It was Noah who finally broke the tense, suffocating silence.
"While a story of passionate love that defies logic and reason is lovely, perhaps a lighter topic of conversation is more suited for a festival. In that spirit… how about a simple game, you two?"
"A game? What sort of game did you have in mind…?"
Something about this felt incredibly suspicious. A game? This looked like nothing more than a blatant attempt by Noah to support Haruna.
I had to admire Nagisa's courage for being willing to accept, even knowing full well that Noah was on Haruna's side… but I had my doubts about whether it was a choice she could handle.
"Fufu, it's nothing too difficult. I'll decide on a question, Mika-san will secretly tell me the answer via Momotalk, and then the two of you will take turns trying to guess it. A little quiz time! If the range of answers is too broad, Mika-san can provide hints. A simple example would be something like, 'What is Mika-san's favorite—' So, what do you say? Is anyone interested?"
…Nagisa, you're not actually going to agree to this, are you? It was painfully obvious that Noah and Haruna had cooked up these questions in advance.
Even if I tried my best to twist the answers so they weren't too obvious, my personality made it difficult to just invent things out of thin air. Trying to lie for your sake just a moment ago wasn't exactly an easy choice for me, you know.
Nagisa probably knew more about 'me' since she'd spent more time with me, but considering the person asking the questions was on Haruna's side, this could turn out to be a surprisingly close match.
"Very well, I accept. I pride myself on knowing Mika-san better than anyone. The outcome of this contest is so obvious that I see no need to state it myself."
"Fufufu. Kirifuji-san, you seem very confident. But I won't be such an easy opponent, you know."
This felt like a trap, and I had a bad feeling about it, but I could understand Nagisa's confidence. It wasn't entirely baseless. In the end, it would all come down to the topics of the questions.
"Alright, first question! Of all the things Mika-san has ever eaten, what is her favorite dish? Please whisper the answer to me in Momotalk~."
Looking at Noah, who was clearly the most excited person here, I knew that my honest answer to her question was something neither of them could possibly guess.
…How in the world were they supposed to guess my mother's kimchi-jjigae?
Ah, now that I thought about it, I was suddenly craving kimchi-jjigae. This is exactly why I'd been deliberately avoiding even thinking about Korean food.
Anyway, I had to choose an answer they had a chance of guessing. And it had to be an impartial one, since the intent behind this question was painfully obvious.
"…Sent."
"Fufu, let's see… Oh? This is quite a surprising answer. Without a hint, it might be impossible for either of you to guess this."
"I think 'it's a meat dish' is a good enough hint. Still, starting with a question that's so clearly in Haruna-chan's favor is a bit transparent, don't you think?"
And so began the answering portion of our game… or rather, the 'let's-throw-things-out-and-see-what-sticks' portion.
"It's obviously Bistecca alla Fiorentina. Right?"
"Oh, Haruna-san! I'm so sorry, but that's incorrect~♪"
"…?!"
Haruna, who had shouted her answer with a supremely confident smile, stared in shock, her eyes wide.
"Ahaha, I knew you'd say that first, Haruna-chan! It was definitely the best steak I've ever had, but when it comes to all meat dishes, it's hard to say it's my absolute favorite."
"…Fufu, I see. In that case, Cotoletta alla Milanese must also be wrong."
"Oh, you remembered that one too? I guess I shouldn't have added that extra comment. Ahaha, what a shame☆"
Listening to our exchange, Nagisa looked back and forth between us as if we were speaking an alien language.
"…Mika-san, didn't you say you could only make simple dishes? Your knowledge seems a bit… overly specialized."
"Hmm… but this has nothing to do with my cooking skills, does it? We're just talking about dishes I've eaten."
"That's… true. In that case, it must be my turn. I'll guess shepherd's pie."
As expected, both of them started with dishes related to themselves. Haruna chose the main dish from our first fateful meeting, where our connection began. Nagisa chose the dish she had cooked for me herself, the one I had praised.
"Kirifuji-san is also incorrect~!"
Unfortunately, neither of them was quite on the right track.
More importantly, I was starting to understand why Noah was here. I still didn't know why she was siding with Haruna, but one thing was certain: she was enjoying this situation more than anyone.
"Sukiyaki."
"Incorrect~!"
"A hamburger…?"
"Nope!"
"Baby back ribs."
"Also incorrect!"
"Roast turkey…"
"Wrong, wrong, wrong~♪"
Countless dishes were named, but none came close to the right answer. The category was limited to meat, but the sheer variety was overwhelming. For Nagisa, who wasn't particularly knowledgeable about cuisine, just coming up with answers seemed to be a struggle.
Even Haruna, who boasted a wide range of culinary knowledge, was starting to take longer to think before answering. Just as she was running out of ideas, Nagisa muttered a guess that made Noah's eyebrows shoot up.
"Smoked duck…"
"Oh my! Kirifuji-san, that's correct!"
Even Nagisa, the one who'd gotten it right, blinked as if she couldn't believe it herself. With Haruna rattling off all sorts of professional-sounding meat dishes next to her, she must have felt intimidated.
But this question asked for my favorite dish, not the most delicious one I'd ever had. In this case, Haruna's extensive knowledge was actually her downfall.
Nagisa, forced to wring out answers from within her limited knowledge, just picked a popular one. Haruna, on the other hand, knew so much that she got lost in her own expertise.
"…You got me. I assumed that as a lady of Trinity who grew up in refinement, the answer would be a high-end dish."
"Ahaha, one look at Nagi-chan here should tell you that was a flawed assumption, right?"
"Yes, regrettably. Losing a point on a question like this is a bit of a blow to my pride."
As she said, Haruna still had her usual smile, but her eyes had darkened slightly. Gastronomy was her pride. A defeat in that arena wouldn't be easy for her to accept.
"Well then~ let's move quickly to the next question! This time, the topic is Mika-san's preferred genre of music!"
…Hey, Nagisa. I'm not that fond of hymns, so please don't give me that look of absolute certainty. I'm sorry to disappoint you…
"Due to time constraints, this will be the final question. Fufu. And since your scores are tied, it's the perfect way to decide the winner."
After six questions had come and gone, Nagisa and Haruna were, surprisingly, tied.
Should I say I was impressed that Haruna had managed to catch up after losing the first, most advantageous question? Unexpectedly, the subsequent questions weren't particularly favorable to her either, so my initial worries had been unfounded.
In other words, Nagisa had managed to bring the game to a tie through pure skill.
Perhaps feeling self-conscious about letting things get this close as my girlfriend, Nagisa looked at me with an apologetic gaze.
It's not like I'm the type to place much importance on the results of a game like this. Though, from the perspective of, Is this all my girlfriend knows about me? the story might be a little different. But what could I do? After the first two questions, the game had devolved into a complete guessing contest.
For example, the fourth question was, 'What was Mika's average score on her last exam?' Neither of them could have possibly known the exact answer to that. It was so out of left field that even I had to pull out my phone to check my grades to give Noah the answer.
Once Nagisa, who knew my approximate grades, started guessing, Haruna just followed her lead and called out numbers in a similar range. In the end, it was just a matter of who stumbled upon the right number first.
…Still, I'm glad I've been studying consistently. When I think about my average score on my first exam, which was my lowest, that number is honestly too embarrassing to even say out loud.
I did have some pride from having gotten into a decent university back in my old life. It would have been pathetic if someone like me couldn't get a proper score on exams that were, aside from ballistics, essentially high school level. I think that's why I kept studying hard even after reaching my initial goals.
"And the final question is… fufu, this is an interesting one. Among the people Mika-san knows, whose name is closest to her personal taste?"
…Huh?
This might have been an incredibly awkward question for anyone else. But for me, it wasn't a problem at all.
I didn't even need to use someone else's name.
When I typed the answer and sent it to Noah, she also seemed a bit taken aback. She gave me a look that said, Are you serious? and I nodded back.
"Pfft… This is truly fascinating. I wonder if either of you can even guess this."
Noah grinned, clearly anticipating the chaos to come.
But I wasn't so sure. This was a question that would be more upsetting for me if Nagisa didn't get it right.
"…Kurodate Haruna."
"Kirifuji Nagisa."
Almost in unison, they both threw out their own names. However, unlike Haruna, who looked tense, Nagisa's expression was perfectly serene, as if she already knew the answer.
"Fufu, you are both incorrect."
At Noah's words, Haruna's face fell, while Nagisa nodded as if to say, I knew it. As I thought, Nagisa knew.
"…Ushio Noah?"
But at Haruna's next guess, Noah put on a mischievous expression.
You can't do that, Noah. I know you're just as playful as I am, but this is going a bit too far.
"Wrong. That's wrong."
"Mika-san… that's my line, you know? You're making this difficult for me."
I gently flicked the nose of Noah, who was staring at me with an intensity that seemed to hum. No matter what, some things just aren't right, you cheeky girl.
"Ouch…!"
"Noah-chan, your prank was way too obvious."
"Hmm? I have no idea what you're talking about, Mika-san."
Did you really think I'd fall for that innocent act? Not a chance.
Anyway, once I put a stop to Noah's mischief, Nagisa finally cleared her throat and said the answer out loud.
"Ahem… The answer is, Misono Mika. Correct?"
"…Oh my. I never thought you would actually get that right."
"What?"
Seeing Haruna's dumbfounded expression, Nagisa finally allowed herself a leisurely, victorious smile. Well, a win is a win, even if it was by luck.
"Fufu, to charm as many people as Mika-san does, I suppose this level of self-love is a basic requirement."
As Noah spoke, I was trying to think of an excuse, but my mouth moved before my brain could stop it.
"…Well, I am pretty."
Ah, I shouldn't have said that.
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