I'm not going to be an Spirit! (Translate)

"Hehe… Guhaha…"

In the corner of a clothing store.

Hiding in the corner thanks to her petite build, Kōshi Tachibana wore sunglasses and a mask while secretly observing Mamika Kirameki and Natsumi Kyouno from a not-too-close, not-too-far distance.

Matsubara Takashi was also wearing sunglasses and a mask, holding a newspaper as a disguise.

When he heard that perverted giggle from Kōshi Tachibana, Matsubara Takashi turned to look at her, his eyes filled with an indescribable strangeness.

"I swear to God, if you didn't look like a little girl right now, I'd call the cops and have you locked up."

Matsubara's mouth twitched as he lowered his voice. "Do you know what we look like right now? Stalkers! And not just any stalkers—we're leering at little girls!"

"What are you so flustered about? Two grown men stalking two little girls is perverted. I'm not a man right now."

Kōshi Tachibana turned around, deliberately took off her sunglasses, and rolled her eyes at him. "Besides, seeing how cute my daughter is—can't a father smile with pride?"

"I don't think that smile of yours is one of paternal comfort…"

Matsubara sighed slightly.

But he didn't continue the topic. He shook out the newspaper and went back to pretending to read it.

Their mission today was to ensure that the 'date' between Mamika Kirameki and Natsumi Kyouno went smoothly.

They had deliberately chosen a busy shopping mall as their patrol location, not really to search for newly descended Constructs, but rather to take Natsumi shopping.

Rebuilding Natsumi confidence was a critical step that everyone agreed on.

Not just to avoid falling into a disadvantage in the future fight against Altair, but also to strengthen Natsumi sense of belonging and goodwill toward their side.

And as for the best candidate for this outing, process of elimination left only Mamika Kirameki.

Although Kōshi Tachibana also wanted to compete for that spot, despite spending these past few days together, Natsumi attitude had only shifted from initial disgust to cold indifference.

Since she wasn't qualified to start a romance side-route, Kōshi Tachibana could only tearfully hand the position over to Mamika Kirameki.

But now…

That choice might not have been so bad?

"Girls getting close to each other is just the best."

Although she couldn't hear what the two were saying, judging by their affectionate behavior, Kōshi Tachibana could totally imagine their dialogue.

As a result, the grin on her face grew even wider.

"If you call yourself her father, then don't put your daughter in a strange couple!"

Matsubara couldn't resist the urge to roast her. "Can you act normal for once?"

"I am normal. The one thing that gets me excited more than anything else is girls being sweet with other girls."

Kōshi Tachibana replied calmly without even turning her head. "Can you guess why my pen name is Kōshi Tachibana?"

"Uh…" Matsubara froze. "You're… a yuri fan?"

"Of course. You didn't know?"

"But Date A Live is a harem series, isn't it?"

"That was the editor's fault!"

The moment the topic came up, Kōshi Tachibana expression twisted in frustration. "I never intended to write about Shidō Itsuka. Originally, the protagonist was going to be Shiori Itsuka, and I was planning a Tachibana-style yuri harem!"

As someone who debuted writing yuri novels, Kōshi Tachibana had originally intended to keep writing what she loved.

But when she started Date A Live, her editor kept insisting that yuri stories had no market and that male-oriented harem stories were the mainstream. Unable to resist the editor's persistent persuasion, she reluctantly changed the female protagonist into a male.

But now, it was too late to complain.

Sighing helplessly, Kōshi Tachibana shifted her attention back to the two girls trying on clothes.

"See? With just a bit of dressing up, little Nana becomes a truly adorable girl."

Mamika Kirameki, who had added a few accessories to Natsumi outfit according to her own aesthetic, nodded in satisfaction, then quickly snapped a photo with her phone.

She moved so fast that Natsumi didn't even have time to react before the picture was taken.

"You! Who said you could take that?!"

Natsumi panicked, reaching out to grab the phone. "Delete it! Delete it now!"

"Ehh~ I just wanted to commemorate this beautiful moment forever~"

Thanks to her height advantage, Mamika Kirameki lifted the phone high above her head. "I won't show it to anyone else. At most, I'll just set it as my lock screen~"

"That's way too embarrassing!" Natsumi face turned bright red. "If someone sees it, what will they think?!"

"What will they think? Of course, they'll think you're my best friend."

Mamika Kirameki tilted her head. "Only best friends would use each other's photos as lock screens, right?"

"I'm so done with this childish world and its childish worldview!"

After a flurry of back-and-forth, Natsumi still couldn't get Mamika Kirameki to delete the photo.

Not only that, Mamika Kirameki even used the excuse of "you wouldn't want anyone to see this photo, right?" to coax her into trying on a few more outfits.

After the lively chaos continued for about half an hour, the two finally walked out of the clothing store carrying large shopping bags full of clothes, shoes, pants, and various accessories.

"Sigh…"

Natsumi looked completely drained, slouching as she muttered, "Finally… It's over. I'm going straight home to rest."

"Eh? Nana, you're tired already?"

In stark contrast to Natsumi, Mamika Kirameki looked even more cheerful than when they first entered the store. Smiling brightly, she said, "That won't do~ Girls are supposed to have limitless energy when shopping. You need more training, Nana!"

"Why would anyone need to practice that?"

"Just like boys practice games, girls obviously have to practice shopping too!" Mamika Kirameki declared with perfect logic. "After all, it brings us happiness!"

"I'm not happy at all!"

"Ehh~ Really~?" Mamika Kirameki gave her a doubtful look. "But I think Nana actually had a bit of fun."

"I absolutely didn't."

"Well then, summon the Pseudo Witch and I'll ask her if Nana's just being tsundere."

"Ugh…"

"Aha! You are being tsundere!"

Mamika Kirameki beamed triumphantly as if she'd caught her red-handed. Then she pointed in a direction and said, "Alright then! Time to head to our next destination!"

"Next destination?!"

Natsumi had just been feeling a bit awkward, but after hearing that, her whole body jolted. "We're going somewhere else?! I thought we were going home?!"

"Huh? What are you talking about, Nana? We've only been to one store."

Mamika Kirameki looked as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"At the very least, we have to finish shopping this whole street."