A flicker of astonishment crossed Luo Shu's face when he saw Mira Tsubakihara take out the Demon Heart.
He frowned and opened the system with a thought, preparing to cut his losses and run as he gave Miss Mira a suspicious look.
"Miss Mira, do you know what this thing is?"
"It calls itself a 'demon's heart.'"
At that, Mira Tsubakihara thought for a moment, then nodded apologetically to Luo Shu.
"Earlier, your friend-the lively young lady with white hair-asked me about it, Luo Shu. But I lied."
"I told her I didn't know where the ring was, but actually... I knew all along."
"It was in my pocket the whole time, inside the gift box. It made me forget about it after work earlier, but later, it made me remember on its own."
"..." Luo Shu fell silent at Mira Tsubakihara's words, then asked, "Then why are you showing it to me now?"
Recalling what Tachibana Kirika had said about the Demon Heart's side effects, Luo Shu suddenly understood.
The ring could block women's memories of it, making them forget its existence. But if it could block those memories, it could naturally restore them as well.
For some reason, after making Mira Tsubakihara forget, the Demon Heart had made her remember again, leading to their current situation.
Across from him, Mira Tsubakihara hesitated at his question, then held out the box containing the ring and spoke in a slightly troubled tone.
"You might not believe me, Luo Shu, but this ring seems to be 'alive.'"
"Alive?" Luo Shu lowered his gaze to the ring in front of him.
He didn't reach for it. In fact, if possible, he wanted to put more distance between himself and the ring.
The moment Mira Tsubakihara said the ring had once made her forget its existence, Luo Shu had felt there was something sinister about it.
Yet, though he wasn't sure whether he was imagining it, he kept feeling that the eye inside the ring looked somewhat "fawning" as it gazed at him.
Am I imagining it...? As Luo Shu pondered that, Mira Tsubakihara explained uncertainly.
"Actually, when I came back to the apartment, I'd already texted my family's bodyguards..."
Through Mira Tsubakihara's explanation, Luo Shu learned what had happened from another perspective.
It turned out that Mira Tsubakihara had considered the risks of returning to her apartment. She had simply believed it would be safer and prevent innocent people from getting hurt.
That was because the tenants of apartments 201, 301, and 305 were all female bodyguards trained by Japan's government agencies, apparently of the "same caliber as the prime minister's."
Their daily job was to take turns protecting Mira Tsubakihara from nearby.
This seemed to be one of the conditions she had agreed upon with her grandmother in exchange for being allowed to live independently.
Mira Tsubakihara's original plan had therefore been to hurry home and let the bodyguards, who had received her message, deal with the stalker behind her while she left under their protection.
But when she reached the apartment entrance, the Demon Heart suddenly took the initiative to influence Mira Tsubakihara, prompting her to grab Luo Shu and ask for help.
Everything that followed was what Luo Shu had experienced.
With Luo Shu's unexpected involvement, he had taken Mira Tsubakihara to the fourth floor, then the fifth. Like the Hound pursuing them, they had missed the bodyguards coming out onto the third floor.
By the time Luo Shu reached the third floor from the fifth via the balcony emergency escape route, the female bodyguards had already found Mira Tsubakihara on the fifth floor and placed her under their protection.
After that, Luo Shu had shot the Hound on the fourth floor.
Because of the gunfire, Mira Tsubakihara had remained under the bodyguards' protection in apartment 503 throughout.
Meanwhile, patrolling government personnel had spotted Luo Shu because he had fired a gun. With them warning him and keeping him under guard, he had been unable to return to the fifth floor and could only cooperate, go downstairs, and leave with the police.
Once he had sorted everything out, Luo Shu covered his forehead and pressed it with his fingers to ease his headache before speaking.
"So even if I hadn't done anything, you would have been perfectly safe?"
"You've got the premise wrong, Luo Shu."
Mira Tsubakihara planted both hands on the table and brought her face closer to his. At this distance, her force of presence seemed to have received an enormous boost.
"To begin with, without your help, it's far from certain that the bodyguards and I could have handled such an inhuman opponent."
"So by going so far as to use a firearm and shooting the Hound dead before the Hound could escape, you genuinely protected my life."
"That means there's absolutely no question that you saved my life."
At Mira Tsubakihara's forceful, emphatic words, Luo Shu leaned back to put some distance between them and raised his hands as though surrendering.
"All right, I understand now. Yes, yes, I'm your lifesaver. Is that right?"
"Exactly. I'm glad you see it that way." Mira Tsubakihara took her hands off the table and settled back into her seat with a happy smile.
Seeing her like this, Luo Shu couldn't help feeling a little strange.
Who rushes to owe someone a life debt? How bizarre... Who knows how these heroines' minds work?
As he thought that, Luo Shu glanced down at the eye brimming with eagerness to please and frowned.
"Then.
..according to Miss Tsubakihara..."
"Mira. Call me Mira, or Miss Mira if you prefer."
Mira Tsubakihara held up her index finger in front of Luo Shu.
Luo Shu looked up at her, then corrected himself. "So, Miss Mira, this ring took the initiative to control you and make you approach me?"
"...That was what happened at the time, but it's different now." Mira Tsubakihara paused inexplicably, then emphasized the latter half of her sentence.
Luo Shu glanced at her, but didn't dwell on it. Instead, he frowned. "That's very suspicious, coming to me so eagerly... uh..."
"What is it?" Seeing Luo Shu suddenly fall silent, Mira Tsubakihara looked over curiously.
At that moment, remembering the two times he had lost the Lucky Wallet, Luo Shu realized something was amiss. After brushing her off with a casual "Nothing," he contacted the system that called itself his "divine servant" and asked:
Did the wallet and the ring both realize there was something special about me, and that's why they took the initiative to approach me?
[Ding-!] [Answer: Under certain conditions, Abyssal Artifacts possessing "sentience" will take the initiative to approach the host, seeking further evolution.]
...I don't think I'm capable of making artifacts like these evolve right now.
Despite that thought, the confusion in Luo Shu's mind cleared.
So those impressive-sounding titles of his, "Lord of the Divine Pantheon" and "future God King," did come with at least a few perks!
But judging by the system's explanation, why did these sentient Abyssal Artifacts seem to be looking for a powerful backer?
Why do I feel like you're more qualified to be my backers...? Luo Shu grumbled inwardly, then hesitated before addressing Mira Tsubakihara, who was watching him.
"Let me ask again. Are you sure you want to give me this ring?"
"It's a little embarrassing to admit, but even if you give me an Abyssal Artifact like this, what I can offer in return probably won't match its value."
Even if he could get it for free, Luo Shu didn't think taking a heroine's belongings for nothing was a good idea. After all, he still coveted her points, so naturally, he wanted to avoid damaging their relationship as much as possible.
"No, I never really wanted anything in return. Besides, the ring wanted to go to you in the first place..."
Mira Tsubakihara nodded and was just about to urge Luo Shu to pick up the ring when she suddenly paused. She gave it a suspicious look, seemingly remembering something, and asked another question.
"But if you really feel bad about it, you could simply tell me about this ring as repayment."
At that, Mira Tsubakihara asked in bewilderment, "What special ability does this ring actually have? Why do I always feel so uneasy whenever I come into contact with it?"
Hearing that, Luo Shu wanted to explain, but the words caught in his throat.
If I remember correctly... this ring's ability is to 'hypnotize women.'
-This is a lethal question I absolutely can't answer!!!
Before you continue