Chapter 19: Ephnel and Yukina

“Aren’t you going to go up and say hello?”

Yonomikenami urged her on with a triumphant expression, as if she had just won the grand prize in a lottery.

Ephnel silently looked at the flattered Yukina.

Right now, she was Ephnel, not Yanase Naoto.

There was no way Yukina would recognize her.

The initiative was on her side.

As long as she handled it well and didn’t reveal any flaws, there wouldn’t be a problem.

She didn’t immediately go up to greet Yukina.

Instead, she shot Yonomikenami a meaningful glance.

“What are you looking at me for?”

Yonomikenami smiled slyly, pretending to know nothing, but the smugness in her eyes was still obvious.

“I told you before, you would absolutely love her.”

“You didn’t say she was my sister.”

To be honest, Ephnel really didn’t want to face this scene.

Even though her identity was unknown to Yukina, the closer Yukina got to “her,” the more her anxiety swelled like a water-filled sponge.

Ephnel was wary.

Shiomi Yukina, her sister, was an exceptionally rare “Absolute Accommodator.”

Only two people were supposed to know this: the former Commander, and Ephnel herself.

To explain it all properly, one would probably have to trace back to a very, very long time ago.

Too many things had happened in between.

In short, the result was that Ephnel had taken Yukina’s place, joining the “Order” as the mistaken “Absolute Accommodator” and becoming an “Agent.”

And Shiomi Yukina… was kept completely hidden away as Ephnel’s most important secret.

Strictly speaking, this secret was also a promise between Ephnel and that person.

Of course, the conditions of the exchange and the details of the agreement were not things that could be summed up in a single sentence.

But overall, after weighing the pros and cons, that “contract” was formed.

It was an unknown secret agreement.

Many people only knew that Ephnel’s position in the “Order” was not as simple as it appeared on the surface, but few knew the specific reasons.

In fact, it all had traces of that “agreement.”

But, the current situation…

Perhaps it was because her concern was causing chaos.

Confused thoughts filled her mind, and Ephnel couldn’t make a clear judgment.

She took a shallow breath, suppressed the wavering in her heart, and shot a questioning look at Yonomikenami, her expression blank.

“Yonomikenami… you knew all along, didn’t you?”

“You mean, about Yukina-chan?”

Ephnel nodded slightly.

“I’m the one who pushed for your fan club. Of course I knew.”

Yonomikenami stuck out her tongue and smiled playfully, a gesture that didn’t match her attire at all.

“But, just so you know, I didn’t interfere with the fan club. Her becoming the head had nothing to do with her relationship with you. It was all her own merit.”

Yonomikenami spread her hands, neatly clearing herself of any responsibility.

“I was surprised too, when I met her.”

Ephnel stared intently at Yonomikenami, unable to easily read her thoughts from her expression, but it didn’t seem like she was lying.

“Hmm… you don’t seem very happy?”

“Maybe.”

“Hey, you’re definitely not happy with that look on your face…”

Indeed, she was not happy at all.

But for some reason, there was a small flutter of excitement—it turned out that Yukina had dressed up so meticulously this morning not for someone else, but for her.

The feeling was like the joy of finding a lost treasure.

“It doesn’t matter. Now is not the time to keep chatting. I’ll figure this out on my own later.”

Ephnel turned and walked towards Yukina.

“Hey, hey! Wait for me…”

Yonomikenami followed behind Ephnel.

Just then, a faint, dissonant vibration came from her pocket.

She took out her phone.

The screen showed an incoming call request from the command center.

“Eh? At a time like this?”

“What’s wrong?”

Ephnel asked.

“It’s a call from headquarters…”

“Headquarters?”

Ephnel’s expression turned slightly grim.

“Could it be ‘Erosion’?”

“I don’t know, but since they didn’t contact you first, it’s probably something else… You know, with the reconstruction of headquarters, there’s a lot going on lately…”

Yonomikenami was a little annoyed, but she immediately straightened her expression without hesitation.

“So, I’m very sorry, but I’ll have to excuse myself for a moment.”

“Go ahead.”

Yonomikenami glanced at the girl by the window, then shifted her gaze back to Ephnel, and turned to leave.

Ephnel watched Yonomikenami’s back in silence, her expression unreadable.

Today…

Was the second time she was face-to-face with Yukina as Ephnel.

‘Right now, I’m Ephnel, not “Yanase Naoto.”‘

With that thought, Ephnel took a deep breath to calm herself.

In the blink of an eye, she put on that famously cute smile.

Although she was only a half-baked idol, Ephnel had, at the very least, properly studied this level of expression management.

Ten minutes earlier.

Holding her number tag, Yukina followed the beautiful waitress to the top floor.

This was the place Miss Yonomikenami had booked in advance.

Yukina was waiting here.

Although it was “temporary,” the job of being the head of the fan club still needed to be done well.

Taking this opportunity, Yonomikenami had arranged for Yukina to meet with Ephnel.

Yukina sat quietly by the window, unable to hide her excitement.

In her phone, the fan club chat group had already exploded.

A friend sent her a message.

[Yukina, Yukina! Can you sneak a photo for me? Please, I’m begging you… QAQ]

Yukina covered her mouth and chuckled, her fingers tapping lightly on the screen, not knowing how to reply.

If she could, she would, of course, love to sneak a few close-up shots of Ephnel, but that would be impolite, so she wouldn’t do it.

She had already made up her mind to get a selfie with her.

This might be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so she had to have some kind of memento, no matter what.

After waiting for a while, Yukina’s gaze began to wander.

She started to observe the dessert shop.

This dessert shop… was huge, and very luxurious.

That was Yukina’s first impression.

The top floor had an ingenious saucer-shaped structure.

The panoramic windows slanted outwards, blocking the harsh sunlight while providing an incredibly wide field of view.

The food counter displayed a wide variety of desserts and fruits.

A pastry chef skillfully brought out freshly baked egg tarts and shortbread.

If needed, they could also provide pasta, Western food, or rice dishes.

The service was quite thorough.

The air was filled with a sweet fragrance and elegant music.

The elegant and cozy styles were wonderfully woven together.

It was hard to imagine what the desserts here would taste like.

When she was a child, Shiomi Yukina had a soft spot for desserts too.

But even though she was never short of pocket money, she had never been to a place like this, let alone met the Ephnel she so admired here.

It felt like a first date.

This made her both excited and a little reserved.

Every move became cautious and meticulous.

She couldn’t help but worry… It was hot at the venue, so she had sweated a lot.

Did she… smell?

Her makeup… did she need to touch it up?

Her collar and hair accessories, they weren’t messy, were they?

Her mind was filled with anxious thoughts.

And… because she was upset with her brother, she had eaten very little for breakfast.

Watching the performance and managing the fan club in the morning had consumed a lot of her energy.

Yukina felt her stomach rumbling with hunger.

‘It’s a rare chance to meet my idol. It would be so embarrassing if I ate too much…’

‘But if I eat too little, there’s still so much to do in the afternoon. My stamina isn’t great to begin with. What if I collapse from exhaustion and my idol sees such an embarrassing scene? I’m supposed to be the one in charge, but I can’t even do my job properly. I’ll be a bother to Ephnel and Miss Yonomikenami, won’t I?’

Yukina had a history of this.

She had once gone to PE class on an empty stomach and fainted—unlike her brother, Yanase Naoto, Yukina’s constitution had always been rather frail.

The more she thought, the more worried she became.

She sent a message to her friend, asking for help.

Soon, a reply came back.

[Let me teach you a little trick. When I go to my good friend’s house, I always eat a little something beforehand. That way, it won’t look like I’m eating too much.]

‘I see!’

Yukina nodded in agreement.

It had to be said, that was indeed a good idea.

She glanced around and then at the time.

Miss Yonomikenami had said she would be a little while longer.

‘No time to waste.’

With that thought, Yukina found a waitress and ordered a small piece of cake.

Suddenly, a commotion and cheers erupted from downstairs.

Still holding the plate, Yukina curiously leaned towards the window to look down.

She couldn’t see anything, but a lot of people were gathering.

Yukina opened her phone.

There were no messages from Yonomikenami.

Just then.

The crisp ding of the elevator sounded, followed by footsteps from behind.

“…Aren’t we here to meet the person in charge?”

A girl’s voice said something, her tone like the swaying of a wind chime on a summer night.

Yukina subconsciously turned her head, and then… she froze, like a statue.

Shiomi Yukina felt like a thief who had just been caught.

She had an appointment to meet someone important, but she had “snuck a bite” beforehand and was caught red-handed.

What was this?

Would she be looked down upon?

Looking at Ephnel walking towards her, Yukina felt so embarrassed she wanted to crawl into a hole in the ground.

She held the small plate in her hand, not knowing whether to keep holding it or hide it.

She forced a stiff smile.

“Um… h-hello… n-nice to meet you… I’m…”

The unexpected turn of events made Yukina completely forget the lines she had memorized so well.

No matter how hard she tried to recall them, her mind was a blank.

Her face felt like it had been scalded with boiling water.

‘Right now, even the back of my neck must be beet red, right?’

‘Like a tomato.’

‘So lame.’

‘So incredibly lame.’

‘I’m usually not like this. But now that I finally get to meet my idol face-to-face, I’ve messed it up with my own clumsiness. If word gets out, everyone will probably laugh at me, right?’

‘What will Ephnel, the person I’ve longed to see again so much, think of me now?