I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

Noah had already tried to be as tactful as possible.

Amamiya, who has a certain understanding of Rion, is able to "see through appearances to the essence"—in fact, Rion, who rarely leaves her home, although she has regular training and is not as "frail" as Himari, should still be considered to be in the relatively poor category in terms of physical fitness.

Rion probably never thought about 'exercising in the hot sun while wearing a gym uniform,' so she chose to 'stay home,' leaving all the affairs of the Akawa Festival to Yuka, Noah, and Koyuki.

"That's it..."

It's a bit of a shame that we didn't get to see Rion in her gymnastics uniform.

"Sensei, regarding Yuki's mistake... from Yuka's perspective, how do you plan to handle... and deal with Yuki?"

Noah, who had "accidentally" used a terrible word, belatedly corrected himself.

Before Amamiya could speak, Yuki, startled, cried out first.

“Wa ...

After shouting, she looked pitifully at Amamiya.

Amamiya paused, then continued without a trace of pity: "...Keep him in solitary confinement for a while."

Noah nodded in agreement: "Although we will temporarily lose a 'labor force,' it is indeed the best choice at this stage..."

After deciding Xiaoxue's 'life' for the next period of time with just a few words, Noah said no more about it.

—The food chain that has existed for thousands of years is just that strict.

Koyuki is at the 'lowest end' of the food chain, while the seemingly strict Yuka is above Koyuki, and Noah is a 'predator' level existence that is even higher than Yuka.

As for Rion... she is undoubtedly the 'overlord'.

"Sensei, would you like us to show you around the stadium first?"

As Xiaoxue's expression gradually turned ashen, Noah then silently unfurled his fangs.

Amamiya's purpose for this trip was to go to the engineering department to check with Yuriko about the status of the "exclusive weapon" prepared for Kai—but for now, with Yuka, Noah, and Koyuki by her side, she could familiarize herself with the venue first, which would be a good way to get 'familiar with the venue' once and for all later.

"Then I'll leave it to Yuka and Noah."

Yuka, feeling slightly awkward, tried to be coy, but Noah chuckled and shrugged her shoulders.

"Yuka-chan~ Sensei is begging us right now~?"

"You and Sensei are such good friends... you should be more decisive at this time."

"No... Noah...!"

Yuka, who was about to say something, was interrupted and became slightly annoyed.

My thoughts were in complete disarray, and I forgot all the prepared answers and introductions I had prepared.

After hesitating for a moment, Yuka sighed helplessly, realizing she couldn't think of a single word.

“…Sensei, come with me.”

"We'll take you on a tour of the main venue of the 'Kōrin Taisai'..."

Chapter 49 Yuka blushed that day~

It was close to noon.

After checking the situation at the stadium with Amamiya, the purple-haired girl and the white-haired girl, who were flanking Amamiya on either side, stopped in the shadow of a building.

"Hoo~"

Grabbing her by the collar, the purple-haired girl naturally walked towards the vending machine next to her, looked up, and used her other hand to cover her eyes as she confirmed the increasingly venomous sun above her head.

After sighing, she selected several iced drinks from the vending machine. With a "beep," she bent down and took out three bottles of different flavors from the vending machine's beverage dispenser.

Summer has arrived before we knew it!

With a slightly drawn-out tone, Yuka, holding her drink to her chest with one hand, got up and turned back.

The cool mist emanating from the beverage bottle mingled with the light sweat on the girl's blue T-shirt, which was slightly damp from the weather, adding a touch of hazy mystery to the outfit.

"Since Sensei came to Kivotos and got to know Sensei, summer has arrived again without us even realizing it..."

Shaking the drink bulging in front of her chest, the girl's eyes lit up: "Sensei...which flavor do you want to drink?"

Amamiya didn't answer directly, but instead answered the question with a question: "What flavor does Yuka like?"

"I like this..."

Yuka instinctively wanted to answer, but suddenly realized something was wrong and stopped speaking. Then, with a slightly stiff expression, she changed the subject: "Sensei, I'm asking you now~?"

'Hmph... This question may seem unremarkable, but it's a good opportunity to confirm Sensei's tastes and lifestyle habits...'

Yuka, brimming with confidence that her 'clever trick' was about to succeed, hadn't even had a chance to start her little scheme when the white-haired girl next to her chuckled and stepped in to thwart her plan.

"Yuka-chan's favorite drink... is probably that 'sea salt lemonade,' right?"

The white-haired girl tapped her chin lightly with a pen, and when she found the right moment, she smiled and squinted as she replied, "...I remember that Yuka-chan usually tries to save money and never drinks beverages."

"If I really had to choose a beverage... I would also choose this kind of almost sugar-free drink, which has a slightly sour taste but can replenish water and salt at the same time, and can quickly quench thirst and cool you down. It's a 'high-value' drink..."

"Noah?!"

Ignoring Yuka's shame and indignation, Noah quickly wrote a sentence in his notebook, then smiled and stepped forward to take the canned coffee and carbonated beverage from Yuka's arms.

Yuka reacted a beat too slow and reached out to stop him, but Noah, who was a step faster, had already chuckled and retreated.

"The relationship between Yuhya sauce and Sensei... can also be described as 'sea salt and lemon flavor'..."

"I once heard Sensei sing a few lines of a song called 'Lemon' by chance in Xialai..."

With her eyes half-closed, the white-haired girl cleared her throat, recalling a melody she had heard while on duty in Xia Lai. Amidst Yuka's embarrassed, surprised, and bewildered expression, she sang two lines in a very off-key tone.

The aroma of bitter lemon lingers until the rain stops and the sun shines again.

Like a lemon that has been cut in half.

'To this day you are still my light.'

"It seems... to be like that?"

Amamiya: "..."

There's no need to use the excuse of "seemingly" to confidently sing the lyrics out of tune.

Amamiya really didn't expect that Noah would remember the lyrics of a song that he had hummed casually while working so clearly.

To avoid any misunderstanding from Noah, Amamiya solemnly explained: "There is indeed such a song, and such lyrics. However, the song's true meaning is related to the heavy word 'death.' It was created around the theme of 'gently embracing those who are wounded.'"

Without knowing the full meaning, simply looking at the lyrics or even listening to the song can lead to a misinterpretation of its true meaning...

Take the famous song "Senbonzakura" for example. The feeling it evokes is almost completely different from its actual meaning.

"...That's it."

Noah paused briefly, lowered his brows slightly, and then casually changed the subject: "But sea salt and lemon really are the best description of the relationship between Sensei and Yuuka-chan, aren't they? Sensei, you didn't rush to explain the misunderstanding, but instead corrected my misinterpretation of the song first..."

“This means,” the girl tilted her head, “that Sensei actually… approves of my description?”

"In Sensei's eyes, Yuka-chan has a bittersweet taste, like lemonade..."

Amamiya: ...Is the imagination of a literary girl always this surprising?

As Amamiya carefully considered his words, he noticed the subtle mix of expectation and trepidation in Yuka's expression as she looked at him.

...This meaning was not originally intended.

But it's not that it can't be had.

"It seems like Noah has misunderstood again... but this interpretation isn't entirely wrong."

【~???~】(Yuka)

【~??~】(Noah)

Yuka, who had already unscrewed the last bottle of her drink, froze on the spot, almost dropping the drink in her hand.

After regaining her senses, to hide her panic, she drank almost half of the beverage in one gulp.

The refreshing taste of sea salt and lemon blended together upon swallowing was not enough to dispel Yuka's heart pounding as if she had entered overclocking mode, nor the burning sensation emanating from her chest.

'Noah was watching right there... Shouldn't Sensei be resolving this now?!'

Why did you admit it so readily?

'Although my relationship with Sensei has become so close...'

'But under Noah's observation, Sensei still said so, and indeed it was somewhat...'

The gamer, preoccupied with his own thoughts, didn't immediately grasp the meaning of Noah's "sharing joys and sorrows" before his hand was suddenly empty, and then another drink was shoved into his hand.

Yuka blinked and realized that Noah had taken the half-empty bottle of beverage from her hand, and she was immediately a little angry.

What made her even more embarrassed was Noah's subsequent actions.

He gracefully stepped back and handed the half-empty bottle of beverage to Amamiya: "So, Sensei, are you going to 'share the joys and sorrows' with Yuuka-chan?"

Before Amamiya could even answer, Yuka covered her face with one hand, trying to stop him with a mixture of fear and anticipation.

"It's just a problem with the drinks... there's no need to escalate it to something as far-fetched as 'sharing joys and sorrows,' isn't there?"

"Also, if Sensei wants to try the flavor I usually drink, it's perfectly safe to buy another bottle..."

Amamiya, who was about to take the drink: ...

That being said, my body honestly stood still without making any move... I was even slightly looking forward to it?

Amidst Yuka's shy yet nervous expression, Amamiya took the drink that Yuka had been drinking from Noah's hand.

“Indeed… Yuka is right. Reaching the level of ‘sharing joys and sorrows’ is still too far off…”

"but."

"Leaving aside the 'sweet moments'... I can always 'share the hardships'. Whether it's busy work or 'difficulties' in life, as long as Yuka is willing to bring it up, I can always share the burden with Yuka."

With that, Amamiya tilted her head back and drank the remaining half bottle of beverage.

【~???~】(Yuka)

'Sensei...'

Yuka quickly calmed down.

An adult's reliability and steadiness are like sea salt, bringing out the sweet aftertaste of a sour lemon slice.

Deeply moved and relieved, Yuka was about to say something when she heard Amamiya give a serious 'comment' on the taste: "Hmm... the drink with Yuka's flavor seems to taste even better."

"..."

Yuka hummed twice, temporarily shifting her 'attention' to the bottle cap in her hand.

(////////)

"……?"

"Huh? I actually won the 'buy one get one free' prize..."

Blinking her eyes, Yuka then realized—this was a perfect opportunity to dispel the romantic atmosphere.

"Wow... I actually won the lottery..."

Noah, with his poise and grace, gracefully approached, glanced at the winning information on the bottle cap beside Yuka, and then said in a surprised tone, "So lucky..."

But then she chuckled and continued teasingly, "Perhaps... this is luck's recognition of Sensei and Yuuka's unwavering affection?"

"Noah?! Don't overthink things like winning the lottery, it's such a low-probability event!"

"It was just a low-probability lottery winning event... You can't force an emotional connection to it, can you?!"

Yuka hurriedly interrupted Noah's strange remarks, leaving behind an awkward and stiff "I...I...I'm going to redeem a prize..." before turning around and running towards the vending machine not far away.

Seeing that Yuka was distracted and probably wouldn't notice them for the time being, Noah naturally suppressed his smile and shook the canned coffee in his hand.

"Sensei must really like coffee, right? Want to... have some together?"

With a 'pop', Noah pulled the tab on the can of coffee in his hand, took a small sip, and then, just like Yuka, handed the can of coffee to Amamiya.

"The bottled iced coffee bought from the vending machine, though cheap, is nowhere near as good as Sensei's carefully brewed 'Lubran Coffee.'"

"But compared to the rich and lingering flavor of a carefully brewed coffee, a novelty like this, which you buy occasionally, can also be quite delightful."