Chapter 42

"What's the point of only unlocking a guardian spirit ability? Why not just give out a King of Silence as a reward?"

Natsuki read through the guardian spirit description carefully and couldn't help but think, "Isn't this basically just a Stand from JoJo?"

Crimson King, Platinum Heart, Golden Requiem... It was pretty obvious these guardian spirits weren't all that powerful.

After mulling it over for a few seconds, Natsuki already had the perfect guardian spirit candidate in mind.

He turned around quietly. Chika was happily chatting with her friends, the naive and big-hearted girl having already forgotten everything about the game.

"What a shame," Natsuki sighed to himself.

The ideal guardian spirit was clearly the bow-wearing girl in front of him, but humans didn't meet the requirements. Once you separate the anti-pervert and anti-crime combo, it becomes nothing special.

"Hm?"

Noticing Natsuki's gaze, Chika tilted her head and looked over.

Suddenly, Natsuki felt his pinky finger twitch slightly.

Apparently, the red string effect worked in the real world too.

Looking up, he saw Chika quietly raise her right hand to her face, making a scissors gesture.

"Hey~" she chirped.

Hey what? Had Barbatos's curse spread across the multiverse or something?

..........

The day flew by quickly. Before they knew it, it was time to head home from school.

At some point, the weather had changed from sunny to overcast, and it looked like rain was on the way.

Kaguya walked out of the school towards a black luxury car.

"It's going to rain," said the blonde girl sucking on a lollipop as she opened the car door. After Kaguya got in, the girl went around to the other side and sat next to her.

The driver was a gray-haired man with decades of accident-free experience – a true pro.

"Let's not go back to the mansion just yet," Kaguya suddenly spoke up, her voice cool and collected. "I want to go somewhere."

The driver seemed a bit surprised and glanced at the blonde girl.

There was a soft "pop" as the girl pulled the lollipop from her mouth, her cherry-red lips glistening. She tilted her head curiously.

"Where to, Miss? Want to hit up a mall for some shopping?"

"I know this great lingerie store. There's this winning bra I totally recommend."

"What even is sexy lingerie?" Kaguya couldn't help but protest. "Why would I buy something like that?"

The blonde girl replied matter-of-factly, "After reading that 'How to Train a Loyal Boyfriend' manual, I figured you wanted to practice and mold that boy you like into your perfect little puppy. I get it."

"I've only read half of that book! I haven't even finished it!"

Kaguya paused for a beat before adding flatly, "And there isn't even a boy I like... at all."

"Tsk~" The blonde girl popped the lollipop back in her mouth. "Miss, the whole tsundere act is so last season."

Kaguya turned to look out the window as rain began to fall, creating a misty view.

"Anyway... I just want to go check something out."

At the same time, on his way home, Natsuki ran into Miko and her good friend, Hana.

"Good afternoon, Natsuki," Hana greeted him with a blush. The button incident from two days ago was still fresh in her mind. The more she thought about it, the shyer she became. Now she'd turn red just seeing Natsuki.

I didn't care at the time... but I was in such an embarrassing position looking for buttons under the bed. He must have seen my underwear!

"Hey there," Natsuki replied, walking over to the two girls. "Why do you only have one umbrella?"

Miko, looking exhausted with dark circles under her eyes, weakly explained, "Hana went out this morning and forgot to bring an umbrella."

"I was so busy reading my horoscope that I totally spaced on grabbing my umbrella," Hana said, tapping her chest. "Don't worry, I definitely won't forget next time."

Natsuki couldn't help but quip, "People who say that usually forget the next time too."

Hana puffed out her cheeks. "Natsuki, you're being mean!"

They chatted as they walked, soon arriving at Miko's house. Hana waved goodbye, borrowing her friend's umbrella to head straight home instead of staying to read.

Natsuki held the umbrella over Miko's head, looking at his slim childhood friend seriously.

"Hey, I need you to help me practice something."

Miko looked confused. "???"

"Natsuki, you dummy, what are you talking about?" Miko tilted her head, perplexed.

Natsuki sighed. "Actually, this morning, that game chose me again..."

"What?" she startled, worry crossing her pretty face as she reached out to check Natsuki for injuries. "You're not hurt, are you?"

"Nah, I'm fine," Natsuki shook his head, giving her a quick rundown of the game's events.

"So much happened..." she bit her lower lip. Being a non-player, she couldn't help even if she wanted to. "What did you mean by 'practice' just now?"

"The mall refreshed with this weird ability today," Natsuki explained. "It's called 'I don't want to work hard anymore.'"

Miko squinted suspiciously. "...That doesn't sound good."

Natsuki went on to describe the skill:

[Skill: I don't want to work hard anymore]

[Price: 50 game coins]

[Description: This skill is for players who are done with the grind. Get stronger just by lying down! Simply lie flat and let others walk all over you. You'll absorb their trampling energy and convert it into special energy to boost your physical fitness.]

[Note: Rich girl, I'm done working hard!]

That morning, Natsuki had checked the game mall as usual and noticed the high-end products had been refreshed. He'd thought he could only get permanent attributes, but skills were available too.

He hadn't taken it seriously at first. He'd used up most of his game coins recently and was short on funds, so he couldn't afford it anyway.

"Who knew I'd get pulled into the game again this morning? After finishing it, I became loaded overnight. So I thought, why not?

A skill that lets you get stronger just by lying down, all the way to the human limit? Who wouldn't be tempted?

Natsuki's an only child with no little sister, and he doesn't know any rich girls. But that's fine, 'cause he's got his childhood friend.

"Getting stronger just by lying down and being stepped on..." Miko hugged herself, frowning. "That's super weird."

Natsuki shrugged, holding the umbrella. "Just think of it like you're stepping on my back to crack it."

"Even so..." Miko hesitated. "It still feels off."

"Come on, it's not like you didn't step on my back in middle school," Natsuki pointed out.

"I was just curious then." Miko's face flushed a bit. She sighed. "Fine... Let's go home first."

During summer break in their second year of middle school, they'd been watching TV and saw someone getting their back stepped on. Curious, they'd tried it once, but it felt awkward so they never did it again.

It's not their first time, so what's the harm in doing it again?

They were childhood friends, after all. Of course Miko wanted Natsuki to be safe. Even if she couldn't help in the game, she wasn't about to just stand by in real life.

...

"I'm home," Miko called out, unlocking the door and stepping into the entryway.

"Welcome back," came a vague, unreal voice from the living room. Her father sat on the couch, reading a newspaper. He glanced up at the sound.

Natsuki and Miko both pretended not to notice anything unusual.

"My shoulders are soaked." Miko tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, then bent to change her shoes. "And my socks are damp too. It's uncomfortable."

"That's what happens when two people share an umbrella," Natsuki said. "Go take a shower first. Don't catch a cold."

"Yeah." Miko nodded and walked to the fridge. "Wait for me in the room..."

As she opened the refrigerator, a decaying human head appeared on the top shelf, its lifeless eyes staring right at her.

Miko bit her lip. "Natsuki, come get whatever you want to drink."

Natsuki came over and saw it was an old... acquaintance.

For whatever reason, this vengeful spirit liked hanging out in the fridge. Natsuki saw it every morning when he woke up.

"I'll have some black tea," Natsuki said calmly, reaching towards the ghostly head as he quietly activated his evil spirit-repelling ability.

The head in the fridge let out a sudden shriek, then quickly dissolved into black smoke and vanished.

Grabbing a can of green tea, Natsuki headed upstairs. "Go take your shower."

Miko let out a relieved sigh, turning to grasp the bathroom door handle, ready to step in.

But then...

The golden-eyed girl's pupils suddenly widened, her body starting to tremble involuntarily.

Inside the bathroom, a terrifying spirit nearly filled the entire space. Its face was covered in insect-like scarlet compound eyes, locking gazes with Miko.

"You... can see me?" A cold, hollow voice echoed in her ears.

Miko's body shook, her eyes quickly misting over, tears threatening to fall.

This was too much.

Way too much!

She'd just dealt with the head in the fridge, and right when she let her guard down, she opened the door to find this monstrosity. Miko nearly screamed.

"Can you see me?" The many-eyed spirit slowly pressed forward, dozens of eyes fixed on Miko. Its evil, gloomy aura made her eyes water even more.

"Natsuki—" she called out, her voice trembling.