C384

Shirou already knew that Ritsuka had tampered with his safe.

Wasn't that to be expected?

The box containing the strand of golden hair was actually created by him using his black mud, functioning like his clone. When she touched the box, "Evil" informed him of the intrusion.

However, he didn't rush back to confront her because the contents of the safe weren't valuable, and he had already dealt with the situation the day before. He figured it wouldn't be appropriate to pursue the matter further now.

He decided to turn a blind eye to the situation and didn't immediately return. Instead, he kept an eye on Miyu at the school, giving Ritsuka some time to tidy up the mess.

Of course, if she didn't clean up properly, he wouldn't be able to ignore it, and he might have to give her another spanking.

"Ding Ling Ling~!"

The school bell rang, signaling the end of classes. Students poured out of the classroom, getting ready to head home.

Miyu walked out of the classroom alongside Illya, accompanied by Illya's friends, including Moriyama Nanaki and Kurihara Suzuka.

Spotting Shirou, Miyu bid farewell to Illya and her friends, then made her way over to him.

Nanaki commented, "Miyu is the little sister of that scary senpai?"

"Scary senpai?" Illya tilted her head in confusion, glancing at her.

"Yeah," Nanaki continued, "My sister was in the same class as that senior in the high school section. She mentioned that he's tough to get along with. Even my kind and easygoing sister said that, so he must be a really intimidating person!"

Illya felt a bit helpless as she lowered her head weakly. In her mind, she couldn't help but recall the scene from last night when Shirou spanked Ritsuka, and she couldn't deny finding it somewhat scary as well.

However, as she remembered the scene from last night when the young Shirou descended from the sky and defeated Medusa, she couldn't help but silently contemplate that perhaps Fujimaru-niisan did look a bit intimidating, but he was only protecting the people around him in his own unique way.

Shirou waved to Illya before walking home with Miyu.

"So, how'd it go?"

"The theoretical stuff is way too basic. The teachers don't even understand calculus, which is troubling for me."

"I wasn't talking about the classes. I meant how you feel about interacting with other regular kids."

She pondered for a moment, "It's all puzzling to me. Some people face bullying but manage to laugh it off. Others say 'I hate you,' but then go on to play nicely with others. And then there's Illya..."

"What about Illya?"

She thought again and explained, "During PE class, she challenged me to a race, but when she lost, she acted unwilling and yet hugged me with a smile. She's so affectionate and keeps smiling. I just can't figure it out."

"And how does that make you feel?" He asked gently.

She lowered her head slightly, "It's not that bad."

He reached out and affectionately patted her head, saying, "That's good to hear."

"Um..." she hesitated for a moment, then looked up at him and said, "I know I've caused Fujimaru-niisan a lot of trouble already. Let me at least help out with some household chores, or I won't feel right about accepting all of this."

As they reached the front door of their house, Shirou and Miyu stepped inside, only to find Ritsuka in tears, rushing to hug her brother tightly.

"What's wrong, Ritsuka?" He asked.

Between sobs, she cried out, "Brother, brother! Just give Ruby back to me!"

His expression hardened as he replied, "I've already destroyed that thing."

"Waaahhh!" she wailed, "No, that's not true! You're lying! I promised you I won't cheat, and I won't be a magical girl anymore. Please, just give Ruby back to me. Don't destroy my good friend!"

"Don't be ridiculous."

She cried even louder, "If you don't return Ruby to me, I won't eat anything!"

Shirou: "..."

Gray stood there looking troubled, watching this family drama unfold.

He paid no attention to Ritsuka and returned to his room, giving a quick glance at the safe. His foolish little sister had shown some wisdom in handling the aftermath, so he decided to turn a blind eye to her attempt to break into his safe.

"Brother, please give Ruby back to me! She's my friend, don't destroy her. Waaahhh..." she followed him into the room, continuing to cry loudly.

He lay down on the bed and pulled out a comic book, casually flipping through its pages, completely ignoring her.

She continued to cry loudly, stealing glances at him in between sobs, her crying growing even more intense.

Normally, her brother would soften up after she cried, but this time was different. She cried for half an hour, yet her brother continued reading his comic book, completely unfazed.

"Hmm?" He looked up, watching Ritsuka rubbing her eyes, and asked, "Are you done crying? I haven't had enough of it. Your tears make for a nice background music while reading comics."

Ritsuka: "..."

She gritted her teeth, crossed her arms, and pouted, "I won't eat! If you don't give Ruby back, I'll go on a hunger strike!"

"A hunger strike?" He raised an eyebrow.

She nodded firmly, declaring, "If you don't return Ruby to me, I'd rather starve to death than take a single bite of food!"

Such a foolish tactic! He couldn't help but chuckle, setting aside the comic book as he walked out of the room.

Ritsuka sat on the bed, arms crossed, wearing a determined pout. She had made up her mind; she would go on a hunger strike to save her dear friend from the evil demon king!

After walking out of the room, Shirou reached into his pocket and dialed Sakura's number on his phone. "Hey, Sakura... Yeah, it's me! Let's have hotpot tonight! Yes, get more beef!"

"Okay, brother."

Sakura hung up the phone at the entrance of the middle school, letting out a sigh as she realized her brother hadn't come to pick her up after all.

She felt like she had been acting way too grown-up lately – and maybe that wasn't such a great idea after all. It seemed like her brother didn't even pay attention to her anymore, and that left her feeling neglected and unimportant.

She felt deeply troubled; all she wanted was for her brother to care about her and take care of her.

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she headed to the supermarket to buy hotpot ingredients and vegetables, making sure to add extra beef.

That evening, Shirou cooked a delicious hotpot right in front of Ritsuka. He and Sakura enjoyed it with relish.

Ritsuka's mouth watered as she watched, the tempting aroma filling the room, but she resisted the temptation for the sake of her friend.

Sakura hesitated for a moment and whispered, "Brother, why don't you just comfort Ritsuka?"

"Comfort her?" He chuckled, "There's no need."

He playfully took out a fan, picked up a slice of the deliciously cooked beef, and gently fanned the mouthwatering aroma of the hotpot towards Ritsuka.

It smelled so good... so good...

The tantalizing aroma filled the room, making it even harder for Ritsuka to resist. Her mouth watered, and she found it difficult to hold back anymore. As Shirou playfully fanned the air and teased her, he turned to Sakura and the others, saying, "Let's dig in and eat to our heart's content, too bad the one on a hunger strike won't get a taste."

Ritsuka clenched her teeth, trying to resist the temptation. However, when she decided to leave the room, she realized her brother had locked the door, keeping the key securely in his pocket.

Trapped in a room with the mouthwatering aroma enveloping her, she felt her resolve waver. That's when Sakura came over, offering a gentle suggestion, "Maybe we should just start eating now? Otherwise, all this delicious food will disappear into big brother's belly."

Unable to resist anymore, she gave in and nodded, returning to the table.

As she attempted to pick up some slices of beef from the hotpot, her heart sank. There were only a few pieces left; it seemed that her brother had already devoured most of it.

Tears welled up in Ritsuka's eyes, and frustration got the best of her. "Big brother is so mean!"

Not wanting to lose out again, she quickly reached for the beef with her chopsticks, grabbing some before he could get to it.

Sakura asked, "How does it taste?"

"It's delicious!" Ritsuka smiled.

With her spirits lifted, she picked up the pace of her eating, savoring each bite.

Ruby?

What was that again? A hunger strike?

Of course, she would go on a hunger strike! But how could she continue her hunger strike if she didn't eat enough?

Ritsuka thought to herself.