Editing The Unexplored Summon Blood Sign:Volume7 Chapter2 (section)

===Part 5===

Freedom 903 was in a sorry state.

Kyousuke breathed the scorched air while carrying the small girl he had once fought alongside.

It felt like a warzone.

Nothing remained of Houbi Village and its refreshing breeze.

“…Dammit.”

“Do not let it bother you. That child’s evil actions are not your fault.”

“No, I should have predicted this. Given how obsessed with me Bridesmaid and the White Queen are, I should have considered the possibility that they would also become a threat to people I know.”

This went beyond Olivia Highland.

He pictured the Alices he had saved either in the past or by altering causality.

Librarian-chan and her sister, Isabelle and Murasame Kuina, Himekawa Mika and Ellie Slide, Sekurtiti and Azalea, Meinokawa Renge and Higan, and all of those before then. All of those people had paved his way to 903 Awards.

Just because they had not been targeted yet was no guarantee they never would be.

“If you ask me, they might have been intentionally left alone,” said Aoi while carrying Biondetta whose body was defenselessly sprawled out.

“…What?”

“Do not feel bad. Because I am a lookalike for the Queen, I feel like I can understand how she thinks to a certain extent. Yes, I simply feel like I can.”

The silver-haired shrine maiden sighed.

She was still carrying Biondetta over her back, so the two girls’ cheeks were rubbing together.

“What a girl in love fears more than anything else is being ignored. And on that front, you are very easy to manipulate. I mean, you have announced you refuse to let anyone die, so it’s obvious from the start what someone has to do to get your attention.”

“…”

“From the very beginning, you’ve displayed the one weakness you can never ignore. If someone dreaming of you is ever feeling uncertain, it goes without saying what she needs to do to put her mind at ease, right?”

Did that mean those girls would not have been targeted if Kyousuke was not “like this”?

Did that mean the best possible path Kyousuke had thought up had actually directly led to this hell on earth?

“That’s ridiculous…”

“Indeed. But we can view this in a positive light. If the White Queen is playing one of the cards she had held in reserve, it means she is feeling the pressure. In other words, she feels the need to shake you using one of her trump cards.”

While they held their conversation, Meinokawa Aoi guided him to an irrigation ditch dividing the paddies. This should have been in clear view of the satellites overhead, but there were a few exceptions.

For example, below an intersection with the ocean embankment.

When Kyousuke peered inside the round opening using his smartphone’s LED light, he saw a rusted and broken grating with water falling even further down through it. It was not a problem for Kyousuke and Aoi, but if a small child like Olivia followed her curiosity and crawled inside, she might end up trapped.

There were numerous cracks, but the tunnel had not collapsed even after the downpour of rockets. Even with the disaster-prevention embankment so close by, it was unnaturally sturdy for a civilian structure.

“You can get underground from almost anywhere here. Burning a few scorch marks on the ground isn’t enough for this Houbi land to collapse.” With Biondetta still on her back, the silver-haired shrine maiden freed one of her hands and waved her slender finger. “Since you’re in contact with Renge of this generation, I assume you understand the Meinokawa Shrine’s situation. Including the fact that Guard of Honor came to steal the Joruri Text.”

“You mean…?”

“They eventually managed to get it due to the gambling debt, but there were a few largescale attacks before that. With the Toy Dream policy underway in various remote rural regions, no one cares much about a poor, declining village. This is not the first time that this Houbi land was destroyed. Rebuilding afterwards is our way. It’s like a filming set for the silver screen.”

Was that why the Meinokawa Shrine’s wood had smelled surprisingly new for such an old building? They had perfectly recreated it, including intentionally damaging the wood and adding moss.

“We are a tough people both inside and out. And that includes Renge and Higan. So don’t worry about it too much.”

“…But if you can get in from anywhere, won’t Bridesmaid notice the underground tunnels too?”

“They will of course find an entrance or two. But the inside is a complex three-dimensional labyrinth and their ''sat-a-lite fotos'' and ''map daytuh'' will not be of any use. It will take them ages to map it all out themselves.”

“Could they smoke everyone out with poison gas or flamethrowers?”

“It is possible, but we can switch between several patterns for the wind direction inside the tunnels. By determining the routes through which air can travel, we can keep the damage to a minimum even if they send poison in through an entrance.”

It did not matter that they were wearing sneakers and leather boots. They stepped into the source of the unpleasant mixture of a muddy and salty smell and let their feet sink into the sludge as they trudged on. They saw a few branching tunnels that were protected by metal grating, but one of those had a door locked with a chain and combination lock.

“Um, what was the combination again…? N-no! It isn’t that I’ve forgotten!! Don’t treat me like an old lady!!”

“I didn’t say anything. Now move out of the way.”

Aoi hopped up and down, causing a variety of jiggling, and made a preemptive denial while blushing, but Kyousuke pushed her aside and grabbed the longish combination lock. He set all of the 8 digits and then unlocked it.

“Huh? How did you do that???”

“''That’s the kind of world this is.''”

Kyousuke began to think this might also prevent any harm even if Bridesmaid used poison gas. Anything inorganic was not a real threat. As everyone fled through the complex arrangement of tunnels, ''they would just so happen to make the correct choice.

(On the other hand, things could get very bad very quickly if they have actual people perform a direct search. ''They might miraculously find the villagers right away''.)

“What do we do now?”

“Those…''Bridez-made''? Anyway, those people with a Western name are Queen worshipers, right? To be honest, this isn’t looking good. I don’t know how skilled you are, but I doubt we can push them back in a direct confrontation. It would be a lot of work with little excitement, so it would be boring and a pain to go along with.”

“Well, I suppose so.”

To reiterate, Kyousuke’s group gained nothing from fighting that Queen-worshiping cult. It would not help them complete the trump card the boy had in mind. Win or lose, they would lose something if they were caught in a battle with that pain-in-the-ass group.

Unfortunately, Bridesmaid was not taking their circumstances into consideration.

“Now, it’s about time we got serious. Even if the role was forced onto me, I am a shrine god and I must protect the people of Houbi Village.”

“And how will you do that?”

Meinokawa Aoi shifted defenseless Biondetta’s position on her back as she answered Kyousuke’s question.

“They worship the White Queen, so let’s break that mental pillar and bring them to a state of apathy. The best course of action is to construct your method of killing the Queen and shove that blade toward the Queen’s throat.”

“…”

“Even with the appropriate knowledge and technique, you cannot acquire an artificial vessel with special artificial blood in its veins if we do not have a workshop to give it physical form. But how many such workshops do you think are hidden in this village? …Well, let’s just say that ''Bridez-made'' cannot find them all if they cannot even grasp the full scope of these underground tunnels.”

(…Artificial blood, hm?)

That term had not come up before, so Kyousuke made sure to make a mental note of it.

They could not see the stars in the narrow underground tunnel, but Kyousuke’s sense of direction told him they were generally moving from the ocean to the mountain.

“A cruise ship has been abandoned at the top of the mountain. It is called the St. Elmo.”

“At the top of the mountain? Why???”

“It was originally used for leisurely cruises in the crater lake, but an earthquake created a deep crack in the lake bottom. It dried up and now only the ship remains.”

“So is that the workshop?”

“One of them, yes. Even if ''Bridez-made'' breaks into a government office ''daytuh-bays'', they shouldn’t find anything if they only check for ‘buildings’.”

Whether or not something showed up in a search could sometimes lead you astray far more than whether or not that thing was visible. Of course, they would likely discover it if they spent months performing a thorough search, but Kyousuke and Bridesmaid were in the middle of a blitzkrieg where speed was everything. Kyousuke would not give them the time.

After they continued on for a while, their surroundings began to change.

The sewer-ish smell vanished and the plain concrete walls and floor were replaced by the smooth curves of a limestone cave. Rather than developing the area according to a blueprint, they had apparently forcibly connected the tunnel to a nearby cave. It felt a lot like a sightseeing cave.

(Since the awful smell hasn’t gotten in here, she might have been right about their ability to control the flow of air to fight against smoke and poison gas.)

While thinking about that, they climbed the gradual slope of the limestone cave. Perhaps because it was so damp, none of the evacuees were gathered here. Closed environments helped mold spores harm people’s lungs and mouths, so that dampness could not be taken lightly.

“Phew. I’m soaked just from all this walking.”

“…”

“Hey, quit thinking and try blushing a little. A young maiden’s clothing is all wet and see-through. And I can’t cover up while carrying this summoner.”

“I’m glad to see the Joruri Method has more horsepower than a normal person.”

“Nn, mhhh!!”

For some reason, Aoi puffed out her cheeks as the two of them continued on.

That reaction was less like an old lady and more like a little sister who was ignored after putting on a show of as much sexiness as she could manage.

Once they arrived at the edge of a large underground lake with a metal bridge across it, the unpleasant moisture soaking their hair and skin had vanished. This area seemed to be well ventilated.

“…This would be a good place to rest.”

“Oh, I see! So wet clothing just wasn’t good enough for you. You were waiting until you could see a girl bathing. I have to admire your dedication, you utter pervert!!”

“That nonsense aside, we need some place to set down Olivia and Biondetta.”

“Just as a warning, it is quite rude to not bat an eye when faced with a defenseless girl.”

He already knew from his experience with the true white evil that this kind of idiot would only look at you like an idiot if you idiotically did what they claimed to want.

The underground lake’s water was probably used to create a division between the cave system’s currents and moisture. And the area around the lake was not entirely cut off from human civilization because, after taking a short walk, they discovered a small shrine-like wooden building. It did not seem religious and they found several blankets and camping goods in plastic packaging inside.

There was also some portable food on the level of canned goods.

“This is surprisingly gourmet. There’s rice and freeze-dried vegetables that only need hot water. And all sorts of seasonings too.”

“Well, it takes a lot for salt or soy sauce to go bad.”

Aoi must not have liked how her damp leather boots felt because she stripped them off. All of the supplies were carefully packaged, but that was likely to prevent snakes or bats from getting into them. However, Kyousuke was less interested in the oddly unique options than he was in the world-famous cup noodles.

“…This is an incredibly outdoorsy selection.”

“Well, in this rural area, there isn’t much else to look forward to. And look at this lineup: if they weren’t going all out, there wouldn’t be so many options.”

From the looks of this, the entire three-dimensional labyrinth might have similar supply areas just like the pay phones and vending machines that never seemed to entirely go away. Instead of preparing with a specific threat in mind, it felt more like they had been having fun turning it into something like a secret base.

(I wouldn’t be surprised to find traps that send boulders rolling down slopes or levers that change waterways.)

Kyousuke prepared himself for the worst when it came to that slight “playful spirit” he sensed here.

At any rate, they finally managed to let Olivia and Biondetta rest while defenseless both inside and out. As Aoi had said, their hair and clothing were quite wet just from the dampness of the cave. Olivia’s school swimsuit had grown a deeper shade of blue. After lowering the two girls onto the wooden floor, Kyousuke and Aoi broke open the clear packaging and pulled out a few blankets.

“The losers can’t resist anything, so if we leave them be, they could catch cold or even come down with pneumonia.”

“I’m aware of that,” said Kyousuke. “But if we lit a fire inside here, it would cause carbon monoxide poisoning. That means we need to remove their wet clothing to dry them off.”

“Now, then. I’ll leave the decision to you, but who will dry off who? Choose, boy. Face the abyss within yourself: A flat chest or giant boobs. I am willing to let you enjoy your fetish. Hah hah!!”

“…”

“…Okay, okay. I’ll do both of them. I’ll be a good girl.”

“Dry off Biondetta’s white snake too. Be extra careful with it since it’s cold blooded.”

When Kyousuke put his hands on his hips and glared at her, Meinokawa Aoi shrank down. After tossing his vessel a towel, the boy left the shrine(?).

As far as he could see, there was no sign of Bridesmaid summoners or Repliglass soldiers hiding in the area. Even by the large underwater lake, there were only so many passageways leading here, so he considered setting up a simple trap.

Given the large space and the excellent ventilation, he figured he could start a fire next to the lake.

(That said, that’s only if we decide to wait around here.)

It was an entirely unnecessary action, but Kyousuke picked up a nearby stone and threw it toward the vast lake.

(20 times.)

After making a prediction, he counted the number of times the stone skipped off the water’s surface.

(19 times.)

He made sure it was not just a coincidence.

(23 times.)

He finally breathed an exasperated sigh.

Kyousuke had not thrown the stone after making every last physics calculation like Laplace’s Demon. He had intentionally omitted all calculations in order to prove something.

“…''Honestly, this is one hell of a world. It’s like I can manipulate coincidence.''”

And this was no time to be doing that.

At the moment, he had two major choices available to him.

The first was to wait for Olivia and Biondetta to recover so they could replenish their fighting force before continuing on to the cruise ship at the mountain’s peak. Olivia was technically not an ally, but having to carry her around and having her walk on her own two feet would make a major difference.

The second was to not wait for them to recover and start for the cruise ship right away.

Simply put, it was a choice between speed and caution. The pros and cons of both went without saying.

“Heyyy!”

Aoi walked over from the double doors of the shrine(?).

She had apparently finished drying off the two defenseless girls, getting them dressed again, and placing the blankets over them.

“The sun has likely set outside, so it wouldn’t hurt to fill our bellies.”

“?”

He realized Aoi was holding some cup noodles and freeze-dried foods against her surprisingly ample chest.

“Um, just out of curiosity…Renge could eat like normal, but what about you?”

“Have you not seen ‘inside’ Renge? Just because we use artificial parts doesn’t mean our body is structured any differently. If we are injured, we bleed red. If we move around a lot, we get hungry. I like to have more than 30 minutes of exercise a day to stay healthy and I ideally get 8 hours of sleep a day. Although since I am artificial, I can switch all that activity on and off.”

“Oh? So you’re like a dried-up human water bear.”

“You just pictured something incredibly pathetic just now, didn’t you!? Toryahh!!”

Out of nowhere, Meinokawa Aoi made a strange cry, threw her hands into the air, and collapsed backwards into the clear water.

“What are you doing!? This is kind of an emergency situation!”

“Oh, shut up! An impertinent brat called me a dried-up old hag, so I’m just hydrating myself is all! Besides, I was already wet from all this moisture. What does a little more matter?”

The lake was not all that deep right at the shore, so Aoi sat up and laughed. Some of the clear water pooled up on the surprisingly large chest of her shrine maiden outfit.

“How about you? Build up too much stress and it will affect your performance, so it might be a good idea to blow off some steam.”

“…Then could you please try harder to avoid ''giving'' me any stress in the first place?” Kyousuke brought an exasperated hand to his forehead. “And this is the same as when you played in the river. It’s the wet clothing that’s bothering me.”

“Mwa ha ha. And what if I said I was doing it on purpose?”

“…”

“Keh heh heh. I’m joking,” said Meinokawa Aoi as she trudged back over to him. “Quit taking everything so seriously. It’s stifling.”

It was not that he maintained an unshakable heart; he simply knew how to quickly recover when it was shaken. And that was not just splitting hairs because every little thing seemed to transform into a major event around her.

Meanwhile, Aoi stood on one leg, tilted her head to the right, and tapped her palm against the side of her head. She seemed to have water in her ear, but she did not seem to notice that her careless action also caused her surprisingly large breasts to move up and down.

“Yo…ho…Ah, that got it out. Hey, can we start a fire here?”

“I warned you. So are you getting chilled?”

“No. After letting dust gather on me for so long, I want to fill my belly for the first time in forever. And I can’t hold back any longer with those cup noodles right in front of me. Oh, I want some junk food so badly right now!”

“…Well, it is unlikely Bridesmaid will show up now.”

Aoi’s face lit up and she lined up her prizes along the edge of the lake.

“What, do you only have an oil lamp? A campfire would seem a lot more outdoorsy!”

“…You ''are'' freezing, aren’t you?”

“No, not really. Although I am soaked, so I could stand to let my clothes dry. Uryahh!!

She let out another strange cry.

And of all things, she reached for the string of her bright ''hakama''<ref>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hakama Hakama] is a traditional Japanese clothing. It covers from waist to ankles.</ref> and undid the knot. From there, gravity did its job. To describe it with a sound effect, it fell right down with a “fwoosh”.

Unlike a normal ''kimono'', it lacked a separate ''obi'', but the ''kosode''<ref>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosode Kososde] is a multipurpose Japanese robe.</ref> being so wet paid off and the front remained in place and the collar stayed together. It may have been something like throwing a wet towel against the wall.

An incredibly grim look came to Shiroyama Kyousuke’s face.

“What are you doing?”

“Mwa ha ha. There’s no need to force that serious look. You’re secretly panicking because I already mentioned that girls in traditional clothing don’t wear Western underwear, aren’t you? But too bad! The ''kosode'' is made long, so you still can’t see anything!! Just like a girl in nothing but a baggy dress shirt!!”

“I can’t believe this. And come to think of it, I never asked Renge if you were waterproof. This is going to be a lot more difficult if all this water is making you malfunction.”

“Hold it! Why aren’t you blushing!?”

In her Japanese-style naked dress shirt(???), Meinokawa Aoi raised both arms in anger, but not even Kyousuke knew how he was supposed to react here.

Regardless, Aoi herself set her butt down on the ground, pouted her lips, and twisted the knob on the oil lamp that would boil water for them.

“Nn.”

“What’s that weird groan for? Did you get all sandy when you sat down?”

“I really don’t think you should take such a realistic view of a girl in nothing but a single piece of clothing!! And a proper woman knows how to protect herself without letting it show on her face!!”

“Except it’s most definitely showing. And the way you’re lifting your hips is about to let something else show, so fix that!!”

The collar was only plastered in place with the moisture, so it could open up at any moment.

And despite the conversation, they were not about to forget they stood on the front line of the Summoning Ceremony.

“Let me make something clear,” said Aoi.

“Yeah?”

“Even if that…Olivia, was it? Even if she comes to, it will not be easy to open her eyes to the truth when her faith in the Queen is so strong.”

“I’ve taken that into account.”

Meinokawa Aoi had created the shock of a failed summoning and it apparently put people in the same state as losing a Summoning Ceremony battle. That meant it would take about 24 hours before they recovered. Aoi had likely planned it this way, but Kyousuke’s side was fortunate that they had taken less damage due to not summoning a Material.

That gave them time to think.

“Oh, they had water bottles in there, didn’t they?” asked Kyousuke.

“This land is known for its water, so why not just drink from the lake?”

“Do you have any idea how much bacteria there must be in there? Even commercial mineral water is boiled and there might be germs that can resist the heat. We don’t have time to examine the water quality, so if there are bottles it’s best to just use it.”

“And judging what is going on inside that Olivia girl’s head would be even more difficult. Then again, she contains the royal blood that allows her to control the Materials with such incredible precision. To be honest, I am not fond of the idea that your bloodline determines everything before you are even born, but she would make for a powerful ally if she was fighting on our side. Of course, that’s only ''if'' we could convince her.”

“I know that.” A grim look came to Kyousuke’s face. “But we might be able to manage since this is Houbi Village. For that, I’m thankful.”

“?”

Aoi shook her long silver hair, walked back to the shrine(?), and returned with a family-sized water bottle held against her surprisingly ample chest. Since both her hands were full, she could not hold down the bottom of the ''kosode'' that showed off her thighs right up to the very top.

Once the shrine maiden sat down with only the ''kosode'' covering her butt, she poured the imported deep sea water into a metal pot from the camping goods.

“Now, I want to decide on a general plan,” said Kyousuke. “At the moment, we have two primary options.”

“Yes. I would like to head for the summit as soon as we finish eating this. This Houbi land has fallen to those ''Bridez-made'' people and the people cannot elude them forever. Our time limit is two or three days at the most, so there is no time to waste.”

“Really? I was hoping to suggest we wait for those two to recover.”

“And why is that?”

There was a wide variety of cup noodles, but Kyousuke chose the standard soy sauce flavor while Meinokawa Aoi chose the limited edition seafood tomato soup flavor.

“First of all, to increase our strength. Simply having Biondetta able to fight will mean a lot. And if those two can walk on their own, we won’t have to carry them.”

[[Image:BloodSign_v07_172.jpg|thumb]]

“Hmm. Sorry, but based on that battle, I’m not sure what help she would really be.”

“That was just a bad matchup for her.”

They pulled the lids of the cups halfway up and then Kyousuke froze in shocked silence. In nothing but a soaking wet ''kosode'', Aoi sprinkled grated cheese into her container before even pouring the hot water inside.

“Why was there cheese in the disaster goods?”

“Why not? Fermented foods are generally preserved foods, right? Just like seasonings, it takes a lot for things like natto and kimchi to go bad. Hm, hm, hmm. There is nothing wrong with adding a hint of extra flavor, so it’s time you had a taste of a maiden’s aesthetics.”

“Maybe so, but you wouldn’t just leave yogurt sitting out, would you!?”

“What, have you never heard of ''greke yo-gert''? Get with the times!!”

“You don’t store Greek yogurt at room temperature!”

The two of them continued bickering and fighting over each other’s toppings. Kyousuke was not too picky except when it came to cereal, but he needed to acquire the proper nutrients when he knew he had to fight. Simply put, he had to eat when he had the chance.

“Oh? Are you the kind of boy who knows his way around the kitchen?”

“I’m not an expert or anything, but I can handle it at the moment. ''Even without any special knowledge, everything will miraculously come together if I just choose at random.''”

“?”

“It’s the same as that combination lock. This is a world where I can mix random drinks at the soda fountain and end up with the kind of success worth getting patented. As long as there’s at least one possible success among the random options, I’ll end up choosing that one. Of course, that’s only when I don’t come into conflict with someone else’s choices.”

As he explained, Kyousuke’s hand wandered about and grabbed something ''at random'': a freeze-dried vegetable set. He poured hot water in there, set it back down, lightly cooked it in a frying pan, and mixed in some starch and water. All of it was simple enough for a child to do, but it ended up making his cup noodles ''ankake''-style. It lacked meat, but he did not reach for the canned goods, perhaps because it would have clashed with the thick ''tare'' sauce.

Meanwhile, Aoi sat with her bare thighs placed in front of her.

“Hm, hm, hmm.”

“What are you doing with that rice? Surely you aren’t making ramen rice.”

“You fool. Have you forgotten my cup is already something of a mess with the grated ''cheze'' inside?”

“So you admit it’s a mess!?”

“But if I rehydrate the rice and dump it in…tah dah!! It transforms into something like a ''rizo-to''!!”

“What the hell kind of food is that!? The noodles are extraneous at this point!! The cheese, soup, and rice would be enough!!”

But because of the world they now lived in, that too was a success.

The world was a complicated place.

“Hmm, it could use some more color. Oh, I know. There were some canned goods. Yes, there’s some salted chicken. That would be the perfect finishing touch!”

The lid had a pull tab, so Aoi did not need a can opener. Only after seeing that did Kyousuke realize there were cans with a non-''tare'' sauce. He had failed to properly look over everything because he was relying on the random choices like a book fortunetelling. The meat in cup noodles always made one wonder if it was really meat, so he was honestly jealous.

(Does that mean I can’t choose any coincidental successes that weren’t in the options I thought were possible?)

And…

“…Ow!”

“?”

“Uuuhh, I was caught by a fearsome trap.”

“Don’t try to make this sound more exciting than it really is. Just say you cut your finger on the edge of the can’s lid.”

Aoi grew tearful as a red drop of blood appeared on the tip of her index finger.

“Oh, I know. Boy, I think you should lick this off to disinfect it.”

“Well, I don’t think so. Why would I?”

“Don’t act like it’s some awful thing! You made me do it when we bound our contract, but now you refuse to put mine in your mouth!? Honestly! Oh, honestly!!”

Aoi was quite upset and began licking off her own finger.

Their ridiculous conversations did help pass the time. When adding original toppings, it took time for them to work their way into the entire cup. If you miscalculated, your noodles could end up overcooked.

“Well, even if she only diverts the enemy’s attention, I can see how letting Biondetta recover would be useful,” said Aoi. “But what about Olivia? Letting that child wake up seems to me like it would only complicate matters. She would likely try to escape from us at every opportunity and I doubt Biondetta would appreciate it after losing to her. We could end up with an internal threat in addition to the external ones.”

“That ties into my second reason. If we can get information out of Olivia, we might be able to get some details on the Bridesmaid troops deployed in Houbi Village.”

The silver-haired shrine maiden gave a bitter look.

Aoi crossed her arms, which lifted her surprisingly large breasts.

“That seems overly optimistic. Wouldn’t that require fully eliminating the Queen worship rooted so deeply in that child’s soul? Although I would appreciate it if we could accomplish that.”

“I know.”

“I am not just talking about whether she will obey us or rebel. If she pretended to turn over a new leaf and fed us false information, it would only invite chaos.”

Of course, Kyousuke knew all too well the troublesome transformations people underwent when influenced by the White Queen.

However.

The promised time arrived, so Kyousuke removed the small stone from the top of his lid.

“If we can’t get Olivia on our side, we’ll have to search out the extent of Bridesmaid’s deployment on our own.”

“Mh.”

“We have a set destination in mind, but the route we take to reach that cruise ship at the mountain’s peak depends on Bridesmaid’s location. It would mean a lot to know their timetable in advance.”

“Summoner battles are quite different from those of traditional armies. Isn’t a dense mass of enemies the perfect opportunity to build up a Chain and wipe them all out? Aren’t you at Freedom’s 900 level?”

Meinokawa Aoi fully peeled up the lid, bent over at the hip without bothering to grab any chopsticks, and leaned forward to bring her nose to the steaming container.

“Ahhh. The combination of tomato and cheese seems to have come out well. Didn’t it, my cute chicken ''cheze rizo-to''-chan☆”

“You can’t even call that ramen anymore, so it’s actually scary that it looks like it might actually be decent.”

“D-don’t leer at me like some kind of wild animal… But if you are jealous of my amazing creation, I am willing to give you a bite. But just one! O-okay, say ‘ah’.”

“…What am I supposed to do here? I understand the rules of this world, but I’m just having trouble believing it…”

“What, so you want to fight? Then let’s let our fists do the talking.”

Meinokawa Aoi puffed out her soft-looking cheeks, but there was a clear look of enjoyment in her eyes.

She soon began eating the risotto(-ish thing) she had created.

“Eating with someone else really is nice.”

“…”

“Renge has been better than most, but I really have been neglected as the generations go by. There really is no substitute for eating a proper meal like this.”

But anyway.

Kyousuke got back on topic while slurping up the cup noodles he had successfully modified into ''ankake'' ramen.

“Using their superior numbers against them by breaking through a dense formation with a Chain is certainly a viable tactic, but what if Bridesmaid sees it coming? They might have intentionally spread out their people to prevent a Chain. They might even skip the whole Summoning Ceremony business and just snipe us from a distance. We’re not talking about that pure white here and summoners aren’t all-powerful. I also want to ask Olivia ''how well they understand me.'' Even if that means angering her into letting something slip.”

Olivia was a member, Azalea had been a member, and they had their connection to the White Queen herself. Bridesmaid knew far too many people who understood Kyousuke as a person rather than a legend. If they understood the details of his thought processes and built up a flowchart people could use, it would be dangerous to continue blindly on with no hope of supplies or reinforcements. They might lure him into wasting Incense Grenades. He did not have access to anyone like Lu Niang Lan or Ellie Slide here, so he could not resupply and needed to be careful.

Meinokawa Aoi’s surprisingly large chest rose and fell as she worked her artificial lungs to blow on and cool down the contents of her container.

Then the shrine maiden looked up in just her white ''kosode''.

“…I’ll just have to trust your judgement then.”

“Thanks.”

But then she grabbed some of her thick rice porridge creation, held the chopsticks out toward Kyousuke, and winked.

“Listen. Do not forget that this smooth decision is a result of a pure and beautiful maiden taking a step back so the gentleman can show what he can do. Besides, you seem biased toward those girls with Western names like Olivia and Biondetta, so I need to remind you that I am the one with the contract to share your destiny as your vessel.”

“Sure, whatever.”

“That’s the kind of behavior I’m complaining about! Stop acting like I don’t matter at all to you!!”