Kyoto could be considered one of the most historically significant cities in Japan. Whether in the past or in modern society, it held an extraordinary position within the country.
That historical foundation, combined with the extensive disaster-relief experience accumulated from living in a country where earthquakes struck year after year, and civil engineering technology around the world that had somehow advanced by several levels in rapid succession, had produced remarkable results.
All those factors together meant that even though Kyoto had only suffered the aftereffects of a world-ending crisis a few days ago, its streets were already bustling with people. It stood in stark contrast to the other cities Cid had passed along the way, most of which were still undergoing reconstruction.
Cid silently marveled at the sight. This was exactly why he had chosen to flee here. It was nearby, its post-disaster infrastructure was excellent, and it was relatively safe and peaceful. The world was less likely to suddenly start ending around him.
"Wow, it's so beautiful!"
Of course, if Cid had known beforehand that his wallet would be stolen here and that he would run into a bit player he knew, he would have taken the long way around and found somewhere else to hide.
Hearing Kanade's painfully provincial exclamation beside him, Cid sighed, clenched his fist, and knocked her on the head.
"Ow!"
"Keep it down. Stop acting like some country bumpkin who's never seen anything before. You'll make people look down on me too."
Cid ruthlessly scolded the miserable-looking Kanade. Now that he controlled her finances, he could no longer be bothered to hide how vain he was.
There was a running joke online that people from Japan's two great capitals, Tokyo and Kyoto, each considered themselves a cut above everyone else.
Tokyo was Japan's present-day capital, home to countless entrepreneurs and people of high status. It was the center of modern Japanese high society.
Kyoto had once been Japan's capital, with its ancient nobility and refined traditions. Even now, some foreigners still thought Kyoto was the true capital.
That was where the friction between the two came from.
One side thought the other was nothing more than uncultured nouveau riche. The other thought its rival consisted of stubborn old fossils incapable of adapting to the times.
Both sides were textbook examples of regional rivalry.
Cid personally preferred to describe them as capitalists and feudal landlords. It was basically two social circles slapping labels on each other.
More accurately, both sides seemed to look down on everyone equally.
Cid did not understand it, but he respected their dedication, as long as they did not look down on him. If they did, then they could hardly blame him for losing his temper.
Of course, that assumed he himself had done nothing wrong.
If the locals looked down on him because of a country bumpkin like Kanade, then even Cid would have nothing to say. Kanade really did look like small fry.
"You're just as vain yourself, so why are you, Cid-kun..."
Still talking back?
One glare from Cid made Kanade swallow the rest of her words.
She looked away and awkwardly changed the subject. Her wallet had just been stolen, after all, and she was depending on Cid to support her from now on.
"Um, Cid-kun, where are we staying?"
"At a hotel. What, don't you plan your itinerary before going on a trip?"
Cid answered as though it were obvious, then looked at Kanade's embarrassed expression in confusion. He was genuinely surprised she had fled with nothing but a wallet.
"How could I book anything in advance? If I hadn't run when I did, I would've been hacked to death."
Kanade complained about Cid's complete lack of common sense.
She was not actually here on vacation.
At this point, she seriously suspected Cid had not listened to a word of her explanation.
"Tsk. You have to make an occasion of things."
Kanade no longer had the strength to argue.
She could not understand how Cid, who was supposedly a bottom-tier bit player just like her, could remain so ridiculously optimistic.
"By the way, Cid-kun, you still haven't told me exactly where we're staying."
After leaving the station, Kanade followed behind Cid while letting her thoughts wander.
As she stared at his silent back, a strange sense of unease suddenly came over her.
Come to think of it, she had no money, she was alone in a foreign country, and her phone had just run out of battery...
Cid-kun couldn't possibly be planning to sell me for money, could he?!
Kanade's face stiffened at the thought.
She could hardly be blamed for considering the possibility.
Cid had a motive.
His money had just been stolen by a pickpocket too, which meant there was a very real chance he was penniless and desperately needed money to survive.
Kanade was not stupid, either.
Cid might claim he had come here as a tourist and wanted to contribute to the city's public safety, but Kanade knew perfectly well that he was running away just like her.
His wallet had even been stolen too.
Everything she had said earlier to flatter him was simply because she could not beat him and needed his financial support.
If Christina-sama were here, Kanade would absolutely expose Cid to his face and report him immediately.
"We're here."
By the time Kanade had imagined an entire novel about herself being sold abroad, escaping through her invincible power, then returning to the Kingdom of Midgar to complain to Christina-sama, Cid stopped walking.
He pointed at the lavish hotel in front of them.
"Mitsugoshi... Hotel? Has Mitsugoshi Company expanded all the way out here?"
Reading the hotel's name aloud, Kanade voiced her confusion without thinking.
"Maybe. I don't know."
Cid shook his head without giving it much thought.
He walked toward the front desk and greeted the attendant there.
"Hello. I'm Cid Kagenou. I already have a reservation here, so could you... Hm? Nu, aren't you supposed to be with Gamma... Wait, no. You should be on vacation right now. What are you doing here?"
Halfway through speaking, the young woman behind the counter looked up.
Only then did Cid realize she was Nu, who was normally worked to the bone at Gamma's side.
"Cid-sama, Gamma-sama was worried that it might be inconvenient for you without anyone nearby to attend to you, so she adjusted my vacation and sent me here to follow your instructions."
Nu smiled faintly as she explained why she was there, while quickly completing Cid's check-in.
Then she shifted her gaze toward Kanade, who was standing behind Cid and looking around in obvious wonder like a complete country bumpkin.
"Cid-sama, does this young lady need a room as well? We still have several vacant rooms available for her."
"No."
Cid shook his head.
He had enough self-awareness to know that whatever Gamma had arranged for him was probably some kind of luxury suite.
Gamma had gone out of her way to arrange this because of their relationship. Cid could not shamelessly bring a friend along to take advantage of that goodwill.
More importantly, Kanade was not worth the trouble, and the luxury suite was large enough for two people anyway.
"See you, Nu."
"Goodbye, Cid-sama. Please let us know if you need anything."
Cid called out to Kanade, grabbed her while she was still looking around, and headed toward the elevator.
"Huh? The two of us are staying together?"
Kanade's mind worked quickly. The moment she saw that Cid was holding only one key, she immediately understood what he meant.
"What else did you expect? You want me to book another room just for you? I don't have that much money."
"Grr..."
Kanade clenched her teeth.
After being insulted by Cid again and again, she had finally reached her limit.
"Cid-kun, I know I'm spending your money right now, but that doesn't mean you can insult my intelligence. If it's only an ordinary room, I'll sell my sword if I have to. Please remember what our relationship is. Don't you understand that men and women should keep an appropriate distance? I'd rather sleep on the street than squeeze into the same room as you."
"Gulp."
Kanade stared wide-eyed at the magnificent room before her.
The luxurious yet restrained décor struck directly at her tastes. Even the air, saturated with the scent of money, seemed sweet.
Thud!
Kanade stopped the door just before it could close and stared at Cid with pleading eyes.
"Please, Cid-kun. Let me stay with you for one night."
"Men and women should keep an appropriate distance."
"I love you more than anyone. Tonight... no, let's get married right now, Cid-kun."
"You really have no shame at all."
"If you love someone, you should say it out loud."
"Ugh..."
In the end, Kanade successfully relied on sheer shamelessness to break through Cid's defenses and sneak into the room.
"Wow! High-grade down from a bird-type magical beast. I heard this creature's feathers automatically regulate temperature, and they're incredibly soft to the touch. If I could sleep on this for even one night, I could die happy!"
"Stop talking about dying every other sentence. Try living a little longer. Immortality is one of humanity's greatest lifelong pursuits."
"And that's my bed. Get off it and sleep on the sofa!"
After giving his philosophical observation, Cid's expression changed in an instant.
He lunged onto the bed with a vicious look, fighting Kanade for the blanket while kicking at her and trying to knock her off.
"No! No! The bed's huge anyway. Can't we just sleep together? Ow! Cid-kun, you kicked me! Aren't we loving allies in the same alliance? How could you treat me like this?!"
Kanade rolled and thrashed around shamelessly.
Even after Cid kicked her several times, she somehow managed to cling to her territory every time she was on the verge of falling off.
Her terrifying determination left even Cid stunned.
"Seriously? It's just a bed. Is all this really necessary?"
"This might be my only chance in my entire life to sleep in a top-class suite like this. What's wrong with risking my life for it? More importantly, Cid-kun, you're a bottom-tier nobody just like me. How did you even manage to book this place?!"
"Get off the bed!"
"Come eat me if you've got the guts! If you won't, then I'll make a sacrifice and we can sleep together!"
"..."
Cid stared silently at Kanade as she stubbornly made a complete nuisance of herself.
He admitted that he was acting a little childish.
But now she had actually made him laugh from sheer anger.
Cid had no idea how many formidable opponents had already died by his hand.
Kanade was one of the very few powerful people who could take two kicks from him and still keep running her mouth.
At this point, it was no longer a trivial dispute over a bed.
This concerned his dignity.
If he could not even win something this minor, Cid would almost feel sorry for all the enemies who had died by his hand.
He glanced at the number that had appeared above Kanade's head at some point, then looked at Kanade, who still had no idea disaster was about to strike.
Cid stood up and grabbed her.
"Fine. But there's one thing I should make clear beforehand. I have a habit of hugging things in my sleep, and I sometimes sleepwalk. So if I accidentally do anything inappropriate while I'm asleep tonight, I hope you'll be understanding."
Kanade felt Cid's arms slowly moving along both sides of her body from top to bottom.
His voice remained completely serious.
"Waaah!"
Kanade screamed, sprang away, and rolled several times across the floor.
With her face flushed from fear and embarrassment, she turned around and saw Cid standing on the bed with a smile.
"Guh... I fell for it."
Kanade groaned in regret and could only watch as Cid walked past her.
"You can have that bed."
"...Really?!"
Kanade froze at Cid's words.
Once they registered, she immediately asked again, both excited and suspicious.
"Really."
Cid nodded.
The bed itself was not important to him.
What mattered was the mercy a victor showed to the defeated.
Besides, it was not as though there was only one bed.
Cid casually pushed open the door to the adjoining room.
Kanade stared at the identical bed inside and completely froze.
"Gah! Then what was I even fighting over earlier?!"
"Heh. Maybe you were fighting for something meaningless that you still couldn't bring yourself to give up."
"Waaah! Waaah..."
Cid's cold heart ignored Kanade's wailing.
He opened the door, stepped inside, and closed it behind him.
A few hours later, after settling their luggage, Cid and Kanade spread out a map and began discussing sightseeing destinations for this trip that was supposedly a vacation, was actually an escape, yet still somehow looked exactly like an ordinary vacation.
Cid had to admit there was a reason Kyoto looked down on Tokyo.
Nearly every recommended sightseeing spot in Kyoto consisted of temples or ancient architecture, with barely any natural attractions at all.
One glance was enough to see the difference in historical depth between the two cities.
"Ah, the geisha district. Cid-kun, since we've only just arrived, why don't we buy a few sets of clothes first? That way the locals won't mistake us for country bumpkins. I don't care if I embarrass myself, but I can't let you lose face."
"In that case, I should throw you, the embarrassment itself, onto the street and let you fend for yourself. You're already enough of a country bumpkin. Also, stop thinking about buying things the moment you see a shopping district. Don't expect me to buy you clothes. If you want them, get a part-time job and earn the money yourself. I can recommend you to a friend for a customer-service job."
"Cheapskate. Can't I just pay you back when my living allowance comes in next month?"
Cid glanced at Kanade after hearing her complaint.
Living allowance?
Don't tell me this idiot spent several days sorting through classified documents and didn't even get paid for it.
Impressive.
Cid had originally thought someone like Gamma, who let Beta trick her into contributing money, effort, and labor only to barely break even, was already a rare kind of sucker.
He never imagined there was someone who would not even ask for wages and simply work for free.
If Gamma ever met you, she'd probably be overjoyed and immediately call you a kindred spirit.
"I've decided."
Ignoring Kanade, who had immediately lost all enthusiasm upon hearing that no one was buying her anything, Cid pointed at the hotel on the map.
"Once we've gone around sightseeing and come back, we'll go straight to the baths."
"You need to get a grip too, Cid-kun! Don't decide how the day ends before you've even figured out where we're going in between. Of course we're going to the baths, but not right now!"
"What a troublesome woman."
"What a troublesome Cid-kun."
After trading insults, the two eventually planned their route according to how far each attraction was from the hotel and finally reached an agreement.
"Let's go!"
Click. Click.
They opened the door to their room.
At almost exactly the same moment, two doors opened.
"Hm?"
Cid turned toward the other sound.
The door to the suite across the hallway had opened as well, and two women stepped out. One had long red hair, while the other had short black hair.
"Rias-senpai? Vice President Sona?"
"Cid-kun?" x2
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