Chapter 97 Im Getting Closer to Kuro...... (1/2)

The winner of the harvest festival spends the night in the Spirits’ Forest.

I’ve never camped out in the wild before, so I came to the shrine with a lot of anxiety in my heart, but then, for some reason, Kuro showed up, as if she just coincidentally passed by.

[……Seriously, you really show up out of nowhere every single time, Kuro.]

[Ahaha, I wanted to see Kaito-kun, so I went along with the flow and came here with you.]

[Rather than that, how did you know I’m here?]

[Eh? That’s because of the technique used in Kaito-kun’s neck…… Of course, it’s through my intuition!]

[Oi, wait a minute there, what were you going to say just now……]

You were just talking about a technique you used, right? Eh? What? Is she about to say that she used some kind of magic on this necklace to track my whereabouts?

How should I say this… I feel like that’s something that shouldn’t be overlooked, but the one in question, Kuro, just had a smile on her face before she spoke.

[Ahh! Kaito-kun, I heard you were hurt, are you okay?]

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[Eh? A- Ahhh…… It’s all over now.]

[I see~~ I’m glad you’re safe, Kaito-kun. Ahh, that’s right! I heard you won in the harvest festival! That’s amazing, Kaito-kun! Congratulations!]

[Eh? A- Ahhh…… Thanks.]

I nodded my head, forgetting what I was going to ask, overwhelmed by Kuro, who told me those in rapid succession as if she was a machine gun.

Ad also, how should I say this, unnn…… what the heck’s happening……

“Congratulations for your victory”, I’ve been hearing those words enough times already that I feel like they’re still resounding in my ears. I’m sure I’ve already said this to the big shot elves, but I’m not feeling worthy of that victory at all.

However, when Kuro said those words to me, what surged up from within my heart…… was joy.

Those words may be pretty simple, but it feels like my hard work paid off…… I felt so fulfilled that I’m feeling that I have worked hard all day just to hear those few words.

Seeing me like that, Kuro let out a smile as bright as the sun, before taking out a familiar paper bag.

[For such a Kaito-kun, here, you can have this!]

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[……I knew you would come out again, baby castella.]

[Fufufu, the baby castella is “Kaito-kun’s victory congratulation version”! This is different from the usual!]

[……The heck’s with that?]

I thought it was going to be the reappearance of the usual baby castella, but Kuro said that this time’s baby castella was special.

Seeing the smug smile on Kuro while she’s puffing out her flat chest, I wanted to ask her if she couldn’t do something about her naming sense, but I held back and just picked up a baby castella.

It looks the same as usual, but is the filling the one that’s different? Or is this one of those foods that was filled with strange things like that wasabi-filled baby castella I ate back at Shiro-san’s place?

[Stare~~ Stare~~]

[You’re not supposed to say that with your own mouth!]

[Staaaaaarrrreeeeeeee~~~~~]

[T- Thank you for the food.]

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Kuro looks at me with expectations in her eyes, saying the onomatopoeia with her own mouth.

It seems that I can’t choose not to eat it, so I made up my mind and brought the baby castella to my mouth.

[Arehh?]

[What do you think?]

[No, it’s delicious as usual but…… It’s kinda different than usual?]

The baby castella I tried wasn’t particularly different from the baby castellas I ate before, and I would have normally thought it was the same as the usual baby castellas.

However, how should I say this… I just felt that there was something different from the baby castellas I usually eat.

It’s hard to describe, but the taste was a little rougher than usual, and I could really feel like this baby castella is handmade…… To be honest, I like the taste of this one more than the usual.

[Hmmm. As I thought, it isn’t as tasty as the usual?]

[Eh? No, as far as I’m concerned, I like the taste of this one more……]

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[Really!? Thank goodness~~ thought I would be no good since I can’t compete with Ein in cooking.]

[Unnn? What does that mean?]

[Ah, well…… Actually, I was the one who made those baby castellas. I’m glad it came out great~~]

Apparently, these baby castellas were made by Kuro…… Or rather, I thought Kuro had been the one making them all these times, but it was Ein-san who was making them!? Even those baby castellas filled with wasabi!?

While I was taken aback by Kuro’s statement, I couldn’t say anything since these baby castellas really fit my taste, as I popped them into my mouth one after another in a pace faster than usual.

After we finished eating baby castellas, I sat next to Kuro on the tatami mat, watching the beautiful moon through the hole in the ceiling.

Come to think of it, when I first met Kuro, didn’t we also look at the moon together like this? I don’t know why, it should have only been a month ago, but it feels like that happened a long time ago.

[Ah, that’s right. Kaito-kun, “Shalltear” praised you before.]

(T/N: シャルティア / Sharutia)

[Shalltear? Who’s that?]

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[The society calls her “The Phantasmal King, No Face”.]

[Huh?]

[She’s a good friend of mine, and she would sometimes come over to hang out with me…… The last time I met her, she praised Kaito-kun, saying you’re “promising”. It’s really rare for Shalltear to praise someone, so receiving her praise is amazing!]

[N- No, wait a minute there, will you!? I don’t think I’ve even met that Shalltear-san person before though?]

(T/N: As I mentioned before, the Phantasmal King’s gender isn’t specified. I’m just assuming her gender here based on her name.)

I never thought the name of the Phantasmal King would suddenly be mentioned here.

However, for her to be praising me…… even after thinking about all the people I met before, I still have no idea which one she is.

[No, I think you never really met her before?]

[Eh?]

[Shalltear’s ridiculous amount of subordinates wer spread out all over the world, and they are really everywhere. Shalltear is the most informed person in the world. She probably even knows Kaito-kun from the day you came to this world.]

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[The heck is that, that sounds scary.]

Apparently, the Phantasmal King is a being that seems to know everything.

In short, there were agents lurking all over the world, and all kinds of information were being gathered by the Phantasmal King…… Honestly, in a way, she might be the most fearsome among the Six Kings.

[I feel like she’s also interested in Kaito-kun, so she might come and meet you soon.]

[Eh? W- Would that be alright? It’s just that Lillywood-san told me to be careful of the Phantasmal King……]

[Hmmm. It’s true that Shalltear can be dry in some ways…… but I can talk to her easier compared to Megiddo, so it’s okay.]

[Megiddo…… was the War King, right? Eh? Is that Megiddo-san worse than her?]