Satania's antics made Nibutani Shinka cringe with secondhand embarrassment.
They also reminded her of her own chuunibyou days. Still, after witnessing real "mysterious powers," she no longer rejected that kind of behavior so much. After all, a world of black and white—of ordinary people and the extraordinary—really does exist.
Pressing a hand to her ample chest and feeling the necklace Hayashi Maki gave her, Shinka's heart kicked into overdrive.
So what is that scoundrel Hayashi Maki thinking?
He openly revealed his identity, and earlier he'd been hugging and kissing her like that.
Does he actually want to make a contract with her?
Then why is he so calm about it?
And lately he's been getting along so well with that airheaded beauty Satania and the ex-angel, now slacker beauty Gabriel…
Why does it feel like she's getting farther and farther away from him?
Shinka grew anxious and possessive, to the point she couldn't concentrate in class.
Behind Hayashi Maki, Gabriel had her textbook propped up while secretly gaming. Hayashi Maki was sneaking looks at his phone too—he'd long since mastered the math, so skipping the lecture didn't matter much.
Right now he was messaging another of his retainers, Akizuki Marina.
In the second-year classroom, Marina felt her phone buzz, hurriedly switched it to silent, and peeked down. Heaven knows—she'd always been a model student; she'd never used her phone in class. But the text was from that shameless guy, and she couldn't ignore it.
Hayashi Maki: "I'm coming over tonight. Happy, Marina?"
Marina: "Not happy. Could you… not come?"
Happy, my foot.
She'd discovered her stepfather was a perverted scumbag who wanted to lay hands on his "daughter." She'd barely been saved before falling into a demon's grasp and signing a contract. Thinking about what she'd lost, the conservative Marina felt miserable.
And that misery… came from having too much time to brood. Also Hayashi Maki's fault. He'd been busy lately with Asada Shino, Yukinoshita Second Heiress, and Mahiru, so his "time management" slipped and he hadn't come by to comfort Marina. That wouldn't happen again—he needed to win, and tightly hold, the hearts of these two high-quality retainers.
Hayashi Maki: "Not coming isn't an option. I miss you, Marina."
Reading that, Akizuki Marina flushed; her heartbeat sped up. A lifelong honor student and dutiful girl at home, she'd never heard such bluntly intimate, cheesy lines. Her whole body trembled.
Hayashi Maki kept up the oily output:
Hayashi Maki: "I want to hold you and kiss you… Do you want that too, Marina?"
Marina: "No. I would never want something that shameless!"
She shot back immediately. But the moment she saw his message, memories of that night—his practiced moves, her own shame—echoed through her mind.
Hayashi Maki: "Oh? So to you that's 'shameless'? But I'm crazy about you. What am I supposed to do?"
Marina: "I don't know… Don't ask me. And I'm in class—please pay attention, okay? I need to study hard too."
Hayashi Maki: "Why work so hard? Do you think I can't take care of you?"
Marina: "What do you mean 'take care of'? I'm an honor student; paying attention is my job. Could you please focus on class too?"
Hayashi Maki: "I could… if you promise to wait in your room for me tonight."
Marina: "Ugh… Fine, I'll wait."
She'd wanted to refuse. But he was a demon—how was she supposed to resist?
Hayashi Maki's pestering successfully rattled the model student; Marina couldn't focus on the lecture.
When class ended, she sighed, looking troubled. Just thinking about "this and that" tonight made her blush. Touching her cheeks, she muttered under her breath, "I'm not looking forward to… anything that shameless."
While she was flustered, a warm voice came from beside her. "Um, Akizuki-san, you don't look well. Did something happen?"
It was the popular, sunny pretty-boy in class, Ōno Masato.
Marina gave a polite, embarrassed smile and shook her head. "It's nothing. You misread, Ōno-san."
"Ah—sorry, my mistake. Still, if you ever need help, please tell me."
"Thank you." Marina answered, then went back to fretting. She didn't take his words to heart and didn't think he could help anyway. Hayashi Maki was a demon—no ordinary person could deal with that.
And, to be fair, Hayashi Maki was her man, and he had saved her and Airi. As awful as he could be, in looks and presence Ōno couldn't hold a candle to him…
After teasing the good-girl honor student, Hayashi Maki switched targets and messaged Yukinoshita Yukino. He'd noticed her expression at the gate that morning—she'd probably seen Mahiru's ring. For the record, he'd only just learned to craft magic tools and wasn't that practiced yet. And he needed the right timing to give one. Lunch would do nicely.
Demon Lord: "Yukino, free at noon?"
Seeing the message, Yukino pouted. Thinking of the ring on Mahiru Shiina's hand, she felt sour and replied with a bit of attitude:
Yukinoshita Yukino: "No."
Demon Lord: "Eh? How come? Make new friends? Otherwise how are you 'not free'?"
Yukino's cheeks went pink. New friends? Not really—she'd chatted with Raphiel, but they hadn't planned to eat together. Mostly, she was clumsy with people and too shy to invite anyone.
Yukinoshita Yukino: "I'm just not free. I need to study. I'm a month behind and have to catch up."
Demon Lord: "In that case, why not join my club? Mahiru's in it. We can study together."
Yukinoshita Yukino: "No."
At the mention of Shiina Mahiru, the sourness flared again, and she reflexively refused.
Demon Lord: "Then I'll come to your classroom at lunch."
That made her jump.
Yukinoshita Yukino: "What for? Don't come!"
Demon Lord: "To see why you're 'not free' and dared reject my invitation."
Yukinoshita Yukino: "Fine—the rooftop… I suddenly have time."
Demon Lord: "Hmph, I'm very petty. I suspect you've made a new friend. I want to see which clueless punk thinks he can touch my Yukino."
Yukinoshita Yukino: "There's no new friend… Who else would be my boyfriend besides you?"
Demon Lord: "Really? Then why did you turn me down just now?"
Yukinoshita Yukino: "Hmph. I was in a bad mood, that's all."
Demon Lord: "Got it. Then I'll cheer you up at lunch."
Yukinoshita Yukino: "Tch. Lech."
Cheer her up, huh? He just wanted to do bad things to her. So why did her heart feel lighter… and a little expectant…?
~~~
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