Chapter XXIII

Dilemma

First period. The meal hall of the obelisk blue dorm is empty, all the students are in their respective classrooms, except for a few people. On a table, Ryou sits across from Edo and Asuka, they each have a plate of food. Ryou stares at his plate, a blank drawn on his expression, he's dazing off, but the stern traits on his face tell them he's not up for a talk; Edo supports his elbow on the table, his cheek folding on his hand, now that he can't attend to boring classes, he misses it; Asuka sits quietly in a tense mood, exchanging a glance at both.

"Can you not say something?" The blonde covers the side of her mouth while whispering to the younger boy beside her.

"Say what? Is it not clear that the man needs time to think?" He replies earnestly, she huffs at him, tugging a smile on her lips to soothe the mood.

"Ryou," His eyes blink once, cast at her when he opens them. "Even if those girls wanted to test whatever was in the flask on us and Edo was still in his room, it wouldn't have affected us because he was outside last night."

"Outside? Why is it that this doesn't surprise me? What were you doing, Edo?"

"Investigating, of course. Just because you couldn't, it doesn't mean we all can't."

"And did you find useful information?"

"That's complicated to say, I wish we would be able to tell more, but we had to retreat."

"We?" Ryou raises a brow, switching his glance between the two.

"We could've tried to go in there." Asuka contests, sitting sideways to face Edo, as if riled up by his wrong statement.

"No, it was dangerous. Or do you not remember we had to run? Next time I'm going in alone."

At this point, Ryou's mind already drifted off from the conversation, landing on his plate of soup, a completely emotionless expression, his lips shut in a plain line. Their voices are only background noise.

"What?" She frowns, irritated at Edo. "Are you insinuating that I'm… A burden?"

"No, I'm just saying if you were not there, I could've risked more."

"I can't believe you!" She gasps offended. "Look, I remember I ran with my own two legs back there, you didn't need to worry about me or anything! We're doing this together for a reason!"

"Yeah, and I was trying to make sure we don't get hurt! I'm not trying to burst your bubble, but I'm way more experienced in this than you, we don't know who those people are and what they can do, you're out next time."

"You can't just decide things for me! It's about my brother! You can't stop me from going there and finding clues about him!"

Their shouting and bickering escalates, the green, sharp orbs of the Kaiser as still as his soup, his reflection there eliciting memories from the last night. The way Rie looked at him so tenderly, her eyes had only his image in them and nothing else. That love is not something he's seen from any fan or anyone else.

He's conscious it's part of the effect of that potion, whatever was the intention of the person who made it. He's aware that was but a fake display of emotions, but the more he tells himself that, he notices this bothersome sensation that a part of him wanted it to be true. Deep down, a part of him wanted that all to be true. Those feelings, that whole night. But is that really his heart talking or is it just because of the sensations he had?

His chest twists inside him, making this uncomfortable airiness swells in him at the thought. He's not sure of what he wants and doesn't anymore and this is completely frustrating. Loud voices disrupting his immersion:

"Wouldn't it be worse if something happened to you while you're searching for your brother?! Say we find him, how would I even have excuses?!"

"Something could happen to you too, don't pretend as if I'm the only frail one here!" she retorts.

"No is no, Asuka!"

"You two…" Ryou says in a collected voice.

"If it was Ryou, you'd take him along!"

"Yeah! And he's way better than you at this! Also, it was your choice to not tell him!"

"Tell me what?" He attempts to ask, exchanging a confused glance at both his patience running out as the quarrelling fills in the air.

"That was different!"

"No, it's not! You're just-"

"Would you two shut up?!"

His voice rings on their ears, they immediately look at him, their eyes almost popping out at his outburst. He swings his head in disapproval:

"So you're both going into night excursions alone and I'm out? Great! I expected this from you, and I knew you'd try to follow your agenda whatever it is that you want…" He looks at Edo with distrust. "But even you, Asuka? Even you are keeping secrets from me?" He takes a deep breath. "Why is it that everyone wants to hide something from me? Do I look that unreliable?"

"Ryou… I'm sorry, I just…" She stammers, trying to find the words.

"Not like your girlfriend isn't hiding a secret or two." He snaps back at the teal-haired boy.

Asuka gasps in shock, Ryou gapes at the insinuation, his eyes wavering conflicted for a moment, his face hardening with a scowl, he stands up from his chair with a squeaking of it scratching the ground.

"Ryou, wait! Where are you going?"

"I lost my appetite."

Her hazel orbs falter looking at him vanishing from the dorms, until her brows come together annoyedly, glaring at Edo, he jolts subtly on his seat, feeling her scolding stare.

"Can you not hold your tongue? You know Ryou, you shouldn't be saying such things to him, Rie isn't his girlfriend."

"Yeah, but it's very obvious there's something going on, the truth must have hurt."

"How can you be so obnoxious sometimes?! Didn't you say earlier he needed time to think?! How can you just provoke him like that?! He…" Her brows coil up as she casts a bitter look at the path her friend passed by. "He sounded very disappointed with us…"

He's astounded at her words for a moment, Asuka could be a very sensitive person when it comes to feelings of others, maybe that's how she got along so well with someone like Ryou in the first place and… With someone like him.

"Fair." Her words flip a switch, his anger dissipating. "My bad. I'll talk to him another time, but for now you should let him be."

"He just stormed out of the room, how can I let him be?"

"Sometimes guys need time to think, don't go barging into their personal space like that…"

She knows he's trying to be insightful, maybe he's really feeling guilty for letting his stress take the best of him.

Inside the school building

Ryou's expression is devoid of emotions, unlike his interior. He walks towards the infirmary. His steps are firm, but his insides oscillate in reluctance. How will he even keep composure and clear everything up? He didn't get to hear Rie's reasons for deceiving them either.

He flinches upon hearing the click of a door. Daitokuji comes out of the infirmary, their eyes meeting briefly. His expression is as dispirited as the Kaiser's, but soon a smile forms on his lips.

"Rie-chan needs to rest, it's better to come later." His words surprise Ryou for a moment. "The first period is not over yet, do you have some time to spare now?"

A drop of sweat rolls down his face, it was a rhetorical question, but with how intense Daitokuji's presence looks, he can't just refuse. His fists clench, it's better if he settles this attrition between them here and now.

"Sure."

The teacher turns around, the same gentle looking and deceitful smirk on his lips, he guides the teen to the lab, opening the slide door to the side and waiting for the teen to enter, locking them in there.

"I hope you brought the flask as I asked."

His gaze lingers a second longer on the face of his professor, as if trying to read him, then he rummages in his coat's pocket, taking out a plastic bag that contains all the small shards of the glass.

"Good. I can commence the analysis, would you mind being my assistant?"

"No problem."

"Can you give me those pincers?" He points at the other end of the table, a tray with some silver tools, Ryou hands it to him.

The professor quickly arranges some flasks, one of them in a transparent liquid, he takes one of the shards with the pincer and drops it in the liquid that immediately changes color to pink.

"Tell me again… What was Rie-chan doing in your room? Did she say anything about why she was there?"

Ryou knew this was coming, but it's not less uncomfortable, leaning his hip against the lab counter, he crosses his arms, gazing at his teacher unfazed by the question:

"Some girls wanted to try this on Edo and Asuka, but I changed rooms with Edo just yesterday, Rie was trying to get this flask and whatever was in it before Edo arrived. I didn't get to hear why."

There's an unnerving silence in the room as his professor prepares some sort of cooking station for the flasks, the glass tinkling as he moves it around skillfully. The Kaiser risks the question:

"Can you tell what it is?"

"Yes." He smiles faintly, casting a brief look before concentrating on the task, waiting for the solution to boil. "It'll take some time to find out all the compounds, but there's plenty of time before your next period, isn't there?" The last part sounded more like a threat than a comment. "Did Rie-chan say anything strange when she was under the influence of this 'drug'?"

He frowns tensely at the question, they were far too busy to be "talking", but he doesn't want to even remember that now, his blood simmers just at the faintest recollection. An indifferent and short answer coming out of his lips:

"No."

"Tell me, Marufuji-kun…" He adjusts his glasses, turning around and supporting his hands on the counter, looking at the side, to his student. "You're always getting in trouble along with Rie-chan, aren't you? You two look like two magnets for problems."

"With all due respect, many times it were others who hooked us into problems."

"Right, you have a reputation to zeal for."

"I don't care about reputation, those people don't know me, but it's different for Rie, she was always concerned about how others see her. Sincerely, I'm stupefied you never interfered with how your niece was being bullied."

He's astounded momentarily at the razor sharp words, is this defiance he hears in Ryou's tone?

"Rie-chan is able to take care of herself and deal with those matters."

"Yet she sought your help the last time." He looked like he had that answer on the tip of his tongue.

He can sense a vein's about to pop on Daitokuji's forehead, but the man keeps his lighthearted smile. It bothers Ryou, this seemingly lack of care, even back when they asked his help to take her out of the dorm, he didn't seem worried about her in the least. Perhaps, had his teacher been more attentive to her issues, she wouldn't resort to deceiving people around her. Not that he's better since he also overlooked many things.

"Rie may look fine with it, but I doubt she'd seek your help if things weren't very bad. As her uncle, shouldn't you have helped before it reached this point in which she's just intruding people's rooms because she thinks she can count on no one else but herself?"

Daitokuji's smile fades for a moment, Ryou Marufuji really has the nerve to tell him off, especially in a moment like this, the scenes of how she was crying in the infirmary flashing in his mind. A faint smirk playing on his lips:

"You think you are very different, don't you Marufuji-kun? Do you think you can keep her away from trouble? That won't work. You don't know half of the truth."

"But I'm willing to find out this 'truth'."

"You do have sway with words on her, given what happened, I can understand why." The last words are acid and provocative.

"This isn't about any 'sway'." Ryou's fists clutch together unwittingly. "People seek for honesty in any sort of relationship, lies won't get them anywhere. She knows that."

"You think being persistent is the answer? Let me give you advice: the more you try to get to the truth, the worse it will be, you'll just hurt her in the end and yourself too."

"Is this what you've been telling Rie? To not trust people because she could get hurt? To keep distance from them?"

There's a pause and a wrinkle forms between Daitokuji's brows, Ryou corresponds with a scowl. His blood gets a bit too heated with this bothersome, burning sensation building up in his chest as he stares at the man on the side.

What exactly has her uncle been telling her and is this also why she'd been so closed off this whole time? She's shy, but those secrets she's keeping, that wasn't just about being shy. If the only person that should be taking care of her is as aloof as he seems, he can get why she'd believe she'd be better off by herself.

"Can you say that's not true? Tell me who tried to help her when she needed it? You ignored her at first too, you think I can tell her to trust people? You're just selfishly indulging your opinion on the matter, Marufuji-kun, not thinking of the consequences later." His eyebrows close the gap between them.

"Well, too bad that's for Rie to decide and not you, professor." He stands up straight, walking to the door and unlocking it, sliding it to the side, casting a last glance over his shoulder, his eyes narrowing. "We're through here. I suppose you won't need me here anymore. Have a good day."

He skids the door behind with a soft thud, Daitokuji's lips angling down. This isn't the first time he'd seen that riled up face of the Kaiser, but certainly the first time it was directed at him.

His student has a point, he's been focusing more on his mission than on his own daughter's wellbeing, ironically enough, he's also doing it for her, but at which moment it started being more hurtful than worth the pain?

He supports his hands on the alchemy counter, a deep sigh. With a second of rest, he starts producing an antidote again, mulling over Rie's words. Was she this unhappy by participating in this mission this whole time? Did he burden her with too much? If this is it, then why…? Why would she even accept it? She could have refused.

No. That isn't right. She wouldn't refuse… because of him. Rie had a gentle heart and no one else after her mother was gone, naturally for someone so young, they'd rely on the only other person she was close with and knew. Does that mean she doesn't need him anymore now that she got other people precious to her? Even if that's the case, he can't complain.

He didn't do much for her, yet he can't just accept that he would mean so little in her life and trust that other people will be able to take care of her as much as she needs, they're as young as her. What should he do then?

Lunch break

Asuka chats with Junko and Momoe, the three of them leave for the middle of day break, the black-haired girl reads through some news on her PDA while the other two chat, then, she calls their attention with:

"Hey, did you see the news? It seems the tag duel with Edo and Jonouchi went viral in the media."

She shows the screen of her PDA, an article in a blog about "Edo Phoenix loses to school kids from the duel academy in a secret duel and bribes Jonouchi to hide the results. Is he trying to hide the shame and keep a clean record?"

"What?!" Asuka's eyes almost bulge out. "How…? The duel wasn't even a broadcast!"

"It seems some sort of reporter got near the stage. They even have pictures!"

Indeed there is a picture of Edo and Jonouchi standing and the screen showing their life points as zero, it seems the shot even purposefully hid the part showing Judai's and Shou's life points. Also, a picture of an angry Edo speaking to a smiling Jonouchi on a side corridor.

"This is such trash! They didn't even lose, it was a draw!" She blurts out, indignant.

"It's rare to see you being so annoyed at someone else's matters." Junko blinks surprised.

"I mean…" She recoils, a drop of sweat rolling down her face.

As they walk out of the classroom, a familiar face interrupts the three, much to their astonishment, the victim of the gossip in flesh and bone.

"Asuka, do you have a moment to talk?" He asks politely, minding the other two.

"I…"

Junko and Momoe exchange a glance, gasping at the sudden invitation, some other people start wondering what's going on, until the brown-haired girl declares, giggling mischievously:

"She does! We will see you later, Asuka, enjoy your lunch break."

Momoe beckons at them as she's dragged out of the scene by Junko, the blonde girl stretches her hand towards them as if trying to catch them. Edo raises a brow:

"You have interesting friends."

"What do you want to talk about now?"

"Oh, right, we can go somewhere else."

He speaks lower, sending some unwelcoming glances at the people observing them from the surroundings, they turn their gazes away. Once they're out of the school building, her shoulder relaxes a bit more.

"Aren't you a bit paranoid? Not like people can prohibit us from talking."

"You wouldn't say that if you knew just what those girls comment when you're not watching. By the way, I just heard something you might not like…"

She types on her PDA, accessing the same link as Momoe showed her before, displaying it to him, a grumpy crease forming on his expression as his eyes flash speedily on the lines.

"This is such trash!" He crosses his arms. "How did they even get photos?"

"I said exactly the same when I read this. Are you fine?"

"No!" He replies on a whim, then reconsiders. "I mean, it doesn't matter. I didn't call you here to talk about my career, I can settle that later, though, I'm amused that you're interested in reading news about me."

"I just heard about it from Momoe and Junko and thought you might want to know!" She gestures hectically to excuse herself.

"Anyways, about the lab, I think I have a plan, but I would wait at least two or so days for us to prepare."

"Us?" She's startled.

"Yes." His lips curve slightly downwards, as if he's a tiny bit unwilling to admit. "About what I said earlier… I didn't mean to exclude you from it, but you oughta understand it's a risky maneuver."

"I get that, but just telling me it's dangerous and I can't go will get me angry, in all this time roaming on this island, I was only caught once and that was by that creepy guy, never again by any guards of sort! Don't treat me like I'm incapable of going in there too, it'll just make me angry."

He would never involve normal people under any circumstance, but he can hardly say this is like anything he'd done before, she's right that it's about her brother and also about how she has done this sort of sneaking before. Still, he did worry about what could've happened if those people are kidnapping students, it wouldn't be hard for them to make them both vanish.

"But," He raises a finger, indicating he's making a concession with a condition. "You listen to everything I tell you and follow my plans. And today we're finishing our scouting."

"I'll listen to your terms, I understand you know what you are doing."

"We're good, then."

A couple days later,

Daitokuji stops by the infirmary again, taking a seat on the chair near Rie's bed, she's awake, but stares deeply into the ceiling, as if disregarding his presence. There's a small chest of drawers near the bed the nurse arranged for her, a flower vase with a bouquet on it. Someone dropped by to visit her before him, it seems.

"Rie-chan, the antidote is finished…" He takes a small flask out of his pocket, putting it above the chest of drawers. "I heard your fever is still high even with the medicines, you should drink this to get better, all the symptoms will disappear in a matter of hours."

Her blue orbs spare a side glance at him, narrowing in a mix of sulkiness and angst, instead of answering with her PDA, he hears the sound of the bed sheets ruffling as she turns her back at him, only her head coming out of the blanket.

"Are you going to give me this silent treatment now?" He folds his arms, a slight hint of disgruntlement in his brows.

She has her communicator at hand, but refuses to use it. Had he known it'd be so tricky to deal with a teenage girl, he'd have read more books about it and less about alchemy. The lenses of his glasses are obstructed by the artificial light, he stands up quietly, leaving the room, saying a last sentence before going away:

"I trust you'll take the medicine. There's no need to refuse that, at least."

She hears the door closing behind her, slowly turning around to look at it, her eyebrows are coiled up. Things haven't turned out in any way she predicted. It's already been three days she's here, but she doesn't feel the will to leave. The thought of going out that door and facing the people whom she lied to just fills her in dread.

Her expression dismantles when she hears the door opening again, startled, she just watches as someone enters the room. It's Asuka. The sight is somewhat comforting, she takes a deep breath in relief.

"I heard from nurse Ayukawa that you woke up. How are you feeling?"

She puts on a bright smile, sitting on the very same chair Daitokuji was not long ago. Rie makes an effort to sit up, but her cheeks are still as flushed from fever as before, the blonde girl notes that, her heart throbbing in concern.

"I'll be better after some more time." Rie's answer is as bland as her eyes.

"I see you got flowers." She chuckles to lift the mood. "Did Ryou come to visit you?"

"Those are from Edo."

Her smile crackles into pieces, her eyes widening at the message. Rie stares at the white bed sheets, lost in thought and a tad of dismay in her face. So Ryou never came here to visit? This only aggravates her worry, what in the world is he doing? Her mental examination is crossed by a question that Rie typed in the meantime:

"Asuka would you be angry at me if I lied to you?"

The pink-haired girl has a rather empty gaze, but she seems very serious about the question. A tense atmosphere manifesting in the room. Could she be worried about something regarding that night with potion? Or is it something else?

"I think people have reasons why they lie at times. I don't think you'd lie about anything bad, Rie. But whether I'd be angry or not, I guess I'd need to hear out what the lie was in the first place."

There's some sort of dissatisfaction on Rie's face as she turns her eyes away, her head lowered again. The mood is becoming a bit suffocating, this makes it all more sad for her and motivates her to try harder.

"Don't worry too much about what happened that night. Just remember to talk to us next time, okay? You can count on us. Or in me, at least if you think the boys don't have much tact for whatever you want to talk about."

With a smile on her face, she bids her goodbyes to a perplexed Rie who's left behind. The flask on the chest of drawers gets her attention for a moment, then she turns around, tucking herself under the bed sheets again.

Inside the school building

The lectures are monotonous, some yawns spread in the air during the alchemy and chemistry classes, and some people chuckle very low while looking at the strange apparatus set up to mix solutions. Ryou's eyes squint, ever since that episode with Daitokuji calling him to the school lab, some tension sparked between them, even more because he started wondering why their professor has been ignoring Rie's problems and saying strange things like him not knowing enough about her.

Was Daitikuji even aware she's been sneaking out of the dorm late at night or does he have any idea of what she was doing? Or was he oblivious to it? No, the way he calmly dealt with the situation at the dorm and his questions were always about what "Rie said" and not about the unspoken reasons she could have. Does he know something else? Or is he just being suspicious because he's not even considering she could have ulterior motives besides helping her friends?

The class goes silent with a startle when Daitokuji's voice reverberates in the room harshly:

"Marufuji-kun, can you answer my questions?" His gentle smile did not hide the demanding undertone to his voice. At least, not for Ryou.

"Yes."

He stands proudly and recites a by-the-book reply, people debated behind his back whether he was a human encyclopedia with how he always had the answer to any question, even the hard ones whenever it was a school subject. He wishes his knowledge would be useful to solve their current predicament too.

"Is it just my impression or professor Daitokuji has been asking him questions more frequently…?"

Rumors start flying, very silently, all over the class, people are confused, it's been like this for the past classes, every day, for a few days already.

"Yeah, almost like he's the only student in the class."

"Did he make the professor angry or something?"

"Did you not hear? The professor's niece got sick after they were doing some experiments in the lab. I heard the Kaiser was there."

"Do you think he's related to her having an accident in the lab?

"Hey, our Kaiser is not a klutz, he wouldn't go breaking things for no purpose."

"Then, do you think he was hitting on the professor's niece?"

"The Kaiser? Nah, I bet he wouldn't make a move, the guy is all about dueling."

Ryou sits down while listening partially to some of those comments, his semblance unfazed. He sighs inwardly, just how much more trouble will that mistake of theirs bring? Accidental or not, he did plenty to summon the fury of his chemistry teacher, but so did the man to him too. The bell rings announcing the end of the period.

He's stopped by some boys at the door and invited to tutor them, but simply denies it. Recently he has been refusing all the requests. His feet take him to the lighthouse. The only place he can find some peace. His mind has been so turbulent he's often drifting off to many memories, it's alarming how his concentration dropped and people would certainly notice if he were to be around them.

He found himself standing in front of the infirmary door and hesitating to reach out to open it as if he'd enter an unknown maze without a map. It all comes down to that night, he can't force himself to go in there, his mind draws a blank.

Since when did he have such volatile emotions? He thought he could control himself better, but it all just imploded inside him and now… Now he doesn't know what to do. This is new to him, he'd always believed to have everything figured out and elaborated many alternate plans, nevertheless, now when it matters the most, his circuits simply bugged out.

He wanted to help Rie, he'd fend off Sakamoto if needed or even contest the claims of the bullies, he'd do anything in his power to help. He wanted to know more about her and talk more, it felt like he was reaching somewhere in her heart and helping her open up to others and he enjoyed this feeling that she could be growing out her shell and smiling more, like him.

Then, he's confronted with the reality that Rie has been hiding things. Still, he was willing to listen to her reasons if she would tell, it's his belief that people should have a chance to explain themselves. Back when she came out of the swimming class, he was sure she'd talk more to them, a genuine conversation, he could see her eyes melting, then it was interrupted by Sakamoto and his stupidity.

It has been so frustrating, to feel like at every step they get close to Rie, she walks two steps away. He'd been a good talker, but also a person who keeps to himself when he thinks it's necessary, only the people close to him would understand and appreciate that, she's aware of that too.

He has been brutally frank to her, maybe coming off as a bit too strict on her perspective, but he expected the same amount of respect and honesty towards him, yet something seemed to be holding her back.

Even so… Even so, he wanted to hear the truth from her of what she's really doing in the academy and why she's been conducting her own agenda. And this again was ruined by whichever damn drug was inside that flask. It's very likely she will just go back to avoiding him at this point and he can't say he doesn't understand why. He just wishes it would be less complicated.

A deep sigh. This uncanny sensation that he's losing this duel before he even had the chance to start it disturbs him. What does he feel about her? Does he like her this much? But he doesn't even know her a lot. What his professor said, despite being rough, is true, he doesn't know even half of it. Who is her and what is she doing here? Why did she befriend them and why did she seem to know more than she was letting on?

The events of that night utterly turned his senses upside down, now he can't even make something out of his emotions if they're his or just instilled by that drug. He's been sure of many things during his life, even as a young kid, but this is the first time he's in this murky water territory, unsure of everything.

His arms are folded in a stern and solemn posture, his gaze is so focused on the ocean ahead he doesn't even notice soft footsteps drawing closer until she speaks to him:

"Ryou."

He glances briefly at her, then goes back to staring into the ocean, even though some days have passed, he's still in the same dim mood as before.

"How is the investigation going for you two?"

"I'm sorry about that… I didn't want to exclude you. Or, I did, but… I thought it'd be good for you to have more time to worry about yourself. I know how much we've been trying to find Fubuki, but I don't want this to be an obsession for you."

"It was never an obsession. Neither for you or me."

His eyes seem saddened by something as he looks down to the waves crashing near his feet, she comes a few steps closer, standing beside him.

"It's been a while we haven't met here, but given everything that happened…"

"Why didn't you just tell me something? I can understand that coming from Edo, and maybe Rie, but… You?"

"I thought if I gave you more free time, you'd be able to cure this constant frown on your brows. I didn't want to burden you with finding Fubuki for the rest of your academy life… You've done a lot and you even got into trouble for that…"

"True I had more free time, but that… Didn't get me far, did it? Besides, it was my choice too to join the investigation, I don't mind the troubles either, they're part of it."

"You also had issues with your mom due to this before."

"That doesn't matter anymore. She's always making issues, that wasn't the first and won't be the last time."

"I'm sorry, I… Won't exclude you again. It was silly of me to try keeping secrets. It feels like we all are getting nowhere with that."

"What were you two even doing?"

"Trying to get into a very iffy laboratory on the island. It's a very odd place."

"Invading sounds like a danger, are you sure you're doing this?"

"Edo said it's possible. Maybe he'd have preferred to have you as a partner, though."

"I'm not sure how much help I can offer."

"What about you? What have you been doing?" She looks at the horizon too. "I visited Rie today and she told me Edo went there, but she never mentioned you. Did you really ignore a girl for three days straight without ever saying anything after she woke up? "

She says in a scolding intonation. There's no answer for a long minute, as if he's measuring his words carefully. She takes his delay as a cue to speak more:

"It's unlike you to do this, Ryou. You confront people head-on if you have anything to say, you wouldn't just avoid them. What happened between you and Rie that night for you to be acting like this?"

"Do you really want to know?"

His eyes sharpen, he doesn't look at her. She gapes at his reply, her eyes wavering in awe. She didn't expect this. So something did happen and she's afraid to ask more with how he's being reticent about it.

"I don't know what happened, but you shouldn't avoid her. She seemed really gloomy, I'm sure if you paid a visit it would lift her mood or at least, clear any misunderstandings between you two."

"I just… Don't know what to do." He says in a deadpan manner.

She's shocked again. That Kaiser Ryou saying he doesn't know what to do? This is unheard of. Despite not being talkative most of the time, when a matter was serious, he'd have an essay ready in his mind and follow through it during a conversation or have ten different ways of solving a problem.

"I thought I knew everything I wanted to do with my life up until now, and that I was fine in just concentrating on my dueling and dedicating all my time to that, and I kept my relationships at a bare minimum but… I'm not so sure anymore how I feel about many things, Rie included. No matter how hard I think, I can't come to a conclusion."

"Y-You're not sure…?"

She stutters, gulping and blushing slightly. He can't mean…? His aloof gaze lands on her, she can feel his expectancy, as if awaiting for her to say something. Her eyes widen more. Of course, she's a girl too, she should know one or two pieces of advice regarding those matters, shouldn't she?

The pressure gets her thinking about it for a long moment, she was never much into romance like her brother and all the little experience she has is from hearing Junko and Momoe talking about it and they also have never been in any romantic relationship besides their platonic adoration for idols. Breathing inspiration, her dense posture lessens, a smile playing on her lips:

"Well, if you aren't sure about anything, why not try out to get closer and see how it goes?" She says with confidence, looking ahead.

"Try it out?" The idea is simple, but he's intrigued and perplexed at the thought.

"Yes. You don't need to rush on deciding things, if you're unsure about what you want or how you feel, can't you just go slowly and try things out? Even if nothing happens or your mind changes, at least you'll know how you feel about the matter and this would make it better for you both."

She smiles wryly, she's not an expert and she certainly could use more of her own advice too, Edo's face coming to her mind, a red flush on her cheeks. Couldn't she be this cool and dependable in front of him too for a change?

"At least, Fubuki always said to try things out if you don't know whether they could work… In duels." She adds the last part worriedly.

"Did he?" A tiny smile blooms on his lips, as if a weight has been lifted from his chest. "I'll remember that for when he comes back too."

She can't contain her own smile, at last they solved the tension between them after he found out she's been investigating without him.

"By the way, why do you want to invade the lab so much? Is there anything outstanding about it?"

"We're sure they're doing shady things there and the other day we…" She dazes off, to the time when the student was dragged by the guard of the place. "I think we saw a student being locked in there." His arms unfold, astounded. "I should have mentioned it before… But you seemed to be absorbed into your own problems too, I thought it wasn't the time." Her confession comes with regret imbued in it.

"Right… I didn't ask for any explanation before either." He puts a hand to his forehead. "So you're telling me it's possible the missing students are there?"

"We think so, but we have to get in there to confirm."

"This is big…"

"I know… Fubuki could…"

"I'm surprised that Edo of all people would agree to this."

"He has more of an adventurous spirit than you'd think." Her eyes roll up to the sky, reminiscing how he was behaving like an action movie actor.

"I suppose three people going would be too much."

"Yeah, I don't think it's a good idea for you to go. Especially without a clear mind, maybe you can help from outside somehow. We could ask Edo, he's the brain in charge of the plans."

"Would he even accept not being the one in charge?"

"You know him well." She snickers. "Why didn't we talk like this before?"

"I don't know. But I'm glad it's over now. It's unhealthy to keep all the secrets."

"You're very right. I'll text you later, Ryou, I need to discuss the final details about the plan myself."

"Sure. Thank you for the advice."

"I'll see you around."

She beckons before leaving him alone with his thoughts again. Trying out things, huh? He sure couldn't forget all he "tried out" that night, nonetheless, he knows this is not how people should forge bonds. Asuka is right in that he shouldn't avoid Rie either, he spent far too much time accessing facts and trying to come up with a solution without any progress, but he shouldn't just think forever.

The beams of the setting sun bask his figure in light as he walks away from the lighthouse, at the same time, Asuka almost bumps onto someone on her way into the main building, nearby the lighthouse.

"Edo?"

"You finally told him about the lab?"

"Were you listening?"

"And just so you know, I'm the brain in charge of the operation because I have more practical experience, not because I think you're incapable." he admits, crossing his arms glumly

"You heard that too?" A faint, fidgety smile plays on her lips.

"No offense taken. About the invasion, we'll do it in the middle of the night, 4 AM."

"Why so late?"

"From what we've gathered, that's when the guards who had a long night shift switch, they're tired and prone to make mistakes, we'll take advantage of that."

"I hope the students are safe…"

"We'll make sure they get help if they're there." He taps her shoulder in assurance.

Inside the school's building, Ryou stops in front of the infirmary's door again, his heart pounding heavily as he reaches out for the doorknob, despite the stoic semblance.

Rie turns around under the blankets after hearing the click of the door, her brows furrowing annoyed, she's still mad at Daitokuji. Her frown disappears, turning into bewilderment as he walks closer, his face as standoff as usual. After so many days, he came, but…

Her fingers twitch, her blood making her skin red from up to down and not just because of the fever, her eyes flickering wildly. How is she supposed to talk to him now?