Chinatsu followed the "Koushi" possessed by Aha into the living room, feeling almost as if she were attending a funeral.
Her mind raced, considering how to deal with this massive variable—an Aeon who took pleasure in sowing chaos.
The moment she stepped into the living room, before she could even question "Koushi," the scene before her almost made her vomit the crepe she had just eaten.
(Bites the Dust!)
---
Because Shido had confirmed that "Koushi" was safe and sound, his tightly wound nerves instantly relaxed, and he practically collapsed onto the soft single-seater sofa in the living room.
He let out a long, heartfelt sigh, his face showing a sense of relief bordering on exhaustion, as if he had just escaped a perilous lair.
However, his unguarded posture of relaxation was, in someone else's eyes, equivalent to an open treasure vault.
The very second he finished exhaling, a figure swift as the wind lunged forward!
"Woah?!"
Shido felt a weight on his lap, and his vision was completely filled by Tobiichi Origami's delicate yet expressionless face. She adopted an undeniable and extremely aggressive posture.
She directly straddled his thighs, her slender yet strong hands gripping his shoulders like iron clamps, confining him securely within the small space formed by the sofa and her body.
Their bodies were pressed tightly together, the position extremely intimate.
Shido could even clearly feel the weight of her body and the warmth transmitted through her thin school uniform.
This made the blood rush instantly to his head; his entire face and neck turned red like a cooked shrimp.
Origami's pale gray eyes, like the most precise scanner, stared down at Shido, her gaze so sharp it seemed capable of piercing his soul.
Using her signature, perfectly calm yet utterly oppressive tone, she began her cool and rapid interrogation. Every word hammered like a tiny mallet on Shido's fragile heart:
"Proposition One: Itsuka Shido. Explain. What is your relationship with Phoenix-in Chinatsu."
"Proposition Two: Are you two currently dating."
"Proposition Three: Why was she holding your arm at the door just now."
"Requirement: Please explain in detail, in order. Now."
"Waaah! Cla-Classmate Origami?! What are you doing! Get off! Th-this isn't right!"
Shido was terrified out of his wits by this sudden "reverse cowgirl" interrogation, shouting incoherently.
His hands nervously braced against Origami's waist, trying to push her away, yet he dared not use real force, fearing he might touch something inappropriate. His futile resistance instead resembled a helpless caress.
"No, no! It's not what you think!" Shido shook his head desperately. "Classmate Hōōin and I are just... just ordinary classmates! We only recently met! Seriously!"
Hearing Shido personally deny any special relationship with Chinatsu, Origami's eyes, like the surface of a frozen lake, flickered almost imperceptibly.
Although her face remained expressionless, the pressure on Shido's shoulders seemed to ease slightly, and the tense lines of her body softened a little, as if she had silently sighed in relief.
But this did not mean the interrogation was over.
Instead of leaving, she leaned down, bringing her expressionless, pretty face extremely close—almost touching Shido's nose. Her warm breath lightly brushed his skin, causing an indescribable tickle and an even stronger sense of shame.
"New query." Origami's gaze locked onto Shido's flickering eyes, and she continued to throw out more lethal questions in her flat tone: "Based on observation, you and Phoenix-in Chinatsu engaged in unconventional interaction. Please answer:"
"Query One: Do you have a special preference for women who are skilled at cooking?"
"Query Two: Or, do you prefer women with larger bust sizes?" Her gaze seemed to subtly sweep across her own chest.
"Query Three: Or rather, do you lean toward the cold, difficult-to-approach female type?" "Please select and elaborate on your reasoning."
This barrage of sharp questions, aimed directly at his soul and concerning his personal sexual preferences, completely stunned Shido.
He felt like his brain's CPU was overloaded and burning up. His tongue was tied in knots, and he could only produce meaningless sounds:
"L-liking something... I... I don't... I'm not... That... Classmate Origami, you're... too close...!"
He tried to lean his head back to escape the proximity, but the sofa back restricted his retreat, leaving him pinned in place, enduring this sweet (?) yet agonizing torture.
Origami's persistent and serious gaze, combined with the intense stimulation from the physical contact, made Shido feel like he was suffocating. Only one thought spun wildly in his mind:
(Kotori! Help me—! This is harder than dealing with a Spirit—!)
And just then, Koushi (Aha) and Chinatsu walked in, taking in the entire scene.
"Pfft—Hahahahahahaha!!!" Koushi (Aha) froze for a second, then erupted into a tremendous, utterly undignified fit of laughter. He laughed so hard he bent double, even dramatically pounding the wall.
"Hahahaha! Amazing! This is incredible! To see such an interesting spectacle the moment I arrive! Hahahaha! Shido, you sly dog! A cooking battle during the day, and a love battlefield at night! Life is truly splendid, hahahaha!!"
His laughter was filled with pure, unadulterated "Joy," as if he were watching the most entertaining play in the world.
Compared to Aha's wild laughter, Chinatsu's reaction was much calmer. She simply raised an eyebrow, a look of "I knew it" understanding and resignation on her face.
(Sigh, Master Origami is the same as always—incredible initiative and completely uncaring about onlookers... This classic scene really did happen.)
"N-no, it's not like that! Koushi! Chinatsu! Listen to me!" Seeing the two enter, especially Chinatsu's "calm" expression, Shido panicked even more, feeling as if he had been caught cheating by his actual girlfriend (though he didn't have one).
He suddenly exerted force and finally managed to push Origami off him. He scrambled to his feet, trying frantically to clarify: "Classmate Origami just suddenly... We didn't do anything! Really!"
However, the pushed-away Origami showed no sign of shame or surrender. She immediately clung to him again like a persistent parasite, this time tightly hugging Shido's left arm.
She leaned her entire body weight onto him, then lifted her face—which was still expressionless, but whose tone was deliberately laced with grievance and accusation—and spoke to Koushi and Chinatsu:
"Shido... he tried to push me away just now."
"He might... hate me."
"Is it because... Classmate Hōōin is here?"
Her words were light, yet they acted like a soft dagger, precisely steering the situation toward a love triangle narrative of "Shido rejecting his old flame (?) because of a new lover."
She framed herself as the pitiful, "rejected" character, placing Chinatsu in the position of the "interloper."
Shido: "??!!! I am not! I didn't! Don't make things up!"
Chinatsu watched Origami's masterful "tea art" performance, completely unfazed, even feeling a slight urge to applaud her acting skills.
(As expected of Master Origami, this skill in twisting facts and confusing the audience is truly unparalleled.)
Koushi (Aha), meanwhile, laughed even louder, slapping his thigh as he did so:
"Gah gah gah gah! Entertaining! Too entertaining! I actually get to see such a magnificent drama! It's better than Amamiya City TV's annual special! Hahahaha!"
The entire apartment living room was filled with Aha's maniacal laughter, Shido's desperate explanations, and Origami's expressionless "accusations."
And Chinatsu's weary silence. A chaotic farce, personally orchestrated by the Aeon of Joy, had officially begun.