At this moment, inside a crepe shop next to the movie theater, a six-person booth was almost fully occupied — just one seat short — and this particular table had drawn the attention of most of the customers in the shop.
Like we said, this place is LaLaPort TOKYO-BAY, a dating hotspot for Chiba high schoolers. Couples were scattered all over, and even in this crepe shop, it was mostly lovey-dovey pairs.
However, at this very moment, most of the guys in the shop were shooting jealous, resentful looks at the lone guy at the almost full booth — he was surrounded by four beautiful girls, each with their own charm.
Meanwhile, the guy beside them could only look at the girl across from him… That's just unfair.
So, who were the ones seated at this six-person booth? They were: Yazuki, Ikaros, Megumi, and—by "coincidence" at the clothing store—Eriri and Utaha.
When they found Megumi's phone, the three of them had happened to bump into the two girls just stepping out of the fitting rooms.
As for the kind of face-reddening, heart-pounding incident you'd expect in novels or anime? Sorry, nothing like that happened.
This is reality, after all.
Also, Yazuki didn't actually find Megumi via her ringtone going off — her phone had already shut down from low battery before he even reached the store.
So, he had to ask the store clerk for help.
Through the security footage, they saw Megumi's phone get caught by a clothing rack just outside the fitting room Eriri and Utaha were in. The phone strap sticking out of her pocket got snagged and just… hung there.
There was nothing suspicious in the footage — it clearly looked like an accident.
An accident? That was way too much of an accident.
Anyway, Yazuki couldn't read anything from Megumi's expression — she was now charging her phone using his data cable, playing on it while simultaneously munching on a crepe. (Someone had clearly splurged again.)
As for Ikaros, beside them, she was quietly eating her crepe like a small animal — seriously adorable.
Across from them sat the gentle and elegant Utaha-senpai, and a glaring Eriri with her arms crossed and her infamous dead-fish eyes. It was as if she was saying, "Fess up. Who's that girl next to you and where'd you lure her from?"
"Speak. Be honest. Where did you lure this girl from?"
She even slammed the table as she stood up, her tone like an interrogator questioning a suspect.
"Do you really want to know, Eriri? Honestly, I think you're better off not knowing."
Yazuki's slightly sighing tone suggested there was a deep story behind it — one that could shake Eriri to her core.
"Huh? Why can't I know?"
"Because… she's your half-sister. Her name is Ikaros."
"…Huh?"
"Mmgh—!"
Even the ever-graceful Utaha-senpai nearly spit out her milk tea.
"Uh—!"
Even Megumi, who usually just immersed herself in her phone, looked completely stunned.
No lead-up, no filter, just blurted out such a ridiculous claim.
"You—"
"Calm down. Maybe you don't know this… but Uncle Spencer actually had a childhood friend back in his hometown. She's always loved him, never gave up. And you remember when I went missing for a while? I actually went to bring this girl back. So… yeah, you get the picture."
As Yazuki spoke, he sighed again, putting on a melancholy expression. He even gently patted Ikaros on the head.
Eriri, with wide eyes and twitching twin tails, looked shaken. But no — judging by the way she was grinding her teeth and her furious expression, she wasn't falling for it. She wasn't an idiot — there was no way she'd believe such nonsense just like that.
Still… even if she didn't buy the part about Ikaros being her dad's illegitimate child, the idea that her father had a childhood friend who still pined for him… that got her curious.
The next second, Eriri pulled out her phone and dialed.
"Yo, Eriri, missing dad alrea—"
"Dad, quick question. Is it true that you had a childhood friend back home who never gave up on you?"
"Wait—Eriri! Hold on!!!"
Her dad's panicked reaction left Eriri speechless. So… it's true?
In the background, she vaguely heard him telling someone not to come in and disturb him.
"Who told you that? Was it Yazuki? Is that kid there with you? Put him on!"
Her dad sounded super flustered, like he was afraid some huge secret had been spilled.
"So it's true then?"
"N-No—"
"Then I'll ask Mom."
"…Fine. Yes, it's true. There was a childhood friend like that. Even Sayuri knows about it."
"Then why are you so nervous, Dad? Don't tell me you're still in touch?"
"No! Absolutely not! I've explained this all very clearly! I only love your mother!"
"Oh? You sound way too nervous for that to be true."
"I am not nervous!"
"Really? Then what's this about Ikaros? Yazuki says he brought back a super cute girl from your hometown who's supposedly your illegitimate daughter."
"Complete nonsense! There's no way—wait… Ikaros, you said? That… that was the name she said she'd give if she had a kid, whether it was a boy or a girl… No, no, no! It was just one night, there's no way… Wait, so that's why she suddenly wrote me again recently…"
On the other end of the phone, a flurry of confusion, panic, and incoherent muttering poured out. If Eriri could've seen her dad, he'd probably be sweating waterfalls and dabbing his forehead with tissues.
"…Dear, would you mind explaining a little more clearly?"
That voice — her mom's — came from behind her dad, soft and gentle. So gentle, in fact, that even through the phone, Eriri felt a chill run down her spine.
"Eriri, sweetheart, Mom needs to have a little talk with Dad right now. I'll call you later, okay? Bye~"
Beep—beep—beep—
Disconnected. A busy tone.
Eriri sat down hard, dazed.
No way… That angelic girl across from her — with wings seemingly clipped — was her half-sister?
Then her eyes drifted to the source of this bombshell — Yazuki — who also looked completely stunned.
"Huh?"
That's when Yazuki took Eriri's phone and tried calling back.
Beep—beep—beep—
No answer.
"What the heck? Why do you look more shocked than I do?"
"Because I was just joking! Ikaros has absolutely no connection to your dad! I was just messing with you!"
Yazuki, now drenched in cold sweat, wiped his brow as he confessed. How was he supposed to know his little joke would accidentally hit a hidden nerve?
He only knew that Eriri's dad had a childhood friend — that's it. He thought tossing out a wild story would be funny. Who'd have guessed it would actually expose some deep family secret… and part of what he joked about ended up being true?
"You serious?"
"I'm serious."
After getting Yazuki's confirmation, Eriri's face twitched all over before her twin tails whipped into action.
"If Mom kicks Dad out, I'll be fatherless because of you, you idiot!!!"