207 207. The Illegitimate Child

Izumi parted ways with Tōru after they had a private conversation. And he hadn't had the chance to ask before, so Izumi started to speak.

"Rori, why did you come here?"

"I want to visit your world."

"Is that it? You have no other purpose?"

"Does free lodging count?"

Hearing Rori's words, Izumi covered his face with his palm. He wondered why she had to come at a time like this.

"Alright. Then, let's go find a hotel for you to stay in!"

"Eh, no. I'm gonna stay in your house instead."

"Haaa?"

Not expecting Rori to refuse him right off the bat, she even stated that she would stay in his house. God knew what expression his mother had when she found out that a lolita girl wanted to stay for a few days. And when Izumi thought of how Rori could force him to submit, he resigned.

Nevertheless, he had to think of how to explain to his mother if Rori wanted to stay at his house.

Izumi looked at the lolita beside him.

"There will be no free lodging. You should help my mother in her shop!"

Rori put her index finger on her lower lip. Then replied,

"Oh, sure. Your mother owns a cake shop, right? Perhaps I can also learn how to make one."

"Suit yourself. But, don't do anything weird, okay!" Izumi reminded her.

Rori is like a free spirit who comes and goes regardless of her duties as a soul bridge from the world to the hereafter. If Izumi remembered correctly, she only had about 40 years of age before she ascended to the rank of a god. Maybe for that reason, Rori wanted to satisfy herself in the mortal world before the ascension.

"Rori."

"Hmmm?"

"Is it okay for you to play around? You should have a duty, right?"

"Oh. It's fine. He said that freeing me for 40 years is a reward before I reach godhood." Rori replied playfully. But, Izumi frowned.

"That means, once you ascend, you can't go to the mortal world again?"

"Eh, you know that?"

"Well, that should be the common rule among gods I suppose."

"Well. It can't be helped, right? But, that should be considered quite a long time for humans. Anyway, if I refuse to ascend, I would probably die."

Izumi frowned. Hearing such a strict rule, he couldn't help but have a bad feeling.

"What will happen when you ascend to become a god?"

Rori just shrugged her shoulders and said nothing. But, his instinct told him that Rori hid something from him. Izumi let out a sigh. Since Rori didn't want to talk about it, Izumi kept his mouth shut from asking that thing.

In which, he changed the topic.

"Hey, what were you talking about with Kyouko?"

"It's a girls' talk."

"Huh?"

"It means, s-e-c-r-e-t."

Izumi frowned. He didn't like Rori's way of interacting with his ex.

"You shouldn't meddle in other people's business, Rori. Although we had a relationship in the past, now—"

Before Izumi could finish his words, Rori interjected.

"I know, I know. I just wondered why she dumped you. Even though you are far from perfect, you are a man who is quite ideal for many women."

Izumi didn't really care what Rori said. He got closer while pointing his index finger at her.

"Listen! I haven't cleared up the misunderstanding caused by Kuroneko's message. What you did earlier made the situation worse. In fact, all I wanted was for Kuroneko and Tabane to apologize to my ex. That way, she won't think of me as a cheating bastard." Izumi said solemnly.

Looking at Izumi's seriousness, Rori took a step back while raising both of her hands. It was clear that Izumi was irritated as well. So, she apologized for what she had done.

If Izumi is still dating Kyouko, then Rori's arrival will be a problem. But Izumi had already broken up with her, so the only problem that would arise was that his name would be tarnished.

Izumi sighed. He didn't care anymore. Whether he would be branded as a playboy or not, was up to those people to decide.

— — — —

Arriving at Izumi's house, he invited Rori inside. The house was still as quiet as ever. And without any hesitation, Rori went inside without caring that she was invited to a man's house.

Izumi turned to Rori and pointed to the living room. The room was decorated with flower vases, several wall paintings, and glass roll doors covered with curtains patterned with cherry leaves. There was also a long sofa, table, and television that could be used to relax.

"You can sit there and turn on the... Oh right, I forgot that you don't know much about tv."

Since Rori was from the Special Region, which was basically a fantasy world, Izumi was pretty sure that Rori didn't really understand electronics. So, he explained how to use it.

Izumi himself went straight to his room to change after explaining a little about how to use the television.

After changing, Izumi returned to the living room, but he was a little surprised. Not because of Rori or anyone else, but rather it was due to the news on television.

The news told about the sudden disappearance of five students when they were at school, during extracurricular activities to be precise. Their photos and names were also clearly displayed on the tv screen.

"It seems Hiiro is from your world, Izumi."

"I know. I already…"

While Izumi was talking, the continuation of the news made Izumi stop his words.

—Moving on to other news. There is a case that has remained a mystery since last year. According to the report, a class exploded as if a terrorist had targeted the class because the other classes were only affected by the explosion. No one in the class survived, and their bodies were not found which makes this case still a mystery. Even the police who have cooperated with the intelligence agency still cannot reveal who was behind the bombing because there is no evidence at all—

When the news on television was heard by Izumi and Rori, they were sure that the bombing was indeed out of ordinary.

"This…" Izumi didn't know what to say. Meanwhile, Rori responded.

"I'm sure that's magic from another world, but who did it?" Rori turned her head to Izumi.

"It happened a year ago in this world, it was the time when I didn't have any power at all. So I'm not sure." Izumi shook his head.

However, just like what Rori said, that incident was caused by someone with superpowers that instantly decimated all of the students including a teacher in that class. He wasn't sure if that was a certain anime plot since the world he lived in had so many characters from different animes. There might be someone with such a power lurking in the dark. In any case, he decided to investigate tonight.

"If you want to go, take me with you! I might be able to tell if it was caused by magic power!"

Izumi agreed with Rori's suggestion. It would be more of a relief if he brought an experienced and strong person instead of going alone.

— — — —

Since the location of the house and the incident site were quite far away, Izumi thought of taking the train to get there. However, when he thought about it, he really didn't want to be at the scene of the incident in broad daylight. He also wasn't sure if the place was still safe to be investigated.

"Should I use my IS later at midnight?"

When Izumi was preoccupied with plans to investigate the incident site, he realized that his mother had entered the house.

"I'm home. Izumi, are you there?"

Izumi jerked up from the sofa while looking at Rori.

"Rori, what to do? I haven't thought about the reason for your coming here. I can't just say "my friend is coming from abroad, can she stay here?" Like that casually, right?"

Of course, Rori was aware of this difficult-to-explain situation. However, she still smiled to reassure him. She said,

"Hehe, you don't have to worry! I already thought about that."

As soon as Rori finished speaking, Iori, Izumi's mother, was stunned to see the unfamiliar girl who was with him. Furthermore, a boy and girl were at home alone.

"Oh. How rare. You're bold enough to bring another girl home. Since when did you become such a playboy, Izumi?"

"Wait, wait, wait! Don't misunderstand!"

Izumi stretched out both hands while waving, which showed that he was denying what Iori said. Iori looked at Rori closely. She has Asian facial features and dresses like a princess due to her gothic dress. Iori thought that Rori might want to take part in an event called a cosplay festival or something.

Rori stepped forward, then greeted Iori while bending her knees and bowing.

"Pleased to meet you. You must be Izumi's mother. My name is Rori Mercury."

"Nice to meet you too. What should I call you? Rori?"

"Yes. I am also the illegitimate daughter of your husband."

What Rori said was a bomb ready to explode Izumi and Iori's heads. They were both dumbfounded and speechless at the same time.