Twilight set Anya down and straightened his clothes. "Miss Yor, nicely done!"
Twilight ran over to the thief, bent down, and snatched the old lady's wallet from his hand.
The people passing along the surrounding streets were drawn over. Bewildered, they pointed at Twilight and the others or whispered among themselves.
Twilight held up the wallet and told the crowd, "Everyone, this thief stole an old lady's wallet. Please help take him to the police station."
Some of the onlookers understood at once, while others remained confused. They murmured among themselves: a robber? Who had robbed whom, exactly?
"Mr. Loid, let's return the wallet to the old lady!" Yor said to Twilight as she set Richie down.
Twilight nodded and exchanged a look with Yor.
With Twilight holding Anya's hand and Yor holding Richie's, they made a graceful exit under the crowd's watchful eyes.
The old lady was deeply grateful to Twilight's family. "Sorry for the trouble of bringing it all the way back. The money in here is for buying my grandson a present. Thank you! You've been such a big help!"
The old lady clasped Yor's hand in both of hers and shook it vigorously, expressing her heartfelt thanks.
Yor graciously explained, "No, ma'am. It was my husband, Mr. Loid, who recovered your wallet, so I'm not the one you should thank."
The old lady's eyes narrowed in a kindly smile. These two really do treat each other with such respect. Haha.
Twilight held Anya in his arms as she watched everything unfold with her big, round eyes.
"It's nothing. If it weren't for Miss Yor, I wouldn't have gone after the thief at all," Twilight explained.
Richie looked up and tugged at Yor's coat. So I don't get any credit! Wait, neither does Anya.
After thanking Yor, the old lady took Twilight's hand and pumped it up and down. "Thank you. You're such a good man."
Twilight replied bashfully, "You really don't have to thank me!"
Twilight had never been thanked by anyone in his life. When he first joined the organization, he had been told, "Heroes without shadows! The world will never know of your accomplishments as agents!"
But this time, Twilight experienced what it felt like to receive someone's gratitude. Being thanked like this once in a while feels pretty nice.
Anya and Richie both heard Twilight talking to himself in his mind and said in unison, "Father's a tsundere."
"Thank you, Miss Yor. This outing has really lifted my spirits! I'll buckle down and work hard." Twilight had never been as happy as he was today. Being appreciated really did feel wonderful.
At some point, Yor had picked Richie up again. He clapped in her arms and sang, "Let me say thank you, because you're here, all four seasons feel warm~~"
Twilight felt helpless. What strange song was Richie singing this time?
When Richie finished singing, Twilight looked at Yor. She shyly looked back, and as their eyes met, a strange feeling arose between them.
Holding Twilight's hat, Anya said with an adorably blank look, "Father and Mother are all lovey-dovey."
Twilight immediately blushed and protested in unison with Yor, "We are not!"
Richie and Anya were completely oblivious to their embarrassment. "Anya, what you should say here is that Father and Mother are being all mushy."
Twilight and Yor both flushed scarlet, right to the tips of their ears, with even the blood vessels in their earlobes clearly visible. "Don't be ridiculous."
"Aren't you going to thank Anya too?" Anya blinked her big, mascara-ad eyes.
Twilight teased her, "You're right. We caught the culprit thanks to that bottomless stomach of yours, too. Good job, good job!"
"What about Richie?" Richie wanted praise too.
"Richie did great too!" Twilight said fondly.
Holding Richie with one arm, Yor covered her mouth with her other hand and laughed. "Richie was wonderful too! He wasn't scared at all when I jumped up so high with him in my arms. What a brave little man!"
The old lady smiled dotingly and said with envy, "You really are such a wonderful family! You remind me of my younger days."
The old lady was practically the perfect wingwoman. She fished two candies out of her pocket. "Here, have some candy."
"Candy~" Anya reached out to accept it, her voice sweet and babyish.
"Say thank you to the nice lady!"
Anya and Richie said together, "Thank you, ma'am!"
Once they returned home, their adorable little outing was over. It had been a truly long day.
Before they went inside, Anya poked her head toward Yor. "Mother, Anya wants cocoa."
Still in Yor's arms, Richie also said softly, "Mother, Richie wants milk tea too."
Yor stroked Richie's head. "I'll make them for you right away."
Stars filled the sky, and the lights came on inside as the exhausted family returned home.
Anya and Richie waited for their drinks while Twilight prepared answers for tomorrow's interview. They would have another practice interview shortly.
"Let's have another practice interview in a moment, everyone!" Within seconds, Twilight put on glasses and slicked back his hair, transforming himself into an examiner.
Twilight wore a serious expression, his thick black-framed glasses hiding his stunning good looks. "Anya, what do you do on your days off?"
"I listen to opera, visit art galleries, and eat at restaurants." Anya's little mouth opened and closed as she rattled off her answer smoothly.
Twilight nodded approvingly, beaming. "Very good. If they ask, tell them about what happened today."
After questioning Anya, Twilight turned to Richie. "Richie, what would you do if you saw a friend doing something bad?"
Richie cupped his chin and thought for a moment. "Uh... hmm... I'd jump down on him from somewhere high and beat him up, then send that guy off to eat prison grub. Or use beatdown therapy. All evil will ultimately be brought to justice!"
Richie clenched both fists, utterly resolute.
"Let's pretend you never saw that!"
Richie secretly gave a mischievous chuckle. "Father's embarrassed. Father's a tsundere!"
Twilight covered his face with the papers in his hand and thought, It's over. I might as well give up!
"Father was super cool back then! Whoosh-bam!!"
Anya waved her little arms in front of Twilight, her eyes sparkling.
Yor had finished making the coffee, cocoa, and milk tea. As she brought them over, she agreed with Anya. "You really were very cool!"
Richie agreed too. "Father's my idol-"
Anya and Richie turned to fetch their respective drinks, still muttering, "Prison grub! Whoosh! Hyah!!"
Twilight's cheeks burned as he slumped onto the sofa, thoroughly embarrassed.
"Chicken wings over rice, la-la!!" Richie hopped off the sofa and picked up the milk tea from the coffee table, then hauled his little body back onto the sofa with practiced effort.
"Cocoa tastes the best!"
"Milk tea's better!"
Twilight picked up the black coffee from the table and remembered what the old lady had said: "You're such a wonderful family!"
Being told that meant he had at least completed one percent of the preparations!
Hearing Twilight's thoughts, Richie savored a sip of milk tea. Father, it may only be one percent of the preparations, but it's the most important one percent.
Previously:
The next chapter begins the second-round interview stage. Anya encounters all sorts of difficulties during the interview. Will Richie face the same things as Anya, or will he meet that big shot from the art gallery?
Stay tuned! I have school tomorrow, so good night. Get to bed early, everyone! (￣︶￣*))
Before you continue