I Became a Spirit in Date A Live, but I Refuse to Date

"Ah, since I've come all this way, I might as well buy something before I go."

Shido was about to head to the shopping street for some eggs and milk when he spotted a "No Entry" sign blocking the road.

Well... even without the sign, Shido would have known he couldn't go that way. Right behind it was an enormous hole, terrifyingly wide and deep.

I'd need wings to get across now, wouldn't I?

Of course, the wings were just a joke.

"Ah, I ended up here without even realizing it."

Shido recognized the street. It was where he, Lingmeng, and Tohka had met.

Perhaps the reconstruction crews hadn't had time to deal with it. The street still looked as devastated as it had ten days ago.

Thinking back on everything that had happened yesterday, Shido sighed softly.

Tohka had only received her name yesterday. Where was the girl whose immense power had earned her the label of disaster now?

From their conversation yesterday, Shido had realized that she was an innocent, straightforward girl. Yet the world rejected her.

Her pained expression remained etched in his mind, strengthening his resolve to save her.

"Tohka... I'll save you. I promise!"

Shido clenched his fists, determination filling his eyes...

A Date About to Begin

Just as Shido was wondering how he could save Tohka, a voice called out.

"...do."

Perhaps he was too absorbed in thought to hear it.

"...Hey...do."

Once again, he let the voice pass him by. His mind was full of Tohka's hesitant, sorrowful expression. Seeing her like that was something he couldn't bear.

"Hey! Shido!"

Lost in thought, Shido had unknowingly wandered back to the closed school gates.

"...Don't ignore me!"

"—Huh?"

Now that he had noticed the voice, Shido felt as though he had heard it somewhere before. He could never forget that lark-like voice.

That voice... Could it be?! No, that's impossible, right?

Shido gave a wry smile but turned toward the sound anyway.

Then he froze—

"Toh... Tohka?" Shido asked, surprise and confusion in his voice.

It was Tohka, the Spirit he had met only yesterday. Dressed in her magnificent gown, she stood atop a pile of rubble behind him.

"You finally noticed me? Idiot! Idiot!"

Annoyed at being ignored, Tohka leaped off the rubble with a thud, landing on the stretch of asphalt road that had barely retained its shape.

"Move!" Her path blocked, Tohka kicked over the sign in front of her and marched up to Shido.

"What... are you doing, Tohka...?"

"Hm? What do you mean?"

"Why are you here...?!"

As he shouted, Shido looked behind him. He could see women chatting and residents walking their dogs.

None of them had fled to the shelters, which meant no Spacequake alarm had been issued.

"Why am I here?" Tohka narrowed her eyes, then asked, "Where's Lingmeng? Is she here?"

"Uh... Well..." Shido broke into a sweat. He hadn't seen Lingmeng at all since coming to school, but he was afraid telling Tohka would upset her.

"Lingmeng isn't here...?" As if she had guessed the answer, Tohka lowered her head in disappointment.

Shido was about to say something when another all-too-familiar voice rang out.

"Oh, what's this? You're already here?"

Shido turned toward the voice. Beside him stood a girl with long golden hair and looks that rivaled Tohka's.

"Lingmeng! You came! I thought you weren't going to!"

The moment Tohka noticed Lingmeng, her gloom vanished and she perked right up.

"Of course. I made a promise to you two. Not showing up would mean breaking my word, wouldn't it?"

Lingmeng smiled at Tohka as she answered.

"Lingmeng... I'm so glad you came. I thought you might not."

Shido sounded a little excited too. If Lingmeng really hadn't come, Tohka might have stayed miserable all day.

"What kind of person do you take me for? I keep my promises, you know. If I'd known when you two were coming, I would've been waiting here already."

Lingmeng gave Shido an exasperated look. She had promised him and Tohka yesterday that she would come, but Shido hadn't told her what time. That was why she was late.

"Uh... Sorry." Shido scratched his cheek awkwardly. He had to admit he had overlooked that.

"Anyway! Shido, you're the one who asked us out, right? I think you called it a date."

Tohka excitedly repeated the word "date" several times.

"I... I know! Just stop saying it over and over!"

"What... Shido, did you take advantage of me not knowing what it means and teach me some filthy word that's embarrassing to say?"

Tohka's cheeks reddened slightly, and she frowned.

"N-no! It's a perfectly respectable word!"

"Really?" Tohka asked doubtfully.

"More or less? Depending on who says it, it can sometimes mean something less innocent. But coming from Shido, it's a respectable word."

Lingmeng answered Tohka's question, glancing at Shido as she did.

"Yeah... That's about right," Shido said with a nod.

Just then, Lingmeng spoke up. "If we're going to talk, how about we do it somewhere else?"

"Huh?" Shido was puzzled at first. Then he noticed the women behind them watching with amused eyes, and he finally understood why Lingmeng had suggested it.

The nearby women snickered as they watched him, though some of them were also curious about Tohka's outfit.

"Hm?" Tohka seemed to notice their stares too. "Shido, Lingmeng, who are they? Enemies? Should I kill them?"

"Ah... What?" Shido's shoulders twitched at Tohka's sudden question.

"Hey, Tohka, that's a dangerous thing to say."

"Yeah, they're just ordinary women. Why would you think that?"

Shido hurried to agree after Lingmeng's remark.

"How could they be? Their eyes are gleaming like beasts'! Of course I'd think they wanted to attack me. To prevent any future trouble, I think killing them now would be safest."

It's a simple way of thinking, but those women's stares really are a little scary!

Lingmeng glanced at the women behind them. The intensity of their gazes made even her uneasy, let alone Tohka.

Well, their eyes certainly were shining, but that was mainly because they had found a juicy new topic to talk about!

"Don't worry. I told you, only a small number of humans will attack you."

"Right. People without weapons are usually just ordinary residents. The ones who'd attack you are those robot troops from yesterday."

Shido and Lingmeng explained it to her. To make it easier for Tohka to understand, Lingmeng had deliberately called AST "robot troops."

"...Hmph." Tohka remained highly alert, but at least she let go of her urge to leap at them immediately.

"All right... So about this thing called a date..."

"Can we leave here first? Please?"

"Yeah. Being stared at won't actually hurt us, but it's still uncomfortable, right?"

Hearing Tohka continue the subject without a care, Shido hurried off, and Lingmeng followed close behind.

"Hey, Shido, Lingmeng, where are you going?"

"I don't know. Away from here, at least. Hurry up and follow us, or we'll leave you behind."

Lingmeng looked back with a smile, then kept walking after Shido.

"Ugh... What's that supposed to mean?"

Tohka pouted at Lingmeng's words, then quickly caught up and walked shoulder to shoulder with her and Shido...

The Date Begins

"W-what? There are so many of them! Is this a human-wave attack?"

Tohka had followed Shido and Lingmeng onto the street. The crowds of people and cars seemed to have frightened her, and she remained on high alert as she spoke angrily.

At the same time, tiny balls of light appeared on all ten of her fingertips. Shido immediately stopped her in a panic.

"No, it's not what you think! Nobody here is going to take your life!"

"...Really?"

"Really. You're so tense all the time, I'm starting to think you have a persecution complex."

After hearing Shido and Lingmeng, Tohka still looked around warily, but she finally made the balls of light disappear.

Shido and Lingmeng could only smile wryly. Ever since they had met up with Tohka, she had been on guard against everyone. Though AST had driven her to it.

"Tohka, remember: don't do to others what you wouldn't want done to you. Don't force something you dislike on someone else. You'd be angry if AST suddenly attacked you, wouldn't you?"

Shido spoke like a parent teaching a child. Tohka didn't seem entirely convinced, but she nodded obediently.

Incidentally, Tohka's outfit had changed from her magnificent Astral Dress into a Raizen High School uniform like Shido's.

Some of the details were different, and hers was the girls' version, but it drew far less attention than her Astral Dress.

As for why her Astral Dress had changed, Shido had asked Tohka what had happened after yesterday. Once he learned that Spirits didn't cause Spacequakes by choice, Tohka had started insisting they hurry up and go on their date.

But her outfit attracted far too much attention, so Shido and Lingmeng had decided she should change before the date. Tohka had then transformed her Astral Dress to match Shido's uniform.

Incidentally, when Tohka transformed her Astral Dress into a uniform, it and her spiritual power vanished for a few seconds. In a sense, that meant Shido and Lingmeng got quite an eyeful.

Just then, Tohka's expression suddenly relaxed.

"Hm...? Shido, Lingmeng. Do you smell something good?"

"A smell?" Shido closed his eyes and sniffed. Just as Tohka had said, a pleasant aroma filled the air.

"You mean the smell coming from over there?"

Lingmeng pointed to the bakery on their right.

"Oh?" Tohka replied briefly, then kept staring at the bakery.

"...Tohka?"

"Hm? What is it?"

"Want to go in?"

Shido seemed to have guessed what Tohka wanted.

"If you or Lingmeng want to go in, Shido, I suppose I wouldn't mind accompanying you."

Tohka folded her arms and pursed her lips, her voice the very picture of haughty reluctance. As if to betray her, her stomach let out a loud grrrr.