About two hours later, Ryougi Shiki officially appeared in Shinji's office as an intern assistant.
"I'm here to officially report for duty, Shinji!"
With a smile on her face, Ryougi Shiki greeted Shinji.
But Shinji didn't seem to hear her, as he kept massaging his side just below his ribs.
"Shinji?"
Seeing Shinji ignoring her, Ryougi Shiki tilted her head.
"Ouch… that woman really didn't hold back."
Still lost in his own world, Shinji didn't notice Shiki until she clapped her hands loudly right next to his ear.
Shinji snapped to attention, his eyes wide, sitting up straight as he asked, "What? What happened? Did Arturia have a diabetic episode?"
"Shinji! Geez, I've been calling you and you didn't even respond," Ryougi Shiki pouted, pretending to be annoyed.
"Sorry, I was thinking about something. Ryougi-san, please have a seat."
Shinji gave an awkward smile and gestured for her to take her seat.
Throughout the entire exchange, Shinji continued to slowly massage his side.
It was no joke dealing with someone as skilled in martial arts as Cloris—she didn't go for his face or throat but landed a precise blow to his liver.
Anyone with a bit of combat training knows the liver is a vulnerable spot; a direct hit to it can leave someone incapacitated. Worse still, the pain of such a blow leaves you fully conscious, fully aware of the pain and helplessness.
Cloris hadn't intended to paralyze him, though; she had gauged her strength carefully. The hit wouldn't truly harm him, but it certainly left him feeling the pain.
'Well, I guess that's Cloris for you... Guess the saying's true: 'a harem is a battlefield.' But it wasn't a total loss.'
Having already vented her frustrations, Shinji could now sit back and watch the girls fight amongst themselves.
'Maybe they'll start competing to spoil me, huh? I wonder what goodies Cloris might offer up…'
Shinji shook his head to clear his mind, pushing aside those rosy thoughts.
Then he turned to Ryougi Shiki and said, "Ryougi-san—"
"We're in private now. You can just call me 'Shiki-nee,' Shinji!"
The woman in the kimono waved her hand at Shinji from her seat. "Shinji, I'll be counting on you in the days ahead."
"Alright… Shiki-nee," Shinji replied, glancing at the door to make sure no one else was around before using her nickname.
"Shiki-nee, you've come here as an intern—what exactly are you hoping to learn? Or rather, what's your purpose for coming here?"
Shinji clasped his hands under his chin, striking a pose reminiscent of Commander Ikari.
"Well… it was my father's idea. He said if I came here for the internship, he wouldn't set up any more matchmaking for me!" Shiki answered, beaming.
Avoiding matchmaking by working? What kind of odd reason was that?
Shinji's mouth twitched slightly.
But he could understand her thinking. In his previous life, he'd been endlessly annoyed by the matchmaking his family arranged, which had led to several arguments.
In this life, he'd made it clear to his grandfather, Zouken, from the start that he'd take charge of his own marriage and wouldn't participate in any matchmaking.
The Ryougi family, being as prestigious as it was, probably had an even more formal, complicated matchmaking process. It made sense Shiki would want to avoid it.
Still…
'An internship with me to dodge matchmaking? Mr. Ryougi certainly doesn't beat around the bush; it's almost like he's directly suggesting a match with me.'
Shinji sighed internally. The Ryougi family's intentions were a bit too obvious, which made things complicated.
"Well, I wanted to come here too."
Ryougi Shiki added sweetly, "Actually, I also wanted to come."
"Huh? Shiki-nee, why did you want to come over?"
"Because I want to learn how to be a star!"
"Huh?"
Shinji nearly choked at her blunt reply.
"I've always thought it would be amazing to be an actor, to portray all kinds of stories on the big screen. Unfortunately, my family never allowed it," Shiki explained.
Through her explanation, Shinji learned that this lady from the esteemed Ryougi family had always dreamed of becoming an actress. But it was no surprise the Ryougi family would never permit their daughter to dive into the entertainment industry.
It was only after Shinji, a prodigy in magecraft, entered the entertainment world that Shiki saw a glimmer of hope.
Essentially, Shiki used her father's eagerness to "sell her off" as an excuse to join Shinji's side. She hoped to gain his attention and work her way toward becoming an actress. If she trained under any other director, her father would likely put his foot down, but if it was Matou Shinji, he might grudgingly allow it.
So, with ulterior motives, father and daughter struck a deal, using Matou Zouken's connections to place Shiki as an intern assistant with Shinji.
'Something doesn't seem quite right…' Shinji thought as he looked at Shiki, who was graceful and utterly unselfconscious. But he couldn't pinpoint exactly what felt off.
"Alright, Shiki-nee, for now, let's have you assist me as an intern," Shinji decided after a moment's thought. "Next year, the company will hold an acting workshop, and if you're serious about acting, you can join that."
The workshop was an acting crash course Shinji had set up to help train newly summoned Heroic Spirits, and Shiki was welcome to join if she wanted.
"Thank you so much, Shinji," Shiki responded with a big, happy smile, clearly pleased with the arrangement.
"We were supposed to throw a welcome party for you tonight, but we have the HF viewing event…"
"The third episode releasing at midnight, right?" Shiki's eyes sparkled. "Can I join?"
"Of course," Shinji nodded. "The viewing party can double as your welcome event."
After all, few things bring people together faster than watching a movie and riffing on it—assuming everyone enjoys it, that is.
HF was a TV miniseries, but playing it in the company lounge offered a relaxed, casual vibe with snacks and drinks, perfect for welcoming new faces.
"Alright, it's settled. Shiki-nee, do you have any food preferences?"
"Anything's fine; I'm not picky. Ah, right," Shiki clapped her hands, as if recalling something. "I'll bring some treats I made myself as a little introduction gift."
"Really? I'm looking forward to it."
<+>
Later that night, at midnight, Tokyo, in the Magus Club.
"Ahhh, it's so nice to speak freely—what a wonderful privilege!" Aoko chewed on a mouthful of popcorn as she lounged on the sofa, complaining loudly with zero regard for decorum.
To hell with lady-like manners and the dignity of a high-born lady; she was going to talk her heart out tonight!
"Being aware, desperately wanting to comment, and yet unable to utter a word is pure torture!"
"Freedom of speech is nonsense, but having the right to speak is a biological necessity…"
"Aoko," Alice chimed in with a quiet reminder, "If you keep yapping like this, I'm going to tape your mouth shut again."
With a disdainful wave, she gestured to Shibamatsu.
"No, no, no!" Aoko jumped back, putting distance between herself and Shibamatsu.
"I don't want to go through a whole night of silence again; that's why I didn't join Grandpa for the third episode this time."
"Really?" Alice's eyes held a clear note of suspicion.
Given Aoko's impatience, Alice doubted she could actually resist watching a new release.
"It's true! Look, I even brought the unopened DVD as proof," Aoko said, trying to appease her. "That way, we don't have to queue up outside in the cold all night!"
"If it were your grandfather, getting two DVDs wouldn't be a problem, would it?"
Alice gave her a skeptical glance before picking up the DVD.
"Look who's talking! You're so stuck-up you refuse to play it until midnight," Aoko griped, stuffing more popcorn in her mouth.
Alice scoffed, "It's about fairness. If it's officially released at midnight, then we wait until midnight. A few hours won't hurt."
"Is that Saber Alter on the cover?" Alice observed, studying the DVD's packaging. "Sir Matou's been hyping her up. I wonder how strong she'll be."
She glanced at Aoko pointedly.
"Oh, I know about this!" Aoko answered without thinking. "This dark Saber is seriously strong, and her fight with Berserker was epic—uh-oh!"
Seeing everyone's eyes on her, Aoko realized she'd spilled a spoiler and clapped her hand over her mouth.
"Ha, Aoko, so you've already watched it!" Alice smirked, lifting her right hand.
"Wait, Alice! I only said that because I don't want a gag order—"
"Too late. Suffer the consequences!"
"Gugh—" Aoko let out a frog-like croak as she endured Alice's "electric punishment," twitching as she collapsed on the sofa, her popcorn scattering everywhere.
"Alice… you set me up…"
With her last ounce of energy, Aoko pointed at Alice in a dying gasp.
"Serves you right," Alice replied coldly, with a smirk.
<+>
If you want to see more chapter of this story and don't mind paying $5 each month to read till the latest posted chapter, please go to my Patreon[1]
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