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!
Summary of the last chapter
Yui conspires with Mars. It's Yui's time with Keima! Keima spends three hours with Yui. They discuss Aoba Fuse. Keima walks with Tenri in the morning. Keima chaperones Kanon in school. Aoba meets with Ayumi and Chihiro.
As for some characters:
Aoba Fuse, Ikumi Yoshino, and Asami Yoshino are light novel heroines. I took their characterizations 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.
ARC II - CONSPIRACIES
Flag XXII
Laying the Pieces
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
Senpai = Upperclassmen. I mostly left it untranslated. And for consistency's sake, I reversed the order. So instead of Fuse-senpai, I went with Senpai Fuse.
Plot Points
There are currently five ongoing plot points in this story. Every scene belongs to one of the five.
1. Miyako's Conquest
2. Keima spending time with the girls of the schedule (yes, this is the main focus of the story since the beginning, and I will tell all that happened during the hours of the girls in the week. Because after this week, I won't do this again since it takes too much time).
3. Yui's quest to include Aoba Fuse in the schedule.
4. Aoba's quest to make Keima respected and feared in the school.
5. Mari and the parents getting involved in the Schedule
...
Hello. Because of the length of the story, and the fact that there are many things going on at the same time, I decided to make summaries of the various plot points from this chapter onwards. You can skip to Part 241 below if you want.
I'll start with the Yui – Aoba plot point, then the "Aoba wants to Make Keima respected" plot point for this Flag. The summary of the other plot points will be posted at the succeeding Flags...
SUMMARY OF THE AOBA – YUI PLOT
First Week
On the Tuesday of the first week, Shiori Shiomiya, due to her excitement, ran off to the library to spend her first hour of the week with Keima and forgot her bag and notes. Aoba Fuse, her classmate in class 2C, was on cleaning duty that day. So she took Shiori's bag and notes to the library.
There, Aoba accidentally heard, during Keima's date with Shiori, Keima call himself the God of Conquest.
Aoba Fuse had long been in communication with the owner of the website Fallen God, who called himself the God of Conquests. Curious, and desperately wanting to meet him, she laid a trap. And the next day, Wednesday, Aoba Fuse was able to trap Keima and confirm to her that he indeed was the God of Conquests, the man behind Fallen God. She promptly asked to be his disciple.
Keima immediately accepted. But he noted that it would be a bother to him since he had a harem of seven girls after him. The girls may misinterpret the situation, so he asked Aoba to visit the girls, tell them of the actual situation, and if possible, make friends with them, just to ease his burden. Aoba immediately knew that her request to be his disciple turned out to be an imposition to Keima, so she pledged herself to make it right by convincing all the girls that she has pure intentions.
All the girls, except Yui, believed her when she declared that she was merely a disciple, in part by telling them that she was in love with another boy. In the process, Tenri, Yui, and Tsukiyo asked Aoba to teach them how to play games.
Yui did not believe her, thinking that based on how Fuse acted around Keima, Fuse was actually in love with Keima. That was solidified when Yui heard Fuse ask Keima for a "date" to see him play in the God of Conquest mode. Determined to one-up Aoba, Yui asked Keima during her two hours to play in the God of Conquest mode in her warehouse on Friday. In addition, Yui also asked him if it were possible for her to become a disciple like Aoba too. Yui also inserted herself as a third wheel in Keima and Aoba's Saturday "date". Keima and Aoba allowed her to come to convince Yui that what they were doing was innocent.
During the Saturday visit of Yui and Aoba to Keima's home, they met Mari. They went to Keima's game library, and Aoba managed to get herself an invitation to come anytime she liked if she wanted to borrow games or if she merely wanted to look at his game collection. That convinced Yui beyond all doubt that Aoba really was after Keima.
Yui asked Aoba, who had figured out most of the schedule, if she would join the schedule if she really was in love with Keima. Aoba, thinking that it was impossible, said yes.
Yui and Mars resolved to bring Aoba into the schedule because they thought that Aoba was unfairly trying to win Keima in staying out of the schedule and becoming his disciple. Mars tricked the rest of the Goddesses into supporting Aoba's inclusion in the schedule by making a bet. The other Goddesses believed Aoba was not in love with Keima, so if it turned out that Aoba really wasn't in love with Keima, Yui should give her time with Keima to the other girls for the next six weeks. In exchange, if it turned out that Aoba was in love with Keima, the Goddesses should support Yui in bringing Aoba in the schedule.
...
Second Week
On Sunday afternoon, Yui, Tsukiyo, and Tenri commenced their first gaming lesson in Aoba's home. During that time, Yui asked about Aoba's love life. Aoba told them that she was in love with another boy, but she can't remember his name or even face. She forgot. All she knew was that he was the one who introduced her to the ideal world of dating sims. He was her first master.
Yui immediately knew that the first "master" was Keima Katsuragi himself, who conquered Aoba when she had a loose soul. And it solved her dilemma of how to let the other girls know that Aoba was in love with Keima without making Aoba look like a liar for telling everyone that she was not in love with the gamer in the first place. Yui and Mars planned to restore Aoba's memories as a first step to getting Aoba part of the schedule.
But they did not know how. So Yui needed to know how to restore a lost memory, or even if it were possible. Fortunately, Yui knew someone with an almost identical situation with Aoba—Chihiro Kosaka. Chihiro still did not remember her own conquest even as she was in love with Keima and, unlike Aoba, was part of the schedule. So it would be a risk-free strategy to try to restore Chihiro's memories.
On Monday, Yui told Chihiro that she needed to regain her memories of her first kiss with Keima, and told Keima that she wanted her friend's memories to be restored. Chihiro agreed, and Keima acquiesced. Then, for good measure, she talked to Haqua to make sure everything fell into place. So on Tuesday, during her hour with Keima, Chihiro asked for her memories back, Keima agreed and called Haqua, who restored Chihiro's memories.
The memory restoration was successful.
Meanwhile, Yui invited Aoba for lunch. Yui asked Aoba if she had found her first master and how much did she want to remember his name and face. Aoba said that she still has not found him, and she very much wants to remember him. Then Aoba asked Yui for her support in making Keima Katsuragi school council president, and Yui agreed, offering to contribute money. She learned that if Keima runs, his future opponent would be Kaori Yuuzaki, a girl whom Yui really dislikes.
After Aoba left, Haqua, who was invisible during the conversation, appeared and told Yui that Chihiro's memory restoration was successful. So Yui knew Haqua could do it. Yui proposed that Haqua restore Fuse's memories, but Haqua instead asked about Kaori Yuuzaki.
Yui told Haqua about Kaori being Keima's opponent if Keima runs for school president, and that Fuse was working for his election without Keima knowing. Haqua told Yui that if she gives a good reason, she may help her with Fuse's memories. She also warned that if she restores Fuse's memories, the girl genius needed to join the schedule. She also said that if Fuse finds out about Goddesses and New Hell and other phenomena, Fuse would need to join the schedule, or she would forget everything.
When Haqua visited Dokuro, she was informed that she needed to get Fuse in the schedule because Fuse would be useful in their battle against Vintage and Kaori.
That afternoon, as Aoba was going home to give gaming lessons, Yui walked home with her. Yui then told Aoba about the truth regarding New Hell and the Goddesses, but Aoba did not believe her. She tried showing Mars to her but failed once more.
Yui, later on, found out, from Mars, that ordinary mortals could not see the Goddesses. But then Yui wondered how Chihiro could see the Goddesses.
Later that day, during her time with Keima, she asked him about Fuse. Keima thought that Yui was afraid that he would make the girls vote to include Aoba in the schedule if Aoba remembered, so he told them that it was in her hands. He also told Yui that if he had to choose between losing Aoba or having Aoba in the schedule, he would choose to bring Aoba in the schedule.
SUMMARY OF THE "AOBA MAKING KEIMA RESPECTED" PLOT
First Week
Aoba Fuse, on Wednesday morning, became the disciple of Keima Katsuragi in the ideal world. Because she knew Keima as the God of Conquests, she called him God, God of Conquest, or the Divine One. Since she was his disciple, he was her Master, so she called him Master too. She rarely called him by anything else.
Aoba learned that his Master was in a harem situation because he helped and saved girls as a result of his sister Elsie. She concluded that Keima loved Elsie so much that he would do anything for Elsie. And Aoba also learned on her own, and through slips of the tongue, about the Schedule, on how the seven girls would share Keima Katsuragi throughout the week.
She apologized to Keima for being selfish in trying to become his disciple because he got more burdened by her, but Keima answered that he was also selfish in wanting to make Aoba his disciple, and they should help each other in their selfishness.
Aoba's admiration for Keima went to dizzying heights when she visited his home on Saturday and, aside from meeting Mari, saw his impressive game library, and most important of all, his God of Conquest mode. She broke down, feeling vastly inferior to her God, and vowed that she would try to be as great at him. And she was happy that he would help her become as great a gamer as he was.
Later that Saturday, Aoba also met Haqua as Elsie's best friend.
Gradually, during the first week, she was able to establish good relations with all the girls of the schedule by talking to every one of them and convinced all but one that she was not really in love with Keima as she was in love with another boy. Only Yui remained unconvinced, yet even if Yui was persistent, she was friendly. As part of trying to make friends with the girls, Aoba agreed to teach Tsukiyo, Tenri, and Yui about games. She also helped Shiori by telling her about the One Leaf novelization.
Shiori, during her time with Keima, on Thursday, asked Keima to read to her the One Leaf book, where Yokkyun, Keima's favorite heroine, was the star. Keima loved the One Leaf book so much that he started to plot how to get the book before he graduates from High School. He knew that the Library Committee Head has the authority to dispose of books. And he learned that Shiori wanted to become Library Committee Head very much even as her chances were slim due to her shy personality. Since it was the School Council President who has the authority to recommend the next Library Committee head, he began to plot to get someone friendly on the School President chair, like Ayumi or Kanon.
Second Week
On Sunday, Kanon made an announcement that Keima was like a brother, and he was not her boyfriend.
Aoba Fuse attended the Second Café meeting, where she saw all the seven girls of Keima's harem gathered. There, she was part of the crowd when Keima gave a speech about lying and deceiving, and that he may do so for their own good.
On Monday, Aoba Fuse walked with Keima to school. Then, she remembered how she resented her peers for mocking and bullying Keima. She was determined that the entire school should respect him. She also wanted to take revenge on her peers who bullied him. And she would do both without changing his personality.
Keima asked Aoba for advice on who could be Student Council President since he wanted to find a candidate who could win so he could get his book. Aoba then found the answer to her problem and said that Keima should run. Keima bluntly told her not to mention it again. Aoba promised that as long as Keima couldn't be elected, she won't say anything about it to the male gamer.
But that did not stop Aoba. She went ahead with her plans. For her first plan, she decided to create a club with Keima as the club president. She asked Keima if they could form a club. Keima, not wanting to disappoint his disciple for the second time in a day, even though he did not want to form a club, said yes on the condition that Mr. Kodoma approves it, expecting that Kodoma would reject it. But Aoba was able to trick Kodoma into approving the club.
Meanwhile, Asami Yoshino, who was in love with Keima the whole time and lost all hope when Kanon confessed, regained hope when Kanon announced that Keima was actually her brother. But because of the number of girls surrounding Keima—she thinks that some of them were after him—she became desperate that she'll lose her second chance with him. So she decided to act.
On Monday afternoon, as Aoba and Keima were walking home, Aoba informed him that Kodoma approved of the Books and Games Club with Keima as Club President. Keima was surprised, but accepted it because a promise is a promise, and he was delighted at Aoba outwitting Kodoma. He promptly appointed Aoba as Club Secretary. Then as they were walking together, Aoba towards home and Keima towards Miyako's house, "Asami" appeared and joined them. She quickly saw the approval form for the club and declared she wanted to join. Keima put the responsibility to Aoba, who gave her the rules and told her to read it before she could join.
On Tuesday morning, Aoba, while walking to school with Elsie, got caught up in Kanon's scheme to get Elsie to teach her to act like a sister of Keima. While in the studio, and when Elsie was busy, Aoba asked Kanon for her support in making Keima President, without telling Keima. Kanon said yes.
When they arrived in school, Keima and Elsie tricked Aoba so Elsie could clean the dirty, grimy clubroom using her magical broom without Aoba knowing. Aoba ate lunch with Yui, who asked her about her first Master. Then Aoba asked Yui for her support to make Keima School Council President, and Yui said yes. Aoba Fuse then said that it would be difficult because they would fight against Kaori Yuuzaki. Kaori was very popular with the students of the school.
It turned out that Yui hated Kaori, and she declared that she would contribute money for the cause. Yui wanted to crush Kaori.
When Aoba left, Haqua, who was invisible, appeared and asked Yui about Kaori. Yui told Haqua that Aoba was planning for Keima to run against Kaori for student council President.
When Haqua consulted Dokuro, it turned out that Kaori was actually five years older, and Vintage made Kaori five years younger. And Kaori running for president may or may not be part of Vintage's plan. Either way, they need to defeat Kaori. Only Keima can run against Kaori without endangering innocent lives. And only Aoba can make Keima win. So they decided to support Aoba, and at the same time, make Aoba part of the schedule.
On Tuesday afternoon, Aoba interviewed Asami. Aoba figured out that the "Asami" they talked to the day before was actually Asami's twin sister "Ikumi". Asami was forced to admit her real reason for joining the club—because she loves Keima. But Aoba forgave Asami and let her join the club. Asami was so grateful that she decided to help Aoba in making Keima President. Then Minami Ikoma tried to join the club.
Basically, Minami was strongly affected when Keima visited her in Middle School during the Goddess Search. Keima guessed so many things about her correctly that she concluded that Keima really knew her. So she stalked Keima to find out more about him, and in the process, fell in love with him. She decided to join the club to be close to Keima.
Aoba interviewed Minami about middle school, and the gamer found out that Keima was actually popular in middle school because of the Senpai Factor. So Aoba, who figured out that Minami was in love with Keima, decided to use Minami to gain the middle school vote for Keima. She gave a copy of the club rules to Minami and told her to come back the next day if she was still willing to join after reading the rules.
In the meantime, Okada, Kanon's manager, made Keima into Kanon's chaperone for her school visit on Wednesday. Keima decided to have Ayumi, Chihiro, Elsie, and Aoba help him chaperone Kanon. The responsibility he gave Aoba was to help control the suitors—she would weed most of them out before they could meet Kanon. However, Aoba proposed and got Keima to accept that suitors should go through Keima first. Keima should approve most boys before sending them to Aoba. The purpose outwardly was to make sure that the brother-sister ruse was believed, but Aoba's secret goal was to make Keima more popular among male students because Keima would be acting all nice to those suitors as part of the ruse.
During Kanon's visit, Keima was punched in the face by three delinquents in front of Kanon and all of the other students of the school. Kanon slapped the three bullies and castigated the high school crowd for cheering the bullies.
Later, at lunch, Aoba ate lunch with Ayumi and Chihiro. She asked them to support her in making Keima school council president. The two said yes. Then Aoba learned from Ayumi and Chihiro that Keima was playing in a duet contest with Miyako and that the music hall was mostly empty.
START OF FLAG XXII
Part 241 – Kanon Lunch
Kanon Nakagawa gasped at Keima's new clubroom. "This is really pretty!"
"I cleaned it up!" Elsie beamed as Kanon stared at the place.
"And where did you get the furnishings? The TV? The game consoles?"
"They were junk," Keima answered. "Elsie cleaned it up and made them usable. Even the TV and the electronics. I guess the only reason it wasn't working was it was so dusty and grimy inside. Cleaning it made it work."
"So what do you think?" asked Elsie.
"If I weren't so busy being an idol, I'd join in a heartbeat!" exclaimed Kanon as she looked at the room.
As she said that, she felt Keima's hands on her shoulders. Then, she was spun around. She faced him with the distance as the between them was closed. He held her by her arms just above the elbows, and leaned forward and kissed her on the lips.
Once more, she was taken off guard by his actions. But she welcomed it. She wanted to wrap her arms around him as he did so, but the way he held her meant that her hands stayed helplessly by her side. So she just enjoyed the kiss.
Wait. Wasn't Elsie just in front of them? She blushed and considered pulling away, but because his grip was firm, and the way he pressed his head forward and downward, she knew she couldn't pull her head back at her position. So she kissed back instead, tiptoeing to push her head against his, putting Elsie at the back of her mind.
They finished when they were out of breath, Keima blushing a little, Kanon's face the same color as her hair. Elsie was at the window, smiling.
The devil then flew out the window after saying, "See you later!"
"Elsie saw us!" Kanon said.
"Elsie saw me kiss lots of girls," he said nonchalantly. "This isn't anything new."
Kanon shrugged at that. She didn't want to get into an argument with Keima about Elsie. "This clubroom is wonderful! If I weren't an idol, I would have loved to join."
"Unfortunately, no member of the schedule could be admitted to membership," Keima informed. "I can't admit all of you seven, and admitting just some would cause jealousy among the others."
Kanon smiled at that. Because of her career, she would be unable to join. Thus, when she learned about the club, she had been apprehensive that the other girls would join, and the idol would be left out. Keima was really trying his best to be even-handed with all the girls around him.
Time to win Keima!
She took two bentos from her bag and offered it to the gamer.
"Here are two bentos! Just for you! One is for me as your little sister!" she explained. "And the second one is as a member of the schedule!"
Kanon was pleased when Keima accepted her offerings. It was Apollo's advice that she prepare two bentos for him. According to her Goddess, Keima really likes it when girls give him food. And since Yui gave him two bentos last Monday for lunch, then she must not fall behind.
Part 242 – Kanon's Declaration
"Look, Kanon, I'm sorry you have to put up with this," Keima began as soon as they started eating. "I know you probably want to spend the entire day with me, that's why you insisted that I be your chaperone."
But Kanon was having none of it. "Stop it, Keima. Yes, I cooked up that scheme to give me a valid reason to spend time with you, but repairing the damage caused by my confession is more important. Look, you asked, and I agreed. I would have objected if I didn't want to. But I want to do it! Let me do this favor for you, okay?"
Apollo, when she first read the message from Keima detailing his plan, immediately urged that she do as he asked. And the idol agreed. She would not rest until she fixed Keima's situation in school. The TV announcement wasn't enough. He was still mocked, even for a different reason.
"But do you really want to reject one or two boys every time you're at school?" asked the gamer apologetically, looking at the idol. "Looking at it, I may have gone too far."
"I am an actress too. I've done it countless times in front of the cameras. Doing that to hapless schoolmates would be nothing," said Kanon. "Why? Are you jealous that I'm going to fall for one of those boys?"
"Should I be jealous?" he asked.
"Of course not, silly! I love you, Keima, and you will be the only boy I'll love until the day I die!" she confessed.
"I know. I hope I didn't take advantage of it by making you do all of this," he apologized.
"You didn't make me do this. I did this on my own free will. I follow what you tell me to do because I want to do it, to make you happy, not because you made me! Nothing you tell me to do can make me sad," she asserted. "Except if you told me to abandon my career. But you won't do that. Other than that, I'll do anything you ask."
"Even if I tell you to jump off a cliff?"
"Of course! You'll save me if I did so. And you know Apollo would just fly me to safety if you don't!" Kanon answered. "And you forget something."
"What?"
"If it weren't for this, I would be mobbed by endless suitors, and I would be overwhelmed by fans. To tell you the truth, this was the first peaceful school day I had since I became famous. I actually feel like a student! Chihiro, Ayumi, and Aoba were wonderful. They treated me just like any other student. You know, I want to be their friend, not because we all belong to you, as part of the schedule, but because they're wonderful girls."
"Thanks. Still, did you really have to slap those bullies? I mean, they're just parsleys!"
"Parsleys?"
"Yeah. They're the same parsleys that beat me up just before I conquered Kusunoki Kasuga. What you did wasn't part of the plan, you know."
"You didn't say I couldn't!" Kanon defended. In truth, it was an impulsive act. She lost her temper when she saw what had happened, and what she actually did was restrained to what she wanted to do. The Yandere idol wanted to taze all those bullies and yell at the other high schoolers. "Besides, do you expect me to just do nothing?"
"It's just that nobody actually defended me from bullies before, except probably Kusonoki," said Keima. "Thank you. I never expected that."
Keima was sincere. What Kanon did was not part of the script. In fact, he expected that the bullies would not be so brazen as to beat him up in front of all those witnesses. He expected an ambush on some deserted alley or inside the school building, not in front of a crowd! How stupid could those bullies be? They deserved to be called parsleys.
Hopefully, he'll be left alone.
…
Kanon and Keima spent the rest of the hour talking to each other about minor things as Keima played his games while Kanon looked around the clubroom. Keima told Kanon how Aoba was responsible for the club, while Elsie cleaned the room up.
Kanon told Keima about her week and how the staff was so enamored by her "brother". In fact, a lot of them were pressing Okada that the manager should offer him an internship at the studio as soon as possible.
…
When the end of the hour was near, Kanon said that she wanted to sing a song for Keima. "It's a new release."
Keima was not interested and showed it. "Maybe next time," he said as he continued playing.
"But this song may appear in the next game," she teased.
"Okay, I'm interested. But until I hear it in a game, I can't be that much of a fan."
"So, if my music appears in a game, you'll be a fan of that song?"
"It depends on how that song adds to the experience of the heroine. But it could happen."
"Then you'll hear it in advance," Kanon expressed as she rummaged her bag and produced a microphone. "And could you set up a sound system? Like you did last week?"
Keima sighed as he called Elsie. Elsie used her magic to create speakers that produced loud music. Kanon then got a CD that contained the music from her unreleased song.
"And Keima, could you be like a big fan like you did last time?"
"You do know that I was just acting."
"I know, and I loved it. Please act like that while I sing."
"Fine," the gamer uttered. "Elsie?"
"I'm on it, Divine Brother!" said Elsie as she produced flags with Kanon's name on it, a sash with her name, and a headband with her name too.
Keima wore the accessories. "Elsie, could you please seal the room so no one can hear us?"
"I already did that, Exalted Brother!" the devil answered before she disappeared.
"Kanon! Kanon! Kanon!" Keima shouted at the top of his voice while jumping up and down and waving flags. "Yahoo!"
Kanon smiled as she pretended that Keima was sincere and began to sing.
…
Part 243 – The Valedictorian Devil's Offer
Meanwhile…
Yui Goido was headed for the Astronomy Club. She had a lunch appointment with Tsukiyo and Shiori.
However, before she ascended the last staircase, a girl wearing the Maijima uniform stepped in her way. She had violet hair and a serious expression on her face. Luckily, her scythe was absent.
"Miss Herminium, what can I do for you?"
"Do you have time?" asked the devil.
"I'm going to see Tsukiyo and Shiori, but I guess they can wait."
The two walked along the empty corridor. Most of the students were in their clubrooms, their classrooms, or on the lower grounds.
The Valedictorian began. "Listen. I may have been too hasty in saying that you've got no reason for restoring Aoba Fuse's memories."
"You're changing your mind?"
"Not necessarily," said Haqua. "It depends on you. Tell me why I should restore Aoba Fuse's memories."
For Haqua was in a bind. She had her marching orders—get Aoba Fuse in the schedule so that New Hell won't have to erase her memories. And hence, they can have her services in the struggle against Kaori Yuuzaki and Vintage. But she knew that she couldn't just demand Fuse's inclusion—Chief Dokuro had instructed her to keep the Kaori-Vintage connection secret as long as possible. And without telling him the real reason, she knew that Keima and the girls won't agree with her demand.
So the only possible choice was to partner with Yui. Yui seemed to have a plan.
"It will make Fuse happy, and Keima too."
"Wait. Katsuragi said he'll be happy if that happens?"
"Keima told me that he doesn't want to lose her as a disciple. If getting her into the schedule were the only alternative to losing her, then he'll get her into it."
"He'll get her in for that reason? Interesting," Haqua mused, her mind deep in thought.
Yui smiled. "Yes. I know Keima really wants Fuse to be in the schedule but won't act to bring her in. He believes it's impossible since a unanimous vote is needed. Because he thinks we won't approve of it, he can't act like he wants her to join or it would wreck the schedule."
"I didn't know that. Did he tell you that?"
"Not directly, but I can read between the lines. And if Fuse's memories are restored, and he can't get her in the schedule, he knows she'll lose her memories, and he'll lose her as a disciple. So he thinks the best he could do is the current situation. So if you restore her memories, he'll have to bring her in. Won't he be happily surprised when we all vote for Fuse?"
"What, so you're saying that—"
"If you gave him that choice, he'll knuckle under! But he'll be very happy if Fuse got in. Just remember. No matter how he acts on the outside, no matter how he says he really doesn't want Fuse in the schedule, in his heart, he really wants her in. So just give him an ultimatum. He'll act like the world's ending, but inside, he'll be delighted that he can have an excuse to bring Fuse in."
Haqua stopped. "But how can I do that? For that to happen, Fuse needs to know something about all of this."
"Well, worry not. I already told Fuse all about New Hell, the Goddesses, and Keima's mission. Not to mention the collar."
"What? You did?"
"Yep."
"So how did she react?" the Devil asked excitedly.
"She didn't believe it. But I told her, so that counts as finding out about it, right?"
The valedictorian's hopes were crushed. "Oh, Miss Goido! You missed the point! She must know of it! If she doesn't believe it then it doesn't count as her knowing!"
"So, she needs to believe?"
"Yes!"
"So that didn't work! Oh well. Anyway, I have a question. Why didn't she see Mars when I transformed in front of her?"
"For the same reason the audience didn't see your wings during that concert," the devil answered.
"But Chihiro did!"
"Because she's a special case. She already got involved with Vintage. You see, ordinary people can see New Hell personnel without special precautions, like turning invisible. It's just that most devils, when they visit earth, adopt those precautions. The reverse is true of Goddesses, I think. You ordinarily don't see them unless a spell was cast on you."
"So how did Chihiro see the Goddesses?"
"I cast a spell so she could see them," said Haqua. "It's rare. The Goddesses had just awakened, so it wasn't usually an issue for us. Chihiro's situation was unique."
"Can you cast the spell on Fuse?"
"Not without a good reason."
"How about loose souls then," asked Yui.
"They are from Old Hell. Usually, only those of New Hell and those involved in the Spirit Catching Squad, like Katsuragi, can see them."
"How about Goddesses?"
"They can see loose souls too."
"The Goddess hosts?
"I'm not sure if merely being hosts means they can see them."
"But Keima darling said that we can witness the catching!"
"If Katsuragi requests it, then I can cast a spell that makes you see everything," Haqua informed.
Yui pondered a bit. "That's nice. If you cast that same spell on Fuse, she can see everything, right?"
"Yes."
"So, could you cast that spell on Fuse?"
"Without an order from Katsuragi, I can't."
"So you can't do it on purpose. What about on accident? Let's just say you accidentally also cast that spell on Fuse when you cast it on us, and she saw the catching of the loose soul."
"I can't do something on accident on purpose, that is a contradiction of terms, you know—oh! I see. Maybe if I did it clumsily, I may accidentally cast the spell over Fuse too, especially if she's with the Goddess hosts, and I didn't notice it," Haqua pondered. "It won't be my fault, and Katsuragi can't blame me for that."
"Yes. It's a pity. I'm sure no such accident will happen. Fuse and Keima are too careful about it!" Yui added in a sing-song tone. "But if it does happen—"
"She'll see the loose soul being caught. And I would have no choice but to either erase all her memories or to restore her memories of her conquest," Haqua finished. "If she finds out about some part, she then must know about everything about New Hell and the Goddesses too. Then when she knows all, she must join the schedule. But of course, such a thing can never happen in reality."
"Wow! I never knew there's such a rule."
"There isn't that I know of. Unless there's some rule that I haven't seen in the rule book. I may have to do some research," the devil said. In fact, she knew for a fact that there was no such rule.
"I'm sure you'll find it if you look close enough," Yui laughed.
"But are you really sure about this? This isn't a sure thing, you know," asked the Devil.
"What do you mean?"
"Even if Katsuragi agrees to Fuse joining, even if Fuse wants to join, and we vote for it, I don't think the other six girls would do so. Remember, just a single nay vote would scupper the entire thing."
"You think so?"
"Because no right-thinking girl would want an additional rival! It's not normal!" Haqua asserted. "In fact, I'd bet that they'd be happy to be rid of Fuse."
"Oh, that? I'll take care of that. They'll vote the proper way. Speaking of which, how long do I have?"
"What do you mean?"
"I can persuade the others, but I can't do it before Fuse's memory is restored," Yui asserted. "They first need to believe that Fuse's really in love with darling. Then I can get to work."
"Fine. Hypothetically speaking, should this happen, the time is three days from the time I restore Fuse's memories. If after that time, if she still hasn't joined, I'll take it all away."
"Is that a definite rule? Three days?"
"Maybe," Haqua pondered. "I'll check on it."
"Anything else I need to know?"
"Remember, we're not planning anything. This is just a hypothetical scenario that won't ever happen. Because I never would be so careless that I'd accidentally let Fuse witness the capture of a loose soul and see what a Weiss looks like. I am a valedictorian."
"I'm sure you'll be very careful!"
They looked each other in the eye, and an unspoken agreement was formed.
"I need to do something," the devil cried.
Yui waved. "See you later."
As soon as Haqua was gone, Yui felt her phone vibrate. But there was no caller. Instead, she saw her reflection and Mars appeared.
"That was splendid, Yui!" the Goddess of War complimented.
"Gosh, I only followed what you told me to say," Yui answered.
"But you remembered everything we talked about," said the Goddess as they approached the door to the Astronomy Club.
…
Part 244 – Aristocratic Lunch
"You're late," Tsukiyo Kujo stated as Yui Goido entered the Astronomy Club. "Being tardy is not beautiful."
"I'm sorry, Lady Kujo," Yui apologized. "Something came up, and I got detained."
"It's fine," the doll-like girl answered. "Take a seat."
"Thank you. Hello, Shiomiya."
"Hello, Miss Goido," Shiori greeted.
And the three ate lunch.
…
The topic of conversation was the thing that the three had in common—Keima Katsuragi. Yui, who had already finished her three hours with him for the week, regaled the other two girls, who had not had even one hour yet, with her time with Keima, especially the kisses. The other two girls blushed a bit even as they looked forward to their time with the gamer.
"So yeah, all of the girls of the schedule would have three kisses! So don't worry about that if that's what you're thinking," the crossdresser proclaimed.
Both Shiori and Tsukiyo blushed more at the shameless girls' words.
Yui continued. "Speaking of kissing, don't you know that darling would be kissing Miyako Terada?"
"We already know that," Tsukiyo answered. She regretted having Yui for lunch. Actually, it was Yui who asked to have lunch with them.
"But did you know that Ayumi, Chihiro, Ayukawa, and I would witness it?"
"What?"
"To prove how much we love Keima, to show that we understand the mission. I think you two should ask to witness it too."
The two other girls were speechless for a while.
Tsukiyo never had thought of trying to be part of the conquest of Miyako. But with Goido, Takahara, Kosaka, and Ayukawa there, she could not be left behind. What would the others think? They might conclude that she does not care about Keima's mission and that she was selfish.
"I'll go. I want to see him kiss Terada."
"Me too," Shiori squeaked. She was wavering, as she was sure seeing Keima kiss another girl, even if it was for a mission, would be painful. But, on the other hand, she needed to show her love for Keima, and one way of showing that was by demonstrating her approval of his mission to save other girls. Tsukiyo's answer made her decision much easier. She did not want to be the odd one out.
Yui nodded. "Ask him during your time. I heard that Miyako's conquest will be tomorrow evening, after the piano duet."
"I'll demand from Keima that right," Tsukiyo asserted haughtily.
Shiori nodded a tiny bit.
…
Later…
"By the way," Yui said as she drank her cup of tea—which Tsukiyo prepared, "Fuse will probably visit you soon."
"Soon? Why?" asked the moon-lover.
"Because she'll ask you to support her. She wants Keima to be School Council President next year. If she asks you, will you support her in that? She already asked me, and I said yes."
"Wait. Does that mean that Keima will fight Lady Yuuzaki?" Tsukiyo inquired.
"Yes. Our dear classmate would fight against the boy we all love," the heiress answered.
"But why? It would be impossible! Lady Yuuzaki is the most admired student of this school! He'll be crushed!" Tsukiyo cried. "We should put a stop to this nonsense!"
Shiori, on the other hand, wanted him to run. Partially for selfish reasons. That means I could become Library Committee Head. I would fulfill my high school ambition! But that's not the only reason! Katsuragi will have a happier last year if he gets it. But could he win? I don't care. I'll be there for him.
But she did not want to contradict her close friend Tsukiyo, so she kept quiet.
Yui gave Aoba's reasons for wanting Keima to run.
"That's a valid reason," the moon-lover admitted. She was glad she was not part of the crowd that oppressed him, but she was convinced that it was a fool-hardy venture doomed to crash down in flames. "But Lady Yuuzaki could destroy our Keima beyond recognition."
"We'll win. Fuse was so confident that I believe she has a plan. And she's a genius like darling. I have faith in her," Yui said.
"Then I guess I'll ask her about it," Tsukiyo said, taking a PFP—which Fuse lent her—and sent a message to the girl gamer genius.
…
Part 245 – Tsukiyo's Demand
Aoba Fuse wondered why Tsukiyo Kujo called her at that particular point in time. It was late enough during the lunch break that it couldn't have been to invite her to lunch. She recalled if there was something that Lady Kujo needed from her—there was none. Her gaming was acceptable, for example—she had grasped the basics well enough.
She entered the Astronomy Club, and as expected, saw Lady Kujo and Shiomiya. And Yui. What was Yui doing in the Astronomy Club? Was Yui the cause of all this?
"Yui, Shiomiya, Lady Kujo," she said as she sat down with them.
"Miss Fuse, I have a question related to your lessons. Certain flags were raised, and I'm not sure what they mean, so I can't make the proper choice."
And Tsukiyo was using gaming lingo!
"What kind of flags?"
"Some heroine, a genius gamer, wants to make the player President of the School Council. There are several choices, but I can't seem to grasp the consequences. Would those choices lead to bad events or good events, and would they lead to good or bad endings?"
So it was Yui. You told her.
"What's your opinion on it?" asked Aoba.
"I have no idea. Choosing to do so may cause the player to become all-powerful, yet it may also lead to events that would utterly ruin him. But looking at the probability, most choices, if the heroine chose to make him President, would result in a bad ending for the player."
"True. But the event would come in the future. If one raised enough flags in the intermediate period, the heroine could increase the chance of events that would lead to the best ending for the player. Thus, if we create enough flags after the decision to pursue the ambition for the player, we stack the events in our favor. So right now, if we trigger that event, the player would surely lose. But enough flags raised would ensure the good end."
"But Fuse, only you can create those flags for us," Yui added.
Shiori just looked at the three girls, utterly confused.
"So how do you rate my game talk?" asked Tsukiyo.
"It's better than before, Lady Tsukiyo. You understand gaming well."
"Yes, but if that's the case, then my gaming skills still lag far behind my understanding. Still, you probably know why I asked you to come here. Do you really know how to make Keima win?"
"I have enough flags prepared. And several events already happened which raised the chances of him winning. And yes, I can assure you, it's not guaranteed, but I have a plan. The Divine One will be the school council president."
"In that case, I believe you. I'll support you in your quest to make Keima the most powerful student in our last year. Though you still have to atone for your mistake."
"Mistake?"
"Tell me, who did you ask for support in this?" Tsukiyo asked in her usual haughty tone.
"Kanon, Yui, Takahara, and Kosaka," Aoba answered. And Yoshino and Ikoma, but you don't need to know that yet.
"And why didn't you ask me?"
In truth, Aoba had no plans to ask Tsukiyo's support. To be blunt, unlike the others she had asked before, Tsukiyo would be useless, as the moon lover did not know anyone, was not that popular, was unable to connect with other students, and had no skills that could be useful. Even Shiori would be more beneficial to her because of her reading and writing skills.
"I do plan on asking for your support," Aoba lied. "I just asked Takahara and Kosaka first. You're going to be next."
"Fine then. Shiori and I want to support you and Keima. Just ask what you need, and I'll happily give it to you. Use me in this campaign."
And that irritated Aoba. Now she'll have to keep her busy, or she might think that she's ignoring her. How to use her? What's Tsukiyo's talent? She's well-versed in astronomy, but that was useless.
"You must keep this a secret. The Divine One must not know until he changes his mind."
"I will. This is a surprise present for Keima, a future event for him, am I right?"
"Yes."
"Miss Fuse," Shiori interjected suddenly in a faint voice. "I want to support you too."
"Thank you, Shiomiya."
Then the bell rang, and the three girls dashed towards their respective classrooms to avoid being late.
…
Part 246 – Middle School Club Member
After class…
"Senpai Fuse!"
Aoba Fuse was surprised at seeing Minami Ikoma just outside the door of class 2C. True, she said to meet her at the end of the class for that day, but she expected her to be outside the club.
"Ikoma," she greeted in a low voice as she picked her PFP from her bag and began playing.
"Senpai Fuse, I have read the rules, and I still want to join the club."
"Are you sure? You do know the purpose of this club. Do you even like to read books?"
"Not really, no. But I am a good student. I will read my school textbooks and study at the club. And I also need to start studying for the entrance exams for high school."
"Why the need to study when you have a high school that you're automatically qualified for?"
"Better safe than sorry, I guess. I was looking for clubs where I could study. And the rules meant that it would be the perfect place. And with you and Senpai Katsuragi being geniuses, maybe I could ask either of you for tips or to tutor me?"
You mean you want the Divine One to tutor you, not me. But I guess that's as good a reason as any. "And it's not an excuse to be near the Club President?"
"To be honest, that's one reason," Minami admitted. Unlike the day before, she was prepared to face Fuse. She had been practicing the entire day what to say the next time she saw the blue-haired ice princess. Akko and Saitou were especially helpful on what lines would work on Senpai Fuse. And it paid off. "But who wouldn't? He's Kanon's brother. He helped Kanon in her career. He's the hero of many middle schoolers. Especially after what happened this morning. Senpai Katsuragi was so great. And you and your friends were great too, helping Kanon like that."
"You admire him?"
"Yes, like you do. He's such a great man," Minami said. Akko and Saitou told her that Senpai Fuse, while not actually loving Senpai Katsuragi, intensely admired him. Since there wasn't any love, Minami wouldn't cause any jealousy to arise in stating that she admired him too. That would bring her points up with the girl genius. "I wish high school could see how great he is, not only middle school. I mean, it was terrible for that bully to beat him up. But it was even more terrible for the high school to cheer those bullies on. I'm glad Kanon told off the entire high school population."
Aoba agreed, even if she actually regretted what happened. The entire thing was a success, but not the Kanon saving Keima from the bullies scene. To Aoba, not only was that event unplanned, it was cringeworthy. It would mean that the Divine One was thought of as Kanon's dog, hiding under Kanon's skirt to protect himself. She already heard those rumors from hostile tongues.
Aoba desperately wanted Keima to stand on his own two feet, to show that he's his own master. Hopefully, there was still time to repair the damage. Not that she blamed Kanon. It was just a natural reaction. It was just that nobody expected those background characters to be so stupid as to beat him up right in front of Kanon—a Yandere. Seriously, what were they thinking?
Looking at Ikoma, Aoba Fuse made up her mind. Whatever reservation she had about admitting Minami Ikoma was gone. The girl, as a support character, would be extremely valuable in getting the Middle School Vote. She would hold the key to whether or not her effort succeeds. And thus, the genius was determined that she be the next member of the club.
"I approve of your membership," she said and watched the middle-schooler's expression change to utter joy. "You'll just have to await the President's final verdict, but I believe that he won't have any problems with you."
Aoba Fuse hoped so. She would stake everything she had on getting the middle-schooler in. The Divine One had to approve her, but she could see no objections to her. Ikoma was here to read books. She was quiet and unassuming, which was another informal criteria stated by the Divine One. And most importantly, she was not a member of the schedule. Sure, Ikoma was in love with her Senpai, but he did not say that it was a disqualification, so it did not matter.
After all, he gave her the authority to admit members. If the Divine One really trusted her, he should trust her on this issue.
They entered the club, and Asami was already there, reading a novel. The girl with the side-ponytail stood up and said, "Good afternoon, Secretary, Ikoma."
Aoba nodded, while Minami bowed. "Good afternoon, Senpai Yoshino."
…
Part 247 – Keima, Mimani, and Aoba
Keima Katsuragi played his PFP as he walked towards his new club. He wished that the club existed before he met Elsie. Or before he had to conquer Miyako.
The club was an enjoyable place to play games in. And it was not a bad place to spend time with the girls of the schedule, as it afforded more privacy than his other preferred location, the rooftop. Elsie really outdid herself in renovating the room.
But most of his thanks went directed to his secretary. The club was something he never knew he needed. It was a joy! It would make his last year much more bearable.
If only he had more time to spend on it. But that afternoon, instead of spending his time in the club until dark like he wished, he would have to practice with Miyako, then go spend time with Tenri and Kanon.
Miyako. The truth was, he could have completed the conquest last Sunday. He had all the necessary pieces. But the interference of Ayumi and Chihiro meant that he had to find another way to do so, in such a way that both girls could meaningfully contribute. So this entire rigamarole of the piano tutorial and duet was in reality to please them.
But it was not a total waste. By letting Ayumi and Chihiro help him, he would strengthen their affection points. They would feel that he needed them. And they would finally understand what a conquest of a girl with loose souls means. The sooner they fully accept it, the better. In the long run, it would be far better for everyone involved.
He just hoped that none of their affection points would drop from seeing him romance and kiss Miyako. But that event was a risk worth having. He could easily repair any damage afterward.
What he was hoping for was more understanding. What he wanted was when they see him kiss a conquest target, they would just shrug as if it was nothing, or love him even more for doing so.
…
When he entered the clubroom, he was surprised to see a familiar face.
"Hello, Senpai Katsuragi," Minami Ikoma greeted, her voice happy and hopeful, and a slight blush on her face.
"Divine One, I believe that we should admit her as a new club member," Aoba Fuse said. "She would be a treasured addition. As the one you trusted to be in charge of membership, I already said yes to her. But you still have the final say."
"So, why do you want to be a member of this club?" Keima inquired as he looked at Minami.
"She wanted a quiet place to study, to read her textbooks for class. And she also wanted to join because she admired you as Kanon's brother, especially after what happened early in the morning," Aoba answered.
Minami looked at him with hopeful and expectant eyes, her cheeks having a slight blush. "I'm so happy Senpai Fuse told me I could join. She said you'd say yes, and I'm so happy. Thank you, Senpai Katsuragi."
And he had no choice. Even if he wanted to, he cannot reject Minami as it would break the heart of his conquered girl. That might open another gap and cause another loose soul to enter. And he still cared for her, like he cared for all his conquests.
And to refuse would not only break the expectant heart of Minami, but it would also humiliate Aoba Fuse in front of Asami and Minami.
Even if he was not trying to conquer Aoba as an object of love, he was cultivating her as a loyal and faithful disciple. He wanted Aoba to admire him as the God of Conquests. If he rejected Minami, he would be rejecting Aoba too, and as he said to Yui, he did not want to lose Aoba as a disciple.
Besides, Aoba did nothing wrong. Minami was not a girl of the schedule. And she was a quiet girl, so she would not, unlike Elsie, disrupt the atmosphere that he desired for his club. Mimani met all his stated criteria.
Also, to reject Minami would show that he didn't trust his disciple. Which he did. He totally trusted Aoba to look after his interests.
After all, the club was her doing. And he liked the club very much. That told him that Aoba knew what he liked and needed deep down. Perhaps more than he himself knew. Maybe admitting Minami would have benefits for him that he did not know yet? As long as Minami would remain just a club member, and nothing more, it was fine.
He just had to trust his disciple on this. He had no choice.
"Yes, I admit you. Welcome to the club, Minami Ikoma."
"Really? Thank you, Senpai!" Minami shouted, and she suddenly jumped and hugged her upperclassman.
"Welcome, Miss Ikoma!" Asami greeted with a big smile.
"Congratulations, Ikoma," Aoba said after the hug.
"Well, I wish I could stay, but sadly, I have other things to do," Keima informed, to the disappointment of the others. "Aoba, you're in charge."
And Keima left the girls alone.
Part 248 – Aoba's Duet Plan
"He's so wonderful!" Minami exclaimed, her eyes wide as she looked at the retreating Keima. She turned to Fuse. "Thank you very much for giving me this. I'll do anything. Please, just tell me."
"Anything? Can you keep a secret?"
"I would!"
"Even from your Senpai Katsuragi?"
"Do I?"
"It concerns him. But this secret will be only for a secret for a little while. A few months at most. We are planning a surprise for him. Think of it as a way of making him happy," Asami added.
"I would love to do anything to make him happy. So this is like a surprise birthday party?"
"Yes. Could you keep this a secret?"
"Yes, Senpai."
"Okay. Minami Ikoma, I want the President of this Club to be School Council President," said Aoba Fuse.
Minami's jaw dropped as her eyes became as wide as saucers. "Really? He'll run the next year? That's great! Everyone in Middle school will be delighted!"
"Hopefully. I'm not sure yet. Right now, if you ask him, he'll refuse. I asked him, and he told me not to mention it to him again. But who knows? He can change his mind. I want to prepare the way, so no matter how late he changes his mind, it won't be too late."
Minami thought that if Senpai Katsuragi really does not want to run, then they should respect his wishes. But she owed so much to Senpai Fuse that she's willing to help her in whatever she wanted. And she's right. Senpai Katsuragi may change his mind.
"What if he doesn't?"
"Then we would have wasted our time. But it's still worth it for the chance that he may," answered Aoba. "I understand if you don't like to help us, but I would be very grateful and happy if you did."
Minami did not need any persuading to join. Anything to help both Senpai Fuse and Senpai Katsuragi. "I'll join."
"Good. Now, I have something to ask of you. Can I?"
"What is it, Senpai?"
"You see, the Divine One is going to participate in a Piano Duet with Miyako Terada tomorrow night at the Music Hall. I'm sure he'll win. What I want is for you to invite as many middle-schoolers as possible to the concert, and cheer both your Senpai Katsuragi and Senpai Terada."
"Me? Invite as many as I can? But why?"
"I want to see how popular he is," the genius answered.
"But he's already the second most popular senpai in Middle School, after Senpai Yuuzaki!"
"Then, you will have no trouble inviting as many middle schoolers to the play, right?"
"They'll be thrilled. That may make him even more popular with us," Minami answered. "And I would love to do it, but I don't know how." She was shocked by Senpai Fuse's request. How could she do it? Still, all might not be lost. Maybe Akko and Saitou would help her? They would love to see Senpai Katsuragi in the flesh once more.
"And why don't I make some flyers?" Asami offered. She had read enough examples from books on how to get a crowd on short notice. "We'll make as many copies as you need, and you can distribute it in Middle School."
"Really? That would be swell! I'll do my best, my senpais!" Minami said with enthusiasm.
Aoba Fuse was hopeful. If Ikoma was right—a big if—then the music hall would be packed with middle-school admirers. Hopefully, the God of Conquests would give an excellent performance.
Now if she could only persuade him to not act rude to all those starry-eyed middle-schoolers who might want to meet him after the duet.
Part 249 – Haqua's Request
In New Hell…
Haqua du Lot Herminium was uneasy as she approached Dokuro's office. It would be a point of no return if Katsuragi found out. The reporting of Keima's positive and negative points of the girls to the Goddesses were, in comparison, trivial to what she was about to do.
Yet unlike the girls' points with Keima, which was mainly a product of her curiosity, what she was about to do was part of her duty as a devil. As a valedictorian serving New Hell, she had scarcely a choice if she was to fulfill her mission as Dokuro stated earlier.
Her only hope was that Katsuragi would not find out.
She entered Dokuro's office. "Chief, I have a request."
The skullhead just looked at her in curiosity.
"You have the authority to make rules regarding loose souls, memories, and the like, right?"
"I do. Why do you ask?"
"I need you to make a new rule."
"Go on. I'm listening."
"I need a new rule. That if a girl who had a loose soul, and after her memories were altered after her Weiss had been extracted, saw, for whatever reason, another Weiss from another girl, or any other supernatural phenomena, she will have all their erased memories restored. However, to retain those memories, she must come under New Hell's Supervision within three days. Or she would lose all memories of not only New Hell and Goddess phenomena, but all memories of the members of the Spirit Capturing Squad, including its human members, even if those memories had nothing to do with New Hell, Goddesses or the Spirit Capturing Squad."
"So you're saying that they must be under Katsuragi's schedule, or they would forget they ever met Katsuragi?"
"Yes. Could I have that new rule as soon as possible?"
"This has something to do with making Aoba Fuse a part of Katsuragi's schedule, right?"
"Yes."
"But why do you need me to publish a rule? Just tell him that there's such a rule. Katsuragi can't know you're bluffing."
"I don't want to lie to him more than necessary. I want to say it with the conviction that I am telling the truth. Please. If I know it's not true, I can't look him in the eye and say it. I want to be honest. Make the rule, please."
"Fine. As a favor for you, Haqua, I'll make this an official New Hell rule starting tomorrow, okay?"
"Thank you, Chief!" Haqua said with a smile. Now her conscience was clear. She can do what she was planning without lying to Katsuragi.
"Anything else?"
"Well, I was wondering. Those under the schedule are indirectly under New Hell supervision, right? If for example, a devil with authority became a member of the schedule. Would that conflict with the rules of supervision? Because a devil is supposed to have supervision with her buddy for example, but if, let's say, Katsuragi's buddy, who was a devil, became a member of the schedule for monitoring purposes, would that be possible?"
"Why, Haqua? Would you like to join the schedule?"
Haqua suddenly blushed. "Of course not! Why would I want to be a member? I mean, if I have no choice, I would, but only if it's absolutely necessary, for the good of New Hell, and not because I want to! I am thinking of Rimyuel since Rimyuel was a former conquest target of Katsuragi. If I call on her to help me, she might want to insist on being part of Katsuragi's schedule."
"I suppose it is possible, but there should be an official reason. Maybe if Rimyuel could justify it based on our mission, perhaps it could be allowed. But we'll see when Rimyuel makes her request. This is uncharted territory. Why? Did Rimyuel ask you about it?"
"No. I'm curious. I'm covering all my bases."
"I see, diligent as always. Very well then," Dokuro nodded, "Is that all?"
"Yes, thank you very much, Chief!" Haqua bowed, before turning around and walking out of the office. Her expression was normal, but inside her head she was cheering.
Her plan was proceeding smoothly.
End of Flag XXII
Stats for the Week
Official Time
Monday
Tenri – Morning Walk – 15 minutes
Yui – Lunch – 1 hour
Kanon – Night Event – 1 hour
Tuesday
Tenri - Morning Walk - 15 minutes
Chihiro – Lunch – 1 hour
Tenri – After School Visit – 1 hour
Wednesday
Tenri - Morning Walk - 15 minutes
Kanon – Lunch – 1 hour
Total:
Tenri – 1 hour, 45 minutes
Yui – 3 hours
Kanon – 2 hours
Chihiro – 1 hour
Author Notes
Aoba Fuse and Asami Yoshino are a light novel heroines. I took their characterization both from the light novel, and also from Wrathie Winsre's stories.
Review Replies
To xellos540, thanks for your review once more.
Once again, I'll post this reply in the next chapter as a review reply for the enlightenment of the other readers.
Well, Yui is getting close to Aoba. By this time, she genuinely likes the girl genius, so she would be happy for her. And she was still confident that she would win if Aoba was part of the schedule.
True. Thinking back, I looked back at the story, and tried to see how Chihiro was able to see the Goddesses. Was there some sort of spell or something that made her see? I've got nothing. So there's no reason why she can see and the others can't, so I just can make my own reason for that.
Yui is disappointed because she wanted a romantic dinner, and for Keima to act like a lady in dinner, which meant eating slowly, etc., just like she imagined it to be. As for why she didn't eat anything in those ten minutes? She was too astonished at seeing Keima eat that fast and that many. Remember how Keima ate Chihiro's meat buns during her conquest? He ate like that.
Since lots of girls initiated kisses with Keima, I don't think it's much of an issue that he did so as Keiko.
Would that cheat code work all the time? Who knows! XD
Sadly, Yui's three hours for the week is over. The Goddess on the Lap mode will have to happen in the future, in different arcs. Though I do wonder if Keima would even want to do that? Oh well, it's not as if he has a choice during the time of the girls.
Knowing Yui, she'll probably just move the bed to the warehouse and make Keima put the controllers on the bed so she can sleep besides him while he plays his God of Conquest mode.
Seeing Yui in female clothes would be weird. Maybe we'll see it in the next arc.
Well, it's Keima's blind spot. He could not comprehend that a girl would willingly share him with another if she had a choice. Because there's no such game, and all harem games mostly have a clear winner in the end. So it's out of his comfort zone. Sure, the girls currently share him, but he manipulated them to share him. So it follows that if he does not manipulate them, they won't like to share him, right?
As for the "And you're the only boy that paid any attention to me," statement of Tenri, you're right about the attractiveness of Tenri to boys. So why did Tenri say it? She's talking about why her parents think Keima is the ideal son-in-law. Tenri said, "But they didn't see that. You were always so polite when you're in front of them. You said all the right things. And you're the only boy that paid any attention to me. So you became the ideal boy in their eyes for me."
So she was referring to her parents. Her parents were the ones who think that Keima was the only boy who paid attention to Tenri, and thus, was a reason why he became ideal for their daughter. And they would think that because as you said, Tenri would reject every other boy, so the parents would only see Keima paying attention to Tenri (I don't think Tenri would speak to her parents about other boys she rejected). That was the context of her statement.
I hope that cleared it up.
As for Diana's blackmail, and slap, it was a conflict between her love for Keima and unconscious longing to have him (which was the motivation for the blackmail) and her duty to nurture and encourage Tenri's love for Keima, which would demand that she ignore her own love to Keima and caused her to feel guilty over falling in love with Katsuragi. So that conflict was played out over that morning. And yes, slapping him was a pragmatic move, because of her guilty conscience.
And does Keima know of Diana's feelings? Yes. Diana directly confessed her love to Keima during the Goddess search, right after Keima broke Chihiro's heart by his cruel rejection.
And how does Diana know about his feelings for Chihiro? Well, Tenri knows that Keima loves Chihiro since Flag IV, Part 28. Tenri was able to guess that Keima had already loved a girl by that time, and she was able to figure out that it was Chihiro since Chihiro was the only girl who became part of the schedule. And Keima admitted that he loves Chihiro, but he may love another girl more than Chihiro and choose that girl instead at the end of five years.
Goddesses see and hear everything the hosts see and hear, but not vice versa. So Diana heard everything. That's how she knew.
Yes, it's the first time Mobuko appears. And yeah, the eraser incident would decide humanity's fate! xD And to Mobuko, saying Keima is just like his brother is Keima being "brotherzoned", kinda like being "friend zoned".
Mobuko's role would be as a typical representative of how high schoolers sees Keima. She would marvel and be surprised by what would happen with Keima.
Well, he was assertive all along, yet this was the first time he directed that assertiveness to command the crowd of students, since he usually wants to be left alone and play in peace.
Mio Aoyama is still working part time, I imagine. And maybe friends with Yui.
Yep. Keima has the skills and the presence to command the masses, if he wants it. Too bad he doesn't care about it. Good thing there are others who cared about him having power!
Well, of course Keima would play favorites. He trusts the girls of the schedule. And as for Ayumi calling him Mr. Katsuragi, or Katsuragi-san, that's part of the script.
Why would Aoba even raise her hand? Because she's Kanon's fan, like everyone else (at least to normal people).
Yes, it's the delinquent TRIO, the same ones who beat up Keima before he conquered Kusonoki.
Well, Kanon is a yandere. As the bully scene was not scripted (because who can script the actions of the delinquent trio?), it was a surprise. Kanon saw her beloved getting punched in the mouth, bleeding, being hurt, and being jeered for the first time ever. She saw how much misery Keima had to endure, and she knew she was partly responsible for that. As a yandere, she wanted to protect her man. And she would do anything to protect Keima. Anything. So she did what she did. Without thinking it through.
Anyway, since they apologized, I don't think she will actually follow up on her threat to have them expelled.
Keima is still rude and want nothing to do with the real. So of course he's still grumpy! xD
Mobuko will just act like the typical high schooler who loathed Keima, so it depends on how the high schoolers will change their view on Keima to see how Mobuko could be really that bad. She'll just go with the crowd who hates Keima.
Chihiro is already overwhelmed as she couldn't decide which student would actually get Kanon's autograph!
Would Miyako actually be jealous? She doesn't know that being the brother of Kanon is just a ruse.
How does Keima know? Through research, of course. I'm sure Ayumi and Chihiro knows gossip of almost every boy in high school. He could easily have asked the other girls too about it and they would share their knowledge about boys with Keima when he was formulating his plan.
Yup. Though it's more of Keima Holmes and Aoba Holmes, as both were equal in intellectual capacity, with Keima only slightly smarter than Aoba. More like Sherlock being Aoba, and Mycroft (who's a genius too and smarter than Sherlock) being Keima.
Well, yeah. I watched the Fate series, though I prefer Fate /Zero.
Chihiro, earlier in the year, was a member of the stay at home club. And now, her only interest is the band. So I don't think Chihiro would be particularly interested in the Student Council.
You're right about Keima not being the best President. That observation was made by Ayumi, who's in love with Keima, proud of him, and therefore, is biased in her assessment. And yeah, Keima don't have respect for the school, the teachers, or his fellow students. But in comparison to Kaori, and her true personality, Keima is still better.
Who will spill the secret first? We'll see.
Chihiro has a list of the girls who Keima conquered before (it was given by Keima during the first café meeting way back in Flag II). So she remembers seeing Minami's name on it.
If Aoba will witness Keima kissing another girl, I wonder who will it be? Kinda obvious, ain't it? But will that make Aoba fall in love with him, or will it only make her realize that she has been in love with him all this time? But the problem of falling in love without remembering was that she's still wedded to the idea that she's still in love with her first master, and it would be a betrayal to fall in love with another boy. Whatever she feels, she'll try to justify her feelings as being anything but love, like admiration, hero worship, etc. (like what's happening now). If she does admit it, she'll feel very guilty and try to reconcile her "two" loves.
So remembering is really something essential for her emotional well-being if she falls in love again with Keima.
As for being over the top, Keima in the manga and anime could sometimes be really over the top (like many of the things he did in the past in the body as a ten-year old kid, or many times during the Goddess search saga), and Kanon too was guilty of being over the top (like tasing someone for not recognizing her, performing a private concert just to make one guy a fan and carrying an entire stage and sound equipment to the roof by herself, and of course, confessing in the middle of an exam in front of everyone). It's just that both their over the topness converged for a single event which was designed to change the public opinion of their fellow students.
Once more, thanks for your review.
To rahmanism, thanks for your review.
Yes, Keima's reputation is something that would change. It's already better in Middle School. As for High School? It certainly be going to be different. Whether for good or ill, we'll see. As for Keima letting Kanon get close to him, well, it's because Okada made him her chaperone, and Keima really wanted to make sure that the brother-sister ruse really was believed. As for her gifts showing an effect, we'll see. Yep. Keima's previous girls would gather, as you put it.