475: Omission (2)

After being worn down by Iroha and agreeing to her invitation, Chisato thanked Yukino after getting off the train.

He then followed the three of them to a nearby supermarket to buy ingredients for the evening's meal.

When they reached the vegetables and fresh produce section, Chisato suddenly had a vague feeling of familiarity.

At the same time, Yui and Yukino subtly turned their gazes toward him. 

When they noticed he was looking back at them, they immediately pretended as if nothing had happened and shifted their gazes away.

Thanks to their little gestures, Chisato finally remembered. It seemed that he had been in this very supermarket, in this same area, before.

Back then, he had been with Eriri and Utaha, and they had bumped into the three of them right here.

Chisato clearly remembered Yukino's cold, contemptuous gaze from that time... Strange, why did he feel a little excited about it now?

From their reactions, it seemed they were also recalling that moment.

As for the main character in question, she was happily walking through the vegetable aisles, seemingly oblivious to the situation due to her elevated mood.

But it was okay. After all, it wasn't anything major. It was probably for the best that she didn't remember.

Once they picked out all the ingredients for dinner, they ran into a slight disagreement at the checkout counter.

Chisato felt a little guilty about disturbing their dinner at someone else's house, so he wanted to pay for the ingredients himself.

However, Yukino disagreed, insisting, "Don't be so polite; let this be a return gesture for your kindness earlier."

This comment was double-edged. 

From Iroha and Yui's perspective, they would think Yukino was referring to what happened in the school meeting room earlier.

But Chisato knew she was referring to the help he had given her during the summer vacation.

How should he put it? Chisato's feelings were quite complex. 

The incidents Yukino had faced were all a result of his actions, yet he couldn't say anything about it and had to let the misunderstanding persist.

After returning to his apartment, Chisato first stopped by his own home.

Recently, the cold weather had made his pet, Dark Wing, reluctant to wander outside, and it mostly stayed at home, becoming a full-fledged homebody.

When Chisato returned, the cat was lying on the couch pretending to nap. He prepared some food and placed it on the coffee table when Utaha called him for a video chat.

As soon as the call connected, her delicate and charming face appeared on his screen.

Looking at the background, it seemed like she was in a hotel.

"Did you miss me?"

She smiled lightly and asked for affection as soon as she spoke.

"A little," Chisato replied, holding the phone and walking to the kitchen to open the fridge.

"How was Fukuoka? Was it fun?"

"It was nice, had some local specialties and took photos with my friends. It was a much-needed break. Didn't Eriri come over to your place?"

"No, she didn't."

"That girl…"

She muttered under her breath and noticed the change in the background on the screen when Chisato moved to the kitchen.

"What are you making for dinner tonight?" she asked.

"Sukiyaki, something like that."

Chisato wasn't sure, since he'd only heard a rough idea from Isshiki.

"That sounds good. Hot pot is great for cold weather," Utaha nodded approvingly. Sukiyaki, with both vegetables and meat, was quite balanced nutritionally.

"I think there should still be some wagyu beef left. Where did you put it?"

"It's on the third shelf, bottom of the fridge. You can look for it there."

"Oh…"

After some rummaging, Chisato found the high-grade beef sent by the amusement park director they had worked with before.

Though Yukino had said that, Chisato still felt it was somewhat improper to show up empty-handed, so he wanted to bring something with him.

The high-quality beef in front of him was a great choice. 

The marbled texture was pleasing to the eye, and after tasting it once before, Chisato had given it a review of "really smooth."

"Well, I won't keep you from cooking. I'll call you later," Utaha said.

"I wasn't planning on cooking tonight," Chisato replied.

"?"

"I've been invited by Isshiki, so I'll be having dinner next door."

"!"

Chisato's nonchalant comment immediately made Utaha's expression turn serious. The lazy smile that had been on her lips disappeared.

She took a shallow breath, calming herself down.

She had originally thought that with Kazusa actively leaving for overseas, the biggest threat to her and Eriri had been removed. 

Afterward, things had gone smoothly for them.

Though there was still Hitori to consider, after their first meeting and a few subsequent interactions, she and Eriri both felt that Hitori wasn't someone to be worried about.

However, unexpectedly, in such a peaceful environment, both she and Eriri had become too careless.

They had forgotten that Chisato still had someone watching him closely—Iroha, the high school student from Sōbu High School, who spoke in an exaggerated, cutesy tone.

But since Chisato had said they were having dinner at someone else's house, it meant the location of their interaction would be at Yukino's home.

And since it was someone else's home, the owner would naturally be present.

Thinking of this, Utaha's heart rate slowly calmed down.

"What's going on? Suddenly having dinner at someone else's house?"

Utaha casually twirled her hair, asking with a nonchalant attitude.

"About that, actually…" Chisato briefly explained how he had agreed to help a friend with student council tasks and then, by coincidence, ended up running into Iroha and the others because of the joint sports event with Sōbu High.

"I see," Utaha said, finally understanding.

Basically, because of the joint event between the two schools, Chisato had reconnected with Iroha.

"Well, since it's for work, there's no helping it. Go ahead, but make sure to bring something with you. Don't show up empty-handed."

"You don't need to worry about that. That's why I asked you where the beef was," 

Chisato said with a smile, shaking the beef in his hand before bidding farewell to Utaha and ending the call.

After the call ended, Utaha's forced smile immediately disappeared.

She stood up and nervously chewed on her nails as she paced around the room. After a while, she finally called Eriri's number.

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