‘——This has to be a miracle.
Either that, or I’m dreaming.
A dream this wildly unrealistic would usually just make me feel pathetic.
But why…
why are your voice, your face, your touch…
and all those heart-fluttering emotions I thought would slowly fade and quiet down over time, suddenly appearing right before my eyes with such vivid clarity?
Thank you, God.
If this is a dream, please let me drown in it forever.
Don’t ever wake me up.’ Yuna Okotsu opened her eyes from her light slumber.
The view greeting her wasn’t the dorm room she had spent the last few years occupying…
It was a place deeply seared into her memory—the very school where she had let Rika run wild and hurt people, right before Rui picked her up.
Something was wrong.
She reached for the cursed tool at her waist out of sheer habit, but her fingers gripped empty air; there was absolutely nothing there.
Who could possibly pull off a stunt like this?
She was no longer the clueless rookie who held the title of Special Grade in name only.
Even if she had completely let her training slide after Rui’s death, it was mechanically impossible for someone to smuggle her out of Jujutsu High and disarm her without her noticing—not even Ms.
Gojo could manage that.
Turning her head to scan the surroundings, she saw Rika floating and weaving through the school corridor, a scene that filled her with an intense sense of deja vu.
Suddenly, she found herself too terrified to keep looking.
She was scared that she was overthinking it, petrified that if she looked past Rika, the person she was dying to see wouldn’t actually be standing there…
She was terrified that maybe she was just so profoundly broken by grief that she had hallucinated this entire setup just to numb herself.
“Rui…
kun…?” ——He was actually there.
Miss Okotsu stared blankly at Rui, tears spilling over her lashes completely unbidden.
Her heart, which had been silent and hollow for so long, began to beat once again from this very second.
…
If a heroine from a dating sim was fully conquered and then suddenly dropped into reality with all her end-game stats and feelings intact, what kind of chaotic move would she make?
Miss Okotsu didn’t play video games, but at this exact moment, she could perfectly empathize with that exact scenario.
Of course, Rui had absolutely no idea about any of this.
He merely stared at the silently weeping Yuna, a faint prickle of unease scratching at the back of his mind.
According to the simulation’s script, the “Devour Me” trait should have kicked in by now, driving Yuna completely feral with an urge to plunge her teeth into his neck.
But what was with that look on her face?
What was up with that intense gaze?
And what was the deal with those twin streams of tears?
She couldn’t possibly be crying from hunger, right?
But sure enough, Yuna still took a step forward just like in the simulation.
After a split second of hesitation, she tilted her head…
Much like how a freshly sun-dried blanket always makes you want to bury your entire body into it, she buried her face deep into the crook of Rui’s neck, taking a deep, shuddering breath.
——Now, let’s look at the situation here.
Who was the one who initially suggested “letting Yuna drink Rui’s blood a few more times” back in the simulation?
It was Shoko.
——And why did Shoko throw out a suggestion that sounded like a hardcore shipper forcing a couple’s heads together?
For desensitization.
To put it another way, the current Miss Okotsu was a seasoned veteran who had clocked in well over a hundred blood-drinking sessions.
She should have been completely desensitized to the effects of “Devour Me” a long time ago.
So, why was she still putting on an act, pretending to be utterly hijacked by an insatiable appetite?
Let’s take a quick peek into her current train of thought.
‘No…
I can’t just act completely reckless and unhinged just because I have memories of the future.
What if he ends up hating me?
In my past life, I solely relied on Ms.
Shoko’s advice to use this exact underhanded method just to cling to Rui-kun’s side 24/7…
I just need to do it all over again.
I’ll let nature take its course, save Rui-kun when the campus gets ambushed, and then we’ll naturally start da…
dating…
Hehe, ehehehe…’ Rui was thoroughly exasperated.
Still, there was one major factor she had completely failed to account for.
In the simulation, Yuna had been possessed by an overwhelming, primal appetite, and that intense desire had been transmitted directly to Rika through their binding vow.
That was why Rika completely ignored the intimate skinship between her and Rui, even going as far as to pin Rui down for her…
But what about right now?
“Yuna…?!
W-Wait, what’s going on, Yuna?!
You and this guy…?!” Rika was completely exasperated too.
Rui felt the Yuna in his arms instantly freeze up.
She glanced awkwardly at Rika, then looked back at Rui.
After a long, agonizing silence, she squeezed out a tiny, pathetic whisper: “I’m…
I’m sorry?” “YOU!
YOU ABSOLUTE TRAITORRRRRRRRRR!!” With a deafening, furious roar, Rika’s silhouette materialized at lightning speed, her form rapidly solidifying as the ink-black residual cursed energy coating her flesh bleached into a pristine, snow-white sheen.
Up until now, she had always manifested in an incomplete state—but this towering monstrosity right here was the true, unadulterated form of the Queen of Curses!
Yuna nervously grabbed Rui’s arm, instinctively trying to take a step forward to shield him behind her back.
But Rui merely gave her a gentle, reassuring push back, shaking his head to signal that he had this fully covered.
Would he win?
“Okotsu-san, your cursed technique is kind of getting in the way.” Rui raised his hand, executing a couple of quick feints right in front of Rika.
Rika didn’t even bother to dodge—internally, she was scoffing.
What could a Grade 2 Sorcerer like him possibly achieve?
Was he going to use his basic Construction Technique to forge a toy sword and tickle her a couple of times?
The very next second, she watched in horror as Rui’s arm violently elongated.
A massive, perfectly shaped hand shot forward, clamping down firmly on her skull.
Idle Transfiguration, activate!
A sharp shriek echoed through the corridor…
though it was impossible to tell who it actually belonged to, since Yuna and Rika seemed to have screamed in perfect unison.
Either way, the exact microsecond the palm made contact, the colossal Special Grade Vengeful Cursed Spirit began to deflate like a punctured balloon.
Her iron-hard outer carapace softened piece by piece, turning incredibly delicate, smooth, and radiant.
Her slitted, monstrous pupils dissolved amidst a brilliant wash of light, replaced by a pair of slightly narrowed, almond-shaped eyes that gave off the lazy, elegant vibe of a Persian cat.
The old, gooey monster version of me is dead.
Now, allow me to introduce a vastly more refined version— Rika Orimoto, officially resurrected!
“—Huh?” Furthermore, she had been restored in her fully grown form.
Rui casually used his technique to stitch together a matching girls’ high school uniform for her—a navy blue blazer paired with a pleated plaid skirt, topped off with her long, straight black hair neatly combed down.
While her outfit was practically identical to Yuna’s, her overall aura was worlds apart from the timid, fragile high school girl next to her who looked like she was custom-made to get bullied.
Rika radiated the pure, striking presence of a traditional, upper-class young lady stepping out from a secluded estate.
She didn’t seem to have fully processed what had just occurred, her bewildered gaze darting back and forth between Rui and Yuna, completely at a loss for words.
“—Huh?” The person sharing her exact state of absolute astronomical shock was none other than Miss Okotsu.
Even a seasoned Special Grade Sorcerer had never witnessed a circus trick like this in her entire life.
Where the hell did this guy just drop her off?
Could the Construction Technique even be optimized to achieve *this* level of reality warping?
A million existential questions started sprouting in her mind.
But before any of that…
the very first thing she registered was a wave of pure, unadulterated joy.
There was absolutely no need to dwell on what followed; nothing in this world is more cliché than a long-awaited reunion.
Rui could only vividly recall the two girls taking turns flanking him on his left and right, showering him with gratitude.
Man, you really had to hand it to Japanese girls—every single line of “Arigato” was accompanied by a perfectly synchronized, deep bow…
and they were both bawling their eyes out.
Though he had watched Yuna cry a dozen times over in the simulation, this was his first time witnessing it live in the real world.
At this point, he couldn’t help but validate the simulation’s assessment: Miss Okotsu dropping her gaze and lowering her voice while sobbing hysterically really was a spectacular sight.
The only issue was that by the time the two girls finally finished their crying session and he began leading them out of the school building, the expressions on both the teenage sorcerer and the teenage cursed spirit turned incredibly bizarre.
‘Wait a minute…
what was I trying to do in the first place?
Even though my memories from when I was a pure cursed spirit are super blurry…
it really felt like Yuna and Mr.
Rui were locked in THAT kind of relationship…?!
I…
but…
wait, what about me?!
I was clearly the one who came first here…
No, wait, I was dead for a few years in the middle so maybe that doesn’t count.
Does that make me the homewrecker here…?’ by Rika.
‘No, that’s wrong.
Even if Mr.
Rui is literally my savior, Yuna and I are supposed to have a mutual, unshakeable bond, right?
You can’t force a dynamic that isn’t there, so I definitely still have a shot!
Yuna has to be thinking the exact same thing!’ by Rika.
‘Wait, Yuna…
ah, she’s staring directly at Mr.
Rui.’ by Rika.
‘…Can she seriously not wear such an incredibly easy-to-read expression on her face…?’ by Rika.
Meanwhile.
‘Wait, hold on.
In this exact school setting, shouldn’t the natural progression be me losing control to my appetite, biting Rui-kun’s neck, and then weeping in his arms while he holds me tight and lets me pour my entire heart out to him?’ by Yuna Okotsu.
‘Where the hell is my exclusive, character-specific romantic cutscene with Rui-kun…?’ by Yuna Okotsu.