Opening the bento Sachi, Namida and Ketsueki stared at it for a few seconds, Ketsueki lifted the bento as Sachi grabbed both their store-bought ones. Namida slammed her hand on the table and gripped her cup of coffee and carefully placed it on the table, Ketsueki placed the bento back on the table as Sachi did the same.

Speaking through gritted teeth, Namida said. "Explanation." Both Sachi and Ketsueki picked up their chopsticks and said. "Itadakimasu." Ketsueki used her chopstick to cut off a bit of the hamburger steak and tasted it, her eyes brightening as she savored it. Sachi looked at the bento in envy while Namida was staring daggers at her.

After a few more bites of the hamburger steak and a bite of the onigiri with a penguin on it, Ketsueki with a smirk on her face said. "My little brother made this." Sachi was thinking about something while Namida's expression changed back to normal as she picked up her chopsticks and said. "Itadakimasu." As she started to eat, one mouthful of cold steamed chicken and rice. She said. "I guess it's acceptable then." Sachi opened her water bottle and said. "Isn't he 10 years old?" 

Namida's eyes widened as she gave Ketsueki a cold glare again. Ketsueki ate one of the heart-shaped egg rolls and drank some water. She said. "Jealous much?" As she took a bite of the onigiri mixed with a pickled plum. Namida looked like she was about to snap her chopsticks while a smile was on Sachi's face. She said. "No no, you misunderstood Ketsueki. Since you claim your little brother made this." As she pointed at the bento. She continued. "You wouldn't mind us visiting for verification, right?"

Ketsueki almost dropped her chopsticks as Sachi continued. "And we wouldn't just intrude in your home empty-handed, we would even go as far as to buy groceries for your lunch, dinner, and breakfast. Namida and I would only stay for lunch and after we finished eating dinner we would be out of your hair."

Before Ketsueki could say anything Namida said. "Right! You've already met both of our little brothers, it would only be fair if we met yours. Since you say you love him so much and would do anything for him, you would at least allow him to meet your friends. You never know, he might be worried about you since you never brought us to your home." Both of them had a bright smile on their face while Ketsueki's eyes were cold and looked like she might shove a knife in their heads.

Her eyes turned back to normal as Ketsueki said. "He's busy with school." As both of their bright smiles stayed on their face, Ketsueki continued. "I can't make him stop his studies because of-." Namida chuckled while Sachi's eyes were filled with fear, as Namida said. "Studies? Doesn't he go to that Trash... Acade... My..."

As she saw Ketsueki eyes were hostile as her hand was beginning to be surrounded with mana. Sachi hit Namida in her stomach using her elbow and immediately said. "That's cute Namida! The last time we asked your brother was barely able to get in one while hers on the other hand got a full scholarship at-." Ketsueki's eyes turned back to normal, she said. "Sure." Both of the girls had a look of surprise on their faces, Ketsueki continued. "It's not like I have to worry about anything."

As she stared at Namida's pitiful almost flat chest, Namida's fist was covered in thick blue mana as she swung her arm at Ketsueki's face. Ketsueki easily caught it with her left hand while she ate some pickled vegetables using her right hand, Namida said. "I'm sorry I didn't catch that? Say that again, but this time slower and to my face." As something slowly appeared behind her back. Sachi kept calm and said. "Namida, you're taking it too personally." Namida let out an exaggerated sigh and said. "I! Took it too personally?!"

Sachi let out a sigh and said. "The last time we..." Namida's eyes turned hostile as Sachi stopped herself mid-sentence, she continued. "Commented on your brother, you screamed bloody murder, you insult Ketsueki's little brother and she does nothing but..." Sachi's gaze drops to Namida's chest as she went back to eating. Namida stood up from her seat as a shadowy figure behind her became more visible, she said. "Men who judge a woman by their chest size are all-."

The door swung open as a beautiful female that wore a traditional kimono a bit loose along with geta and white socks. The woman said. "Good afternoon, ladies." As she was suddenly sitting on the empty chair on Ketsueki's left. The woman said. "Now about today's mission-." She trailed off seeing Ketsueki eating a homemade bento, looking at the other two store-bought ones. She said. "What's the occasion?" As she turned her head to face Ketsueki. Putting on an expressionless look Ketsueki said. "Nothing, my little brother made my bento for the day."

Sachi said. "And were be able to see her precious little brother sometime this week or the next." The woman's eyes widen in realization and said. "I see, Ketsueki's infamous... Little brother. I'll be sure to-." Ketsueki said. "No." Which made all three of them have looks of surprise. The woman smiled and said. "Now I'm even more curious about him..." Namida said. "Face it Ketsueki, we'll finally be able to see what's he's like." Ketsueki ate the last heart-shaped egg rolls and said. "The commander uses gauze to hide her breast size to avoid all the men here."

The eyes of the three girls widened as Namida looked at the woman's chest that was a bit smaller compared to Sachi. Namida said. "I-Is that true, Captain?" The woman let out a long sigh as she turned her head to face Ketsueki, placing her hand inside the kimono her breast suddenly expanded easily being bigger than Ketsueki, as dragged out something from the inside of her kimono and threw a thick layer of gauze on the floor. 

She said. "All the men here are just perverts who think they're worth something. But in reality, they'll be the first to be sacrificed when we need it..." Narrowing her eyes she continued. "How you find information never ceases to amaze me, Ketsueki. Especially considering that you're one of the few who is still a virgin while most of the females here would pick the easy way." Ketsueki kept an expressionless face and said. "I learned from the best." 

As she gave her a side glance, with a smile on the woman's face she said. "Damn right you did..." She leaned in to whisper something in Ketsueki's ear. "Roughly a 5 to 6-minute walk to both from their schools." As she stood up and walked to the door and said. "Girls sharpen your knives. You've got someone to convince..." Trailing off her eyes turned cruel and said. "If they refuse... You know what to do." As she closed the door behind her.

Ketsueki's left hand that's reaching for the bottle of water slowly formed into a fist as it slowly shook in anger. With gritted teeth she said. "Next week." Namida sat in her seat with a blank look on her for a few seconds before shouting. "I quit!" As she stormed to the door and closed it with enough force to make the hinges move. Sachi said. "How many times did she say that this month?" As she ate another piece of cold chicken, Ketsueki let out a sigh of frustration and said. "It's the 45th time this month alone." As she placed a generous piece of the hamburger steak on her store-bought bento. Sachi smiled and tasted it, she said. "It's good..."

______________________________________________________

Back At The Carriage

Reiki was drinking from his waterskin while looking at his drawing on the ground making sure it wasn't missing anything. He thought. That carriage the princess had... Wasn't the metal one of those used for magic circuits?... The voice said. [Correct, but I won't even worry about it. From her lack of reaction to you just tearing some off, I'm guessing it was someone else.] Reiki heard the coachman close his basket as he went inside and sat in his previous seat.

The coachman shouted. "Gentlemen! Time's up! We leave with or without! Doesn't make a difference to me!" The man stretched a bit in his seat as adventurers were packing up their things and walked towards the carriage. The man that was planning to kidnap Reiki saw the drawing of him on the ground as he narrowed his eyes and used his foot to wipe it.

The man sat back at his seat at the very front while he looked at Reiki using the corner of his eyes. With the carriage slowly being filled again, the same large and burly man sat next to Reiki taking up most of the space on the seat. He thought. The first thing on the list to buy is transportation land, air, and or sea . I'll buy enough space for an army 12 times over. The coachman reached for the reins as he used a whip to make a loud cracking sound in the air that made the horse start moving.

Reiki tried to move in his cramped seat as he took the brown pouch from his pocket and took out Kaita again and started to read. The material of the craftsman tool would either be beneficial or a detriment depending on the situation. Some metals have the same properties having high resistance to fire, can only be forged in freezing temperatures, or inside of a dying star. One way to somewhat improve the chances of forging a high-grade item, the craftsman tools would be made of pure gold, Crystal, Iron, or Obsidian, this can also apply to an acupuncturist. Depending on their customer, their needles would be used for certain species. Gold for humans to remove impurities, Crystal for golems to aid in their mana absorption, Obsidian from volcanoes to puncture a dragon's scale. Reiki continued to read with his head down as the carriage slowly went to their destination, time quickly passed by.

______________________________________________________

Back At The Classroom

The bell rang to signal the end of the school day, the same female teacher wearing a suit said. "That is all for today, review the materials I gave you and you'll be a fine magician in the future. That is all, dismissed." A male stood up and said. "Stand up." As all of them stood up in unison. The male said. "Bow." Everyone gave a polite bow simultaneously as the teacher waved her hand as she slid the door open and walked somewhere in the school. Shiro was stretching in her chair as she said. "It's over!" As she picked up her bento and made sure to take the notes she made for today.

She was approached by the two girls who joined her for lunch, the one with the boyish hair said. "Another day that I've somehow survived with no motivation." The girl with the long hair next to her said. "So just another regular day for you?" The one with the boyish hair laughed as she sat on top of the rest of an empty chair.

The one with the long hair turned her head to face Shiro and said. "I guess it's usual for all of us in the go-home club." Shiro nodded excitedly as she carried her notebook and bento, while the one with the boyish hair had nothing on her, the one with the long hair had a brown side bag with a couple of extra compartments.

All of them walked to the front of the school talking about what they've recently watched and others. After passing the gate Shiro said. "This is where we part, see you tomorrow." As she weaved her hand and took a left and walked down the street, both of them waved her goodbye as the one with the boyish hair said. "I'll see ya next time." 

And started to run straight down the road, the one with the long hair took a right and a limo was there waiting. A woman wearing a black suit and sunglasses opened the door and stood up and held the door in place as she waited for her to enter. The girl with the long hair entered without saying anything as the woman went inside and closed it shut, as the limo drove off in the distance.

Shiro was walking down the street as her grip was slowly tightening on her bento as she held a notebook beside her, every time she was nearing a turn she would look behind her and quickly take it and cautiously look around her for any signs of someone following. Taking a deep breath she tried to make her way back to her house and walked in silence, hearing the sound of birds chirping as they passed by.

The closer she was at home the calmer she was, Shiro let out a sigh of relief and cheerfully hummed as she was getting closer to the front door. Placing her bento in her right hand with her notebook, and saw a figure coming from around the corner, Shiro froze in place as her heartbeat steadily increased. She let out a sigh of relief and said. "Onee-chan, welcome back." While she rummaged through her pockets and unlocked the door, Ketsueki gently caressed her head and with a warm smile, she said. "I'm sorry Shiro, me coming from the turn over there must have scared you."

Shiro unlocked the door as she made a very small nod, Ketsueki carried her and placed Shiro in her arms. Ketsueki placed her forehead on Shiro's and said. "Don't worry, Shiro. Your older brother would be there to save you again like last time." Ketsueki hugged her as she softly patted her back. Shiro gripped Ketsueki's baggy jacket as she nodded and lightly sniffled, she saw a woman wearing a lab coat and a v neck that was headed towards their direction.

Ketsueki turned around and saw the woman as well, Kireina said. "Are you Akihito Reiki's older sister?" Shiro turned around and hugged Ketsueki, she patted her back and said. "I am, is there anything wrong?" Kireina said. "No, Akihito. I mean, Reiki has been selected to participate in an accelerated learning course for high schoolers. Knowing his... Record the principal decided to add him on the list for the school's lack of... Students."

Shiro slowly turned around and used the corner of her eye to look at Kireina hearing her brother being mentioned. Ketsueki frowned and said. "And why weren't I informed of this beforehand? I don't remember signing any wavers." Kireina replied. "It's the school's last-ditch effort, seeing if we stand around doing nothing it'll be gone sooner or later. The principal plans to nurture a handful of students with... The highest potential." Ketsueki's frown deepens, she said. "And I don't get any say in this? No waiver for legal purposes and not even a word in advance with his family?"

Kireina kept a pleasant smile on her face and was starting to get tired. She said. "That's strange." Ketsueki said. "What is?" Kireina continued. "We asked one of the male disciplinary members to ask him last time and he refused, we asked the head of the disciplinary Yuki, he agreed immediately like last time." Ketsueki's frown disappeared as she said. "Well, in that case, I'll just have to wait for his return here, have a good day."

As she went back inside carrying Shiro in her arms and closed the door. With a big smirk on her face, Kireina walked down the street and said. "Have fun with my surprise at home you little shit." As she laughed to herself, with a left turn Kireina vanished when she was away from view.

...

Ketsueki carefully placed Shiro down as she looked at her expression with a sweet smile. Shiro said. "Onee-chan, is Onii-chan in trouble?" Ketsueki took a deep breath and calmly said. "Yes." Shiro tilted her head and said. "Why? Onii-chan getting recognized for his brain is a good thing, right?" Ketsueki and Shiro removed their shoes and replaced them with white indoor slippers, Ketsueki said. "Shiro, remember that bad man I told you about who left us?"

Shiro had a thinking expression on her face for a moment then nodded. Ketsueki continued. "Then do you want Reiki to also leave us?" Shiro said. "O-Onii-chan won't leave us! H-he made a promise." Ketsueki said. "That's true, he did make a promise that he'll never leave us behind..." She trailed off, making Shiro's eyes filled with worry and a layer of moisture as she was on the edge of tearing up. Ketsueki crouched down so they were more or less at the same head level, she continued. "That's why he needs to be punished if we punish him for doing like this, he won't do them in the foreseeable future. If we don't, a girl might steal him away from us."

Shiro stared at Ketsueki's serious expression as she blinked to dry her eyes she tugged on her sleeve and said. "I understand Onee-chan... B-But don't hurt him too bad, okay?" Ketsueki smiled as she gently caressed her head, she said. "I promise, that I won't punish him too cruelly. But remember, when the time comes, follow my lead."

Shiro nodded while Ketsueki stood up from her crouching position, she said. "Well, looks like we won't be able to eat his homemade pizza in a few days... So how about we order some?" Shiro's eyes brightened as she excitedly nodded her head in agreement as both of them headed deeper into the house. Shiro sat on the couch and started to browse the channels while Ketsueki took her smartphone out and started to order their dinner for tonight.

______________________________________________________

Back At The Carriage

The sun had passed its highest point as the carriage was still moving on a decent dirt road. Reiki was lazily looking at the scenery next to the large man who was sleeping most on the seat. The carriage stopped abruptly, the coachman said. "Last stop for the day before we make camp. Gentlemen, you know the rules." As he coachman used his large straw hat to cover his face and laid down on his seat. 

Reiki quickly went out and did some stretches to help his blood flow, keeping his hood up as he scanned the area around adventurers also went out as they either stretched like him or searched for some freshwater.

Still standing near the entrance of the carriage Reiki took out his waterskin from the brown pouch as he downed what's left of it in one go. Placing it back inside the pouch he took a look around as he walked deeper inside the Arch forest for the first time. A dark figure hiding on top of a tree suddenly vanished as Reiki walked alone.

While walking deeper into the forest Reiki thought. You're confident they're around here. The voice said. [Don't worry, they're near. Just make sure you won't get caught.] He thought. By those idiots? I've-. Reiki stopped and saw the man in front of him who's been planning to kidnap him, on his left was one of his friends, on his right had a large tree in the way and looking behind him he saw the other one he ate with at noon.

All of them walked closer to him as the man with the dagger said. "It's a dangerous world out there." The other two laughed as Reiki stood still, the man grew a large smile on his face as he said. "So how about you join us?" Slowly making their way towards him the man said. "We're not bad people, see." As he took out a guild card similar to the one Otome gave him as his reward. All three of them were half an arm's length away from Reiki as the leader said. "So, what's it going to be?" Reiki brought his hood down as a smile was on his face, which placed a confused look on his face. Reiki thought. Flash Max Distance.

『Flash Has Been Activated. Mana Cost: 6,250.』

Reiki disappeared without a trace in front of all three of them as they stared at the spot in disbelief, a split second later they heard the sound of footsteps sprinting on top of crunchy leaves and twigs on the ground. 

The leader screamed at the top of his lungs. "Get him!" As all three of them started to run towards him at full speed while running, Reiki turned his head around and saw that all three of them were getting closer as he moved sideways to avoid the tree in front. One of the leader's friends was about to catch him but noticed Reiki was gaining speed as he got further away from him. Keeping his gaze in front as he made sure to keep a certain distance from them, Reiki had a small smirk on his face.