Chapter 32

"Mm... We'll be going, then." After bowing to the staff member, Shido left with Lingmeng.

"Well, that was a miscalculation. I never thought Lingmeng had a little scheme like that up her sleeve."

On the Fraxinus, Kotori looked utterly taken aback before speaking again.

"Shido, judging by what we've seen, an attraction with no thrills at all won't work on Lingmeng. Take her to the roller coaster and try that."

As Kotori picked up the microphone and gave Shido his orders, the male crew members below perked up.

Their expressions seemed to say, "See? Option one was the right choice all along." That earned them angry looks from the female crew members.

"Got it." Shido looked at Lingmeng beside him and said awkwardly, "Lingmeng, shall we ride the roller coaster next?"

An Endless Loop of Roller Coasters and Drop Towers

Does Shido think I'm afraid of roller coasters and want to use this chance to win points with me? Does he think the driving god of Mount Akina would be scared of that?

Lingmeng seemed to have caught on to Shido's intentions.

To be honest, Lingmeng might really have been a little scared of roller coasters in her previous life.

But she was a Spirit now. If she wanted to, she could run faster than a roller coaster herself. A mere roller coaster was nothing to fear.

"A roller coaster? Sure." Lingmeng smiled with her eyes half-lidded, then followed Shido toward the ticket booth.

Click! Lingmeng and Shido were seated on the roller coaster. Perhaps they were lucky, because they had landed seats in the very front row.

Once the safety bars were locked in place, the roller coaster started moving to background music that sounded suspiciously like "Deja Vu."

The first minute or so was fine. They were only climbing a gentle slope. But the moment they reached the top, the coaster plunged downward as if it had been shot full of adrenaline.

"Aaaaaah..." Screams rose from behind Shido and Lingmeng, mostly from women, though a few men joined in.

Some of the couples behind them held hands on the speeding coaster to make themselves feel less afraid.

"Shido, Lingmeng must be at least a little scared right now. Find a chance to take her hand. Make her feel like you'll be there for her, and her affection for you will definitely go up."

Kotori's voice sounded in his ear. Shido acknowledged her, then turned toward Lingmeng. With the coaster moving so fast, he could barely keep his eyes open.

"Lingmeng..." But when Shido managed to open his eyes and check whether she looked frightened, he found her perfectly calm. She showed no trace of panic.

Not only that, her eyes were closed, her head hung forward, and she was snoring softly in a steady rhythm. There was no doubt about it: she had fallen asleep.

"Um... Kotori, I think Lingmeng's fallen asleep..."

Shido told Kotori with an embarrassed look.

"What?! Is she deaf?! How can she sleep somewhere like that? (╯‵□′)╯︵┴─┴"

Seated in the Command Seat aboard the Fraxinus, Kotori bit straight through the Chupa Chups in her mouth when she heard him.

"I wish I knew." Shido could only give a helpless, wry smile.

Before long, the roller coaster reached the station. The sound of it stopping worked like an alarm clock, waking Lingmeng.

"Huh? We're already back?" Lingmeng asked in surprise as she looked around.

"You only just noticed?" Shido was speechless.

"Shido, take Lingmeng on the roller coaster again!" Kotori snatched up the microphone and spoke excitedly.

"Isn't that a bit much?" Shido looked troubled.

"Enough excuses. Unless you want more people to hear about your embarrassing past, do as I say!"

"Fine..."

Shido lowered his head, as if resigning himself to his fate. It seemed his little sister was determined to go head-to-head with Lingmeng.

Scratching his cheek, Shido asked awkwardly, "Lingmeng... would you mind riding it again?"

"Uh... sure." Lingmeng nodded, baffled.

Didn't you just tell me we shouldn't keep riding the same thing? Why are you contradicting yourself now?

With that thought, Lingmeng rode the roller coaster with Shido once more. She didn't fall asleep this time, but her expression remained utterly steady, leaving Shido no opening.

And just like that, the coaster reached the station again.

"Kotori..."

"Ride it again! Keep riding until you manage to hold her hand!"

Kotori cut Shido off before he could finish.

"Got it..." Shido replied with a complicated expression, then invited Lingmeng aboard once more.

And so, for more than an hour, Shido repeated that hellish ride. The result was the same every time: Lingmeng showed no reaction at all, while Shido was reaching his limit.

"Hey, Shido. Looks like the roller coaster doesn't work on Lingmeng."

Kotori's voice sounded in his ear. Just as Shido thought she was finally letting him off, her next words dragged him straight back to hell.

"Take Lingmeng to the drop tower and try that."

"Pfft—!" Shido clutched his chest, nearly coughing up blood. But no matter how badly he wanted to refuse, he still had to do as she said.

Another hour passed. Shido had finally escaped the torment of the roller coaster and drop tower. He brought Lingmeng over to a trash can beside a bench and began throwing up.

"Urgh... urgh..."

Seeing him like that, Lingmeng shrugged helplessly. "You were already at your limit. Why did you keep riding them? Do you have a death wish?"

"Ah... sorry." Shido wiped his mouth with a tissue, looking haggard.

Shido swore that after today, he wouldn't ride either of those inhuman contraptions again for months. Absolutely not!

"Well, at a time like this, maybe we should try something else to take your mind off it?"

"Then what do you think we should try, Lingmeng?"

Shido thought she had a point, so he asked.

"Well..." While Lingmeng was still trying to decide, a shout interrupted her.

Lingmeng and Shido looked toward the sound and saw someone bungee jumping not far away.

"Hey, Shido. I think I know what we should do."

Lingmeng spoke to Shido as she watched the bungee jumpers.

"Lingmeng, you're not thinking of making me..." Shido asked, cold sweat breaking out.

"That's~ right~!" Lingmeng gave him a wicked grin. A moment later, the two of them were on the bungee platform.

"Lingmeng... are you sure you want me to bungee jump...?"

A staff member had already secured Shido's legs with a thick rubber cord. He stood on the platform, glanced down, and spoke with a dark look on his face.

To be honest, Shido was a little afraid of bungee jumping. The thought of plunging from such a height was terrifying.

He was reluctant even on a normal day, let alone now, when the roller coaster and drop tower had left him exhausted in both body and mind.

"Relax, relax. Even if something goes wrong, I'll save you. Besides, you want to raise my affection for you, right? If you jump like a real man, I might like you a little more."

Lingmeng waved a hand casually and gave Shido a wicked grin.

Die, Vending Machine!

"Hey, Shido. If you want to win points with her, stop hesitating and jump."

Kotori's voice sounded in his ear. Hearing his own little sister say something so heartless left Shido with mixed feelings.

"Hey, I'm your brother. Wouldn't you be upset if something happened to me?"

Shido spoke quietly, but Kotori's reply was utterly calm.

"What are you afraid of? Didn't Lingmeng just say she'd protect you? With the Strongest Spirit beside you, you won't fall to your death. You might even survive a nuclear bomb."

"Uh..." Shido paused. Come to think of it, Kotori did have a point. With Lingmeng there watching him, he wouldn't be in any danger.

That may be true... but I'm still scared. ⊙﹏⊙

Shido glanced down again, sweating at the thought.

"Come on, Shido. Don't be scared. It's just a game."

Lingmeng patted his shoulder encouragingly.

"Lingmeng..."

"Listen to me. Games are meant to be enjoyed with a smile. Come on, give me one."

Lingmeng smiled, gesturing for Shido to smile too.

His face stiff, Shido managed a strained smile. "Ha... haha..."

"That's it. You can do it!"

"Huh?!"

After that stirring speech, Lingmeng turned Shido around herself and kicked him off the platform.

"Aaaaaaaaaah... |?Д?)))" Shido let out a wail as he plummeted through the air. He had never imagined Lingmeng would actually kick him off.

"Remember to smile and enjoy yourself, Shido!"

"How the hell am I supposed to smile?! Aaaaaah..."

After calling down to the falling Shido, Lingmeng glanced at the staff member beside her.

"This equipment's safe, right?"

"Rest assured, ma'am. This attraction has been open for years, and we've never had a single accident."

The staff member rubbed his hands together and answered with a smile.

"I see..."

Well, if they haven't had an accident in years, I don't need to keep an eye on him, do I?

Just as Lingmeng was thinking that, the rubber cord attached to Shido's legs snapped with a crack.

"Aaaaaah... Lingmeng, help me!" Realizing the cord had broken, Shido screamed again.

"..."

"Haah... haah... That scared me to death. The safety cord suddenly snapped! How terrifying is that?"

Shido sat on a bench, wiping cold sweat from his forehead. Perhaps because he had nearly died, his face was pale and his legs were still shaking.

"Seriously. They confidently assured me there was no problem, and then it broke a second later. How unreliable can you get?"

Lingmeng leaned against the bench, spreading her hands in irritation.

Just before Shido hit the ground, Lingmeng had used her power to bring him straight back to her side. If she had been even a little slower, he might have been reduced to a bloody mess.

Of course, Lingmeng had also erased the staff member's memory of her using her power. It would be a disaster if ordinary people found out about her.

Oddly enough, when she altered his memory, she discovered that the equipment really had gone years without a single accident. It had failed right after she asked about it. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"Ah... Someone like me really does bring disaster to everyone around me..."

Lingmeng muttered darkly.

"What disaster?" Shido asked, apparently not having heard her clearly.

"N-no, it's nothing. I'm a little thirsty, so I'm going to buy a drink."

Lingmeng hurried to cover up her remark. She pointed to a nearby vending machine, hoping to change the subject.

With that, Lingmeng ran straight toward the vending machine.