Chapter 20: Reflections and Complaints on Battling the Tornado

Inside the cafeteria, Yuri and the others, having successfully completed Operation Tornado, relished the meal tickets they had just swept away, savoring the corresponding dishes as they bantered with other members of the Battlefront. Displeased, Fujimaki turned to Yuri and said, "What's the deal with that newcomer, Yoru? Not only did he refuse to attack Angel with us, he even shielded her from our assault. If he weren’t a rookie, I’d have made him die once for that!"

"Die once? If you really tried, we’d probably be picking up your corpse instead. Or, like last time in the music room, maybe we wouldn’t even find a body," Hinata mocked, exposing Fujimaki’s bravado without a hint of mercy.

"Enough, you two," Oyama interjected with an awkward laugh, trying to defuse the quarrel and defend Yoru. "Didn’t Yoru successfully keep Angel occupied until the operation was over?"

"Who knows what’s going on in his head? The world he comes from must be different from ours. Besides, he’s convinced Angel isn’t sent by God. With that in mind, it’s not surprising he acts that way. Frankly, I’m starting to suspect he might be God himself," Yuri mused, stirring the noodles in her bowl with her chopsticks.

"Him, God? Never heard of a god that can die," Fujimaki replied skeptically, though Yuri’s words had drawn the attention of most present. Even if he didn’t think much of Yoru, suspecting him of being God seemed a stretch.

"What if he hasn’t died? Bringing in a divine beast like the Nine-Tailed Fox is strange enough. His attitude is closer to Angel’s, yet he chose to join us. And he has such power—who’s to say he isn’t a god toying with us for his amusement?" Yuri’s imagination ran wild once more, questioning Yoru’s true nature. Sometimes, her leaps of logic were uncanny—she’d already deduced that most students were NPCs, relying on intuition for the rest.

"Hmm? What’s with all of you?" Yuri looked up to find those across from her huddled together, staring at her with obvious unease. She rolled her eyes. "Even if I say all that, it’s just speculation. Yoru’s the first person of his kind we’ve ever seen—it doesn’t have to be as I said. There’s no need to look so scared!"

"Behind you, Yuri!"

A gentle, calm voice sounded from behind her. "Hey, Yuri, is it all right if we sit here?" Yoru, accompanied by Kanade Tachibana and Otonashi, each carrying food trays, approached the few empty seats nearby.

"Angel!" Startled, Yuri jumped back several steps, her hand instinctively going to the small of her back, nearly drawing her pistol.

"I’ll just eat somewhere else," Kanade’s eyes, bright with happiness moments ago at the prospect of eating mapo tofu, dimmed instantly at Yuri and the others’ unwelcoming attitude, her voice dropping low.

"Eat here! Why go somewhere else? Isn’t it normal for friends to share a meal? Or... are you saying you don’t see me as a friend at all?" Yoru caught Kanade by the shoulder, stopping her. His shamelessly cute act, eyes wide and pleading, bored into Kanade’s.

Unable to withstand Yoru’s ‘pitiful’ gaze and words, Kanade took the empty seat beside him, quietly eating her mapo tofu. Yoru’s pitiable expression vanished at once. Kanade was dear to him—aside from C.C., Kuro, and the newly acquainted Ruo Xing and Ruo Chen, she had offered him warmth and kindness when they were still strangers, so naturally, he wanted to protect her.

Seeing that Kanade showed no intention of attacking, the others also returned to their seats to continue dinner, though the atmosphere had grown somewhat strained. Hinata, trying to lighten the mood, called out, "Whoa! Yoru, you and Angel are both having the legendary spiciest dish, mapo tofu! Even our bravest Battlefront warriors can only handle it with lots of rice!"

At once, everyone’s gaze landed on the dishes in front of Kanade and Yoru—two identical plates. The only difference was that Yoru was eating his with a bowl of rice. The sheer spiciness had deterred many; now, they all looked at the pair with admiration.

Kanade, silent, ate her mapo tofu in small, measured bites, at a pace Yoru himself could hardly match. Watching their exaggerated expressions, Yoru laughed, "Is it really that bad? Personally, I think it’s delicious. Sure, it’s a bit spicy, but the flavor and texture are both excellent!"

"Yuri, can I ask—was Operation Tornado designed to whip up the excitement with a concert and then, while the ordinary students were distracted, use the wind to sweep away the meal tickets?" Yoru, recalling the scene when the tickets drifted down, asked in curiosity.

"Y-yes, that’s right," Yuri replied, a little startled by the question, but she nodded.

"Rookie, I haven’t settled with you yet! Why did you help Angel earlier? You’re one of us, a member of the Battlefront!" Fujimaki slammed the table and pointed accusingly at Yoru, glancing at Kanade, who was quietly eating her meal.

"Actually, there are two things I’ve been meaning to ask all of you." Yoru pulled from his pocket a wrinkled paper form—the one he had shown Kanade earlier—and laid it flat on the table. It was a simple application for a band performance, stamped with the school’s approval seal.

"There really wasn’t any need for such intense fighting. All you had to do was submit this form, and the concert would be an official, school-approved event. Why go through all the trouble of a massive gun battle, wasting time and even using rocket launchers?" Everyone stared blankly at the form, especially the members of the GDM band. If hosting a concert was this easy, why had they gone to such lengths?

At this, Takamatsu, the group’s only strategist, adjusted his glasses and declared solemnly, "We’re members of the Afterlife Battlefront! Following school rules? How would we ever show our faces if word got out on the streets?"

"Crack!" Yuri spun around and shattered his glasses with a punch. "Don’t make us sound like a criminal syndicate!"

Everyone ignored the fool—better he’d said nothing at all.

"My other question: the NPCs all listened to GDM knowing their meal tickets would be swept away, didn’t they? So it’s fair to say they were willing contributors, right?" Yoru pressed for confirmation.

"Of course! We, the Afterlife Battlefront, would never force the ordinary students to do anything!" Yuri declared, lifting her chin proudly.

"In that case, why bother with the wind? Isn’t it unnecessarily complicated, especially since you have to collect the tickets yourselves and many aren’t recovered? Who knows how many tickets are wasted. If they’re willing to give them up, why not use a normal method? For example, make the meal ticket the price of admission, like a real concert."

The expressions of the Battlefront members froze, as if someone had painted "Never even considered it" across their faces. Even the ever-hungry Matsushita nodded with grave admiration. "As expected from a clever new recruit—to think of such a unique idea!"

"No, no, I’d say your method of using a tornado to collect tickets is even more unique—definitely beyond the realm of ordinary people. I’m in awe!" Yoru pressed his hand to his forehead with a weary sigh, taking in their reactions.