Tokyo: After years of stagnation, the heiress of the yakuza arrives.

When Shido Kuroba finished paying and came out of the convenience store, he was still a little dazed.

A plastic bag hung on his wrist, containing the items he had just spent a long time studying the shelves, ultimately choosing them based on the simplistic, impoverished logic that "this packaging looks more expensive, so it can't be wrong."

Of course, whether it's expensive or not isn't really important.

The important thing is that he had just squatted in front of the women's products shelf for a full three minutes, and had been subjected to stares from two couples, an older woman with a child, and a convenience store clerk, all of whom seemed to think, "Is this guy a pervert?"

Kuroba Shido limped towards the old apartment building, muttering to himself, "This is life. Buying rice balls for a raffle and getting tea as a prize, using the tea to treat my senior, my senior going to the restroom, the restroom triggering a hidden quest, the hidden quest making me buy this... Game designer, isn't this quest chain a bit too long?"

He suddenly stopped halfway through his journey.

Wait a moment.

Did he just leave his senior alone at home?

Shido Kuroba blinked.

The next second, cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

Who is the senior student?

It was incredibly sinister. A mere mortal like him was locked in a terrifying duel with the overpowered power of a minister. This little Karami could only cower and tremble in fear, clinging to life in the cracks of the toilet…

Flying amidst flying, weak little chef among weak little chefs...

He was easily manipulated by his senior...

Now, he keeps this terrifying senior student alone in his old residence.

What's the difference between that and leaving Yamamoto Akira alone in a love fortune-telling shop?

Thinking back to all the things he had done with his senior, her network of relationships, her status updates, and the terrifying information processing ability behind her gentle smile, Shido Kuroba instantly broke out in a cold sweat.

Could it be...?

Even this was part of the senior's design, right?

The Black Feather Warrior said, "..."

In Kuroba Shido's imagination, his senior had already started tinkering around at home, deducing his recent living situation from the direction the cups were placed, the marks on the bedside, the emptiness of the cabinets, the thickness of the dust, and the state of the dead body on the door panels...

The Black Feather Warrior said, "..."

Holy crap!!!

That's too sinister!

Kuroba Shido suddenly realized that there was no such thing as a coincidence. It might be a coincidence for others, but when it came to Onodera Zannen, it could not be explained by mere coincidence!

"Da da da..."

Move aside, move aside right now! My female mouse is about to give birth!!!

On the streets of the rat district, Kuroba Shido, leaning on his cane, began to run wildly. An old man with a cane by the roadside saw this and was stunned for a moment, then looked at his own cane and dropped it...

Look, now that's someone who deserves to use a cane!

Kuroba Shido scrambled into the stairwell, his cane pounding on the stairs like a drumbeat of escape. One motion-sensor lights in the old stairwell turned on one after another, only to be left behind by him.

When he rushed back to the door, he first glanced at the broken door that had been barely pieced together.

The door is still there.

Although it's crooked like someone who's drunk, at least it hasn't fallen over.

The room was also very quiet.

It seems that Onodera Zannen hasn't appeared yet.

Shido Kuroba breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately.

He didn't see his senior standing in the middle of the room, holding the discount coupon that had fallen to his hands at some point, smiling as she asked, "Where have you been staying lately, Shido-kun?"

He raised his hand to wipe his sweat and knocked on the bathroom door.

"Senior, I've bought the things."

Onodera's soft voice echoed from behind the door.

"Thank you, Shido-kun. Could you leave it at the door?"

Kuroba Shido immediately placed the plastic bag by the door, then took three steps back, his eyes serious as if he were preparing for a moral exam—an open-book one at that, the kind where even if he cheated, the teacher would turn a blind eye…

Okay, just kidding, even a blank paper gets full marks.

"It's all set up," Kuroba Shido said.

The door opened a crack.

A fair hand reached out and took the plastic bag.

The door closed again.

Kuroba Shido stood there for a moment, then seemed to remember something and began to check the house...

After a while, Onodera Zanne came out of the toilet.

Her expression had returned to normal, her long hair fell to her shoulders, her uniform skirt was neatly trimmed, and she wore her usual gentle smile, as if the incident that had just caused Shido Kuroba to die at the convenience store had never happened.

"Thank you for your help, Shido-kun."

Hearing the commotion, Kuroba Shido stopped in time, looking as if to say, "I'm so naive, I don't know anything."

"No trouble at all, no trouble at all. Helping others is one of the few useless but noble spiritual assets that poor people possess..."

It would be even better if you could leave sooner, senior; I would be even more grateful to you.

Onodera Zanne chuckled softly.

Then she sat back down on the small cushion.

Pick up the teacup.

Continue drinking tea.

The Black Feather Warrior said, "..."

No.

Senior, why are you still able to sit down?

Shouldn't this plot point have already ended?

The normal procedure is to buy the items, thank the customer, and prepare to leave as it gets late. That should be reasonable, right?

How come you can still sit back and drink tea?

Kuroba Shido felt a chill run down his spine, but dared not urge him.

He could only sit back down at the small table, pick up his cup of tea which had cooled considerably, and sip it slowly.

The room fell silent again.

The tea tasted very weak.

The dust smell was more pronounced in the old house...

Onodera Zanne occasionally asked if he used to eat here alone, and Kuroba Shido just laughed it off, saying it depended on the discount on the rice balls and his mood that day.

She then asked if it would be unsafe if the door was broken. Kuroba Shido said that this place was the safest because if a thief came in and found that he was even poorer than himself, he would most likely leave in shame.

As Onodera Zanne listened, he nodded occasionally and smiled sometimes. Every sentence sounded like casual conversation, yet it was as if he was gradually weaving Kuroba Shido's past into his own network of relationships.

Kuroba Shido became increasingly anxious as they talked.

But he couldn't stop.

Because whenever she stops, Onodera Zanne's gaze will fall on a certain detail in the room.

cup.

cabinet.

bedside.

door.

refrigerator.

With each glance, Kuroba Shido felt as if one of his secrets was being quietly dissected by her, and he mentally told himself... anxiety!

When anxious, people tend to repeat the same action, such as... drinking tea.

Finally, Shido Kuroba finished his tea.

Only a few pale tea leaves remained at the bottom of the cup.

Just as he was about to think about how to naturally see the guest off, Onodera Zannen suddenly put down his teacup.

"It's getting late."

Kuroba Shido's eyes lit up.

coming!

finally come!

This time, fate finally stopped tormenting him!

Onodera Zanne stood up and gently straightened her skirt.

"I should go back now."

Kuroba Shido almost felt like fireworks were going off in his mind.

gone.

The senior student is finally leaving.

He immediately stood up, trying his best to maintain a polite smile, not wanting to laugh too happily and let the senior student see his true feelings of "finally seeing the Buddha off".

"Then I'll see the senior off."

When he said those words, Shido Kuroba was already prepared to be rejected.

Logically, Onodera Zanne would have glanced at his legs and gently said, "No need, Shido-kun, your legs aren't feeling well, please rest."

He then sits down, waves, closes the door, and the mission is complete.

perfect.

As a result, Onodera Zanne looked at him and nodded slightly.

"Then I'll have to trouble you, Shido-kun."

The Black Feather Warrior said, "???"

No.

Why did you agree?

That's not how the script was written, is it?

Senior, shouldn't you have some compassion for disabled and impoverished teenagers?

Onodera Zannen had already headed towards the door, and Kuroba Shido could only follow, leaning on his cane.

The two went downstairs.

The lights in the hallway were still flickering. Onodera Zanne walked a little ahead, with Kuroba Shido following beside her, his feelings very complicated.

He felt that he was finally going to send the person away.

On the one hand, I felt that something was wrong.

But he couldn't quite put his finger on what was wrong.

The two continued walking until they left the rat-infested area and reached a relatively well-lit street corner.

Further ahead is the road leading to the station and upscale residential area. Onodera Zannen should take this route home, and Kuroba Shido can finally find a chance to turn back and call Amamiya Kaoru to have the old cowboy come and pick him up.

Kuroba Shido breathed a sigh of relief and waved his hand.

"Senior, I'll leave you here. Take care on your journey."

Onodera Zannen stopped in his tracks.

The sun had completely set, the streetlights came on, and the warm white light fell on her face, making her expression appear even more serene than usual.

She looked at Kuroba Shido and suddenly spoke.

"Shidou-san."

Kuroba Shido's heart skipped a beat.

"Um?"

Onodera asked softly.

"You don't actually live there anymore, right?"

The Black Feather Warrior said, "???"