The World The Girls Also Knows: The Girls God Can Only Save
AU after Goddesses Arc. Keima has to keep the affection of the seven Goddess hosts and Chihiro at the same time. And he still has to exorcise loose souls from girls by making them fall in love with him. Miyako has a loose soul that needs to be exorcised, and the God of Conquests gets himself a new disciple in the game world named Aoba Fuse.
And I do not own The World God Only Knows.
And thanks to xellos540 for the beta job!
And now, the credits.
First of all, I got the idea of crossdressing and playing games at Yui's house from xellos540. I also got the idea from a certain manga chapter in the Heart of Jupiter arc, when Yui and the child Keima in his teen-age body went to the warehouse that was converted into a gaming center by Yui. Several dialogues of Yui were also directed lifted from the manga.
And thanks to ZeldagisGW for the idea of Shiori going to Narusawa City for Ramen.
As for some characters:
Aoba Fuse is a light novel heroine. I took her characterization both from the light novel, and also from Wrathie Winsre's stories.
Oh and an announcement and request. In the near future, I probably would run out of events that the girls could do with Keima during their "official" time. So if any of you could suggest activities that they could engage in one hour, two hours, or three, as long as those activities are in character, please tell me. I'd probably include it, with full credit of course.
Flag X
Saturday Lunch
Translation of Manga Terms that I use
Nii-sama = Big Brother, Exalted Brother, Beloved Brother
Kami-Nii-sama or Kama-Onii-Sama = Divine Brother
Kami-sama = Divine One, Godly One, God. Aoba Fuse calls Keima Kami-sama, so I use Divine One.
Kami = God
Sama = Lord or Lady so Kujo-Sama is Lady Kujo, or Tsukiyo Sama is Lady Tsukiyo
Otamegane or Otamega = Glasses Wearing Game Nerd or Game Nut. I left it mostly untranslated.
Sensei = Teacher. But in context, I use Mr. or Miss. So Kodoma-Sensei would be Mr. Kodoma.
Otome Games = Games for Girls. The female equivalent of male dating sims.
Ojou-sama = aristocratic lady or noble lady
Part 91 – A Shock Appearance
The "girl" looked at her. "Hello, Tenri."
Tenri looked at him, dumbfounded. This was the last thing she expected—Keima as a crossdresser. Who would have guessed? "What's going on?"
"Don't say anything about this to anyone," he said in a whisper. "Are your parents home yet?"
"Not yet," said Tenri. "But they might be coming home any minute now."
"Good," he said as he walked to Tenri's house.
"Keima?"
"Can I change here?" he asked as he stood in front of the Ayukawa door.
Tenri nodded as she opened the door. He entered, and he flopped on the couch.
"So, Keima—"
"There's a good explanation of why I am dressed like this," he said.
He was calm. She admired that about Keima. If it was her in that situation, Tenri would have been mortified and would be barely able to talk.
"Was it Yui?"
"Yes. Can I go upstairs? I don't want your parents to walk in on me like this," he asked.
"Um sure," Tenri replied. Truth be told, she was still in shock. Diana too. Keima, in a girls' dress, suddenly appeared like magic in front of her. She was so flabbergasted that she lost the capacity to think. And, besides, she had to admit that Keima was cute as a girl.
She accompanied him to her room, and he asked, "Could I change here?"
"Yes, Keima," she said, and she left her room.
As soon as she was outside, Diana came out. She appeared on a small mirror on the wall. As Keima was not with Tenri, the goddess was not technically taking away Tenri's time.
"Well, I've seen so many weird things, but this definitely takes the cake!" said Diana.
"Yeah. That's very weird. But I don't think it's weirder than all the weird stuff that happened during the Goddess search."
"What is that man up to? It's not enough that he's a pervert, but he's a crossdresser too?"
"I'm sure he has a perfectly good reason for it," Tenri argued. "Keima always has. Just trust him."
"I do. That's the only reason I won't kill him for getting close to that gamer girl!"
"Don't think that. Fuse is a nice girl! She can make me closer to Keima."
"Yeah, I was wrong about her. Keima always has a plan, doesn't he? To think that he would use her to make you more like a gamer. I don't approve of gaming, but if that's what it takes to win his heart, then go Tenri!"
"Thank you, I guess."
"And Tenri. I need to remind you. You need to do it tonight."
"Huh?"
"What we've talked about all week."
"Oh, that! Do I have to? Tonight, I mean."
"Yes. Kiss him. And when I say kiss him, do it to him, don't wait for him to do it. I bet that all the other girls have kissed him already."
"You don't know that."
"Then ask him."
"I can't do that!"
"Tenri! I beg you, ask him about it!"
The door opened, and Diana disappeared. Keima was now in his regular male Mai High Private School uniform.
"Don't worry. The official time starts now, not when you saw me first. How about it?"
"If you say so, Keima," Tenri said as she entered her room. She motioned for Keima to follow. "So, what happened?"
"Well, you know Yui Goido, right? You always see—"
"Wait!" she said. "Not yet."
"Huh?" asked a perplexed Keima.
"Where's your PFP? Please play it."
"Oh!" he began as he fished the device out of his pocket. He had not touched the PFP since he changed into the female uniform.
"And you can tell me the story while you play," she said, her heart skipping as she saw him turn on the gaming device. The sounds of the game and the noise of buttons being pressed were music to her ears.
Never change, Keima.
"So, where were we? Oh yes, Yui and I switched bodies during her original conquest. And that somehow affected her even after the conquest. She became a crossdresser even as she remains a girl at heart. But that meant that she saw me as kind of a girl. Well, not really. It's just that the roles were reversed. She sees herself as a player character and is forceful. She sees me as a feminine boy. A boy, but a heroine, if that's possible. And she remembers me as a girl when we switched bodies. She, as a boy, courted me as a girl. And so she gave me that uniform to wear. And I wore it during her second conquest to draw out Mars."
"That's really complicated," Tenri admitted.
"Yeah. Anyway, I did say that you girls would decide how to spend the time. That's Rule Nine. How the scheduled time will be spent will be the girls' decision. If she cannot make a decision, Keima Katsuragi will decide. So that's how Yui decided. And so here I am. I was already late for your schedule, so I did not have enough time to change back."
"You're so sweet, Keima, doing all that for us," Tenri complimented. "No wonder so many girls are after you."
"No kidding," he said in annoyance. "So, what are your plans?"
"Well, since you asked, just play your games. I want you to have fun," Tenri smiled. "I'm going to listen."
"Listen to what?"
"I want to hear stories."
"About what?"
"Um, what happened with Yui?" she asked.
"Are you sure you want to know?"
"I am curious after seeing you like that."
"Well, then, here goes," he began. And he told the story of the two hours with Yui but omitted the kissing stuff.
…
Part 92 – Keima's Tales
"Wouldn't you know it? She turned her warehouse into a big version of my room! It had eight monitors! Eight! It was a dream come true!" he said animatedly, his eyes and voice showing his excitement. "And she bought the latest games too! I don't know how she knew, but it's all there! And she let me play the entire time I was there! I was so happy! It was thrilling! All those brand new games!"
"I'm glad you had fun," Tenri admitted, happy at seeing her Keima in such joy. "Yui really made you happy, didn't she?"
Keima looked at Tenri and, carefully selecting his words, said, "Maybe."
"She really did make you happy, Keima!" she concluded.
"Yes, she did. I even forgot I wore that uniform!" he laughed. "I hope you won't get jealous."
"Don't worry. All that matters is that you're happy," Tenri said as she watched him play his games. "So how was Miyako? What's her problem? Did you find out today?"
"I don't know yet. I haven't done much."
"And?"
"Well, I have an excuse to hang out with her as long as Elsie's around. But I can't start until I've done my homework."
"Homework?"
"With you and the other girls. I need to explain to Kanon tomorrow what I'm going to do, and then I may proceed with her conquest."
"You should have more faith in us," Tenri said. "You already explained. I think you're overexplaining it to us."
"Better to overexplain than underexplain, in this situation. I might get killed if I don't err on the side of caution," he replied.
"Just have faith in us, Keima. And have faith in your ability to explain," she said. "Don't hold back on saving Terada just because of us. We understand. All seven of us."
"Thank you, Tenri."
…
Afterward, Keima told Tenri some of what he had been doing with the other girls, at Tenri's insistence. Why would she ask that, he had no idea. But that confirmed to him that his neighbor had no jealous bone in her body. Still, he had the tact to refrain from mentioning the kisses and the other physical stuff. Not that he can't trust Tenri, but Diana may take matters into her own hands. Even though she was the smartest of the Goddesses, her emotions sometimes hindered her judgment. And what volatile emotions! Not only was she protective of Tenri's love, but she was also in love with him! Talk about complicated!
Tenri was amazed and appalled. The way he manipulated the emotions of the other girls horrified her, but she was understanding of Keima and wasn't angry. And she was astonished by how easily and how successfully he had done it. Her Keima can do anything if he puts his mind to it.
…
"Couldn't you do that without lying to Chihiro again?
…
"That was mean of you to do that to Ayumi," she said upon hearing her tale. "Using Miyako for that!"
…
"That was so nice of Shiori. I never thought she could know about your favorite character," Tenri said. She knew only of Yokkyun when Nora tried to read Keima's mind so she could hurt his "love".
…
"You really didn't need to make Tsukiyo cry, you know. You already know she's yours!" she pouted.
"I guess I really deserved to be slapped, huh?"
…
After the forty-five minutes, Keima tried to leave, but Tenri's parents, who had arrived in the meantime, once again, invited him for dinner. After a quick call to Mari, Keima agreed, and spent another hour at the Ayukawa residence, mostly at the dinner table, talking with Tenri and her parents.
…
Later…
It was long after dinner. Keima was about to leave and Tenri walked him to the door.
"Thank you for coming, Keima. Don't worry, I won't tell," she said, referring to the cross-dressing episode.
"Thank you," he said.
"Um, all the girls you met during the schedule, I have a question," she whispered, after looking around to make sure they were alone.
"Yeah?"
"You kissed all of them, right?"
Where did that question come from? Probably from Diana. "Well, all of them, some of the time," he vaguely answered, wondering where this was headed. "And half the time, they were the ones who kissed me. I was the innocent victim!"
"Then I can't fall behind," she said, and wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him on the lips. For the first time, she initiated a kiss without Diana taking the initiative. Her face turned red as a tomato. "Bye."
Keima was a bit dumbfounded as he left the house and headed back home. What happened to the shy, innocent, wholesome, Tenri Ayukawa?
Diana happened, most probably. That Goddess corrupted her mind.
…
Tenri ran upstairs. I'm so proud of you, Diana said in her mind as she did so.
Before she could go into her room, she ran into her parents, with big smiles on their faces.
"Aw, my Tenri! That is so brave of you! When is the wedding?" Mrs. Ayukawa teased, clearly having seen her kiss him.
"I knew it! I knew it! Ever since ten years ago, I knew it!" Mr. Ayukawa exclaimed. "You couldn't have picked a better boy!"
Tenri wished she could just disappear.
Part 93 – The Theory of the Schedules
Saturday Morning…
Keima was not surprised when Aoba Fuse joined him and Elsie on the walk to his school. He was thankful for Elsie's presence. The devil would prevent the gamer girl from asking too many questions.
"Master, Elly," she greeted.
"Aoba," he acknowledged, glancing at her before returning to his game.
"Hello, Aoba!" Elsie greeted enthusiastically.
"Divine One, may I ask the same question? What is the—"
"Someone's here," Keima scolded.
"I have reason to believe that Elsie already knows about it," the girl gamer answered.
The devil looked at her quizzically. "Huh? What should I already know?"
"The schedule," she answered quickly before Keima could say anything.
"Oh, you know that? You must not say anything!" Elsie replied, without thinking. "Who told you?"
Keima groaned. Now he doesn't even have the option to deny that it existed. Thanks a lot, you bug demon. You just told her that you know about the schedule.
"Thanks for confirming it, Elly. Tsukiyo and Yui told me. I want to know more."
"Oops. Shouldn't have said that," Elsie said, realizing her slip.
The cat was out of the bag, so Keima decided to continue. "So what do you think? Do you have any idea what the schedule is?"
"I do."
"Wow! You figured it out already?" Elsie asked, wide-eyed.
"Maybe."
"So what have you figured out?"
"The girls in the harem, all seven of them, agreed to share you, Master. They, or maybe you, Divine One, drew up a schedule so they can know the time they would spend with you. They also drew up rules that each girl must follow."
"Wow! You're amazing! That's all true! Are you sure nobody told you that?" Elsie exclaimed.
You just did, Elsie de Lute Irma. I wish I could disown you! Keima sighed. And there goes bluffing Aoba. All his prepared lies went out of the window. Maybe Aoba did plan for Elsie to be here.
"No."
"So how did you figure it out?" asked the gamer.
"It's a similar scenario to an obscure game I played once. When I remembered that game, it's called Harem Master, your situation immediately came to mind. And everything I learned confirmed it. As you said, games can be applied to real life."
"So, how did you confirm it?"
"The words of the haremettes," said Aoba. "They're not angry about having other girls love you, for example. And some of them are close friends. That didn't strain their friendship. Yui said something about close friends and rivals. And the way they acted towards me. They were angrier about the prospect of me being outside the schedule if I am in love with you, rather than me being in love with you in the first place. They're concerned about me stealing their time. But if I'm in the schedule, they won't be as concerned about it."
Keima laughed. It was too much.
"Then there was Chihiro yesterday. That told me everything."
"What about her?"
"That told me that the girls cannot approach you just to spend time with you outside of their schedule. If they do, they must have another valid reason. She kept insisting that she had a valid reason for wanting to walk with you, even if it's not her time. That's the reason Yui kept using homework to get close to you."
"And what is your overall conclusion?"
"Well, each girl has a set time to spend with you. I don't know how much time, but I would say it would be equal time, if I have to guess, per week, as that would be the most logical and fair. Seven girls with equal time in one day would not work, and in a month would be too long for them. Outside their respective times, they cannot just approach you or spend time with you without any good reason. That's why they kept inventing reasons. And there are probably other rules that I'm not aware of to regulate their competition for your heart."
"So, did they just invent those rules and agree among themselves?" he asked.
"You imposed those rules. The seven girls aren't close enough or familiar enough with each other to come to an agreement with each other. Normally, they'd tear each other apart, and fight like cats and dogs. So how did they come together and agree to all of this? You, of course, Divine One. You're the God of Conquests. You're smart enough to get them to agree to it. And it's beneficial to you since, by my observation, it leaves you with enough free time to play games. And it regulates their behavior. For example, I learned from the rumor mill that before, Yui always grabs you and do physical things to you in public whenever she likes, without any inhibition. Now, she's behaved."
Keima really wanted to applaud her disciple. She really was a genius. Still, it was all guesswork. So maybe he could lie and—
"Wow! That's great! You're as smart as my Divine Brother! That's all true!" Elsie exclaimed, her mouth wide open, her big eyes looking at the blue-haired girl in admiration.
Keima sighed. And there goes his plans.
"And if I'm really in love with you, and I am after you, I'm not bound by the schedule and their rules. So in their eyes, I can do anything and spend unlimited time with you, things they can't do. That's why they kept telling me to be in the schedule to keep things fair."
Part 94 – Selfish Gamers
"What can I say? You figured it all out. So after knowing all that, you still want to be my disciple?"
"Yes. Your private life is none of my business. But by becoming your disciple, I intruded on it. I'm very sorry for causing you so much distress. It's my fault. I should've considered your situation before asking for my selfish request. I don't deserve to be your disciple for how I thrust myself into your life."
"Think nothing of it. I want you to be my disciple. I want to teach you the ideal, so you can be as great as me. Deserve has nothing to do with it. But even so, you deserve it," he said. "I would only drop you if you don't want to be my disciple anymore. Not for any other reason. But if you choose to remain my disciple, it won't be easy, as you would be involved, whether you like it or not, in harem politics. That can't be avoided, I'm sorry to say."
"Even after all the trouble I caused you because of my selfishness, you still want me as a student?"
"Yes. The trouble will sort itself out. We already have a plan, don't we? We'll just stick with it. As for selfishness, nobody is more selfish than I am. The reason I want to take you in is because I am a selfish bastard."
Aoba looked at him with adoration. He truly is great. After all this, he still wants to be my master. After all the trouble I caused—he still believes in me. He truly is God. Only God could persuade seven girls to share him like he did and be bound by the rules he made. If only my first master weren't out there, waiting for me, I would gladly ask to be included in the schedule. I know you don't love me, but you don't love the other girls too. For now, Tenri should win your heart.
"I still want to be your disciple, Master. If you would have me."
"I do. We're both selfish, so we can help each other out with what we want."
"Thank you, Master."
"So, what do you think about me? Won't you think I'm evil for how I acted, for how I played with the girls? I am God, but I am also the devil. I can be pretty evil."
"Evil? I don't care about that. I came to you to be a good gamer, not to be a good person. I care about becoming a great gamer, and you being good or evil has nothing to do with it."
"I suppose that's true."
"And I know, Divine One, that you have a good reason for doing all of this. This is not just some selfish thing you're doing. The reason for all of this is because you can't pick now, right? And in games, and in reality too, without picking one of them, they won't stop going after you. So you have to regulate their behavior for your benefit, and their benefit too, or your lives would be chaotic, and there would be more hurt."
"You don't even know why I can't pick one of them."
"I don't need to know. I just know that you have an excellent reason for it and that you can't share that reason with anyone else. You are the Devil. But you are also God. I have faith that your reason is right and for the best of everyone involved. But, if I am wrong, if you don't have a good reason, it's really none of my business. This has nothing to do with being a gaming disciple."
"Thank you for that," he said, touched by his disciple's faith in him.
"That's great!" Elsie exclaimed, shaking the girl gamer's hand. "Welcome to the club."
"Thanks, Elly. And Divine One, I have something to ask of you."
"What is it, Aoba?"
"Can I have a copy of the schedule, and the rules too?"
"Why do you want that?"
"I need to know the girls' schedule, so I won't accidentally intrude with their time. You told me that I should try to become their friend, and interrupting them would not do me any favors. And I need to know the rules so I won't unnecessarily make blunders that would make your life more difficult."
"Fine. I'll give you a copy. By the way, tonight, I have three hours with Kanon."
"Thanks, Master."
"Oh, Elsie?"
"Exalted Brother?"
"This is a secret," he warned.
"Don't worry, Big Brother! I won't say a thing about her to anyone!"
"You'd better not," he told her as they entered the school gate.
"I look forward to seeing you play six games at once, Divine One," Aoba said as they walked to their school building.
"So you want to see him in his God of Conquest mode? Divine Brother's rather creepy in that. I don't think you want to see him like that," Elsie warned.
"Yes, that is today, isn't it," Keima said, ignoring the bug demon. "I've got to do some shopping in the game store after school. After that, we can go to my place, and you can see me in my God of Conquest mode."
"I'm going shopping for new games too. May I come with you? Maybe we can compare games," the girl gamer asked.
"But Beloved Brother is reaaaallly creepy in the game store. You don't want to see him like that!" Elsie insisted, her memories of being with Keima to the game store resurfacing. She really adored her Divine Brother, but there were things that a girl should not see of her brother if she wanted to keep her high opinion of him. It's just that Elsie adored her brother so much that nothing he could do could dent her adulation. She was concerned that if Aoba saw him like that, she would be turned off by his creepiness, and he may lose a disciple and a potential friend.
"Guess I'm creepy too," she replied as they entered the school building. "What about Yui? She's coming too?"
"Yes."
"Good," the girl gamer smirked. That hopefully would finally convince the heiress of her sincerity.
…
Part 95 – No Such Thing as Free Lunches
Lunch…
Lunch. It was Saturday, and class was already finished. He would meet Aoba at the gate, and they would proceed to the game store. At least, that was his plan. He would skip eating lunch. He was excited to see the latest titles. Although Yui had already bought most of them, he wanted his own copy of those games. Besides, the crossdresser had not been thorough enough. There were games that she had missed.
At least that was the plan.
"Divine Brother, could you come to the 2B Pencils club room?"
"Can't. I'm busy. Gonna go game shopping with Aoba," he said, his eyes already on his game.
"This is very important. I promise it will only take a minute. I already sent a message to Aoba."
He groaned. He could smell a set-up from a mile away.
"Fine. But only a minute," he said, walking with Elsie as he played his PFP.
When they entered the bandroom, there was no-one inside except a blushing Ayumi Takahara.
"Keima, you haven't eaten lunch, have you?" she asked, her hands behind her back.
"This isn't your time," he brushed off. He really did not want to deal with the girls of the schedule. And he had done an outstanding job during their three hours, so he knew the affection levels would not decrease at all by his coldness outside the schedule.
"No, no. I'm not here to spend time with you," the runner apologized. "I'm just concerned with your health."
"Huh?"
"Here," she said, handing a bento over to him. "No other girl has a schedule with you for lunch, and knowing you, I know you won't eat anything."
"But, Ayumi—"
"Don't worry, I'm not eating lunch with you. That would be unfair to the other girls," she said, still unable to look at him. "Please take it."
He was a bit surprised. He took the offered bento.
"Well, gotta go. Bye," said the runner as she rushed out of the room. He heard her crash into a wall. He ignored it.
"This is the important thing?" asked Keima, peeved at Elsie.
"But your health is very important. You need food to shop and play," said Elsie, a little jealous that Keima was eating the lunch of other girls but not hers.
"Fine. I'll eat it later."
"But I already messaged Aoba that you'll eat lunch then meet with her," the sister protested. "Please eat."
"Fine. I'm going to the rooftop."
He and Elsie walked towards the stairs going to the rooftop. As they turned a corner, they heard a small voice.
"K-K-Katsu—ragggi," she said. It was Shiori Shiomiya.
"Shiori? I'm sorry, but it isn't—" he began.
"Wait," she suddenly yelled. Her face was blushing profusely, looking at the side. Before looking at him. Her eyes went from his face to his hands, and her face became white upon seeing the bento on his hands. "Oh, no!"
"What?" asked an impatient Keima. Shiori was taking away his free time.
Suddenly, she thrust another bento unto him and said, "take it."
He grabbed it and placed it above Ayumi's bento.
"For you, Katsuragi." With that, she ran away from the two siblings.
"What was that about?" asked Keima, staring at his two bentos.
"They're head over heels for you, Beloved Brother!" Elsie cheerily said. "Your plan is coming along nicely. So, are you going to start conquering Miyako?"
"Not yet. Not until I finish with Kanon," he said, as he went up the stairs to the rooftop, and proceeded to his favorite bench.
"Don't bother me while I eat," he said, opening Ayumi's lunch first.
"Um, Divine Brother?"
"What is it?" asked Keima before he started eating.
"This is for you," Elsie said, producing another bento from her raiment.
"What? Can't you see—"
"It's from Chihiro. She was busy, so she asked me to give it to you," she said. "Please take it."
Keima sighed. Three lunches? Not bad. Not bad at all. "Fine. Whatever! I'm not complaining. The only girl who hasn't given me a bento this week is Tenri and Kanon, and that's because Tenri's in Misato High, and I have still to meet Kanon. Tsukiyo and Ayumi gave me bento twice. Might as well eat all of this. To make sure those affection points are high. You're gonna tell Ayumi and Chihiro that I ate their lunch, okay? And tell Shiori too. Say that it's delicious."
"All of them? Which lunch would I say you like the best?"
"All of them equally. I can't choose."
"Really?
"No. Some of them are better than others. But we need to keep a balance. Tell them that all of them were equally delectable. That should keep their jealousy at bay."
"Of course, Exalted Brother!" Elsie said as she sat down and took out her own bento. Her lunch was a homemade meal made from Hellish ingredients.
Keima was very thankful for the bentos from the human girls. If not for that, Elsie would still insist on making lunch for him. He shuddered at the thought.
Still, it was an oversight from him to neglect to make rules regarding bentos and presents. He may be deluged with gifts from the girls. But it was no big deal, as it was a benefit for him. If the girls wanted to give him presents, it does not take time away from the other girls or himself, so it was okay.
There's no such thing as a free lunch. But this wasn't free. He paid dearly for every free thing he would receive with his precious gaming time, his precious oxygen. What he was receiving now was more than justified, in his view.
…
Part 96 – Lunch for Three
Aoba Fuse sighed as she received a message from Elsie.
Divine Brother will meet you after lunch. Elly.
It was a sigh of relief. Unlike the God of Conquests, Aoba had not picked up the habit of skipping meals for the sake of the ideal. She may skip a meal or so, but her doing so regularly was out of the question. When she learned they were going to the game store without eating lunch, she didn't mind, but she wished they would stop for lunch first.
She was about to go to her usual place for eating lunch when she received another message. From Elsie.
Hello Aoba. Tsukiyo asked me to ask you to have lunch with her at the Astronomy Club. Shiori would be there too.
Well, at least she would have a nice place to eat.
…
"Come in," said the club President Tsukiyo Kujo upon hearing the knock.
"What? Who's coming?" asked Shiori Shiomiya.
"Someone we both know," the moon-lover replied as the door opened.
"Ah, Miss Fuse," said the moon-lover. "Come join us."
"Fuse," Shiori managed to say.
"Lady Kujo, Shiomiya," she greeted with her customary level voice. "Thank you for inviting me."
She sat on an empty chair between Luna and Shiori. She placed her bento on the table.
They ate their lunch, silence surrounding the place. Shiori was naturally silent, while Aoba and Tsukiyo were also reticent by nature.
"So, I want to ask you. Could we start this afternoon? I'm not busy, and we have all the time in the world," the blonde asked, referring to her request for the gamer to teach her gaming lingo.
"I'm afraid I cannot. I have an appointment with the master," replied the blue-haired girl. "However, perhaps we can agree on a schedule. When is your free time?"
"An appointment with Keima? You have a date with him?" asked Tsukiyo as she gripped her cup, and Shiori nearly choked. "Are you—"
"It's not a date," the girl gamer sighed. She really shouldn't have mentioned her master when replying. "We're going to the game store to buy the latest games. Then he's going to show me how he plays six games at once. It's just a standard master-disciple activity."
"But you're going together, alone," Shiori insisted. "Romance books state that those are dates."
"I do not like him that way! You should know better! And no, we're not alone. Yui Goido's coming with us. She too wants to observe Keima play six games at a time," she replied, thankful that the crossdresser was coming with them. "This is not an event to raise flags. Please don't mistake it."
"Wait! Goido is with Keima? She's stealing his time! What's her excuse? Watching him play games is not a valid reason!" Tsukiyo said, her anger simmering beneath the calm exterior.
The girl gamer sighed. She was pleased to redirect Tsukiyo's ire away from herself to Goido, but that needed to be squelched too. She needed an excuse and fast. "No, she's coming with Keima and me. Unlike you two, Goido does not believe that I am not in love with the God of Conquests. She thinks that what he and I are up to is a date, which, frankly, is ridiculous. A date has many prerequisites and variables. It requires the protagonist to be on the heroes or heroines route. It requires that the object of the event is to raise affection points of the other. It requires specific flags to be triggered. We both tried to explain it to Goido, but she doesn't listen."
"So she's coming along so you could convince her that you're not on a date?" asked Tsukiyo. "And that you're not in love with him?"
"Precisely," she said.
"Still, it's unfair for the rest of us in the schedule. She is spending time with Keima! Don't you know we can't approach him outside our time, even if we aren't alone if we don't have a reason?"
Aoba just stared at her.
"Oh, wait. Keima has not told you about the schedule, has he?"
"He didn't need to. I figured it all by myself. Elsie confirmed it for me."
"You did?" asked a very surprised Shiori.
"It's easy to figure out based on what you and Goido told me, and what I heard Kosaka say."
"Yui Goido is cheating! She should've refused to come with you," said Tsukiyo. "Not that I blame you, Miss Fuse. You hadn't figured out what the schedule was when you invited her, have you?"
"No."
"I thought so. Listen, you're going to meet up with Yui later, right? So ask her what's her valid reason. If not, can you tell her to back off, or I'll be furious!"
"I have two conditions."
The doll-like lady looked at her and raised her eyebrow.
"You should believe that I am not in love with the master. That we're not going to a date. Because if you don't believe that, what you're asking me is useless."
"I believe you. You are not on a date with Keima. Right, Shiomiya?"
"That's right. You're just a disciple."
"Good. Let's get this out of the way. I promised you to teach you about the lingo, but this condition applies to that as well."
"Very well then. But that won't apply if you really do fall in love with him. It only applies when I'm mistaken," she replied.
"Fine," said the girl gamer.
"So go and tell Goido my message. She better back off without a good reason."
"I'm sure she can come up with a plausible reason. Goido's not stupid," the gamer answered. "And you haven't asked what my second condition is."
"What is it?"
"Yui accompanying Keima and me to verify that nothing is happening between us is a valid reason. I hope you will recognize that. If you can't, I can't deliver your message."
"That would defeat the purpose of my message."
"Not necessarily. For the Divine One and me, that is a valid reason. For Yui, it may not be. She should not have to make Keima and me invite her just to make her believe something obvious. She should have believed me in the first place."
"Fine. That is a valid reason for you and Keima. I won't be angry with the two of you," the moon-lover said before she took another bite of her lunch. "But not for Yui. Ask if she has another reason. If that's her only reason, I'm going to get angry at her because it's obvious what her ploy is!"
"Ploy?" asked Shiori.
"Yes. Can't you see? She's pretending or fooling herself into not believing Miss Fuse here so she can have an excuse to hang out with Keima. Now Keima and you, Miss Fuse, would be forced to do things like this just to make her believe the truth! She's either too smart, or she's too stupid!" growled Tsukiyo. "Tell her, Miss Fuse, that she better have another reason, or else!"
Part 97 – 2B Pencils Talk
The 2B Pencils members sans Yui were walking from their school to Inazumart to browse the music store, and to look at the new instruments on sale. Chihiro, in particular, was excited about the new guitars.
"So what's up with Yui?" asked Miyako Terada as they walked.
"Who knows?" replied Ayumi. "Probably called by her mother or something."
"Yeah. She said she's busy this afternoon. I wonder," Chihiro asked, but refrained from asking what was on her mind. She suspected that the drummer was with Keima on another of her "reasonable" schemes to be with him outside the schedule.
"Wonder what?" asked Miyako.
"Oh nothing," the average band leader replied. Miyako did not need to know about the schedule.
"So, what are you gonna do tomorrow?" asked Elsie. She had joined them after eating lunch with Keima.
The runner sighed. "I'm not sure. Probably rest. This week was stressful."
"You said it," said Chihiro. She knew she was referring to the first week of the schedule with Keima, but with Miyako there, they cannot speak freely. "I'm gonna practice with the guitar and hopefully, start some songs. Or I'll just laze around the house and do nothing."
"Not even homework?" asked Miyako.
The normal girl shrugged. They have homework, but she's going to imitate Yui and use that to spend more time with Keima outside of her three hours.
"So how about you, Elsie?" asked Ayumi. "What are you going to do tomorrow?"
"Em, I'm gonna be with Divine Brother," she answered. She realized that asking that question had been a mistake.
"How about you, Miyako?" asked Chihiro. "Any plans for tomorrow?"
"Hey! That's Inazumart!" Elsie shouted as if it was the first time she'd seen it.
Ignoring the racket made by the female Katsuragi, Miyako said, "Oh, I'm going to tutor Katsuragi."
Ayumi asked. "So, Elsie is with you tomorrow?"
"I meant both Katsuragis!"
"Look at the building! It's enormous!" shouted Elly. She really wanted to end the conversation.
Looking up, she saw an invisible Haqua, riding her scythe, looking at her with a frown. The younger sister knew she had messed up.
Both Ayumi and Chihiro were staring at Miyako, and the party halted its walk.
"Wait. Both? Including the infamous Keima Katsuragi? The Otamegane?" Chihiro demanded, stepping in front of her.
"Yes. Katsuragi asked me to teach him to teach Elsie," the long-haired girl replied, not getting what the big deal was. "Yes, I know it's Katsuragi. And no, I don't believe he has gamer cooties or whatever it was you said he has."
"So, he's coming over to your house?" asked Ayumi, looking at her friend.
"Yes. Tomorrow, he and Elsie will come over," she informed. "Oh, don't look at me like that. It's not as if I'm going to fall in love with that goof. It's going to be a purely academic exercise!"
"Yeah, academic exercise," Chihiro repeated. Somehow, she knew that this was related to the upcoming conquest of Miyako. And looking at her best friend, images of Katsuragi holding her and kissing her and saying sweet nothings sickened her.
"Well, I'm just worried about you. He's the infamous Otamegane," Ayumi warned.
"I don't think he's as bad as you all think he is. He's just a big nerd. I want to help him."
"Ah, so you have a crush on him?" asked Ayumi in a teasing voice, testing the waters. She wondered how much progress was made on Miyako's conquest.
"You too, Ayumi? For the last time, Ayumi, Chihiro, and Elly, no, I'm not going out with him. It's not as if he's the type of guy to sweep a girl off her feet. I don't think there's a girl alive that would like to marry him. Except for Kanon, but she's not normal," she said. "So, you don't have to worry about me. Besides, it's touching that Katsuragi really cares about his sister, right Elly?"
"Yes! It's about teaching him teach me! And nothing else! I wonder what guitar is there on the store," Elsie quickly denied, looking cute and trying to steer the conversation away from the awkward topic.
They resumed their walk, and luckily, both Ayumi and Chihiro walked behind Miyako, so the 2B pianist did not notice their blushing faces.
So this was the dweeb's plan to conquer Miyako. What a terrible idea! Teaching him to teach Elly? About what? How can that lead to a conquest? I need to ask the doofus about it next time I see him. Yes, that would be a great excuse. He better not break her heart!
Chihiro shook her head of her thoughts. Calm down, calm down. It's for Miyako's own good. The Vice or whatever it's called needs to be removed. I need to trust the Otamegane on this. Still, I want to help. I want to see what he's up to.
Ayumi's palm nearly whitened from squeezing it too much. Just thinking about the situation hurt her. She just knew it was part of Keima's plan. Isn't there any other way? Why does he have to do this? Save Miyako, please. If not, I'm going to kick you to the Moon! And why does it feel worse now than when I first heard about it? Didn't I just approve of whatever Keima was doing? Wasn't I prepared to tolerate making Miyako fall in love with him? Oh, my God. Please, I don't want to witness what will happen. Make it quick.
Now I really understand why Keima can't choose a girl until this entire sordid business is over. The girl he chose would be hurt. Too hurt. If right now, it hurts, how much more if he had already made his choice? How would it hurt that girl to know he's still courting other girls because of his duties?
Part 98 – At the Inazumart Game Store
…
The two gamers met at the entrance of the school after lunch.
"So, what are you planning to buy?" asked Keima.
"Love Castle 4, and Girlfriend Trouble 3. Mostly the new Otome Games. But a couple of Galges as well. It depends on what's on the shelves," she said. "What would you recommend?"
"It depends," he said. "I want to see if the store has stock of Game Love 5. Or Asuka's Adventure 6. I'll probably clean out the store, so I don't have a specific recommendation. Just look at what I will pick. You'll learn a lot from the games I buy. Just remember—I have first dibs if there's only one copy."
"That's so unfair. If there's only one copy, and I see it first, I'll grab it, and you'll have to pry it from my cold dead hands," she retorted with icy seriousness.
"That's not very disciple like," Keima said, knowing her too well.
She just shrugged. "Don't worry, I'll let you borrow when I finish the game."
…
The two went to Inazumart, and there, proceeded to the Game Store. There, waiting and looking at the titles, was Yui Goido.
"Hey, you two!" she waved at them. "Keima, Fuse!"
Keima grunted in acknowledgment before he began scanning the titles. Aoba nodded and went to the Guy Game section, scanning Otome Games. They each got two big bags.
Keima was like a kid as he scanned the titles. His face had such happiness in it that it made Yui blush. He was so alive, so joyful, that it made the crossdresser happy that she had gone through this path. The way to his heart was one that would make Keima happy.
Looking at Aoba Fuse, her stoic face was still the same. But her eyes were alive as she looked at title after title, and put over a dozen games in her bags. And her movements were swift and fleet as she jumped from shelf to shelf, with cat-like reflexes.
The two gamers were so alike, yet so different at the same time. Keima was not naturally icy, or unemotional—it's just that things that could trigger his emotions were all in games, so outside of games, he came across as cold and rude. Aoba was just naturally reserved, so even in her happiest element, she looked, on the outside, barely pleased.
The crossdresser approached the girl gamer.
…
"Hey, Fuse, thanks for the tip," Yui said when they were close to each other.
"Did he like it?" asked the girl gamer as she looked at a game, before returning it to the shelf. "I already have this. This is the fifth edition. I'm looking for the sixth. You'd think they'd change the cover, but they are identical except the small label on the back."
"Yes! He was ecstatic! How did you know he would like it?"
"I'm a gamer. I know what games he likes," she replied. I knew of it from his website. But I won't tell you that. Fallen God is a secret. "I have been studying the ideal for some time now, and I could tell which games he would enjoy. He buys all the new games, but he would not enjoy them equally. He enjoys some games more than others. What I recommended were the newly released games he is especially fond of."
"So, can you tell which type he likes?"
"You wouldn't understand it even if I explained it. It's too complicated. Unless you become a gamer too."
"Oh. About that. When can we start? You see, I want to be really good at games. Not as good as you or Keima, but just enough so I can hold my own. I want to be his disciple, but he'll only take me in if I become good enough."
Aoba internally smirked. And here was a golden opportunity to make Yui her friend, just like her master asked her to. And perhaps she could persuade the heiress that she's not after the Divine One.
"Of course. I can't make any promises, but I'll do my best to make you good enough."
"Thank you. And if you think I'm good enough, please recommend me as his second disciple! Please vouch for my skills in games if you think I pass as a gamer!" she pleaded.
"Fine. But only if you really become good enough to be worth his time."
"Don't worry! I know I won't be as good as you or Keima," she admitted. "I only want to be good enough to be close to him."
She didn't respond to this as she got another title and put it on her bag. "By the way, I talked to Lady Kujo, and she asked me to give you a message."
"What are you now, a messenger girl?" laughed Yui.
I may as well be, with all that I've been doing lately. "She told me to ask if you have a valid reason for spending with Keima."
"Oh, that? Isn't what you and Keima want a valid enough reason? You want to prove to me that you are not in love with Keima?" asked Yui. "Besides, rule three states, and I quote, 'However, outside the schedule, the girls can approach Keima Katsuragi for any other purpose other than to spend time with Keima Katsuragi.' But also, rule five states, and I quote, 'Keima Katsuragi can refuse any girl's approach outside the scheduled time for any reason at his discretion.' So that means that it's Keima choice to determine whether or not this is a valid reason outside of my scheduled time. If he thinks I don't have a valid reason, he can just refuse me. Can't you see? It's up to Keima!"
"That answer would make her mad."
"That's because she doesn't know the rules very much! We are in a battle for Keima darling's heart. And the schedule—wait—you already know what the schedule is about, right?"
"I do."
"Good. The schedule and its rules are the keys to winning. It defines our rules of engagement. If she can't think of a way of spending time with him outside her scheduled time, it's not my problem."
"I see."
"But don't worry. I'll think up an excuse that our moon-lover can accept," she reassured.
That did not make the girl genius feel better, but she accepted it. How could she juggle Yui and Tsukiyo at the same time?
"Hey, can I use you as an excuse? Maybe I'll say that I'm accompanying you, Fuse. I'm not actually here to spend time with Keima, but to spend time with you."
"Lame. Lady Kujo will kill me if I tell her that."
"Just tell her that you're teaching me about games and that this is part of my education," she suggested.
"Fine," Aoba sighed. How could she talk her way out of it?
…
Part 99 – Café Grandpa Musings
Yui Goido looked at the Café Grandpa entrance for the second time in her life. This was the business of the Katsuragi family. It was small. Nothing like the Goido business, but even the largest companies started off small. She had no doubt that with the brilliant Keima as the future head, the café could blossom into one of the big players in the business world. All it needed was capital, and who better to give money than the Goido family? And it could happen through a marriage alliance like in olden times. Yui and Keima!
It was not surprising for Yui to have these musings. Even if her education was mostly about becoming a good wife, it was also expected for the Goido heiress to manage the family business when she grows up, and also be a helper to her husband in business if she marries into another business family. Being an ideal wife in the present day was not just about staying at home.
She entered and was appalled by the lack of customers. She was the only one present. Aside from the lady at the counter. Was that Mari Katsuragi? The family definitely needed help to boost its business, but Yui dismissed the thoughts. That was not her object in coming to the place.
The reason why she was here was that Keima and Fuse agreed that she should go-ahead to his house to avoid being seen with him. With Tsukiyo and the other girls watching her every move, it would be in her best interest to act cautiously for the moment. She had to stick to the letter of the rules. Otherwise, she would run afoul of the other girls.
She took her place on one of the tables and waited.
…
Mari Katsuragi prepared for another uneventful day at Café Grandpa. The place was empty. Not because it was closed, but because there were no customers. It was one of those lazy days where nothing happened. It was boring. She would have preferred to have a busy day—at least that would help in the household budget. After the week spent in South America with her husband, the week after was sedate. Normal.
At least the news about her husband's life-threatening condition was fake. She was relieved at the news. She spent the rest of the week abroad with her husband. It was one of the happiest weeks of her married life. And it nearly made her forget about Keiichi Katsuragi's infidelity. Not that she actually forgot—she just didn't want to spoil the romantic mood she had with her beloved spouse.
She kept reminding herself that whatever infidelity that he committed happened a long time ago. He probably even forgot about it. Probably a tryst that occurred when he was drunk and couldn't even remember. She read lots of stories about similar situations. Scheming women got men drunk and seduced them in such a vulnerable state—then the men could not remember a thing that happened when they woke up the next day. That's why Keiichi couldn't even remember what happened. None of the hints she dropped about having an illegitimate child even had an impact.
So she was thankful, that at least, maybe, just maybe, he wasn't intentionally unfaithful.
…
The week after was back to normal. Mostly normal, at least.
Something was off about her son.
Keima had proven himself a responsible adult with how he managed the affairs of the household and the café while she was gone. There was nothing missing. All had been in order. No customer had complained about how Keima managed the café in her absence. The money she had left Keima actually increased under his care. How he did it, she did not know, but it just goes to show how much of a genius her son was.
And there were changes to Keima. He remained a game obsessed nerd, but lately, he had been more social than usual. She was able to observe that that was mostly due to the return of his childhood friend, Tenri Ayukawa. Thrice during the week, Keima ate dinner outside their home. Twice at the Ayukawa's place, and once at the Terada place. The Terada dinner she could excuse, as he merely fetched Elsie when she went to her friend's home and stayed a little too late, but the two Ayukawa dinners were something else.
Now that was something that piqued her curiosity. What was Keima doing in the neighbor's home so often? Talking with Mrs Ayukawa earlier that day, she learned that Keima actually came thrice during the week and that the only reason he did not join them for dinner during Wednesday evening was the need to go to the Terada house. But what was more, according to her gossipy neighbor, her Keima was spending time with Tenri, alone with her in her room.
Wait!
What was Keima doing with Tenri all this time? Was her Keima actually courting a real-life girl this time? Mari got excited. Keima's finally growing up! And Keima could do worse than Tenri Ayukawa. In fact, with his personality, Keima could probably not find a girl other than Tenri. Still, Tenri was not her ideal daughter-in-law. She was too timid, too submissive, and would let him walk all over her. She sighed. Beggars can't be choosers. She would welcome Tenri into her family if, indeed, she was his choice. And if Mrs. Ayukawa's hints were correct, Tenri was madly in love with her son.
Tenri would do.
…
Part 100 – Meeting Mari
"Your special coffee please," a student from Mai High Private School ordered in the Café Grandpa.
Mari Katsuragi was uncertain. The student looked like a boy—with the uniform and all. But the voice was feminine. And the facial features looked like that of a girl. She had just entered, alone, and sat on one of the chairs near the entrance to the residence. Like a good waitress, the mother went to her and asked for her order.
"Special Coffee?" asked the mother, perplexed.
"Yes. The Special Coffee of one Keima Katsuragi," the student replied enthusiastically. "I heard from rumors that it was terrific. So I want to try it."
It was the second time Mari heard about that exceptional coffee of her son. The first time was that weird girl who dressed in a big brown coat and big brown hat earlier in the week.
"I'm sorry, but my son isn't home yet," the mother replied. "He's the only one who knows how to make it. Can I interest you in any other kind of coffee? I assure you—the Coffee of Café Grandpa is special and one of a kind. Not only my son, but I also have my special coffee, aside from the Katsuragi Family coffee served in this café."
"I'll take some snacks. What's available?" asked the crossdresser. "For the coffee, I'll wait for Keima to arrive if that's okay. I heard that it makes all other coffee taste like mud."
"Fine," said Mari. "Can I take your order then?"
"What would you recommend?"
…
She was in the counter, watching the strange girl eat when her sharp ears heard the door to their home open. "Excuse me," she said to the cross-dresser and went to the living room of their house. She intended to pull her gamer of a son to the café before he could march straight to his room and be a pain to get him to do things.
But she stopped when it was not only her son. Was that a girl? Did Keima Katsuragi, her weird gamer son, bring home a girl? A girl who was not Tenri? And by the look of her uniform, a classmate too?
Her son? Bringing a girl home? The last time that happened was when Keima brought home Elsie, but that didn't count, as Elsie was family. Wait! Was that girl some long lost relative? Because no matter what was before her eyes, she still could not believe that her son could bring a girl, that was not his childhood friend, home. It was too weird.
She had no doubt that if her son changed and became polite, sociable, and normal, he could bring home many girls. But not her son as he currently was. She couldn't detect any change in the attitudes of his son towards real-life girls or real life in general.
"Hello, Mother. This is Aoba Fuse. Aoba, this is my mother."
And already first name basis too! What was the world coming to?
"Hello, Mrs. Katsuragi," the blue-haired girl bowed respectfully.
Mari gave a big smile. Her brain quickly processed what was happening. Something had changed. Otherwise, this would not have happened. Either the world or Keima changed. To think that the world would accommodate her son was ridiculous, so that meant her son changed.
And that meant that her son changed enough so that he could befriend a girl his age. Maybe something happened during the last week that brought a change to her son. Does that mean that her son was becoming less of an obnoxious gamer only concerned with 2D girls? And did this girl have a hand in making him change? Was this girl the reason?
That smile became even more prominent as her thought process went into overdrive. To think that a girl could change her son for the better, who would make him more sociable, who would make him less of a gamer! If this were the start of reforming her son for the better, she would jump for joy. Her son was not totally hopeless! Now she won't have to worry if she could have grandchildren with Keima.
If this girl could change him for the better, she would have her eternal gratitude.
"I'm so glad Keima brought a friend home," she said, cooing.
End of Flag X
Stats for the Week
Monday – Official Time
Tenri – Morning Walk – 15 minutes
Chihiro – Lunch – 1 hour
Ayumi – After School Event – 1 hour
Tenri – Visit After School – 45 minutes
Tuesday – Official Time
Ayumi – Lunch – 1 hour
Chihiro – After School Event – 1 hour
Shiori – After School Event – 1 hour
Wednesday – Official Time
Tenri – Morning Walk – 15 minutes
Tsukiyo – Lunch – 1 hour
Chihiro – After School Event – 1 hour (shared with Ayumi)
Ayumi – After School Event – 1 hour (shared with Chihiro)
Tenri – Visit After School – 45 minutes
Thursday – Official Time
Tsukiyo – Lunch – 1 hour
Shiori – After School Events – 2 hours
Tsukiyo – Nighttime Event – 1 hour
Friday – Official Time
Tenri – Morning Walk – 15 minutes
Yui – Lunch – 1 hour
Yui – After School Events – 2 hours
Tenri - Visit After School – 45 minutes
Total:
Tenri – 3 hours
Chihiro – 3 hours
Ayumi – 3 hours
Shiori – 3 hours
Tsukiyo – 3 hours
Yui – 3 hours
Author Notes
Aoba Fuse is a light novel heroine. I took her characterization both from the light novel, and also from Wrathie Winsre's stories.
Oh and an announcement and request. In the near future, I probably would run out of events that the girls could do with Keima during their "official" time. So if any of you could suggest activities that they could engage in one hour, two hours, or three, as long as those activities are in character, please tell me. I'd probably include it, with full credit of course.
Review Replies
To deathstalker982, thanks for your review. I'm going to post my reply for the enlightenment of other readers.
The reason why Mari did not recognize Kano was because Kanon was wearing a disguise. It was a long brown coat and beret that completely covered her hair. It was the disguise Kanon uses when she goes out in public. Not the most effective, but it does serve to fool the general public in the manga and TV series at least. And no, Mari did not closely study the face of the girl in the cafe. She simply did not connect the dots.
So she questioned Keima bringing a girl home, but Keima denied bringing a girl home. His story was that it was all a coincidence, that a schoomate of him heard of rumors of Keima's wonderful coffee and decided, on her own, to go the cafe. Coincidentally, Keima arrived home a little later.
Anyway, I'll probably give more details on her disguise when it's Kanon's time. Hopefully, that will fully answer your question. It would contain spoilers, so I hope you can wait.
To The Hansa, thanks for your review.
Yes, in the last chapter, Keima was happy. We see Keima rarely happy when he was with the girls. And when he acts happy, he usually was acting happy for the benefit of the girl. So I was delighted to write Keima as being really happy with Yui, something that would almost be unimaginable for any other situation. And yes, Keima is passionate about his games, that's why games could make him really happy. As in this fic, it's Shiori and Yui who succeeded to make him really happy by using games to become closer to him. And Tenri also made him happy a bit because in the last two meetings with her, she encouraged him to just play games.
And yes, the girls deserved to be selfish too. Shiori and Yui were actually a bit selfish in the way they made him happy. Shiori, by using a book based on his favorite game, and Yui, by making him dress as a girl while playing a game. Although, for the latter, how it would pan out in the long run remains to be seen. Could she really be a genuine disciple? If she could succeed in that, that would be terrific for both Yui and Keima.
As for the other girls, I think the best way is for Keima to do things that the girls enjoy even if he does not. In exchange, the girls should do activities that Keima enjoys even if they do not. Keima already had been doing the former lots of times. Before Shiori's book, it was a mostly one-way traffic in terms of personal happiness in the activities. The only problem is, once the affection points reach a certain high level, Keima may slack off making the girls happy, knowing nothing he'll do would actually dent their affection, while the girls would want to make him happy. But we'll see what happens.
As for more girls being added to the schedule, most probably, yeah, there would be. As for Diana, Tenri's Goddess being part of it, the problem was that it was theoretically a competition for Keima to choose one of them after five years, and she would compete with Tenri. It would be a no-no for her even if she's in love with Tenri. She felt guilty about the very fact of falling in love with Keima in the first place.
But we'll see. Nothing is set in stone about that topic yet.
To xellos540, thanks for your review. I really really appreciate it. And it makes me really happy to receive it. I'm going to post my reply for the enlightenment of other readers.
Yep. Keima thinks he needs to tell it to all the girls of the schedule. Otherwise, it could blow up it his face. And yeah, Tenri is a student of Misato High, so she has no real reason to know about the 2B Pencils.
I agree. It feels that Tenri is that way too. She isn't even a proper conquest target in the manga and anime too. And she's too understanding and too selfless for her to be other than to be a support member. But hopefully, things will change for her.
Yep. Aoba is like Keima, so in her dealings with the real world, she also uses game logic. And like Keima's game logic, it mostly works.
Well, she did say that either he loves no one, or even if he does, for some reason, he can't pick one right away. Keima answers which of the two applies to him. The reason it did not surprise her more was that she was using game logic, like Keima would, and by game logic, the hero has to choose. Aoba, like Keima, would not be surprised by game logic, even if practically, it could be nonsensical.
Yep. Chihiro to the rescue!
Yeah. Mere explaining is not enough. Keima needs to do something more in order for them to really and fully accept his mission.
Yes. The one benefit of the rules was that it changed Yui's behavior outside of her scheduled time. It gave Keima some breathing room.
Will Maijima survive? Maybe not. xD
Oh yes. When he was thinking about physical contact, he was thinking about things like kisses and hugs which he sometimes may provoke the girls to do to him when raising their affection points. Like that of Chihiro and Ayumi in this fic for example, or Tsukiyo during her first hour. He was fully expecting to be kissed, even if he could not guess the exact minute or so, so he was still caught off guard or surprised sometimes. He simply did not think about Yui. It was a mistake on his part.
Yup. One of the rare weaknesses of Keima. It's always fun to write. And yep, a double reference to Yui's reconquest and Nanaka.
Whether telling Yui about Miyako is a good idea will be seen. Especially if she tries to "help" in the conquest.
Me too. I myself think that he can't be too hurt with the memory wipes. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to properly do his job with all the memory wipes that routinely happens. But in this story, it hurt, but only a little bit. But as Yui said, all those little bits add up. Still, Keima was able to deal with it quite easily.
I hope I did that well. Yui was very difficult to write, but I hope I pulled it off. And actually, I didn't plan it. It simply flowed from the direction of the start of the conversation about Miyako's impending conquest.
I love writing about the interactions between Tsukiyo and Shiori. Such a contrast of character. And yeah, Shiori is very difficult to write if you don't write about her inner thoughts. It would make Shiori a very bland character. With her inner thoughts, Shiori becomes way more interesting.
Yeah, the "Keima will be mine" is something I've been dying to write for a long time.
Yep, Sumire is coming, but I still am undecided if she would have a major role. Kinda hard where is right now.
For the gaming set, the hardest thing about it was deciding on Yui's mother's motivation to keep all those devices. To me, it's not in character for her to do so. Luckily, in the manga, in the Heart of Jupiter arc, she did keep all those devices. So I had to invent a reason. Hopefully, her reason was plausible to her personality. After all, she did keep those after Yui returned to normal after her conquest.
And yeah, she stole a march on Aoba on that. Even though Aoba would not care much who among the girls was "first" to see the God of Conquest mode.
Yes, Yui "wants" to be a disciple. But really, just to spend more time with Keima and because of her jealousy of Aoba. And she's the third, after Tenri and Tsukiyo.
As for Tenri seeing Keima, see this chapter.
Thank you for your review!