"Only Idiot Kiana would carry this many... takeout boxes in such a bizarre way." With her suspicion confirmed, Bronya fully dropped her guard.
It wasn't like Kiana was just holding the bags in her hands. As established, she was currently functioning as a human Christmas tree.
"I'm keeping them like this so the oil doesn't spill, okay?! The sauce is the best part!" Kiana argued, actually sounding a little wronged. Here she was, going out of her way to preserve the optimal flavor profile for them, and the annoying pint-sized Bronya was making fun of her!
Hmph. Just for that, I'm stealing a bite from her portion later so she goes hungry! It was the most diabolical revenge a Kaslana could possibly concoct.
Shu scanned the area. Confirming the coast was clear, he deactivated the Mosquito's Breath pinned to his chest. To Bronya, the sudden drop of the stealth field felt like reality itself had skipped a frame—one second there was a blur, and the next, Shu was standing right in front of her.
"Shu." Bronya stepped forward, her eyes dropping to the containers in his hands. "Is that..."
"I'm guessing you guys already had lunch?" Shu lifted the bags to show her. "Kiana swore by this restaurant and insisted you two had to try it."
Bronya had eaten lunch. But due to... various circumstances, her meal hadn't been exactly ideal. She wasn't starving, but she could definitely go for a second lunch.
"Do you require assistance?" Bronya asked Shu, completely ignoring the fact that he was comfortably holding just two small containers.
The human Christmas tree next to him instantly protested. "Hey! Obviously, I'm the one who needs help here!"
"Ah, but that is Kiana's vital contribution to preventing oil spills. Bronya wouldn't dare interfere with such an important mission," Bronya said with absolute deadpan delivery, her eyes half-lidded as she casually plucked two takeout boxes from Kiana's arms anyway.
"Urgh..." Kiana opened her mouth to shoot back a retort, but Bronya actually taking the food triggered her instinct to say thank you. The two conflicting vocal routines crashed spectacularly in her brain, leaving her sputtering and stammering, unable to form a coherent sentence.
Shu chuckled inwardly, but his curiosity won out regarding why Bronya was wandering around alone. "Did something happen?" He glanced back toward the academic buildings. "Shouldn't you be in class right now?"
Bronya's expression darkened.
"...It is nothing. Bronya was simply hosting an impromptu fan meet-and-greet," she stated stiffly, stubbornly refusing to break eye contact.
Invisible question marks popped up over Shu and Kiana's heads.
"What do you mean..."
"...A fan meet-and-greet?"
Seeing her refuse to elaborate, Shu's brain—which had been comfortably idling in low-power mode for the past couple of days—kicked into high gear.
"Wait... don't tell me you got swarmed by the other students asking a million questions?" he ventured.
Bronya slowly tilted her head up, staring at him with eyes utterly devoid of light.
Shu choked. Are you serious?
"No way, that actually happened?!" Before Bronya could even confirm it, Kiana gasped. She didn't question the absurdity of Shu's guess; she was just entirely flabbergasted that Bronya had found herself in such a ridiculous scenario.
Bronya let out a long, weary sigh and nodded.
Wordlessly, Shu pinned the Mosquito's Breath back onto his chest, keeping his thumb hovering over the activation switch.
It was currently 3:00 PM. Bronya had left the house at 7:00 AM and arrived on campus by 8:00 AM at the latest. Factor in the opening ceremony speech—which Mei had gracefully taken over after Shu flat-out refused—and that meant Bronya had been held hostage by a mob of students for hours.
If even the icy, unapproachable Bronya couldn't escape that fate... what would happen if he got caught by those kids?
Just the thought of it made his head throb.
In this day and age, whether you identified as a boy, a girl, a Hideyoshi, an attack helicopter, or a Walmart plastic bag, you really had to protect your identity when going out.
Shu wasn't exactly worried about someone stealing his face to take out sketchy online microloans, but he absolutely despised dealing with trouble. And dealing with fans was the absolute peak of trouble.
Normally, the masses respected you because you brought them tangible benefits. As long as you did your job well—aiming for good, better, best—you were golden.
But fanbases? They demanded emotional value. That meant he'd have to schmooze, play along, and read the room perfectly at all times. One slip of the tongue, and he'd get canceled.
Sure, there was a certain level of internet fame where you reached the "my stans will write essays defending my worst takes" stage. But anyone who'd been on the internet long enough knew how that usually ended. Eventually, those unhinged quotes would get dug up, and the internet would come to collect its debts. Better to just lay low.
"So, are you heading back to the classroom now, Bronya? Perfect timing! Take us with you, let's go check it out!" Kiana, on the other hand, couldn't care less about crowds. With her striking white hair, she drew stares everywhere she went anyway.
She was completely used to it!
Besides, she was wearing a stealth module, wasn't she?!
Bronya nodded. "The others likely need the resupply as well."
Though she didn't know the exact syllabus for their first class, her preliminary review of the St. Freya Project told her they wouldn't go easy on them just because it was day one. Getting some good food in them after an exhausting session wasn't a bad idea.
Kiana was ready to march off, but Shu paused to ask, "What about Mei? Is she with you guys?"
"Sister Mei is probably not in the classroom... We should call her."
"Oh, don't make it so complicated!" Kiana waved her hand dismissively. She spun around, surveyed the campus for a moment, and confidently pointed in a random direction. "Mei should be over there! I'll go find—"
"I think a phone call is infinitely safer," Shu deadpanned, suppressing certain unpleasant memories of Kiana's navigational skills. He pulled out his phone and dialed Mei's number.
The call connected shortly after. Mei's voice came through, accompanied by the chaotic background noise of rowdy children.
"Shu? Is something the matter?"
"Not really. We're just on campus right now, heading over to check on Bronya's class. Do you want to meet up?" Shu gave a brief explanation. Catching Kiana emphatically pointing at the takeout boxes, he added, "Kiana also brought you some food. Want to come have a bite?"
"Food..." Mei sounded a little troubled. Shu instantly knew she had already eaten and wasn't terribly hungry. But in the end, her gentle nature won out.
"Alright. I'll be right there."