Karamori freezes, and the bags slip from his hands. His eyes glisten as he stares at us—no, at Archive—looking as if he’s just seen a ghost. It almost looks like he’s about to cry…
For a moment, it feels as if time has stopped in the room. The noise from the TV feels like it’s coming from another world.
“…My apologies. That must have been quite painful,” Archive says, and time resumes. She raises her eyebrows slightly, sets Sir Penny aside, and casually removes the hair band.
“…You have nothing to apologize for,” Karamori says.
“I know.”
After that brief exchange, Karamori looks at me with a start.
“S-sorry, Fujinaka! I ruined the mood, didn’t I?”
He smiles again and picks up the plastic bags, then sets an array of bread, pasta, and more on the living room table.
Huh? I said he didn’t need to get me anything…
“All right, Fujinaka. I know you said you’re not hungry, but you should eat anyway. You’ll feel better for it.”
Karamori seems like a pretty considerate person. Something I don’t understand clearly passed between him and Archive just now, but he quickly brushed it off with a smile. He bought me food and showed me that magic trick when he first got here…though I hadn’t really given him much of a reaction.
I get the feeling he’s the sort of perpetually friendly guy that exists in every class. How does he manage that while doing such a dangerous job as a high schooler? It seems like he has lots of secrets of his own.
While I’ve been thinking, Karamori has set out a variety of food in front of me. There’s a strawberry jam roll, red rice onigiri, strawberry no-bake cheesecake… I can’t possibly eat all this.
Wait a second…
I just noticed something about the food.
“This is all egg free…”
“You’re allergic, aren’t you? I’m glad I realized.” Karamori smiles. “I saw there were some egg-free desserts among the remaining food, so I figured that might be the case. I also noticed the strawberry accessory on your bag and the strawberries in the kitchen and guessed you might like them.”
“Whoa, that’s kind of scary,” I say, at the risk of sounding rude. I know he’s being kind, but it’s terrifying that he got that close to the truth with so little information!
I’m revising my earlier observation: He’s not just pretty considerate. He’s insanely considerate.
Although I feel bad about it, I tell him…
“Well, actually…it’s my mom who was allergic to eggs, not me.”
“Wait, really?” Karamori’s voice pitches up in surprise.
“Y-yeah. I appreciate the thought, though.”
Archive shakes her head.
“Mr. Karamori, you’re making Ms. Fujinaka uncomfortable.”
“Huh?”
Karamori looks taken aback by Archive’s accusation.
“He’s not! I was actually really impressed,” I protest.
“It is better to be honest, Ms. Fujinaka,” Archive says calmly. “I also find his need to take care of others unsettling. When my clothes were torn during our last mission, he had a backup outfit ready, which he had bought for me. It was exactly the right size. That sent a chill down my spine, which I assure you is no easy feat.”
“Your sizes are in the database,” Karamori says indignantly.
“Just wait until he serves you white rice and asks if you prefer Koshihikari or Yumepirika.”
“Come on, I wouldn’t go that far.”
Archive and Karamori feel like polar opposites. They look like they get along fine, but I get the sense they have a lot of disagreements.
“This is for you, Archive. I picked one at random,” Karamori says, taking out a colorful instant ramen cup.
“I told you I don’t need anything.”
“Don’t tell me fate said you’re not eating tonight.”
Seriously? Instant ramen?
I only met Archive today, but I don’t know if I could think of a food that seemed more at odds with her whole look… Did he buy that for her out of spite?
“…Well, I suppose it would be a waste to let it go uneaten.”
Archive slides the ramen toward herself, looking far from displeased. In fact, is that a hint of a smile?! Her expression didn’t change at all when we talked about fortune-telling earlier!
“Uh, Ms. Archive? Do you like instant ramen?”
“I do not. I am only eating this because I did not originally intend to eat, and if I am going to, I might as well eat something fast… I will be borrowing your kitchen.”
Archive gets up and walks briskly out of the room.
“Surprising, right?” Karamori says as he opens his bento box.
“You can say that again.”
“That’s one thing about her that hasn’t changed…”
There’s a hint of sadness to Karamori’s voice, but he quickly puts on a smile and looks at me.
“By the way, you can drop the ‘mister.’ We’re the same age, after all.”
“Oh… Are you sure?”
“Of course. We’re both second-years in high school. It’s embarrassing, being called ‘Mr. Karamori’ by you.”
“Okay… Honestly, it felt a little weird to me, too.”
“See? Feel free to drop the ‘Miss’ with Archive as well. She doesn’t care.”
“I don’t know if that would feel right with her…”
“Ha-ha-ha. Well, you can call her whatever you want.”
I’ll just call him “Karamori,” then. I much prefer that as well.
I decide to start with the strawberry jam roll. The moment I open the bag, a strawberry scent tickles my nose.
“So, Karamori, why’s a high school student like you doing such a dangerous job?”
I was just trying to make conversation, but Karamori looks troubled by the question.
“That’s, uh…kind of a long story…”
“Oh, sorry! I didn’t realize it was a sensitive topic… You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”
“No, it’s not that I don’t want to. It’s just…”
Despite Karamori’s claim, I can clearly tell he doesn’t like to be asked that question.
I look at the mysterious sword resting next to the door. Somehow, it managed to cut through Untitled. It feels clearly out of place beside his pistol and state-of-the-art bodysuit.
Just the sight of it sitting there makes me uneasy. Thinking back to the brief glimpse I got of its dark-blue blade, a shiver runs through my body.
Beneath the chains, the entire sheath and handle are made of glittering gold inlaid with blue and red gems. I think the gems are real. It’s undeniably dazzling, but from a design standpoint, it’s gaudy and kind of la—
“You must’ve figured it out by now. The reason I’m doing this job is related to that sword,” Karamori says, following my gaze. “You should be fine, but don’t get too close to it. It’s dangerous. Sorry to disappoint. I know how insanely cool it looks.”
“Huh?”
“Huh?”
We stare at each other.
“…You don’t think it’s cool?”
“No. Never. Not at all.”
And just like that, we end up talking late into the night.
The next morning, after the sun comes up, we go to a nearby park.
“So how are you going to move us? What if the book starts wreaking havoc again? We can’t take it where there might be people…”
“Don’t worry. We thought about that. See?”
Karamori points up at the sky. There’s a black helicopter above us, and I watch in disbelief as it descends toward the empty park we’re in. It sweeps the area with strong gusts of wind as it touches down.
“I asked for a private helicopter. We won’t come across anyone up in the air, will we?” Karamori says casually.
…It feels like I’m stepping into a whole new world I know nothing about.