Akizuki Marina had been sleeping soundly in her room when a hazy figure appeared in her dream.
"Don't sleep, Marina. Your sister is in danger."
That line left the young woman baffled.
"Who are you? What nonsense is this? My sister's fine—how could she be in danger?"
Hayashi Maki answered offhandedly:
"I'm just a demon who occasionally toys with the mortal world. Your new stepfather has barged into her room— that pervert is about to hurt her."
"If you want to be saved, call my name. Remember: I'm Hayashi Maki."
Hearing that, Marina jolted awake.
Without stopping to question whether the dream was real, she scrambled up, slipped on her slippers, and rushed out of the room.
She saw Akizuki Kouzou entering her sister's room.
Panicking, she hurried over—only to see him stripped down to his underwear, while her sister, Akizuki Airi, sat collapsed on the floor, tears in her eyes and unable to move.
Her sister's cheeks were flushed—an abnormal kind of red.
"Onee-chan, please save me! This scum is trying to do that to me… I told you he had bad intentions, but you and Mom wouldn't believe me!"
"Shut up, Airi!" Kouzou snapped, whipping out a spray and blasting Marina before she could dodge.
Marina immediately followed in Airi's footsteps, her body giving out.
Airi burst into tears again at her sister's slow reaction.
Even Hayashi Maki, who'd been steering the situation, was speechless: he'd warned her, and she'd still been hit.
So the OVA heroine really is fragile, huh.
Looking at Marina—flustered, immobilized, and flushed—Kouzou couldn't help laughing in satisfaction.
"Marina, since you're here, you can join in."
"But Daddy still wants to 'educate' disobedient Airi first."
Saying this, Kouzou walked over and reached his hand toward Airi.
In a panic, Marina suddenly remembered the demon's voice from her dream and, almost against her will, shouted:
"Hayashi Maki! Demon-san, please save me and Airi!"
"As you wish!"
Violet light burst forth; before Kouzou could react, a force hurled him into the wall.
A blaze instantly swallowed him.
With Kouzou's evil fully exposed and his own "demon saves the damsel" goal met, Hayashi Maki had no intention of letting the man disgust anyone further.
Even trash has its use; to Hayashi Maki, Kouzou existed only to set off his own "glorious demon" image.
Marina and Airi stared blankly at Hayashi Maki. Noting his handsome face and the roguish curve of his lips, their already flushed cheeks burned hotter.
"Um, Onee-chan… who is he? He just showed up out of nowhere… Ugh, whatever—he's so handsome… hurry, Airi can't take it…"
Before Marina could respond, Airi used what strength she had left to hug Hayashi Maki's leg, gazing up at him with smoldering eyes.
Calmly, Hayashi Maki gathered both women into his arms and shut the door.
Right now he was the demon who had appeared to fulfill Marina's wish.
Don't forget that wish-granting ability.
By guiding events, he'd shown he could stage-manage things himself.
He and Marina had also reached a preliminary verbal contract.
Next came the time to collect payment.
"Onee-chan… Airi… Airi feels awful… please… hey… handsome onii-chan, hold Airi."
Kouzou's drug was bizarre—it actually inflamed a woman's desires.
Perhaps that very drug was what damned his soul.
If it spread, women everywhere would be victimized.
"Airi… how can a lady say such shameless things? Mm…"
Blushing, Marina tried to scold her sister, but then her own body began to feel strange and her words died.
Hayashi Maki didn't rush; he just held the two of them quietly.
"I'm a demon, Marina-san. I appeared for you and resolved your crisis. Now it's time to collect my payment."
"Demons don't make losing deals. And… other matters will require separate compensation."
Marina's eyes widened, shimmering. "How can you say that… I thought you were a good person."
"I'm a demon—I said that from the start. So, Marina—and Airi-san—what do you want from me?"
Hayashi Maki's gentle smile left them both dazed.
Demon or not, he was better than the scum who had gone after his 'daughters.'
The drug kept working; Airi was the first to falter.
She burrowed into Hayashi Maki's arms, fumbling at his clothes.
"Anything's fine, onii-chan—Airi will agree to anything… ngh… Airi feels so awful—help Airi… please?"
Interest flickered in Hayashi Maki's eyes, but he fixed his gaze on Marina, who lowered her reddened face.
"Onee-chan… save Airi… good sis…"
"Airi… I'll save you…"
The two close sisters, in the end, couldn't resist the pull inside them—and yielded to the cunning demon.
With their response, the contract was sealed.
Demon followers +2!
"Alright—have it your way. I've received your wishes loud and clear."
What came next—was to satisfy them.
A demon honors the contract.
A promise made is a promise kept.
And so, a dreamlike scene unfolded.
Marina felt as if she were dreaming.
Hayashi Maki's gentleness and good looks—and his practiced way—guided the naive young woman.
Compared to the shy Marina, Airi was far more uninhibited.
There was always more to learn; Hayashi Maki felt the Akizuki sisters had a long way to go.
After giving Airi and Marina a little "instruction," he left behind the demon's seed of magic and slipped away in a blaze of mana.
As for how to handle Kouzou Akizuki's disappearance—he'd deal with it tomorrow.
Back in his room, Hayashi Maki showered, then returned to bed, holding Shiina Mahiru gently, breathing in her scent, and drifting to sleep.
He didn't even have time to check what powers his two new followers had granted him.
…
The next morning—
Hayashi Maki awoke to find his magic had risen again.
His status panel had changed as well.
[Demon Panel]
[Player: Hayashi Maki (Sole-Contract Demon)]
[Current Followers: Shiina Mahiru; Asada Shino; Yukinoshita Haruno; Yukinoshita Yukino (no deep bond; no add-on ability); Akizuki Airi; Akizuki Marina.]
[Demon Abilities: Super Regeneration; Always Hit; Damage Absorption/Transfer; Damage Stacking; Dual Casting (Left & Right Hands).]
[Demon Authorities: Contract (innate—once a follower is contracted, the undying soul-bond can never be undone); Fire of Judgment (power scales with the number of followers); Lord of Magic (as followers increase, there's a chance to comprehend new magic).]
Reading this, Hayashi Maki gained fresh insight into his powers.
Yukinoshita's Second Heiress was already his follower—at their first formal meeting she'd said she'd do anything for her sister, essentially acknowledging that she belonged to him. But since they hadn't opened up to each other like Haruno, Shino, and Mahiru, he still couldn't access her power.
Damage Stacking came from Airi; Dual Casting came from Marina.
Dual Casting—left and right—meant he could use two different spells simultaneously, a strong ability indeed. And "casting" wouldn't be limited to magic; once he gained other powers, he could activate two at once—for example, two ultimates at the same time.
Lastly, the Demon Authorities—soul-born powers that strengthen with more followers and may even evolve new ones. As the saying goes: the Way begets One; One begets Two; Two beget the ten thousand things.
His Contract authority gave him limitless possibilities, while Lord of Magic occasionally granted new insights—like "mana-form," a teleport that let him appear instantly at a follower's side.
He never knew when the insight would hit; one spark of inspiration and the skill was simply there. He was most likely to comprehend something new when contracting a new follower.
All of it told him that if he wanted to grow stronger, he needed to keep forming contracts.
Beautiful familiars—the more, the merrier!