The lunch bell, like a war horn, announced the arrival of the most "crisis-ridden" moment of the day.
Almost the instant the bell stopped ringing, two desks approached from the left and right with undeniable momentum, clanging twice as they precisely abutted Shido's desk, forming a temporary 'dining table' with a delicate atmosphere.
To the right was Tohka, who was already impatient, with the words "time to eat" written all over her face.
To the left was Tobiichi Origami, expressionless, yet whose swift action was in no way inferior.
"Shido! It's time for lunch!"
Tohka announced cheerfully, then noticed the "uninvited guest" on her left, immediately frowning and her tone turning displeased.
"...Hmm? What is it? It's you again. You're disturbing us."
Origami didn't even lift an eyelid, replying in her characteristic, flat tone: "That's my line."
Shido, caught right in the middle, instantly felt the sharp, almost tangible gazes from both sides colliding fiercely in the air, as if he could hear the crackle of electricity.
Cold sweat beaded on his forehead, and he quickly raised his hands in a gesture of appeasement:
"A-alright, alright... Calm down. Everyone... why don't we all eat together...? Lunch should be enjoyed happily..." His voice carried a subtle tremor.
Perhaps Shido's persuasion worked, or perhaps the lure of food was greater, but Tohka and Origami reluctantly (as evidenced by their subtle body language) called a temporary truce and returned to their respective seats.
Then, in synchronized motion, both of them took out their lunch boxes from their bags.
Seeing this, Shido felt as if he had found a lifeline and quickly took out his own lunch box and placed it on the table.
As if reaching a silent agreement, the three of them opened their lunch box lids with a 'click' almost simultaneously.
And then—
The air seemed to freeze.
Shido clearly saw the blue eyes on Origami's usually expressionless face widen infinitesimally for a moment.
His heart sank, and he instantly cursed his own carelessness!
Shido's lunch was one he had prepared himself this morning.
Since his parents were frequently away, taking care of his sister Kotori's meals had become his daily routine. (Although, for the past month, Kotori had rarely eaten at home.)
Therefore, when Tohka became an extra guest in the house, preparing her lunch naturally became Shido's responsibility.
And so, the result was obvious—
Origami's indifferent gaze, like the most precise scanner, moved back and forth several times between the dishes in Shido's lunch box and the dishes in Tohka's lunch box.
The two lunches were identical in every way: the shape of the tamagoyaki, the cuts in the sausage, the arrangement of the vegetables, and even the amount of sesame seeds sprinkled on the rice! They were literally copy-pasted!
"Hmm? Wh—what? Even if you look at me like that, I won't share with you, okay!"
Tohka seemed unaware of the gravity of the situation; she merely looked back at Origami in surprise, feeling confused and slightly protective of her food because Origami kept staring at her lunch.
Origami slowly shifted her gaze from the lunch box to Shido's face, her voice steady yet carrying immense weight:
"What is the meaning of this?"
"Th—This is because..."
Sticky sweat instantly broke out on Shido's face. His eyes began to drift uncontrollably as his brain frantically tried to concoct a plausible explanation.
"A-actually! This is a lunch box I bought at a lunch shop this morning! Yes! The shop's best seller! And, Tohka just happened to buy the same one there... Haha, what a coincidence..."
"A lie."
Origami mercilessly interrupted Shido's flimsy excuse. She extended a pale finger, picked up the lid of Shido's lunch box that he had placed face down on the table, and displayed the inner side, which bore a logo and design.
"This is the lunch box you purchased at the'Sundrug' discount store in front of the station one hundred and fifty-four days ago for 1,580 yen and have been using ever since. It is absolutely not a product sold by a lunch shop."
Shido was thunderstruck, staring dumbfounded: "H-how do you know that so precisely—?!"
This couldn't be explained away by mere sharp observation! This was a psychopathic level of information retention!
"That is irrelevant," Origami stated flatly, placing the lid back down.
"No, that's actually a pretty serious problem!"
Shido screamed frantically in his mind, but, intimidated by Origami's uncompromising tone and icy gaze, he swallowed the words that were about to leave his mouth, and their conversation was forcibly interrupted.
"Hmm? What have you two been talking about this whole time! Don't exclude me!"
Tohka, who had been left out, looked at the strange atmosphere and the seemingly coded conversation between Shido and Origami, puffed out her cheeks in displeasure, and loudly protested.
Her purple eyes were filled with confusion and the grievance of being excluded.
Lunchtime proceeded with difficulty amidst an extremely bizarre atmosphere where undercurrents surged.
Shido felt the food in his mouth had lost all flavor, leaving only the bitterness named "awkwardness" and "crisis."
It was at this critical moment.
Koushi made his move. (So, he made his move.)
Just as Shido was about to evaporate on the spot, pressured by Origami's all-seeing, icy gaze and Tohka's confused, aggrieved questioning—feeling like lunch was about to turn into a public execution—a lazy yet heavenly voice interjected.
"Yo, Shido, mind if I join your table?"
Koushi strolled over, carrying his own lunch box, and unceremoniously sat down in the empty space directly in front of Shido, perfectly separating the conflicting gazes from the left and right.
He opened his lunch box lid with a'snap,' revealing dishes that were strikingly similar to those of Shido and Tohka!
Koushi seemed completely oblivious to the bizarre atmosphere. He picked up his chopsticks, grabbed a piece of tamagoyaki identical to the one in Shido's lunch, put it in his mouth, and, while chewing, spoke to Shido in the most natural tone possible:
"Oh, Shido, eating together, huh? Mmm—this taste is great! It really lives up to the reputation of the lunch shop that Tohka and I specifically asked you to buy from yesterday. The best seller is reliable! Right, Tohka?"
As he spoke, he tipped his chin toward Tohka, giving her a look that signaled, "Jump in."
Although Tohka was slightly confused by the phrase "specifically asked you to buy"—she distinctly remembered Shido making it himself this morning—she had basic trust in Koushi. Especially seeing that the dishes in Koushi's lunch box were indeed the same as hers, she instinctively played along with his words, nodding vigorously and agreeing, "Yes! It's delicious!"
Koushi executed this maneuver of "confusing the issue" brilliantly. By pulling himself into the "same lunch box" camp, he instantly blurred Shido's "special act" of preparing lunch for Tohka into the ordinary action of "buying in bulk at a friend's request."
Moreover, his tone was natural and his expression was frank, as if that were the absolute truth.
Origami's gaze scanned back and forth between Koushi's lunch and Shido's face. Her mind, like a precise computer, seemed to be re-evaluating the situation before her.
If Koushi's lunch was also the same, the reason Shido's and Tohka's lunches matched seemed more likely to be "bulk purchasing" rather than the "special relationship exclusive preparation" she had initially suspected.
Although she might still harbor doubts deep down, the explanation provided by Koushi offered no obvious logical flaw for the time being.
Shido instantly understood Koushi's intention and mentally shouted, "Good friend!"
He quickly took the opportunity to follow through, giving Origami two dry laughs: "Ahaha... Yes, that's right. Koushi and Tohka both said they wanted to try that shop's lunch, so I bought them together..."
He felt the pressure of the gaze on his back, which had nearly crushed him, suddenly lessen considerably.
Koushi struck while the iron was hot. While spooning his rice, he launched into a tirade about the side dishes, complaining, for example, that "the flour coating on this fried chicken is a bit too thick," and "the broccoli would be better if it were blanched a little longer," successfully shifting the topic from "lunch source" to "lunch taste."
Tohka was also drawn in and began seriously evaluating the food's flavor, temporarily forgetting her earlier displeasure.
Origami watched the group in silence for a few seconds. In the end, she didn't pursue the matter further, simply starting to eat her own lunch silently, though the occasional glance she cast toward Shido still carried a subtle hint of scrutiny.
An impending "lunch box battlefield" was once again defused without major incident, thanks to Koushi's masterful performance of joking and obfuscation.
Shido looked at Koushi across the table, who was eating with gusto and occasionally winking at him, feeling a mix of gratitude and the inner thought, "This guy can really spin a story on the fly."
He could finally eat this lunch with a little peace of mind.
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