"She can stay wherever she wants, just let her know she can count on me to keep an eye on her. Err, safety-wise, not surveillance-wise," she added to clarify, tilting her head a bit at Maruki's blue mood.

It was such a contrast to his expressions around Ichinose, earlier. His expressions when he would hang out with Hamuko, too. But the disapproval he got weighed heavily, didn't it...

"You two look like you have a lot of good friend chemistry, though - you two seem to hit it off in no time flat."