We headed up to the rooftop and sat down to eat.
The sky was thick with clouds today, which worked in our favour. No harsh sun baking us alive.
Eri held out her bento.
'My knight. You shall offer tribute to this lord.'
Kasumi sat beside me, and Eri immediately settled on her other side.
I opened my bag and pulled out a bento.
'Here is yours, Kasumi.'
'Thanks, Di-ran.'
Kasumi lifted the lid, took a whiff of the aroma, and smiled before picking up her chopsticks.
Meanwhile, Eri patted her stomach.
'Feed me, my knight. This lord is hungry.'
'Okay.'
Kasumi brought the bento closer, picked up a piece of beef, and held it out.
Eri opened her mouth.
*Chew. Chew.*
And just like that, Kasumi's lunch break stopped being her own.
That was lunch now: one bite for Eri, one for herself, then back to Eri again.
As for me, I ate like a normal human being. By which I mean I stuffed food into my mouth as fast as possible.
It was a habit from my time as a hero. You never knew when a monster might crawl out of the shadows the moment you let your guard down.
Kasumi suddenly spoke.
'So… Di-ran… you won the bet.'
I paused and lowered my bento.
'So… what favour do you want?'
Eri slowly turned and stared at Kasumi, the kind of look people gave to silently beg someone to shut up.
'Hmm…'
What do I want?
Honestly, I had no idea.
Before I could think much further, Eri jumped in.
'Heh. This lord shall grant any one wish, but only one.'
She closed her eyes and clasped her hands together.
Under her breath, she whispered, 'Please don't be much. Please…'
That was when it hit me.
Saki has been moping around. Although her usual energy was still there, there was less of it.
Sometimes, when she lay on the sofa, I could hear her muttering to herself. 'Everything will be fine. It just takes time.'
'I—'
Before I could say anything, Eri hurriedly cut in again.
'This lord will grant you anything within her power, so don't hesitate. State your wish.'
A bead of sweat rolled down her forehead.
Kasumi glanced at Eri, then back at me.
'Well… I can't do anything grand, but…' She fiddled with her fingers. 'I'll try my best.'
I looked at the two of them.
'I'm not asking for much.' I took a breath. 'I want you to help me convince Saki to apologise to Hina.'
'…'
Eri froze.
For several seconds, she just stared at me.
'Ha. That's simple. This lord thought you were going to ask for something far grander, and yet you waste your wish on this?'
'What happened between them?' Kasumi asked, tilting her head.
Right… she wasn't there and I doubt any of them told her.
'Saki and Hina had a fight.' I said. 'And I don't think they've made up yet.'
Kasumi's expression softened.
'Poor them… you don't need to waste a favour for that. I'll help either way.'
I shook my head. 'This is what I want.'
'Then… I'll do my best.'
Beside her, Eri raised her hand.
'Yes, Eri.'
She lowered it and adjusted her glasses.
'Are you really going to waste this lord's favour on something so simple?'
'To me, it isn't simple.'
Eri let out a quiet sigh.
'Then…'
She looked away and fiddled with her glasses again.
'This lord will do her best to fulfil her servant's wish.'
And with that settled, classes dragged by without any incident.
—————————————
When classes ended, Kasumi first had to stop by her club and apologise, saying she had something important to take care of.
Once she was free, we started the walk home and, like clockwork, Saki was already waiting for us at the front gate.
The moment she saw Kasumi, she spread her arms wide.
'Oh, you're here, Kasumi. Long time no see, my dumpling.'
Kasumi glanced at me before stepping forward and hugging her.
'Yes. Long time no see.'
The moment they pulled apart, Saki pinched both her cheeks.
'I missed these dumplings,' she said with the grin of a complete menace.
'Umm…' Kasumi tried to talk through the assault.
'Saki, could you stop for a second? I want to talk to you about something.'
Saki let go and turned to me.
'What's up, Master?'
'It's about you and Hina.'
The moment those words left my lips, she stiffened ever so slightly before forcing out an awkward laugh.
'Ahaha… what about Hina and me?'
'You two still haven't made up, have you?'
'Pfff… of course we have.' Her eyes drifted away. 'Why wouldn't we have made up? Hina and I… we're fine. Totally fine.'
Before I could say a word, Kasumi moved forward.
'Saki, is… is that really the truth?' Kasumi asked softly, placing a hand on her shoulder.
'Umm… yeah… yeah, it is…'
Saki started bouncing on her heels. Sweat dripped down her forehead.
'Then… if you did, that's good.' Kasumi began to step back.
But before she could, Eri stepped in.
'Saki.' She removed her glasses. 'We're your friends. If you need help, we'll be there for you.'
'I…'
Saki hesitated. Her fingers tightened around her clothes. Her shoulders trembled as she stared at the ground.
'I…'
She looked up.
Then Kasumi pulled her into a hug, and Eri wrapped her arms around her from behind.
'I… haven't yet.' Those words barely escaped her lips.
She wrapped her arms around them.
'I don't know what to do.'
Kasumi gently whispered.
'The first thing would be to apologise.'
'I tried.' She rested her head on Kasumi's shoulder. 'But every time I do… I run away.'
Eri tightened her arms around her.
'This time will be different because you have us.'
'But…'
'A disciple of mine doesn't run from something this important.'
She looked at me before resting her head again.
'… Right.' She clung to Kasumi tighter. 'I'll try.'
Kasumi then slowly turned to face me.
'Di-ran, you should join in the hug.'
'Do I really have to?'
They all looked at me with expectations.
I sighed.
'Fine.'
I walked over and we all hugged each other.
In the end, Saki agreed. So we headed toward Hina's apartment.
The walk there felt strangely quiet.
Even Eri didn't say much. Kasumi kept glancing at Saki, while Saki herself stared straight ahead.
By the time we arrived, her usual energy was nowhere to be seen.
She stood in front of the door, took a breath, and raised her hand to knock.
*Knock. Knock.*
While waiting, Saki fidgeted beside me, glancing around like she was planning an escape route.
*Squeak.*
Just as the door opened, Saki tried to run, but before she could, I stopped her.
'Let me—'
Before she could finish, Hina had already opened the door fully.
'Hello, everyone.'
Hina greeted us with a small smile, but the moment she saw Saki, her smile faded.
Saki turned around and gave a frantic little wave.
'Yo. Hina. Nice weather today, huh?'
'…'
Hina crossed her arms. Then she spoke flatly, 'What is it, Saki?'
'You know… I just wanted to check how you were doing. But it looks like you're fine. Ahaha.'
Hina said nothing. She only watched.
'Saki.' I nudged her. 'This is not what you came for.'
'I…'
Saki scratched her cheek. Her legs shifted, like she might try to run again, but that was when Kasumi gently placed her hand on Saki's shoulder.
'You can do it, Saki.'
Eri then nudged her glasses. 'A true bond is not one without conflict. It is one that survives it.'
'Just say what you really mean,' I said.
Saki turned toward us, then back to Hina.
'Hina…' She clenched her fists. 'I… messed up.'
'I said some stupid things. I was angry that day… but that's not an excuse.'
'And after that… I kept avoiding you because I didn't know how to face you.'
Then, Saki bowed.
'So… I'm sorry.'
'…'
Hina looked at her for a long moment.
'I was waiting for you, you know.'
Saki didn't move.
'Even if we fought, I didn't want things to stay like that.'
'I kept thinking you'd come the next day. Then the day after that.'
Saki's mouth trembled. Her whole body shook.
'I was angry, yeah. But more than that… it hurt that you just kept running from me.'
Then Hina stepped forward and gently took Saki by the shoulders.
'Look me in the eyes, Saki.'
Saki flinched, but after a moment, she raised her head.
'Why did you run?'
'I…'
Her eyes dropped.
'I was scared…'
'Scared that you'd reject me.'
'I thought that maybe… if I just left it alone… things would go back to normal.'
Saki looked Hina in the eyes.
'But… that was just a coward's excuse.'
'…'
There was a brief moment of silence, then Hina sighed.
'You idiot. Next time, just talk to me.'
She pulled Saki into a hug.
'We're best friends.'
Saki flinched. Then, slowly, she hugged her back.
'Yeah.' Her voice cracked. 'I'm sorry.'
They stayed like that for a few moments before finally pulling apart.
Kasumi smiled.
Eri, meanwhile, did the most Eri thing possible.
'Great.' She raised a hand. 'The peace treaty has been signed.'
'…'
No one said anything. We just stared at Eri.
Eri looked around in confusion.
'What? Did this lord say something wrong? It has been resolved, hasn't it?'
I facepalmed myself.
Then I heard a soft giggle. It came from Hina.
'What peace treaty?'
'The one between the Swordfish Knight and her dear friend, obviously,' Eri declared.
Hina covered her mouth, trying not to laugh. Beside her, Saki finally smiled properly.
Looking at them, it felt like the knot that had hung over all of us for days had finally come loose.
Kasumi smiled, Eri looked proud of herself, and Saki… Saki looked like herself again.
'Come in already,' Hina said, stepping aside from the door. 'It'd be weird to leave my guests standing outside after all this.'
And for the first time in a while, Saki's smile no longer looked forced.