Chapter 77 – Injecting the White Enhancement Serum (Patreon)

The instant she saw the little toy tumble out, Mrs. Yuigahama's brain short-circuited entirely.

There was a saying: women at thirty are like...

And Mrs. Yuigahama had just reached that age.

Throughout her twenties, raising her daughter Yui all on her own, supporting the household, had consumed every ounce of her energy day after day. She simply hadn't had a sliver of spare mental bandwidth to think about anything else. Fortunately, Yui had been an easy child, her grades decent enough.

After she scraped through the entrance exams into an institution like Shuchiin Academy, Mrs. Yuigahama, while deeply relieved, finally found life beginning to ease up. She quit her job, started making small investments through the good connections she had built over the years, and the income was decent enough.

Once a person's energy is freed, they inevitably start seeking pleasures beyond the day-to-day. Seeing loving couples paired up all around her, Mrs. Yuigahama didn't exactly envy them.

At her age, with her daughter already grown, she had never really considered finding someone new. But over a decade of suppression still needed an outlet eventually.

Doing it herself felt clumsy and unpracticed. A few attempts had proven thoroughly unsatisfying.

After carefully, shamefully researching some tips online, Mrs. Yuigahama had chosen to purchase a toy. With her gentle, demure nature, she had been careful to an extreme—cautious, and then cautious some more—traveling a full twenty or thirty kilometers from home to buy it. She had never imagined she'd still run into someone who knew her.

And on top of that, the thing had been shaken loose and fallen out. And a little boy had seen it!

What mortified Mrs. Yuigahama most of all was that, at this very moment, her body and mind were already...

Even more than when she had... by herself...

Mrs. Yuigahama bit down fiercely on her lower lip, fighting with everything she had to control her vocal cords.

If she let out such an unseemly sound in front of her daughter's teacher, how could she ever face Hiratsuka again?! That would truly be... complete and utter social death, wouldn't it.

"Whoa, Yuigahama-obasan, your toy is so unique. Is it for your big sister?"

The little boy's innocent, artless voice reached her ears. In her heart, Mrs. Yuigahama let out a massive sigh of relief. Thank goodness—he hadn't recognized what it really was.

Of course... it was a toy, technically.

"Mhm. My daughter... she really likes these kinds of toys."

Mrs. Yuigahama could only steel herself and follow the little boy's lead.

I'm so sorry, Yui. Mommy didn't want to...

After silently apologizing to Yui in her heart, her hands moved with blinding speed to stuff the toy back into the shopping bag.

Just then, the sudden tremor struck again.

This time, it was far more intense than before. The entire building felt the violent shaking.

"Kouma-kun—!"

Hiratsuka instinctively reached out to pull Kouma close and shield him. But under the powerful jolt, the movement ended up pulling him down instead, dragging Mrs. Yuigahama along with them. All three tumbled into the corner by the wall. Kouma ended up sandwiched in the middle. With two soft cushions on either side, he barely felt any pain from the fall.

On the contrary...

"Nn..."

Two soft moans, each with its own distinct flavor, sounded beside his ears—though they were instantly swallowed by the cursing and screaming that erupted after the tremor, lingering only for Kouma to hear.

When Kouma opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was Mrs. Yuigahama's long, graceful neck, flushed almost pink. He didn't dare move a muscle. Otherwise, he feared the last remaining space to breathe would be buried too.

This tremor lasted several seconds. But the customers in the shop didn't crawl out from under their tables until a good few minutes later. In this world, the vast majority of ordinary people had long since developed the habit of diving under a table first and asking questions later.

"Should be fine now, right?"

"Could it be some dangerous monster that showed up...?"

"Should we head to a shelter now?"

"No evacuation alarm. We're probably fine."

Listening to the voices around them, Hiratsuka stood up and pulled Kouma to his feet. A trace of disappointment flickered in her eyes. If only that shaking had lasted a bit longer—she could have stayed lying there with Kouma for a while more.

"Mrs. Yuigahama, are you alright?"

Hiratsuka also helped Mrs. Yuigahama up from the floor. Seeing her disheveled hair and flushed face, Hiratsuka asked with concern.

Mrs. Yuigahama must have been really shaken up...

Hiratsuka thought to herself. Supporting the beautiful woman, she could feel that Mrs. Yuigahama was limp and weak, barely able to stand steady.

"I'm... fine..."

As if trying to cover something up, Mrs. Yuigahama quickly seated herself in a chair the moment she was up, her beautiful eyes drifting everywhere but toward anyone's gaze.

Mrs. Yuigahama slowly steadied her breathing, yet she couldn't calm her violently pounding heart no matter what. Just sitting nearby, sensing Kouma's presence, tremors continued rippling through her body and mind without pause. She absolutely didn't dare turn her head to look at him.

Recalling her own state just moments before, Mrs. Yuigahama wanted nothing more at this moment than to crawl into a hole from sheer mortification. She had actually... just because of Kouma's contact...

Mrs. Yuigahama couldn't accept it. She had reacted this strongly—to a little boy? Her head felt hot and fuzzy, her thoughts a complete tangle.

It wasn't until the ramen shop owner set fresh bowls of ramen back on the table that Mrs. Yuigahama's beautiful eyes gradually cleared.

At that moment, the ramen shop's television popped up with breaking news.

"A spatial quake phenomenon has just occurred in Tokyo's 15th District!"

"It's been three years since the last spatial quake. This latest occurrence..."

Listening to the broadcast, everyone finally understood.

"District 15... that's not far from here. No wonder we felt such strong shaking."

"Wonder what the casualties will be this time... Sigh. Hope these spatial quake phenomena show up less often in the future."

Hiratsuka remarked with a lingering shudder of relief.

Monsters, ghouls—those disasters had heroes to deal with them. But the spatial quake phenomenon was truly impossible to guard against. Every occurrence caused enormous economic losses. Being able to get a warning and evacuate to a shelter in time was already a blessing.

"Let's eat our ramen and calm our nerves."

The owner, ever dedicated, had prepared fresh bowls and brought them over. The three of them finally started happily slurping noodles.

It had to be said, the ramen shop Hiratsuka recommended really had something going for it. Even Kouma, who was thoroughly accustomed to his own cooking, gave the ramen here a "delicious" rating after his tasting assessment.

"The noodles are springy and perfectly chewy, the broth savory without being salty. Truly delicious!"

Beside him, Mrs. Yuigahama offered a soft-spoken praise.

Hearing this, Hiratsuka seemed to suddenly remember something and turned toward Mrs. Yuigahama.

"Mrs. Yuigahama, you cook often, don't you? Do you know how to make ramen too?"

"A little bit. But definitely not on par with this shop's."

Mrs. Yuigahama replied modestly.

Hiratsuka's beautiful eyes lit up slightly. As a complete culinary novice, learning ramen all by herself would be insanely difficult. But if she had a deft and skillful beauty guiding her from the side, she was sure to make rapid progress.

Hiratsuka's mind was already turning, a plan forming in her heart. But with Kouma right there, she couldn't exactly expose the fact that she couldn't make ramen at all.

"I'll ask Mrs. Yuigahama for advice tomorrow..."

She thought to herself as she ate.

Hiratsuka and Kouma finished their ramen quickly. She glanced over at Mrs. Yuigahama beside them—the woman ate with unhurried, measured elegance, not even halfway done.

"Hiratsuka-sensei, you two go on ahead. No need to wait for me."

A faint, shimmering light glinted in Mrs. Yuigahama's beautiful eyes as she spoke to Hiratsuka.

"Then take your time, Mrs. Yuigahama. I'll head off with Kouma-kun first."

Hiratsuka nodded, and on her way out, she quietly settled Mrs. Yuigahama's ramen bill as well.

"Goodbye, Yuigahama-obasan!"

The little boy's youthful voice drifted into her ears. Mrs. Yuigahama looked at that beautiful little face, and unbidden, tiny flutters rippled through her body and heart.

"Goodbye, Kouma-kun."

Mrs. Yuigahama's red lips parted gently, her voice carrying a trace of nervousness as she spoke.

She watched Hiratsuka and the little boy's silhouettes disappear through the shop entrance, then finally let out a soft sigh of relief. Swiftly, she finished the remaining ramen in her bowl.

"It should have dried by now..."

Mrs. Yuigahama took a deep breath and stood up, holding her shopping bag behind her back with one hand to block any trace that might show.

To be absolutely safe, she went straight to a clothing store and bought a new dress to change into. Only after that did she take the nearly hour-long train ride back home.

"Mom, why are you so late? Where did you go shopping today?"

Yui was already home. She pushed open the door and looked up at her mother with a slightly puzzled expression.

Their eyes met for a few seconds.

"What is it? Is there something on my face?"

Mrs. Yuigahama asked, a bit bemused.

"No, I just thought your complexion looks a lot better."

Hearing this, Mrs. Yuigahama's heart skipped a beat. The earlier scene flooded back into her mind, sending a subtle ripple through her body.

"Maybe I just... slept really well last night."

...

Evening.

A small alleyway.

A girl clad in a butterfly-patterned haori cleanly, decisively beheaded a self-proclaimed Lower Rank demon of the Twelve Demon Moons.

In the instant his head flew from his body, Lower Rank Three's eyes bulged wide, brimming with absolute disbelief. He hadn't even seen her figure—and he had already been slain in a single stroke...

"Kanae-nee-san, you're amazing!"

A girl with flaxen hair, wearing pure white clothes and wielding a slender sword, watched Kanae land lightly upon the ground, her beautiful eyes brimming with adoration.

"Asuna, with your talent, you'll surpass me one day."

Kanae smiled gently and spoke.

Then, seemingly catching the lack of confidence in Asuna Yuuki's beautiful eyes, she added, "If you don't believe me, ask Shinobu."

Standing off to the side, Shinobu saw her older sister toss the question her way and felt a bit helpless. She turned her head, only to meet Asuna's earnest, seeking eyes directly. She could only nod.

"Big sister is right. Asuna, you truly possess the talent to become a Hashira."

Shinobu said seriously.

Though, Asuna was... a rather special case. You could even call her a connection-based recruit.

The Demon Slayer Corps was, at this point, almost entirely funded by the Yuuki family. Inserting one of their own children for training was hardly anything remarkable.

What's more, this particular connection happened to possess truly exceptional talent in swordsmanship. Kanae had directly taken her as her Tsuguko, personally nurturing her growth.

And over these past few months, Asuna had truly demonstrated the progress of a genius.

"But surpassing big sister... that's probably impossible."

Shinobu mused silently.

Ever since her sister had slain that Upper Rank demon last time, her strength seemed to have skyrocketed in explosive leaps.

Before, Shinobu could still exchange a few moves with Kanae, serve as a sparring partner. Now, the two of them were on completely different levels entirely.

Even in actual combat now, Shinobu often couldn't follow her sister's movements. Kanae's speed had reached a point where she seemed to, at times, briefly vanish from sight—no trace to be found at all.

Shinobu had even secretly asked Mitsuri Kanroji, only to discover that she too couldn't see Kanae's movements. The sheer terror of that speed was evident.

After wrapping up the Lower Rank kill, Asuna leaned in close to Shinobu's ear and asked quietly, "How has Kanae-nee-san been training lately? Her strength feels like it's getting stronger and stronger."

Shinobu paused, surprised that even Asuna could perceive how much her sister was improving. Turning to the anticipation in Asuna's eyes, Shinobu shook her head and spoke with earnest solemnity, "Asuna, your rate of progress is already very fast. If you chase shortcuts too desperately, haste will bring the opposite result."

"Okay..."

Asuna nodded, a bit disappointed. She knew these simplest truths, of course. But she truly, desperately wanted to become stronger.

As the only daughter of the Yuuki family, the expectations placed upon her by Mrs. Yuuki were immense.

From childhood, she had been subjected to elite education in everything. Under her mother's stringent pressure, Asuna had always kept pushing forward—from music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, to academics, conduct, athletics, and the arts, and now, to being sent to the Demon Slayer Corps for training. Asuna lived a life of crushing weight under Mrs. Yuuki's expectations.

Only constant growth, faster and faster improvement, could let her push back against that pressure. That was why lately she had been training her swordsmanship and breathing techniques with near-mad intensity, hoping to reach that stage her mother deemed "able to stand on her own two feet" as soon as possible.

Walking ahead, Kanae could faintly hear the two girls' conversation behind her. She habitually pretended not to notice.

After all, this matter of her strength skyrocketing so dramatically—she simply couldn't explain it. She couldn't just come out and tell them directly that she'd been given an injection, that she'd received that superhuman liquid, now could she...

"Mrs. Yuuki is still waiting up ahead. Let's hurry over."

They hadn't been out on an official mission today. They'd just happened to encounter this Lower Rank demon after dinner. Mrs. Yuuki was still outside on the main street, waiting for them to return.

The three girls emerged from the alley and immediately caught sight of Mrs. Yuuki's luxury sedan—as well as two figures standing across from Mrs. Yuuki, one large and one small.

"Hiratsuka-sensei?"

Asuna and Shinobu's beautiful eyes widened slightly.

But Kanae's gaze bypassed Hiratsuka's tall figure entirely, landing directly on the small silhouette beside her, a look of delighted surprise sparkling in her eyes.

"Kouma-kun..."

At that moment, Mrs. Yuuki looked at Kouma standing obediently beside Hiratsuka and suddenly felt that this little boy seemed even more beautiful than the last time they'd met. Just looking at him, an impulse even rose in her heart to take him home with her.

"Hiratsuka-sensei, you didn't drive today, did you? Then allow me to give Kouma-kun a ride home. As it happens, I have a collaborative project with Mrs. Yukinoshita right now."

A hint of a smile surfaced on Mrs. Yuuki's coldly dignified, stern face as she spoke with practiced calm.

Prev    Chapters   Next