"I was wondering why you suddenly disappeared. What are you doing here?"
"Making money."
"I've never seen you win."
"How's work going?"
"What a pain. You make me sound unemployed."
"Oh, right. How's Megumi been lately?"
"...Who's that?"
Smack!
"Bastards, bastards! How dare you treat me with such disrespect!"
Riko Amanai, who had been tossed onto the floor, pointed at Igarashi Amayo and the other two as she shouted.
Kuroi hurriedly helped Riko Amanai up and told her, "You've misunderstood, young lady. These two are on our side."
Riko Amanai froze, but quickly recovered and said haughtily, "That still gives them no reason to disrespect me."
Sitting on the sofa, Satoru Gojo turned to look at Riko Amanai in surprise. "I really didn't expect you to be this lively. I had some concerns, thinking you'd be depressed about your upcoming assimilation. You're surprisingly cheerful."
Riko Amanai stood up, gave Satoru Gojo a contemptuous look, and said, "What a lowly person's way of thinking."
"Huh?"
"Listen well." Riko Amanai flipped herself up onto the sofa, pointed one hand toward the sky, and declared proudly, "Lord Tengen is me, and I am Lord Tengen. Though some, like you, confuse 'assimilation' with 'death,' let me tell you, that way of thinking is completely wrong. Through the 'assimilation' of assimilation, I shall become Lord Tengen, and Lord Tengen shall become me. My will and my soul shall live on after assimilation! I shall become Lord Amanai!!"
"Pfft. Dumbass."
On the large bed nearby, Igarashi Amayo suddenly laughed with his eyes shut, shaking his head as he delivered his verdict.
"Hahahahaha! Amayo's assessments always hit the nail on the head! Hahahahaha!" Satoru Gojo and Suguru Geto burst out laughing together.
Riko Amanai flushed red and turned her gaze toward Igarashi Amayo, who was sleeping nearby. "You kidney-deficient bastard! How dare you insult me! Once I become Lord Tengen, I'll make you pay!"
Igarashi Amayo rolled over indifferently and covered his head with the pillow. A voice that sounded utterly perfunctory came from beneath it. "Oh, really? That's so impressive."
"How dare you show contempt for Lord Tengen! Unforgivable!" Seeing him brush her off so casually, Riko Amanai's little face turned pink with anger.
"Sigh. Can't even sleep in peace." Igarashi Amayo sat up, scratched his head, and gave an enormous yawn, then lit a cigarette and walked over to Riko Amanai.
Their faces were very close, but Riko Amanai showed no fear and stared straight at Igarashi Amayo.
The atmosphere grew increasingly tense. Kuroi stamped her feet anxiously nearby, but no matter how she tugged at Satoru Gojo and Suguru Geto, neither budged.
"Heh. You've got some guts." Igarashi Amaha patted Riko Amanai on the shoulder, straightened up, and headed outside, saying, "If you suddenly don't want to assimilate anymore, have them call me. Tengen or whatever, they wouldn't have the guts to go to Southern Europe and snatch someone."
As his words faded, Igarashi Amaha's retreating figure disappeared too, leaving Riko Amanai frozen in place.
Suguru Geto patted Satoru Gojo's shoulder and smiled. "See? What did I tell you? Amaha's a good guy. He wouldn't just stand by and do nothing."
Satoru Gojo nodded. "That may be true, but did Amaha just ditch us and skip work again?"
"That bastard Igarashi Amaha!"
Ring, ring! Ring, ring!
"Huh? Shouldn't we hurry back to Jujutsu High, where it's safe?" Satoru Gojo said into the phone, unable to understand.
"I'd like to do that too, but these are Lord Tengen's orders. We're to fulfill every request Riko Amanai makes."
Beep...
"Tch. Aren't we spoiling her a little too much?" Satoru Gojo muttered impatiently.
Suguru Geto walked over, patted his shoulder, and sighed. "Don't say that, Satoru. We may be accommodating him, but after assimilation, she'll become Lord Tengen and serve as the most stable cornerstone of Jujutsu High's barriers. In other words, she'll never see her family, friends, or anyone else important to her again. Let her enjoy this last bit of time. As for those dangerous guys, she's still got us. After all, we're the strongest, aren't we?"
Satoru Gojo scratched his head. "Yeah, yeah, I get it. Still, that guy Amayo sure has it easy. If he were here, I wouldn't have to keep Limitless active all the time."
"Yeah. Things would be a lot easier with him here."
"That bastard. The two of us have to beat him up." Satoru Gojo suddenly remembered something, rubbed his cheek, and spoke through gritted teeth.
"Can we beat him?"
"Probably."
Meanwhile, elsewhere, inside a fried dumpling shop.
"They're off! The racers in lanes one and two are closer to the inside and have made a strong start!" The boat race commentary came from the television.
"What? They haven't gone back to Jujutsu High? Lucky me." A man wearing a tight black workout shirt spoke to the person on the other end of his phone.
"Now the bounty won't just draw ordinary idiots. It'll draw capable idiots."
"Will that be all right?" came the question over the phone.
"What do you mean?" Toji Fushiguro picked up a fried dumpling with his chopsticks and tossed it into his mouth. "Heh. The target has that Gojo Clan brat with her. A combination of the Six Eyes and Limitless hasn't appeared in centuries. Still, there are ways to deal with that. The tricky one is that guy."
"The man known as the King of Southern Europe?" The person on the other end fell silent for a moment.
"Oh!!" An astonished cry came from the television, and Toji Fushiguro turned his head toward it.
"Kono in boat three has pulled off a spectacular comeback, surging straight into first place!"
Toji Fushiguro's lips curled up. "Yeah, he's one impressive brat. Though maybe not necessarily."
"On his second attempt, he's finally overtaken the lead!"
A teasing voice came over the phone. "Your luck seems pretty good. That guy has already left the target's side."
Toji Fushiguro paused. Having started to stand, he sat back down, his tone shifting as he asked, "Oh? Where did he go?"
"We don't know yet. We can't track him."
Unsurprised, Toji Fushiguro nodded. "Right. Asking you people to find him really is a bit much. Still, if possible, try to keep track of his whereabouts. That way..."
"Oh dear! Boat three has lost its balance, and Yamazaki in boat two has pulled away! Yamazaki in boat two crosses the finish line in the lead!"
"Hello? Why'd you stop talking?"
"Looks like there's no need to look." Beep! Looking at the man standing in front of him, Toji Fushiguro hung up, tapped the table, and said with a smile, "Looks like you've got plenty of free time."
Anything you can give would be appreciated. Many thanks.