"Mmm..."
Marin Kitagawa woke from her sleep.
The first thing she did upon opening her eyes was look out the window.
"The sky's completely dark... how long have I been sleeping..."
Marin Kitagawa rubbed her eyes and carefully moved her head.
Well, that splitting headache feeling had completely disappeared, and her body didn't feel as feverish as before.
It seems the cold medicine Ye Xing bought was indeed very effective. Combined with not having such a relaxing sleep for a long time and getting sufficient rest, her cold was almost completely gone.
Just as Marin Kitagawa was thinking this, she suddenly felt a mysterious object seemingly positioned right in front of her cheek.
"What is this?"
Marin Kitagawa felt somewhat curious. Because the room was completely dark, she couldn't clearly see what was in front of her. Subconsciously, she extended her slender, pale right hand, reaching out to touch the future.
"Hmm...? This thing... an electric baton? Why is it a bit warm?"
Marin Kitagawa cautiously felt it more carefully, growing increasingly puzzled in her heart.
What exactly was this thing?
Thinking this, her still somewhat groggy mind suddenly belatedly remembered something.
She usually lived alone, and when she first woke up, she subconsciously assumed she was by herself, having fallen asleep on the living room sofa.
Now, as her thoughts gradually cleared, Marin Kitagawa remembered...
She had apparently fallen asleep with her head resting on Ye Xing's lap.
So that meant... could it be... was it possible that...?
Just as Marin Kitagawa was at a loss about what to do, Ye Xing's calm voice suddenly sounded.
"I see you're really hungry."
Marin Kitagawa got a fright, instantly sitting up from Ye Xing's lap and curling up in the corner of the sofa, saying timidly:
"S-sorry, I... I didn't mean to."
Ye Xing stood up from the sofa, walked over, and turned on the living room light.
The sudden brightness made Marin Kitagawa's vision blur for a moment.
The instant her eyes adjusted, she subconsciously glanced at a certain part of Ye Xing, then immediately turned her head away, her pretty face flushed red, not daring to look at him again.
While feeling shy and embarrassed, Marin Kitagawa also felt a mix of shock and curiosity.
Was it normally that size?
Wasn't it a bit too impressive?
"Since you're awake, I'll take my leave now."
Seeing Ye Xing preparing to leave, Marin Kitagawa subconsciously spoke up.
"Wait a moment."
"What is it?"
Seeing Ye Xing turn to look at her, Marin Kitagawa slightly parted her lips, realising she had no reason to ask him to stay.
After struggling to think for a few seconds, she finally came up with a clumsy excuse.
"Um... what time is it now?"
"A little past two in the morning."
"It's... it's too late."
Marin Kitagawa's pretty face flushed slightly as she uttered words that even she found quite foolish and full of holes.
"It's not safe for you to go home alone... How about... staying until morning..."
At this point, Marin Kitagawa couldn't continue.
She herself felt that what she had said was utterly ridiculous.
Worrying that it wouldn't be safe for Ye Xing to go home alone?
What a joke.
Even if there really were robbers or something, she shouldn't be worrying about Ye Xing, but rather about any fool stupid enough to target him.
Using such an excuse to make him stay - even Marin Kitagawa herself thought it was far too clumsy.
Unexpectedly, faced with such a lame excuse, Ye Xing simply smiled and nodded, sitting down beside her.
"In that case, I'll wait until daytime to leave."
Seeing that Ye Xing had actually agreed, Marin Kitagawa felt both overjoyed and flustered.
What should I do?
Only now did Marin Kitagawa recall the vow she had made.
She absolutely must not do anything that would betray her good friend Saki Kawasaki again.
But...
Marin Kitagawa stole a glance at Ye Xing's profile, her hands nervously clutching the hem of her clothes.
He had actually come to check on her because she had a cold, even buying cold medicine and letting her sleep on his lap until this hour, while she was barely conscious.
Maintaining a sitting position for several hours straight must have been exhausting, even for someone with Ye Xing's good physical condition...
He's really gentle...
No.
Even the usually carefree Marin Kitagawa realised that such caring behaviour from Ye Xing couldn't simply be explained by gentleness.
Could it be...?
Perhaps?
No way?
Just as Marin was thinking this, her stomach made a soft rumbling sound.
Noticing Ye Xing's amused expression, Marin's face flushed red as she spoke in a mock-angry tone.
"I... I can't help it, I haven't eaten all day... Of course I'm hungry..."
"Let's go out and get something to eat then."
"Mm, okay."
Marin tucked her hair behind her ear, and before going out, she specifically went to the entryway to open her contact lens case there, putting in the pair of pink coloured contacts.
After doing this, she visibly relaxed much more, turning to face Ye Xing with a cheerful smile.
"So, do I look better now?"
Ye Xing shook his head.
"I actually think your natural black eyes are more beautiful."
"Eh..."
Marin seemed like she wanted to say something, but then changed direction, smiling sweetly.
"But then again, you have black eyes, too. You're so narcissistic, of course you'd think black is the most beautiful."
Saying this, Marin subconsciously moved closer to Ye Xing, her bare white feet stepping on the wooden floor as she stood on tiptoe to get a better look at his eyes, thoughtfully commenting.
"Your eyes are really beautiful."
"And your lips... nose... chin..."
Marin Kitagawa had ultimately underestimated the lethality of Ye Xing's appearance and overestimated her own self-control.
She had originally just wanted to look at his eyes, but now she was completely captivated, her pink lips slightly parted as they gradually moved closer to Ye Xing's mouth.
"We should go out now."
Hearing Ye Xing's sudden reminder, Marin snapped back to reality, her pretty face instantly flushing bright red.
Watching Ye Xing push open the door and walk out, she had already realised something she was reluctant to accept but couldn't deny.
She... had fallen in love.
When did it start...
Was it when Ye Xing accompanied her to the cosplay event in Tokyo?
Was it when we went shopping for costumes together, and she stood beside the Mask stand, speaking those words that completely aligned with my cosplay philosophy?
Or perhaps even earlier, on that sunny afternoon when Ye Xing first invited her to the Supernatural Society's activity room...
In any case, Marin Kitagawa finally understood one thing.
The fact that she had asked Ye Xing to help her draw tally marks meant that...
She had already fallen.
"Sorry... Saki."
Marin Kitagawa slipped on black flip-flops, her fair, delicate feet exposed with pale pink nail polish on her toes - the perfect summer gal image.
"I... can't give up."
Marin wasn't the indecisive type.
It was true that she and Saki Kawasaki were good friends.
But that didn't mean she was willing to step aside after realising her feelings for Ye Xing.
Not one bit.
Since they were friends and since they had both fallen for the same person, based on Marin's understanding of Saki Kawasaki, the other girl definitely wouldn't give up either.
In that case...
Let's compete fairly and squarely!
...
Meanwhile, in a remote area of Kyoto City.
The flickering yellow streetlights provided little illumination, instead making the quiet early morning path appear even more eerie.
"Found them."
Rio Futaba spotted several evil spirits gathered under the flickering streetlight - each about three meters tall with grotesquely twisted forms.
She removed her glasses, tied her hair into a high ponytail, and the pale, bone-coloured ring on her right ring finger glimmered slightly.
"Tear off the disguise, Bone Woman."
The moment Rio uttered the first word, the ring instantly expanded.
By the time she finished speaking, her body was already covered in combat attire that enhanced defence and concealed her identity, with a white mask resembling bone covering her face.
Sensing the spiritual power fluctuations in the air, the gathered evil spirits immediately turned around, their ferocious pupils locking onto Rio, who stood there, their voices filled with endless malice.
"You... can see..."
"Bone Spikes."
Without wasting words, Rio calmly uttered two words. Bone Woman appeared behind her, several sharp bone spikes extending from within her wide kimono sleeves, instantly piercing through the foreheads of the evil spirits.
From the moment Rio began her Soul Materialisation by speaking the true name, to the end of the battle when the evil spirits dissipated into black mist - the entire process took less than two seconds.
Mai Sakurajima, who had been observing from the side, couldn't help but marvel inwardly.
Rio Futaba was truly powerful.
To be honest, while there was a gap in their spiritual power levels, they were still in the same tier.
The number of times they received infusions from Ye Xing... should be similar, too.
Of course, that assumed the guy gave her and Futaba roughly equal amounts each time.
Yet despite having no tier difference in spiritual power, the combat effectiveness they could display against evil spirits was vastly different.
This is the difference arising from proficiency in Soul Materialisation and the user's specific development of the soul's true form.
"Just like what I demonstrated earlier."
The outfit formed by Rio Futaba's Soul Materialisation ability disappeared, leaving only the white ring worn on the ring finger of her right hand.
She walked up to Mai Sakurajima, untied her twin tails, took her glasses out from her lab coat pocket and put them on, then raised her right hand to display the white ring before Mai Sakurajima's eyes, speaking calmly.
"Maintaining the power of Soul Materialisation in daily life to form such inconspicuous small objects not only improves one's control over spiritual power, but also allows for the fastest transformation during sudden crises. After all, going from zero to ten compared to going from one to ten - the latter is obviously much faster. It's not just a numerical difference."
Mai Sakurajima nodded with partial understanding, speaking thoughtfully.
"So you mean, when already maintaining Soul Materialisation ability, even using just a little power is much faster than starting from scratch..."
Mai Sakurajima looked at Rio Futaba and smiled.
"Futaba, you're really amazing to have researched such a method."
"It's nothing."
Rio Futaba wasn't accustomed to such direct praise, turning her face away, somewhat embarrassed as she adjusted her glasses, her tone remaining calm.
"As just an ordinary psychic myself, the spiritual power application methods I've thought up are clearly more suitable to share with everyone compared to that abstract guy. This is also one of my responsibilities as a member of the Supernatural Society."
Having said this, Rio Futaba walked forward on her own.
"Let's continue the exorcism."
"Alright."
Yui Yuigahama and Miko Yotsuya couldn't go out at night, but Rio Futaba and Mai Sakurajima had no such restrictions.
After Shoko Makinohara developed Adolescence Syndrome with sudden physical growth, she made an excuse about staying at a friend's house for a while to prevent her family from finding out.
As mentioned before, because Shoko Makinohara didn't have much time left to live, her parents were quite indulgent towards her, fulfilling almost all her requests.
And the so-called friend...
Referred to Mai Sakurajima.
There was no helping it - Mai Sakurajima's fame was quite high, and staying at the home of a former nationally famous idol actress wouldn't make Shoko Makinohara's parents worry.
Of course, Shoko Makinohara was actually staying at Ye Xing's house.
Menma, who was originally under Mai Sakurajima's care, and Hachishaku-sama, who was protecting Shoko Makinohara, had also moved there together.
Because of this, she could now go out for exorcism with Rio Futaba, who also lived alone.
"That guy..."
Mai Sakurajima looked up at the brilliant night sky, Ye Xing's face appearing in her mind as she murmured to herself.
"What is he doing now... Is he at home, or in the Reverse World..."
...
Neither answer was correct.
The place where Ye Xing was located was called a 7-Eleven convenience store.
"This rice ball is really delicious, let's buy two."
Marin Kitagawa was selecting items from the shelves, looking at the dazzling array of products. Her long-empty stomach was growling even more loudly.
She picked up two rice balls, hesitated for a moment, and just when Ye Xing thought she would put them back, he saw Marin Kitagawa take several more.
Two minutes later.
"That's all, please ring them up."
Marin Kitagawa carried a large pile of rice balls, drinks, snacks and other items to the convenience store counter, the quantity so substantial it nearly formed a small mountain.
"All... all of these?"
Facing the stunned female shop assistant, Marin Kitagawa nodded with a cheerful smile.
"Yes, all of them."
She took out her wallet, paid proactively, then left the convenience store with Ye Xing while carrying a large bag of snacks.
"Hehe."
Seeing Marin's innocent smiling expression, Ye Xing couldn't resist commenting.
"You're this happy just because of food?"
"Of course."
Marin puffed out her cheeks, looking somewhat annoyed as she retorted.
"What's with that look? I'm at an age where I'm still growing, of course I need to eat more. Besides, I got some for you, too."
"That's good."
Walking together with Ye Xing along the early morning streets, listening to the cicadas chirping nearby, Marin stole a glance at his profile, tucked a strand of her pale golden hair behind her ear, and asked quietly.
"Was today's interview... successful?"
"Quite successful."
"That female reporter... didn't give you any trouble? Didn't make any... strange requests?"
"What do you mean by that?"
Marin looked somewhat displeased as she muttered quietly.
"Although I'm grateful she took photos for me, I can't help feeling the way she looked at you was ill-intentioned, like she had some ideas about you."
"Don't worry."
Ye Xing waved his hand and chuckled lightly.
"If an older sister is good-looking, I like them all the same."
Marin pursed her lips and muttered under her breath.
"Hmph, that's just like you."
Just as the two were walking side by side, a burst of noisy laughter suddenly came from nearby.
Seven men with their arms around each other's shoulders, holding liquor bottles, clearly drunk and dressed like delinquents, came stumbling over from the side.
When they saw Marin Kitagawa wearing hot pants and a tank top with her outstanding appearance, their eyes lit up, and they exchanged glances.
One of them stepped forward, grinning as he reached out toward Marin's chest while making crude remarks.
"Where are you heading so late, little beauty?"
Before Marin could react, Ye Xing moved sideways to block her, grabbed the man's wrist, and spoke with a smile.
"To dig up your mother's grave, want to come along?"
This sudden verbal attack completely stunned the man.
Several seconds later, he finally processed the words, his face turning angry as he raised his liquor bottle to smash it against Ye Xing's head.
"You fucking bas..."
Thud.
Before the bottle could descend, Ye Xing's straightforward punch had already connected with the man's face.
Seeing their companion covered in blood and howling in pain, the other six men's expressions changed as they pulled out knives from their clothes and surrounded Ye Xing and Marin Kitagawa.
"Ye Xing..."
Seeing the other side had superior numbers, Marin Kitagawa wore a tense expression and lowered her voice to say,
"Don't be rash, call the police..."
Before Marin Kitagawa could finish speaking, accompanied by six consecutive dull thuds, Ye Xing had already knocked the six drunken men to the ground with extremely proficient combat techniques.
Listening to the painful groans of these men writhing on the ground, Marin Kitagawa was completely dumbfounded.
"You... you can fight this well?"
Ye Xing's reply was simple, just chuckling lightly as he said,
"Somewhat proficient."
"Let's go."
Ye Xing patted Marin Kitagawa's shoulder and said softly,
"Let's go home."
...
When they returned to the apartment door, Marin Kitagawa took out her keys to open it, a faint blush appearing on her pretty face as she stole a glance at Ye Xing beside her and said softly,
"Just now... thank you for protecting me."
"Ah, it's nothing worth mentioning."
Ye Xing waved his hand dismissively, speaking with a smile.
"After all, you're my important..."
Just as Marin Kitagawa was nervously anticipating the next words, her heart rising to her throat, Ye Xing abruptly changed the subject.
"Damn, I forgot to buy cold Coca-Cola."
"Eh?"
Marin Kitagawa froze for a moment, then pointed at the large bag she was carrying and asked, confused.
"Aren't there drinks in here?"
"You don't understand."
Ye Xing shook his head.
"I suffer from a strange illness where I'll die if I don't drink cold Coca-Cola regularly."
"How is that possible?"
Ye Xing pushed the doubtful-looking Marin, who seemed about to say something more, through the doorway.
"I'm going to buy a Coke, I'll be right back."
Just as Marin Kitagawa parted her lips to protest, she saw Ye Xing reach out and gently pat her head, speaking in an amused tone.
"Wait for me obediently at home."
Marin Kitagawa was completely stunned.
It wasn't until the door closed that she snapped out of it.
...
Meanwhile, in a secluded alleyway.
The drunkards from earlier had gathered here, their faces filled with resentment, especially the one who had stepped forward first and taken a punch to the face, his nose now crooked, who was grinding his teeth in hatred.
"That damned brat, if I ever run into him again, I'll definitely..."
Before he could finish, a familiar, teasing voice filled with laughter came from the alley entrance.
"Yahallo."
The drunkards turned around to see Ye Xing walking towards them step by step.
Their faces first showed shock, then quickly turned vicious. One of them even pulled out a sharp dagger from his clothes, brandishing it with a sinister grin.
"You damned brat, you actually dare to come looking for death."
"Just as I sensed..."
Ye Xing stopped less than three meters from the drunkards, a kind smile on his face as he spoke softly.
"Your souls are quite twisted."
"Is this kid crazy?"
Facing these vicious-looking drunkards, Ye Xing merely smiled and slowly said.
"You know? I get along well with everyone, I've never had a single enemy."
Just as the drunkards were confused and preparing to surround Ye Xing, an unbelievable scene unfolded before them.
Ye Xing's entire right arm, visible below his short sleeves, instantly turned pale white, with jet-black nails extending from his fingers like sharp blades.
"Because all my enemies have been killed by me."
Ye Xing looked at the seven terrified drunkards backing away in fear, nodding with satisfaction as if counting them.
"Seven people... It's been a while since I've let this guy devour human souls. I'm really looking forward to this."
"I can't think of any reason to let you keep living."
"So it would be better if you just died."