"Phew..."
Kaguya let out a soft breath. A hint of fatigue appeared on her picturesque face.
A hundred kills in reality was indeed hard to achieve. Even when the opponents were elementary schoolers, it was still exhausting.
"Good work."
Natsuki handed her a bottle of green tea.
Kaguya took a small sip of the drink, then tilted her pretty face up to look at Natsuki beside her. With a half-smile, she said:
"Natsuki, I'm very curious. Why did those elementary schoolers keep calling me 'Great Demon King'? Please explain properly."
"That's a long story..." Natsuki said seriously. "So I choose not to tell it."
"Sit."
Kaguya extended a slender jade finger, pointing at the stool beside her.
"One more round." Kaguya screwed the cap back on, slightly pursing her moist cherry lips. "If you can beat me, I won't ask any more about the Great Demon King thing."
Natsuki said flatly:
"You're still hung up on losing this morning?"
Kaguya's pretty face was expressionless. "I'm not hung up on it."
"Then why do you still want to play?"
"I hate losing."
So it really was because of the five-game losing streak this morning. Just how strong is your competitive spirit?!
"You've been playing for so long. You must be tired, right?" Natsuki thought for a moment. "How about resting for today and playing again tomorrow?"
"No need." Kaguya crossed her arms, her tone confident. "I'm in great condition right now. Though I'd never played video games before, I've heard people say... some people can play games all night long. Compared to them, this level of fatigue is nothing."
"If you insist..." Natsuki sat down beside Kaguya. "Don't cry when you lose."
"Absolutely impossible!"
"..."
Battle was imminent.
Kaguya was full of confidence.
Not counting Chika, who was just there to fill numbers, she had now consecutively defeated ninety-nine elementary schoolers. Her practical experience was exceptionally rich. She was no longer the same person she'd been this morning.
The shame of five consecutive losses this morning must be washed away!
A moment later.
Chika came back holding a box of strawberry daifuku. She quickly got a fright. "Huh? Kaguya-chan, why are you crying?"
"I'm not." Kaguya bit her lower lip. "You're seeing things."
Chika was certain. "That expression just now was clearly about to cry."
"Fujiwara-san, say no more." Natsuki stood up and took a sip of his drink. "Where's Kashiwagi-san?"
"Asuka-chan said it's getting dark." Chika's voice was bright. "She has to be home before six in the evening, so she went home first."
Natsuki turned to look out the window.
The sun was setting in the west.
The dying light was dim and yellow.
Before he knew it, evening had arrived.
"Shinomiya-san, that's enough for today." Natsuki picked up his bag. "I need to head home."
Kaguya took a deep breath to calm herself down. Her eyes stared directly at Natsuki:
"Come again tomorrow."
Outrageous outrageous outrageous outrageous!
He actually beat me ten times in a row. I'm remembering this grudge!
"Kaguya-chan, what's the task reward?" Chika asked curiously.
"The reward..." Kaguya furrowed her brows slightly. A floating miniature bow soon appeared in her hand. "This is it."
[Name: Shrine Maiden's Divine Shot]
[Type: Weapon]
[Passive Ability: Demon Sealing. When an arrow hits a vengeful spirit, it deals minor damage and has a certain probability of sealing it. The worse the spirit's condition, the higher the success rate]
[Note: This equipment is bound. Only player Kaguya may use it]
[Note: ADCs must die. You will attract aggro as a priority. Please be mentally prepared at all times]
"Look on the bright side... at least it's equipment that can damage vengeful spirits." Natsuki spoke up. "It's way better than a suspicious pack of tissues."
Chika puffed out her bun-like cheeks. "Natsuki, stop mentioning those tissues!"
"Yes, yes."
"And it even attracts aggro as a priority. That sounds really dangerous." Chika said worriedly. "Kaguya-chan, you definitely shouldn't shoot carelessly."
"I know." Kaguya nodded gently.
"That thing about the worse the condition, the higher the sealing chance—it feels kind of like Pokémon." Chika propped her chin on her right hand. "You can only capture a Pokémon with a Master Ball after defeating it."
"So the question becomes," Natsuki sighed, "how do we defeat those vengeful spirits?"
"Can't be done."
"Impossible for humans."
"..."
After a brief discussion, Natsuki bid farewell to the two girls and headed home.
The night passed without incident.
The next day.
Natsuki opened his eyes to the sound of his alarm. He got up, washed, drank a glass of milk, then ate bread on his way to school.
When he walked into the classroom, Kaguya and Chika had already arrived.
"Natsuki, good morning." Chika looked pitiful, extremely aggrieved. "That long-haired evil spirit stood by my bed again, staring at me the whole time. So mean. If only I could sleep together with Natsuki."
"Sorry, but propriety between men and women must be maintained."
"Boo, rejected again."
Kaguya was gently rubbing her brow. Faint dark circles marked her face—she clearly hadn't rested well either. "Let's open the mystery boxes. Classmates will be coming in soon."
Chika went first again. Today's mystery box item was quite ordinary.
[Item: Farmer Three Punches Mineral Water]
[Note: Safe and odorless. Please drink with confidence]
"It can be stored in the game inventory and taken out whenever I want a drink." Chika wasn't disappointed. "I used up all my luck yesterday, so bad luck today... As long as it's not weird tissues, I'm fine."
Next was Kaguya's turn.
Today's mystery box finally didn't contain a strange task. Unfortunately, her luck was still bad—just a worn-out pencil.
Last was Natsuki.
After waking up this morning, he'd already checked the item in his mystery box. He knew it was a skill.
"Hm?"
Natsuki raised an eyebrow in surprise, then shared the skill's attributes with the two girls.
[Skill: Nemesis of Crime]
[Outlaw Zhang San, you're under arrest!]
[Description: As long as you make physical contact with Outlaw Zhang San, the target will 100% enter a state of surrender]
"Eh eh eh?" Chika's eyes went wide. "Outlaw Zhang San—that name sounds so familiar."
Kaguya reminded her: "You got a skill a couple days ago."
"I remember now." Chika slapped her forehead. "I can change someone's name to Outlaw Zhang San... The two skills seem like they could work together?"
"We'll know if we try." Natsuki looked toward Kaguya.
Chika also looked at Kaguya, eyes sparkling. "Kaguya-chan, let's test it out?"
"I refuse."
Kaguya's eyelashes trembled slightly. One hundred percent refusal.
She absolutely would not surrender to a boy.
Natsuki was about to speak when his expression suddenly turned serious.
A low, raspy voice echoed in his mind.
[The game will begin in five minutes. Players, please prepare]