manga artist Kirito

P.S.: Ah, a good friend has started a new book on Shuke called "My Night Parade of One Hundred Demons Seems to Have Some Problems". Please be sure to add it to your favorites, thank you!

224

【NO.221 A little sweet?】

"What...what's going on?"

Yang Nai and Takasaka Akane, who were lying on beach chairs sunbathing, came over first and were very puzzled by what they were saying.

“Ah, they’re Bento Friends.” Kiritani-kun said blankly, raising an eyebrow at Akane Kosaka, indicating that it was time to dig this watermelon out.

However, Akane Kosaka seemed completely oblivious, stepping onto the pile of sand where Kirito's body was buried. "Friends? You're poisoned... Hmm, as for the bento, it's those things Shizuka mentioned before—wolves?"

"You could say we're friends, though," Iris smiled slightly. "But most of the time we're enemies."

"Ah, well, actually we don't play that kind of game, so let's just have a normal conversation." Yang Nai flashed her most common fake smile, appearing very friendly. "Since you're friends with Hito-kun, then...would you like to play together?"

"Ah no, more than playing together, I'm curious about what's going on with the fighters now. Did they try to take advantage of you and then get controlled? — If you need help, I can call the police." The twin with the slightly wavy long hair, who looked like the older sister—it's common knowledge that older twins have smaller breasts—said curiously.

Sato-kun, watching the ongoing beach volleyball game, twitched slightly at the corner of his mouth. "How could we possibly play together? Are you guys even human?"

Is this really beach volleyball? — It's more like murder volleyball!

I saw that volleyball send people flying! Are you guys sure it's okay to keep playing like this?

Ah, that short-haired girl has such big breasts...

"Although I really want to say thank you for your trouble, that's not the case." Yang Nai brushed her hair, which had been ruffled by the sea breeze, and smiled faintly. "As for people, it's really just... well, people are just a little bit cheeky. There's really no need to call the police!"

"Please, Haruno, could you please roll off the beach and into the sea right now to sober up?!" Kiritani-kun said indifferently, really wanting to stand up right now and rub Haruno against the sand, but unfortunately, the sand seemed to be too hard, and he couldn't get up at all, especially since he couldn't move his hands either—ugh, so frustrating!

"...Ah, are you angry?" Haruno pouted slightly, then squatted down with a shovel, seemingly intending to dig Kiritani out of the sand.

"Wait, Haruno, stop!" Seeing Haruno's sullen expression, Kiritani-kun felt not only no joy, but even a little terrified.

Naturally, Ms. Yang had no intention of stopping and dug even harder.

"Dear Miss Haruno... uh, no, my adorable Haruno, could you please stop?"

"No, no, even though it wasn't my idea to bury Kazuhito here, I feel uneasy now as an accomplice, so I have to help you!" Yang Nai said, sounding righteous and awe-inspiring, as if it were the truth.

In reality, the pink cut is definitely black, and the yellow cut is also absolutely black.

“That’s true. As the culprit, I’m feeling uneasy too.” Akane Kosaka said with a melancholy expression. “It’s a pity there’s no second shovel…”

Stop it right now!

Seeing how hard Yang was working, Kiritani panicked. If she was sticking the shovel into the sand with all her might, she was afraid it would end up piercing his arm or something else.

Please, let me go!

Suddenly, Kiritani seemed to give up on something, letting out a soft sigh, "...Phew! Whatever, it's pointless to tell you anyway."

Ms. Yang showed no intention of stopping. "Oh my, so Kazuhito-kun has finally been able to assess the situation clearly. That's rare."

"Tsk," Kirito-kun smirked, then took a deep breath. "Ash! Hinata!—Help me!!!"

"..."

Peng!

As everyone fell silent, a volleyball flew from a distance and slammed into the side, stirring up a large cloud of dust.

For a moment, the air became even quieter.

First, no one expected Kiritani to call for help, and then no one expected the volleyball to fly over at such a speed. Not only Haruno and Akane Kosaka, but even Sakusen and the others were stunned. What the hell is going on?

"Kazuto!" A chestnut-haired girl walked briskly towards him and stood expressionlessly next to Kiritani-kun. "What's wrong?"

In addition, Suguha and Mikasa, who also had expressionless faces, arrived right after Asuna.

Oh right, and there's Shiina Mashiro, who already has almost no expression...

"elder brother……?"

Kiritani-kun's expression remained blank. "...Uh, I want to come out."

But things are different now... Asuna, Yoko, and Mikasa seem to have misunderstood something...

The setup was a bit too grand...

Sigh, although I really don't want to say this, judging from the current situation, it feels like a fight is about to break out no matter what...

As expected, some things shouldn't be said casually.

Let's try to ease the tension first.

Oh right, it seems that Asuna and the others' target isn't Haruno, but rather the group of people standing to the side, like Sakusen.

This makes things even more awkward...

…………

After Kiritani-kun's explanation, Asuna and the others quieted down and greeted Nazuna and the others in a friendly manner. Haruno and Akane, on the other hand, were a little annoyed, since the incident was caused by the two of them.

To be honest, when I saw Asuna and the other two walking over so aggressively, and with the volleyball hitting the side of the field, I was genuinely shocked.

That should be understandable...

Given Kiritani's personality—he'll talk things out if he can, but resorts to violence if he can't—it seems like Asuna and he get along very well. Thinking about it this way... it's terrifying!

As for Suguha and Mikasa, there's no need to even mention them.

Yang Nai had also paid attention to the Tiger Dojo. As for her intentions... well, you can figure it out with a little thought. She also learned about Suguha and Mikasa through this. The former would occasionally have a friendly conversation with her, while the latter... Yang Nai vaguely remembered a photo in that pile of documents, and the bright red color on the brick in the photo.

Yang Nai clutched her chest, feigning lingering fear, "Well... I was really scared by you just now."

"Well," Asuna smiled slightly, "this is the first time Kazuto has shouted at me so loudly... I thought something terrible had happened."

"Plus, Gunwater and the others were standing there too... I started thinking a bit too much for a moment."

Mikasa stretched her arms, her expression unchanged. "I thought I was going to get beaten up for being a smart aleck."

"Hey, when did I ever say I was being sarcastic?" Kirigaya glared at Mikasa, his face full of displeasure. "I was just being reasonable, which has absolutely nothing to do with what you call being sarcastic. Besides, look at my handsome and imposing face, do I look like someone who would be sarcastic? -- Yoko, you tell me!"

Suguha nodded seriously, "Yeah, my brother is the most handsome!"

This is what a brother complex is like...

The subpar sister-complex guy next to me felt severely hurt.

"Is this... the fighter's girlfriend?" Ayame pushed up her glasses. Because there were quite a few people with Kirito, it was really difficult to figure out the relationships between them. However, judging from their apparent closeness, Asuna was definitely the closest to them...

Well, although my sister seems very affectionate, she's my sister, how could that be...?

“…Mm.” Asuna nodded gently, her pretty face slightly flushed.

Kiritani rarely introduces Asuna in front of large groups of people. After all, even strangers would know she's Kiritani's girlfriend just by seeing her. Asking her directly like this... seems to be the first time I've heard this...

Therefore, it was inevitable that Asuna felt a little shy.

So cute, really.

Asuna blushing is so cute!

"Yes, it's this pure and lovely girl." Kiritani nodded slightly and pointed to Haruno and Akane Kosaka. "The one who wanted to dismember me with a shovel is the crazy woman who escaped from the mental hospital yesterday, and the older one is actually my mom. You can just call her Old Godmother."

"Uh..." E Changpu opened her mouth slightly, not knowing what to say.

"Hey, Asuna, you won't stop us now, right?" Haruno smiled, her gaze becoming even more amiable. "Even you wouldn't forgive me for saying something like that!"

"Well... how should I put it..." Asuna touched the corner of her mouth with her fair finger, her mood slightly complicated. "With people... although I don't think it's very good, I think there's a reason for it!"

Yes, after a change of topic, Asuna resolutely sided with Kirito.

With a slight twitch at the corner of her mouth, Haruno turned to look at Akane Kousaka, whose eyes were twitching violently. The two of them were feeling exactly the same way at that moment.

As they were wondering if they should take Asuna down with them if they were to fight, Kiritani looked at Asuna with deep emotion—ah, as expected of my girlfriend!

"Asuna!" Kiritani-kun gazed at Asuna with deep affection.

“…Yes, I’m here.” Asuna nodded, her pretty face flushed.

"Hug~" Kiritani-kun opened his arms with a big smile.

"Hmm~" Asuna pursed her lips tightly, but without any hesitation, she hugged him directly.

…………

"Hey, is this how you guys usually get blinded? -- I suddenly understand why you say he's a smart aleck."

It might be slander, but now we need a reason to criticize them!

"Thank you for understanding—being with them means you have to be constantly on guard against blinding flashes of light and icy displays of affection."

—Kiritani-kun, Asuna-san, if you two are so good at sunbathing, why don't you two go and be the sun?

225

[NO.222 What were the reasons for losing?]

So, I don't understand!

I don't understand at all. Why is there a couple mixed in with the group?

Everyone else could be described as a "social butterfly," so why are only those two more "social"?

Please don't do this, okay? Can you please restrain yourself a little?

Okay, the resentment in those eyes is a bit too much...

However, some things are unavoidable, such as a sudden flash of light—that's why I hate going out with people!

—Oh, wait, it seems like I can't even find anyone to go out with...

…………

Well, what's the situation now?

Well, it was probably when... Kiritani and Asuna were smiling brightly and giving the others apologetic looks.

Although that look in his eyes combined with his ever-smiling face makes him look incredibly irritating.

...Perhaps it's understandable why they became a couple.

The reason I didn't notice it before was simply because Asuna usually presents a gentle image, making it difficult to see her true nature.

They really hid it well... They're clearly a black person, but they act like a white flower—that's too much!

As a result of this incident, Kiritani-kun and Asuna-san were temporarily separated until evening.

Yes, that's right. These people left two guys who might be showing off their affection at any moment to go have some fun.

Come to think of it, there doesn't seem to be such an obvious scene before. The most glaring one before was probably last night's King's Game.

Furthermore, at this moment, Akane and Kosaka's feelings were extremely complicated.

As for Suguha and Mikasa, they seemed to have gotten used to it and didn't seem to care at all.

Since it was evening, it was time for dinner. For various reasons, Nasu-sen and her group had separated from Shizuka and the others, but after Shizuka found Kiritani and Asuna, they met again on the beach...

Strictly speaking, this can't be considered fate; it's simply because everyone shared the same goal...

Yang Nai didn't quite understand. "Seriously, do we really have to wait for that half-price bento?"

Of course, she knew that Gunslinger and his group often fought tooth and nail over a half-price bento box—after all, Haruno appeared right after Kirito finished his fight with the "pervert" and got the bento box.

Incidentally, Haruno only returned to the car to wait for Kirigaya after watching him finish fighting with the "pervert"—Haruno thought Kirigaya was really cool back then!

As expected of... Kazuto!

Kiritani-kun and Hiratsuka Shizuka, who were quite clear about the meaning of the half-price bento, felt that since they had the opportunity, it would be a waste not to try it.

There's not much time to go back there on weekdays, especially now that summer vacation is coming up. After that, everyone will either go home or go to work... It'll be hard to find a chance!

—Ah, I suddenly realize that being a teacher is a great job! When students are on vacation, teachers are on vacation too. By the way, do you get paid during vacations? —If so, I'd like to try it out. Hmm, I'd like to be a kindergarten teacher.

"I think, the idea that we're short of money here is practically nonexistent. Even if you were to fight someone, you're not exactly a nobody now, so why would you risk a fight over a half-price bento box..."

That's the truth. Apart from Suguha, Mikasa, Shiina Mashiro, Kato Megumi, and Yukino Yukinoshita, everyone else present is capable of earning their own money, and three of them are damn rich girls...

"You don't understand!" Kiritani shook his head slightly. "This is faith!"

"Around this time last year, you also told me that erotic comics are a religion!"

"Eek!" xN

"Ugh... Ugh, I never said anything like that!" Kirito gave Hino a weak glare, then, amidst the others' 'what a pervert' stares, continued, "The Wolf's faith is bento!"