Chapter 28: I Am Gentle to All Cute and Beautiful Girls

At the corner of the first floor of the apartment building, Yoshino, clad in her green hooded outfit, was curled up and trembling in the corner. Her large hood completely shrouded her head, and she radiated an astonishing chill. Even Su Mo, when suddenly confronted by this wave of cold, felt as though he had plunged into an icy abyss—his teeth began to chatter, and he shivered uncontrollably from head to toe.

The biting cold forced Su Mo to halt his steps.

He was, after all, still an ordinary person; his body could not withstand such terrifyingly low temperatures, so he could only remain at a distance.

“Yoshino!” he shouted, pulling a rabbit plush from his coat and hurling it toward her.

Perhaps she heard someone calling her name, for the head that had been buried between her knees lifted instinctively, just in time to see a familiar plush toy descending from above, landing squarely on her head. Yoshino was momentarily stunned, then overwhelmed with joy.

Clutching the familiar rabbit, she hurriedly slipped it onto her left hand with practiced ease.

The once lifeless, unresponsive puppet seemed magically restored, as if the face itself had become more animated. It twisted its head, and the rabbit’s mouth began to move, speaking: “Yo-ho~ Long time no see, Yoshino!”

At these words, a delighted smile bloomed on Yoshino’s face, and she nodded vigorously. “Yoshinon, I finally… finally found you.”

With Yoshinon’s return, the previously unbridled spiritual power within the spirit girl began to settle, and the chill in the air retreated rapidly. Before long, the icy layer encasing the entire apartment melted away, the dark clouds above dispersed, and everything gradually returned to normal.

“Success?” Su Mo murmured as he watched, marveling at the scene.

Yoshino had been teetering on the edge of losing control, yet a simple plush had brought her back. Once she donned the rabbit, the pitiful, fearful expression that once dominated her face vanished, replaced by the bashful demeanor of a shy spirit girl.

He took a step forward, moving slowly toward her.

Yoshino finally noticed him, but it was her puppet that spoke first: “Aha, young man, thank you so much for helping Yoshino find me. You truly are a kind-hearted soul!”

It was the first time Su Mo had ever been awarded a “good person card”—and by a puppet, no less. He couldn’t help but smile wryly, glancing at the puppet, Yoshinon. This was a being with an independent personality; from now on, he couldn’t treat it as a mere toy. Smiling, he replied, “It was nothing, just what I should do. After all, if I hadn’t gotten you back to Yoshino in time and she lost control, the entire city of Tenguu might have suffered.”

Luckily, Yoshino hadn’t lost control; otherwise, there would have been no choice but to destroy her. He still had a mission to collect spirit crystals, and if he could obtain one from Yoshino, that would be ideal. Apparently, even if a spirit’s crystal is taken, they do not die—since their essence is still human, only empowered by the crystal.

This was different from Tohka. Tohka’s will was born from the spirit crystal, which made her human, so as Mio later said, all the spirits of this world are her children—except Tohka, who was unique and could be considered her sister.

Hearing his words, Yoshino lowered her head, guilt etched across her face. She stammered, “I… I’m sorry. I never meant to hurt anyone. I was just… just afraid—afraid of being hurt, so I lost control. I’m truly sorry for the harm I caused.”

Even though she had been unconscious, Yoshino’s power had wrought havoc on the surrounding buildings.

She was a spirit girl who would rather suffer herself than harm others.

Su Mo merely shrugged. It had nothing to do with him, but he still offered comfort to the girl, who looked on the verge of tears from guilt. “It’s all right. You never attacked anyone on purpose, so there’s no need to blame yourself.”

“Oh my, it seems big brother here is quite the gentle soul,” the rabbit puppet chimed in mischievously.

Yoshino, hearing Su Mo’s kind words, grew so shy she could barely contain herself, but her puppet leaned toward Su Mo, its mouth opening and closing playfully.

Su Mo replied reflexively, “I’m gentle with all cute and pretty girls.”

He quickly realized he’d blurted out his true thoughts. Wouldn’t that make him seem like a scoundrel? But then again, he really was a scoundrel—otherwise, he wouldn’t have shown Tohka those harem anime to “re-educate” her about romance.

Yoshino lowered her head bashfully. Anyone else might have thought Su Mo’s words were those of a rogue, but she only felt flattered, her cheeks pink as she tugged at her hood, unable to meet his eyes.

The rabbit puppet piped up in mock astonishment, “Aha? So does that mean Mr. Su Mo, you really like our Yoshino?”

“Like?” Su Mo frowned, mulling it over. His feelings for Yoshino—and even Tohka—were peculiar. As an anime fan, seeing beloved characters come to life was a tremendous delight, naturally instilling a certain fondness. That was why he helped Yoshino search for her lost puppet; his old self had never been so altruistic.

Looking at the timid spirit girl before him, Su Mo smiled. “Yes, Yoshino is very cute. I happen to have a little sister at home about her age. She can be a handful at times, but she’s usually sweet and well-behaved—a person I have to protect.”

He was speaking of Kotori. Though not related by blood, they had been living together for some time now. She woke him every morning, pouted and acted spoiled with him, and though she became sharp-tongued and assertive in commander mode, she had helped him greatly. He truly regarded her as family.

“Oh, so Su Mo-kun thinks of Yoshino as a little sister? For a big brother to treat his sister so well, you really are gentle,” Yoshinon laughed, but was quickly silenced by Yoshino, who covered the puppet’s mouth and looked up at Su Mo.

“Yoshino… can I really be your little sister?” she asked, her eyes full of longing.

Because of her nature, Yoshino had always been lonely—so much so that she’d split off the Yoshinon persona to keep her company and protect her. Now Su Mo had entered her life and shown her so much care, filling her with happiness.

“Of course. If you wish, I’ll always be your big brother,” Su Mo replied, nodding firmly.

At that moment, the prompt from the Main God System rang in his mind:

[Affection Level: 100]