396. A Gift

Kirino is the same.

Motoko and Yukino didn't speak, they just nodded to Shoko.

They disappeared quickly.

Shoko looked around and walked into the deserted alley.

A minute later, she felt the sounds around her suddenly boil over.

From deserted to bustling.

Shoko breathed a sigh of relief, "It's a success."

She checked her bearings, took flight, touched the rabbit hair clip on her head, and vanished into thin air.

After a while.

The doorbell rang at my Little Senior Sister's house, and she opened it to take a look.

With a smile, Shoko Makinohara lifted her skirt and bowed. "Nice to meet you, Seisen- neechan. I am Shoko Makinohara. Please take care of me from now on."

"???"

The Little Senior Sister looked completely bewildered.

On the other side, at the Shuya's house.

With the arrival of Shoko Makinohara, a wisp of black energy silently entered the area and drilled into Shuya's brain.

Shuya slept holding Haruno, he frowned and drifted into a strange dream.

When Shuya regained consciousness, he found himself standing in a vast, empty hall.

The hall was completely dark, and even with his eyesight, he couldn't see through the darkness.

Only vaguely visible are thick stone pillars arranged in a certain pattern.

Shuya didn't pay much attention to the scenery; his gaze was fixed on the end of the main hall.

At the top of the dozens of steps, a large chair sits prominently, with a tall, slender figure reclining there in a classic villainous pose, chin in hand.

Shuya could only vaguely make out that it was a man, but he had long hair.

The man's gaze was fixed on the void ahead.

He spoke.

The voice was familiar, similar to his own, but with slight differences... just like his voice sounded more mature.

The sound echoed in the hall:

I've had many important people in my life, but in the end, I lost them all.

"Therefore, I realized something."

"Something you'll understand someday."

"Humans will die one day, as will Monster, and gods perish the moment they become gods, leaving behind only a concept."

"The life of everything in the world will one day come to an end."

What did you say?

Shuya scratched his head. Damn, this guy's talking so pretentiously... could it be me?

"I began to think, and finally, I understood the truth about the structure of the world."

"Only death is equal."

"Only death is the final destination."

"The world today is strange, crazy, and incomprehensible."

"The old world was fundamentally rotten."

"So I choose to embrace death."

"To spread the gospel of death to the world."

"And those who accept the gospel will become the most faithful believers in death."

"By gathering the power of believers, that immense Power of Will can transform the Great Way, turning this land into a paradise for the dead. Everyone will live in death forever, without sorrow or pain."

"---A new world where no one will get hurt has been achieved."

"Therefore, the living must die."

"Everything for the future of humanity."

"You're crazy."

Shuya clicked his tongue; he could hardly stand how childish and cheesy those words were.

"I'm not crazy, the world is crazy."

The man replied.

"Ah, I get it, I get it. So, having a mental illness made you even more mentally unstable?"

"..."

The man crossed his legs, looking quite interested.

His eyes shone with compassion. "You'll understand someday. I look forward to having you join us."

"I look forward to the day you become the Demon King."

The dream faded away.

Shuya's brows furrowed, and he forgot everything that had just happened.

"I will absolutely not let you become the Demon King, Shuya- kun."

At her Little Senior Sister's house, Shoko Makinohara clenched her fists.

"This time it'll definitely be ---!"

Section 427, 396. Gifts

Saturday.

Shuya and Haruno get up until after 11 a. m.

Don't be fooled by their late start; they don't go to bed until six in the morning.

As it turned out, Shuya's method of dealing with Haruno was very effective. She didn't care about anything else in order to get to sleep, and she didn't care about asking any questions at all.

The only problem is that many places in Shuya's house need to be cleaned, but it's not a big issue.

In fact Shuya felt that Haruno didn't care about the truth of the matter.

She came even though she knew this would be the outcome; her meaning was quite clear.

She's despicable.

After getting up, Shuya explained the whole story to Haruno.

She wasn't very interested; she just listened to it as a story.

Her relationship with Mai wasn't very good either, far less so than that between Yukino and Mai.

Now that everything is resolved, she cares even less.

How to use this to manipulate Shuya was what Haruno was thinking about. On the surface, she had a beautiful smile, but in her heart, she was already making many calculations.

"What's on your mind?"

Shuya asked out of the blue.

"I saw a maid outfit that would suit you perfectly, cough cough cough..."

Haruno blurted it out, only realizing his mistake halfway through.

"Crossing the women's clothing is impossible, absolutely impossible in this lifetime."

Shuya glanced at her sideways. "But you look good in it, go buy some."

"Okay, that works too, Master."

Haruno then feigned grievance and dragged out his sentences.

Shuya shivered; that voice was too seductive.

It's hard.

Haruno noticed the change in Shuya's eyes, her face stiffened, and she obediently shut her mouth.

rbqrbq.

The land is almost ruined by plowing.

She didn't cause any more trouble and slipped away after a while.

Haruno really couldn't take it anymore; if she stayed any longer, she was afraid she wouldn't be able to leave this doorway.

Shuya thought about it for a moment and then called Mai- chan.

"Hey, Shuya?"

"Yes, it's me. How did your conversation with your mom go yesterday?"

Shuya was still quite curious.

Mai said nonchalantly, "It's nothing, just a little argument. But it surprised me a bit; my mom gave up pretty quickly. Maybe forgetting about me before made her a little confused, and her fighting spirit dropped a lot."

"Is that so? By the way, you just woke up?"

"Yeah, I haven't been getting much rest lately."

Mai said.

Then she added, "There's one more thing. I've found myself acting a little... strange?"

"Strange? For example?"

"I seem to have become... much more mentally sharp?"

Mai wasn't entirely sure about the authenticity.

"Um..."

Shuya and said, "Are you home now? I'll come and check on you."

"I'm at home. Come over."

"Good."

After they finished talking, Shuya changed his clothes and went out, immediately flying to Mai's house.

After opening the Mai, Mai subconsciously glanced left and right, checking to see if any reporters were lying in wait.

"You're overthinking it, there are no reporters here."

Shuya the Way.

"Caution is the best policy."

Mai replied with a suspicious look, "Besides, I always feel like someone is watching me!"

"Surveillance?"

"That's right, you don't notice it at home, but it's very obvious when you're out."

Mai said seriously, "On my way home after meeting my mother last night, and again when I went out to throw out the trash just now, I noticed people watching me!"

Shuya and said, "You can feel it now too?"

"Um!"

Point it out, let me see.

Shuya asked Mai to point out the source of the gaze, and Mai didn't refuse, pointing in several directions with her finger: