Faced with this situation, Kars couldn't find any reason to refuse. Although he felt that the upcoming challenges might be difficult, faced with the bait Yuuka Kazami had offered, he still made the choice she wanted.
"I understand, I will do my best!"
Seeing Kars's reply, Yuuka Kazami smiled contentedly.
"Then I will wait for you to come and find me."
After saying goodbye to Kars, Yuuka Kazami left. She no longer had any desire to stay at the banquet, partly because of her physical condition, which made her feel unsuitable for staying.
Kars watched Yuuka Kazami's departing figure until she disappeared from his sight, but at the same time, he was also a bit conflicted about his own physical condition.
"Hey! Kars, what are you doing alone? If you're not busy, come sit with us!" Marisa came up and pulled him over when she saw Kars alone. Their relationship had improved significantly after the recent event, so she didn't hesitate to pull Kars over when they met.
"Mmm… my body doesn't feel warm anymore like before. I guess that effect is gone now that it's spring." Marisa felt Kars's body briefly. Touching him now lacked that enjoyable feeling, which made her feel a little regretful.
"It's not cold now, so why are you still trying to freeload on my heat?" Kars asked, slightly exasperated. Has she become addicted to freeloading? And being hugged by Marisa made him feel a little awkward.
"Well, it's not really about being cold or not, but I just really like the feeling it gives my body. It creates a particularly comfortable sensation." That was Marisa's answer, and it was one reason why she wanted to freeload off his heat. Kars felt that perhaps the activated energy had brought some benefit to her body, which made her instinctively enjoy it.
"Oh, oh! Here it comes, here it comes!!" Marisa felt a comfortable sensation reappear; that warm feeling on her body made her exclaim, which prompted Reimu Hakurei nearby to glance over.
"You were so resistant before, so why are you suddenly so compliant now?"
"I was resistant before because I wanted you to quickly resolve the Incident, so how could I let you continue freeloading off my heat? Besides, I hardly had any energy left then. To make sure I didn't get cold, how could I not resist?" Kars explained. Even now, he wanted to resist, but his physical condition made him hesitant to move. However, Marisa, who was holding him, didn't have such concerns. As she hugged Kars and sat down leaning against the tree, she felt something strange poking her. Marisa moved a little, confused, and then realized Kars in her arms was a bit abnormal.
"This is…" While confused, Marisa felt something near her lower abdomen. After realizing the shape of the object, she understood what it was, but her expression froze. After all, this was the first time she had encountered this situation.
"Could it be my fault…" Marisa thought of this possibility, her face flushing slightly. She believed her actions had caused Kars's reaction, and she wasn't sure what to do, especially with someone else watching nearby. If they separated, they would definitely be discovered, so she remained silent, contemplating how to handle it.
Meanwhile, the sound of a camera shutter was constantly clicking. Aya Shameimaru was taking pictures of Kars. Seeing Marisa hugging a boy like this, and the Hakurei Shrine Maiden watching nearby, wouldn't this easily let her write a massive, scandalous article? And one that could be continuously followed up!
Thinking of this, Aya Shameimaru smiled even more happily.
"Hey! You crow over there! Don't write any strange things! Otherwise, don't blame me for being rude!" Sensing the malice, Reimu Hakurei quickly fixed her gaze on Aya Shameimaru and warned her.
"I'm a Crow Tengu! Not a crow! Please get my species right!" Hearing Reimu Hakurei's address, Aya Shameimaru couldn't help but refute her. As for the warning, it did make her a little nervous, but stopping was absolutely out of the question. If she stopped doing things like this because of a small warning, she would have changed professions long ago. Not to mention, a big scoop was waiting for her right now, so she absolutely wouldn't give up. She had already decided on her next course of action: follow closely behind Kars to get even more revealing photos.
After Aya Shameimaru happily left, Reimu Hakurei turned her attention back to Marisa. She was now leaning against the tree with Kars in her arms, looking like she planned to just take a nap there.
Yuyuko also noticed this scene and became somewhat concerned about the situation between Kars and Marisa. Being hugged like that made them look like very close companions, and she was a little worried that this might affect her Youmu's matter. Especially since even Reimu Hakurei seemed to have some thoughts about Kars.
"Reimu, are you and Kars close?" Yuyuko leaned close to the tree and asked Reimu Hakurei to find out more.
"Huh? Me and this guy? We don't have any special relationship; I just like to freeload off his warmth. It feels really comfortable, so I just want to get closer, that's all." Reimu Hakurei briefly explained the reason, which made Yuyuko understand the situation between Kars and them. It was a normal friendship; any affectionate gestures were simply because Kars looked like a child, and there were no other intentions, which relieved Yuyuko.
"But why are you suddenly asking about this?" Reimu Hakurei looked curiously at Yuyuko. Her tone was like someone investigating whether her intended target had any special or ambiguous relationships with other girls, which was extremely odd. She couldn't imagine Yuyuko being interested in a brat like Kars, or perhaps she was eyeing his family's wealth to get more food.
"I was just doing a little investigating for my Youmu." Yuyuko directly stated her purpose, which Reimu Hakurei found unbelievable. At the same time, she wondered if Yuyuko really wanted Youmu Konpaku to develop a relationship with Kars just for his family's wealth, allowing her to openly freeload food at the Scarlet Devil Mansion.
"Youmu hasn't interacted much with Kars, right? Why would she suddenly want to develop a relationship with him?"
"Matters of the heart can be hard to fathom, you know. Perhaps a person can develop feelings in just a moment. At least that seems to be the case for Youmu; she became shy because of a boy."