— — — — — —
Sayaka swallowed nervously, visibly shaken as she slowly reached out her hand. She lightly pinched Ryo's index finger—barely a touch—before pulling away like a startled squirrel.
Trying to sound tough, she muttered, "See? I can handle it… if it's just a quick touch."
Ryo stared at her with an expressionless face. His eyes, flat and unreadable, practically screamed: 'That's it? Really?'
Seeing that deadpan look, Sayaka's face crumpled. She wanted to try again, but the hesitation held her back. She stood stiffly in front of Ryo, legs pressed tightly together, unsure of what to do.
Ryo let out a sigh and said bluntly, "If that's the best you can do, maybe you should stop pretending you're going to get better."
To be fair, she had technically touched him—barely—but the whole thing had "I can't do this" written all over it.
All she did was make the Lion King Organization question whether she could ever overcome this phobia.
Ryo shook his head slightly.
Was she just being stubborn, or was she genuinely trying to act tough?
Compared to the straightforward Yukina Himeragi, Sayaka's personality was a tangled mess. That's why Ryo could mess with Yukina all day long and not worry about it—but with Sayaka? Yeah, no. Teasing a tsundere with a phobia of men was just asking for trouble.
Sayaka seemed to realize how badly she'd just messed up. She stood there frozen for several seconds before biting the inside of her cheek and saying, through gritted teeth,
"I'm sorry. I lost control of my emotions earlier… Please give me another chance."
Even as she spoke, her heart sank. This test was a disaster.
If things got worse, she might not even be allowed to graduate, or even if she did, her future prospects would be bleak.
She'd trained to be a Shamanic War Dancer, and most missions involved VIP protection. Sure, Endou had once suggested that Sayaka could just be assigned to female VIPs only, but… things weren't that simple in practice.
In any other organization, Sayaka would've been cut from the front lines long ago. But the Lion King Organization was a little more lenient with its own people. They wouldn't give up on someone with her potential so easily.
Still, whether she could actually overcome this phobia was a question they couldn't ignore.
Sayaka knew full well—no matter what it took—she had to prove she wasn't hopeless. Even if she had to fake it, she had to convince them there was a chance she could improve.
And just as Sayaka was caught up in her own spiraling thoughts, Endou's voice cut in, cool and flat. "Sayaka, did I ever teach you that it's okay to take your sweet time adjusting your mindset during a mission?"
"Don't be so harsh. Let her have a do-over," Shirona interjected with a smile, shooting Sayaka an encouraging look.
"Just try again," she added casually.
One played the bad cop, the other good cop—and just like that, the room shifted to 'let's give her another chance.'
"…Well, fair enough," Endou chuckled. "I'll admit my dumb student didn't exactly put her best foot forward."
Then her tone shifted as she narrowed her eyes.
"Sayaka, think carefully. What exactly have I taught you?"
Sayaka blinked in confusion, then her eyes sharpened with sudden clarity.
She bowed her head again, avoided looking directly at Ryo's face, took a deep breath—and slowly reached out her hand.
"I can do it…" she whispered under her breath.
And then, her palm pressed firmly into Ryo's.
Three… four seconds passed.
Sayaka didn't flinch. Her expression remained steady.
Ryo nodded in approval. "Not bad. Adjusting your mental state that quickly? You really are a top-class Lion King Shaman."
As he moved to pull his hand back, he noticed something strange.
"…?"
He tugged slightly, but Sayaka's grip came along with it.
Ryo blinked.
The test is over. Why are you still holding my hand?
What made it weirder was the sensation—Sayaka's fingers were gently kneading his hand, like a mini-massage… or maybe like she was getting a little too into it.
He slowly lifted his head and met her gaze.
She looked… oddly excited.
"…You're not secretly Yoshikage Kira, are you?"
His tone was suspicious.
Yoshikage Kira —an anime villain with a serious hand fetish. Ryo wasn't joking. He was genuinely starting to wonder if Sayaka had a similar… taste.
"..."
The room went awkwardly silent.
No one really got the reference, but combined with Sayaka's expression and the fact that she still hadn't let go, it didn't take a genius to piece it together.
"Ah—sorry! I-I didn't mean to—!"
Sayaka finally snapped out of it and yanked her hand back, her face turning beet red.
"…That wasn't normal."
Koyomi narrowed her eyes and suddenly appeared behind Sayaka. She tapped the back of the girl's head and said quietly,
"A self-hypnosis-type spell… I see. So that's how you suppressed your phobia. You rewrote your perception?"
"Aww, got caught cheating already?" Shirona said with a teasing smile, sticking out her tongue. "Naughty Sayaka."
Then she turned toward Endou with a big, playful grin.
Sayaka looked completely mortified. She glanced at Ryo, then peeked nervously at Endou—who gave her a long, disappointed look.
"I'm sorry…" she mumbled. But after that, she didn't even finish her sentence. She just lowered her head like an ostrich hiding in the sand.
Shirona gave Endou a knowing glance. She was sure Endou was the one who gave Sayaka the idea to cheat.
Endou covered her face with one hand and groaned, "You idiot… Don't tell me you swapped Ryo with Yukina in your mind? You thought that'd get you through the test? How unbelievably stupid."
Sayaka's head dropped even lower.
She had, in fact, used a curse to mess with her own perception—convincing herself that Ryo was Yukina.
Mental-type sorcery was exhausting, but it temporarily suppressed her androphobia. Even if she consciously knew she was touching a guy, her subconscious didn't.
"…Should've swapped it with Endou-sensei instead," she muttered under her breath, defeated.
Her own teacher had practically taught her how to cheat, and she still managed to mess it up.
'If you used me as the mental replacement, you'd never touch my hand, you little dummy,' Endou thought, silently fuming but keeping a neutral expression.
She knew exactly what Sayaka had done. That spell would've only worked with someone Sayaka was extremely close to—and that someone was Yukina, her obsessive attachment.
Buuuuut that was part of Endou's trap from the very beginning.
Getting caught cheating during a high-stakes evaluation? Yeah. That was going to scar Sayaka for life.
"Cheating during an official test, huh? If we go strictly by the book… that's grounds for expulsion," Shirona said with a sweet smile.
Sayaka turned pale. Her mouth opened, but she couldn't say a word.
"…That is what the rules say." Endou gave her student a long, regretful look. "Such a shame."
Both Endou and Shirona subtly glanced at Ryo, checking his reaction.
Meanwhile, Koyomi was watching them, clearly aware they were trying to plant a deeper impression of Ryo into Sayaka's heart.
'No wonder people call the Lion King Organization the "Lion King Matchmaking Agency"… these two are half the reason why,' Koyomi thought bitterly, trembling with rage.
Then Shirona, calm as ever, said, "Disciplinary matters fall under Ryo-dono's authority, don't they?"
"Indeed they do," Endou chimed in at just the right moment. "As much as it hurts, I'll have to hand over my foolish disciple for judgment."
Sayaka had no idea she'd been expertly played from start to finish. She stood there silently, head bowed, face drained of color, waiting for the final verdict.
Endou turned to Ryo with a faint smile. "Well then… Ryo-dono, what do you say?"
Ryo looked down at Sayaka, his expression unreadable—just as the girl slowly lifted her head to meet his eyes.
.
.
.