"My name is Kamijou Touma, 16 years old. Even though some think I am a hero, I always desired a quiet and calm life. I've even rented an apartment to have a serene time while my place is rebuild. So why..."
Touma hit his head on the kitchen table
"...why is there such a crowd here?! It feels like I am back to square one! Does my luck really hate me that much?!"
Initially, there were 4 people in this apartment during meals. Now, the number increased to 8.
Hasako lived here half the time, Maidono became their neighbour, but the fact that Nephthys and Niang-Niang were coming to eat here had no explanation whatsoever.
"STOP WITH THE FREELOADING! No, some of you don't even live here!"
"Oh, don't make a fuss. The more the merrier. Ummm, your cooking is amazing!" Nephthys closed her eyes in delight.
"Another one!" Niang-Niang grinned, extending a hand with a plate.
"Another one my ass! You ate 3 people's worth!"
Touma could only suspect that the Magic Gods did something for other girls to not question their presence. Maybe they didn't even notice them at all.
Touma sighed and bumped into Rikuri, who was heading to the kitchen with plates.
Metal bowl dropped onto the ground. And as they both reached it, their hands grabbed each other by accident.
"Oh, do you seek my comfort already, boy?~" Rikuri teased "It's early in the morning..."
"I might as well have..." Touma mumbled, which got the older girl flustered, as always when teasing turned on her.
Kaibi, watching from afar, sighed, deep in thought.
'Kamijou has it hard. Apparently, he needs to make up for classes he skipped, plus he cooks for us. Usually, I would not care that much, but... it honestly doesn't feel right. I am planning to go out tonight, but maybe we can do something... no no no, I won't change my plans because of him... b-but...'
Maidono was also worried, although she did not try to hide it like a certain tsundere Measure Heart.
"Hmm, the guy looks like he is about to drop dead. I thought I was helping enough, but apparently he has a lot going on even besides cooking us..."
Maidono used her powers to navigate the parade of dishes, which floated through the air towards respective people. Her reach was such that she could bring something from the kitchen without moving from her chair. But this was apparently not enough to ease Kamijou's tiredness.
Hasako was not saying anything, but she casted worried glances towards the kitchen from time to time, and got so distracted that she kept slurping the air form cup where once was her milkshake.
Nephthys and Niang-Niang, who in truth did not experience Touma's kitchen in its full glory, were too busy stuffing themselves full to notice anything odd.
However, the one who finally managed to address the issue, was none other than Amazora.
"Onii-chan... is something wrong? You look so tired!"
Yes, if anyone was not afraid to bluntly confess her worry, it was the little girl staring at Touma with her eyes filled with questions.
Touma smiled and patted her on the head.
"Don't worry about me. I am fine, totally... now, I will be back in just a moment..." and with that, he wobbled his way to the bathroom.
The silence, aside from the sounds of absolutely delighted Niang-Niang stuffing her face with chinese-styled dumplings that Touma made especially for her, was deafeningly awkward.
Finally, Maidono grabbed her head in her hands and muttered.
"Okay, I can't take it anymore! I think we can all agree that Kamijou looks stressed as hell?"
Today, Maidono had her natural dark-brown hair on display. Ever since her reveal of levitation, she alternated between wig and natural look (although she kept the reason a secret, she was testing which of the two styles Touma preferred more).
"He looks so beat! Apparently, he has exams to prepare for, make up classes, his regular shitty luck, and having all of us here is a little bit overwhelming, just saying".
The rest of the girls nodded slowly. However, not all of them agreed upon it with no emotions on their part.
"From what I know, he had freeloaders before he and us came to live here, and they weren't exactly helpful. Repeating that for him is just mean. And I don't usually have problem with mean" Kaibi said, taking a sip of tea from her cup.
Maidono gave her a cross look.
"How do you know of the details of his life, miss dress?"
Kaibi didn't stop elegantly sipping tea, however, her cheeks, visible above the cup, became slightly red. She sighed as she put the drink down.
"That's none of your business."
"I bet sharing a house with someone like this must have been what tired him so much. I mean, you are the type to lash out at imperfections and mistakes, right?" Maidono smirked at Kaibi.
"I have done nothing...much... of this sort! Besides, we were perfectly happy with just my sisters and Kamijou. We are not a damn hotel! We appreciate your help and being a mentor to Amazora, but you can go now. You have your own flat"
"I am sorry, but I didn't see any signs of him disagreeing with my presence here!"
"Maybe because he is a soft hearted idiot who can't dismiss some clingy fool who can't even muster out her true motives"
"You are talking about yourself, I presume?!"
"Excuse me?! Listen, we were here first, so stop tiring Kamijou!"
"Oh, so it's my fault then?!"
"And what if it is?!"
Both girl's raised from their seats, not breaking eye contact.
Maidono grit her teeth. Her irritation was apparent, as all plates and utensils started to shake and slowly move towards her.
"You know, I tried to be reasonable because I consider myself Kamijou's hands to the darkness. But you are really starting to piss me off! Maybe I shall crush you with something so you can cool off! Or maybe you want to be dropped from high altitude?"
"You can try" Kaibi's eyes glowed ominously" But just like you, I trained my power to perfection. Our emotional distance will be decreased before you manage to throw anything at me, or even grab me for that matter. Good luck trying to kill your lover or a partner. Unless you are a sociopath, in which case Kamijou would be better off without you. And you can't just grab me with your power and throw out the window, right?"
"Damn you! I don't need to control your body to-"
"Emm, girls, I don't think we should..." Hasako tried to interject, but was met with fire from both sides.
"YOU STAY OUT OF THIS! It's always the quiet ones. You try to get him to do what you want as well, thinking we wouldn't notice?!"
"Pardon?!" tears of anger appeared in Hasako's eyes "I am not... I could never!"
Amazora, confused with the now three-way shouting match, exited the room. Meanwhile, Rikuri sighed, inhaled deeply through her nose, and...
"EVERYONE, CALM DOWN. RIGHT. NOW!"
She slammed her fist onto the table.
When Maidono and Kaibi tried to point fingers at each other, the older girl raised her own.
"I don't care. If you don't stop, I swear I will spike your drinks and you won't leave the bathroom for the next week."
That did the trick, combined with the fact that Kaibi was oldest (by appearance) member of the group, not counting over 70 years old Hasako and millenia old Magic Gods.
"I have no doubt that you would be able to kill each other, but that would not improve the situation. Besides, if you two started fighting" She pointed at two quasi-level 5 espers "Part of the town could be destroyed. And that's an optimistic estimation"
Maidono and Hasako lowered their heads, although their still send glares at each other from time to time.
Rikuri put her hands together, and focused on all of the girls. Meanwhile, Nephthys and Niang-Niang finished their meals and were now resting with satisfied looks on their faces.
"I think we can all agree that under that senseless bickering, we are simply worried for Kamijou. He did a lot and let's be honest, saved all of us from certain problems."
Kaibi felt a sharp stab in her heart.
'Not me though...'
She owed him for saving her sisters, but he did not involve himself in Kaibi's own case.
Did it... bother her? She kept her distance because of her own wishes, so why did the thought of Kamijou not having a moment like this with her started to bother her now?! How stupid was that?
"I too noticed that he looks tired. And well... I think we all feel guilty about it. It may or may not be related to us, but we are his environment right now. Guilt that we did not do anything about it is fine, but we can't let it end there. There must be something we can do"
"Hmm..."
As they contemplated the situation, one voice entered the discussion. It was Magic God Nephthys, currently laying on the sofa
"What if we made some sort of gifts for him?" she exclaimed towards the rest of the females.
Rikuri blinked, as if she felt something, but when she looked in direction of the couch, there was nothing there.
"What if we made some sort of gifts for him?" she said, with a bit of unease in her voice, as the thought appeared in her head so suddenly that it almost felt like someone gave her that idea.
The rest of the girls started to whisper in excitement.
"That sounds like a cool idea." Maidono approved "But what should we do? And in which form?"
"G-Gift for Kamijou-san?" Hasako was also taking in the new idea "But what should it be?"
Kaibi was the last to speak, and she did so with certain amount of reserve
"Gift? I... should we do it together? Or..."
She knew what answer the she would give the moment she started asking. But it still felt right to consult the others.
Kaibi wanted to erase that thought from her mind. She knew it was silly and maybe utterly selfish.
But when she imagined Kamijou receiving a gift, she wanted for him to be focused on hers and hers alone.
She shook her head.
'Why is my heart beating fast? Am I... excited about this? Excited? Me?'
Gokusai Kaibi's trademark was coolness and collected allure. Yet Kamijou Touma demonstrated her yet again that he had an unparalleled ability in messing her emotions, even being in the other room.
Rikuri took her younger sibling's reaction as being lost on what to do.
"I think we all have valid questions, and we should discuss them to figure out what to do. This is why I proclaim that we shall do... girls outing!"
Kaibi stared at her excited sister
"Huh?"
Hasako was equally dumbfounded.
"Girls... outing? What is this?"
Maidono turned to her with shock on her face.
"What?! You never went out with your female friends?! That's an awesome thing! We can drink, and go to do something fun, and in the meantime, we'll figure out how to appreciate Kamijou without him eavesdropping."
"I didn't have many friends back in my time" Hasako muttered quietly "And most of the time I was experimented on or had to fend off people who called me an freak..."
"Right... s-sorry... but well, there is a first time for everything..." Maidono uttered awkwardly, rubbing her arms to shake off the awful feeling of discomfort. Touma and Gokusai sisters decided, after consultation with Hasako, to tell her basic background regarding the Beginning Child. Maidono accepted the explanation, but in all honesty, still had a lot of trouble fully comprehending it. It seemed out of this world even for Academy City.
Rikuri clapped her hands
"Well, ladies, no time to waste. Oh, and don't tell our cute Amazora-chan. At least not yet."
"Right, she would out the secret before we managed to do anything" Kaibi looked at Rikuri, and whispered" Also... that day is close, right?"
Rikuri's smile fell a little.
"Yeah, she does not remember, but may still feel off. Some memories are felt even if we can't express them. So maybe it's best if we left her with him... he does seem to have a great effect on her."
Kaibi felt stinging sensation once again. Yet again, she forced herself to ignore it.
(15 MINUTES LATER)
When Touma got out after washing himself, he encountered an empty living room. Well, almost empty. Amazora was curled up on the sofa.
"Onii-chan..." she muttered, and Touma realized she was asleep.
"Amazora... why are you asleep, it's morning..." he tried to speak. Yet...
"She is exhausted. Don't wake her up"
Touma jumped, when she heard the voice of Niang-Niang right beside him. The goddess snickered, climbling her purple and pale fingers up his back, enjoying the establishing trend of scaring Touma.
"Niang-Niang? You are still here?!"
"Oh, don't say that in such tone. I know you love having such a fun girl like myself around"
"Replace fun with problematic and I will agree"
She stuck her tongue at him, but with no apparent malice.
"Agree with liking me or me being problematic?"
"Is something wrong with Amazora?" Touma interrupted the teasy streak.
Niang-Niang looked at the small girl, and sighed.
"She is troubled, that much I know. I observed her for a little bit of time, and she seems to carry something within, that she is not comfortable with.
She stroke Amazora's head and sang softly in a language that Touma could only assume was a chinese dialect:
jiù yì jiù xiàng yi shàn chuāng
tuī kaī le jiù zài nán hé shàng
shuí căi guò kū zhī qīng xiăng
yíng huŏ huì zhe huà píng xiāng
Which he somehow understood, as was the case with Nephthys:
Old memories are like windows
If you push it away, it's hard to close it again
Who has stepped over the dead branches, made a soft sound
And drawn the painted screen of incense with firefly spark.
"Maybe that's something coming from her past." the goddess resumed "Those girls are runaways, right? The little one is carrying on well, but recently, she is not sleeping well."
Indeed, Touma noticed that even now, Amazora's face was twitching and her breathing was more erratic than it should be in calm sleep.
"She is having nightmares? So what can I do?"
Niang-Niang grinned
"Do you even need to ask? Come and comfort her. Just lay down with her."
"Eh?"
"You are dense, so I will spell it to you: you are important for this little girl. I don't know how much, and I will leave the exploration to you, but your presence is soothing for her. She is troubled by something awful from her earliest past, and her sisters can only do so much. She needs you."
"I-If you say so..." Touma said, slowly laying down next to Amazora. Not even a minute passed when Niang-Niang's words turned out to be true. Amazora hugged him tightly, and her face calmed down.
Touma also smiled, slowly stroking Amazora's curls to calm her down. He had to admit, youngest Gokusai was admittedly cute and it warmed his heart to see this quality being on full display when she could sleep soundly. One could almost forget that her hobby was using the gattling gun.
"I never had younger siblings so I didn't know what to do at first... but being able to make her happy makes me really glad" Touma finally said. He then blinked and turned to Niang-Niang.
"Hey, last time you told me Amazora is like you. Can you tell me something about it?"
Niang-Niang shrugged, her long sleeves fluttering a little.
"She is determined, has fire in her heart, sense of humour, desire to overcome obstacles. I was the same when I was her age, thousands of years ago... or maybe more? To be honest, that little troublemaker earned a soft spot in me. If she was not an esper, it would be nice to have someone like this as Magic God. Also... she is in the age of my own little sister..."
She got quiet, and looked at Touma.
"I know that Nephthys told you about her story. I don't like to be behind, so I will say something as well. I was born near island of Hainan, on the territory between today's China and Vietnam. My family was not rich, but we somehow managed on our own. My father was a small town official, and my mom weaved and dyed clothing to earn for a living. I also had a younger sister, that was a pride of our village. You see those Yin-Yang accessories on my braids? One of them used to belong to her. "
"What was her name?"
"Liánhuā. It means "Lotus flower". I tell you, she was adored by everyone, a girl that was a model daughter of the time. She was a bundle of energy and always tried to help everyone, even though she messed up more often than not. Meanwhile, I was... more of a rebel, especially for that time. I always tried to get myself into the armoury, ride on horses, and do things girls should not do. I also learned how to read and had photographic memory, that was also not very useful for a girl.
One day, the local lord from nearby town noticed me, bathing in the river. As he watched me, he came with the idea to make me his bride. He was a tyrant and enjoyed to torment people for his own benefit, and wished for a bride from a common villagers so she could not oppose him. Of course, no one was really thrilled. But my parents could not oppose him. No one could."
Touma eyed her sceptically
"Was he a lolico-"
In that moment he discovered that he was not a foot enjoyer, as the end of purple limb collided with his face.
"I looked different back then" Niang-Niang fumed "I was not yet of marrying age. Yet the lord did not care. He demanded that I will go with him, or the village will suffer the consequences. Going would mean I were to never see my family again, and my sister was heartbroken. We devised the plan to somehow stall time. Only a bit later I learned that she tried to impersonate me. She was only a little bit younger than me and with enough preparation, she could fool someone who did not know us. She was convinced that as the stronger one, I alone had the means to oppose the lord and find some way out that would not get our family torn apart. I fled at night, promising to rescue all of them. I searched shelter in the old Dao shrine. The monks helped me but denied the access to their sacred scrolls, deeming it too dangerous. That didn't stop me though, as I stolen them, and ran away again. After week of running away, travel, and practice, I managed to more or less memorize them. I had no idea that they were magical. Thinking back, it was a stroke of dumb luck"
"Why though? Why were you doing this?"
"Tao was considered powerful magical force in our village. With no way to oppose the military might of the tyrant lord, I thought reaching for the supernatural was my only choice. I only wanted to find some way to make him lose his interest in us, so we could go back to our lives. I found what I was looking for, even in such short amount of time. But I was still too late."
She tightened her fists.
"When I returned, my hometown was burning. The streets were littered with corpses. And in the middle of it all, I could see my sister, crying for help as that monster and his men were taking her away. She stalled for time longer than I could have anticipated. But he probably figured it out when she showered. He saw my body before, maybe he could tell the difference. He was furious for that deception and all town suffered because of that. Just because of that, I was the demise of my people. I ran after my sister who was being taken. He probably did not care anymore and wanted to just destroy me for humiliating his intelligence, by taking Liánhuā away. But then... it happened. As she struggled, she managed to fall down alongside the rider. And the horse, scared by sudden commotion, kicked her in the head. I did not know it yet, but it was a lethal blow. As I ran to her side, I tried to perform a healing ritual described in scrolls to give her my chi, my life energy, in hope that it will save her life. It started to work. But then, it was interrupted. As I channelled the energy into her body, one of the men, maybe in terror from the sight of mystical power, drove a spear through me. Thanks to this, unimaginable occurred."
Touma did not even notice that he was baiting his breath.
"Aleister probably told you that in magic, even slightest things can become symbols of power. As Liánhuā died and I kept giving her my life force, she wore my clothes and styled herself as me, as she kept the charade till the last moment. Our ending lives, me giving her my very soul, and her taking my identity flawed the healing and changed it into something else: the corpse liberation, Shijie. My sister died, but I lived on, as my "life" symbolically ended with her death, causing my chi combined with the ritual for a new form of power to manifest. Magic flowing through changed my body, giving me my current look, and turned me into the imperfect Xian, the undead being."
"I...am so sorry."
"Don't be. The blame is on me, for being a complete fool who did not know anything about the world. After I woke up, I tried to revive everyone, I poured everything into it. But they couldn't wake up. And as for the monsters that caused all of that... they all fell quickly before my new might.
I slaughtered them... I slaughtered them all.
That day, only I walked away, after burying my sister. Hollow and empty, I discarded everything. I stopped to age. Even though I learned that later on, the act of abandoning my humanity, my heart, and people I loved met the conditions necessary to turn me into Magic God. They always have to sacrifice parts of her humanity to achieve the power. I had the power, but was completely alone in the world. For few centuries, I was trying to find a sense of purpose. I trained taoistic magic, sneaked into the military dressed as a man, and thought thousands of battles. I got proficient in using weapons, and created my Pao-Pei. Without realizing it, I achieved divinity, through natural skill and talent. And finally, nearly 4 centuries after I became a Xian, I met Nephthys, when I travelled towards the west in search of something that could quench my boredom. I was battle thirsty, yet she completely destroyed me. She never laughed at me, hah, she cried when I told her my story. She taught me how to become a Magic God and promised to walk on that path with me. But that's the story for another time. "
"That... that's so sad and cruel"
"Yes, indeed. But you know what? I tried so hard to change the world for Liánhuā's soul to have rest. I may not redeem myself, but I thought 'If I live longer, maybe something good will come out of it.'"
Touma smiled, feeling tired all of the sudden.
"Niang-Niang-san... I think you are a really good person"
The purple-skinned girl blinked
"Huh? I told you that I made terrible mistakes and through my dumb trust in some nonexistent humanity in that guy, I killed everyone around me"
"Even if that was so... you tried a lot to help. You escaped, but wanted to aid them. You wanted to sacrifice everything to help others, even discard your humanity. If it wasn't for the fact that she was too far gone, you would give your life in exchange for your sister's, right? You are a good person. And I am sticking to it."
Niang-Niang chuckled and sighed.
"Aren't you a charmer? I am an undead immortal, you know. My heart isn't suppose to beat. I also forgot the boundaries of good and evil... but unlike Nephthys, I didn't pop up through some sort of magic phenomenon. I was just a simple, even if beautiful and talented girl. And talking to you..."
The last thing Touma remembered before falling asleep was the cheeky grin of taoistic deity.
"... makes me remember how it's like to truly feel. Kamijou Touma... I wished you would meet me sooner. Someone like that does not come around every millenium."
Touma fell asleep, hugging Amazora tightly. Maybe it was because of Niang-Niang's story, but from that moment forth, he gained new appreciation for the Gokusai Amazora. Even now, he hugged her protectively, which caused the girl to blush and giggle in her sleep. Her nightmare was now just a memory.
Niang-Niang watched them with a somewhat nostalgic look on her face, before she rose up, and put her fingers together with a mischievous smile.
"Now then, girls can't be the only one having fun. Something must be done about that..."
(1 HOUR LATER)
Touma was woke up by knocking on the door.
Slowly getting up, he proceeded to see who was causing the commotion. And he was in for a major surprise.
"Huh? Hamazura?!"
Indeed, the boy with a messy blond hair and brown hoodie was standing awkwardly in the entrance.
"Boss, I should be used to seeing things like this through my times with ITEM, but wow, this place has style."
"It's not exactly like I paid for this place..." Touma shook his head "No, wait a moment, what are you doing-"
"Hold up" Hamazura raised a hand, and turned around" Are you okay back then?!"
For a couple of seconds, there was no answer. But then a silhouette emerged from the shadows of the staircase.
"Nyah... it's good, all good... I just made a tactical stop..."
She was wearing an outfit that would suit a video game idol. She also had long blond hair and crystal blue eyes. Kamijou recognized her, as he was involved in events of this girl's life not once, but twice.
"Fremea-chan!"
Fremea Seivelun pointed a finger at Hamazura.
"Nyah hah! Did you see that?! I can take stairs and go up 9 floors in a few minutes, no problem!"
"Yeah, and you are on the verge of collapsing. Your legs are trembling and you are panting like crazy. I told you, you don't have to prove your stamina."
Hamazura sighed, picking up smaller girl into his arms.
"Honestly, this kid. Say that she can't do something, and she tries to prove you wrong. She is so cheeky about, it's as if I saw her sister in the flesh... oh, and who is this?"
Amazora, rubbing her eyes sleepily, appeared by Touma's side.
"Gyah?! Intruders! Is onii-chan trying to replace me?! This needs my baby-"
"Stupid! Don't start with that now or the whole flat will look like a swiss cheese."
In the next moment, two boys were sitting at the couch while two small girls faced each other while sitting on the living room's carpet.
"Boss, are you on babysitting duty?"
"Kind of. You?"
"I took pity on Fremea. Mugino is... not in a great mood, since she accidentally ran into you. She roams our apartment like an angry blizzard of electron beams. Kinuhata dragged Takitsubo somewhere, probably to shop, so I took it upon myself to evacuate us from danger zone. Boss, she gets all furious and red when we mention this incident. What... did you do?"
Touma chuckled awkwardly.
"While, I sorta... kinda... kissed her... by accident..."
Hamazura stared at him blankly.
"You did what?! This is... like a death warrant! I mean, this is Mugino we are talking about!"
Meanwhile, it seemed that in short amount of time, Fremea and Amazora bonded in the way that is possible only for free-spirited girls of their age. They were now discussing something, and no one would suggest that they were complete strangers just a moment ago. The discussion was very chaotic, but Touma swore that he heard the words "training bra" and "beetle". Soon, the conversation turned into the debate over best big-brother figure
"Hamazura is much better! He can operate all sorts of different types of machines!"
"Onii-chan is 100 times better! He punches people in the face and it's super cool!"
"Hamazura is million times better! He has a girlfriend!"
"Onii-chan is infinity times better! He can have like super lot girlfriends."
"This is getting surreal" Touma commented.
"Yeah, those two are definitely gonna become best friends, no doubts about it" Hamazura also added his confused commentary.
He then looked at Amazora, narrowing his eyes.
"You said that a friend left her with you? Maybe I'm imagining things... but she is so similar to that blond girl in the dress... is she by chance..."
Kamijou and Amazora stiffened. Fremea was turning from one side to the other, not understanding the sudden tension in the air.
'If he knows Kaibi-san, we need to bluff. It would be better to calmly explain the situation, but revealing it like this would be super awkward. Amazora, act naturally!'
Amazora winked to him.
'I have a bad feeling...'
"I am Amazora Goku... Gok... Gokai! I am a completely normal girl, who goes to school, has regular grades, and definitely doesn't shoot people with a wonderful, super cool gattling gun. No, that's not me at all! Ah hah hah hah!"
'Yup, we are dead. She can't bluff at all!'
Hamazura looked at too-widely smiling Amazaora. He opened his mouth...
The bell rang, and Touma thanked every possible scrap of fortune he had. Then something occurred to him.
"Hamazura... why are you here, actually?"
Hamazura shifted his attention to him, making Amazora breath out a sigh of relief.
"Oh? I was invited. By you, boss. I took Fremea along, I hope it's not a problem though."
"I wanted to see you as well, spiky haired hero friend of Hamazura!" Fremea jumped high onto Touma's lap "Actually, I didn't thank you last time you tried to help me with Beetle-san"
"The name is Touma, and it was a pleasure to help you, Fremea-chan. But what was that about invitation-"
The look on Amazora's face upon seeing her new friend's action was so strikingly similar to Kaibi's look of disgust that Touma wouldn't be surprised if it was a copy and paste of genetics. He hoped Hamazura did not pick on yet another similarity. Kaibi was surely a troublesome girl. Why was he even covering for her?
Well, because he cared, probably. And because he wanted to understand her circumstances on his own.
There was a very loud knocking on the door. After getting Fremea down, Touma once again walked to the door.
"What invitation? I didn't send anything..."
"KAMIJOUUUUU! THE PARTY'S GUTS ARE HERE!"
Under a particularly strong knock, the doors flew out of his hinges, straight onto Touma. The new person stepped into the apartment, scratching his head in innocent shock.
"Huh? It seemed my excitement got the better of me!" Sogiita Gunha laughed boisterously, until he noticed Kamijou, twitching under the door. "Oh... why is Kamijou under the door?!"
"Nyah! Spiky hair uncle!"
"Onii-chan!"
"Boss!"
(LATER...)
When Touma came around, he was laying on the floor, and there were two small girls weeping by his side.
"Onii-chan was such a good onii-chan..."
"He did seem cool" Fremea showered him with something that felt like shredded paper.
"Don't worry onii-chan. I will use your belongings to get myself money for weapons and oysters. I'm sure you would be happy..."
"LIKE HELL I WOULD!" Touma shouted, opening his eyes and noticing that girls placed him in a circle made out of few aromatic candles "I am not dead, so stop performing some strange rituals"
As he got up, he realized a two other things. Firstly, the door were fixed and he was laying on the floor in the entrance to living room. Secondly, there were a lot more people in the room. Except for Amazora and Fremea, all of them were guys.
Besides Gunha, in front of him sat two very familiar teens, one with blond hair and Hawaian shirt, the other with blue hair, wearing light shirt under school uniform.
"Tsuchi...mikado? Aogami?!"
"Yo, Kami-yan" his neighbour in their proper dorm greeted him" What's with that face? I know that this is a difference to your normal female to male ratio, but don't act so surprised, nya~"
"KAMIJOU, DAMN YOU!" Aogami was currently engaging in smelling a pillow that he pulled from god knows where" I smell a girl in those sheets. Care to explain why?!"
"Emm... that is... what..."
Touma's mind went into disarray when he noticed another person by Gunha's side.
"Out of all people... Thor? You too?"
"Yo, Kamijou-chan" the long-haired warrior magician winked at him" Long time no see."
Touma slowly looked to his left, where he noticed Hamazura, who seemed relieved that Touma woke up, and Aikawa Enka, who looked extremely out of place given that he never encountered any of the people in the room besides Kamijou and Amazora.
Touma grabbed his head, staring wide eyed at the sight in front of him.
"Oi...oioioioi!"
"Ne, are we waiting for someone else?" Tsuchimikado asked Hamazura.
"Emm, I think there were some other people in the recipient section..."
"Wait, wait, wait! Time out!" Touma finally snapped" It's not like I don't like seeing you, but what is going on here? Why is there a bunch of guys in my apartment?"
Everyone looked at each other, suddenly looking even more confused than Touma was.
"It was in the invitation, Kamijou" Gunha hand through the air.
"Yeah, you sent this to each of us" Hamazura gave his phone to Touma" Are you feeling okay?"
Touma looked at the text displayed on the phone:
KAMIJOU TOUMA INVITES YOU TO ULTRA GUYS PARTY
FUN, CRAZINESS, AND BONDING EXPERIENCE
YOU CAN'T MISS IT, COME IN THE NAME OF OLD TIMES
'I...I did not send this though! And if not me, then who?' Touma thought to himself.
(MEANWHILE...)
Niang-Niang laughed loudly while strolling throughout the festive alley that contained some of Academy City's recreation establishments.
She flashed yet another wicked smile.
"Ho, does this mean Kamijou realized my wonderful gift? Enjoy this, boy. It's on the house"
As Touma found herself in unusual situation, her own destination was just ahead.
Namely, it was a karaoke club. It hustled and bustled with activity even in the nearing noon.
She got into it and passed through reception with no one stopping her. After a bit of thought, she stepped through the door leading to correct karaoke booth.
It was called "booth" but in truth, it was the proper, soundproofed room with couches and mini-bar. Currently, it contained the group of familiar females Niang-Niang was looking for.
Nephthys was sitting in the corner of the room, stretched lazily on her chair. Apparently, she followed the girls while still keeping them from noticing her.
"How is it going?" Niang-Niang asked.
"Well, I think now we are getting to the good part" her friend commented.
Just meters away, Gokusai Kaibi was gritting her teeth.
It was not like she wasn't in places like this before. Some of her clients met her in such clubs.
It was not like she was particularly nervous while being with the girls. While yes, it was a bit out of her natural environment to socialize with so many females, it was nothing she could not solve with her adaptation prowess and natural manipulation skill.
That would be normal. That would be bearable.
What happened in her soul was neither of the two.
'Ghhh... why do I feel bad for leaving Kamijou? Why do I feel like I wanted to stay there? Is it because I wanted to stay with him? Since when the Gokusai Kaibi allows herself to be bounced back and forth between her desires? I am simply... frustrated that he ignored me. W-Why am I feeling like this though? This stupid face of his won't leave my mind. I-It's not like I feel left out and want to spend time with him! I-I am simply worried about Amazora. Who knows what those two will concoct in their heads...'
What Kaibi realized yet found humiliating to phrase out even in her mind was the fact that she was not even jealous of Amazora. She simply wanted to be alone with Touma. Yet even with her emotional maturity, her poor tsundere heart, that she could regulate in regards to everyone but Touma, could only take so much.
Meanwhile, Rikuri once again took the initiative as the four girls plus two unnoticed gods made themselves comfortable.
"Okay, I want all of you to think about nice present for Kamijou-san. Put your heart into it! And in the meantime, just to bring you some inspiration... let's have some good old karaoke! I heard that this place has a lot of not-well known, interesting songs"
"Eh?! We are singing?" the remaining trio shouted. Nephthys and Niang-Niang rose their heads in interest.
"Yes! And I shall now decide in which order it should be done!" Rikuri grabbed poky sticks, and handed them to the girls.
Determined by drawn length of the sticks, the order was Hasako, Maidono, Kaibi, and Rikuri.
"Go on!" Rikuri cheered on the first esper, who slowly stepped forward, towards the screen and selection computer" Let the music bring inspiration for you!"
After certain amount of fighting with technology, and some pre-listening, Hasako's eyes lit up. One particular song seemed made for her! When she selected it and stepped forward, she shyly gulped.
She never sang in front of people. She was not sure if she could do it well. But on the other hand, she had another reason to do it, didn't she?
She thought of Kamijou Touma. How they met, how he saved her, and gave her purpose when she was lost in this alien world. About how much she wanted to thank everyone involved in that indicent... Kamijou, Kumokawa, Mitsuari, even the three blond sisters...
"Kaibi-san, start it please"
Beginning Child took a deep breath and after a few moments of music, began to sing, as her thoughts flowed onwards.
She thought about her desire to explore this new world. To repay Kamijou Touma for gifting her the chance to walk forth into this new realm of possibilities. How safe and grateful she felt when she was with him.
He believed in her when she was at her lowest, when she gave up on the chance that anyone can see her as a woman and not a freak newspapers of her time made her to be. So she wanted to make him cherish the life they were both living. Just like he did for her, she wanted to ensure that he did not feel alone facing the problems of the world. As Hasako sang, her voice got stronger and brighter.
That was right. She wanted to be Kamijou Touma's imagination. If he ever dreamed of a world of peace, she could use her power to stand by his side and make it perfect for everyone. She truly wanted to dedicate her heart to help him achieve this world.
As the song finished, she was greeted with round of applause so fierce that it made her blush.
"Hasako-chan, you have such a beautiful and soothing voice! That was amazing! So, do you have any ideas?" Rikuri inquired.
"Well, I might have a first step in mind..."
As she explained her plan, Maidono punched the air.
"I think that totally suits you! Go for it!"
"I also think that this is a splendid idea to create something wonderful" Rikuri smiled at Hasako in encouragement" Now, we're going to Maidono-chan, but first, let's have a short break..."
Meanwhile, Kaibi did her best to smile along, as she truly enjoyed Hasako's performance but in truth, that weird feeling in her chest returned yet again. It confused her greatly. She shook her head and got up. This happy go lucky play went on long enough, now she got to...
"Oh, are really going now? We were going to have ice cream cake."
Shiver ran through flawless skin of Gokusai Kaibi. She slowly turned around.
"Well, if I am here already... I don't mind, I guess..."
Leave it to older sister to exploit certain sweet tooth of her younger sibling.
(MEANWHILE)
"Damn you! What exactly are you doing when Index is away and waiting?!"
"Stiyl... I would explain if you stopped with trying to shake the soul out of me.."
Just moments ago, the furious fire magician made its way through the door of the apartment and was now grabbing Touma by his clothes.
"Oi, Oi, can't you let this slide and enjoy yourself?" Tsuchimikado patted Stiyl on the back" Index is safe and sound with nee-chin, and Kami-yan's dorm is still undergoing touches of renovation."
Touma nodded at that. He realized that the appointed time of his stay in the apartment was not infinite, but now... he felt a bit bad about it. Of course he wanted to see Index again, but at the same time... at the same time...
Stiyl growled under his breath and let Touma go.
"Fine. But what the hell is this circus of a group?!"
"KAMIJOU! Why didn't you tell me before that you have such amazing friends" Gunha excitedly fist bumped Thor, alongside doing a convoluted dance.
'Oh my god! This is not good. The city... no, the world is not ready for those two together!'
"We have a lot in common" Thor added, licking his lips "If we get a little bit of space, things are going to get glorious. Oh, and Kamijou-chan. We got a little bit excited in testing our strength and-"
"MY WALL! Why is there a hole in the kitchen wall?!" Touma cried out.
"Don't worry onii-chan" Amazora tried to console him "Kai onee-chan said that it would be nice to have more light in the kitchen area..."
Touma looked at only two females in their group, and he got even more terrified by their new companion.
"Oh no..."
Aogami Pierce, one of the most perverted creatures to ever roam the earth, was in excitement.
"Loli and video game idol and imouto but many, many more as well?! You girls have such a fresh, unlimited potential..."
"What is he talking about? What is an "ant eye"?" Fremea, bless her innocent soul, asked out loud.
"Non, non, non, little missy! You see, it is pronounced hen-"
Touma's punch collided with Aogami's head, sending him to the floor.
"You are not scaring them for life, you degenerate!" Touma yelled out.
Hamazura appreciated the sheer scale of chaos that emerged from so many guys in one room. In fact, while he was used to many girls around Touma, he did not suspect that he knew many guys aside from himself, and maybe Accelerator. But those guys seemed like something else...
Finally Tsuchimikado decided to intervene, for what Touma was eternally grateful, as Enka's nervousness and Stiyl's irritation could end in both of them using their abilities, which in turn would result in spectacular explosion that would kill them all.
"Everyone! Let's loosen up a little and have a blast of afternoon, nya~. Let's go for the city and have fun" the blond spy grinned, motioning at the door.
"B-But I have to take care of Amazora" Touma protested. However...
"Onii-chan! I want to have fun with them. Let's go or I will tell Kai onee-chan that you locked me here alone!"
"B-But I am doing this for your own good... fukou da..."
And so, in no time, they found themselves in the small 4x4 Land Rover. Touma had no idea how Tsuchimikado got a vehicle like this. To be honest, both he and Hamazura could easily have something like this under their belts thanks to their dealings with the dark side.
They were more or less comfortable in the very big vehicle. But the real question was...
"W-Why are we all wearing sunglasses?"
"Kami-yan, I am gonna ignore this question and your lack of knowledge about the awesomeness and epicness of sunglasses"
"W-Well, I guess I can see.. your point..."
Gunha and Thor smirked, and looked so natural in sunglasses that they seemed born with them on. Amazora and Fremea had a haughty looks their faces, and the shades made them appear like a daughters of some mafia family (which to an extent they were). However, Stiyl and Enka did not seem to be adapting the look with the same eagerness.
The methane esper was starting to get more or less acquainted with the diverse mix, and right now appeared more confused than ever. He answered Touma's summons without knowledge that there would be others alongside them. He stayed however, when Touma explained to him, that this was his first step to gain friends and get closer to having a loving girlfriend (although Touma himself was not fully sure how exactly would it follow through).
Stiyl however...
"I refuse! I have my pride as a human being" the scowling priest slapped the shades away "Besides, I don't want to stick around any longer with them. I am leaving!"
"Sure~" Tsuchimikado said slowly" If that's how mighty Stiyl Magnus handles pressure of simple going out, then everyone are certified to call you a stick in the butt"
Stiyl gritted his teeth
"Don't think your damn smoothtalk will-"
"Oh, and what will Index-chan say? She will be worried sick if you overwork yourself... you don't want her to worry, right? Besides, I bet you would be able to impress her with those shades on..."
The devil's done it. Stiyl put the shades on without further protest.
'Tsuchimikado... you really are as sly as snake...'
"Oh, and while we are at it..." Tsuchimikado pulled out the phone, and tapped something on it.
Few moments later a pale face with red eyes appeared on screen.
"You know, this is supposed to be an emergency number! Damn it..."
"Welcome to our merry group, Accelerator. Aren't you curious? I know you know about our plans, because you totally inherited this old prick's eavesdropping habits"
"Tch..."
"Come on, come on! Don't tell me you have something more interesting to do, in this wonderfully locked up life of yours~"
"Shut it! You have no idea... I'm in caffeteria and all adult prisoners are crawling away like a bunch of maggots! I get that the trash knows its place, but this is humiliating for everyone! I'll watch, fine!"
Hamazura took place beyond the steering wheel.
"So, where are we going?"
Touma gulped at the look of Tsuchimikado gave the road in front of them.
"Onward, to make it all a blast"
(MEANWHILE)
"Maidono! Maidono! Maidono!" Rikuri were warming up the atmosphere, as the telekinesis user took the mic.
Maidono was much more confident in her abilities than Hasako, and decided to choose a song with a more humoristic approach
"I don't know how to put it... but..." Kaibi could not help but smile despite her melancholic mood.
Maidono was like a bona-fide rapper. She was not only singing in a perfect rhythm, but also dancing as well. If she only had a different outfit, she would fit straight into some music video.
"Wow, look at you go" Rikuri grinned at the enthusiasm exuded around the dancing girl" Not to mention that I love your sense of humour with choosing this particular song... it's called 'Levitating'"
True to the songs name, Maidono was indeed was levitating. Only a meter from the ground, but her feet weren't touching the ground, as Maidono was having a time of her life.
She was having fun. Much more fun that she wanted to admit.
When she thought back on her life, it was quite tedious. First, trying everything to achieve her power and having her ability to use chopsticks taken as a result. She plunged herself into dark side to avoid social ostracism, but ended up being addicted to it. But Kamijou Touma did not care about that. Not about her chopstick problem, not about her desire for revenge.
He simply wanted for her to stop with the path of self-destruction. He wanted her to be happy. And he was so right with that! Step by step, she was learning to experience everything again. And she had so much fun!
It would take time, and some of her problems probably won't go away just because of a few smiles, but it was a great first step. Not to mention that her heart raced from the very thought of being able to share this high of happiness with Kamijou himself.
He gave her strength, did not turn her away, but also wasn't too soft with her. He inspired her to take new heights, both metaphorically and literally. Thanks to him, she achieved what felt like a surreal fantasy. For longest time, she thought why was she able to exceed those limits. And now she had the idea. If what made Kamijou happy was seeing others, herself included, in good spirits, she wanted to be happy. But to do so, she wanted to make sure he was happy as well. Win-Win!
Meanwhile, Gokusai Kaibi's frustration reached the point where, if not for her dignity, she wanted to bang her head on the table. She got up and exited the room.
Rikuri furrowed her brow and clapped her hands.
"Okay, let's do a little break. Maidono-san, please think about your ideas for the present!"
Kaibi was about halfway through the corridor when Rikuri put a hand on her shoulder.
"Kaibi... it's clear as day that something is bothering you. Please, tell me."
"It's nothing... let me go!"
"It's clearly not nothing. I know you, I am your older sister. You were always the responsible type who thought she has to do everything alone. But you don't have to! Please share this with me."
"There is no need. I will be back soon, so let go now."
"There is a certain time in your life when you find yourself lost. At your age, it's especially true, and in our situation... we did not have the best experiences with guys, and..."
"If you are alluding to what I am think you are alluding, drop it immediately. It has nothing to do with Kamijou!"
"I did not say anything about Kamijou specifically though... it isn't about just your attraction or repulsion. I think you are worried, worried about the fact that you losing ground on denying yourself, and fear that he will find out about your... less than socially acceptable jobs from the past."
"YOU ARE WRONG! YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING!" Why would I care about Kamijou enough to think about him being... by those jobs... e-excuse me, I have to go to the toilet..."
Without any further word, Kaibi ran away, freeing herself forcibly from Rikuri's grasp on her arm.
Rikuri sighed, looking at the back of her younger sibling.
"She is lost." she whispered to herself" The things that happened years ago... she is still hurt by them and can't get attached. She built herself a perfect castle of glamorous looks and beautiful clothes to hide her true heart. Even her power is her own defense mechanism. My dear Kai-chan, so strong but so fragile at the same time. She cannot deny that she's starting to feel things she can't control, and it scares her. But I believe that if anyone can destroy that painted prison, and heal my sister's heart... it's him."
Back with Maidono and Hasako, the girls were having their own small talk.
"I have to tell you, you have amazing voice. So soothing yet so powerful at the same time" Maidono complimented the miko girl.
"N-No, it's nothing compared to your dancing abilities. You were outstanding!" Hasako wasn't far behind in her own praise.
Silence followed. Slightly embarrassed, Hasako took a bite of one of the cakes.
"Ne, senpai... you like Kamijou quite a lot, don't you?"
"Hyaghhhh?!"
Hasako made a strange sound and choked on the cake. Her hands flailed a little through the space, as she tried to get the dessert out and breathe in the fresh air. Finally, Maidono slapped her strongly on the upper back, which caused the portion of the cake to escape from the girl's mouth, suspend itself in telekinetic grasp and flow to the trash.
"W-Why do you..."
"You do, don't you?"
"Yes, I... yes, I do!"
Maidono sighed. She was now lifting various objects and float them around for fun, as if to distract herself.
"You know, I like him quite a lot myself. And I've been thinking... I don't really know much about you. I did hear that you possess an unparalleled power, that would even make level 5s tremble in fear"
Hasako blushed a little, and tried to hide her face.
"M-Maybe it is so..."
"So I thought: why don't the two of us have a match?"
"A match?"
"A clash of power. I want to see your determination and heart. And what better way to do it than in a battle of two powerful maidens in love? We would move to someplace safe of course"
Hasako pressed her index fingers together in display of shyness.
"I can think of few other methods... also, l-love is a bit much..."
"Nah, I saw the way you look at him. So say it strongly. Keep your head high, stand proud. He is super popular, you won't get his attention by hiding. I for one can tell that I've totally fallen, head over heels, for this guy. In the short time we've known each other, he was so damn inspiring! So, you have your reasons, I have mine. But talking it out could get things really awkward... so..."
"I understand" Hasako spoke without missing a beat.
"Huh?"
"I can see your sincerity and I wish to thank you for supporting my feelings as well. So I, Kankyougami Hasako, promise to oppose you in an honourable fight, sometime in the future. Although... I have one condition..."
"Yes? What is it?" Maidono asked Beginning Child.
"Regardless of everything, can we still be friends?"
Maidono grinned and slapped Hasako on the back once again.
"You are so cute when you are being polite. Fine, I have no problem with being both friends and rivals"
Hasako reincorporated the smile, but then frowned slightly.
"Maidono-san... can I ask you something?"
"Sure, go ahead"
"You seem so confident about your feelings...then why are you hesitating in confessing them?"
"Eh? Well..." Maidono suddenly lost her smile" That's because... w-we don't know each other that long yet... a-and..."
"That's not really it. You are worried that he will ultimately reject you because your chopstick problem, right?"
"Ghhh..." the short haired girl seemed to take a critical hit. Hasako assumed this was the confirmation.
She did not fully understand the issue, having met Maidono quite recently, but she understood the pain of having something essential in everyday life taken from her. She looked around the room and focused on the food on the table.
"Can't you just... float the food to your mouth using your powers?"
"That's not the same..."
Hasako thought. And thought. And thought even more.
Finally, something occurred to her.
"Maybe I'm speaking only for myself..." she conveyed her idea" But isn't this a perfect opportunity, or an excuse, to ask him to feed you? This is a dream come true for many girls"
Maidono opened her mouth, and then froze. Her expression was of absolute shock as she rose up from the couch.
"Ooooooooooooooooooh..."
She grabbed her head, blush appearing on her cheeks
"...OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH?!"
Rikuri, who just re-entered the room, took a step back at the sight of Maidono standing in triumphant position, while blushing and chanting "feeding, feeding, feeding..." like some strange mantra.
"W-Why is Maidono-san looking as if she is evolving into some sort of ultimate life form?"
"I did a right thing" Hasako chuckled nervously" I hope..."
(EARLIER ON IN THE DAY, ELSEWHERE...)
The next hours, at least from Touma's perspective, were a chaotic frenzy of events. However he could not deny that he was having a lot of fun during that time. When they departed, each of them took turns in deciding what they wanted to do next.
Firstly, they all got to eat something. Hamazura knew a lot of good and cheap restaurants, and the entire group was soon eating loudly and cheerfully, even Stiyl, although he was a bit grumpy about japanese food. Meanwhile Enka was not so discretely asking the other guys if any of the girl's around them was free. After getting rather confusing answer from Gunha ("you will feel it in your guts") and Stiyl ("keep your sinful thoughts away from me"), Hamazura saved the day by offering Enka to introduce him to some girls from his Skill-Out days. Methane esper seemed to gain extra lifespan from this very promise and Touma was sure that he will come to like Hamazura and consider him yet another friend. Accelerator did not say much, and if he did, he did so in swift and curt fashion. Touma thought that he saw an octopus tentacle of a familiar demon by his side, but it could've been his imagination. Surprisingly, Accelerator and Stiyl conversed the most between each other, having loosely interacted with each other before. Thor was crazily talkative, and when he did not talk, he seemingly took in all of the sights of Academy City or tried to listen to Gunha's peculiar way of explaining things. They were really like to peas in the pod.
Being the battle crazed maniacs they were, it didn't took Gunha and Thor to figure out the way to engage in physical activity. Gunha found it utterly fascinated by Thor's ability, but even more priceless was Thor's own face when it turned out that Gunha appeared right beside him when he rotated the world in his Almighty form. His explanation of tracing Thor with his guts made magician only more confused, and caused Touma and Hamazura to almost die from laughter. Gunha also took the liking to the "little ladies" as he called them. They were excited to ride upon his back, even when he exceeded speed of the car and almost gave Touma a heart attack.
The new queens of life, Amazora and Fremea, caused the storm of "oohs" and "aaaahs", accompanied by some discounts on the food (which Touma accepted with gratitude). They were the main topic of next stop, the cloth shop. Both Aogami and Tsuchimikado gave the girls a make-over, which was met with enthusiasm (as both of them were blissfully unaware of the duo's perversion). Even though Hamazura and Touma ended up clobbering Aogami and Tsuchimikado, who in turn started to hit them as well, he had to admit that Amazora and Fremea looked rather cute in maid uniforms which, thank heavens, were not very revealing. Or at the very least, not more revealing than Amazora's usual dress.
Other guys also had to endure through make-over. Amazora and Fremea insisted on dressing up Hamazura and Touma. The sight of two girls giggling together in happiness was rewardingly wholesome, but two boys swore they will take the shame of being in pink dresses to their graves. Although judging from grin Accelerator gave them from the surface of the phone, they could be sure he saved the memory in some form to humiliate them later. Later, when Touma chose horridly looking clothes from the biggest discount, Accelerator and Stiyl agreed to exterminate the monstrosity he was wearing, which caused Stiyl to chase Touma (with some visible pleasure) trying to burn the clothes with pinpoint fire, and only accidentally scorching Touma himself.
In the end, Touma got a new hoodie (gift from Enka, as the sign of their new friendship.) Tsuchimikado a baseball cap, Aogami T-shirt with words "I love all the ladies", Gunha punching gloves, Thor a light coat looking more like a superhero cloak. Hamazura made the biggest impression, choosing synthetic leather jacket that looked just like the real deal. Amazora and Fremea got themselves sundresses and earrings. Stiyl vehemently denied the attempts to give him a new clothes, but yielded with Fremea's request to accept her gift, which was a small flame-shaped badge with a smiling face in the middle of it and the phrase "Stay safe from the fire". It looked somewhat hilarious on Stiyl's dark and serious priest robes.
Least to say, when they all walked down the street, Touma could not help but think that they looked somewhat ridiculous. But well, the sunglasses still remained on.
Next, they went to the park, where Enka proposed to do some challenges for even better bonding experience. Match ups included arm wrestling of Gunha and Enka (which ended in Enka being buried vertically in the ground) Stiyl vs Hamazura in the nearby paintball arena (in which shooting skills of both of them, using flames and blanks, were surprise for each party) Thor vs Tsuchimikado in hand to hand combat (which was tied but inconclusive, because Fremea decided to venture onto the nearby building). Upon closer inspection, in turned out to be a bathhouse.
And so, they found themselves within artificial pool after getting Stiyl to gave them the discount by posing as an adult.
"Yes, I am their... g-guardian." Stiyl said in a tone that the very suggestion of such thing was a blow to his dignity.
"Oh, such a lovely group of boys. Any of your relatives?" the lady on the cash asked the fire magician.
"Even if they were, they would be distant or adopted" Stiyl said in tone as black as night, as the rest tried their best not to start laughing.
Stiyl was already on the point of boiling, but he went beyond that when he was swarmed with all the guys in the bathing area.
"Stiyl-san, can you make the water warmer?"
"No!"
"Can you make bubbles?"
"I am not a jacuzzi! Kamijou, get them the hell off me!"
Fremea and Amazora, who still learned how to swim, were using smaller pool by the side of the main area.
Touma was surprised that Accelerator was still watching by this point, but apparently he found it all very amusing.
In next period of time, nothing really happened. Well, except from Gunha accidentally knocking Enka out with a "super amazing beach ball throw" and Hamazura being shocked beyond belief that Thor is, in fact, a full-fledged guy, down to the lower parts.
"To be quite honest, this is very nice. I wouldn't expect anything like that, but it's actually fun with all of you guys... and girls as well. Got to tell you, Fremea-chan is really nice. I met her before but I think it needs to be said" Touma said to Hamazura, who were still shaking his head in disbelief.
The End of The Century Emperor smiled at that.
"Yeah, she truly is one of the kind. Though... I sometimes get sad when looking at her, because she reminds me of her sister. At the same time, I am glad that her legacy lives on."
"By sister you mean... wait, did something..."
"Frenda. Her sister's name was Frenda. Frenda Seivelun. You remember her from Dianoid, right?"
"I...I didn't seriously link it before... I am so sorry..."
"Don't sweat it. And I have to tell you, that girl on your side... Amazora-chan... she is really fun as well. At first, I had this really bad feeling about her... but maybe I imagined it?"
"Huh? Why?"
"You see, in the past I fought with a girl who..."
"OI! Don't speak of such serious matters. It's merely 4 PM on this glorious weekend." Tsuchimikado splashed closer to them, and put his arms around both of them "And I think I can come up with a way that we can make this even better"
"W-What do you mean, Tsuchimikado?" Touma was not fully sure if he wanted to know the answer.
Hamazura gulped, feeling as if something big was approaching.
Aogami grinned widely.
"Do you think about?..."
"Yes. Touching the untouchable. Reaching into unreachable. Attaining the unattainable! Today we will become true men!"
"I don't fully follow, but becoming a man sounds like a lot of fun" Gunha added his bit, which was met with annoyed groan from Accelerator, displayed on the phone situated on the chair's by pool's side.
"I don't know why, but something tells me this is trouble" Touma shivered despite being in warm water" Will we get involved in something yet again? Or with... someone?"