The Next Day.
"Good morning," said Kojou as he stepped out of his room, dressed in his usual uniform. However, this time he wore a yellow jacket similar to Asagi's, since he was used to wearing jackets and couldn't just stop all of a sudden.
"Good morning," nodded Asagi as she looked Kojou over. "That jacket suits you really well."
"The credit goes to Nagisa, who helped me pick it out," Kojou smiled, leaning in to lightly kiss Nagisa on the lips. "Thank you."
After killing Lucifer, Kojou had absorbed his memories. From time to time, he found himself lost in them. What he had seen there pushed him to follow his heart and do whatever he pleased, regardless of the consequences — he had seen things in Lucifer's memories far worse than anything he himself could ever do.
"You're welcome," Nagisa smiled happily, clearly enjoying Kojou's affection — especially since he often teased her in bed.
Even just last night, he had been teasing her in bed, along with Asagi, who was simply too sweet.
"Tasty!" Kojou commented cheerfully as he devoured the sandwiches. This was definitely Asagi's idea — Nagisa preferred making omelets, white rice with grilled fish, miso soup, and other traditional Japanese meals.
"Thank you. By the way, I handled the cameras last night," Asagi nodded proudly, recalling Kojou's request the previous evening to take care of the surveillance near the place where Touka had fought that old man. "But are you really going to leave that old guy alone?"
Asagi was aware that the old man from the Western Church had his reasons — she had researched the so-called treasure and learned about the Right Arm of the Saint. Still, that didn't mean she agreed with his methods — endangering the lives of innocent people on the island for his goals.
"That's right," Kojou nodded, swallowing his bite. "The Island Management Company wants to use me to deal with that old man. That's why they're letting him do whatever he wants. But I have no intention of letting them exploit me."
"So you're saying the Island Management Company is letting that old man act freely just to gauge your reaction?" Asagi asked, brows furrowed. Clearly, this was a dangerous method — risking civilian lives just to see what Kojou would do.
"Maybe. I don't know their true intentions, but it's obvious they want me to deal with him for some reason that benefits them," Kojou said, shrugging indifferently and grabbing another sandwich. "But I won't help anyone who uses such underhanded tactics."
"Still, even if he gets the Right Arm of the Saint, it won't end there. It seems they want to use his actions to pressure — or even destroy — the Western Church," Kojou said while chewing. "You know the Western Church hates Demons. They see this island as a thorn in their side and have been pressuring the Japanese government and the island's administrators to eliminate the Demons in any way they can."
"Adults are scary," Nagisa mumbled softly. The world of adults — full of schemes, lies, and hypocrisy — was frightening for a kind and innocent girl like her.
"Don't worry. I'll crush anyone who tries to mess with us," Kojou said with a gentle smile, patting Nagisa's head.
"So… are you going to get involved in this matter?" Asagi asked, sensing that Kojou wasn't the type to let the island fall into chaos.
"I don't have such plans yet," Kojou shook his head. "As you know, the island management already has a new Foundation Stone in place of the Saint's Arm. I won't intervene unless they try to corner me with one of their dirty tricks — but if they do, I won't let it slide."
"I see..." Asagi nodded, returning to her breakfast, silently hoping the island's management wouldn't pull anything reckless — Kojou clearly had no intention of making it easy for them.
_
During the lunch break, Kojou went to Natsuki's office with Touka, as he had promised her the previous day.
Knock
Knock
Knock
"Come in..." came a soft voice from the other side of the door — Kojou immediately recognized it as Natsuki's.
"That outfit suits you, Natsuki-chan," Kojou remarked upon seeing Natsuki's slightly different attire.
Normally, Natsuki wore black gothic lolita clothing. While she was still dressed in that style, today her outfit was white with black embroidery, giving her a fresh and different look.
"Don't add '-chan' to your teacher's name," Natsuki replied with a small smile. She had to admit — Kojou's cheekiness was oddly refreshing.
"I don't want to. It's my way of showing how much I love you," Kojou said playfully, sitting on the couch in front of her desk. "So why did you want to see me? Don't tell me you didn't want to go to a love hotel — you'd rather do it here at school? You're so naughty, Natsuki-chan."
"Are you an idiot?!" Natsuki shouted, her face slightly flushed as she suddenly appeared behind Kojou and smacked him hard with her foldable black fan.
"Oww...!" Kojou groaned, clutching his head in pain. She hadn't held back — her small body had put all its strength into the blow.
"..." Touka stared at the interaction between them, feeling a strange pain in her chest. She didn't know what it was.
"Ahem! Let's return to the actual reason I called you here," Natsuki coughed awkwardly. A glowing purple magic circle appeared in the air, and several files dropped onto the table in front of Kojou.
"The reason I called you is to inform you about the current random Demon hunts happening on the island," Natsuki said seriously, beginning to explain the situation.
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"So why are you telling me this?" Kojou asked, puzzled when Natsuki finished her explanation. "Don't tell me… you think I'll be targeted?"
Even though the idea sounded ridiculous to him — Kojou was certain the old man would back off after seeing him — Natsuki either didn't know what happened yesterday or was pretending not to.
"That's right," Natsuki nodded, concern evident in her blue eyes. "I've been prohibited from intervening in this case, and the culprit is still at large. I wanted to warn you — he might come after you because of your immense magical power."
"Are you worried about me, Natsuki-chan?" Kojou smiled, clearly pleased by her concern. "As happy as that makes me, you're underestimating me. I'm not weak enough to get taken down by some guy hiding in the shadows."
"I've already warned you," Natsuki said with a frown. It was obvious Kojou wasn't taking her seriously. "Now get out."
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