Student Council Room — Later That Evening
Tanuma Tsubasa departed first, his dignity slightly tattered but his crush still intact.
Gabriel arrived, consumed coffee with the desperate urgency of someone who hadn't slept in forty-eight hours, submitted her documents with minimal grumbling, and departed into the evening.
Fujiwara Chika had already absconded to the Tabletop Game Club—she was, after all, not obligated to haunt the Student Council daily, though one could be forgiven for assuming otherwise.
Sakurai Saki didn't linger.
He had somewhere to be.
The Bike Shed — Shortly After
Saki unlocked his bicycle and wheeled it through the school gates. The evening air carried the fading warmth of the day, and he pedaled toward home—or rather, toward a detour that would take him considerably out of his way.
I even skipped my rental boyfriend shift for this.
The thought arrived with a faint edge of irritation.
It had better be important. Not another "I'm dying, please send money" emergency.
Last time, that exact phrasing had cost him several thousand yen. Gabriel had been "dying" of hunger because she'd spent her entire budget on a limited-edition game.
She hadn't repaid a single yen.
Does she plan to sell herself to settle the debt? The image flickered through his mind—Gabriel in an apron, offering domestic services—and he dismissed it immediately.
Even if she offered, I'd refuse. That useless angel couldn't compete with Vignette. Vignette, a demon, is more angelic than Gabriel. The universe has a terrible sense of humor.
The Train — Later
The train carried him through the bustling downtown, neon lights blurring past the windows. By the time he reached Gabriel's apartment building, the sky had deepened to indigo.
The stairs groaned under his weight—old, wooden, probably older than he was. Second floor. He produced a key from his pocket.
A spare. Because this happens often enough to warrant one.
The door opened.
The floor was… clean.
Vignette, he concluded immediately. She must have visited recently.
The lighting, however, remained characteristically dismal. Gabriel's relationship with electricity bills was complicated.
Saki crossed to the curtains and pulled them open, letting the last of the evening light filter through.
"A-Ying~!"
A voice like a caffeine-addicted hamster.
"You're HERE!"
Gabriel emerged from her room, and Saki's brain momentarily stalled.
She was wearing a hamster costume.
Himouto! Gabriel, his mind supplied unhelpfully. This is happening. This is my life now.
"Why," he managed, "did you buy that?"
"Doesn't it look good?" Gabriel spun, arms out, model-of-the-moment energy colliding with complete lack of coordination.
Saki examined her with clinical detachment.
"It's indistinguishable from your usual tracksuit."
"No… no sense of excitement?"
"Would you feel excited about a piece of pork?" He tilted his head. "Especially a piece of pork that asks you for money monthly?"
"PORK?!" Gabriel's indignation was magnificent.
She closed the distance between them, puffing up like an angry bird.
"Is there ANY pork as cute as me?!"
"There's a piece standing right in front of me."
Gabriel's mouth opened. Closed. Opened again.
Her gaze dropped to her chest.
Flat. Tragically flat. Board-like in its commitment to aerodynamic efficiency.
Only slightly better than Kaguya Shinomiya's, Saki observed silently. Though Gabriel aims for cute, not elegant. Different leagues, same lack of cargo.
"Forget the pork thing." Gabriel waved it away, dignity slightly wounded but recoverable. "I called you here for something serious."
She settled onto the sofa. Saki followed suit.
"A few days ago, Heaven sent a message." Her voice dropped, taking on actual weight. "Someone's been maliciously manipulating the weather here recently."
"That was me."
Gabriel blinked.
"You… you did it?"
"I couldn't go home. The rain was too heavy."
A pause.
"…You caused a supernatural weather event because you got caught in the rain?"
"It was a valid reason."
Gabriel stared at him.
Then, slowly, she nodded.
"Okay. Fair. This apartment held up better than expected, actually. I was worried."
Saki waited. There was more coming; he could feel it.
"But that's not the main thing." Gabriel leaned forward. "Recently, quite a few inferior demons have smuggled themselves down from the Demon World."
"Inferior demons?"
"Low-intelligence beings. Can't be registered as Demon World citizens. They're basically… wild animals with human shapes." She chose her words carefully. "They disguise themselves as ordinary people and cause trouble. Robbery. Theft. Arson. The usual."
Saki's expression remained neutral, but his mind was already cataloging implications.
The Demon World, he thought, is apparently less straightforward than I assumed.
"Vignette is different," Gabriel added, reading his thoughts. "She's a High Demon. Pure bloodline. When she fully matures, she'll be at least an Upper Demon—capable of destroying weak other worlds with a gesture."
"And these inferior demons?"
"They spawn from the Sea of Blood. Mixed-bloods, mostly. Very few have pure lineages." Gabriel's voice carried a faint edge—the distaste of an angel discussing the messy realities of demon reproduction. "They're the reason Demon World has a bad reputation. The High Demons are actually quite civilized."
Saki absorbed this.
Civilized demons. Wild demons. Angels who can't manage their finances.
The universe really does have a terrible sense of humor.
"So why tell me?"
"Because you live here. Because you interact with humans constantly. Because if something weird starts happening—people acting strange, crimes that don't make sense—you should know what you're dealing with." Gabriel met his eyes. "And because if it gets bad, I might need help."
The hamster costume suddenly seemed less funny and more… practical? Comforting? Saki wasn't sure.
"Fine." He stood. "I'll keep watch. But if I have to fight demons, you're buying dinner."
"DEAL."
The enthusiasm was slightly concerning.
Gabriel's Apartment
Mongrels?
Cannon fodder?
Saki processed this information with clinical detachment.
"They sound… weak."
"They are!" Gabriel nodded enthusiastically. "Demons and angels have both been dealing with the influx. It's mostly cleanup work—like pest control, but with more fire." She paused. "I'm only telling you so you don't… you know. Overdo it."
When Gabriel had been dispatched from Angel School for her earthly experience, she'd received a specific assignment: build a positive relationship with Sakurai Saki.
She'd expected a great demon. A scourge upon humanity. A being of pure evil.
Instead, she'd gotten… this. A guy who lent her money (reluctantly), drank her coffee (critically), and occasionally helped with demon cleanup (while complaining).
Heaven's intelligence network needs work.
"Do inferior demons have distinguishing characteristics?" Saki rubbed his brow, already cataloging potential threat indicators.
"They like to rap!"
Saki's hand froze.
Rap.
Bad memories.
Shirogane Miyuki. Karaoke. That night. The song that nearly killed him.
If inferior demons share ANY characteristics with Shirogane's singing voice—
"They generally won't harm ordinary people," Gabriel continued, her expression shifting to something more serious, "unless—"
Saki leaned forward.
"—unless they're severely short on money!"
"…"
Saki's expression did something complicated.
These are demons?
These disgraceful creatures emerged from the Sea of Blood?
They should return immediately for reincarnation. I recommend a full remake.
"So they respect human laws?" he managed.
"Good news: they won't kill or commit arson if they're not desperate for cash." Gabriel winked, attempting cute. "Bad news: inferior demons are desperate for cash approximately 24 hours a day."
"You're telling me Tokyo now hosts a population of demons who commit murder, arson, and general mayhem whenever their bank accounts run low?"
"Don't worry~" Gabriel patted her chest—the sound was disturbingly hollow—"We'll resolve this within two weeks!"
Saki stared at her.
He mentally reviewed the angels he'd encountered:
Gabriel: Complete internet shut-in. Useless for anything not involving games, food, or sleep. Cute face: her sole redeeming feature.
Shiraha Rafael Ainsworth ("Rafael"): Silver-haired, superficially normal, secretly dark-bellied. Met once. Suspicions remain.
Vignette: Not an angel. Demon. More reliable than both angels combined.
Conclusion: angels are useless.
"If I encounter them," Saki said flatly, "can I kill them?"
"Absolutely! But call me first!" Gabriel's enthusiasm returned with suspicious intensity. "I'll handle the reporting. There are… benefits."
Benefits. Saki filed this away. She wants the bounty. Probably to repay her debts to me.
Unlikely, but one can hope.
The Nakano Apartment — Same Night
"EH?!"
Nakano Itsuki's voice pierced the quiet of her room.
"I LOST WEIGHT!"
She stared at the scale, disbelief warring with delight.
Five pounds. A full five pounds, despite her recent eating habits—which had been, by any reasonable standard, enthusiastic.
Could it be, a dangerous thought bloomed, that the more I eat, the more weight I lose?
Is this my magical girl awakening?
Has my body achieved caloric逆転?
Her mood elevated to dangerous heights. This called for celebration.
Late-night snack, she decided. To honor this miraculous development.
She descended the stairs, already mentally reviewing the refrigerator's contents.
The room fell silent.
Then, in a space Itsuki could not perceive—a fold between realities, a crack in the world's attention—something moved.
A claw.
It emerged from nothing, reaching toward the spot where she had stood mere moments ago. Translucent. Wrong. The shape suggested a crab, but the feeling suggested something far worse.
Grotesque.
The creature hung there, suspended between worlds, its appendage stretching toward empty air.
She was just here.
A moment ago.
Now—nothing.
The claw retracted slowly. The fold sealed.
Silence returned.
Itsuki, downstairs, opened the refrigerator and hummed happily.
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