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

After a long pause, Rikka stopped speaking, while Gen Chiyo slightly opened her eyes.

"So, you mean you successfully planted a spy next to Saeko, Yukino, and Eriri, and that spy is the Black Wing. Once it flies back, we'll know what they talked about?"

"Yes, yes, yes, you've been very busy with work lately, and my sister often doesn't get home until late at night because of her part-time job. I've been bored at home, so I've been playing with it and training it a lot of useful skills. Don't underestimate it, it's very smart! Now is the time for it to show its value!"

As soon as Rikka finished speaking, the jet-black wings fluttered down from the sky and landed precisely on her head.

"Ah! Bro, it's back! It must have brought back some really important information!"

"That's something to look forward to." Yuan Qianye didn't have high hopes, but he still propped himself up and sat up.

His current thought is simply to play with his adorable little sister and make her happy.

Rikka removed the black wings from her head, no longer wanting to correct its habit of perching on her head and looking down at her, which diminished her imposing presence. She eagerly asked, "What are Saeko, Eriri, and Yukino talking about?"

Without hesitation, the black wings flapped and landed on Yuan Qianye's shoulder.

"Oh! The answer is obvious, they're talking about you, bro!" Rikka seemed even more excited!

Yuan Qianye was also somewhat surprised. Could it be that his clever crow was really going to evolve in the direction of a Pokémon?

However, the moment of glory lasts only a fleeting instant.

"What exactly did they talk about?" Rikka continued to ask.

The black-winged creature jumped back onto the mat, opened its mouth and cawed a few times, then began to pace back and forth, flapping its wings and even hopping around a few times.

Judging from the actions alone, it's impossible to understand what it's trying to express.

But if you don't say it, it'll just make you a laughing stock.

"..." Rikka's excited smile froze instantly. She finally realized the key issue.

Yuan Qianye couldn't help but chuckle.

He's a professional... unless he can't help it...

“Brother…” Rikka said with a mournful face.

"Ok?"

"Tell me... is it faster for me to teach Blackwing to speak, or for me to learn the language of crows?"

Yuan Qianye offered a third solution: "I think the fastest way is to attach a miniature camera and a recorder to its leg."

Rikka was suddenly reminded: "Oh right!"

"What do you mean 'right'? Would you like it if someone tied something to your leg for no reason?" Yuan Qianye lightly tapped her head.

Rikka covered her head with her hands: "If I could wear a cool tactical leg glove with a fancy dagger inside, I'd actually be willing to do it."

"Stop joking around. I know you mean well, but don't worry about me. This is just the beginning. Since your older brother can handle this, I can definitely protect you."

"Oh."

"They're back."

Rikka followed her brother's gaze and saw Saeko, Yukino, and Eriri walking back side by side.

For some reason, Rikka felt a sense of unease, as if the three of them looked completely different now than when they left.

It's not about superficial things like facial expressions or gestures, but something much harder to detect, describe, and grasp.

For example... momentum.

Or rather... aura.

"Boss, I've bought the lighter."

Miyoko and Utaha also returned to the camp at the same time.

"Everyone's here now, and I'm hungry too, let's get started."

Yuan Qianye stood up abruptly.

As the only male among the seven, Gen Chiya took on the responsibility of starting the fire and lighting the stove without hesitation.

Light the alcohol block and put it into the stove, press the charcoal on top and light it, then spread it out evenly, and you're done. It's not difficult at all.

To avoid trouble, most of the barbecue ingredients I just bought from the store are already pre-skewered and semi-finished products.

Fresh steaks and vegetables were simply washed, cut, and packed by the staff; we had to skewer them ourselves, but it wasn't too much trouble since there were so many of us.

Yuan Qianye stood by the barbecue grill, turning the food over from time to time, sprinkling on seasonings, watching the food change from raw to cooked, sizzling and emitting an enticing aroma. He found it quite interesting to do this occasionally.

"I'll help out." Shiyu came over to the barbecue grill.

Unlike before, she now tied her long black hair into a high ponytail, revealing her fair nape.

Yuan Qianye shook his head: "You look so good today, and your clothes don't look cheap either. It would be a shame if they got covered in cooking fumes."

"~" Shi Yu smiled happily, her eyes shining as she tilted her head to look at me: "You can praise me more loudly, don't just let me hear it alone, let me show off to others too... give it to me."

She was referring to the gloves.

Seeing that he couldn't persuade her, Yuan Qianye had no choice but to hand over the gloves: "It's just that the situation is special today. Let me give you one last piece of advice: the fumes are very pungent. It would be better to wait over there and eat what's ready."

"I would like to if I could, but I have a necessary reason for being here."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Qianye seemed to sense something and turned around to look at him.

Saeko and Miyoko were chatting and laughing as they skewered ingredients at the table, while Yukino occasionally chimed in with a few words and filled several empty glasses on the other side of the table with drinks.

As for Rikka, she was not far away, playing and laughing with a large flock of pigeons that had been tamed by the Black Wings. The two of them ran around wildly, looking quite happy.

Well, this situation does seem to be a bit tricky for Shiyu.

Given her public persona, it would be difficult for her to fit in with either side.

If you can't force it, then you can only accept it.

"Okay, I'll handle the grilling. Your job is to hand me the raw skewers and then put the grilled food on a plate and take it over to them."

"What do you mean? Are you treating me like a waitress? Don't underestimate me. I sometimes help my mom cook at home, so I have some basic cooking skills." Shi Yu seemed very confident, pointing to the eggplant that had been cut open on the grill and saying, "Shouldn't this be brushed with oil?"

Yuan Qianye nodded.

Upon hearing this, Shi Yu immediately went over and pushed him aside to take the main seat. She picked up the oil brush, gently dipped it, and then carefully spread the excess oil evenly on the roasted eggplant along the edge of the oil can.

I must say, aside from being a bit slow with his hands, he actually looks pretty good.

"How was it?" she asked with a hint of smugness.

Yuan Qianye gave a thumbs up: "I would call you the modern-day barbecue beauty."

Shi Yu's confidence swelled rapidly: "This is just a piece of cake for me, what should I do next?"

"Crack an egg on top."

"Leave it to me."

Shiyu took the egg from Qianye, tapped it gently against the edge of the stove, and then... that was it.

She didn't control her strength well, causing the eggshell to crack open in a large area, and the leaked egg liquid flowed directly down the broken eggshell onto the ground.

Looking at the egg liquid on the ground, Yuan Qianye felt that the scene was familiar.

Shiyu silently gave up the head chef's seat in front of the barbecue grill.

"Let me hand you the ingredients."

Yuan Qianye suppressed a laugh, while Shi Yu glared at him with her eyes downcast, intending to pinch his waist directly.

But as she stretched out her hand halfway, she suddenly stopped and turned around as if she sensed something.

The second young lady's gaze snapped away instantly, and she turned to the trolley, seemingly to retrieve something.

However, despite her quick reaction, Shiyu still caught the fleeting cold expression on her face.

Strange... what's with this secret feeling of satisfaction?

Shi Yu calmly withdrew her gaze, her tone indifferent: "If you wanted to please that second young lady, you shouldn't have asked me to come along today."

Yuan Qianye said righteously, "Who said I did it just to appease her? I did it to make you all happy."

"As things stand, my level of happiness is rather limited."

"Just because an egg was wasted?"

“…Yuan Qianye, I’m serious.”

"Oh, okay, go on. So what's bothering you?"

"When I came here today, I got to see a side of Saeko that is... well, it's quite unknown to most people."

Yuan Qianye pondered for a moment: "Did you make her angry?"

Shiyu immediately expressed her dissatisfaction: "Why did the conversation start with my mistake? And what you're saying clearly shows you're biased towards her, doesn't it?"

"Oh... I guessed wrong?"

No, not at all.

"I see, I understand now." Yuan Qianye fully understood: "Someone is holding a lot of resentment today."

"Who do you think is responsible for this?"

"So, what exactly happened when you came here today?"

"In a sense, I was bullied by girls my age, in a physical way."

"I don't understand what happened when you put it that way."

"Because it's a subtle situation that's not easy to explain clearly in words."

"I understand."

"What do you know?"

"I can't go into the specifics, but I think you understand. The key is that I will provide an appropriate solution for the follow-up. That should be fine, right? You've finally managed to get out and have some fun, so cheer up."

It's just a matter of listening to your words, like listening to a lecture; it's just nonsense literature, who doesn't understand that?

Yuan Qianye said this entirely in a joking manner, but unexpectedly Shi Yu nodded seriously, with a satisfied expression that the problem had been properly resolved.

This is a bit awkward, as the granularity doesn't seem to match up very well.

But it's alright, we can ask Saeko for details and everything will be clear. Besides, there shouldn't be any major conflict between the two of them.