Sin, carrying a large basin of toast, had just walked through the door when two overlapping shouts hit her head-on, startling her so much that she almost dropped the toast.
"What are you shouting for?! You looking to die?!" Sin immediately bared her teeth and shouted back at the two, her expression so fierce it looked like she wanted to turn the two early-morning shouters into today's bacon.
After hastily walking to the table and placing the toast down, Sin was about to roll up her sleeves and settle the score with Rozaliya and Liliya.
Seeing that she was about to be in trouble, Liliya immediately shut her mouth and looked at Rozaliya.
She's all yours!
Rozaliya's eyes widened. She couldn't believe she had been a second too slow, and now a huge pot had been dumped on her.
"What did you just say?" While her mind was racing, Sin had already appeared before her, grabbing her by the collar and pulling her close, while also planting a foot on the stool they were standing on.
"Bronya's back?" Rozaliya repeated subconsciously.
Sin's fierce expression faltered for a moment. She blinked, leaning closer to Rozaliya's face. "Say that again?"
"Uh... Bronya's back?" Rozaliya's eyes discreetly glanced at the ears that Sin's short hair couldn't cover, then she repeated herself hesitantly.
"Move!" Sin let go of her and waved her hand forcefully. Liliya and Rozaliya, as if they had rehearsed it, immediately stood on either side of Sin and made a "please" gesture.
"Tch..." Sin clicked her tongue, then stepped onto the small stool and looked out.
She immediately saw the strange group that had arrived at the gate, and the familiar figure astride a large bear.
A smile flickered on Sin's lips for a moment, then froze on her face. Her mouth twitched for a while before she finally managed to suppress it.
She put on a stern face, jumped down from the stool, and ran out the door without looking back, looking as if she were spoiling for a fight.
Rozaliya and Liliya exchanged a glance. After Sin had run out the door, Rozaliya and Liliya stood together.
"Did Sin just smile?" Rozaliya rubbed her eyes and asked blankly. "Liliya, am I seeing things?"
"Liliya saw it too," Liliya nodded. "Sin just smiled."
"But isn't Sin..." Rozaliya trailed off.
"Rozaliya forgot that Sin is a tsundere," Liliya revealed the truth.
---||---
Outside, Bronya patted the big bear's head. The bear obediently stopped at the gate and sat down with a thud.
The sound of its solid rump hitting the ground made Shu, standing beside it, cringe.
"Damn it, I want a mount too..." On the other side, Kiana was fiercely envious.
If Bronya can do it, she can too!
Mei, with her golden longsword at her hip, smiled helplessly. She could probably guess what Kiana was thinking right now... probably about how to tame that beautiful deer and make it her own mount...
After silently mourning for the deer for two seconds, Bronya slid down from the bear, walked to the gate, and was about to ring the doorbell.
"Bronya-oneechan!" A familiar voice came. Bronya paused, a smile involuntarily appearing on her face.
"Seele!" Bronya smiled and looked in the direction of the voice.
They both saw each other.
"Mei, look at how Bronya's smiling... she never smiles at us like that..." Kiana's nose twitched, and she sidled up to Mei to start badmouthing.
"Bronya is just too excited..." Mei smiled and patted Kiana's head. "You were much more excited than Bronya when you saw me in Nagazora."
"That's..." Kiana pouted but couldn't come up with a rebuttal.
She really had been very excited then, because she had been separated from Mei for a month, while Bronya and Seele had been separated for... almost four months now?
Maybe Bronya's reaction wasn't that exaggerated?
"We're finally here..." Shu stood to the side, watching Bronya and Seele gaze at each other through the gate, and a smile appeared on his face as well.
At that moment, he felt a sense of mission accomplished. After all, the month-long journey since they had set out had not been easy... de Pascal and the Tower of Babylon, two places, two Herrschers...
And the third Herrscher they had met yesterday was still unresolved... Shu let out a breath, feeling a little tired.
But now was not the time to let his guard down. He would have to wait until that Herrscher was dealt with before he could rest.
Beside Shu were two pint-sized figures of similar height. Sirin was hugging a Homu doll, her eyes wide as she looked back and forth between Seele and Bronya. Her eyes were filled with nothing but the desire for gossip.
She had seen Shu's memories through the Key of Remembrance, but not in detail. She wasn't very clear on the relationship between Seele and Bronya.
But her intuition told her that there was definitely something between them.
This "can see but can't touch" situation soon ended. A woman with two-toned short hair, who looked like she had rushed over, unlocked the gate. After the iron gate disappeared, Seele immediately rushed forward excitedly.
"Bronya-oneechan!" Even though Seele was a little taller than Bronya, she buried her head in Bronya's chest.
"I missed you so much, Seele..."
Bronya smiled and patted Seele's head. "Mm, Bronya missed Seele too..."
Sin, holding the lock: "?"
It's fine, I'll wait for them...
"Bronya-oneechan, have you been okay these past few months?"
"Don't worry, Seele, Bronya is fine."
...I'll wait a little longer...
"Bronya-oneechan, that bear..."
"That's a new friend Bronya made. If Seele likes it, she can pet it."
"Hey, hey, hey! Bronya, can't you see me?!" Sin couldn't take it anymore. She shouted at Bronya with a dark face.
Shu maintained his smile.
It's fine, he was forgotten too.
"Sin, long time no see." Bronya didn't react, but kept one hand on Seele's head and extended the other towards Sin.
Shu tried hard to maintain a dignified smile.
"Wow... you've come at just the right time, I can't even tell," Kiana said in a very low voice, expressing what Shu was thinking. Mei gently patted Kiana, and Kiana immediately made a zipping motion across her lips.
Sin looked at Bronya's open arms, her face inexplicably blushing. She then averted her gaze.
"Who's been long time no see... I don't care about that..."
Then she walked over and patted Bronya's hand.