[ As Ayaka says his name, he picks his head up, watching her intently. Momentarily, his eyes flicker in the same directions where she's looking, getting the clearance from Pierre and the others that no one's in the vicinity.

When she thanks him, he seems to visibly relax, releasing what last bit of tension he seemed to have coiled up in him for the last two weeks. He knew holding onto it so close to his chest like this was a risk, but given how things had played out... ]

I'm relieved. I was almost expecting you to admonish me for making such a choice on your behalf. Or, at the very least, keeping you out of the loop for so long.

[ When Clover and Vanis showed theirs, he got a little concerned about what they actually might mean. But Ish seemed to be more straight forward than Richard seemed to be giving him credit for. ]