The Omnipotent Super Chuunibyou - Chapter 43
Inside a clothing store.
“How does this hair clasp look?”
“It’s perfect for you.”
“How about this hair cord?”
“It’s perfect for you.”
“What about this bracelet?”
“It’s perfect for you.”
Suddenly, the atmosphere turned quiet.
“What do you think about this? I think it’d look good on you.”
Eriri held up her right hand, grinning, her fingers curled as if she were about to unleash a powerful meteoric punch.
“Uh…”
Hasegawa Izumi felt a bit awkward.
“What do you mean, ‘it’s perfect for me’?! You’re clearly just blowing me off! Is this how you treat your debtors?” the twintail girl snapped, ordering him about.
“No, that’s not it. I mean, since Eriri is so cute, it doesn’t matter which accessory you choose. It won’t make a difference.”
His gaze darted around as he came up with an excuse on the spot.
The girl’s delicate, jade-like cheeks took on a lovely flush of pink.
But she quickly stamped her foot. “Even if you flatter me, it’s useless! Still, I’ll let you off the hook just this once!”
Then, she bought all the accessories she’d had her eye on.
They continued walking.
Before long, they arrived at a famous anime shop, which carried all sorts of merchandise, from figurines and accessories to cosplay clothing and plushies.
“This life-sized pillow, I think,” Eriri said as she stopped in front of a giant display case, peered down, and pointed at a pillow.
“That’s the vampire protagonist from Kurogane no Necromancer, isn’t it? What, did you start liking him too?” He examined the item.
“Idiot! Of course I’m giving it to Kobato! She’ll love it, right?” Eriri scolded him.
“That’s a certainty, but why are you suddenly giving Kobato a present? It’s not even her birthday yet.”
“I’ll give her a present if I feel like it! What reason does a big sister need to give her little sister a present? Ludicrous!” Eriri shot back with a question, then added a scolding.
“Well, that’s certainly true,” he nodded in agreement. Receiving gifts from someone who wasn’t obligated to give them was always a wonderful thing.
“But Kobato will be happy, won’t she?”
Eriri grabbed the goods and took him to the front counter to pay.
“Hasegawa-san?”
Just as they were about to leave, a voice called out from beside them.
“Oh, it’s you, Kino-san.”
Hasegawa Izumi turned around to see a girl with long black hair, tea-brown eyes, and pale blue irises. He’d seen her several times before, so he had some impression of her.
“I didn’t expect to run into you here, Hasegawa-san… Huh? Hasegawa-san, did you buy that pillow?”
Kino Karen approached, her gaze falling on the item in his hands.
“Oh, this? Actually…”
As he was about to respond, he realized that the person beside him had disappeared.
Good grief, she’s already gone!
“Mm-hmm, I’m giving it to my little sister,” he admitted with a nod.
“Hasegawa-san has a little sister?”
Karen looked curious, but out of politeness, she didn’t pry further. Instead, she suddenly seemed a bit bashful and hesitated to speak.
Miss, you’re looking a bit odd.
“Oh, no, could it be that kind of situation?”
A girl’s head peeked out from behind the bookshelf, eyebrows furrowed.
He chuckled to himself. “If there’s nothing else, I’ll be taking my leave.”
“No, wait… Actually, I wanted to ask you a favor. You see, Sawamura-san and you are childhood friends, right?”
“That’s correct. How did you know?”
His gaze sharpened.
“Because we’re part of the Mass Media Club, we have pretty good sources, so we found out… I just wanted to ask if you could introduce me to Sawamura-san? I’ve seen the ‘Sun God’ she drew, and I thought her technique was amazing, so I wanted to ask her for advice.”
Kino Karen clasped her hands behind her back with a smile.
“So that’s what it is.”
Hasegawa Izumi’s eyes darted somewhere, then he got his answer.
“If you want to meet her, go to the Art Club and give her my name.”
He accepted without hesitation. “Thank you, Hasegawa-san. I won’t keep you any longer, then. Good luck with your matches!”
The girl bowed happily, then waved as they parted ways.
After walking a ways from the anime shop…
“Say, what’s this ‘sun god’ thing? Is it Nika? I’m not that kind of character, you know.”
“It’s nothing. I just happened to catch you jumping to smash a tennis ball and drew it.”
As he muttered to himself, Eriri joined him, casually explaining.
“Isn’t it cool?” Hasegawa Izumi pressed.
“Har har, not bad, but mostly because I’m an awesome artist.”
Eriri scoffed.
Tired from all the walking, they stopped at a café to rest, taking seats beneath a large umbrella.
“Sorry to keep you waiting. Here are your giant banana splits.”
The waiter, all smiles, placed two extravagant ice cream sundaes before them, then withdrew.
“Phew, close call. I almost got busted back there!”
Eriri looked shaken, as if she still feared being caught.
“You ran faster than a rabbit back there, Eriri. Are you that desperate to keep your identity a secret?” Hasegawa Izumi teased.
Eriri picked up her spoon, scooped up a bite of ice cream, and put it in her mouth. Only after she’d closed her lips did she say, “Who’s like you, you idiot? You’re completely fearless. If word got out, this lady’s reputation would be ruined! Those lurking deviants are always waiting for an opportunity like this, just dying to tear us apart!”
“Sounds like you’ve got a good reason to be scared, then,” Hasegawa Izumi agreed without hesitation.
He’d already known this to be true, thanks to the rumors that had circulated about “the lady of Shimamura Middle School.”
The darkest thing in the world was the human heart!
After finishing his part of the special sundae, Hasegawa Izumi began scrolling through his phone. He was keeping an eye on the developments in this world, looking for any hints of change.
Suddenly, he saw a certain title on a forum:
“Is it really possible for a person to beat a tiger? Without using thermal weapons, that is.”
For an average person, without any tools, there would be almost no chance, given the disparity in size and strength. However, it might be possible for someone with extraordinary skill.
Then he saw one person’s response:
“First, I’d slide under the tiger with a forward roll, then slice its belly open with my knife, spilling its organs all over the ground. Or, I’d just leap backward, point my stick up, and stab it to death as it pounced.”
He mentally ran through the steps. Yeah, that’d probably make for a satisfying meal for the tiger.
Next.
“I once fought for seventy-five minutes straight and still had enough energy to run three kilometers afterward. People have different physical abilities; it’s impossible to make blanket statements.”
And the next.
“This is normal; you just need to predict where they’ll shoot. Once, in a fit of extreme anger, I managed to dodge thirty rifle rounds point-blank and knocked out the shooter with a single punch once his magazine was empty.”
“So many people have awakened already? Looks like the era’s tide is coming in even faster than I thought.”
The weekly observation ended, and he nodded thoughtfully before coming to his conclusion.