And so, intimidated by Tianqi Sanluo's overwhelming presence, Itsuka Shidou didn't dare to cause trouble over Tohka being bullied. Instead, he focused his attention on the current priority — his date with Kotori.
As for Tohka, though she was initially unhappy, after a round of Shidou's comforting (more like coaxing) and the promise of kinako bread, she truly believed that she had achieved a great victory — despite the fact that Tianqi Sanluo hadn't offered any form of apology, not even a verbal "sorry."
Tohka was easy enough to deal with — but Kotori was another matter entirely.
Even though he was extremely nervous, Shidou had no choice but to brace himself and go through the date interactions with Kotori.
Kotori, on the other hand, seemed lost in thought, recalling something Tianqi Sanluo had mentioned about her "sister," and didn't strongly resist or reject Shidou's various attempts to get closer — at least not outwardly.
Thus, at least on the surface, Shidou and Kotori's date was going smoothly.
Well, it would have been perfect — if not for the girl nearby who kept watching their every move.
For some reason, though Kotori was cooperating with Shidou, her face remained clouded with displeasure, her brows furrowed as if facing a formidable foe. Perhaps it was the pressure Tianqi Sanluo had put on her.
For example — at 2:10 in the afternoon, the group was eating a late lunch at the Ocean Park's dining area.
The small round table was quite full, though for Tohka, it was hardly enough to fill her up.
"This is so good, Shidou!"
Tohka bit into her sandwich with huge mouthfuls, her face glowing with joy.
In contrast, sitting across from her, Yoshino nibbled her sandwich delicately with her small cherry lips, then nodded softly.
Perhaps the food was working its magic, as Tohka's psychological trauma from Tianqi Sanluo's earlier "lesson" had long since vanished. She even offered a piece of sandwich and a drink to Sanluo.
"No, thank you."
Tianqi Sanluo was a bit surprised, but as the saying goes — one doesn't slap a smiling face — so she declined politely.
"Seriously… is this girl actually dumb? How long has it even been, and she's already forgotten everything?"
Thinking that, Sanluo casually took a sip from her own drink.
"Tastes kind of weird."
Shidou shrugged, then turned his gaze toward Kotori beside him.
Like Sanluo, Kotori didn't seem interested in the food, only frowning as she took a few sips of her drink.
"Is Kotori… upset?"
Shidou wasn't sure — he wasn't exactly inside her head.
Then, as Kotori drank again, she suddenly coughed violently as if choked.
"Hey, Kotori, are you okay?"
"I'm fine, I just choked a bit."
Liar.
Tianqi Sanluo saw it clearly — before the strangely colored liquid even entered Kotori's mouth, she had already started coughing.
And as a Spirit herself, Sanluo could also sense the powerful, restless energy surging within Kotori — exactly the same as when she had laughed maniacally and fired at Kurumi on the rooftop before.
"No wonder she's been wearing that sour expression…"
Sanluo immediately understood, but said nothing. Since Kotori clearly didn't want her brother to know, Sanluo had no reason to expose it.
After finishing her coughing fit, Kotori stood up silently and walked away.
"Hey! Kotori, where are you going?!"
"Questioning a lady when she leaves the table? If you weren't my date today, your life would already be forfeit."
Kotori's voice was strained, and her steps unsteady.
Shidou wasn't stupid — he could tell something was wrong.
Maybe it was the "two negatives make a positive" effect — having a volatile lunatic watching him the whole time, and after all the forced or voluntary close contact earlier, he found himself less nervous than expected, allowing him to notice more details.
"Kotori…"
Shidou muttered, eyes fixed on Kotori's back. A glance to the side showed Tianqi Sanluo also watching Kotori, with a slightly amused expression.
"Tianqi-san… you… know something, don't you?"
Hearing Shidou's cautious question, Tianqi Sanluo turned her head, smiling faintly.
"And what if I do?"
Shidou's heart sank — she definitely knew something, but clearly didn't plan to tell him.
"Hehe, Itsuka Shidou — don't forget, you owe me a favor, not the other way around."
Putting down her drink, Sanluo threw a casual glance at Tohka and Yoshino before striding off in the direction Kotori had gone.
"Eh?"
Shidou blinked — then immediately realized her intention.
"Tohka, Yoshino, I'll be right back — just going to the restroom."
Without waiting for a reply, he hurried after her.
"Shidou!"
"…Shidou…"
Sanluo's meaning was clear — keep Tohka and Yoshino out of this.
"…Might as well help all the way — send the Buddha to heaven while we're at it."
Slowing down her pace, Sanluo waited for Shidou to catch up beside her.
"Huh?"
"If you want to know what's going on, see for yourself. In her current state, Kotori won't even notice if someone's following her."
Saying that, Sanluo pointed toward a spot near the vending machines ahead, located just beside the restrooms — apparently, Kotori's destination.
"Kotori…"
"The rest is up to you. I'll head back to those two and see if they can repay that favor you owe me."
As she turned to leave, Shidou called out, "Wait, Tianqi-san — Tohka and Yoshino…"
"I'm not Tokisaki Kurumi. Their spirit energy is useless to me — relax. Of course, if you think your sister's condition isn't worth worrying about, you're free to tag along with me instead."
With that, Sanluo walked away, leaving Shidou torn but eventually gritting his teeth and sneaking toward the vending machines to peek from behind.
…
Back at the table, Tohka was still eating heartily.
"Mmhh— oh, it's you. Where's Shidou?"
"Oh, he's having a *deep conversation* with his sister. Won't be back for a while."
Then, Sanluo shifted the topic.
"Anyway, since we're just sitting around, why don't we go over there and have some fun?"
She pointed toward the attraction area — the *Forest Cruise* near the flowing water pool.
She wasn't even sure what it was exactly, but to her, anything that could help her adapt to her current female form was welcome.
From her recent experiences, Sanluo had realized that only by engaging in these kinds of mundane, everyday activities could she start to accept her gender — simple destruction and killing did nothing for that.
And though she disliked exposing her body in public — even in a one-piece swimsuit — she had to admit that playing with a hint of embarrassment might actually help her acceptance process.
"Mm? What's that place…?"
Tohka, being her first time here, had no idea either.
"Doesn't matter what it is — I'm sure it'll be… um… fun, right?"
Sanluo stared at the area, still unable to tell what exactly it was.
She barely even understood the concept of "fun" in her past life, so those words came out awkwardly, almost forced.
"Eh? Then it must be fun! I wanna go!"
At that moment, Yoshino tugged on Tohka's hand.
"Tohka… I-I want to go too…"
"Of course you can — but…"
Tohka eagerly agreed at first, then seemed to recall her *"beautiful memory"* of being punished by the very girl in front of her, glancing nervously at Sanluo.
"Of course you can."
Sanluo didn't like crowds, but bringing these unrelated people along would give Shidou and Kotori some privacy — hence her earlier words about "helping to the very end."
"Yay! Let's go together then!"
The innocent Tohka's eyes sparkled as she grabbed Yoshino and Sanluo, running excitedly toward the Forest Cruise.
What happened afterward was…
Glug glug glug…
On the boat, Sanluo, dizzy from all the bumping, saw stars before her eyes. Her mind blanked so badly that she accidentally dunked her head into the water below, choking on several mouthfuls despite the current being quite gentle.
"Mmhh… Are you okay?"
"A-are you alright…?"
"I'm fine… perfectly fine…"
Sanluo waved a hand dismissively — just as the boat made a sudden sharp turn—
"Ughhh— Fuck!"
The only English curse word she had ever learned in her previous life slipped out of her mouth.