Chapter 582: She Has Designs on Her Brother-in-Law

This is an Actor: ? What’s an “Anzen-style flex”? I refuse to acknowledge the existence of any such flexing style of mine!

Doujin Artist: Pfft, “I refuse” and all that.

Machete Girl: Admit it or don’t, the facts are the facts.

Lazy Kitten: Yep. Classic humble-bragging Versailles flex.

Amegakure Village’s Angel: When are you setting off, Mochou?

Scarlet Lotus Fairy: Not yet, there are still a few things I need to hand over.

Though she meant to become a hands-off shopkeeper, Li Mochou was obviously not the sort of irresponsible person who’d cut and run. She had already written up a development plan and program for the base area for Ren Yingying and Qu Feiyan, with all the key points marked out.

On top of that, she had transcribed from memory the books of the mentors, theory like this was the very foundation of practice.

Doujin Artist: Must be nice! Sis Mochou is already getting ready for a second isekai trip, must be nice! And then look at poor me. Why is heaven so unfair?

Eriri, now lodging in the Kirgis Inn, shook her head and sighed, sour to the point of fermentation.

Creeeak.

Just then, the door to her room was pushed open. Ashley, wearing nothing but a thin gauze nightgown, strolled in, her voice soft: “Still awake, Mr. Shinigami?”

“It’s still early. Not yet time.” Eriri glanced at those two heavy fruits of hers and discreetly curled her lip.

Come to think of it, the women of this other world all seemed rather wicked. Ashley, Claire, Jessica, every one of them radiated a heavy, suffocating aura of wickedness. It was downright env, infuriating.

“I see. So Mr. Shinigami truly does enjoy the atmosphere of the night.” Ashley blinked and said, with a meaningful lilt, “This city may not blaze as bright as Tokyo at night, but it has its own distinctive flavor too, you know.”

“Oh? And what flavor would that be?”

“That depends on your tastes. I’d recommend Penny’s Cottage in the street next over.” Ashley gathered the long hair behind her head and smiled. “The girls there aren’t only human, there are all manner of nonhuman races besides. They even have girls of the cow-folk, rare on this continent.”

Cow-folk, my foot.

Eriri’s mouth twitched hard; she understood exactly what Ashley meant. “How dull. I’ve no interest in that sort of thing.”

More than lacking interest, she found it rather sickening.

Exploiting and selling women as merchandise, regardless of whether the women consented, was plainly an assault on women as a whole. As a woman herself, Eriri felt nothing but loathing for it.

“Is it that you have no interest… or that you have no equipment?” Ashley suddenly asked, apropos of nothing.

“What did you say?” Eriri’s expression froze, and she shot to her feet. “You know?”

In that instant she felt a flicker of fear, and, at the same time, a sensation of relief. Finally someone had seen through her. Finally she could stop pretending!

“No need to be nervous.” Ashley moved with light, lotus steps until she stood before Eriri, reached out both hands, and cupped her face. “Whatever happens, you will always be my Mr. Shinigami.”

Hsss.

Hearing this, Eriri’s face went blank, a chill crawling up into her brain. Without a moment’s hesitation, she yanked open the group chat and fired off a message: It’s over. This is doomsday!

Skirt-Flipping Maniac: Doomsday! Something’s happened!

Ruiko’s and Eriri’s messages went out at virtually the same instant, neither before the other.

Doujin Artist: ?

Skirt-Flipping Maniac: ?

Machete Girl: Pfft, what’s with you two?

Skirt-Flipping Maniac: Let Eriri-chan go first.

Doujin Artist: No, Ruiko-chan first.

Once again, their messages went out in dead-even simultaneity, and the whole group lapsed into speechlessness.

Scarlet Lotus Fairy: …

This is an Actor: What remarkable chemistry you two have. Eriri first, then.

Doujin Artist: I-it’s nothing, really. On my end it’s probably not a big deal. It’s just… Ashley has figured out I’m a woman, and then she sort of confessed to me.

Curly-haired Guy: Confessed how, exactly? The kind of confession I’m thinking of?

Doujin Artist: A confession is a confession, what’s all this “the kind I’m thinking of”? A confession! A declaration of love! Do you understand?!

Eriri’s heart was boiling with irritation at that moment, and even her messages came out sharp.

Foul-Mouthed Mask Guy: Damn it, how is this fair?! Do all women love women these days? Are we men about to go extinct?!

Soul Society’s Villain: It looks like true love, Eriri. You’d best treat her well.

Doujin Artist: Don’t you start joking too, Hua-jie! This joke isn’t funny AT ALL!

Amegakure Village’s Angel: You could handle it the way Ruiko-chan did, have my darling sort it out for you.

This is an Actor: I’m in seclusion.

Doujin Artist: AAAAAAH, why does this kind of thing always happen to ME?!

Skirt-Flipping Maniac: I’d like to ask the same, why are none of the girls around me normal?!

Lazy Kitten: Ruiko-chan, elaborate. How “not normal” are we talking?

Skirt-Flipping Maniac: Misaka Mikoto just came to find me. She wants me to bring Anzen-san over to meet her, face to face, so we can all sit down and discuss the future of our “relationship.”

Machete Girl: I, what?!

Lazy Kitten: Good grief. I don’t even know what to say. Good grief!

Doujin Artist: So what you’re saying is, this Misaka Mikoto genuinely agreed to her mother’s proposal?! Damn it, what is this girl’s thought process? She’s actually willing? This is sharing we’re talking about! A boyfriend can be SHARED?! Only a brain-dead person would offer up sharing in the first place!

Amegakure Village’s Angel: ?

Doujin Artist: Konan-jie, that wasn’t aimed at you.

Scarlet Lotus Fairy: That sentence of yours just now included Konan completely, thoroughly, and unmistakably. Would you believe your own denial right now?

Doujin Artist: I really wasn’t talking about Konan-jie! I was just griping in general!

Skirt-Flipping Maniac: This is agony. I don’t even know how to reply to this Misaka Mikoto.

Doujin Artist: Same here. I have no idea how to turn her down!

Machete Girl: You two truly are sisters in suffering. Five seconds of silence for you both.

Skirt-Flipping Maniac: Kotonoha-chan, don’t just stand there enjoying the spectacle, think of something for us! Who knows, something like this might happen to you someday too?

Machete Girl: Impossible. Janet herself has said she’ll never fall in love with anyone! So I could never have troubles like yours. Farewell!

Doujin Artist: Heh. Even if Janet never does… what about the others? What about that precocious little sister of yours, Kotonoha Katsura-chan, does she have designs on her brother-in-law?