Kawashima Toya brought Kasugano Sora and Kasumigaoka Utaha to a nearby shopping street.
Various shops lined the street, ranging from economical and affordable to high-end luxury; everything one could wish for was there.
"Utaha, what kind of clothes should Sora buy?" Toya looked down at the middle school-aged Sora and asked Utaha.
He had almost no experience buying clothes, let alone for Sora, whose age placed her at an awkward boundary.
Should she choose clothes suitable for elementary school students, or go for a more mature middle school style? It was a difficult choice.
"Never bought any? Just come with us!"
Utaha rolled her eyes and said with disdain, "Sora is a girl; how can we let you pick out her clothes?"
"And as for your fashion sense... don't even get me started."
"Oh, I see." Toya nodded, feigning enlightenment. "Then you two go choose; I'll just pay."
"No need, I'll pay." Utaha said very generously, "I made a killing after the new volume of my light novel went on sale recently."
"And the main reason I earned so much is all thanks to the ideas you gave me, Kawashima."
"So today, Sora's expenses and yours are on me. I'm treating!"
"That impressive?" Toya's smile grew brighter. "Then I won't say no. Thanks in advance, Utaha!"
Although he wasn't short on money, having such a good opportunity, he had to make a dent in Utaha's wallet
He wanted to make her understand that the phrase "I'm paying for everything" wasn't something she could say so easily just yet.
At least, he should be the one saying it!
Toya said gently to Sora, "Sora, go find Sister Utaha. She's paying for everything today."
"But..." Sora reluctantly let go of Toya's hand and held Utaha's.
Toya deliberately fell a step behind, following the two at a moderate distance.
"There really are a lot of evil spirits." Toya glanced around. Even in broad daylight, the bustling shopping street was practically a gathering place for them.
The street was already crowded with people, yet the remaining space was completely occupied by wandering spirits.
If you threw a coin into the crowd, there was a fifty-fifty chance it would hit an evil spirit.
Sometime later, Utaha and Sora were carrying so many shopping bags that they could barely hold anything else.
Seeing Toya strolling along like a slacker, Utaha complained, "Kawashima, at least help us share the load!"
"With so much luggage, how are we supposed to keep shopping?"
"Hmm..." Toya pondered for a moment, then shaken his head. "Generally speaking, people should be independent."
"Think of it this way: you and Sora carrying the bags counts as physical training."
Although his words sounded philosophical, his meaning was singular:
Don't even dream about it.
Utaha trembled with anger. "You... you really are the worst."
The leisure time of shopping for clothes soon came to an end.
Utaha tried several times to get Toya to help carry the bags, but ultimately received only rejections.
She could only put aside the thought of buying more clothes and turned her attention to food.
In front of a maid cafe, Toya hurriedly called out, "Utaha, Sora, let's see what the coffee here tastes like!"
"Don't hold back. I'll cover the bill!"
He had been in Japan for a while now, but he had only seen maids on TV. He had never actually visited a maid cafe.
Since the opportunity was right in front of him, how could he miss it?
Utaha sneered. "You don't want coffee; you just want to ogle the maids, don't you?"
Sora made a cute "shame on you" gesture, rubbing her cheek with her finger. "Big Brother Kawashima, how shameful!"
"Impossible. I came purely for the coffee." Toya said with a straight face, "I heard coffee made by maids tastes much better."
As for whether that was true, he didn't know.
He had only seen maid cafes on the internet, after all.
Although Utaha despised Toya's motives, she still followed him inside.
Having walked for so long and carried most of the packages, she was exhausted and desperately needed a caffeine pick-me-up.
As Toya walked into the maid cafe, a maid immediately approached, her energetic and gentle voice ringing out: "Welcome home, Master!"
The maid bowed perfectly, then looked up at Toya.
Seeing that familiar yet different face...
Hanazono Yurine froze on the spot. Wasn't this the guy who broke into her home not long ago and gave Jashin-chan a whack with a crowbar?
Looking at the maid, Hanazono Yurine, Toya was surprised. "It's actually Hanazono Yurine!"
He hadn't expected such a coincidence—randomly entering a maid cafe and running into Yurine working part-time.
At this moment, Yurine had swapped her gloomy Gothic Lolita outfit for a vibrant black-and-white maid uniform.
Her usual dark aura had vanished, replaced by a sweet, professional smile.
If he hadn't seen Yurine at noon, he really wouldn't have believed they were the same person.
Yurine was shocked by Toya's appearance, but she immediately remembered her duty. Wearing a sweet smile completely different from her usual self, she said, "Master, welcome home!"
"Please follow your exclusive maid to your seat."
Even though she felt incredibly embarrassed inside, she remembered the responsibilities of her job.
She had to maintain a smile at all times and ensure the customer didn't feel even a hint of unhappiness.
"Of course." A hint of amusement flashed in Toya's eyes as he followed her at a leisurely pace.
He wanted to see just how flustered Yurine would get.
Unaware of the situation, Utaha saw Toya eagerly following the maid like a puppy and huffed in anger.
"Look at him, acting so disgraceful over a maid."
"Has he no shame?"
Sora nodded heavily. "Sister Utaha is right. Big Brother is being too shameful!"
She was also very jealous. What was so good about a maid that made Big Brother make that face?
If he really liked maids, she and Sister Utaha could just buy the uniforms themselves.
Although they spurned Toya's behavior, Utaha and Sora still followed and sat at the same table with him.
Sitting in his seat, Toya took the menu. "I'll have a black coffee with maid magic added!"
After speaking, he handed the menu to Utaha and Sora. "Order whatever you like, don't be shy."
Toya couldn't wait to see what kind of expression the "Missionary of Evil," the "Strongest Black Mage on Earth," Hanazono Yurine, would make while casting a spell on his coffee.
"I'll have a latte and a milk tea." Utaha expertly ordered the drinks and helped Sora order hers as well.
Sora looked at Utaha in confusion. "Sister Utaha, I wanted to try ordering myself."
Coming to a maid cafe for the first time was a completely new experience for her.
She wanted to see what was so different about this place.