Chapter 173: First Ravage, Then Kill? Thoroughly Played? A Joyful Hayasaka Ai
The damp night air clung to the alley walls, heavy with the scent of rain and garbage. Under the flickering orange glow of a distant streetlight, the monstrous ayakashi—a writhing mass of corrupted eyeballs—writhed in the shadows.
Ren, standing casually just feet away as if observing abstract street art, spoke into the quiet.
"So," he called out, his voice unsettlingly calm, "do you need help?"
The god in the worn-out blue tracksuit, Yato, flinched. He hadn't sensed this newcomer at all. He stared at Ren, his blue eyes wide with puzzlement. "Are you a god too?"
Ren shook his head. "Just a passerby." He gently raised one hand, palm forward.
Whoosh!
An invisible wave of psychic power washed over the scene. The ayakashi's grotesque body, which had been thrashing violently, suddenly froze solid in mid-air, its many eyes wide, immobilized in a silent scream.
Yato's jaw dropped. He leaped down from the rusted street sign, landing softly on the cracked pavement. He cautiously approached the paralyzed demon, poking it. It was held fast, as if encased in invisible cement. He looked back at Ren in disbelief.
"A binding art? Are you a Regalia?"
[Inorin's Note: A Regalia (Shinki) is a spirit, often a human soul, that gods like Yato forge a contract with to use as a weapon, tool, or garment.]
"Not exactly," Ren replied. "You can think of me as a Psychic."
He tilted his head, looking at Yato with genuine curiosity. "Aren't you going to kill this... ayakashi? Or do you prefer to leave them hanging?"
Yato stammered, "A... a Psychic? But you're so strong! You can obviously eliminate it yourself, right?"
That was certainly true. A simple mental push would obliterate it. But Ren was curious. "I am," he admitted, "but I'm interested in how you gods handle these things. Call it professional curiosity."
If Yato existed, then the Yaoyorozu-no-Kamigami—the eight million gods of Shinto—were likely real in this world. Not that Ren thought highly of them; from what he knew, most of them were pathetically weak.
Still, he wanted to see the process firsthand.
"..."
Yato was speechless. This powerful, handsome stranger just wanted to... watch?
After a brief, awkward silence, he sighed. He gripped his short, unwrapped blade—his Regalia—and his entire demeanor shifted instantly from goofy delivery god to severe deity. His gaze turned sharp.
He spoke, his voice resonating with a faint, divine power.
"This is the Land of Abundant Reed Plains! Your desecration shall not be allowed! Hear me! I am the god Yato!"
He raised his blade. "I now lay thee waste with the Sekki, and expel thy vast defilement! I cleanse thee!"
"ーーRend!"
[Inorin's Note: Yato is referring to Japan by its mythical name, Toyoashihara no Nakatsukuni. The Sekki is the name of his Regalia in its weapon form.]
The short blade flashed, trailing a clean stream of silver light. It cut through the bound ayakashi with perfect precision.
The demon split neatly in two, and its corrupted essence dissolved into harmless motes of light, fading into the night.
Ren watched, mildly impressed. "Hmm... a very clean cut." Yato's core ability, it seemed, was simply 'to sever'.
As the demon died, the short blade in Yato's hand shimmered and transformed into a girl in a white robe, Hiyori. She respectfully bowed to Ren. "Thank you for your assistance, Ren-sama."
Although she didn't know Ren's identity, his special power and evident assistance made the high honorific feel appropriate.
"This is..." Ren started, looking at the girl who was just a sword.
"My Regalia, Hiyori," Yato said proudly, puffing out his chest.
"..."
But Hiyori merely rolled her eyes at Yato's antics.
The delivery god had no idea that his Regalia was already impressed enough by Ren to consider switching masters, if only fleetingly.
"Ren-san," Yato called out, "the ayakashi is slain, so we should go. I truly hope you still remember me next time we meet!"
He gave a jaunty wave, turned, and stuffed his hands into his tracksuit pockets, striking a 'cool' walk-away pose as he sauntered off. Hiyori sighed and followed him.
"I think I will," Ren replied nonchalantly to his retreating back.
Yato's figure paused. His shoulders stiffened for just a moment.
It was the first time he'd met someone (besides Hiyori) who could see him so clearly, and the first time a stranger promised to remember his name. Yato found himself in a very good mood.
Even if the other person eventually forgot—that was, after all, his destiny as an obscure stray god—the sentiment felt nice.
"..."
From the shadows of the alley entrance, Hayasaka Ai watched these scenes unfold in stunned disbelief. Her heart felt like it was trying to escape her chest.
Psychics. Demons. Tracksuit-wearing gods. A sword that transforms into a living girl.
These were terms from manga and light novels, not her life. These unreal, impossible things were happening right in front of her.
...Am I hallucinating? she thought, her years of professional training shattering like glass. Did I hit my head? Is this a dream?
"Miss, are you perhaps following me?"
Ren's face suddenly appeared inches from her own, his voice cutting through her panic.
Hayasaka Ai's delicate body shivered violently, a small, terrified squeak escaping her throat as she stumbled back, hitting the brick wall.
She immediately defaulted to one of her many masks. Forcing a dry, awkward laugh, she scratched her head and feigned distress.
"Oh, dear! I seem to have gotten completely lost just now. Silly me. I don't know how I ended up here. Young man, do you know the way out of this area?"
Ren didn't answer. He just stared intently into her eyes, his gaze seeming to pierce right through her carefully constructed facade.
Hayasaka Ai's heart hammered against her ribs. He wasn't buying the act. She felt intense, suffocating nervousness, her mind flashing to scenarios where she would be silenced—killed to protect this supernatural secret.
Just as her fear peaked, he spoke, his tone one of mild surprise. "You've awakened Spirit Vision?"
"Spirit... Vision?" Hayasaka Ai instinctively repeated the term, her voice trembling.
"You saw that ayakashi and the god, Yato, just now, didn't you?"
Ren's question cut directly to the core of her panic.
How should I answer? she thought desperately. She didn't know if he was testing her.
If I say yes, will he kill me? Hayasaka Ai knew the dark side of the world well; she worked for the Shinomiya family, after all. She knew that only a corpse could truly keep a secret.
To her surprise, Ren just looked at her with a strange, almost amused expression, and then complained speechlessly.
"You're really overthinking this," he said, his voice flat.
What?
"If I wanted to kill you," Ren continued, "why would I waste time talking to you? It's dark. This alley is deserted."
He leaned in slightly, his voice dropping to a near-whisper that sent a chill down her spine. "I wouldn't just kill you. I'd have my way with you first, right here against this wall, until you couldn't even scream anymore. Then I'd kill you, snap my fingers, and teleport your body to the dark side of the moon. No one would ever find it."
"!!!"
Hayasaka Ai's eyes widened in pure terror and utter confusion.
Wait... Is he answering my thoughts? What did I just say? I didn't say anything! I was clearly just thinking that!
"That's right," Ren confirmed calmly, as if discussing the weather. "I can hear your thoughts."
"Huh?" Hayasaka Ai audibly gasped this time, all pretense of composure gone.
Ren adopted a placid expression, ticking off facts as if reading a grocery list. "Your name is Hayasaka Ai. You're currently employed as Kaguya Shinomiya's personal maid, serving the Shinomiya family. However, your true identity is that of a multi-faceted agent, raised by the Hayasaka family—a branch of the Shinomiya—to be her handler, guard, and spy."
He paused, his eyes flicking down for a split second before meeting hers again.
"Oh, and you're wearing black lace panties today. Very chic."
"!!!"
The moment Ren exposed her true identity, all the blood drained from Hayasaka Ai's face.
She was utterly flustered. Panic, anxiety, and a deep, cold unease washed over her. Her deepest, most dangerous secret—her entire life's purpose and burden—was exposed by a stranger in an alley.
He knows everything! He's going to...
"Relax," Ren interrupted her panic. "I have no connection to the Shinomiya family. What are you afraid of?"
He found her spiraling thoughts amusing. Does she really think I'm going to report her? To whom?
Hayasaka Ai's panic froze, leaving her speechless.
...Upon closer thought, he was right. If he was this powerful—a mind-reading psychic who hangs out with gods and threatens to send bodies to the moon—what did he care about the Shinomiya family's internal politics?
"But you and Kaguya-sama..." she stammered, latching onto a new thought. He knows her name. He must have a connection to the Young Miss.
"Done?" Ren mused on her thought. "Oh, you mean that."
He adopted a serious expression, as if giving a status report. "We've slept together, yes. Multiple times. But we're not 'in love' yet. That part is still in progress."
He delivered these extremely shameless words with absolute sincerity.
Hayasaka Ai was rendered utterly speechless. He... He... with Kaguya-sama?! Repeatedly?!
Seeing that nothing—nothing—could be hidden, not even her underwear color, Hayasaka Ai felt the fight drain out of her.
She let her face droop, slowly raised her hands high in surrender, and decided to just give up.
"I surrender," she sighed. "I admit it. I saw everything just now. Do whatever you want with me."
She was just... so tired. Let it all be destroyed.
"Oh. If you saw it, you saw it," Ren just nodded, showing no intention of taking action.
Instead, he kindly reminded her, "But you must be careful now. This 'Spirit Vision' isn't necessarily a good thing. It's fine if you just see ayakashi, but if you ever encounter an actual evil spirit—a malicious ghost—you must not answer if it asks you a question. Don't even acknowledge it. If you do, you'll likely die."
Who made me so eager to help others? Ren thought to himself. I'm truly a good citizen.
"..."
Hayasaka Ai slowly lowered her hands, feeling that Ren was now just scaring her, perhaps with a dark, mischievous sense of humor.
But... since she had already laid her cards on the table, she decided to ask boldly. "Do... do these things really exist? In the real world?"
Ren nodded, looking surprisingly patient. "That's right. Evil spirits are just that—malicious ghosts. The ayakashi you saw, they're drawn to and feed on negative emotions. They can also amplify those emotions in people, often leading to depression or even suicide."
"The gods, like Yato, and their Regalia, like Hiyori, are the ones who eliminate them. That's basically the gist of it."
"..."
Alright. If these things were real, Hayasaka Ai naturally understood the implications.
At the same time, she thought of something crucial.
Just before, her negative emotions had seemed to explode. She had felt an overwhelming despair, a desire to... just end it. But after bumping into Ren, she had returned to normal.
She remembered he seemed to reach out and pinch her ear.
"You..." she realized, "you saved me just now, didn't you?"
"Oh, you mean that little ayakashi that was clinging to you? I saw your negative emotions were severely affected, so I conveniently flicked it off. No need to thank me."
Ren said it indifferently. It was a small matter, not even worth mentioning.
"..."
To him, it was clearly an insignificant matter.
But for Hayasaka Ai, it was a tangible act of saving her life.
"Thank you," she said, this time with genuine, heartfelt sincerity.
Her life often felt as lowly and insignificant as a feather, manipulated by the Shinomiya. Yet here, today, it was saved by a complete stranger. It was truly incredible.
"Mm-hmm." Ren accepted the thanks. He wasn't one to be pretentious about being owed a favor.
"You don't have anything else to do, do you?" he asked. "Don't follow me anymore. I'm not a bad person. Go home. Seriously, following a strange man into a dark alley late at night... aren't you afraid I'd..."
Before he could finish his sentence, Hayasaka Ai, feeling strangely bold now that the worst was over, actively continued, "...have your way with me, then kill me?"
"..."
Ren raised an eyebrow.
Good heavens, he thought, this girl just blurted that out? She's got nerve.
"Actually, I have one more question," Hayasaka Ai pressed, seeming almost fearless. She calmly engaged him in conversation.
"Ask." Ren didn't mind; he had time.
"Will Kaguya-sama... have a baby?" Her eyes were suddenly sparkling with intense, inappropriate curiosity.
A Psychic's baby! Just thinking about it is exciting!
Ren pinched his chin, giving Hayasaka Ai a strange look. He heard her thought clearly.
Hayasaka Ai, however, tilted her head innocently. "Hmm? Didn't you... do it... with Kaguya-sama? You... ah... finished inside her, right?"
[Inorin's Note: The original text is euphemistic. Hayasaka is asking if Ren ejaculated inside Kaguya, which is why she's asking about a baby.]
"Hiss!"
Ren almost gasped. This maid was actually saying something so direct and rebellious!
But he still replied in a serious manner, "I did... but there won't be one."
Hayasaka Ai blinked her watery blue eyes. "Why not?"
"Because I am a Psychic."
How could a Psychic's absolute control over his own body be imagined by ordinary people? he thought.
As soon as Ren finished speaking, the world distorted.
In one instant, Hayasaka Ai was standing in the cold, damp alley.
In the next, she was standing on the plush carpet of her own bedroom in the Shinomiya estate.
Ren was standing in front of her.
"Is this your room? I just pulled the location from your memory," he said.
"It's too late for you to be wandering around. I'll just send you straight back. I'm out of here."
After saying that, Ren's form simply dissolved into the air, disappearing completely.
"..."
Hayasaka Ai stood frozen for a full minute. She slowly reached out, touching her desk, her computer monitor. The wood was solid. The screen was cool.
"I... I really came back..."
"Ai-chan!"
Kaguya's voice called out loudly from the hallway. She hadn't been able to find Ai-chan anywhere, and the other maids all said they hadn't seen her. Kaguya was getting anxious.
"I'm in my room, Kaguya-sama," Hayasaka Ai responded, her voice miraculously steady.
"Eh?"
Kaguya ran over, pushing the door open without knocking. She saw Hayasaka Ai standing right in the middle of the room, looking perfectly normal.
"Is something wrong, Kaguya-sama?" Hayasaka asked calmly, adopting her perfect maid persona, puzzled.
Kaguya felt strange. "I... I clearly checked your room just now. You weren't here."
"Perhaps we just missed each other," Hayasaka Ai replied smoothly, brushing it off.
Seeing Ai-chan was safe, Kaguya felt relieved and didn't question it further.
But then, she suddenly sniffed with her nose.
She frowned slightly, sniffing again as she approached Hayasaka Ai. She leaned in close, her dark red eyes fixing on her maid with a sharp, almost questioning look.
"Ai-chan... Why do you smell like Ren?"
She couldn't possibly be mistaken. It was faint, but it was his scent!
"..."
Hayasaka Ai inwardly complained fiercely.
As expected of Kaguya-sama, who has been so thoroughly... 'disciplined' by Ren. She's like a bloodhound for his scent.
She didn't show a hint of fluster, her expression calm and composed. "I happened to run into Ren-san earlier today. I was asking him about club funds for a friend."
"Oh, I see." Kaguya nodded. That reason was plausible enough.
Having received an answer, Kaguya returned to her usual self. "Well, I'm going to rest. Ai-chan, you should also rest early."
"Yes, Kaguya-sama."
Hayasaka bowed slightly, holding the position until Kaguya left the room and closed the door.
Raising her head, Hayasaka Ai's blue eyes sparkled with a new, dangerous light.
Today, she had discovered an incredible secret.
Ren is a mind-reading, teleporting Psychic. Gods and demons are real.
And Kaguya-sama... her prim and proper, ice-cold Young Miss... was being thoroughly and shamelessly 'disciplined' by that same Psychic.
Just thinking of the scenes that must imply, a hint of a mischievous, knowing smile inexplicably appeared at the corner of her mouth. This was far more interesting than any Shinomiya power struggle.
[Inorin Note:
If you wish to support me so I can continue to survive and afford proper food, you can join my membership on Patreon [patreon.com/InorinTL]. Be sure to check out "The Dedicated Fan"—a special, limited-time tier that offers all the benefits of "The Plot Uncoverer" at a discounted price! Slots are limited, so grab yours before they run out. Besides membership, you can also donate via Ko-Fi [https://ko-fi.com/inorintl].
I hope I am still worthy of your support. My life truly depends on this... haha, I know I'm so shameless.]