"It's nice to meet you all. I'm the new teaching assistant who transferred to this school. My name is Tenjouin Yuto. I look forward to working with you from now on."
Standing on the podium, Yuto smiled warmly and introduced himself with perfect manners. His presence immediately drew the attention of the students below, who began whispering among themselves. Words like "So young," "So handsome," and "Girlfriend material" floated through the air.
"Quiet down, everyone!" Rikuo's homeroom teacher clapped his hands to settle the chatter. "Although Teacher Yuto is young, he just returned from studying abroad. He chose to join our school as a teaching assistant to adjust to life here. Please treat him with respect and call him 'Teacher.' Understood?"
With the students hushed, the teacher gave a small nod toward Yuto, silently encouraging him to engage with the class, and then left the room, smiling.
"Natsumi, the new teacher is so handsome! I wonder how long he'll be here. I wish he'd stay with us forever, don't you think?"
Maki Saori, staring at Yuto on the podium, nudged the cat-eyed girl beside her. It wasn't just Maki—most of the girls in class were curious about Yuto. And it made sense. Thanks to his bloodline, Yuto was undeniably good-looking, almost rivaling even the legendary charm of the Nurarihyon.
Of course, Yuto had no designs on the Nurarihyon himself, nor any ambition to meddle with his kimonos. The loyalty of Nurarihyon's inner circle had been cultivated over generations, and even now, figures like Aotabo and Kubinashi remained steadfast.
Yuto had always admired the innocent, round-eyed Yuki-onna Hyōrei from afar—but in the current timeline, Hyōrei was firmly bonded to Rikuo. Stealing her away was impossible. In her clan, marrying a Nurarihyon was almost a sacred obsession, a tradition rooted in her mother's long-standing devotion.
Yuto's real reason for following Rikuo—even to school—was far more practical: he wanted to witness and learn the ability Oni-Tether that Rikuo would soon master.
Oni-Tether, developed by Rihan Nura, the second head of the Nura Clan, allowed the wielder to carry another yokai's "karma" and bind it using their "fear." The technique unleashed massive power, boosting both combat skill and yokai energy—but only under strict conditions. The user had to be a half-yokai and share a deep bond with the yokai being bound. Yuto, as a half-demon with keen understanding of yokai techniques, met these conditions perfectly.
Rikuo had learned Oni-Tether after comprehending the meaning of karma during his battle with Gyu-oni, guided by the demon itself. Yuto, understanding the principles and possessing the necessary prerequisites, knew that observing Rikuo in action might give him the chance to learn the technique himself.
As the homeroom teacher encouraged the class to interact with Yuto, students began peppering him with questions about his life abroad, gradually steering the conversation toward the supernatural.
"Teacher, have you ever seen a yokai abroad?" asked a boy with dark green hair named Kiyotsugu Kiyoji.
The question caught everyone by surprise. Normally, such inquiries would be met with ridicule, but Yuto's response was confident.
"Of course! Aren't yokai pretty common creatures?"
The students froze. Kiyotsugu, after a brief moment of stunned silence, practically bounced in excitement. Finally—a kindred spirit!
Kiyotsugu had been obsessed with yokai ever since a yokai-transformed Rikuo saved him from an accident four years ago. Yet his fascination had never been taken seriously by anyone else. Now, Yuto's words made him feel validated, his enthusiasm exploding.
Meanwhile, Maki Saori, standing beside him, stared at Yuto speechless. Sunny, handsome, and charming—yet somehow he seemed to share the same strange obsession with yokai as Kiyotsugu.
"What kind of yokai have you seen, teacher? Can you tell me?" Kiyotsugu pressed, pushing past Natsumi and Maki with a fanatical look.
"Well," Yuto said casually, "I haven't seen that many yokai myself, but the one that impressed me most is probably Nurarihyon."
The moment Yuto mentioned "Nurarihyon," his gaze flicked toward Rikuo, who suddenly looked slightly panicked.
"Nurarihyon? That freeloading yokai that just lounges in people's homes? What's so special about it? Haven't you seen anything cooler, teacher?" Kiyotsugu asked, clearly familiar with the lore.
Yuto smirked. "You might think Nurarihyon is a petty, low-class yokai, but my opinion's quite different. Nurarihyon is very strong, you know. And I've heard there are Nurarihyon roaming this city."