Chapter 90 - Do You Take Me As A kid!?
"I saw the President when I went back to the Club. She told me not to worry, but I've never seen her like that before," Koneko said, her usual stoic expression showing a rare hint of concern.
Rias, who was always confident and cheerful, suddenly looked depressed.
This made Koneko anxious, but she wasn't good with words and didn't know how to comfort Rias, so she turned to others for help.
Naturally, Mahiro's place became her first stop.
"It seems Rias's trip back to the underworld didn't go well," Akeno sighed.
Akeno didn't look too surprised, like she had seen this coming.
"What should we do?" Koneko looked at Mahiro, almost begging.
Mahiro: "..."
'How the hell am I supposed to know what to do?'
Mahiro had a good idea why Rias was down, but it was still her business.
Plus, he had already told her that if she needed help, she could ask him directly.
It's not like he could just walk up to her and say, "I'll help you with your engagement bullshit," without being asked.
She'd probably just tell him to back off.
It would be better for Rias to bring it up herself once she's processed it.
Then, Mahiro could step in and do his part.
For now, it was best to stay out of it.
"Don't worry, Rias won't let this beat her," Mahiro said with a small laugh.
"I know the President is strong, but still..." Koneko was clearly worried.
"Mahiro-kun, this time, you might have to step in," Akeno added.
"What can I do?" Mahiro shrugged. "You're her friend. Don't you know Rias better than I do? You should try to comfort her. It might work better."
"That's true," Akeno sighed. "But if I try to comfort her this time, Rias might react the same way she did with Koneko-chan."
Akeno sighed again. "Koneko-chan and I have been with Rias for a long time, so if we try to comfort her, it might not work."
"So, I'm just out of the loop?" Mahiro smirked.
"Rias might also want your comfort. She's still a girl. When she's feeling down, sometimes having a guy around helps more than we do," Akeno pleaded, "So, please, Mahiro-kun."
"I get it," Mahiro nodded. "But I can't promise I'll be able to cheer Rias up."
"Please," Koneko said, looking at Mahiro seriously.
"I'll go check on her," Mahiro said, patting Koneko's head gently.
"Where is Rias now?" Mahiro asked Koneko.
"When I left, she was still at the Club," Koneko replied.
"Got it, I'll use teleportation magic to get there," Mahiro decided.
Then, a magic circle lit up in the living room, and Mahiro stepped into it.
"Mahiro-kun, I'm counting on you," Akeno said with a smile. "I'll start cooking and wait for you to come back so we can eat together."
After a moment, Mahiro's figure disappeared.
"This doesn't sit right with me, but for now, I'll leave it to you, Mahiro-kun," Akeno muttered, clearly dissatisfied, as she headed back to the kitchen.
"Akeno-senpai, I'll help too," Koneko followed her into the kitchen.
With an emerging light, Mahiro reappeared in ORC.
"Not here?" Mahiro muttered as he glanced around the quiet, dark room. After a quick scan, he opened the door and stepped outside.
He had only taken a few steps when he saw it.
At the end of the corridor, a long strand of hair fluttered slightly in the breeze, and a familiar figure sat on the windowsill, leaning against the edge of the window, staring out.
Night had fallen, and the moon hung high in the sky.
The cold moonlight made Rias look more vulnerable than usual.
"Rias," Mahiro called out softly.
His voice was not loud, but in the quiet corridor, it was easy to hear.
But Rias just kept staring out the window, lost in thought, like she hadn't heard him at all.
Mahiro noticed her eyes were slightly unfocused, like she was completely zoned out.
Mahiro sighed. She probably tried to get her engagement called off and got shut down by her family again.
Feeling defeated, she was stuck in this funk.
Mahiro walked up to Rias, but she still didn't notice him as he got closer.
"Rias!" Mahiro suddenly raised his voice.
"Ah!" Rias let out a startled cry, completely caught off guard. She had been sitting securely on the windowsill but lost her balance in surprise.
She leaned out of the window, flailing her arms as she tried to regain her balance.
Mahiro couldn't help but chuckle. He hadn't expected Rias, who was usually so composed, to freak out like this. It was kind of cute.
He quickly grabbed her, preventing her from falling off the windowsill.
Once she was steady, Rias leaned against Mahiro, still looking a bit shaken.
"Mahiro-kun, it's you," Rias said, calming down a bit before shooting him a slightly annoyed look. "You really scared me."
"I didn't expect you to freak out!" Mahiro teased with a grin.
"Do you take me as a kid?" Rias glared at him, her face slightly flushed.
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