After Suika finished eating, she stood, stretched lazily, and returned to Gensokyo.
Kaguya and Hayasaka remained at the restaurant even after finishing their meals, simply because Kaguya did not feel like leaving so early.
At this point, there was no longer anyone in the Shinomiya family who dared impose a curfew on her anyway.
She was the one making the rules now, and everyone else had to live within the framework she established.
Even on the scale of the entire country, if Kaguya truly wanted to, she was already capable of quietly influencing certain things from behind the scenes.
"Oh, right, Kamisaka-kun. Would you like to go to the beach together sometime?"
Kaguya suddenly looked up and asked.
Her smile appeared perfectly calm, but beneath the counter, her hands had already clenched tightly together.
She was clearly nervous.
Yuto thought about it for a moment.
Tokyo itself was enormous, but despite being a coastal city, there were not many convenient beaches suitable for an ordinary day of recreation.
Much of the waterfront was occupied by ports and shipping facilities, which meant that if they wanted a proper beach trip, they would most likely have to leave the city.
That also meant the round trip could take quite a while.
What worried Yuto most was the restaurant.
"If we're going somewhere nearby, I don't mind. It's just that—"
"Ah, Kamisaka-kun, you don't need to worry about the restaurant."
Kaguya hurriedly interrupted him.
"We can leave in the morning and return the same day. It isn't very far from here."
Apparently, she had already anticipated exactly what he would be concerned about.
Yuto nodded slightly.
"Who else would be going?"
Kaguya froze for half a second before recovering almost immediately.
"As for people... probably just Hayasaka and me, along with a few attendants. Of course, if there's anyone Kamisaka-kun wants to invite, you can bring them too."
Her smile remained flawless.
Yuto raised an eyebrow.
"Really?"
"Of course. Kamisaka-kun can bring whoever he wants. The beach is very large, and it's more fun when there are more people!"
Beside her, Hayasaka silently sighed.
The original plan had been for Kaguya to spend an entire day at the beach with Yuto.
Preferably alone.
And Kaguya had just destroyed that plan with her own mouth.
Hayasaka could already see exactly how this was going to end.
Yuto tapped his fingers lightly against the counter while considering the idea.
"Then maybe I'll invite a few friends. It would be nice for everyone to go enjoy the beach together."
Kaguya's expression stiffened.
She looked exactly like someone watching a carefully prepared plan collapse in real time.
"Mmm..."
The sound she made was strangely long and strained, almost as though she were having trouble breathing normally.
Yuto looked at her in confusion.
"Something wrong?"
Kaguya forced her smile back into place and shook her head.
"No. Nothing at all."
Hayasaka quietly covered her forehead.
"Then when should we go?" Yuto asked.
"I'm free whenever Kamisaka-kun is."
Kaguya answered a little too quickly.
Yuto considered his schedule.
Things had calmed down somewhat recently, and if he wanted to choose a day when most people would be available, Saturday or Sunday made the most sense.
"How about Saturday or Sunday?"
"Either works. Once you decide, just call me in advance and I'll arrange everything."
"Thanks, Kaguya."
"No, no, there's no need to thank me. You and everyone at the restaurant have helped me so much recently, and I still haven't properly repaid any of that."
Kaguya smiled.
Unfortunately for her, those words immediately gave Yuto another idea.
"Then why don't we invite everyone from the restaurant too? Some of them might be interested in going to the beach."
Kaguya's expression froze again.
She desperately wanted to say no.
Reality, however, refused to cooperate.
"Of course!" she replied with an extremely "delighted" smile. "That sounds wonderful!"
Hayasaka's internal sighing only grew more intense.
"Great, then it's settled. I'll ask everyone and see who wants to come."
"Mm..."
By the time Kaguya finally left, her smile was still technically in place, but her expression had become noticeably stiff.
Yuto watched her go with mild confusion.
Had something happened?
He could not really tell, but it probably was not something he needed to worry about.
Kaguya was more than capable of handling her own problems.
After all, she was Kaguya Shinomiya.
In some ways, she was far more capable than Yuto himself.
"Do you two want to come to the beach too?"
Yuto turned toward Erina and Hisako.
Before either girl could answer, Tohru immediately shot her hand into the air.
"I'm going! I'm going! I'm going!"
"All right, all right, calm down. Of course I'll bring you."
"Woohoo! Boss is the best~!"
...
Once Kaguya and Hayasaka got into the car outside Ichinose Street, the atmosphere inside immediately became quiet.
Hayasaka sat behind the wheel with a helpless expression, while Kaguya stared blankly ahead from the back seat.
"Well... I guess the private beach trip has officially turned into a giant group outing."
Hayasaka sighed and turned the key.
The engine shuddered lightly before settling into a steady hum.
Kaguya drew in a deep breath.
"I miscalculated. I didn't expect Boss to ask who else was coming."
Hayasaka glanced at her through the mirror.
"That wasn't a miscalculation. That was you saying something stupid. You really shouldn't have answered like that."
"Quiet! Just drive!"
"Yes, ma'am."
The car pulled away.
At the same time, the security personnel stationed discreetly around Ichinose Street started their own vehicles and followed.
For what was supposed to be a simple drive home, the procession looked surprisingly grand.
...
Back inside the restaurant, Yuto's phone chimed.
He pulled it out and saw a message from Kaguya.
[About Hayasaka... thank you, Kamisaka-kun.]
She had deliberately waited until she left the restaurant to thank him.
Yuto smiled faintly before replying.
[It's fine. I didn't really do much. I'm just glad you two managed to talk everything through.]
No response came immediately, but Yuto did not mind.
He slipped the phone back into his pocket and continued chatting with Erina and the others.
The rest of the night passed without incident.
Customers came and went, staying for a while before eventually returning to their own worlds.
It was not until early morning, when the restaurant was nearly ready to close, that Erina and Hisako finally left.
The Moon Banquet Festival would continue for several days, so both girls still had plenty of work waiting for them back at Tōtsuki.
Normally, after staying awake and working through an entire night, they would have needed to sleep as soon as they returned.
Tonight, however, their minds remained astonishingly clear.
In fact, both felt more alert than they had in a long time.
The medicine Tohru had brought from her world really was effective.
...
After tidying up the restaurant, Yuto and Tohru took Kanna to school, then stopped by the market to buy ingredients.
When they returned to Ichinose Street, they found a small dog lying across the threshold of the restaurant and making soft little whining sounds.
Its eyes were bright and glossy, almost like polished black obsidian.
The puppy was only around forty centimeters long and barely more than ten centimeters tall, with gray-and-black fur that made it look almost like a tiny wolf.
The moment it saw Yuto and Tohru, it stood and tilted its head adorably to one side.
Strangely enough, it did not seem particularly afraid of people.
Curious, Yuto walked closer and crouched beside it.
He slowly reached out.
The puppy gave a small whine and backed away half a step, but not nearly far enough to escape Yuto's hand.
"Where did you come from, little guy?"
Yuto gently stroked its fur.
There was something about young animals that naturally softened people.
Whether it was a human child, a kitten, or a puppy, they all seemed born with an almost unfair ability to make someone feel protective toward them.
Looking at the tiny dog in front of him, Yuto's mood lightened without him even noticing.
Unfortunately, the puppy obviously could not answer his question.
It merely gave a few quiet whines.
By now, it had already grown used to being petted and even seemed to be enjoying the attention.
"All right. Come inside with me for now."
Yuto smiled and picked the puppy up, then handed the grocery bags he had been carrying to Tohru.
Tohru accepted them, but the look she gave the puppy was noticeably unfriendly.
As far as the dragon maid was concerned, this dog was already becoming a threat to her position.
...
Once they were inside, Yuto poured some milk into a bowl.
The puppy immediately began drinking with obvious enthusiasm.
While it was occupied, Yuto went around Ichinose Street asking whether anyone had lost a dog.
Unfortunately, nobody had.
That left him with a problem.
Was it really a stray?
If no one on Ichinose Street owned it, then it must have wandered in from somewhere outside.
But if that was the case, how was he supposed to find its owner?
After thinking it over, Yuto eventually put up a notice at the entrance to the street.
FOUND DOG — OWNER WANTED
Hopefully someone would call later.
When he returned to the restaurant, he found Tohru and the puppy locked in an intense staring contest.
Tohru was lying flat on the floor so that her face was level with the puppy's.
The puppy was lying down too.
For several seconds, they simply stared at each other.
Then the puppy casually yawned.
Tohru's face immediately darkened.
This stupid dog had just yawned directly in the face of a mighty dragon.
Her cheeks puffed out as she prepared to frighten it, but Yuto's laughter stopped her before she could do anything.
"Hahaha! Tohru, what are you doing?"
The instant the puppy heard Yuto's voice, it jumped up and scampered toward him.
Its legs were so short that its running looked more like a series of tiny hops.
Once it reached Yuto, it began circling his legs with its tail wagging furiously.
It was obviously delighted to see him.
Yuto could not help laughing again.
"So it knows how to suck up to Boss..."
Tohru narrowed her eyes and muttered so quietly that only she could hear.
"Boss, did you find its owner?"
Yuto shrugged and explained what happened.
Then he sat down and lifted the puppy into his arms.
"For now, I guess we'll take care of it."
He raised the puppy in front of his face.
It stared back blankly, Yuto's reflection clearly visible in its dark eyes.
He smiled.
"What?! Boss is keeping it?!"
Tohru looked genuinely shocked.
Yuto gave her a helpless look.
"What else am I supposed to do? We can't find the owner right now, so we might as well take care of it until someone comes looking. I've wanted a dog for a while anyway. I just kept forgetting to visit a pet shop, so I guess today worked out."
He continued playing with the puppy as he spoke.
Tohru pouted.
Her gaze toward the dog became even less friendly.
"Speaking of which, you need a name."
Yuto smiled down at the puppy.
The little dog opened its mouth and gave a soft, drawn-out "Awooo."
Yuto thought about it for a moment.
"How about Vitamin?"
The name was admittedly a little ridiculous.
Fortunately, the puppy seemed perfectly satisfied with it.
"Woof!"
It barked brightly and looked quite pleased.
"Okay. Vitamin it is."
Yuto placed Vitamin on the floor, walked a short distance away, and clapped his hands.
"Vitamin!"
The puppy immediately scampered toward him as fast as its tiny legs could carry it, barking happily when it reached him.
From that day onward, Yuto officially had a dog!