I won't laugh

"If you want to fight me, wait until your injuries heal..."

"But before that, let me borrow your points!"

Ryu Ishigori lay on the bed, still unable to move half his body freely. His eyebrows rose at those words.

He had seen shameless people before, even four hundred years ago.

But someone who could say, "After beating you, I'll clean you out while I'm at it," so naturally was a rare find.

Pop.

Kogane popped out beside Long Xi.

This time, though, instead of hovering close to him as usual, it flew into a corner, flapping its wings with great restraint and keeping a safe distance.

Long Xi stared at it for three seconds.

"Don't tell me you're still holding a grudge over those two slaps I gave you?"

Kogane shrank farther into the corner.

Long Xi fell silent.

He really couldn't understand it. Even game administrators could be traumatized?

Kogane: Do you know how much psychological damage that slap did to a game administrator?

Ryu Ishigori chuckled a few times, finally working out why the other man had spared his life.

"Is it a new rule?"

"I see. Your companions added it, didn't they?"

"Without that rule, you would've killed us, right?..."

Looking at Long Xi, who still wore that carefree grin, Ryu Ishigori finally smiled helplessly too.

"I wouldn't kill you. Compared to five points, making friends with someone as strong as you is a much better deal, isn't it?"

"Especially with Takako Uro around. Her injuries haven't healed yet, but once they do, she might become a major headache again. Then the three of us can gang up on her!"

Ryu Ishigori clicked his tongue, then called out softly.

"That woman hasn't handed hers over yet, so I'll go first... They're your spoils, after all. Oh, and don't tell that damn woman. Tell her I gave them to you willingly!"

His Kogane flew out too. Apart from having the same hairstyle as him, it wasn't particularly different from the others.

Takako Uro and her companion came over as well, but Ishigori showed no reaction, as though he had expected it.

"Your Kogane has quite a personality. They say these bugs change their personalities to match their users..."

"Why doesn't this little bug resemble me at all?"

Without another word, Ryu Ishigori transferred all his points.

He looked at Long Xi's expression, which seemed to say, There's obviously nothing wrong with me, so why are you still acting like this?

For a second, he felt a little sorry for the bug.

All of Ryu Ishigori's points came through, and Long Xi's balance jumped to 200.

[Total points: 200]

Ryu Ishigori looked at the number, then at Takako Uro.

"When did you transfer yours...?"

Takako Uro turned her face away, and Ryu Ishigori looked back at Long Xi.

Long Xi finally lost his composure and chuckled.

"What are you laughing at?"

Long Xi put on a serious face, instantly adopting the demeanor of a tough guy, though even his voice turned cutesy.

"I remembered something that made me happy..."

"What made you happy?"

"I won my battle..."

Ryu Ishigori fell even more silent.

"Pfft!" The person who cracked up in the room was Yuta Okkotsu, who had always seemed utterly aloof.

"What are you laughing at?"

Yuta Okkotsu's smile brimmed with the joy of Thank goodness.

He rubbed his head and answered helplessly...

"I won my battle too..."

Ryu Ishigori froze completely. He spread his hands and stared at the two of them, looking as though he wanted to ask whether they were messing with him.

"Did you fight the same battle?"

"Yes... yes..."

"Pfft!" Both of them cracked up at once, and so did the other two girls in the room, even though they had already tried using every muscle in their bodies to hold it in.

Even Zero wouldn't have been able to keep a straight face at this scene.

Long Xi noticed the inconsistency first and spoke up before anyone else.

"No... it was the same cockroach..."

"..."

"You've clearly been laughing this whole time! You haven't stopped!"

"You've gone too far! I've put up with you long enough!"

"I won the fight. You know cockroaches, right? They're really hard to beat..."

"You're obviously laughing at me! You haven't stopped!"

Long Xi and Yuta Okkotsu stood on either side, scratching their heads, putting their hands on their hips, and stretching.

They perfectly demonstrated how people pretended to be busy when things got awkward.

"Ryu Ishigori, you know... we're modern people..."

"Okkotsu might be different, but I've undergone rigorous training. No matter how funny something is, I won't laugh."

"Unless I can't help it..."

The moment he finished speaking, he broke into another utterly shameless, unvarnished grin that rivaled Mahito's and Sukuna's.

All right, now he couldn't even be bothered to pretend.

Happy now?!

You cold, heartless bastard! I'll never forgive you! Never!

Ryu Ishigori went from pale to red, then from red to purple, before finally beginning to give off a faint blue glow.

Anyone who didn't know better might have thought he was about to unleash Slush Shockwave.

That series of changing expressions was second only to the gallant Jiraiya's.

Takako Uro had initially enjoyed watching Ryu Ishigori get humiliated, only for Long Xi's next remark to drag her into it too.

"See? Once you've transferred your points, you're one of us."

"Who's one of you? You stole them!"

"Lawful inheritance of the spoils."

"A loss is a loss. Technically, even you count as spoils!"

"Mr. Long Xi, that sounds so perverted..."

"Assistant, shut up."

Yuta Okkotsu lowered his head to work on the bandages, his shoulders giving a slight shake.

Takako Uro turned toward him. Faced with this descendant of the Fujiwara Clan, she was clearly in a foul mood.

"What are you laughing at?"

Yuta Okkotsu looked up, his tone a little lighter.

"I just thought you don't look like people who were trying to kill each other a moment ago..."

"You look more like friends..."

"Thank goodness..."

Riko Amanai nodded.

But following the principle that animal friends weren't allowed to talk, Long Xi wisely picked up a drink from beside him and made her choose silence.

The livestream assistant even visibly hissed at him!

The room stayed chaotic for a while, but the atmosphere really did relax.

Ryu Ishigori leaned against the headboard, listening to everyone trade remarks. For once, he didn't find it noisy.

Four hundred years ago, he had met many sorcerers and eaten plenty of so-called full-course meals.

But sitting in a broken-down room after a fight, fighting over bandages and chances to speak, was a rather fresh experience.

He looked at the Kogane beside Long Xi, and curiosity finally drove him to ask.

"What do you need so many points for?"

Long Xi had been prodding Kogane with a finger. He stopped at the question.

"They'll have specific uses at specific times."

"Speak normally."

"Saving them."

Long Xi answered without hesitation. As for exactly what rules he needed?

He had already prepared three thousand rules targeting a certain King of Curses!!!!

"Rules become more valuable the later things get. For instance, we could have Kogane add a rule banning domains inside the barriers."

Ryu Ishigori's expression grew peculiar as he looked at him.

"Isn't that just flipping the table because you can't use a domain yourself?"

Long Xi clapped his hands.

"Congratulations. Correct."

Riko Amanai covered her forehead.

"You're actually admitting it!"

"If I can't do it, I can't do it. Pretending won't let me expand one." Long Xi sat on an overturned crate.

"Besides, I wouldn't be the only one benefiting from a domain ban."

As he spoke, he thought of a certain fellow in the Tokyo barrier who was a Special Grade, yet one of the few Special Grades who couldn't expand a domain.

If this rule really went through, it would be targeted relief for that man too.

Comments drifted past beside him.

[LOL, this streamer lives by one principle: if you can't win, change the patch.]

[Domains? Banned. Ban them all.]

[No loving deer! What's wrong with Lady Konan?!]

Long Xi glanced at them, then chose to feature the third comment. Lady Konan was the right choice!

Afterward, he pressed his ribs, and the pain made his fingers pause.

The battle in Sendai really had drained him dry.

Especially that strike the woman behind him had aimed at his chest. His bones probably still weren't back in place...

He would have to wait for them to settle back into position. Fortunately, he had indirectly cut off her hand, so he had gotten his revenge.

But if he wanted to fight the ones still to come...

The cards he currently held were nowhere near enough.

Yuta Okkotsu was the first to notice the change in his condition.

"Long Xi, you have another objective, don't you?"

The room grew a little quieter.

Long Xi raised his head and looked at them.

"I do."

Ryu Ishigori perked up.

"Who are you going to fight?"

Once again, Long Xi flashed a smile that would drag everyone aboard his pirate ship!

"The King of Curses."

"Ryomen Sukuna."

(The college entrance exams started here today too. As a graduating high school senior, I naturally went to take them, so today's update was a little late.)

(While I'm at it, I hope all the other seniors taking the exams with me get good results and make it into a good university!)

(I have a feeling we're going to win this time!)