Shiro-san’s intervention had provided Cento-san and Sien-san with items that bypassed Tre-san’s interference, allowing them to track her at will. Theoretically, this meant Tre-san would never be able to slip away from her sisters again.
Under normal circumstances, Cento and Sien’s own tracking abilities were overwhelming. There shouldn’t have been any issue to begin with, provided the Authority Class power Shiro-san bestowed wasn't active... but there was no way to be certain without a field test.
"This means that even if Tre-san wanders off, you two can track her down immediately, right?" I asked.
"Yes. Since they were a gift from Shallow Vernal-sama, I’m sure they’ll function perfectly, though there are things we won't understand until we actually put them to the test," Cento-san replied.
"Just as Cento says, I’d like to try them once... Tre-neesama, would you mind going and getting lost for a bit?" Sien-san added.
"My little sisters certainly have a way of demanding the impossible with such straight faces," Tre-san teased.
Since Shiro-san was the creator, I didn't doubt the items would work, but it was only natural that they’d want to confirm it for themselves.
Sien-san had asked her to get lost in a tone that was clearly a joke, and Tre-san laughed along playfully. After a moment of thought, however, she made a suggestion.
"...Hmm. In the end, it doesn't really matter if I'm 'lost' as long as Cento and Sien can successfully lock onto me with detection magic, right? How about this: I’ll head into the city with Kaito, and you two wait about fifteen minutes before trying to hunt us down."
"I see. That would definitely serve as an experiment to see if you can be found via magic," I agreed.
Cento and Sien, however, shared a look of indescribable complexity. I wondered what was wrong. They didn't just seem hesitant; they looked genuinely uncomfortable.
"Oh, don't worry. Since I have advance notice this time, I won't interfere," Alice said, manifesting out of thin air to address the twins before vanishing just as quickly.
Seeing the pair visibly relax at those words, the pieces finally clicked into place.
I remembered a message Alice had delivered when I first met the two of them in the Demon Realm. She had mentioned that Cento and Sien wanted to offer their proper greetings later. At the time, they must have tried to locate me using detection magic, and Alice had intercepted it.
There didn't seem to be any lingering animosity, but the twins clearly still held a lingering fear of Alice. Based on what she just said, it seemed she had simply reacted on instinct back then. She had popped in just now to reassure them that since she knew they were testing their magic, she wouldn't shut them down.
"Did something happen with Shaltier-sama before?" I asked.
"Ah, well... when we were trying to find you and Sieglinde-san in the past, we activated our detection magic," Cento-san explained with a wry smile. "But the Phantasm King-sama, who was guarding you at the time, performed a Forced Cancellation on us."
"She didn't scold us or anything. She said she simply dealt with it reflexively... but feeling that staggering gap in power firsthand was... well, my body still tenses up a bit just remembering it," Sien-san added.
Tre-san and I both nodded, finally understanding their reluctance. Since the path was clear this time, I decided to accompany Tre-san into the city.
"Alright! Kaito, it’s a date! Let's go have ourselves a fifteen-minute hot aventure!"
"We're doing no such thing. Besides, fifteen minutes is way too short for that..."
"...That’s strange. I thought your affection level would have reached the 'easy' threshold by now."
"Maybe if you stopped acting in a way where I can't tell if you're joking or serious, things would be different."
"Oh, how cruel! Are you saying my love isn't reaching you? Truly, matters of the heart are difficult," she lamented, though she was grinning the whole time.
"You can't expect me to take you seriously when you're laughing like that..."
Despite her constant teasing and the uncertainty of her true feelings, I genuinely enjoyed talking with Tre-san. As we set off for our experiment, I found myself looking forward to spending time with her and the others in the city.
Serious-senpai: "For now, the fact that Tre doesn't seem likely to get all 'sweet' is a real relief."
???: "I don't know. Isn't it usually this type that becomes the most cloyingly sweet once they finally fall for someone?"
Serious-senpai: "Stop saying such ominous things!"