Power and wealth are not equivalent. Often, having money doesn't necessarily mean having power, but having power almost certainly means having money.
The Fujiwara family was no exception. Although ostensibly just a political family, in terms of wealth accumulation, they probably weren't much worse than some corporate conglomerates.
Just from the bed of the Fujiwara family's second daughter in the annex, one could discern a few clues.
Asakura had only seen European-style four-poster beds with drapes in animations and movies before, but now one appeared in reality.
Even though he had no knowledge of wood, he could roughly sense that the materials used for this bed would likely have many zeros if calculated in Yen.
In any case, the double bed was very large, more than enough even with him lying on it.
However, the bedding itself was beyond Asakura's expectations; it wasn't as soft and cloud-like as it appeared.
Thinking about it, though he couldn't remember where he'd seen it, Asakura recalled that overly soft beds were supposedly not good for the body.
Lying on the bed, his nostrils were filled with a faint sweet fragrance, the scent of some expensive bath gel the girl used. In contrast, he could hardly smell any of the girl's own body odor.
"Um, could you please not sniff around like that?"
Fujiwara Chika said, a bit shyly.
She already had a slightly baby-faced appearance, and after bathing, with her hair completely loose and dressed in pink pajamas, that sense of youthfulness was further magnified, making her look as if she had regressed from a high school student to a middle schooler.
"Don't mind it, it's just an unconscious habit."
Asakura said stiffly.
"A habit? Does Exorcist-sensei always climb into girls' beds?"
Fujiwara Chika's tone was curious with a hint of playful mischief.
Even without looking at her face, Asakura could imagine the mischievous smile on the girl's face.
"Unfortunately, no such thing."
Asakura lay there stiffly, like a vampire in a coffin, and replied, "I don't stay out overnight."
"Unexpectedly, he's a good man."
"Is your definition of a good man a bit too simple and plain?"
"Because I haven't shared a quilt with a boy either."
She whispered, "But I read in a book that boys in puberty like to be perverted."
"The book is right, you'd best stay far away from me."
Asakura said, unconsciously yawning, and then turned his back to the girl and began to sleep.
A lot had happened today. Although his body wasn't particularly tired, it seemed his mind was somewhat exhausted.
Speaking of which, he also forgot to go back to the shop to see how Taoka's move was going. It seemed he could only arrange it for tomorrow…
Fujiwara Chika, on the other side, was clearly not very good at this kind of topic. Although she had started it herself, she didn't know how to respond at the moment and fell silent. Finally, she just quietly turned off the light and gently lay down beside Asakura—incidentally, Asakura was facing away from the girl at this time.
"Oh, right."
After the entire room had fallen into darkness and silence for some time, and Asakura felt he was about to fall asleep, the girl's voice suddenly rang out from behind him again.
"I haven't introduced myself yet!"
She said excitedly, as if she had discovered a blind spot, "I knew it! Why has Exorcist-sensei never called me by my name?!"
"Fujiwara Chika, right?"
"Exorcist-sensei actually knows!"
"Don't underestimate my intelligence network."
More precisely, don't underestimate the doxing capabilities of the internet age; the more prominent a family, the easier it is to pinpoint individuals.
The Fujiwara family did seem to protect the personal information of its members, but for someone like Fujiwara Chika, whose grandfather was a former prime minister and whose mother was a current diplomat, no matter how much protection there was, many clues would inevitably be exposed.
"The Exorcist's intelligence network is so scary! Oh no, actually, if I think about it carefully, it seems Dad and Mom did release some information in that circle to solve my condition during this time…"
Fujiwara Chika naturally didn't know she had been doxxed. She thought Asakura had sought her out after hearing about her situation in the professional exorcist circle.
Asakura was also happy for her misunderstanding, so he didn't specifically correct her.
Night and silence spread again, and after a while, the girl suddenly asked again, "That... is that all?"
"Aren't you going to sleep?"
"Before I met Exorcist-san, my only entertainment was sleeping, sleeping, and sleeping, you know."
The girl said indignantly, "I've already had plenty of sleep~"
"Is your family 'no mobile phones' type?"
"It's not that extreme, but as soon as I open my eyes, I see that monster. The only place I can trust is my own bed."
The girl's timid voice sounded a bit scared and pitiful.
"Then at least today you don't have to go to sleep with that fear anymore..."
So Asakura said, "I think in terms of sleep quality alone, it will definitely be much better than before."
"Hoo-hoo~ It feels like that's really the case~"
The girl yawned widely, and her voice sounded a bit sleepy too.
But a moment later, there was a slapping sound from her side—probably her gently patting her own face.
"That was close! I almost fell asleep!"
"No, it's normal to fall asleep at this time, isn't it?"
Asakura retorted.
"It's because Exorcist-san always changes the subject like this that I lose the opportunity to ask."
"Ask what?"
"Of course, Exorcist-san's name! You already know my name..."
The girl's voice sounded a bit wronged.
"Urushibara Ruka."
Asakura said seriously, "My name is Urushibara Ruka."
"Liar."
The girl pouted and protested in a small, indignant voice, "Isn't that the name of the shrine maiden who came here for an exorcism this afternoon!"
"Oh, you actually knew that?"
Asakura was surprised.
"I can tell, Exorcist-san, you're treating Chika like an idiot, aren't you?"
"No, that's not the case (guilty conscience)."
"Yes, you are. The proof is that you still haven't turned around to look at me."
"I just don't like sleeping face-to-face with people."
"A flaw! Hey—!"
The girl suddenly hugged him.
A soft, warm sensation instantly spread from Asakura's back.
"Where's your modesty as a girl...?"
Asakura asked somewhat helplessly.
"It's Exorcist-san's fault for always exposing his back to the enemy!"
Fujiwara Chika murmured in a low voice, like she was acting spoiled and a little sad, "It's just a name, it's okay to tell me, isn't it...?"
Asakura sighed helplessly.
"Asakura Takuma. You can just call me Exorcist-san."
"Since you know the name, why do you still use such a troublesome title!"