Leaving This Home

By then, Asaba Kotone had already teleported to the second floor and stood inside a wall with Intangibility active, watching Shinya Higashiyama's every move.

Standing outside Kobeni Higashiyama's bedroom, Shinya Higashiyama had no idea that Asaba Kotone was inside the wall behind him.

"Kobeni, your boyfriend's here to see you. His name's Asaba Kotone, right? Open the door."

Shinya Higashiyama knocked on the door, his gentle tone sounding fake and forced.

When Kobeni Higashiyama, who had locked herself in her room, heard that Asaba Kotone was here, she stirred beneath the covers where she had curled up.

She had never told her family that she had a boyfriend, and aside from Xiao Qian, none of them even knew she knew Asaba Kotone.

So she did not suspect anything when Shinya Higashiyama said that.

Kobeni Higashiyama opened the door, but she only saw her father, not Asaba.

Before she could ask, Shinya Higashiyama barged inside and locked the door behind him.

Kobeni Higashiyama froze in confusion, unsure what her father was trying to do.

By then, Asaba Kotone had also moved into the wall of Kobeni's room.

He could see the room clearly. With the curtains drawn over the window, it was a little dark inside.

Kobeni's room was tiny, with only a bed, a desk, and a small wardrobe. All the furniture looked old and worn.

Still, it was very clean, without any unpleasant smells. Clearly, Kobeni took good care of her personal hygiene.

Asaba Kotone could now see that Kobeni Higashiyama's eyes were red and swollen, with clearly visible bloodshot streaks and tear tracks still on her face.

Clearly, Kobeni had not slept well last night. She had probably spent a long time crying.

Asaba Kotone was already struggling to watch, but he held himself back.

This was not the right moment for him to reveal himself.

"Who would've thought? Our Kobeni's quite something, dating that Asaba Kotone."

Shinya Higashiyama smiled and said quietly, "But when he comes upstairs, you mustn't say anything you shouldn't about last night. Just tell him you were sick, so you didn't get up on time."

He had already formed a plan while bringing Asaba Kotone inside.

A powerful Devil Hunter was bound to have plenty of money, and he wanted Kobeni to gradually milk Asaba Kotone for cash.

That meant Asaba Kotone absolutely could not find out what had happened last night. Otherwise, his image would be ruined, and getting money out of him would become difficult.

"I... I understand..."

Kobeni Higashiyama was terrified of her father and did not dare disobey him.

"So, what happened last night that she shouldn't talk about?"

Just then, Asaba Kotone stepped out of the wall.

The sudden sound of Asaba Kotone's voice made Shinya Higashiyama jump.

"You! How did you get in here?!"

Shinya Higashiyama exclaimed in shock.

He had definitely locked the door, and he had not heard the slightest sound just now.

"Did you forget? I'm a Devil Hunter."

Asaba Kotone spoke coolly.

"..."

Shinya Higashiyama was speechless.

Of course he remembered that Asaba Kotone was a Devil Hunter, but he had never imagined he possessed an ability like this, allowing him to suddenly appear here from the living room without making a sound.

Cold sweat broke out on Shinya Higashiyama's face. The other man had heard everything he had just said. He was in serious trouble now.

Asaba Kotone looked at Kobeni Higashiyama and found her face filled with fear and distress.

He stepped forward and gently wrapped his arms around her, soothing her in a soft voice. "Don't be afraid. Tell me everything that happened last night."

Although he could roughly guess, he wanted to hear the details from Kobeni herself.

The sudden warmth of his embrace left Kobeni Higashiyama stunned.

She froze for a moment, and then her eyes welled up.

[Kobeni Higashiyama's affection +5%]

Shinya Higashiyama hurried out of the room in disgrace. It was not as though he could do anything to Asaba Kotone.

Asaba Kotone learned from Kobeni Higashiyama exactly what had happened last night.

After dinner last night, Kobeni had tried talking to her parents, saying that she owed a classmate a lot of favors and wanted to repay some of them.

In short, she had wanted a little money. Over something so trivial, her parents had given her a vicious scolding.

Afterward, all Kobeni could do was hide in her room and cry...

"Why were you so silly? Why did you tell them any of that?"

Asaba Kotone let out a faint sigh.

"Because... because I didn't want to keep taking your help without giving anything back, Asaba. Every time, there's nothing I can do, so I wanted to try talking it over with Mom and Dad."

Kobeni Higashiyama spoke through tears.

When Asaba had offered to help her yesterday, the reason she had said she would go home and think it over was that she had decided to try discussing it with her parents.

The result had left her bitterly disappointed...

Asaba Kotone felt a little helpless. How could Kobeni think there was nothing she could do?

If she wanted to, Kobeni could become a Devil Hunter at any time-and one with top-tier strength at that.

But because of her personality, Kobeni was usually just a timid, fragile, ordinary girl.

Her devil power probably played a part too. He remembered that in the original story, using it sent Kobeni's brain into such a high that it felt close to breaking. Perhaps that was also why she did not dare use it casually.

Without her devil power, Kobeni was simply a timid, fragile girl.

"Then can you tell me now? How do you really feel about this home?"

Asaba Kotone brought up the subject again.

"I want to... leave this home."

Kobeni Higashiyama sounded hesitant, but she still said it.

Life in this home was too painful and suffocating for her. If she could, she wanted to stay with Asaba.

"All right."

That was exactly what Asaba Kotone had been waiting to hear from Kobeni Higashiyama. "Rest in your room for now. I'll go downstairs and have a proper talk with your parents."

"Okay..."

Kobeni Higashiyama did not want to sit nearby and listen, either. That would make her feel terribly awkward and uncomfortable.

After closing Kobeni's door for her, Asaba Kotone went straight downstairs.

As soon as he came down, he saw the ugly look on Shinya Higashiyama's face. Gei Higashiyama's expression was hardly any better, since Shinya Higashiyama had already told her what had happened.

"Now, let's have a talk."

Asaba Kotone sat down at the table, his face expressionless.

Not knowing what to say, Shinya Higashiyama and Gei Higashiyama sat down across from Asaba Kotone.

"Kobeni has already told me she wants to leave this home, so I'll be taking her with me today. But you don't need to worry. I'll make sure she's well looked after."

"As for supporting you financially in the future, that will be entirely up to Kobeni. Do either of you have any objections?"

Asaba Kotone spoke bluntly.

Japan had no mandatory requirement to financially support one's parents, so it depended entirely on Kobeni's wishes.

Although it was understandable that the Higashiyama family, with more than a dozen members, was short on money, that did not justify treating Kobeni that way.

In the original story, even after Kobeni became a Public Safety Devil Hunter and earned plenty of money, her family still bled her dry. They were nothing short of utterly greedy vampires.