Chapter Twenty-Two: Education Must Begin with the Young

When Su Mo returned home, he changed his shoes at the entrance and shouted, “Aunt Flo!”

Inside the Itsuka household, Shiori was busy in the kitchen preparing dinner, while Tohka sat on the sofa, utterly absorbed in an anime. As for Kotori, she was nowhere to be seen; most likely, she was still at work with Ratatoskr. After all, a new Spirit had appeared, and he had just asked her to help him find a rabbit plush toy.

Thanks to the rain, his clothes were drenched. Shedding his outer layer, Su Mo made straight for the bathroom. Tohka nearly leapt up from the sofa upon seeing him, exclaiming, “Su Mo, you’re back!”

Her cheeks blushed bright red as she spoke. Over time, Tohka had gradually blended into human society and learned many things—such as that dating was something only lovers did, and that one must always wear clothes. Remembering their last date and the time she had run stark naked to him, Tohka grew shy, her heart pounding wildly.

His gaze flickered to the TV in front of Tohka, which was playing a carefully curated, harmonious harem anime—those series where the male protagonist gathers a harem, the female characters coexist peacefully, never quarrel, and occasionally offer the hero some fanservice.

All melodramatic love triangles or soap operas were strictly banned by Su Mo.

After all, education must begin early...

He wasn’t sure if he’d actually build a harem in the future, but to be safe, he was preparing in advance. Tohka was as pure as a blank sheet of paper—such innocence was easiest to sway. As long as he instilled the belief that harems were justice, then even if he were to assemble a crystal palace one day, it would be perfectly natural.

“Ah, Tohka!”

Su Mo walked over and ruffled her hair, gave her a few words of encouragement, then, unable to stand the clammy feeling of his wet clothes any longer, dashed into the bathroom for a quick shower. Only after changing into fresh, clean clothes did he emerge.

By then, Kotori had also returned.

In the study, Su Mo faced Kotori, who had switched into her commander mode.

“So, did you find the plush?” Su Mo asked eagerly.

Kotori pondered for a moment. “After investigating the Spirit codenamed Hermit, we discovered she appeared in this world even earlier than Tohka and has manifested many times. However, since she seems to deliberately keep herself under control, there’s been no real damage. And every time, the AST arrives promptly, so we at Ratatoskr never even picked up on her presence.”

“Is that so? Then—”

“We haven’t found it yet, but Ratatoskr has launched a full-scale search. I’m confident we’ll have results soon.” Kotori propped her chin on two fingers, then looked up at Su Mo. “By the way, wasn’t I counting on you to keep an eye on that Spirit? How could you let her escape? Honestly, even a cockroach in a toilet is more efficient than you.”

Su Mo was already used to her merciless mockery.

After discussing Yoshino’s situation, the two of them left the study.

The next morning arrived.

Life went on with mechanical repetition, except now, instead of just him and Shiori, Tohka had joined their morning routine. The three of them walking down the street drew so many stares it was almost terrifying.

As expected, upon entering their classroom, Su Mo and his companions once again became the center of attention.

“So enviable!”

This outburst came from Hiroto Tonomachi, a classmate who could get along with anyone and possessed a resilient heart—no matter how many setbacks he faced, he’d bounce right back in no time. In truth, he was also a pervert obsessed with beautiful girl games.

Seeing Tonomachi approach, Su Mo glanced up at him. Despite having been in the same class for a month, they were little more than acquaintances who exchanged nods. He wondered what brought Tonomachi over today.

“Su Mo!” Tonomachi scratched his head, swept a glance over Tohka and Shiori, and then looked at Su Mo with fervent admiration. “I can’t believe it’s only been a month and you’ve already won over Origami Tobiichi, and now you’re inseparable from Yatogami Tohka. On top of that, you have such a gentle, adorable sister like Shiori. You know, the FFF Brigade would burn you at the stake for this.”

“Uh...”

Su Mo was speechless, sweat beading on his forehead. “There’s nothing going on between me and Origami, and running into Tohka every morning is just coincidence. Besides, Shiori is my sister. Surely you don’t think I’d cross any lines with her?”

He could say that with a clear conscience—Shiori always kept a close eye on him, so there was no way he could make any untoward moves with Tohka.

“That’s exactly why you’re even more enviable, Su Mo.” Tonomachi glanced longingly at Shiori. “Imagine living under the same roof as someone as gentle and adorable as Shiori! That’s the dream of every boy at Raizen High. She’s ranked number one on the ‘Girls I Most Want to Date’ list—countless guys see her as their dream girl.”

Watching Tonomachi practically drool, Su Mo couldn’t help but twitch a little at the corners of his mouth.

If only he knew that Shiori was formerly a guy, would he still look at her that way?

Still, there was no denying Shiori’s immense popularity at school. Even Tohka and Origami, who matched her in looks, could only trail behind.

Incidentally, Su Mo himself ranked third on the ‘Guys I Most Want to Date’ list—thanks to two votes, one each from Tohka and Origami. That he could reach third place with just two votes spoke volumes about the tragic state of Raizen High’s male students.

And all these silly rankings were the handiwork of none other than Tonomachi.

“That’s enough!” Su Mo covered his forehead and sighed.

“How could it be enough? If Shiori wore a maid outfit... Oh my god, the effect would be...!” Tonomachi daydreamed endlessly—he was a devoted maid enthusiast, a frequent patron of maid cafés.

“A maid outfit...”

Su Mo’s eyelid twitched; Tonomachi’s words gave him a fright. No, no, just the thought of Shiori as a gender-swapped protagonist was more than he could bear.

As their conversation grew more and more off-topic and indecent, Origami Tobiichi entered the classroom with her backpack. Su Mo’s eyes suddenly sharpened—not because of Origami herself, but because hanging from her backpack zipper was a rabbit plush toy, unmistakably unique: one eye covered by a patch, giving it the air of a pirate rogue rabbit.

Just then, Kotori’s voice sounded in his right-ear earpiece.

“Su Mo, I’ve tracked down the rabbit plush.”

“So have I.”

...