"Mmmph! Mmmph!"
Eriri struggled, but under Utaha's meaningful gaze, she finally quieted down and followed the direction Utaha pointed to, her bright blue eyes widening in surprise.
Wasn't that big idiot supposed to be out on a date with Megumi? Well, probably not a romantic date—more likely a delusional one, believing Megumi had some mysterious identity and wanting to break her seal or something.
But what did they see?
A pink-haired girl in a light blue spaghetti-strap dress with a dark blue jacket draped over her shoulders had joined them.
Her pale face, so fair it could reflect light, showed no emotions. Her slightly downcast emerald eyes gave off a faint melancholy. Around her delicate neck was a choker with a small chain, making her look like an imprisoned angel.
The dress couldn't hide her curvy and graceful figure—perhaps even rivaling or surpassing Utaha's own voluptuous and tall frame. Her bare, slender legs beneath the skirt were practically art, especially her sandal-exposed feet; each toe was perfectly rounded, full, and translucent.
But the most important thing: this girl seemed shy?
She clung to Yazuki's shirt hem like a timid child afraid of losing her parents, walking behind him.
In short, this girl gave off the aura of a small, timid animal that invoked an instinctive urge to care for and protect her.
"Wha-wha-what?! Where the hell did that guy pick her up?!"
Eriri felt like she was seeing things.
No matter how she looked at it, she couldn't figure out how such a cute girl seemed so reliant on Yazuki, that damn perverted demon king.
If anything, the girl must have something wrong with her head.
Actually, it really might be the case. Maybe Yazuki tricked her somehow.
Damn it. She even saw how Yazuki looked at the girl—with such gentleness and affection.
Was this guy really capable of showing that kind of expression to a girl?
For some reason, Eriri felt a twinge of sourness in her heart.
"How should I know?"
"I wasn't asking you."
"Well, I wasn't answering you either~"
After exchanging glances, the two of them began sneakily tailing the trio.
At this moment, Utaha also felt a tremendous sense of crisis. This suddenly appeared girl posed a serious threat to their plan to tease Scumbag-kun.
Up to now, Utaha had been quite confident in her looks and figure, but after seeing this girl, for the first time, she doubted whether she could win.
As for temperament, while Utaha appeared to be a quiet, refined beauty on the surface, while this girl had the aura of a timid, melancholic, small-animal type of beauty. Honestly, she might be at a disadvantage.
Just staring at her a bit too long, Utaha felt an irresistible urge to protect her.
This girl… was a super rival!
With her by Scumbag-kun's side, seducing him would now be extremely difficult.
...
After the three of them got out of the taxi, what came into view was a crowd filled with young people.
"They all seem to be high schoolers?"
That pleasant, clear, and slightly confused voice came from Megumi's lips.
"That's normal. This is LaLaport TOKYO-BAY, the dating hotspot for high schoolers in Chiba."
The one who answered was Yazuki. Looking around, couples were everywhere.
The place was filled with all kinds of shops, a movie theater, and a large event space. It was the most luxurious leisure and entertainment facility in Chiba Prefecture, so couples loved coming here on dates—especially today when most high schoolers had a day off.
There were several times more people than usual. And since it was still early, it would only get more crowded later.
Come to think of it, in a way, wasn't he technically part of the normie crowd now? He could already feel the venomous glares from the single dogs around.
First things first, since he called Megumi out early this morning, he should at least entertain her properly—so they came to a nearby café inside the department store.
"I recommend the tiramisu—it's the best dessert here."
"Is that so? Then I won't hold back."
Then, Yazuki looked at Ikaros. He almost forgot—could Ikaros eat? After all, her design was still at an early stage, and now for some reason, she had evolved into the ideal Ikaros he envisioned.
Could she eat like a normal human?
Come to think of it, since she was a magical creation, shouldn't she be unable to function in the real world?
That was because Ikaros had a completely isolated internal operating environment.
She couldn't operate at full capacity in the real world, and she hadn't been fully repaired yet.
But unlike him, whose human body restricted his power use, Ikaros—powered by his Dragon Pearl—could forcibly use her full strength even in the real world.
Her deployed Absolute Defense Field (Aegis) was her absolute domain—similar to an angel's domain—though the energy cost here was several hundred times higher than in the inner world.
Looking at Ikaros again, she still felt so unbelievable—exactly like the one from Heaven's Lost Property.
It felt as if she was really that Ikaros from that world.
"Master, what's the matter? If it's about eating, there's no problem. My internal system includes a standard digestive system."
Ikaros's lips moved, and her words sounded a little odd. Megumi glanced at her but then continued browsing the menu and tapping on her phone.
As for Ikaros's situation, Yazuki told Megumi that she was a distant relative from his hometown—a girl with a late-stage chuunibyou condition who believed she was a robot.
Her speech might be strange, but Megumi shouldn't mind.
In truth, what kind of normal girl wouldn't be bothered? His words and Ikaros's behavior were full of holes—but since Megumi wasn't the type to pry and tended to stay calm, that's exactly why he chose to bring her along.
"So... thanks a lot for helping me today, Megumi."
"Huh? It's nothing, really."
As always, her response was calm and flat.
"Oh, right, I have a question, Yazuki."
"A question?"
"If you were the Demon King, would you want to rule the world—or destroy it?"
Megumi asked offhandedly, without even looking at him, her attention shifting between her phone and the dessert menu.
It sounded like a silly hypothetical, something casually thrown out.
Yazuki froze for a moment, squinting slightly, then gave her an exasperated look.
"Do I look like that kind of person?"
"Hmm... not really."
"Exactly. I'd be bored. If the world were destroyed, how would I enjoy my otaku culture? I—"
He went on for a bit, only to realize that Megumi wasn't even listening.
This girl really liked her phone, huh?