Chapter 290: Who Do You Actually Like
Kouya discovered a very serious problem—one that, for some reason, always seemed to find him whenever he was anywhere near Takanashi Rikka.
The door to Rikka's room wasn't closed. It wasn't even properly shut. It was just hanging there, half-closed, the faint gap in it glowing faintly from the light spilling through.
So when Takanashi Touka gave it the gentlest of pushes, the hinges creaked softly, and the door swung wide open with a crisp click.
Their eyes met. Silence instantly filled the air. The atmosphere went so heavy that even the dust seemed to freeze midair.
Time stopped.
Rikka froze on the bed, her mouth slightly open. Kouya stood stiffly beside her, trying—and failing—to look innocent. Touka, framed by the doorway's shadow, narrowed her eyes.
The scene was awkward beyond imagination.
"Heh," Touka exhaled slowly, her lips curving into something that wasn't quite a smile. "You two…"
She folded one arm across her chest, and with the other hand—god knows how—pulled out a gleaming stainless-steel soup spoon that caught the light like a blade.
Where did that even come from? What kind of person just materializes cutlery when they're angry?
And seriously, put that thing away before you talk! No one can take you seriously while you're threatening people with a spoon!
To be fair, though… the scene in front of her was bad. Like, catastrophically bad.
Kouya stood near the bed, hands halfway raised like he was about to explain. Rikka was lying face-down, her skirt flipped up, those blue-and-white striped panties out for the world to see. Her small face was flushed pink, her breathing uneven—and worst of all, there was a suspicious drop of white liquid glinting at the corner of her mouth.
If this had been anyone else walking in, they'd have called the cops already.
It didn't matter that the truth was completely innocent—because how it looked was the stuff of nightmares.
"You're quite something, huh…" Touka said, her tone the calm before the storm.
Her anger meter hit MAX. Murder intent: confirmed. Execution: imminent.
"We didn't do anything!" Kouya said quickly, his voice breaking the frozen silence.
He glanced down at Rikka.
The ahoge girl's face was scarlet as she bowed her head. "U-Um…"
Her eyes darted away, her tiny hands fidgeting nervously. She looked exactly like someone caught in the act.
'Say something, dammit! Why are you blushing at a time like this!' he screamed inwardly..
"Rikka. Get up," Touka said flatly.
"Okay…"
Rikka nodded, but didn't move. Her body seemed to sink deeper into the sheets.
Touka's brow twitched. "Still not getting up?"
Rikka's soft voice trembled. "It hurts… I don't have any strength…"
Crack.
Kouya swore he could hear the sound of ice spreading through the air.
Touka's eyes darkened; her killing intent grew so thick it could crush a mountain.
Then—Swish!—a spoon flew toward him like a silver flash of death.
Kouya barely raised a hand before it struck, catching it midair. The cold metal vibrated in his palm.
To be fair… yeah, it looked terrible.
A boy and girl alone in a bedroom. The girl's clothes wrinkled, a suspicious liquid on her mouth, legs weak, body sore, and unable to move. Even a monk would imagine a forbidden story playing out here.
And if you were actually going to do that, at least use a love hotel. Doing it in the bedroom under your sister's roof? That's not bravery—that's suicide!
"Any last words?" Touka's voice sliced through the air, so cold it could've frozen breath.
"Wait, wait! Let me explain!"
Kouya grabbed the spoon and held it aside. "She hit her head on the bed leg, that's why she's sore! It has nothing to do with me! And her legs went weak because a Hell Girl scared her! Also not my fault!"
"Explain? Fine." Touka flicked her wrist—and another spoon appeared. She spun it between her fingers with practiced grace, the cold metal reflecting her glare. "Everything you say can and will be used against you."
'How many spoons do you have? Are you a walking kitchen drawer?' Kouya groaned inwardly.
"I didn't do anything," he said aloud, tone flat.
"Really?" Touka asked. "I've been home since noon, sitting in the living room the whole time. So tell me—when exactly did you sneak in? Don't tell me you climbed through the drainpipe like some video game plumber."
'…I teleported. But yeah, like you'd believe that.'
Thinking fast, he said, "Rikka's your little sister. Do you honestly think she'd dare do that while you're home?"
Touka paused. "Hmm… good point." Her tone softened slightly, though suspicion still flickered in her eyes.
Knowing her sister as well as she did, if Rikka had actually dragged a boy in here for something indecent, she'd be an embarrassed wreck by now.
Rikka puffed her cheeks. "That's mean, hero! I'm not scared of you or onee-chan!"
'Oh my god, shut up! Now is not the time to prove your courage!'.
Touka sighed. "Then explain why you're in her room."
'Lady, please stop asking questions. Ever heard of plausible deniability?'
Kouya hesitated, wondering whether honesty was worth the headache. Before he could decide, Rikka piped up timidly, "The hero came to help me!"
"Help? With what?"
"Finding the Unseen Boundary Line!" Rikka declared proudly.
Touka pinched the bridge of her nose. "That thing doesn't exist."
"You're wrong, onee-chan! It's real! I'll find it no matter what!"
Touka didn't argue further. She merely said, "Then wipe that off your mouth first."
"Huh?"
"It's yogurt! Not— not that kind of stuff!" Kouya interjected quickly, pointing at the yogurt bottle in the trash bin. "You can check! It's definitely yogurt!"
Touka said nothing. Her eyebrow twitched. Her spoon shimmered ominously.
For a long second, Kouya thought she might actually throw it at his face again, but she exhaled sharply and held back. Rikka, meanwhile, blinked innocently and wiped her lips, utterly unaware of the misunderstanding.
Touka inspected the room like a detective: the sheets were clean, the bed frame intact, no rubbery items of questionable purpose in sight. Finally, she lowered the spoon.
"You two. Downstairs."
"Okay."
Rikka trotted after her obediently, her short skirt bouncing. Kouya followed, silently regretting every decision that led to this moment. Of all the rooms to teleport into, why this one?
...
The smell of dinner filled the living room. Two dishes and a steaming bowl of soup sat neatly on the table. Two bowls of rice were already set.
Touka's sharp gaze cut toward Kouya. "Have you eaten?"
"I…" He almost said yes, but then realized that would only raise more questions. "Not yet. I was planning to grab a bento later."
Touka frowned. "That's not healthy. Do you even cook?"
"Uh…"
"You're going to start cooking from now on," she declared. "Relying on bento is unacceptable."
'What kind of logic is that?! I eat bento because I don't like washing dishes, not because I can't cook!' he grumbled internally. 'Give me good ingredients, and I'll make food so good it shines. You'll eat until your shirt explodes again!'
He remembered, not without irony, that she'd literally had her shirt button pop open once while stretching—and she'd even given him the button as a "souvenir." He still didn't know what to do with it.
"Sit and eat," Touka ordered. "Rikka, get him a bowl and chopsticks."
"Okay, onee-chan!"
Sensing the tension, Rikka hopped to her feet and dashed off into the kitchen.
The room went still again. Only the soft tap tap tap of Touka's nails on the wooden table broke the silence.
"You get along well with Rikka… and those girls, Gabriel and the others?" she asked suddenly.
'Get along? Not really. We just go to school together because we live nearby.'
Touka tilted her head slightly, watching him carefully. Then, after a brief pause, she said:
"Honestly, I don't care who you date—Rikka, Gabriel, whoever. You're high schoolers now; you can make your own choices. I just want to know one thing: who do you actually like?"
"…" Kouya froze.
That question hit harder than expected. A direct shot to the heart. Even Cthulhu's weird biology questions were easier than this.
'Who do I like?' he thought.
Gabriel came to mind first—lazy, gluttonous, constantly needing food. But he didn't dislike being around her. In fact, it was… comfortable.
Then there was Vigne. Always tidy, always taking responsibility. A perfectionist who reorganized everything, even their popcorn buckets at the movies. Sometimes bossy, sometimes too serious—but he couldn't bring himself to be annoyed. If anything, he admired her.
And of course, Raphiel and Satanyan… the mischievous angel and the hopeless idiot demon. Chaos incarnate, but somehow, his world felt fuller with them around.
'So who do I actually like?'
Touka didn't interrupt his silence. Her tone softened as she said:
"Until you're sure of your heart, don't make promises. Don't cross the line. Some things can't be undone."
She handed him her phone number. "If you ever need to talk, call me. Sometimes a big sister can offer decent advice."
Kouya nodded quietly. She was only in her early twenties, but she spoke like someone twice her age—steady, dependable. A true "veteran driver."
Soon after, Rikka returned with the food, and the three of them ate together. The tension faded bit by bit as the smell of soup and rice filled the air.
Touka's cooking was surprisingly good—balanced, warm, perfectly seasoned. Kouya ended up eating more than he meant to, laughing once or twice despite himself.
When they finished, Touka began collecting dishes. Without looking up, she said evenly, "Dinner's done. You can leave now."
Rikka raised her hand eagerly. "I'll walk the hero out, onee-chan!"
Outside the door, the night air was cool and crisp.
Rikka clasped her hands behind her back, leaning forward slightly as she smiled up at him. "Hey, hero, tomorrow's the weekend. Let's go look for the Unseen Boundary Line together, okay?"
Her eyes gleamed with childlike wonder, bright and clear. "With you here, I know we'll find it!"
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