Earlier parts omitted.
What should one do upon finding a boy sitting on one's younger sister's bed in her bedroom?
Hiromi Kato desperately wanted to know the answer, but that was impossible.
After all, this world had no gods who'd actively appear to solve people's problems.
So Hiromi could only choose to muddle through in her own way.
"Ah, I'm feeling rather thirsty! I'll go get some juice from the fridge!"
Pretending nothing had happened, Hiromi closed the door and prepared to go downstairs.
But at that moment, her sister Megumi rushed up, grabbed her arm, and unceremoniously dragged her back into the room without the slightest hesitation.
'Ah, my plan to report to Mum was instantly seen through...' Hiromi thought as her mouth opened for one last attempt.
"Mum! Little sister brought a strange man home!!"
These words ultimately never left her lips.
Before Hiromi could shout, Megumi had already covered her mouth.
Clearly, over a decade of living together since birth had given Megumi perfect anticipation of her sister's behaviour.
But simultaneously, Megumi's uncharacteristic actions made Hiromi realise something.
'Could it be... my little sister brought a man home without even telling our parents?'
'No way... my sister shouldn't be this wild!'
"Please behave yourself now, sister."
Megumi warned Hiromi with hollow eyes.
Seeing her younger sister's death glare, Hiromi Kato cheerfully walked to the bedside and obediently sat down, clearly relishing the drama.
Clang.
Megumi Kato glanced down the corridor, confirming no one else was there before closing the door.
As she turned back, she found her sister already interrogating Luo Shu.
"Sooo, what's your name? How long have you been seeing Megumi?"
"Actually, how did you two manage to sneak here without them noticing?"
"Sister!!"
Megumi couldn't stand Hiromi's relentless questioning and shouted.
"Megumi, you're so stingy!" Hiromi pouted at her sister. "After I was just thinking of keeping your secret too."
'No, you absolutely planned to snitch...'
Megumi knew her sister's character all too well.
If Megumi was someone who mixed one lie into a hundred truths, then Hiromi Kato was someone who might tell one truth in a hundred lies.
Come to think of it, the trick of hiding small lies within long truths to avoid detection was something this woman, six years her senior, had taught her.
"Why did you have to come now?" Megumi's face remained calm, but her thoughts were full of frustration.
"You're the one who asked me where this was!"
Hiromi picked up a Hamtaro plushie nearby, shook it a few times, then turned to the silent Luo Shu:
"But thanks to my sudden whim, I got to discover you've been hiding a man at home, Megumi."
"Though come to think of it, you haven't reacted at all to my questions? Normally, boys would be nervous when caught like this, no?"
This was directed at Luo Shu. She'd noticed earlier that this person had been observing her with the curiosity of someone studying exotic animals.
Indeed, Luo Shu was studying the woman before him with genuine interest.
Longer hair, more expressive face, better figure - she looked like a mature version of Megumi, though their personalities seemed opposites.
Facing Hiromi's probing questions, Luo Shu smiled and countered:
"Didn't you say it yourself? That's how one would react in normal circumstances."
"Oh?" Hiromi raised an eyebrow, surprised. "So you're saying this isn't normal circumstances then?"
She gave Luo Shu a thorough once-over before adding:
"While you do look like the son-in-law type my mother would adore, she wouldn't approve of overly bold behaviour, you know."
''Mother's ideal son-in-law,' my foot - you mean your ideal brother-in-law...'
Megumi had long grown accustomed to deciphering Hiromi's true intentions.
'But Director Luo doesn't know this woman's true nature...'
Worried things might escalate, Megumi was about to explain the situation when she suddenly recalled Luo Shu's earlier actions and realised something.
'Could the Director be doing this on purpose?'
At that moment, Luo Shu looked past Hiromi towards Megumi and uttered what in Megumi's eyes were words from hell:
"Megumi, shall I make your sister quiet down for you?"
Hiromi Kato gasped in shock, then looked at her younger sister with a wounded expression:
"Eh? Eh? Are you two really going to silence me? No way, no way! Megumi, do you really think I can't keep a secret?"
This was teasing!
Megumi Kato was absolutely certain of that.
Even if Megumi didn't say anything, her elder sister would keep her secret.
Of course, it would inevitably involve signing a dozen unfair agreements, and Hiromi Kato would promptly alert their parents if she thought Megumi's relationship with Luo Shu was crossing boundaries.
So Hiromi Kato was waiting for her explanation and pleas, waiting to tease her.
Megumi understood this perfectly well.
Yet in response to her sister's teasing, Megumi directly turned to Luo Shu:
"Senior, you did this on purpose, didn't you?"
"You deliberately let my sister find you here."
"Hmm?" Hiromi's eyebrows twitched. Though she didn't understand why Megumi was reacting this way, she realised the situation might not be what she'd imagined.
At Megumi's questioning, Luo Shu remained completely unruffled as he replied:
"Rather than saying it was deliberate, it's more that I didn't particularly care."
He looked at Megumi's slightly sulky face and gave a light chuckle:
"Admittedly, I noticed your sister approaching early on and could have concealed myself the moment she opened the door. But why should I go out of my way to do such a thing?"
"Is there any need to keep our relationship a secret?"
Megumi's cheeks puffed up.
It was the expression of someone slightly angry yet unable to refute, left with no choice but to glare at Luo Shu in frustration.
Seeing Megumi Kato make such an animated expression, Luo Shu couldn't help but smile and offered another suggestion:
"However, since you don't want to be discovered, that's also possible."
Luo Shu raised his left hand. Indigo mist suddenly appeared around his fingers, then dissipated just as quickly, revealing the ruby ring that had been concealed beneath the haze. Within the blood-red gemstone, a crimson vertical pupil abruptly rotated, as if regaining its ominous vitality.
Displaying the Demon Heart, Luo Shu smiled at Megumi Kato and explained:
"This is a hypnotic Abyss Artefact. Megumi, if you truly don't wish to, you could ask me to hypnotise your sister and erase her recent memories."
Megumi instantly fell silent.
That an Abyss Artefact could accomplish something like hypnosis genuinely stunned her.
"Eh?!!"
Their unconcealed conversation left Hiromi Kato completely dumbfounded.
Sitting between the two, she glanced at Megumi, then at Luo Shu, before remarking in bewilderment:
"Megumi, so you like this chuunibyou-type guy?"
'Chuunibyou?'
'Megumi actually likes this kind of chuunibyou boy?'
'Though come to think of it, a guy this handsome being chuunibyou... no wonder Megumi managed to snag him...'
'A boy with looks like this would have no shortage of girlfriends at school if he were even slightly normal...'
'But isn't the idea of hypnotising women going a bit too far?'
Numerous thoughts flooded Hiromi's mind, but at that moment, Luo Shu pointed the ring at her and said calmly:
"Stand quietly over there."
Hiromi blinked, about to retort 'since when do brats order me around, should I play along?' when, before her smile could form, she was shocked to find herself standing up voluntarily and moving to stand stiffly by the desk, completely silent.
In that instant, Hiromi's worldview shattered!
—He can actually hypnotise me!!!