This is not the date I wanted.

Kotori couldn't help but let out a long sigh. She knew that no matter how she looked at it, she was doomed to be sleepless tonight.

02 Neither evil nor good

==============================

"call……"

Standing at the door of her apartment, Mengyue did not rush into the house, but stayed in front of the door, thinking about something.

After saying goodbye to Kotori, Mengyue left the aerial ship and returned to the elf apartment on the ground.

Of course, this does not mean that her mission is complete and she can go back to her room and sleep until dawn. On the contrary, as the only blind spot that cannot be observed in the "Divine Eclipse Volume", she must make the information she has as secretive as possible but clear for everyone to understand.

(How can I explain this clearly?)

Mengyue couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

Is Reine the phantom that turned everyone into spirits? Is she also the original spirit? Is Shidou the reincarnation of Reine's lover from thirty years ago? No, reincarnation? The soul container? And Shidou must date Reine tomorrow to capture her?

It was not difficult to tell everyone the news, but how to make everyone accept the information calmly was another matter. Although a code had been set, even Kotori was a little shaken when she learned the whole story. Meng Yue could not guarantee that others would not reveal their true colors when they heard the same words.

(Origami should be no problem. Nia is also okay, right? But the others...)

Considering everyone's acting skills, Mengyue couldn't help but have a headache about how to think about her own words.

Mio's information was too crucial. If possible, she wanted to avoid the risk of Westcott knowing it.

To be honest, keeping it a secret from everyone for the time being is not a bad option. But Meng Yue doesn't intend to do so unless there is no other way.

(After all, we have already made an appointment. If I continue to hide it, it would be considered a lie.)

Meng Yue couldn't help but smile bitterly. She was familiar with the story of The Boy Who Cried Wolf since she was a child, and the next action would indeed require their help and cooperation.

Furthermore, although concealing something is not the same as lying, it can sometimes lead to worse consequences than lying. They are already very passive in terms of intelligence, and the asymmetry of intelligence can easily lead to more trouble.

(Otherwise, when the fight with Dem really breaks out, what if they ask where Shidou is? And Westcott blurts out that he is dating Reine now...)

The scene was so funny that Meng Yue felt at a loss whether to laugh or cry just by imagining it.

(Forget it, there’s no point standing at the door, let’s go inside and think about it first.)

Thinking of this, Mengyue shrugged, pushed open the door, took off her shoes and walked into the apartment.

(Is everyone asleep by now... huh?)

Meng Yue glanced around the hall on the first floor and suddenly discovered that Nanashi and Yoshino were hiding outside the door of the big kitchen, doing something sneaky.

At the same time, two other familiar voices were faintly heard in the kitchen.

——Hmm. This is not an easy task. Is this ok?

——Hmm! You did a great job, Rokuko! The shape is pretty good!

——Shixiang, the size you made is very good.

— Hmm? Is that so? This is the size of my palm, isn’t it?

——If Liu Er remembers correctly, when my sister demonstrated, it was only one palm wide. But yours is so big that it can cover two palms.

(Ah~ I see.)

Witnessing this scene, Mengyue seemed to understand something and couldn't help but smile with satisfaction on her face.

"Yo~ What are you three peeking at?"

Meng Yue patted Qi Zui's shoulder and spoke softly.

"Ghost ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Qishi suddenly retreated back to the wall, letting out a high-decibel scream that disturbed everyone.

"Hey~ Isn't this Meng Yue-chan? You're back after finishing your work."

"Meng Yue-san... welcome back."

"Well, I'm back."

Rubbing the little heads of Shiono and Shionai, Mengyue smiled with satisfaction.

"Menmeng Mengmeng--Meng, Mengyue...you...you have that bad habit of walking without making any sound...ha...ha...can you...gulu...change it?"

Nanashi was so frightened that his heart and lungs were beating wildly, and he spoke incoherently.

"Haha. Sorry, sorry~ I'll pay attention."

"Hmm. Why is there so much noise outside?"

"Hmm?! Nanashi, what's wrong with you? You suddenly screamed."

As if attracted by the noise outside, the kitchen door opened, and Tohka and Rokuko asked with a puzzled look on their faces.

Meng Yue secretly glanced at the kitchen. As expected, there was a large pot of rice and various fillings, and two newly formed white rice balls of different sizes were placed on the table.

(Well, a popular misunderstanding.)

Meng Yue sighed as expected. Although he also wondered if the two of them were instilled with strange common sense like "touching each other's buttocks to show friendship" by Mei Jiu, if that was the case, the content of their conversation should be the opposite.

"What are you guys...doing?"

Looking at the two people wearing aprons, Nanashi asked in a daze.

"Yeah, making rice balls." Tohka tilted her head and answered as a matter of course, "Everyone is busy with various tasks, and I want to help out a little. I'll ask Rokuko to help prepare comfort food for everyone."

"Hum. Tohka's idea is very good, and Liu'er readily agreed."

"........."

The Seven Sins fell into paleness in silence.

"So, you decided to make rice balls?"

Meng Yue asked curiously.

"Hmm. But I'm not as good at cooking as you, Mengyue. After practicing for a long time, I can only make some simple rice balls."

Tohka said with some shame. In response, Mengyue smiled and shook her head.

"That's not true. Everyone is a beginner at cooking. The fact that you have this idea and can put it into action is already remarkable."

I really wish some people could be like you.

Seeing the well-made rice balls on the table, and thinking of the elves who were so idle at Gokawa's house yesterday, Meng Yue couldn't help but add in her heart.

"Hmm? Pickled plums and pickled wild vegetables? Tohka, Rokuko, don't you hate eating these?"

After taking a quick look at the types of fillings on the table, Meng Yue looked at the two of them with some surprise.

"Hmm... I really don't like this sour taste. But, that's why I have to overcome it. If I can't even beat Umeboshi, how can I beat Dem?!"

"Hmm. Tohka is right. Liu'er is determined to put an end to this spicy battle. After experiencing the torture from my sister, these ordinary things are nothing in Liu'er's eyes."

(Rokuko, did you just say something very rude...)

Looking at the two people who were full of fighting spirit, Meng Yue couldn't help but feel ashamed. She always felt that they were using their energy in the wrong place.

"By the way, if you have time now, how about you guys come and do it together? This is really fun, right?"

Tohka invited.

"Hmm? I don't mind."

Meng Yue nodded. As she was considering how to convey the information, Tohka's invitation was something she had been looking forward to. However...

"Well... forget it... Rice balls are made by kneading rice into balls with your hands, right? Humph... For someone like me whose heart is completely rotten, my hands must also be filthy. I'm sure that even if I give my rice balls to beggars, they would rather starve to death in despair than eat one more bite... Mixing such rice balls into everyone's food is already considered poisoning, and it's against the law."

Perhaps because of the misunderstanding just now, Nanashi fell into self-loathing mode faster than ever before.

However, before Meng Yue could say anything to comfort her, Shiono had already taken action first. She took advantage of Nanashi's depression and carelessness to grab her hand and block her escape route. Then -

"Hmm."

Without saying a word, he sucked Nanashi's finger.

“Ah~ Shi-Shiono?!”

Caught off guard, Nanashi's eyes were dazed. Yoshino seemed to want to say something, but because she was holding Nanashi's finger, she could only make an indistinct humming sound.

…The scene suddenly became somewhat erotic.

"Ah, because Yoshino-chan is busy now. I, Yoshino, will pass on the message! Nanashi-chan's hands are not poisonous! They are very clean and beautiful! Yoshino-chan likes it very much!"

“Uh… um…”

(…This girl Yoshino. She will definitely be a beauty who brings disaster when she grows up. Speaking of which, where did she learn this trick?)

Meng Yue couldn't help but sigh in her heart. Maybe in the future, I should carefully select the TV series for her to watch.

Then, Tohka and Rokuko, who lacked common sense, seemed to treat it as a daily interaction to exchange feelings, and enthusiastically followed Yoshino's example and sucked Nanashi's other fingers.

“Eh? Ehhhhhhh!?”

Nanashi, whose face was as red as a tomato, seemed to have crashed.

(If it was Miku, she would have probably been so happy that she would have ascended to heaven on the spot. But Nanashi's reaction was surprisingly effective, right?)

Looking at the scene in front of her, which seemed like some kind of religious ceremony, Meng Yue pondered for a moment and asked.

"...Do you need me to join?"

“Stop them, quick!”

……

In this way, everyone began to make rice balls as gifts of comfort.

However, perhaps because she was moved by Tohka's determination to challenge the food she hated, Yoshino also decided to imitate and add the celery she hated as the filling to the rice balls, and Nanashi was proposed to add tuna eyes rich in DHA to the rice balls because she expressed her dislike of sight. The topic gradually developed in the direction of dark cuisine.

"Is there anything that my sister is not good at? Liu'er is very curious."

“The food I hate…”

Meng Yue thought for a moment and replied.

"Canned herrings?"

"That's something that basically everyone hates, right? Turning canned herring into rice balls is the real poison, right?"

Qiqi couldn't help but complain.

"Well, then, there shouldn't be anything I hate or fear among the things I've eaten. If I must say... it's something unknown, right?"

"Unknown...thing?"

Shion tilted her head in confusion.

"Well, isn't it often said that unknown things are the scariest? So I think I might be afraid of things I've never eaten... like foie gras, caviar, truffles, etc."

"I see... Hmm? Why do I feel like I've heard these names somewhere before?"

Tohka first realized something, then tilted her head in confusion.

Nanashi complained with a look of shame on his face.

"The world's three great delicacies... Meng Yue is not saying 'I hate tea'." (Note: A Japanese folk story in which a man says he is particularly afraid of tea, and then the villagers keep sending tea to his house.)

"How could that be? It's true that I haven't tried it, and it's also true that I'm afraid of the unknown. But after actually trying it, maybe the fear will turn into love."

Meng Yue answered confidently.

"You're changing the subject a lot... Well, it's not like I can't understand it. It's true that when you don't understand something, you feel uneasy."

Qizai complained speechlessly, but still agreed with Mengyue's point of view.

"Like Phantom?"

"Ok?"

Why did you suddenly mention the phantom? Before Qi Zui could ask, Meng Yue silently put her finger to her lips, signaling "don't answer".

"Don't mention 'phantom', just treat it as if I told you the name of the dish and communicate with you. I want to know what you think of her?"

After a long pause, Qi Zui finally realized that Meng Yue was planning to use this topic as a cover to confirm and exchange information with them.

"As for me... I can't say I hate it, but I still feel a little repulsive. After all, I've only heard of it but never actually experienced it, so I don't dare to try it."

(I don’t hate him, but I don’t know his details, so I’m afraid…)