Chapter 58: Defeated Girl Old Eight's Resolve.
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Anna Yanami used a tissue to wipe away the potato chip crumbs from the corner of her mouth before tossing the crumpled paper into the trash bin. Picking up a box of what appeared to be strawberry milk, she unwrapped the straw and poked it into the carton, wrapping her soft pink lips around the straw to take slow, leisurely sips.
After Lala's modifications, the food machine could even recreate the exact snack packaging—though the characters printed on it resembled those AI-generated text patterns.
Anna felt like she had instantly reclaimed the high-alert mindset she possessed before her romantic heart had been shattered. Nana was practically radiating the distinct scent of a thieving cat right now.
Although the idea seemed a bit unbelievable at first, after Anna ran through Nana's recent experiences in her mind, she concluded that the probability of Nana falling for Kihara was actually quite high.
The classic trope of a hero saving a beauty, shared hobbies, a unique sense of security—with all these factors stacked together, as long as Nana wasn't strictly into girls, those conditions were more than enough to make any girl fall head over heels.
However, her current conclusions were based entirely on personal deduction. Whether Nana truly liked Kihara still required further probing to confirm.
"A gift that can touch his heart, huh? But as far as I know, you might not be able to give him the gift that touches a guy's heart the most."
"Huh?"
Nana raised her eyebrows in irritation. She was the Second Princess of Planet Deviluke; with just a little spoiled whining to her father and mother, she could fetch almost any rare item in the galaxy. How could she possibly fail to satisfy a mere Earthling like Kihara?
"Tell me what that gift is! I'll have Zastin go buy it for me right away!"
"This... I'm afraid it's something money can't buy."
Seeing her talking like a riddler—vague and secretive—Nana grew increasingly annoyed. Resting her hands on the table, she leaned her body forward: "Stop dragging your feet! Hurry up and tell me what that gift is!"
"Yourself."
"Eh?"
Stunned by the answer, Nana stared blankly at Anna Yanami, as if searching for any sign that the other girl was joking. Yet Anna's expression didn't shift in the slightest; she even reached around Nana's hands resting on the table to grab a cookie behind her.
"You're joking, right? The best gift being myself or something..."
Nana squeezed out a strained smile. Recalling her supreme confidence just a moment ago—thinking she could pull off anything—she felt as though a loud slap had landed right across her face, leaving her cheeks burning with embarrassment.
"See for yourself..."
Anna tapped her phone screen a few times, then held up a picture of a girl wearing nothing but a red ribbon to show her.
"If you slather a bit of chocolate on yourself on top of that and invite him to eat, I bet the effect would be even better."
Scared so badly that she plopped onto the floor, Nana shuffled backward a few steps while clutching her bright red face, shouting in sheer embarrassment: "T-This is way too unpure!!!"
"You were the one who asked for a gift that could move his heart. Can't handle something at this level?"
"How could I have known you'd pull out such a shameless photo?!"
"So it's my fault?"
"O-Of course not!" Nana wasn't foolish enough to blame her for it. Through the cracks between her fingers, she saw that Anna had already stowed her phone away and resumed stuffing her face. Breathing a sigh of relief, she asked awkwardly: "Ruling that method out... is there anything else?"
"You really are persistent. Just like I said earlier, why not just gift him a video game or a manga book?"
"Anna, I am a princess of Planet Deviluke, after all. If I give my savior such a cheap gift, my father and mother would scold me to death if they found out."
"Princesses really are a hassle—so many restrictions just for giving a gift."
"So considering I brought over so many snacks today, help me brainstorm another way!"
"Alright, fine."
With a chocolate stick dangling from her mouth, Anna pretended to ponder for a few minutes before offering a suggestion that sounded surprisingly plausible: "How about you buy the most expensive chocolate on the market, make it into a lipstick, and gift it to Kihara?"
"Money isn't an issue, but... why make it into a lipstick for him? Isn't that something only girls use? Don't tell me brother-in-law has a crossdressing..."
"Stop, stop, stop! Where is your mind wandering off to?! My point was to have him apply the chocolate lipstick onto your lips, and then personally taste your handmade chocolate."
"I see..."
Nana nodded with half-baked comprehension.
"That actually sounds like a pretty great gift. Compared to a plain luxury item, it carries a touch of handmade sincerity... Sincerity my foot! Wouldn't that just mean I'm actively seducing brother-in-law?!"
Facing her furious interrogation, Anna blinked with a look of pure innocence: "You said you wanted to touch his heart, so I genuinely assumed you were planning to steal your big sister's man."
"Uh..." Nana fell instantly silent. She really did have a habit of talking without thinking, which easily caused misunderstandings. Hurriedly apologizing, she said: "Sorry, that was my fault. Let's keep this as a backup option for now. Are there any other, more suitable gifts?"
"A backup option?"
"No, no, no! It's not what you think! I meant making the chocolate lipstick for brother-in-law so he can kiss big sister, not me doing it!"
Despite Nana's frantic efforts to explain herself, her "there is no silver buried here" suspicious attitude only solidified Anna's suspicion that she harbored genuine feelings in that direction.
'Continuing to probe her with these subtle questions might raise Nana's suspicion. I'd better pull out my ultimate killer move directly.'
Taking a sip of her drink to moisten her throat, Anna held up her index finger: "I have a great idea!"
"What is it?"
"You might not know this, but Kihara actually really likes girls' feet. I once caught him setting a picture of a 2D anime girl's fair feet as his lock screen. It was only after I deleted it that he stopped using those kinds of pictures and switched to a normal landscape photo."
"So, why don't you find a time—or just make a move while playing video games together—to shove your foot into his arms and let him rub it for a few hours?"
"F-Feet...?"
Prompted by her remark, Nana recalled the sensation of having the bridge of her foot massaged by Kihara in the kitchen earlier. Her pale face turned bright red once again at a speed visible to the naked eye.
"No way, no way! Proactively letting him touch my feet is way too embarrassing, I can't do it!!"
"Oh..." Anna's eyes narrowed slightly, looking like a hunter watching a prey step directly into her trap: "Then let me think of other ways."
'Her address for him switched from 'brother-in-law' to 'him,' and she feels embarrassed because it's a proactive move—not because she dislikes him touching her... You definitely harbor feelings for the blockhead.'
Having confirmed Nana's true feelings, Anna resolved to exert all her efforts to stop this sister-in-law who already possessed the qualities of a thieving cat. She had lost to Lala in the battle of romance, but that didn't mean she was willing to watch a third party intrude upon their relationship.
'As long as the blockhead can be happy, I'm more than willing to play the gatekeeper for the rest of my life! I will block every single thieving cat right outside the door!'
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Thank you for reading.