Charles Patricius

[Bloodedge]

Once outside the bedroom, Kazu took a few moments to breathe. His magical method of cleaning involved absorbing, as he'd seen the likes of Sakura and Angelica do time and time again. It was a strange sensation made stranger still by the fact that he could still go a thousand more rounds without pause. No matter; things had to be done. Even so, he was willing to share his discontent with Kaguya, who insisted the intermission would be fun. "If you say so," he replied. Finally sporting his original clothes after some great difficulty donning pants, Kazu seated himself next to... a very different Angelica. "Huh. No more Rapunzel," was the comment he offered whilst reaching out for her hair.

Kusanagi entered the apartment, but Nara Rita was nowhere to be seen yet. What a shame. The fun would have to wait a bit longer, so he took the time to find a seat... on Rita's bed. One meat bun would be consumed while they waited. It seemed Princess wasn't sure how to feel about his use of the word 'fun' regarding this meeting. Surely she should know what to expect by now. "This is the turning point. Nara Rita makes her final decision tonight. Look around. This apartment is a second home, probably leftover from the previous shop owner. She's been moving her belongings in recently. Some things here still have the smell of cardboard boxes on them. She's moving on, and is probably already planning a divorce... but there's another twist," he said. This penultimate turning point in Rita's journey was likely to occur once she saw the hard evidence of her husband's wrongdoings. All the while, Hiroshi was preparing more ramen bowls and the like for passing customers when Rita arrived. Did he need help? Absolutely not. "Everything's fine here. No need to worry; I can handle much more than this with ease."

[Apollymi]

"Oh, I do say so~" Kaguya said. She was personally looking forward to seeing Iino Sousuke again, she always enjoyed Miko's family but her dad was a top-tier man. At the same time after watching Kazuhiko struggle with his pants, Kaguya realized the problem of being a well-endowed man in the world without magic. Someone should probably be inventing the male version of a dick bra to strap them down and keep them from being such a problem. Angelica seemed to have an answer for it though, but not to the thing mentioned by Kazuhiko. "I have no idea who Rapunzel is..." she said with absolute seriousness. "But... I have enough left to do this..." she said. She reached out with a hand and planted against the side of Kazuhiko's pants, she used magic to imbue them with a bit of extra internal space, so that he could get in and out of them without any problem. "You guys are gonna love tv. None of these magical world people know anything about media... it's crazy," Kaguya said seeming to find it interesting. She wasn't even that well versed in most things, but she liked her high fantasy things, fairytales included.

Meanwhile the ideations of Kusanagi weren't ones which made sense to a lot of people. Even so, he seemed capable of explaining what he found fun about the mental break of a housewife. All of the minor details about this apartment he'd noticed he claimed led to certain beliefs about the life of Nara Rita. "Not that I don't believe you, but there are less extreme ways to tell the same information. Still, I'm not one to interrupt someone else's fun," Princess said. She stood casually eating from a soup cup one of the best bowls of ramen she'd ever had in her life. This convenience store might become one of her favorite places just for the food. "Umai!♥~" she squealed. At the same time, Rita was walking through customers hearing the claim of Hiroshi that he could handle worse than what was happening here. "Okay, if you're sure. I'll just be upstairs though..." she claimed as she made her way into her apartment. Upon seeing two people inside it she didn't know what to think, but given the appearance of that green haired lad, she knew it probably wouldn't have mattered if she locked the door or not. "Still don't believe in normal greetings. Okay..." she said a bit of fire in those magenta eyes, she had a recent hair cut and a slightly more sarcastic attitude than the pictures Princess had seen of her. She was definitely going to leave her husband, she'd made herself look different. Control was being taken, she wasn't just moving in for fun. She'd taken everything of hers... made them essentially strangers. A smirk spread across Princess's face, good for her.

[Bloodedge]

Of course Angelica didn't know who Rapunzel was; he didn't expect her to. When Kazu spoke, he did so solely as vocal observation. "Not a real person. Well... not in this world. She might be real on Alaya, but who knows?" he said, running Angelica's hair through his fingers while she apparently proved capable of expanding his pants within. Immediately, Kazu felt a comfort and freedom he didn't think he'd get again on Gaia. His own magic had undergone some drastic changes, but technical skills were still lacking. "Arigatou! Teach me how to do that one day!" he pleaded. Of course, there was also the hand upon his thigh during the whole ordeal. "And we definitely have to show you guys all the good stuff like TV. Sakura took to smartphones really qui─... oh! Wait, no way!" Kazu exclaimed, immediately darting off to find the extra phone he'd been given by Marisbury. "I gotta get some of that Clairvoyance; this is so cool!"

Meanwhile, Nara Rita finally made her way toward the apartment while Princess swooned over a cup of ramen from the convenience store below. He didn't much care for ramen, or really anything that couldn't be eaten easily on the move. Even so, it smelled as good as Princess claimed it tasted. Regardless, they were finally visited by the very woman who lived here. Rita entered her bedroom where Kusanagi sat, commenting on his lack of standard greeting. Kusanagi had nothing but the usual empty expression to offer. "Konbanwa, Nara-ya. You've got a good look in your eye now. Show me another," he said, reaching into the breast pocket of his shirt to toss a stack of images from the previous night onto the floor. "But don't take it too far, unless you changed your mind about the rape."

[Apollymi]

According to Kazuhiko there was no person called Rapunzel in this world, apparently she might exist on Alaya though. "I see," Angelica said more than willing to let that information go. Still there was more to be said about things like clothing and tv whatever that was. Kaguya seemed to think that the people from the magical world were missing out on something. Still, Kazuhiko was quite pleased by the expansion of his pants which allowed him comfort. "I will if you want... though it'd probably be easier to think about it like it's making an adjustment and not making something from nothing. And you don't have to thank me. I don't want you attracting any weird strays..." Angelica said calmly. She didn't have a lot to go off of, but considering how human men acted around her, she didn't hold out hope for non-magical human women around Kazu. She didn't know what kind of magical understanding Kazuhiko had to start with though. "I don't really understand but... it doesn't seem like we'll have much else to do..." Angelica said, and then Kazuhiko ran off looking for a smartphone claiming to want Clairvoyance. "Isn't clairvoyance contradictory to adventuring. Like you'll already know what's gonna happen, wouldn't that take the edge off?" Kaguya asked. They'd been traveling together for a few days and she felt pretty strongly from him the emotions surrounding his adventures. He didn't seem like the type who'd want to know things ahead of time.

A familiar greeting came from Kusanagi, that one had a very rude way of referring to everyone so far as she knew. Rita didn't take it personally and instead simply found herself greeting the people now in her apartment. "Konbanwa. And you..." she said watching a girl drink a cup of ramen. "Yo. This is great by the way... Oh and nice hair cut," she said of the food and Rita herself. "Thanks... I thought it might be a bit extreme," she said willing to simply accept a compliment from a girl. Ah, but pleasantries weren't to last. This particular boy enjoyed faces and as such he was obviously about to show her something jarring the pictures he dropped on the floor were ones she didn't immediately look towards. He spoke very strangely to her, but unlike most she wasn't as unnerved by him as she could have been. "I'm really going to need to know why guys keep weirdly offering me dick, maybe I need one of those... emergency meetings..." she said thinking about it. "Freaky," she murmured about that threat which loomed and about the reaction it garnered. It was more obvious after speaking to her, how much her husband fucked up in making the choice he did... this woman was something else. She bent down picking up the photos and seeing what was obviously her husband and his little floozy in a hotel room having what was probably singular round of sex. There was anger and hurt in her eyes, but she also had her face twitch in several places like she was considering all manner of violence against the pair in addition to everything else. Well this just made the divorce easier, "Seeing it pisses me off," she mentioned. "Also, if you used a larger aperture at this shutter speed you could get more detail in the shot than the zoom lens alone will give... the contrast will be a bit stronger..." she added since he seemed to like facial expressions so much. "Can I keep these? I have a thing I want to do..." she said thinking about it. She wasn't often spiteful but now she was finding herself to be both angry and curious. Did he really think she was stupid? She felt disrespected by his audacity at this point.

[Bloodedge]

Angelica didn't want him attracting any... weird strays, in her words. Kazuhiko seemed confused, but that would probably make itself clear at some point. No matter; he now had something exciting to deal with. Marisbury Animusphere gave him two phones, and one had no obvious purpose before. Now however, it obviously had to be for Angelica. No other person from that magical world was here with no technology of their own. While scrambling for the smartphone, Kazu heard Kaguya's counter to the idea of Clairvoyance. "Well... yeah, that would suck. But still! If I could just use it for little stuff like this, it'd be awesome!" he said. Only a moment later, he was rushing back with that unused cellphone for Angelica. "This! This is a cellphone. It's... for communication, mostly, but a bunch of other stuff too," the lad began. For the foreseeable future, it seemed he'd be explaining phones to the blonde goddess.

Rita's haircut was extreme, though in a pleasant way. In Kusanagi's opinion, she had far less in the way of her face now. All those little ticks showed in a much better way than before. As such, Kusanagi had a slightly improved opinion of hairstyles. As for his offer and the apparent matching offer from some younger males wanting to bed her, Kusanagi had an answer he considered obvious. "Maybe it's the giant tits, or the way your face twists. It'd look great if you had something rammed inside any of your holes," he commented. Speaking of great-looking faces, Rita offered a few in quick succession, once she saw her husband in those photos. Kusanagi's face cracked just slightly ─ something of a one-sided grin appearing just at the left corner of his mouth. "Calm..." he whispered to himself. Luckily, there was a distraction in the form of advice. Rita gave a photographer's perspective on picture-taking for a clearer product, then asked if she could keep the images for a plan of hers. "Noted. Keep those; I have no use for them. I do have use for Suzuki-ya and his little slut, though. But first... what do you want to do to them?"

[Apollymi]

Weird strays was something that Angelica said that seemed to fly over the head of Kazuhiko but would be acknowledged by Kaguya with a smirk. He was already likely getting a pack of extras, weird this world strays were something that all the girls would want to keep away for various reasons if that actually happened. Regardless, it appeared there were a few caveats to Clairvoyance for Kazuhiko, he wanted it but didn't want it to affect his adventures. Instead he wanted it for small things. "Ah, I guess that'd be cool," Kaguya said with his caveats. Anything was possible if one managed Angelica however was due to learn about phones. Something she'd seen the girl known as Kaguya using to keep in contact with Iino Miko even just a few minutes ago. She paid close attention to all Kazuhiko had to say all the while Iino Miko herself was soon enough approaching this house with her parents, now carrying a messenger bag with her electronics, chargers, a few books and even her shrine visitor stamp book. She still seemed pleased enough and knew she could mostly trust Kaguya to have done what she asked. Still, the closer they got the more antsy Miko became, such was always going to be the case, life was very complicated when switching between a magical world and a mundane one.

At the same time, Rita was being given some interesting compliments and the male perspective on her form. Some unnecessarily vivid words were being used by the green haired young man but she probably wasn't wrong. "That's a lot... I get it though. That was mostly rhetorical," she said seemingly a bit abashed. Whether she fully understood her own attractiveness or not, wasn't really the issue here. She'd been married for a long enough time to forget that people looked at her. Princess could see that written all over the woman's face. There were several other things she could see written on her face soon after, and Kusanagi's face as well. That man was way too interested in the shifting of that woman's face. But she also seemed decent enough at deflecting even if it was accidental. "You keep saying that but it never looks like you feel it," Princess mentioned. It was becoming easier to notice that man's 'face' as the blonde man from earlier had stated. As for what she wanted with her soon to be former husband and the pictures she shrugged. "I said I was pissed. And right now I want to know if he thinks I'm stupid... " she said. "Evidence is good for confrontations so I was going to go back home and make sure he understands not to come anywhere near me. And he should be home from 'work' pretty soon," she offered succinctly, she'd even put quotes on work knowing the man hadn't been in months already. Princess understood in that moment what the woman was actually seeking was... closure. She'd witnessed a lot of women give up on their husbands, many fight or argue with them when they were confronted with their perversions. But fewer than those were the women who remained seething beneath the surface but dedicated to expressing themselves. 'Interesting.' Princess was beginning to understand Kusanagi's interest in this woman though not to the same extreme as him. She wondered briefly, just briefly if she'd end up trying to kill that man. Anger did a lot for violent tendencies her own included. And this woman she ralized, had energy similar to her own and in her opinion anyone who would step on someone might also kill someone under the right circumstances.

[Bloodedge]

Kazu spent a few solid minutes explaining phones to Angelica, just as he'd done with Sakura before. This time, however, he had a different sort of example to give at the end. By the time Miko and her parents were approaching the house, with Iino Sosuke wondering how a full group squeezed into the building, Kazu was showing Angelica how texting worked from his own phone. How did he do it? Well, he thought it best to use that opportunity to also check on Sakura's wellbeing. "So yeah, like this," he said while pressing send on a message. It read: "Everything alright where you are? Btw I gave Ang your number. Extra phone was for her."

While the final moments of a lesson occurred on that couch, Kusanagi was keeping himself... relatively stable atop Nara Rita's bed. One could hardly call it properly stable, though, as another point of elation for him was Princess's observational ability. "Oh? You could see that?" he wondered as that grin became a bit more noticeable still. Maybe he was more interested in Princess than he thought? Time would tell. Moving on though, it seemed Rita's intention was to confront her husband and ensure he became a non-issue in her future. That alone was quite boring, but... exploitable. Kusanagi was becoming more excited by the moment, if only a bit. "Interesting. When you're done, I want to see. I'll take that in exchange for your evidence. You've got two days to settle your affairs with them before it's too late for all of you. If there's nothing else, we're done here for now," he said, finally standing in preparation to vacate the bedroom.

[Apollymi]

Kazuhiko was busy explaining the uses of phones to Angelica and even got down to text message. For Kaguya this was an interesting thing to watch, it was something so very natural to humans that it almost didn't need to be explained, but here he was... explaining a telecommunication device to someone who would have never used one before. It was... interesting. Regardless, the young woman known as Sakura was soon receiving a message she was walking along the beach having a bit of fun before heading back to that mansion. She figured she could go for a bath and a wardrobe switch before doing something interesting with her night. Even so, she looked at her phone and was smiling brightly to see who it was from. "Everything is fine here. I spent a day on the beach. I'm happy you gave Angie my number. Are you all okay?" she asked. Along with that series of questions was a smiling selfie of Sakura sent to his phone, wearing her new bikini to confirm her wellness. A deep breath was being taken by Miko as she approached the house, she was calming herself down as much as she could. She'd knock briefly and then enter. "Tadaima, brought my parents..." Miko mentioned. 'Please don't be naked.' she thought not wanting to explain anything. So imagine her immediate relief when she looked into the room and everyone was dressed and doing seemingly normal things.

Meanwhile, Rita was busy entertaining to people with less than reputable jobs within the confines of her new apartment. The pink haired girl was garnering some unusual amounts of attention for noticing the small changes in the visage of Kusanagi. Rita noticed that she seemed to cringe just a little almost choking on her soup. "Stop, looking at me like that... freak," she said immediately. In seeing this kind of interaction Rita could only chuckle. "Ganbareyo..." she offered the girl who seemed to be a bit tsundere. "You are also weird but thanks..." mentioned Princess. Still what did Kusanagi want in exchange for his help? To see... "That seems manageable. And I don't plan to let it drag out or anything," she said. In truth she didn't care of her future former husband fell off a cliff. She didn't know what Kusanagi really wanted, but she could see an amount of violence in him that wasn't at all normal. It wasn't her business what he wanted with her former husband so she could contribute without thinking too much about it. With that it seemed that this leg of their journey was ending. Princess would aim to move with Kusanagi... figuring he might want to talk after this particular moment. "Ja ne, Nee-san." Princess mentioned seeming to have a pretty good understanding of Rita's age in comparison to her own. "See you later..." she offered both as they left. She had a bit of planning to do if she was going to do what Kusanagi asked. She wasn't actually sure if he just meant seeing her or seeing his reactions, but she figured both could be fine. A couple of well placed hidden cameras could do the trick and she had a few in her case, that she used for candid shots at weddings. It would be fine. Still at the convenience store right now sas a blonde haired girl with lightly pink tips on a short cut. She had big eyes and was wearing a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. She smiled happily as she saw Hiroshi, thinking he was a good looking guy, amazingly tall and exactly the type that Akira would never measure up to. She'd be working with him even so it'd give her access. "Ano, I'm here for orientation, Nanami Mami." she said softly introducing herself to the tall man.

[Bloodedge]

Shortly after showing Angelica how texting worked, Kazuhiko received a reply message from Sakura. She confirmed her wellness and then some, even including a beaming picture in the most... interesting bikini he'd ever seen. 'Nothing normal. Always nothing normal. That figures, but...' Kazu's thoughts trailed off. He couldn't actually hate that decision if he tried, strange though it was. A quick response from the lad read: "That's an awesome look on you! 10/10 would smash. Like now. Want to now." Perhaps, in due time, Kazu would taper off the constant thirst for sex he'd developed over recent centuries in the Nexus. He did seem to be slowing down... maybe. Of course, that wouldn't be easy at all with Miko an her bombshell of a mother walking into the living room, each grasping his attention in sequence. "Okae," Kazu said after a brief and unexpected pause. Why did her mother look like that? Well, Sosuke had once wondered the same. He'd now be wondering something else. "Ohayou gozaimasu. Mimi, your group is even bigger than this, isn't it? This building is unusually tiny..." he observed prior to any introductions. He did, however, see Kazuhiko very quickly. That lad was going to be worth additional attention for reasons Sosuke didn't yet know.

One other thing in need of attention was Nanami Mami, a human girl who approached Hiroshi with different intentions to other customers. Hiroshi had already prepared himself to throw another bowl of ramen together when the blonde spoke of orientation. "Sou ka. I thought you were a customer. Fukuyama Hiroshi. I was informed someone would be coming for this. Nara-san just recently went upstairs; she should be down soon. Did you want to place an order in the meantime?" Hiroshi wondered. Whether this girl wanted something or not, he'd already gotten into a groove of producing cup after cup. Either she'd want something, or he'd have something ready for the next person before switching to the register that was now accumulating a small line.

[Apollymi]

It would appear that phones were interesting devices indeed and the return message of Kazuhiko after Sakura sent her wellness picture was one which Sakura read with pure curiosity. Kazuhiko hadn't been quite this forward when she'd last spoken to him. His actions in the Nexus and the 'grounding' had to have done him quite a bit of good. She even understood the context of smash so she sent back another message. "Arigatou♥!~ I'll be sure to take advantage when it's possible though, don't worry! Both of you fully settle, and don't forget about your presents :3" she claimed in her own message. After that Sakura likely couldn't have been stopped from feeling good. She'd have to make sure to send more pictures to her spouses. Beyond that it would appear that the introduction of Miko's parents was in order and given the reaction of Kazuhiko, Kaguya couldn't help but chuckle. She saw the movements of the lad's eyes, she knew he finally understood what she'd been getting at moments ago. "I would like to take this opportunity to say I told you so♥!~" claimed Kaguya. In the meantime, Angelica listened and watched as Miko's father addressed her and this group's living situation in a purely parental way, taking note of how he spoke to her. "What? Your dad calls you Mimi? That's so cute!" Angelica noted causing a bit of bashfulness in Miko. "There are a few more people, but we aren't usually all here at the same time. Shi...." another pause occurred in Miko's speech as she realized she was about to refer to her mentor in a rather familiar way without any context as to why. "Hiroshi-san is working at the convenience store most of the time. Sakura-chan is at the beach today things like that," she murmured. Saori came out and found herself leaning against the doorway to the kitchen. "These are my parents Iino Sousuke and Iino Risa." she said finally introducing them properly. Kaguya took the opportunity to be her usual self. "Hey, Sou-jii♥!" she offered first. "Risa-ka♥~" she added soon after, knowing Miko was staring daggers at her. "Hey there cuties♥!~" Risa said after her introduction.

At the aforementioned convenience store, Hiroshi was introducing himself to a blonde and wondering if she wished to order. "No need to worry. I'll wait, and I don't need to order. I'm not in the mood for noodles." she offered all the while watching him work. Rita wouldn't be staying upstairs very long she headed down with a small bag containing the pictures and a few discrete cameras and was about to leave. When Rita Nara made an appearance, the girl's posture changed. She was quite the looker, with a nice hair cut and sharp looks. Beyond that her figure was astronomical. She hated that, but at least she wasn't a super brunette she might have walked out if that had been the case. She could at least... continue. And given the lack of focus on the tall man, it seemed there wasn't anything standing in Mami's way. "I'm on my way out again, you still okay?" she asked of Hiroshi, that little blonde girl escaping her notice as she basically seemed to be just loitering a bit.

[Bloodedge]

Sakura sent a reminder of the presents she'd left. Kazu would have to address that matter later; he still couldn't go find out what it was. No, there was something massively important standing in the room ─ something unprecedented. Kaguya hadn't given all the details, but how could she? No one could be properly prepared for this turn of events. "Hardly! Could have given more of a warning," he said in a hushed tone. Meanwhile, Sosuke heard the appreciation of an unknown blonde lass for how he addressed his daughter. That girl seemed to be from the western world, but her Japanese was impeccable. Surely this group was, indeed, elite. "She speaks so well. I didn't think I'd ever see a westerner as articulate as Animusphere-kun again," he commented. With that came Miko's introduction of her parents, a nod of acknowledgment from Sosuke, and an introduction from Risa ─ one Kazu thought needed addressing. "Nope. No way. I can't," he said. If not for Angelica's magical intervention, Kazu would have burst through his pants right then and there. "Kimura Kazuhiko desu. Annie, you've got a thousand explanations to give about something," he added. In the meantime, Sosuke was stepping forward to place a hand atop Kaguya's head. "Good to see you in person again, Kaya-chan. Kimura-kun... I saw you recently. . ."

At the convenience store, Hiroshi's offer of a ramen cup was unneeded. That was all well; he could pass that next cup along to the next customer. "As you wish. Though a bit of nourishment would do you well. At your earliest convenience, I would recommend something with meat," Hiroshi said upon observing this girl's physique. Spiritually, she was in need of balance, but that sort of matter couldn't be addressed in this world. Hiroshi could only do his best to translate such warnings appropriately, as he'd taken to doing of late. Whatever the case, he was soon processing customer orders and hearing Rita's voice once more. "Everything's fine. While you're here, however, this young woman is Nanami Mami. She claims to be here for orientation," he said. All the while, Kusanagi was entering the shop right behind Rita. That loitering girl... something was interesting about her. She was certainly going through quite a few mental processes ─ none of them good. Of course, that sort of thing meant they were all good in Kusanagi's case. Perhaps he'd also loiter a bit and try one of those ramen cups. "... We're waiting five minutes," he said to Princess. "I decided to try those noodles after all. . ."

[Apollymi]

Could Kaguya have given more of a warning? Maybe, but... she knew the intricacies of the Iino Family and it wasn't something that could be fully explained. "Some things have to be lived♥!~" she said shrugging. Speaking of living, Sousuke was being surprised by the articulate nature of Angelica. In typical tusndere fashion she seemed quite pleased by the compliment. "Weird, I like that compliment, thanks. I'm... Luviagelita Angelica Edelfelt. But... Angelica or Angie are fine," she said to the parents at large using her whole name to avoid the Kazuhiko follow up. At the same time, Miko was thinking about the articulation of one Marisbury Animusphere and her brain immediately jumped to other things she knew the man to be capable of with his tongue. She closed her eyes and shut it out lest something very strange come out of her mouth. 'Brain, parents hare here... please stop.' she offered herself. Meanwhile, Risa was being treated to a rare reaction. "Hehehe~ I haven't heard that since, Sato-chan. Hai hai," she offered since the lad gave his name, she supposed she'd be calling him Kazu to avoid any unnecessary discontent. "This is such a later thing. I probably can't actually explain it," she said, answering to her usual nickname without thinking about it. All the same Kaguya was getting happy head pats which made her quite giddy. "Always great to see you, Sou-jii~" she commented, it made the sharp eyed look from Miko worth getting. "Papa." was all Miko had to say to her father. "Oh? You look a lot like my college roommate, actually..." Saori glanced at Miko more directly and then back at her mother and she could see it clearly. A person right between them in age range with features that were stunningly similar. "Sou ka, I should have noticed that before... it really has been too long," Saori mentioned. "Oh, Hayami Saori. Yoroshiku." she said. "Oh, Saori-nee, my aunt is your college roommate. She lives in this town and owns that convenience store, Nara Rita... you should hang out with her. She could use a friend." Miko followed up. "Oh yeah, this little cutie did mention knowing you. She said you were a history teacher," Risa said of Miko who just wanted everyone not to spend too much time talking about anything related to the magical world things. "Man trouble? Do I get to beat someone up? Also yes, I teach high school history." Saori said, it was always surprising to others what she did for work. "Mama you're a librarian..." Miko said given the obvious juxtaposition between attractiveness and academia.

At the same time, Mami was being treated to the advice of Hiroshi. He sounded like some sort of strange wellness guru. Though Mami ate decent meals from time to time, nourishment wasn't what she considered to be an important part of her day. He claimed he could at her earliest convenience recommend something with meat. She looked at him longer, he was too straightforward to be a pervert so she could assume he meant that platonically. "Iia, there really isn't a need to bother, Fukuyama-san." she offered. Soon enough, Hiroshi was speaking to Rita and it seemed her new hire was here, "Sou, I forgot about that... Nara Rita and I own this place. Thank you for your interest in working here. Come on, Nanami-chan. I'll show you around a bit, answer any of your questions and then you can do your paperwork," Rita said. "Iia, Nara-san, thank you for having me. I'm grateful for the opportunity..." the girl said playing with those large and innocent eyes of hers appearing meek. At the same time, something strange was happening as Kusanagi apparently decided that he and Princess were waiting around for about five minutes. He also claimed he wanted to try the noodles. Princess looked at him with a raised brow and then around the room, what had caught his attention. She supposed she'd be observing. "Hai hai, you're the boss. The Ramen really is great though," she said in truth. She was actually thinking of making more trips to this place just for the soup. Just the same she'd be keeping an eye on the man she was with, lest she not figure out what was so amusing to him. Rita was interesting enough in a work sense she seemed easily capable of separating her personal life from everything else.

[Bloodedge]

What an interesting name this seemingly European girl had. Luviagelita Angelica Edelfelt was one hell of a mouthful, but Sosuke had heard more intense names. "That's an incredible name. Hmm. Would you be alright with Ruri? Taking our language into account, it could be the lu and vi from your name, or the lu and the li that appears twice. I think it sounds a bit... superhero," he mused. His past hobby had been brought back to the forefront of his mind recently, so he was back to thinking in terms of a television show. "If not, Angie-chan will have to do," he concluded. By then, Kazu was looking at the man strangely. Now that he thought about it, there was something odd about both of Miko's parents, not just her mother. Well... Iino Risa was a whole extra list of things he wanted to unpack in multiple ways later, but for now... Sosuke was addressing him. "Did you? Uhh... cool hair, glasses, looks more like my dad than I'd like to think... I must not have seen you," said Kazu. Just then, Sosuke shook his head. "Iia. It was on Mimi's Instagram," Sosuke said before addressing Miko herself. "It's fine. I'm just curious, as I've never met this friend before. I'm also curious to know who this Annie is, since you answered to it."

Meanwhile, Nanami Mami was being rerouted to the shop owner, Rita. Hiroshi was happy enough to have one less person to deal with at once, but lo... he'd soon have another as Kusanagi stood in wait for a cup of ramen. The green-haired man wasn't paying much mind to Hiroshi or the ramen assembly. His gaze meandered, but his focal point was Mami. That innocence was a lie, and not a small one. Her sense of self-preservation transcended instinct and entered the realm of obsession, and that... was exciting. "Oya? There may be another variable. This is interesting," he mused absently.

[Apollymi]

Angelica did have quite the name, but a nickname or two was missing from her casual references. It would seem that if Iino Sousuke was good at something, it would be naming teenage girls in such a way as to have them like it. Angelica listened to what the man had to say, he complimented her name and then offered an easier method to refer to her, which amounted to, Ruri. "That I like that. Mi-chan your dad is awesome!" Angelica said she was practically starry eyed. "Easy Princess, you'll end up in the same boat as Kaya-sen," Miko said turning her head. "It's a great boat♥!~" Kaguya confirmed. There was no need for him to refer to her as Angelica. "Other thing isn't necessary. Ruri desu!" Angelica confirmed, which made Saori chuckle."Also what's a superhero, I know what a hero is..." Angelica followed up making eyes widen around the room. These teenagers were way too into adults for their own good. She didn't envy Miko dealing with corralling her friends, but perhaps that was where those snaps came from, she'd seen one from the soft deer girl. Miko's warnings were not being heeded which was enough problems to begin with, Kazuhiko assumed her father was mentioning seeing him around... but it was her Instagram which made sense. "Sou, I forgot you don't have the no adult policy most people our age have on that sort of thing..." Kaguya said remembering that Miko's life was one lived almost completely transparently. "Hell I am almost thirty and I wouldn't let my parents see my Instagram either..." Saori said with a shrug. Well, Miko wasn't a liar in this case she saw something wrong with the way people interacted with their parents. Regardless, it would be something else, her father's interrogation turned on her as he questioned her answering to Annie as a nickname. Risa watched this unfold with a smirk... there were plenty of reasons a girl might answer to not her own name but the way her daughter looked currently she didn't want to explain. 'Fuck! I answered without thinking. Fuck fuck fuck fuck!' she was shouting in her head. "I answered to it because he calls me that. It was a reflex," she said honestly. No extra details. 'Good shit brain. More questions will follow.' Kaguya watched her friend process and though she couldn't hear it, she knew she was freaking out. Obviously, she'd forgotten the easy explanations she could use, in her time outside of the modern world. "Sou-jii, this is a pretty extreme interrogation. Obviously, they are gaming friends~" she said with a shrug, it was true enough for Miko to not freak out about it, and technically answered their closeness and the lack of mention of it before now. 'That's why you're getting dick. As soon as I figure out how to give it!' Miko thought. 'My VP. MY BESTIE. MINE!' there was triumph as that light danced in her eyes.

In the meantime, Mami was being shown around and was paying at least cursory attention to her boss. Playing innocent and attentive to make sure she stayed on that woman's good side was likely for the best. If nothing else, it seemed likely that she wouldn't have to deal with her too much. "I'll be taking some time off pretty soon, but Hiroshi-san is my store manager and you'll be working most closely with him for a while," mentioned Rita. Mami smiled her eyes closing for a moment, this was almost too good to be true. It was definitely worthwhile to have it that way. "Hai hai, he was very nice when he introduced himself. He seems like he's quite knowledgeable. I'll pay close attention to what he says," she said all the right things. Just the same, Princess was finally able to see what Kusanagi was busy watching, while Hiroshi prepared his ramen bowl, Princess was finally able to make some more direct observations. "Sou ka, she's pretty. Her personality is fucked, but... you like that part, huh?" she said while observing him.

[Bloodedge]

The name Ruri was acceptable, according to Angelica. Sosuke nodded; he'd address her as such henceforth. "Ruri it is then. Hajimemashite, Ruri-chan," he said. Strangely, the girl questioned a superhero. Sosuke thought that was odd, but perhaps it was a matter of language barriers? He'd assume as much, despite her fluent Japanese. "Hmm, how to put it? It's the usual hero of justice, but one with inhuman powers. I'm not sure what another word for it would be," he explained. As for Kazuhiko and the way he addressed Miko, it was explained that they were gaming friends. That made a great deal of sense, and in fact, Kazu was prepared to say something similar before Kaguya spoke up. "What she said. Her character in AoE is Anais, so... Annie," said Kazu. Sosuke nodded again. This alleged 'interrogation' of his was mere curiosity, but that part had now been settled. "Sou ka. I still haven't had much chance to look at that game. A bunch of silly cases have been reaching my desk lately, claiming it's connected to some disappearances. I can't appreciate it while still associating it with annoyance. Now then..."

Sosuke had more curiosities to express, but he wouldn't get much of a chance to ask Kazu another question. Why? Well, that little black pup made his return once more. Darting into the living room was Naito, who made a beeline for none other than Iino Risa, heeling at her feet and looking rather expectant. Mere seconds later, just as before... Yuuya followed suit in full armor. "Naito! I told you to..." The black-haired lad paused, shocked by the sudden appearance of two total strangers. That wasn't possible. Ignoring his fully-armored state, Yuuya had a single question. "... How are there people here?" he wondered. All the while, Sosuke had the subtlest twinkle in his eye. "Ho? Is that cosplay?! It's so well-made, like a black dragoon knight! Are ou all going to that convention?" the man questioned excitedly. Meanwhile, Kazuhiko registered Yuuya's question and understood what was so bothersome a few moments before. "Oh. I get it. I get things now."

Kusanagi received his ramen cup in only a short amount of time, much to the store's credit. Serving ramen in a convenience store should have been a stupid idea, but the first sip of broth let him realize it wasn't made the normal way. "This is actually good. It's closer to miso soup," he observed. He consumed only a single bite of each topping, and a single slurp of noodles before passing the cup to Princess. Though Kusanagi enjoyed the cup, he never wanted it; he was just looking for an excuse. Now, he knew who he'd be looking for... for leisure purposes. "She's my favorite type of person. Looks like a new hire. I'll keep an eye open, but for now... I need to calm myself. Come on." With that said, Kusanagi would be taking his leave of the shop. After dealing with Rita and seeing that girl, his excitement was elevated a bit too much for comfort. Luckily, he had Princess for quite a while longer. . .