[Ding!
Making Fake Become Real has activated.] [Lie detected: “When Togawa Sakiko immerses herself in happiness, she can increase the Luck Value of herself and those close to her.”] [Calculating listener trust and Fate Value…] [Togawa Sakiko: Fate Value 45.
Trust: 40%.
Manifestation contribution: 18.] [Total Manifestation Points: 18 / 100.] [Manifestation rate: 18%.] [Manifestation result: Each time you hug Togawa Sakiko and make her feel happy, the next drop temporarily gains an 18% Luck Value bonus.] Makoto’s eyes lit up.
‘So those rainbow-colored lights represent happiness…’ ‘Looks like my hugs are pretty comforting after all.’ Makoto rubbed his nose.
At that moment, even he felt a faint flutter pass through his heart.
The way he was staring only made Sakiko purse her lips, increasingly convinced Makoto had ulterior motives.
That was also why her trust had fallen to only 40%.
Still, Makoto’s reminder made Sakiko remember what had happened earlier.
Recalling the moment he’d hugged her, she couldn’t deny how warm and comforting it had felt.
But she didn’t want to do it again.
It wasn’t because she disliked Makoto.
The strange feeling simply left her at a loss, and she was afraid she might sink too deeply into it.
“Absolutely not!” Sakiko declared firmly.
Unfortunately for her, Making Fake Become Real had already succeeded.
Makoto had no intention of giving up so easily.
“We need to recover our condition anyway.
Why don’t we test it once?” “I think that after we recover, the next Cursed Spirit we kill will definitely drop a Cursed Energy Crystal.” Makoto put on his most serious expression.
Sakiko stared at him suspiciously before finally biting her lip and slowly nodding.
She didn’t believe Makoto would deliberately take advantage of her at a time like this.
After all, he’d always seemed dependable to her.
So in a dark corner of the shopping mall, after confirming there was no danger nearby, the two slowly embraced again.
This time, knowing exactly what they were about to do somehow made them both nervous and awkward.
When Makoto wrapped his arms around Sakiko’s waist, she even sucked in a sharp breath.
Makoto glanced down.
Sakiko had already turned her face away, leaving him with only a view of her slightly reddened profile.
But to both of their surprise, the rainbow-colored motes never appeared.
Instead, pink lights began floating around them.
‘What’s this?’ Before Makoto could ask, a faint warmth flowed through both of their bodies.
At the same time, the person in each other’s arms suddenly seemed far more attractive than before.
‘No.’ ‘Something’s very wrong here!’ Before Sakiko could react, Makoto immediately placed his hands on her shoulders and pushed her away.
“That state wasn’t right.
Get your emotions under control, or your ability might go out of control.” Only then did Sakiko come back to her senses.
Her face was already bright red.
She hurriedly nodded without daring to say anything else.
She certainly wasn’t going to admit that she’d just found herself sinking into Makoto’s embrace, overwhelmed by the urge to hold onto him and fall asleep in his arms.
It wasn’t joy.
It wasn’t happiness either.
It was a far more difficult emotion to admit.
Fortunately, Makoto had managed to restrain himself.
Thinking of that, Sakiko secretly glanced at him and noticed a faint flush on his cheeks as well.
The sight made the mortified Sakiko’s lips curl slightly upward.
‘So I’m not the only one embarrassed.’ …
Three minutes later, Sakiko finally stabilized her emotions.
She took the initiative to open her arms toward Makoto.
“This is the last time we’re trying this.” Makoto nodded.
He agreed.
If it still didn’t work, then they would stop here.
It was only a small increase in Drop Rate.
There was no reason to damage the trust between them over a few percentage points.
Makoto embraced Sakiko again.
This time, both of them were much calmer.
Cursed Spirits were still roaring in the distance, and faint explosions occasionally echoed through the streets.
But the two had already begun growing accustomed to it all.
Hidden in the shadows of the mall, they simply felt each other’s warmth and breathing.
A sense of peace and safety gradually enveloped them both.
Tiny rainbow-colored lights finally began appearing around Sakiko.
That completely restorative sensation returned.
Within only a few breaths, both of their bodies were restored to peak condition.
This time, something else happened as well.
A system message appeared before Makoto.
[You have gained a Buff: 18% Drop Luck Bonus.] [Applies to the next drop only.] Makoto slowly released Sakiko.
She still seemed immersed in that lingering happiness when he said, “Trust me.
The next Cursed Spirit we kill will definitely drop a Cursed Energy Crystal!” [Ding!
Making Fake Become Real has activated.] [Lie detected: “The next Cursed Spirit we kill will definitely drop a Cursed Energy Crystal.”] [Calculating listener trust and Fate Value…] [Togawa Sakiko: Fate Value 45.
Trust: 50%.
Manifestation contribution: 22.5.] [Total Manifestation Points: 22.5 / 100.] [Manifestation rate: 22.5%.] [Manifestation result: The next item drop gains a 22.5% guaranteed Cursed Energy Crystal probability pool.
The remaining 77.5% will be calculated normally.] Sakiko took a deep breath before speaking in a slightly pouty tone.
“You’d better be telling the truth!” Makoto excitedly grabbed her hand and led her toward a nearby Grade 3 Cursed Spirit that was attacking a fire hydrant.
“If it doesn’t drop one, I’ll buy you some cake.
How about that?” Makoto refused to believe that after stacking so many buffs, they could still fail.
…
Ding!
After a two-minute battle, a Cursed Energy Crystal dropped from the smoke left behind as the Grade 3 Cursed Spirit vanished.
Makoto reacted instantly and snatched it up.
It really was a Cursed Energy Crystal!
[Small Cursed Energy Crystal: Can be consumed to rapidly restore Cursed Energy or moderately increase the user’s maximum Cursed Energy.] Makoto’s eyes shone.
Not only had something dropped, it was even a higher-grade item than the fragment they’d obtained from the Grade 4 Cursed Spirit.
Sakiko happily leaned closer, about to congratulate him.
Then her heart suddenly skipped.
‘Wait…’ ‘If Kitano-kun was telling the truth, doesn’t that mean our hugs really…’ Makoto looked at her.
“I’m going to use it right away, okay?” Sakiko nodded.
Makoto immediately crushed the Cursed Energy Crystal in his hand.
Sakiko hurriedly asked, “How effective was it?” Makoto smiled.
“It increased my maximum Cursed Energy by about two hundred points.” [Ding!
Making Fake Become Real has activated.] […] [Manifestation result: Your maximum Cursed Energy has increased by 45 points.] [You have become a Grade 2 Jujutsu Sorcerer.] Makoto froze.
‘I’m already Grade 2?’ No.
Only his total amount of Cursed Energy had barely reached the requirement.
His development and understanding of jujutsu were still extremely basic.
His true combat level should be closer to a Semi-Grade 2 Jujutsu Sorcerer.
Even so, reaching Semi-Grade 2 was already enough to give him real confidence in his chances of survival.
As long as he stayed away from those Special Grade Cursed Spirits, Makoto was certain of one thing.
‘This Hell-rank mission is as good as cleared!’ …