Chapter 14: The Death God Elementary Student and the Godslayer
Nakamori Ginzo left joyfully, clutching a bottle of "Transform-Transform."
For the sake of his son-in-law's best friend, Hikigaya gave him a discount—only taking one month of his lifespan.
"Hachiman, is this really okay?" Seishuin Ena watched Hikigaya enthusiastically waving goodbye at the shop entrance, feeling that this whole situation was a bit precarious. "If he takes your items out and uses them recklessly, it might attract danger."
Hikigaya was a Demon King adept at manipulating the forces of nature and life. Since the incident in America, this was no longer a major secret in the world of magic.
This included the fact that Hikigaya had opened a shop; all the truly powerful magical organizations knew about it. Because of this, the number of people in this world seeking the location of the Yorozuya was steadily increasing.
Too many people wanted to buy the merchandise here, and most of their wishes were related to life force, but they basically had no hope of being proactively invited by the Yorozuya.
Hikigaya was actually a bit of a troll; he loved teasing those who didn't know the "market price"—that was where the thrill was.
The Yorozuya itself, which had not yet fully become a Tsukumogami, wasn't a troll, but since it was created by Hikigaya, it naturally pulled people in according to his general preferences.
A character like Nakamori Ginzo was not only ignorant of the market but also very lively; Hikigaya looked forward to seeing what he would look like once he finally understood the true nature of things. Of course, by then, he would likely be deleted from Hikigaya's customer list, but that was a matter for the future and didn't stop Hikigaya from giving him preferential treatment now.
Thus, hearing Ena's question, Hikigaya happily leaked the truth.
"It won't happen. The items that Inspector Nakamori uses are crafted using his own life force; no one else can use them. Besides, I will protect my customers."
Ena let out an "Oh" and stopped speaking. She had her answer, and that was all she wanted.
The Yorozuya was even less of a secret to the Four Great Families. As the only member of the Four Families involved in a romantic relationship with Hikigaya, Ena had been pestered quite a bit.
But even within the Seishuin clan, no one dared to come looking for Hikigaya to talk business anywhere outside of the Yorozuya. Everyone firmly believed that Hikigaya Hachiman was only a businessman when he was inside the shop.
.
.
.
While Ena was thinking about how to brush off those annoying relatives, Hikigaya—who had intended to call it a day—discovered that the Yorozuya was reacting.
And it was the reaction of directly pulling someone in.
Tsk tsk tsk... who is it? Someone with so much face? This is the first time the Yorozuya has proactively opened a portal to pull in a newcomer!'
Curious, Hikigaya pulled back Ena, who thought they were leaving, and plopped back down, waiting with great interest.
After a moment, ripples appeared in the air ahead, and then a ball rolled out.
Pardon me, it wasn't a ball—it was a fat person, a little fat kid (Genta). But that wasn't the end. To Hikigaya and Ena's surprised gazes, three more little rascals rolled out. After spitting out four "balls" in one go, the Yorozuya closed the spatial transport with satisfaction.
Looking at the four little ones on the floor, Hikigaya's expression became very strange.
Because the one who rolled out last was someone he had seen not too long ago.
Kudo Shinichi—alias "Laundry Machine" (a pun on his name)—who had changed his name to Edogawa Conan because he turned small.
Right now, the miniature "Laundry Machine" and his Detective Boys friends were all dizzy and disoriented. It seemed the Yorozuya's transport process put a significant physical burden on children.
However... was this "Laundry Machine" planning to provoke him?
Setting business aside for a moment, Hikigaya decided to strangle the other's mysterious "protagonist halo" right in the cradle.
He turned to Ena and said, "Ena, sorry to trouble you, but go bring Gin and his little lackey (Vodka) over here."
It seemed the name he spoke had a sobering effect on the "Death God Elementary Student" before him. The "Laundry Machine's" eyes, which were spinning like spirals, immediately returned to normal. He stared straight over and let out an "Ah!"
Clearly, he recognized Hikigaya.
"It's you?" Just as the question escaped him, the "Laundry Machine" timely realized he had forgotten something important.
He had to act like a kid...
It wasn't that he was out of practice, but the name "Gin" had caused him to lose his composure.
Hikigaya watched the "Death God Elementary Student's" performance with a smile, showing full understanding of his loss of cool. After all, while he didn't remember the exact plot of the manga (who could remember something that long?), he still remembered that whenever the "Laundry Machine" encountered members of the Black Organization, his face would change color and he'd be shocked beyond belief.
It had probably become a conditioned reflex.
Tsk tsk tsk, it seems turning into a child left a massive psychological shadow on him.
'You foolish carbon-based lifeform. You have no idea how many people in this world would use any unscrupulous means just to become young again.'
"That's right, it's me, Conan-kun." Seeing the "Laundry Machine's" appearance, Hikigaya suddenly wanted to be a bit of a troll.
"Wait, I should call you Shinichi-kun."
As for calling Kudo Shinichi "kun" (as a child), Hikigaya didn't see any problem with it—honestly, he was ten or twenty years older than this guy, right? If you're not happy about it, why don't you try reaching a series finale first?
"Eh? Big brother, what are you saying? Are you looking for Shinichi-niichan?"
As a habitual offender of pretending to be a child and bathing with his childhood friend girlfriend, the "Laundry Machine's" reaction speed was commendable; he immediately started playing dumb.
However, it was useless. His mental activities could not be hidden from Hikigaya.
Thus, Hikigaya couldn't be bothered with the "Laundry Machine's" affectation and went straight to the generic opening line.
"I am the owner of this shop. Though I don't know how you got in, you are a customer now that you're here." He walked up to the "Laundry Machine" and snapped his fingers under the latter's wary gaze.
The three other dizzy kids immediately lay down and fell fast asleep. Children need to sleep more; they're only cute when they sleep until they're chubby—well, the little fat one who came out first doesn't need it, he's already over the limit.
"My 'little' guest, do you have a wish?" Hikigaya crouched down to look the "Laundry Machine" in the eye. "Answer seriously. If you miss this chance, there won't be a next time."
"Is anything okay?" The persistent "Laundry Machine" continued acting cute.
"I want to fly like Kamen Yaiba!"
"Oh, you want to fly?" Hikigaya chuckled.
"Since it's your first time in the shop, I'll give you a free trial of 'Fly Your Heart Out.' Once you've had your fill of flying, you can think carefully about what you really want. Even if you want to be a kid forever with your Ran-chan, that's possible too."
After saying that, ignoring the "Super Face-Changing" expression on the "Laundry Machine," Hikigaya grabbed him by the scruff of the neck.
The next second, he appeared thousands of meters up in the sky.
This was just a small trick of spatial magic, which in the hands of a Godslayer like Hikigaya, became an instant cast. At this moment, the "Laundry Machine" had barely managed to say the words "Who are you?" before he started staring blankly at the sea of clouds beneath his feet.
Looking at the clouds and feeling the un-loveliness of gravity, the "Laundry Machine" was dumbfounded.
"Haha..." He let out a dry laugh. "Big brother, are you a magician? This is amazing, it feels just like the real thing."
One sentence could perfectly summarize his current thoughts: 'Science protects my body; demons, monsters, and ghosts—get lost!'
Unfortunately, what he met today wasn't a demon or a ghost, but a Godslayer who was millions of times more terrifying.
Most importantly, this Godslayer intended to be a real troll.
Important announcement
Hello everyone!
Thank you as always for your support!
There are 2 new Fanfictions!
Emiya Shirou will change the fake Holy Grail War
A false Holy Grail War was held in Snowfield City.
Consequently, the Noble Phantasms of Gilgamesh and Enkidu flew wildly like rain. The Pale Rider rapidly infected the entire city. The Avenger Heracles surged with overflowing black mud. Even the Zealot, who possessed the eighteen secret techniques of the Hassans, had to struggle just to survive in the cracks between them.
A battlefield where gods fight is exactly like this; a duel between a human and a Heroic Spirit is, after all, a distant and irrelevant myth.
That is, if the silhouette of a certain red-haired "faker" young man hadn't happened to—randomly, inadvertently, and accidentally—pass by this world's counterfeit Holy Grail War.
COTE: Katsuragi Keima's battle of wits in love
The youth, Katsuragi Keima, was holding his game console, posting walkthroughs for various galge (dating sims) across different forums.
At that very moment, Katsuragi Keima received a new message.
[To the Capturing God]
[I've heard the rumors that you can capture any girl, regardless of who she is. While I find it unlikely, if it is true, there are many girls waiting for your capture. (This will be a super-high difficulty galge unlike anything you have ever experienced.)]
"What's this? An email full of such provocative undertones... who does he think I am? The God does not run away!"
Katsuragi Keima pressed the confirmation button.
Welcome to the Classroom of the Elite!
(Katsuragi Keima is the protagonist of The World God Only Know)
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