In crossover anime, who isn't a childhood friend?

"Shihua seems to have caught a cold and isn't feeling well, so please don't disturb her rest."

"My sister has a cold. I knew it. She didn't come to wake me up today."

"What would you like for breakfast? I'll make it today."

"I'll just have something simple, I'm not picky about food, but since my sister isn't feeling well, it's best to make her a nutritious breakfast."

"I know that without you telling me. Go wash up first."

"Ah."

Yuan Qianye went to the kitchen to prepare breakfast.

After washing up, Rikka was still a little worried and couldn't put her mind at ease, so she went to her sister's room.

Upon opening the door, a slightly somber atmosphere was palpable.

She couldn't quite describe the smell; it wasn't unpleasant, but she instinctively felt that the room should be ventilated by opening the windows.

She cautiously approached the bedside, only to be startled by Toka's sudden opening of her eyes.

"Oh, sister, you're awake."

Shihua stared intently at her younger sister, first tightening the blanket around her neck, and then spoke.

"Is there a problem?"

“It’s nothing. Qianye said you had a cold and weren’t feeling well, so I was wondering if there was anything you particularly wanted to eat. Anyway, I’m at home with nothing to do, so I can just go out and buy it for you.”

Shihua's expression softened upon hearing this; it seemed her usual doting on this guy hadn't been in vain.

"I don't need anything. I'll lie down for a bit, and I should be fine by tomorrow... no, this afternoon."

"That's good, then I won't disturb your rest."

"Ah."

Rikka was about to leave, but after taking two steps, she suddenly turned back.

"By the way, sister, it sounds a bit strange, but you always seem to look better when you're sick than usual. Your cheeks are rosy and you have a healthy glow, and you have a special charm, how should I put it..."

"Okay! Stop thinking about it, I'm going to take a nap."

"Oh, right. Well then, you go to sleep, I won't bother you anymore. I'll bring you breakfast later."

Rikka left without thinking much about it.

Shika stared silently at the ceiling, then thought back to her sweaty entanglement with Qianye last night, and how she had been served by him almost the entire time.

Her face became even rosier, her whole body curled up, her two small feet together, her delicate toes lightly touching each other, and the blanket was pulled up to cover her entire face.

It didn't hurt as much as I expected, it really... feels so good...

Besides, there's really no going back between me and Qianye now...

…………

Chapter 276: Early Spring Affairs

Yuan Qianye worked quickly, bringing breakfast out of the kitchen in just over ten minutes.

The main thing is that the breakfasts he makes are indeed not complicated.

Toasted bread filled with egg mixture with a little milk was pan-fried, romaine lettuce, endive, and purple cabbage from the fridge were washed, shrunk, and tossed into a salad. Paired with freshly squeezed orange juice, it was all done.

A nutritious breakfast is enough. Although our family's economic situation has improved a lot compared to before, it's not good to eat too much meat and fish every day.

"Rikka, come and eat."

He called out, his voice carrying the crispness of early morning.

"Here you are."

With a lighthearted reply, Rikka floated over from the living room like a butterfly.

Today she wore a loose T-shirt with a huge cartoon unicorn print, paired with denim shorts, and her signature short black hair looked a bit fluffy.

Gen Chiya placed Toka's breakfast on a tray, preparing to bring it into the house for her.

Rikka, who was standing to the side, picked up a fork, but instead of immediately enjoying the tempting breakfast in front of her, she rested her chin on her hands and looked at her sworn brother with great concern.

"What's wrong? Is it not to your liking?" Yuan Qianye noticed her gaze and stopped what he was doing.

He knew that Rikka was probably pondering some strange question in her little head again.

“How could that be?” Rikka immediately shook her head, her upright ahoge swaying slightly. “Unless I encounter something I don’t like to eat, I’m generally not picky about food.”

She solemnly repeated the words that Gen Chiya had taught her before, her tone as serious as if she were making an oath.

Yuan Qianye was amused by her appearance, truly finding her words to be as profound as listening to a lecture.

He shook his head helplessly and pointed to the few cherry tomatoes in her salad bowl that had been deliberately pushed to the side: "Don't give me that. You'd better eat all the cherry tomatoes in your salad. If you dare to pick them out, I'll pluck your ahoge right now."

"Hmm..." Rikka subconsciously covered the iconic tuft of hair on her head, pouting slightly: "How could you bear to do something so cute?"

Rikka instinctively covered her head, but seeing Minamoto Chiyo's smile, she wasn't so scared anymore.

"Qianye." She leaned forward, getting a little closer, and lowered her voice mysteriously, "Why do you seem so happy today?"

"Do I have one?" Yuan Qianye raised an eyebrow and continued tidying the tray, his movements unhurried.

Yes, absolutely!

Rikka nodded vigorously.

"You were even humming a song when you came out of the kitchen, did something good happen?"

Her eyes sparkled, filled with the excitement of a detective discovering a clue!

Of course, there are good things too. For example, last night I was able to connect with someone completely and share a quiet and intimate nighttime conversation.

But how could I possibly tell you something like this outright?

Yuan Qianye didn't intend to reply and was about to brush it off with "Let's eat quickly." But Rikka suddenly let out a dramatic "Hey," and abruptly stretched out her right hand to cover half of her face, revealing only one eye, staring intently at him through her fingers.

She tried her best to imitate the signature move of one of her favorite anime voice actors, and then started with a "kukuku" laugh that sounded quite out of place and a little embarrassing in real life.

"My contractor, under the gaze of the Evil King's True Eye, all hidden truths will be exposed!"

She tried to make her voice sound deep and mysterious.

"Don't rush to tell me, let me guess first, hmm... let me see..."

She tilted her head dramatically, accompanied by a series of up-and-down gestures to her upper right, as if she were truly performing some kind of mind-reading technique.

"Judging from the fluctuations in your soul and the subtle details of your micro-expressions... I think I know the source of your inner joy!"

"..."

Yuan Qianye's face was full of helplessness.

Aren't you ashamed of being so immature?

"Hey! Don't rush to answer me, let me guess. Is it because you're secretly excited about going to the same school as Yukino again after three years, and about forming a club with us? Thinking about all this, aren't you secretly excited? That's definitely it, right? Kukuku..."

As Chiyo watched Rikka immerse herself in her self-concept and diligently analyze the situation, the tension she felt at having her thoughts exposed instantly vanished.

Rikka is still the same Rikka; her thought process is always so unique and chuunibyou (a Japanese term for someone with delusions of grandeur).

Although her physical development has been quite remarkable since she first became a member of the family, it is still remarkable now.

The rather thin little girl from back then has now gradually developed, with the graceful curves of a young woman, a slender waist, and long legs, coupled with her charming and delicate looks that she inherited from Shihua.

With fair skin, a pert nose, and petal-like lips, she has become a stunningly beautiful young woman who turns heads on the street.

But how should I put it... Rikka's perceptual acuity in terms of thought and consciousness doesn't seem to have improved much in a substantial way.

In her world, anime, games, snacks, and her jet-black wings occupy most of the space. She remains almost oblivious to the complexities of real-life interpersonal relationships and certain subtle emotional changes.

To use an imperfect analogy, it's like upgrading a computer host, replacing it with a cooler and more exquisite shell and RGB lighting effects, making it look incredibly cool, but the graphics card and CPU that handle the logic of reality are still at the level of a dreamy and shy elementary school student.

However, Gen Chiya didn't care about this at all; on the contrary, she found this innocence to be extremely precious.

Anyway, he had already made up his mind that he didn't plan to let this little mascot go out to work in the future, and he didn't want her to experience the harsh jungle law of society too early.

The main concern is that, given her personality, she might be sold out by those with ulterior motives and then happily help them count the money.

After Liuhua graduates from university, if she is willing, let her try to help manage the family business and handle some simple tasks.

If she doesn't have that idea, then let her stay at home peacefully, watch new anime, play console games, and entertain herself as an ACG blogger. Anyway, the family can afford to support her.

When she has free time, she goes out to have meals, travel, and visit exhibitions with her friends Eriri and the others.

Yuan Qianye never expected her to earn money to support the family. His biggest wish was for her to live a carefree and happy life like she does now.

This was the life path he had planned for Rikka long ago.

The agreement we made to let her stay home and be a couch potato was not just a joke.

"You guessed right, as expected of you."

Gen Chiya gave a thumbs-up in response.

"What do you think~" Rikka said smugly, "Let me take my sister's breakfast in."

"No, you eat yours. I'll ask her what she wants for lunch. I need to go downstairs to the supermarket later."

"Then I'll go help out later. The Blackwing has almost finished eating its hickory nuts. It seems to have increased its appetite lately, so we need to stock up on more."

Yuan Qianye gave an OK sign.

I left the living room and went to Toka's room.

The door was ajar, not closed properly.

Rikka is a bit airheaded and carefree, not thinking things through, but she's not really stupid. It would be a little awkward to close the door so tightly when delivering food in broad daylight.

While one or two incidents may seem insignificant, if they accumulate, she will definitely notice something is wrong. Considering that there is still a long future ahead, it is best to be more cautious.

Seeing that Chiya was bringing breakfast over, Toka slowly sat up.

"How are you feeling now?"

Yuan Qianye placed breakfast on the bedside table and then sat down on the edge of the bed.

Shihua shook her head, glancing intently at the door.

Where's Rikka?