The previous day, although the Witch had played a pivotal role in rescuing the blonde girl, she had remained invisible throughout the ordeal. Consequently, Midori Orikasa had yet to see Akane Koizumi's true face.
"She's the fortune teller who located Mayuzuki's position yesterday," Hayashi Shuichi introduced her briefly.
"Thank you so much for yesterday!" Midori Hurriedly bowed in gratitude.
She knew all too well that if they had arrived even a moment later, the girl would have been defiled by those thugs. Thinking of the potential consequences, Midori bowed again and again. If anything had happened to Mayuzuki, she might have lived with the guilt for the rest of her life.
"No need to thank me," Akane said, waving her hand dismissively. "I didn't perform the divination for your sake, anyway."
"By the way, where's Mayuzuki?" Shuichi asked as he unlocked the door. "Is she doing alright?"
"Mayuzuki went to school as usual today," Midori said with a light chuckle. "She's incredibly resilient, so you don't need to worry about her, Senpai."
The group stepped into the Izakaya.
Eri Kisaki headed straight for the cash register without a word. She began organizing the ledgers with brisk, forceful movements, the sharp snapping of paper and the thud of the books echoing through the room—a clear outlet for her simmering frustration.
Midori took out her books and homework, leaning in close to Shuichi's side. "Senpai, about this problem..."
When it came to academics, Midori clearly lacked innate talent, but she made up for it with sheer persistence. During her time at the Izakaya, aside from learning culinary skills from Shuichi, she had been using her breaks to catch up on her studies. After two months of effort, her grades had improved significantly.
Seeing this, Akane didn't hesitate. She pulled out her own homework and unceremoniously squeezed Midori aside. "How do you solve this one?"
The moment Shuichi saw the problem she was pointing at, he felt a massive headache coming on.
Beside them, Midori's eyes widened in shock. She had always believed her own grades were bottom-tier, but she hadn't expected Shuichi's classmate to be—frankly—worse than her.
"Isn't this... an elementary school level problem?" Shuichi felt his pulse throbbing at his temples.
"Well, my mother never taught me this!" Akane said defensively. She began poking at her notebook with the tip of her pen, leaving a trail of tiny indentations in the paper. "Math is such a drag. It's not like other subjects where you can just memorize things."
As she spoke, the girl pouted, her face a mask of genuine distress.
"This... we're going to have to start from the basics," Shuichi muttered, rubbing his temples.
"You said earlier on the rooftop that what I asked for didn't count as the 'second favor,'" Akane said, noticing his reluctance. She tilted her head thoughtfully. "Fine then. Tutoring me will be the second thing you do for me. Is that fair?"
"...Alright." Seeing that she was actually serious about learning, Shuichi could only nod in resignation.
For the next hour or so, Shuichi was fully occupied with Akane's remedial lesson.
"No, no... when dividing fractions, you have to multiply by the reciprocal..."
"But why? That's so much work! Why can't I just multiply them directly?"
"Because that's how the rules of mathematics work."
"Rules can be changed, can't they?"
...
By the time six o'clock rolled around, Kogoro Mori and Reiko returned.
Once Shuichi finished preparing the staff meal, Akane sat down at the dining table as if she owned the place, her eyes fixed hungrily on the fragrant dishes.
"This isn't for customers!" Reiko snapped, planting her hands on her hips and glaring at Akane. Ever since the divination incident the day before, she had harbored a deep dislike for her brother's classmate.
"Does that mean I don't have to pay?" Akane blinked, her expression one of feigned innocence.
"You—!"
Reiko's cheeks flushed crimson with anger. She was about to explode when Shuichi stepped in to stop her.
"Hmph, shameless!" The little cousin grumbled as she sat down, pointedly dragging her chair across the floor with a loud, screeching noise.
"Akane-kun, please, eat up," Kogoro Mori greeted her warmly. "Shuichi's cooking is top-notch."
"It really is quite good," Akane murmured after a careful taste, a look of pure satisfaction spreading across her face. "It seems I'll have to make sure the puppet butler at home knows how to cook too."
The Witch nodded to herself, lost in thought.
The table fell into a sudden, awkward silence. Everyone looked at each other, unable to make sense of her comment. Only Shuichi could only shake his head helplessly.
After dinner, the Izakaya officially opened for business.
While Shuichi and the others busied themselves with chores, Akane didn't leave. Instead, she sat alone at a window seat, resting her chin in her hands as she watched them work.
Finally, Eri Kisaki reached her breaking point.
She marched over and slammed her hand onto the table. "Hey! If you're not eating, don't take up a table. We have a business to run!"
Akane turned her head slowly and pulled two ten-thousand yen bills from her pink wallet, sliding them across the table. "Is this enough?"
"We are an Izakaya! Not a charity for beggars!" Eri clenched her fists, her voice trembling with suppressed rage. "If you aren't ordering food, please leave!"
"But I'm already full," Akane said, patting her stomach. "That guy's cooking is really something... oh well, I suppose it is time for me to go home anyway."
The girl stood up and stuffed the money into Eri's hand.
"I told you, we don't—" Eri started to refuse, but Akane cut her off.
"This is for the next few days' worth of meals."
"You're coming back tomorrow?" Eri's eyes shot wide, her voice jumping an octave.
"Of course," Akane nodded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "He promised to tutor me. If I don't come here, he'll have to come to my house..."
"No!" Eri interrupted instantly.
At the Izakaya, she could keep an eye on them. But if they were alone at the girl's house—a boy and a girl behind closed doors... she didn't even want to finish that thought.
"Exactly," Akane said with a satisfied nod. "See you tomorrow, 'Angry Eri-san.'"
The girl intentionally dragged out the syllables of the nickname before waving toward the kitchen counter. "Shuichi! I want ramen tomorrow!"
With that, Akane let out a small yawn and strolled out of the Izakaya.
"Hmph, another one tangled up with you," Eri said irritably, walking over to the counter. "What was it you told me before?"
"What did I say?" Shuichi feigned a lapse in memory, quickly trying to change the subject. "Oh, right! Didn't Yukiko say she'd finish filming this weekend? Maybe she can join us for that trip to the beach."
"Keep playing dumb!"
Eri glared at him. Thinking of the impending return of Yukiko Fujimine, she fell into a contemplative silence for a moment before speaking up.
"Since Akane Koizumi loves coming here so much, why don't we just have her work here starting tomorrow?"
Shuichi looked at her in genuine surprise. "I thought you didn't like her?"
"What does it matter if I like her or not?" Eri rolled her eyes at him. "If I say I don't like her, are you really going to stop her from coming?"
"Well... I did give her my word. I can't exactly go back on it now," Shuichi gave a dry, awkward laugh.
"Then let her stay," Eri said, her face becoming an expressionless mask. "With one more person helping out, everyone else's workload will be lighter."
(The "Strategy of Pitting Tiger Against Wolf": By keeping the new rival close, Eri ensures she can monitor the situation while potentially using Akane to balance out the influence of the soon-to-return Yukiko.)
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