Yuto only gave everyone a broad outline of what had happened at the banquet rather than going into every detail.
Coincidentally, just as he reached the part where he had run into Kaguya, the girl herself arrived.
The restaurant door slid open.
Kaguya Shinomiya and Hayasaka Ai stepped inside together.
Only the two of them had come.
Asuna was nowhere to be seen.
Yuto stopped his story and greeted them instead. After Kaguya and Hayasaka returned the greeting, they took seats at the counter.
The moment Kaguya sat down, an unmistakable trace of relaxation appeared on her face.
Compared with the dignified, untouchable young lady Yuto had seen at the banquet earlier, she looked infinitely more at ease here.
"Is the banquet already over?"
Yuto looked at the two girls curiously.
It had not even been half an hour since he returned.
Had the banquet really ended that quickly?
"No. It isn't over yet." Kaguya gently brushed a strand of hair away from her cheek and smiled. "I simply didn't want to stay there anymore."
Leaving a formal banquet halfway through would normally be considered rather rude.
But rules like that did not really apply to the daughter of the Shinomiya family.
"I see. Want something to eat?"
Yuto nodded and smiled.
"I happen to be a little hungry. If I could have Kamisaka-kun's cooking, that would be even better."
In truth, Kaguya had not eaten a single thing at the banquet.
She had barely even touched her drink, taking only one sip of water the entire evening.
So saying she was merely "a little hungry" was a considerable understatement.
She was absolutely starving.
But in front of Yuto, she still intended to maintain at least some degree of elegance.
"What about you, Hayasaka?"
Yuto turned toward Hayasaka.
The girl reacted noticeably slowly.
Nearly two full seconds passed before she seemed to realize he had spoken to her.
"Yes."
Her quiet reply made it obvious that she had been lost in thought.
Yuto gave her a meaningful glance.
Hayasaka merely lowered her head and avoided looking at him.
"Hayasaka, what's wrong?" Kaguya asked, genuine concern appearing in her eyes. "You've been acting strange ever since earlier."
Hayasaka immediately concealed whatever she was feeling.
She forced a smile.
"It's nothing, Milady."
Anyone with eyes could tell that was not true.
Kaguya frowned slightly.
In the end, however, she did not continue questioning her.
Hayasaka was not merely her servant anymore.
She was one of the people Kaguya trusted most, and Kaguya had no desire to force a friend to speak about something she clearly did not want to discuss.
Yuto quietly watched the exchange.
His expression did not change, though several thoughts passed through his mind.
After taking Kaguya and Hayasaka's orders, he returned to the kitchen.
Back in the dining area, everyone naturally began asking Kaguya about what happened at the banquet.
Kaguya answered them with a much warmer, more approachable smile than the one she had shown the upper-class guests earlier.
Hayasaka sat quietly beside her.
She still looked somewhat stiff.
By the time Yuto returned with their food, Kaguya and the others were already chatting happily.
The instant Kaguya saw the dishes, however, an unmistakable longing appeared in her eyes.
Her stomach had finally reached its limit.
"Looks like you really were hungry."
Yuto casually teased her.
A faint blush immediately colored Kaguya's cheeks.
She recovered almost at once and simply pretended she had not heard him, lowering her head and beginning to eat with as much elegance as she could still manage.
Hayasaka quietly followed suit.
Once Kaguya finished eating, Yuto paused for a moment before speaking again.
"Kaguya, there's something I'd like to ask you for."
He looked at her with a somewhat helpless smile.
The instant she heard those words, excitement flashed across Kaguya's face.
She immediately forced it back down.
Then she turned toward him with a pleasant smile.
"Of course."
Yuto blinked.
"Eh? You're not even going to ask what it is?"
Kaguya's face flushed again.
"Ahem. What I meant was that no matter what Kamisaka-kun needs, I'll do my absolute best to help."
Her posture had become noticeably stiff and awkward.
Yuto laughed inwardly.
This version of Kaguya...
Was unexpectedly cute.
"Kaguya-san is really dependable."
"O-Of course I am!"
It had only been a small compliment.
Somehow, it made Kaguya even more flustered.
This was the same girl who had looked so dignified and untouchable at the banquet earlier.
"Kamisaka-kun..." Kaguya desperately suppressed the agitation in her heart and tried to sound calm.
"Did you run into some kind of problem?"
"I just want to ask you to help me find someone."
The smile on Yuto's face faded slightly.
Kaguya froze.
"Find someone?"
"Yes."
Yuto nodded.
The person he wanted Kaguya to locate was the strange old man who had previously wandered around Ichinose Street.
Trying to find someone through his own efforts would be painfully slow.
After thinking about the problem throughout the day, Yuto had decided that asking Kaguya for help would be far more practical.
For her, locating a single person should not be particularly difficult.
She had the Shinomiya family's enormous network at her disposal.
"Is it a man or a woman?"
Yuto had not expected that to be Kaguya's first question.
Still, he answered honestly.
"A man. An elderly man. He looks..."
He proceeded to describe the old man's appearance in as much detail as he could remember.
The moment Kaguya heard that the person he was searching for was an elderly man, she quietly released a small breath, almost as though some invisible burden had just been lifted from her shoulders.
"What is his relationship with Kamisaka-kun...?"
"None, really. There are just some important things I want to ask him."
"I see."
Kaguya's expression brightened immediately.
"No problem. Leave it to me. I promise I'll get you an answer as quickly as possible."
Her guarantee was unexpectedly serious.
"Thanks."
Yuto smiled.
Kaguya immediately shook her head.
"Kamisaka-kun has helped me so many times. Something this small doesn't deserve thanks at all."
Her earnestness left Yuto with very little he could say.
He could only smile.
Kaguya then took out her phone and immediately made a call.
The warmth in her expression vanished almost at once.
Her tone became cooler and more authoritative as she issued several concise instructions to whoever was on the other end. Before hanging up, she added one final firm reminder.
Then the call ended.
Yuto stared at her with mild surprise.
He had not expected Kaguya to be quite this...
Efficient.
"Please don't worry, Kamisaka-kun. There should be an answer by tomorrow morning at the latest." Kaguya smiled reassuringly.
"As long as that person hasn't left Tokyo, it shouldn't take very long."
She was not exaggerating.
With the current reach of both the Shinomiya family and Kaguya herself, locating one individual somewhere in Tokyo was genuinely a simple task.
"Then thank you."
Yuto nodded, still slightly taken aback by how quickly she had handled it.
Still, he trusted her.
Now...
All he could do was wait.
Once the old man was found, the questions that had been lingering in Yuto's mind could finally be answered.
After chatting with Kaguya for a while longer, Yuto returned to the kitchen and brought out Yuuka's flower cakes.
Then he immediately had to go back in and prepare even more food for Yuyuko.
Her entire bucket was already empty.
And yet...
She still wanted more.
Apparently, Yuyuko planned to vent every bit of resentment she had accumulated from being forced to work by eating everything within reach.
That was terrifying.
Yuto ended up spending quite a long time in the kitchen.
During that period, more customers arrived.
Rin returned with Archer.
The instant she walked through the door, her first question had nothing to do with food.
"Has Sakura come yet?"
Clearly, the Tohsaka heiress had not returned primarily to eat.
She had come for her little sister.
After learning that Sakura had not appeared yet, Rin took Archer and sat at one of the side tables.
There were no seats left at the counter anyway.
So she settled in to wait.
Not long afterward, Reiko also came to the restaurant for the first time in quite a while.
The moment she entered, Kaguya's attention immediately shifted toward her.
The two had some history together.
When Yuto had first "picked up" Kaguya and brought her back to the restaurant, Reiko had been the only other customer present.
The Gensokyo group also had a fairly favorable impression of Reiko.
For a human to have managed to befriend so many youkai was enough by itself to make the girls from Gensokyo naturally fond of her.
Reiko's arrival made the already cheerful restaurant even livelier.
Laughter filled the room once again.
That warm atmosphere continued...
Until another customer stepped through the door.
The newcomer did not look very old.
Perhaps twelve or thirteen.
Maybe even younger.
Like Yukari, she had purple eyes.
Her long black hair was tied into a side ponytail and secured with an emerald-green butterfly ornament.
She had an adorable face.
Yet at the moment, vigilance and confusion were clearly visible in her expression.
"Welcome."
Seeing that she was a new customer, Yuto temporarily stepped out of the kitchen and greeted her with a gentle smile.
The girl remained wary.
Then Yuto's gaze dropped toward her waist.
A sword hung there.
His eyes lingered on it for a moment.
That... was a real weapon.