"In the livestream just now, you were on the outskirts of Tokyo"
Tendou Kisara hesitated before answering with a nod.
"Mm, yes, we were outside."
"Tch!"
She sucked in a breath. Even driving here would take ages, yet they'd appeared in a mere blink. Not even a full second had elapsed. Was this some kind of spatial teleportation technology? By reflex, her mind started analyzing how it might work.
"Pleasure to meet you. I'm Rei Ao," he said. "As you've seen in the Trade Chat Group, I'm its master."
Bursting with excitement, Midori Fuse and the others rushed closer. They wanted to get a good look at the Oniisan who had stood up so strongly for the Cursed Children.
Seeing a crowd of cute young girls, Rei Ao raised a hand and, out of habit, patted Yuzuki Katagiri on the head, since she was right next to him.
"Ugh!"
Yuzuki stiffened. If this had been anyone else, she would've punched them instantly. But it was Rei Ao, so she not only didn't resistshe lowered her head shyly.
Observing Rei Ao's total lack of revulsion touching her, the other girls' eyes brightened.
"Staaaare"
One by one, they gazed at him expectantly.
Rei Ao chuckled.
"May I pat your heads?"
"Er, II don't mind at all,"
Asaka Mibu mumbled first, a little bashful. Right there in front of everyone, Rei Ao began patting these adorable girls' heads in turn.
When he reached Midori Fuse, she nervously clutched her hat, tears threatening in her eyes.
"B-big brother, II have something bad on top of my head."
She believed her ears made her a monster.
"Heh heh, I know. A pair of lovely cat ears, right?"
"Lovely?"
Midori didn't understand. People always hated her ears; no one had ever called them "lovely."
"Exactly. A girl with ears like these is a neko-mimi, something I love. May I see?"
Rei Ao's face was earnest. This was a genuine, natural-born catgirlnot at all like Leona's transformed lioness form.
"Uuh"
She was half-ecstatic, half-shy at his sincerity. Timidly, she removed her hat. A pair of fluffy white cat ears trembled, just like Midori's anxious heart.
Rei Ao's eyes lit up. Without thinking, he reached out to touch them. The tactile sensation was so addicting he couldn't get enough, praising her aloud:
"Midori, your ears are truly beautiful!"
"Nngh!"
Though it felt sensitive and ticklish being touched, Midori was more content than she'd ever been.
Meanwhile, Tina stared intently at Midori's delighted expression. Suddenly she scurried forward, wrapped her arms around Rei Ao's thigh, and said in a toneless voice,
"Oniisan, I like you."
"Eh?!"
The others were taken aback, realizing exactly what Tina was up to.
"Tina! That's cheating!"
"II want a hug too!"
At once, the rest all squeezed in around him.
"D-don't push me!"
""
Off to one side, Enju Aihara gazed vacantly.
"Why? I was the one who got here first"
~~~
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Chapter 470: Volunteers in Cleansing the World...
Rentarou Satomi had tried everything he could, yet still couldn't find either Kisara Tendou or Enju Aihara. Finally, he decided to seek help.
The first person who came to mind was Miyori Shiba of Shiba Heavy Industries, someone he had a cooperative relationship with.
But now he was told Miyori wasn't in apparently she'd left, as though on purpose. Asked when she would return, there was no definitive answer.
Rentarou's face darkened. Kisara and Enju had been missing for an hour already, which pointed to serious trouble.
"Phew"
Even lacking powerful allies, he had to keep searching. Just as he was preparing to enlist the help of other Promoters, his phone lit up with an odd message:
[Seitenshi has decided to enact a Cursed Children Human Rights Protection Law, with a non-anonymous, 12-hour referendum for all of Tokyo!]
[Whether or not the law takes effect will be decided by the people of Tokyo, in a fully public display!]
"?"
Everyone in Tokyo knew who Seitenshi was. Rentarou also recalled that not long ago, she had tried to push a new Gastrea law, granting certain protections to Cursed Children.
Unfortunately, that law wasn't yet finalized when massive public protests began. And now, so soon after all that, she was directly introducing a new law again?
What's more, it would be determined by a referendum across all of Tokyo's 787 wards? And there were three choices: "approve," "oppose," or "abstain."
""
Rentarou read the news, gave a slight shake of his head, and put away his phone. Not that he didn't want to vote in favor, but he could already predict the law's fate: there was no way it would pass the referendum.
Right now, all that really mattered to him was continuing his search for Kisara.
Meanwhile, across the Tokyo Area, most people had gotten the news through various media outlets.
Many resolutely opposed it, and some had even begun organizing protest marches.
Some people, unwilling to stir up trouble especially because it was a non-anonymous vote opted simply to abstain.
Government officials who knew about it likewise hesitated to speak out. They were waiting on someone else's stance.
That person was Kikunojou Tendou.
Kikunojou, Kisara's grandfather, was the head of the Tendou family as well as Seitenshi's deputy aide.
He had climbed to the pinnacle of political power. Officials might ignore Seitenshi because she was young and lacked seniority, but they absolutely couldn't overlook Kikunojou Tendou's attitude.
The man was a genuine, shrewd schemer, deeply trusted by Seitenshi. In many politicians' eyes, his real status exceeded Seitenshi's.
Right now, Kikunojou Tendou's aged brow was knotted in worry. He had yet to make any statement.
He was Seitenshi's most trusted adviser in office, and outwardly, he supported Seitenshi's plan for the new Gastrea law apparently out of genuine respect for her.
Yet in truth, behind the scenes he was the one orchestrating and stirring up public opinion so the masses would violently oppose it.
That was one reason the new Gastrea law had failed. Thanks to his political influence, once other officials picked up on his position, they lined up accordingly.
Ultimately, aside from the nominal support from Kikunojou, Seitenshi had no one on her side. In reality, he was the most twisted figure of all.
Kikunojou himself came from the "Stolen Generation." His wife had died in the Gastrea War, and so he loathed both Gastrea and the Cursed Children.
Even so, this time, he did not immediately pretend to back Seitenshi. Declaring his support under his real name would only lead people to misread his stance, encouraging them to follow blindly.
With the status he wielded, any move he made would tip the scales and the last thing he wanted was for this law to actually pass.
The biggest problem was that Seitenshi's move had come with no warning, and no official meeting had even been convened an abrupt and peculiar move.
Not even a cunning old fox like Kikunojou Tendou could lay the groundwork in advance.
"Someone come. I need to see the Princess."
As for why Seitenshi had made such a decisive move, there was a reason. Not long before, a mysterious figure had abruptly appeared in her conference hall, just like how Rei Ao and his entourage teleported in elsewhere.
A woman in fact, numerous women. Several dozen in total!
They had all been summoned by Rei Ao.
Rei Ao: "@Everyone, it's time for a grand cleansing of this world. Volunteers, come forth."
Aside from everyone in the main group, along with Yukino and various others close to him, a number of them volunteered to join. Among them:
Saikyou Nene, who simply found this world's people unpleasant.
The sisters Yotsuba Maya and Shiba Miya sympathetic to the plight of the Cursed Children, and also for Miyuki's sake.
Yukinoshita Haruno.
Yes, Haruno's appearance surprised Rei Ao. After all, many complete ordinary people like Mrs. Yuigahama, Kasumigaoka Utaha, and Ogata Rizu hadn't come at all. Yet Haruno had.
Among the crowd, someone noticed her:
"Sis? Whywhy are you here?"
Yukino stared, stunned.
""
Haruno's expression was sly: "Heehee, Yukino-chan, your big sis wants to be a great hero now!"
"But you're just an ordinary person! Hurry up and go home!"
It was the first time Yukino had shown real worry. But that single anxious remark deeply pricked Haruno's heart, freezing her usual flippant smile on her face.
She had seen, through the livestream, the horrors of the Gastrea, the corruption of that other world, and how Rei Ao planned an astonishing "cleansing."
Still, it felt remote from her as an ordinary person. Haruno, with her adaptability, had treated it like some sci-fi movie.
However, when Rei Ao invited everyone to come along, alarm bells rang for her.
She dashed to Yukino's bedroom. Empty. She clearly remembered Yukino had taken a bath and then gone to her room, not reemerging. So Yukino had gone to another world!
""
Haruno panicked, her thoughts in turmoil. Would Yukino be hurt? Would she ever return? And so on.
Anxiety mingled with fear of not seeing her sister again. She bit her lip so hard her teeth left imprints.
Ultimately, she made a bold decision:
She would go too. She had to see for herself.
Even if she was just an ordinary person.
~~~
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Chapter 471: Waiting and Revenge?
"Mother, it seems Yukino just went out. If you had some business with her, perhaps you should wait out for a while."
Compared to Yukino's sudden disappearance, Haruno was the more cautious one when mentioning Yukino.
"Hmm? When did Yukino leave?"
Their mother assumed she'd merely failed to notice. Habitually, she would have asked a few clarifying questions. But recalling the agreement she had with Rei Ao, she gave up on the idea.
She nodded slightly.
"Go on, then."
Such an easygoing response from her mother left Haruno unaccustomed. Even so, after politely nodding, she went out.
Walking to an empty spot, she opted to accept the invitation to travel to another world.
Even though she simply wanted to check on Yukino, Yukino's casual remark earlier had pierced through the layers of Haruno's psychological "defenses."
Yukino was right.
Haruno was just a normal person.
Whereas Yukinowas not.
Even if she did come here, Haruno might only add to Yukino's troubles. Her eyes dimmed. For the first time, Haruno felt truly discouraged.
Just then a large, steady hand landed on her shoulder.
"Harunomy dear sister-in-law. You only came here because you were worried about Yukino, right?"
That ultimate sis-con guess: as soon as you tied her odd behavior to Yukino, you couldn't go wrong.
"Worried about her"
Haruno's expression flickered.
"Heh, Rei Ao-san is quite the joker. I'm just an ordinary person. If anything, Yukino should be the one worried about me."
Feigning calm, Haruno didn't want Yukino to discover her superfluous concerns. She changed the subject with a playful air:
"Rei Ao-san, might I end up being a burden to you here?"
She blinked her clear eyes. Although she looked mischievous, the depth in her gaze suggested she was anxious for reassurance.
Rei Ao could easily sense how vulnerable and lacking in confidence she felt at that moment. Rather than undermine her, he simply gave her the warmth of his palm.
"You don't need to worry about that. If I bring you here, naturally I can protect you."
Even if he wasn't watching her personally, Tohru and Velzard and the others had ample means to keep them safe.
"The real question is whether your heart can handle what's next."
There was still some time before Seitenshi concluded her selection process. Rei Ao's plan was straightforward: send people out to hunt Gastrea to gain combat experience, while dispatching the three Demon LordsRamiris, Frey, and Luminusto gather all the world's Cursed Children one by one.
Ramiris's casually created labyrinth happened to be perfect for that.
"Velzard, I'm leaving these people in your care."
With Velzard, Tohru, and the rest protecting them, there'd be absolutely no problem.
"They won't come to any harm as long as I'm there," Velzard said with a small smile. "All right, everyonelet's go."
Whoosh!
In a blink, dozens of them disappeared into thin air.
"As for you," Rei Ao said, pointing to Haruno, "stay by my side."
""
Seeing how steadfast he was, Haruno could only suppress her anxiety and remain obediently by Rei Ao's side.
At this point, Enju Aihara tugged on his sleeve.
"Rei Ao-nii, we can help, too."
Asaka Mibu and a few other Cursed Children eyed him eagerly.
"For now, all of you just stay here and watch what unfolds," Rei Ao replied.
In this world, a Cursed Child's strength was only significant relative to an ordinary human. They currently had chat-group members from other worlds who were far beyond that, so there wasn't much these girls could contribute.
"Okay"
Though a bit disappointed, Enju and the others realized not causing chaos was the best help they could offer at the moment.
Just then, Kisara Tendou's group of four approached as well, looking stunned.
Their gaze wandered to Haruno standing next to him. Muroto Sumire, especially, couldn't resist coming closer in curiosity, ignoring Haruno's stiff smile and scrutinizing her face up close.
"An otherworlder? But she looks exactly like a normal person."
""
That was precisely what Haruno herself thought.
"Why'd you imagine people from another world would look strange? Of course there are normal civilians in other worlds. For instance, this is Yukinoshita Haruno, my dear sister-in-law."
Haruno rolled her eyes, grumbling inwardly: Yes, I'm only a normal personso sorry about that. And you could drop the 'dear' from calling me sister-in-lawthat's over-the-top.
But being in someone else's domain, she only complained in her mind and said nothing out loud.
"Ahh, I see now," Muroto Sumire said, nodding sagely. "So in that other world, there are superhumans and also ordinary folk. Those who left just now must be superhumans?"
