After leaving the café, Beta watched Alexia walking ahead, a faint smile curling at her lips. She quickened her pace, catching up to walk beside her, and whispered softly,
"You handled that pretty well, Princess Alexia."
"Tsk!"
At Beta's comment, Alexia clicked her tongue, clearly displeased.
"You didn't have to rush things like that, Princess Alexia. If we'd talked a bit longer, I might've ended up playing the bad guy instead."
Unbothered by Alexia's attitude, Beta continued teasing her with a bright smile.
She wasn't sure why Alexia was so eager to get the intelligence she brought, but that didn't stop her from taking advantage of it to cast herself in the "good cop" role. After all, she didn't want to come across as disrespectful in front of Shadow-sama.
"Forget it. I don't care about that."
Alexia brushed it off indifferently. She really didn't mind. Though she felt a slight sense of guilt, it was for their own good, to keep both of them from getting dragged into the Cult of Diablos.
Besides, she was in a hurry because her royal sister would be arriving that afternoon. She needed to accompany her, so she didn't have time to linger with Beta.
"It's just… I think I should warn you. Don't drag Pochi into anything involving the Cult of Diablos. Pochi is my best friend."
She had only invited Pochi because Beta suggested it, and because she didn't want to look bad in front of Cid. That didn't mean she was willing to involve him with the Cult of Diablos. Pochi was so weak, if he got dragged into this, he'd die.
"Your Highness, Second Princess, I assure you, I won't involve Cid in our affairs. Will that do?"
"That's more like it. The documents?"
"Here. Take them."
Alexia took the briefcase from Beta. Just as she was about to open it, something crossed her mind, and she looked back at Beta.
"Right… if you can, could you investigate Pochi again?"
"Oh? Why? Didn't you just say you don't want Cid getting involved?"
Beta narrowed her eyes as she looked at Alexia.
"I'm a bit worried… what if Pochi has some kind of secret connection to the Cult of Diablos? Like being threatened into joining them and working for them!"
Beta fell silent. Her eyes widened slightly, her lips parting as she looked at Alexia with a complicated expression.
"You… why would you think something like that?"
"It's just a suspicion. Why are you asking so many questions? Just tell me if you can do it."
"It's not a problem to look into it. But now I'm a little curious."
Hearing that, Alexia immediately became cautious.
"I'm warning you, Pochi is mine. Don't touch him."
"No, that's not the kind of curiosity I meant… forget it, you don't need to explain. I really can't understand how your mind works."
"What do you mean? You—"
As Beta struggled to process Alexia's train of thought, a dispute was also breaking out back at the café.
"Who does she think she is…"
"Sayaka, calm down. Just calm down."
Sayaka Kirasaka was still fuming over the disdain Alexia had shown them before leaving, while Yukina Himeragi stood beside her, trying to soothe her.
"Yeah, yeah. Alexia really was acting out of character today."
Cid nodded along, agreeing with Sayaka Kirasaka.
"People are influenced by the company they keep. If you can be friends with someone like that, I doubt you're a good person either. Yukina, you'd better stay away from him…"
"I think I should clear something up. My relationship with Alexia is purely one of throwing coins and picking them up. We're not friends."
"Throwing coins and picking them up? What kind of relationship is that?"
"Not friends?"
Sayaka Kirasaka and Yukina Himeragi each fixated on a different part of his statement at the same time.
"A 'throwing coins and picking them up' relationship basically means something like throwing a stick for a dog to fetch. And just so you know, I'm the dog."
It took a few seconds for Sayaka Kirasaka to process what Cid had just said.
"…Is she a pervert?"
"I think it's fine. It's not a big deal. The pay is good, so I'm perfectly okay with it. Besides, she gets her fun out of it, and I get the coins. No one's unhappy. Isn't that a win-win?"
"I suddenly feel a bit sorry for you…"
"I don't need your sympathy. This job is easy, pays well, and has low requirements. If people found out about it, plenty would try to take it from me. I wouldn't even be surprised if someone offered money just to do it."
"Uh… I don't think anyone would be that perverted."
"I think you need to have more faith in human potential!"
"Can't argue with that."
"…"
"I'm kind of envious of your mindset. It's strange… after talking with you for a bit, I actually don't dislike you…"
Just as Sayaka Kirasaka sighed in admiration, mentally crossing Cid off her list of possible scumbags, a silly giggle suddenly came from the side.
"Hehe… not friends…"
Yukina Himeragi stood there with one hand over her chest and the other resting on her head, a blissful smile on her face as she murmured to herself.
Seeing her like this, Sayaka Kirasaka's expression immediately darkened.
"Alright, I take it back. I definitely still dislike you."