Steady Development

“I’ll eat!”

Yisha pressed her palms together before she began to savor the dishes laid out on the table.

Contrary to her expectations, the nuanced, layered flavors surprised her slightly.

Unlike the immediate, explosive burst of flavor she was accustomed to, Shido’s cooking demanded a more deliberate appreciation. Each taste built upon and shifted into another, culminating in a sensation that could only be described with one word: delicious.

“Sister, is it alright?”

Yina, seated beside her, sounded a little anxious. Ordinarily, Yina made a conscious effort to prepare meals that catered to Yisha’s preferences and physical needs.

This Japanese cuisine experience was somewhat of an experiment. If Yisha enjoyed it, then their future menu could be slightly diversified.

After all, despite her efforts to vary the dishes, over two years, Yisha had almost exhausted all the Chinese recipes Yina knew.

“It’s truly delicious, easily comparable to your cooking, Yina.”

Yisha offered her assessment, then abandoned her initial cautiousness and began to eat with gusto.

“Oh, Yina can cook too?”

Shido, having gleaned this new information from their conversation, was quite taken aback.

“Yes, I was once fortunate enough to study a little under a world-renowned chef.”

Yina tasted Shido’s cooking, a flicker of surprise passing through her eyes.

“And you, Shido? Where did you train?”

Realizing her sister’s praise was genuine, Yina set aside her initial reservations and inquired of Shido.

“Nowhere in particular. I just gradually picked it up over time, preparing meals for Kotori and myself every day.”

“Oh my, that’s truly astonishing.”

‘I can’t underestimate him. This man might just steal my sister’s stomach. I must work harder!’

Unbeknownst to anyone else, Yina silently made a firm resolution.

Yisha ate quietly, taking small bites, all the while observing the interactions between them. Naturally, she didn’t miss Kotori, who had remained silent at her side.

Until…

“Onii-chan, Yisha, Yina, I have something I need to discuss with all of you later.”

Her words broke everyone’s train of thought.

‘Come to think of it, this month’s date hasn’t even been continued yet.’

Yisha sighed inwardly, having more or less guessed Kotori’s intentions.

On the Fraxinus, Yisha, clad in a white lab coat, wore a grave expression. Her eyes darted between the surveillance footage and the status parameters.

“Everything looks good. You may proceed.”

Upon her command, the experimental personnel in the control room increased the magical energy output, continuously injecting it into the magic cannon situated on the shoulder.

“Hmm, compression is normal, spell construction is normal, and the rifling is undamaged.”

A new limit had been reached. Yisha let out a yawn and halted the experiment.

“Would you like some water, Sister?”

Taking the cup of water Yina offered, Yisha meticulously recorded the details of the experiment.

Over the past month, their connection with Ratatoskr had granted them the privilege of experiencing top-tier treatment, albeit exclusively for healing and development.

Thanks to Ratatoskr’s medical Realizer, combined with Zadkiel, Yisha’s injuries healed remarkably quickly.

As the saying goes, idle hands lead to mischief. Yisha had requested the data and design principles for Ratatoskr’s medical Realizer. To her surprise, they didn’t object. Instead, they asked Yisha to create a CR-UNIT for an unknown individual as an exchange.

Initially, she was quite puzzled by their request. As one of only two companies in the world that possessed the design principles for Realizers and had developed them for years, why would they ask her, a mere ‘merchant,’ to build a CR-UNIT? Wasn’t that like teaching a fish to swim?

It was only when they clarified their requirements that she understood.

“Your design for the burst mode is far too extreme. Could you show us its operation?”

To translate: the burst mode, when activated, resulted in either death or severe injury, with significant side effects even for the user. They wanted her to create a version without such issues for their review.

And so, this was the current situation.

“The experimental data has been uploaded. We should be able to proceed with live combat drills tomorrow.”

Yisha deactivated the CR-UNIT in the testing area, informed the tester that the session was over, and then departed.

The experiment had gone smoothly, in every sense, except for the tester who always wore a black stocking over their face. One might have mistaken them for a Counter-Strike operative.

“It seems our transaction with Ratatoskr can continue to be fulfilled.”

Yina glanced back at the tester, confirmed they were unharmed, and then accompanied Yisha as they left.

“Honestly, I truly dislike dealing with these large corporations. Couldn’t we just exchange the goods and be done with it? But no, they demand after-sales service, manuals, this, that, and the other. It’s infuriating!”

Yisha pouted, expressing her displeasure.

They had agreed on a recent delivery, but what happened? The designer couldn’t understand the data she provided. Fine, she painstakingly explained it. The tester didn’t know how to use it. Fine, she taught them hand-by-hand. Now they had a prototype, yet they still wanted her to build another unit and conduct the initial tests? If it weren’t for the medical Realizer materials, who would bother?

“Sister, getting angry isn’t good for your health.”

“I’m just complaining.”

The two bantered as they headed towards the bridge. Kotori’s earlier instruction to ‘not leave’ had, in fact, been a summons to a meeting.

As the doors opened, all eyes converged upon them, or more accurately, upon Yisha.

Yisha sensed an odd atmosphere. She looked towards the large screen on the bridge and immediately understood.

The screen displayed footage of her and Shido encountering Hermit at the shrine earlier.

‘They’ve discovered that guy is a Spirit? How efficient.’

With a quiet thought, Yisha moved to the side, intending to listen to their meeting in silence.

However, it seemed no one intended to let her remain idle. Their gazes remained fixed on her.

“Ms. Shimazaki, could you tell us what you did after you left?”

Someone finally posed the question. Yisha narrowed her eyes and waved a dismissive hand.

“I encountered a mortal enemy and had a brief conversation with it.”

“Was it Phantom?”

“Phantom?”

Yisha was momentarily bewildered. How had a new Spirit emerged after only three hours of not checking the Spirit data? Was Origin truly unconcerned by this?

“Oh, I apologize, I forgot to mention it to you. Phantom is our codename for the mosaic-covered Spirit you described.”

Shiizaki, immediately grasping Yisha’s confusion, offered the explanation.

“Ah, I see. It was that one.”

Yisha nodded in understanding.

‘Why Phantom? Deus would be a far more fitting name for that entity, wouldn’t it?’

Recalling the deathly radiance that had descended like Gabriel’s trumpet in ancient myths, she inwardly gave a bitter smile.

“Our cameras lost track of you shortly after you departed. Was that caused by your conversation?”

“No, it was my Angel. We are incompatible, as you know.”

“Understood.”

Shiizaki nodded, flipping through the notebook in her hands, and continued, “Then, Ms. Shimazaki, your date with Shido-kun is scheduled for tomorrow. Is that acceptable?”

“It is.”

Yisha had no objections. In fact, she wished to complete the routine date with Shido as soon as possible. Who knew when it would actually happen if they kept delaying it? And she would have to expend more effort remaining vigilant.

“You are dismissed.”

At Kotori’s command, everyone scattered like birds, leaving only Yisha, Shido, Yina, and the young commander.

Yisha raised an eyebrow, realizing Kotori had more to say. She walked to the table, pulled out a chair, and sat down, adopting an attentive posture.