Durandal sat on the sofa, feeling a little uneasy. She felt that something was strange about her right now...
When Otto told her that Ryn had reappeared, for the first time, she had interrupted her training plan for a reason other than a mission and had run to find Ryn.
She ran to Otto's office, but neither Otto nor Ryn were there. Then the alarm at Schicksal rang, saying there was a Honkai Beast attack.
By the time Durandal arrived at the target location, all that was left was the dormant Kukulkan and Dr. Nagamitsu's team, who had come to investigate.
After finding out from Nagamitsu and the others that Ryn had taken Kika towards the apartment district, Durandal rushed to Ryn's apartment.
Standing in front of Ryn's door, Durandal was at a loss. Her hand hovered in mid-air, hesitating to press the doorbell for a long time.
The moment she heard Ryn was back, her mind was filled with thoughts of seeing him. All she had to do was press this doorbell to see the person she had been longing for.
But...
The door opened, and Kika stood in the entryway, looking at Durandal in surprise.
Durandal didn't know what happened between her and Kika after that. She just remembered being dazedly pulled inside by Kika, sitting on the sofa, and then nothing.
When Durandal saw Kika in a state of disarray in Ryn's room, her mind went blank.
Although Durandal usually seemed a bit goofy, with only fighting and training on her mind, after she and Ryn were misunderstood by Rita last time, Rita had given her a crash course on improper relationships between men and women.
No wonder Ryn and Kika were so close. So that was the kind of relationship they had?
What should I do... Am I the third party?
"No, no! Durandal, get a grip!"
Durandal patted her own face, forcing herself to calm down.
"What am I even thinking... I just came to check on Ryn! Why am I getting so sidetracked!"
"Durandal, what are you talking about? Have some tea and something to eat first!"
Kika placed a plate of dessert and a teapot on the coffee table, then poured a cup of tea for Durandal.
After that, Kika picked up a small cake and lazily lay down on the sofa, slowly eating while saying to Durandal:
"You're here for Ryn, right? Unfortunately, I don't know where he went either. But since he left me here, he'll definitely be back to pick me up soon."
"Mm..."
Durandal looked at the tea leaves that took up a third of the teacup, silently closed her eyes, took a small sip, and then decisively put the cup down.
No wonder Kika didn't drink the tea herself. So she also knew she couldn't make tea...
Kika, who had been secretly watching Durandal, saw her put down the teacup after just one sip, and her tense heart immediately sank.
Gu... Even Durandal can't drink it, so Ryn probably won't like it either.
Kika's whole demeanor became gloomy. She curled up into a ball, turning into a gloomy little mushroom rotting in the corner.
Durandal: "Uh... Rita is quite knowledgeable about the art of tea. If Miss Kika wishes to learn more about it, you could try asking Rita for guidance."
The moment Kika heard Rita's name, she thought of the elegant maid in public, perverted loli-con in private. If she really took Durandal's advice and went to Rita, she would probably be relentlessly glomped, have many cute pictures taken of her, and then be ruthlessly threatened with those pictures...
"Miss Rita, huh... I think I'll pass. This is fine!"
"Alright, my apologies for being nosy."
Click—
Ryn pushed open the door and walked in.
Durandal and Ryn stared at each other, both stunned.
The moment Ryn saw Durandal, it was as if he had witnessed the beginning of the universe, the formation of planets, the birth of life...
No wonder he always felt like he had forgotten something...
The whole reason he was in such a hurry to return to the prime world was because Durandal was still confronting Su!!
He had completely forgotten about it! And he had been chatting and laughing with Su outside the World Barrier earlier! Damn it, I'm really not a good person!
Durandal looked at Ryn, who had become more mature, his eyes deeper, and she was immediately filled with deep self-reproach.
If she hadn't been careless and gotten swept into Sumeru by the Second Divine Key, Ryn wouldn't have been teleported to an unknown place by Su to save her.
In her dream, she had dreamed for ten thousand years, witnessing the history of the Previous Era's struggle against the Honkai and the stories of the Flame-Chasers, who were not recognized by the world...
Although, according to her body's protective mechanism, these memories that didn't belong to her would gradually fade and be forgotten, only to resurface upon touching those who actually existed.
So what about Ryn?
How much hardship, how much tempering must he have gone through to become the person he was now.
(Ryn: It was the tree's fault, the sea's doing. The hardships were from the torrent of time, and the deep look in my eyes is from having my soul drained by Tianqi. I'll be fine after some rest, it's not a big deal.)
Ryn and Durandal didn't know what the other had been through, but their eyes were filled with apology for each other.
They simultaneously shouted to each other, "I'm sorry! Ryn/Durandal!"
They were stunned for a moment, then said in unison, "Huh? What are you sorry for?"
"Uh... nothing!"
Ryn and Durandal fell silent at the same time, then spoke again.
"Are you two doing a comedy routine here!"
Kika complained with a sense of speechlessness, then took Ryn's hand and pulled him to her side.
"If you have something to say, just say it properly. Who can understand what you're saying when you speak in riddles."
"Hehe, I was rude. My apologies, Durandal."
"It's fine..."
Ryn picked up the teacup and poured himself a glass of water. He had been busy for so long and hadn't had a single drop of water.
But when he saw the dark yellow tea in the cup, Ryn fell into deep thought.
"You poured the wrong water, this isn't for drinking!"
Kika quickly scrambled up from the sofa, trying to snatch the teacup from Ryn's hand with flailing arms.
How could she let Ryn drink something that even Durandal couldn't stomach!
"Alright, alright! You must have made this tea, right? This is the first time I've ever seen you make tea!"
Ryn held Kika's head down with one hand and held the teacup high with the other, preventing her from snatching it, then drained the cup in one gulp.
Ryn smacked his lips after drinking. The tea was nothing but bitter, with the aroma of tea but none of the flavor...
"These tea leaves aren't very good, the tea doesn't taste good. Let's give them to Yae Sakura? We can buy those pre-portioned tea bags. I prefer that kind of tea. Although some of the tea's flavor is lost, it's simple and easy to make. Kika, what do you think?"
"What do I think, my foot!"
Kika picked up a cushion from the sofa and threw it at Ryn's head.
"Just keep spoiling me! Don't you dare regret it when I'm completely spoiled!"
"Hehe..." Ryn grabbed Kika's small hand and gently pressed it against his heart.
"See, the heart isn't in the center. What's wrong with being a little biased and favoring you."