"Thank you, but I'm not interested; no need!"
Subconsciously, Hayashi directly rejected its invitation.
"Is that so? What a pity. Then how about you all? Your aptitude is also quite good. Are you interested in going to a world with magic, beastmen, and swords and becoming a hero?"
Facing Hayashi's rejection, its exquisitely beautiful and sacred face revealed... heartbreaking disappointment, before it turned to Kazuma and the others and asked.
That expression made people feel unbearable heartache, as if rejecting it was committing an unforgivable sin.
However, Hayashi still resisted this impulse.
'Is this what damned Charisma is like! Foul play!'
Hayashi, who had probably guessed its identity, complained inwardly.
On the other side, facing its invitation, Kazuma and Iori immediately wanted to accept. After all, who could refuse such an exquisitely beautiful and pure white existence?
However, just as the two were about to agree immediately.
They caught sight of Hayashi's gaze, which looked like he was watching a good show, and the two guys instantly sobered up.
As close friends, they understood each other very well. There was definitely a trap here. Coupled with Hayashi's instantaneous refusal, the two also decisively shook their heads, rejecting Its recruitment.
Yuki was even more vigilant, refusing just as decisively as Hayashi, since she had seen too many terrifying things.
In response, it merely nodded, left a sentence, and then turned to leave.
"Your world is about to face a Great Calamity. My invitation remains open. If you need me, you can clutch this and shout my name, and I will take you away."
As its figure disappeared, four Holy Emblems fell into the hands of the group.
The emblems were engraved with a golden circle and a cross, which left Yuki and the others puzzled.
When Hayashi saw this object, he immediately recognized it. It really was the Emperor! But it shouldn't be the Emperor's main body but rather a psionic clone or something similar.
After all, the Emperor's main body still had to sit on the Golden Throne.
"What a strange fellow!!"
Rize, who had been ignored throughout, flashed a hint of annoyance in her eyes, but instinctively, she only dared to show this annoyance after It had left.
Meanwhile, Hayashi and Yuki had no time to pay attention to her for the moment and were discussing:
"Was what she said at the end a doomsday prophecy?" Yuki asked, confused.
She guessed inwardly whether some Rule Anomaly or Rule Horror was about to expand.
"Probably. She might be able to see the future."
Although his wording was uncertain, Hayashi's tone was very definite, as he knew the identity of the other party.
"How can such a beautiful existence exist in the world, that goddess-like temperament... I actually just rejected a goddess!!!"
Kazuma cried out in distress. After all, the being just now perfectly matched the goddess's temperament in his fantasies, looking several times better than that Goddess Aqua, and their temperaments were worlds apart!
He didn't even know how he had managed to reject the other party just now. Was it based on the instinct that his buddy was setting a trap?
"Hayashi-san, you still haven't answered my question!"
Seemingly unwilling to discuss the existence that had given her the creeps any further, Rize redirected the topic back to Hayashi and pressed him.
"It's my pleasure. I happen to know a private cinema with a good environment. Miss Rize, would you like to watch a movie?"
"Perfect, I really love watching movies!"
Rize smiled happily.
As she spoke, Rize proactively took Hayashi's hand, leaned her upper body against his shoulder, and followed Hayashi out of the coffee shop.
"What are you staring at? Follow them!"
Watching the retreating figures of Hayashi and Rize, Yuki called out to Kazuma and Iori.
"Right away!" *2
With Yuki and the others following, Hayashi took Rize by car toward the suburbs, while Yuki and the others behind them also got into the car driven by Kazuma and followed.
In the car with Yuki and the others, Kazuma asked Yuki with some concern.
"Will Hayashi be alright? After all, she's a [Ghoul]."
"It's a small problem."
Yuki said with a faint smile, simultaneously recalling the Gambling [Curse] Hayashi had subdued during the last mission.
She figured that the cursed tool Hayashi obtained must be related to gambling rules. Although cursed tools shouldn't be used too much in the real world, lest one be infected by the anomaly.
But dealing with a [Ghoul] was simply a piece of cake.
At this moment, she had already guessed how Hayashi would likely handle the [Ghoul].
Naturally, it would be to trick the [Ghoul] into betting with him, where the loser would wager their body and soul to him.
As long as Hayashi set up a guaranteed winning gamble, no matter what she thought internally, once she agreed to the bet, she would be finished if she lost.
Just as Yuki was guessing what Hayashi would gamble with Rize.
On the other side, Hayashi and Rize had already gotten out of the car next to a remote place.
Seeing this, Yuki and the others immediately turned off their lights, got out of the car, and crept closer.
Then they heard the ambiguous conversation between Hayashi and Rize.
"Hayashi-san~ out here in this remote place~ are you planning to take me into the nearby woods?"
Under the dim streetlights, Rize asked seductively, her gaze glancing towards the silent woods nearby.
"Miss Rize, didn't you agree to get out here too?"
Hayashi said with an ambiguous smile.
"I'm not that kind of casual woman~!"
Rize, in a delicate manner, still wanted to drag out the flirtation.
Hayashi, however, silently pulled a revolver from his pocket.
The instant she saw the gun in Hayashi's hand, Rize's expression changed, the seductive charm in her eyes completely extinguished, and her pupils turned into beast-like scarlet vertical slits.
Based on what she had learned over the past few days, ordinary people wouldn't carry guns.
"Who are you!?"
Rize demanded sharply.
"Have you forgotten that you made a certain poor person disappear yesterday, Miss [Ghoul]?"
Facing Rize's interrogation, Hayashi calmly opened the revolver's six-chamber cylinder and loaded five shiny bullets one by one.
"I was very careful, yet I was still discovered? Are you from the police department?"
Rize did not stop Hayashi's actions.
After all, through the physical contact just now, she had sensed that Hayashi was just an ordinary person.
And a gun? A revolver? She wasn't afraid of that.
"No, that's not right. It shouldn't be the authorities. The authorities usually organize joint operations, not solo missions."
"So you... are an arrogant, idiotic vigilante? or a teenager suffering from chuunibyou?"
Without waiting for Hayashi's reply, Rize continued to speculate.
Hayashi ignored her mockery. After securing the bullets, he spun the cylinder.
'Naive!'
Rize was just about to mock him, intending to say that a revolver wouldn't affect her, and preparing to summon her kagune.
She was surprised to find that Hayashi's muzzle wasn't pointed at her, but at himself.
"Click!"
Empty shot!
'What is this guy doing? Is he crazy?'
Before Rize could react, she saw Hayashi spin the cylinder again and fire another shot at himself.
"Click!"
It was still an empty shot.
'A one-sixth chance of an empty shot two times in a row is one thirty-sixth... This guy has pretty good luck.'
Rize thought this to herself.
And just then, Hayashi spoke.
"My luck is good today, but yours doesn't seem to be very good!"
"?"
A question mark appeared in Rize's mind.
She felt that there was something wrong with Hayashi's head.
'But he's just food, so it doesn't matter if his mind is slow...'
Before that thought could fully flash through her mind, Hayashi's gaze suddenly changed, becoming sharp and fixating on her.
Instinctively, Rize's hair stood on end. A bone-deep chill, following her biological instinct, warned her.
That was a creature's perception of danger, a warning that transcended the five senses.
Subconsciously, she prepared to deploy her four-tailed kagune.
But unfortunately, her movement was still too slow.
The flesh broke through the air wall, surpassing the sound barrier, reaching her face before the sound.
By the time she reacted, a pair of hands had already enlarged before her eyes, clamping onto her face, followed immediately by an irresistible force pushing downward!
"Bang!"
Her cheek violently collided with the ground. Amidst the deafening crash, the ground within a hundred meters collectively caved in and cracked like ice, instantly forming a complete impact crater!
"What happened..."
This was the last thought Rize had before her head made contact with the ground.
Editor's Notes:
Don't ask what happened… I also don't know…
¯\_(ツ)_/¯