huanyue scratched beneath the white cat's chin. The cat let out a satisfied purr and found a comfortable position in her arms, while Qian Huanyue herself wore a contented smile.

"See?" Qian Huanyue smiled at Miku. "This is what it means for both sides to be happy."

Miku stared blankly at the scene before her. The white cat in Qian Huanyue's arms contentedly narrowed its eyes, while the relaxed, easy smile on the silver-haired girl's face was completely different from the deliberate coldness she had shown earlier.

"I see~" Miku suddenly laughed softly. "Is Huanyue-chan teaching me how to properly express affection?"

"Then..." She elegantly stepped back, putting just the right amount of distance between them. "What should I do to make Huanyue-chan happy too?"