Chapter 292: Ice Cream (Patreon)

"All right, all right."

Amamiya Rin pressed his right hand on Kawakami Tomie's shoulder and his left on Azawa Tomie's head, stopping the two of them from squabbling any further.

"Didn't we agree to go see the circus? If you keep this up, the show will start without us."

"Brats are such a hassle."

Kawakami Tomie muttered it, but said nothing more. She just turned her face away, the picture of out of sight, out of mind.

Azawa Tomie snorted through her nose, stuffed the ticket into her skirt pocket, and strutted out in front like a kitten patrolling its territory.

Amano Sei watched the scene and couldn't help laughing softly.

"Hey, ugly. That brat's already walked off, so how about showing some self-awareness and not barging in on our time alone together?"

Hearing the laugh, Kawakami Tomie shot Amano Sei a glance and spoke coldly.

In an instant, the smile froze on Amano Sei's face, and she didn't know what to do with herself.

She'd known Tomie had a vicious personality, but she had never expected Tomie to pull something like this out of nowhere.

"Time alone? If you can get this kid to leave on her own before the circus show starts, I wouldn't mind having time alone with you, either."

Amamiya Rin said it calmly.

Kawakami Tomie's expression froze, too.

Her gaze swung to Azawa Tomie, fiercer than the look she'd given Amano Sei.

Amano Sei was only an outsider, a chance acquaintance of Amamiya Rin who would never form any deep connection with him. The worst rival was this little brat!

Amamiya Rin, meanwhile, looked at Amano Sei with a slightly apologetic expression.

Amano Sei was stunned for a moment, then gave a wry smile.

"It's fine. I understand."

She shook her head slightly, her tone gentle, without a trace of blame in her eyes.

Her gaze brushed past Kawakami Tomie and settled on Amamiya Rin's face, with the knowing look of a bystander.

"Amamiya-kun, it can't be easy for you, either."

She said it so quietly that only Amamiya Rin could hear.

Amamiya Rin didn't answer. He only tugged the corner of his mouth slightly.

Amano Sei took in his expression and sighed inwardly.

Someone so gentle, and saddled with such a possessive girlfriend. Life must be hard for him.

Still, getting herself mixed up in this situation was clearly a bad idea.

"Um... Amamiya-kun."

Amano Sei pulled her phone from her pocket and glanced down at it, a small frown on her brow, her tone apologetic in just the right measure.

"I just remembered I have something to do this afternoon. I'll skip the circus."

Amamiya Rin could see right through Amano Sei's real intentions. He started to say something, but in the end he didn't try to stop her and simply nodded.

"I see. Be careful on the way."

"Mm. See you around."

Amano Sei waved, turned, and walked off in the other direction.

"Hmph! Finally, someone with some self-awareness."

Kawakami Tomie glanced after her and snorted through her nose, then turned to Azawa Tomie.

The two glared at each other.

Two similar faces, one looking down, one looking up, and neither willing to give an inch.

The afternoon sun fell across their faces and left the hostility in those eyes nowhere to hide.

A strange tension hung in the air, like a taut string that could snap at any moment.

"Brat, I suggest you know your place."

Kawakami Tomie spoke first, her voice carrying an undisguised threat.

"Know my place?"

Azawa Tomie tilted her head, a sneer curling the corner of her mouth.

"You're the one who should know her place. Knockoff."

"You—!"

Kawakami Tomie's eyelid twitched, and her fingers tightened again.

Azawa Tomie glared right back, a viciousness and malice in her eyes that didn't match her age at all.

They stayed locked in the standoff, neither willing to look away first.

Time slipped by second by second. Cicadas droned from a park in the distance, one cry after another, as if scoring this silent confrontation.

In the end, it was Kawakami Tomie who gave way.

"Hmph!"

She huffed hard and turned her face aside, no longer looking at Azawa Tomie.

Azawa Tomie snorted through her nose as well and twisted her head the other way.

Neither said another word, but neither tried to drive the other off anymore.

It was an understanding, or rather, a compromise both knew perfectly well.

Neither of them could get rid of the other before the circus show started.

Rather than waste time here, they might as well call a temporary truce.

"Let's go."

Amamiya Rin watched the scene with a helpless shrug, then turned and headed toward where the car was parked.

It was a shame his friend had left, but today was a rare free day, and someone else was paying besides. He wasn't about to let it spoil his chance to relax.

Kawakami Tomie fell in step at once and naturally hooked her arm through his.

Azawa Tomie refused to be outdone. She ran a few steps and grabbed his other hand.

The three got into the car. The engine started, and the jeep merged into the afternoon traffic, heading toward Shinjuku.

The Babylus Grand Circus had set up its performance site on an empty lot beside a newly built commercial complex.

A huge red-and-white striped tent stood on the ground, with several pennants atop it swaying gently in the afternoon breeze.

At the entrance stood an arched inflatable sign, with "Babylus Grand Circus" written in ornate lettering and a ring of small colored bulbs along its edge.

Plenty of cars were parked around the lot. Adults led children by the hand, drifting toward the entrance in twos and threes. The air was thick with the sweet smell of popcorn and cotton candy, and now and then the smoky scent of hot dogs.

"Ice cream! I want ice cream!"

Azawa Tomie stopped abruptly and tugged Amamiya Rin's hand toward another direction.

Amamiya Rin followed her gaze.

At the edge of the lot was a retro-styled ice cream truck. A few children and their parents had gathered around it, holding cones and licking them until their faces were smeared.

"Wait here."

Amamiya Rin headed over at once. The two Tomies, big and small, didn't stay behind and followed right away.

The truck was parked to the right of the tent entrance. Behind the window stood a young man of twenty-five or twenty-six, with features so handsome they were almost eerie. He was handing a cone to a small child. When he turned and saw Amamiya Rin and the two Tomies, his eyes lit up slightly, as if he'd spotted a pleasant surprise, and a faint smile curved his lips.

"Welcome."

The young man's voice was low and soft, like a cello string plucked gently.

He bowed slightly, raised a hand to remove his top hat, and made a perfect welcoming gesture.

Beneath the brim, a few strands of ink-black hair fell loose, making his pale face look all the more unreal.

Amamiya Rin's gaze lingered on the young man's face.

He sensed something... a very subtle wrongness.

Amamiya Rin narrowed his eyes, and a flash of white light passed through their depths.

Something was off, yet he couldn't tell what.

Through Amamiya Rin's Ultra vision, the ice cream vendor was just an ordinary human. Nothing about him seemed wrong.

Amamiya Rin closed his eyes.

His eyes told him the man in front of him was fine.

But his instincts told him the man was wrong.

In a world like this, Amamiya Rin trusted his instincts over his eyes.