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Max forced down the jumble of thoughts in his head.
He looked ahead at Satania, who was currently wrestling a Samoyed for… a piece of bread?
"Hey, you need a hand?" he called out.
They were fighting over a melon bread.
Satania's absolute favorite.
He remembered in the original world setting, whenever a Samoyed showed up, Satania almost never got to eat one.
No wonder they called those dogs the angels' lapdogs.
Ha. Figures.
"Huh?"
Satania, still locked in a tug-of-war with the fluffy beast, turned her head at the sound of his voice.
Perfect opening!
The Samoyed's eyes flashed, and it yanked hard.
The bread slipped free, right into its jaws.
With a triumphant bark, the dog bolted, legs flying, melon bread clenched tight.
"Ah! My melon bread…!"
Satania froze, eyes wide, arm stretched out like she was in some dramatic soap opera.
She could only watch as her precious bread got farther and farther away. Tears glimmered at the corners of her eyes.
Ugh… my poor melon bread.
"…Well."
Max was speechless at the scene.
And yet, part of him wanted to laugh.
Classic Satania.
Why does she always look like she's on the verge of tears?
Probably because her love for melon bread runs so deep.
"You okay?"
He coughed lightly, breaking the silence.
Satania turned to him.
Suspicion flickered in her eyes. Her face seemed to say, Who even are you?
"Wait a sec…"
Something clicked in her head. She narrowed her eyes at him.
"That was you just now, right? The one who called out?"
"Yeah, that was me." Max smiled and nodded.
"What do you mean yeah, that was me?! Of course it was you!"
Hands on her hips, Satania glared.
"It's your fault my bread got stolen! I was winning, you know! I almost had it back—then you yelled, and that mutt ran off with it!"
"…Fair point."
Max blinked, then chuckled.
"How about this—I buy you another one. Sound good?"
"Eh? Really?!"
Satania's eyes lit up like Christmas. She stared at him in shock, then in growing delight.
"Really." Max nodded again.
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"
Grinning ear to ear, she looked at him with a whole new warmth. She'd already thought he looked pleasing enough, but now? Now he was downright charming.
"Lead the way."
Max chuckled, and the two set off together toward the nearest bakery.
Along the way they chatted, slowly closing the distance between them.
About ten minutes later, they stopped near a shop by the station that specialized in pastries.
Max lined up, waited a minute or two, then bought a small bag's worth of bread:
Two melon breads, a blueberry roll, a cheese-and-bean bun, and a sandwich.
Everything except the melon bread was for his own lunch.
"Here. Your melon bread."
He handed both to Satania.
"Wait, two?!"
She blinked, surprised, but quickly accepted them both.
"One's to make up for the one you lost," Max said with a smile. "The other's a little gift. Let's call it… a 'first meeting present.'"
"First meeting… present?"
She froze for a second.
Max grinned. "Well, we're friends now, aren't we?"
"F-Friends?!"
Her eyes flew wide. She clearly hadn't expected to hear that word.
Then it sank in.
She puffed out her chest, fighting the huge smile threatening to break free, and said with mock pride:
"Hmph! Not just anyone can be my friend, you know."
"Oh? And why's that?" Max raised an eyebrow.
"Because," Satania declared with a smirk, "I'm destined to be a legendary demon lord. A great demon!"
Classic Satania. She didn't even bother hiding what she really was.
"A great demon, huh…"
Max's eyes flickered.
If he hadn't already known she was an actual demon, he'd have just written her off as a cringey chuuni.
An idea sparked in his eyes. He reached out his hand.
"Well then… guess I'll take one of those breads back."
"Wha—"
Satania panicked, eyes wide again.
"No no no, that's not what I meant! Ordinary humans don't qualify, sure, but you're different!"
She flailed, trying to explain, almost on the verge of tears again.
During her time in the human world, Max was the first person who'd actually felt… different. Someone she liked right away.
And no, it wasn't because of the melon bread.
Sure, she'd even thought about dragging his soul into the demon world as her underling one day. But that wasn't because of melon bread either.
And yes, he was the first human who'd ever said he wanted to be her friend.
She really did want to be his friend.
Definitely not because of melon bread.
But now, because of her own dumb pride, she was about to lose that first friend, and the thought made her want to cry all over again.
"I get it, I get it. No need to freak out."
Max smirked.
"Eh?"
Satania blinked at him.
He extended his hand again. "From now on, we're friends. Nice to meet you."
"Friends!"
This time, she beamed, eagerly grabbing his hand and shaking it.
As their hands met, Max's vision flickered.
The Book of All Things chimed in his head.
For a moment, his eyes widened in surprise.
When their handshake ended, he smiled again. "Let's swap contact info."
Satania agreed immediately.
They exchanged emails and phone numbers.
No LINE, since Satania didn't have it.
They walked and talked a while longer.
About twenty minutes later, they reached a crossroads and went their separate ways.
"My first friend…"
Staring at Max's name saved in her phone, Satania's grin was so wide it could've outgunned an AK.
"Friend. Hehehe…"
Her silly little smile stayed plastered on her face.
Meanwhile, after parting, Max summoned the Book of All Things.
Nobody else could see it anyway.
He flipped to the latest page: Satania's entry.
It was already glowing.
Name: Kurumizawa Satania McDowell
Rank: BlueDescription: Demon from the Netherworld
Acquired: Divine Drag-Ride · Bahamut
"Divine Drag-Ride…"
Max narrowed his eyes at the reward.
It didn't immediately click where it was from.
But after a moment's thought, it hit him.
The world of Undefeated Bahamut Chronicle.
There were two types of Drag-Rides: the standard, mass-produced ones, and the Divine Drag-Rides.
The Divine ones were unique.
Each had its own defining power, and at full strength, every single one of them could contend for the title of "strongest."
Bahamut belonged to Lux Arcadia, the protagonist himself.
And it was strong—no question about it.