Chapter 41: Flushed Kurona
"I told you last time, didn't I? It's true."
Kanzaki Ryoma's voice was calm but firm.
"But I'll admit—I'm always on guard around you. That doesn't change the fact that I like you."
Rize Kamishiro smirked.
"If you were truly head over heels for me, you'd do anything I asked."
Her teasing gaze lingered on him.
"Like letting me have a bite."
Ryoma sighed.
"Look, I like you, but I'm not a complete idiot. I'm not a masochist either. Why would I willingly let you take a chunk out of me?"
"Fair enough."
Rize shrugged, as if it were no big deal.
"But if you like me, shouldn't I respond properly?"
Ryoma's expression didn't change.
"That's entirely up to you."
He didn't expect anything from her—whether she reciprocated or not didn't concern him.
He was just speaking the truth.
"Your attitude makes it really hard to believe you actually like me."
Rize narrowed her eyes slightly.
"But I do like you. That's a fact."
Ryoma reaffirmed his words without hesitation.
Rize studied him for a moment, then let out a chuckle.
"Alright, I get it."
Then her expression shifted—sharp, hungry, amused.
"But honestly? Right now, I'd still rather think of you as food."
She grinned playfully.
"So, when I actually start having feelings for you, or if you ever fall completely for me—then I'll give you a proper answer."
Ryoma nodded.
"Fair enough."
With that, he smoothly changed the topic.
"Have you ever considered going to school?"
Rize scoffed.
"Not interested. Sounds boring."
"...Right. Should've figured."
---
After spending a few more hours wandering the university, Ryoma and Rize finally parted ways.
Both heading back to their own homes.
After lunch, Ryoma took a short nap, then got ready for his internship mission.
Today's assignment would take place in the 24th Ward again, and he had arranged to meet his group at the District 23 subway station.
When the train arrived at a stop midway, two familiar figures stepped inside.
Kurona and Nashiro Yasuhisa.
Not a coincidence—they all took the same route at the same time.
Ryoma raised a hand in greeting.
"Kurona, Nashiro Yasuhisa-san."
Kurona didn't respond.
Instead, she quietly took the seat right next to him.
Nashiro sat beside her and gave a casual nod.
"Why did you call kurona by her first name, but still call me by my full name?"
Nashiro tilted her head.
Ryoma smirked.
"Because she allowed me to call her that."
He glanced at Kurona.
"I can't just start calling you the same thing out of the blue."
Kurona's shoulders tensed.
"Wait—allowed you? I didn't tell you to do it! I just didn't stop you!"
She hurriedly corrected him, her voice laced with embarrassment.
Ryoma simply chuckled.
"Right, right. Whatever you say."
Kurona looked away, flustered.
Nashiro, on the other hand, nodded decisively.
"Then I want you to call me by my first name too."
Kurona turned to her twin, stunned.
"Nashiro, you—"
Ryoma raised an eyebrow at Nashiro's request but agreed without hesitation.
"Alright, Nashiro it is."
The moment the words left his mouth, Nashiro's face turned slightly pink.
Even though she had prepared herself, hearing him actually say it still made her a little flustered.
She coughed into her hand, then tried to steer the conversation elsewhere.
"Ahem… By the way, how old are you? And what's your family like?"
Kurona's brows furrowed slightly.
Why was Nashiro asking these kinds of questions?
"That's pretty random…"
Ryoma muttered, though he answered anyway.
"I'm eighteen. And I live alone."
Nashiro's expression softened.
"Oh… Sorry, I didn't mean to bring up anything painful."
Ryoma smiled faintly.
"It's fine."
It wasn't like his parents had actually died.
The system had just set him up with this background—gave him a house, a car, money.
Honestly, it was convenient.
So, there was no painful past to mourn.
Nashiro let out a small sigh of relief.
"Alright, then… I want to ask you something else."
Ryoma raised an eyebrow.
"Go ahead."
She turned her gaze to Kurona.
"What do you think of kurona?"
Kurona immediately froze.
Her hands clenched into fists on her lap.
Ryoma thought for a moment.
"You mean… like a character evaluation?"
Nashiro nodded.
"You could put it that way."
Ryoma didn't hesitate.
"She's cute."
The answer came so quickly that Nashiro was caught off guard.
Kurona's face turned bright red.
She quickly turned away, hiding her expression.
"Uh… Yeah, kurona is cute for sure...I guess…"
Nashiro muttered.
Then, a strange thought occurred to her.
She and Kurona were identical twins.
So if kurona was cute…
Did that mean she was cute too?
She shook the thought from her head and cleared her throat.
"But, uh… aside from that, do you have anything else to say?"
Ryoma shrugged.
"Not really."
He glanced at Kurona and grinned.
"She's too cute for me to think of any other adjectives."
Kurona's shoulders trembled.
This guy—
Was he doing this on purpose?!
She knew Ryoma wasn't the type to joke around casually.
Which meant—he was being serious.
Her face was burning.
"Alright, alright! I get it!"
Kurona buried her face in her hands.
Meanwhile, Nashiro stared at Ryoma.
Why did he sound so honest?
And why was it making her feel weird, too?
For the first time, she couldn't meet his eyes.
She quickly looked away.
"...Whatever. I just wanted to know what you thought."
Her voice was quieter than before.
Kurona stayed silent, still trying to recover.
And as the train continued toward District 23, Ryoma simply leaned back and smirked to himself.