Chapter 154: Placeholder - .
Sam barely made it in time for lunch. The moment he met with Shizuru and basked in the radiance of her smile he felt his soul burn like an evil spirit getting exorcised.
The gilt of his betrayal coiled around his heart like chains even with his attempts to look at it in a positive light. The pain meant that he cared about the Asian girl, otherwise, his entanglement with Alice would have been enough to erase all feelings for her.
How devastating would it be when the time finally comes for them to part ways? Just thinking about it added to the pain tormenting Sam.
"You don’t look any better," Shizuru fixed him with a scrutinizing look. "Don’t tell me you didn’t get any rest..."
His exhaustion was difficult to hide so Sam had prepared an excuse beforehand. The truth about his betrayal would have to wait for some time.
"I recalled something concerning my research," He said. "By the time I knew it was already morning."
"Your research, huh..." Shizuru narrowed her eyes. "You and those nanomachines of yours."
The lie was easy to accept seeing that this wasn’t his first time losing track of the real world while absorbed in his research. A lie was still a lie, however, and his girlfriend believing it only worsened the guilt.
The lunch date passed without a problem, or so Sam hoped. Though there was no proof he had an inkling that Shizuru did notice something off about him but chose to not mention it. Being paranoid didn’t do him any good so he threw it to the back of his mind and headed for his lab.
More time passed and the stress returned, but for a different reason. The Valkyries hadn’t returned by the usual time which could only mean some unforeseen events took place. It wasn’t until 17:00 that the three weapons returned.
D-class Calamities had appeared in their way, and while not too powerful, they proved to be a little difficult to deal with. In the end, they managed to finish them off and returned after making sure no more Calamities were in the vicinity.