Tengu City was peaceful at night, in a small villa that wasn't grand but gave off a very warm feeling. Yoshino had bought this villa with the money world consciousness had sponsored her from the previous world.
She didn't know if it was because of the world's blessing or because housing prices in Japan were really too cheap, but buying this house didn't cost Yoshino too much money. Moreover, in the world of "Lovelive", Yoshino had also earned some money through comics, and now she still had enough funds to spend.
In this cozy villa, three beautiful girls were sitting on the floor in the living room, heads bowed. They listened with remorse to Yoshino, who was wearing an apron, lecturing them. When they came back tonight, Yoshino had caught them red-handed at the entrance, and no explanation worked. Yoshino, with an unrefusable attitude, made the three of them sit on the floor, listening to her lecture.
"You went out to find Mr. Shido today, Sister Nozomi, Kotori, and Rin. I told you to buy tonight's groceries, but you chose to follow Mr. Shido when you saw him on the road. Sister Nozomi, you even used a camera to take pictures of Mr. Shido.
What are you going to do with these pictures now? Observe and research?"
Yoshino looked at the confiscated camera with Shiina, asking Toujou Nozomi strangely. In the footage, Itsuka Shido didn't seem to notice he was being followed at all. It seemed the three of them had very skilled tracking techniques.
"Yoshino, don't blame Sister Nozomi. It was I who wanted to see what kind of person that guy who could capture Spirits in Yoshino's world was, that's why I did this. Please forgive Sister Nozomi and Rin." Minami Kotori couldn't bear to see Toujou Nozomi and Hoshizora Rin being scolded, so she decided to take the blame for them.
"What! No meow. Kotori. This was all because Rin couldn't suppress her curiosity and ran over meow. Rin is also at fault. Don't blame her."
"No! I used my senior status to make you follow me for this matter. I am the mastermind of this whole thing." The three began to squabble, each claiming to be the mastermind. Their bond was really good. However, Yoshino wasn't trying to punish them, and their behavior made it seem like Yoshino was the bad guy.
"You guys are so sly. You clearly know Yoshino won't blame you, yet you still talk like that to Yoshino." Yoshino sighed, looking at the three giggling girls, feeling a headache.
"Huh? Look, it seems someone else besides us is also following Itsuka Shido. Look at this spot."
Shiina suddenly exclaimed, pointing to a corner of the camera to show everyone. The four followed Shiina's refer tos, and indeed saw a girl with pure white hair hiding behind a utility pole, continuously taking pictures of Itsuka Shido with a camera.
"Eh! I didn't notice this person just now. I didn't expect someone else to be following this boy. Yoshino, do you know who this girl is?"
Minami Kotori asked Yoshino curiously. Although she couldn't see her face, the girl's school uniform and Itsuka Shido's clothes seemed to be from the same school.
Judging by the girl's figure, Minami Kotori didn't think this girl would be a so-called 'back-view killer'.
"Hmm~ A girl who looks like this and secretly takes pictures of Mr. Shido, somewhat like a stalker, can only be Tobiichi Origami. This is what Tobiichi Origami looks like."
Yoshino used her spirit power to project Tobiichi Origami's appearance in the air so the three could see what she looked like. It had to be said that Tobiichi Origami was truly a beautiful girl who was not inferior to a Spirit. However, she didn't care about anyone else besides Itsuka Shido... Ah, that's wrong.
Besides Spirits, she wasn't interested in anyone else. It was just that her love for Shido reminded Yoshino of Shirai Kuroko's love for Misaka Mikoto; both were on a perverted level.
"Because she lost her parents when she was young and was full of despair, she was comforted by Itsuka Shido, which made her dependent on him. Now, besides Spirits, he is the person she cares about most.
When she was young, she hated Spirits because of them, and now she has joined the AST organization to find the Flame Spirit who killed her parents." However, the person who truly killed Tobiichi Origami's parents was actually herself.
When she went back in time, she accidentally killed her own parents. But she didn't say this out loud.
"How pitiful, losing her parents when she was so young. If it were me, I probably couldn't bear it either." Minami Kotori felt sorry for Tobiichi Origami, who looked expressionless like a doll. She must have suffered a great deal of pain back then. Otherwise, she wouldn't have become like this.
"What concerns me more is that Itsuka Shido met her when she was young and comforted her, creating goodwill in her heart, which has now turned into a perverted obsession where she frantically stalks him. He really has a way, this Itsuka Shido.
He can unintentionally capture such a beautiful girl. It seems there's nothing unreasonable about letting him capture Spirits."
Toujou Nozomi narrowed her eyes, dangerously contemplating how to deal with Itsuka Shido. Even if he was the protagonist of this world, if he dared to set his sights on Yoshino, she would make him realize her strength.
"Now that you mention it, that's true."
They were so focused on Tobiichi Origami's situation that they forgot about Itsuka Shido. Unintentionally doing something like capturing Spirits would surely make many boys envious, but this unintentionalness was precisely the most dangerous aspect.
Minami Kotori and Hoshizora Rin's eyes became dangerous. This made it even more impossible to let him get close to Yoshino.
"So, is this what you're focused on?" Yoshino looked at the three girls, caught between laughter and tears. "Didn't I promise Sister Nozomi that when I returned to my original world, I wouldn't bother Mr. Shido? It's just that there are still many mysteries that Yoshino needs to understand properly. So, approaching Mr. Shido is necessary."
Yes, her identity as a Spirit must have been known by the people of Ratatoskr. Facing them was only a matter of time, and if she wanted to gain the favor of other Spirits, she also needed to interact with Itsuka Shido. This was an unavoidable matter, but before interacting with Itsuka Shido, she still needed to do one thing.
"Forget it, let's leave this matter here for now. I still need to sort out dinner. There are still some ingredients in the kitchen, so dinner can be made a little simple." She handed the camera back to Toujou Nozomi, picked up the ladle from the table, and turned to walk towards the kitchen. She didn't know if she would come tonight, but she had to be prepared.
"Hehehe~ Let us help you, Yoshino. That way, dinner can be made faster." Toujou Nozomi jogged over and smiled. She had been helping Yoshino with dinner before, and the two had already formed a tacit understanding.
However, Minami Kotori watched the two walk towards the kitchen, laughing, and felt a sense of discomfort. Pouting, Minami Kotori walked up to follow the two into the kitchen. She couldn't lose to Toujou Nozomi now.
"Oh~ Kotori and Sister Nozomi feel so strange. Did something happen?"
Hoshizora Rin felt that the backs of the three of them were a bit off. However, being an idiot, she couldn't figure out what that feeling was. She rubbed her head, and unable to think of anything, she directly gave up the idea of thinking and went to the living room to conduct her daily spirit power training.
This time, Yoshino had brought her to another world, and she had to help her well. She couldn't betray this trust. Moreover, she couldn't cook, so going to the kitchen would only cause trouble.
An hour later, with two people helping, Yoshino quickly solved the dinner problem. The four sat down at the dining table, and just as they were about to start dinner, Yoshino stopped the three of them.
"What's wrong, Yoshino? Is there something else?" The three looked at Yoshino curiously. Was there still something to discuss?
"We have a guest coming over tonight, and it would be impolite for us to eat now. Let's wait a bit longer; she should be here soon." This time, Yoshino wanted to ask her roommate for a favor, and if she wasn't mistaken, the person should have already arrived.
"Oh my, I apologize for being late. My wondrous Spirits. I'm so glad you invited me." A beautiful young woman in a black and blood-red gothic dress emerged from the shadows of the living room, smiling charmingly at Yoshino.
Toujou Nozomi and the other two looked at the girl with serious expressions. Seeing the golden clock in her exposed left eye, they knew she was no ordinary person. They began to gather their internal power to guard against a sneak attack.
"Hehehe~ Ladies, there's no need to be nervous. I'm here by invitation this time. Let me introduce myself: my name is Tokisaki Kurumi, and like her, I am a Spirit, too."
The dining room grew solemn with Tokisaki Kurumi's self-introduction. Toujou Nozomi and the others at the table all pulled out their weapons, watching Tokisaki Kurumi warily.
The three dared not relax around this unknown Spirit. Toujou Nozomi took out her tarot cards and drew one. It showed a person with both black and white colors, representing both good and evil within them. However, the tarot cards' meaning didn't suggest she was evil, but rather that she used evil actions to conceal her true intentions.
Toujou Nozomi frowned at the tarot card. She could tell from it that the other party had no ill will. But even if she committed evil for good, the act was still done. She couldn't trust this person now.
"No, don't be like this, Sister Nozomi, Kotori, and Rin. Sister Kurumi is a friend I invited. I asked her to come to our house because I needed her help with something. Please don't be like this."
Yoshino nervously watched the three women guarding against Tokisaki Kurumi. She still needed her help with this matter. She couldn't let their relationship fail because of this.
"Hmph! Hmph! Don't worry about what I'll do. I watched your arrival very carefully, my friends from another world. I think we should be able to enjoy dinner happily now, shouldn't we?"
Seeing the three still on guard, Tokisaki Kurumi smiled helplessly. A red spiritual light appeared around her, enveloping her body, and her spirit dress transformed back into ordinary casual clothes.
Her long black hair was tied into two braids, falling gracefully over her shoulders, and her waterfall-like bangs covered her left eye, which originally had the golden clock. She looked at everyone gently, like a well-mannered young lady.
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