Chapter 322

But he lied.

He's a liar.

Even if she might be killed, Shinomiya Kaguya still had to utter those curses.

"... That's a pretty harsh thing to say."

Asakusa Toru somewhat surprised, but he didn't show much anger.

There's nothing to be angry about. "Liar" isn't a particularly offensive word. The fact is, he was indeed late, so even if there were many reasons, it's understandable to be called a liar.

... Of course, the most important reason is that Shinomiya Kaguya in front of me is a beautiful girl.

If it were some little boy or some old geezer, he would have kicked them.

Talkative and incoherent.

"But I've taken it. Do you want an explanation? If so, bring me a pot of tea. Of course, if you prefer to talk like this in your own room, I don't mind."

He said.

In an instant, as if her composure had crumbled, Shinomiya Kaguya's icy expression vanished, transforming her from the Ice Kaguya Princess to the everyday Kaguya Shinomiya. She responded forcefully, loudly, and with a firm nod, "--Yes!"

A liar is a liar, and a lie is a lie.

But if you have an explanation, you can tell me...

Then I can still wipe away my tears, nod, and listen carefully to what you have to say.

"Haasaka! Prepare tea!"

With a wave of her hand, Hayasaka Ai began her operation.

Tableware, teaware, tea snacks, tea leaves, tea.

Then there are the tatami mats used for formal tea ceremonies.

Shinomiya Kaguya took her seat with the poise and elegance befitting a young lady, but Asakusa Toru, sitting opposite her, showed no intention of sitting properly, instead casually sitting down with his legs spread wide.

"Actually, there's not much to explain."

After taking a sip of tea, Asakusa Toru put down his teacup.

He didn't know much about tea, nor did he care much about its taste; he just treated it as something flavorful to drink to soothe his throat.

For him, the Shinomiya Family's tea was somewhat of a waste.

"Those who know, know; those who don't, don't need to know." He waved his hand and casually uttered a couple of riddles.

Shinomiya Kaguya: "...?"

... Is this how you explain asking me to sit down?

Just as she was about to unleash another curse, Asakusa Toru spoke up.

"Just kidding, this is how I usually write my diary, so don't worry."

Her fingertips lightly tapped the table, instantly calming Shinomiya Kaguya down and quieting the tense atmosphere.

"If it's just about reasons and explanations, I think I can come up with many." He paused, then said softly, "But if we're talking about the most fundamental reason, there can only be one."

"--I'm not strong enough."

Scratching his head, Asakusa Toru revealed a very embarrassed smile:

"Oh, actually, I'm quite insecure, really."

"I worry about being betrayed, I'm afraid of being crushed. Although my cooperation with you, Kaguya Shinomiya, has been quite pleasant, since Mashiro has received a lot of care from you, I'm still not strong enough."

"This bothers me a lot," he said.

"Simple firearms are fine, but as for dodging bullets with my bare hands, I think I can manage that too." With his hands clasped together, Asakusa Toru placed them on the table, saying something that seemed strange but was surprisingly serious, "Explosives should be able to withstand a little bit of that too, if it's just something that might be used in the city."

"But what if it's not just that?"

"I've never really trusted Japan. What if they're planning to gamble their national destiny on me?"

"The thought that I might be attacked by a nuclear bomb makes me extremely anxious."

"When I'm anxious, I want to hit people," Asakusa Toru said, clenching his fist, veins bulging, his fist radiating obvious violence. "But normal people haven't provoked me, so I have no reason to hit them."

"Fortunately, there are cursed spirits; they're not human, and they're quite resilient."

"Before I knew it, I had been fighting the cursed spirits for quite some time."

Asakusa Toru spoke as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, but both Shinomiya Kaguya and Hayasaka Ai had expressions that said, "What is this guy talking about?"

When Asakusa Toru abandoned all pretexts and explanations, and instead appeared to be preparing to offer some fundamental reasons, what kind of answer did she expect him to give?

I never expected this answer.

Ha?

"... But if I had to say, I actually did plan to come and meet up with you first, since I also wanted to check on Mashiro's recent situation." After a slight pause, Asakusa Toru casually changed the subject, "However, I'm actually quite busy, with a lot of things to do. Because of a year of school, many things were forced to be put on hold for a year."

"Considering this is my personal matter, I'll go and resolve the issue over there first."

"As for why I didn't contact you first," Asakusa Toru blinked, "I don't have your contact information."

"Using a diary to communicate is too conspicuous. You don't want others to pinpoint your location and lead you to open the box offline, do you?"

Slowly nodding in agreement, and somewhat belatedly realizing the change in Asakusa Toru's tone, Shinomiya Kaguya finally understood that he was now seriously explaining the reason.

In other words, he was just joking.

... Is it really all a joke?

"I'm not kidding, you know? I really did beat up the cursed spirit. As for the order of events, I first dealt with personal matters, then casually exposed the glorious history of 2.5-jou Satoru-sama, and since I'd already exposed it all, I might as well beat up the cursed spirit too. That's roughly the itinerary."

"The same goes for the issue of strength. I'm not too worried about my own safety, but I'm still somewhat lacking in the skills to handle various situations."

"Well, the main problem is that we're missing an Anywhere Door."

If there were Anywhere Door, he wouldn't need to ring the doorbell.

Although the diary hasn't been updated for very long, Asakusa Toru is too lazy to list out all the rewards that have been revealed.

In short, his strength has been steadily increasing. Since the lifting of the ban on superhuman abilities, even the worst items or Skill he has been able to draw have been superhuman items. Every day, he is getting closer to being able to 'do whatever he wants'.

"I roughly know what you're worried about. Although I feel that the Shinomiya Family might not be as useful as I initially thought, it's okay. I won't easily break our original agreement." Asakusa Toru shrugged. "Besides, thinking about it carefully, isn't it you who broke the agreement?"

"Didn't you promise to pick me up on the agreed-upon day?"

Although it was said 'if possible'.

However, instead of waiting for Shinomiya Kaguya at the school gate, he was met by Amasawa Ichika.

"Is... is that true, Hayasaka?" Shinomiya Kaguya's body stiffened slightly as she turned and pulled Hayasaka Ai aside, asking in a low voice.

She wanted to hear a no.

Unfortunately, she couldn't hear it; she could only hear a definite and affirmative answer.

"Yes, Kaguya Shinomiya." Hayasaka Ai nodded calmly and replied, "You promised, and I reminded you in advance. You said I didn't need to worry, so I went and got a Membership Card that day."

Yes, the White Room Membership Card was issued on the same day that Asakusa Toru left school.

Shinomiya Kaguya: "..."

... Huh?

How did it suddenly become my fault in the blink of an eye???

"Whether it happened or not is irrelevant, I don't care anyway." Fortunately, Asakusa Toru's next words brought her back to calm after the brief embarrassment.

"What I should repeat now is, um," Asakusa Toru extended his hand, "It's the same thing again."

"--It's a pleasure working with you."

He will help her overthrow the Shinomiya Family and make her the head of the Shinomiya Family.

And what she wants in return.

It's about loyalty.

Loyalty is given under the guise of a subordinate relationship, while respecting the individual's independent personality.

It wouldn't go to the level of master and servant. Forcing Shinomiya Kaguya to become a slave would simply be an insult to her dignity and would have no value whatsoever.

Aside from being a photographer's dream Shinomiya Kaguya isn't actually that abstract.

And now, it's clear she has absolutely no intention of becoming a photographer.

There's absolutely no need for torture. Torturing someone for something that doesn't exist is pointless.

Although, as he just said, the Shinomiya Family wasn't as useful as he had imagined, he originally thought that even after the extraordinary era began, he would still need a certain amount of time to grow. At this time, relying on the Shinomiya Conglomerate to collect the necessary resources and intelligence, or to provide convenience, would make the Shinomiya Family a great help.

But he really didn't expect that he would be almost invincible right from the start.

The Shinomiya Family suddenly became a useless burden; these kinds of conglomerates that only have money are truly the most useless.

But a promise is a promise, and it took a lot of effort for Mashiro Shinomiya Kaguya.

Although it was Hayasaka Ai took care of her.

Moreover, the preliminary preparations for the research were almost complete, and it was time for him to formally hand over the subsequent storyboard outlines to Mashiro so that she could slowly draw her own story in the way she wanted.

To draw an analogy, yes, it's like One-Punch Man, ONE's original version and Yusuke Murata's remake.

He would leave her a separate, blurry draft of the original version, while Shiina Mashiro could draw a remastered version that was uniquely hers, based on her own understanding.

I believe that after this training, she will have developed some degree of self-creative ability.

The arranged process, the things to consider, and the rest...

It's about choosing to sow the seeds of power.

Asakusa Toru needed someone to act on his behalf within the Shinomiya Family, to help Shinomiya Kaguya unify the Shinomiya Family and to provide some protection for several girls, including Shiina Mashiro.

He was still very busy, and it was impossible for him to personally serve in every matter and devote himself to the cause until his dying breath.

Actually, he's always been quite lazy. Recently, he's been incredibly busy since dropping out of school. It's like the last bit of perfunctory rest he had during his Advanced Nurturing period has finally ended. All the accumulated but unexploded changes that have started to arise due to the unlocking of his extraordinary abilities seem to be gradually approaching one after another.

Let alone the fact that there are many annoying 'villainous forces,' even if it's for 'protecting my Earth,' even if it's because of the 'Earth's Blessing' I'm currently under.

Asakusa Toru also needs to become a little... more diligent.

From this perspective...

Oh no, we've fallen into their trap.

Perhaps the Earth's will was deliberately hypnotized and protected in order to find such a leisurely yet capable labor job?!

Ha people.

However, whether it's a scheme or not, he can't spit out the sugar coating he's swallowed, so even if it's a trick, he'll choose to accept it.

Instead, let's focus our attention on the present situation.

For example...

What kind of small piece of trash should we throw at Shinomiya and Hayasaka?

Actually, he doesn't have much junk stockpiled right now; most of it is usable.

Considering that the scope and worldview of the Diary that can be released at the moment have not yet begun to expand, even if they don't release anything too powerful, it's enough for them to crush ordinary Muggles while protecting themselves.

So.

"--It's a pleasure working with you."

Following his words, Shinomiya Kaguya grasped his outstretched hand. Her slender, cool, white hand intertwined with Asakusa Toru's fingers, and she glanced at him with captivating eyes, whispering:

"But this time, please don't lie to me again."

"It is a sin to toy with a young girl's heart."

As she spoke, she lightly touched him, as if playing with fire, and in the next moment, as she suddenly closed the distance and made a small, ambiguous gesture, she quickly let go of his hand.

A faint blush crept up her neck.

This was the first time the pure and innocent young lady from a sheltered family had done something so outrageous.

It may not be romantic love, but perhaps, amidst the repeated pounding of the heart, a complex mix of emotions arises because of him, including fear, anxiety, dissatisfaction, reassurance, and a sense of peace.

It crystallized into love.

Of course, it's more likely that it will remain just that—a friendship that falls short of romance.