[41] Counter Force Strikes

"...What's going on with that woman?" Standing at the entrance of his own studio, Kazuya watched the teacher who had just come to his home for a home visit through the crack in the curtains. She was his sister's teacher.

Kazuya furrowed his brows slightly.

From the moment he first saw her, there was something off about that woman's demeanor.

"Hey, Onii-chan, what do you think of Kanako-sensei?" His little sister asked from behind him.

"Well... she's very pretty and seems to have a gentle personality. Why do you ask?"

"Sigh~~ Didn't you notice?" Kazumi smiled. "It seems like the teacher has taken a liking to you."

"Huh? She's interested in me?" Kazuya furrowed his brow slightly. "I see... that explains why things felt a bit strange. Love, huh? I've never experienced that before. Maybe I can use it as a reference for my manga later."

Listening to Kazuya's words, a slight twitch appeared at the corner of Kazumi's mouth. "Is that all you're thinking about?"

"Didn't I say? Her expression earlier is quite valuable as a reference... But, at your age, do you even know what love is? Don't tell me you're already dating boys at school?"

"No, no, absolutely not! Don't accuse me like that, Onii-chan!" Kazumi hurriedly waved her hands.

"I see... well, if you really have someone you like, I won't oppose it. But first, consider your age. You're only 11, right?"

"I told you, there's really no one... Anyway, don't change the subject. What do you think of the teacher?" Kazumi asked expectantly. "I think she's nice."

"No, she's not suitable for me. Next time, I'll just refuse straightforwardly. But should I wait for her to confess first? Otherwise, it might seem like I'm being presumptuous. No, to avoid trouble, it's better to reject her directly. It's better that way. Besides, her expression when she's rejected... would be a good reference."

Kazumi seemed lost in thought for a moment, "That... mangaka... are they all like you?"

Kazumi felt like her perception had been refreshed. She originally thought it was a very cool profession, but now... what's with this... no matter what, his first thought was "use it as a reference"...

"It's unlikely, I guess I'm the only one like this," Kazuya thought for a moment and said seriously. "Of course, the reason is simple. She didn't leave a deep impression on me before. Even if I don't draw it, I might forget at some point. It's that simple. And—even if she couldn't leave a profound impression on me, I think the chances of being happy together are quite low. So, it's better to just reject her."

...

Unexpectedly, it was completely different from what she had imagined!

Kanako Sawada's heart was beating slightly faster as she walked back...

He was very handsome, and he was so tall... no, she hadn't seen anyone taller in her real life.

For some reason... he made her heart race. If... it were possible...

...

Time passed slowly...

Kazuya noticed something strange...

Lately, he kept meeting people for various reasons.

And all of them were beautiful women with stunning figures.

Teachers, nurses, female students, police officers, shrine maidens... even the single women who had just moved in next door.

Twins, married women, frail girls.

Girls with glasses, maids, airheads, servant girls, nobles, mature women, snarky ones...

You name it.

There were even European and African women...

He could think of everything in just one month...

To put it bluntly, he was thankful that they didn't send any men to test if he was gay. Even idiots could see that someone was playing tricks behind his back, but strangely... according to his observations, these people seemed willing... they came to him willingly. Some of them even seemed a bit tsundere, but after careful consideration, it seemed that as long as he was willing to conquer, there should be no problem taking them within two days.

They all accepted it, and there was no conflict...

But... but...

Go away!

Who the hell is messing with him? So annoying!

He can't even accompany his little sister to school in the morning without encountering many things.... his mood for coming up with new manga ideas was completely gone!

If it weren't for being able to relax in his dreams every night... he felt like he would have been driven to madness by the mental stress of reality.

Yes... challenging Dio, who had turned into a vampire, over and over again in his dreams, and dying repeatedly. Now... that was relaxing. The mental pressure from reality was just too much...

As for whether he had someone he liked among all these women...

Yes, of course he did.

But... they came in droves, and he didn't know about others, but he just felt annoyed and disgusted...

So annoying!

...

In the void...

Two consciousnesses communicated.

The Counter Force...

Gaia, the consciousness of the planet, centered everything around the world and the planet. Its purpose was singular, to ensure the existence of the planet.

Alaya, the collective consciousness of humanity, centered everything around humans. Its purpose was also singular, to ensure the continuation of humanity.

The actions of these two consciousnesses were almost simultaneous, but... they didn't communicate because, to some extent, these two entities were in conflict, yet they were also one and the same.

Because the survival of humanity was built on the destruction of the planet. In this regard, Gaia and Alaya were in conflict.

Even if humans were to disappear, the planet could still exist.

But if the planet were to disappear, current humanity would not survive. In this regard, Gaia and Alaya were allies.

However... this was only the present—

The future for humans to venture into the endless expanse of the cosmos was not an impossibility, and in some parallel worlds, it had already been accomplished.

In other words, once it reached that point.

Even if the planet were to be destroyed, humanity could still exist. In this regard, Gaia and Alaya were in conflict.

So, these two entities didn't intentionally communicate, but almost simultaneously arrived at the same conclusion.

They couldn't kill Kurokawa Kazuya because The Root didn't allow it. He had obtained the friendship of The Root's incarnation. So... they decided to disrupt this friendship.

However... because there was no prior consultation, they both acted at the same time, affecting the nearby women...

The result was that Kurokawa Kazuya felt something was amiss...

The two entities fell silent...

They discussed it and reached a conclusion—wait a few years before taking action again. Next time, they should be slow, gradual, and not let him notice. For now... everything should return to normal.

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