chapter 17: a quiet evening

The bakery shop was a quaint, cozy place tucked into a quiet corner of the city, its walls adorned with warm pastel colors and the faint scent of fresh bread lingering in the air. Zack sat across from Yurina at a small table near the window, his black coffee steaming faintly as he sipped it without a single grimace at the intense bitterness. The quiet hum of chatter and clinking cups filled the space, yet for Zack, it was just another background noise in his long, repetitive life.

Yurina, on the other hand, was a picture of light-hearted enjoyment. A slice of tiramisu cake sat neatly on a delicate white plate in front of her, each layer of creamy mascarpone and espresso-soaked sponge enticing. She nibbled at it with a small fork, her eyes bright with delight as she occasionally sipped her cup of hot tea.

"—and then Alixia tripped over the training dummy!" Yurina laughed, recounting her day with animated enthusiasm. "She was so embarrassed she turned red like a tomato! You should've seen it, Zack; it was hilarious!"

Zack nodded absently, his focus seemingly on the swirling black liquid in his cup. He wasn't one to interrupt or discourage her. Listening to Yurina chatter on was... tolerable. It was far better than the suffocating silence that often plagued his solitary moments.

"Anyway, how's the coffee?" Yurina asked suddenly, eyeing the dark brew in his hand.

"It's fine," Zack replied, his voice flat as ever. He took another sip, the bitterness strong and unrelenting, but it didn't faze him. He'd grown used to bitter things, both in flavor and in life.

"Ugh," Yurina scrunched up her nose, clearly remembering the one time she'd tried it. "How can you drink that? It's so bitter! Most people would spit it out."

Zack set the cup down. "I've had worse."

Yurina pouted but quickly returned to her tiramisu, the sweet flavors washing away any lingering thoughts of Zack's unusual taste in beverages. The contrast between them—her enjoying life's simple pleasures, him merely enduring them—was stark, yet somehow, they shared a strange understanding.

As Zack set his now-empty cup down, Yurina suddenly paused mid-bite, her expression shifting. She glanced toward the table behind Zack and leaned in slightly, lowering her voice.

"Zack," she began, her tone a little more serious now, "do you feel something?"

Zack didn't turn around immediately. Instead, he closed his eyes for a brief moment, letting his senses stretch out. A faint, familiar pressure brushed against him, one that was subtle yet unmistakable. It wasn't hostile—at least, not openly—but it was there, watchful and calculating.

"Yes," he replied calmly, setting his cup down with a quiet clink. "Tyrus's aura."

Yurina winced slightly. "And my sister Marina... I knew they were following us."

Zack's eyes narrowed slightly, though he didn't turn to look. Tyrus, Yurina's older brother, was a formidable swordsman whose raw power and battle instincts rivaled even the academy's best. Meanwhile, Marina, Yurina's oldest sister and the second child of the Hydro family, was a master tactician with a sharp mind and a watchful gaze. Zack knew them both well from his countless lives. They had always been fiercely protective of Yurina, sometimes to an almost overbearing degree.

"They're sitting behind us," Yurina murmured, sneaking a quick glance over Zack's shoulder. "Pretending to eat. How subtle."

Zack let out a soft huff that could have been mistaken for amusement. "They've always been suspicious."

Yurina sighed, poking at her cake with her fork. "They've been like this ever since we were kids. It's sweet, I guess, but also really annoying."

"They don't trust me," Zack said simply, his voice devoid of emotion.

"It's not you," Yurina argued quickly, though she knew it wasn't entirely true. "They're just... protective. It's how they are."

Zack didn't respond, but he didn't need to. He knew Tyrus and Marina's suspicions weren't entirely unwarranted. His relationship with Yurina—if it could even be called that—was an anomaly. She was a Rank S student, a member of one of the most prestigious families in the academy, and here she was, spending her time with someone like him—a Rank E nobody who didn't even have mana.

"Should we... say something to them?" Yurina suggested hesitantly, glancing at Zack for guidance.

"No," Zack replied firmly. "Let them watch. They won't find anything."

Yurina sighed again, clearly exasperated by her siblings' behavior, but she nodded. She trusted Zack, and she knew he wouldn't let something as minor as their surveillance bother him.

Still, the weight of their gaze lingered, and Yurina couldn't help but feel a little self-conscious as she finished her tiramisu. She wanted to believe that her siblings meant well, but their overprotectiveness was starting to feel suffocating.

Meanwhile, Zack remained calm, his mind already cataloging Tyrus and Marina's movements. He knew they wouldn't act unless provoked, but their presence was a reminder that even in this seemingly peaceful moment, he couldn't afford to let his guard down.

As Yurina finished her cake and Zack prepared to leave, the faint tension between them and the pair sitting behind them hung in the air. Zack stood first, sliding his chair back with a quiet scrape. Yurina followed suit, grabbing her bag and glancing nervously toward her siblings.

Tyrus and Marina didn't move. They continued to sit at their table, their gazes trained on Zack and Yurina as the two walked toward the exit.

As the door to the bakery closed behind them, Yurina let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding. "That was... awkward."

Zack didn't respond. He simply kept walking, his hands in his pockets and his eyes fixed ahead.

But Yurina wasn't done. "You're not mad, are you?" she asked, her voice softer now.

"Why would I be mad?" Zack replied, his tone flat as ever.

"Well, it's just..." Yurina hesitated. "I know they can be a bit... overbearing."

Zack stopped walking and turned to face her, his expression unreadable. "Yurina," he said quietly, "I've dealt with worse."

Yurina bit her lip, feeling a pang of guilt. She wanted to defend her siblings, but she also couldn't deny that their behavior had been intrusive.

"Let them watch," Zack continued, his gaze steady. "It doesn't matter."

With that, he turned and kept walking, leaving Yurina to follow after him.

As they made their way back to the academy, neither of them noticed the faint smile that played on Marina's lips as she watched them from a distance.

"Interesting," she murmured, her sharp eyes gleaming. "Very interesting."

Tyrus, standing beside her, frowned. "He's hiding something."

Marina tilted her head thoughtfully. "Perhaps. Or perhaps he's just tired of being watched."

Tyrus didn't respond, but his gaze remained fixed on the path Zack and Yurina had taken, his jaw tight with suspicion.

For Zack, the attention was just another obstacle to endure. But for Yurina, it was a delicate balance—one that she wasn't sure she could maintain.