"Ring ring ring~"
Izu.
Shinka Nibutani, who was enjoying her summer break in an air-conditioned room, suddenly heard her phone ring.
"Haa~"
Having just woken up, she rubbed her sleepy eyes and muttered, "Who the heck is calling this early?"
To some students on break, noon basically is morning!
Plenty of people weren't even up yet.
Without even checking, she picked up the call.
"Hello, this is Shinka, haa~"
She yawned, one hand slipping under her pajama top to scratch her tummy, already wondering what to eat later.
["Mori-sama, it's Kamashiro here~"]
"Huh?"
Hearing that familiar voice, Shinka blinked a few times. Then, a narrow-eyed figure popped into her head.
She glanced at her phone screen.
[Scumbag]
Without hesitation, she hung up!
"Whew…"
Staring at the now-dark screen, Shinka let out a breath of relief. Good thing she hung up fast, or she would've been exploited again!
After what happened last time, she swore to stay far away from Kamishiro!
That man… that man was too evil!
He's the kind of terrifying person who not only makes you do grunt work, but also wants to take you to a love hotel!
Most importantly!
That damn guy hadn't contacted her for ages!
And now he suddenly calls? Obviously, he just wants to use her again.
Hmph. Scumbag!
No chance!!
(???□?)?*?
Just as Shinka was mentally praising her own cleverness, her phone screen lit up again.
[Scumbag: Mori-sama, you don't want your chuunibyou secrets exposed, right~]
"Bastard!"
Now, there was no trace of sleepiness left. Shinka wished she could summon a magic circle and curse Kamishiro to oblivion.
"Ring ring ring~"
Her phone rang again~
Staring at the name on the screen, Shinka ground her teeth in frustration—but she had no choice. She answered.
She was definitely going to give that shameless jerk a piece of her mind. Didn't he say he'd stop using this kind of threat?!
["Moshi moshi, Kamashiro here~"]
Hearing that annoyingly carefree voice again, Shinka felt a wave of frustration wash over her.
"You liar! How dare you go back on your word!"
"Huh? What do you mean by that?"
Still playing dumb, huh?!
Shinka was fuming, repeatedly pounding the bunny plushie by her bedside as if it were that scummy guy himself.
Poor bunny. Just last night it had been lovingly snuggled, and today it had to take the fall for someone else's sins~
"You said after last time you wouldn't use 'chuunibyou' as a threat anymore!"
Shinka was incredibly upset—this was the most aggrieved she'd felt since starting college!
The last time she'd been blackmailed like this was back in high school.
Ugh! So infuriating!
Why does that damn website still exist?!
If it were just her little love fortune-telling being exposed, Shinka wouldn't have cared all that much.
Girls liking romantic fortune-telling is totally normal.
It's just that her identity might be a bit of a hassle if it got out.
But "Lady Mori" doesn't just represent some trivial love fortune-telling!
If someone with bad intentions actually went and dug through the internet…
They'd find a whole archive of painfully cringy, chuunibyou-style quotes—just like what happened with Kamishiro!
The kind that makes you want to socially vanish into thin air!
(っ╥╯﹏╰╥c)
Shinka was starting to regret it. She shouldn't have impulsively brought "Lady Mori" back from the dead.
All the way in Palau, Kamishiro could clearly hear the frustration in her voice and let out a soft chuckle.
He wasn't some kind of demon—he wouldn't use the same trick to blackmail a girl twice.
As a top-tier hunter, he simply had his own clever ways of establishing communication.
To soothe her mood, his voice unconsciously turned gentle. "You've misunderstood~"
"You sent a message like that, and you're telling me I misunderstood?!"
Sensing the tenderness in his tone, Shinka pouted, feeling like she'd finally seized the upper hand.
"Of course, that was just a question, really. I just wanted to hear your thoughts on what it feels like to have your chuunibyou past exposed~"
That statement brought her up short, just as she was preparing to assert dominance.
Shinka reopened the message Kamashiro had sent earlier. Now that she looked again… okay, maybe it could be interpreted as a question?
Yeah right!
Anyone with half a brain would recognize it as a threat!
"You…"
She was so mad she didn't even know what to say anymore. She'd been toyed with again! That infuriating, squinty-eyed fox!
Nothing good ever happens when it involves this guy!
Wham, wham, wham!
Unable to calm down, she resumed beating up her bunny plushie. She made up her mind: next time she'd custom-order a plushie modeled after Kamishiro himself!
Then she could smack it around every day!
…
Hearing the thump thump noises from the other end of the phone, Kamashiro's lips curled into a smile. As expected, teasing a cute girl was the most fun thing ever.
Of course, one had to know where to draw the line—or it could backfire.
The timing felt just right. Kamashiro spoke again, "Don't be mad anymore. Actually, the reason I called was to tell you that the gift I sent should arrive in a few days. Make sure to pick it up."
"Gift?"
Still in the middle of wailing on her plushie, Shinka couldn't believe her ears. A gift?
Was this some new scheme?
But Kamashiro's next words eased her suspicions.
"Yeah, I'm in Palau right now. Saw some pretty nice wood carvings, and a few outfits that looked like they'd suit you. So I just bought them as gifts. They should arrive soon."
"…Huh?"
Shinka was at a loss for words. That was… a lot of information.
Leaving aside the whole "Why is he in Palau?" thing—
Why was he suddenly buying her all this stuff?
They had only met in person two or three times.
Could it be…
He likes her?!
Just the thought made Shinka's face flush with color.
Was this love knocking at her door?
It had to be! After all, last time he even brought her to a love hotel. If he didn't like her, why would he take her to a place like that?
W-What should she do now?
Of course she'd have to reject him! No way she'd ever date a playboy!
Even if… he was pretty handsome, and being around him didn't feel all that bad…
Still, she couldn't accept someone so flirty!
She—
Shinka Nibutani, had been a believer in pure romance ever since high school!
The question was: how should she turn him down?
Would rejecting him over the phone be too harsh?
And what if… he didn't actually mean it that way?!
Aaaaaaaaah!!!
So conflicted!
In her turmoil, Shinka unconsciously began tugging at her poor bunny plushie again. It had gone from being beaten to practically being torn apart~
Luckily, Kamashiro's voice saved it from its tragic fate.
"Shinka?"
His gentle tone helped calm her down. "Mm, I'm okay… Thanks."
She'd made up her mind!
She'd stay put for now!
If Kamashiro ever confessed, then she'd turn him down. She believed in herself—she would hold the line!
As for the gift… it sounded like he'd already sent it. She might as well accept it for now.
At worst, she could just give him something in return when he got back!
With that settled, Shinka suddenly felt lighter—more at ease.
…
Mission accomplished.
Kamishiro's lips curled into a victor's smile.
Just hearing the gentler tone in the girl's voice, he knew that his previously irate little kitten had been successfully coaxed into purring again.
As for the "gift"?
That was already picked out—in a few hours' time, that is.
Now that the kitten had shown her belly, Kamashiro was done playing nice~
"Oh right, Shinka. I've got a friend here who's really into fortune-telling. He's helping another friend with a love reading right now. Can you take a look at his method for me?"
Shinka, still in a good mood from all the pampering, didn't find the request suspicious at all.
He just wanted her opinion, and she was curious about other people's techniques.
So without hesitation, she agreed, "Sure, is your friend doing a reading right now? What's his method?"
Seeing that "Lady Mori" had taken the bait, Kamashiro silently rejoiced. Now he just needed to frame it as a duel, and she'd be compelled to do her own fortune-telling.
As for Kohei's "method"…
Kamashiro glanced toward the fortune-telling setup a short distance away—and froze.
He had assumed that, being an otaku, Kohei might at least have a decent grasp on fortune-telling.
But instead—
"Yeah, uh… he drew a three of diamonds, and based on that, he predicted that my friend would end up with a girl from the countryside who wears way too much makeup and dreams of cheesy romance plots from TV dramas…"
Shinka: ???
Σ(っ °Д °;)っ
What kind of fortune-telling is THAT supposed to be?!