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Suzume was so bored with her temporary life in Steam Bison and still hadn't found the answers to her missing father's whereabouts in the city. A gut feeling kept telling her that he was somewhere here, so she hadn't given up on the search. Her visa was supposed to last until the end of her summer vacation anyway, so she still has time.
Suzume decided to take a break and focus on something else. Her father would want her to rest and not focus on him one day. Her robots, Carolina, Albert, and Cecile, jumped off to somewhere with Coindar, Lincoln, and Chloe.
As for Luke and Layton...They're here at his family's house for once.
Flora, Crow, Tweeds, and Marliyn were out, doing business in the Steam Bison's Black Market as usual.
Suzume was in the library. That cute steam-powered robot brought her tea and sweets. Geez, were the Americans in Steam Bison that lazy? Suzume wasn't used to American society and its ways. The Japanese did everything themselves.
Suzume's maternal grandparents instilled responsibility and discipline in her from a young age, as they thought her parents were spoiling and adoring her too much. Now, Suzume was older, and she understood why her parents spoiled her.
To compensate for their absences due to their hardworking jobs.
When Suzume entered middle school, she began to reject her parents' adoration towards her, preferring them to save up their money in case they needed it for emergencies.
And that's what her parents did; they saved up money for Suzume's education and gave her a weekly allowance of 7,086 yen. That was $48 in US currency.
When Suzume turned sixteen, she sought a part-time job. After receiving permission from her high school and parents, she worked for her own income. The only condition was to focus on her studies first, of course.
'Yet, I was still receiving allowance from my parents...' Suzume thought, chuckling as she was reading a book and her chin resting on her hand.
"What are you reading?" Luke asked.
Damn. Suzume has forgotten Luke was also in the library. She looked around, and Layton wasn't seen in the library. The British professor has probably gone out to seek more knowledge of Steam Bison.
"Ehhh...a book about... Mr. Eggmuffin? Thanks goodness I can actually read this..."
When Suzume read Frankenstein the other day, she was confused by the old British English, which was ironic since Suzume was able to read Sherlock Holmes books, which were also written in old British English, just fine.
"Ehhh? What the heck is that supposed to mean?"
"Well, let's say British English is still....strange to me."
"Oh, I see now. So, you were taught American English in your home country."
"No, shit, Triton. American English is pretty much the dominant English taught in English classes since most English teachers are from the US."
"Oh..."
Suzume stared at Luke. He was sitting next to her, grinning at her. His chin was also resting on his hand.
"You're lucky we're in your family home, or I'd kick you out, little shit." Suzume narrowed her eyes at him, feeling so awkward by his gaze on her.
"Then, try to do so, Miss Mizuno. I have no problem with Miss Beth and Flora kicking me out of my own home when they needed to clean."
"So, the steam-powered robots and machines don't do ALL of the work in Steam Bison."
"Of course not! Mr. Eggmuffin designed them to do simple tasks, not complex tasks."
"What's next? Mr. Eggmuffin will build a life-size steam-powered female robot for you to fool around with," Suzume laughed at her own joke. "I mean, you're still an early-teen boy with curiosity about the opposite sex."
Luke blinked at her in surprise. Was he playing dumb with her, or was he really too much into mysteries and puzzles to acknowledge the presence of a female his age? Sure, Luke was friends with Marina, who was around the same age as him, but Suzume thought Luke just saw Marina as a friend, and Marina felt the same.
Then Luke smiled at Suzume kittenishly, his gaze matched with his smile.
"Why would I want a life-size robot when I have the actual female in front of me?"
"HUH?!" Suzume exclaimed at him, her cheeks burning. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?!"
"You're older than me. You do have an idea what I am talking about."
"Do you even hear yourself right now?!"
"I do."
No. Hell no. Suzume isn't dealing with this shit right now. She's out. Before she could excuse herself, Beth did it for her. Thank goodness for Beth!
"Luke! You have a client outside!" Beth's voice called out.
"You heard her, detective boy," Suzume awkwardly smiled at him. "Go and meet your client. A gentleman must assist his fellow men or women in need, right?"
"Oh, you're very right, Miss Mizuno. Professor must have taught you that, huh?"
"Yeah, now get outta here and greet your client." Suzume tossed a handkerchief at his face. "Thanks for letting me borrow this the other day."
"Ah. It's no problem. It is my job as a gentleman to help a lady in need."
Suzume had no idea how long she could handle Luke's Gentlemen Complex, but his kittenish attitude, gaze, and smile made her feel very uneasy...
'Shit...Why did I have to mention the stupid life-size robot?' Suzume covered her face, feeling so embarrassed and apprehensive. 'I have a deep shit feeling that things will NOT end well...'
It looked like Suzume really needed to talk to Layton about how strange Luke has been acting around her when they're alone.
Luke started to express a frolic side to her, a side that he wouldn't even DARE to do so in Layton's presence, and now, she doesn't really want to be alone with Luke anymore...
'...It's probably nothing...' Suzume excused Luke's actions as childish. 'Triton is only a kid, joking around with me. I am the adult here. I should have known better than to play along with his joke.'
Suzume suddenly felt precarious around Luke alone....