Heavy girl? I feel worse than Black Hole Trigger!

"..."

Although he has a feeling of "what has come to this?", Baodō Oreri still doesn't understand why Nagasaki Suyo likes him.

Come to think of it, he didn't have many good qualities. He lacked noble ideals and ambitions, and even less so, any tangible achievements. Even with the Blood Star cheat, he couldn't muster the slightest desire to achieve great things... Ah, he did want to be a hero, but there weren't any monsters in this world for him to fight.

At most, she has good bloodline and a decent face, but Su Shi is probably not the kind of girl who is only judged by her looks.

...But what are liking and loving like?

Sizzle, sizzle—the sound of the gravy boiling in the hot pot made the kitchen not too peaceful and soothing, but Zhe Li simply moved the spatula casually to stop the increasingly noisy bubbles.

He stared intently at the caramel-colored sheen on the surface of the steak.

Simply because of his own freedom, because of a moment of pity, and because of the endless passion in his heart... a man accepted the love of a girl that was worth a lifetime and made a promise that was worth a lifetime.

"Is that enough for her?"

Baodeng Zheli thought quietly.

——Even if it takes everything, I will return to her.

This promise is not a lie.

But, beyond that…

Perhaps she wants more than just quietly preparing lunch side by side in the kitchen. Or perhaps she's secretly imagined her crush giving her a loving surprise on a special anniversary. Or perhaps she's longing for a more ordinary lover, someone who's even more devoted to her, someone who truly loves her.

And that is not something that Baodeng Zheli can give.

This is not what a beast that desperately wants to be human and doesn't know what love is can give.

"..."

Baodeng Zheli reached out to turn off the gas stove, and the sound of the burning fire was suddenly eliminated from the background.

In that overly silent moment, the man stared at the still scorching oil droplets, watching them gradually slide from the center of the pan to the edge, cool down, and return to deathly calm.

...Perhaps, from the moment he was resurrected as a monster,

Some of the "Baodeng Zheli" have already died completely.

Even if I try to recall the days I spent with my family and friends, that seemingly long period of time, compared to every unforgettable moment in the BanG Dream world, is as distant as the yellowed spots on a photo. Only when I gently touch them can I vaguely feel a feeling called nostalgia.

There is not a bit of excitement, not a trace of depression.

Only one copy,

"Ah, something like this has happened before."

...such an understated emotion.

"————."

The man blinked softly.

The cheeks slowly lifted up.

Two times. The corners of his mouth curled up slightly.

Three times. His eyebrows lowered softly.

He finally smiled as if it was natural once again.

"...It's no problem."

He took a deep breath—

The girl beside him, with her gaze as light as a flying butterfly, stopped on the smiling face he had already adjusted the moment he changed his expression.

He glanced over and smiled, "Su Shi, what kind of dessert do you like after dinner?"

The girl smiled and raised her finger, saying, "Parfait is good, right? I want everyone to have a taste of Lenai's favorite matcha parfait."

"Huh? That's very tiring. What if you guys order it often in the future?"

"Hehe... then I'll have to trouble you, okay?"

"You're just being perfunctory with me."

"Okay, okay, I'll help you when the time comes."

……

The man glanced sideways at the girl's playful smile.

That gentle gaze was the same as always.

Yes, that's fine. ...That's fine for now.

Lost Star Chapter 51 Summer Time Record: Chapter Melting

Ding-ding-ding-ding-ding...

It is said that three women make a drama, but now the Nascita coffee shop where five girls gather is very quiet.

There was only the sound of spoons and forks hitting the dishes.

"……tasty."

Shiina Riki seemed unable to bear the silence and spoke softly.

She actually didn't like pasta that much, and she ordered white sauce pasta only because Toyokawa Shoko had already ordered pasta, so she wanted to save the manager some trouble.

Yet, the perfectly springy noodles and the subtle yet pervasive milky aroma of the white sauce, accented by the fresh, seafood-infused aroma of the clams and occasionally nibbled shrimp, made every bite deeply satisfying. She even began to wonder if she might suddenly develop a fondness for seafood white sauce pasta.

Just saying it's delicious makes me feel a little sorry for this ingenious taste.

"Thank you."

At this time, Nagasaki Suyo had just taken a tissue to wipe her mouth. When she heard Li Xi's sigh, she looked up at her with a smile on her face.

Li Xi immediately raised his eyes and stared at Su Shi's smile, which seemed to be full of joy from the heart, and said coldly: "I'm not praising you. This is not what you did at all."

"Oh~" Su Shi put her hand over her mouth, "Am I not thanking Xiao Lixi on behalf of Zhe Li?"

Shiina Riki snorted softly, glanced at the man sitting at the counter, spinning his high stool like a child while holding a cup of tea, and muttered:

"It's not like that guy can't hear—"

"Ok?"

Almost the moment she finished speaking, Baodeng Zheli stopped what he was doing, tilted his head slightly, waved his hand at Lixi, and opened his mouth with a smile, as if he was saying "thank you".

...To be honest, it's a bit scary.

Just imagine that everything they CRYCHIC talked about in this cafe was actually heard word for word by the always mysterious and very suspicious manager. It would make you feel ashamed as if you were naked - even though they probably didn't tell any secrets.

Li Xi looked away, trying to divert his attention.

Shoko Toyokawa and Riki, who were sitting diagonally in front of her, happened to meet each other's eyes. Shoko smiled at her before lowering her head to taste her noodles.

Farther away, Ruoye Mu, always expressionless, was slowly finishing her pen. She paused slightly, as if noticing Li Xi's gaze, but ultimately refused to even raise an eyebrow.

Gao Songdeng was sitting next to Li Xi, stirring the curry rice in front of him with a spoon.

Deng, it turns out that he likes to eat curry with rice - she had just thought of this insignificant thought when she saw Gao Song Deng scoop a spoonful of rice into his mouth.

"...?"

Deng had just put the spoon in her mouth when she noticed Lixi's eyes lingering on her lips, so she tilted her head to express her confusion.

But after looking at Lixi for a while, she didn't say anything, so Deng ignored her, chewed gently, scooped up a small spoonful of curry sauce and poured it on the rice, this time eating a mouthful of rice dipped in sauce.

Then he chewed slowly and started stirring with a spoon...

"..."

Takamatsu Deng stared at the tip of the spoon mixed with sauce and rice for a while with her head down. She only blinked after swallowing the food in her mouth and slowly turned her head to look at Shiina Riki who was still staring at her.

"Hey." Li Xi quickly turned his head away as if he was doing something shameful.

I only heard the lamp beside me whispering softly, "Lixi, what's wrong?"

"Oh no……"

Li Xi had no choice but to turn back and look at the lamp's eyes which seemed to be wide open with curiosity.

"I was just thinking, well, Deng likes to mix curry and rice together first—or something like that."

"Hmm...? I... probably don't have any particular preference." Deng lowered his head and thought for a moment, then said, "But... I'm more used to pouring the sauce over the rice and then scooping it up to eat."

“Because that’s what my family does.”

Takamatsu Deng spoke at a very slow pace, just like usual. Although his voice was still soft, requiring Shiina Riki to strain his ears, the timidity he'd felt the previous few days had faded considerably. Riki listened carefully, paused, and stretched his face as wide as he could, revealing a slightly stiff smile.

"That's it..."

"Yeah." Deng nodded slightly.

"Then..." Li Xi tried to think, just like a strong person trying to turn the magnetic field. She chose her words carefully: "Then why does the lamp mix the rice into the curry sauce?"

Gao Songdeng blinked and suddenly showed a faint smile.

Shiina Riki was still trying to figure out if he had said anything funny when he heard Deng say softly:

"Because, it looks a lot like a penguin."

"Eh……?"

"look."

Deng turned sideways and put away his arms, allowing Lixi to see the entirety of her plate.

Two potatoes that were not covered with curry sauce were buried in the rice soaked in sauce by the lamp, and another carrot that was cut a little larger was placed lower down.

Combining this with her word "penguin," Li Xi could immediately imagine: the two potatoes were the eyes, the carrot was the beak, the brown part dyed by the curry sauce was the penguin's black feathers, and the clearly separated part of the rice was naturally the white feathers...

"This is a black-footed penguin." Deng glanced at Lixi's stunned expression and explained in a low voice.

Li Xi first looked down at the "Penguin Painting", then raised his eyes to look at the lamp.

"……puff."

He looked at the lamp seriously and chuckled.

Takamatsu Deng subconsciously shrank back, but after taking a closer look at the smile on Shiina Riki's face, he relaxed again and asked nervously, "Um, um, did I say something wrong...?"

Shiina Riki coughed a few times to suppress his smile, and raised his hand to twirl the hair at his temples.

"No. I just... suddenly feel like an idiot."

“……?” Deng looked at Li Xi and blinked blankly.

Lixi smiled and said without further explanation, "I think it looks more like a panda."

After hearing this, Deng turned back and stared at his own plate. After thinking for a long time, he said, "Hmm. It looks like a panda." He reached out for a spoon to pick out a carrot and ate it. Looking at the curry picture that had lost its "beak", his eyes lit up.

Li Xi stared at her profile, which showed a hint of excitement, for a long time before looking away.

Then she ran into Nagasaki Suyo across from her, staring at her with a smile.

"…Why are you looking at me?"

Li Xi tried to keep a cool face, but he seemed to be having trouble holding it together.

It was like meowing at a kitten in an alley for a long time, then walking out of the alley, and seeing my friend trying to hold back his laughter.

Nagasaki Suyo's smile at the moment was filled with mockery, but her lips slightly parted, and the words she uttered were very considerate of Li Xi's sense of shame: "I'm very happy to see that little Li Xi can get along well with Xiao Deng."

"Hmph. You don't need to tell me. ...For the time being, we're all members of the same band."

Shiina Riki turned her gaze to Toyokawa Shoko, who was quietly praising Wakaba Mutsu about the deliciousness of the green sauce, while Mutsu watched her talk while eating with a fork of pen tube noodles, without saying a word as usual.

Here, no, although their "CRYCHIC" is very quiet, it is not completely silent.

She slowly closed her eyes and leaned back in her chair.

"You should finish eating quickly. We'll be ready to start practice soon."

"Yes~"

……

"Then we'll go in first!"

Nagasaki Suyo waved to Baodō Zeriri while carrying her violin case.