Upon reaching our destination, I was astonished to find out that it was lunchtime—just a little before 12 o’clock. I remembered being kidnapped at around 4 PM, so I’d been asleep for nearly 20 straight hours.
Seriously though, that horrid concoction Haruna fed me, which I wouldn’t even dare call food, is something that should never exist in this world again. I could easily see the Four Thousand begging to learn how to brew that poison if they ever found out about it.
Fufu.
Walking a few steps ahead, Haruna, who held my wrist, seemed entirely free of the conflicted emotions I saw in the car. Had she reached some sort of conclusion on her own? Or did the thrill of gourmet hunting trigger a flood of dopamine the moment it was time to dig in?
Still, I’m glad to see her looking so bright rather than droopy. Sure, her values might be a bit off, but she’s not a bad kid overall.
Even though she blew up an underwhelming restaurant and fed my kindred spirit a meal that any normal person would be bedridden for a week after eating, our Haruna is fundamentally kind-hearted. And it’s certainly not because I’m enchanted by her sly glances and smiling eyes.
Thanks to borrowing Haruna’s cellphone to send a Momotalk to Nagisa reassuring her that I’d be back by tonight at the latest, I’ve managed to ease my own worries too. I had no idea what Nagisa’s Momotalk ID was, but combining her name and birthday brought it right up.
Just like Hina and Nagisa, creating a Momotalk ID from one’s name and birthday is so convenient. Because of that, even in this absurd situation, I was able to contact someone without forgetting.
“What kind of burger do you like the most, Mika~? By the way, the place we plan to visit has a whopping forty-seven kinds of burgers! Wuhuhuh, I’m really looking forward to it!”
…Of course, with Akari saying something like that, it only sounds like she wants to try every single type on the menu. And I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s true. After being reincarnated, a one-person, one-chicken eating standard feels like a distant dream, making this feel surreal.
“Well, if I had to pick one, I’d say chicken burger. But if I’m only having it once in a while, I prefer cheeseburgers. You know, the kind that’s super gooey and loaded with cheese.”
Even just imagining that burger makes my lifespan feel like it’s getting shorter. Yeah, I definitely need that. If there’s no recommended item on the menu, I’m set on ordering a cheese-laden burger.
“I really, really love the deluxe chocolate burger! But I heard they don’t serve it here. How can a place so unreasonable exist?! Hmm, what should I eat instead…?”
“Haha, with so many kinds, there’s bound to be at least one you like, right?”
“Right, that’s true! You’re so wise, Vice President! And if I drizzle some mint chocolate paste on top, I won’t feel as disappointed, right?!”
“…”
This isn’t easy. I definitely can’t confidently hang out with these guys every day. And perhaps I shouldn’t.
A food fighter, the king of grotesque food, and an explosives fanatic. Adding Junko to that mix wouldn’t make things better either, and here I am, hitching a ride on this madness? Just imagining it is terrifying.
Hina will probably be extremely disappointed in me too. Not to mention, I’ll cause her lots of trouble. So the thought of Misono Mika, the Vice President of the Gourmet Research Club, is a future possibility that should never exist. Absolutely not.
“Mika, I’ve been thinking a little…”
“Hmm?”
“Um, never mind. I’ll tell you in a bit.”
“Haha! Haruna-chan, you’re so whimsical!”
Even the irritation of being interrupted fades away in the presence of her overwhelming beauty. I can’t help but wonder if I fell for Haruna at first sight.
“Oh, there it is!”
Haruna pointed to a store in the distance. As I noticed the bright sign shining above the store, I couldn’t help but admire it.
[BURGER EMPEROR]
Wow, how did a place end up with a name like Burger Emperor?! That’s a name that truly embodies arrogance. I’m a bit bothered by how similar it sounds to a certain franchise, though.
“Fortunately, it doesn’t look like there’s a wait.”
“Wuhuhuh, it’s not lunchtime for the students here yet~. If we had been even a little late, it would have been a big deal☆”
True enough! This place is so popular, it’s rumored that lines stretch all the way from Millennium to Gehenna. If we were just 20 minutes… maybe even just 10 minutes late, the line might have been incredibly long. Thinking that makes me even more determined to protect this place from Haruna’s clutches.
Once we stepped inside the restaurant, it was clear that there were a lot of customers. Even though the store is relatively spacious, there’s barely a table open… well, now there are two. If we had taken longer, we might not have been able to sit down at all.
“Wuhuhuh, then, everyone, I hope you enjoy your meals?”
With just that, Akari moved toward a recently cleared table. She quickly dropped her belongings on the table to claim her territory and approached the staff at the counter instead of the kiosk.
“Excuse me, customers need to place their orders through the kiosk—”
“I heard that you have forty-seven types of handmade burgers available here. Is that true~?”
“…Well, it’s actually forty-nine types, ma’am.”
“Wuhuhuh.”
Akari smiled sweetly and pulled out a card without hesitation, placing an intimidating order immediately.
“Every menu item, including sides, two of each, please serve them as soon as they’re ready~☆”
“Ma’am, we do not accept prank orders…”
Hmm…
As far as I remember, Akari used to hop from all-you-can-eat restaurants to manage her meal volume. How can she confidently place such an order?
Feeling strangely uneasy, I subtly turned my head, only to find Haruna struggling to suppress a peculiar smile upon hearing Akari’s order.
“Hey, is that card, by any chance, Haruna-chan’s?”
“Umm… yeah, it just kind of happened.”
“Haha! How did that happen?”
“…”
“Um, just to clarify, it’s not because of me, right? Is it? Huh?”
Upon hearing my question, Haruna silently closed her eyes and nodded. That peaceful smile at the corner of her lips might not really mean she’s smiling.
“Haha, haha…”
Oh no. I’m sorry, Haruna. Glancing at the prices, that order would probably rack up almost 150,000 yen…
Could it be that the incident I caused with Hina triggered this? If it’s because of me, that’s the only possibility. I know Haruna is quite affluent, but that aside, it’s been quite a while since that incident happened. Why hasn’t she mentioned anything until now…? Is she some kind of Buddha?
“I’ve been eagerly waiting for this day! I was so tired of waiting because my promise with the Vice President just wouldn’t get confirmed!”
“Haruna-chan. Um, I’m sorry…?”
No, well. If I had to think about it, it’s not like I should be sorry, but knowing I dragged things on to this point makes me feel I need to apologize. After all, if I had only set a date for that promise, Haruna wouldn’t have to resort to such extreme measures.
“…Hehe. It’s okay. What truly matters is that Mika is here with me right now. That’s enough for me.”
As I registered those words flowing out of Haruna so naturally, I hurriedly covered my face with my hands. The overwhelming embarrassment was too much to bear.
…Ah. I fell victim to that wicked devil’s games again.
Seriously, how does this keep happening? Looking like this, I suddenly feel more incompetent than I realized. Just before being kidnapped too, I was completely in over my head.
I can’t just keep being dragged along like this. At our first meeting, Haruna decisively claimed victory, but I remember that we at least exchanged something. Now, I’m just being overwhelmingly pushed around, which feels like regression. I distinctly recall preparing for scenarios like this…
Right, that’s it.
Haruna’s weak point is compliments. I had engraved that in my memory, but facing her now has completely frozen my brain. What kind of compliment should I give? If it’s not appropriate for the situation, the effect will clearly be diminished.
Nothing is coming to mind.
I see. So I am a stonehead…!
In the end, my mind gave up on thinking. Yet, my mouth seems to have developed a will of its own and begins to move.
“…It makes me happy to hear you say that, Haruna.”
Oh no, I messed up.
I managed to squeeze out that one line and then clamped my mouth shut like I had glue on my lips. This is exactly why being a virgin is a problem. Waves of self-loathing come flooding in. But…
“…”
“Hmm~? Aren’t you both going to order? Why are you two just dawdling?! I’m starving here, let’s hurry and order already!”
…Wait, what’s happening?
That clearly sounded like something that should make anyone think it was a disaster, but why was Haruna blushing and looking away? The moment our eyes met, she immediately averted her gaze, leaving me dumbfounded and wondering if the world had gone nuts.
It was then I realized one blinding fact. There was an intricate concept of ‘plausibility’ tied into this.
Not simply because she’s beautiful, but the plausibility of Mika, who managed to successfully wash away deeds that couldn’t be complimented with mere empty words, was supplying me with strength. Enough to cover up my immaturity without a second thought…!
But even with such an advantage handed to me, smoothly extracting Haruna’s soul with smooth lines is impossible. It’s a matter of inherent ability, but Haruna also possesses an extraordinary level of plausibility. Just being near Haruna, who captivated countless Blue Archive users with her beauty, automatically draws me into her rhythm.
“Um, Mika.”
“…Uh, what?!”
“Shouldn’t we make our order first…?”
Said Haruna, pointing outside the shop with a gesture. Glancing that way, I spotted students wandering around in the streets, just beginning their lunch hour. If I hesitated any longer here, the food would take that much longer to arrive.
“Haha… yeah, let’s do that☆”
Since I had already decided to go for a cheeseburger, I could choose quickly. Barely one minute into scanning the menu, one particular item caught my eye.
Deep In Cheeseburger. Whether the ‘Deep’ refers to Deep or Dip, just looking at the visuals gives me the sensation of diving deep into a cheese swamp.
Alright, today’s lunch is you…!
…As for getting back at Haruna, I’ll think more clearly about that later. I know very well that for me, that presents an infinitely high hurdle. How unfortunate.
*
“Hello, Nagisa.”
“It’s been a while, Atsuko-chan. And… to the Arius Squad.”
Gazing at the girl before her, Saori began to seriously contemplate whether she should correct her words. Referring to them as the Arius Squad seemed incorrect, considering they were essentially Mika’s personal unit at this point.
However, Saori soon discarded that thought. The name wasn’t particularly important; Arius was their identity.
Despite the damage to the name due to Madame’s misconduct, with Mika and Sisterhood’s proactive assistance, they were slowly regaining their former selves. So they could now take pride in the name Arius.
“I have a mission I want to entrust to the Arius Squad. You may already be aware, but Mika was kidnapped about 12 hours ago by a certain faction and is currently on her way to Millennium.”
“…What?!”
“Mika-chan was kidnapped?! Who could pull off such a reckless deed…? I can’t even imagine Mika-chan losing to anyone…!”
The term ‘Mika-chan’ that slipped out of Hiyori’s mouth made Nagisa’s eyebrows twitch. She recalled that Mika was also called that by Sakurako, and that the girl, who was now frozen in shock with fingers tangled in her hair, was referred to as sister by her.
In that moment, Nagisa almost gritted her teeth instinctively but let out a small sigh, regaining her composure. Little did she expect to realize just how much she had been missing out on until now.
She felt an insatiable urge to open Mika’s cellphone, which was at hand, to check her Momotalk some more, but she stifled it with superhuman patience. Even so, she wasn’t reckless enough to invade Mika’s privacy unnecessarily.
“The perpetrator is the Gourmet Research Club from Gehenna, which is a notorious club. According to the student council president from Gehenna, they are a terrorist organization that has been causing chaos by blowing up numerous restaurants since their establishment, and even the school cafeteria isn’t safe from their attacks.”
“Nagisa, what was the reason for that Gourmet Research Club to kidnap older sister Mika? And how did they do it?”
“It appears Mika had a personal relationship with the president of that Gourmet Research Club. We suspect that they exploited Mika’s guard being down due to that connection to carry this out, but other than that, not much has been confirmed. Their goal is… to commit an act of terror together with Mika at a restaurant that has been gaining popularity in the Millennium Autonomous District recently.”
“Huh? What does that even mean…”
Mizuki seemed bewildered as she tried to ask, but Saori raised her hand, silencing her.
“Then, the mission you wish to entrust us with is to infiltrate the Millennium Autonomous District, secure Mika’s safety, and return. Did I understand correctly?”
“Similar but slightly different. The student council president from Gehenna has also decided to get involved directly. We’ve sent an official cooperation letter to Millennium already, but… even if they refuse to cooperate, we will confront all conflict and enter Millennium. Our operation’s objective is to capture that infuriating terrorist group.”
Upon hearing Nagisa’s words, the squad members exchanged glances with one another. Their answer to this proposal had been decided from the very beginning.
“Let’s accept it, leader.”
“…Ah, sure.”
“Oh, and by the way, I plan to accompany you on this mission. I’m tired of just waiting around now.”
“…?”
“So, I look forward to working with you all, Arius Squad members.”
Arius Squad + Kirihouji Nagisa, total of 6 members. 9 hours until they enter Millennium.
