Kikyo Was a Demon in Every Sense of the Word

Around noon, Ju Ji finally returned to his dorm room.

The room wasn't very large, but it had three separate areas: a bedroom, a kitchen, and a bathroom. It was fully equipped, and there were no limits on electricity or gas, so he could live as freely and carelessly as he pleased.

After a day spent tense and on edge, Ju Ji was feeling a little tired. He wanted to crawl into the soft bedcovers and get a nice, comfortable sleep.

Knock, knock!

Maybe someone didn't want him to rest just yet. Someone was knocking at his dorm-room door. He couldn't think of anyone who would come looking for him at a time like this—or, for that matter, whether he had any friends close enough to do so.

So he wanted to pretend he was asleep, or wasn't there. Whatever it was could wait until he'd had enough sleep.

But then his phone rang.

"Shinomiya Ju Fan, open the door! I know you just got back!"

The person outside wasn't giving up, and Ju Ji knew that voice very well. Judging by the way she'd called him by his full name, something terrible would happen if he didn't open the door.

In the end, his will to survive overcame his desire to sleep. He hauled his tired body over to the peephole, and sure enough, he saw Kikyo's "radiant" smile.

He reached out and opened the dorm-room door.

"Kikyo, what is—"

"So this is the room Ju Ji tidied up? It's not as messy as I imagined. What are you standing there for? Hurry up and close the door."

Kikyo didn't seem interested in hearing what he had to say. She walked straight into the room and sat down on his bed as if she owned the place, even though he hadn't gotten to enjoy it yet.

But he knew that she only looked like an angel while the dorm-room door was still open. The room was reasonably soundproof, and as long as they didn't get too rowdy, no sound would carry outside.

Then her true colors would show. Looking at Kikyo's adorable face, Ju Ji couldn't help thinking ruefully.

"Ugh, that Horikita woman. She's so full of herself just because she's cute."

Sure enough, the kind and adorable angel had vanished. In her place was a demon, mercilessly beating up the cute frog plushie on his bed. That's my favorite plushie. Could you at least be a little gentler with it?

Even though he'd seen this happen several times, he still couldn't get used to her drastic change in personality. If he could, he'd like her to treat him gently, too.

"Do you have a problem with that?"

"No, nothing."

Common sense told Ju Ji it was best not to argue right now. Had she really been hypnotized? Why did it feel like their roles had been reversed?

"Why are you sitting so far away? Come over and sit with me. Isn't this your room? Why are you acting so stiff?"

No, that was asking a lot of Ju Ji. However you looked at it, Kikyo was a very cute girl. There was no way he could relax with the two of them alone in a room.

But since she'd asked him to, Ju Ji was willing to grant her wish.

As soon as he sat down, he caught a faint citrus scent. Her long eyelashes and large, expressive eyes made it clear that this girl had been blessed with exceptional beauty. It was a shame her personality was so awful.

"By the way, you got along pretty well with Horikita today, didn't you? Naiko really is attractive, isn't she? But how do I compare to her?"

As if to watch Ju Ji's reaction, Kikyo pressed herself against him and stared straight into his eyes with a demonic gaze.

Her soft body pressed clearly against him through their clothes. But instead of feeling even a little pleased, he felt cold sweat gradually break out across his back.

With such a terrifying look fixed on him, who could possibly pay attention to anything else?

Ju Ji knew perfectly well that Kikyo didn't act this way because she liked him. It was just some inexplicable urge to compete. At most, she'd been hypnotized by the system into thinking of him as a close friend; they didn't share any deep feelings or cherished memories.

"You don't actually want to hear my answer, do you? The result is obvious, of course."

"Tch, Ju Ji, you really are boring. You know martial arts, don't you? Come spar with me and let me blow off some steam."

Just as Ju Ji had guessed, Kikyo quickly lost interest. She stood up, moved to an open spot, and assumed a fighting stance. It was obvious at a glance that she was an amateur.

But this was her real purpose. Normally, when Kikyo needed to vent, she would go to the railing by the river. Now that Ju Ji was around, she'd changed how she did it. And from what she'd said, the system seemed to have altered some of her perceptions when it hypnotized her. Otherwise, there was no way to explain how she knew Ju Ji could do martial arts.

As it happened, Ju Ji had something he wanted to test, too. His skill, [Taming Lv1], increased the learning ability of the person being tamed.

It would be great if Kikyo could learn Tai Chi during this time. It would help her cultivate herself and give her some ability to protect herself. Either way, she was his friend now, and having a little more ability to defend herself couldn't hurt.

"Your intention to attack is too obvious... Your sense of distance is poor... Your thinking is too naïve."

Ju Ji had practiced Tai Chi since childhood in his previous life, and after regaining his memories, he'd trained for another two years. By now, he'd become highly proficient. Still, to help Kikyo train and blow off steam, he held back quite a bit.

Before long, Kikyo was drenched in sweat. She slumped onto the bed, breathing heavily. The gloom had vanished from her face, so it seemed that working off her frustration had helped.

But please don't make that strange, flushed face and satisfied expression. It's easy to get the wrong idea.

Over the course of those two hours or so, Kikyo had gone from being a complete novice to having a decent-looking stance. She'd even started to master a few techniques for redirecting force. It was hard to tell whether she had an incredible talent for martial arts or whether it was because of the system skill. Hmm, his Taming skill had gained 1% proficiency.

"Kikyo, you really are a martial arts prodigy. It took me several months to get this far."

"No, it was all thanks to your teaching, Ju Ji... Tch, I still didn't manage to hit you at all, though."

One second she had an angel's smile; the next, she was a demon. Kikyo really was a master of changing faces.

"But Kikyo, you should go back and change your clothes. They're soaked through. You can borrow my jacket for now."

Since they were in his dorm room, Kikyo wasn't wearing her dark red jacket. Her white undershirt was soaked with sweat, making it hard for him to look away.

"Hmph, so that's how Ju Ji sees me, huh? I don't really mind... But you must be tired today, Ju Ji, so I'll head back for now. I'll borrow your jacket and return it later."

At that moment, Kikyo was a demon in every sense of the word. But perhaps because she thought of Ju Ji as a close friend, she joked around with him without restraint and didn't refuse his kindness.

After Kikyo left, Ju Ji collapsed onto the bed, exhausted in both body and mind. He didn't even notice that something was missing before he fell into a deep sleep—and forgot to test just how far Kikyo's hypnosis had gone...