Although she was a big eater, Kiana wasn't actually a glutton. After a full day of starving, one normal-sized set meal plus a plate of small desserts was enough to leave her full and satisfied, wanting nothing more than to collapse back into her chair.
Fatally, however, the restaurant's chairs had no backs. Kiana almost fell over backward. Luckily, at the critical moment, she grabbed the arm of Evan, who was sitting next to her. It was also lucky that Evan was not an ordinary person; otherwise, her sudden pull would not have saved her and would have just sent him tumbling down with her.
Letting out a breath of relief, Kiana knew she had done something stupid. She remembered that the person next to her was not only the benefactor who had treated her to a delicious meal, but also her creditor. She immediately became much more docile, though her eyes kept darting towards Evan, secretly observing his expression.
"Let's go if you're full."
Evan stood up after paying the bill. Kiana hesitated for a moment, then obediently followed him. When they were back out on the street, she sidled up to him and asked in a low, unconfident voice.
"Where are you taking me?"
Evan had thought Kiana would return to her energetic self after eating her fill, but she seemed much more subdued. He couldn't help but stop and turn to look at her, a curious smile on his face.
"Take a guess."
"It's not the police station, is it? You're going to have me arrested for breaking into your dorm? Was that my last meal?"
"The police don't execute criminals immediately after catching them. There's a process."
Evan deliberately paused after saying this, enjoying her tense expression. Just before she could protest, he continued.
"Also, you have quite an imagination. I'm not going to turn you over to the police. Although you did cause some damage, it's within my tolerance. The one-hundred-million compensation was just a joke. Now, do you need me to take you home? Or should we part ways here?"
Evan wasn't entirely clear on Kiana's situation. In his memory, Kiana would transfer to Senba Academy, and then the Third Honkai Eruption would occur. As for the other specific details, he didn't know much. This world was originally a game, not a novel. The official manga that came with it was not only updated slowly but also frequently retconned its own settings. How could he possibly remember every single detail?
"I... I don't have a home here."
Kiana's voice grew even weaker. Evan frowned slightly. Her pitiful and dejected appearance made it difficult for him to continue teasing her. His previous actions towards Kiana weren't born from any negative feelings; it was precisely because Kiana held a special place in his heart that he acted that way. Otherwise, he would have just kicked out any ordinary intruder. Why would he waste so much time?
Simply put, he wanted to tease her because she was Kiana.
Evan thought carefully about Kiana's background from the game's plot.
Her public identity was not something one could casually discuss. Kiana's mother, Cecilia, once Schicksal's strongest S-rank Valkyrie, was already dead. And her father, Siegfried, didn't seem to be in a good state after the Second Honkai Eruption. Evan didn't know the specifics; after all, Siegfried wasn't a Valkyrie.
As for the girl's true identity, that was an even greater tragedy.
Evan let out a soft breath and patted the girl's head beside him. He had done this many, many times in the game. Back then, all he touched was a screen, which at first gave haptic feedback, but even that eventually disappeared. But now, he could feel the warmth between the strands of her hair, the smoothness of her white locks, and also—the hidden, but not very well-hidden, bewilderment and unease.
Kiana, who had wandered here all alone, was not as energetic and carefree as she appeared. The clumsiness she showed was because she disliked thinking, not because she was truly stupid. Otherwise, a girl who had lost contact with her only guardian for so long couldn't have survived on her own for this long, let alone travel thousands of miles to Nagazora City.
Even with Schicksal's secret arrangements.
Evan didn't believe that Kiana's journey was entirely of her own will, without any push from others. Yes, he was talking about that guy, Otto.
If he got too close to Kiana now, he might be noticed by Otto, planting seeds of instability for future events. But—should he cut off contact just because of such a concern, such a possibility? If he were to do that, he shouldn't have contacted Mei in the first place, just to be safe, because Mei was the daughter of Raiden Ryoma, the former president of ME Corp, and Raiden Ryoma was on Anti-Entropy's side.
Should he do nothing out of fear and hesitation, or live as a bystander hiding in the shadows until he was strong enough to jump out? [-55] Not to mention all the things he would miss and the tragedies he would let happen, an ordinary person training in an ordinary way could never reach the point of being "strong enough," no matter how long they trained.
Evan's main channel for getting stronger now was the Friendship Supply, and to get the friendship points needed to pull from it, he had to interact with these girls. In reality, he never had many choices from the beginning, and he had already set foot on that one and only path.
"If you don't have a home... would you like to stay with me for now? My dormitory building has plenty of empty rooms."
Evan looked at Kiana and said this with a gentle smile.
In his own mind, his image at this moment should be brilliant and noble. After all, he had weighed the options and made a firm decision to face unknown risks. However, in Kiana's eyes, it was a completely different situation.
The girl wrinkled her nose, her gaze full of scrutiny as she looked at him.
"Are you plotting something bad?"