Chapter 83

Kotori's teasing voice reached his Kotori, but Shido ignored her. After all, no matter how beastly he was, he would never lay a hand on a minor or his own sister.

Even if I were to actually take action, it would be against people like Tohka, Reine, Lingmeng... (///ˊ?ˋ///)

No, what am I thinking!

Realizing he was thinking something Pervert, Shido slapped his face hard, forcing himself to calm down.

"Shall we go to your house?"

Ignoring Shido's actions, which seemed perplexing to outsiders, Lingmeng shrugged.

"Well, that works too. There are so many people in the restaurant, Yoshino would probably be scared if she went, right? What do you think, Yoshino?"

Yoshino nodded slightly without saying a word.

----------------This is the dividing line for the relocation

"Hmm... Let me see. There are eggs, chicken, and white rice... Ah, how about making oyakodon (chicken and egg rice bowl)?"

While sorting through the ingredients in the plastic bag, Shido spoke to the two people watching TV in the living room.

"Oh, whatever."

Lingmeng waved her hand casually.

At this moment, Yoshino was looking around with a face full of curiosity, seemingly very curious about everything.

After hearing Shido's question, he simply nodded weakly.

"Um... thank you..."

After obtaining the two girls' consent, Shido began cooking with practiced ease.

For Shido, who frequently spends time in the kitchen, these operations are already extremely familiar.

In just over ten minutes, the dish was ready.

Noticing the aroma wafting from the kitchen, Lingmeng squinted her eyes and said.

"It smells pretty good."

"Haha... it's just so-so."

Shido smiled and brought the oyakodon (chicken and egg rice bowl) to the table.

"You two come and eat."

"Okay, I understand..."

"Um..."

She stood up timidly from the sofa Yoshino followed Lingmeng to the dining table to sit down.

"I'm going to start eating."

"I... I'm going to start eating..."

Lingmeng and Yoshino simultaneously clasped their hands together, then each picked up a chopstick and a spoon and took a bite.

"Well, it tastes pretty good. After all, being a good wife and mother is one of the few virtues you have, Shido."

Are you praising me or insulting me?

Shido's lips twitched slightly, then, as if he had thought of something, he turned his gaze to Yoshino.

"How is Yoshino? Is it delicious?"

"...!"

Suddenly her eyes widened, Yoshino slammed her hands on the table.

"It seems that Shido's cooking is surprisingly to Yoshino's liking?"

Seeing Yoshino's surprisingly strong reaction, Lingmeng muttered softly.

Well, she could do it if she wanted to, but she's too lazy, so let's just forget about it.

It's more appropriate to let Shido, the stay-at-home husband, do the laundry and cooking.

Um... normally, these kinds of things should be done by girls, right?

"..."

After unconsciously meeting Shido's gaze, Yoshino subconsciously looked away.

After that, seemingly too afraid to speak, Yoshino simply gave Shido a thumbs-up in praise.

Chapter Thirty-One: Twisted Mercy

"Yoshino, I have a question I'd like to ask you, is that alright?"

"We've finished eating everything," Lingmeng, sitting next to Yoshino, suddenly spoke up.

"Is there... a problem... if I knew...?"

Yoshino lowered her head and stammered as she spoke.

"Does that Yoshino hand puppet hold any special meaning for you? You seem quite attached to it."

After Lingmeng asked the question, Shido also cast a curious glance at her. After all, if he could get some information from Yoshino, it would be of great help in the strategy.

In response, Yoshino simply gripped the hem of her clothes tightly and murmured softly.

"Yoshino is my friend... She doesn't want to be as weak as me... She's strong and handsome... She's the ideal version of myself..."

Yoshino... is my hero...

(Ah... this...)

When Yoshino heard Yoshino Lingmeng her ideal version of herself, the corner of her mouth twitched involuntarily.

After all, from the first time they met, Yoshino's only impression on it was that she was a chatterbox and a troublemaker.

She really couldn't imagine a cute little girl like Yoshino turning into that. Just thinking about it made her shudder...

To prevent her fantasies from becoming reality, Lingmeng said with embarrassment.

"Um... is that so? But I don't think Yoshino necessarily has to become like that. Look at you, aren't you doing just fine now?"

"No... No... Someone as weak as me..."

Yoshino shook her head in a declining manner.

But at that moment, Shido interjected.

"No—I don't think Yoshino is weak at all. If I had to choose, I prefer the way you are now..."

Shido shifted his gaze to the side and awkwardly scratched his cheek.

Although Yoshino does become exceptionally enthusiastic when wearing the puppet, Shido doesn't really want to see it again.

After all, it was Tohka who caused all Tohka trouble.

In contrast, Yoshino is definitely much cuter when she's not wearing the puppet.

Lingmeng nodded vigorously in agreement.

"Yes, yes, Shido and I are in the same Shido on that point."

As if reacting to Shido and Lingmeng's words, Yoshino stared wide-eyed in surprise, then shyly covered her face with her hat.

"Yoshino... what's wrong?"

Shido tried to get a better look at Yoshino's face while asking her a question.

Then Yoshino released her grip on the hood of her cloak and slowly raised her head.

"Sorry... this is the first time I've heard someone say that... so I'm quite happy..."

"Is... is that so?"

Yoshino nodded vigorously.

Since she's an elf, she's always attacked by ASTs for causing Spacequake whenever she comes to this world, so it's normal that she's never heard anyone say that, right?

"Wow, those words just now seem to have increased Yoshino's affection for you quite a bit. And you were so calm, so the training we did for you really worked?"

"Probably..."

Shido gave an ambiguous reply, while glancing at Lingmeng beside him.

At this moment, Lingmeng was resting her chin on her hand, her eyes half-closed.

"Then why didn't you fight back when you were attacked by AST?"

Lingmeng asked this question.

As a spirit, Yoshino should have been able to easily annihilate all the ASTs when facing their attacks, but instead she simply ran away, which is something that Lingmeng finds very troubling.

Lingmeng Kotori mention yesterday that Yoshino's Identification Code is Hermit, and she is the gentlest of all known spirits.

Most of the ASTs who fought against her suffered relatively few casualties; their casualty rate was even lower than that of Lingmeng.

Lingmeng doesn't harm AST simply because she used to be human and doesn't want to kill anyone.

However, it's a bit puzzling that Yoshino basically has no connection with AST, would do this.

Yoshino simply shook her head slightly at this.

"... I hate pain. I also hate... scary things. I think... those people must also... hate pain and scary... things. So... I..."

It's easy to miss if you're not paying close attention; the voice is faint and hoarse.

Upon hearing Yoshino's answer, not only Shido, but even Lingmeng felt a pang of heartache.

Wow~ This child is so kind!

This was a shared idea between Shido and Lingmeng.

Indeed, this child is simply an Angel! To tolerate AST's attacks just for this reason—could an ordinary person do that!?

But Yoshino didn't finish her sentence; she continued speaking, her whole body trembling.

"But... I'm... weak... and a coward. Whenever I feel pain... or fear, and don't know what to do... my mind goes completely blank... and then I do really awful things to everyone..."

Gradually, the sound turned into sobs in the latter half.

"So... Yoshino is my hero... Even when I'm scared... Yoshino will tell me 'It's okay.' And because of that... it really is okay... So..."

"...!"

Shido subconsciously bit his lip, his hands clenching into fists with such force that they almost bled.

Lingmeng, as if provoked by Yoshino's words, pulled her into her arms without saying a word.

"No! Yoshino, you're not weak at all! You're a very strong child! Don't worry, your brother, sister, and Shido will definitely help you find Yoshino. We'll bring your hero back!"

"That... that..."

Yoshino buried her face in Lingmeng's chest, feeling the sudden application of face wash, and was somewhat at a loss. Then she looked at Shido with pleading eyes.

However, Shido didn't seem to notice Yoshino's gaze; he simply stood up and walked to her side.

Then he gently stroked Yoshino's head with his hand.

"I swear, I will definitely find Yoshino and bring her back to you. But... you don't have to rely on Yoshino anymore."

"Huh...?"

Shido revealed a determined look in his eyes.

"I will never let pain or terror come near you again. Because I will be your hero!"

Shido said this. Although these words were not in line with his usual style, they were undoubtedly his truest thoughts.

Of course, Lingmeng shared the same thoughts as Shido.

Although the child before her possessed a saintly tolerance, surpassing even Lingmeng's, she was unwilling to bestow such compassion upon herself.

If things continue like this, her gentleness will eventually lead her into trouble.

This reminded Lingmeng of something someone had once told her, "Gentleness is a sin."

In order to prevent the girl's compassion and gentleness from becoming a sin, they must be the ones to bestow upon her the compassion that she never gave herself.