#targana

121 There is a general store called the Nyanya Shop. The so-called General Store Station was also built in the same location where the shop stood, a strip of land only 3 stons (approx. 9 meters) wide. It had been constructed so that the track ran directly in front of the shop. In other words, the shop was in the best location possible, as you would be greeted by it as soon as you took a few steps off the train. But the general store’s exterior made it look like a deserted house. On top of the store itself being old, part of the roof was peeling off and the lettering on the sign had begun to fade slightly, so even if they knew it was a proper store and not a deserted house, a newcomer would, in all likelihood, hesitate. A rare “closed” sign was hanging on the storefront of this general store. This was so that luggage could be organized in preparation for its move to the Metafalica continent, which would likely be in the near future. But the general store was currently managed by Sasha, a girl who was only ten years old. It was practically impossible for a girl like her to do the work required for moving all alone.

122 But there were three other people inside the general store today besides the girl who was the shopkeeper. “Uh-Uuuuhn!” Sasha lifted a box as tall as she was, her face flushed. She had finished packing it, so she was trying to move it to the corner of the shop where the other boxes she had finished packing earlier were. But the box had been packed to the brim with things, and was nearly twice as heavy as Sasha. She was used to carrying heavy things since she regularly purchased goods, but it was still unreasonable. Realizing what Sasha was doing, a tall man who had been cleaning the floors of the shop with a rag quickly rushed over to her. “Sasha, don’t strain yourself. Didn’t I tell you that I would move it if you left it there?” “Ah, M-Mr.Targana” The young man called Targana took the box from Sasha’s hands, and carried it over to the corner of the shop. “I-I’m sorry. I’m not very strong……” “You needn’t worry about it. I’m here to help you.” Targana used to be the successor to Pastalia’s Papal family, so in short, he was formerly a prince. He was also formerly a leader of the Sacred Army, or rather he had been a symbol of sorts, but now that the Sacred Army had dissolved, he served as a knight under the direct control of Grand Bell Hall’s Maidens. It may seem like a good position, but in truth, it was probably closer to say that he was endlessly pushed around by the two Maidens, a victim of their whims, the man who toiled away behind them.

123 As proof, the task he had been assigned to this time was to help the general store’s shopkeeper Sasha. Cloche had actually planned on making Croix go and help, but unfortunately, he had some other business to take care of with Leglius, so he couldn’t. Cloche’s work had been piling up, so there was no way she could go out herself. Although it would be inconvenient if there wasn’t a man to help out with physical labor. She had been worrying about what to do, when Targana happened to pass by. Realizing something was wrong with Cloche, he had asked why, then offered to go help in place of Croix. He knew Sasha was an unsung hero, not to mention an important partner to the Maiden Cloche. That’s why he thought that if she had some faith, even if it wasn’t as much as with Croix, she could entrust it to him. (?) Sure enough, Cloche had looked relieved as she assigned Targana the task of going to help Sasha. She had explained that Sasha was- “A girl whose grandma is in the hospital, who manages the store all by herself. She’s extremely cute, an extremely good kid, an extremely hard worker, and an extremely reliable girl, so I think you’ll be surprised when you meet her.”

124 ……Though he had thought her barrage of “extremelies” was frankly just her own partiality. However, now that he had been helping Sasha out, he knew quite well that what Cloche had been saying wasn’t wrong. She was polite despite being so young, and it was admirable seeing her work so hard at the shop. Targana had, at first, secretly felt regret when he saw her, but now he had been helping her out all he could. ……Although she was young, there was no doubt that she was an unsung hero. Targana had been thinking about that as he worked, but then he looked over at the two girls who were helping organize luggage. “Wow, it’s a duck! To think there’d be this many rubber duckies!” “It’s amazing! It would be a dream to have this many ducks floating in the bath!” Targana saw them clamoring about the stock of toy ducks they had discovered, and sighed. Much like Sasha, the two of them also provided support from behind the scenes. One ran a weapons shop, and the other was a poster girl for a restaurant.

125 The name of the girl who ran the weapons shop was Cynthia. She provided support in the form of weapons and items that could be used in battle, and probably had most helpful service of all. The restaurant poster girl was called Skycat. It was the name she used at work, not her real name, but Targana didn’t know her real name. Although she was a restaurant poster girl, she was a scary girl who for some reason made weapons using food, and weapons that were food in name only. …… Well, but hadn’t she been saying that Lady Luca and Jakuri played a major part in making that food? In other words, the target recipe may have been something normal, and their cooking was just destructive, but that was also something Targana didn’t know, and he thought he may be happier that way too. “Hey, you two over there. How about you stop playing around so much, and get your hands moving?” The two of them looked up from the ducks. “Oh, but isn’t it only natural to be captivated by ducks?” “No it’s not, Skycat-chan. A distinguished person would be captivated by not a duck, but a swan toy.” “That’s your reasoning?! It’s bad manners to bring toys other than a duck into the bath!” Cynthia and Skycat were a bit surprised that even Targana might have bath toys. Though it was somehow hard to imagine him in a tub, poking and watching a duck. (?)

126 “Anyway, leave the ducks behind. Both of you are being depended on by someone to help out, right?” With that, the two of them suddenly remembered. This is what had happened yesterday. Cynthia had just been tending the weapons shop while singing a love song for Croix to herself, when he had come in alone and said- “I want to help Sasha move her shop, but I can’t ditch my work as a knight no matter what. I’m sorry, but could you go and help instead?” The person she loved was depending on her, so there was no way she could have refused. “Leave it to me, Coo-kun! I’ll even fix the broken furniture and stuff while I’m at it!” She had replied, a huge smile on her face. This is what had happened this morning. Before the restaurant opened and Skycat went to work, Luca had been standing there and had said- “Sasha is preparing to move at her store today. The truth is, I want to go and help out too, but I have my job as the Maiden, so it’s impossible for me to go…… I wish I had the time, but I was wondering if I could have you could go in my place?” The person she loved was depending on her, so there was no way she could have refused. “Leave it to me, senpai! I’ll even bring refreshments for lunch while I’m at it!” She had replied, rubbing her cheek up against Luca’s. Having remembered their promises, the two of them closed the box of ducks, and got up.

127 “Not good, not good, we ended up being charmed by the cuteness of the ducks.” “That’s right. We don’t have time to be charmed by mere ducks, since this was a request from the people we love.” Targana was relieved to see the two of them finally return to working on the move. It wasn’t all that big of a store, but it was still enough to be too much for just Targana and Sasha alone. Besides, it wasn’t just the building itself that was falling apart. The store’s shelves and the furniture she used everyday was worn out too, so there were quite a lot of things that were impossible to pack and move without repairing first. Unfortunately, Targana was a novice when it came to repairing things, so it wouldn’t get done unless Cynthia kept working. ……Even if he told Sasha he’d give her a new set of furniture, she’d probably refuse. Even so, Targana swore to himself that he’d bring her something in celebration when she reopened business on the Metafalica continent. As he returned to wiping the floors, Sasha saw him and rushed over in a hurry. “D-don’t do that Mr.Targana! I’ll do that kind of work!” “No, I’m used to it. I used to do a lot of floor cleaning with Croix at the dojo we went to when we were kids.” “But it would be blasphemy to allow a prince to do something like that……” Upon hearing Sasha’s comment, Cynthia and Skycat remembered his position as well.

128 “Oh, His Highness Targana is a prince, isn’t he. I didn’t even have any interest in the Sacred Army or whatever, so I had completely forgotten about the prince.” “And I have no interest in men other than Coo-kun.” “……Well, you don’t have to worry about me being a prince now. I’ve already decided to serve the Maidens. There’s no need to address me so formally. Treat me the same way you treat Croix.” Targana said, and once again began cleaning the floors. He had said he wasn’t anymore, but still, he was a man who had lead the life of a prince. He had a charismatic aura to him, even when cleaning floors with a rag. “Wow, how cool!” Sasha’s eyes were sparkling, and Skycat watched him carefully next to her. “Wait, Targana! Your technique is wrong!” “Wha-!” Targana was surprised by Skycat addressing him so casually, when she had just referred to him as “His Highness” a mere ten seconds ago. …… He had asked to be treated like Croix, but was it always like this for him? That considered, he couldn’t raise any objections, but he had no idea that they addressed Croix at least a little more respectfully. Skycat snatched the rag out of Targana’s hand and wiped the floor vigorously, demonstrating how to do it.

129 “It won’t get clean if you don’t put your back into it like this. And look, you have to make sure you get the corners of the room as well. That’s the kind of place where dust collects.” “…… I-I see. It seems I was careless about a lot of things since I haven’t done this in a while.” His charismatic aura vanished in an instant. “Wow, you can’t even clean a floor…… your house must be quite dirty with work like that.” “Ahh~, I know the type. They look cool on the outside, but live in a house full of trash. Is the former prince like that too?” “…… I don’t clean all that often, but my house isn’t full of trash or anything. I’ve only gone back home to sleep, so there hasn’t even been time for trash to collect. By the way, couldn’t you find something a little better to call me than ‘former prince?’” “Hm, then how about Gaa-kun? Since its fine to treat you like Coo-kun and all. Ah, but I won’t give you my love, so don’t expect it.” He didn’t expect it of course, nor did he even want it, but he thought she’d be quiet if he nodded for the time being, so that’s exactly what he decided to do. Having finally been handed the rag, Targana went back to work cleaning the floor. Now that he thought about it, it was as Cynthia said, you couldn’t help but be a little doubtful of someone like him, who was cleaning another person’s house despite not even being able to clean his own.

130 Especially since Targana, as part of the Sacred Army, had been using the town of Enna on the Rim as a hideout until just recently. His home was also there, so he’d have to move to Pastalia or Metafalica in the near future. In any case, he realized he had not once been able to return home ever since he joined Grand Bell Hall. ……Perhaps he’d drop by later. “Umm, Mr.Targana……” Sasha spoke to him as he worked. “I’m really sorry for making you do something like this. I will talk to sister Clo, so please get back to your job.” “No, this too was a direct order from the Maiden. I appreciate the thought, but I can’t do that.” “But don’t you have more important work to do than cleaning?” Metafalica was now close at hand, so it certainly was very busy within Grand Bell Hall. Especially for someone in Targana’s position. In addition to integrating former Sacred Army knights into the Grand Bell Knights, which they still weren’t used to, he had official duties to attend to. Cloche had also been worried when he had volunteered for the job. Targana had figured as much, and had lied, saying he would have time until evening since he had taken care of some of his official duties.

131 ……Since finding a way to ease the Maiden’s troubles was also part of his duty. Although he got a slight headache remembering the mountain of official business waiting for him when he returned. “There is something, isn’t there? If there is, you should hurry up and……” “……No, it’s nothing to be concerned about. I just tend to worry.” “But……” “It was a Maiden’s order, so regardless of what it may be, it’s my duty as a knight to follow it. Besides, going back without helping a kid like you would be unchivalrous.” Targana personally wanted to help her out anyways, but there was also no telling what would happen if Cloche were to know that he went back without doing anything just because Sasha had told him to. He was staying here for Sasha’s sake, as well as his own. And since Targana kept insisting, she left it at that. “Thank you……in that case, I’ll presume on your kindness.” “Ahh, I don’t mind. Don’t hesitate to ask if you need anything.” Targana said, and patted Sasha’s head. Targana didn’t usually interact with kids, so it was the first time he had done such a thing.

132 So he just patted her head without much thought. Sasha seemed a little embarrassed by it, but she was smiling happily. Seeing this, Targana felt a strange feeling inside himself. ……How cute. He genuinely thought so. Seeing Sasha happy had brought forth fatherly feelings inside of him. Incidentally, Cloche had come to care about Sasha for the same reason, so the same thing had ended up happening to them both. “Eheheh……” “…………” Targana continued to pat Sasha’s head, but realized he didn’t know when to stop. Should he continue as long as she was happy? If so, he felt like he would have to continue for a while longer, but then they wouldn’t make any progress in their work. Though what if he stopped while she was still happy? If she were to look sad because of that, he’d feel bad all day.

133 He was unusually troubled by this, but thought a little longer might be good, so he decided to continue patting her. Sasha was happy, and he didn’t feel bad either. But Targana realized the other two girls were staring at them. “Hey, hey Skycat-chan. Look at Gaa-kun.” “Heheh, he’s like a big brother. What a heartwarming sight.” “No, what if he just likes little children?” “Ew, gross!” “Skycat-chan, how out of character!” “Oh, not good, not good.” As a waitress poster girl, the ever popular Skycat had to be everyone’s idol- anytime, anyplace. For that reason, she rarely showed her true personality, even when she was off duty, but it occasionally surfaced like just now. Skycat cleared her throat and regained her form, then swayed her body. “Ugh, it’s because Targana’s a lolicon.” “N-no, you’ve got it all wrong!” Targana hurriedly took his hand off Sasha’s head and denied it, but it backfired.

134 “Wow, wasn’t that suspiciously quick? So it’s true, Gaa-kun…….” “You can’t judge a book by its cover, can you…….” “Calm down, you’re misunderstanding!” “There’s no need to panic. We can keep a secret, and we won’t look down on you or anything.” “Yeah, definitely. We’ll gladly guard it, as long as you don’t do anything obscene.” “Why don’t you try listening to what people say!” Targana had a bit of respect for Croix, who dealt with these two on a regular basis. If it was him, he surely would have stayed away so he could have as little to do with them as possible. “Uh-ummm……” Sasha raised her hand nervously. “Um, may I ask you something?” “Wh-what is it?” “Okay. What does lolicon mean?” Targana froze. But Cynthia and Skycat calmly said- “It’s a form of love.” “It’s a somewhat deep form of love.”

135 The two of them had replied without any hesitation. Sasha’s face turned red. “L-love?…… Um, I-I’m too young to understand that……” She looked down in embarrassment, trying as hard as she could to hide her red face. “……Nice explanation.” Targana honestly admired the two of them for cleverly dodging the question without lying. They proudly gave the V-sign. “Although, I don’t think you’re too young. Age doesn’t matter when it comes to love.” “That’s right. Besides, Sasha-chan is already 10, right? So it wouldn’t be strange if she’s already had a first love or two.” “No, I feel like there’s only one, but…… how about it, Sasha? Is there a boy on your mind?” “Th-there’s not! Nothing like a first love!” Sasha hurriedly denied it, blushing all the way to her ears. She barely even had friends around the same age as her to begin with, and she hadn’t once played with them now that she was the only one running the shop. There was no way someone like Sasha, who was hard at work from morning to evening, would have something like a first love. “Besides, even if I had someone I liked, it would be no good as I am right now. It would be rude to my partner if I didn’t first become a proper adult who has studied a lot more and who can do things like housework.”

136 She was more than good enough in the eyes of everyone around her who saw her running the general store all by herself, but Sasha had never thought so. Although, “I kind of understand how you feel, Sasha.” “Ehhh, does it really matter, as long as you both love each other? It’s not something I worry about.” “You know it would be just to satisfy yourself. But while it may be true that your partner thinks so, you don’t just want to take advantage of that. So you want to learn how to do at least a few more things so you can become someone who is able to support the person you like. Is that what you’re trying to say Sasha?” Sasha nodded in response to Targana. “I’m poor and can’t even go to school……so I at least want a talent that I can speak proudly of to everyone.” Sasha sounded a bit lonely as she spoke, and there was but one thing Targana understood. The source of Sasha’s overly-humble nature, despite having talent far beyond her years. Perhaps it was because she lacked self-confidence. He had no idea when this had started, but Sasha had been studying by herself, running a store by herself, and doing any housework she needed to by herself all this time. But there hadn’t been anyone around to see and praise her hard work. She had been praised whenever possible ever since she got to know Cloche, but unfortunately, she had spent far too much time alone.

137 Which was why she was so happy to even just be patted on the head. ……Well, even with how he had patted her, she didn’t mind, so there shouldn’t be any problem.(?) “But if you understand Sasha-chan’s feelings so well, does that mean you feel the same way, Targana?” “That’s right…… well, it’s more just that I don’t disagree.” “Do you have a lover or someone you like, by any chance?” “No, I don’t. It’s not that I don’t have any interest in love, it’s just I don’t have the time right now.” “Or, to be blunt, because you’re not popular Gaa-kun?” “I don’t know what your basis for if I’m popular or not is, but I get sent love letters quite often.” However, most of the people who wrote them had seemed to be trying to marry into money for when Targana would someday seize power from Grand Bell Hall. As proof, the number of love letters he received had been rapidly dropping ever since he became a Grand Bell knight. Thinking about it made him feel a bit lonely, but even so, the fact that he was still being sent some meant that not all of those women were simply chasing after that power. This made him a bit happy, and he couldn’t help but smile.

138 “Wow, he’s proud of himself. Somehow, I don’t like it…” “Yeah, no kidding. People like that always end up getting into trouble.” The simple misunderstanding from earlier got on his nerves a bit. But he no longer felt like arguing anymore. “Still, no one has good taste. I mean, Senpai is 100 million times cuter than Targana.” “Coo-kun is 100 million times more of a nice guy!” “Wh-what! Are you saying I’m not as good as Croix?” They weren’t saying he wasn’t as strong as Croix, but no matter what, it was still frustrating to be told he wasn’t as good as him. Although it’s not like he would have been happy even if they had said he was better. Sasha had decided that the conversation was for adults, and had separated herself from it to get back to work around the time they started talking about Targana’s love letters. ……It was a conversation she was still too young for. And not just that. If she were to hear a word she didn’t know, it would end up bothering her, and she’d probably ask Targana and the others what it meant, even if it was something she was still too young to understand. She figured that would mean she risked troubling them with explaining it to her. But she didn’t realize she already had. The three of them were still engrossed in their conversation, but Sasha didn’t plan on stopping them.

139 She had originally planned on preparing for the move by herself, but it would have been lonely to work all alone in a dead silent shop. But she didn’t have to feel lonely, because Targana and the others had come. So she didn’t have even the slightest intention of asking them to help her out. The three of them were so absorbed in their conversation that Sasha had already finished the rest of the packing, and had started cleaning the floors that Targana was supposed to by the time they finally realized she had been working all alone. “S-sorry, I got caught up in the conversation just now. Give me the rag, Sasha, I’ll do the rest. ” “But I’ll be done soon, so I don’t mind. Please don’t worry about it.” “I can’t do that! Besides, Skycat taught me how to do it just now, so it would be a waste not to put it into practice.” “I-I see. Don’t let it go to waste.” Sasha rinsed the dirty rag in a bucket to get the dirt off, then handed it to Targana. “Okay then, I’ll leave the rest to you. In the meantime, I’ll prepare lunch, so please come to the back after you’re done.” “Ooh, I’m looking forward to it. So let’s work hard until then.”

140 “I was in the middle of repairing the shelves. I’ll have to finish by then.” “If you’re preparing lunch, then I’ll help too. Besides, I want to warm up the refreshments I brought.” Skycat and Sasha withdrew to the back of the shop, while Targana and Cynthia went to work in silence. They didn’t even talk while they worked like they had earlier, perhaps because they felt obliged not to after having gotten caught up in conversation and leaving Sasha to do most of the work alone, despite them having come to help her. Besides, Targana couldn’t stand that he hadn’t once appeared to be a responsible adult. ……Cleaning this floor would restore his honor! Targana would never be seen like this at Grand Bell Hall, so this was an extremely rare occasion. Unfortunately, the only person here was Cynthia, who had practically no interest in him, so their work continued and finished without incident. All that was left was to wait for Metafalica’s success. “……It won’t be for much longer, but with this, it should be a fairly comfortable place, right?” Cynthia heard Targana’s worried murmuring and laughed. “This shop is Sasha-chan’s treasure, yeah? There’s no point in worrying all the time.” “……You have a point.”

141 They looked over the cleaned up storefront, and nodded approvingly. “H-hiaaaaaaaaah!” Suddenly, they heard Sasha screaming from the back of the shop. “Eh, what’s wrong?!” “What happened Sasha?!” The two of them rushed off towards the back of the shop. They went through the shop curtain, and found an ordinary hallway like you’d see in any house. About half of the first floor of the building was being used as the general store, while the remainder served as her home. They headed down the short hallway, and opened a sliding door on the left, which lead to a small, 6-mat living room. It was a drab room, with a small shelf along the wall, a chabudai (low dining table) in the center, and pretty much nothing else besides floor cushions. Sasha was sitting in front of the table, pale-faced and shivering as she looked at a pot that had been placed on it. “Sasha, what in the world happened?” “Are you okay, Sasha-chan? You’re shivering.” “Ah, e-errr, umm……” Sasha tried to explain, but couldn’t find the right words, so she pointed to the pot on the table instead.

142 “Is something wrong with that pot?” “Oh, there’s no need to panic you two.” Skycat came out from the kitchen with chopsticks and plates for everyone. “Skycat, what exactly happened? I mean Sasha’s afraid of that pot, but……” “It’s fine. She’s not actually all that afraid.” Right? Skycat smiled at Sasha, but she was looking from Targana’s face to Skycat’s to the pot like she didn’t know how to respond. “No, I think she’s clearly afraid but……” “Targana, are you saying I did something to scare Sasha-chan?” “That’s not what I meant, but……” He looked away from Skycat, who was puffing out her cheeks in anger. Anyone could see that she was clearly putting on an act. Targana noticed something strange about the pot. The steam escaping from it looked almost poisonous in color. “What’s this…… brown-colored steam?” “Love-colored, it’s love-colored. Love-colored, made with the color of love.”

143 “I’ve never heard of such a color. And do you really think such brown-colored love exists?” “Love is different for each person, Gaa-kun. You still have a ways to go if you don’t understand that much.” Skycat was listening and nodding in satisfaction, but Targana and Sasha thought they’d be just fine with having “a ways to go” their entire life. Nevertheless, given Sasha’s apparent fear, there was no doubt she had looked inside. Targana cautiously lifted the lid, fully prepared for there to be a demon lurking within. “…………” He regretted checking. “……Tell me something Skycat. Are you trying to poison us?” “Wow, how mean! There’s no way someone who works at a restaurant would make something that harms people!” If Croix were here, he would have immediately retorted against that denial of recipes like Eattle Brand. “Well then, I’m listening. What exactly is this garbage cooked in sewage?” Lots of fish bones and what could only be described as mysterious food scraps had been boiled in a brown liquid, and were floating inside the pot…… In short, he didn’t really know what it was. At the very least, it couldn’t be called miso or some other kind of soup as far as Targana and Sasha were concerned. “Ooh yes, this!”

144 Cynthia’s eyes sparkled as she saw what was in the pot. Had she eaten it before? “How can you be so happy?” “You still don’t get it?” “…………” Did he have to? Targana thought long and hard about it, and finally came up with an answer. “I know, it’s yaminabe?!” (Dish made from ingredients brought by each person, made and eaten in the dark so you don’t know what you’re eating) “Don’t be rude! This is a refined version of Trulywaath soup, a soup filled with love, known as Senpai-soup among connoisseurs. It’s name is Lelina Trulywaath soup!” “……This is soup?” Targana had seen all sorts of delicious soups, unappetizing soups, and soups that had aimed to be original but had been huge failures in the 20+ years he had been alive, but he had never seen a soup this disgusting before. “Lelina Trulywaath soup…… though the "Trulywaath” part sounds similar to Lady Luca’s surname?“ "I see you’ve noticed one of its virtues. This dish was originally made by senpai. But this time, I gave it my own twist, and incorporated my own stock into the soup on top of senpai’s. It’s the ultimate dish, with nothing else quite like it in the entire world.”

145 “How could anyone even stand there being more of something like this?” “But wow, you can really tell that it’s bursting with love. Is it because Skycat-chan followed the recipe for a dish Luca made with love while adding even more love to it?” “What a nice thing to say. Cynthia-chan, your love for Croix-kun is magnificent as well, isn’t it.” (?) Although they were talking, Skycat was serving the soup into dishes for everyone. There were plenty of soups that were visibly thick when served, but was it really supposed to be this gloppy? (?) “Skycat, is this safe to eat? If you ask me, I feel like it’s poisonous even just to put in my mouth, but……” Skycat gave a small click of her tongue, looking quite fed up. “Skycat-chan, I understand how you feel, but your character!” “…… Honestly, I’m getting fed up with people saying that every single time. Everyone arbitrarily judges it based on nothing more than its appearance, and some customers even order it as a punishment game, and…… take a good look.” Skycat took a spoonful of the soup she had made, and put it in her mouth. The three of them watched as she took time to enjoy its flavor in her mouth before swallowing. “……Mm.”

146 Skycat’s body trembled a little, her cheeks slightly red. “……Just what I’d expect of senpai’s love. It fills my heart with bliss.” “……Seriously?” “Wow, it’s good, so gooood! I wasn’t able to have any when I went to the restaurant earlier, so I’m super happy!” “Heheh, there’s plenty to go around, so feel free to have seconds.” She was able to have seconds of this thing that would probably take him a while to even so much as put in his mouth? Targana had his doubts. And before anyone had realized, Sasha had slipped behind him to try and hide. “Are you okay Sasha?” “I-I’m fine…… I think.” Despite saying as much, she was shivering slightly. Targana knew how she felt, but he couldn’t stay scared forever like Sasha. “……Alright, fine. Well then, let’s try this refined Lady Luca soup.” He said, and finally sat down. “At last you feel like trying it. Okay, here you go.” Skycat offered him the soup with a smile. He grimaced at its dizzyingly sweet stench, but remained unfazed as he grabbed a spoon and whispered to Sasha, who was still cowering behind him.

147 “Sasha, I’m gonna try this first to see if it’s poisonous.” “You can’t, after all it’s, umm……” She glanced at Skycat. “……I-I feel like it’s dangerous.” He was fully aware of that, but Skycat had come here on the Maiden Luca’s request. And the soup that had been placed before him was a dish the Maiden had created. If he judged it by its appearance and didn’t eat it, it might be taken as defiance against the Maiden. And he had no idea what Cloche, the other Maiden, would do to him if Sasha were made to eat it. All things considered, there was but one remaining option- he had no choice but to eat it. “If something happens to me, contact Grand Bell Hall……there’s no need to be so scared.” “Mr. Targana……” “If I safely finish eating it, make miso soup or something. I’d hate for its taste to be left in my mouth.” “……Okay, I understand. I wish you the best of luck, Mr. Targana.” Targana prepared himself for the worst, her hopes riding on his back. Cynthia was already digging into a second helping next to him while saying how delicious it was, but she was the same as Skycat, so he didn’t care.

148 “Well then……here goes nothing!” He psyched himself up and sunk his spoon into the soup. “Hey! You’re supposed to show thanks before a meal, yes?” “……Thank you for the meal.” With that, all his motivation vanished, and he dejectedly scooped up some soup. If it wasn’t for Cynthia devouring it next to him, he might have even been able to stop going along with this joke and set down his spoon, take Sasha, and run. But such thoughts wouldn’t help him now. He held his breath as he put it in his mouth and immediately swallowed, hoping he at least wouldn’t have to taste it. *gulp……* Targana felt himself tearing up at the uncomfortable feeling of the soup slowly making its way down his throat. ……He couldn’t believe it, crying at his age…… “M-Mr. Targana……” He realized Sasha was looking at him with concern, and forced a smile. This was bad.

149 It was only for a second, but he absentmindedly took a breath through his nose. “Nghh!” He was instantly struck by an indescribably horrible taste on top of the unpleasant feeling in his mouth, throat, and stomach. He desperately tried to suppress that vomit-inducing taste, but now his vision had begun to spin. Not good. He was biting his lip so hard that his teeth were cutting into it in an attempt to stay conscious. And just like that, he lost consciousness. “M-Mr. Targana! Mr. Targana!” Targana’s eyes were dilated, and he had stopped moving. Sasha frantically shook his body, but he wasn’t responding. “Oh dear, how dramatic.” Skycat gave a troubled laugh. Cynthia was laughing happily next to her. “Ahahaha, no kidding. Well, I guess for Gaa-kun, a dish overflowing with love was……” Cynthia’s body convulsed slightly. “Nmbfff!” Soup spurted out of Cynthia’s nose, and she fell forward, no longer moving. “E-Eeeeeeeeeeeeh!”

150 Sasha couldn’t help but be shook up by the sudden hellish scene in her living room, and had no idea what to do. Skycat, the last remaining person, looked at the scene and said- “Heheh…… It appears they weren’t yet ready for this love.” then gracefully sipped the soup.