Sitting on a chair.
Yotsuya Miko: "So my mom already knows?"
Yurikawa Hana: "Take a guess."
Yotsuya Miko: "Hana…"
Yurikawa Hana: "Treat me next time, and I'll tell you."
Yotsuya Miko: "No problem."
Yurikawa Hana: "I covered for you, Miko. And I even collected a fee for you using me as an excuse.".
"Your mom gave me some snacks."
Yotsuya Miko: "It's fine, Hana, you can just accept it."
"You're the best, Hana!"
Hearing that her mom didn't know yet, Yotsuya Miko breathed a sigh of relief.
Yurikawa Hana: "As if. I'm not the best at all, hmph. I plan to hold this secret over you and get free meals for life."
Yotsuya Miko: "Huh (⊙o⊙)…"
Yurikawa Hana: "Miko, you wouldn't want your mom to know you've been spending the night with a boy, right?"
Yotsuya Miko: "What?"
Yurikawa Hana: "Hurry up and tell me. All those times you said you were staying over at my place, were you with Lin-san instead?"
Yotsuya Miko: "Yes."
Since it had come to this, she might as well lay her cards on the table.
Kita Ward, on the way home.
Seeing Yotsuya Miko's reply, Yurikawa Hana blinked.
So she finally dropped the act.
After a moment's hesitation, her cheeks flushed slightly:
"Miko, have you and Lin-san... already done that kind of thing?"
They had been together so many nights.
As a healthy boy and girl.
If they were sleeping together at night, unless there were some special circumstances, it was hard to imagine nothing happened.
Even if they didn't do that thing.
They must have done other things, right?!
Shinjuku Gyoen, rest area.
"!!!"
Seeing her best friend's question, Yotsuya Miko's eyes widened slightly, a flash of shyness in their depths.
She hadn't expected Hana to ask about this.
Although she really wanted to say 'no'.
Remembering that her friend had leverage over her, Yotsuya Miko hesitated for a moment before deciding to tell the truth.
So she replied with a single word.
"Mm…"
"Whoa!!!"
Seeing her best friend's reply, Yurikawa Hana's jaw dropped slightly.
Shock filled her eyes.
They actually did that kind of thing!
She couldn't help but think back on how long Yotsuya Miko and Lin had known each other—it had only been about half a month.
Their progress was moving at lightning speed.
"Wait a second…"
Yurikawa Hana suddenly thought of something.
She had previously felt that Yotsuya Miko had changed, becoming prettier, with better skin and all.
Could it be because she did that kind of thing?
Can doing that kind of thing actually improve one's appearance?
Speaking of which, what does it actually feel like when you do it?
Is it uncomfortable or very pleasurable?
"Oh my god, what am I thinking?!"
Snapping back to her senses, Yurikawa Hana's face instantly turned red.
She could feel her face burning up.
Shaking her head, she quickly suppressed the thoughts in her mind.
Then she thought of something else.
She quickly typed out a message:
"Oh my god, Miko, you and Lin-san are moving way too fast! You guys used protection, right?"
"I don't want to see you with a big belly in a few months."
Although she'd never even had a boyfriend and had zero experience,
there were some things she understood.
After all, the internet is well-developed in modern society.
Using protection is very important.
"This…"
Seeing Yurikawa Hana's message, Yotsuya Miko blushed a little.
Her eyes flickered.
Every time she did that with Lin, it was direct contact.
Though she had been worried at first.
But Lin said it was completely fine, so she had to trust him.
After all, Lin wasn't an ordinary person.
He was so powerful, even without using ordinary human protection, she probably didn't have to worry about getting pregnant.
Blushing slightly, she began to type:
Yotsuya Miko: "Don't worry, Lin took precautions."
Yurikawa Hana: "That's good."
While Yotsuya Miko was chatting with Yurikawa Hana, Lin, who was talking with Tohru and the others nearby, glanced over at her.
He took in her expression.
He had a feeling the topic of their conversation wasn't exactly proper.
Time passed, and five minutes later,
Yotsuya Miko and Yurikawa Hana ended their chat.
Putting her phone away, Yurikawa Hana started walking toward her house.
Her gaze flickered, her mind racing.
Her best friend has a boyfriend now.
Speaking of which, should I also find a boyfriend like Miko?
After all, once you have a boyfriend, you're always together.
In that case, I won't be able to just ask Miko to hang out whenever I want.
I can't just be a third wheel.
"A boyfriend, huh…"
Yurikawa Hana murmured, and an image of someone suddenly appeared in her mind.
"Huh! Why is it him?"
She was startled, her pretty face flushing red as a hint of shyness appeared in her eyes.
There also seemed to be a trace of shame.
...
Meanwhile, on the other side.
Seeing Yotsuya Miko put her phone away,
Lin and the others didn't ask what she and Yurikawa Hana were talking about.
They stopped resting and continued on their way.
After leaving Shinjuku Gyoen, the group shopped their way from Shinjuku to Shibuya, and in the end, Lin bought something for everyone.
Including Shuzen Kokoa.
After accepting the gift Lin bought for her, Shuzen Kokoa couldn't help but blush slightly, thanking him in a soft voice.
In the blink of an eye, it was afternoon.
Lin's group of seven returned to the residence carrying bags big and small.
Everyone's face was brimming with a happy and satisfied smile.
The women took their things and went back to their rooms.
Yotsuya Miko, Tohru, Akashiya Moka, and Shuzen Akua were on the third floor.
Akasha was on the second floor.
Shuzen Kokoa was on the first floor.
All the bedrooms were now occupied.
Lin couldn't help but feel that his house was a bit small now.
He used to think it was quite large.
But before he knew it, it was at full capacity.
It seems the matter of building a royal palace in the Mirage Realm needs to get underway.
"I'm heading out for a bit."
Lin said to Shuzen Kokoa, who had been assigned to the guest room on the first floor.
A Space Card materialized in front of him.
The next moment, he vanished instantly.
When he reappeared, he was back at the mountain with the Mountain God's shrine.
With the Mountain God eliminated,
the evil spirits lurking near the shrine emerged one after another and entered it.
Lin spent a little time exterminating all the evil spirits on the entire mountain.
Finally, he arrived at the shrine's main square.
He summoned the Codex of All Things.
There was only one entry worth special attention: the 'Mountain God's'.
Nickname: Bronze-Hand Fox Spirit
Level: Blue
Description: Divine Evil Spirit Body
Acquired: Protection of the Arrow
…
Lin claimed all the Codex rewards.
His power and Force output limit received a small boost.
The Protection of the Arrow fused with his soul.
The ability comes from Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-.
It is one of the many Divine Protections possessed by the 'Sword Saint,' Reinhard van Astrea.
Its effect is: the user's ranged attacks are guaranteed to hit their target.
It's considered a fate-type ability.
After fusing with the 'Protection of the Arrow,' Lin could sense that the ability had a ceiling; after all, it was Blue-level.
The power difference between him and his target couldn't be too great.
And although the attack was a guaranteed hit, the opponent could still block it.
This protection was better than nothing.
Lin could already achieve a 'guaranteed hit' effect with his All-Phenomena Cards.
The advantage of the protection was that it was passive.
It didn't need to be actively used; it would take effect on any ranged attack.
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