Pop, pop, pop.
After Trimmau gave a hum of acknowledgement, countless Neco-Arcs emerged from every corner of the café with a series of soft pops.
Identical pairs of crimson cat-eyes fixed intently on Himeragi Yukina, who was clutching a guitar case.
Then, they swarmed her all at once.
"Wha— Wha— Wha—?!"
The struggle began abruptly and ended just as swiftly.
The Neco-Arcs latched onto various parts of the girl's body, firmly pinning her in place.
One of the Neco-Arcs glanced at the guitar case, tossed it aside with a look of disdain, and produced a buzzing power drill, looking every bit like it was ready to start torturing someone.
So weak!
Root lifted her small chin, standing proudly atop Nagisa's palm as she was carried towards Yukina.
What was it this little creature in front of her had just said?
That she was here to monitor the strongest… no, the second strongest Primogenitor?
Her cat ears flattened back against her head in an 'airplane ear' posture as Root crossed her arms and lifted her chin haughtily. "Who gave you the courage?"
Himeragi Yukina struggled with all her might.
Despite her rigorous training since childhood, she couldn't break free from these strange cats?
"I am the Sword Shaman of the Lion King Organization, dispatched here under orders," she declared, finally going limp and lying still, her gaze serious as she addressed Root.
"Oh? The mere Lion King Organization..." Root stared unblinkingly at Yukina, then slid her head horizontally to whisper into Nagisa's ear, "My Shrine Maiden, what is the Lion King Organization?"
"Eh... an animal protection organization?" Nagisa, who was still holding Root up, tilted her head quizzically.
"It is not!" Yukina cut in sternly. "The Lion King Organization is a special operations organ established under the National Public Safety Commission."
"So you're a civil servant?" Arcueid looked up, blinking curiously.
"Yes."
"So you have a permanent position, then?"
"A perma... permanent position...?" Yukina strained to look at Arcueid, her eyes suddenly widening in realization.
"A golden-haired, red-eyed girl beside the Fourth Primogenitor... Are you the Fifth Primogenitor?"
Arcueid suddenly wagged a finger, shaking it seriously in front of her.
"'The Princess of the Moon' has nothing to do with me, Arcueid."
A sly smile spread across her face. With a swift chop, Arcueid brought her hand down on Avrora's head, who had been intently eating.
Avrora let out a pained "Oww!" clutching her head as her blue eyes welled up with tears, lifting a face still stuffed with food.
"However, you said you were here to monitor the Fourth Primogenitor, correct? So, which Fourth Primogenitor are you looking for?"
As her words fell, twelve expressionless faces and one utterly bewildered one simultaneously turned to gaze at the girl not far away.
Stare—
Yukina narrowed her eyes, carefully scanning the faces, trying to match one to the girl in the photo.
But the thirteen nearly identical faces before her made her head spin. With great effort, she shifted her grip and slowly pulled the photo from her pocket, meticulously comparing it.
"...Wait a minute, this photo..."
Like a rabbit suddenly popping up on a grassland, Arcueid's figure instantly appeared right beside Yukina.
Looking at the photo in Yukina's hand, the corner of her mouth quirked up with interest.
One of Teacher Arcutie's most important daily tasks was capturing candid shots of a certain little friend asleep.
But the pose and timing in this photo... Teacher Arcutie had no memory of it at all.
Shooting a glance at Avrora, who was still blissfully unaware of the impending doom, Arcueid asked Yukina, "Have you identified her?"
Even though she wasn't in her school uniform today, being a day off...
"It's her, right?"
Yukina pointed directly at Avrora, who was staring back at her with a dazed expression.
Sure enough, Avrora's unique... aura was just too conspicuous.
Arcueid nodded, swiping her hand through the air. A test paper materialized and was slapped down in front of Yukina. "Correct! Your reward is a practice test."
Then, a continuous stream of test papers began pouring forth from Arcueid's hands.
This sight, the stuff of every student's nightmares, left Yukina frozen stiff on the spot.
"Here's math, foreign language, history, P.E...." More and more papers piled up into a small mountain in front of Yukina.
"Hmm... what subject is this one for? Ah, never mind, just add it to the pile."
After placing the final sheet, Arcueid clapped her hands together, turned around, and hoisted Root back to the dining table.
"Um, excuse me... what is all this?" Yukina asked, struggling to support the towering stack of papers, her voice full of confusion.
"You don't know?" Arcueid raised a glass of ice-cold cola, looking back at her with a brilliantly sunny smile. "I'm your homeroom teacher, you know."
"Eh?!"
"And these," Arcueid's eyes narrowed dangerously, "are your preliminary quizzes. If you can't finish them, don't even think about joining my class."
"B-But..."
"Good luck, my little monitoring friend who barged into our private space."
Yukina looked helplessly at the stack of tests in her hands and let out a deep sigh.
She had definitely gotten herself wrapped up in something troublesome.
"Is that matchmaking agency so eager to send people our way?"
Arcueid twirled her fork in a strand of spaghetti, asking offhandedly.
"Matchmaking agency... that's certainly an apt description." Minamiya Natsuki elegantly dabbed the corner of her mouth with a napkin.
"The Lion King Organization does indeed use such methods to keep certain vampires in check."
For vampires, the act of sucking blood isn't strictly necessary for sustenance. It's an impulse tied to carnal desire.
Sword Shamans are inherently excellent maidens. Drinking their blood helps vampires enhance their power and control their Beast Vassals.
"How tedious." Arcueid puffed out her cheeks slightly and continued twirling her fork.
"Well, our side certainly has no need for it." Natsuki lifted her gaze slightly, looking towards Yukina, who was miserably working on her tests.
Arcueid detested blood, and she had no need to use Beast Vassals herself.
As for Avrora and the others, their Beast Vassals were quite obedient now. Very obedient to Arcueid.
After all, if they misbehaved, they might get smashed a few more times.
Lately, Root had even been mumbling in her sleep about the moon falling down.
"Ah, right."
Arcueid suddenly looked at Natsuki with an utterly serious expression.
"What is it?"
Seemingly infected by Arcueid's grave demeanor, Natsuki also regarded her with utmost seriousness.
"I need to issue a warrant."
Had someone infiltrated the area?
Natsuki's expression grew increasingly stern. She would never allow this place to be disrupted.
"The target is?"
"A blue-haired loli."
...Huh?
The witch's severe gaze instantly froze. She stared silently at the princess before her, then uttered a puzzled, "...What?"
"Just as I said." Arcueid gobbled down the forkful of curry mapo tofu spaghetti. "Find a blue-haired loli."
The strange combination of flavors made her pause for a moment.
Hmm... still better than strawberry mapo tofu.
Nagisa's cheerful voice rang out from the dining table once more.
The lively gathering continued in full swing.
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T/N: HSR Fic out on MapleTL!
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T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.