Dark golden runes circled around Sakai Miho in ring after ring.
The girl's slender body slowly floated upward, her waist arched into a full-moon curve, her lower abdomen flawless and alluring.
Unlike ordinary close-combat Ability Users, whose bodies often lacked a certain degree of beauty because training had burned away too much fat,
Sakai Miho, who possessed Perfect Proxy, had a figure so perfect it was downright seductive.
Kujo Ryuko stood there, her entire body rigid.
She stared at the rings of dark golden runes surrounding Sakai Miho.
"Hmm..."
She couldn't understand them.
But there was one thing Kujo Ryuko understood perfectly.
This was Grace.
And an extremely powerful and special Grace at that.
Although she had no idea what this Grace actually did,
as she sensed the new power slowly surging from within Sakai Miho, Kujo Ryuko understood that her wager with Su Youzi
would most likely end with her losing.
The girl's fists clenched.
The Goddess of Destiny, that bitch she had just sneered at... had slapped her twice right across the face.
Just moments ago, when she had mocked and looked down on Su Youzi, the disdain on Kujo Ryuko's face had been intense. Now... the embarrassment on the girl's face as she stood there was just as deep.
Especially since... right beside her, that stupid rabbit wore a smug look, as if the person who had broken through wasn't Sakai Miho, but her.
"What are you so happy about?!"
"Your Senpai was looking entirely at that Sakai Miho just now, hey!"
Clenching her fists tightly, Kujo Ryuko looked toward Su Youzi.
There wasn't even much surprise on Su Youzi's face, as if everything had gone exactly as she expected, as if it were only natural.
Fate really should be just as she had said—
it would favor strong girls.
The girl's calm, unconcerned attitude made Kujo Ryuko clench her fists so tightly that her nails seemed ready to dig into her flesh.
She was like a clown.
Although... ever since the day her sister... no, ever since that bastard had fallen into the abyss, she had already been a clown.
'The Sister of the Abyss Empress.'
Ha—
What an 'honor.'
She looked at Su Youzi.
For an instant, Kujo Ryuko even felt that Su Youzi's ability wasn't the basic Mental Type ability, Telekinetic Ability, at all.
Instead, it was a Rule-based Ability resembling the Saintess of the Holy Royal Court's...
Or perhaps... she was simply the Perfect Proxy of that bitch, the Goddess of Destiny, in this world.
Su Youzi didn't even pay attention to Kujo Ryuko.
She only watched the girl slowly arch her waist and float upward, watching the perfect silhouette of the girl as though she were transforming into a magical girl.
This time... this time, she had made a killing.
The rings of whirling dark golden runes gradually drew together.
At the girl's lower abdomen, where the dark-purple eye emblem had originally been drawn, a pattern emerged, as if it were the cross-section of a citrus fruit supported by two or three leaves.
It looked like a citrus cross-section.
And yet it also resembled... the sun.
Clack—
The girl's toes lightly touched the floor.
As Sakai Miho landed, the intelligent machine female voice rang incessantly in Su Youzi's ears.
[Beep—] [Congratulations, you have unlocked a new achievement: A Hand Reaching Out from the Abyss.] [Beep—] [Congratulations, you have unlocked a new achievement: Possessing Your First Abyssal-Type Agent.] [Beep—] [Sakai Miho's development was successful.] [Sakai Miho completed her breakthrough.] [Sakai Miho advanced to the "First Sequence."] [Development: Sakai Miho Affection Points +1.] [Received Affection Boost Reward: Girl's Cute Apron.] [Redemption: Sakai Miho Affection Points +10.] [Received Affection Boost Reward: Strange Comic Book.] [Received compensation for development materials spent.] ["First Sequence Promotion Emblem" ×2.] [...]
Looking at the items that had suddenly appeared in the Material Slot, along with the Promotion Emblems multiplied by two,
Su Youzi almost wanted to hug Little Miho and take a bite right then and there.
What did it mean to be a lucky star?
What did it mean to make a killing?
Not only had she won her wager with Kujo Ryuko and gained such an obedient girl, she had even gotten her Promotion Emblems back for free.
However... Su Youzi looked at the "Girl's Recipe Notebook" and "Girl's Cute Apron" in the Material Slot.
She understood both of these Affection Point gift rewards.
They showed that Sakai Miho was actually a girl who was capable at all household tasks and skilled at taking care of others.
But... that "Strange Comic Book"...
Su Youzi found it a little difficult to understand.
Would there really be no problem with giving that kind of weird thing to such an obedient girl?
Would girls really like it?
Forget it—
None of that was the point.
She looked toward Sakai Miho in front of her.
The girl stood prettily before Su Youzi, her light-green eyes fixed intently on Su Youzi, unwilling to look away ever again.
She sensed the new power continuously bursting forth within her body.
The shackles that had bound her had been broken.
The "Grace" granted by the Goddess of Destiny?
"No..."
"That's not right..."
That luck had clearly been brought to her by Senior Youzi.
"Se... Senpai..." Her voice was excited and elated, yet choked with emotion as though tears were about to fall.
Su Youzi looked at the charming and adorable girl standing before her.
"Classmate Sakai..."
"Mm?" Sakai Miho responded softly.
She watched Su Youzi's gaze slowly descend, then... in the beautiful, flushed eyes of her Senpai, she saw the reflection of her own body.
"Eh?" She froze for a moment.
The next second, the girl's bashful scream rang throughout the entire floor.
Sakai Miho crouched in front of Su Youzi with her knees hugged to her chest, adorable tears glimmering at the corners of her eyes.
Su Youzi sighed softly and looked back to signal.
Unohana Chiyo led Kujo Ryuko and Saotome Yukina out of the hospital room.
Su Youzi slowly crouched down in front of Sakai Miho, took off her own sweatshirt, and draped it over Sakai Miho.
The girl's ears were already suffused with crimson... She looked up pitifully.
Her little hands tightly gripped the collar of Su Youzi's sweatshirt.
The sweatshirt seemed to retain her Senpai's body heat, along with... that citrus-like scent she savored so dearly.
Thump, thump—
Her heartbeat sped up.
"Get some good rest." Su Youzi gently rubbed Sakai Miho's head.
The girl nodded vigorously.
Su Youzi rose and left the hospital room.
Outside the room, Kujo Ryuko watched Su Youzi with a complicated expression.
"I lost—"
Kujo Ryuko looked at Su Youzi, her expression utterly awful.
In the brief few dozen seconds while Su Youzi comforted Sakai Miho, Kujo Ryuko's heart had struggled through countless cycles.
Before Su Youzi could say anything,
the girl's arms trembling nonstop... she directly bent down and knelt before Su Youzi.
She braced her left hand against the floor, while her right hand slowly beckoned, just as Su Youzi had in her imagination...
"..."
Kujo Ryuko bit her lip, her expression shifting constantly.
"Woof..." The sound was as soft as a mosquito's hum.
She had clearly wanted to see that proud, noble girl slowly lower her head in humiliation before her.
But in the end... the one who lowered her head was herself.
Kujo Ryuko bit her lip hard and closed her eyes.
Su Youzi looked at Kujo Ryuko with a complicated expression.
Actually... she didn't like bullying girls like this.
But—
Kujo Ryuko was simply too dangerous.
Still, this was good.
When one had to cut something off, one should do it decisively.
After this... Kujo Ryuko and she should become complete strangers. Whenever Kujo Ryuko saw her, she would probably lower her head and avoid her.
Su Youzi looked at Kujo Ryuko in the Character Codex.
She wondered whether Affection Points could go negative.
Before Su Youzi, Kujo Ryuko kept her eyes closed, her shoulders trembling nonstop.
Because of her overwhelming shame... a faint flush gradually spread across the girl's fair, slender neck.
She struggled, then threw caution to the wind.
Kujo Ryuko suddenly raised her little face. "Woof!"
[Beep—] [Submission: Kujo Ryuko Affection Points +30.] [Received Affection Boost Reward: Silver Bit for Taming Beasts.] [Beep—] [Congratulations, you have unlocked a new achievement: Tiger Hunter.]
"?"
"¿¿¿¿¿" A great many question marks instantly appeared above the girl's head.
Su Youzi stared blankly at Kujo Ryuko before her and likewise held it in for a long while...
"NMD!!!"
Before you continue