WebNovels

Chapter 19 - Chapter 19: A Lonely Little Gift

"N-no," Gotou lowered her head slightly.

It wasn't that she disliked Makima or didn't want to see her.

She simply had no idea how to face her.

Makima smiled and tilted her head. "Aren't you going to invite me in for a little tour?"

"Uh… alright," Gotou nodded.

She pushed open the door to STARRY.

Naturally, this drew everyone's attention. Nijika and Ryou looked over.

"Bocchi-chan's here!"

"Bocchi-chan… and she's not alone?" Ryou sounded a bit surprised.

"Huh? You're right!" Nijika quickly noticed and looked closely at the person behind Gotou.

Makima followed with a polite smile. "Good afternoon."

Nijika immediately stood up. "Bocchi-chan, is this the person you said would make a perfect lead vocalist?"

"Yeah, she's gorgeous, has a great voice, and most importantly… she's got that commanding stage presence!"

"Uh?" Gotou froze.

She realized Nijika had gotten the wrong idea.

"Well done, Bocchi-chan," Ryou gave a thumbs-up. "I underestimated your ability to rope people in."

"Hey, Ryou, that's rude! What do you mean 'rope people in'? Bocchi-chan must have won her over with sincerity!"

"By the way, did you meet her at school? Is she a classmate?" Ryou asked.

"Um… you've got it wrong…" Gotou tried to explain.

"Wrong?"

Nijika blinked, then clapped her hands as if she'd just figured it out. "Oh, of course! She looks way too mature to be your classmate… so she's a teacher, right?"

"Whoa, a teacher who plays in a band? That's super rare!"

"No, she's not…" Gotou shook her head and waved her hands anxiously, unsure where to start.

Even she didn't know how to explain Makima's identity.

"Not a teacher either?" Ryou thought for a moment, then nodded. "Oh… Nijika, we both guessed wrong. She's not a new band member Bocchi-chan recruited."

Gotou breathed a sigh of relief.

Finally, the misunderstanding was about to be cleared up.

Ryou continued, "She must be Bocchi-chan's mom, here to keep her company out of concern."

"She's not!!!" Gotou raised her voice.

Nijika and Ryou both looked puzzled.

Not a classmate, not a teacher, not a mom… then who could she be?

"Hahaha…"

Makima finally couldn't hold back her laughter.

"Perhaps I should introduce myself," she said, wrapping her arms around Gotou. "Actually, I'm Bocchi-chan's…"

Feeling the soft touch at the back of her neck, Gotou's face turned crimson.

And watching this, Nijika and Ryou's minds instantly drifted somewhere else.

She's Bocchi-chan's what?!

Their faces practically screamed curiosity.

"…devoted fan~," Makima finished with a smile.

The two were momentarily stunned, then looked a bit disappointed.

"Oh… just a fan?"

"I thought it was going to be something way juicier."

Gotou puffed her cheeks in protest. "What are you two thinking?!"

"Ahaha, nothing!" Nijika waved it off.

Clack.

At that moment, Seika came out from the back room.

She froze the moment she saw Makima. "Makima-san?!"

"Wait, sis, you know her?" Nijika asked.

"Uh… we've met once or twice."

"Hello, Ijichi-san," Makima smiled. "Would you mind chatting with me privately for a bit?"

Seika nodded nervously. "O-of course…"

The two walked into the back, leaving the others in the front room.

Nijika and Ryou's gossip radar immediately lit up.

"So, Bocchi-chan, how do you know Makima-san?" Nijika nudged Gotou's shoulder. "She's such a graceful beauty!"

"Yeah, beautiful enough to make even a world-class beauty like me jealous," Ryou added.

Gotou fidgeted. "Uh… it's kind of complicated…"

"She's really just your fan?" Nijika pressed.

"M-maybe… not just that…"

"Eh? Really? Then what's your relationship?"

"…"

More like a superior and subordinate, Gotou thought.

But that wasn't something she could just blurt out.

And seeing the way Nijika and Ryou's eyes gleamed, she couldn't shake the feeling that the misunderstanding had only gotten worse.

In the back room.

"Makima-san… you came all the way here today, was there something you needed?" Seika asked nervously.

She knew very well that Makima was no ordinary person.

This was a high-ranking Public Safety officer who specialized in dealing with devils.

Makima gestured for her to relax. "It's nothing. I just came to see Bocchi-chan."

"To see her?" Seika frowned. "You mean to check if she's alive? But in that case, wouldn't going to her house be faster…?"

"I won't hide it from you Bocchi-chan is currently part of my Division 4."

"…Huh?"

"Don't underestimate her. She's an excellent Devil Hunter. That Bat Devil that showed up last time? She's the one who took it down."

"I… see…"

"I'm telling you this because you know a little about what's going on. But Bocchi-chan probably doesn't want others to know, so please keep it to yourself."

"Understood."

"And about that Bat Devil incident…"

Makima gave a few more confidentiality reminders before saying, "That's it for now. I only had a bit of free time there's still work waiting at Public Safety, so I'll get going."

She stepped back into the front room with a smile.

"I'll be off. Next time, make sure I get to see you perform."

"Sure! We won't even charge you for tickets!" Nijika called out.

Makima nodded and started to leave only to be stopped by a voice from behind.

"Makima-san."

Turning, she saw Gotou walking up. On tiptoe, she leaned toward Makima's ear and whispered:

"Um… how's the Division's combat strength right now?"

"Hm? We still have plenty of Devil Hunters on standby. Why?" Makima asked.

"It's nothing… just that I might have a little gift for you later."

Makima's eyes lit up. "A gift from Bocchi-chan?"

"Don't say it so loud…" Gotou pressed her lips together. "Anyway… see you."

After saying goodbye, she turned around only to find Nijika and Ryou staring right at her.

"Bocchi-chan, you're giving Makima-san a gift?"

"Uh… th-that's none of your business!"

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