Multi-Anime, Kira Yoshikage Yearns for a Peaceful Life

"I just asked Kaguya. She knows nothing about the Lake God and has no memory of the person who saved her. The only one who knows who that person is now is Miss Kashiwagi. She was the only one fully conscious the whole time; she should remember what he looked like."

"To find him, we need Miss Kashiwagi's help."

Kashiwagi Masao's brow was deeply furrowed. He had also sent people to question the students who had been watching.

The other party had entered the water from the opposite side of the swamp, and at the exact same time as his daughter, Kashiwagi Nagisa, had gone in. This caused everyone else's attention to be drawn to Kashiwagi Nagisa, so no one got a clear look at that person's face.

Moreover, he had already taken off his clothes beforehand, making it even harder to determine his identity.

The only thing certain was that since he could save Shinomiya Kaguya and the other two from the Lake God, he must be a powerful Onmyoji! In other words, even if his original intention was to rescue people, by now he definitely knew of the Lake God's existence!

For them, this was undoubtedly a huge hidden danger.

Shinomiya Gan'an clearly understood his son's way of doing things. A cold smile appeared on his face:

"Find him, and then what? Kill him?"

Shinomiya Kōkō remained silent and didn't answer, but it was obvious that was exactly what he was thinking. For someone who knew their secret, the safest course of action was to send people to eliminate him!

Shinomiya Gan'an's gaze was filled with immense disappointment:

"If you really do that, you might as well sever ties with the Shinomiya Family right now."

Shinomiya Kōkō's expression shifted slightly. For Shinomiya Gan'an to say something like that was already extremely severe.

Severing ties with the Shinomiya Family meant he would completely lose any chance of competing for the position of the next head of the Shinomiya Family!

Kashiwagi Masao probed cautiously:

"Does he come from some Onmyoji clan?"

Shinomiya Gan'an glanced at him and said flatly:

"I don't even know who he is, so how would I know that?"

Kashiwagi Masao frowned:

"Then you..."

Shinomiya Gan'an said calmly:

"The Lake God is dead."

Kashiwagi Masao and Shinomiya Kōkō both changed color at the same time. Shinomiya Kōkō even blurted out:

"Impossible! I sent someone to check on the Lake God's condition. Its power was damaged, but it was definitely still alive!"

"I sent someone to check too. The Lake God's aura was still there. How could it be dead?"

Kashiwagi Masao also raised doubts, clearly finding it hard to believe.

A bitter smile involuntarily tugged at the corner of Shinomiya Gan'an's mouth:

"I sent a powerful Onmyoji to look into it. At first, he also thought the Lake God was still alive. But only later did he discover that what he sensed was merely the residual aura of the Lake God. The Lake God's true body had long since died."

"The Lake God is really dead?"

Kashiwagi Masao's face was full of disbelief.

Shinomiya Gan'an ignored him. He looked at the dazed Shinomiya Kōkō, his eyes growing even more disappointed:

"Even if the Lake God hadn't died, the fact that that Onmyoji could save Kaguya and the others from the Lake God and even escape unscathed already proves his strength. With someone like that, what should be done is to win him over. Only if winning him over fails should other options be considered."

"But the first thing that came to your mind was to kill him to eliminate the threat. You have disappointed me greatly."

Shinomiya Kōkō finally panicked and quickly tried to make amends:

"Father, I understand. I'll go and win him over right now!"

"Enough."

Shinomiya Gan'an's expression grew even more disappointed, to the point where the thought of 'deposing the eldest son' had even crossed his mind. He said flatly:

"Your current state is no longer suitable for serving as the chairman of Shuchiin Academy. That position will be handed over to Kumotaka for now."

"Also, do not investigate that person's identity."

"Since he did not come to us, it means he is not our enemy."

"And since he left immediately after saving people, it means he does not want anyone to know who he is."

"President Kashiwagi."

Shinomiya Gan'an looked at Kashiwagi Masao and spoke slowly:

"As for your daughter, I'll have to trouble you to be extra careful. Don't let her expose that person's identity."

"Don't worry, I understand that clearly."

Kashiwagi Masao nodded solemnly, indicating he had no objection to Shinomiya Gan'an's handling of the matter.

However, he had another guess about that Onmyoji's condition—

Although he had killed the Lake God, he himself must have suffered for it. Perhaps he had been severely wounded by the Lake God's death throes. Fearing they might retaliate, he chose to leave immediately.

Kashiwagi Masao glanced at Shinomiya Kōkō. Considering the thoughts of this eldest son of the Shinomiya Family, that Onmyoji's concerns were clearly justified.

But fortunately, none of that had happened yet, and their relationship with that Onmyoji had not yet deteriorated to an irreversible point.

Confidentiality was certainly a must; upon returning, he instructed Kashiwagi Nagisa not to disclose any information about that person to anyone.

But privately, he could still do some searching himself—

The Lake God was dead, and their group needed to find a new guardian deity.

And that powerful Onmyoji who killed the Lake God was the best choice!

If the other party was truly gravely injured, the Kashiwagi Family could provide top-tier medical care.

Moreover, Shinomiya Gan'an might not be without similar thoughts; the so-called "don't disturb that person" was nothing but a smokescreen thrown out by Shinomiya Gan'an to stabilize him while secretly contacting that person himself.

Kashiwagi Masao sneered inwardly, We're both foxes who've lived a thousand years—what's with the fairy tale act?

Chapter 26: Kaguya: Hayasaka, You're My God!

Early morning.

Kira Yoshikage, having enjoyed a full night's sleep, opened his eyes and glanced at the phone buzzing on the table. There were several unread messages on LINE:

Miura Yumiko: "Good morning, Kira-kun. Even if you're busy, remember to eat a proper breakfast~"

Kitagawa Marin: "Kira-kun, good morning! Must be tough working part-time, right?"

Yuibihama Yui: "Good morning, Kira-kun, are you awake?"

Shimazaki Yuna: "Kira-kun, here are the remaining illustrations. Are there any parts that need changes?"

Aoyama Nanami: "The hourly wage here is 1500 yen, the manager is a woman and easy to talk to. Are you sure you won't come?"

Kira Yoshikage replied to each one, while also declining Aoyama Nanami's kind offer.

Although 1500 yen per hour wasn't low, it still fell short compared to the 2000-yen waiter job. Besides, over these past few days, Kira Yoshikage had gradually gotten the hang of this work and had no plans to switch jobs for now.

After a quick wash, Kira Yoshikage drank a glass of milk, then left his apartment and headed for the nearest subway station.

Halfway there, LINE buzzed with more unread messages from Kitagawa Marin:

"Kira-kun, are you free this weekend?"

"If you mean a gathering, I'm not."

"No, it's a personal favor I want to ask Kira-kun. Is that okay?"

"I have overtime."

"Then can you come after work?"

Kira Yoshikage's fingers hovered over the screen, but Kitagawa Marin sent another message:

"I'll pay at least minimum wage. Is that okay?"

Kira Yoshikage paused for two seconds, cleared the input box, and retyped:

"I'm free in the morning."

Work in the afternoon, a side gig in the morning—now that's what you call a time management master.

"Then it's settled, Kira-kun~!"

"☆(≧▽≦*)?"

Ding-dong~!

The train slowly pulled into the station, accompanied by a crisp chime as the doors opened.

Kira Yoshikage followed the crowd out of the subway. Not far from the station exit stood Shuchiin Academy, with several students in black uniforms wearing yellow armbands at the school gate.

The black uniforms marked them as students of the school, while the yellow armbands identified them as Disciplinary Committee Members.

This wasn't particularly unusual.

The student council of Shuchiin Academy was mostly composed of Pure Academy students; any Mixed Academy students present were just there to fill seats.

As children of wealthy families, Pure Academy students always placed great emphasis on appearance.

Thus, every morning, the Disciplinary Committee stationed members at the gate to catch students with sloppy attire—like delinquents with their collars open or rebellious girls who had shortened their skirts.

Tap!

Spotting the Disciplinary Committee Members, Kira Yoshikage stopped in the distance.

Though there had always been Disciplinary Committee Members at the gate before, this time was clearly different.

Among those committee members was a short-haired girl earnestly inspecting every student who passed by her.

And unfortunately, that girl's name was Kashiwagi Nagisa.

Her father was the president of Japan's largest shipbuilding company, Kashiwagi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd., and her grandfather was a director of the Japan Economic Federation, one of Japan's "Three Economic Groups." Her family background ranked among the very top of Japan's upper class—she was undeniably a first-class young miss.

Even more unfortunate was that, in last week's "Pure Academy student accidental drowning" incident, Kashiwagi Nagisa was also one of those involved.

And she had most likely already memorized Kira Yoshikage's face.

Kira Yoshikage's intuition told him that Kashiwagi Nagisa was here precisely to find him—

Otherwise, there was no explanation for why this young miss had been standing guard at the gate for an entire week. This situation was clearly a stakeout.

Maybe she wanted to express gratitude, or perhaps she wanted to ask about the details of the incident. But no matter what she intended, for Kira Yoshikage, who only wanted a peaceful life, none of it was good news.

Getting involved with a Young Miss like that would only throw his peaceful life into chaos.

Realizing this, Kira Yoshikage stopped in his tracks, bypassing the stairs leading to the school gate and taking a long detour around to the side wall of Shuchiin Academy.

Making sure no one else was watching, Kira Yoshikage nimbly scaled the wall and dropped onto the lawn.

But just as he was about to leave, he heard the sound of feet kicking against the wall right behind him.

Turning around, a blonde girl with a side ponytail had already landed lightly on the ground.

As if sensing the man's gaze, the girl instinctively looked up, her eyes meeting Kira Yoshikage's.

They stared at each other for a few seconds, the atmosphere growing a bit awkward.

Kira Yoshikage's face was expressionless, but in his mind, he was already considering whether to reset.

If he had to reset, he'd need to call Miura Yumiko over within an hour...

Just then, the blonde girl broke the silence first, asking casually:

"You're from the Mixed Academy, right? Why are you here?"

The girl glanced at Kira Yoshikage's uniform, brushed the dirt and grass clippings off her palms from the landing, and stepped closer to him, her tone carrying a hint of aggressive pressure.

Kira Yoshikage looked at the girl dressed like a gyaru—jacket tied around her waist, wearing colored contacts, fake nails on all ten fingers—and roughly guessed why she'd climbed the wall too. He replied calmly:

"Just wandering around, taking in the sights."

The blonde girl echoed without missing a beat:

"What a coincidence, me too."

With that, she greeted him nonchalantly:

"My name is Smithy A. Hasaka. What's yours?"

Kira Yoshikage stared at her for two seconds:

"Kira Queen."