After hearing such an answer and making an analogy, Kisaragi Rin also gained an understanding of Medea and the others.
"Then try this."
Kisaragi Rin thought, and a golden projection appeared beside him, walking towards Esdeath.
Then, the golden projection was bounced back.
"Your strength has far surpassed mine."
Kisaragi Rin's face darkened a little, but he hadn't used his Paradise Coins yet, so he could still significantly improve his strength when he had free time.
"Isn't it natural for my strength to surpass yours? This way I can protect you."
Esdeath didn't think anything was wrong; she even reached out and wrapped her arms around Kisaragi's neck, whispering sweet nothings, and her wet lips were already pressed against his.
"Teacher also wants to kiss Kisaragi," Shizuka Marikawa said with a troubled expression, making Lily's ears perk up and wiggle.
"Teacher? Student?"
Lily sniffed out something interesting.
Just then, a knock on the door suddenly sounded.
Kisaragi Rin paused his intimacy with Esdeath, picked her up, and set her aside, preparing to open the door.
"Saber, stop eating. Yukinoshita Yukino is here to pick you up."
Having already seen who was outside the door through Transparent World, Kisaragi Rin pulled Saber, ready to send her off.
Hmm... Kisaragi Rin was very worried that Saber might inadvertently ignite a love triangle.
"Kisaragi-san, I haven't had dinner yet."
"My King, you can go back to the Yukinoshita Yukino residence to eat."
Kisaragi Rin opened the door, placed the bewildered Saber into Yukinoshita Yukino's arms, and after doing all this, immediately closed the door without giving Yukinoshita Yukino a chance to speak.
Yukinoshita Yukino: "..."
"Saber, let's go."
The evening breeze blew over the ahoge on her head, and Yukinoshita Yukino led Saber down the stairs. Her sister, Yukinoshita Haruno, was leaning against the luxury car behind her.
"Did you ask?"
"He doesn't want to see guests today."
"Yukino, you don't seem to have much pull."
"..." Yukinoshita Yukino stopped chatting and pulled Saber into the back seat.
"Saber, I've learned a cooking Skill."
Yukinoshita Yukino said demurely.
"I will taste it."
Saber's ahoge swayed.
The car started and drove away, and Kisaragi Rin also withdrew his gaze.
He had enough on his plate today and really didn't want to interact with Yukinoshita Yukino's sister.
Seeing Mary float past him as if nothing had happened, Kisaragi Rin looked at the apartment and realized that the place was no longer big enough to accommodate so many people.
Finding Busujima Saeko, Kisaragi Rin asked, "Should we move to a bigger house?"
"That will take time."
Busujima Saeko thought for a moment; even buying a house wasn't something that could be done on a whim.
Location, price, renovation—many things needed to be handled.
"Where should we move to?"
Kisaragi Rin was pondering this when the doorbell rang again.
Looking through Transparent World, Kisaragi Rin saw a deer standing outside the door.
Hmm... a deer.
Kisaragi Rin sighed and went to the door again to open it for it.
Unlike Shikanoko Noko, a girl with antlers typically found on male deer, the one outside the door was a very proper-looking deer, the kind you'd find in a zoo.
"Hello, Mr. Kisaragi, I am Tsunoda from Chiba Zoo."
"Last time, I was the one who drove you during the Great Deer Parade. You can call me Mr. Tsunoda."
The deer simply introduced itself.
Its mouth didn't move; it just looked at Kisaragi with dull eyes, using telepathy or something similar.
"Uh, Mr. Tsunoda, is there something you need this time?" Kisaragi Rin asked, and after a moment's thought, invited it into the house.
The deer couldn't sit down, so it just stood in the living room.
"I've come this time to invite Lord Kisaragi Rin to join Chiba Zoo."
Mr. Tsunoda said succinctly.
Upon hearing this, Kisaragi Rin scratched his head and asked his first question.
"Mr. Tsunoda, what is Shikanoko Noko's status at Chiba Zoo?"
No matter what, Shikanoko Noko had been a great benefactor to Kisaragi Rin.
When Kisaragi Rin first left Apocalypse of Academy and returned to the Main World, he had already encountered the strange Shikanoko Noko on the road. Shikanoko Noko not only didn't harm him but also helped him erase his traces.
Later, after leaving Demon Slayer, when Kisaragi Rin and Kanroji Mitsuri inadvertently went to the zoo, Shikanoko Noko even led him to participate in a ritual to gain a bit of luck.
And just after leaving the Fate World, that Shikanoko Noko even responded to his summons, killing the red suit in a way he couldn't understand, practically serving as Kisaragi's protector on his path to becoming an S-rank.
No matter how strange this protector was, the word 'gratitude' was already plastered on Kisaragi Rin's face.
Loyalty on the left, gratitude on the right.
Whether to join the organization or not, Kisaragi Rin still needed to inquire about Shikanoko Noko's status.
After all... the name Chiba Zoo already implied that it was primarily composed of non-human players.
Although an organization that dared to openly exist in Chiba City certainly wasn't a terrorist group, Kisaragi still needed to know if there were any high-level players who harbored extreme hatred towards humans.
Hmm... even in "The Secret Life of Pets," there were so many pets who hated humans because they were abandoned.
"Regarding this, I think you should know about Lord Shikanoko Noko's title."
"Her name is Deer Horn Great Sage."
Mr. Tsunoda said respectfully, using this title to prove that Shikanoko Noko was indeed the crowned king of Chiba Zoo.
"What rank of player organization is Chiba Zoo in Japan?" Kisaragi Rin asked again.
"Hmm... regarding this, I can only say it's in the first tier. No one knows who would be superior until one side is completely eliminated."
Seeing that Kisaragi Rin didn't understand the relationships, Mr. Tsunoda proactively said, "One, two, four, eight, nine, hundred, thousand—these are the first-tier legitimate organizations here in Japan."
"One is Japan's official Takamagahara."
"Two are Inari Shrine and Fuchiumi Shrine."
"Four are the four financial groups: Shinomiya, Suzuki..."
"Eight refers to the Serpent-Headed Eight Families, which is a yakuza group."
"Nine is the Nine Dragons Society, also a yakuza group, but with some differences from the Serpent-Headed Eight Families."
"Hundred is the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons, a yakuza group, but composed of yokai. Most active yokai players in Japan have some connection to this organization."
"And the last, 'thousand,' is Chiba Zoo."
Lily interjected from the side, "Compared to the previous names, that sounds so down-to-earth."
"That may be true, but Chiba is our territory, you know."
Mr. Tsunoda stated plainly.