"Uncle Jin..."
Mio Naruse was not as relaxed as Jin Tojo. Her slender yet curvy body was tense with nervousness.
"Maria and I discussed it, and we still feel things are pretty good now. We don't really want to move."
"Is it because of this young handsome man?"
Jin Tojo sized up Ethan. After a few days, this kid seemed to have gotten even stronger than last time.
"No! Of course not!" Mio Naruse snapped, her pretty face flushed, her voice suddenly two tones higher.
"Then why?" Jin Tojo said casually. "Basara might be a bit dull, but he's not bad-looking either, you know."
"Huh?"
Mio Naruse looked at Jin Tojo suspiciously. This time, she genuinely didn't understand what he meant. Only after the Succubus loli's quiet whispering did she realize.
"Closer bond through marriage? What the heck?"
The Demon King's daughter, with her red twin-tails, was naturally a proud and headstrong person who disliked having her fate arranged. Seeing that her uncle-by-marriage, Jin Tojo, had intentions of playing matchmaker, she was even less willing to move in with them.
Besides, while Basara Tojo was handsome, he still paled in comparison to Ethan.
As his strength constantly improved, Ethan's physique and looks were also maturing.
At nearly six feet tall, he was a head taller than Basara Tojo, despite being the same age, and his demeanor was more mature.
Coupled with his well-proportioned, streamlined physique, his impressive endowment, which Mio Naruse had personally verified, and his refined, handsome face, their relationship was much deeper than the one she shared with Basara Tojo, whom she had only met twice.
"Well, I was just kidding."
Jin Tojo didn't mind. He hadn't wanted to interfere with his children's lives, but his investigation showed that even someone as promiscuous and open-minded as he was felt Ethan had too many women.
However, since Mio Naruse was so resistant, he wouldn't press the matter. Whatever happens, happens.
"But rather than burdening the Gremory young lady, I still feel it's better to have Basara protect you."
Blood is thicker than water. When it came to protecting Mio Naruse, Jin Tojo trusted his own family more.
"Uncle Jin, even if we don't live together, that doesn't mean Basara-nii can't protect Lady Mio."
Maria, her hands behind her back, strode back and forth on her slender little legs. "Since you've moved here, it means Basara-nii will also transfer to Kuoh Academy, right?"
Basara Tojo was an honest kid and nodded. "Yeah, I'm enrolling next week. I think I'm in Class 2-A."
"Then we'll be classmates soon~"
The Succubus loli flashed a knowing smile. "So, if Lady Mio encounters danger during the week, we'll entrust her to Basara-nii."
"Though I'd like to accept that request in a cool way..."
Basara Tojo looked at his right hand and gave a wry smile. "Please don't have too high expectations of me."
"It's okay. Even if Basara-nii can't manage it, we still have Akira-nii."
Maria giggled and gently tapped her own head with a small fist. "Ehe, I accidentally said my thoughts out loud."
Jin Tojo extinguished the remaining cigarette butt and looked at the grim-faced Basara Tojo, choosing not to say anything more.
The incident in the village wasn't entirely Basara Tojo's fault. Compared to the young Basara, the adults—especially the elders of the Hero Village—shouldered the main responsibility.
But because of his background, Basara Tojo bore all the blame. As his father, he also held an undeniable responsibility.
"I originally wanted both of you sisters to keep Basara company, afraid he'd be lonely."
Jin Tojo lit another cigarette and pulled out his vibrating phone. "Now it looks like Basara will just have to find a girlfriend soon."
"Dad..."
Basara Tojo was about to object, but seeing Jin Tojo's expression, his words changed to, "Another business trip? Where to this time?"
"I'm going overseas this time. I estimate it will be for a long while."
Jin Tojo put away his phone, quickly packed a few things, and prepared to leave.
"Dad, so soon? Can't you stay for a meal before you go?"
The last time they met, Mio Naruse was completely wary, and the family couldn't eat together. He had hoped they could share a meal today, but Jin Tojo was already leaving.
Basara Tojo regretted not agreeing to go out to lunch earlier...
"Not this time. Next time."
Jin Tojo ruffled Basara Tojo's spiky hair, laughing heartily. "If you get lonely, call Akira and Mio to hang out, or make some friends yourself. This should be the last time we move."
The Three Faction Summit was approaching. Once a peace treaty was signed, even if the mother and son couldn't publicly acknowledge each other, occasional visits would be fine.
Basara Tojo's identity wouldn't need to be kept secret anymore, and since he was an adult and could take care of himself, frequent moves would no longer be necessary.
Ethan and the three teenagers saw Jin Tojo off at the door.
"Alright, I've called a taxi. You guys go on back."
"Uncle... Uncle Jin, was that you last time?" Not knowing when they would meet again, Ethan couldn't hold back and asked the question that had been lingering in his mind.
Since meeting Jin Tojo, he had felt a strange familiarity—not the familiarity of a character from memory appearing before him, but the feeling of having sensed the other person's aura somewhere before.
He had thought about it continuously while the Naruse family was chatting, which reminded him of the time he rescued Mio Naruse's foster parents.
Jin Tojo smiled slightly, neither confirming nor denying it.
"A sharp kid. If you didn't mess around with women so much, entrusting Mio to you wouldn't be a bad idea."
"Uncle Jin is formidable indeed. I still have a lot of work to do."
Mio Naruse and the other two looked confusedly at the two men speaking in riddles, seemingly understanding and yet completely lost.
"Haha, of course I am. I've lived almost thirty years longer than you."
"Uncle Jin, have a safe trip. I'll look after the house."
"If Basara had half your nerve, my life would be easier."
Jin Tojo laughed mockingly as he got into the taxi. "I'm off. Call me if anything happens."
After Jin Tojo left, Ethan and the three teenagers went out to eat together.
After agreeing to see each other in school the following week, Ethan left the Tojo house with the Naruse sisters.
On the way back, Ethan casually asked, "Mio, why did you specifically ask me to come? Was this supposed to be meeting the parents?"
"Peh."
Mio Naruse's face was crimson, and she retorted haughtily, "Of course not! It was just... just..."
When she first met the Tojo father and son and realized they were family, she instinctively thought of Ethan and wanted to ask his opinion.
When Jin Tojo suggested they move, she also subconsciously thought of Ethan and didn't want to leave.
Ethan rarely stayed at the villa at night because doing so always resulted in chaotic night raids, and there were many other beautiful girls waiting for his 'comfort' outside.
But compared to other places, Ethan spent more time at the villa.
Besides, if she moved in with a boy her age, what if Ethan got the wrong idea...
"Just what?"
"Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!"
The red twin-tailed, prideful beauty, unable to answer, launched a three-pronged barrage of "Urusaid!" (Shut up!) to forcefully end the topic.
"Ah, Lady Mio and Akira-nii have such a good relationship."
Maria put on a distressed expression. "Unlike me, nobody cares about me. Uncle Jin only thinks about Lady Mio."
"What? A lustful Succubus like you needs people to worry about her partner problems?"
Mio Naruse shot back at Maria irritably. The girl was a repeat offender. Despite being hit countless times, she still secretly took pictures of Mio and constantly corrupted her with lewd ideas.
The Succubus loli instantly dropped the distressed act and huddled close to Mio Naruse.
"Lady Mio, I don't need a partner. I just want to be with you forever."
"You... Shut up!"
Maria's sudden confession made the recently calmed Mio Naruse flush again. Sincerity was indeed the eternal trump card against a tsundere.
Watching the Naruse sisters tease each other, Ethan found it quite amusing.
It was strange, though. Maria had only known Mio Naruse for a short time. While they had shared some hardships, the Succubus loli shouldn't have such deep feelings for her.
He could only attribute it to love at first sight.
It was true that siblings who had never met often developed unusual feelings for each other. Such examples were common in literature.
The exact reason was complex, but it was largely due to the blood connection, which led to a feeling of familiarity upon meeting. If they didn't know the truth, it was easier to fall in love at first sight.
But the Succubus loli clearly knew.
Oh, they were first cousins, and the Underworld didn't care about such things, plus she was a Succubus...
Never mind, then.
It was only because Mio Naruse was a tsundere that she hadn't been turned gay yet.
Otherwise, the two would probably be constantly "grinding tofu" every night until they were ground into powder.
Ethan swallowed, quickly chasing the pink scene from his mind. Any more thinking and his little Akira would stage a rebellion.
He had seen pure and beautiful lesbian action before; the Sakuramiya sisters often put on a show for him.
But the thought of the proud, red twin-tailed, big-breasted beauty and the pure-but-lustful Succubus loli, two half-sisters, intimately intertwined, still sent a wave of excitement through him.