"Ohh, so it's Uchiha..."
Uruka Minami was just about to politely reply with a "Nice to meet you too."
But then; suddenly- she realized that something about the name seemed off.
"Eh?!"
Minami's expression stiffened as she processed it; This girl had the same last name as Uchiha-kun.
Which meant they were family.
But.. they didn't look like siblings.
Sure, both Uchiha Byakuya and Uchiha Eto were very attractive but there was absolutely no resemblance between the two of them.
Normally even among siblings there would be at least a little similarity.
So, could they be married?!
That's probably not the case... right?
Minami's mind raced, she was both surprised and curious.
And before she could stop herself; she subconsciously blurted out her thoughts.
"Eto-san, you two wouldn't happen to be... husband and wife, would you?"
Eto tilted her head slightly.
Her lips curled up playfully as she looked at Minami.
"What if I said yes?"
She answered, deliberately playing along.
Minami's eyes widened once again.
Wait- seriously?!
Could it be that Eto-san only looked younger than she actually was?
Maybe she was already over eighteen; that would explain it.
After all, even Kishou-kun was only eighteen himself.
The age gap wouldn't be weird at all.
And appearance-wise; they could definitely all still pass as high schoolers.
"Well then...congratulations to both of you."
Minami awkwardly smiled.
She was a little embarrassed, after all; her first assumption had been completely wrong.
She had initially thought they were siblings but in the end the two turned out to be married.
However in Eto's eyes this awkwardness felt different.
It carried another, completely different meaning.
"Hmm~..."
Eto rested her delicate chin onto her hand, eyes gleaming with amusement.
This girl- was definitely cute but she wasn't really a "loli."
Eto, who constantly teased Byakuya for being a "lolicon" suddenly found herself reevaluating.
After all, this guy kept on denying it.
Maybe... he really wasn't a lolicon after all.
That thought- for some reason made Eto uncomfortable.
Because Uruka Minami wasn't a loli.
"..."
Byakuya himself fell silent.
Eto was making things more complicated.
For a brief moment he had no idea what her was supposed to say.
The best move for now was to make sure Uruka Minami never learned Eto's real name.
As for the "marriage" misunderstanding- Byakuya honestly didn't care.
It wasn't a big deal.
"Alright, alright~, joking aside."
Finally, Eto revealed the truth.
"Byakuya and I are just doing a rather... special kind of roleplay. We're neither siblings nor a married couple."
The misunderstanding was cleared up.
But it immediately created an even bigger one and it was obvious Eto did it on purpose.
"Special... roleplay?"
Minami blinked, her expression now completely blank.
Despite her ruthlessness when hunting humans- Uruka Minami was actually innocent about... certain things.
It took her a moment- but she finally realized what Eto's words might imply.
A special... kink?!
Her face instantly turned red.
"A-ah... I-I don't really understand these things- but... I never expected Uchiha-kun to have such... unique interests..."
Minami blushed deeply and quickly looked away, obviously trying not to think too much.
Meanwhile Byakuya was completely speechless.
Minami had always believed that Uchiha-kun and Arima-kun were both honest and upright individuals.
Yet now through Eto-san, she had discovered a completely unknown side of Uchiha-kun.
"No, No; don't listen to her nonsense!"
Finally, Byakuya couldn't take it anymore and swiftly corrected her, "I don't have any weird fetishes!"
"Ah! Sorry, sorry, I misunderstood!"
Minami hurriedly apologized.
Meanwhile Eto was internally laughing to herself.
This was exactly what she wanted to see; Byakuya suffering.
Off to the side; Arima Kishou who already knew everything, remained completely silent.
His expression was utterly unreadable.
Minami, now thoroughly confused by both Byakuya and Eto, ended up accepting the name "Uchiha Eto" without any further questioning.
She was worried that if she asked about it, she might say something wrong.
So she simply chose not to ask.
"Why don't you two come inside and sit?"
Minami changed the subject and went off to prepare some tea for her guests.
"Alright, we'll be in your care, Minami-chan~"
Eto replied politely.
"It's nothing, really."
Minami still felt like Eto-san was someone she couldn't quite figure out.
They had just met yet the girl spoke to her so casually, as if they were long-time friends.
And it seemed like she was very familiar with Arima-kun and Uchiha-kun.
But both Arima-kun and Uchiha-kun were CCG Investigators.
So, could it be that Eto-san was actually also a Ghoul Investigator?
If that was the case; should she try to hide her identity as a ghoul?
Feeling uneasy, Minami waited for a moment then secretly gestured for Arima quietly to come over.
"Arima-kun, Eto-san... is she also a CCG Investigator?"
"Should I try my best to act like a normal human?"
Uruka Minami asked in a very soft voice.
"No need. She's not an investigator and she already knows you're a Ghoul so there's no need to hide it."
Arima's tone was calm and indifferent.
Of course, he had no intention of revealing Eto's true identity as a ghoul.
"Ohh, that's a relief."
Minami felt a bit more at ease.
After all, pretending to eat regular food in front of her human friends was a real struggle.
She always had to vomit it back up later.
"By the way, Arima-kun, when did you first meet Eto-san?"
Minami suddenly felt a little concerned.
Eto was cute and smart, and that made her dangerous.
Uruka Minami couldn't help but feel a little uneasy.
Especially because Arima-kun seemed to have a good relationship with Eto.
After all not only had he brought her here, but he had also trusted her enough to let her know about Uruka Minami's true identity.
"Not too long ago."
Arima answered flatly.
"Oh..."
Minami's mood suddenly sank slightly.
They just met recently but they were already so close.
Arima noticed the small shift in her expression but he had no idea what she was thinking.
Because Minami assumed from the start that Eto was human; she naturally poured a cup of tea for her as well.
Of course tea was one of the things ghouls couldn't consume.
But coffee was an exception.
So Minami made herself coffee instead and she added the concentrated nutrient capsules given to her by Yoshimura-san.
For ghouls, not only did it help with hunger, but it also made the coffee taste even better.
At that moment Minami couldn't hold back her curiosity any longer.
She wanted to ask Eto something.
"Et-"
But before she could finish- Eto had already spoken first.
"Minami-chan, you must have someone you like at school, right?"