Fuyuko’s desperate question caught the attention of some of the other students, but not for long enough after Ryoichi quietly told her to lower her voice. None of the two boys talking to her could find fault with her reaction, however; those news, deeply unpleasant and baffling, could only be met with that same shock or a disgust that Fuyuko wasn’t able to express. Yuji sighed, but at last nodded, his expression sullen beyond what was expected from his usual energetic demeanor.
“The old geezer’s planning on marrying her off by August,” He explained, hopelessness dripping from every word. “Some relatives tried to reason with him, but that bastard won’t listen at all. …After White Day, they’re planning on introducing her to her future mother-in-law in a fancy party in a cruise. She said I shouldn’t tell any of you, but I’m stuck. Any ideas?”
Ryoichi bit his lower lip, a frown settling in his face. “…there’s virtually nothing we can do about it. The only way to stop this would be to make her grandfather or the fiancé to back down, but…”
The conversation would leave and enter his mind with ease, not piquing his interest for long enough to keep himself entertained. And yet his mind was working through the problem, attempting to make a plan of his own to assist as he could. What should be done? What laws would he be willing to break or skillfully dodge? Should he sport an identity he had prepared, create a new one, simply appear as he was? Should he help her openly, or should he operate from the shadows, as he so often did time and time again? It was a question of whether his arrogance would step between him and his need to help a maiden in distress, one that he recognized as his rival and equal, or if he would defeat his pride and dash towards her with no regards for his well-being.
Eventually, he turned to the side, to another beauty he kept in mind too often for his own liking. Chika had been doodling in her notebook for a while, absentmindedly copying the face of a heroine from an anime he vaguely remembered. Her nails were nicely painted, and the patterns were what he expected from a girl whose life was flowers and their symbolism.
“Chi-chan, I didn’t even notice how cute your nails looked!” He smiled brightly, taking her free hand in his own, making the girl blink confusedly. “Say, aren’t these flowers that bloom near the ocean? Arme… Arma…”
Her cheeks dusted pink from the contact, but her embarrassment was soon replaced by genuine joy. “Armeria maritima! They’re pretty common in Britain, I’m surprised you know them! They’re usually called ‘sea thrift’ though.”
He nodded enthusiastically, before tilting his head. “Say, you know I didn’t live in Tokyo for all that long, is there any place with a nice view of the sea here? Not a beach, you know, I don’t really like the sand~”
“…hm, the few beaches in the coast don’t have the best water, but… if you’re not talking about those, then what about Tokyo Bay?”
“There’s a bay in Tokyo!?”
By the end of their long discussion, of Kaito playing dumb and his classmate and friend telling him about the Tokyo Bay, she agreed to later show him the way to it.
…so I’ll have a nice opportunity to study the ports, and maybe even learn of when the cruise will sail. Asakura Chika, you’re the best unintentional partner in crime~☆
