She was staring at the bowl of noodles with rich broth, a fried egg, and slices of pork.
The aroma rising from it was so fragrant that her stomach kept growling nonstop.
"What's this called again? Udon? Ramen? Whatever, just eat it."
Kai yawned once and glanced over at her.
'This guy… is he impotent or something?' Eru thought to herself.
Even though she had been observing him for a long time, she still didn't have much clarity about his attitude toward sex or romance.
That's why, while traveling together, she carefully watched his every gesture, action, expression—and even what was happening under his pants.
She deliberately led him past several brothels to test him, and he agreed without hesitation.
And then came the thing beyond her imagination.
Instead of getting aroused and blushing like a teenage boy, this guy acted like someone completely indifferent to the world.
He scratched his ass right in front of the girls, sniffed his hand, went "ewww", then sniffed it again.
Then he scratched his crotch and immediately shook hands with the husband of one of the girls—after he had just saved both of them from a gang of thugs who were about to gang-rape the husband (huh?).
Most shockingly, when the women from the brothel tried to seduce him, he flopped down on the ground, screaming and crying, yelling that he wanted to call the police or some knights because these women were trying to kidnap a minor.
This guy wasn't the clueless type his appearance suggested. He knew everything but just didn't give a damn.
A true misfit! Is this guy really from around here?!
"I don't want to lose my virginity because I want to win more than anything," Kai said, flexing his muscles, kissing his own bicep, then flashing his teeth at her in a grin.
A vein popped on her forehead. She couldn't stand it anymore.
This guy knew exactly what she was thinking—and he was proving her wrong by doing these blatantly provocative things!
As a girl raised in a sex-worshipping cult, she felt utterly humiliated.
There's no way a man—the same species driven by sex—could resist temptation in front of women like this!
So she used an aphrodisiac drug, turned it into a mist for them to inhale, and released it toward a group of nearby women as well as Kai.
Then she slipped away to a safe spot to avoid breathing it herself, smirking like a gremlin.
…Only to later see Kai casually chatting with those women like a mature adult lady.
He was smiling, pouring tea for them, talking about all kinds of random things and the women, who should have been overcome with lust, ended up valuing the conversation more than sex.
She surrendered. Total defeat.
After walking for a while, the two arrived at an Eastern-style restaurant. Kai ordered a bowl for her right away.
"What's wrong? Not eating?" Kai looked at her, scanning her from head to toe.
"…What are you looking at?"
"Looking at my friend so I can buy clothes in the right size later. Big brother has to take good care of little sister, right?"
"I don't remember accepting you as my brother."
"Boss! If this girl doesn't pay later, just sell her to a brothel!"
"OI!!"
Kai leaned in close, smirking.
"So… you accepting me as big brother yet?"
"…Fine, yes."
"Good girl."
Kai gently patted her head. A warm aura seemed to radiate from him.
'Did this guy get hit in the head somewhere? Or did that acupuncture needle the doctor stabbed into his brain leave permanent damage?'
"Eat up. We're heading to sleep soon."
"Uh… yeah…"
She tried to pick up food with chopsticks but dropped it, then glanced at Kai.
Kai gave her a friendly smile.
"Need help? Say 'big brother' and I'll teach you how to use chopsticks."
"Get lost, you siscon freak."
Kai didn't seem to mind much. In the end, he just showed her how to use them properly anyway.
…Delicious. That was her honest thought, even though the broth was quite salty.
"Hey," Kai's calm voice suddenly spoke up, as if he wanted to ask something.
"?"
"Let me guess a few things… That Spider-Man guy I met at school—the one who almost killed me… he's from your cult, right?"
She stopped mid-motion with her chopsticks and carefully observed Kai.
"Why do you think that?"
"You and him both serve the same cult. Also I have a curse."
"Huh?" She raised an eyebrow, not understanding.
"I'm not great at thinking deeply, but I remember clearly: when I fought him, he gave off this purple-pink energy. At first I didn't know what it was because I lacked experience, but now it's pretty clear."
But she hadn't used any skill or magic, had she? Wait… maybe when he was talking to her, she had channeled energy into the knife… Shit.
"But that's still lacking solid proof. Everyone has different mana colors. Same color is normal. Maybe I'm overthinking~"
Hearing that, she let out a sigh of relief. Best if this guy didn't know too much. If he found out that guy and her cult were connected, he'd definitely start asking about their goals—after all, that Spider guy had nearly killed him.
"Or maybe not." Kai looked straight into her eyes.
"…What do you mean by that?"
"I already told you—I have a Curse. And my curse is very, very versatile… as long as I'm willing to pay the price."
Then, an octopus crawled out from inside his shirt. It was panting hard, having been squished against Kai's muscular chest.
"…" She stared at the octopus, then at Kai.
Before going to meet Eru earlier, Kai had stopped to a vet and brought Pandora along.
Pandora opened its mouth and pulled out a small mirror, handing it to Kai.
"It used to be an ordinary little mirror, but thanks to my Pandora, it became the Mirror of Truth. It lets me get answers to any question I ask."
Then Kai smiled.
"Of course, the price for using it is… scratching my ass and my crotch in front of everyone!!"
What incredible willpower. Respect to people willing to do that in public.
"…If you already know, what are you going to do? Take revenge on me?" Eru asked.
"No."
"Really? Then are you going to blackmail me with it to force out top-secret information? Dream on. Even if you humiliate me, rape me, or turn me into a toilet meat, I won't say a single word—"
A light kick sent her tumbling off the chair.
"Motherf—! Why did you kick me?!"
"Has the little kid finished talking nonsense? I haven't even said anything yet and you're already spouting garbage. When we get home I'm burning all your porn collection as punishment!"
"WE DON'T EVEN LIVE TOGETHER!"
"Besides… why would I do those things to my little sister? I protect my little sister until the end. Since you've already become my little sister, there's no reason for me to care about that other stuff anymore."
Then Kai scooped Eru up and hoisted her onto his shoulder.
"And remember to take me to your cult's place, okay! I want to see your home, Eru."
"…"
This guy is both crazy and weird. He really must still be suffering side effects from that acupuncture needle getting stabbed into his brain.