Tripping over her own feet

And what if her classmates got the wrong idea?

"No, no... I can't do it..."

Kobeni Higashiyama shook her head, saying she couldn't manage it.

"What's so hard about it? It's a great chance to get closer to Asaba. If you're too shy, just try to get past it. Or is there something you're worried about, little Kobeni?"

After hesitating for a while, Kobeni Higashiyama finally told Rika Matsumoto what was worrying her.

"It's just that if the other classmates get the wrong idea, it'll definitely cause trouble for Asaba..."

She didn't mind if people misunderstood her, but she didn't want to cause trouble for Asaba.

"Huh? Would it? I don't think so. I think Asaba likes you."

Rika Matsumoto said.

"Well..."

Although Kobeni Higashiyama had vaguely sensed that herself, she kept feeling it was just wishful thinking.

"Don't worry. Don't overthink it. You're just bringing him some water."

Rika Matsumoto encouraged Kobeni Higashiyama.

She knew little Kobeni's personality well, and she also knew that little Kobeni definitely liked Asaba. But her personality made it hard for her to make any progress, so as her friend, Rika wanted to give her a hand.

"Okay..."

Watching Asaba Kotone run, Kobeni Higashiyama wrestled with herself for a while before finally making up her mind.

Asaba Kotone was running laps. Although he was holding back considerably, he still ended up taking the lead.

Gotō Iwen had initially been out in front, but Asaba Kotone gradually overtook him.

Although Gotō Iwen had already made a contract with the Jealousy Devil, his physical abilities remained the same as usual when he wasn't using the devil's power, so he couldn't compare to Asaba Kotone.

Watching Asaba Kotone overtake him and run ahead, Gotō Iwen felt jealousy rise within him again.

He gradually realized that something was very wrong with him, and his expression changed. Why was even something this trivial making him so intensely jealous?

Normally, he wouldn't have cared about something like this that had nothing to do with devils.

Most importantly, he realized that his emotions were beyond his control, and jealousy came far too easily.

Gotō Iwen somewhat regretted making a contract with the Jealousy Devil. Its influence on him was more severe than he had imagined.

He still hadn't studied devils enough. He had no idea that making a contract with a devil could affect his emotions, and he had never encountered any precedent for it.

Perhaps this was why making unauthorized contracts with devils was illegal. Still, as long as he didn't hurt anyone, nothing much would happen to him. Japan wasn't particularly strict about this, and quite a few private Devil Hunters had made unauthorized contracts with devils.

Now that he had gained more knowledge about devils worth researching, Gotō Iwen grew excited and stopped worrying about the rest.

The contract had already been made anyway, so there was no way to back out. What mattered was that he could study more about devils.

After finally finishing the last lap, Asaba Kotone barely felt tired at all.

Just then, Rika Matsumoto gave Kobeni Higashiyama a gentle nudge.

"Come on, hurry up. It'll be our turn to run soon."

Only then did Kobeni Higashiyama walk toward Asaba Kotone with a bottle of water. A little sweat appeared on her face, and her grip on the bottle tightened slightly. She was clearly nervous, and her mind was occupied as well.

Seeing Kobeni Higashiyama approaching with water, Asaba Kotone was about to reach out to take it.

But just as Kobeni Higashiyama was about to reach him, she accidentally stepped on her right foot with her left and tripped over her own feet.

Fortunately, Kobeni Higashiyama's fall looked very slow to him, and he reached out in time to catch her.

He caught the water bottle before it hit the ground with one hand and grabbed Kobeni Higashiyama's arm with the other. Then she fell into his arms.

Asaba Kotone reacted quickly, however, and immediately steadied Kobeni Higashiyama on her feet. She hadn't even realized what had happened yet, and the other classmates hadn't noticed that brief moment either.

Only Rika Matsumoto, who had been watching Kobeni Higashiyama the entire time, saw little Kobeni fall into Asaba's arms. Rika Matsumoto found it rather absurd that little Kobeni's astonishing ability to trip over her own feet had actually proved so useful at a time like this.

"Thanks."

Asaba Kotone unscrewed the cap of the water bottle in his hand, took a sip, and then went off to the side to rest.

Next, it was the girls' turn to run.

Kobeni Higashiyama remained rooted to the spot. Did I just... fall into Asaba's arms?

It had happened so suddenly that, for a moment, she wondered whether it had really happened at all.

She only started moving when the PE teacher called for them to gather.

Only then did Kobeni Higashiyama become certain that it really had happened.

Once the girls started running laps, the boys were free to do whatever they wanted, as long as they didn't leave the grounds.

Asaba Kotone had nothing in particular he wanted to do, so he sat there waiting for class to end.

At twelve thirty, as class was about to end, the boys and girls first returned to the classroom and changing room to change back into their uniforms before going to eat.

Just like the day before, Asaba Kotone gave Kobeni Higashiyama some extra food, taking out some of the desserts and drinks he had stored in the Kamui Dimension.

"Go ahead and eat. I need to step out for a bit."

Asaba Kotone said.

"Th... thank you!"

Kobeni Higashiyama felt terribly embarrassed about always eating the things Asaba gave her, but in the end, she couldn't resist the temptation of delicious food. All she could do was wonder how she could repay him.

Asaba Kotone now planned to visit the Library and buy some books to keep in the clubroom.

Students generally weren't allowed to leave campus freely during the lunch break, but Asaba Kotone clearly didn't fall into that "general" category.

When he walked out through the school gates, the security guard didn't stop him at all.

After leaving the school, he immediately entered the Kamui Dimension and brought Pochita out for some fresh air.

It wasn't convenient to let Pochita out at school, but outside, it didn't matter.

Asaba Kotone was looking forward to meeting the Control Devil, the War Devil, and the Famine Devil. These three members of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse had all come to the Human World seeking Pochita, the Chainsaw Devil. This was also one of the main reasons he kept Pochita by his side.

As for the Death Devil, that remained unknown for now, but Pochita would probably draw that devil out sooner or later as well.