Always Waiting for You to Change Your Mind

Time passed bit by bit. Utaha Kasumigaoka stood there, her expression shifting between light and shadow as she pondered, making it easy to see the internal struggle she was enduring.

Leo was in no rush. He continued to fiddle with the glowing piece in his hand, appearing as though he didn't care much about the outcome.

Neither of them spoke again, causing the air in the room to grow somewhat heavy.

"Haa..."

After a long, long while, Utaha Kasumigaoka finally let out a breath.

"I believe you are a devil now," Utaha Kasumigaoka remarked with a sigh. "Only a devil could so precisely bewitch the heart and deceive a human, right?"

"That's quite rude, senpai," Leo said with a hint of dissatisfaction. "Everything I've said is the truth; there isn't a single lie in it."

"That's exactly why it's terrifying," Utaha Kasumigaoka said with unexpected calmness, like an onlooker. "Lies are sometimes easy to expose and can't fool truly intelligent people. But the truth is different. As long as you find the right method, even the smartest person will fall for it and eventually choose to compromise."

"So, does that mean you agree, senpai?"

Leo held out the evil piece in his hand.

However, Utaha Kasumigaoka did not take it.

"Becoming a devil, shedding my humanity, becoming a peerage member, and serving as your servant—how could I possibly agree to something like that in such a short time?" Utaha Kasumigaoka looked deeply at Leo and said, "Tell me honestly, devil-kun, have you had your eye on me for a long time?"

Clearly, Utaha Kasumigaoka had already sensed something.

"Does Kasumigaoka-san want to hear the truth? Or a lie?"

Leo didn't answer every question as he had before; instead, he smiled and kept her in suspense.

"Let's hear the lie first," Utaha Kasumigaoka said, always doing the unexpected. As if not wanting to be manipulated by Leo, she added, "I want to see what kind of clever lies a devil can spin."

"It's not clever, just stating the facts," Leo said, spreading his hands. "I've said it before, haven't I? Being summoned, signing contracts with humans, and collecting a corresponding price as payment for fulfilling their wishes—that is the work of a devil. Therefore, every human with desires is a potential client of mine, including you, senpai. If that counts as having my eye on you, then yes, you have indeed been targeted by me."

"As expected, a very clever lie. Using one truth to cover up another. If I hadn't been prepared, I probably would have fallen for it," Utaha Kasumigaoka said, crossing her arms and nodding. "Then, what is the truth?"

"The truth is that I'm likely not the only one who has their eye on you, senpai." Leo looked at Utaha Kasumigaoka's feigned calmness and smiled meaningfully. "Humans with desires are my potential clients, but you are much more special than the average client. Therefore, including me, there are probably quite a few people watching you from the shadows."

These words made Utaha Kasumigaoka frown, her eyes no longer calm.

"Why? What is it about me that makes me worth your attention?"

Utaha Kasumigaoka asked, not very composed.

Unfortunately, Leo offered no further explanation.

"I've already provided the necessary explanations, and out of respect for our relationship, I even gave you some extra friendly tips. I can't tell you anything more than that." Seeing that Utaha Kasumigaoka was struggling to accept this, Leo added, "If you have no intention of getting involved in our world, it's better not to know the details. Otherwise, it will do you more harm than good."

"Besides, I am a devil, and you were the one who summoned me. Even if you don't care about my work or my performance, treating me like a free encyclopedia is a bit much, don't you think?"

"I'm not one of those simps at school who are going crazy trying to pursue you, the kind who get so lost in the clouds just by getting a word in with you."

Utaha Kasumigaoka didn't speak, her brow furrowing deeper and deeper.

But soon, Utaha Kasumigaoka's brow relaxed again.

"Then, what if I make a wish to you, wanting to know everything I want to know right now?"

Utaha Kasumigaoka put forward a request that made Leo feel both surprised and amused.

"That really is an unexpected turn of events. You're truly cunning, senpai, just like a vixen."

Leo offered a sincere compliment, though the way he phrased it was hardly anything to be happy about.

"Let me see."

Without waiting for Utaha Kasumigaoka to respond, Leo excitedly took out a device.

This was an action device exclusively for devils, the same type that Yukino Yukinoshita had previously used to find humans with desires. One only needed to operate it and input the wish proposed by the client into the interface, and the instrument would automatically calculate the price required to be paid.

The price varied from person to person because human value is not equal. The more valuable, capable, and full of potential a person is, the greater the wishes they can realize.

For instance, if a useless homeless person were to wish to become the world's richest man, unless he truly possessed the potential to become such a person, the price he would need to pay to realize that wish would be beyond imagination. He might simply die, and his soul would be taken away as well.

But those who are valuable, capable, and full of potential are different. The value of their lives and souls is high. If one wants to collect a price based on that, one might have to put in quite a bit of effort, fulfilling a particularly grand ambition for the other party.

What about the value of Utaha Kasumigaoka herself?

It could only be said... that it was very high.

She possessed many advantages that surpassed her peers, including but not limited to beauty, family background, social standing, and literary and artistic accomplishments. Even as an ordinary human, if she continued to develop under these conditions, she would reach goals in the future that over ninety-nine percent of the people in this world could never achieve. Therefore, the value of her life and soul was incredibly high, ranking among the very best of all the clients Leo had met so far.

And if her own unique nature were also taken into account, that value would be even greater, likely easily surpassing all the clients Leo had encountered to date.

Someone like her already had the potential to come into contact with the world he belonged to; now, she was merely asking to know some information in advance. The price required for that... could only be described as shockingly low.

Seeing the result displayed on the device—"an item of clothing personally worn by the individual"—Leo fell silent.

He knew that this price didn't actually hold any special meaning.

Just like how the clothes worn by celebrities and great figures can fetch a high price no matter how old or tattered they are, a piece of clothing personally used by Utaha Kasumigaoka might not mean much to her, but devils could collect it. Once she achieved fame and success, there would be plenty of people willing to pay for it.

It wasn't as if Leo hadn't collected similar rewards in the past, so he knew that anyone who would think the wrong way after seeing that line needed to go stand in the corner and reflect.

However, he also knew that if he proposed this reward, the title of "perverted devil-kun" in the heart of this autumn flower of Sobu High School would likely never be shaken off for the rest of his life.

Trying to force me into being a pervert, huh?

Fine, fine, fine...

Leo decisively put away the action device and said to Utaha Kasumigaoka:

"Give me a kiss, and I'll tell you."

As soon as those words left his mouth, the air instantly froze.

Utaha Kasumigaoka was stunned, Utaha Kasumigaoka fell silent, and unsurprisingly, a look of contempt appeared in Utaha Kasumigaoka's eyes.

"Are you sure this is payment for a devil's work? Not just your own personal desire?"

Utaha Kasumigaoka voiced her deep skepticism.

"So what if it is?" Leo, acting as if he were immune to shame, said very directly, "No matter which perspective it's proposed from, as long as the payment is made and the wish is granted, isn't that fair?"

"Besides, are you really losing out?"

"Look at this face of mine. Is it really that hard to overcome your mental barrier and leave a lipstick mark on it?"

Leo leaned his face close to Utaha Kasumigaoka. While it startled her, the sudden close-range view also caused her cheeks to flush red.

"Don't get so close, you perverted devil-kun."

Utaha Kasumigaoka pushed Leo's face away, waving her small hand to fan herself in an attempt to cool down her cheeks.

Seeing the young girl like this, Leo was amused.

"For the sake of our relationship, I'll let your wish be fulfilled first."

As he spoke, Leo raised his hand, and a magic circle unfolded upon it.

"The memories you are about to receive are of the mysterious world you want to understand."

"I'll give you the information first; we'll put the payment on your tab."

"As for the matter of becoming a peerage servant... I'll be waiting for you to change your mind, Kasumigaoka-san."

As he spoke, a surge of memories flooded into Utaha Kasumigaoka's mind, causing her head to reel and her eyes to lose focus.

Devils, angels, fallen angels, the church, sacred gear, the underworld... all sorts of knowledge were absorbed by Utaha Kasumigaoka, allowing her to quickly understand what the mysterious was, what supernatural power was, what the underworld society was, and what reality was.

Utaha Kasumigaoka did not know how long this reception lasted.

When she finally regained her senses, dizzy and lightheaded, and her eyes began to refocus, Leo's figure had already vanished. In his place was a devil flyer, the same one he had used once before, lying on the floor. The simple magic circle depicted on it was so conspicuous, so deeply impressive.

"..."

Utaha Kasumigaoka remained silent for a long time before stepping forward to pick up the devil flyer.

"Sacred gear... is it?"

Upon learning of her own uniqueness, Utaha Kasumigaoka's expression became exceptionally complex.

Recalling the fates of those out-of-control sacred gear possessors mentioned in the knowledge Leo had transmitted to her, Utaha Kasumigaoka couldn't help but shiver.

"That guy definitely did that on purpose."

Utaha Kasumigaoka muttered maliciously to herself as she lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling, remaining speechless for a long time.