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"After all, that M... 'Maschera' is just a flashy, delusional chuunibyou anime that aired around the same time as Meruru, isn't it?"
Kirino, after being lectured by Gokou Ruri for a long time, suddenly spoke as if she had realized something.
"De-delusional..."
Gokou Ruri showed an expression of 'I can't pretend I didn't hear that,' and her eyes, with their burgundy contact lenses, suddenly sharpened significantly: "You probably haven't even watched it and are spouting such idiotic fallacies! 'Maschera' is the biggest animation production in recent years. Both the animation and direction are from industry-renowned masters, and the staff list in the credits is absolutely national-team level! Not to mention the incredibly profound themes and connotations hidden beneath the superpower battles, even closely related to religion, life, and contemporary social humanities!"
"Exactly! Exactly!"
Kitagawa Marin nodded vigorously in agreement.
As if still not appeased, Gokou Ruri continued, "Also, the Meruru you mentioned, you don't mean 'Tenchu Girl Meruru', do you? That kind of fighting magical girl is already out of fashion. Even the latest 'Pretty Cure' significantly reduced its combat animation... In fact, only preschoolers and moe-pigs would watch that kind of boring children's magical girl show!"
"Huh?! What nonsense are you talking about! Meruru is a super-excellent work that deeply portrays friendship, effort, and bonds! Anyone who hasn't properly understood the emotions between Meruru and her companions, which are deeper than the Mariana Trench, is not qualified to comment on Meruru!"
Kirino also got angry.
Asakura heard someone at another table quietly ask, 'Does Malaysia have a trench?'
He figured the other party probably meant the Mariana Trench but misremembered...
"That's right, Meruru is also quite good."
Kitagawa Marin also nodded repeatedly.
""Whose side are you on?!""
Gokou Ruri and Kirino yelled at her together.
"Um..."
The blonde hot girl scratched her face a little awkwardly, then excitedly said, "Actually, compared to anime, I prefer games! Have you played 'Saint ♡ Slippery's Academy for Girls'? Shizuku in it is super awesome!"
Gokou Ruri and Kirino silently and simultaneously moved a little safe distance away from her, which greatly disheartened the blonde hot girl.
"All in all, Meruru and 'Maschera' are completely incomparable. Even without discussing the vastly different animation and direction, just their viewership ratings alone put them in completely different leagues."
Gokou Ruri cleared her throat, making her final victory declaration.
"So, viewership ratings, animation, direction... Are you speaking Magic? What's the point of such things? As long as an anime is entertaining to watch, that's all that matters. Are you the kind of person who thinks, 'Because the game I like sold more than the one you like, my game must be superior to yours'? How shallow!"
Kirino was not to be outdone; it seemed she had a very strong competitive spirit.
"You're the shallow one! You've only watched so little anime, and you're here spouting nonsense without understanding anything—"
"Why should I care about the thoughts of a chuunibyou with an evil eye? As long as I like it, it's a good work!"
"Evil... This is the second time. As the saying goes, even a Buddha can only tolerate three times. If you—"
"Evil eye chuunibyou."
Kirino immediately said, not waiting for Gokou Ruri to finish.
"Guh... You asked for this—"
Gokou Ruri raised her arm.
However, before she could make another move, Asakura, who had appeared beside her at some point, gently held her wrist.
He had a gentle smile on his face and softly said, "Alright, that's enough."
Perhaps seeing that Gokou Ruri had someone to back her up, Kirino gave a fierce glare to the boy who had been peeking over since just now.
So, the other party had no choice but to put down his cup and walk out with an awkward smile: "That's right, everyone calm down. It's just anime, after all..."
""'It's just anime, after all?'"" This time, not only Gokou Ruri and Kirino, but even some other people at the offline gathering cast dissatisfied glances at him, making the boy's movements look even more awkward and embarrassed.
Asakura looked at him with amusement, then softly said to the fuming Gokou Ruri, "My Young Lady, there's no need to get angry over Muggles."
"Young Lady?"
Kirino cast a questioning glance, but Asakura had no intention of explaining.
However, Gokou Ruri, whose hand was nonchalantly held by Asakura, quickly calmed down from her indignant state: "You're right, after all, they're just Muggles..."
"Is this also part of Cosplay?"
Kirino looked at Asakura, who was wearing a soft felt hat and had white hair: "This guy is cosplaying Ura... Urameshi Yuusuke from the famous 'Bleach'?"
"It's Urahara Kisuke, right? Urameshi Yuusuke is from Togashi's manga..."
Saori whispered a hint to her from the side.
"More or less!"
Kirino also realized she had made a mistake, and with a red face, she stubbornly said, "I don't watch anime that boys watch!"
"Rather than Urahara Kisuke, he feels more like a butler, since the hat is black."
Kitagawa Marin seemed particularly enthusiastic about Cosplay, saying with great interest.
"Could it be that Kuroneko-shi is really some Rich Young Lady?"
Saori asked cheerfully.
"That's right, that's right, my Young Lady is very busy, you know. Let me see..."
Asakura pulled back his sleeve, pretending to look at his watch, but his wrist was bare, with no trace of having worn a watch.
"Tsk..."
Kirino let out a scoff.
Gokou Ruri frowned and looked at her, her eyes like a stray cat staring at a sparrow. It seemed she reacted more strongly to Asakura being ridiculed than to being verbally attacked herself.
"Oh, I forgot my watch," Asakura leisurely took off his hat, then pulled out an old-fashioned alarm clock about the size of a human face from the seemingly shallow soft felt hat. He feigned looking at the dial before putting it back into the hat. The whole process was smooth and fluid, making everyone look surprised, while Asakura continued in his old London manner, elegantly saying, "If you need a second gathering with your Muggle friends, please inform me in advance."
Almost everyone stared at Asakura's hat, their faces filled with the question, 'How on earth did he do that Magic?'
"Then let's stop here..."
Gokou Ruri also seemed to have no intention of staying longer. She had just stood up, but before she could finish speaking, Saori suddenly said, "Wait a moment, Kuroneko-shi, there's still a friend who hasn't arrived..."
"What does that have to do with me?"
Gokou Ruri looked at her displeased.
"Of course it does," Saori raised her eyebrows and happily reminded her, "Have you forgotten the challenge you made with UMR-shi in the community before?"
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