Chapter 238: Moving?
"Uncle Jin..."
Naruse Mio wasn't as relaxed as Toujou Jin; her slender yet curvaceous body tensed up nervously.
"Maria and I discussed it and still feel that things are fine as they are. We're not really keen on moving."
"Is it because of this handsome guy?"
Toujou Jin sized up Haruto. It had only been a few days, but this kid seemed to have grown stronger again.
"N-No, it's not!" Naruse Mio's pretty face flushed, and her voice suddenly rose a pitch.
"Then why?" Toujou Jin said casually, "Basara might be a bit dull, but he's not bad-looking either."
"Huh?"
Naruse Mio looked at Toujou Jin suspiciously. This time, she genuinely didn't understand what he meant until the Succubus Loli whispered an explanation, and she finally caught on.
"Strengthening family ties? What the heck?"
The red-haired, twin-tailed Devil King's daughter had a tsundere and stubborn personality by nature. She disliked having her fate arranged and, seeing that her uncle-by-marriage Toujou Jin seemed intent on matchmaking, became even more reluctant to move in together.
Besides, while Toujou Basara was indeed good-looking, he still fell short compared to Haruto.
As Haruto continued to break through in strength, his physique and looks were gradually maturing.
Standing nearly 180 cm tall, he was half a head taller than Toujou Basara despite being the same age, and his demeanor was more mature.
Coupled with his well-proportioned, streamlined physique, impressive assets that Naruse Mio had personally verified, and his handsome face, the bond between them was deeper than with Toujou Basara, whom she had only met twice.
"Well, I was just joking."
Toujou Jin didn't mind. He hadn't intended to interfere much in the children's affairs, but after some investigation, even someone as open-minded and free-spirited as him felt that Haruto had too many women.
However, since Naruse Mio was so resistant, he didn't press further and decided to let things take their natural course.
"Still, rather than troubling the young lady of the Gremory family, I think it's better to have Basara protect you."
Blood runs thicker than water. When it came to protecting Naruse Mio, Toujou Jin still trusted his own family more.
"Uncle Jin, even if we don't live together, that doesn't mean Basara can't protect Mio-sama."
Maria clasped her hands behind her back, pacing back and forth on her slender legs. "Since you've moved here, that means Basara will be transferring to Kuoh Academy too, right?"
Toujou Basara, being an honest kid, nodded and said, "Yeah, I'll be starting next week. Seems like I'll be in Class 2-A."
"Then we'll be classmates from now on~"
The Succubus Loli flashed a triumphant smile. "So, if Mio-sama ever faces any danger in daily life, we'll be counting on you, Basara."
"I'd love to confidently agree to that..."
Toujou Basara looked at his right hand and gave a bitter smile. "But it's better not to expect too much from me."
"It's fine. Even if Basara can't handle it, we still have Brother Haruto."
Maria giggled, lightly tapping her own head with a small fist. "Oops, I accidentally said what I was thinking out loud."
Toujou Jin extinguished the remaining cigarette butt and watched Basara's troubled expression without saying anything more.
What happened in the village back then couldn't be entirely blamed on Basara. Compared to Basara who was just a child at the time, the adults—especially the elders of the Brave's Village—should bear the greatest responsibility.
Yet due to his background, Basara ended up shouldering all of it. As his father, Jin also bore undeniable responsibility.
"Originally, I was worried Basara might feel lonely and wanted you two sisters to keep him company."
Toujou Jin lit another cigarette and pulled out his vibrating phone. "But now it seems Basara will just have to find a girlfriend sooner."
"Dad..."
Basara initially wanted to protest, but seeing Jin's expression, his words changed to: "Another business trip? Where to this time?"
"This time it's overseas. Probably for quite a while."
Jin put away his phone, quickly packed his luggage, and prepared to leave.
"Dad, so soon? Can't you stay for a meal?"
Last time they met, Naruse Mio had been too wary for the family to share a meal together. Basara had thought today would be different, never expecting Jin would leave immediately.
Basara regretted not agreeing to eat together earlier...
"Next time."
Jin ruffled Basara's spiky hair and chuckled. "If you get lonely, just call Haruto and Mio to keep you company, or make some friends yourself. This should be the last time we move."
With the Three Factions Summit approaching, once the peace treaty was signed, even if mother and son couldn't openly acknowledge each other, occasional meetings would be possible.
There would be no more need to keep Basara's identity secret. He was grown up now and could take care of himself, so frequent moves would no longer be necessary.
Haruto and the other three saw Toujou Jin to the door.
"Alright, I've called a taxi. You can go back now."
"Toujou... Uncle Jin, was it you last time?" Not knowing when they'd meet again, Haruto couldn't resist asking the question that had been weighing on his mind.
After meeting Toujou Jin, he felt a strange sense of familiarity—not the recognition of someone from memory appearing before his eyes, but rather a feeling of having sensed his aura somewhere before.
While the Naruse family was chatting, he had nothing to do, so he kept pondering this matter, which eventually reminded him of the time he had saved Mio's adoptive parents.
Toujou Jin smiled faintly, neither confirming nor denying it.
"Perceptive kid. If you weren't so reckless with women, entrusting Mio to you wouldn't be a bad idea."
"Uncle Jin, you're truly impressive. I still have a lot to work on."
Mio and the other two looked at the two speaking in riddles with confusion, seeming to understand yet not understanding at all.
"Haha, of course. I've lived nearly thirty years longer than you."
"Uncle Jin, have a safe trip. I'll take good care of things at home."
"If Yaiba had even half your thick skin, my life would be much easier."
Toujou Jin chuckled and scolded lightly before getting into a taxi. "I'm off. Call me if anything comes up."
After Toujou Jin left, Haruto and the other three had a meal together.
After agreeing to meet at school the following week, Haruto took the Naruse sisters and left the Toujou residence.
On the way back, Haruto casually asked, "Mio, why did you specifically invite me along? Was this like meeting the parents?"
"Pfft."
Mio's face flushed red, and she replied tsundere-ly, "Of course not! It's just... just..."
When she first met the Toujou father and son and learned they were relatives, she instinctively thought of Haruto and wanted to seek his opinion.
When Toujou Jin suggested they move, she again thought of Haruto subconsciously and didn't want to leave.
Haruto rarely stayed at the villa at night because whenever he did, it would lead to chaotic nighttime assaults, and there were also many other beauties outside waiting for comfort.
But compared to other places, Haruto still spent more time at the villa.
Besides, if she moved in to live with a boy her age, what if Haruto misunderstood…
"Just what?"
"Urusai! Urusai!"
Unable to answer, the tsundere beauty with red twin-tails fired off a triple retort, forcibly ending the conversation.
"Ah, Mio-sama and Brother Haruto get along so well."
Maria wore a sorrowful expression, "Unlike me, no one cares about me. Even Uncle Hayate only thinks about Mio-sama."
"What? A perverted succubus like you needs others to worry about your partner situation?"
Naruse Mio retorted irritably at Maria. This girl never learned her lesson - no matter how many times she'd been punished, she still kept secretly photographing her and tempting her with lewd suggestions.
The loli succubus immediately dropped her sad expression and cheerfully sidled up to Naruse Mio.
"Mio-sama, I don't want a partner. I just want to be with you forever."
"You... Urusai!"
Maria's confession made the recently calmed Naruse Mio blush intensely again. When dealing with tsunderes, sincerity truly is the ultimate weapon.
Watching the playful Naruse sisters, Haruto found it quite amusing.
Strangely enough, Maria had only known Naruse Mio for a short time. Although they'd been through hardships together, the loli succubus shouldn't have developed such deep feelings for her.
After much thought, the only explanation was love at first sight.
Siblings who've never met before can indeed develop unusual feelings - this kind of example appears frequently in various literary works.
The specific reasons are complex, probably because blood relations create familiarity upon meeting, and without knowing the truth, it's easier to fall in love at first sight.
But the loli succubus clearly knew.
Ah, they're cousins, and such things don't matter in the Underworld, plus she's a succubus...
Well, that explains it.
If Naruse Mio weren't such a tsundere, she probably would have been turned already.
Then the two of them would be grinding tofu every night, not stopping until it turned into bean curd residue.
Haruto swallowed hard and quickly dispelled the pink scenes from his mind. If he kept thinking about it, little Haruto would rebel.
He wasn't unfamiliar with pure yet gorgeous lilies - the Sakuramiya Sisters often performed for him.
But imagining the scene of the tsundere red-haired twin-tailed busty beauty and the pure-yet-seductive loli succubus, half-sisters baring themselves to each other, still made him feel excited.