Chapter 8: Guests at the Grass Pavilion
Most god-slayer don't like to think too much. After all, ninety-nine percent of the things in the world could be solved with just a single slap.
The remaining one percent, however, is entirely related to gods and fellow slayers—situations where one slap is insufficient, at least a dozen would be needed.
For example, the person now sitting with Hikigaya inside a grass pavilion likely had their brain turned into tofu a century ago, yet their slap is extraordinarily powerful—powerful enough to kill a god.
"So… is that your reasoning?" The strongest single female in the world gave her neighbor a rather unfriendly look.
Of course, perhaps calling this woman Luo Hao a Chinese empress would be more fitting.
"I think that's a very reasonable reason," Hikigaya sighed over his tea. "By the way, when you drink tea, do you refill it or not?"
He put his empty cup back on the table, slightly dissatisfied.
Really stingy—just one cup! For a man used to drinking from soda bottles, this was far from enough.
Well, it wasn't truly just one cup—the one who had brought the tea earlier had been scared off.
Hikigaya had seen plenty of people act pompous and run away, but seeing someone flee while holding a teapot was a first.
Then he heard Luo Hao speak in a mocking tone:
"I have no interest in tracing the footsteps of gods, and I have even less interest in Japanese women."
As she spoke, Luo Hao waved her sleeve, seemingly swatting flies. But the result was that the tea in the cup Hikigaya had just put back on the table rapidly refilled before his eyes.
This spell looked extremely useful.
Although it might sound strange, Luo Hao—the god-slayer not particularly enthusiastic about slaying gods—was actually the most orthodox in skill systems among all god-slayer.
Martial arts and magic are usually separate disciplines for ordinary people, but Luo Hao, who possessed the blood of a divine ancestor, was so obsessed with training that she maxed out both sides. In fact, most of the time, her main skill was dual cultivation of martial arts and magic, making her powers few but her abilities numerous.
This didn't mean she had turned martial arts and magic into abilities equivalent to powers, but it did make her less dependent on powers.
Hikigaya hadn't come all the way to Luo Hao's old home just to drink tea; he wanted to use her spiritual vision to search for Mariya Hikari. He didn't distrust Yuri from the original story, who specialized in spiritual vision, but Yuri couldn't find her own sister using it. Clearly, her main skill was something else.
Hikigaya could only sigh at how degenerate the world had become—priests treating intimate acts as their main skill? What kind of priest was that?
"Do me a favor." Seeing Luo Hao about to act tsundere, Hikigaya had to flatter her a bit while secretly thinking the fight at Sunlight Mountain had been worth it. Given her personality, if she weren't interested, she would have kicked him out by now.
"Do you have an equivalent reward for me? I mean equivalent as in me taking action for you, not just equivalent to that Japanese woman's value." Clearly, Luo Hao had a fondness for calling Japanese people "Wa."
Hikigaya had no idea what such a retro character liked. Most things that god-slayers liked, she didn't.
After a moment of thought, he said:
"Let's say I owe you a favor, how about that?"
"That could work." Luo Hao nodded. Although her expression was still reluctant, it could be considered an agreement.
For an over-the-top, antique-style chuunibyou like Luo Hao, not actively messing with someone meant she had good character; a "helpful" personality would never exist in her settings.
She stood, lightly stepped forward, and floated out of the grass pavilion.
They were deep in Mount Lu. In Hikigaya's previous life, Mount Lu was a tourist spot. But in this world, it belonged privately to god-slayer Luo Hao, and was recognized by the public as a demon's lair.
Yet because of this, Mount Lu's environment in this world was much improved, truly living up to the praise: "Mount Lu's scenery is the most wondrous in the world."
This phrase had been penned by the famous ancient Chinese poet Bai Letian—oh no, Bai Juyi.
Walking out of the pavilion, Luo Hao gazed at the distant horizon. The mist weaving through the steep peaks seemed to hold extra meaning in her eyes.
After a long while, her voice reached Hikigaya, still seated in the pavilion. He received an answer.
It wasn't as precise as he had imagined, but it pointed clearly enough.
"Thank you." Hikigaya lifted his tea cup, saluted Luo Hao from afar, and then drank it in one gulp.
When the cup returned to the table, Hikigaya's figure had vanished. If not for the obvious disturbance of the furniture, it would have seemed as though no one had been there at all.
Luo Hao appeared completely unaware of the movements behind her. She continued watching the sky for a few more minutes before turning and leaving without even glancing at the grass pavilion.
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