Even someone as dense as Nero could tell from the barely contained smirk on Aine's face what her true mood was right now. Gotta hand it to her—this time, Aine had played her cards perfectly and was clearly reveling in it.
Not that Nero was gonna sweat the small stuff and bicker over it. Let Aine have her moment; it's not like it cost Nero a chunk of flesh. Besides, the invitation to join the Astronomy Club was way more interesting.
Yeah, it was a subtle invite, no question. But Aine, ever the tactician, left it up to Nero to acknowledge it as an invitation, sidestepping any awkwardness if Nero turned it down. From Nero's perspective, whether it was to keep up her persona or to get closer to little Ace, she had plenty of reasons to say yes.
So, without missing a beat or overthinking it, she gave her answer, cool as you like: "Sounds perfect. Wanna swing by the Astronomy Club together today?"
"Awesome!" Aine clapped her hands, looking like she'd just dodged a bullet. "I was hoping we could join the same club, Nerolo~"
This time, Aine's joy seemed genuine, straight from the heart.
"Nah, I should be thanking you for remembering what I'm into," Nero said, slinging her bag over her shoulder. She flashed a grin, waved goodbye to the other classmates, and turned to Aine. "Let's roll."
And so, that day, the nearly forgotten Astronomy Club room at Haneoka Academy welcomed two new visitors.
"Light, I'm here!" Aine called out. "And I brought someone else who's curious about the club!"
Aine and Nero stepped into the Astronomy Club room. The first thing that hit them was the sight of two massive bookshelves—one horizontal, one vertical—crammed with astronomy books, all neatly categorized and organized.
Beyond that, what caught the eye was a small zodiac globe perched on one of the shelves and a high-end telescope positioned next to a storage cabinet. Since the Astronomy Club was basically a ghost club with only its president as a member, the room was pretty cramped. Aside from the bookshelves, globe, and telescope, there was just a sofa, a desk, and not much else.
Right now, Light was sitting in one of the room's two folding chairs, the other tucked under the desk. The desk itself was plastered with a few eye-catching posters of people Nero didn't recognize.
"Aine, and…"
Light's voice hitched when she saw Nero step in, her mental gears grinding to a halt. Her mouth opened and closed a couple of times before she managed, "Uh… welcome…"
"So, Nero, what do you think of the place?" Aine jumped in, smoothly changing the subject. She'd clocked that Light blanked on Nero's name and was tossing her a lifeline with the subtle name-drop.
"You can tell the president's poured her heart into this place," Nero said, playing along. "It's pretty damn impressive."
She'd also noticed Light forgetting her name and Aine's worry that she might take offense. But Nero? She wasn't about to throw a fit over it. She was a classy lady, after all. "Didn't expect the president to be Takamatsu, though."
Seeing Nero wasn't mad, both Aine and Light let out silent sighs of relief. Light cautiously studied Nero's expression before saying, "Nero… you're into astronomy too?"
Since Nero was already set on joining the club, the answer was a no-brainer. But she had to be careful how she phrased it. Claiming she was all about the stars only to admit she could barely pick out the Big Dipper or Polaris would be a rookie mistake.
In the end, she went with: "The night sky's gorgeous, mysterious as hell. But more than that, even in this country, I can look up and see the same stars as back home."
When she saw Light's tense expression soften, Nero knew she'd passed the club's unofficial vibe check.
After chatting a bit more—learning some of Haneoka Academy's Astronomy Club history and a few basic astronomy tidbits—Aine and Nero filled out membership forms. From that moment, they were officially provisional members of the Astronomy Club.
As the sky outside started to glow with faint red hues, the quiet clubroom was suddenly interrupted by the buzz of a phone.
Not a quick notification ping, but the persistent hum of an incoming call. The source? Nero's phone.
When Nero pulled it out, Aine let out a small "Oh!" and asked, a bit worried, "It's not about your part-time job, is it?"
She was concerned that dragging Nero to the club might've made her late for work.
Nero shook her head. "Nah, I'm off today. This call's from…"
She glanced at the number on the screen. No clue who it was. Still, she excused herself to the others with a quick "One sec," stepped out of the clubroom, and answered.
"Hello?" she said.
"Been a minute, Nero."
The voice on the other end wasn't in the local language—it was crisp, standard English. The speaker's tone was magnetic, laced with a playful edge, and belonged to a man Nero knew all too well. "How's school life treating ya? Settling in okay?"
"Uncle Dante?" Nero couldn't hide her shock. She really hadn't expected Dante to call her out of the blue, let alone from some random number. "Why the sudden—"
"Sorry, kid," Dante cut in, his voice carrying that signature laid-back charm. "Didn't plan on meddling in your life, but word is you've been here two weeks and haven't gone back home. So, I figured I'd drop by uninvited."
"Shit, sorry for worrying you," Nero said quickly. Sure, she'd kept in touch with Kyrie now and then, but she hadn't reached out to Dante at all. She hadn't expected him to care this much. "I'm fine, but… what do you mean 'drop by uninvited'?"
A bad feeling crept up her spine.
"Yup," Dante said with a light chuckle. "I'm free right now, so I thought I'd swing by the Land of Harmony to chill. The manga here's way better than in Red Grave City, and don't get me started on the desserts. Pizza's a bit iffy, but we'll save that for later. Point is, I'm in town. Already met up with an old friend and found out you're in school.
"But that's not what I meant by 'uninvited.'"
Heart pounding, Nero leaned out the window, peering past the courtyard to the school's main gate.
Sure enough, there he was—a silver-haired man in a red trench coat, leaning against a flashy motorcycle, casually waving two fingers toward the school building.
"Yo," he called from a distance. "Here to pick you up from school."
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