Fuu, fuuâ¦â¦ Hah, hahâ¦â¦ Haa. haa.
Beads-like sweat formed on Inglisâ forehead. Her upturned cheeks were cherry-colored. Sweats trickled from her cheeks down to her throat. It then fell and splashed onto her chest, which soon stained her clothes and dissipated.
For onlookers, she looked even more glamorous than usual. Inglis had always been prone to gather attention, but today even more so than any other day. The boysâ eyes were glued at Inglis who was sweating profusely.
Although, the person herself was completely unconcerned, concentrating on what was in front of her. Sitting right next to her was Rafinha, as drenched in sweat as Inglis.
ãA-, are you two okay? Inglis, Rafinhaâ¦â¦ã ããWeâre good!ãã ãTh-, thatâs fine then, butââã ãThat being said, what a dreadful color those areâ¦â¦ theyâre completely red.ã ãIt is the Extremely Spicy Sauce, after all.ã
Double Extra Large All Toppings Extremely Spicy Pasta. That was a new menu entry Inglis and Rafinha had requested to the cafeteria. Today, they were battling with this extremely spicy new menu since early morning.
ãI canât say thatâs a color of something edibleâ¦â¦ã
Commented Leone, petrified.
ãThatâs not true. Itâs delicious, you know?ã ãIt has a stimulating taste!ã ãIt looks tasty in my eyes tooâ¦â¦ã
Added Pullum, supporting Inglis and Rafinhaâs claim.
ãEeh!? That looks delicious to you, Miss Pullumâ¦â¦!?ã ãYes.ã ãWeâre from Alucard, after all. North from here. Itâs cold over there, and eating spicy stuff makes our bodies warm. Weâre used to it.ã ãItâs as Lahti said. Spicy stuff tastes like home to us, you see.ã ãThen, why donât you order one too, Pullum?ã ãW-, well, the amount is a bit too muchâ¦â¦ Double extra large is justââã ãThen, then, Iâll give you some of mine!ã
Saying so, Rafinha put some of her red pasta on Pullumâs plate.
ãWah, thank you so much.ã ãOh. Give me some too, Inglis.ã ãSure.ã ãNo! You canât, Lahti!ã ãEeh!? Why?ã ãIndirect kiss is a no go!ã ãâ¦â¦Fine, fine, I got it.ã ãOoh. Youâre obediently listening to Pullum today?ã
Rare things did occur too, after all.
ãWell, I messed up real bad yesterday, after allâ¦â¦ I gotta be more docile.ã
Said Lahti, scratching his face.
ãThatâs not true, it wasnât your fault! You were only trying to save me, Iâm not blaming you at all. I wonât let the indirect kiss pass, though!ã ãâ¦â¦Sure, sure. We canât even talk properly with you around.ã
Seeing how casual Lahti was, Rafinha opened her mouth.
ãAah~ If you keep saying mean stuff like that, Pullum will grow tired of you, you know? Even like this, Pullum is quite popular. She just got a love letter the other day. Donât think that a girlâs feelings will never change, okay?ã ãWhaâ¦â¦!? O-, oi, Pullum, is that trueâ¦â¦!? Whoâs the b̲a̲s̲t̲a̲r̲d̲!?ã
Bam!
Lahti leapt to his feet.
ãOh, look at you, getting all anxious. How easy to understand~. That was a lie, a lie. If youâre getting anxious about it anyway, you should take the appropriate attitude with her.ã ãUgghâ¦â¦!?ã
Lahti flinched.
ãThatâs right~ thatâs right~ã
Added Pullum, swinging her fist in the air whilst hiding behind Rafinhaâs shoulder. However, being glared at by Lahti, she hid her eyes on Rafinhaâs back.
ãStop it, Rafinha. Itâs not good to lie.ã
Leone chimed despite seemingly amused by the situation.
ãThatâs right, Rani. Itâs hard for childish boys to be honest with the girl he likes. Once Lahti grows a bit more mature, heâll stick to Pullum like a stamp.ã ãIs that true? Inglis!?ã ãYeah. Boys are that kind of creature.ã ãDONâT DECIDE THAT YOUR DAMN SELVESSS!!!!ã
Screamed Lahti in protest, but Rafinha instead looked puzzled by something else.
ãEven if you say that, Glis. Seeing how youâre so disinterested in boys, it doesnât sound so persuasive, you knowâ¦â¦?ã ãYourâe right. After all, the last time we asked you who was cool, you answered with Prisma, didnât you?ã ãThis and that are different matters.ã
Rafinha and Leone tilted their head in confusion with Inglisâ casual reply.
How is it different? They had questioning faces, but Inglis purposely didnât answer.
ãSo, you went to save Pullum and was about to get attacked by a Magic Stone Beast?ã ãYea. And thatâs when Senior Silva came and received the attack for me. I mean, you guys saved him after that, but I still messed it up real bad. I gotta apologize to him later.ã ãEven so, that personage didnât look that angry back then, did he? Seeing his attitude towards Miss Inglis and Senior Yua, I was under the assumption that he hated the Squiresâ¦â¦ã ãAh! I knowâ¦â¦!ã ãKnow what, Rani?ã ãHe must be a guy who likes boysâ¦â¦! Thatâs why he was so kind towards Lahti, right?ã ãHaahâ¦â¦L-, like hell thatâs trueââ!ã ãAgreed. Can you not decide someoneâs taste behind their back?ã
The person who suddenly intruded into the discussion was the person in question, Silva himself.
ãUmmâ¦â¦! Iâm so, sorry about yesterday! You were injured badly because we were in the area!ã
With great vigor, Lahti bowed deeply to Silva.
ãDonât mind it. It was our mistake since we brought you two into the enclosed subspace. Rather, it was me who was saved by your group. I apologize for my rudeness, please let me say my gratitude. Thank you.ã
This time, it was Silva who bowed towards Inglis and Rafinha. Seeing this, Rafinha grabbed Inglisâ hand then stood up. After which, she also bowed her head. Making Inglis do the same.
ãNo, Iâm at fault too for saying impudent things to you. Iâm sorry! And so, since weâre all apologizing anyway, that means weâre even, right?ã
Her smile was wide and radiating. Following which, she held her hand out to Silva. This kind of freshness and friendliness were part of Rafinhaâs charm as well. She didnât fuss herself with the small things and had the capacity to let bygones be bygones.
ãYeah, letâs go with that.ã
Silva answered Rafinhaâs handshake. This conduct invited a smile to Inglisâ face.
Butââ!
ãOkay, youâre done, Raniââ Let me ask you on my behalf too.ã
Inglis quickly intervened and put an early end to Rafinhaâs handshake. It was undesirable for men outside of the family to touch Rafinha. There was no such thing as being too cautious.