I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

In the chaos, Maki made a move she herself did not expect—she stood on tiptoe, leaned forward, and buried her head in Amamiya's chest.

[...I sensed intense emotions emanating from Maki.]

[They've developed a special relationship...]

There's no going back...

[COOP Improvement!]

【Maki Kotobuki (Chariot) ★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆】

[★5 Bond Ability "Emotional Color" is now unlocked!]

"It's all Sensei's fault for suddenly saying weird things... My head is so messed up right now..."

"Never mind, I don't want to think about it anymore..."

"Before we start graffitiing, let's first absorb some of Sensei's style..."

Chapter Seventy-Four: "A Short Story After the Rain"

"Sniff sniff..."

"sen, Sensei..."

The wind chilled her skirt, and she felt the breath and deliberate sniffing sounds coming from the cheek pressed against her chest. The girl did not resist, but she was already overwhelmed with shame.

"Sniff sniff..."

Every sniffing sound was a tremendous test for the girl's taut nerves.

'Sensei's hobbies are really unique...'

'Something feels off...'

'But I also seem a little happy...?'

"Is it...is it ready?"

After enduring for so long, she couldn't help but tentatively speak up.

"Hmm... let's stop here for now."

After setting Maki down on the spot, Amamiya glanced at the sunset in the distance, which was almost completely shrouded in dark clouds, and the sky that was gradually becoming a little strange.

"It's getting late... and there are signs that it's going to rain soon, so we should hurry back."

Before leaving, after carefully packing up Maki's graffiti tools, Amamiya took one last look at the portrait of himself painted with "emotional paint."

how to say……

Maki's graffiti style is somewhere between 'abstract' and 'artistic', and overall... it's quite unique.

It's very distinctive, just like the graffiti around it...you can tell at a glance who did it.

“Eh, now that Sensei says so…it does seem true.”

Upon hearing this, Maki, who had put away the graffiti tools she had brought, looked up at the gradually darkening sky.

"It's about to rain... I really don't know if the graffiti I worked so hard on all afternoon can withstand the rain..."

After a moment of worry, the girl glanced at the young man who was squatting down to help her pack up her props.

Well... whether the graffiti can withstand it or not doesn't really matter.

After all, the most important "gain" from this trip wasn't the release of artistic talent, but rather...

As she was thinking, Maki suddenly felt a wet sensation on her cheek.

Summer rain always comes without warning and spreads very quickly.

"Ah...it's already raining?!"

Without even bothering to pack her things, Maki hurriedly stood up and pulled up her coat, saying, "Sensei... don't pack your things yet, let's find somewhere to shelter from the rain!"

"If we don't hurry and find shelter from the rain, we'll get soaked to the bone—wait, sen, Sensei?!"

A slight feeling of weightlessness came over her, and when Maki came to her senses, she was already sitting on Amamiya's shoulders.

The viewpoint is a bit high... even higher than when I'm being held in someone's arms...

After the initial novelty of the sudden change in perspective, Maki immediately felt a subtle, fluttering feeling emanating from Amamiya, who was 'carrying' her on his shoulder.

Without Amamiya needing to say anything more, Maki had already consciously tightened her legs to maintain her balance.

"Open up your clothes."

With just one sentence from Amamiya, Maki already understood Amamiya's reason for doing so.

—Given that neither of them had brought an umbrella, and given their close relationship and such a significant difference in size... this seems like a solution that isn't really a solution?

"Okay~!"

Maki grinned as she took off her thousand-year-old uniform jacket, which barely provided any protection from the rain. Feeling the bumps under her feet, she bent over and opened the jacket against the wind and rain.

After a short sprint, Amamiya led Maki to the roof of a building that provided significant shelter from the rain.

After putting down Maki, who was still somewhat unsatisfied, Amamiya let out a calm sigh.

Actually, he brought an umbrella... He didn't even need an umbrella; he could use "Persona" or other supernatural powers to protect himself and Maki from the raindrops.

Then why did he have to 'grab Maki' and let her ride on his back before having a rain shower?

My main goal was to experience the unique tension of a "short story in the rain".

After landing, the red-haired girl, still feeling exhilarated, first approached the edge of the rain curtain, shading her eyes with her hand as she looked out at the torrential downpour.

"Wow..."

Almost getting splashed by the change in wind direction, Maki took a step back and exclaimed in surprise, "It's raining so hard... it doesn't look like it's going to stop anytime soon..."

After taking off her soaking wet coat and trying to wring it out, she couldn't help but look at Amamiya.

"That was so exciting..."

"Luckily, Sensei reacted quickly, otherwise he would have been completely soaked... Not only would he have looked terrible, but he might have also caught a cold..."

As Maki's murmurs faded, she seemed to be completely lost in her memories. Then, she suddenly blushed and her movements of wringing out her coat slowed down a little.

Amamiya found it slightly amusing, nudged Maki's shoulder, and teased, "Why did you stop talking?"

【~???~】(Maki)

"Ah... well..."

Maki immediately squinted, and stammered in embarrassment.

After her gaze darted left and right for a moment, she shoved the coat she was holding into Amamiya's arms and huffed, "Sensei... help me wring out my clothes."

"This garment got soaked when I was sheltering from the rain with Sensei... Even if I can't wring it out now, since Sensei handled it, I'll have an explanation when I go back."

'Responding to ambiguity with ambiguity, yet using questions to deflect attention from an overwhelming amount of ambiguity...'

Amamiya smiled gently, saying nothing, but kept staring at Maki with a subtle look that made her feel slightly embarrassed and uncomfortable.

Maki initially seemed quite 'shy' from being stared at, but quickly adopted a subtle (???) expression.

"...Sensei?"

"Even if it was meant to be a joke, isn't this a bit too much?"

Amamiya wrung out her clothes quickly and replied with a smile, "It's only natural for me to tease Maki a bit because she's so cute."

【~???~】(Maki)

Maki: (???)

After a brief silence, she "reluctantly" gave up.

Maki took out her phone from her skirt pocket and started checking the weather.

"Hmm...it's not a shower. Although the rain will lessen, it could last all night or even several days..."

Maki suddenly realized a very serious problem.

If the rain isn't going to stop anytime soon, how will they get back?

Staying here... is it just "sitting and waiting to die"?

Or should I contact the other members of Beritas and ask them to come and pick me up?

However, if I contacted Minister Chihiro, I would definitely be reprimanded... and it might even implicate Sensei, causing her to be reprimanded as well...

Maki gritted her teeth, hoping she wouldn't be "unlucky" all the way through, and just then she contacted Chihiro.

“Sensei, I’ll call Beritas and have them come get me.”

"it is good."

Amamiya gave a simple and straightforward answer.

Anyway, I don't have anything urgent to do right now... so I might as well stay in Beritas, this 'hacker's den,' for one night.

After receiving a response, Maki held her phone a little further away and began to make a call quietly.

Amamiya had no intention of eavesdropping, but he still managed to catch some keywords thanks to his "phantom thief's extraordinary hearing".

On the other end of the phone was Xiaoyu; it seemed she was on duty at the club activity room in Beritas today.

When Maki told Tama that she couldn't return alone because of the heavy rain and needed Beritas's help, Tama was a little uninterested and absent-minded.

Amamiya naturally knew the reason why Tama was absent-minded—because today was another "song performance" that he and Tama had agreed on once a week, or rather... a segment similar to "ASMR audio broadcast".

Because she's going to be on the phone for ages, Xiaoyu's mind is probably preoccupied with how to communicate without the rest of Beritas knowing, and what songs she'll be singing today.

When Maki uttered the key phrase, "Actually, I'm currently trapped with Sensei," there was a brief pause on the other end of the phone.

Xiaoyu's voice immediately became urgent as she began asking for details about the address. She then left a message saying, "I'll be right there," and hurriedly hung up the phone.

After hanging up the phone, Maki also let out a sigh of relief.

After confirming Chihiro's schedule with Tama and finding out that she was busy with security and regular upgrades for the seminar and had no time to attend to Beritas, Maki was finally relieved.

Maki casually tucked her phone back into her skirt pocket and returned with a smile, ready to share the 'good news'.

Suddenly she stopped, her brow furrowing as she sensed a watchful gaze emanating from the shadows.

Strange... Is it just my imagination? It feels like someone is watching me...

Composing herself, Maki quickly walked to Amamiya's side and tugged at his sleeve.

"Sensei..."

"Do you feel... like someone is watching us?"

Chapter Seventy-Five: Little Gouba Smells Good Too

at the same time……

In a corridor of a building across the street, little rabbits holding military binoculars looked at each other.

The raindrops hitting the glass, and the sudden downpour, greatly reduced visibility, making it difficult for the little rabbits to see what would happen next.

But even without looking, just thinking about it... the little rabbits were starting to grit their teeth.

"No way……"

Saki clenched her fist and slammed it against the iron railing she was leaning against with a 'clang'.

"】Yueyi d『1〔u〆Qi Liu Yi San〒貳侕Jiu 貳Is it really another special plot like this...?"

rain……

It's raining again.

It was only after a torrential rain that swept through the entire Rabbit Park that the Rabbit team was able to completely and initially eliminate their prejudices and barriers with Sensei, which is why they are now able to live together under the same roof as Sensei...