Chapter 319 - 319: Cat or Sea Otter?

"I'm so jealous... How do all of you lick your ice cream into such perfect circles...?"

Ellen, dressed in her student uniform, looked a little unhappy as she held an ice cream cone in her hand. Beside her stood Lynn, one of her best friends.

"Hold the cone and turn it as you lick it, just like I showed you."

"I tried, but it didn't work at all... The ice cream almost fell off."

Ellen's innocent complaint left Lynn feeling a little helpless.

"That's because you hesitated for too long, and the ice cream melted."

"Ugh... My hands are so sticky..."

After finishing her ice cream, Ellen looked at the slight residue on her hands before continuing, "While trying to make it perfectly round, I ended up finishing it without even realizing it. Now I'm mentally exhausted, and my stomach feels cold..."

"If Monna finds out, she'll make you take stomach medicine again."

"Uh... Don't tell her."

Ellen looked genuinely reluctant, as though she'd just remembered the bitter taste of the medicine.

"Also, Ellen, if you're really worried about this, you could practice with something else. Like lollipops."

Lynn's casual suggestion made Ellen pause in thought.

"Something else... Hmm? Wise!"

"Eh? Wise? Your boyfriend? You want to practice on him? Well... I guess it's not impossible, but are you really okay with telling me that so casually?"

Lynn's face flushed slightly as an indecent thought crossed her mind.

"Lynn! What are you talking about? I just spotted him!"

Hearing Lynn's words, Ellen immediately realized the misunderstanding and hurriedly corrected her, her face turning bright red.

Or rather, Lynn had deliberately twisted her words.

After clearing her throat a couple of times, Lynn looked in the direction Ellen had pointed.

"Ah, it really is your boyfriend. But why are there two beautiful girls with him? Are they friends... or is it something else?"

As Lynn spoke, she glanced at Ellen beside her. Ellen's expression immediately darkened, looking even more unhappy than before.

"Hmph, never mind him for now. Didn't we make plans with Ruby and the others? We'll be late if we don't hurry."

"Eh... Right. Alright, Ellen, wait for me."

Looking at her best friend's dejected expression, Lynn couldn't help but feel indignant on her behalf.

If she had to say, Ellen was simply too good-tempered.

As for Wise... his methods were truly astonishing.

To make so many beautiful girls willingly accept a situation like this...

Could it be because he was just that capable? Or were his abilities simply that extraordinary?

Of course, Wise also noticed Ellen leaving, but he couldn't greet her at that moment. It looked like he would have to make it up to her later.

Right now, however, the situation in front of him was far more complicated.

"Zhu Yuan, calm down. Just hear me out first."

"I am calm!" Zhu Yuan insisted, though her tone made it obvious she wasn't.

Just then, she noticed Wise standing beside her.

"Wait, Wise! You're finally here. But if Miyabi is here too... did you make plans with both of us at the same time?!"

"No. If I were going to do something like that, I'd definitely tell you beforehand," Wise explained innocently.

Miyabi, who had been quietly listening, nodded in agreement.

"That's right. Wise didn't mention this to me. Running into each other here was purely a coincidence."

Her voice remained as calm as ever.

"So that's how it is. Never mind, then. Anyway, Wise, you came at the perfect time."

After Zhu Yuan finished speaking, Miyabi seemed to think of something, and her expression grew a little more serious.

"Are you asking Wise to judge between us? I don't think he will favor the top students like our instructors did."

As she spoke, Miyabi turned to Wise, her eyes seeming to ask, 'Am I right?'

"Um... could one of you tell me what happened first?"

Wise wasn't about to jump to conclusions. Judging from their expressions, they didn't seem to have argued.

At the very least, they both looked relatively calm. So, whatever had happened, it probably wasn't anything too serious.

"Just now, I ran into Zhu Yuan out on the street..." Miyabi said.

"And then... somehow, we ended up having an intense discussion about Public Security's mascot, Officer Mewmew."

Zhu Yuan spoke with a bewildered expression.

"Why were we even talking about that? I can't remember. It just... came up naturally."

"That's probably because both Miyabi and I are really bad at making small talk."

Zhu Yuan couldn't help but complain, and hearing that, Miyabi nodded in agreement.

"You might be right. I believe Officer Mewmew's design is most likely based on a sea otter."

"Wise... please listen to what she's saying. Officer Mewmew is obviously a cat, right?!"

"What makes you think that?"

"I... No, that's not the point. Why am I the one answering your question? More importantly, how did you conclude that Officer Mewmew is a sea otter?"

Catching herself in time, Zhu Yuan immediately fired back, while Miyabi calmly explained, "The face, the colors, the way it moves. There's no mistaking it. It's a sea otter."

"Sea otters don't have tiny pointed ears, do they? But Officer Mewmew does..." Zhu Yuan said helplessly.

"Those were simply added for practical reasons, so the officer's hat wouldn't fall off."

"...Those are cat ears, Miyabi."

The two continued arguing, each firmly convinced they were right. Seeing no sign of the debate ending, Miyabi turned to Wise once again.

"What do you think, Wise? Is Officer Mewmew a sea otter or a cat?"

As Miyabi asked the question, Zhu Yuan also looked toward Wise. Both pairs of eyes were filled with expectation, clearly hoping he would give the answer they wanted to hear.

Unfortunately for Wise, this was an incredibly difficult question.

Why did he always end up in situations like this?

'...Right. It's because of my own choices. Fine. In that case, I definitely can't side with either of them.'

After thinking for a moment, he finally answered, "I think it's more like a bear."

"Huh?"

"...Hmm."

Wise's answer caught both of them completely off guard, but under the circumstances, it was probably the best possible response.

Miyabi immediately fell into thought, seemingly giving his answer genuine consideration, while Zhu Yuan remained determined to prove her point.

"Wise, are you serious? Officer Mewmew. 'Mew'... like 'meow.' Doesn't that remind you of anything?"

"If 'Mewmew' is a cat, then I'm a star, and you're a bird."

"...Let's just go grab something to drink."

Unable to come up with a rebuttal, Zhu Yuan finally gave up on the topic. Although Miyabi still couldn't understand the other two's reasoning, she firmly believed that New Eridu was a city where different opinions could coexist.

She didn't dislike that at all.

"Let's go to a nearby coffee shop. What would you like to drink?"

"I want honeydew melon juice."

"I'll just have a cup of coffee."

What had originally been a date between Wise and Zhu Yuan unexpectedly turned into an outing for three after they ran into Miyabi.

Fortunately, judging by how things turned out, no one seemed dissatisfied.

Well... unless you counted Ellen.

+- - -+

-[ AD ]-

+- - -+

+- - -+

Zenless Zone Zero: The Almighty Incubus of Sixth Street

+- - -+

✨ 90+ Advance Chapters • Early Access ✨

📚 Read Ahead Here:

[- p - a - t - r - e - o - n . com / DysFiction -]

💖 Enjoying the Story? Support My Work:

[ ko - fi . com / dysfiction ]

+- - -+

📖 Available Novels

🔹 Zenless Zone Zero: The Almighty Incubus of Sixth Street

↳ (Translation)

🔹 Azur Lane: Don't Fight! You're All My Wives!

↳ (Translation)

🔹 Zenless Zone Zero: Death in White

↳ (Original Story — Exclusive Until Chapter 30)

+- - -+