After a pause, she added, "I do have some confidence when it comes to tailing people, don't worry about being spotted."
'So where exactly did you gain this tailing experience?', Taki was ready to retort but held back.
After a brief hesitation, her sour emotions won out, and she lightly nodded.
'I'm just worried about Tomori's safety.'
She silently repeated this sentence in her heart, as if reminding herself of a fact she must not forget.
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Chapter 268: Taki: I Have a Bold Idea!
"Chinstrap penguins, also called Antarctic penguins, belong to the order Sphenisciformes, family Spheniscidae, genus Pygoscelis."
"Their body length usually ranges from about 43 to 55 centimeters. Because there's a black stripe under their neck that looks like a naval officer's hat strap, they are named this way. Their chubby bodies waddle adorably when they walk."
Takamatsu Tomori was indeed a good guide.
This seemingly shy and introverted girl lit up like a shining star when talking about her favorite subject. She shared all kinds of facts fluently, her knowledge abundant, to the point that even the aquarium staff who wanted to come introduce things to them were left feeling ashamed, she could be called a walking penguin encyclopedia.
Unfortunately, neither Mortis nor Mutsumi seemed very interested.
The former was still immersed in endless regret and remorse, the three-person world with her brother had been broken just like that. If time could be turned back, she would absolutely not say a single extra word like an idiot to keep Tomori around.
But obviously there were no regrets pills in the world, so Mortis could only cry without tears and comfort herself in her heart, 'It's okay, life always has its ups and downs.'
Even though her downs might possibly, maybe, kind of be a little bit too frequent, but those details aren't important.
As for Mutsumi life isn't easy, even cucumbers sigh. With such a clumsy teammate who always overplays her hand, she should've gotten used to it by now, right?
On the bright side, although Mortis was a bit too simple-minded, at least she had a character that could be praised for being resilient and never giving up. Don't ask where the "resilient" and "never giving up" parts came from though.
Kaito was the only one seriously listening to Tomori's scientific facts without showing any impatience.
Actually, he didn't have much interest in penguins, but looking at the gray-haired girl in front of him excitedly sharing the things she loved, with those bright eyes shining like crushed diamonds, he felt he shouldn't show a dismissive attitude like a grown-up who ruins the mood.
One person talking happily, one listening earnestly, if one ignored the soul-dead Mortis on the side and the emotionless Mutsumi, this scene was unexpectedly heartwarming, like an introverted younger sister sharing her interests with a close older brother.
However, the warm atmosphere didn't last long.
Takamatsu Tomori's excited voice suddenly paused.
She noticed that, just now, Kaito's eyebrows seemed to furrow slightly?
'Is it because he dislikes my chattering?'
'Or does he actually really hate penguins?'
The girl froze for a moment, her heart feeling like it had been tightly gripped by a giant hand.
Back in kindergarten, Tomori already had a hobby of collecting little things, like pebbles, pill bugs, or petals that fell from cherry blossom trees.
She had once given a pill bug she treasured to a good friend, as a token of their friendship, but it made the friend's parents very unhappy.
That day, her mother kept apologizing, while Tomori shrank in a corner of the office, watching the teacher trying to mediate, the discontent parents, and the strange mix of repulsed and judging gazes from the others. It was the first time she realized that her hobbies weren't liked by most people.
Since then, she had become extremely sensitive in social interactions, always worried that her words might cause a bad impression.
Even though it was just a tiny furrow of the brow, a blink-and-you-miss-it moment, it still brought back those unpleasant memories for Tomori.
She stopped talking and, like a child who had made a mistake, lowered her head and cautiously asked:
"Did I talk a little too much?"
"Hmm?"
Kaito pulled back his gaze that had fallen somewhere else and realized that his small movement might have been misunderstood by Tomori, so he slightly shook his head and showed a faint smile, "No, I just noticed something interesting."
'Something interesting?'
Takamatsu Tomori didn't quite understand. She just looked at him blankly and innocently.
"Why do I feel like we've already been found out?"
At the same time, just a bit outside the penguin exhibit, in a hidden corner.
Shiina Taki couldn't help furrowing her brow. Clearly they were the ones tailing, no, following, wait, no, just coincidentally passing by. So why did it feel like they were the ones being watched instead?
To avoid being noticed, they had deliberately kept a distance. There were at least two hundred meters between them now.
At that distance, a normal person's eyesight could only make out silhouettes, it would be hard to see specific details. Not to mention they were hiding in the shadows, which should have made them even harder to spot.
But recalling that eerie feeling just now, like being stripped bare and stared at from head to toe, Taki couldn't help rubbing her arms, goosebumps popped up all over her.
"You're imagining things."
Yahata Umiri didn't even turn her head, still calm as ever, "A 200-meter gap, plus other tourists for cover, rather than worrying about being spotted, it's better to think about how long we're going to keep following them."
At the mention of this topic, Shiina Taki coughed once, feeling a bit awkward.
No matter how you put it, "tailing" just sounded way too sleazy. It made her feel like one of those creeps used as cautionary tales in legal dramas.
Still, even if the words were unpleasant, it was the truth. So she didn't argue, only pretended not to hear, crossed her arms, and said indifferently, "If you're bored, it's fine if you leave now."
It wasn't just an excuse, that was her genuine thought.
Taki already regretted her earlier decision. She'd acted rashly in the heat of the moment, and only now, after cooling down, realized how stupid her behavior had been.
If they weren't discovered, fine. But if they were, her image in Tomori's eyes would probably shatter completely, right?
From a reliable and cool big-sister figure straight down to a creepy and shady stalker just thinking about that possibility gave her chills.
Thinking about it carefully, Tomori was a young lady now. It was natural for her to have a boy she liked. Sooner or later, she would fall in love and get married. Taki couldn't protect her forever.
'Wait a second maybe there is a way?'
The thought of a certain possibility made the girl's fair face slowly turn pink, even the tear mole at the corner of her eye seemed more vivid. She quickly patted her cheeks to calm herself.
'If we just marry the same man, then I can naturally protect Tomori for a lifetime?'
'No no no no no no matter how you look at it, this idea is way too ridiculous! There's no way my parents would accept it, and Hikari-nee definitely wouldn't agree either.'
Even though things like this weren't uncommon in today's society and the law didn't forbid it, Taki was the traditional type. In her eyes, love was sacred, something that mustn't be tainted by others.
Facing the person she liked, even if it was Tomori, she couldn't bring herself to generously share
'Right?'
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Chapter 269: Yahata Umiri is Very Curious
Actually, Kaito had already noticed Shiina Taki's presence quite a while ago.
At first, he didn't think much of it. After all, it was the weekend, and aquariums were indeed popular attractions among young girls. Running into someone by chance was completely normal.
There was also a woman he didn't recognize beside her, black hair, green eyes, wearing a punk-style leather jacket. Judging by her appearance, she was a beauty above average level, though her expression was indifferent, giving off a very cold vibe.
'Probably just friends hanging out?'
With that thought in mind, he merely gave them a glance before withdrawing his gaze, not intending to greet them.
After all, not everyone liked to be interrupted while out having fun. And strictly speaking, he and Shiina Taki weren't that close, only met a few times. Even calling her a "friend" was pushing it. There was really no need to butt in and risk an awkward situation.
But the other party didn't seem to think the same way.
He entered the aquarium, and Taki followed into the aquarium.
He came to the penguin section to see penguins, and the girl still trailed after him, keeping about one or two meters behind. Not too far, not too close.
Even if all this was just coincidence, hiding deliberately in a low-key corner and staring this way without blinking since earlier. This kind of totally unhidden reconnaissance behavior surely couldn't just be coincidence, right?
'Hmm maybe this situation should be called "tailing" instead?'
Kaito wasn't sure what Taki was thinking, but before he could consider whether or not to expose her presence, Takamatsu Tomori had already followed his gaze and looked over.
"Is that Taki?", The gray-haired girl tried hard to make out the figure in the distance before finally recognizing it and tilted her little head slightly.
Would staying here be boring?
"Of course not."
In response to her friend's question, Yahata Umiri shook her head decisively. Her normally solemnly beautiful face even showed a hint of amusement, "In fact, I actually find it quite interesting. It's a kind of curious experience."
Shiina Taki: "..."
Some things are like this, when your emotions run hot, you don't consider the consequences. Only when you've cooled down do you realize how inappropriate your behavior was.
At first, due to being overwhelmed by emotion, she didn't even notice there was another familiar figure present. Her focus was entirely on Tomori and that guy, thinking they were dating behind her back and came to the aquarium for a date.
But after following for so long, especially after realizing the presence of Mutsumi, Shiina Taki knew she had misunderstood.
The reason was simple.
What kind of couple goes on a date and brings a third wheel?
Let alone two.
Not only do they get in the way, but they ruin the atmosphere.
Unless they had some sort of special fetish, like feeling excited in front of outsiders or something.
But based on what Taki knew about Tomori, that possibility was basically zero.
The more likely situation was, she'd misunderstood everything from the beginning.
Since it was all just a false alarm, there was no need to keep tailing them.
If Tomori and that guy did notice them, being socially dead would be the least of her concerns.
If she got labeled a "stalker p*rvert," her life as a functioning human would basically be over, right?
Thinking about that gloomy future, the drumline member nearly blacked out and urgently wanted to flee.
That test from earlier was supposed to be an escape route. As long as Umiri agreed, she'd use that as a cue to suggest they leave together and end this farcical pursuit.
Unfortunately, her plan fell apart.
Seeing her friend's face full of frustration and unable to argue back, Yahata Umiri's lips curled slightly.
Taki was a very stubborn girl, with a strong-willed attitude, and it was precisely that kind of personality that made people want to tease her more.
Of course, that was only part of it.
The more important reason was, Umiri was genuinely curious.
She wasn't unfamiliar with "romance."
Although she had no experience herself, she worked as a support musician for thirty bands, had witnessed all kinds of emotional entanglements, and even if she didn't actively want to learn about them, she passively absorbed a ton of related knowledge.
From that angle, maybe she could barely count as a theoretical master in the field of romance?
In Yahata Umiri's eyes, the word "love" was most often associated with "strange" and "troublesome."
She had seen plenty of teammates who were normally sharp and capable, turn into completely different people once they fell in love. Suddenly giggling to themselves, hugging their phones all day texting, and surrounded by an aura of pink bubbles.
Like a strawberry cake with way too much cream. Let alone eating it, even looking at it made her feel sick.
Usually, when dealing with temporary teammates she didn't know well, she could still maintain the stance of a respectful bystander who just watched the drama and minded her own business.
But now watching even her best friend get infected by this virus called "love" Umiri really couldn't imagine what kind of guy it would take to make the extremely straight Shiina Taki, whose level of straightness could rival titanium alloy, turn into this mess of doubt and anxiety, acting completely unlike herself.
'Love really is scary. It can turn a person's entire world upside down, this is already hypnosis no, brainwashing-level transformation, isn't it?'
With that thought, the cold-beauty-type girl subconsciously looked again toward the distant penguin exhibit.
She was genuinely curious, what kind of guy could Shiina Taki like?
Unfortunately, separated by almost two hundred meters, visibility was limited, and she couldn't even make out his facial features.
They could try getting closer, but that would increase the chance of being discovered.
Looks like they were going to miss the opportunity this time.
Yahata Umiri was a bit disappointed, but quickly composed herself.
Her gaze once again fell upon the girl in front of her, and seeing Taki's face becoming more and more flushed and warm, in order to prevent both herself and the other from exploding, Sister Umiri decided to stop while she was ahead.
"I suddenly remembered there's a live show later, if..."
"Mm?", Shiina Taki looked somewhat confused at her close-at-hand friend, not understanding why she suddenly choked up, and the expression on her face was also a bit strange.
