"Thank you for today, Setsuna-san. The food was really delicious!" Silica said, patting her small tummy with a content smile.
"Seriously, I didn't know your cooking skills were that high," Leafa added in amazement after tasting the meal he had made earlier. Even though the food wasn't real and was only composed of data, players could still experience taste, its quality depending on how high their Cooking Skill mastery was.
As for Leafa, she and the others had already tasted Asuna's cooking in the game, which was quite similar to Shido's. That could only mean one thing, Shido's Cooking Skill was on par with Asuna's, which was already maxed out.
Hearing her words, Shido replied nonchalantly while sipping his tea, "Well, I had enough time to max it, so it ended up like this."
'When did this guy even start playing again?' Leafa's lips twitched at his response. All of them knew that Shido had only recently joined ALO, despite already causing so much commotion in the game. So how in the world did he have time to max out his cooking skill?
Shido had no idea what she was thinking. He simply smiled at Leafa before turning his head toward Lisbeth, who was also staring in his direction for some reason.
Noticing her gaze, Shido tilted his head. "Is something wrong, Lisbeth?"
Caught red-handed, Lisbeth let out an awkward laugh and shook her head. "Mmn… I was actually thinking the same thing as Leafa."
"Is that so?" Shido raised an eyebrow, but he didn't dwell on it. Still, he could tell Lisbeth had something on her mind—she kept fidgeting, and her eyes would frequently drift toward him.
It wasn't unusual for Silica and Leafa to glance at him from time to time as well, but Lisbeth's gaze felt different, and Shido was quite familiar with that kind of look.
Shaking his head, Shido let out a quiet sigh and smiled inwardly. It seemed something was about to happen.
...
"Well then, we'll get going now, Setsuna-san." Leafa nodded at Shido as she thanked him once more.
Silica followed right after. "Mn! See you later, Setsuna-san. Let's party together again sometime!"
"Kuu!"
Pina mimicked its master and bowed to Shido as well, making him chuckle. The little dragon-and-loli combo was undeniably cute.
"Un, see you later."
Waving his hand, Shido watched as Leafa and Silica disappeared in a flash of light. Just before Leafa vanished, however, she shot him a strange look, as if she were wrestling with something internally.
Shido could more or less guess what that look meant, and he could only shake his head.
In the end, only Lisbeth and Shido were left behind in his residence.
Just like earlier, Lisbeth was fidgeting a little, her thighs rubbing together as her mouth opened and closed repeatedly. She clearly wanted to say something, but always stopped at the last moment.
Knowing exactly what she was trying to do, Shido smiled inwardly. It seemed it was about time to capture this "lost heroine."
Without waiting for Lisbeth to speak, Shido walked toward her and sat down right beside her on the couch. The couch wasn't very big, so their bodies were almost touching each other.
Noticing Shido's sudden action, Lisbeth was momentarily dumbfounded, she hadn't expected him to sit so close. Embarrassment quickly followed as she became aware of how near he was, their arms almost brushing against each other.
Her face grew warm, and she was certain her cheeks were turning red. But when she turned her head toward Shido, she realized just how close his face was to hers, making her heart nearly leap out of her chest.
"What's wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost."
Seeing the mischievous grin on Shido's face, Lisbeth immediately knew he was teasing her. Her cheeks puffed slightly as she pouted on the inside.
Even though they were inside a game, ALO still simulated a certain level of physical sensation. Just like how they could taste the food during the celebration, they could also feel warmth and contact. And right now, Shido and Lisbeth could clearly feel each other's warmth.
"Nothing."
Feeling a little annoyed, Lisbeth let out a sharp "Hmmp!" and looked away. Seeing this, Shido's smile grew even wider, this tomboyish girl was really cute when she acted like this.
While she turned away, Shido made his move. He shifted a little closer to her and suddenly placed his hand over her small hands, causing Lisbeth to stiffen in surprise. Her cheeks instantly flushed a deeper shade of red.
"Y-You! What are you doing?!" Lisbeth's voice sounded angry, but she didn't pull her hand away. Instead, she found herself holding his hand tightly while feeling embarrassed, especially as Shido looked into her eyes with that gentle smile.
'…No fair. How can he be so gentle? My heart can't take this…' This is too much for my heart.' Lisbeth thought to herself, feeling her steadily rising heartbeat.
Meanwhile, Shido lips curve in a playful grin, showing no intention of letting go. He even tightened his hold slightly before saying, "Hmm? What do you mean?"
Shido's words sounded perfectly natural, and his expression was innocently calm, making Lisbeth mutter in her mind, '…This shameless person.'
She was speechless at how thick his face was, holding her hand and saying that with such a straight face. Yet, at the same time, she couldn't help but feel a small flutter of happines as Shido seemed to to be inditicating something.
She had already decided earlier that she would make a move since she had stayed behind, but she hadn't expected Shido to be so proactive. The thought both elated and embarrassed her.
Since Lisbeth wasn't saying anything but still holding his hand, Shido nodded, thinking that despite her boyish tendencies at times, she looked innocently cute in that moment.
He couldn't help but sigh, wondering why Kirito had ignored such a girl. At the same time, he felt grateful to Kirito, if not for him, he wouldn't have the chance to get to know Lisbeth.
Now that the situation had grown ambiguous, and the atmosphere seemed to take on a faint, pinkish hue, Shido leaned slightly closer and said to the blushing Lisbeth, "Don't you already know why I'm doing this, Lisbeth?"