Yamada Ryō figured her relationship with Aoki was decent.
In Japan, only good friends call each other by given names, and "suki-san," that nickname, took the "ki" from Keisuke's given name.
So if Aoki ever asked to call her "Ryō," she probably wouldn't refuse.
But to bump into each other on the street one day and have him shout her name in the crowd…
Honestly, without any mental prep, it felt a bit weird.
So Ryō paused a beat, a hint of confusion in her eyes.
Kita Ikuyo, meanwhile, froze solid.
Between same-sex friends, switching to given names after a while is no big deal.
But Aoki-senpai and Ryō-senpai weren't the same sex.
Kita's love-detective radar started blaring.
But that wasn't the biggest issue here—
If Ryō and Aoki were really dating, then who was this girl, boldly asking "who is that woman?"
A fling?
Kita never expected Aoki to be that kind of person. She'd been skeptical yet quietly cheering for Ryō and Aoki, but this happening right before her eyes…
She looked at Aoki, then at Ryō.
…
Come to think of it, why doesn't Ryō-senpai look even a little sad? Is she so crushed she's expressionless?
No—focus!
Kita shook her head and looked back at Aoki.
"Aoki-senpai! In love, the most important thing is loyalty! Two-timing and fickleness are absolutely—absolutely—wrong!"
She raised her voice.
Her decibels were high enough that more people stopped to watch.
The crowd grew.
Aoki's mouth twitched as he threw Ryō a pleading look.
He didn't care about the scene, but Kita's outcry really tested his patience.
With so many eyes on them, and with a situation that couldn't be explained in a sentence or two…
How vexing.
Catching his plaintive glance, Ryō blinked.
She shifted her eyes to Kita, who was righteous fury incarnate, and blinked again.
Maybe the joke had gone a bit far…
Realizing she'd made a mistake, Ryō quickly said,
"Kita, sorry—just kidding. I'm not dating suki-san. And… your voice was kinda loud."
"Eh?"
Kita's righteous face became puzzled.
She looked at Aoki, then finally noticed the onlookers.
"…"
Her expression locked up; she turned to Ryō, cheeks going scarlet.
"Eh—?!"
…
Ryō explained. Aoki briefly summarized Rikka's situation. Kita reddened further.
She scolded Ryō—"How can you joke like that! So irresponsible!"—then apologized solemnly to Aoki. After that, mortified, she clammed up.
Aoki said it was fine, but since the joke was over the line, Ryō also apologized formally.
Rikka didn't know what had happened, but she apologized too.
Then, with Aoki admitting he didn't know Tokyo's streets well, he asked Ryō and Kita to help walk Rikka home.
Of course they agreed.
As for Aoki—
Since it involved him, he decided to come along.
So the four of them set off toward the address Rikka had given.
It wasn't close, but not far either.
It was getting hot, especially near noon; a walk made you sweat.
After a bit, Aoki ducked into a convenience store and bought four drinks.
Handing them out, he remembered he'd called Ryō "Ryō-san" at the station earlier.
Out of politeness, he apologized.
Ryō didn't mind at all. She shook her head. "You can just call me Ryō. Whatever feels natural."
"Ryō" did roll off the tongue, if only slightly better than "Yamada." Aoki nodded.
Kita's love-detective radar pinged again.
Even if they denied it, she stuck with her initial gut—
Even if they're not dating, they're definitely not just normal friends!
She eyed them suspiciously.
Before she could spin more theories, Ryō cut in.
"By the way, I never asked—what's this classmate's name?"
Rikka's outfit was eccentric, and she dared to wear it out. Ryō was curious.
Hearing the question, Rikka paused and very seriously declared,
"I am the Seeker of the Invisible Boundary… The Tyrant's Eye, present!"
"…"
Ryō blinked, then caught on at once.
She nodded, thought, and replied,
"I'm the most wicked musician in the Ink-Black Netherworld—the Devil Bassist."
Then she glanced at Aoki, tilting her head. "Oh, and you, suki-san…?"
He cut in with a cough, understanding her intent. In a level tone:
"I am the former bearer of the Seven Deadly Sins, Keeper of the Horizon at the World's End, the Despot who Wanders the Otherworlds—Aoki Keisuke."
"Oooh—cool, suki-san." Ryō gave a deadpan thumbs-up.
Then, after a beat, she looked to Kita.
Kita hadn't kept up, but when she felt Ryō's gaze, she flinched.
"Eh?"
Rikka and Aoki also turned to her.
"Eh? Eh?"
Cornered, she frowned in thought for a long moment and finally stammered,
"Th-then I… I'm the Apprentice Guitarist of the Ink-Black Netherworld, k-known as the Devil Guitar… desu…"
"…"
No response.
Silence fell; they walked on.
A few seconds later, Ryō snorted a laugh.
Aoki kept his face solemn and pinched his thigh hard.
"…"
Kita inhaled deeply.
Then, voice on the verge of tears: "I hate this—I hate it! Ryō-senpai! Aoki-senpai! Meanieees!"
…
And that was that for the immoral bassist bullying the newbie guitarist.
Thanks to native Tokyoites Ryō and Kita, they took shortcuts instead of backtracking. By noon, they delivered Rikka home.
Before they left, Rikka ran out again and added Aoki on LINE.
She messaged:
[Tyrant's Eye: Thank you, O Sealed One. Please also thank the Devil Bass and Devil Guitar on my behalf.]
Aoki said "sure" and showed the message to the two girls.
He ate lunch alone and went to the livehouse in the afternoon for practice.
That night—
Around nine, Love Detective Kita lay on her bed, phone in both hands, staring at the ceiling, mind wandering.
Ryō-senpai and Aoki-senpai's relationship seems… suspicious. I'm so curious!
Come to think of it… Nijika-senpai is close to Ryō-senpai. If I asked her… maybe she'd know?
Her eyes brightened.
It wasn't late. Acting on impulse, she opened LINE, found Nijika, and typed:
[Nijika-senpai, Ryō-senpai seems really close with Aoki-senpai. Do you know any hidden story? I'm super curious! If you can't say, that's okay—thank you!]
[(Cute bunny thank-you sticker)]
-------
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