kscans

Chapter 130 - I Invited Two Women Over, But I'm a Woman Too

The day after all the trouble at the Shibuya branch, I had planned to spend the day relaxing at home. But right now, I wasn't Okita-kun, but Eleanor-san. The reason was simple, the Eleanor-san fanatic, Nanapon, was over.

"Eleanor-san, you bought new clothes."

As I sat on the sofa in my Eleanor form, Nanapon, sitting next to me, started pinching my clothes and skirt.

I don’t really care, but stop trying to lift my skirt, kid.

"Kaede-chan told me to buy some winter clothes. Well, she picked them out for me."

I have no idea how to coordinate women’s clothes, so I left it all up to Kaede-chan.

"They look great on you!"

"Thanks..."

I’m not particularly happy about it.

As I was making small talk with Nanapon, the doorbell rang. I got up from the sofa and went to check the monitor.

"Is that Yoshino-san?"

"Yeah."

I confirmed the visitor’s face and nodded. Today was the day to discuss yesterday’s events and future plans with Yoshino-san and Nanapon.

I headed to the entrance and opened the door.

"Hey, it really is Eleanor."

Yoshino-san raised her hand with a smile and greeted me. Today, she wasn’t in her usual killer outfit, but in regular casual clothes.

"Nanaka-san is here, you see."

"You have it rough."

"I’m used to it."

"I’d rather you didn’t get used to it."

Fair enough.

I let Yoshino-san in and returned to the living room.

"Just sit wherever you like. I’ll make some tea."

"Yeah. Thanks. But don’t put any Sleeping Potion in it."

"I won’t."

I went to the kitchen and poured hot water into the cups I had prepared earlier. Once the coffee was ready, I brought it to the living room with sugar and milk. Yoshino-san was sitting at the table instead of the sofa, so I placed the coffee on the table.

"Sorry for the trouble."

"Not at all."

I hesitated for a moment, wondering whether to sit on the sofa with Nanapon or at the table with Yoshino-san, but I chose the table.

"How did it go yesterday?"

As soon as I sat down, Yoshino-san asked about my visit to the Shibuya branch.

"First, I accepted the parents’ apology and thanks. I wanted to refuse, but the Shibuya branch manager insisted I take it."

"Well, it’s better that you accepted it. The Shibuya branch manager probably wanted to settle things peacefully and quickly."

Still, 800,000 yen is a lot. The cost of the Healing Potion at most would have been enough.

"In any case, I’m glad it ended without incident. The father seemed like a normal person, too."

"That’s good. The Head of Headquarters was relieved as well. So, what happened after that?"

"The branch manager said he wanted to talk, so I stayed behind. As expected, he started probing for information. Judging by his questions, I’m certain Kiryu was listening in somehow."

If I hadn't known beforehand, I might have spouted a bunch of lies and had various things figured out about me. At the very least, they would have found out I was making the items. I’m glad Nanapon was there for me.

"Kiryu is dangerous, after all..."

"I gave him a warning, so I think it’ll be fine. If he makes a move in the future, it’ll probably be toward you, Yoshino-san."

"He’s coming for me?"

Yoshino-san made a disgusted face.

"Just give him some vague answers."

"I know. I’ve already discussed this with the Head of Headquarters, and I’ve made sure my subordinates are aware as well."

"You work fast."

"Well, it is the Truth Discernment skill, after all. It’s a threat, but as long as we take thorough countermeasures, we can manage."

It’s a terrifying skill, but once it’s exposed, there’s not much it can do.

"I see. Then let me share my theory with you. I think that skill probably has some kind of restriction."

"A restriction? Why do you think so?"

"I was on that TV debate show. I told all sorts of lies there, yet he was trying to confirm things again yesterday. I think TV broadcasts probably don’t work for it."

On TV, I stated that the potions and Item Bags were Dropped by a Slime. Yet he asked me about it again yesterday. There’s no doubt he wasn’t able to confirm it. That show I was on is all over the internet, so he could have watched it. The possibility that he just missed it is nil.

"A limitation... Eleanor, Kiryu wasn’t there with you, was he?"

"That’s right. There was nowhere to hide, and I didn’t sense any presence."

I have Presence Detection. I should have known if he was hiding.

"In that case, the possibility that he has to hear it directly is slim. Does it have to be in real-time?"

"Maybe. If he wanted to, the branch manager could have just brought a recorder. There would be no reason to bring Kiryu himself."

She said the Shibuya branch manager had brought Kiryu to a meeting with the Head of Headquarters before, which is strange.

"Hmm, I see. I’ll report this to the Head of Headquarters."

"That’s about it for yesterday."

"Hmm? Aren’t you forgetting something important? Something that caused me and the Head of Headquarters to work overtime yesterday."

So they had to work overtime. It’s not my fault, but sorry about that.

"On my way out, that little brat attacked me with a knife."

"What!?"

Nanapon, who had been lying on the sofa, shot up with a cry of surprise.

"Are you okay?"

Nanapon asked, her face full of worry.

"Do I look like a ghost to you? Besides, what can a kid like that do? I could beat him with my eyes closed."

"I heard you did an unnecessary spinning back kick."

You know a lot, don’t you.

"You heard about that?"

"We questioned the receptionist."

That girl...

"Oh. Well, that former gravure idol receptionist was there, so I chose a cool-looking move."

"I see. I have a message from that receptionist. She said, ‘Please don’t do that in a skirt. I could see your underwear.’"

So she was looking at that instead of how cool it was.

"I’ll be more careful in the future."

I’m not really used to the sensation of wearing a skirt.

"You do that. Also, she said, ‘Please don’t provoke people unnecessarily.’"

"About that, I really regret it. Thanks to that, my Provocation level went up."

My Provocation skill is now level two.

"I see. You’ve caught up to me. As expected. At this rate, you’ll surpass Lin."

Dammit! I can just picture Lin-san’s happy face.

"It was payback for before."

Being called a hyena after I saved them still makes me mad every time I think about it.

"I figured."

Yoshino-san nodded in agreement.

"And that’s why you had to work overtime?"

"That’s right. We had to call his parents and all sorts of things."

Sounds like a hassle. I’m not at fault for any of it, but I’m truly sorry.