The group, having enjoyed themselves thoroughly at the beach, returned to Takanashi's old home under the dim yellow light of the setting sun.
Totsuka, attempting to get a tan line tattoo on her stomach, forgot to apply sunscreen and lay directly under the hot sun, getting herself sunburned. She was as red as a shrimp.
Everything hurt when she moved, and she was dizzy, so she could only lie on the ground, being looked after by Nibutani.
Among those who played on the beach, everyone except Koushou, who was sleeping the whole time, and Fang Wuwei, who simply couldn't get tanned, had darkened by one shade, even Nibutani, and had adorable tan lines.
It was by using these tan lines that Nibutani stealthily pasted the large characters "Stupid Totsuka" on Totsuka's back. These two words would stay with her until her skin color returned to normal.
Little did she know, there were also large characters "Fake Summer" on her own back, courtesy of Totsuka.
What an excellent matching mechanism.
Soon after, Yuta and Toka returned home together. As soon as Toka arrived, she went to the kitchen to busy herself; she wanted to properly showcase her cooking skills.
As for Yuta, the first thing he did upon returning home was to pull away the 'corpse-like' Fang Wuwei, with a serious expression, which made Fang Wuwei feel somewhat... bewildered.
"Wuwei, tell me honestly, have you investigated Rikka?"
Looking at Yuta, who was questioning him with a serious face, Fang Wuwei's mind didn't process it immediately, and he didn't even know how to answer.
Looking at the silly Fang Wuwei in front of him, Yuta was a little angry. Investigating others without permission, isn't that very...
"You told me about Rikka before (Chapter 24). You said Toka told you, but Toka never told anyone. So you... how exactly did you know?"
Hearing this, Fang Wuwei's thoughts instantly cleared. Ah, so that's how it is, he's been exposed.
Let me think about how to muddle through this...
But Fang Wuwei pondered for a moment and decided... to directly self-destruct.
He just smiled, a gentle smile on his face as he faced Yuta, yet it made Yuta feel a chill down his spine.
"Yuta, this kind of thing is very easy to find out, isn't it?"
Facing Fang Wuwei's self-destructive statement, Yuta's eyes widened. He had originally thought there was a misunderstanding... well, he really did investigate!
"Wuwei! How could you do this?!"
He was a little anxious. How could his good friend become like this?
But Fang Wuwei just smiled, making a quiet gesture towards Yuta, while pointing his hand upstairs, indicating that the main person was right above, telling him to keep his voice down.
"The first time I saw her, I knew she was like me, a tragic person. Yuta, some things cannot be hidden... As for investigating... don't slander me, some things are known just by asking a little."
Facing Fang Wuwei's answer, Yuta was somewhat stunned. A similarly tragic person? People who lost loved ones can attract each other, right? Even a Stand user couldn't tell at first glance, could they?!
But he couldn't refute it. He hadn't experienced Fang Wuwei's past despair, and he couldn't say for sure whether it was truly possible to recognize it, and as for asking... Yuta understood Fang Wuwei; he was very smart. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to figure out the Takanashi family's situation so early, nor would he have known that Rikka's chunibyo stemmed from him.
He couldn't refute it. Even though Yuta knew Fang Wuwei was lying, and knew his answer was full of holes, he just couldn't refute it.
He couldn't just break off their friendship, could he?
So in the end, Yuta could only glare fiercely at Fang Wuwei, warning him seriously again, and only left after receiving Fang Wuwei's full agreement.
After Yuta left, Fang Wuwei sat in the courtyard and looked at the sky...
Damn it... why did I have to be so talkative back then...? Even if it was to advance their relationship... there was no rush!
Soon after, Toka brought a large table of dishes to the table, and Fang Wuwei was also called back by Isshiki to eat.
Looking at the exquisitely prepared dishes on the table, Nibutani couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
"Are all these made by Toka?"
Toka seemed to be stunned in place. It was her first time hearing praise from a child the same age as Rikka; Rikka had never praised her cooking.
"Speaking of which, Takanashi's bento has always been very luxurious."
Isshiki, who was nearby, also chimed in, facing the table full of delicacies. Nibutani naturally continued the conversation.
"Ah, yes, it's quite famous in class. Speaking of which, I didn't expect your sister to work at that restaurant. I really envy Rikka~"
Having little, almost no experience with praise, the always strong Toka, facing the extremely polite Nibutani, was overjoyed internally. For a moment, she didn't know how to respond, only accepting the praise with a slight blush, revealing a cute side.
Isshiki Makoto was the first to give in, picking up his chopsticks and starting to eat. With him leading the way, the others naturally had no reservations and each ate their favorite dishes.
Only one person was an exception...
Totsuka picked up the bowl of salad in front of her, sniffed it with a frown, and her face immediately darkened.
"Is there cheese in this, Death?!"
Totsuka absolutely detested dairy products.
"Totsuka, you don't even like cheese?"
"Who wants to eat something that smells like a rotten rag, Death! This is made from milk, Death, the product of rotten milk, Death! It's terrible, Death!"
Totsuka incessantly complained about the salad, naturally provoking the cook's displeasure. Saying it was unappetizing to the cook's face, wasn't that asking for death?
Totsuka looked up from below, and under the obscuring presence of a pair of terrifyingly large objects, she only saw half of Toka's darkened face. The powerful pressure made her tremble with fear.
What has blinded my eyes?
In the end, Totsuka was forced by Toka to eat the entire bowl of salad with cheese.
"As expected of the Saint Healer feared by the Master, Death! That gaze was too terrifying, Death!"
Totsuka, eating and swallowing with tears in her eyes, and holding her breath to reduce the taste, still had to act chunibyo even at this point...
Watching Totsuka 'gobble' down her food, Koushou, sitting nearby, thought of Rikka, and also reminded Yuta.
"I'll go check on her."
With that, Yuta stood up, left the table, and went upstairs to find Rikka.
"Is she not feeling well?"
Nibutani, sitting opposite, also spoke up with concern, but Yuta didn't know how to answer, so he could only muddle through with a vague reply.
Looking at Yuta leaving, and thinking about Rikka's current state, Toka's heart sank.
As for Fang Wuwei, he decided to do nothing. Just as he had told Toka, letting things take their natural course was best, and he had learned his lesson from his past garrulousness.
Upstairs at this moment, inside Rikka's room.
Rikka was doing nothing, the lights were off, and she was lying on the table, not sleeping. She just didn't want to do anything right now.
The night outside the window, accompanied by moonlight, cast its glow. Although it was summer, Rikka only felt cold.
A knock came from outside the door, along with Yuta's voice.
"Are you there?"
Facing Yuta, Rikka couldn't adopt the attitude she used with her family.
"What's the password?"
Listening to the familiar, emotionless voice from inside the door, Yuta frowned, pondered for a moment, and said what he thought was the most likely password.
"Evil King's True Eye is the strongest."
After a brief silence, Rikka's voice from inside the door said "Incorrect," which greatly surprised Yuta.
"It's not right?!"
Rikka already understood Yuta's purpose for coming to find her at this time. It was just Toka who sent Yuta over, wanting her to leave the room and go downstairs to eat.
She was unwilling to leave this room, which was the only place she could feel a tiny bit of comfort in this old home, and even more unwilling to face her family.
"It seems you have been mentally attacked by the Saint Healer. Yuta is no longer Yuta."
Seeing that the normal approach wouldn't work, Yuta immediately decided to return to his old ways. Fighting chunibyo with chunibyo was the truly correct method.
"You would think that, Evil King's True Eye. Don't worry, I was once the Dark Flame Master after all!
...It seems you're unwilling? Then we won't go looking for the invisible boundary line."
Rikka, leaning against the door, had originally thought even Yuta had betrayed her and was feeling sad, but then she heard Yuta's words, which struck her deeply, and a glimmer of light reappeared in her calm eyes.
Yuta waited quietly. After a long while, Rikka slowly pulled the door open, lying on the ground, not daring to look at Yuta's face.
"Really?"
Facing Rikka, who was lying on the ground, Yuta felt something gradually growing in his heart. Always gentle towards Rikka, he squatted down, placing himself on the same level as Rikka, so they could look at each other.
"Why would I lie to you?"
"But... but, Mom, Sister, Grandpa, Grandma, they all..."
"That's why you chose me, right?"
Rikka still hesitated. She chose chunibyo to escape reality, and this was not understood by her family. This led to her feeling incredibly suffocated by the pressure of reality in this old home, surrounded by her family, unable to breathe.
Only Yuta, only Yuta understood her and accepted her.
Hearing Yuta's promise, she was still afraid that her willfulness would make Toka angry, so she hesitated and dared not go out.
But when faced with Yuta's words, "How about we forget it?", she was unwilling to give up. She was originally thinking about how to hide it from Toka, but then she heard Yuta's words that truly struck her heart.
"When do we leave?"
It was as if he was telling her to disregard the consequences, to not think, and even to not be afraid... because no matter where she was, or what she did, Yuta would always be by her side, playing with her, running with her, no matter how willful she was, no matter how childish she was... Yuta would always be by her side.
This moment was the peak of Rikka's emotions since she returned to her old home.
"present!"
Looking at Yuta, who would agree to even such a willful request as 'leave now,' Rikka's eyes once again shone with brilliance. At this moment, she no longer felt alone, and she couldn't even feel the suffocating sensation that had been lingering around her.
In her eyes, there was only Yuta.
Her world was too dark, shrouded in a gloomy mist that protected her from the pressures of reality but also blocked her exploration of the world. Only Yuta, only this single ray of light, pierced through this gloomy mist, illuminating her dark world.