At Luo Shu's greeting, Mira Tsubakihara quickly collected herself and regained her composure. She nodded to him with an elegant smile he could find no fault with.
"Good morning, Luo Shu."
"How did you sleep last night?"
Holding her handbag in front of her, Mira Tsubakihara asked tentatively, her eyes curving into a smile and a hint of curiosity in her voice.
"Me? I slept straight through until morning, of course."
I only discovered that little surprise after my ability upgraded, but I'm not lying... Luo Shu added inwardly. Then he suddenly looked up at Mira Tsubakihara and noticed the curiosity in her eyes.
Huh? How come I can even sense people's emotions now?
Intrigued, Luo Shu took stock of what was happening to him, then said to Mira Tsubakihara,
"You've been standing outside for a while, haven't you? Come in and have a seat."
"Then... sorry for intruding." As though she felt too awkward to refuse, Mira Tsubakihara stepped into the apartment.
Meanwhile, in a hotel suite not far away.
With binoculars in her hands and a cookie stick between her lips, Chisato Nishikigi let out an astonished "Oh!"
"What happened?"
Beside her, Takina Inoue, who had been dozing under a blanket in the corner, instantly sprang to her feet, settled behind the sniper rifle, and looked toward Luo Shu's home.
She caught the last glimpse of Luo Shu and Mira Tsubakihara entering the apartment.
A whole string of question marks practically appeared above Takina Inoue's head: ???
Then Chisato Nishikigi exclaimed, "Impressive, Luo Shu! It only took you one day to get her into your room. Is the only handsome guy at our Lycoris Café about to be claimed by that incredibly sexy young lady?"
Hearing Chisato Nishikigi's teasing, Takina Inoue, who had assumed they were under enemy attack, clenched her fists.
Her fists were itching. They really were!
"Chisato!" Takina Inoue looked up and glared at her partner through gritted teeth.
Chisato Nishikigi looked down at Takina Inoue's fiery glare, blinked, and played dumb.
"Oh, Takina, you're awake. Want me to order breakfast for you?"
"No." Takina Inoue straightened up, walked over to a nearby seat, and picked up a cookie stick. Biting into it, she calmly asked, "No problems during the second half of the night?"
Chisato Nishikigi shook her head. "Nope. Neither we nor the security upstairs made any moves, and neither did any enemies who might be out there."
"I see..."
Takina Inoue rubbed her chin and said uncertainly,
"Could the Demon Hunters' Hound really have failed to report the information about this place? Or was there nothing about this place in the material that jewelry store clerk sent away?"
"Too bad the chief's memory retrieval item can only retrieve fragments of dead people's memories. Otherwise, we wouldn't be stuck reacting like this."
"Want some coffee?" Holding the binoculars in one hand, Chisato Nishikigi picked up a can of coffee that had already gone cold with the other.
"No." Takina Inoue paused, then said to Chisato Nishikigi, "Let's switch. I'll let you know if anything happens."
"Sure~" Chisato Nishikigi smiled and patted Takina Inoue on the shoulder. "Don't get too tense, Takina. Have faith in Luo Shu. He'll complete the mission."
"...But he's only a rookie." Takina Inoue sounded resigned.
Only Chisato Nishikigi would put that much faith in a rookie who had never even been trained, wouldn't she?
"But Luo Shu's a genius~" Chisato Nishikigi chuckled, then flopped onto the soft bed nearby. "Ahh~~ I'm so sleepy. This time, I'm not getting up until I've had my fill."
"..." Takina Inoue gave Chisato Nishikigi a helpless look, then settled behind the sniper rifle again and continued her surveillance through the scope.
"I've never had visitors here, so I only have men's indoor slippers. I hope you don't mind."
Japan made a strict distinction between indoor and outdoor shoes, and after coming here, Luo Shu had naturally followed the local custom.
Fortunately, people back home also distinguished between indoor and outdoor shoes. Apart from leaving shoes outside the door back home rather than keeping them in the entryway here, he had found it easy enough to adjust.
Luo Shu took out a pair of plaid slippers and set them down facing Mira Tsubakihara so she could slip them on easily, then stood and went into the living room.
Mira Tsubakihara looked down at the men's slippers. After a moment's thought, she took off her high heels, put them on, and entered Luo Shu's apartment.
"Hmm?"
Once inside, Mira Tsubakihara blinked at the instant noodle cup and drinking glass left on the low glass table.
Noticing something was wrong, Luo Shu glanced at the table and gave an awkward laugh.
"Sorry. I'm a bachelor, so I'm a little messy."
"Oh, I see." Mira Tsubakihara smiled and approached the sofa, where she promptly spotted the school uniform Luo Shu had taken off and left behind it yesterday.
She paused, then glanced at the slightly rumpled suit Luo Shu was wearing and couldn't help laughing.
"Don't tell me you slept in that last night?"
"Uh..." Now Luo Shu was feeling a little embarrassed too.
He went over and gathered the clothes from the floor, carried them into the bathroom, and tossed the whole pile into the washing machine. Then he fetched a cloth from the kitchen and returned to the living room to clear away the glass and instant noodle cup,
giving the glass table a wipe while he was at it.
"Sorry for embarrassing myself in front of you."
Holding back her laughter, Mira Tsubakihara teased, "Luo Shu, you might want to consider getting a girlfriend."
Luo Shu gave that serious thought, then shook his head. "...I'd better not. I'm not ready to take responsibility for someone else's life yet."
"...Mm-hmm. You're surprisingly serious, Luo Shu." Mira Tsubakihara gave him a surprised look, apparently not expecting an offhand joke to lead him to that conclusion.
Once he had finished tidying up, Luo Shu was about to make tea. But thinking that Mira Tsubakihara might not like the tea he had at home, he slowed down and asked,
"I have black tea and coffee. Which would you like?"
To his surprise, however, Mira Tsubakihara smiled at him and said,
"Just hot water for me, please."
"Hot water, huh..."
Luo Shu paused, then went over to the thermos and picked it up. Finding it still half full of the hot water he had prepared yesterday morning, he was about to empty it when he heard Mira Tsubakihara say,
"Water in a thermos is fine as long as it hasn't been more than three days."
Luo Shu's expression turned rather odd.
He sighed, fetched two fresh cups, and poured two cups of hot water. Then he sat down and handed one to Mira Tsubakihara.
"By the way, did you come over this early for something?"
"There is something, actually."
As she spoke, Mira Tsubakihara took a sheet of paper from her handbag, turned it around, and handed it to him.
"What I asked the lawyer to help with yesterday just arrived."
Luo Shu lowered his head to read the sheet of paper. The first thing he saw was the heading at the top.
[Property Ownership Transfer Agreement]
Before you continue