As he dressed, Rei Ao glanced at Esdeath. "If you ever want to go another round, feel free to make another trade with me. Until then, see you."
His figure vanished, leaving Esdeath to stare at the spot where he disappeared for a long time before smiling faintly.
"Ah, what an interesting man."
...
Rei Ao was indeed satisfied, mainly because Esdeath's strength in all aspects allowed for complete indulgence. But upon returning home, something felt off.
The room lights were off, and he could hear Mai's steady breathing in the darkness. She hadn't waited up for him and had already fallen asleep. However, when he got into bed, he immediately realized something was wrongthere was water on the bed.
It was then he understood that Mai had spilled water, perhaps during her sleep. With a strange look on his face, Rei Ao didn't wake her up. She must have worn herself out, having been "busy" for quite some time.
"Well, tomorrow I'll have to make it up to her properly," he decided, thinking about how to give Mai a great time, especially now that she had become stronger.
Rei Ao soon learned the meaning of "plans can't keep up with change." Originally, he had planned to spend a carefree weekend leaving traces of their love all around the house. But early in the morning, a phone call woke her up, and she hurried to answer it, not even noticing the mess on the bed.
She told Rei Ao afterward that it was her mother calling, and she had to go back home for a visit. Rei Ao, noticing her reluctance, offered to accompany her, but Mai declined after giving him a deep kiss.
"I can't run away anymore," she said. "Facing my mother is a necessary step in my growth."
Before leaving, she promised, "When I come back, I'll tell you everything."
And so, Mai prepared to return home, leaving Rei Ao alone in the house. The sudden quiet left him feeling somewhat lonely.
"Maybe I'll go visit Ayame or Saeko," he thought. Not only could he have some fun there, but he could also level up by fighting monsters. Just as he was about to send a message to set up a trade with one of them, the doorbell rang unexpectedly.
He assumed it was Gabriel coming to repay him, but when he opened the door, he was surprised to see someone else.
"Yukinoshita-san?"
"Ao-san?" Yukino Yukinoshita was equally surprised. "Do you live here?"
Rei Ao nodded. "Yes, I moved in just a few days ago. And you?"
His gaze shifted to the box of fruit she was holding.
Yukino handed it to him, explaining, "This is a small gift. I've just moved in today to the apartment next door."
She pointed to the left side.
"Oh, so you rented the place next door," Rei Ao said, accepting the fruit with a smile. "Looks like we're neighbors now. Let's look out for each other."
He extended his hand.
"Yes, let's look out for each other." Yukino lightly shook his hand before they both pulled back, aware of the awkwardness.
Just then, the door to the right opened, revealing Gabriel with messy hair, walking out. Yukino recognized her from earlier when she had also dropped off a welcome gift.
Gabriel, noticing Rei Ao, scratched her head awkwardly and mumbled, "Rei Ao could you come over for a second?"
Rei Ao couldn't help but chuckle internally at Gabriel's swift descent into laziness. Gone was the perfect angel he had seen before.
He gave Yukino an apologetic look and said, "If you need any help, feel free to ask me."
With that, he followed Gabriel into her apartment. Yukino, now feeling puzzled, watched the two disappear into the neighboring room. The girl seemed to be quite familiar with him.
She, too, returned to her apartment, her mind swirling with thoughts. Moving in next door to someone she knew was an unexpected twist.
Inside Gabriel's apartment, she once again brought Rei Ao to her computer. On the screen was a familiar ad'Holy Divine Staff19999 for purchase!'
"Gabriel's really getting sucked into this, huh?" Rei Ao thought, amused. The game was clearly designed to fleece people, selling virtual gear for absurd amounts. He couldn't help but wonder if this was a devilish game specifically targeting naive angels like Gabriel.
"Do you need to borrow more money?" he asked playfully.
Gabriel nodded vigorously. "Don't worry, I'll pay you back on time according to the contract," she said, patting her chest with confidence. She had already calculated how to scrimp, save, and take on a part-time job if necessary.
"Well, alright. I'll transfer it to you, same as last time," Rei Ao said as he sent her the money.
"Thank you so much! The people of Valhalla will be grateful to you as well!" Gabriel exclaimed, referring to the game's fictional kingdom as she eagerly proceeded with the purchase.
Watching her rush back to the game, Rei Ao couldn't help but shake his head and laugh. "You're really hooked on this game, huh?"
"I'm saving the world!" she declared earnestly, though she hadn't even gotten the chance to test her new staff's powers.
Just then, the doorbell rang.
"!!!"
Gabriel suddenly remembered. "It's probably Raphiel and the others!"
She was torn. She really wanted to test out her new staff but couldn't let her friends find out about her obsession. Making up her mind, she turned to Rei Ao.
"Rei Ao, could you answer the door for me? I need to, uh, clean up quickly."
"Your friends?" he guessed it might be Raphiel or Vignette and the others. He agreed and went to open the door, giving Gabriel some time to quickly jump back into her game.
~~~
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Chapter 69: New Neighbors, Mai's Mother
Rei Ao opened the door, and just as he had expected, there were three figures standing outside.
The short-haired girl in front jumped slightly in surprise upon seeing an unfamiliar man answering the door.
She tugged on Raphiel's sleeve and whispered, "Raphiel, didn't you say this was Gab-chan's house? Did we come to the wrong place?"
"No, this is indeed Gabriel's home," Raphiel replied, blinking with curiosity. "But why is Rei Ao here?"
"You know him?"
Rei Ao smiled and introduced himself. "I'm Rei Ao. I moved here a few days ago, and it turns out that Gabriel, or Tenma as I call her, is now my neighbor."
He explained briefly, then added, "Gabriel asked me to help with something just now. Please come in."
"Oh, okay!" The short-haired girl walked in and introduced herself, "Hello, Rei Ao, I'm Vignette April Tsukinose, a second-year transfer student at the academy."
She then pointed to the red-haired girl beside her, who was still staring blankly, and introduced her too. "And this is Satanichia McDowell Kurumizawa, she and I come from the same place."
"Oh, Kurumizawa-san, I think I saw you the other morning."
"It was you!!!" Satanichia exclaimed excitedly, jumping up. She finally recognized him. No wonder he looked familiarhe was the one who helped her fend off the "ferocious beast" (a small dog) and even gave her some chips.
"Rei Ao, right? Quickly, become my servant! With your help, I, Satanichia, will surely become the most powerful demon!"
Satanichia eagerly extended what seemed to be an "invitation," though it looked more like a command.
"Huh?" Vignette panicked at Satanichia's open declaration of her demon identitythis was something humans weren't supposed to know. She quickly tried to cover it up. "Oh, Rei Ao, please don't mind her. Satanichia, um... she's just a bit of a chuuni."
Rei Ao chuckled lightly, "It seems you're not very good at lying, Vignette." He then turned to Raphiel with a knowing smile, "Tell me, Shiraha-san, is this kind of behavior common among demons in the underworld?"
Raphiel, her eyes full of amusement, shook her head. "No, it's quite rare. Satanichia is very... unique."
"Huh?" Vignette was confused, hearing the words "underworld" and "demons." She turned to Raphiel, seeking an explanation.
Raphiel smiled brightly, clearly enjoying the situation. "Oh, did I forget to mention? Rei Ao here is the first awakened human we're supposed to observe."
"What? He's the one we're supposed to be keeping an eye on?" Vignette was shocked, then turned to Satanichia with a questioning look. "You knew all along, Satania? And you didn't tell me?"
"Uh" Satanichia looked utterly lost. She had no idea. However
"Heh, heh!" Satanichia quickly recovered and puffed out her chest with pride. "Of course, I knew from the start. After all, I'm a future S-class demon. I can see through things like this in an instant!"
Raphiel, who couldn't resist teasing her further, chimed in, "Wow, Satania, you're amazing~"
Rei Ao couldn't help but feel a little sorry for Satanichia, who still had no idea she was being made fun of by the mischievous angel.
"By the way, where's Gabriel?" Vignette asked, not seeing their friend.
"Oh" Rei Ao called out to the bedroom, "Tenma, your friends are here waiting for you."
A flurry of activity could be heard from the bedroom, followed by Gabriel stumbling out, her hair in a disheveled mess.
"Hmm?" Raphiel immediately noticed something off. "Gabriel, your halo looks a bit dim."
"D-dim?" Gabriel, clearly flustered, reached up and quickly pulled off her halo, giving it a wipe on her shirt before placing it back on her head. Instantly, it shone brightly again.
Seeing this, Rei Ao couldn't help but mentally applaud Gabriel's ability to make her halo sparkle just by wiping it down.
'Classic Gabriel,' he thought.
"Ha ha, you must have just seen it wrong, Raphiel. There was a little dust on it, that's all," Gabriel deflected, clearly hoping to move past the topic quickly. "Anyway, have you all introduced yourselves?"
"Yes, we've already mentioned that Rei Ao is the awakened one," Vignette replied, relieved that they had already smoothed things over. "We were sent by the underworld to observe Rei Ao, but it's not like we're spying on you or anything. I hope you don't mind."
Rei Ao waved it off. "It's fine. Shiraha-san and Tenma have already explained everything. As long as there's no weird conspiracy, I don't mind."
Just then, Raphiel had an idea. "Since we're all supposed to observe Rei Ao, why don't we all move in together?"
"What?!" The others were shocked.
Raphiel explained her reasoning with a grin. "It would make it easier to observe him if we're close by. I noticed this apartment still has rooms available. There's a two-bedroom option, and we can split ittwo to a room. It'll save on rent and living expenses."
"Living expenses!" Vignette's interest was piqued. Her finances were tight, and even though performing minor "bad deeds" could boost her rank and earnings, she wasn't any good at it. Sharing rent would be a lifesaver.
"I'm in!" Vignette said eagerly.
"Me too!" Satanichia raised her hands in agreement, her goals being twofold: first, to defeat the angels, and second, to make Rei Ao her loyal servant. If she accomplished both, she'd be one step closer to becoming an S-class demon!
"Ha ha ha!" Just imagining her future glory, Satanichia burst into laughter.
"." Rei Ao sighed, feeling that Satanichia might just trip herself up.
"I, uh" Gabriel hesitated, knowing that if they all moved in together, her gaming habits would be exposed. But Raphiel didn't give her a chance to object.
"Great! I'll share with Gabriel, and Vignette can room with Satanichia. It's the weekend, so we can move in right away."
Faced with Raphiel's smiling face, Gabriel was speechless.
Vignette turned to Rei Ao. "Rei Ao, could you help us pick a room?"
"Sure, I just moved in recently, but I can help you look."
"That would be wonderful!"
As Rei Ao led them to check out the rooms, Gabriel lagged behind, thinking only about getting back to her game.
On the other side, Mai Sakurajima stood in front of her family home, gazing at the familiar yet somewhat foreign house. She hesitated to go in. Mai didn't want to face her mothershe even harbored a sense of loathing toward her. It all stemmed from something that happened when she was thirteen.
Mai had started her career as a child star and had gained significant fame. Her mother, acting as her manager, had capitalized on numerous advertisement opportunities, earning a great deal of money. However, when Mai was thirteen, her mother arranged a commercial shoot for a swimsuit photobook.
Upon hearing about it, Mai, realizing how inappropriate it was, firmly refused, even going so far as to threaten self-harm to stop it. Her mother eventually relented, canceling the job and paying a hefty penalty fee for breaching the contract. From that moment on, Mai came to understand that her mother had become trapped in the pursuit of money and wealth, becoming increasingly greedy and self-centered.
That was the first time Mai felt the urge to escape. Perhaps it was around that time she began avoiding attention, no longer wanting to be seen. Thankfully, when she dressed as a bunny girl, Rei Ao had found her. Otherwise, the person known as Mai Sakurajima might have soon disappeared from the world entirely.
The thought of this brought a relieved smile to Mai's face, giving her the courage to move forward. She stepped up and rang the doorbell.
"Ding dong!"
Before long, the door opened. Standing there was a woman with sleek black hair, elegantly dressed in business attire. She glanced outside but saw no one, furrowing her brow slightly in annoyance. "Is this some kind of prank?"
She failed to notice Mai standing just a step away from her.
"As I thought" Mai felt deeply disappointed. Even her own mother couldn't see her. She had suspected as much. Her mother hadn't called her once since she'd been away, likely having forgotten her entirely. The moment she had activated the recognition spell she received from Rei Ao, enabling her to be seen again, was probably when her mother finally remembered she existed.
As her mother, thinking it was a prank, started to close the door, Mai restored her visibility and grabbed the door before it could shut. In a quiet voice, she said, "Mom."
"!!"
Her mother's body stiffened at the familiar voice. When she turned around and saw Mai, a flash of excitement lit up her eyes. "Mai!"
Her excitement wasn't born from motherly affection, but rather
"You've rested long enough. It's time for you to return to the entertainment industry. I've already planned everything out. I'm certain that your comeback will be even more successful than before."
She tried to pull Mai inside the house, but Mai stopped her with a firm response.
"I'm sorry, Mom. I don't want to return to the entertainment industry."
