Chapter 181: Eirin is a Gentle Big Sister
Yagokoro Eirin's request wasn't a difficult one.
All she wanted was a few strands of his hair to research the mechanics of the immortal body he had acquired.
Haruto readily agreed. Even setting aside his friendship with Eirin, the magnificent longbow he had just received was more than enough payment for a simple haircut.
After the trim, Haruto even found himself unexpectedly enjoying a hair wash and scalp massage, personally administered by Eirin herself. He had only mentioned it as a passing joke, not expecting her to take him seriously, but the ever-gracious pharmacist had simply smiled and agreed.
'Yagokoro Eirin is so different from Yukari,'he mused as he relaxed under her gentle fingers.'She's the calm, intellectual, and truly gentle older sister type.'
Just as he stepped out of the Eirin's Pharmacy, feeling refreshed, Haruto spotted Reisen not far from the doorway.
Her timid face was flushed a bright crimson, as if she had just finished some sort of strenuous exercise. He was about to call out a friendly hello, but before he could, she squeaked and fled like a startled rabbit, disappearing into the bamboo forest.
Blinking in surprise, Haruto reached into a newly opened Gap and pulled out a hand mirror. He tilted his head, examining his reflection from several angles, confirming that he was, in fact, still as devilishly handsome as ever. Satisfied, he tossed the mirror back into the void with a suspicious frown.
"There's nothing wrong with my face..." he muttered in confusion, though he didn't dwell on the moon rabbit's bizarre behavior for long.
Instead of returning directly to the Sunflower Field, Haruto made his way toward the Yakumo residence. Once Reimu and Marisa finished digging that massive pit, he would still need to divert water from a river in the Outside World and stock it with fish.
Relying on his own half-baked Gap abilities was out of the question; diverting an entire river and then painstakingly transporting small fish would take an eternity. It would be far more efficient to ask Ran or his dear sister Yukari for help...
At that same moment, inside the Dream Guesthouse.
Kazami Yuuka was leaning against the window as she always did, quietly sipping her tea and flipping through a volume of manga Haruto had given her.
Suddenly—
A loud explosion echoed from the distance. Her movements paused, and she slowly raised her eyes, gazing out the window.
Boom! Boom, boom—
A series of continuous vibrations and roars rolled across the landscape. Even the teacup on the table beside her trembled, its porcelain rattling softly against the saucer.
The source of the commotion was to the right of the Sunflower Field... precisely where Haruto's secret cabin was located.
'Is he trying to tear down my flower field?'
A flicker of weary resignation flashed in her crimson eyes. Kazami Yuuka set down her teacup, rose from her chair, and began a leisurely stroll toward the cabin.
The closer she got, the clearer the sounds became, now interspersed with the excited shouts of two very familiar young girls.
'As I thought.'
When she arrived at the site of Haruto's project, the scene that met her eyes was exactly as she'd expected. Reimu Hakurei and Marisa Kirisame were having the time of their lives. One was swinging her Yin-Yang Orbs like wrecking balls, while the other was gleefully aiming her Mini-Hakkero, blasting away at the ever-deepening pit.
Seeing that they were completely absorbed in their destructive fun and utterly oblivious to her arrival, Kazami Yuuka silently raised her parasol. With a casual flick of her wrist, she added a single Magic Cannon blast to their efforts.
RUMBLE—!
The aftershock from her one attack far exceeded the sum of all the previous commotion.
The earth shook violently. The surrounding Ghost Flowers, which had been curiously observing the chaos, shrieked in terror, each one shrinking back and clutching their heads with their leafy hands.
Reimu and Marisa were jolted out of their gleeful rampage. Only then did they notice the figure that had appeared at the edge of the pit. Kazami Yuuka stood there, her crimson eyes narrowed, quietly staring them down.
The two girls swallowed in unison. They silently floated back to the ground and discreetly tucked away their respective tools of destruction.
They had completely forgotten. This was the Sunflower Field—Kazami Yuuka's sacred territory. Carrying out a demolition project here was tantamount to yanking a sleeping tiger's whiskers.
Both girls were on the verge of tears, silently pressing their palms together in a desperate prayer. At this point, their only hope was that Haruto's name carried enough weight to shield them from the flower youkai's wrath.
Fortunately for them, their bet paid off.
Kazami Yuuka watched them in silence for a long moment. In the end, she said nothing more, only leaving them with a single, quiet command.
"Don't hurt the sunflowers nearby."
Then, she turned and walked away.
The two girls let out a long, synchronized sigh of relief, clutching their chests as they slumped to the ground.
'Not dead, not dead... we survived.'
But the mission wasn't over yet.
With mournful expressions, the two had no choice but to get back to work. This time, however, they were exceedingly cautious, terrified that one stray spark might turn them into flower fertilizer. They had to switch from their wide-area, "automatic" demolition to a much more tedious "manual" mode.
Reimu, for instance, jumped down to the edge of the pit, raised her Yin-Yang Orbs, and began smashing the earth one precise strike at a time, like a human pile driver.
By the time Haruto returned to the Sunflower Field with Yakumo Ran in tow, the two girls were nowhere to be seen. As he approached the massive hole, he heard rhythmic chanting echoing from within—
"Eighty!"
"Eighty!"
Haruto peered down into the darkness.
The pit was now at least a hundred meters deep, and its volume had expanded significantly.
'This should be more than enough.'
Haruto immediately called for the two to come up, then tossed a large pile of specially prepared fish feed into the bottom of the pit. Only then did he signal for Yakumo Ran to begin. In a matter of moments, a shimmering Gap opened at the bottom, and a torrent of clear water began to fill the massive hole.
The Gap connecting to the river wouldn't be closed immediately; it would likely remain open for a good eight hours. That was more than enough time for plenty of large fish to be lured in by the bait.
With everything properly set up, Haruto looked up at the sky, then glanced over at Reimu and Marisa, who were now covered from head to toe in mud and filth.
"You two, go take a shower. As for clothes... there are some new disposable sets in the bathroom. Just make do with those for now."
"Got it~"
Once the two had scurried off, Haruto skillfully set up a simple stove and began laying out the various barbecue ingredients he had prepared: marbled Wagyu beef, tender Fuzzyball meat, chicken wings, leeks...
"Haruto-sama, since there is nothing else, Ran will take her leave now," Yakumo Ran said with a polite bow.
"Wait, wait!" Haruto quickly grabbed her sleeve. "Stay and eat with us. Since you're already here, you have to have a few bites, right?"
Yakumo Ran hesitated, a flicker of uncertainty in her eyes. In the end, however, she couldn't bring herself to refuse Haruto. She nodded in agreement and, to his surprise, took the initiative to take over the grilling duties.
Seeing this, Haruto finally breathed a sigh of relief.
While he could handle simple grilling, his culinary skills were truly average. The only things he could confidently claim to be good at were desserts and soups.
Since Ran was taking over, Haruto was more than happy to slack off. He pulled out a sleek, silver-white fishing rod he had acquired some time ago but had yet to use.
He put some bait on the hook, swung the rod with all his might, and cast the line far out into his newly created fishing pond.
Half a minute... three minutes... a full fifteen minutes passed, and the float didn't so much as twitch.
By now, even Marisa and Reimu had finished their showers and returned, clad in fresh, simple clothes.
Marisa was holding a bowl of grilled mushrooms, squatting next to Haruto. She watched him with curiosity as she ate, occasionally popping a mushroom into his mouth.
"How long have you been at it? Any fish biting?"
"I just started," Haruto said through gritted teeth, the veins on the back of the hand holding the rod beginning to bulge.
Not far away, Yakumo Ran couldn't help but point out, "Haruto-sama, didn't you just dump a massive amount of bait into the pond? So for you to—"
"A fish is on!" Haruto suddenly shouted, yanking back on the rod with a triumphant grin.
An immense force tugged back from the other end. He immediately shifted his stance, hoisting the rod over his shoulder and pulling with all his might, looking like he was trying to yank a giant radish from the ground.
Seeing the struggle, Marisa got excited. She put down her bowl and rushed over to help.
The fishing line was pulled taut, making a terrifying zipping sound as it cut through the air.
The thing underwater was clearly enormous, and the force was still increasing. Instead of pulling it up, Haruto and Marisa found themselves being gradually dragged toward the water's edge.
"Reimu!" Haruto shouted urgently.
"Coming!" Reimu immediately jumped into the fray, adding her strength to theirs.
Even Yakumo Ran watched with curiosity, wanting to see what on earth they could possibly catch.
SPLASH—!
A huge plume of water erupted as a colossal, fifty-meter-long stone fish broke the surface.
But the stone fish merely opened its mouth and fell back into the water with a crash. What remained on the hook was a slightly smaller, though still massive, twenty-to-thirty-meter-long fish.
Before Haruto could recover from the shock, he felt the weight in his hands lighten again. The big fish had also let go, and the hook was now snagged on a ten-meter-long eel.
"Reimu!" Haruto cried out in alarm. Seeing that this eel was also about to get off the hook, he shouted at the top of his lungs.
Fortunately, Reimu reacted with lightning speed. She instantly used her flight ability to manipulate the struggling eel, guiding it to land steadily on the shore.
Haruto had just breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the eel on the ground squirm twice and spit out a dull metal lump.
The object looked suspiciously like a missile. It was about thirty to forty centimeters in diameter, and Haruto's fishing hook was firmly caught on its tail fin.
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