[MF] Ch 15: Miss Aozaki, Marry Me

— — — — — — 

"So that detective snooping around these past two days was your guy, wasn't he? Fine, spit it out. What do you want from me?"

Touko Aozaki eyed Kaito coolly. His good looks didn't so much as ripple her expression—her voice was flat, almost bored—but it carried a sharp edge. The kind that told him if he didn't give her a damn good reason, things weren't going to end peacefully today.

Prickly. Like a hedgehog baring its quills. Nothing like the future Kaito remembered—the confident, unshakable master puppeteer who had already completed her metamorphosis and could take anything in stride.

Clearly, this Touko was still in her low point.

Which made sense. At this stage, she wasn't just at odds with her sister; she was also wanted by the Mage's Association. That lovely little organization that thrived on backstabbing and politics had even tried to slap her with a Sealing Designation.

No wonder she was jumpy. To someone in her situation, being investigated by a stranger meant danger. Normally, if Kaito had shown even a shred of hostility, she would've blasted him on the spot.

So her suspicion now didn't surprise him. In fact, he had made sure she noticed the investigation.

After all, tailing a top-class magus—even one down on her luck—wasn't something an ordinary detective agency could pull off cleanly. Of course she'd sniff it out. That was the point. Kaito wanted her prepared, wanted her to think the ones poking around weren't very competent. As long as she felt she had the situation under control, she wouldn't overreact or bolt.

The truth? He'd already pinpointed Touko's location two days ago, the very night he robbed the yakuza. Finding her himself was easy compared to relying on hired help. The detective commission was just a bit of theater. He'd even handed them a rough location to make sure they'd "find" her on schedule.

Why bother with all the hassle? Partly because startling Touko into disappearing would've been a pain. Mostly, though… it was for the fun of it.

Kaito had discovered Touko could actually drop Fun Points. Not a lot—since she wasn't part of Fate/Zero's main cast, the payout was pitiful. Only 158 points. Far below what a magus of her caliber deserved.

Clearly the system was biased against characters outside the central narrative.

Still, maybe he could squeeze an achievement or two out of her. If not, hey—fun was fun. A proper entertainer never passed up a chance to stir things up.

Kaito straightened his posture, face serious, and launched into his introduction.

"My name is Kaito Kurobane, twenty years old, heir to an ancient mage family. I'm Japanese, but my roots are from America at this moment."

"I don't smoke. I drink only lightly. Every night, I go to bed at eleven and sleep a full eight hours. Before bed, I warm up with twenty minutes of light stretches, followed by a glass of hot milk. That way I sleep soundly through the night, like a baby, and wake up refreshed with no stress carried over. Even my doctor says I'm perfectly healthy."

Touko blinked. Her cool mask slipped for a moment, confusion breaking through as her mind tripped over his bizarre, almost hypnotic introduction.

What the hell is this guy even talking about?

[Fun Points +3 +4 +5 +2]

Pathetic drop rate. Figures.

After a beat, she pulled herself back together, forced her face back into neutrality, and pressed on. "So what's your real purpose here? You claim to be from an ancient mage family, which I admit surprises me, but as far as I know I've had no dealings with America, "your root". Or is it that you're here to cash in on the Association's bounty?"

Kaito shook his head, stepped forward slowly, and stopped right at her desk. Her body tensed, eyes sharpening, but he didn't flinch.

Then, in a voice carrying absolute resolve, like a man bearing the weight of countless untold stories, he declared:

"Miss Aozaki, marry me."

Touko: "...What?"

[Fun Points +5 +5 +5]

That one hit like a bomb.

Touko actually leaned back in her chair in disbelief, her stoic façade completely shattered. Who wouldn't crack, facing a total stranger who opened with a marriage proposal?

Hell, it wasn't just out of nowhere—it felt ahead of its time. Like some ridiculous prank from a future decade. She instinctively took a long drag of her cigarette, exhaled to steady herself, then replied.

"Sorry, I'm not planning to marry anyone. Besides, don't you think proposing the instant we meet is… I don't know, a little much?"

Her eyes narrowed. "And even if I agreed, aren't you worried about the Mage's Association? Or do you not know they're hunting me?"

By the end, her curiosity was genuine. The absurdity had caught her off guard, but now she wanted to see what this handsome, bold young man was really after.

She studied him more carefully, and had to admit—he was damn attractive. If she'd met him back during her Clock Tower days, she probably wouldn't have resisted a pursuit.

She'd always been a sucker for good looks. Still was, honestly, though age and hardship had dulled the effect.

"Ooh!"

Kaito sighed in mock regret at her refusal, then smirked with the kind of pride expected of an heir from an old transcendent family. His tone was laced with scorn.

"I'll protect you. We can leave for a more stable country, somewhere the Mage's Association can't touch us."

Touko paused, considering. And realized… maybe he wasn't bragging. He was just stating the truth, like he could protect her.

Well... of course, the Perfect Acting skill did its job as always.

And for a fleeting moment, the idea tempted her. Marry Kaito, escape from here, start fresh. At worst, she'd just need to give him a child to continue his bloodline. Hardly a dealbreaker. A child wouldn't tie her down, and once things settled, she could always divorce him.

But no. She squashed the thought. Not because of morals, but because there were too many unknowns. Kaito Kurobane? She knew nothing about him. To throw herself into that would mean surrendering control of her own fate.

And that was something a true magus like Touko Aozaki could never accept.

.

.

.