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"Tamaki, don't shout…"
Goko Ruri's vision went dark. It honestly felt like her life was about to end right then and there.
She had only come out to buy a few things. So why… why of all times did she have to run into her mom and little sister?
Was this island seriously that small?!
Quick footsteps rang out as a grade school girl with short twin-tails came running over. The moment she saw Blake and Kuroneko, her eyes went wide in shock.
"Huh? It really is sis Ruri?!"
Her gaze quickly shifted to Blake.
"So that good-looking guy is your boyfriend, sis Ruri?"
"I always thought you'd spend your whole life with manga and light novels, being all chuunibyou and stuff. And now you're secretly dating a guy? Did the sun rise in the west today or something?!"
As she spoke, a gentle-looking woman pushing a shopping cart turned the corner, her face full of warm satisfaction.
"Our little Ruri has finally grown up."
"Y-you've got it all wrong—let me explain…"
Ruri bit her lower lip, face burning as she tried to defend herself.
"Red bean rice!"
Unfortunately, Tamaki suddenly raised her head and shouted loudly:
"Mom, we're having big sister's red bean rice tonight!"
Her mother smiled kindly. "Alright, we'll go buy some red beans in a bit."
"D-don't buy weird stuff like that, Mom!"
Ruri's face turned bright red, practically steaming as she cried out in embarrassment.
"Blake and I just happened to run into each other! We're not dating!"
"Quit lying, Ruri-nee. You've never even had friends your whole life. Now you're suddenly shopping at a convenience store with a guy—if that's not dating, what is it?"
The twin-tailed girl, Hinata, planted her hands on her hips and fired back.
"I-I recently awakened special powers! I can communicate with cats now, and I'm preparing to take on bounty requests! I asked Blake to come help me—that's all!"
Ruri's face was red as she gave her explanation, mortified.
Sadly, it was useless.
Everyone knew Kuroneko had terminal chuunibyou, so even when she told the truth, nobody believed her.
"Big bro, are you classmates with big sister?"
Little Tamaki wasn't shy at all. She trotted over and looked up curiously.
Blake twitched his lips slightly, then forced himself to introduce himself and clear things up.
"Please don't misunderstand. Ruri and I really aren't dating… I just wanted to buy some cat food, and happened to run into her. So I asked her to help me pick out some canned food."
"Oh, I see…"
Ruri's mother smiled warmly, looking as if she believed him. She waved at Ruri, then led the two girls away.
"Let's go. We shouldn't disturb little Ruri."
Ruri: "…"
She totally didn't believe a word of that!
Soon, the three of them disappeared, leaving only Blake and Ruri by the shelves.
An awkward silence settled in.
Ruri stared down at her toes, her voice small and embarrassed.
"Sorry… I caused you trouble."
"It's fine as long as things are cleared up." Blake didn't seem to mind. Right now, all he cared about was making money. "We've got everything we need. Want to head to the park?"
"…Okay."
Ruri took a deep breath and quickly buried her embarrassment.
She was mortified—honestly wanted to run home and hide in her closet—but no matter what, she couldn't run now!
One hundred thousand yen… she absolutely couldn't let that slip away!
After finishing their shopping, they pushed the cart to the register—only for a small figure to come running over again.
"Big sister!"
Tamaki looked up sweetly. "Mom asked me to check—are you coming home for dinner tonight?"
Ruri quickly crouched down and whispered:
"Of course I'm coming home."
"But sis Hinata said you're going on a date with big bro tonight… and you might not come home at all."
"That's impossible!"
Noticing the strange looks from people nearby, Ruri felt like steam was rising from her head. She wanted nothing more than to disappear into the ground.
Even if she were on a date with Blake, at most they'd just eat dinner together outside. There was no way she'd stay out all night!
Tamaki continued in her soft voice:
"Sis Hinata also said you should be careful…"
"Eh?"
Ruri froze for a second, then immediately realized what "be careful" meant.
(Aaaaaah! That idiot Hinata—don't teach kids weird stuff!)
As the surrounding gazes grew more and more suspicious, even Blake, usually expressionless, started to feel the pressure. He simply grabbed a lollipop, had it scanned, and handed it to Tamaki.
"Here, Tamaki. Have some candy."
Her attention was instantly captured. Her eyes sparkled as she stared at the lollipop, clearly wanting it badly.
Still, she had good manners. Even though she wanted it, she didn't take it right away. Instead, she looked up expectantly at Ruri.
"If he's giving it to you, take it."
Ruri understood exactly why Blake offered the candy. She huffed lightly but didn't refuse.
"Thank you, Big bro!"
Tamaki cheered and happily took the lollipop.
"…Stare—"
Blake quickly noticed a hopeful gaze on his back.
Turning around, he spotted another small head with twin-tails peeking out from behind a shelf—it was Hinata.
The moment she realized she'd been seen, she ducked back instantly.
"…I'll get one more."
Blake picked up another oversized lollipop and handed it to Tamaki.
"Big bro, I like you!"
With double the happiness, the little girl blurted it out without hesitation.
"Idiot, Blake. One is enough." Ruri's eyes trembled slightly as she whispered, "Too much candy will give kids cavities."
"This one's for Hinata." Blake said calmly. "If you buy for one and not the other, she'll definitely feel bad."
It wasn't about scoring points with the little sisters.
He just knew what it felt like to be treated differently.
"…You're really kind, Blake."
Ruri murmured to herself. She'd been so busy panicking earlier that she almost forgot Hinata was definitely hiding nearby.
Blushing, she crouched down, explained who the second lollipop was for, and gently patted Tamaki's head before sending her back to their mother.
After that, nothing else happened. They paid and headed back to the park with their bags.
The moment they arrived, they saw over a dozen stray cats gathered in the corner, waiting.
"Meow~"
Ruri took a deep breath and stepped forward, her face slightly red as she began communicating in "cat language."
"Meow?"
"Meow meow!"
"Meooow~"
To Blake, it just sounded like a chorus of meowing. He had no idea what they were saying.
After chatting for a bit, Ruri turned back.
"Blake, can you open the cans?"
"Sure."
He pulled out the cat food and got to work opening them, acting as the designated can-opener.
With Ruri there, the stray cats weren't afraid of humans. They gathered around and happily ate.
Once they were full, the cats didn't slack off. They scattered in all directions to search for the missing orange cat.
"All we have to do now is wait quietly," Ruri said, letting out a small breath. "Once they find it, they'll come back right away to lead us."
Blake sat down to rest. "Let's hope for good news."
The good news came faster than expected.
In just twenty minutes, a calico cat came running back, meowing nonstop in front of Ruri.
Her eyes lit up instantly. She grabbed Blake's wrist, her voice filled with excitement.
"Let's go—…they've found the missing contracted beast!"
"....."