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According to Bokue's original plan, after treating a certain nightmare girl to a drink, that should've been the end of it.
However, what Bokue hadn't anticipated was that this one little beverage would result in her latching onto him completely.
The scene shifted—the two had already left the café and entered the shopping center on the same floor.
Following Yukina's earlier instructions, Bokue needed to buy several days' worth of groceries and bring them back before evening.
But because Eguchi Yume kept following him, they ended up navigating the shopping center together—one tall, one small.
Though that wasn't really a problem.
After all, Bokue pushed the shopping cart the entire time, walking ahead, while Yume followed behind him like she'd activated auto-follow mode.
Plus, considering Bokue's handsome appearance and upstanding demeanor, even if people noticed them, they'd most likely assume he was an older brother out shopping with his little sister—not anything along the lines of "three years minimum, death penalty maximum."
"Hey~ what does big brother do anyway? You can resist Ririu's powers, so you definitely can't be an ordinary person, right?"
"Me? I used to be an onmyōji. Now I'm basically just coasting through life."
"Onmyōji? Like those mage-types who throw talismans around and summon all kinds of animals?"
"That's just one type. As for me... I'm a bit different from them."
"Could other onmyōji also resist or dispel Ririu's mental control?"
"Mm... no, they couldn't."
Bokue gave that negative response without even thinking.
Eguchi Yume's natural talent as a nightmare was undoubtedly quite impressive. The fact that she could instantly hard-control both Yukina and Sayaka was proof enough of that.
Though it didn't work on him at all, but... there was a saying: you can't judge everyone by the same standard.
And if Yume could instantly control Yukina and Sayaka, then she could undoubtedly lock down the entire Keikain family just as effectively.
After all, in terms of mental fortitude, those two girls from the Lion King Organization weren't inferior to Keikain family onmyōji—in fact, their stronger physical bodies made their mental resilience even tougher.
Yet even so, they'd been controlled by Yume without any resistance.
"Is that so?"
As they moved through the aisles lined with vegetables, the nightmare girl walked behind Bokue with her hands clasped behind her back, tail swishing rhythmically. Hearing this, she tilted her head thoughtfully.
"So does that mean big brother is special to Ririu?"
"Objectively speaking, yes. But I get the feeling you're implying something that could easily be misunderstood."
"Eep~ Not at all!"
Without suppressing her nightmare features, Yume's personality had shifted into something resembling a little devil or bratty kid. Seeing Bokue call her out directly, she covered her mouth and giggled softly.
"Big brother's the one with a dirty mind, you know? Or are you actually the type who's interested in elementary school girls?"
"You're way off base there. Personally, I prefer them bigger."
Bokue shrugged.
He wasn't lying about that. Even Yukina and Nagisa were already quite well-developed for their age group—it was just that everyone else was so absurdly top-heavy that by comparison, those two seemed small.
Especially once you got to Rias, Mio Naruse, and Akeno's level—those were genuinely bigger than their heads. Normal development couldn't compete at all.
"Oh~ so all guys really are the same in that regard."
The nightmare girl walking behind him hummed.
"Never thought big brother would be such a shallow person."
"...You can't call someone shallow for liking big ones only when you don't have them yourself."
"Eh? What?"
"I'm saying that when you grow up, you might develop really well and end up like that too. If you're calling it shallow now, won't that just boomerang back on you later?"
Bokue rephrased it into something an elementary schooler could understand.
He'd expected Yume to stubbornly insist she'd never want to grow that big because it looked awful or something.
But what Bokue hadn't anticipated was that after hearing those words, the nightmare girl behind him suddenly slowed her pace, lowered her head, and fell silent for a moment before finally mumbling indistinctly:
"Maybe... if... Ririu even has a future..."
"What?"
Bokue hadn't quite caught that.
"Mm~ nothing!"
The nightmare girl shook her head and smiled again, quickly catching up.
"Just saying I hope big brother's right... Oh yeah! Instead of that—since big brother said you like bigger girls, which of those two big sisters from this morning is your girlfriend? Wait, let Ririu guess! It's probably the tall one with the high ponytail, right?"
She was obviously referring to Sayaka.
That made sense, actually. Compared to Yukina's development, Sayaka was indeed more advanced. After all, age wasn't for nothing.
Unfortunately, she'd guessed wrong.
"It's not 'which one'—they're both my girlfriends."
Bokue gestured toward the shopping cart in front of him.
"They're at home right now. I came down here to buy ingredients for tonight's dinner."
"Down... here?"
Yume looked upward curiously.
"Does that mean big brother lives inside the Keystone Gate?"
"Pretty much. Right at the very top."
Bokue didn't bother hiding it.
"Though I'll be heading back after I finish shopping."
"Mm-hmm, Ririu understands."
The nightmare girl smiled obediently.
Looks like I'll have to come see big brother again next time. Mm... hopefully there is a next time.
And so, twenty minutes later, having purchased everything on Yukina's list, Bokue parted ways with a certain nightmare girl at the shopping center entrance, then teleported back to the peak of the Keystone Gate.
However, the moment he materialized, a soft, petite rear end gently settled on the young man's shoulder.
Accompanying it was a certain nightmare housewife's teasing voice.
"I knew something was up when you went out alone. Turns out you went to meet another girl—and judging from the lingering scent, a very young girl... Hmm, never thought you'd be into that type, Bokue... huh?"
She stopped mid-sentence.
Sheila leapt down from the young man's shoulder, hovering in midair as she floated before Bokue. She bent forward, bringing her face close to his waist and hands, sniffing carefully. Then her expression changed drastically.
"Wait, this power—could it be...??"
"What's wrong?"
"This... this is the power of Lilith, the Witch of the Night!"
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