Aunt Xiangzi, how did you manage to live?

Nagasaki Motoyo was all smiles and had a very approachable demeanor.

“…/]Q*un児霖侕鸸引山另疤+二……

However, Xiao remained silent, and her eyes, which would never have turned cold when looking at Su Shi, were now slightly shadowed.

He remained silent, neither questioning her about how she knew about this, but simply listened quietly to Su Shi's subsequent additions.

"Since Xiaojun is so motivated, I think I should also take action as soon as possible and not let your efforts go to waste—how about we take some time to draft a battle plan? A plan that can make Xiangzi change his mind. If it's you, you can definitely come up with some ideas for me."

Su Shi smiled and tossed the olive branch into Xiao's hand.

If she was still wary of Akatsuki when they formed an alliance before, now Nagasaki Motoyo has poured all her trust into Kazama Akatsuki.

Chu Hua had seen and remembered Xiao's request to never form a band with Xiangzi, and from then on, she truly regarded Xiao as a like-minded partner.

In other words, the test of Nagasaki Motoyo's loyalty to Kazama Akira has come to an end.

He passed Su Shi's test.

If it's this guy, he'll definitely be able to help her successfully win back Xiangzi and rebuild CRYCHIC.

—At least when she made this request with a smile, Nagasaki Motoyo was so confident.

However, the curly-haired boy sitting in front of her unusually did not immediately respond to her words, and even stopped greeting her with his usual handsome and cute smile.

Rather, the air pressure around Kazama is now frighteningly low.

Did I just say something offensive to him...?

Su Shi, who was naturally sensitive, suspicious, and had high emotional intelligence, was a little suspicious, but she repeatedly recalled her own words—it was all just a normal inquiry.

If it were the usual Kazama, he would probably have already nodded and smiled broadly at her, then started saying something like, "I'm happy to serve my classmate Suze, even if it means going through fire and water," in a playful manner.

But his expression now was so cold it was almost frightening.

"...I thought it was something serious, but it turns out Su Shi was still thinking about this."

After a long while, Kazama finally broke the silence.

His face remained expressionless throughout.

By now.

Even now... the most important thing in Nagasaki Motoyo's eyes is still this matter.

It's clear that if he had made just one wrong decision, a vibrant life could have been lost forever.

Xiao's feelings were complicated. He had never realized that there was such a thick barrier between him and Nagasaki Motoyo.

Admittedly, Su Shi couldn't possibly know all the information he had so far. But since she knew about the request he made to Chu Hua, it meant she had been watching him all along.

Since you've been watching him all along... why didn't you even notice his recent distracted and preoccupied state?

Or rather, even if she saw it, she wouldn't care—because what she cared about most was whether CRYCHIC could come back.

The more I think about it, the more upset I get.

Su Shi hadn't done anything wrong in a strict sense; he was just a little aggrieved.

If it were the familiar Aunt Su Shi from my memory, she would definitely ask about his mood first, and then discuss countermeasures with him.

But Nagasaki Motoyo, standing before him, clearly didn't care about his feelings.

That's true... He shouldn't be looking for Aunt Suyo's reflection in the current Nagasaki Suyo anymore; it will only disappoint him.

Xiao stopped obsessing over the details, instead raising her head and offering a bitter, self-deprecating smile.

“Yeah, always only caring about whether CRYCHIC will come back...that’s Su Shi for you.”

He had taken it upon himself to mistake her for the gentle and considerate Su Shi from his memories.

"...?"

Nagasaki Motoyo couldn't possibly have been unaware of the subtle sarcasm in the boy's words, which only made her more confused.

What do you mean by this...?

What's with this guy's sarcastic remarks now that things have come to this?

They clearly wanted CRYCHIC and Xiangzi to come back... This was a consensus they had reached a long time ago.

"It's nothing, I just felt..."

Realizing that he had been deluding himself all along, Xiao shook his head. He knew that unrealistic expectations would only lead to disappointment—he finally understood the bitterness of it all.

Su Shi didn't understand the hardship he endured by hiding his identity to accompany everyone, nor could she empathize with how disappointed he was at this moment.

She was only thinking about how to revive Team C.

Without any intention of moral judgment or accusation, Xiao simply sighed softly.

"As expected, Su Shi only thinks about himself."

"—"

Nagasaki Motoyo's previously furrowed brows froze.

What was clearly just a casual remark from Xiao was, to her, like a thunderclap piercing the silent night sky.

"what……"

Unbeknownst to them, on the other side, Banami and Aine, who had just returned from the restroom, witnessed this embarrassing scene.

Naturally, they overheard Akatsuki and Suze's conversation. Both Aine, whose smile froze, and Banami, who was looking at Suze with a complicated expression, held their breath and did not make a sound.

The atmosphere suddenly plummeted to absolute zero.

Chapter Sixty-Six: The Broken Alliance

You're such a selfish person.

“………Eh?”

Nagasaki Motoyo was stunned by these words, because she never imagined that they would come from Kazama Akatsuki's mouth.

Even his eyes, which always gazed at her with tenderness, were now tinged with a hint of disappointment for some reason.

Puzzling.

doubt.

Why would he suddenly give me that look?

After being caught between these two emotions, what followed was an indescribable sense of grievance.

She had thought that Kazama would never show her such a sly expression, nor would he say such harsh words to her.

"Hey—we're back! Oh, Soyotin's here too! What a coincidence! What were you guys talking about?"

Before she could say anything, a sudden, energetic female voice broke the tense atmosphere between the two.

Chihaya Aine, who seemed to have just returned from the restroom, was holding hands with Yanami Anna, her face full of joy at seeing Suze and curiosity about their conversation—she seemed not to have heard their previous exchange.

Hmm, it seems that way.

"...Good morning, Chihaya-san and Hanami-san."

Nagasaki Motoyo's expression remained uncertain, but she still politely nodded and greeted the two girls.

"Hey, don't be so formal! Just call me Aine!"

"Hehe, it's nice to see you all here, but I have some things to attend to, so I'll be going now. See you in RiNG, Chihaya-kun."

Su Shi ignored Ai Yin's attempts to get close to her, nodded slightly to them, and then got up and left.

Throughout the entire ordeal, Nagasaki Motoyo never turned her head to say a single word to Akira.

But before leaving, she still conveyed her feelings to the boy sitting in his original seat with a silent gaze.

Although she didn't say anything, Xiao could still read her thoughts from her eyes.

"I originally thought that Xiaojun would understand me."

It seemed like a complaint, or perhaps a silent sigh—or perhaps more intensely, an obvious disappointment.

But this time, Xiao did not feel guilty about it.

More than whether the band can be rebuilt, the life-or-death situation is what truly troubles him.

If Su Shi were to misunderstand him because of this unspeakable hardship, then it seems they are destined to be unable to understand or empathize with each other.

"……call."

Xiao let out a long sigh of relief, finally accepting the fact.

That is the fact that the current Nagasaki Motoyo is not the Motoyo Auntie he has always respected and admired.

"Alright, I don't know why you're sighing like that."

Just as he was looking worried, the blue-haired girl next to him handed him the menu with a smile.

"Everyone says that eating more desserts will lift your spirits—whatever you eat from now on, I'll pay for it! How about that? This is a rare treat from Ms. Banami, don't miss out!"

She crossed her arms in front of her with a serious expression, as if to say, "If you're going to take advantage of this, you're a complete bastard."

Kazama wasn't some dull, taciturn romantic comedy protagonist; of course he knew that Banami was trying her best to make him happy.

"But, I haven't repaid you for the meal you treated me to before..."

"Hey, let's keep things separate. I'm being incredibly kind by treating you to dinner, why are you still making that face? Can't you cheer up?"

"Huh? Almond Sauce is having dessert... Can I join in too?!"

Aiyin, who was standing nearby, caught the key words, and her bright eyes immediately lit up.

"Uh... if it's Aine-chan..."

"Hehe, I was just kidding."

Ai Yin, who was having a good time being cheeky, stuck out her tongue. Actually, she just wanted to lighten the awkward atmosphere.

"...Alright, then I won't be polite and will eat as much as I want."

Looking at the two girls in front of her who were trying so hard to make her happy, Xiao could only smile helplessly and open the menu as they wished.

It seems that his alliance with Nagasaki Motoyo broke down because of his remark.

However, Xiao did not regret saying those words, after all, it was indeed an undeniable fact—his Aunt Suze was not the same person as the current Nagasaki Suze who was obsessed with going back to the past.

Those who are conducive to her returning to the past will be won over, while those who are not conducive to her returning to the past will be eliminated.

Becoming friends with someone like Nagasaki Motoyo is actually not a good thing.

...Perhaps he should relax and stop looking for familiar shadows in the girls in front of him.

Responding to Hanami's cheerful invitation, Kazama reluctantly ordered five or six desserts to fill his stomach.

As the last piece of chocolate mousse was eaten, and the two girls stared incredulously at the pile of clean, white plates on the table, Xiao Cai felt a little better.

"That's terrible... I will absolutely not invite Kazama-sensei to dinner."

When Chihaya Aine saw Hanami, whose face had turned extremely pale, go to the front desk to pay the bill, she left behind this sigh as if she had survived a disaster.

Xiaoxin patted her slightly bulging belly with satisfaction; the dessert she had eaten seemed to have indeed had some effect.

Seemingly worried that the sweet offensive wasn't intense enough, after a hearty meal at the cafe, Banami and Aine dragged Akatsuki to a nearby shopping mall amusement park for a whole day.

Playing with girls his own age was a rare experience for him. They would always notice his emotions immediately and show him care in a calm and composed manner. They would also express their feelings of "I need you" directly to him at appropriate times.

Well, Xiao doesn't dislike the feeling of being needed.

The "treatment" methods of Banami and Aine were indeed very effective, and Akatsuki did not feel depressed again for the next day or two.

During this time, he also learned about the current situation of a certain band mercenary, Hachiman Kairin, from Lixi. In his impression, she was a cool and quiet aunt who always had a talent for making funny faces in some strange ways.

She was still working as a temporary member in several bands, and it seemed that Xiangzi had not yet come knocking on her door.

It seems that as long as they are not recruited into Xiangzi's team for the time being, Su Shi will not play the Kasuga Shadow, and the death of Toyokawa Xiangzi will not be triggered.

Although his relationship with Su Shi seemed to have broken down, they still reached a consensus on the matter of not playing the Kasuga Shadow, which would upset Shoko.

In this way, we can buy ourselves a little more time.

However, the idle day or two passed in the blink of an eye, and new changes soon followed.