Chapter 466: So You’re a Monster Girl

Chapter 466: Chapter 466: So You’re a Monster Girl

Chapter 466: So You’re a Monster Girl

Half a month later, on the streets of Shibuya.

"Look at this..."

Sakurakawa Rikka picked up a chibi style doll from a street stall.

Its tiny face wore an exaggerated expression of anger.

She held it up beside her face and smiled at Asagiri.

"Doesn’t it look like Kotoko?"

"That angry expression is exactly like hers."

Asagiri glanced at the doll and chuckled.

"It really does."

"But if Kotoko heard you say that, she’d probably hit you with God Chasing on the spot."

Although the Death Game had ended, Iwanaga Kotoko had made it clear that she had no intention of abandoning her role as the God of Wisdom.

The balance between humans and Cursed beings still needed to be maintained.

Yokai would continue encountering problems.

Supernatural disputes would still arise.

And as the Princess responsible for maintaining that order, Kotoko intended to continue handling them.

Which raised an important question.

What about Sakurakawa Rikka?

In the past, Iwanaga Kotoko had regarded her as an extremely dangerous existence.

Sakurakawa Rikka had consumed the flesh of two Cursed beings, the Mermaid and the Kudan, obtaining powers that broke the normal boundary between humans and the supernatural.

From Kotoko’s perspective, someone like her could never simply be ignored.

But now...

They had survived the Death Game together.

During the final battle against Nyx, Sakurakawa Rikka had also taken the black gun shaped summoner and transformed her will into the power that reached Asagiri.

Without that, Asagiri might have been forced to sacrifice himself through Great Seal.

After everything they had experienced together, even Iwanaga Kotoko, rational to the point of ruthlessness when necessary, could no longer bring herself to treat Sakurakawa Rikka as an enemy that needed to be eliminated.

So, at Asagiri’s suggestion, the two had reached a new arrangement.

Sakurakawa Rikka would become Iwanaga Kotoko’s permanent partner.

From now on, they would handle supernatural requests together.

"Oh, right..."

Sakurakawa Rikka stepped closer.

Standing on her toes, she leaned toward Asagiri’s ear and whispered,

"You stopped Kotoko from treating me as a threat."

"And what you said back then also resolved something that had weighed on me for many years."

"I still haven’t properly thanked you."

"Whoa, whoa."

Asagiri took half a step back.

For once, his expression became unusually serious.

"That wording is dangerously easy to misunderstand."

Sakurakawa Rikka blinked.

Then she noticed the amusement hidden in his eyes.

Instead of getting annoyed, she gave him a helpless, almost spoiled smile.

"You clearly know what I mean."

"Are you deliberately teasing me?"

"Because you’re hiding something from me too."

Sakurakawa Rikka looked slightly surprised.

Asagiri took the chibi doll from her hand, asked the stall owner for the price, and paid for it.

Then he looked back at her.

"Everyone talked about what they wanted to do after the Game ended."

"You were the only one who never answered."

"I’m curious."

"Hmm..."

Sakurakawa Rikka walked beside him.

Today, she wore fitted jeans and a thin wool coat suited to the cold weather.

A pair of modest white heels completed the outfit.

Combined with her delicate appearance and mysterious aura, she naturally drew the eyes of people passing by.

"If I told you..."

Sakurakawa Rikka suddenly stopped.

She turned to face Asagiri directly.

Gentle affection filled her eyes.

"That I don’t really have any vision for my own future..."

"And that from now on, I simply want to stay beside you..."

"What would you think?"

Asagiri shook his head and smiled.

"That’s not a future plan."

"You don’t need special permission to stay with me."

He tilted his head.

"Besides that, is there really nothing else you want to do?"

"Something else..."

Sakurakawa Rikka thought for a moment.

Then her gaze drifted toward a nearby arcade.

Her expression brightened.

"Then..."

"Will you play the claw machines with me?"

"No problem."

Asagiri agreed immediately.

The two entered the arcade.

After exchanging money for tokens, they stopped in front of a row of claw machines packed with plush dolls.

Before Asagiri could touch the controls, Sakurakawa Rikka raised a hand.

"You’re only accompanying me."

"You’re not allowed to play."

"What?"

Asagiri laughed.

"Are you already being stingy with the tokens?"

"No."

Sakurakawa Rikka tucked her short hair behind one ear.

A gentle smile appeared on her lips.

"Let me guess."

"You’re probably extremely good at claw machines too, aren’t you?"

"If you clear out all the prizes immediately, then there’ll be no fun left for me."

Asagiri paused.

Then he took a step back.

"You know..."

"That’s actually very reasonable."

He folded his arms with interest.

"Alright."

"Show me what you’ve got."

...

Several hours later.

Asagiri and Sakurakawa Rikka walked out of the arcade.

Both were empty handed.

Asagiri looked at her with profound admiration.

"You are truly a genius."

Sakurakawa Rikka’s cheeks were already slightly red.

Asagiri continued with complete sincerity,

"One hundred thousand yen in tokens."

"An entire morning."

"And not a single plush doll."

He nodded solemnly.

"I have reasonable grounds to suspect that you are not a carbon based life form."

Sakurakawa Rikka, who normally maintained an elegant and mature demeanor no matter what happened, looked genuinely embarrassed.

A delicate blush colored her pale face.

Her eyes shifted away.

"I... didn’t expect myself to be quite that bad."

"But..."

Her embarrassment gradually softened into a smile.

"This was the happiest morning I’ve ever had."

Asagiri looked at her.

Sakurakawa Rikka continued quietly.

"Not only because it was the first time I did something purely for fun without using my foresight even once..."

She stepped in front of him.

Then leaned closer and whispered,

"But more importantly..."

"You were beside me."

Her voice grew softer.

"When I’m with you..."

"That’s when I feel most alive."

She drew back slightly.

A faint red tint spread across her cheeks.

"So..."

"Shouldn’t we do something a little more intimate now?"

Asagiri raised his eyebrows.

"Whoa."

"I know you like me, but aren’t you being a little direct?"

"No."

Sakurakawa Rikka smiled.

"It’s not just that I like you."

She tucked her hair behind her ear and met his gaze without looking away.

"Just like the others..."

"I love you."

Her expression became gentler.

"And because you exist..."

"I no longer want my life to end."

...

Later that evening, at Asagiri’s home.

After taking off her shoes, Sakurakawa Rikka walked straight toward him.

Without giving herself time to hesitate, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.

The kiss was slightly awkward.

But there was nothing uncertain about the emotion behind it.

When they separated, Sakurakawa Rikka’s usual composure had visibly weakened.

Asagiri noticed that her hands were slightly cold.

"You’re surprisingly cool to the touch."

Sakurakawa Rikka’s expression immediately became nervous.

For someone who normally wore a calm, polite smile no matter what happened, the change was striking.

"Is that..."

"A problem?"

"Not really."

Asagiri answered seriously.

"If anything, it fits."

"Fits?"

"Monster girl logic."

Sakurakawa Rikka stared at him.

Asagiri continued as though giving a professional lecture.

"Characters with unusually cool skin are a classic trope in Eroge Shooter."

"Usually slimes, snake girls, supernatural heroines, that sort of thing."

He paused.

"Come to think of it..."

"You technically qualify as a monster girl yourself, don’t you?"

Sakurakawa Rikka covered her mouth and laughed softly.

"Even at a moment like this..."

"You still can’t forget you’re Eroge Shooter."

She gently touched his cheek.

Then she leaned closer, her smile warm rather than mysterious for once.

"Then you can decide for yourself..."

"Whether I’m the kind of monster girl you like."

The rest of the evening passed quietly, with Sakurakawa Rikka allowing herself, perhaps for the first time, to stop thinking about possible futures and simply remain in the present.

For once, there was no Kudan foresight.

No death.

No destiny.

Only the simple certainty that she wanted to stay.

...

The next morning, Saturday.

Inside a café in Ginza.

"Asagiri!"

"Have you been waiting long?"

Hearing Eriri’s voice, Asagiri looked up from his seat.

She wore a pink jacket despite the cold December weather.

Instead of long pants, she had chosen a JK style skirt paired with black tights.

Her glasses were absent.

Her light blonde hair had been tied into her familiar twin tails.

A shy, almost bashful smile rested on her delicate face.

One foot, clad in a small leather shoe, tapped nervously against the café floor.

"Um..."

"Today..."

"Today I..."

Eriri’s words tangled together before she could form a complete sentence.

Asagiri saved her.

"You look really cute today."

"Hehe..."

Eriri’s face immediately lit up.

"Really?"

Then she realized how openly delighted she sounded.

Her cheeks turned bright red.

She quickly sat down across from him and grabbed the menu as though it could protect her dignity.

"Ahem..."

"Let’s see..."

"What should I drink...?"

"Eriri."

"What is it, Utsunomiya-san?"

"The menu is upside down."

....

https://discord.gg/KvMN2CFsMR

[If you don’t want to wait for the next update, read 50 Chapters ahead on P@treon.]

[[email protected]/FanficLord03].