Realizer of Death : The Reaper

"Hijiri? What are you doing here?" Setsuka was shocked when she saw Hijiri inside the restaurant and panicked because she was afraid that the other party would misunderstand when she saw her coming together with a man.

"Me? I was bored at home and asked Keiko to take a walk at the festival. After walking around for a while, I got hungry and decided to eat at a nearby restaurant. By chance, I found this place. I didn't expect to meet you here." Hijiri smiled and pointed at a girl next to her.

That girl is Hijiri's classmate, and her name is Keiko Nishizawa. She had shoulder-length brownish-black hair and was quite tall. Hijiri and Keiko wore kimonos of the same color but with different patterns.

The two girls looked beautiful tonight, especially Hijiri. She didn't lose to Setsuka and became the center of attention of the men inside the restaurant.

Setsuka nodded slightly in response, while Kohana kept silent and bowed to her. Although she knew her and had met her several times, Kohana was not close to Hijiri.

"Hello, Fuyushima." Keiko greeted Setsuka. They know each other because they are schoolmates and see each other often.

"Hello, Nishizawa." Setsuka returned the greeting and quickly looked for an empty table in the restaurant. But after checking all corners of the place, she couldn't find a single table, which disappointed her. The restaurant was busier than usual because it was near the festival site, and many people came for dinner after being tired of having fun at the event.

Setsuka sighed and intended to leave that place and look for another restaurant. Luckily, Tenku didn't come in with her. Otherwise, Hijiri would get suspicious when she saw him with a boy and rumors would spread around the school after the holidays ended. But before Setsuka led Kohana to leave the restaurant, Hijiri stopped her.

"Where do you want to go, Setsuka? Didn't you come here for dinner?" Hijiri asked. She felt something was off about Setsuka when she saw her wanting to leave in a hurry.

"Yes, I want to have dinner here. But no table is available for us. So I will look for another restaurant." Setsuka smiled and wanted to leave that place before Tenku entered the restaurant. But Hijiri stopped her again.

"Then how about you have dinner with us? There were still four empty chairs at my table. You'll have difficulty finding an empty restaurant during a festival. Even if you found one, it must be far from here and tiring for you and Kohana." Hijiri tried to persuade Setsuka to eat together because the table she was occupying was too big for the two of them, and she felt uncomfortable with the stares of the men around her. She wanted to share those feelings with Setsuka.

Setsuka fell silent and thought about what Hijiri had said. What she said was true. Setsuka would have a hard time finding an empty restaurant at this time.

If Setsuka looked for another restaurant in a more distant location, Tenku might reconsider her dinner invitation, and their plan to thank him would fail. But if they had dinner at that restaurant with Hijiri, both would get suspicious of their relationship, and rumors would spread afterward. When Setsuka was at a loss to decide, Kohana tugged at her kimono sleeve and said to her.

"Wouldn't it be better to accept her invitation than cancel tonight's dinner? We don't know when we'll see Big Brother again." Kohana looked at Setsuka and said.

"But..." Setsuka wanted to explain why she hesitated to accept Hijiri's invitation, but Kohana interrupted her before she could continue.

"Are you afraid of the rumors circulating when other people see you with big brother? Are you ashamed of that? If you think like that, you will lose to other girls." Kohana spoke like she knew what her older sister was thinking.

"What are you saying..." Setsuka blushed and tried to deny the words, but Kohana cut her off again.

"Rumors or being closer to Big Brother, which is more important for you? If you choose rumors, I will go with big brother and have dinner alone with him." Kohana said seriously.

Usually, Kohana will act childish, and Setsuka will act maturely in dealing with problems. But their attitudes were reversed this time because Setsuka wasn't in her usual state.

Setsuka trembled slightly under Kohana's gaze and words. She sighed with relief after feeling the heavy burden on her heart lifted.

"You are right. I shouldn't have to think about that matter. I have to do what I think is important. Thank you, Kohana. Please call Tenku for me." Setsuka smiled and rubbed her little sister's head. Kohana nodded and then walked out of the restaurant in a rush.

"Alright. I will accept your offer. But I have one more person with me. Is that not a problem for you?" Setsuka asked for Hijiri and Keiko's approval.

"Who? Is that Kaede? If it's her, then you don't need to ask my permission." Hijiri knows that Setsuka doesn't have many friends due to her cold and aloof temperament. Therefore, when she said someone else was coming with her, Hijiri could only think of Kaede, Setsuka's childhood friend dan classmate.

"That person isn't Kaede. He is our underclassman at Suisei High School, and you also met him on the mission at Lake Shima. He was my sister's savior, and I met him at the festival. Because of that, I asked him to have dinner together as a thank you." Setsuka explained.

Hijiri was curious after hearing Setsuka's answer. But before she could ask any further, the restaurant door opened, and Kohana entered, holding a boy in her arms.

"Isn't he the student who awakened an F-rank Phantasmal Object and was called the weakest in Suisei High School? Is it alright to let him join in on the mission from the organization?" Keiko muttered after seeing Tenku's face. She did not participate in the mission on Lake Shima because she had another business. But Keiko heard from Hijiri that the mission was dangerous and monsters injured many students. She didn't expect a weak student like Tenku to participate in the mission.

Tenku heard those words and ignored her because he was used to that nickname, but it was different for Setsuka.

"What are you saying?" Setsuka said in a low voice, and the surrounding temperature dropped drastically to the point of freezing. The people inside the restaurant stopped eating from shivering, and no one dared to make a sound.

Keiko trembled with fear when she heard Setsuka's question. She didn't know that her words had touched Setsuka's reverse scales.

On the other hand, Hijiri raised her eyebrows because she had seen something similar happen at Lake Shima when the first-year students made fun of Tenku. Hijiri didn't expect her to be angry and felt that Tenku's position as Kohana's savior was insignificant in Setsuka's heart.

"Please calm down, Setsuka. can't you see that you are disturbing other people in this restaurant?" Hijiri stood in front of Setsuka and reminded her.

Setsuka finally realized that her anger was making her powers go out of control and disturbing the people in the restaurant. She took a deep breath to calm herself and looked at Keiko.

"Please don't say that again because he is my sister's savior. But I can find another restaurant if you don't like to sit with him." Setsuka said seriously.

"I'm sorry. It was my fault." Keiko said apologetically and bowed her head. She didn't expect that her words would provoke Setsuka's anger.

"We never said we didn't like sitting with him. Then, We'd better sit down now since we've become the center of attention of the people in the restaurant." Hijiri sighed and sat back in her seat. She felt Setsuka was a bit temperamental when it came to Tenku.

"Thank you." Setsuka nodded and sat at Hijiri's table along with Tenku and Kohana.

Tenku didn't care what happened in that restaurant. He wanted to quickly finish their dinner and return to the apartment to pack his things. Tenku had called Wang Haotian to ask about their departure for Beijing tomorrow, and nothing had changed with their plan.

After Setsuka and the others sat down, they quickly ordered the food. Tenku sat across from Hijiri, allowing them to see each other's faces. Hijiri tilted her head as if she had seen him somewhere.

"I know you are my underclassman at Suisei High School. But have we met anywhere else? I feel like I've seen you somewhere but can't remember." Hijiri asked and looked at Tenku's face intently.

Setsuka panicked when she heard the question. Of course, Hijiri would feel like she had met Tenku since the other party was the one who had stuck a scythe against her cheek and threatened to ruin her face during the mission in Lake Shima. It was a horrible experience that Hijiri would never forget.

"No. Except for school and the mission at lake Shima, I never saw you, miss Natsukawa." Tenku replied calmly.

"Is that so?" Hijiri didn't ask any further but felt suspicious about Tenku's answer.

Setsuka tried to divert the topic of their conversation so Hijiri wouldn't get stuck with Tenku until the food they ordered came. After that, they started to enjoy their dinner, and they became the center of attention from the people in the restaurant, especially the men. They were jealous and angry when they saw Tenku surrounded by beautiful girls.

Hijiri and the others finished their dinner quickly as they felt uncomfortable eating under so many people's gazes. After leaving the restaurant, they parted ways to return to their homes, including Tenku. He quickly said goodbye to Kohana and Setsuka as he had other things to do at home.

​ "Can we go together with big brother again?" Kohana looked at Setsuka sadly after Tenku disappeared.

"I don't know." Setsuka answered in a low voice, and her face was no less sad than her sister's when she saw Tenku leaving them.

***

Tenku got up early the next day and left for Beijing with Wang Haotian on the first flight. They only need three hours to get to their destination from Tokyo by plane.

After Tenku and Wang Haotian left the airport, they were greeted by a beautiful, long-haired girl wearing a blue cheongsam.

"Grandpa!" The girl smiled and walked over to them.