Phantom Feather and Blazing Heart strolled the streets a while longer. Phantom Feather glanced up absentmindedly—and froze. Directly ahead stood Branch 19’s central building: the Disciplinary Committee office. A spark lit his eyes. He took Blazing Heart’s hand and crossed the street.
Festival decorations brightened every shopfront. At night, the lanterns would glow beautifully. But Phantom Feather barely noticed. Head down, he pondered visiting Branch 19. He needed to find her—to discuss improvements to the "Croak Communicator."
School rules didn’t require copyright holder permission for modifications. Yet Phantom Feather cared. Consulting the creator might spark fresh ideas.
Silent, they reached the office door. Phantom Feather knocked.
···
No reply. *Right*, he realized. That unassuming little loli would never answer doors—it’d force her into the spotlight. He pushed the door open.
Inside, no one sat at desks or lounged on sofas. Phantom Feather’s gaze swept upward, landing on the third bookshelf tier. A missing book revealed a sliver of space behind it. There—a flicker of green. Not paint. Hair shifting between white and green.
He rounded the shelves. A green-haired loli sat curled on the floor, books piled around her. She slept soundly, head bobbing gently.
—*Dead to the world.*
Phantom Feather stood frozen, staring at Kaya Linxina.
Meanwhile, another pair of eyes fixed on him.
"Blazing Heart," he sighed without turning, "stop staring. It’s creepy."
*"Stare~"*
"Alright, alright. My bad. I’ve got business now—go sit on the sofa, okay?" Her unblinking gaze forced his surrender.
Blazing Heart finally looked away, head tilted in thought. After a pause: "No... bad things."
"Huh?" Phantom Feather blinked, bewildered, as she walked off. Only when she settled on the sofa did he shake his head and focus.
Kneeling beside the sleeping girl, he met her face.
*Speechless.* Her peaceful, defenseless slumber rivaled Blazing Heart’s innocence.
—*Hey. Didn’t your parents warn you? Sleeping this cute in public gets you kidnapped by weird uncles.*
"Calm down," he muttered, sucking in a sharp breath. He reached to tap her shoulder—but she stirred before his fingers landed. Her eyes fluttered open. "Mmmph~" She stretched, blinking drowsily at him.
Phantom Feather froze, hand suspended mid-air. *This looks so suspicious.* He didn’t even know *what* it looked like—just that it felt mortifying.
"Huh?~~!" Kaya Linxina studied the familiar handsome boy before her. Three distinct "huh"s escaped her lips. On the third, her eyes widened and brows shot up.
"W-What’s wrong?" Phantom Feather stumbled back, voice cracking.
"Why are you here?" Her delayed question eased his tension—and sparked a flicker of regret.
—*Phew. No misunderstanding.*
—*Regret? What the hell, Phantom Feather! You creep!*
"I need to discuss something with you," he said evenly.
"?" She tilted her head, confusion deepening.
"Aren’t you curious what it is?" Her silent stare unnerved him.
"Oh. What is it?" she prompted.
"That ‘Croak Communicator’—you built it, right?"
"Mm." A soft hum.
"I modified it recently. Felt like plagiarism. Wanted your permission."
"Want to see!" Stars ignited in Kaya’s eyes.
"Uh—" He fumbled in his pocket, pulling out blueprints. Laying them neatly on the floor.
"Ahhh~~!" Kaya squealed, tracing the designs. "I never thought of this! Big brother’s so smart!" She beamed up at him, awestruck.
Phantom Feather recoiled, glancing toward the sofa. *Kaya’s voice might make Blazing Heart jealous—*
The sofa was empty. The door stood ajar.
—*Shit.*
He sprang up like a coiled spring, launching himself out the door.
—*Irresponsible owner. Leaving her again for this nonsense.*
Guilt hammered his chest as he sprinted.
*Not here!*
*Not here!!*
*NOT HERE!!!*
—*Where’s Blazing Heart?!*
Frantic, he careened down streets—then froze. A faint vibration pulsed through his Contract Seal. He crashed shoulder-first into a roadside tree. Passersby jumped.
"*Hah... hah...*" He straightened, breathing hard.
—*Idiot. Forgot the Contract Seal.*
Blazing Heart’s voice had been faint but clear. Safe.
Eyes closed, he focused through the Contract Seal.
····
*There.*
He ran toward Feria Academy—the mech exhibition site. Normally off-limits to outsiders, it opened during the festival. Far from Branch 19’s center.
Mid-stride across a street, tires screeched. A Magic Vehicle swerved wildly toward a student riding a Speed Drake. The rider dodged too late—the vehicle clipped the drake’s hindquarters. Rider and mount tumbled.
Rare, but irrelevant now. As Disciplinary Committee support and Student Council aide, he had to act. First, he alerted Misha via Croak Communicator. Then he sprinted over, helping the student up. Unharmed—but the drake whimpered, tailbone fractured.
Combat? His specialty. Healing? Not a clue.
He stabilized the fracture with invisible magic—a temporary fix. Proper treatment would erase all traces.
The student cried for help. Misha arrived swiftly, frowning. *Good thing I warned her to bring a healer.*
As medics examined the drake, Misha scanned the scene.
Suddenly, Phantom Feather’s Contract Seal blared.
*"Master~~~ Master~~~ Master... scared."*
"Misha—I’ve got to go!"
He vanished in a blur of afterimages.
—*If you’ve touched my Blazing Heart... I’ll erase you from this world.*
He reappeared before Blazing Heart. Four Feria Academy students stood frozen, shock etched on their faces.
"Master." A tiny voice. Warm weight clung to his right arm.
"Blazing Heart. I’m late."
Her grip tightened.
Phantom Feather’s gentle smile hardened into something terrifying as he looked up.
"Hungry."
Her voice echoed through the Contract Seal.
His chilling smile didn’t waver. *"Did they hurt you?"*
"No. Just... weird words."
*"Then why the distress call?"*
"Hungry."
"*Sigh.* Let’s get lunch."
"Mm."
The four students shifted uneasily under his silent glare.
"Next time," Phantom Feather said, pulling Blazing Heart away, "won’t be this simple."
The icy promise in his voice sent them fleeing.
At a nearby restaurant, they ordered quietly. Surface calm masked their Contract Seal chatter.
Mid-meal, the Croak Communicator buzzed.
"Where are you?" Misha’s voice crackled.
"Eating."
"You’re eating?!"
"Does hunger require mood permission?"
"Fine. You saw the crash?"
"Yeah. How’s it look?"
"*Mmmph~*" Phantom Feather fed Blazing Heart another bite.
"What was *that*?"
"Unimportant."
"Empty Magic Vehicle. Speed Drake’s tailbone fractured—but your magic stabilized it. Full recovery in days."
"Glad no one’s hurt. Cause?"
"Tampered core. Foreign spellwork triggered the malfunction."
"Got it. Gotta go."
"Wait—what did *‘Mmmph~’* mean?!"
"Munch~ Master, this is so delicious."
"P-pervert!!!"
"Huh? What I meant was per—" "Beep beep beep~"
Before Illusionary Feather could finish, all that came from the other end was the dial tone.
"Whatever."
After they finished eating, Illusionary Feather felt he needed to discuss something with Blazing Heart.
They walked to a nearby bench and sat down.
"Blazing Heart, it was all Master’s fault today for leaving you there and not taking care of you."
"..."
"But I really love creating things, so..."
"I want to be with Master."
"???"
"Just being by Master’s side is enough."
"But when I’m creating, I can’t take care of you, Blazing Heart."
"Master loves it, so I love it too. Just watching Master is enough."
"So you just want to sit by my side—even when I’m busy—and watching me is enough?"
"Mhm."
"In that case, from now on, when Master is creating, Blazing Heart can just sleep quietly by the side."
"Mhm."
"Then let’s go to Branch 19. I still have some things to handle."
"Mhm."
"Just a moment ago, you were so talkative, and now you’re down to just one word."
Illusionary Feather didn’t say much more. He took Blazing Heart’s hand and led her back to the Branch 19 office.
Inside, someone was busy behind the bookshelves.
As he got closer, sure enough, Kaya Linxina was flipping through design blueprints.
She had a look of admiration on her face.
"Oh, big brother, you’re back! I can’t wait to see the finished product."
"I’m really sorry for running off suddenly earlier."
"I just want to see the finished product."
Kaya ignored Illusionary Feather’s apology and continued.
"Not yet. We’re still researching it. I’ll make it as soon as I get back."
"Mhm."
The two then continued working busily. Blazing Heart stayed by Illusionary Feather’s side. Though she didn’t understand their conversation, seeing Master’s smile made her heart warm with affection.
