Lately, the old uncle felt like he was eating better and better these days.
When he had nothing to do, he would gently pet and cuddle Kirara, who liked to perch on his shoulder in her cat form.
When he did have something to do...
Well, he could consider going over to pinch and rub little Eula's cheeks next to him.
Heh heh, just kidding.
At the moment, the rumors about Shura Anyakonsen-shou seemed to be growing bigger and bigger, but the speculations about his true identity were constantly canceling each other out.
Some busybodies went to the Adventurers' Guild to try buying information about Shura Anyakonsen-shou, only to be rejected by Katherine on the grounds that it was classified as an Inazuma state secret.
And this only caused the rumors about Shura Anyakonsen-shou to spread even more wildly.
After all, sometimes the unknown is precisely what sparks people's curiosity and attention the most.
It was also precisely because his identity was being kept secret that Cid the old uncle suddenly found himself with some free time on his hands.
"Little Yoimiya, what are you guys playing?"
Arriving at the fireworks shop, the old uncle saw little Yoimiya sitting on the carpet with her friends, weaving something together.
"We're making rubber band bracelets!"
Little Yoimiya excitedly showed the old uncle her newly acquired toy.
It was a little bracelet woven from colorful rubber bands intertwined together.
It looked pretty nice?
"How do you make it? Let me see?"
The old uncle joined the braiding group without the slightest hesitation or shame, quietly sitting down right next to little Yoimiya.
"Oh oh, old uncle, look—first you put the first rubber band on this fork, then hook it over like this..."
The old uncle felt absolutely no embarrassment about playing with little girls' toys. He simply followed little Yoimiya's movements and completed the most basic foundation.
The little girls nearby initially felt a bit awkward seeing the old uncle join in.
But when they saw big sister Yoimiya personally teaching this uncle how to braid...
Huh? Looks like something fun just appeared.
There's an adult braiding bracelets?
A group of little girls crowded around to watch the old uncle braiding away.
As a result, what the old uncle faced was...
"I think you could also braid it like this..."
"Why not try making a little flower?"
"I feel like you don't have to limit yourself to just a rope..."
In short, beginner old uncle received an enthusiastic and friendly barrage of guidance from the girls toward the newbie.
"Oh oh, is that how it works?"
The old uncle held the little fork, turning into the children's braiding machine.
Little Yoimiya watched as all her good friends crowded over, suddenly feeling her own space getting a bit cramped.
Noticing that no one was behind the old uncle, she got an idea.
"Are you sure this can weave clothes?"
The old uncle had just been following along with little Yoimiya, but now that her friends had arrived, he couldn't ignore them either.
Though the real reason was that the old uncle actually found this rubber-band braiding game quite novel and fun himself.
"Old uncle, actually I think if you take off the bottom rubber band this early, it'll fall apart, you know."
Little Yoimiya directly leaned in from behind the old uncle, wrapping her arms around his neck in a hug and claiming the airspace right behind him.
Her little face pressed right up against the old uncle's cheek.
"Is that so?"
For a moment, the old uncle got a bit distracted.
It had to be said—no wonder she's big sister Yoimiya. If you counted it, this was the first time the old uncle had ever been hugged so proactively by a child.
"Ah ya, that's not right~"
Big sister Yoimiya directly reached out and took the clumsy braiding tool from the old uncle's hands.
She demonstrated it hands-on right away.
"Oh oh, I see."
Today's little Yoimiya was still acting just like a big sister.
And in the end, the old uncle—surrounded by the children—ended up with a colorful scarf made entirely of rubber bands.
It had basically no warmth, and it wasn't particularly good-looking either.
But the old uncle still put the scarf around his neck.
After all, this was his bond with the children of Inazuma.