"No, I just want to eat lunch next to Saeko."
"Saeko? When did I permit you to address me so familiarly? Moreover, I prefer to dine alone."
Saeko Busujima's gaze was sharp with vigilance, but in Akira's eyes, her affection points remained unchanged.
"Alright then! I'll be direct—I can help you."
Akira relayed everything he had learned from the system quest.
Saeko Busujima frowned deeply. "Where did you hear about these things?"
Akira had no intention of revealing the system, but he had already prepared an excuse. "This world is full of wondrous abilities."
"Have you heard of Tornado, the second-ranked hero?"
"You're saying you have psychokinesis?"
"I'm just giving an example. If psychokinesis can exist, then it's hardly surprising that I might know things about you."
"And my abilities aren't limited to just that. I can also enhance a person's strength through certain… specialized training methods."
"You're planning to kill the Zombie Devil. With your current strength, seeking it out would mean certain death."
Akira remained calm and direct. "I don't want to see someone as beautiful as you perish."
"You desire my body?"
"Hmm. Any man who saw you and didn't would hardly be a man."
A faint blush crept across Saeko Busujima's cheeks.
Her affection for Akira increased by another two points.
"I appreciate your honesty. So, this special training method you mentioned—can it make me strong enough to kill the Zombie Devil in a single day?"
"One day is certainly not enough. But counting today… it might just be possible."
"How does it work?"
"It's rather scandalous to say out loud. Lean closer."
As Akira whispered, Saeko Busujima's face grew progressively redder.
At the same time, astonishment flickered in her eyes—that such an intimate ability could exist in the world.
"I have reason to doubt the authenticity of this… 'dual cultivation' ability of yours."
"I'm being completely open with you."
"And even if I were lying, the worst that happens is you become a woman before you die."
The words were blunt, but strangely, they made Saeko Busujima trust him a little more.
"How about this: I will not submit to a man weaker than myself."
"If you can defeat me, I'll believe you."
Saeko Busujima wasn't foolish. Anyone strong enough to overpower her wouldn't need to resort to tricks. Conversely, if he couldn't, she would remain in full control.
In short, the advantage was entirely hers.
Seeing Saeko Busujima's status panel shift to 'Confident,' Akira clapped his hands, then reached out and snapped a branch from a nearby tree—roughly the length of a wooden sword.
"You use the branch; I won't take advantage of you."
Her affection rose another two points, reaching seventy.
Saeko Busujima set her bento aside. "Very well. Even if you're deceiving me, I'll forgive you."
Akira smiled. "I'm not deceiving you."
"Are you ready?"
The moment the words left his mouth, Saeko Busujima's branch blurred through the air.
In close combat, reach is king.
That was an axiom of weapons.
And in swordsmanship, Saeko Busujima was already exceptional.
Even with a mere branch, her strikes carried lethal precision.
But Akira's current physical stats already surpassed those of a professional athlete. No matter how fierce her mortal-level swordsmanship, it couldn't touch him.
"You've lost."
In the brief instant she adjusted her stance, Akira stepped forward, his palm aimed squarely at Saeko Busujima's chest.
By the time she realized what had happened—
Akira's fingertips were already hovering near her, his intent unmistakable.
Saeko Busujima's expression flickered between shock and embarrassment. "You—how can you do something like this here?"
"If you don't mind, I have no objections."
They were on the school rooftop, with no tall buildings nearby—no risk of being discovered.
But no matter how open-minded Saeko Busujima was, starting here was out of the question.
"Akira… let's go back to the dojo. Not here."
Akira didn't press. "Alright. Let's have lunch first."
Watching his carefree retreating figure, Saeko Busujima's affection toward him rose significantly.
It jumped directly from seventy to seventy-five.
Clearly, while Saeko Busujima admired strength, she also valued being respected.
Akira ate his bento contentedly. Now that Saeko Busujima's affection had reached seventy-five, after their physical connection, the platinum capture ball would finally come into play.
Just thinking about it made his grin harder to suppress than an AK.
"Akira, with abilities like yours, why don't you join the Hero Association or Public Security?"
"I only share this with someone I truly care about. Not just anyone can come along and take advantage."
"Besides, if my abilities were exposed, do you think I'd ever get out of bed again?"
The image flashed through Saeko Busujima's mind—Akira tied to a bed, a parade of women lining up—and a shiver of unease ran through her.
"Akira, I swear I won't tell anyone about your abilities."
"I trust you. Now, hurry up and eat."
The two sat on the ground, finished their bentos in comfortable silence, and left the rooftop.
The afternoon classes passed by without incident.
When the dismissal bell rang, Akira bid farewell to everyone and rose to leave.
"Hmm~! I've got something to handle, so I won't be home for dinner."
"Okay, Akira."
Yumi Suou, who had answered the phone, hesitated for a brief moment before adding, "Come home early."
Originally, she had worried Akira might misunderstand and almost withheld those words. But after a moment's thought—it was simply a mother's gentle admonition, carrying no other implication—she let them out.
That slight pause, however, that hesitation before speaking, planted a seed of expectation in Akira's mind.
Was that an invitation?
For him to visit her room tonight?
"Got it. I'll be back early. Bye-bye!"
"Bye-bye!"
As the call ended, Yumi Suou's heart swirled with conflicting emotions—both happiness and a faint melancholy.
It was her fault, really. She should have controlled the situation better yesterday, prevented this mistake from happening.
Still, these things had to be faced eventually.
She needed to properly mend their mother-son relationship with Akira.
At the bus stop, a solitary figure stood alone by the platform.
The students around her clustered in groups of three or five, laughing, playing, chatting—
Making Kato Megumi's presence seem even more isolated.
"Megumi-chan!"
Feeling a tap on her shoulder, Kato Megumi turned around—
Only to have Akira's finger poke her cheek, dimpling the skin.
"Akira, can't you stop acting like a child with these jokes?"
He grinned. "You might keep a straight face, but inside, you're happy."
Akira could see her status—he wasn't speaking idly.
"You're not me—how do you know what I'm thinking? Or is it that you're just good at reading people's minds?"
"I'm only good at reading yours."
The moment he finished speaking, their bus pulled up to the stop.
"Oh, right—I have something to do today, so I won't be heading back just yet. You go home alone today."
"Hmm! See you tomorrow morning, then. Oh—the email!?"
"I'll give it to you tomorrow morning. Get on the bus first—the next one will be more crowded."
"Hmm!"
Kato Megumi didn't feel upset. After all, Akira had kept his promise to meet her; he just couldn't ride home together because of other plans.
As the bus pulled away, Saeko Busujima finally approached from a distance.
An hour later, at her invitation, Akira stepped into the dojo her father had left behind.
"So spacious—almost two hundred square meters!"
Though his eyes surveyed the interior of the dojo, Akira's hand moved instinctively, grasping Saeko Busujima's small hand and leading her toward the center of the floor.