"..."
Under the girl's gaze, she felt a little embarrassed. Subconsciously, she took a sip of orange juice, using the rim of the glass to slightly cover her face.
"...Hey... Mio."
Staring at the orange juice shimmering gold under the light, Hare spoke absentmindedly.
"...Mm?"
Hearing her call, she lifted her eyes to look at her.
"Inori... is really amazing..."
"...Mm."
She murmured softly. That was true... in a sense, she acknowledged that the other girl was impressive.
"...I probably can never catch up to her, right?"
Hare sighed. They were people from completely different worlds... Inori was strong... unlike her, a crybaby.
"..."
Watching the girl murmuring like this, the Shogun took another sip of her drink and set it down on the table. The movement seemed to draw Hare's attention as she looked at her.
"Why compare yourself?"
She frowned slightly and asked, her tone somewhat complicated.
"...Mio... you wouldn't understand, right?"
Hearing the question, Hare gave a helpless smile.
"What do you mean?"
She asked.
"Mio... what do you think of Inori? Do you like her?"
Hare asked.
"...If it's a matter of liking or disliking, then of course I like her."
She answered.
"But..."
"...?"
Hare looked at her again, waiting for her next words.
"I... like you too. I don't think there's anything strange about that. There's no need to compare these things."
She replied, somewhat puzzled.
"Pfft... that really does sound like something Mio would say..."
Hare smiled fondly. She was certain that Mio hadn't truly understood the meaning of 'like,' or the deeper meaning of 'love.' She understood the kind of 'like' Mio meant—it was only within the bounds of friendship or something like close companions.
"..."
She didn't respond, simply watching her quietly.
"Haa... honestly, if someone else had said that just now, it would've meant something completely different. But... since it's you, Mio, that's a different story."
Hare let out a relieved smile. Then she slowly placed her hand over the back of Mio's hand and gently held it.
But thinking about it, she hadn't felt any jealousy from Inori. On the contrary, she often seemed to encourage her. It was hard to understand... Did Inori not like Mio?
No... she was sure of it. Inori definitely liked her. But... she hadn't taken another step forward. Or rather, had she already reached her limit?
Haa... she was really awful. The other person hadn't even tried to compete with her, yet she had taken the initiative to compare herself. Sigh... how self-indulgent, Hare.
"Are you two big sisters flirting in public?"
The next moment, a black-haired girl with a ponytail suddenly appeared beside them. She grabbed a drink and casually took a sip, glancing at their clasped hands as she teased them.
"—///!"
Startled, Hare immediately let go of her hand.
"Ah... sorry, sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt... you two carry on. I'll go somewhere else."
The girl waved her hand in understanding and turned to leave.
"You misunderstand. It's not what you think."
The Shogun sighed and also withdrew her hand from the table.
"Oh? Is that so? Then can I stay here?"
The girl asked.
"Suit yourself."
She replied indifferently.
"Thanks~ By the way... how are the drinks here?"
The girl sat down beside Hare, glancing at the orange juice in their glasses.
"A bit bland."
She answered honestly.
"M-Mio..."
Hare gave a bitter smile. Even if it was true, she could've phrased it more gently... sigh...
"Haha~! Big sis, you're too funny. Then let's add a bit of sugar to the orange juice later. I'll let the bartender know."
The girl laughed, completely unbothered.
So there really was a bartender here?
She had thought anyone could just take whatever they wanted. Seems she was mistaken.
"Um..."
"My name's Kyou. I'm a new logistics member here."
Kyo seemed to anticipate Hare's question and answered smoothly.
"I heard from Gai about you two. Wow~ your story is amazing... especially you, big sis with the purple hair. You're incredible~! I didn't see it myself, but just hearing about it sounds unbelievable. Gai said that with you around, Funeral Parlor would take a lot fewer detours. I believe in you, big sis~!"
After taking a sip of her drink, she smiled at Mio with excitement and admiration.
"...I'll do what I can."
She sighed inwardly and gave a passable reply.
"Mm~! Ah—soon I'll be able to go on missions with Gai too. Even if it's just logistics support, I'm still so excited~! It's my first time~! Well, I'll get going. Bye-bye, big sisters!"
She hopped off her seat, placed her cup back, and waved as she ran off.
"...Such an energetic child."
Hare smiled as she watched her leave.
"A child like her is actually quite dangerous in an organization like this."
She said.
"...Mm, that's true..."
Hare understood what she meant and didn't press further.
Night—
Tap, tap...
Inori stood alone outside a room in the corridor, knocking lightly as she waited for the person inside to open the door.
"..."
There was no immediate response, but she didn't seem anxious. As always, her expression remained calm as she casually observed the softly lit hallway around her.
Buzz...
The lights flickered occasionally due to poor contact—something she had long grown used to.
Click...
At last, the door opened.
Gai, bare-chested with a coat draped over his shoulders, looked somewhat unwell as he stepped aside to let her in.
"..."
She glanced at his expression before silently entering the room. He closed the door behind her.
The room was relatively spacious but sparsely furnished. There was only a single bed—and it was the kind used in hospitals. To her right was a window divided into eight panes. Since the curtains weren't drawn, the room was filled with soft moonlight from outside. Even without the lights on, it was bright enough—bright enough for her to see the trace of blood at the corner of his mouth.
"..."
She didn't speak right away. Following him, she walked over to a globe, touching it lightly and spinning it back and forth.
"How's your body?"
She stopped the globe and looked at Gai, who was already seated on the bed.
"Same as always... you know that."
He replied.
"It doesn't matter," Gai answered casually.
"...There's blood."
She pointed to the corner of her own mouth as a reminder.
"...Haa."
After noticing it, he wiped it away carelessly, then lay down directly on the bed and pulled the blanket over himself.
Seeing this, she walked over to the bedside, picked up a blood bag placed nearby, hung it on the IV stand, connected the tubing, and skillfully inserted the needle into the vein on the back of his hand. She then turned on the monitoring device beside him—his ECG and various data appeared on the screen. After making the necessary preparations, she activated the dialysis machine and the series of connected instruments.
Once she finished this set of procedures, she let out a quiet breath and slowly sat down on the chair by the bed, looking at the man lying there.
"Has it gotten worse these past few days?"
She asked.
"Yeah... compared to before, I suppose so."
He answered, then opened his eyes and looked at her under the moonlight, smiling with a complicated expression.
"You... are becoming more and more like that woman."
He said with a faint sigh.
"..."
Hearing this, Inori did not respond immediately. Instead, she glanced at the silver cross pendant resting on his bed.
"Do you hate it?"
She looked at his profile again and asked.
"...I don't know."
After a moment of silence, he gave a complicated answer.
"Do you like her?"
She asked.
"...Mm."
With his eyes closed, Gai nodded slightly.
"...Does it hurt?"
"Mm... it hurts. It hurts a lot."
He smiled faintly, as if mocking himself.
"Gai... when you saved me back then, was it because I—"
"No. Even if you didn't resemble her, I would have saved you. It has nothing to do with that."
He interrupted her.
"...I see."
She didn't press further.
"I never treated you as her substitute. You don't need to worry about that."
"...I know."
She nodded.
"Tell me about you."
"My... story?"
"That woman's matter, Mio's matter... you... do you like her?"
Gai kept his eyes closed as he asked.
"...I like her. But... that's all. As for Mio... I don't want to take another step forward."
Because she doesn't belong to me... she understood that clearly. So it was enough to remain as family... or friends—something just short of lovers. She knew that one day, Mio would leave. During that time, it was enough just to stay by her side. Besides, lately she could sense that the Shogun seemed somewhat fixated on Hare. Thinking about that made her feel a little uncomfortable.
Haa... forget it. Once she had made a decision, she wouldn't go back on it.
"Is that so? When it comes to things like this, you're more mature than I am."
Gai opened his eyes and looked at her with a faint smile.
"Have you ever thought that we might be wrong? Do you regret it?"
He asked.
"Funeral Parlor is my home. You all—including Mio—are my family. So, Gai... I won't let you down. Never."
Inori answered him indirectly.
"I see... you've worked hard during this time, Inori."
"...Mm. You too."