Her mother had told her early that morning: Miru was dead, her body reduced to nothing, her parents perished in the fire.
"I'm not a murderer, I'm not an arsonist… I didn't do anything, I was just sleeping… Miru… I'm sorry, Miru…"
Rumi's mental state was fragile, sobbing repeatedly, her eyes swollen like eggs fried in a pan. Hunger didn't register, though she heard her mother's calls, none sank in—words went in one ear, out the other.
Piano lessons? A new teacher?
—I don't need them! I need nothing!! Let me be, I'm not a murderer, not an arsonist!!
Rumi clutched her ears, trembling under her blankets.
"No, you are—!"
A genderless, eerie voice echoed in her mind.
She gasped, her body freezing.
Outside
"Mr. Sawamura, I'm so sorry…"
Ms. Tsurumi, crestfallen, bowed repeatedly to Kagura.
"Sigh… Can't be helped…"
Kagura was about to say, "Let's call it a day, I'll visit another time," but a crisp bell rang—"Ding-ling~~~"
The sound was vivid, as if from behind him.
He spun toward the staircase.
"Ding-ling~~"
Another chime, but now he couldn't pinpoint it, as if enveloped by bells.
Then, a ghostly figure materialized behind him.
A kimono-clad girl, barely 1.4 meters tall, her skin pale, eyes crimson, moving like a stiff, frenzied marionette. She raised her hands toward Kagura's back.
"Hiss—!!"
The white fox on his shoulder stood, its blue-and-gold sacred eyes locking onto her.
Ms. Tsurumi, oblivious, kept knocking softly, while Kagura searched for the bell's source.
The girl's hands froze, her head snapping up to meet the nine-tailed fox's gaze.
Her pupils flickered rapidly between emerald and blood-red.
A second later, the fox, as if recalling something, settled back, yawning, wagging its tails, and dozing.
—Oh, it's the master's pet… Didn't recognize it. Whatever, nap time.
"Ding-ling~~~, Ding-ling~~~"
"Hm??"
Kagura scratched his head, baffled by the bell's origin.
The sound was loud, urgent, like a warning.
Then, the girl's eyes reverted to crimson. Clasping her hands, she shoved forward at Kagura's back: "Boom!! Boom-boom-boom!!"
The red-eyed girl floated silently, expressionless, watching Kagura tumble, crashing at the staircase's end, neck snapped.
—A new piano teacher? Unnecessary…!
"Wha…?! Mr. Sawamura?!!"
Kagura's consciousness faded, that cry the last he heard before darkness.
Gradually, the black-haired girl's eyes shifted to verdant emerald. Confused, she glanced around, then saw Kagura in a pool of blood below.
"What… what happened…? Did I… do this again?" Her hands flew to her face in disbelief.
She felt a profound bond with him, a tie of life and death, screaming he was her most vital person.
Yet, why would she—? Unable to accept it, she stared at her clean hands, suddenly feeling them drenched in blood.
Her vision flickered: bullying, theft, arson, murder—scenes flashed relentlessly.
"No—!! Stop showing me! I didn't do this!! I'm… I'm the crystal of everyone's happy memories…"
On the verge of collapse, she knelt on the landing, hands covering her face, sobbing.
Renka—her name, pure, sacred, tinged with Zen mystique. Since gaining consciousness, she'd watched over those she met, granting happiness, sharing the wishes she'd gathered.
But months ago, everything changed.
A "thing" invaded her—a foul black aura, corrosive and potent.
Since then, Renka felt like a mulberry leaf, the "thing" a black silkworm with an insatiable appetite, devouring her power. No attack or barrier worked; instead, she fed it, letting it grow fatter, faster, consuming her.
The consequences soon surfaced.
At first, a brief lapse of control, which she ignored. But issues mounted, culminating in the blaze that claimed the Hakawa family. Renka realized she could no longer restrain it.
Like a crab hollowed by a parasite, her body and essence were eaten, becoming a puppet, only moving when strings were pulled.
—If I'd never existed… I just made a friend in Rumi, found my most important person. Double joy should've been greater joy. Why did this happen?
Ah… I remember, I should know his name… Sawamura Spencer Kagura!
She wanted to scream it, sensing his life fading fast, powerless to save him.
In her prime, she might've had a chance, but now—a shell, three parts sane, her last strength battling the evil, unable to spare elsewhere.
Ms. Tsurumi, an ordinary middle-aged woman, lacked courage. The Hakawa fire had left her anxious, her daughter's refusal to leave her room exhausting her. Sleepless, barely eating, she pinned hopes on Kagura.
But he'd fallen, seemingly lifeless.
She couldn't fathom the consequences of a young master dying in her home. Overwhelmed, she fainted beside him.
Thirty Seconds Later
"Ugh… My head… Am I… dead?"
Kagura stirred, consciousness returning.
What happened? Why was he on the floor? His mind was foggy, like standing too fast after squatting.
His last memory… Right, someone pushed him down the stairs.
Ms. Tsurumi? No… She had no motive.
Then—who?
"Ding-ling~~"
That damned bell again. Yes, he'd heard it seconds before the push.
His spirit pet…? But how could a spirit touch him?
It was a mystery, but he had time to unravel it.
A golden apple, used on him forty years ago, restored him to that moment's state—immortal, unaging. Blood on the floor flowed back into him, wounds and bruises healed rapidly. A minute later, he flipped over in the cramped stairwell.
"Damn it… What the hell?!"
Rubbing his head, rolling his eyes, he sat against the wall, glaring upward.
—Did Rumi, Tsurumi's daughter, dart from another room and push me? Don't want lessons? Fine, I don't want to teach! What grudge makes you snap my neck?
That night with Miru Hakawa, he'd heard bells too. Did his encounter with her cause the fire?
Then, his eyes met a girl's.
She knelt on the landing, weeping silently, pearl-like tears cascading down her face, not flowing but bouncing, bursting midair into silver sparks.
Her frame was delicate, her crying pitiable. Bluntly, in old Yoshiwara, she'd be a top courtesan. Even as a child, her future beauty was staggering.
Spirits didn't age, though.
"Huh…?"
She was stunned.
"Phew—" Kagura rubbed his temples, smirking. "Found you… It's you, isn't it!"
"You… No… You… You shouldn't be…?"
She stood shakily, clutching the railing. "Dead—that's what you mean? Sorry, killing me isn't that easy." He glanced left—Ms. Tsurumi, pushed too?
As if reading him, the girl whispered, "She's fine, just fainted from shock. I… I didn't push her… At least, I don't think so."
"Really…" Kagura half-believed her, squinting. "So, your name? What are you? Why do this?"
"I… I'm Renka…" She slumped, covering her face, sighing desolately. "The rest… I don't know… I come to, and it's done… Since that day, I'm a stranger to myself. I didn't want to push you, really, I don't want to hurt anyone…"
"Is that so…"
Though some things were unclear, Kagura mostly accepted her role in recent events. He carried Ms. Tsurumi, still unconscious, to the sofa, covering her with a blanket, then returned to the stairs, ascending step by step. "Don't… Don't come closer…"
Renka shuffled back, hitting the wall, yelping cutely. Her ornate black kimono, crimson-lined, with a white underlayer, flashed her slender legs in tabi socks. Her pitiful look tugged at Kagura's heart.
—Keeping distance to protect me… What a gentle child. He crouched, smiling, patting her head. "Ngh…"
Renka flinched, eyes shut, as if bracing for a blow. "Relax, don't be scared. I know you… And I've been looking for you…"
"If you get close… You'll get hurt again. I don't want that, so please… Ngh—!" She clutched her kimono collar, turning away, tears falling.
Kagura said nothing, kneeling to pull her into his arms.
Her small frame stiffened, but minutes later, she relaxed, resting on his shoulder, patting his back. "You… Such a fool."
"Why…?"
"Knowing I'll hurt you when that thing controls me, you still hug me… Men, honestly…"
Her tone turned playful.
"Well…"
Kagura knew she was corrupted by evil, so he didn't blame her for the push. "Hugging a once-in-a-century beauty without care—you're lust over life, huh…"
"Heh…"
If she knew I'm immortal, would she faint?
"Thump-thump—!"
Suddenly, a strange pulse shuddered through her.
"No…! It's coming… Please… Let me go… Or… Ngh—!"
Renka bit her lip, eyes shifting from crimson to emerald, back to crimson, battling, until they became heterochromatic. The last green pupil succumbed to red.
"No need for a piano teacher!"
Losing reason, Renka roared at him.
Kagura stood impassively, and as she lunged, he extended a hand—nine golden chains erupted from his wrist, binding her like a dumpling, leaving her writhing and whimpering on the floor.
"Ah—!!! Aaaaaaah—!!!"
She wailed in agony.
But her cries and rolling stopped, eyes reverting to emerald. She shouted, "You know the Nine-Word Mantra? Please, hit me!! Help me control it! I don't want this…! This isn't me!"
"Shut up! Crawl back to your hole! Yapping all day, so annoying!!" Her eyes flashed red, snarling at herself.
Kagura had used a Nine-Word Mantra move, akin to Kushina's "Adamantine Sealing Chains" on Kurama, binding the corrupted Renka. But binding wasn't enough to restore her sanity.
Purifying her would kill her, and though she'd revive, the evil would too, leaving Kagura spiritually "castrated," unable to get hard during her revival.
Wait, she said hit her?
Right! He could infuse his hands with mantra power and beat her!
With her permission, Kagura charged his hands with potent spiritual energy. "Who… Who are you?!"
The evil-controlled Renka, clueless, gnawed the chains, but they tightened, slicing between her legs, digging into tender flesh.
"Me? I'm—" Kagura leaned down, smashing a fist into her face, slamming her head into the floor, adding, "Renka's master! Here to crush you, bastard!"
"Cough… Cough-cough!"
Renka winced, head pinned, coughing in pain.
For a moment, her eyes flickered emerald—his method worked!
Her left cheek swelled, hair disheveled from the blow, giving the impression Kagura was forcing her submission for assault.
"I'm not mad at Renka—she's controlled. But you, you pushed me, right?"
Cracking his knuckles, he pinned the chained "Inner Renka," straddling her slender waist, pummeling her face relentlessly.
"For tormenting my Renka, for arson, for pushing me down the stairs, you bastard! Take this, and this, and this!! Feel it? Hurt? I hurt like hell too! Neck snapped once! Try it yourself!"
Yanking her hair, he exposed her snarling face. Immobilized, she spat, mocking, "So what? The Hakawas are dead. I did it, but so did she. We're one. Your mantra's useless—you can't save them!"
Kagura's hand clamped her delicate neck.
"Give me back my Renka!!"
Fury surged, recalling the burned estate. He squeezed, thumb pressing her throat's center, crushing down.
"Urk—! Urk-urk-urk… Cough-cough!!"
She writhed like a shrimp in hot oil, but the chains and Kagura's weight held her. Her expression grew desperate, head tilting back, eyes rolling white, gasping futilely.
Finally, with Kagura and the true Renka's efforts, her crimson eyes snapped back to emerald.
He released her, snapping his fingers to undo the chains, helping her up, hugging her. "You okay?"
"I'm… Cough-cough… Cough-cough-cough!! Thanks… You helped me regain control…"
Weak, eyes swollen shut, she touched his hand, gripping it gently, leaning into him, tears streaming, choking, "I'm sorry… I didn't mean to hurt them… But it's too late… I brought no happiness, only trouble, killed them so cruelly… This is my sin, my lifelong burden… Cough-cough… Sin!"
"No… It's not too late. There's a way!"
Kagura gritted his teeth, recalling the "save-load" ability copied from Lady X.
He had a save, Slot A, from Golden Week's second night, around 10 PM. He could reload, rush from home, and subdue Renka.
Two issues: the ability required "urinating outside a toilet," and where was Renka from 10 PM to 2 AM that night?
He shook her shoulders. "Renka, focus! Answer me: the night you were controlled and burned the Hakawas, 10 PM to 2 AM, where were you?"
"I… Cough-cough…" She sighed weakly. "I was likely attached to Ms. Tsurumi's daughter, dormant, conserving energy… But what can you do? It's too late… The damage is done."
"I said it's not! Trust me!" Scanning around, he told her, "To go back, I need to…"
He explained the ability's condition.
"R-Really?"
Renka, embarrassed, covered her swollen face, but the swelling faded fast—spirits weren't like humans.
"Of course, I swear on my name."
"Then…" She knelt, closing her eyes, covering one with her right hand, opening her mouth. "Ah—Come… In my mouth… Quick, right?"
"Uh… Just not a toilet. Doesn't have to be anyone's mouth." Her offer left her speechless with embarrassment.
But since she'd said it, Kagura didn't hesitate, dropping his pants, dousing her face, some entering her mouth. She swallowed, her injuries healing rapidly, restoring her peerless beauty.
His fluids sped her recovery?
Doing this to a kneeling beauty felt sinful, but… she'd agreed, and reloading would erase her memory (it's the future).
Done, Kagura loaded "Slot A."
Instantly, everything sped up, morphing into colorful light bands—time, intangible, like a one-way train with fixed seats. His "load" ability let him jump cars.
"Ding~"
A splash sounded.
He was in the bathroom, naked, cock dripping under the shower—he'd just urinated.
The thermostat read: Golden Week, Day 2, Sunday, 10:13 PM.
"That was awkward, pissing on Renka's face…"
His cock stirred. Ignoring it, he twisted the shower off, cast a cleaning spell, grabbed a towel, dried off, and rushed to change.
Initially, he hadn't planned to reload for the Hakawas, but their deaths tied to him now—he couldn't stand by.
Miru, wait for me!!
Gritting his teeth, he skipped blow-drying, used a cleaning spell on his dyed hair, and bolted to Nao's maid quarters—"Well, welcome," Nao, in gold lace lingerie, modestly covered her chest with her maid outfit. "Here to claim your nightly maid duties?"
"Nao, now, the car! The fastest one!"
No time for flirting, he pointed outside, dead serious. Three lives depended on him! "Yes, sir!"
Nao snapped into action, throwing on a coat, grabbing gloves and keys, slipping on shoes, and dashing out with him to the front door.
She didn't know why he was urgent, but his gravity demanded her best.
She was, after all, the Spencer family's model maid!
Running, Kagura recited the address. Nao memorized it, and they dove into the car, doors slamming, engine roaring. Wordlessly, she floored it, hitting triple Japan's speed limit on private roads.
In the city, she slowed for safety, driving as fast as possible without asking why.
The scenery grew familiar—Kagura had seen it by day, now night, matching his memory of dropping off Miru.
Closer, closer… "Ding-ling~~"
The bell chimed as Nao entered the Hakawas' low-density residential area. Kagura directed, "Left at the next intersection."
"Understood."
Nao slowed, turning left safely, creeping forward.
Kagura saw the Hakawas' nameplate and intact estate. Miru was likely inside, maybe scolded or bathing.
"Keep going, right at that intersection, then left after two more." He resisted stopping, giving Tsurumi's address. "Got it."
Nao maneuvered, delivering him to the small two-story slap-slap-slap! two-story house with a red Toyota out front, the "Tsurumi" nameplate on the gate.
Car stopped, Kagura leapt out, barking, "Wait here," and sprinted to the door.
"Ding-dong—Ding-dong—"
He mashed the bell, the mental chime growing louder, as if welcoming him.
The intercom buzzed, and Ms. Tsurumi, in the living room, saw him on the screen. "You… Huh? Sawamura-kun? No, Mr. Sawamura? Why now…?"
She was baffled. Her daughter had just returned from skipping costly piano lessons, fraying her nerves, and now Kagura? What was today?
"Sorry for the late visit, but it's urgent, Ms. Tsurumi. Can I come in? I need to see your daughter."
"Uh… Sure, Rumi just got back. Hold on, I'll open the door."
Kagura was her student, his character universally praised. A boy visiting a single mother and daughter at night didn't faze her.
Inside, she offered tea, but Kagura waved it off. "I need to see your daughter first, urgent business."
"Okay, okay…" Though puzzled, she started to call Rumi, but Kagura cut in, "Her room's upstairs, right? Can we go up?"
"Of course."
Odd, but she led him up the narrow stairs. "Knock-knock-knock," she rapped on Rumi's door. "Rumi?! Mommy's coming in. The new piano teacher we talked about is here."
Without waiting, she opened the door.
"Ding-ling~~~"
The bell rang louder than ever.
Kagura and Rumi, in a sheer light-purple nightdress, froze. Beneath the translucent fabric, her budding chest rose like jade shoots, her smooth mound faintly visible, nearly drawing his gaze.
"You… You… M-Mommy?! I'm not dressed!"
Seeing her piano idol, Kagura, Rumi squatted, covering her face. "Huh?? Rumi??" Kagura spun to Ms. Tsurumi. "Isn't… Isn't she Miru Hakawa?"
"Miru Hakawa? Who's that?" Ms. Tsurumi frowned, pointing. "That's my daughter, Rumi. You mean Miru Hakawa, her friend?"
It clicked: "Miru Hakawa" was Rumi's fake name. Trust, where art thou? Well, he did look like a punk then.
Hearing "Miru Hakawa," Rumi's body quaked, eyes snapping up.
"Gotcha! You're Rumi!! Lied about being Miru Hakawa?!" Kagura, after double-checking, pointed, shouting. "You're…?! Ah—"
Rumi hesitated, then recognized the voice—the "punk" who saved her from harassment and bought her dinner.
She tried to speak, but her body swayed, collapsing backward, her tender slit fully exposed. Ms. Tsurumi, embarrassed, rushed in, lifting Rumi, tugging her hem. "Rumi? You okay?"
To Kagura, it was different.
As Rumi fainted, "Renka," with hime-cut black hair, emerged from her like a soul, eyes crimson, hair rippling like waves, her form hazy, dreamlike.
Clearly, this was the "Inner Renka" behind the Hakawas' deaths. "You…" Her fingers cracked pop-pop, snarling, "Who the hell are you?!"
Kagura, having crossed time, didn't bother with words, thrusting his right hand—Nine-Word Mantra activated!
"Sssshhh…!!"
Nine thumb-thick golden chains shot from his wrist like starving serpents, binding Inner Renka into a dumpling.
A chain gagged her lips, two wrapped her chest, one sliced between, cutting through her slit, binding wrists, ankles, arms, and thighs. She crashed, face smacking the floor, legs curled tight, tabi socks pressing her small buttocks, chains knotting wrists to ankles.
"Phew…"
Kagura exhaled, relieved. Made it… Not too late.
His right palm held one golden chain, splitting into nine, all binding her. Neither Renka nor chains were visible to Ms. Tsurumi, an ordinary human.
Inner Renka struggled, but the more she fought, the tighter the chains gripped, leaving her gnawing futilely, panting through her nose, glaring.
Two minutes later, Rumi stirred. Kagura dragged Inner Renka by the chains, leading Ms. Tsurumi downstairs. Once Rumi changed and joined, they cleared up the night's events.
Kagura omitted Renka.
Amid Ms. Tsurumi's profuse thanks and Rumi's grudging, red-faced glares, Kagura boldly hauled Renka by the mantra chains, dragging her out.
Per his plan, he'd return Golden Week's fourth morning to assess Rumi's piano skills.
Nao waited in the car.
Tossing the now-harmless Inner Renka inside, Kagura slid in, gripping her neck casually, telling Nao, "Alright, Nao, home." Tonight was for taming a naughty child.