Chapter 114: Fireworks by the River, Rio's Invitation to Bathe Together
This was the first time Yoru saw such a sly, little-girl-like smiling expression on Rio's face.
"Since you are provoking me so much..."
While speaking, Yoru reached out to Rio.
Her body stiffened, and she closed her eyes nervously, her heart beating much faster.
Result: Yoru just pinched her cheek and smiled.
"Then I'll reward you by taking you out to do something fun."
"Something fun?"
"Yes, let's go."
Yoru dragged Rio out of the door and downstairs without further explanation.
"Where are we going?"
Rio's hand was held by Yoru. Feeling the slight coolness in his palm, the throbbing in her chest intensified.
It was her first time feeling this way.
No need to consider anything, no need to worry about anything.
Just follow him.
"To the riverbank; I'll perform a trick (Zheng Huo) for you."
Hearing Yoru's chuckling words, Rio suddenly felt a sense of heaviness in her heart.
Perform a trick?
If anyone else said this, even the cooking assassin Yui, she would just laugh it off.
After all, no matter how much trouble they caused, it wouldn't be a big deal.
But every time Yoru performed a trick...
It was indeed a bit too big.
Is he thinking of playing the Suona for me by the river?
Playing "Hundred Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix" (Bai Niao Chao Feng) in the middle of the night, isn't it a bit inappropriate?
Counts as disturbing the peace, right?
Thinking of this, Rio couldn't help but smile.
Who cares, let it be disturbing the peace.
....
Yoru dragged Rio all the way to the riverbank.
Looking at her panting, her chest heaving constantly, her face flushed and cute, he shook his head and said earnestly.
"I say, you should exercise more usually."
"Huff... huff..."
Rio panted for a long time before straightening up and replying.
"I, I am the intellectual type. Besides, isn't there that convenient..."
Speaking of this, Rio looked shy.
"That... convenient method to strengthen various physical functions?"
Yoru shook his head.
"Your words are wrong."
"Physical values are one thing, but being able to keep power under control and release it freely is also very important."
Rio nodded slightly, thinking that makes sense.
Before Miko conducted... conducted the "experiment," actually the physical fitness of the two wasn't much different; after all, they were just ordinary high school girls.
However, Miko's psychological quality was much stronger than Rio's.
Facing those terrifying evil spirits that made people shudder, she could even keep her face unchanged and kill them like eating and drinking.
This psychological endurance beyond ordinary people was also forcibly honed by Miko.
In her opinion, evil spirits themselves weren't scary.
Since I have the ability to eliminate evil spirits, why be afraid?
Just chop them.
It was Yoru's abstractness that covered up Miko's abnormality.
Otherwise, in the eyes of ordinary people, her overly strong psychological quality would also belong to the category of abnormal humans.
"Mmhmm, I understand."
Rio nodded obediently, then couldn't suppress her curiosity, looked at Yoru, and asked.
"Can I ask you a question?"
Yoru replied without hesitation.
"If according to my wish, I think having a daughter is better. As for the name... can take your surname; I don't mind these."
Rio froze upon hearing this. After a few seconds, she reacted, gritted her silver teeth, and blushed.
"You, you, you, who wants to have children with you!"
"Really won't?"
Yoru's rhetorical question with a teasing tone stumped Rio directly.
She was silent for a while before muttering softly.
"Ev... even if having children, have to wait, wait until I graduate from high school."
"Alright, just teasing you."
Yoru reached out and rubbed Rio's head.
"You guy, really."
Rio complained angrily, then steadied her emotions, returned to that serious appearance, pursed her lips, looked straight into Yoru's eyes, and asked softly with a slightly nervous tone.
"If one day, I mean if, you find that you are the cause of these strange phenomena, what would you do?"
After saying this sentence, Rio's heart was in her throat.
She thought from his perspective.
If she were in Yoru's position, facing such a sharp question, how should she answer?
Rio couldn't figure it out.
This question was too heavy.
"You mean..."
Unexpectedly for Rio, facing such a question, Yoru showed no surprise or accident at all, even smiling lightly.
"You think I might be someone suffering from Adolescence Syndrome like Sakurajima Mai, and the appearance of the Otherworld and the 'Door' is the external manifestation of my Adolescence Syndrome?"
"You..."
Rio froze, murmuring.
"Have you already guessed it?"
"Of course, I'm not stupid."
Yoru smiled nonchalantly.
"I awakened my spiritual ability and the 'Door' appeared on the same day, March 20th. Of course I can notice this detail."
Immediately after, Yoru looked at the worried Rio and laughed dumbfoundedly.
"You've been acting weird recently because of this?"
"What else?"
Seeing Yoru still looking indifferent and relaxed, Rio said grumpily.
"Our Super-Quant Club's goal is to eliminate harmful strangeness as much as possible and protect the humans in Kyoto city."
"Result: Suddenly finding out that the cause of these strange phenomena might be our beloved Captain-sama. Anyone in my position would feel such tangled feelings, right?"
Yoru nodded: "True."
Immediately after, he pinched Rio's cheek, changed the subject, and smiled.
"However, rest assured. The connection between these two things isn't what you think. Saying that because of the recovery of strange phenomena, I awakened spiritual ability to become humanity's last hope makes more sense."
Listening to such conceited words, Rio didn't feel like complaining but whispered.
"How can you confirm?"
"Are you stupid? Infected by Yui Yuigahama?"
Yoru teased first, then explained.
"Think about it. The Nura Clan has existed for at least hundreds of years, and the yokai race has existed even longer."
"Moreover, the time Miko awakened Yin-Yang Eyes was much earlier than me."
"This is enough to prove that strangeness already existed in this world before I became a spirit medium."
Rio looked skeptical.
"Really? Are you sure this statement isn't logic forced out to avoid falling into a moral dilemma yourself?"
"Sigh, look at what you're saying."
Yoru waved his hand, giving an iron logic that Rio couldn't refute.
"I have no morals; where does the moral dilemma come from? Don't joke."
Rio looked speechless.
True.
With Yoru's free and easy personality that could even be called unscrupulous, even if his Adolescence Syndrome really caused the appearance of "Doors" in Kyoto, presumably he wouldn't care at all.
"Then why did you suddenly awaken spiritual ability?"
"Not exactly sudden; hard to explain to you."
Yoru replied faintly.
"On March 20th, I received the list of first-year students sent to me by the Sobu High authorities."
"The moment I saw the name Yotsuya Miko, I could 'Observe' the existence of those things."
Rio looked confused.
"What are you talking about? Is there a causal relationship in this?"
"Of course there is, but I'm too lazy to explain."
"Lazy to death then."
Yoru knew the reason for awakening his spiritual ability before enrolling in Sobu High.
Strange phenomena, the Otherworld, and Soul Manifestation were all abilities leaning towards idealism.
That is, individual subjective cognition was more important than external objective factors.
If it were an ordinary person, say Rio.
Even if Miko told her to her face that evil spirits existed in this world, Rio wouldn't awaken.
Because other people's words are always hard to believe completely.
Even if witnessing with her own eyes in the Otherworld, after returning to the real world, she would subconsciously evade the fact that evil spirits existed in the world.
This is the subconscious of humans avoiding danger that cannot be controlled.
However.
Yoru was different; he was a transmigrator.
The moment he saw the name Yotsuya Miko appearing on the list of new students enrolling in Sobu High, he realized.
Evil spirits and ghosts existed in this world.
Not a guess.
But knowing.
And Yoru's first thought at that time wasn't how terrifying it was.
But that interesting things were coming.
After completing the subjective consciousness transformation, he awakened the ability of Yin-Yang Eyes.
Then, the moment he saw an evil spirit, he completed the cognition of regarding the evil spirit as an enemy that could be eliminated.
In other words.
Yoru's awakening process was actually the same as Miko's, just much faster, taking less than three seconds.
"Since you said so, of course I believe you."
Rio breathed a sigh of relief as if a heavy burden was lifted, a heartfelt happy smile appearing on her face.
Immediately after, she stood prettily in front of Yoru and asked curiously.
"By the way, you dragged me to the riverbank; what exactly are we going to do?"
"Hehe, this, my long-cherished big baby."
Yoru took a deep breath, then took out a handful of...
Fireworks from his bosom.
"This..."
Rio froze for a moment, then laughed and cried.
"Where did you buy this? Why carry such things on you?"
Yoru replied casually.
"As a qualified exorcist, isn't it reasonable to carry fireworks with me?"
Rio glanced at the slender fireworks in Yoru's hand and snorted lightly.
"Hmph, childish. Only elementary school students like playing with such things."
Although she said so, her body was honest. She took a handful of fireworks from Yoru's hand, looking impatient on her small face.
"Got a lighter? Quick, quick."
"Here, take it."
Rio took the lighter and lit the fireworks in her hand.
Watching the brilliant blooming fireworks, excitement appeared in her eyes. Like a little girl, she waved the fireworks in the air, drawing arcs with dazzling tails.
"Haven't you played with fireworks before?"
Hearing Yoru's question, Rio replied subconsciously.
"Of course I have, but that was when I was little, and..."
Speaking of this, Rio hid behind the burning fireworks like a shy ostrich.
Her pretty face was hidden behind the brilliant fireworks. Her soft shy voice came from between them, accompanied by crackling burning sounds.
"But this time you are with me, so it's different."
After saying this sentence, Rio seemed to have brain overload. The whole person was like a dying fish, feeling a bit short of oxygen.
Nervous, really too nervous.
"By the way."
Rio threw the nearly burnt-out fireworks on the ground, took another handful from Yoru's hand, lit them, and spoke.
"Regarding the candidate for new member, since you found someone with special abilities, why not recruit her into the club?"
"The situation is not that simple."
Rio asked doubtfully.
"Is the character bad?"
"Not really."
"Unwilling to join?"
"Although she will refuse at first, I have a way to make her join."
"Then could it be..."
Rio dragged out the ending note, narrowed her eyes staring at Yoru, and said word by word.
"Could it be because she is not your type?"
Yoru's face changed, and he waved his hand seriously to explain.
"Eh, Miss Futaba, what are you saying? I am not that kind of person."
Just as Rio wanted to say she was just joking, she heard Yoru add immediately.
"I never have a preferred type, only follow one principle: as long as she is good-looking, any type will do."
Hearing him say such outrageous words, Rio wished she could poke the burning fireworks in her hand directly into Yoru's face.
But looking up and seeing that handsome face, she felt unbearable again.
Forget it.
Yoru's face doesn't belong to Yoru.
Logically speaking, it should be mine and Miko's property, after all, Miko and I look at it every day.
Yoru himself can't see what he looks like every moment.
Rio thought if it really burns, in the end, I'm the one suffering the loss.
"Then what exactly is the reason?"
Yoru replied faintly.
"Let's talk about it during the full meeting on Monday lunch break. After all, the Super-Quant Club isn't mine alone. Unlike Yagami Light, an external member, I can't make such a decision on behalf of all members."
"Alright."
Rio nodded and threw the burnt-out fireworks in her hand on the ground.
Then she patted the dust on her hands, took out a pack of tissues from her bosom, carefully wrapped the burnt fireworks and ashes produced by burning, folded the tissue, and threw it into a trash can nearby.
After doing this series of actions, she squatted on the ground, looking like she started to rot (give up) cutely.
"I can't walk anymore."
"Sure (Chi Chu), I have a way."
Yoru walked in front of Rio. The latter's heart beat fast, suddenly feeling a bit nervous.
Is it coming?
Being carried on Yoru's back, her chest pressing tightly against his back.
Her legs supported by his hands.
And her chin resting on his shoulder, her breath blowing on Yoru's neck.
Just thinking of this picture, Rio felt itchy in her heart and blushed.
She wanted to snuggle with Yoru.
But next, Rio suddenly felt her body lighten.
"Eh... eh!!!"
Rio's figure was very petite. Yoru directly lifted her body with one hand and put her on his shoulder.
"Eh!!! I didn't mean this!!!"
In the ideal, it was a boy carrying a girl on his back, a picture of rubbing ambiguously all the way.
In reality.
Yoru carried Rio with one hand like a dock worker unloading cargo, running forward at a fast speed.
....
When they returned to her home, Rio and Yoru were drenched like drowned rats.
"Really..."
Rio tidied her short-sleeved shirt soaked by rain. Her gray long curly hair could be wrung out directly by hand.
Yoru shook his head and said earnestly.
"I told you it would rain."
"You still have the nerve to say?"
Rio was so angry she almost couldn't straighten her tongue.
"You said it would rain, right, but after it really rained, why did you change from running to walking? And didn't put me down; you deliberately wanted me to get wet, right?"
"True."
Yoru admitted undisguisedly.
"Because I want to take a bath with you."
Rio froze upon hearing this, then blushed and shouted angrily.
"How could I agree!!!"
Yoru smiled meaningfully, spoke slowly, and said a sentence.
"I often take baths with Sakurajima Mai-san."
"What!?"
Rio's pupils shrank in shock. She couldn't help gritting her silver teeth, revealing unwillingness in her eyes.
Since Mai appeared, she had always regarded the other party as a competitor.
It seemed now competition was unnecessary; just join the battle directly.
However.
As one of the three veterans of the Super-Quant Club, on the progress of conquering the S-rank dungeon Yoru, how could she, the dignified "Quantum," lose to a new member without a code name?
Rio's competitiveness overwhelmed her shyness. She lowered her head and said in a voice as tiny as a mosquito's.
"Then, then you go in first. I, I'll come in later."
"Sure."
Yoru stepped into the bathroom and looked around.
Mmhmm, the bathroom in Rio's house was very big, the kind with a shower and bathtub combined.
Large area.
Enough to display skills.