"I'm sorry, customer. Rikki is a bit introverted and isn't very good at communicating with others."
After scolding Taki, Ririko turned to face Mutsumi Kamijo.
"What would you like to order? It's on me, as an apology on Rikki's behalf."
As expected of a mature upperclassman, her handling of the situation was flawless; even the most demanding person would find no fault with her.
"Ririko-senpai, I..."
Seeing her senpai apologize to this flirtatious guy because of her, Taki couldn't hold back.
Clearly, she wasn't introverted as Ririko claimed; in fact, she was quite adept at intimidating others into silence.
Witnessing this scene, she was ready to blow up at Mutsumi.
Although she wasn't a rich young lady like Soyo or Anon, Taki's family wasn't short on money either. She wouldn't swallow her pride and endure mistreatment for the sake of a job like a certain customer-service representative who shall not be named.
Miss Taki won't stand for this! Worst case, I'll just quit!
Still, that Soyo has terrible taste in men!
Miss Soyo would probably never imagine that her reputation would take such a hit with her former bandmate because of Mutsumi Kamijo.
"That won't be necessary."
Oh no, I've become the villain!
To prevent the girls from the band from charging at him with guitars, shouting about dreams and friendship, and smashing his head in, Mutsumi could only smile and say to Ririko:
"We weren't fighting. I was just joking around with Taki-chan..."
"Taki-chan..."
Hearing Mutsumi's familiar way of addressing Taki, Ririko—who hadn't witnessed him seamlessly switch between two beautiful girls—clearly misunderstood something.
"It seems I misunderstood... Please continue your chat. I won't disturb you."
With that, she gave Taki a rather knowing, suggestive glance before leaving.
"I..."
Taki didn't even have time to explain. In the end, all she could do was glare fiercely at Mutsumi.
"You bastard... are you looking for a fight?"
It had to be said, Taki was a straightforward person. When angered, she was genuinely ready to throw down.
"I just want to order..."
Mutsumi wisely chose not to provoke the girl before him any further. After all, he enjoyed watching girls fight, not fighting with them himself.
Besides, given his current physical condition, he might not even win against Taki. That would be truly embarrassing.
"...What do you want?"
Her last shred of reason stopped Taki from coming to physical blows with Mutsumi.
"A cucumber-flavored parfait?"
"..."
Seeing the girl looked like she was seriously about to swing, Mutsumi quickly changed his tune.
"What flavors do you have?"
"...Only matcha is left. Take it or leave it!"
"Then four matcha parfaits, please. Two for here and two to go."
Perhaps sensing that it was a rare opportunity to see this guy behave, Taki surprisingly didn't give him any more attitude and dutifully prepared his order.
"Here's your parfait..."
Naturally, her tone was anything but friendly.
Mutsumi paid promptly but only took the two to-go packages in the end.
"Hey, your parfaits!"
Although she was at odds with him, Taki still called out when she saw him leaving them behind.
"No, they're your parfaits!"
"Huh?"
Taki was clearly not on the same wavelength as Mutsumi.
"Consider it my apology to you and Ririko-senpai..."
Mutsumi said with a light laugh and left before Taki could react.
"That guy..."
When Taki came to her senses, she stared at the two matcha parfaits on the table, unsure of what to do.
"Taki-chan,"
Just then, Ririko, who had been observing from the side, walked over.
"How did your chat with that handsome boy go?" she asked, her tone teasing.
"I have nothing to do with that guy!"
Faced with her senpai's misunderstanding, Taki remained brutally honest.
Ririko simply chuckled in response. Though she didn't press the matter, she wasn't convinced.
Even with zero practical experience, she'd seen enough of the world to know what was going on.
At the very least, the gentleness in Mutsumi's eyes when he looked at Taki...
She couldn't be mistaken!
"Taki-chan, what about these two parfaits?"
"That guy gave them to you!" Taki said, turning away decisively, adopting an "out of sight, out of mind" attitude.
"Eh?!"
In the end, under Ririko's persuasion and with the mindset of not wanting to waste food, Taki ate her share of the parfait.
"Want a parfait?"
After leaving RiNG, Mutsumi unsurprisingly found the green-haired girl waiting for him there.
"Unfortunately, they didn't have cucumber flavor, but matcha is good too. It's so good it would make a cat cry with envy."
"..."
The green-haired girl said nothing, only staring at Mutsumi with a blank expression.
"Not to your liking? Should I go buy some cucumbers?"
"...Why did you approach Soyo? What do you want with her?"
The green-haired girl finally broke her silence, her tone extremely hostile.
"...I just wanted her to do some voice acting for my anime... There's no need to guard against me like I'm a thief, is there, Mutsumi?"
Mutsumi seemed to know why the girl treated him with such an attitude, but he still spoke with a tone of feigned helplessness.
"Why are you looking for Soyo?"
However, after hearing Mutsumi's explanation, the girl's attitude didn't soften in the slightest. Instead, her frown deepened.
"Isn't having me enough for you?"
The girl's words were incredibly suggestive. If any clueless bystander were to pass by, they would certainly misunderstand.
But in reality, this Mutsumi wasn't jealous. In fact, before today, the two had never even met.
She had only seen a photo of Kamijo Mutsumi and knew of his existence.
"How should I put this... Let's get in the car and talk. It's getting late."
The girl had no objection. She got into Mutsumi's car, looking for all the world like an innocent girl being deceived by a rich, scummy heir, breaking the hearts of many onlookers.
Inside the car, the girl sat expressionlessly beside Mutsumi. Her pale golden eyes showed no hint of light, and her entire being was devoid of energy, like a caged bird about to be imprisoned.
"Don't look so down," Mutsumi said upon seeing her state. "Have some parfait."
With that, he also opened the parfait in front of him and took a somewhat shaky bite.
It was cool and refreshing. The matcha flavor was a bit bitter at first, but it gave way to a soft, sweet creaminess—a taste that girls found completely irresistible. No wonder Raana loved it so much.
However, the girl was in no mood to appreciate the delicious treat in her hands. Even a matcha parfait beloved by Raana tasted like wax in her mouth.
"Besides me... are you going to target Soyo as well?" the girl asked, her lips pursed as she stared at Kamijo Mutsumi.