The winner of the harvest festival spends the night in the forest of spirits.
　I've never camped out in the wild before, so I came to the shrine with a lot of anxiety in my heart, but then Kuro appeared by chance, as if he were passing by.

It's really a good thing that Kuro always appears out of the blue.
Ha-ha, I wanted to see you, Kite, so I just went with the flow.
I mean, how do you know what's going on here?
'What?　That's Kite's necklace with a magic trick........a hunch!
"Hey, wait a minute, what were you going to say, you...

　You were just about to say you had a magic trick in you, weren't you?　Huh?　What?　Are you saying you put a spell on this necklace so it can track me?
　What an unheard-of statement, I think I heard, but Black, the one in question, opens his mouth with a smile on his face.

''Ah!　Kite, I heard you were hurt, are you okay?
'What?　Oh, ah ... all over now.
'I see~ I'm glad you're safe, Kite. Oh, that's right!　At the harvest festival, you won!　Great job, kite!　Congratulations!
'What?　Oh, uh ... thank you.

　I nodded my head, forgetting that I was going to ask a question, overwhelmed by Black, who told me in rapid succession as if it were a machine gun.
　And what can I say, yes.......what is this.......
　Congratulations to the winner, I've heard those words enough times before to get calluses on my ears. I'm sure I should have been afraid of being called unworthy by the elite.
　But when Black said those words to me, I felt a surge of joy.

　I'm sure it's a simple thing to do, but it's as if all my hard work has paid off.
　I'm sure you'll be able to find the best way to get the most out of your time here.

''For such a kite, yes, here you go!
There it is, baby sponge cake.
''Hmmm, this time it's the 'Congratulations on your win' version, Kite!　It's always different!
...What is that?

　I thought it was going to be the customary appearance of a baby sponge cake, but Kuro said that this time the baby sponge cake was special.
　Seeing Kuro's smug face and nearly flat chest, I wanted to ask him if he couldn't do something about the naming scheme, but I held it together and picked up a baby sponge cake.
　It looks the same as usual, but is it different inside?　Not the ghetto type like the one you had at White's place with wasabi, right?

Jeez.
You're going to say that out loud?
J~~~~~~~~~
Yes, thank you.

　Black looks at me with expectation in his eyes, saying onomatopoeia with his mouth.
　I can't seem to choose not to eat it, so I make up my mind and bring the baby sponge cake to my mouth.

".........Huh?
How's that?
No, it's just that it's delicious, but it's different than usual, isn't it?

　The baby sponge cake I tried was not particularly different from any other baby sponge cake I've ever eaten.
　I just felt that there was something different from the baby sponge cake I usually eat.
　It's hard to describe, but the taste was a little more fudgy than usual, with a strong home-made flavor... To be honest, I liked the taste more than usual.

Hmmm. Isn't it still better than the usual?
'What?　No, it's more to my liking, as far as I'm concerned...
Really?　Thank goodness - I thought it would be no good because you can't compete with Ayn in cooking,
Yeah?　What does that mean?
Oh, no actually, I made that baby sponge cake. I'm glad it was so good~

　　Baby sponge cakes with wasabi, or whatever they make them!
　While I was taken aback by Black's statement, I couldn't say anything because this baby sponge cake really tasted like me, and I popped it into my mouth one after another at a faster than usual pace.



















　I finished my baby sponge cake and stood on the tatami mat watching the beautiful moon through the hole in the ceiling.
　Come to think of it, when we first met Kuro, did we ever look at the moon together like this?　I don't know what it was, it was only about a month ago, but it feels like a long time ago.

Oh, that's right. I'm sure you're not the only one who has done this.
'Chartier?　Who's that?
"People call you 'The Phantom King No Face,'
What?
'He's a good friend of mine, and sometimes he comes over to hang out with me... the last time I was here, he praised Kite, saying he had 'potential' for you. It's rare for Chartier to praise someone, and that's awesome!
'No, no, wait a minute!　I've never met this Mr. Chartier person before?

　I didn't think the name of the Phantom King would be mentioned here.
　But when I look back on it now, I still don't have any idea who she was when she was praising me.

I'm sure you've never met him.
What?
Chartier's men are in ridiculous numbers all over the world, and they are really everywhere. Chartier is the most informed person in the world. I've probably known Kite since the day he came to this world.
That's scary.

　Apparently, the Phantom King is an existence that seems to know everything.
　After all, there are agents lurking all over the world, and all kinds of information is gathered at the Phantom King's place... Honestly, in a way, he might be the most fearsome six-king in the world.

''I got the feeling you were interested in Kaito-kun, maybe you'll come to see him sooner or later.
'What?　I don't know if that's a good idea.　What's that, Liliwood-san told me to be careful of the Phantom King...
''Hmmm. It's true that Chartier can be dry in some ways but I can talk to him better than Megiddo, so it's okay.
"Megiddo... was the Warlord, right? Huh?　Is that Mr. Megiddo in worse shape than that?
'Probably the first thing he'll say to me when we meet is, 'Let's have a fight. I love to fight.
That's scary.

　What kind of berserker would challenge him to a fight at the opening of their first meeting or something like that? I mean, if he's being compared to that, then the Phantom King must be in pretty bad shape!
　The ones I haven't met are the Warlord, the Dragon King, and the Phantom King, but you say two of them are in danger and I'm not supposed to meet them. ...Normally you can't see the Sixth King so early, don't worry, it's fine.

...Kite, you just keep getting better and better, don't you?
"...Yeah?　What's going on, all of a sudden....

　When my mind was confused about the Phantom King and the War King, Black muttered there in a gentle tone of voice.

''You're working harder and growing up more than I thought you would, Kite...''
....

　You'll be able to get a good idea of what you're looking for.
　Perhaps because of her originally pretty appearance, the figure illuminated by the moonlight was fantastic, and even felt like an art form.

''There's ... something I want.''
What?
I've wanted it for a long time and I couldn't find it, couldn't get it and I've been looking for it for a long time. Maybe from the moment I came into the world, I've been looking for it.

　It was hard to imagine the answer to those quietly told words.
　He is powerful enough to fight with the God of Creation, has the most money in the world, is well-liked by his family and admirers, and has a reputation as the pinnacle of the magical world.
　What is it that Kuro, who has everything, has not been able to get since he was born?　Would it be very valuable?　Could it be something else that doesn't exist in this world?
　Perhaps sensing my thoughts, Kuro turns to me and smiles.

It's not that it's anything unusual. I'm sure everyone else, including Kite, has one. But I can't get my hands on it, no matter how many times I've tried, I just can't find it. I couldn't even find it.
"...it's not...
"Don't tell. But....yeah. If you find that out, Kite, I'll be..................happy.
....

　In the moonlight, the mysterious girl smiles.
　It's a smile so beautiful that you can't take your eyes off of it, fleeting like the light that pours down.

'Well, leaving that aside, Kite, I think it's time for you to go to bed, don't you?　You must be tired.
'What?　Oh, no ... yeah. Yeah.

　Black's words, which abruptly changed the topic, felt more like a plea to not go any further than a lapse....
　In the end, the question isn't resolved, as usual, there are many things we don't know about Kuro.
　But I do know one thing. I'm sure you'll be able to find something, something that you sincerely desire... if you can figure it out, you'll be able to get a lot closer to Black.

"....blankets and tatami mats, no pillows, but I think I can sleep well enough.
'What are you talking about, Kite?　There's a pillow.
'What?　Where?
Here, here.

　Laughing at that, Black smacked his own knee.

''No, no, that's not the way to go...''
It's not like I'm new to this. Come on, come on, don't be shy.
Ugh, okay.
'Yeah, yeah, honesty is best!

　Eventually he pushes me off again and I put my head in Black's lap, feeling embarrassed.
　Immediately, a small hand is on my head, gently stroking my hair.
　That's all it takes, and I close my eyes, feeling a pleasant drowsiness drain from my body all at once.

　While feeling Black's warmth from behind and in front of my head, my consciousness slowly sinks into a slumber.

'....Good night, Kite.
"....Yeah ... good night ... black ...

　Dear Mom, Dad - Black is still a mystery to me. But I can feel it for sure. Little by little, step by step, I'm getting closer to you, Black.
























　While stroking the head of Kaito, who was sleeping with a relieved expression, Chrome-Eina smiled a little sadly.

''.........Really, he's a terrible boy, Kaito-kun.......I gave up on him a long time ago.......''

　Gently and compassionately stroking Kaito's head, Chrome-Eina murmured to no one.
　The expression on her face seemed to show her complicated heart, and she didn't know whether she should be sad or happy.

''........You'll be gone in a year......why do you annoy me so much?''

　A beautiful voice echoes in the quiet shrine, a voice that sounds somewhat like it is crying.
　It's a small sorrow and joy, filled with very deep feelings.

How many times has Kaito-kun betrayed my expectations?　The conversation with White.... the meeting with Isis... the story of Kronor-chan...

　So Crom Eina stopped stroking it and slowly, so as not to wake Kaito up, she hugged its head.

''........I would expect.......that maybe Kaito-kun would......''

　Continuing their embrace as if they were handling a treasure, their cheeks turned a little vermilion, and Crom Eina said a thought that she would never 'now' tell Kaito directly.

''........I love you.......Kaito-kun.