The Beginning of Hachiman Showing Off
"——"
The aggrieved muttering stopped instantly, and Anastasia's light blue eyes widened in a look of being deeply moved.
She was the only one wearing a formal kimono; relying on this unique trump card and set against the backdrop of ordinary yukatas, her visual appeal at this moment was not even inferior to Emilia's.
If Emilia and Crusch had been wearing different clothes, it would be one thing, but it had to be yukatas—forced into a sharp contrast with the kimono where the winner was decided at a glance.
Anastasia's little scheme in sending the yukatas was plain for all to see.
"Should I say it's just as expected of me? ——This really is a bit embarrassing~"
With her eyes curved like crescents, the fox-like, crafty Anastasia spoke words that even Mimi wouldn't believe. Mimi knew it: the Young Lady was the most thick-skinned person of all; she was capable of anything!
"But because the Young Lady is so thick-skinned, she's super amazing, nya!"
Cuddling Mimi dotingly, Anastasia said blatantly: "Thank you, Mimi. But it's enough just to know these things; you don't have to say them out loud, nya?"
"Haha!" Ricardo let out a hearty, bright laugh.
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「The members of all four camps took their places and sat down. The breakfast Anastasia had prepared for everyone was Okonomiyaki—using two small spatulas to freely flip ingredients on an iron plate, sautéing them into a pancake shape to be eaten while hot.」
「Despite being a greedy merchant, Anastasia didn't skimp on expenses here; all sorts of precious and delicious ingredients were available for the picking.」
「Before starting, Emilia, who was sitting obediently next to Hachiman, secretly tugged at his sleeve and pointed at Anastasia. "Hachiman, I should buy a dress like that later, right? You seem to really like it."」
「 "It's not that I like it that much..."」
「Compared to a mere kimono, what actually made it hard for him to look away was the greedy merchant herself.」
「 "See, you definitely like it!" Seeing that he was still looking at Anastasia while talking tough, Emilia wagged her finger and lectured him seriously. "Lying is ve~ry bad, you mustn't do it! I'll go buy one later, it's fine!"」
「Hikigaya Hachiman raised his hands and surrendered cooperatively.」
「Emilia rolled up her sleeves and nodded heavily. "Mm, that's better. Hachiman is a good boy. So, I'm going to make Okonomiyaki for you to eat; Beatrice gets a portion too."」
「 "Hmph, Betty doesn't need any! Besides, Hachiman wants to eat Okonomiyaki handmade by Betty; keep yours for yourself!"」
「Treating Beatrice's refusal as the duplicitous play of a child, Emilia wasn't discouraged at all. She flipped the pancake seriously, and after a lot of effort, successfully produced a dish of "dark matter." Beatrice was the same; neither of these two had a talent for cooking.」
「Looking at these two inedible dishes of dark cuisine, Hikigaya Hachiman thought of Yui Yuigahama for the first time since crossing into this world over a year ago.」
「 "How is it? Miss Emilia can't cook, nya? Poor Hikigaya, having nothing to eat is truly pitiable. Mine is—"」
「 "Thanks, no need, okay, won't trouble you, please help yourself, Anastasia."」
「Before she could finish her sentence, Hikigaya Hachiman quickly vetoed her generosity on Emilia's behalf. While she wasn't as lethal as Emilia, he knew very well that Anastasia's cooking skills weren't good by any measure—at the very least, they weren't as good as his.」
「 "Being that blunt is so mean, nya!"」
「 "Um... if you don't mind, would Sir Hachiman like to...?' Crusch, carefully weighing her words, raised her hand. Her cooking skills were considered exquisite by everyone; the Okonomiyaki she made not only smelled fragrant but looked especially appetizing.」
「Upon hearing this, Ferris and Wilhelm exchanged looks and opinions within a single second. Immediately and without a word, the two of them grabbed the plate Crusch wanted to hand out and passed it along, placing it directly in front of Hikigaya Hachiman.」
「The speed was so fast he didn't even have a chance to refuse.」
「Crusch froze for a moment, then, watching Hikigaya Hachiman being forced to taste it, she tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear with some embarrassment.」
「 "Whoa..." Felt looked left and right with a suspicious expression. "Why does it feel like, Big Bro, you're playing both sides and have a special relationship with everyone? We're supposed to be competitors, right? It feels like I'm the only one out of place. No way, could it be that I'm the only one still upholding the duty of a competitor?"」
「Hikigaya Hachiman spoke his realization: "The competition between candidates is healthy competition; there's no need for such hostility. Felt, no matter who wins or loses, everyone here is already a friend. Just enjoy it."」
「 "Besides, when it's time to compete later, no one is going to go soft because of this."」
「 "Whoa... I'm the kid polished by the slums, yet you seem to understand a lot more principles than me." Felt scratched her head. "Fine, fine, I get it."」
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"Saying no one will go soft, yet you're the one constantly showing mercy and even giving advantages to your competitors."
In the Sword Saint's estate, Felt stood with hands on hips and said speechlessly, "What a gentle, big fat liar."
"But, that's Komachi's brother for you!" In the Hikigaya household, Komachi grinned, baring her tiger tooth, feeling incomparably satisfied with her "number one in the world" brother.
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「During the meal, a Meteor—which functioned similarly to a radio—broadcast Liliana's singing throughout the Water Gate City; this broadcast occurred at scheduled times every day.」
「Today, Liliana sang a song called 'The Love Song of the Sword Devil,' which was adapted from Wilhelm's love story.」
「Influenced by the song, Wilhelm's resolve to reconcile with his grandson hardened. He tremblingly invited Reinhard to teach him how to make Okonomiyaki. After a moment of disbelief, Reinhard also accepted with a trembling voice.」
「If Reinhard and Wilhelm were to reconcile, in order to look after the feelings of these two, Crusch might ally with Felt. In that case, the two camps with the lowest current probability of winning would become a unified, powerful foe.」
「Anastasia understood this. However, watching the two of them being able to reconcile, even the most mercenary and profit-oriented version of her did not interfere, nor did she feel dissatisfied.」
「—Just as everyone was silently witnessing this scene of reconciliation, the door to the room was suddenly thrown open. A drunken man appeared with a sneer; he was Reinhard's father and Wilhelm's son, named Heinkel.」
「 "Fifteen years, and you're still hypocritically trying to mend old ties? How can things be that easy? Hehe, Reinhard, would my mother—whom you killed—allow it?"」
「 "And you, my father, who was the first to question and abuse Reinhard back then—do you really think he holds no grudge at all? Hahaha, you fool!"」
「 "You're all a bunch of idiots, hahaha!"」
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