"[ Phantom Thief White Cat's Unofficial History: Untold Tales ]... Ugh, these news outlets are getting more outrageous by the day!" Furina grumbled.
In the morning, Furina sat at the table in her pajamas, reading the newspaper while waiting for breakfast.
The Steam Bird—that was the paper she was reading.
But it was clear this particular article hadn't been written by Charlotte.
Even at The Steam Bird, a paper renowned for its talented reporters, there were still unscrupulous journalists lacking professional ethics.
Luna, unfazed, said, "Stop reading that Unofficial History nonsense and come eat breakfast."
"Aren't you angry? They clearly don't understand anything, yet they're tearing you down like this!" Furina huffed indignantly, folding the newspaper and tossing it aside.
Luna handed Furina the jam. "They don't need to understand. If slandering a 'dead' criminal brings them piles of money, why wouldn't they do it? After all, they don't have to worry about a ghost knocking on their door."
True enough... Furina thought, her face twisting with indignation.
How could she possibly accept seeing her beloved Phantom Thief—the greatest of them all—being mercilessly defamed and devoured by these "flies"?
Seeing that Luna genuinely didn't care about such things, Furina felt a little relieved.
"Besides, all that matters is that the person I love understands me," Luna said with a smile.
"You don't have to worry about that at all. I'll always be on your side..." Furina replied, her face flushing as she took small bites of her bread.
Sometimes she wondered: If Luna ever returned to her old life, wouldn't she terrify those fools out of their wits?
But then she'd think: But I don't want Luna to risk herself...
Isn't it nice just spending these peaceful days together?
After all her conflicting thoughts, Furina finally realized one thing: in the end, the decision still rested with Luna.
If Luna were to don her mask again, Furina would, of course, support her.
Just tell me beforehand!
Making her worry was a terrible sin.
"Furina."
"Hmm?"
"Feed me."
Why is Luna getting so clingy?
She'd been acting more coquettish lately, though it wasn't exactly a bad thing—as long as it didn't immediately lead to kissing.
Not that Furina disliked kissing... but having so many kisses every day was just too much to handle.
Her heart couldn't keep racing that fast for that long without endangering her health!
Furina speared a piece of bacon with her fork and fed it to Luna.
"Why don't you just feed me the whole breakfast?"
"Don't be so lazy!"
-
Ding-dong! The doorbell at Chioriya Boutique chimed.
"Chichi, Chiriri~"
Another bizarre nickname. Chiori sighed deeply.
Can't you just call me by my name properly?
"What brings you here? Shouldn't you be keeping the Former Hydro Archon company instead of barging in here?" The barbed words slipped out before she could stop herself.
Chiori realized her mistake only after the words had escaped her lips. But once spoken, they couldn't be retracted.
"Because I wanted to see you."
Fortunately, Luna wasn't one to take such things to heart.
Or perhaps years of familiarity had made her immune to Chiori's bluntness.
That's right, I was the one who came to her first. I was the one who encouraged her to get back on her feet, not anyone else.
...But competing over such things is childish.
"Now that you've seen me, what then?" Chiori asked.
"Then I'll stay here, just like before."
Chiori's expression softened slightly. "Just don't disturb me or any later customers. And stop lounging around like a fat cat."
"Doesn't matter, does it? A world-famous star is lounging in your boutique as a mascot! Your customer traffic will definitely increase."
"Then at least cover up your exposed belly."
"Want a kiss?"
Their bickering with Luna always veered off into strange directions.
Lately, Luna seemed to have awakened again after her initial awakening, becoming even more incorrigible—even moving in with Furina.
In the past, Chiori would have rejected such a suggestion outright.
After all, Luna was just talking casually.
While Chiori wouldn't have minded if Luna acted on her words, believing them and letting herself get caught up in them would only lead to losing her composure.
It was precisely because Luna's words and actions were so disorienting and impulsive that Chiori always refused her.
What an unserious creature, Chiori thought to herself.
She stood up and moved to Luna's side, settling onto the sofa beside her.
After gazing for a moment at Luna's exposed belly, Chiori gathered her hair, leaned down, and pressed her lips against the cool, soft skin.
Luna's eyes widened. "You...?"
Did she really kiss me?
Chiori straightened up, her expression nonchalant. "Didn't you ask if I wanted to kiss you?"
"'I was just saying...'—if that's your excuse, it has nothing to do with what I wanted to do. If you don't listen to people, I won't listen to cat-speak."
Luna's cheeks flushed slightly. "I'm just surprised you actually did it."
You used to refuse to even let me touch your face, no matter how much I begged.
"How surprised are you? Tell me." Chiori's lips curled into a teasing smile.
"Very."
"That proves you still don't understand me well enough. I rejected you before not because I didn't like you, but because your attitude infuriated me."
Holding hands was one thing—close friends often do that. Though she'd never let anyone else hold her hand.
But kissing her cheek?
That was entirely different.
"You're too casual," she said.
Luna raised an eyebrow.
Casual? Even carefree would be a stretch. Casual?
She couldn't accept that.
Luna rose and pinned Chiori down. "Then you don't understand me either. I don't just kiss anyone. It's because it's you, Chiori, that I felt that way."
Chiori retorted, "Then you should know that if someone I didn't care about expressed such feelings to me, I would make them understand the suffering of living in this world."
Chiori pushed herself up, flipping Luna over to pin her down instead.
"You're not someone I don't care about, which is why I'm infuriated. Understand?" she said coolly, her hand sliding down Luna's cheek.
The comfortable itch made Luna's eyes narrow slightly, a hint of pleasure flickering across her face.
But she still wore that maddening smile.
"The angrier you get, the more I want to keep saying these things," Luna said.
"The more you say, the angrier I get. And unfortunately for you, I'm not one to control my emotions well—or rather, I see no need to control them at all—"
Chiori leaned down, her figure filling Luna's vision.
"So, you should really think twice about whether you want to make me angry."
"If it's Chiori's angry side, I'd love to see it."
Luna took one of Chiori's hands, her fingertip gliding from Chiori's wrist across her palm. With a fluid motion, she wove her fingers between Chiori's, clasped her hand, and gently pressed her lips to Chiori's fingertip.
"What was that saying again? 'True indifference is a complete lack of concern'?"
"And I want you to care about me more, Chiori. So even your angry side—I want to see it, touch it, even kiss your cheek."
Chiori pursed her lips slightly, then sighed.
She clasped Luna's hand in return.
With their fingers intertwined, Chiori murmured, "Then I hope you won't regret this later."
"I never do things I'll regret."
Chiori's voice deepened. "Me neither."
Though she regretted not keeping a closer eye on Luna, allowing her to cohabit with Furina, she stood by her earlier declaration.
There won't be a next time.