Eh?!
Keti was suddenly stopped at the bathroom door and froze for a moment, then… only after a brief panic did she recognize the person in front of her.
This boy who looked so familiar it gave her déjà vu… wasn’t he the new member of the Hero Party who had just been sitting next to Alice—Jiaxia?
This—
Hearing the other party’s abrupt question and seeing that mischievous smile, Keti immediately became highly alert.
She narrowed her eyes at once and snorted coldly.
It must be Alice who sent this guy to question her.
Did she notice some detail and start suspecting her identity?
Heh… trying to trick me? No way!
“You’re called Jiaxia, right? I don’t understand what you’re talking about. I’m just Keti’s friend, how could I possibly be him? Keti-kun is a guy just like you, you know. Why are you saying such nonsense…?”
“But… I actually think we’re really alike~”
Miss Succubus gave a wicked smile and threw out a double entendre, still believing the silver-haired beauty in front of her had also disguised her appearance just as she herself had.
The two of them did have certain similarities, after all; at this moment it was a girl pretending to be a boy talking with a boy who had turned into a girl.
When it came to adapting to their roles, both of them seemed a little awkward.
But saying that out loud risked exposing her own identity—something Miss Succubus definitely wanted to avoid.
So after a moment, Jiaxia tilted her head and continued,
“And isn’t Keti-kun the same? Both have silver-grey hair, both are connected to the Hero Party, and the most crucial point is… If you’re not Mr. Keti, but just an outsider, then… how could you have gotten so emotional about a new member joining, and even ran away on the spot?”
Hiss—
Ha?!”
That really hit Keti’s weak spot.
Her behavior just now really had some glaring issues.
What was she supposed to say—that she was just highly empathetic?
“Hah… I, I just came to use the restroom, there’s no such thing as running away. It’s just that I’m not familiar with you all, so I didn’t say hello… uh…”
The silver-haired beauty wiped sweat as she offered a strained explanation, but Miss Succubus merely shook her head, then suddenly looked seriously at Keti, and earnestly pleaded, “I’m very good at reading people’s emotions, so… stop pretending, Mr. Keti.”
“The reason I exposed you is actually just to make one request—could you… could you please return to the Hero Party?!”
—
No, wait, what’s with this setup now?
Keti stared blankly at Jiaxia, who was bowing deeply in front of her, blinking in confusion.
If Layla or Sylvia had asked her to return, Keti could at least understand it as nostalgic attachment.
But this junior of hers—Jiaxia-kun, who’d only just joined the Hero Party—what was her motive for asking her to come back?
The silver-haired beauty didn’t know that, at this moment, the person most desperate for Keti to return to the party might be this Miss Succubus right before her.
Of course—she couldn’t let such a big fish go.
What’s more, while eavesdropping on Alice and Layla’s conversation earlier, Jiaxia had discovered that this person in front of her was actually a teacher at Liddell Magic Academy.
That was a big problem!
If she let her get away now, and Keti kept staying at the Magic Academy, it would be very hard to make a move on her!
Jiaxia’s own abilities were limited, so… the best solution was to drag Keti back into the Hero Party, then spend some time together.
Miss Succubus was nothing if not patient—once Keti and Alice let down their guards around her, she could take out these childhood sweethearts together!
Puff, puff, puff.
What a flawless plan~
With this, Jiaxia broke into a smug smile.
She thought Keti would definitely take the excuse she offered and agree right away—after all, with that overreaction earlier, she must be eager to return to the team, right?
But…
After a brief pause, much to Miss Succubus’s surprise, Keti thought it over, then shook her head, sighed, and made up her mind.
At the same time, she directly admitted her identity, “I… I still won’t go back. I left the party on my own terms, after thinking it through, so there’s no reason to return.”
“I just… had an emotional moment earlier, that’s all. Now that I’ve calmed down… I really don’t deserve that team. Besides… well, maybe you’ll understand someday. The truth is, my position isn’t as easy as it looks.”
Ha?!
At Keti’s wry smile, Miss Succubus immediately felt annoyed.
What did that mean? She’d gone out of her way to give this guy a chance, and instead of being grateful, he was trying to persuade her?
What’s that supposed to mean, huh? Looking down on her?
Wasn’t he just the only male character in a ragtag adventurer party? What’s so hard about it?
At worst, it’s just taking care of a few fussy girls, right? Hah… a trivial matter, she’d already done fine yesterday.
And if she played it right, wasn’t this basically building a harem?
If only Miss Succubus had any interest in women at all, she’d think this position was pretty great.
If only those three teammates were all handsome, energetic guys~!
So, after a moment, Jiaxia frowned with dissatisfaction, then let out a cold laugh,
“Is that really okay? Mr. Keti, those three beautiful sisters already like me a lot. We’d only just met yesterday, and they were already praising me.”
“If I stay in the party, win their favor, and take good care of them, who knows—maybe soon they’ll forget you entirely, and start liking me instead. Even so… you won’t regret your decision today?”
“Hoo… R-really?”
There was such a good thing?!
Keti completely missed the taunting in Jiaxia’s words, immediately looked up, grabbed Miss Succubus’s hand with shining eyes, and, while Jiaxia stood dumbfounded, excitedly confirmed,
“You can really take good care of Alice? Make sure she’s happy every day? That’s wonderful… Hoo… In that case, I’ll have fulfilled the Mission of Childhood Sweethearts and the Task from Parents!”
“Uh… Eh?!”
N-no, wait—what’s with that look of relief, like you’ve finally managed to dump a burden?
This gives me the feeling I’ve fallen into a pit—wait… is there something actually strange about Alice?
“Well… that was just a joke earlier. There’s no way I’d feel comfortable entrusting them to someone else. Heh… But that doesn’t mean I’m coming back to the party, either.”
“Don’t be so naive, brat. Honestly… let’s see if you can survive even a month in the Hero Party without running away first.”