The Infinity Train, symbolizing the sun that never sets.
Today, Shuchiin Academy had chartered this train for a school field trip to Kyoto. Students were grouped in threes.
"Dio-kun♡, is there any spot you'd like to visit?" Kitagawa Marin and Diego were assigned to the same group. She chatted excitedly. "I want to go to the Silver Pavilion, but the Five-Story Pagoda also looks great… Ugh, so hard to choose! How about we just go to both!"
Hehe~ Being grouped with Dio-kun this time is perfect! The heavens are on my side! I have to make some progress in our relationship—at the very least, get to… hehe…
"Ai-chan~ What do you think?"
The third member of their group was Hayasaka Ai, Kaguya Shinomiya's personal maid, who had one-quarter Irish blood.
Hayasaka Ai wore her hair in a side ponytail. Her school uniform skirt was rolled up, the collar left unbuttoned, nails painted—a classic gyaru look. She sat on the aisle side, scrolling on her phone.
"I'm fine with anything. Kyoto doesn't hold any good memories for me, so I don't really have any interest in sightseeing." Hearing Marin's words, Hayasaka Ai paused her typing, lifted her head slightly, and spoke calmly.
"But… if I could choose, I'd rather go to Yokohama." Hayasaka Ai pulled a notebook out of nowhere, suddenly full of enthusiasm as she changed the subject.
"First, meet up at Sakuragicho Station, then cross the tracks and have lunch at Hungry Tiger in HAMMERHEAD…"
"After watching a movie at World Porters, head to the amusement park, ride the Ferris wheel together and enjoy the view…"
The World suddenly appeared, letting out two puzzled "Muda muda"s.
Shut up, The World. Go back. No one's calling you…
"Make custom cup noodles at the Cup Noodles Museum… ride a rickshaw through Chinatown for an escape game, eat Chinese food, go sightseeing, skate at the Red Brick Warehouse…"
Hayasaka Ai suddenly raised her right hand at a 45-degree angle upward, cheeks slightly flushed, shouting excitedly: "And at the hill park with a view of the harbor nightscape, there'll be tons of intimate couples! Finally, end the date with a kiss in that atmosphere!!"
"Ai-chan…"
"Hehe~ How's that, Marin-chan?"
"The first part sounded okay, but the rest is completely just a date plan…" Kitagawa Marin broke out in a cold sweat. Seeing Hayasaka Ai instantly deflate, she quickly backpedaled. "Okay, okay, we're going to Kyoto this time, so we can't carry out your perfect itinerary anyway."
"True."
Kitagawa Marin let out a relieved breath and turned to look at Diego, who was sitting by the window.
At that moment, Diego had his hand propping up his chin, expression blank, staring fixedly at the scenery outside, showing no reaction at all to their conversation.
Right… after all, Dio-kun has such painful memories. He can't go back… He's probably enduring it with everything he has.
No, I can't just think about myself. Kitagawa Marin, use your super intelligence to cheer Dio-kun up!
That cloud looks kind of like a woman's chest… Diego thought, completely zoning out.
...
—Kyoto, Silver Pavilion—
After visiting the Five-Story Pagoda, the three walked along the stone path in front of the Silver Pavilion, surrounded by noisy crowds.
"…Ah, seeing these ancient buildings up close really feels strange." Kitagawa Marin stretched lazily, her gaze locked tightly on Diego.
Ahaha—oh no, I didn't actually look at the temples or pagoda at all. My attention was completely on Dio-kun's side profile the whole time…
Temples… ah, right, maybe I can do this!
"Dio-kun, Ai-chan, wait here for me just a sec! I'll be right back!"
Diego, holding two large bags of snacks, fell into thought. He stared fixedly at Marin's departing figure. For some reason, he had the feeling that after this, he might never see her again… Pfft, wrong scene.
Okonomiyaki and candied apples, fried chicken chunks and chicken skin dumplings, grilled chicken, grilled beef, grilled squid, chocolate bananas, and cotton candy…
She didn't go buy more snacks, did she?!
Just eat something simple.
His restless little claws stealthily grabbed a skewer and started munching on squid. Free food tastes the best!
"Hey, Dio, tell me—how did you do it?" Hayasaka Ai took the chance while Marin was gone to lean close to Diego's ear and whisper.
Munch munch… "Do what?" Diego's expression remained the same. He glanced at Hayasaka Ai, tone flat, though the speed of his sneaky eating noticeably increased.
"Ugh… come on, I'm not going to steal your snacks. I mean the Shinomiya family thing." Hayasaka Ai's cheeks puffed out in frustration, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. Clearly she was very interested in this upheaval.
That night, Hayasaka Ai had received a text from her mother: regarding the dismissal of Shinomiya family servants.
Hayasaka Ai wanted to believe.
Then she would try to believe—in that man!
Upon learning her mother had been taken in by the SPW Foundation, Hayasaka Ai made a decision that went against everything her ancestors stood for. For the first time in over a decade, she stopped reporting every single detail of Kaguya Shinomiya's words and actions to the main family.
The expected questioning and retaliation from the main family never came. Instead of calls demanding explanations, there was only dead silence. This indicated one thing.
The Shinomiya family was finished!
And that meant the guilt that had once nearly crushed Hayasaka Ai was effortlessly resolved.
The man who accomplished all this was:
Diego Brando…
Munch munch… "Ah, that. If I said that Shinomiya Gan'an, Shinomiya Kōkō, Shinomiya Seiryū, Shinomiya Un'yō… those pieces of shit are now completely obedient to me, Dio…"
"Would you believe me?"
Diego stopped eating, slightly raised his head, and smiled as he looked at Hayasaka Ai.
"I'd believe anything you say. After all, you did say you're…" Hayasaka Ai clasped her hands behind her back. Her words suddenly paused, perfectly syncing with what Diego said next.
"Unbeatable." ×2
Diego froze for a second, then quickly laughed again. "Heh heh, good that you understand. There's nothing that can stump me, Dio."
"Then… unbeatable Dio-sama~ How should I repay you?"
Hayasaka Ai's words carried a teasing tone. Before Diego could answer, Kitagawa Marin's shout came from afar—the real reason Diego had stopped sneaking snacks.
"Dio-kun—Ai-chan—sorry to keep you waiting! Look, look at this!" Kitagawa Marin had changed out of her uniform into a yukata and trotted over to the two.
"Mhm! I got excited and put on the whole set—" Kitagawa Marin spun around a few times, proudly showing off the complete outfit to Diego.
At the same time, she secretly observed his reaction. Seeing his gaze fixed blankly on the nape of her neck, she gave a sly smile.
"Could it be—Dio-kun… you're moved by the sight of my nape exposed in this yukata?"
Nape…
The sealed city of Rubadran…
To its west, the vast and boundless Beastless Land…
A thousand hundred-meter-tall Titan One-Eyed Giants…
With powerful regeneration, immense strength, slow movement, and body temperature close to magma.
Their only weak point: the nape meat.
Once the nape is exposed, a single slash with a blade can easily kill a Titan One-Eyed Giant.
So when a girl exposes her nape to you—she's completely fallen for it!
Diego, who had once battled a thousand Titan One-Eyed Giants alone, instantly triggered muscle memory. That's why he stared so intently at Kitagawa Marin's nape.
"…"
I want to slash it…
"Uh, really?!" Diego's silence was taken as confirmation by Kitagawa Marin. Her face flushed instantly, and she turned her head away.
"The yukata looks pretty good. Feels about half as nice as me right after a bath." Diego parted his lips slightly, hand on his forehead, speaking with considerable narcissism.
Thump thump thump thump, thump thump, thump thump…
No way? No way? No way?!
Ha—?! This is so exciting!! Good thing I changed into the yukata—!!
Knowing Diego's personality well, Kitagawa Marin clearly understood just how rare it was to hear praise from him—especially when he compared her looks to his own.
Her heart felt tugged by an invisible thread. Kitagawa Marin's fingers trembled slightly. Though she tried hard to suppress it, the blush on the tips of her ears couldn't be hidden.
After a brief eye contact, the high-attack low-defense Kitagawa Marin lost. Flustered, she hurriedly took the snacks from Diego's hand and happily started eating.
Diego lifted his head, gazing at the bustling crowd.
In the past, during events like this where I mingled with crowds, I always hid in corners where no one noticed—completely unaware—
That it could be this noisy. So noisy. The joyful voices of people—only when you're close do you realize how fun going out with friends can be…
Next time, if there's a chance, I should come with Frieren and the others.
[Dio, you didn't come to this year's harvest festival again…]
[Why should I squeeze in with that flock of pigeons? I'm a top-class wanted criminal. It'd just cause another huge commotion. You guys go have fun on your own.]
[But we wanted to participate with Dio… The elf lady waited all night and cried until her eyes were red…]
[Tch…]
This is fine. The peaceful life I could never reach in the past has gained another irreplaceable memory.
"Heh… It feels like every time I see you, you're happily munching on snacks."
"Dio-kun, you were just thinking… 'this girl really can eat,' right…?"
Kitagawa Marin's expression changed. The hand holding the skewer froze midair. Blush spread across her entire face as she muttered softly, "I won't gain weight… I exercise properly and burn calories…"
"Ko no Dio didn't think that at all. I was just feeling a bit nostalgic. In some ways, you're eerily similar to me. There was a time when I ate nonstop all day long…"
"You clearly did think it! And I—I'm the type where if I don't eat rice, my stomach won't bloat…!! It's really true!! Believe me!!"
In a panic to change the subject, Kitagawa Marin grabbed the two of them and hurried off to a lake in front of the temple.
The moment they stopped, Diego was instantly surrounded by a group of girls.
A girl with a camera hanging from her neck mustered her courage and spoke to Diego: "Brando-kun, excuse me~~ Could we take a photo?"
"Sure."
As soon as he agreed, the girl bowed in thanks and handed him the camera, apparently wanting him to take a group photo with the temple.
But the camera wasn't taken from her hand.
The girl looked up and realized that at some point, the Diego in front of her had already struck a pose.
"How much longer? Getting to photograph this great one's handsome poses—lucky you."
Several girls exchanged glances and nodded heavily. We're on the same wavelength.
Click… click… click…
They took a ton of handsome photos and left fully satisfied. Even if they died now, the trip was worth it!!
Hehe, Brando-kun~ Tonight's material is secured…
"Seriously, at the start of the school year you were so against Dio." Hayasaka Ai put her hands on her hips, clearly annoyed by the fangirling. "By the way, where's Marin-chan? She disappeared in the blink of an eye…"
Turning around, she saw Diego strip off his shirt in an instant and dive into the lake, pulling Kitagawa Marin out.
Hey hey hey… why did she end up in the lake?!