Hearing these words, Ai Hayasaka, who had already stepped outside, paused and turned slightly to say softly,
"Ye Xing-san, being able to say something like that shows you're not as completely socially inept as you appear on the surface."
"Look at what you're saying."
Ye Xing responded with a laugh.
"Being able to precisely step on every one of someone's sore points means I'm equally capable of completely avoiding offending others in social interactions."
"I choose the former simply out of personal interest and preference."
"Compared to hypocritically putting on an apologetic smile, I prefer direct verbal humiliation."
"Though it's rather uncouth, I feel quite pleased with myself."
Ai Hayasaka didn't respond this time, simply walking out through the door on her own.
After the other party had left, Mai Sakurajima finally let out a relieved sigh and murmured thoughtfully.
"I never expected there would be a second person suffering from Adolescence Syndrome, and it's that Kaguya Shinomiya. This is going to be troublesome."
"What's so troublesome about it?"
Ye Xing waved his hand dismissively.
"Kaguya Shinomiya getting sick has nothing to do with us. It doesn't affect us, and I don't plan to agree to help anyway."
"Hmm?"
Hearing this, Mai Sakurajima's delicate brows furrowed, her expression clearly displeased as she reached out and pinched Ye Xing's arm.
"I have to say, what's happened to you since going to Tokyo? Even though Kaguya Shinomiya was once your rival, it was just academic competition between students, not some deep-seated hatred. Leaving aside the possibility of supernatural phenomena, just the fact that she's developed Adolescence Syndrome means we, as those who know about it, should offer our help."
Ye Xing's response was simple.
"No."
Mai Sakurajima grew even more irritated, clenching her fist and shaking it in front of Ye Xing's face.
"Now you're showing off with English? Huh?"
"I said I won't help, and that's final."
Watching Ye Xing lying on the sofa, fully committed to his lazy attitude, Mai Sakurajima took a deep breath and decided to try a different approach.
She first opened the refrigerator, took one bottle from the dozen or so neatly arranged chilled Coca-Cola bottles, then went over to Ye Xing, crouched down, unscrewed the cap proactively, and handed it to him. In an extremely gentle tone, she softly said,
"You must be tired after going all the way to Itomori Town? Have a Coke, and I'll massage your shoulders for you."
"Trying that approach?"
Ye Xing saw through Mai Sakurajima's scheme immediately.
But seeing through it was one thing.
He might as well drink the Coke first.
After finishing it, he placed the bottle on the table, looked at Mai Sakurajima, and said seriously,
"You heard it too - Kaguya Shinomiya developed Adolescence Syndrome on the very night the joint exams ended. You understand what that means, right?"
"Of course."
Mai Sakurajima sighed softly, took Ye Xing's hand, and said earnestly,
"But you shouldn't feel responsible because of this. You deserved to come first in the exams - there are always rankings in tests, and you couldn't have predicted that Kaguya Shinomiya would develop Adolescence Syndrome because of it."
"Obviously."
Faced with Mai Sakurajima's comfort, Ye Xing showed no trace of guilt, instead appearing completely justified.
"That's definitely her own lack of ability. How could it be my problem?"
Mai Sakurajima rolled her eyes, thinking to herself that she must have been out of her mind to try comforting Ye Xing.
This guy's immunity to moral blackmail was at two hundred percent.
Not to mention others - Ye Xing would never morally blackmail himself either.
When normal people encounter such situations, even though they know it's not their fault, since losing the top spot in the joint exams and Kaguya Shinomiya's Adolescence Syndrome are likely causally related, they would inevitably have complicated feelings about it.
Fortunately, Ye Xing wasn't a normal person.
"That may be so."
Mai Sakurajima shifted her tone, lying back against Ye Xing's lap as she raised a hand to stroke his cheek, advising gently.
"If I hadn't met you back then, I'd probably have disappeared from everyone's awareness long ago. As someone who once suffered from Adolescence Syndrome, I understand Kaguya Shinomiya's current feelings best. She must be experiencing indescribable pain and inner conflict to have reached this state. Please help her."
"Feeling overly compassionate?"
"How can you call that being overly compassionate? If that's your logic, then when you helped me back then, you were being overly compassionate, too."
"You're different."
"What's different?"
Ye Xing replied with complete sincerity.
"I was attracted to your body back then - my motives weren't entirely pure."
"Stop making things up."
Mai Sakurajima didn't believe this explanation at all.
If he had really been attracted to her body, back when he was the only person in the world who could observe her, and when she was living in his house, wouldn't he have made a move already?
Being attracted to her as a person was more like it.
Her assessment: pure tsundere behaviour.
"Please help her, I'm begging you."
Mai Sakurajima launched her cute attack.
Ye Xing was completely immune, though he deliberately acted as if he'd taken super-effective damage.
"Helping... is possible."
Before Mai could feel happy about it, she heard Ye Xing add very seriously.
"But if you're thinking about holding another exam where I intentionally lose to her, that's impossible."
Mai Sakurajima pursed her lips and said helplessly.
"You're really quite competitive, aren't you? Not willing to lose even once?"
"That depends on the person."
Ye Xing stopped smiling, clasping Mai Sakurajima's hands in his as he said very seriously.
"For someone like you, whom I consider one of my own, I could lose countless times. But Kaguya Shinomiya is just an outsider, so that's a different matter entirely."
Mai Sakurajima's pretty face flushed slightly as she muttered quietly.
"You always spring these sudden attacks... really..."
Ye Xing smiled.
"Is that the only thing?"
"Oh, right, the most important thing isn't that."
Mai Sakurajima seemed to remember something as she spoke slowly.
"The first thing - after returning to Tokyo, Teacher Shizuka Hiratsuka called me twice, saying she wants to speak with you alone. Does she already know about exorcism?"
"Yes, but she hasn't seen our true abilities yet."
"Whether to meet her, and how much to reveal if we do meet - that's up to you."
Mai Sakurajima wasn't particularly concerned about this matter.
Truth be told, the Supernatural Society's exorcism activities had never been deliberately concealed.
What couldn't be made public were the members' special abilities and the existence of evil spirits.
After all, exorcism was an occupation that had existed since ancient times - it's just that genuinely spiritually powerful people were rare, with frauds making up the majority.
Moreover, Oda Noto usually only passed on commissions. This time, Mai Sakurajima had actively arranged to meet the client because she'd heard the client's name was Ai Hayasaka and it involved the Shinomiya family.
Otherwise, it would have followed the usual procedure: going to the designated location, eliminating the evil spirits, and collecting payment.
With Oda Noto acting as intermediary, there was no need to meet the client at all.
"This is just a minor matter. There's one more thing of utmost importance - the real reason I urged you to return."
At this point, Mai Sakurajima let out a long sigh and spoke slowly.
"Shoko Makinohara... has grown up."
"Grown up?"
Ye Xing furrowed his brow slightly, looking somewhat puzzled.
"She's not at the age for physical development yet, is she? Could she be exceptionally gifted?"
"What kind of inappropriate remark is that!? I'm talking about her entire person - it's as if she completed her development overnight, her body growing to match our high school age group!"
"Oh, that's what you meant."
Ye Xing nodded slightly, not particularly surprised.
After all, in the original storyline, Shoko Makinohara had suffered from Adolescence Syndrome.
Unlike Rio Futaba, her congenital heart disease still hadn't found a cure, so the underlying emotional knot naturally remained unresolved.
The desire to continue living, to grow up like normal children her age - this was the root cause of Shoko Makinohara's condition.
While lost in thought, Ye Xing noticed Mai Sakurajima's somewhat complicated, meaningful gaze and felt an ominous premonition.
"Wait... judging by your expression... Shoko Makinohara's Adolescence Syndrome couldn't possibly be caused by me, too, could it? I'm genuinely not familiar with her - we've barely exchanged more than a few words."
"Heh, is that so?"
Mai Sakurajima let out two cold laughs, wearing a meaningful expression as she spoke in a slightly sour tone.
"She's been talking about you ever since her body grew, and she ran away from home two days ago. Things like 'Why hasn't big brother returned yet?' and 'I must wait for him to come back to tell him in person.' Heh, I wonder why that could be."
"Don't be sarcastic, little Mai."
Ye Xing rolled his eyes.
"If you don't know why, I certainly don't either. So where is she now?"
"Staying at your place with Menma and Hachishaku-sama."
"What?"
Ye Xing's face was full of question marks.
"Why isn't she staying at your place or Futaba's?"
"Tch, you think I didn't suggest that?"
Mai Sakurajima sighed helplessly.
"I did propose it, but Miss Shoko Makinohara insisted on waiting for your return at your home. Think about it - although her body has grown, she still has heart disease. Who would dare take the risk if she becomes too emotionally agitated? I had to give her your spare key first."
Hearing this, Ye Xing's expression changed, and he immediately stood up.
"Well, if you put it that way, I really should hurry home."
Mai Sakurajima grabbed his sleeve, annoyed.
"Just sit down properly. I haven't finished yet."
"I've told you about Kyoto matters. Now it's your turn to explain what you've been up to these past two days."
Ye Xing looked confused.
"What matters?"
"Playing dumb?"
Mai Sakurajima narrowed her beautiful eyes slightly, a hint of killing intent emanating from them.
"You went out alone with Hina, spent two nights away, and only returned to Kyoto at this hour today. Nothing happened in between?"
"Well, something did happen."
"Hmph, I knew it."
Mai Sakurajima let out a light hum. Although she appeared quite angry, Ye Xing knew that when she acted this way, she wasn't really angry. He smiled and explained.
"For the sake of future operations, I examined Hina Amano's body. The proportion of her semi-transparent, rainbow-colored parts is currently about forty-three percent, roughly extending to..."
"Stop, stop, stop!"
Seeing Ye Xing still wanted to continue speaking, Mai Sakurajima quickly raised her hand to stop him.
"You really say everything that comes to mind, don't you? Do you want to describe the process to me in detail?"
Ye Xing appeared righteous and principled, his eyes radiating with the light of justice.
"Precisely because of this, it proves I harbour no impure thoughts in my heart. I undertook this process with completely pure intentions. Greatness needs no elaboration."
"Since you put it that way, I'll reluctantly believe you."
Mai Sakurajima was the classic case of a sharp tongue but soft heart. She always appeared fierce and imposing, yet would be appeased with just a word or two.
Then, staring intently into Ye Xing's eyes, she asked very seriously.
"But you must tell me truthfully - how far have things progressed between you and Hina?"
Ye Xing showed a slight smile and pinched Mai Sakurajima's fair, tender cheek.
"I'm exceptionally energetic right now. Would you like to check for yourself?"
"Hmph, though I'd like to, I'll let you off this time."
Hearing this, though Ye Xing didn't say it explicitly, his expression and eyes already conveyed his meaning.
Mere Mai Sakurajima, how bold of you to make such claims.
Who's really letting whom off here? Don't you have any self-awareness?
"You should go see Rio now, shouldn't you?"
Mai Sakurajima, like a virtuous wife, straightened Ye Xing's collar and said softly.
"On your way to that Miyamizu Shrine this time, you probably gathered quite a bit of new information. Rio has the sharpest mind in our club. You should give her the information for sorting and analysis as soon as possible. We might uncover some new clues."
At this moment, Ye Xing felt astonished.
Mai Sakurajima truly lived up to being the head of the harem (self-proclaimed).
This grand vision for the Supernatural Society's future plans - taking the initiative to suggest he go see Rio Futaba on his first day back in Kyoto - was truly rare in this world.
Truly worthy of you, Mai-senpai.
"What you say makes sense, but..."
As he spoke, Ye Xing's hand was already caressing Mai Sakurajima's stocking-clad legs.
"Going a bit later won't make any difference."
"Mmm..."
Mai Sakurajima let out an affectionate murmur, her eyebrows twitching slightly as she lifted her snow-white chin in a challenging manner, making a bold declaration.
"In that case, I'm afraid it won't just be 'a bit later'."
...
Twenty-seven minutes later, Mai Sakurajima lay on the large bed in the bedroom, listening to the sound of the door closing, her beautiful eyes already dazed.
She had finally realised.
Not only had Ye Xing never used his full strength in exorcism... it seemed he had been holding back in this area too.
The mighty Mai Sakurajima had ultimately lasted only twenty-seven minutes before being defeated.
"I'm sorry, Master Ye Xing, I couldn't satisfy you."
"Rio... I leave it to you."
...
Half an hour later, at Rio Futaba's doorstep.
Rio Futaba, wearing glasses and loose homewear while reading a book, heard the knocking and went straight to open the door.
Normally, a high school girl living alone like her should be more cautious.
But the current Rio Futaba wasn't the same Rio Futaba from before.
Leaving aside her superhuman physical abilities for now...
The Soul Materialisation ability wasn't restricted to evil spirits. If the user wished, they could manifest before any human and cause them harm.
Want to test Rio Futaba?
Then let's first taste how sharp Bone Woman's sting is.
After opening the door, Rio Futaba saw Ye Xing standing outside. A flicker of delight first flashed in her eyes, then she pushed up her glasses and pretended to be nonchalant, speaking without emotional fluctuation.
"Hmph, coming to see me so late? Are you in heat?"
Hearing this term, Ye Xing couldn't help but retort.
"You're really abstract now, Futaba."
"Probably infected by you."
Ye Xing entered the room, first closed the door, then smiled at Rio Futaba.
"Have you forgotten? You were supposed to give me a special welcome ceremony."
Seeing his half-smiling expression, Rio Futaba's face flushed slightly as she muttered quietly.
"What a perverted guy."
Despite saying this, Rio Futaba took a deep breath, suppressing her embarrassment, and spoke in a voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz.
"Mas... Master, wel... welcome home."
"That's more like it."
Ye Xing patted Rio Futaba's head approvingly.
Rio Futaba sighed helplessly. After Ye Xing sat down, she brewed a steaming cup of coffee and brought it to him.
'Really,' she thought to herself, 'I'm completely under his control.'
"Let me briefly tell you about my experience in Itomori Town this time."
Ye Xing picked up the coffee cup and took a sip. Though he disliked the bitterness, it did clear his mind considerably. He recounted everything that happened during his trip to Itomori Town to Rio Futaba.
When discussing this topic, the latter had completely slipped into her role as the top strategist of the Supernatural Society. Even when hearing about the minor incidents that occurred during the luring of the god, she remained expressionless and completely rational.
"Combat with a god... This is the first direct confrontation."
Rio Futaba murmured to herself, then looked at Ye Xing.
"As someone who experienced it firsthand, how would you assess the strength of this so-called weather god?"
Ye Xing thought for a moment before giving his evaluation.
"Strong, but also weak."
Rio Futaba frowned slightly.
"What kind of assessment is that? You might as well have said nothing."
Ye Xing smiled and said quietly.
"Its strength lies in spiritual power, while the weakness I mentioned refers to its complete lack of combat experience, relying solely on pure spiritual power for instinctive attacks."
"So that's how it is..."
Rio Futaba suddenly understood, murmuring to herself as she pondered.
"That makes sense. As a true deity, different from the Goat-Headed Deity, it has never experienced any battles... This might be its weakness."
Hearing this, Ye Xing put on a serious expression and righteously criticised her.
"Hey, why are you attacking the Goat-Headed Deity while you're at it? Trying to elevate one by putting down another? Are you in some fan community?"
Rio Futaba rolled her eyes and retorted.
"You've developed feelings for that thing?"
"Of course."
Standing on moral high ground, Ye Xing declared righteously.
"I won't allow you to speak that way about my exclusive, self-regenerating, lifetime supply of compressed biscuits!"