"What is this?"
Shirou came out of the kitchen with another plate of fried rice, only to see two "lumps" sprawled on the sofa, one like a flickering fluorescent lamp, the other like a croissant and both looking like their souls had left their bodies.
"They had it coming. Do not mind them."
Texas and Sora were calmly eating the fried rice at the table. As for Exusiai and Croissant's current state they deserved it.
Talking behind someone's back was not exactly civilized behavior.
"Come on, get up and eat. It will not taste as good once it's cold."
After a moment's thought, Shirou lifted the two of them up and placed them on chairs, then served each of them a portion.
The moment they saw the food in front of them, they instantly revived at full health.
"Whoa, Shirou! Did you not say this morning you could not make fried rice? This is pretty good!"
Croissant took a bite and gave it a rating above average.
"I spent quite a bit of time researching it and failed a few times before getting it right. I am glad you like it."
Shirou humbly accepted the praise. Seeing others enjoy something he worked hard on was genuinely satisfying.
"So… about that apple pie…"
"Next time, for sure. Besides, that's your specialty, isn't it, Exusiai?"
Shirou brushed off Exusiai's eager request. He had a feeling that if he actually made apple pie, she would start asking for it every single day.
So better to delay it as long as possible until she either gave up or lost interest.
"How could you…"
Exusiai looked visibly dejected.
"Hey, think of it this way, if Shirou learns how to make apple pie, then you will not have anything special left."
Croissant patted Exusiai's shoulder, trying to cheer her up.
"What are you talking about?! I have plenty of other strengths!"
Exusiai slapped her hand away and protested.
"Oh? Like what?"
"I… I'm really good with guns!"
She had originally wanted to say she was good at shooting, but remembering the shooting range results from a few days ago, she quickly changed her wording.
"Is that not just a basic skill for Sankta? Anything else?"
"I… can not think of anything."
Exusiai's face fell, looking completely defeated, as if that "white mochi soul" was about to drift out again.
"Seriously…"
Croissant shook her head. Today's winner was clearly her.
"Croissant, you're the one getting worse, aren't you?"
Sora looked at her teammate with a somewhat troubled expression.
"Huh?"
Croissant tilted her head in confusion.
"Do not overthink labels others give you. If you care too much, life becomes exhausting."
Seeing Exusiai on the verge of collapse, Shirou offered a bit of comfort. Croissant's combo of verbal attacks had been a bit too much.
Maybe it was just his imagination, but Shirou felt like everyone in Penguin Logistics had become more aggressive lately. Where did they even learn this from?
"Waaah… Shirou, you are the best…"
Exusiai, tears and snot streaming, lunged toward Shirou. Thankfully, he reacted in time and stopped her before her face could press against him.
The thought of all that mess getting on his clothes was enough to make anyone hesitate.
Texas and Sora watched the three of them while eating, finding the scene more entertaining than anything on their phones.
After finishing dinner and cleaning their plates, everyone settled into their own activities in the living room.
The upstairs living room had been cleaned up by Shirou, but it was now filled with their belongings, especially work-related documents and materials. It looked more like an office than a living room.
Since they had just eaten and did not feel like moving, the downstairs living room naturally became their relaxation space. Game consoles had been moved down, and even the sofa had been relocated.
Everyone had their preferred spots, Exusiai and Croissant liked lounging on the sofa playing games, while Texas and Sora sat at a nearby table, drinking coffee and reading.
"Texas, there is something I want to ask."
Seeing Texas leisurely flipping through a book, Shirou approached her.
"What is it?"
Texas closed her book and looked up at him, her ears twitching slightly.
"The boss called me today. He said I might be working with your team from now on."
Shirou's original intention was to let them know about the boss's plan and see if there was any chance of changing it.
"Hmm. Is there a problem?"
Texas thought about it and did not see any issue.
What Shirou did not realize was that he was already half a member of their team. The Emperor had planned this from the start, he just needed time to observe him.
Now that Shirou had been informed, that observation period was likely over.
(Incidentally, Texas had been one of the people responsible for evaluating him and she had passed him rather quickly. Definitely not because he fixed her headphones or cooked great food. Definitely not.)
"It's just… not very appropriate, right?"
Shirou phrased it carefully.
"I do not see anything inappropriate. I think it's fine. What do you think, Sora?"
Texas could not understand his concern, so she asked Sora.
"Hm? Shirou, is it because you're a guy and feel it might be inconvenient?"
Sora had been listening the whole time. Since they were not speaking quietly, she easily picked up on everything and quickly figured out his concern.
"Yeah, exactly."
Shirou nodded, relieved.
Finally, someone understood him!
"I think you are overthinking it. Think about what our job usually involves."
Sora posed a question.
"Delivering goods?"
Shirou thought for a moment and answered.
After all, the company was called Penguin Logistics, so delivery made sense. He had occasionally seen them loading cargo onto vehicles, though they often came back injured, which worried him.
"That is half right."
Sora nodded, then added:
"The goods we deliver are often dangerous. We frequently run into people trying to steal them or hostile forces attacking us."
This was the first time Shirou truly understood their working environment.
He had always assumed they carried weapons mainly to deal with Originium creatures along the way.
He had not expected them to face hostile people as well. That explained why Penguin Logistics was so familiar with the Guard Department and why they had quite a reputation.
"Are you scared?"
Seeing Shirou frown, Texas assumed he was intimidated.
That was normal, not everyone wanted to associate with people involved in dangerous fights.
"Huh? I am not really scared… I just finally understand why you are not very well-liked by the Guard Department."
Shirou said it absentmindedly while thinking.
Only when things suddenly went quiet did he realize something was wrong.
He looked up and found himself surrounded by all four of them.
A drop of cold sweat ran down his face.
"Wait—"
Before he could finish, Shirou was instantly "beaten up" by the group.