Conquering Villains and Capturing Targets Is Harder in Real Life than in Games

47: What kind of psychopath exacts his revenge like this?!

Faithful to his words, even after he had changed back into his regular clothes and neatly spread out the assortment of food he had procured on top of the desks that they had been pushed together, Madoka refused to share his food with Shizuka.

Instead, he made a show of taking a bite out of every item and describing the cooking process of each one like a professional food critic just to spite her.

"The taiyaki wasn't cooked as long as it should have been," noted Madoka as he examined the fish shaped waffle in his hands that was missing a single bite. "The batter was likely removed from the pan a minute early resulting in an overly soft waffle. The custard to waffle ratio isn't balanced, reflecting not only unskilled custard piping but a limited budget as well. Furthermore, the taste of the custard itself, where it is present, is bland. Overall, a barely passable snack for those with cheap tastes."

"Since it's barely passable why don't you give it to me?!" wailed Shizuka. "I have cheap tastes!"

Madoka glanced at her indifferently. "Unlike you, I don't go back on what I've declared, so no."

After saying this he gracefully finished off the remainder of the taiyaki he deemed subpar.

Tears almost welled up in Shizuka's eyes. How is he even unrivaled in being petty? What kind of psychopath exacts his revenge like this?!

Araki nudged Fuyuki with a quizzical look. "What's up with them, Fuyuyu?

"Just ignore them," Fuyuki advised as she waved a hand dismissively. "It's probably just a lovers' spat. It'll make them closer in the long run. The way that smart kids flirt is something us normal people won't be able to follow."

Araki contemplated this for a moment before the corners of his lips curved up into a slyly. Then he held up a plastic wrapped turtle-shaped bread in Shizuka's direction. "Shizu-rin, if you're hungry why don't you have this? It's filled with chocolate. You like chocolate, right?"

Shizuka promptly flipped her head towards Araki's outstretched hand. "Yes! I love chocolate! Senpai~~~ Did I ever tell you how much I appreciate having your presence in my life?!"

Araki's smile grew as he waved the packaged bread just out of Shizuka's reach. "No, actually, you haven't. Why don't you tell me exactly how much you appreciate me?"

Shizuka leaned forward as she eagerly swiped at the bread. "Immensely! I appreciate you immensely!"

"Hm, just that much?" Araki stretched his arm out to the fullest and raised it above his head as if to retaliate against her unsatisfactory response.

"No!" Shizuka bolted up and tried to reach the bread that was in his hand by jumping forwards. "I appreciate you more than high speed internet and online games!"

Araki cocked an eyebrow as he took a step backwards. "And?"

"And uh...I appreciate you more than fresh air and clean water!" exclaimed Shizuka as she leapt towards him.

Araki slid to his right. "And?"

Shizuka frowned as she copied his movements. "And? I appreciate you more than uh somewhat polluted but still breathable and drinkable air and water?"

Fuyuki and Yoru snorted at her ridiculous response.

Mika stopped sipping on her carton of chocolate milk to smile.

Araki gave Shizuka a look that seemed to ask, "Are you kidding me right now?" as he leapt back diagonally.

Shizuka flailed her arms as she tried to think of ways she could amend her previous statement and flatter Araki. "It's not as bad as it sounds, senpai! It's actually extremely high praise that I'm giving you here! When I said I appreciate you more than somewhat polluted air and water, I'm talking about air that's like at least ten kilometers away from a factory district and uh groundwater that doesn't have a ton of microorganisms in it! Which really aren't even that bad for you, if you really think about it! In fact, I'd even argue that in this day and age, with the ever growing levels of pollution, that sort of air and water quality can be considered a rare luxury for many!"