It was time.
Ainz had to head back to his own world.
Before leaving, he was clearly a bit uncomfortable.
He kept adjusting his various movements, tweaking everything from his walking posture to the deep, resonant tone of his voice.
Although Yuto knew exactly why he was doing this, he still couldn't help but laugh.
After practicing for a few minutes, the aura Ainz gave off suddenly shifted.
For the entire night, despite his terrifying skeletal appearance, Ainz had given off the impression of an ordinary, stressed-out young man—sometimes goofy, sometimes remarkably normal.
However, after the adjustments, he suddenly transformed into an incredibly dignified, solemn figure.
He looked exactly like a deep, scheming and a strong villain from a dark fantasy movie.
"How is it, Kamisaka?" Ainz asked, deliberately lowering his voice.
It sounded incredibly deep.
Perhaps because he was no longer human, his voice carried a distinct, chilling terror that human vocal cords simply couldn't replicate.
As Ainz spoke, he took a slow, measured step forward.
His heavy, solemn robes swayed perfectly with the movement. In his stride, there was a distinct, undeniable air of a supreme king.
Yuto was genuinely surprised.
This felt even more impressive and intimidating than the dignified version of Ainz he had seen yesterday.
"Did you have some kind of epiphany?" Yuto asked in astonishment.
"Hmph. I did learn something profound from listening to the King of Conqueror lecture. Although I can't yet pretend to be a true king from the soul, sooner or later, I will be able to put on a flawless, convincing act!" Ainz boasted, crossing his arms.
Listening to Ainz's deep self-satisfaction, Yuto couldn't help but sweatdrop.
'Ainz... please don't treat the legendary Conqueror King's heartfelt lecture as a masterclass in method acting!'
"Ainz, seriously, didn't you ever consider becoming a movie actor in your past life?" Yuto asked.
He genuinely felt the skeleton had the raw talent to become an Oscar-winning performer.
Hearing this, Ainz waved his skeletal hand dismissively.
"Mere celebrities are nothing compared to the glory of gaming!"
Yuto twitched the corner of his mouth.
Truly, he was a proper, incurable internet-addicted youth to the bitter end!
After bidding a formal farewell, Ainz strode out the heavy wooden door.
Watching from behind, his dramatic, sweeping exit definitely had a certain dark, aristocratic flair to it.
Once Ainz left, Yuto spent a few minutes tidying up the restaurant.
He wiped down the long counter, swept the floorboards, and organized the spice racks.
Then, he went to the back and wheeled his bicycle out.
Because the restaurant space had magically expanded and merged, the original side alleyway was now enclosed within the building's footprint.
The secondary door Ainz had installed in the wall back then was exactly for this purpose.
Yuto pushed his bicycle from the backyard straight through the restaurant, casually turned off the overhead lights, and wheeled the bike out the front door.
He locked up, flipped the wooden signboard to 'Closed', and merged into the morning traffic, heading straight for the local supermarket.
As he rode his bicycle past a busy intersection, the traffic light turned red.
Tokyo's morning rush hour was heavy.
Yuto stood at the intersection, supporting his bike with one foot on the asphalt.
Originally, Yuto had a cute, unassuming appearance. But after receiving two rounds of magical physical enhancements, his presence had subtly changed.
He now carried a faint, natural aura somewhat reminiscent of Kazami Yuuka.
A pure, effortless vitality radiated around him.
Standing under the warm morning sun, he looked like a vibrant, shimmering leaf—quiet, yet naturally drawing people's gazes.
Several men and women waiting at the crosswalk found themselves looking at him, their expressions varying from mild appreciation to quiet curiosity.
Whoosh~~
The morning's cool breeze was still quite strong, whipping through the streets like a stubborn child trying to show off its strength.
Yuto's hair was ruffled by the sudden gust. He raised a hand to gently brush it out of his eyes.
Just as he was about to lower his hand, he caught movement in his peripheral vision.
A white beret was tumbling through the air, carried by the strong wind.
Judging by its trajectory, the hat was going to collide directly with Yuto's face.
He calmly reached out and plucked the hat from the air.
He turned his head to the left to see where it came from. At the edge of a slightly elevated slope near the sidewalk, a girl was staring blankly at him.
Or, to be precise, she was staring at the hat in his hand.
After the magical enhancements, Yuto's eyesight was incredibly sharp.
He could clearly see the quiet flicker of surprise and relief in the girl's dark eyes.
Holding the white beret, Yuto gave it a slight wave to get her attention.
The girl quickly jogged down the slope toward him.
Yuto checked the crosswalk signal, the red light countdown was almost up.
When the girl reached him, he simply handed the hat over.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome. Make sure you wear it a bit tighter next time," Yuto smiled.
After offering the brief advice, Yuto glanced at the traffic light again.
"Goodbye."
Yuto offered a polite nod, pushed off the ground, and rode away into the morning traffic.
The girl stood at the edge of the intersection.
She seemed to have more to say, but she missed her chance. She stood there quietly, watching Yuto's back disappear into the sea of commuters.
She looked down at the white hat in her hands. Her short, dark hair was slightly tousled by the wind.
She reached up, gently tucking a stray strand behind her ear.
Then, she inspected the hat—it was just slightly crumpled from where Yuto had caught it.
She placed the beret firmly back on her head using both hands.
Remembering his casual advice, she pulled it down just a little bit tighter.
...
Yuto wandered comfortably through the large supermarket aisles.
Although he regularly bought his fresh vegetables from the local Granny's market stall, he still needed to browse the commercial aisles for dry goods and hardware.
Sometimes, he found new items that could be useful for the restaurant.
'I should probably buy a few oversized mugs,' Yuto thought.
Looking at the glassware section reminded him of Iskandar and Whitebeard.
Since he occasionally hosted literal giants who were heavy drinkers, it was a good idea to keep a few massive, durable flagons on hand.
He picked out several extra-large, heavy-duty plastic mugs and tossed them into his shopping basket.
The plastic was molded and painted with a faux wood-grain pattern on the outside, making them look remarkably like the rustic oak tankards you'd see in a fantasy tavern.
After securing the mugs, he casually browsed the snack aisle, tossing a few bags of fried chips and crackers into his basket.
'I'll have a junk-food night tonight!' he decided happily.
Finally, he paid for his dry goods and rode over to the open-air market to find Granny's produce stall.
"Granny," Yuto greeted her warmly.
"Ah! Yuto-chan! You are a bit late today, but don't worry, Granny saved the best, freshest vegetables just for you!" the elderly woman beamed.
Just as Yuto was about to thank her, he noticed the quiet figure standing beside her, sorting a crate of apples.
It was the same girl from the intersection.
The girl looked up and noticed his gaze.
A distinct flicker of surprise broke through her usually flat expression.
Seeing the two of them exchange glances caused Granny's expression to shift from mild confusion to delight.
"Oh? Does Yuto-chan already know my Megumi?"
A knowing, deeply satisfied smile spread across Granny's wrinkled face.
The way the old woman looked at Yuto suddenly held a hint of something... more.
"Not exactly. We just had a brief encounter earlier this morning," Yuto explained, quickly recounting the incident with the runaway hat to clear up any misunderstandings.
The girl, Megumi, gave a quiet nod.
Hearing the story, Granny's face lit up with even more joy.
The corners of her mouth lifted, making her look particularly kind and mischievous.
"What a wonderful coincidence! Megumi, did you make sure to thank Yuto-chan properly?" Granny turned to her granddaughter, her tone carrying a hint of seriousness.
"Yes, I did," Megumi nodded gently.
Granny turned back to Yuto, her eyes practically sparkling.
"I never expected Yuto-chan to run into my Megumi like that."
Granny looked at Yuto with a gaze full of intense satisfaction and pleasant surprise.
Yuto felt a sudden chill.
There was definitely something odd about how she was looking at him!
"So, Megumi is your relative, Granny?" Yuto asked, trying to keep the conversation casual.
"Megumi is my precious granddaughter. She is a good girl, she always comes to help me out here at the stall during her school holidays," Granny replied with a proud smile.
Yuto nodded.
He now had a slightly better impression of the quiet girl. Any teenager willing to wake up at dawn during their school break to help their elderly grandmother with heavy manual labor had to be a very considerate, hardworking person.
He lowered his head and began selecting his tomatoes and leafy greens.
After all, he and the girl were just passing acquaintances.
It was best not to dwell on the coincidence too much.
However, as he bent down to inspect the produce, he didn't see Granny's expression.
It was a look filled with intense, calculating meaning.
Granny seemed to be plotting something, her gaze darting between Yuto and Megumi with immense satisfaction.
She glanced at her granddaughter.
Megumi's expression was calm, flat, and perfectly unreadable, as if she didn't care about anything happening around her.
Moreover, her physical presence was naturally incredibly faint—it was easy to forget she was even standing there.
As her grandmother, the old woman was deeply concerned. She knew for a fact that Megumi still hadn't made a single close friend in high school.
It was likely due to her unique 'stealth' circumstances, almost no one ever noticed the girl.
Coupled with the fact that Megumi lacked the assertive personality needed to actively socialize, the girl had been entirely alone.
Although Megumi didn't seem bothered by her isolation, her grandmother worried constantly.
Having lived a long life, the old woman understood a fundamental truth: people need friends to survive.