The World The Girls Also Knows: The Girls God Can Only Save
AU after Goddesses Arc. Keima has to maintain the affection of the Seven Goddess hosts and Chihiro and hunt loose souls at the same time.
CHAPTER 11 summary
Mari gets to know Aoba and Yui. Aoba sees Keima's Game library and his God of Conquest mode. Mari questions Keima and Elsi about Tenri, Yui, and Aoba. Aoba Fuse meet both Haqua and Kanon. Kanon's three hours begins.
Summary of the last chapter.
Keima spends time with Tenri to complete her three hours. Three girls give Keima lunch on Saturday. Aoba eats lunch with Tsukiyo and Shiori. Keima shops for games with Yui and Aoba. Mari meets Yui and Aoba.
And I do not own The World God Only Knows.
And thanks to xellos540 for the beta job!
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 XI
Meeting God
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
Mai-Hime = Princess from Maijima, the title of Aoba Fuse in the Gaming Community
Part 101 – A Disappointing Friend
"I am the Divine One's disciple," Aoba Fuse said to Mari.
"Wait. Divine One? Disciple?" Mari replied, her daydreams crashing down.
"Yes. Your son is God. God of Conquests and Games. It's only natural that I call him Divine," she clarified.
"Excuse me a minute," Mari said. "Keima, I want to talk to you."
She grabbed her son and pulled him to an adjacent room. "Listen here, Keima. I'm not too fond of you making Elsie call you God. She hero-worships you, so that's excusable, but to make another girl call you that? I don't care how big your ego is. You're going to march right out and tell her not to call you that."
He nodded. It was not a big deal to him anyway.
They went back to the living room. "Aoba, please don't call me Divine One."
"But Master, you call yourself the God of Conquests. And it is because you are the God on Conquests that I came to know you. I cannot call you any name other than Divine or Master or God. Otherwise, that would be too disrespectful. Please let me call you that. It would be insolent for me not to do so."
She was so earnest, so sincere! But Mari can't have that. That would swell her son's already awesome ego. She needed to approach this differently. Then she noticed another thing. What she was carrying—it was two bags filled to the brim. She recognized it. Those were bags from the game store.
"Keima. Making her carry your games! Have you no shame? Apologize!" she quickly scolded, drawing the most obvious conclusion.
"He doesn't need to," the girl gamer interjected. "These are my own games. The Divine One would have carried it for me if he weren't carrying his own game bags."
That mollified Mari. That explanation made sense. And she saw four more bags of games, the games her son presumably carried. "Oh! I'm so sorry for jumping to conclusions, son."
"That's fine, Mom."
"So tell me, how did you two meet?"
Aoba and Keima told her an abbreviated version of what happened between them, without mentioning that Keima was the person behind the Fallen God website.
After the tale was told, Mari was speechless.
It was not Keima changing at all. No. It was that he found another person who shared the exact same interests as him. And that the person happened to be a girl.
She should be excited and happy for her son. But all her hopes of the girl weaning her son away from gaming was dashed as she learned about the true nature of Aoba Fuse. If anything, she would only encourage his bad habits.
But at least he had a friend that he could relate to. And the way she looked at her son. It was not love. But it was something else. It was pure adoration. Keima was her hero. It was like how Elsie looked at him. Mari was a bit disappointed, but she could not deny her Keima's friendship.
Then she remembered the girl in the café. "Keima, we'll discuss this later. We have a customer in the café who wants to sample your coffee. Go now! Before she leaves!"
"Okay, Mother," he said, going to the café, leaving Mari and Aoba alone in the living room.
"If I may, I'd like to thank you for raising such a wonderful son," the girl gamer said to Mari as soon as he left the room. "His passion for games, and his skill and proficiency at it leaves me in awe. I can only hope to be as good as him at games."
"Don't worry. If there's one thing that I am sure of, is that he can make you very good at games," Mari conceded. "Ever since he was a little kid, he does nothing but play games." She told it with an air of pride and exasperation.
"What? That's amazing. No wonder he's so good. I only learned about games just a few months ago. If only my parents introduced me to games at such a young age. Maybe I can even become as good as him. He's so lucky to have you as a mother. Otherwise, he would not have turned out to be as great as he is now."
Those words were not hollow. Aoba exuded sincerity when she said those words. She did not use diplomatic words. She outright praised her son for the one thing she despaired of so many times.
It was the first time anyone outside her family had complimented her about raising Keima to be a gamer. And it tickled her. It flattered her. She had often wondered if she did right by raising Keima the way she did. She wondered if she made some errors in letting him become such a gamer without any social skills.
Hearing those words from Aoba made her content. She did raise Keima right after all. He did not lack social skills at all if he could make friends with this girl. And not for the first time, she felt pride in her son as a gamer.
From that moment, she liked Aoba Fuse. Maybe she does not totally approve of the influence she could have on her son, but she liked her. Her words affirmed her pride as a mother.
"You must be hungry. Come to the café. You're my guest, so the food's on the house," she invited as she led her to the Café Grandpa.
…
Part 102 – Future Wife
"Your coffee is deeelightful!" shouted Yui after she took a sip. "Keima darling, the rumors did not exaggerate!"
That was when Mari entered with Aoba in tow. "Keima darling? You know each other?" the mother asked.
"Oh, yes! Darling is a very close friend," she said, standing and bowing to Mari. "I will be his future wife."
That stopped the mother in her tracks.
"Huh?"
"Mrs. Katsuragi, I want to ask permission to marry your son. Not now, mind you, but in the future. In five years!"
Everyone else dropped their jaw.
Mari was the first one to recover. "I'm happy that you'd like to be my son's wife. But you're asking the wrong person. You should ask Keima that. And I will support whatever his decision is," she finally said.
"Thank you, Ma'am!" the crossdresser said, as happy as a lark. "I will win your son, and he will choose me when it's time!"
Mari was dumbfounded. What just happened? She went from musing about how her son's asocial and gaming nature would make even befriending a girl difficult, to a girl outright asking for her son's hand in marriage. Not that she was unhappy. On the contrary, she was happy that Keima could get a girl, but this was just too much.
Then she remembered Tenri. How could she have forgotten about Tenri? She had just accepted that Tenri might be the only girl that could tolerate Keima. Before, Keima gave no indication of being in love or courting his neighbor. He acted like Tenri was just a friend, and given Keima's gamer attitudes towards 2D girls, Mari just accepted it. That is until she heard of the news of Keima spending time with Tenri alone in her room. It was shocking that Keima might actually be courting a real girl!
But this girl, and Fuse, completely changed her perception that Keima as himself could not attract girls that were not his childhood friend.
So basically, Keima now had three female friends, two of whom were definitely after her son.
"Oh, pardon me. I forgot to introduce myself. I am Yui Goido. Hopefully, in the future, Yui Katsuragi!"
"Wait. Goido? Are you from the famous Goido family?"
"The very same! If I marry your son, your family will never want for anything again, and your son could play games all day long!"
"I must warn you though, you're not the only one after him," she finally said, referring to Tenri. She was not sure she approved this girl for her son. She knew too little about her.
"I know," she merely said. "But I will triumph in the end."
"That's enough, Yui," Keima finally said.
And Mari noticed that her son was of first name basis with the Goido girl. They really do know each other very well.
"Mom, Aoba, and Yui are here because they wanted to see me play games. Specifically, they want to see me play more than one game at the same time," he said. "We're going to my room now."
"Wait? Your room?" said Mari.
"Yes. I want to show them my gaming equipment," he replied. "May we go now?"
"Yes, but we'll talk later, Keima. Wait. I want to join you." I want to see their reaction to my son's room. Hopefully, they won't be too shocked. Maybe if they were, would that be enough to change Keima? Who am I kidding? That Aoba girl would make him even a bigger nerd than he already is.
"As you wish, Mom," he said, sighing. "Let's go."
As there were no other customers in the café, Mari closed the establishment before joining Keima and the girls. She wanted to check what Keima was really up to, as well as act as a chaperone.
…
Part 103 – The Game Library
The gamer was a bit irritated that his mother accompanied them, but what could he do? With his father abroad, she rules the roost. God only knows what his mother was thinking of the entire situation. It was near breaking point with her knowing the times he spent at Tenri's house. With two additional girls entering his life? He didn't know how to begin to explain to his mother what was happening.
He decided to ignore her as best he could. He led them upstairs. First, he led them to the Game Library opposite his room.
"This is where I keep my games," he said.
Aoba Fuse's jaw nearly hit the floor as she stared at the place. "Look at this! This is the first I've seen a physical copy of this game! And look! This game! This is so rare!"
She looked at the shelves, scanning the titles, looking at the covers, as giddy as a child in a candy store. "This game is over ten years old! Oh my! I can't believe it! Your collection is awesome, Master!"
The girl gamer spent the next half-hour browsing the games, and many "oohs" and "aahs" were heard. Keima was like a proud collector showing off his collection, and he explained the games that Aoba was looking at.
Yui was lost and was not able to say anything. She just stared at the two, utterly jealous of the two gamers' interaction with each other. She just followed their progress through the shelves, making a comment or two when she could. Which only exposed her ignorance.
The heiress was amazed at Fuse's knowledge of past games, which made it even more exciting for the girl gamer. It was like a history lover going to a museum and seeing rare objects of the past, or more likely, traveling to the past and meeting their favorite historical figures. For the first time, she saw Fuse's mask partially come off her face.
"If I only learned games ten years ago, maybe I could have a collection as great as yours!" Aoba said in awe. Looking at her Master's library was far better than going to the game store. In the game store, she was already familiar with most games. Here, everything was new to her. All the games that she only read about on the Internet were here. The entire history of galges was here. It's as if she traveled back in time. It was heaven.
"If you like, my disciple, you could borrow any game you want. I can even lend you some old game consoles for the obsolete ones," he said as she looked.
"Can I?" she said.
"Yes, you can."
"Thank you! You truly are God!" she exclaimed before getting his hand and shaking it hard, and giving him a short hug that made him blush. She quickly let go and returned to the shelves, scanning the titles. "How many can I borrow in one day?"
"As many as you can play in a day," he replied. He was happy at her reaction to his gaming collection. Nobody had ever reacted that way to his games, and he was glad he made her his disciple.
"I can't borrow any game today. I need to finish all the games I bought today, and I still have some backlog," the girl gamer replied. "Can I come here again?"
"You can come here anytime you want," he answered. "As long as I'm here so I know what games you're gonna take."
"Wait. Fuse can come here anytime as long as you're here?" Yui asked, dumbfounded.
"Yes. How else can she pick what games to borrow?"
"Thank you, Master! But even if I don't have games to borrow, could I come back here? I just love looking at the games, even if I'm not playing. There's just so much history here, it's so wonderful."
"Yes. I have no objection," he said. He was so pleased with her reaction. It vindicated everything he had been doing for the past ten years. All those detractors who questioned his habits will now eat their words. He had now someone who could understand and appreciate his hobby.
And Yui got jealous. Really jealous. That confirmed it. Fuse was really after her darling Keima. She was so brazen in her tactics. The girl genius, just like that, got permission to spend as much as she wanted with him, and even go to his home.
The heiress pondered. What could she do about it? She could not do the same. That would violate the schedule, and she would run afoul the other girls. I really need to get Fuse inside the schedule. That would limit the time she would spend with him. But is that the right idea? If she's not in the schedule, Keima can't choose her. But will Keima only limit his choice among us seven? I know that he thinks he'll do that, but a lot can change. Love can make him lose his mind and choose outside us seven girls. I'll need to talk to Mars.
For Mari, that was wonderful. It's so lovely to see her son make some friends his age. Granted, he already had Tenri, but she was already his friend since childhood. Fuse was the first friend he made while a teenager. And the look of awe and amazement at seeing her sons' game collection was just adorable. Nobody else ever laid eyes on her sons' games like Aoba did. If only she could persuade herself that she's Keima's equal. Her calling him Master or Divine doesn't sit well with her. Elsie calling her brother God was already too much.
Mari could also tell that Yui was not really interested in Keima's games, despite being here to watch him play. The crossdresser was evidently more interested in her son than in his hobbies. The heiress kept looking at him and barely at the games on the shelves.
"Could I also borrow your games?" Yui cut in.
"You're not even my disciple," Keima shot back. "You have enough games at your house, and you don't even play them."
"But if I become your disciple in games, could I have the same rights as Fuse in visiting this game collection?"
"If you become one, yes," he conceded.
And Yui's eyes widened in anticipation.
…
Part 104 – God's Room
"Now for the main attraction!" Keima proclaimed as soon as they were done in the game library. "Behold, and be amazed, at the God of Conquest mode!"
Mari could only roll her eyes at her son. She had already seen her sons' ability. And to be honest, it was a fantastic ability. It spoke to his talents at multitasking. She just wished he applied his skills to worthier endeavors than gaming.
He led them to his room.
Aoba Fuse was surprised that the room was so dark. The curtains were closed, and the lights were off.
"And God said, let there be light!" Keima's booming voice announced.
Then there was a blinking light. Then more blinking lights. Suddenly, there was brightness.
And right before them, six monitors on the wall came to life, and various games loaded.
"Behold, the gaming throne of God!" Keima shouted, gesturing his arm to the chair with gaming controllers in front of it. He sat on it.
"Unbelievable!" the girl gamer exclaimed, staring at the screens, before looking at her master.
"I first developed the mode when I needed to complete multiple games under a time constraint. At first, I tried to play two games at the same time. That was more than ten years ago if I am not mistaken, right Mom?"
"Yes, son," Mari said, not relishing the memory of a seven-year-old Keima making his first "throne".
"I did it! Then I tried three games, four games, five, and finally, six. Now, watch God at work!"
Yui had already seen it, so she was not surprised. She looked at Aoba and saw that the genius was even more gobsmacked. Her eyes were wide, her mouth was open. She looked like she was in heaven.
Keima began playing. And even if it was the second time for Yui, she remained in awe of him. His arms were so fast that it seemed he had six arms.
"After-images," mumbled Aoba, her eyes darting between his arms and the screens in front of him. "I… I am not… worthy."
…
When it was over, when all six games were completed at the same time, he looked at the girls. "Well, what do you think?"
"That's amazing, Keima darling!" shouted Yui.
Aoba looked at the screens of endings and looked at him. He looked like a God. He looked magnificent. She was in total awe of the master.
Her eyes moistened, and tears began flowing. "To see such a thing, I am so lucky, so privileged, even if I am not worthy," she said. She stepped a little forward before falling on her knees. "Forgive me, Master, for daring to presume that I could be a worthy disciple. Seeing you, seeing that, shows how low I am. I am nothing compared to you, who is God. I can't even play two games at the same time, yet you can play six! If it pleases you, I want to learn how to do that," she said, her eyes looking upward at him.
"Don't say that," Keima said, looking at his disciple. "You're way above everyone else. That you're not close to me is only natural, since I am God, and you're just a princess, Mai Hime. But, Princess, you could, in the future, if you try. My skill isn't impossible to learn. I have faith that you could, in time, become just as good as me. Be the Goddess that you're destined to be, Aoba Fuse!"
"You think so?"
"Do you really think I was born this way? Of course not! The only advantage I have over others is that I'm a genius. But you're a genius too. I would not be surprised if you can be as great as me. And yes, I will teach you how to do so."
She finally stood up and said, "Thank you," before giving him a tight hug. She then stepped back and bowed. "I'm sorry for acting the way I did. I'm afraid I lost myself there."
"That's fine. What do you think? What should you do first to learn about it?"
"Can I take a picture of that chair? I want to do that in my room," she began.
He nodded, and she got her phone and took pictures.
…
Yui Goido looked on, both happy and jealous. She was jealous because she wished she was the one who was being praised and helped by Keima. She knew she couldn't even fake reacting as Aoba did. That was genuine. She really was a gamer girl. Keima would immediately spot her faking it if she tried.
And Keima called her a Princess. Yui would kill for that.
But she was happy because Keima was happy. She had seen the true self of her beloved. And she was also happy for Aoba Fuse since, by this time, she clearly liked her as a friend. If only Aoba would openly admit liking Keima, so many things would be solved. She could join an exclusive and charmed circle of girls.
…
Mari was happy. It was rare to see Keima being kind or considerate to other people. Most of the time, he was rude and selfish. Most of the time, she just wanted to smack some sense into him. All he cared about was games. Though she had to admit, Keima being kind to Aoba was intimately related to gaming. Yes, that must be it. Aoba genuinely praised him for something he deeply cared about. And Keima responded in kind.
Mari savored the moment. It was a vindication of her mothering skills. Keima, after all, was not bad. He was a good kid. And his gaming did not hinder him as much as she thought it did. Now, he was making new friends, and was treating such friends as actual human beings! Such progress! All thanks to that Aoba girl.
Still, she did not favor the blue-haired girl for her son as a girlfriend. A best friend—yes, but not a girlfriend. To Mari, she wanted someone who could ground him to reality, to offset his bad habits, to make him engage in the real world more often. Fuse would not do on that score. She would encourage him in his gaming, and swell his already colossal ego even further. She literally worships the ground he walks on. That would not be healthy.
…
Part 105 – New Master and Student
More than four hours later…
It was late, and Yui Goido and Aoba Fuse, after giving their farewells, were walking together. They were headed in the same direction. The girl gamer was very happy, even if it was not shown on her face. She had returned to her regular ice-cold personality.
"So, are you satisfied? Nothing happened between God and me. That's proof enough that I am not in love with him."
"The only reason nothing happened between you and Keima was that I was there, and so was Mrs. Katsuragi. And you invited me so that I'll believe you, so of course you won't do anything with him even if Mrs. Katsuragi's absent. But you did something, anyway."
"What do you mean?"
"You just invited yourself in his house any time you liked as long as he's home. Nice strategy. Using your love of games to gain such an advantage! You're a genius!" the heiress genuinely complimented.
"That doesn't mean—" the gamer began, then stopped. Looking at it logically, Yui was right. It looked bad. She really made it seem she set it up just to spend time with him. "Look, I know what you're thinking. But it's nothing like that. I'm just amazed at his game collection and his gaming devices. I want to borrow his games."
"I know you're telling the truth about your love of games. It's just very convenient, isn't it?"
Aoba glared at her, while Yui just smiled at her with a knowing grin.
"Come on! I'm not hating you for it! Just admit it! You love Keima!"
"I do not!"
The heiress laughed. "Don't be so stubborn. Don't worry, you'll admit it soon enough, and we can have a laugh at it," she said. "By the way, if you finally admit it, would you be willing to join the schedule?"
"Yes, if I don't love someone else, and I only love him," the girl gamer answered without hesitation. Yui wouldn't believe her anyway if she denied it. "But that's not going to happen, is it? I don't love him."
"Right. Just to make sure," Yui said, smiling. "Oh, and another thing, how about we start the lessons? I really need to learn about gaming."
"Fine. Maybe this will convince you," she said. "Okay, first, do you have a gaming device? A PFP?"
"I have dozens of them."
"You have? Good. Bring them on Monday," the girl gamer instructed. "You have games?"
"Tons."
"If you have so many, how come you don't know anything about it?" she asked suspiciously.
"I kept buying them, hoping that I could become a gamer and be like Keima," Yui lied. "But I don't even know how to start. I look at it, and it just makes my head hurt. I can't do it on my own."
"Bring one of them. I'm going to run you through it."
"So, how long do you think before I can be good enough?"
"I don't know."
"How long did you become good enough?"
"A few weeks."
"Why can't l be good enough in a few weeks?"
"I'm a genius. You're not."
"That's not nice."
"I'm not nice. If you really want to learn fast, I'm going to be a hard taskmaster. You're going to regret asking me how to play."
"How can I regret anything that would make me closer to Keima darling?"
"I won't be easy on you," she said icily. I'm going to make you pay, Goido, for making me do all this.
Part 106 – Mother's Interrogation
Keima was supposed to be getting ready for his three hours with Kanon Nagakawa.
But he was stuck in the living room. Drinking coffee. With his mother.
After the girls had left, Mari Katsuragi had insisted that her son make her a sample of his famous coffee. And he did. He hoped that was all. He expected the worst.
"So, this is your famous coffee," she said, tasting it. "Not bad. Not bad at all. Better than mine. Or any other coffee for that matter. No wonder your school mates came here to sample it."
"I'm glad you like it."
"It's wonderful. You served it during the Mai-High festival?"
"Yes."
"No wonder. It's so good! Where did you find this recipe?"
"I invented it," he said.
"How did you?"
"I made some mixtures and did some tinkering. I got lucky," he said.
"Would you tell me how you did this?"
"It's a secret."
"Not even for your mother? Or the café?"
"I may. But only if you promise to keep it a secret, and only make it if I am around. I want that coffee to remain exclusively associated with me," he said.
"Fine. So, I want to ask you a question."
Here it comes.
"Do you have a girlfriend?"
And that was the easiest question to answer.
"No."
Keima did not even have to lie to answer that.
"Really?"
"No, I don't have a girlfriend," he answered honestly in the most matter-of-fact manner possible. He retained his poker face, which not even his mother could peel.
His mother looked at him skeptically, but he just stared back, his brown eyes looking innocently at her. There was nothing in his face that indicated any lie.
"Right. I want to talk to you. I know you're a growing boy. It's perfectly normal for someone your age to like girls, and to have a girlfriend," she began.
"I like girls. In fact, I interact with them every day!" he said with an enthusiastic voice.
"I'm not talking about game girls," Mari retorted.
"Oh. You mean real girls? Not interested," he said, his voice becoming normal. "Don't worry, Mom. I'm not letting real girls distract me. I promise that I'll always be a perfect student. You will never have anything to complain from me academically."
"I know. You are my perfect son, one that I would not trade anyone for," she said. "You're a genius! You're smarter than anyone else I know. It's just that, sometimes, I'm concerned about you. Answer my question. Do you have an eye for any girl? Don't be shy. I won't get angry. I'm your mother, after all."
And once again, he answered honestly.
"No, Mother. I don't have any eye for any girl in the real," he said. He really doesn't. He may love Chihiro at the moment, but he can't pursue her outside the schedule. And he doesn't have an eye on any other members of the schedule. It was easy to answer that.
"So, why are you visiting Tenri every day this week?"
"It's not every day. Only three times."
"Well?"
Luckily, he had long anticipated this line of questioning. He had the perfect excuse. And he had instructed Tenri to answer the same if someone asked her the same questions. Luckily, nobody saw them do intimate stuff. Like kissing. That would be difficult to explain. But even if they had been caught, he had lies prepared for any eventuality.
"Tenri had some difficulties in her studies. So on Monday, I helped her in her lessons. She was so grateful that she offered to show me some magic tricks. So I returned on Wednesday, and she did her magic show. Then yesterday, she got tons of homework. So I coached her. And she's taking part in a play, so I helped her rehearse her lines," he answered as if he was answering questions to a boring game. His voice was so natural, his face was so inscrutable that his lies went undetected.
"So, that's all that has been going on between you two?"
"Yes. She's my childhood friend. It's our obligation to help each other," said Keima. "To be honest, she had been a bother. I'd rather play games than waste my time helping real girls. But if I refuse, then her parents may complain to you, and I'd rather not do anything to make you angry, Mom. And Elsie insisted that I help her when my sister came to know of her."
"You called Tenri your childhood friend!" Mari noticed.
"You can thank my sister for that," he replied.
"So how about that Goido girl?"
"She's a crazy crossdresser. She got to know me because of the 2B Pencils. Elsie begged me to help them solve a band problem. They were missing a drummer. I helped them find a drummer. That drummer was Yui Goido. And in the process, I helped Yui solve her problem too. And it was because of me that they were able to perform during the Mai High Festival. So, because of that, Yui decided to make me feel better by pretending to fall in love with me, though God knows why. I'm a creepy gamer!" he explained. "Yui doing that was something out of my control. I don't like her. She's a real girl. She isn't even close to the ideal. Believe me, her attempts to court me are a pain. I wish I could tell her to disappear forever, but that may make her quit the band. I would never hear the end of it from Elsie if that happened."
"Wait. You said pretend. How do you know she's not really in love with you? You saw how she acted," Mari pointed out.
"She's just teasing. She's not really in love with me," he insisted. "She just wants to embarrass me. She's not serious."
"Really! You can't believe what you're saying!"
"I'm a creepy gamer who spends all his time gaming and cares nothing about the real world! What girl would fall in love with that? No matter how much I help girls, my creepiness and nerdiness would ensure that they stay away. They can't love someone with my personality!" he said. "I am cold, rude, obnoxious, and hate real girls. I'm buried in games. What girl could like a boy like that?"
"But how she acts—"
"Do you really think a person in love would act the way she did? Of course not. That only meant she's not serious, and she's doing it as a joke. Maybe she's sorry for me, so she does that so that my classmates may think that I can make a girl fall for me," he rationalized. "Besides, logically, she can't fall in love with me."
"Why?"
"Because no flags were raised. There were no proper events. And she kept acting like a player instead of a heroine. So how can she fall in love with me when the proper steps are not taken?"
"This is not a game!"
"Real life is like a game. A shitty game, but nonetheless a game!"
Mari sighed. He was not lying. Of course! How can she think otherwise? He was using game logic in real life, and that told him Yui can't love him. That's why he's so blind. She really needs to educate his son on that matter. "So that Goido girl being here is because of Elly?"
"Yes. She's a real pain, always wanting to help random strangers. It's maddening. I could always say no to her, but it's very difficult or even impossible once she started begging and showing you those puppy dog eyes."
"You really do care about your sister!" Mari cooed before hugging her son.
He said nothing to that. Let her think that. It's easy to blame his sister for everything. It's not even a lie. Everything that happened was because of that damned bug demon. And he had earlier talked to Elsie and instructed her on what story to feed his mother.
"And I suppose that Elsie was the reason you became a friend with that Fuse girl?"
"No. That's on me. What we told you was what really happened," he said. "She's a lost lamb. I can't let a lost lamb remain lost. That would tarnish my reputation as the God of Conquests. And besides, she's not my friend. She's my disciple."
Mari ignored the last part. No matter what Keima claimed, she could see that Aoba and Keima were friends, sort of. The only thing lacking was equality between two friends. Maybe, when she became as good as him, he would admit to himself that she was his friend.
So many of her presumptions were overturned this past week. Keima was more than a gamer. He could manage the household and the business without her just fine. Keima, without changing his personality, managed to make three girls his close friends. Two girls were head over heels for Keima just for his own personality, no matter what Keima would claim. And more importantly, Keima became closer to Elsie. It was Elsie who was responsible for Keima having more friends and becoming more outgoing. She was the girl who made Keima do what he usually would not do. And for that, she was grateful that "her daughter" joined their lives.
And she was proud of her son. Hopefully, Keima would recognize these changes and accept them as part of his life.
Still, part of her suspected that he was lying. But another part wanted to believe her son and wanted to think that he would never lie to her in such an important matter. She looked at his eyes, his facial muscles, any indication that he might not be telling the truth, and she found none.
There was one way to check his truthfulness.
Part 107 – Elsie's Answers
…
Later…
Keima had already gone to his room to play games when Elsie arrived home. She had hung out with the members of the 2B Pencils club, specifically around Miyako, as part of her duties. When it was late, she had to go home. Otherwise, Mari would get angry. An invisible Haqua remained around the pianist.
"Elsie, could I talk to you?" asked Mari as she entered the Katsuragi home.
"Yes, Mother?" she cheerily answered.
"I need to ask you some questions regarding Keima and his friends," she began. "So, a girl named Yui Goido came and asked to marry my son. Do you know how he came to know her?"
She smiled as she answered. She and her Divine Brother had gone over it numerous times. If there's one thing she's good at, it's following his instructions to the letter and producing the desired results. She could lie to other people very well as part of her mission, and with such innocent verve that nobody could suspect that she was anything but truthful.
"Well, our band needed a drummer. So, I asked Beloved Brother to help me find one. And Exalted Brother was so kind that he helped us. He found Yui Goido. At first, she had some problems that meant she can't just join us, but the Divine One solved her problem. So she joined us. And Yui fell head over heels with my brother because of that. How can she not? Big Brother is so amazing and handsome and wonderful that all girls ought to fall in love with him."
"So Keima knows Yui loves him."
"No. That's the frustrating part. He thinks that Yui's just mocking him and that everything Yui does is pretend," Elsie complained. "Sometimes, I just can't understand him. He kept saying something that came out of games that meant that Yui doesn't love him. I didn't get it."
"That's what Keima told me. So how about Tenri? I heard that he was with Tenri thrice this week, in her room. They're dating, I heard," Mari lied to see how Elsie would reply.
"They are? But I thought that Big Brother was just tutoring Tenri, and Tenri just wanted to show him magic tricks? Big brother really didn't want to help her at first. But I asked him so nicely, and he said yes because he's such a wonderful brother," Elsie replied with a look of surprise on her face.
"No, I was just kidding about the dating thing," Mari said. So much for her ruse.
"Do you think Tenri likes Keima?"
"All girls like him. There isn't a girl alive who could resist him. All girls would eventually fall in love with Divine Brother," Elsie answered with complete conviction of a sister hero-worshiping her brother. "So, I guess it's the same for Tenri."
That didn't answer Mari's question. Of course, Elsie would believe every girl would like Keima.
The mother then asked about Aoba Fuse, and Elsie again corroborated everything that Keima told her.
Finally, there was one question that Mari's dying to know. "Does Keima have a crush? A girlfriend, anything?"
Elsie shrugged. "Not unless you count game girls," she said. "You know how Big Brother is. If I don't ask him, he won't even talk to real girls, no matter how head over heels those girls are of him. And most of the time, he doesn't notice it. When he does, he doesn't care. So, no."
"So he notices some girls fall in love with him?" asked Mari, "but he just doesn't care? Who are those girls?"
"Kanon Nakagawa. The famous idol. Beloved Brother should be honored that the idol fell in love with him, but he doesn't care. He sees it as a bother. Not that I blame him. Many people hate him because of that."
"So the rumors are true? Kanon really did confess to my son in the middle of the test?"
"Yes."
"What did Keima do?"
"Keima got angry and annoyed at Kanon."
"No, I mean, how did they—"
"Kanon and the Divine One are classmates. I asked him to help her with one of her problems, and he did so. She fell in love with him because of that, but he did not notice or care. He only noticed when she confessed it to his face. Really, my brother is so dense when it comes to love. Despite being so wonderful, I wish he would be more aware."
That really disappointed Mari. So it was back to the old status quo, except Keima was much more of a social worker because of his new sister. And he has a new friend and disciple only because the said friend was as big a nerd as he was.
Even so, Mari was relieved. Elsie corroborated everything that Keima told her. And even if she may think that Keima may lie to her, it was inconceivable that Elsie—sweet, naïve, innocent—could look her in the eye and lie on such an important matter.
She may have doubted some of the claims of her son regarding the girls, but she, as a mother wanted to believe that her son would not lie to her on such an important matter. And she wanted to trust Keima on this one. She wanted to believe her son as a maternal duty. So, it was such a relief that her faith in her son was vindicated by Elsie.
Mari concluded that Keima was not lying to his mother, even if he was lying to himself a lot. One could not lie if one believes that he was telling the truth, after all.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.
…
Part 108 – Three Geniuses in One Room
"Hello, Mrs. Katsuragi!" Haqua du Lot Herminium greeted as she entered through the front door. "Is Elsie home? I tried the café as usual, but it's closed, so I'm here!"
"Haqua!" shouted Elsie, and she went and hugged her best friend.
"So how are you, Haqua?" asked Mari.
"I'm fine, Mrs. Katsuragi," she said, a big smile on the valedictorian's face.
"I'm glad. You want some tea?"
"That would be fine, thank you."
The mother nodded before she went to the kitchen.
"So how are you? Anything new happen?" By anything, Elsie meant the situation with Miyako.
"I'm not sure. I kept observing her, but nothing seems to turn up. That's why I need to talk to Katsuragi. Is he here?"
"I'll call him," said Elsie. "BIG BROTHER!"
And she went upstairs to fetch him.
Mari arrived with the tea just as Elsie came back with Keima.
"Hello, Katsuragi!" the violet-haired devil waved at him.
He made a small nod, even as his eyes remained on the PFP.
"I'm glad to see you again, Haqua," Mari said as she put the tea on the table. "I'll be in the café. If you need anything—"
There was another knock on the door. "Excuse me," Mari apologized as Keima sat on one of the couches.
"I'm sorry, Mrs. Katsuragi, but I left one of my game bags," Aoba Fuse said on the door, and Keima froze.
"Come in, come in," said Mari, and she led the genius in. "Aoba, this is Elsie's best friend and former classmate, Haqua du Lot Herminium."
"Nice to meet you, Miss Herminium," said the blue-haired genius as she bowed.
"And Haqua, this is Aoba Fuse, Keima's schoolmate, and friend," said Mari. Mari knew that she's technically a disciple, but that's just semantics. To the mother, Aoba was for all intents and purposes Keima's friend.
"Nice to meet you, Miss Fuse. And call me Haqua," said the devil, also bowing.
"Very well, Haqua. Call me Fuse," said the gamer. She didn't feel close enough to Haqua to let her call her by her first name.
"Well, I'm sure Keima knows where you left your game bag," said Mari. "I need to go back to the café. So have fun, you four!"
And the mother left the four.
For Aoba Fuse, things got complicated. She had deliberately left her bag so she would have a reason to come back after she had left with Yui. She wanted to discuss and plan her meeting with Kanon. The Divine One had said that meeting Kanon would be different from meeting the other girls due to the difficulties involved, so they need to work together to make it happen.
But the presence of Elly's childhood friend complicated matters.
"I am the Divine One's disciple," said Aoba as she sat by the couch and took a cup of tea.
"Wow! Aoba, Divine Brother, and Haqua, all in the same room! So much brainpower! I never expected three geniuses to be at the same place!" Elsie happily said.
Fuse raised an eyebrow at that and looked at the cosplayer with a scythe. She looks weird. Certainly foreign with that name. "Excuse me, but you're from abroad, right? Your name, I can't place it."
"Yes, you noticed. I'm from the West. Europe," said Haqua with pride.
"So you were classmates before? Abroad I mean?"
"Yes," said Haqua. If studying in Hell counts as abroad. "Sadly, Elly had to transfer when she found her brother."
"Found?"
"Yes. Don't you know?"
"I know that Elsie was a recent transfer student."
"Well, she had long been separated from her brother. When she found him, she was overjoyed. She moved here to be with her family. That's why she got transferred," Haqua explained, and Keima and Elsie just nodded at that. It was a good lie as any other. It was a good thing Mari wasn't present, or she'd be questioned endlessly about it.
"So, you're just here to visit your friend then?"
"That, and I recently moved here too. My parents got work in Japan, helping in the selling of Gokult," sighed Haqua. "Though I wished I was still in Europe, I'm happy that I get to meet my best friend once more!"
"And don't you know that Haqua is a genius! A valedictorian in our old school! I wish I could be as smart as her!"
"Really? Congratulations!" Aoba said.
"Thank you. I hope I can continue to be a good role model for Elsie," Haqua said. "Though there are things that Elsie is better than me. It's just not reflected in the academic record."
Part 109 – Secrets Revealed
"Don't be too modest! There's nothing where I'm better than you!" Elsie exclaimed. "And Aoba is a genius too! Second best student in all of Maijima. After Beloved Brother, of course!"
"Really now? I didn't know you're a genius, Katsuragi!" Haqua said in a teasing manner.
"Gee. You didn't notice?" asked Keima sarcastically. "How many times I have to beat you at your own game before you would notice?"
Haqua beat Keima with her scythe. "You were just lucky. And I let you win!" she said with a blush on her face. "Though if you want to play a game with me, I'm willing to. But only because I want to beat you! Not for any other reason."
A tsundere, Aoba thought. By the way she blushes when she talks to God, it was clear that she had a crush on him. Time to test that theory.
"So, you like spending time with the Divine One?" she asked in as innocent a tone as possible.
"Of course not!" Haqua violently denied. "Why would I want to spend time with a disgusting pervert like him?"
A tsundere, 100 percent. And yes, you do like him.
"I didn't imply that. I too like spending time with the Divine One, especially if it's related to games."
"What, you spend time with Keima? How come I didn't know that!" she said with jealousy in her voice. Haqua spent almost all her time tailing Miyako that she was almost totally ignorant of the Aoba situation.
"Like I said, I'm his disciple. Of games. I want to be a great gamer, and he's willing to make me one. So I guess I'm spending time with him," she bluntly answered.
"Well, whether or not he takes a disciple is none of my business," she said, even as she was placated by Fuse's explanation. "It's not as if I care. But congratulations. You could find no better mentor in games than that creepy pervert."
"Haqua, don't you know that she's so smart? She was able to figure out the schedule on her own."
"What? How did she know?"
"Wait! Haqua, you know about the schedule?"
Keima wanted to facepalm. Elsie, I wish I could strangle you.
Both geniuses looked at each other.
"Yes, I do know about the schedule," Fuse admitted. "And so do you."
"Of course. I was the one who helped Katsuragi make the rules."
Aoba looked at her in confusion. Wait. That doesn't make sense. You're in love with him. Yet you helped him make a schedule where you are excluded. So if the criteria for inclusion is that she should be in love with the Master, why are you out and the others in? What makes you so unique? Wait. Does he know that you're in love with him? Of course. It's so obvious. God surely would notice.
"So, you're okay with my Master doing all of this?"
"Of course, it's okay. It's necessary because—" she said before she clammed up. I can't tell her all that hell and goddess stuff.
"Because otherwise, my life would be hell if I don't," said Keima. "Elsie asked Haqua to help, and Elsie just can't refuse to help her best friend, right?"
"Of course. I can't refuse a request from Elsie. She's like a little sister to me. I always helped her in school before, so why shouldn't I help her now?"
That didn't allay her suspicions. Maybe Haqua was in denial too? The situation didn't make any sense. Why would Haqua agree to help just because Elsie asked? Why didn't Haqua insist that she be included? Or did God refuse when she asked.
She shrugged internally. Oh well. It's none of my business. Maybe she does care for Elsie so much that she's willing to do it. Elsie was the one who persuaded the Divine One to help all those girls, even if he didn't want to. Maybe Elsie was just that charismatic?
"So how did you get to know about the schedule?" asked Haqua.
"It's a long story," Keima answered for Aoba. "What's important is that we're trying to persuade the girls that I'm not dating her, and that she's not in love with me. We've already talked to six girls, so the only one remaining is Kanon."
"Kanon's special, so what we did with the other six girls would probably not work. Especially after that fiasco with Yui," the girl genius stated. "I have an idea on how to approach her."
…
Part 110 – The Idol From Maijima
Kanon Nagakawa was excited. She had been looking forward to this day all week.
It had been a busy week for the idol. Despite, or even because of, Elsie substituting for Kanon during the past week, her workload was more oppressive than ever. And she had to apologize or invent explanations for Elsie's numerous subpar performances for the past week, like she had a flue, or was fatigued, or was too worried about her school work. Still, even if Elsie had not been excellent, she had been competent as her substitute, so her backlog wasn't too significant.
Miss Okada had been running her ragged, keeping her busy at all times with barely time for breaks. If it weren't for Apollo helping her with her energy, she would not know what she would do. Still, she made it, if only barely.
Now it was time to meet the love of her life.
Keima Katsuragi.
It was so unfair! Why do the other girls get to have time with Keima during the week, and she had to wait until the end? Granted, she could not complain, because her work schedule would not permit her otherwise, but still! She looked at the piece of paper, and was jealous that some girls get to see him even thrice a week! They had three chances to make a good impression on him while she got only one. Despite the times being equal, at three hours each, she felt shortchanged as she got to see her beloved only once.
She was supposed to be in her room, studying. But instead, she was preparing. She looked at her face. She was as cute as ever. She hoped to dazzle the gamer.
"So, ready for your time with your lover boy, Keima Katsuragi?" asked Apollo as Kanon looked at her mirror.
"Yes. I'm so excited! Will he be as excited to see me?"
"I dunno. He has been seeing six other girls," Apollo mused. "But they're not idols, are they?"
"I guess not," Kanon said as she put on her glasses. "I need to make a good impression. I'll do it! I'm going to make him fall in love with me! Maybe not tonight, but soon!"
"You're gonna go through your plan?"
"Yes."
"Still, are you really sure about it? It would make all the others angry."
"I don't care. I love Keima, and that is enough," Kanon said, her Yandere nature surfacing. "Keima's mine and mine alone. I won't wait."
"Still, my sisters will chew me out," Apollo said. "But I'll support you all the way."
"Thanks. Don't worry. I suggested the schedule, indirectly, after all," she said. "I really meant that he should spend time with me while I wait for his mission to be over. But when I said that, I meant only me, not the other girls. But I can't say that with the other girls present at the meeting, can I? I'll tell Keima that, and we can talk it over. I'm sure I can make him dump the schedule so he won't have to spend time with the other girls. After all, spending time with me alone would leave him with more gaming time."
"But you accepted it in front of everyone," the Goddess objected. "You'll look like a liar."
"Yes, I did. But looking back, I really didn't mean to accept it. I mean, at that time, it's probably peer pressure, and I'm just glad to get some time out of Keima. I really didn't mean it. I want to go back on it. It's foolish. I want him to myself," she said stubbornly. "One week really gave me perspective. I know what I want. And I'm sure Keima will see it my way."
"I don't know. I'm not the sharpest pencil in the case, but I think you're playing with fire," said Apollo.
"Don't worry. I've thought hard about this. I know what I'm doing."
"Your funeral. After he shoots you down and makes you cry, I'll be here if you want to talk about it!"
"Apollo! Don't say such things!"
"Again, your funeral. And do you really need to put on that coat and beret? Not that there's anything wrong with it, but you look rather plain."
"Don't you know that the reason I'm famous is that I'm old-fashioned and plain?" she retorted. She wasn't plain, of course, but that's the image she exuded—a throwback to the idols of past who were supposed to be more innocent and wholesome compared to the modern idols.
"I don't know. It's kinda backward if you asked me. Then again, I'm not the smartest knife in the drawer, so what do I know?"
"Trust me. Plain and old-fashioned sells. But that's not the reason I'm wearing this. I need this as a disguise."
"Can't I just cast a spell?"
"You can, but it's better to be safe than sorry," said Kanon. "Don't worry. You won't have to do much. Just make sure I can get out of here without being seen."
"You got it!" said the Goddess as she cast the spell.
With that spell, Kanon was able to walk through the building where she worked without anybody recognizing her. When they were outside, the spell wore off, but, like countless times before, her coat and beret was enough to keep her identity a secret. Keima would be the only one who would recognize her.
She went to their rendezvous point. It was just outside Maijima High. She had a very special place she wanted to go to during the first hour. She looked around. There were very few people around, mostly students who had gone home from club meetings. And nobody paid her any mind.
Part 111 – A New Friend
…
It was about six-thirty in the evening, and it was already dark. She was standing beneath a lamppost, looking at her phone. It was still a half-hour before the start of their three hours together, but for some reason, Keima requested that she come thirty minutes early. She immediately said yes, as any extra Keima time would be nice.
Many students walked past her, and they paid her no mind. The disguise, as usual, was working perfectly.
Suddenly, she bumped into someone, and both crashed to the ground. It was a female Mai High student who was walking while looking at something she was holding. That was a bit reckless of her.
"Oops. I'm sorry. I should've been looking where I was going," the girl apologized. "It's my fault. Here, let me help you get up."
"It's fine," said Kanon as the girl stood up and pulled her up. She gave her an apologetic smile.
"Excuse me, but are you Kanon Nakagawa?"
"I'm sorry, but you must be mistaken," Kanon whispered to the girl.
"I'm sorry, but you are her," the student said in a calm voice.
Kanon looked at her. The student was wearing a Mai High uniform and had blue hair. What she was holding and looking at, the cause of her collision, was a PFP. Wait, a PFP? What a coincidence.
"Don't worry, Miss Nakagawa, I won't say anything to anybody," she said as she pocketed her gaming device. "I know you want to unwind outside without being mobbed. I'm sorry if I recognized you, but your face is very famous. But don't worry. I'm the only one. Your disguise is perfect otherwise."
"I'm sorry, but I'm—"
"You have that pink hair straying outside your beret," pointed out the girl. "You better tuck it in, or someone else might recognize you."
"Hey, aren't you Kanon?" another student, with brown hair, asked.
"I'm sorry, this isn't Kanon. This is my friend," said the blue-haired girl. "You must be mistaken."
"I'm so sorry. Miss Fuse, thanks for that. This is really embarrassing," said the female student as she walked past. She blushed. "I guess that was my mistake. I'll see you around, Miss Fuse."
The stranger walked away.
…
Fuse looked at the "stranger" in gratitude. Yes, her and Keima's plans were going fine. She had initially doubted whether involving someone like Elsie's childhood friend and former classmate, Haqua du Lot Herminium, was a good idea. She learned that Haqua and Kanon had seen each other before, once. But only once.
Haqua had insisted that she was a master of disguise and acting, and Keima told the blue-haired gamer that the valedictorian took to the stage while she was a student. Apparently, a wig and some make-up were enough to fool Kanon. And when Fuse saw the strange girl, she admitted that Haqua's disguise was perfect. If she didn't know she would appear, the gamer would never have guessed that she was the same Haqua she just met.
…
"Thank you for that," said Kanon as she hid the stray length of pink hair under her cap. That other girl they just met reminded her of someone. She swore she saw her before, but she just can't remember. She then dismissed the memory. It wasn't important. "Yes, I am Kanon, but don't tell anyone else. It's a secret. And what's your name?"
"I am Aoba Fuse. I am a big fan of yours. Well, to tell you the truth, I'm not very fond of your type of music, I'm more of a classical and game music fan, but I admire you very much as a person. To achieve such success at such a young age, I can't imagine how much talent you have to possess and how much hard work you have to do. You brought fame and honor to our school. You made me proud to be a student at Mai High Private School. Please, can I have your autograph?"
She produced a small notebook from her bag.
The idol took the notebook and signed the autograph.
"Thank you," Fuse said as she took it and then stood a little bit at a distance from her like she was waiting for someone.
"You're welcome," Kanon said. Still, she was curious. "Hey, are you waiting for someone?"
"Yes. My master."
"Master?"
"Yes. He's the one who will make me a great gamer."
"So, you two are on a date?"
"We're not dating. I love someone else. Please don't mistake that. Other girls thinking that—oh no, I shouldn't burden a famous idol like you with my personal problems," she apologized.
"No, no, it's not a burden. I can listen if you want," Kanon offered.
"About my master. I don't like him or love him. And neither does he like or love me," she said in a dejected voice. "But a lot of other girls who like him mistake our relationship. Even when they know that I love someone else. What can I do? How can I make them believe me?"
"You don't have to. Just be true to yourself," advised the idol, pondering the problem of the new girl. It was a frustrating situation, she had to admit. "Anyway, how about this. To make you feel better, I know something that would cheer you up. I owe you one for fending off that girl. I will believe you. That's right, you can say to yourself that the famous idol Kanon Nakagawa believes your story and that you're not really in love with your master."
"Really? Thank you," said Aoba Fuse. "You made me really happy."
Kanon smiled. She really liked making her fans happy.
"I guess I'm too lowly, but I hope I can call you my friend," she said. "Miss Nakagawa, can I? Not Kanon the idol, but just Kanon the ordinary student."
"Miss Fuse, I would be honored," Kanon said, flattered, smiling at her, and offering her hand, "if I can call you my friend. Ordinary student Kanon would like to be your friend."
"I'm so glad," Fuse replied, shaking the idol's hand.
"By the way, if you don't mind, who is your master?" asked a curious Kanon.
"Keima Katsuragi," she replied, looking at a distance. "He's the greatest gamer in this world. I want to be just like him."
That shook Kanon. Who was this girl exactly? And what just happened?
"Hello," a male voice suddenly intruded. Kanon turned, and there was the love of her life, Keima Katsuragi.
"Keima!" Kanon said as happiness filled her.
"Aoba, I'm glad you're here," he said. "I'm sorry for the mix-up. But you forgot this."
Keima was holding a bag full of games.
"That's why you asked me to meet you here? I thought I lost it at the station! Silly me," she said, her voice a little embarrassed. "I'm so sorry for troubling you, Divine One. Because of my carelessness, I unwittingly disturbed your date with Kanon Nakagawa."
"Not too loud, or someone might hear," Keima said as she handed the bag of games to his disciple. "Kanon, this is my disciple in games, Aoba Fuse. Aoba, this is Kanon Nakagawa. Yes, she's the famous idol. And be quiet about this. I don't want people to mob us."
"As you wish, Divine One," Aoba said. "We already met and talked."
"Yes, Keima. She's a nice girl. We're now friends," Kanon smiled.
"Really? That's great!" he exclaimed, giving Kanon a smile that made her heart flutter.
"May I go now? Or do you need something else from me?" the girl gamer asked.
He looked at this watch. "You can go. Just remember the time."
"I will. Bye!"
It was seven in the evening when Aoba Fuse left.
"I guess the three hours starts now," Keima said, retrieving a game console from his pocket, and started playing. "She's a brilliant disciple. The very best. One day, she will become my equal in games."
"Yes. She can be excellent if you're her teacher. You know, it's lucky that she told me that she doesn't love you. Otherwise I might have gotten jealous," said the Yandere idol.
"Why would anyone get jealous? She's just my student. Nothing more, nothing less," he retorted. "She just wanted to be the best gamer, and there's no better choice than me to be her master in that."
"I know. I'm just relieved that she's not after you," Kanon said, happy to believe Aoba Fuse's assurances. She seemed so sincere when she talked about her personal problems. And she doesn't even know that she loved Keima Katsuragi. Well, there were rumors about her and Keima, but those were just baseless rumors. By the way she spoke, Aoba exuded intelligence. Thus, she was not the type to make judgments based on rumors.
"Since that's settled, what do you want to do, Kanon?" he asked, his eyes still on the PFP.
End of Flag XI
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 ZelgadisGW, thanks for your reviews.
Chapter 8
Thanks. Yes, Shiori is a sweet girl, isn't she? And writing her inner monologues was the most fun thing for me to do when writing about Shiori. Those monologues give her such character that was just lacking if one is to rely only on her spoken words and visible actions. And yes, the One Leaf novelization is really unlikely, but I'll probably place an explanation on how such a novelization is even possible in some future chapter.
Tsukiyo was sweet. Very sweet. And her dialogue was fun to write. She's such a high class lady, and had such firm opinions on beauty and the moon, that sometimes, her dialogue just writes itself. The dance idea I got from Keima's dance with Mio during her conquest. Oh and Tsukiyo's victory is far from inevitable, but let her think that. After all, she believes she and Keima being together is fate.
Yep. The friendship of Shiori and Tsukiyo happened in the Heart of Jupiter Saga. So in this fic, where it does not happen, I just had to make that friendship happen, as it was one of my favorite things to occur in that saga.
Chapter 9
I agree 100% with your opinion of Tenri being bae.
Like Keima, Aoba Fuse is a genius. So it's no surprise that she can figure it out. And you're right. Aoba's proficiency in using game logic did bite Keima. In this chapter, and in future chapters too. As for her figuring out paranormal stuff, she won't without help.
And you're right. There are no schoolgirls in Medieval Europe. And I guess it's just poor wording of Aoba. The reason you don't need to graduate from high school in medieval Europe to marry was there was no high school! Her point was it's possible to marry while the girl was 17 during those periods, which was impossible in the current period.
And as mentioned, I adored the friendship between Shiori and Tsukiyo. So I try to develop it. And you're welcome. It's coming soon.
And yes, I'm happy with how Yui turned out. Writing Yui while making her remain in character was very difficult. How to contain her boundless energy and her constant physical harassment of Keima without diluting her character?
And I love writing that rooftop scene.
As for the scene in her warehouse, yes, it was genius. And the best part for Yui, Keima had to wear female apparel in order to play there once more.
Oh I have no doubt about Yui's determination to become good enough. The question is, is Aoba good enough to teach her to become that good?
As for if Chihiro and Yui can become useful in Miyako's conquest? Time will tell.
Chapter 10
Again, I fully agree with Tenri being the bae-sts girl out there. :D
And correct about her being an improvised therapist. Keima already tells her everything. The only thing Tenri doesn't know was that the hosts will die if he doesn't love them or if the girls ceased to love him.
Yeah, Tenri's got a little bit more confident. Too bad it backfired. How will her parents seeing her kiss Keima affect future events will be seen.
And yes, Aoba's talent for figuring out things will cause trouble. It already has in this chapter, sort of. She immediately figured Haqua feelings for Keima, for example. Though her meeting Haqua was just an accident. And with Elsie being very "helpful", she's bound to discover more things. Though in this case, I'm betting Yui would cause more trouble regarding Aoba than anything else.
Ha ha, Mari has her own ideas of her ideal daughter-in-law, which in this case, is one who's more like herself. And yeah, she found out already. At least about Yui, Aoba, and Kanon in addition to Tenri.
About the feelings of Ayumi and Chihiro, you have to remember that an additional complicating factor was that the conquest target is Miyako, their best friend. Maybe if the next target is a stranger to them, they won't feel the same way. And yes, it is painful, but some more than others. For example, I think Yui would find it only slightly painful. And Tenri would not completely understand and would not show any pain.
Can they endure the next five years? Well, they have to.
To zero, welcome, and thanks for your review.
Thank you. I had fun writing the closing of the chapter with Tenri and Keima in the dress. As for Yuri Nikaido, yes, she will play a part. But it would still be far off. Remember, here, Dokuro is still alive.
As for your suggestions, the slumber party is a wonderful idea, and I already have ideas on how to incorporate it to the future plot.
As for Haqua and Ryo joining Keima's class, we'll see. Haqua is already busy helping Keima in the conquests, and Elsie is in his class if they need to contact him while in school.
To xellos540,
Thanks for the review, xellos540. Anyway, I've already sent this reply through PM. I'm going to repost it here for the the enlightenment of other readers.
Yep. Diana, of course, was also in love with Keima, so that may have been a factor in her understanding. After all, she put her trust in Keima for the Goddess search, and Keima did not disappoint. And Tenri's human, so I'm sure she would be horrified at some of Keima's stunts, although she would be totally understanding. And yes, it was such a huge development for her to kiss him like that. Even if it needed a lot of prodding from Diana.
Yep. I wonder if Tenri's parents seeing that will affect things? xD
Yeah, Aoba figured out the schedule, but Elsie did help out. Only she helped out Aoba in figuring out if what she figured out was true or not. xD
As for when it'll bite Keima in the ass, just wait… Though I'm sure Keima could talk his wait out of any trouble…
It's only Ayumi who used Elsie to lure someone in. Tsukiyo also used Elsie to lure Aoba to the Astronomy club.
Yeah, three lunches. But to be fair, it's just a total coincidence. Ayumi, Chihiro, and Shiori did not know the others were actually giving Keima lunches that day. As for the running together, xD!
Yep. It's not the first time that the term "date" as been altered as a result of Aoba becoming a disciple. She needed to do those mental gymnastics to keep away the ire of the girls of the schedule. As for how they should deal with Tsukiyo's suspicious, I don't think Yui could deal with it because Tsukiyo's suspicions were actually true in Yui's case. She's doing that to spend time with Keima, even if the specifics of some actions might be mistaken.
Yep. Elsie's the gift that keeps giving. She's very convenient to the plot.
As for Ayumi and Chihiro's reaction, it's not just about kissing Miyako. It's the fact that Miyako is their best friend. If it were a random stranger, they wouldn't care as much. Both still remember the hurt that the Goddess search put them through, not like the other girls who didn't experience any heartbreak during that event. So it would take time for them to get used to Keima doing all of this. And Keima is aware of this. That is why he is so cautious.
Whether or not it would be a burden to Aoba would remain to be seen. But I'm sure she could find ways to make it easier for her if that became the case. After all, her primary goal was to surpass Keima as a gamer, and teaching newbies may help.
As for my theory of her parents, yeah. As I said before, I want to explain how they stayed together, and how Mari remained loyal to her husband despite the alleged infidelity. Hopefully, that explanation was satisfying.
As for Mari and Tenri, hopefully, the next chapter would answer some questions. As to her opinion of Tenri, she's a mother who wants the perfect daughter-in-law. Who's the perfect woman? Herself of course. So she may want someone who's just like herself. Still, if Keima chooses Tenri, Tenri would never know that Mari at first didn't fully approve of her.
As for Mari's reaction to Yui and Aoba Fuse, the next chapter answers that.
Thank you very much for your review!