The corridors of Raizen High were crowded with students milling about during the break. The usual bustle—laughter, footsteps, the opening and closing of classroom doors—filled the air.
Amid the flow, Gabriel walked straight ahead with calm, measured steps.
Yet his mind wasn't really there.
It was on Moegami.
Yesterday, he had stabilized Origami's condition from a different timeline—using the power of the Hogyoku to erase the boundary between two possibilities that had once collided.
The impact wasn't limited to reality.
Sephira within him had also been affected.
Put simply, Moegami's consciousness would gradually approach a point of wholeness—between the old Origami and the new.
Gabriel lowered his gaze slightly.
That should be enough.
His steps continued automatically.
At the same time, Moegami had just descended from the school rooftop.
The memory of that rejection still echoed faintly in her mind—not out of doubt, but because of a decision she had already made.
She walked quickly through the corridor, barely paying attention ahead.
Bruk!
A collision was inevitable.
Gabriel, unprepared, was pushed a step backward, while Moegami came to an abrupt stop.
Both remained stable, not falling—just slightly shaken.
Moegami immediately turned to him.
"…Sorry," she said briefly.
Her gaze met Gabriel's.
For a moment, her expression shifted slightly—surprised, but quickly returned to calm.
"Michaelis-kun."
"Your pace…" Gabriel said flatly. "Were you practicing sprints?"
Moegami shook her head slightly. "No."
"No?" Gabriel repeated, feigning curiosity but with convincing confidence.
A brief silence followed.
The clamor of the corridor continued around them, seemingly undisturbed.
Moegami exhaled softly.
"I just finished something," she said, without elaborating.
Gabriel studied her for a moment, noting the subtle change in her gaze.
"Have you had lunch?" Moegami asked suddenly.
"Not yet."
"In that case…" Moegami paused for a fraction of a second, then continued in her usual calm tone, "would you like to eat together?"
Gabriel looked at her for a few seconds.
"…Alright."
The brief reply made Moegami avert her gaze for a fraction of a second— a faint blush appearing on her face, though she quickly neutralized it.
"Then, follow me."
She turned and started walking.
***
A few minutes later, after retrieving their lunches from under the classroom desk, the two made their way to the back of the school.
There stood a large, shady tree, a little away from the bustling cafeteria.
The afternoon breeze blew gently, rustling the leaves and muffling the noise from the main building.
They sat side by side, not too close but not too far apart either.
Moegami neatly opened her lunchbox. The faint aroma of warm karaage wafted up.
Gabriel, on the other hand, unwrapped the onigiri he had bought before coming to school.
A brief silence settled over them—only the sounds of plastic being unwrapped and chopsticks lightly touching their meals.
Moegami glanced at him while taking a bite of her karaage with her chopsticks.
"I often see you eating lunch alone," she said calmly. "With food you bought from the supermarket."
Gabriel tilted his head slightly.
"Your observation is quite detailed."
"I'm not observing you on purpose," she replied quickly. "It's just… noticeable."
A brief silence.
"You usually sit by the window," Moegami continued. "And bring bread or something convenient."
Gabriel almost replied reflexively.
"Yes, if this were an interstellar battlefield, then simple logistics are key to victory and—"
The sentence died halfway.
He blinked slowly.
…No, not that.
Gabriel let out a light sigh and neutralized his expression.
"That's efficient," he corrected shortly. "And food is food. As long as it fills the stomach, that's enough."
Moegami paused with her chopsticks mid-motion.
She glanced at the onigiri in Gabriel's hand, then back up at his face.
"That's not healthy."
"The basic nutrition is still covered," Gabriel replied without hesitation.
"Not enough," Moegami interjected softly. "Instant or pre-made meals every day aren't good for your body."
Gabriel tilted his head slightly.
"You're worried about me?"
Moegami fell silent for a fraction of a second. Her face tinted faintly red for a moment before she calmed herself.
"I'm just stating a fact."
"With a rather firm tone."
"That's because you seem indifferent."
A gentle breeze blew, moving Moegami's white hair.
She looked back down at her lunch box and said without turning her head, "The human body has limits. Even if you feel fine now, it doesn't mean it will always be that way."
Gabriel observed her for a few seconds.
"You cooked this yourself?"
"Yes."
"Every day?"
Moegami nodded slightly.
"Exactly."
Gabriel was silent for a moment, then spoke in a tone lighter than usual, "Then… your survival skills are quite high."
Moegami glanced at him.
"That's just a basic skill."
"Hmm."
{Author's note: just to avoid confusion, Gabriel is holding back his Ash persona here}
A brief silence followed.
Then, without much change in expression, Moegami lifted a piece of karaage with her chopsticks and held it slightly forward.
"Try it."
Gabriel looked at the karaage.
"…This?"
"Consider it a nutritional evaluation."
Gabriel said little. He leaned slightly forward and bit the piece of karaage directly from the chopsticks still held by Moegami.
He chewed calmly.
A few seconds passed.
"How is it?" Moegami asked, trying to sound casual.
"Decent," Gabriel replied shortly. "Better than the average packaged product."
Moegami was about to pull her chopsticks back—then froze mid-motion.
Just now…
She had used the chopsticks.
And Gabriel had bitten the piece without hesitation.
The realization came a little too late.
Her face slowly flushed, starting from the tips of her ears and spreading to her cheeks.
Her hand holding the chopsticks trembled slightly before she finally pulled them back and lowered her gaze, pretending to be busy with her lunchbox.
Gabriel tilted his head, noticing the change.
"Why is your face red?"
Moegami replied quickly, without looking at him.
"I'm fine."
***
Not far from the tree, behind the wall of the school's rear building, Shido peeked while half-crouched.
His face was stiff.
In front of him, the interaction between Gabriel and Moegami was clearly visible. Karaage. Chopsticks. Flushed cheeks.
Shido slowly pulled his head back behind the wall.
"…This feels uncomfortable," he muttered quietly.
His chest felt strange. Not anger. Not pure jealousy. More like confusion mixed with a slight tightness.
"If… she really likes that person…" he whispered, "there's no way I could just steal someone else's girlfriend…"
From the small communication device in his ear, a voice spoke.
"Onii-chan, focus," Kotori said flatly.
Shido exhaled. "I know, but it feels like I'm spying on someone's private life…"
"Technically, you are," Kotori replied without guilt.
"Don't justify it like that!"
Suddenly, another voice came through the communication channel.
"A romantic lunch scene under a tree. How beautiful. You can even feel the 'indirect kiss' aura from here," Kannazuki commented, his tone dripping with exaggerated emotion.
Shido flinched. "Kannazuki-san, please don't describe it like that!"
On the other end, the sound of quick footsteps was heard. Then—
DUGH!
A loud thud followed by a stifled cough.
"Gh—!"
"That's to maintain crew professionalism," Kotori's voice cut in coldly. "We are conducting tactical observation, not reading a cheap romance novel."
"S-sorry… Commander…" Kannazuki's voice weakened, still coughing.
Shido rubbed his temple.
"…Why is my support team like this…"
Kotori spoke again, this time more calmly.
"Preliminary conclusion: their interaction is natural. No stress. No indication of danger."
"That's not what's confusing me," Shido muttered softly.
"Then?"
Shido glanced again from behind the wall.
Moegami, turning her face away with flushed cheeks.
Gabriel, calm as always.
"…I don't even know how I'm supposed to feel."
On the other end of the communication, Kotori was silent for a few seconds.
Then, in a softer tone than usual, she said,
"For now, there's no need to feel anything, Onii-chan. We're just observing."
Shido nodded slowly, though no one could see him.
"Yeah…"
Yet his gaze remained fixed on the two figures beneath the tree.
"Shido, what are you looking at?"
That soft, sweet voice came from right behind him.
Shido nearly jumped half a meter.
"WAA—?!"
He spun around quickly and saw Tohka standing directly behind him, tilting her head slightly with an innocent expression.
"T-Tohka?! Since when have you been here?!"
In his ear, Kotori's voice could be heard.
"…Ah."
"'Ah'? What does that mean?!" Shido whispered, flustered.
Kotori cleared her throat softly. "I forgot to tell you. Tohka has been following from behind for the past five minutes."
"Why are you only telling me now?!"
"Because the situation didn't feel critical yet."
"This is extremely critical for my heart!"
Meanwhile, without a hint of guilt, Tohka crouched down next to Shido and mirrored his position, peeking over the wall.
"Oh…" she murmured softly. "Isn't that Origami and Gabriel?"
Shido tensed. "Ssst, keep your voice down a little…"
"I know Gabriel," she continued casually. "His name is like Miku's Angel. And he's kind."
Shido blinked. "That's true…"
"I once received a wheat bun from him," Tohka explained with a serious expression, as if it were important information. "It was soft."
She paused for a moment, trying to recall. Then she tilted her head again.
"Though sometimes I don't understand what Gabriel is saying."
Shido unconsciously gave a small smile.
"…I don't always understand him either," he admitted honestly.
Tohka turned to him. "So, Shido, what are you doing?"
Shido glanced back at the tree.
Gabriel and Moegami were still sitting side by side. The atmosphere was calm. Too calm.
"I'm just… making sure everything's okay," he answered softly.
"I saw them eating," Tohka said innocently. "It looked fun."
Shido fell silent.
He couldn't deny it.
"…Yeah," he finally nodded slightly. "It seems so."
Kotori interjected again over the intercom.
"Additional analysis: Tohka's presence does not interfere with the observation. However, sound leakage has increased by 38%."
"I can hear that, you know!" Shido whispered in protest.
Tohka peeked again, her violet eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"Are they on a date?"
"Maybe?" said Shido.
And beneath the tree, Origami remained completely unaware of anything.
But Gabriel noticed.
For the past few minutes, his Ki Perception had picked up two presences hiding behind a nearby wall. One restless and noisy. The other… purely curious.
He calmly took a bite of the onigiri in his hand.
"Hmm," he murmured softly.
Moegami glanced at him. "What is it?"
Gabriel swallowed first, then spoke casually, as if merely commenting on the weather.
"They're not very skilled yet."
Moegami blinked. "What do you mean?"
Gabriel closed his eyes for a moment, then took another bite of the onigiri without changing his expression.
"It's nothing," he replied lightly.
He didn't look toward the wall.
He didn't give any signal.
Yet the corner of his mouth lifted ever so slightly.
Behind the wall, Shido suddenly felt an inexplicable chill crawl down his spine.
"…Why do I feel like I was just judged?" he whispered softly.
Tohka tilted her head. "Judged? Like a test?"
Shido stared blankly ahead.
"…I don't know."
___
Author's Note:
Well, yeah. I'll keep it short—if you enjoyed it, please leave a comment and give all your Power Stones. ⭐