Shinmai Maou no Keiyakusha

The Master and Servant Contract immediately activated the curse when the Servant betrayed the Master.

After almost a month--- On the next full moon, it was possible to annul it.

At first they believed it to be hopeless, but they somehow managed to overcome the first week.

---Regardless of how it came to be, the contract was bound, so they had to deal with the situation.

To successfully avoid the curse from activating, they persuaded Mio now and little by little they confirmed the activation conditions for the curse and other effects.

And as of now, they had a good understanding about the contract magic.

First--- The servant wasn"t forced into absolute obedience and could defy an unreasonable order. Apparently it was done, so that the contract wouldn"t be used one-sided, but interactive.

Consequently, the master needed to reward his servant with an adequate att.i.tude as a master. It was close to the "Reward & Service" relationship between the Shogun and Samurai, which takes it origin during the Kamakura period.

That said, even if the Master makes an unreasonable order, the curse will not activate for him due to the superior stance in the contract. Still, the fact that the servant could disobey a strange order was a salvation for Basara and Mio.

---Then what determined a betrayal from the servant, leading to the activation to the curse?

It was a bit complicated, as the condition for the curse"s activation was "a mental betrayal".

That said, the servant wasn"t forced into absolute obedience. He had the right to "oppose" an unreasonable order.

Also, actions that appeared like a "rebellion" or "betrayal", but were for example to "correct" a mistake, meaning an action for the sake of the master, were apparently forgiven.

But on the other hand, if the Servant disobeyed a legit order or took an unreasonable att.i.tude, the curse activated without mercy.

And it seemed that the power of the curse was determined on the Servant"s feeling of "guilt"--- in other words, his "mental betrayal".

When the curse activated, a mark appeared on Mio"s neck like a collar as proof.

But--- Basically the curse wouldn"t activate as long as she trusted and believed him.

Because the contract between Basara and Mio was conducted uncommonly, there had been confusion in the beginning, but originally it was a magic that strengthened the trust between Master and Servant, allowing them to keep track of each other"s positions.

Therefore there was no problem. A week pa.s.sed while desperately convincing themselves like that.

And then--- summer vacation came to an end.

That said, even with summer vacation ending, it was not the end of summer.

On sunny days, the temperature easily crossed 30°C.

A day with boiling heat from the morning on. Toujou Basara walked the street to school for the first time.

The second term from today onward. The start of his new school life.

"Aw, so hot… d.a.m.n."

He was wearing the summer uniform, but that didn"t mean that his trousers were shorts. Additionally the surroundings were full of students with the same uniform. He hated crowds.

"Girls have it good… They get to wear short skirts."

"---Hey, could you stop being so egoistic? In exchange for that, it"s cold in the winter."

A cold voice beside him answered the grumbling Basara. It was Mio wearing the same school uniform.

Since they mostly made sure of the activation boundaries of the curse, making an impudent remark in the middle of a normal conversation was no problem.

Malice or a guilty conscious were the problematic ones.

"But, in winter you can easily wear shorts or at worst tracksuits pants under your skirt, right."

Each of them cold-blooded spoiled a boy"s pure heart. Upon that,

"That goes without saying. What"s the point of letting yourself freeze."

"Then in the end, you"re warm in winter!"

Not good. He inadvertently retorted, but what good was it to even get hot-blooded himself. There,

"Right, please calm down, Basara-san."

A young voice from behind. When he turned around, Maria was following behind them.

Needless to say she didn"t wear a school uniform, but a refreshing dress.

"It is hot, because you think it is hot. At time like these, just look at me."

Saying so, Maria searched rustling in the convenience store bag in her hand.

Then she pulled out a pet bottle, drinking it with big gulps.

Next she ripped open a popsicle wrapping, taking a mouthful. Narrowing her eyes pleased, she faced him with a smile.

"How is it? When watching a refreshing scenery, you feel refreshing yourself, right?"

"As if!"

"Muh, I just wanted to cheer you up a bit, since I am asking you to guard Mio-sama at school."

While feeling despondent, Maria licked her ice. That appearance looked unnecessarily erotic.

In casual moments like this, he was reminded that she was a succubus.

"…I"ll just be grateful for the idea."

Basara wearily faced frontward again. Upon that, his gaze fell on the wave of students with the same school uniform that flowing through the gate. Shortly thereafter, Basara and the girls arrived there as well.

"Oh, so this is it."

Basara stopped in front of the gate and looked up the big building.

Private [Hijirigasaka Academy]. That was the school Mio attended and which Basara would attend from today onward.

"Well then, Mio-sama, I will be on standby nearby."

"Yeah, thanks."

On the night of the screwed up Master and Servant contract, she had been filled with rage, but after a week, Mio"s anger certainly had subdued. Mio and Maria had returned to their quite close sister relationship.

When Maria showed a smile on Mio"s "Yes", she suddenly looked up to Basara.

"Okay, Basara-san, I leave Mio-sama to you. Though I doubt there will be any troubles in a place with so many people."

"Yeah, if anything comes up, I"ll let you know right away."

However, suddenly doubt arose in him.

"But… You said you would be on standby nearby, but it"s a weekday, you know? Won"t it be troublesome if the police finds you loitering around here?"

Upon that, "Fufufu. Do not worry. It will be completely fine."

Maria laughed with Fufufu and pulled out a single card from the pouch she was carrying over her shoulder.

"Look, in preparation for such cases, I have a fake ID that testifies me as 18 years old. 18 years, you hear? With that I can loiter around during noon all I want."

"Oh really…"

Basara lost his strength. Just because she was 18 didn"t mean she could loiter around all she wanted.

Or rather, normally anyone would doubt that age from her appearance--- even when she was smiling so radiant.

Upon entering the school grounds, the flood of students got to it"s peak and the hallways were crowded with students.

Basara, a transfer student, parted from Mio and headed to the staff room first. When he told them at the door that he was the new transfer student today, he was told to wait for a bit in the waiting room next door. And after the chime rang a few times, a young male teacher came to pick him up with a cla.s.s register in his hands. He held out his hand with a brilliant smile.

"I"m Sakasaki Mamoru, your homeroom teacher. Nice to meet you, Toujou."

"Yes, h.e.l.lo…"

Even while being overwhelmed by the unnecessary refreshing aura, Basara replied to the handshake.

Since the morning home room followed right after the staff meeting, they moved to the cla.s.s room right away.

"Well, we often get transfers due to family circ.u.mstances, but your case seems a bit more complicated, Toujou."

"Yes, kind of…"

Nothing would come from hiding the fact that he was living with Mio. Therefore Basara told just the school that they were currently living together to see if they could be a family before the remarriage, when he was asked at the beginning. That said, he wouldn"t announce that to the cla.s.smates though.

"But making a trial period like that shows that your parents are good people, who properly consider the feelings of their children."

Basara replied with the vague answer "Sure". He couldn"t tell him that all of that was made up.

Although, it all happened from Jin"s considerations, so Sakasaki"s words weren"t wrong.

…Ah, reminds me.

Basara asked Sakasaki what he suddenly remembered.

"Uhm… I heard that a friend of my father is at this school, but do you know anything of it?"

Jin might have received a favor from that person when he took care of the transfer papers.

Then it would be better to express grat.i.tude to that person. However,

"Is that so? Well, I haven"t heard anything in particular about that. Should I look into it later?"

"Ah, no, thank you."

If the homeroom teacher Sakasaki didn"t hear about it, it might be better not to pry into it.

When he politely turned him down, they arrived in front of the cla.s.sroom.

"This is our cla.s.s. A new family and new school might bring various hardships, but you"ll get used to it in no time. Besides, we have Naruse in our cla.s.s."

Ohh, Basara was a bit surprised. It was rare that siblings or relatives were put in the same cla.s.s. He thought for sure he would end up in a different cla.s.s than Mio. They must have been considerate.

"Moreover there is our serious cla.s.s rep and me as your homeroom teacher. If there"s anything you don"t understand, just ask without reservation. Okay, let"s go in."

Saying so, Sakasaki moved into the cla.s.sroom and Basara followed after him. The news of a transfer student coming must have spread already. When he stood in front of the blackboard, he could look over the whole cla.s.s.

…Geez.

Basara made a sigh at heart. All gazes in the cla.s.sroom were focused on him and all at once they started to evaluate Basara. That was the unavoidable fate of a transfer student.

First of all, he saw everyone get discouraged, boys and girls alike, just by the fact that he was a boy. He was prepared for it, but before his self-introduction it already felt like a lost battle, which truly depressed him. He believed his looks to be average, but there were still a few girls that hadn"t lost interest in Basara yet.

…Ah.

Amongst them was Mio sitting at the window in the back.

…She really stands out after all.

Seeing her like that, he once more realized Mio"s cuteness. In the cla.s.sroom s.p.a.ce, everyone wore the same uniform and sat at the systematic ordered desks. The conditions were the same. Due to that, one"s characteristic stood out excessively. When he stared at her, she averted her eyes towards the window.

He lost another interested one. Who remained was,

…Mh?

In the same window-row as Mio--- the girl at the very front was looking at him.

It was a pretty girl. Contrary to her vivid presence, similar to Mio"s, she had an aura like clear water.

Their types were different, but she was a beautiful girl on par with Mio.

Seeing as the desk next to her was empty, it most likely was going to be Basara"s.

Indeed, it was understandable that she was interested in him when he was going to sit next to her. But,

…Ehm, what to do about this?

He considered her a cute girl, but if she stared at him so directly it certainly was a bit awkward.

At that time, Sakasaki, standing besides the teacher"s desk, eloquently wrote his name on the blackboard,

"Okay, as you can see, we have a transfer student. ---Toujou, introduce yourself."

"Ah, yes…"

coming to his aid in the silence.

"Ehm, I"m Toujou Basara. My name is a bit showy, but as you can see, I"m an average guy. Please take care of me."

Since they would inquire about it anyway, he made a self-deriding introduction, whereupon the expressions of the guys softened a bit. The atmosphere became somewhat welcome and Basara made a sigh of relief.

Then it was time for questions and with the silly questions and answers repeating numerous times, the chime tolled the end of the homeroom soon enough. Sakasaki clapped his hands together.

"---Okay, that"s it for now. Save the rest for after the opening ceremony. Toujou, your desk is the empty one over there. Nonaka, you"re the cla.s.s rep, so look after Toujou."

"…Yes."

The beautiful girl from earlier stood up and nodded short. Apparently she was the cla.s.s representative.

"Well then, everyone line up in the hallway. We"re going to the gym."

On Sakasaki"s words, everyone started to stand up from their seats.

"He tells us to line up… but in what order?"

Amidst the students pouring out of the cla.s.sroom, Basara just stood there with no idea what to do, whereupon

"---Basara."

Suddenly his name was called, and Basara faced it startled.

"Ehm, what is it, cla.s.s rep…?"

Before he had noticed it, the girl had stood right besides him. He was surprised by suddenly being called by name, but for Basara, the transfer student, she was the one to take care of him. Therefore,

"I hope we get along, cla.s.s rep. I"ll try not to cause any---"

troubles… was what he wanted to say, but couldn"t. Because she suddenly hugged him.

"Eh---?"

For a moment, he didn"t understand what was happening.

But the soft touch of a girl and the faint, sweet fragrance told him that it was reality.

"W- Wh- What are you two doing!"

Mio, who noticed the two of them before anyone else, pushed the dumbfounded cla.s.smates aside and came over with a bright red face. Her eyes were lightly bloodshot.

"Ohh!? Cla.s.s rep, can you get away? Otherwise I think it"ll be dangerous!"

Mostly for my own body though.

"Moreover, you call me by my first name and hug me, could it be you lived overseas?"

"…No."

On the question, Nonaka raised her face while still hugging onto Basara.

"Basara… have you really forgotten?"

Then she showed him a little sulking expression.

"Mh? That reminds me, the name Nonaka… Don"t tell me,"

Basara remembered the last name of the cla.s.s rep, which the homeroom teacher had called, very well.

"You"re… Yuki?"

Upon saying the name of his childhood friend after a few years, the girl in front of his eyes nodded short with "Mm".

"Basara, it"s been a while…"

Saying so happily, Nonaka Yuki showed a smile. Then,

"Get off him already!"

Mio forcefully got between them. When she pulled Basara and Yuki apart,

"H- Hugging him out of nowhere… A- Are you nuts?"

She flared up at Yuki with a bright red face. However Yuki stayed composed.

"Not really. This is normal between Basara and me."

"N- Normal…? H- Hey, Basara, what does she mean?"

Basara was troubled by Mio"s ogre-like glare.

"Well, Yuki"s my childhood friend… She was quite attached to me."

"Attached… You aren"t a dog or cat!"

"Well yeah…"

But the fact remained that it was true. They were of the same age and lived nearby, so they grew up like siblings. Actually, it hurt. The gazes of his cla.s.smates, Mio"s included, that is. Specially the ones from the boys.

Well, obviously. For a bystander it only looked like Mio and Yuki were fighting over Basara.

…Not good. At this rate, the friendly atmosphere I created with my introduction will…

But, how to explain it? While he was like that, the situation kept getting worse.

"…It doesn"t concern you, Naruse-san."

At last, Yuki declared coldly--- But it provoked Mio"s emotions.

"It, It does concern me!"

Before Basara could stop her, Mio shouted with a voice that reached down the hallway. The all decisive sentence.

"I"m… living together with him after all!"

The opening ceremony ended and it became lunch break after a couple of cla.s.ses.

A happy lunch-time atmosphere spread over the school.

Basara sat bored and alone at his own seat in the cla.s.sroom. Inadvertently he mumbled.

"……For real?"

Wow. This was beyond his expectations. Could a person on his first day of transfer become this isolated?

First of all, it seemed like he made an enemy out of every boy. Just getting hugged by Yuki was bad enough, but Mio"s declaration of their living together totally ruined everything.

For example, the girls showered Basara with question without mercy once they returned to the cla.s.sroom from the opening ceremony. He got information about Mio or Yuki, but they sucked out all the information from him they wanted, then left satisfied and never spoke to him again.

Therefore Basara had no longer anyone to speak with, except Mio and Yuki.

---However these last two rays of hope weren"t here either right now. Yuki left after being called by the teacher for some cla.s.s representative work. When he then invited Mio to eat lunch together, she said "You finally reunited with your childhood friend, so eat with her for all I care" and left with the girls from cla.s.s to somewhere. Probably because it was a suggestion that was considerate to him in a way, the curse of the Master and Servant contract didn"t activate in particular.

And this--- led to his current solitude. Basara sighed wearily.

"Guess I should get going…"

There was no point in staying here. As he didn"t have a lunch box with him, his choices were either the cafeteria or the school store. And when he stood up from his seat and left the cla.s.sroom, Basara was suddenly called out to.

"Yo. Making most of the boys in cla.s.s your enemy in an instant, you have some tough luck, Mr. Transfer Student."

When he turned around, there stood a boy, showing a friendly smile. One of his cla.s.smates.

"Ehm… Takigawa, was it?"

"Oh, you could tell? Have we met before somewhere or what?"

Takigawa made a puzzled face. Only Basara had introduced himself in front of the cla.s.s. Needless to say, the other cla.s.smates,

Takigawa included, didn"t name themselves.

"Well, it"s thanks to this from Sakasaki-sensei."

Basara pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket and held it out. It was a copy of the seating chart that his homeroom teacher Sakasaki prepared from him, so that he could memorize his cla.s.smates" names as fast as possible.

"Hee, Sakasaki is perceptive as ever."

Takigawa nodded once he told his understanding, then placed his hand over-familiar onto Basara"s shoulder.

"For that reason, let"s grab a bite together, Mr. Transfer Student. You didn"t have lunch yet, right?"

"Yeah… but how do you get to "For that reason" from our conversation?"

"Because the transfer student, who"s all alone after making an enemy out of all the guys in cla.s.s on his first day, was hanging his head super depressed. It was just too pitiful, so I inadvertently had to call out to you. Besides, I moved near here just last year. So I can understand a bit the troubles and melancholy of a transfer."

He appreciated the concern, but couldn"t he have said it better?

Well, he didn"t seem like a bad guy.

"Just call me Basara then… I"ll call you Takigawa too."

"Kay. So Basara, cafeteria or school store?"

"Let"s see… The school store today, I guess."

Not to forget the incident during cla.s.s break. It was unlikely he could calm down in the crowded cafeteria.

He wanted to buy something at random and eat at an isolated place.

"Then we better hurry. If we don"t, there won"t be anything decent left."

Saying so, Takigawa started walking. When Basara caught up next to him,

"Still, to be the brother-in-law with our Princess Mio and childhood friends with our Princess Yuki… Raising flags with both idols that our school is so proud of, that"s one d.a.m.n King position."

"Princess…? They are called like that?"

He thought that their appearances certainly stood out.

"Yeah, that"s why I think you made other cla.s.ses and seniors your enemy too. I mean, these two are really popular here and they seem to have a lot of pa.s.sionate fans."

Takigawa shrugged his shoulders while smiling.

"Surprisingly a man"s jealously is even greater than a woman"s. And to be honest, it"s quite lasting."

Indeed. No wonder then that the boys of the other cla.s.ses glared at him with hostility when he left the cla.s.sroom to go drink some water and that he felt a vague killing intent in the toilet.

"Aw, we"re too late after all."

When they arrived at the school store, there was already a long line before the food.

Along with Takigawa, whose expression had turned bitter, Basara lined up at the end of the line, where he casually probed.

"Hey… About these pa.s.sionate fans, has there ever been some kind of incident so far with them involved?"

"Woah, creepy… So, for example like what?"

Said Takigawa while looking at the beginning of the line. "Let"s see" said Basara as a prelude.

"For example, someone tried to aggressively get at them… Or contrary, a girl, jealous of their popularity, did some kind of hara.s.sment?"

"No way. To begin with, the other fans wouldn"t keep quiet if anyone tried to steal a march. Even the girls know of Naruse and Nonaka"s popularity. They"re aware that they would make the boys angry if they were to pull some kind of careless hara.s.sment."

"I see…"

In other words, Mio was the center of attention to some kind of extent at school.

There had been a risk of an enemy being mixed in the school, but it was unlikely that any flashy measures would be taken in that situation.

…Well, the first term actually did go by normally.

Of course it couldn"t be a.s.serted that the school was perfectly safe because of that, but at least it narrowed down the places and times, where they had to be wary.

When Basara pondered like that, Takigawa, next to him, suddenly showed a nasty smile.

"Well, there was once a soph.o.m.ore boy that tried to steal a march, but was put through the mill by a couple of seniors… Going by that, you"re probably in the most danger."

"Guess so…"

He got the feeling that it was true. After all, ever since he showed up at the school store, some guys had been glaring at him. It was good that Mio was relatively safe, but it made him worry about his school life.

"But are you going to be fine, Takigawa? Won"t the pa.s.sionate fans have an eye on you too when you hang out with me?"

On Basara"s question, Takigawa smiled.

"Don"t fret it. I have fast legs. If it comes down to it, I"ll abandon you and run away."

Such a reliable cla.s.smate. Then Takigawa added "Besides" happily.

"Raising flags with our school"s two beauties is quite the feast. The so called protagonist potential? If I hang out with a guy that has such "luck" or "invisible power", I think my school life will get quite lively. Let"s get along from now on."

"Same here. But… I"m afraid I don"t have such luck or power."

Basara made a wry smile. He already--- lost his qualifications to be a hero and was nothing more than a side-character.

After school.

Mio, who had been silent ever since leaving the cla.s.sroom, finally opened her mouth when they left the entrance hall.

"…Why are you following me?"

"Well, I"m just trying to go home…"

A sullen voice. Apparently the incident from after this morning"s homeroom still had after-effects.

Well, it had certainly surprised him too.

---However, couldn"t she fix her mood already? He had already been at the verge to be all alone at school, yet even on the way home it seemed that he wouldn"t get a proper conversation.

In his opinion, it was time to remind her again about idea behind the Kanji 人.[1]

Supporting each other.

"Hey Mio… What do you think about the Kanji "人"?"

"It looks like Nonaka and you hugging."

Not good. Impossible. He couldn"t count on her. Like this, he could only hope for the meddling of a third person.

Walking towards the school gate, Basara shifted his gaze to the far in front. Upon that,

"Mio-chaan, Basara-saan."

Maria, waiting outside the gate, waved her hand greatly. Apparently she was carrying out their setting as sisters in public. Well, it certainly would be weird when she called her "Mio-sama".

"Good job on sitting out your time… you two."

"Thanks for waiting for us, but your remark is a bit wrong."

Don"t make it sound like we came out of prison. The counselling teacher is looking.

There Maria noticed Mio"s bad mood and alternating looked at Mio and Basara"s expression, then

"Basara-san, Basara-san…"

Pulling on his sleeve and taking a bit of a distance from Mio, she whispered into his ear.

"What is up with Mio-sama? It appears that her mood is kind of foul."

"Well, stuff happened…"

"? …Ah, I see. So that is how it is. That is not good, you have to use contraception."

"Hey… what did you think of in these mere seconds just now?"

Seemed it wasn"t good to rely on someone else. He should do something about it himself. At that time,

…Mh?

Suddenly he noticed that Mio across of him looked at him.

"……….."

Her expression looked like she was waiting for Basara"s words.

…Figures.

Of course it worried her when the one, who promised to protect her, showed an expression she didn"t know.

It was nothing to be surprised about. A trust between Mio and him hadn"t been properly established yet.

Neither as a family--- nor as comrades.

…Worrying my little sister, I fail as a big brother…

When he thought so self-instructing, Basara returned to Mio"s side.

"…….What?"

Mio faced sideways sulking and gave him a side-glance.

At the time he tried to find words to rea.s.sure her then.

"---Basara."

A quiet voice called his name from the side interrupting. Before he had noticed, Nonaka Yuki had stood right beside him. And ignoring Mio, whose expression instantly turned sour, she declared.

"I have something important to discuss… just between us two."

Basara decided to accept Yuki"s request to talk with just the two of them.

As expected, the bad-tempered Mio had left Basara behind and went home, but she had Maria with her.

Befitting the season, the sun was still up high and there were a lot of students, since it was time to go home.

It should be safe to leave the two of them alone for a bit.

Basara and Yuki moved to a café in front of the station. It was all fine up to the point where they got guided to an empty table at the back, but

"…Hey, Yuki. We"re sitting at a table, not at the counter, so wouldn"t you normally sit down across?"

Regardless of the table for four people, Yuki sat down besides Basara for some reason. Upon that,

"No. It"s better when no one hears what we"re discussing now."

There wasn"t much of a distance to begin with, yet Yuki shifted her chair even closer to Basara.

A thin distance, where their arms could touch. The soft sensation from smooth bare skin and the sweet fragrance of a girl coming from Yuki.

…Ugh. This is bad…

During the time they had been apart, their intimacy had vanished and Basara was strangely conscious of the gap to his feminine-matured childhood friend. But in regards, Yuki took the menu card with a cool face and looked at it.

Then they both simply ordered drinks and when they dampened their dry throats,

"…Thanks, for coming."

Yuki slowly opened her mouth.

"No prob. I wanted to talk to you too anyway."

The glares at school were so heavy that he couldn"t get a decent conversation going in the end.

"Good…"

Yuki made a sigh of relief.

"I thought for sure, you were angry, Basara."

"Mh? Why?"

"I mean… You didn"t look all that happy, even though I hugged you."

"No, I just didn"t realize it was you at that time…"

It had been already five years since he met Yuki last at the age of ten. They were both in their growing periods right now. It was understandable he wouldn"t recognize her at once. And anyone would be troubled if a girl on the supposed first meeting hugged onto one. Besides,

"…You sure have changed."

What he first thought was, how surprisingly pretty she got. The Yuki Basara knew had the smallest and childish body amongst their old playmates, but now she looked more mature than her age.

Yuki said that it might be due to the change of her hairstyle. Surely, the old Yuki had grown out her hair.

But--- That wasn"t the reason Basara didn"t notice it right away that it was Yuki on their reunion.

He thought back.

…She wasn"t the type to make such a face…

She had been sparing with words since forever, but had a great variety of expressions. But, Yuki"s face, as she was looking at him awaiting from besides, looked completely inexpressive.

…Five years, huh.

Most likely she had changed in Basara"s absence. The current Yuki might be no longer the Yuki he used to know. Just like the current Basara was different from his self five years ago now.

"…Actually, did I look happy in the past?"

Basara felt his thoughts going into a bad direction, so he got back on the previous topic.

Upon that, Yuki nodded a "Mm".

"When I hugged you, you would tightly hug me back."

"Mhm, is that so…"

"---Also, you often took advantage of the situation to touch my b.u.t.t."

"Eh, seriously!?"

He didn"t remember at all, but he was just a perverted kid then. What was his younger self doing?

…Ah.

Looking at his fl.u.s.tered self, Yuki finally brightened her expression.

That faint smile matched the Yuki in his memories.

It finally felt real to him--- That he reunited with his childhood friend Nonaka Yuki.

He was quite happy about that. But, that specially was the reason why he couldn"t avert his eyes now.

"…So? What do you want to talk about?"

Yuki didn"t answer Basara"s question right away.

And the faint smile she was showing reverted back to the cold expression.

"…It"s about Naruse Mio."

She said whispering. Those were words he had expected.

"Basara… Don"t get involved with her any more."

"So it"s you after all… Her observer sent by the village."

Yes. Originally, it was strange for Yuki to be here.

For Basara"s childhood friend--- a girl from the Hero tribe to be here, away from the village.

"Well she did get a surveillance rank S-…"

"…You knew?"

"My dad told me. I believe I know most of their circ.u.mstances too."

"Then I"ll cut to the chase. Leave Naruse Mio at once."

Yuki overlapped her hand with Basara"s, which rested on the table.

Then she softly leaned over and looked at him.

"She"s being sought by the current Devil Lord--- At this rate you and Jin-san will be dragged into it."

---There were two people secretly watching Basara and Yuki from a few seats afar.

They were Mio and Maria. They wanted to go home ahead of him, but followed him after all because they were worried. They could barely hear their conversation.

"…It seems she is from the Hero Tribe just like Basara-san after all."

"Y- Yes… Looks like it."

On Maria"s words, Mio nodded so a bit awkward.

…

She was Basara"s childhood friend. With a bit of thought she could have figured it out, but agitated by the hug in front of her eyes this morning, where she ended up blowing up and revealing their living together, she just couldn"t muster any sober thoughts.

Even now, she had thought for sure that they were having a date.

But--- Now that she thought back on it, she got the feeling that Nonaka Yuki had always kind of avoided her.

Of course everyone had own interests. If she was avoiding her, there was no need for Mio to forcefully befriend her, so she had kept her distance, but

…So that"s the reason I felt her look on me despite that.

That said, there was no need for Mio to act as long as she wasn"t challenged.

At any rate, her enemies were the ones, who killed her parents. Making an enemy out of the Hero Tribe could really foil her plans.

"Mio-sama, what do we do? It seems she is trying to separate Basara-san from us…"

"…Mhm, let"s watch a bit longer."

If all went well, they might get to know about the intentions of the Hero Tribe.

…Besides, it could be that… She might get to hear Basara"s true feelings. How he, who said he would protect her, felt at heart. It was an unforeseen chance, but the perfect one for Naruse Mio to make sure of the boy called Toujou Basara. Therefore Mio tried to perk up her ears to the conversation between them.

"---Mm."

The eaves-dropping behaviour probably made her feel a bit guilty. Due to that, Mio trembled her body with a shiver on the sweet sensation that arose from inside her body. The curse of the Master and Servant Contract.

"…Mio-sama?"

Maria, next to her, was puzzled, whereas Mio repeated "I"m not eavesdropping" in her heart while turning red. Convincing herself that she wasn"t betraying her master, but only worrying about him. Upon that, the sweet sensation faded soon enough and Mio made a sigh of relief.

While observing Basara and Yuki again,

…Still,

Suddenly hugging onto him regardless of the place and now even leaning over and holding his hand, this girl--- even for a childhood friend, she was being way too clingy.

Don"t get involved with Mio any more--- To these words from Yuki that resembled a request,

"Too late… I"m afraid I"m already dragged into it."

Basara slowly shook his head and declared his resolve.

"Both my dad and I have already decided to protect them."

"---But!"

Yuki raised an unusual loud voice. After gulping briefly, she squeezed out.

"In the incident five years ago, you…"

"……Yeah."

He knew what Yuki wanted to say. Due to the incident five years ago, Basara had to leave the village. Toujou Basara hadn"t forgotten what he did back then, nor what he had lost. But,

"Still… I want to protect Mio. Mio doesn"t wish for the power she holds. She just wants to live as a normal human, a normal girl. It led to the death of her parents by the ulterior motives of devils and right now--- she herself is in danger of being killed for her power."

He couldn"t overlook that. He had a reason not to.

"She"s innocent. If you guys, the village is willing to protect her---"

"…That alone is impossible. You should know that."

"Yeah…"

Basara gave Yuki, who darkened her expression, a wry smile.

The Hero Tribe existed to protect the peace in the human world from the devils.

That doctrine took priority over everything else--- Even at the cost of whatever sacrifices.

---The Heroes of this world weren"t the kind of fantasy heroes that protected everyone.

Keeping their own existence secret, they only protected the world itself. For that sake sacrifices were necessary. Basara understood that as well--- That precisely was the reason for the happenings after the incident five years ago.

Basara had lost his qualification as a Hero and since Jin couldn"t keep protecting him as a Hero, he quit too--- both of them leaving the village.

And Mio"s life being in danger was at best an internal quarrel between devils. The Heroes had no reason to help her.

Therefore. Basara and Jin were the only ones who could protect Mio.

"I understand your worry, Yuki. Five years ago, I couldn"t undertake the consequences of my actions to the last."

"No. That wasn"t your fault… I mean,"

Basara cut into the words Yuki wanted to say now by shaking his head with "No".

"Still, it doesn"t undo what I have done."

Upon that, there was a change in Yuki, who stayed silent so far. Looking down, her face still looked like she was close to tears.

"…"Dat ain"t true."

She said so with a dialect. It was her bad habit that showed up when she couldn"t control her emotions anymore.

"Wha"ever anyone says, ya saved me, Basara…"

"…Yeah, thanks."

It was a little salvation for him to have Yuki say that to him, even though what he did was unforgivable.

For him, who had committed a huge mistake and lost a great deal of people, to have protected someone despite all that.

"But I couldn"t bear the responsibility for my actions… and still can"t even now. I have no idea how to face it yet."

But, said Basara and declared.

Like addressing Toujou Basara"s unwavering feelings to Yuki and himself.

"But Mio is… She"s different from me. Facing her sad past, she still desperately tries to live on provident. She"s trying to fight. And then we happened to meet. Of course there"s the stuff with my dad"s scheme and my initial anger about getting deceived. But--- The moment I came to know everything about it, I wanted to protect her. It"s not just sympathy or a whim. I seriously want to protect her. Like you said, I certainly don"t have the same power I had in the past anymore. And given my five years without training, I don"t know how much of a help I can be. But you know, if the Heroes still can"t protect her, can"t fight for her, then I believe it"s my role to do so. You see, therefore---"

At the time he got this far. A loud noise echoed through the café.

When Basara and Yuki looked it"s way curious,

"M- My apologies."

Near the entrance of the café, a fl.u.s.tered waitress crouched on the floor.

Most likely she b.u.mped into a customer and dropped her stainless tray with the cups.

As the customer hastily left the café, the door was still open.

Mio, who had rushed out of the café, desperately continued to run.

Running, running and running until she was out of breathe. Before long she suddenly rushed into a back alley. Right afterwards, Maria came after her hastily.

"M- Mio-samaa, do not run away so suddenly. It is dangerous to separate outsi--- Mio-sama?"

Maria rebuked while being out of breathe, but Mio didn"t hear her voice.

Who could blame her. She had been at her limit.

If she had heard any more of Basara"s words--- Mio would have cried without doubt.

She could tell that her face was red. It wasn"t due to the curse of the Master and Servant Contract, nor due her full-power sprint.

"What now, Maria… How should I act towards Basara from now on?"

Her body trembled from agitation. She couldn"t suppress her soaring emotions. Even though Mio was kind of a burden to Basara, he had made such a strong resolve.

She hadn"t known. That Basara--- tried to protect her with such strong feelings.

"It is a good thing… Now we know that Basara-san is truly a kind person."

"But…"

Like this, she felt uneasy about involving Basara. But Maria shook her head.

"You do not need to worry. Basara-san"s feelings are his own. What you need to do, Mio-sama, is not to show a strange reservation, but properly respond to Basara-san"s feelings."

"Respond to… But how?"

"That is obvious. Open up your heart to him and trust him."

"J- Just that? Only something so simple?"

"Yes, indeed. Also, if you feel like doing something for him, I believe it is appropriate to do it."

"Me, doing something for him…"

What would it be? As expected, it was better to somehow express grat.i.tude in such a case?

If so, what could she do? Inadvertently Mio lapsed into deep thoughts.

"---Ah, but"

Suddenly knitting her eyebrows as she remembered something, Maria brooded.

"His childhood friend at least could be a bit troublesome… We do not know what happened after we left the café, but Basara-san is generally a good person. Earlier they were holding hands and looking each other into the eyes. If she cries, or approaches him a bit more daring, Basara-san might unexpectedly fall under her spell…"

"M- More daring, she couldn"t be… They"re in public."

She tried to deny that possibility, but Mio remembered the incident from this morning in cla.s.s.

Right. Thinking back on it, Yuki was the kind of girl that would openly hug him in public. Her greeting on their reunion. It wouldn"t be strange for her to do even more to keep Basara.

…M- More than just hugging him… N- No way.

Not good. That didn"t leave room for many possibilities.

"O, Oh no… What do we do, Maria?"

When Mio asked with her wanton imagination, Maria showed an over-confident expression again.

"Mio-sama, do not be intimidated. You have to go on the attack."

"H- How?"

Maria laughed a Fufu to Mio"s question for a solution.

"Please leave it to me--- I know a very good method!"

In the end, Basara and Yuki never got on the same wavelength afterwards.

No matter what Basara said, Yuki wouldn"t accept it. No matter how much Yuki persuaded him, Basara wouldn"t back off from his standpoint. The sun had completely set when they left the café and a last quarter moon hung in the sky. Just like the other people hurrying home, Basara and Yuki started walking too.

"…I hope this cheers her up even a bit."

Basara mumbled while dropping his gaze on the cake that he bought at the café as a present.

Later, when he gets home, he would have to explain to Mio and Maria without doubt. He likely would get a lecture too. When he inadvertently felt dejected, the figure that should be next to him had suddenly vanished.

"…Mh? What"s up, Yuki?"

When he turned around, Yuki had stopped a few steps behind. And,

"…It"s no use. Both Jin-san and you are no longer part of the village… I don"t think you can win against the current Devil Lord faction by yourself."

"Might be… But we"re fine as long as we don"t lose. The enemy isn"t after Mio"s life, but after the power sleeping inside of her."

"Besides," said Basara.

"They"re currently keeping it an internal struggle, since they don"t want things to go out of hands. Thus my dad and I become Jokers. We certainly might no longer be Heroes, but we still have power to fight. I imagine the enemy will think twice before acting. It"s possible that they think the Hero Tribe would act for revenge once they laid hands on us."

If so, then it was more than likely that they could manage by themselves.

"But…"

"Yeah, of course that won"t actually happen. The village treats my dad and me as non-existent after chasing us out."

For the village, his dad and him were no longer comrades, nor humans worth of their protection. Even if they were to die, the village would surely just keep observing.

"But I don"t really care. I don"t intend to drag you or the village into our fight."

Either way, he had to protect Mio right now. Even if it was only temporarily or buying time.

Meanwhile Jin would have to stop the enemy. And if that wasn"t possible, then he would group up with Jin and think of a new plan. ---But.

"…That"s impossible."

Yuki"s quiet voice denied Basara"s words. Why--- was what Basara wanted to ask, but before that Basara saw the br.i.m.m.i.n.g aura around Yuki"s body that appeared when a Hero released his power.

And then, a shrill noise echoed. Yuki had instantly quick-drawn her materialized spirit sword. Just like Basara"s magic sword Brynhildr, the spirit sword armoured Yuki"s arm up to her elbow. Using the spirit sword, which couldn"t be seen by normal eyes, Yuki brought forth an invisible slashing blade.

Basara saw it cutting through "something" that was hidden in empty s.p.a.ce.

"Just now…"

"A low-cla.s.s stray devil. You haven"t noticed it, Basara, but the Devil Lord"s power in Naruse Mio slowly attracts them more and more. Currently it"s not grave, but in time it might attract ones that hurt people."

While Yuki quietly cancelled her aura and spirit sword,

"If Naruse Mio"s existence brings harm to those around her--- the village will immediately make her an termination target. I believe, it won"t be that far off."

"Yuki…"

Basara inadvertently reached out his hand, but Yuki softly avoided it.

Her sad-looking eyes looked straight at Basara.

"If that happens, I won"t hold back--- Even if you"ll hate me for it."

Then Yuki turned on her heels and went away like that.

Leaving Basara behind, who just stood there saying nothing.

When Basara returned home, he called for Mio and Maria right away and explained his relation to Yuki.

From Yuki being a Hero and their reunion after five years to the fact that he turned down her request of leaving Mio at the café, he told them everything thoroughly.

He was worried if she would listen to him due to her bad mood, but surprisingly Mio, as well as Maria, listened obediently to him. And then ten-odd minutes pa.s.sed with only Basara telling the story in order.

"Ehm… so, this is a cake that I bought at the café."

Basara, finishing his explanation faster than he had thought, timidly examining their expressions.

"…………………." "…………………."

The two girls remained silent in regards.

…Aw- Awkward…

The silence was too oppressive. Just like back then when they revealed their true ident.i.ties and told Basara to leave the house.

"Uh- Uhm…"

Unable to withstand the silent pressure, Basara tried to get a reaction from them, whereupon

"…… Yes, I understand."

Finally Maria opened her mouth. Basara made a sigh of relief.

Mio next to him still stayed quiet, but he wouldn"t ask for more.

"Y- You do? Good. Then let"s have dinn---"

"---No, can you spare some time before that?"

With that, Maria cut into Basara"s words.

"Actually, while you were talking with Nonaka-san, Mio-sama and myself were extremely worried. We thought you might get persuaded by Nonaka-san and abandon us… Right, Mio-sama?"

"---Eh? Yes, right."

When the conversation suddenly turned to her, Mio, who had remained silent so far, hastily nodded.

"My bad… But, I properly came back, see?"

"Indeed. But, when the date lasts until this late, I get worried if you maybe have been convinced by her… What about you, Mio-sama?"

"Y- Yes… right."

Mio agreed.

"No, it wasn"t a date, but just a normal conversation…"

"---Can you prove it?"

"? Proof… what?"

"You need to ask? Proof that you have not betrayed us."

Don"t ask for the impossible with a smug face. As if there"s such a thing.

"You can only believe in me for that…"

"Please do not misunderstand. We do trust you, Basara-san. Yes, indeed we do."

said Maria with a slightly exaggerated tone.

"The thing is, we would like to have more faith in you, Basara-san. As comrades in arms, we would like to deepen our bonds of trust. That is all… Right, Mio-sama?"

"Y- Yes… As she said."

Really? For a while now, it sounded like a third-rate play though.

…Still.

Over the course of things, they had formed a Master and Servant Contract, but Basara too was concerned about their mutual trust. With Jin out of the house, he would like to reduce possible worries as much as possible with regard to the future. It seemed Mio and Maria wanted Basara to do something for them. The absurd request of showing proof that he didn"t betray them was most likely leading up to that.

…Mhm.

It would be favorable if something he did could rea.s.sure them. Then,

"I somehow get your point. ---So? What do you want me to do?"

Upon that, Maria smiled. And then she slowly beckoned Basara.

"I am glad you say that. Well then, Basara-san, please come over here."

"…How did it come to this?"

At the place Maria took him to, Basara mumbled in pure incomprehension.

Right now, Basara was in a s.p.a.ce with white steam--- The bath. With only a towel around his waist, Basara was sitting on the plastic chair with his elbows on his lap while resting his chin on his hands. There,

"Is that not obvious?"

A bright voice came from the bathtub. It was Maria, the mastermind behind this, while she looked at him with her chin resting on her hands that were on the edge of the bathtub.

"The only way to deepen one"s bonds in this world is to get naked together."

"That"s only for the same gender. Why would you do it co-ed?"

When the opposites s.e.xes got naked together, it was just an erotic situation.

"What is the problem? Cramped together nearly completely naked in a small room--- sharing the same shame will bring results even if you are against it. You can treat another person kindly once you know his pain."

"What"s with this licking each other"s wounds mentality! Or rather, there"s no point in forced results!"

"Not quite, Basara-san. A girl"s "No" means "Yes"."

Or, said Maria.

"Could it be you dislike taking a bath with a girl?"

"No, I wouldn"t say dislike…"

There was no way he would dislike it as a healthy high school boy. Still, even boys needed to mentally prepare themselves at times.

---Earlier, Maria had taken Basara to the anteroom of the bath.

There she had taken off her clothes and said to the bewildered Basara.

"---Now then, let us all take a bath together."

He had no clue what was going on. It was just too out of context. Basara instantly tried to decline, but she told him "I cannot trust you when we do not take a bath together". Moreover, he had thought for sure that Mio would oppose, but she locked the door of the anteroom and sealed his escape route, telling him "…Please, go in with us". It looked like they would strip him down, so Basara resigned. He agreed to go in with them and reluctantly took off his clothes by himself.

Back-to-back and the towel covering his precious part, he had thought they wouldn"t see it, but the shame of it still wasn"t to be underestimated. His accelerated heartbeat surely wasn"t just from the hot air in the bath. And opposite to the composed Maria, Mio seemed to be feeling the same as Basara.

"…….."

In the bathtub--- next to Maria, she flushed her cheeks in shame. A natural reaction.

She was still clad in a bath towel, but her big b.r.e.a.s.t.s would surely float in the water. The knot of the towel had been on the verge to come untied right away, so she had held up the towel with her hands at first, but in time she had given up and rested her b.r.e.a.s.t.s on the edge of the bathtub. In a posture that emphasized the volume of her b.r.e.a.s.t.s to the limit.

…That was foul play…

Even under normal circ.u.mstances it was already a trial for the reasoning of a boy in his teens to take a bath together with a girl, yet these b.r.e.a.s.t.s were tempting him even more. After all, Basara had already felt them up directly.

---The incredible soft sensation that drove a boy crazy.

Not to forget her embarra.s.sed expression of biting down on her lips and her skin colored in a faint pink. Everything about Mio right now was erotic. Against his will, Basara ended up remembering the night when the contract was formed.

"Now then--- How about you wash Basara-san"s back, Mio-sama?"

Maria, in the bathtub, suggested the unbelievable.

"---Eh? No need. I can wash myself."

"That will not do. It would defy the meaning of taking a bath together."

Basara tried to decline, but Maria declared decisively.

"Of course you can wash your back by yourself. However, here you should dare to openly expose your back to us--- That is precisely what trust is about, just like entrusting your backs to each other in a fight."

And then,

"Mio-sama and myself will properly wash your back for you--- But not only will we wash it, we will also respond to the trust of exposing your back to us. You can only trust someone, who openly exposes his back. Getting naked together in the bath, precisely a situation where you defenselessly bare your lives to each other builds up a mutual trust, would you not agree?"

"Uhh…"

After being told something reasonable, Basara was at a loss for words and sighed a "HAH" before long.

"…Okay. If it makes you trust me, go ahead."

He was already sitting on the chair anyway. When he agreed and left his back to them,

"Y- Yeah… Got it."

Mio slowly got out of the bathtub and moved behind Basara.

After moving behind Basara, Mio sat down on the bath floor with her knees bent, her legs neatly side by side.

Then she soaked the sponge with the body soap.

"I, I"ll start now…"

With a nervous expression, she started to wash Basara"s back. It was her first time washing a boy"s back. She already thought so to herself when she rode the bicycle behind him, but

…This is what a boy"s back feels like.

It was broader than her own and more than anything it was st.u.r.dy from the muscles. Basara"s body, which could still bring out incredible fighting skills in actual combat as he was a Hero in the past, was scarred all over. He most likely got them from training and actual combats. Each of the wounds were old.

Even Mio"s eyes, inexperienced in that prospect, could tell that this body of his was well trained. Therefore she could comprehend that he cut down the enemy with one swing of his huge magic sword.

Naruse Mio realized once more. That she was saved by this person without doubt.

"…What"s up?"

"Eh? N- No, nothing."

Asked by Basara doubtfully, Mio hastily started to move her stopped hand.

---Upon that, there suddenly was something in the edge of Mio"s vision. It was Maria"s expression as she was looking over from the bathtub. That expression clearly was criticizing her.

…I, I get it…

Mio remembered the words that Maria had told her before Basara came home.

It was an idea so that Yuki wouldn"t steal Basara--- Maria"s secret plan.

---At the café, Basara declared strongly that he would protect Mio. that surely were his true feelings.

And even now, he was openly entrusting his back to Mio. This showed that Basara trusted Mio. Then, she herself had to respond to that.

"…."

Mio cleared her throat with a gulp and unravelled the knot of the towel she was wearing. What if he turned around now--- While thinking like that, Mio got completely naked and brought her body closer to Basara"s back. What first touched it was the part of Mio"s body that inevitably stood out the most.

Her b.r.e.a.s.t.s.

"? H- Hey!?"

"---D- Don"t move!!"

Basara raised a surprised voice and tried to get away, whereas Mio stopped him with an even louder voice.

"Please, stay like that… If you move, I"ll kill you a hundred times."

Mio declared with a frail voice to the completely petrified Basara.

It was incredible embarra.s.sing for her as well. Still, if this prevented Yuki from stealing Basara, then she could somehow withstand this level of embarra.s.sment.

---Mio was told by Maria that her b.r.e.a.s.t.s were an effective weapon against Basara.

And indeed. Compared to girls her age, Mio"s b.r.e.a.s.t.s were rather--- no, quite big.

At school or on the streets, she often felt the gazes of men not only to her face, but on her b.r.e.a.s.t.s too.

She never thought of that as a happy circ.u.mstance, but at least now it was different.

These b.r.e.a.s.t.s certainly were a weapon that Yuki lacked.

…Basara…

Mio looked. At the petrified Basara"s upper body, which had become bright red from a rush of blood.

Basara was conscious of her--- For some reason that made her incredibly happy. Mio took the body soap bottle, poured the contents amply onto her b.r.e.a.s.t.s and made it foam.

"…."

She pressed her b.r.e.a.s.t.s determined onto him again, then started to sliding wash his back.

Upon that, Mio"s voluminous b.r.e.a.s.t.s filled the muscle cavities on Basara"s back with their movements, surprisingly lewdly changing shape. Gaining an unexpected shame, soon enough there started to be a change in Mio"s body. What slowly welled up from inside her body was a sweet tickling heat.

…Mm, Ah…

Suddenly Mio noticed that the tip of her b.r.e.a.s.t.s were tense. She ended up feeling it herself.

That embarra.s.sment flared up Mio"s whole body with heat, colouring her body in a bright red very fast.

---But, Mio didn"t remove her b.r.e.a.s.t.s from Basara"s back. Because Basara was behaving embarra.s.sed. Albeit not voicing it out, his body was clearly hot. Without doubt, Basara was only feeling conscious of Mio right now. That fact made Mio feel unsurpa.s.sable bliss.

…Basara…Basaraa…

Was this an effect from the Master and Servant Contract too? Normally, she absolutely wouldn"t do something so indecent. Yet she was proud of herself of going this far for Basara--- for her Master.

"Mm… Fuh, Ah… Mm"

At some point, Mio entwined her arms around Basara"s front and pressed onto him from behind as much as possible, immersing herself in sliding her b.r.e.a.s.t.s on the back in front of her eyes. Each time Mio moved, the foaming bubbles made a lewd and sticky sound. And when Mio"s b.r.e.a.s.t.s had went all over Basara"s back,

"…I, I think it"s all clean now…"

Basara said fl.u.s.tered at his limits. Mio raised her drowsy face.

"W- Well… I just got a bit hungry. We hadn"t had dinner yet. And I bought the cake and all."

So it"s about time we go out--- was what Basara was trying to say.

"---Ah, no problem. I thought this might happen, so I brought your cake with me."

Wherever she pulled it out from, Maria held up the white paper box with the cake in it.

Then she swiftly opened the box, took a short cake and got out of the bathtub.

"Here, Basara-san… Say "Ah"."

"W- Wait! Why did you bring the cake into the bath!?"

That"s too novel, screamed Basara to stop Maria and their hands collided.

"Aw…"

The cake fell from Maria"s hand onto Basara"s shoulder, then dropped down from his upper arm to his elbow, lastly landing on the floor. The white fresh cream and sponge cake stained Basara"s skin sticky.

"S- See, eating cake in the bath is too high level!"