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!

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.

Summary of the last chapter

Short summary

Keima spends an hour with Kanon. Haqua and Yui plot. Yui and Aoba meet with Tsukiyo and Shiori. Keima decides on Minami's fate. Aoba gives a mission to Minami. Haqua asked Dokuro for some favors.

Long Summary

Yui – Aoba Plot

As Yui Goido was heading to the Astronomy club, she was intercepted by Haqua. Haqua, who had been tasked by Dokuro to get Aoba Fuse in the schedule, decided to talk to Yui, who she suspected had a plan.

Yui told Haqua that Keima secretly wishes for Aoba to join the schedule. He thinks that the other girls would not approve, so he has to pretend that he does not want Aoba to join. And Keima would, inside, like it very much if he was given an excuse to bring Aoba in.

Such an excuse would occur if Aoba learned about New Hell, Goddesses, or Weiss. The best way to do that was to let Aoba see the Weiss when Miyako would be conquered. But Haqua needed to cast a spell on her because mortals could not ordinarily see them. But Haqua can't just cast the spell without Keima's permission.

Luckily, the girls of the schedule wanted to watch the conquest of Miyako and see the Weiss. Since they're not sure if Goddess Hosts could see Weiss, Haqua would cast a spell on them. And maybe "accidentally" cast a spell on Aoba too.

Then if Aoba saw the Weiss, Haqua would demand that Aoba should remember everything, or she would forget everything. Once she remembered everything, she would demand that Aoba be included in the schedule within three days, or she'll forget everything anyway. And Keima will lose her as a disciple.

Yui mentioned that she didn't know such a rule existed. Haqua said that she wasn't sure and that she'll check, even as she knew that there was not such a rule at all.

Yui went and ate lunch with Tsukiyo and Shiori. There, she talked them into witnessing Miyako's conquest after the duet.

Later, Haqua went to Dokuro and asked her chief to create new rules that would make it possible to get Aoba in the schedule. The reason for her request was that she did not want to have to lie to Keima when the time comes. Dokuro granted her request.

"Aoba Making Keima Respected" Plot

Yui ate lunch with Tsukiyo and Shiori at the Astronomy Club. There, she mentioned that Aoba Fuse was planning to make Keima School Council President and was recruiting the girls of the schedule for help. Tsukiyo summoned Aoba and invited herself and Shiori to help Aoba.

After school, Minami returned to the club, and Keima approved of the Minami's membership. Later, when Keima left, Aoba told Minami about her plans to make Keima President. She then told Minami about the piano duet of Miyako and Keima. And asked Minami to invite as many middle-schoolers to the concert as possible.

Summary of the Schedule Plot

My original plan, my original aim, was the schedule. I want Keima to date as many girls as possible. But with the girls being on board with that, willing to share, even if grudgingly. And at the same time, he will continue with his mission of capturing loose souls. So, the idea of the schedule came to me.

I want the girls to understand Keima, his situation, his reasons for doing what he does, and willingly share and join the schedule. And I want the impetus to come from Keima himself, so Keima won't be forced by the girls to accede to their demands, but for them to come to a mutual accommodation. Keima being Keima, he would do so through manipulative means. But it works because he's giving the girls what they really want—a chance to spend time with Keima, a chance to win him for themselves, a chance to be happy—with the only drawback being that they won't be the only girl in his life.

The other plot points were just an extension of this plot—girls in the schedule come to understand his mission to save Miyako, another girl or two joins the schedule, Mari would come to accept the schedule too, etc. Everything else derives from this simple fact—so you could say there's only one plot point.

But I digress.

This plot point is the longest, so I will divide the summary into two parts. The first part would be posted after the end of the review replies in this chapter. The second part I'll post at the end of Flag XXVI. The reason for that was because Flag XXIV will have the summaries of the Miyako and Mari plot points. And Flag XXV would be a special chapter.

I'll put the summary at the bottom, after the review replies.

ARC II - CONSPIRACIES

Flag XXIII

Final Preparations

Part 250 – Miyako's Trouble

Wednesday afternoon, after class…

Miyako Terada nearly jumped at the abrupt entrance of Keima Katsuragi to the 2B Pencils bandroom.

"I'm sorry for being a bit late," Keima apologized. "I have some club business to attend to."

"Um, no problem at all," she uttered as she blushed while looking at him.

"Beloved Brother!" Kanon exclaimed upon his entrance. "I never knew you were entering a duet contest!"

Kanon, and her "chaperones", Ayumi, Chihiro, and Elsie, were with Miyako, to observe him and Miyako practice.

"Well, we only joined yesterday," he answered.

"Would that be enough?" asked the idol.

"For this type of contest? Normally, no," he answered. "But with Miyako here teaching me, anything's possible!"

Kanon shook the pianist's hand. "Thank you for teaching my exalted brother how to play the piano, and thank you for playing a piano duet with him. Win or lose, I'm sure you'll do great."

Miyako wanted to scream as the idol was shaking her hands. It was true that Kanon played with them during the concert at the Festival, but this was different. A famous idol, shaking her hand?

"Thank you," she sputtered. She wanted to ask for an autograph or a selfie. But after what happened that morning, she didn't want to risk it.

"You want an autograph or to take a picture with me?" the idol asked as if she were reading Miyako's mind.

Miyako could not believe her ears. "Yes, but I can't cheat. I need to go through Chihiro first like all the others."

"That's fine. Miss Kosaka, could you put her name on the top of the list?"

"Done," the normal girl declared as she took her notebook and added Miyako's name.

And Kanon then signed her autograph on the pianist's notebook, and had pictures with the normal girl.

Miyako just wanted to shriek in happiness at what was happening. To be a classmate was one thing. But this was on another plane.

The idol smiled. "I'm going to watch, but don't tell anyone, okay?"

"I won't!" the pianist squealed.

"Okay, let's practice," Keima proclaimed as he set up Miyako's keyboard.

The two sat together side-by-side as Miyako began to direct the practice, with Keima following everything she told him to like a good student should.

Inwardly, Miyako was nervous. The presence of Kanon was building up the pressure for her and Katsuragi to perform. What if she messed up? She didn't have to worry about Katsuragi messing up—he was a godly genius who could predict test questions—unless she messed up in teaching him. That was the downside of Katsuragi learning everything from her—all his mistakes would be her mistakes too.

Her heart pounded. She dreaded the contest. Because no matter how great they were—if they didn't win, they were nothing.

…

A long time ago, she had thought that being second or third in piano was fine. She was talented, and she understood that she could not always be the best, as people would still appreciate her whatever happened. Until that fateful last duet concert…

She had a student before—her first piano student. She had lied when she said that Katsuragi was her first because she wished her first student disappeared from the face of the earth.

She was in sixth grade. She was a great pianist for her age, and all admired her. And she always got first, second, or third place in piano and everything else she did. She was one of the brightest lights of her generation. She was happy. Everything she did, she did with zest and with no apparent effort.

So it was with a hopeful heart that a mother of one boy—a piano prodigy—approached her about tutoring her son. He was a genius. But he was raw. He needed to develop his talent. And the mother was not rich enough to hire tutors for her son.

The son was just a first grader—five years younger than she was. But age didn't matter to him. The first time he played, Miyako knew that he had more raw talent than she ever would have with a lifetime of practice, but that talent would need polishing to be great. And since at that time, she thought that she was special, she hoped that she could be the one to make that master pianist achieve his destiny.

She agreed to tutor him. For six months. After that, they would have one month to prepare for that years' piano duet contest. Since the boy had never participated in any competition before, he technically counted as a 'novice'.

He seemed great in practice. Far better than Katsuragi currently. And she appeared to be a great teacher. He became more polished and better than before. Everyone who saw them practice thought that they were a shoo-in for first place.

Except they were not. They came second—a shock to everyone. Of course, everybody congratulated them for their first runner-up status, but she could see their downcast eyes. The mother of the boy paid Miyako the money promised, but her eyes and tone of voice told Miyako of great disappointment. The mother did not renew the tutorial contract like Miyako expected her to—it spoke far more than anything she said out loud.

That hurt a lot.

After that, no one else tried to ask her to teach them piano. If she could not make a piano genius win a simple duet, what could she do anyway? That was one reason she never entered another piano contest. She lost all her confidence. She was still good, but she could never be the best. And without being the best, what was she but average? Only someone average could have messed up that duet.

And that attitude of hers affected her other endeavors. If being second in piano meant that she was just average in piano, then being second in everything else meant she was only average in those as well. Being second place was nothing. She was nothing special. She was just a normal average boring girl.

Still, she tried her hand in almost everything, just to prove to herself that maybe she was not average. She had thought that she was good at everything before, but looking at her past achievements, she was not anything special. Too many second or third-place finishes—not enough first places. And during middle school and high school, she never even finished first.

She had genuinely fallen to mediocrity.

She had to finish first in something. Anything. Just to tell herself she had some hope of regaining her past glory.

Then there was the Kanon confession, and Katsuragi not finishing that English exam.

Finally! Something to give her hope! She was always second in class—so maybe if Katsuragi did not finish the exam, he'd fail. And Miyako would once again be number one in an exam. Sure, she would be number one by default. But she didn't care. She just wanted to be top on something. Even if it was because someone else failed.

So that day, when the exam results were to be announced, she was full of hope. She would be special again. She was delighted when Kodama began speaking. She would have something she could boast to her parents once more. Even for a little while…

…

Part 251 – The Final Practice

As she practiced with Katsuragi, she tried to set her expectations as low as possible. They were going to lose. They were going to be humiliated. She was going to see all those downcast eyes once more. Competing in a piano concert was the source of all her problems so she wanted to quit. She wanted to run away.

But she couldn't. Not after Katsuragi had poured his heart and soul into learning piano. Quitting would not only reflect on her but reflect on her confidence in her student. She would be no better than the mother of that genius if that happened.

She just hoped that nothing would go wrong and that the audience would be more understanding of her failure than during the last concert.

…

There was thunderous applause when they were finished practicing. But they also applauded during her practices with that piano prodigy.

Looking around her, more people were watching.

In addition to Kanon, Chihiro, Elsie, and Ayumi, there was Fuse, Yoshino, Yui, and a middle school girl.

"Wow! You two were great!" Yui shouted as she applauded. She never expected her darling to be that great. Nor for Miyako to be so good at teaching the tone-deaf gamer. "Keima, you were godly! Miyako, you're a really, really, really great teacher!"

Aoba Fuse just stared at them, her mouth wide open. This will really impress the middle-schoolers. And I never knew that the Divine One was good at piano. If he didn't know music before, then Terada is a godly tutor as well.

"Congratulations, Divine One, Terada," the girl genius saluted.

Asami applauded silently.

"Senpai Terada, you were great. I'm sure the entire middle school population would want to see you and Senpai Katsuragi play," Minami Ikoma complimented. "Senpai Katsuragi, I didn't know you're good at the piano too!"

Keima stood up and bowed before Miyako. "Thank you, Miyako. You made me a competent pianist. I just hope we can win tomorrow."

Miyako blushed harder. "No need to do that. I was doing my job. Really, this was nothing."

"But you're wrong," Kanon insisted. "Keima here didn't have any ear for music before. Trust me on that one. To transform him in such a short time, you had to be extraordinary! You're no ordinary, normal girl! You're someone special!"

And Miyako blushed. She wanted to run away. She did not deserve all that praise. And it will be even worse when it all will come crashing down tomorrow.

"Stop it! We haven't won yet, please."

"But it's a shoo-in!" Yui proclaimed.

Miyako blanched. Her last concert was supposed to be a shoo-in too. And that prodigy was far better than Katsuragi at the piano.

Keima looked at her sympathetically. "Don't worry, Miyako. Win or lose, as long as we learn something, that's the important thing. And as long as we showed our best, we shouldn't have anything to regret."

"Yes. Yes, of course," she agreed without conviction.

…

"Secretary, Katsuragi is great!" Asami said to Aoba as they watched the others congratulate and fuss over the pair of pianists.

The genius agreed. "I know. This will make him more popular with middle schoolers."

"Won't that make him popular with high schoolers too? Why not try to get as many high schoolers to watch the two tomorrow?" Asami pondered.

Aoba nearly flinched at the mention of High School. If she had her way, the high-schoolers would all go to hell. She chuckled. To the majority of their peers, the Divine One lording over them would be literal hell. So to her, it would be the perfect revenge to make her Master President.

"It's impossible. The majority of the high school population already made up their mind about the Divine One. They hate him. This would not change it. They would just be jealous. And high schoolers are far more enamored of Lady Kaori Yuuzaki than middle schoolers are."

Asami nodded. "Come to think of it, you're right. Lady Yuuzaki had been preparing far longer for next year's run. She's always friendly with all her peers, and the year below us. Middle-school had far less exposure to her than high school."

Aoba agreed. "We can't beat her in high school. Luckily for us, high-school won't matter next year. Middle school is where it's at. But Lady Yuuzaki must never know that. She must think that we're fighting for the high school vote and ignoring middle school in the process."

…

It was their final practice before the contest the next day. And all of the people watching in the room agreed that, based on their performance, they had a good chance. Whether or not they would win would depend on how good the competition was.

…

After that, everyone except Kanon left the band room. Kanon waited for five minutes. Then the door opened, and a boy with flowers entered.

Kanon sighed. It was her first "suitor". She wasn't too fond of this part of the plan, but it was for Keima.

Before the hapless boy could do anything, Kanon shook his hand, took the flowers, thanked him, then asked if he wanted an autograph and a picture. Before he could even get a word in, she got a photo of herself, asked his name, and signed a short message and an autograph at the back of the picture, thanking him for being a big fan.

Then she asked if he had anything to say.

The boy thanked her for the photograph and told her how much of a fan he was. But he wasn't able to say anything else as he was too tongue-tied and star-struck.

Thus, without even rejecting him, Kanon gave him a short hug and led him out of the door. Meeting over.

Five minutes later, the second boy Aoba approved, Shiro Emiya, entered. He also had flowers.

The same routine with the first boy happened, except this boy was able to confess his love. Kanon replied by thanking him but saying to him that she doesn't have time for love, as she was too busy being an idol. Besides, an idol can't have a boyfriend as she had an image to protect. But she thanked him for being a fan and liking her, and that she would always think of fans like him when she felt down. Fans like him would always cheer her up. Fans like him encourage her to sing more. And she gave him a short chaste peck on the cheek, before ushering the boy out of the room.

That was boy number two. Kanon called for Ayumi and Chihiro. They would accompany her out of the campus, into the waiting car outside.

…

Part 252– The Magic Carpet Ride

Later…

The first thing that tipped Keima that something was off was when the door opened to the Ayukawa residence. Instead of being ushered upstairs into Tenri's room, he met Tenri in the living room. Instead of seeing her in her Misato High Sailor uniform, she was in a lovely pink dress, up to her knees, with her hair dressed up, her face with slight make-up and her lips red with lipstick, legs covered in stockings and heels on her feet. She was holding a matching pink handbag.

In short, she was prettied up. Keima had to admit that she looked lovelier than usual.

"Welcome, Keima," Mrs. Ayukawa greeted him as soon as she entered. "It's your one-hour date, right? Tenri decided that she wanted to go out with you instead of staying cooped up in her room all the time. Right, Tenri?"

Tenri's face color matched that of her outfit as she nodded silently.

"Well, I'll leave you two lovebirds to your date! Take care!" Yuuko exclaimed as she helped Tenri into her long autumn coat, and wrapped a scarf around her neck before she all but pushed both teens out of the house.

…

It was Tenri's last full hour of the week. There would still be a fifteen-minute walk to school on Friday, but that was it.

"I take it that this was your Mom's idea?"

"Yes. She said that we should properly date instead of just spending our time in my room after school. She wants to help me win against Kanon."

"Figures. So what do we do?" asked Keima.

"I don't know. I haven't been on a real proper date before."

Keima had planned for such a contingency. He took out his phone and searched for something on the net. He looked at his watch.

"Five minutes, huh? Elsie! Come here!"

And the devil appeared. "Hello, Tenri. What can I do for you, Divine Brother?"

"Turn us invisible and fly us to Narusawa City. And wrap a protective bubble around us too."

Elsie gave a big smile as she nodded. "Right away, Divine Brother!"

And a second later, there was a carpet with a transparent bubble around them.

Keima suppressed the urge to laugh. "A magic carpet ride, huh? Why didn't you do this before? I'd rather have this than you pull me up by my jacket. I felt like a kitten carried by his scruff!"

"But this is for romantic encounters," Elsie insisted as she turned the couple and the carpet invisible. "You riding the carpet alone isn't romantic at all. And carrying both of you at the same time is awkward for a date!"

"Whatever," he sighed as he and Tenri sat on the carpet. The carpet rose to great heights, the bubble around them maintaining a constant temperature and allowing only winds of moderate speed within. It was not the first time he had been inside such a bubble—his second hour with Kanon when they had a night picnic in a park on a cold November night was his most recent use of that bubble.

"This is beautiful!" Tenri exclaimed as she looked at Maijima below. As it was nearing December, the days were short, the nights were early, and it was already dark. They could see the street lights, throngs of people walking about, vehicles running.

The view didn't last long, as Elsie carried the carpet at high speed to their destination. The lights below became a blur. And when they stopped, they were over Narusawa City.

Part 253 – The Great Magician Show

They entered a hall through a window on the second floor.

"This way, we don't have to get at the back of the line for tickets. Or pay for them," Keima remarked as he looked outside and saw a long line of people. "I'm sorry if that would seem sneaky, but I didn't expect us to be here today."

Elsie took care of the carpet while the two teenagers sneaked down the hall. They took a seat near the front. As they were already inside, the ushers assumed that they already paid for their tickets, and escorted them to their chairs, which was given on a 'first come, first serve' basis. Tenri was on the left, Keima on the right.

Tenri smiled when a man wearing a Victorian suit, complete with top hat, cape, and staff entered.

"It's the great magician Gendo!" Tenri cried. She had been following his performances on TV since she became interested in stage magic. To see him in the flesh was a dream come true. She hugged Keima in gratitude. "Oh, thank you, thank you, Keima! I'm so happy!"

The show was not long—it was only a last-minute booking because of a gap in the magician's schedule. So the performance was only forty minutes.

But it was an enchanting forty minutes for Tenri. Her eyes were on the magician, vainly trying to discover how he did his illusions while whispering to Keima about who Gendo was and what magic trick he was performing.

When it was nearly over, she noticed that she was clasping Keima's left hand. She was so excited that she didn't even notice it. She smiled as she clung on to it, feeling the warmth of his hand in hers.

Keima knew what Tenri unconsciously did, but let it happen since it would increase Tenri's affection points. Unintentional hand-holding was a ubiquitous flag in games. It was a useful tool to conquer a heroine and to cement the hold on an already conquered girl like Tenri.

As for the show, Keima already knew how most tricks were done, but feigned interest for Tenri's sake.

…

"Thank you very much, Keima," Tenri happily cried as they walked out of the hall after the performance. "I always wanted to see the great magician Gendo perform live on stage, but the tickets were so expensive! You made my dream come true."

Keima nodded, his face was impassive even as he was pleased that his event was successful. "It was my pleasure."

Tenri, in the meantime, had become bolder. She clung to his arm while he played his PFP as they walked. She was so happy that she momentarily overcame her natural timidity. When it came to Keima, under the right circumstance, Tenri could be bold and brave. At that moment, not only was Tenri holding Keima's arm as they walked side by side, she was also leaning against him.

They walked to a deserted part of the city, where Elsie appeared and made them invisible. They rode the devil's bubble covered magic carpet back to Maijima.

Part 254 – The Walk Back Home

There were still fifteen minutes left of their time.

Elsie landed them some distance from their homes, where she turned them visible. The two walked the rest of the way, with Tenri still clinging on to him. The devil turned invisible and floated, watching the two.

"Tomorrow's the big moment, huh?"

"You mean Miyako's conquest? Yes."

"I want to watch the duet."

"Only students of Maijima High, teachers, and parents are allowed in that music hall. I guess Diana could find a way in."

"Diana said she'd just fly over, and nobody will make a fuss once I'm in."

"Just to be sure, wear the Mai-High uniform. I'm sure Elsie could lend you one, or you could have Diana cast a spell or something," Keima suggested. "And do you really want to watch me conquer Miyako?"

"You mean, watch you kiss her? Then yes. I want to see the Weiss."

"You, Ayumi, Chihiro, and Yui. Well, sure, I'll arrange it with Haqua so all of you could have front row seats."

"Can I see them? The Weiss?"

"I guess you could. You're a Goddess host. Anyway, now that you mention it, I'm not sure Chihiro could see it since she's not a host. I'll just ask Haqua about it. Maybe she can cast a spell so that all of you can see it, just to be sure."

"Thanks," said the timid girl as they reached the Ayukawa front gate. "I guess this is goodbye then."

"Yes. We still have a fifteen-minute walk on Friday."

"Keima, can you please drop the walks?"

"Huh?"

"I still want walks, but I don't like the walks being counted as my time. I want another full hour instead."

"In that case, I can't walk with you without a valid reason, as it would be outside your time," Keima answered.

"I'll take it. Please do that for next week."

"I will," said Keima. Now Keima looked at his watch, and he decided to finish this date with a kiss. That would close his obligation to Tenri, and—

"Keima?" Tenri began.

"I'm sorry."

"Sorry for wh—"

Before he could finish his sentence, Tenri suddenly wrapped her arms around his neck and crashed her lips to his.

After experiencing two magnificent long kisses from the boy she loved that week, she was determined to do the same to him. She didn't care if she might again swoon—she wanted it.

And so she didn't let go afterward like she did her previous kiss. Instead, her grip around his neck got tighter as she refused to let go. Her feet pushed her head forward, going into tiptoe as she did so. Even as she experienced bliss, it didn't cause her to let go or have her grip slacken. Instead, it became tighter, so much so that her grip became iron.

Keima wondered if she was using Diana's strength as the kiss went on and on, squeezing him with her grip. He then steadied himself, and, wrapping his hands around her, kissed back.

Finally, Tenri herself broke off, gasping for breath. "Oh Keima, that was—"

Then she promptly fainted, her arms still around his neck.

He tried to pry her off, but he was like a teddy bear being hugged by a sleeping child—she refused to let go. She hung around him like that.

Keima sighed as he carried her bridal style to the door, putting one arm below her back and the other under her legs, and rang the doorbell.

He blushed a bit in embarrassment when Yuuko Ayukawa opened the door and squealed.

"Tenri got tired and fell asleep," he excused. He knew her unspoken question—why are her arms around your neck?

"She saw something scary, so she clung to me," he explained, "then fell asleep."

Mrs. Ayukawa didn't challenge the story as she helped him pry the sleeping girl off him, expertly untangling the interlocked fingers behind his neck.

"Did you have fun?"

He just nodded. "Well, see you later. I still have to meet Kanon."

Mrs. Ayukawa just waved as he stepped out of the door.

"Keima!" a girl in a coat and beret called.

It was Kanon, and she was standing at the gate of the Ayukawa house.

Part 255 – Kanon's Time Once More

"Aw, I'm jealous. I want you to carry me like that!" she pouted.

"You-you saw that?" Keima should not have been surprised. Kanon's last hour for the week was directly after Tenri's hour. So, of course, Kanon would be waiting just outside Tenri's home. He should have thought of that before he kissed—scratch that, it was Tenri who kissed him, so maybe he should have been more careful?

Kanon was cheeky. "I saw everything at the gate. And I'm jealous."

And Keima began to pout as he approached her.

And she melted upon his gaze. "I'm jealous, but I'm not angry. It's Tenri's time, so it's only fair to her. Promise me you'll carry me bridal style later on?"

"Yes, if that's what you want," answered Keima. She did not need to ask. It was her right, after all. "I'm sorry you saw that."

"Don't be. We are all girls of the schedule, we accept that we should share you for the next five years, and we know what you do with each of us during our time," smiled Kanon. "I don't mind watching you kiss Tenri. After all, I'm going to watch you kiss Miyako Terada tomorrow."

"What?"

"Oh! That's right! I haven't asked you yet. Ayumi, Chihiro, and Yui told me earlier this day that they're going to watch you conquer the Terada girl tomorrow. It's to understand your mission. And I want to show that I support you too! So, could I?"

"Yes. Now that's five girls!" he said with an air of exasperation. "You, Ayumi, Chihiro, Yui, and Tenri."

"Tenri too?"

"Yes. She asked me just a while ago. It's going to be a girls' watch party. And, let me warn you, it's likely going to be painful for you."

"I know."

The truth of the matter was, accidentally seeing Tenri kissing Keima was painful for Kanon, but not as painful as she imagined it to be. There was only a slight pain. She became jealous, but it was the right kind of jealousy. And she was surprised how she was not angry at all.

The yandere girl accepted that, for now, she's just one girl among many.

"So, what are we doing?" he asked.

"First, we need to don disguises!"

"Disguises?"

"Yes. After all, it would ruin the ruse if people see the brother and sister dating!" Kanon declared as she removed her beret. Her hair changed from pink to light brown, and her facial features changed too.

Suddenly, she returned to normal. "It's just Apollo's illusion spell," Kanon informed. "You can see my real face just fine, but strangers will see the girl with brown hair."

"How about my face?"

"It will remain the same. If people spot you, they'll think you're dating other girls, and help our ruse."

Keima had to agree to that. So far, he has not followed Okada's advice of getting a 'pretend' girlfriend. After all, he could easily have been spotted dating other members of the schedule. But apparently, the ruses worked too well for the school population. The first 'girlfriend' that was linked to him since he started the ruses was Miyako when the school saw the two during the duet registration.

"So what's going to happen?" he asked.

"We're going to have some fun!" Kanon exclaimed as the two of them walked to the center of the city.

...

Part 256 – Singing Fun

Kanon led him to a karaoke bar, where she secured a private singing room for both of them.

The idol sang first, singing her songs, and giving a performance that she hoped would rivet the attention of the gamer. To be doubly sure, she performed songs that were used as background music to Keima's favorite games.

When she caught Keima mouthing or singing along, she knew she had him.

"I knew you'd love it!" Kanon stated after one performance.

"It was a song I always hear in many of my favorite games. It was an earworm."

"You like the voice?"

"It's passable."

"How about the current singer?"

"I suppose she would do as a background singer," he remarked even as his eyes were on his PFP.

"So I 'would do'! That's great!" Kanon squealed. Coming from him, it was a great compliment. She would take any praise from him that she could. "How about you? Why don't you sing?"

"Me? Sorry. I don't have the talent."

"Oh, c'mon! You didn't have the talent to play the piano, and look at you now! Please?"

"I don't want to!"

"You know it's my time! And I invoke Rule 9! So sing!" Kanon insisted.

He sighed. He took the microphone and entered the number for his favorite song. Which, unsurprisingly, was a song used in one of his favorite games.

And he sang.

…

Kanon was stunned at him. His singing was…

"It's awful, right Kanon?"

"It's unique. I've never heard of anything like that before!" she answered. It was terrible. He was so off-key it was painful. How could he have been so great at playing piano when he was so toneless?

She wanted to laugh but held her tongue. She does not want to embarrass him on her time.

"I think that's it for me," Keima sighed, going back to his PFP and handing the microphone back to Kanon.

Kanon sang another of Keima's game songs.

…

They were walking home. Her ride would pick her up outside of Keima's house at the end of her hour. It was about fifteen minutes to the end of Kanon's hour, and thus, Kanon's weekly time with Keima. It saddened the idol that her next hour would be in the next week.

"So how was Chihiro, Elsie, Aoba, and Ayumi? Were they good chaperones?"

"They were wonderful. I wish that they could be my real friends," Kanon answered. "Because of Miss Kosaka, I was not swamped with autograph requests. Miss Takahara scared off those crowds! She's better than my bodyguards! And Elsie was just a dear. Anytime I needed a distraction or a rest, she'd turn into me and give me a break! And you and Miss Fuse really screened those suitors! Those two boys who she chose were real gentlemen, and I kinda felt bad letting them down. I haven't enjoyed school like this for a long time."

"Do you still regret having those around as your chaperones?"

"You're still my chaperone, because you chose them and they act under your control," Kanon pointed out. "So them being my chaperones means you're still my chaperone."

"Okay, but you still regret it?"

"Oh, I love those four. The only thing that can make it better if you were there too, but I understand. Thank you, Keima, for making this an enjoyable day!"

"I'm glad you had fun."

"But you still have to make it up to me. For leaving me alone," she pouted.

He knew what was coming, so he played along. "What did I do?"

"You should've chaperoned me personally. Just for that, you must pay."

"How much Yen?"

"Not like that," she huffed and marched right in front of him. She glared at him with her cute pink eyes. Then closed her eyes and waited patiently.

"So, are you just going to stand there?" asked Keima with a puzzled face, playing dumb.

"Keima, you know what you need to do!" she demanded playfully.

He sighed. But it would fulfill his obligation for the week. He took hold of her arms and pressed his lip upon hers.

To Kanon, that kiss was as beautiful as all the other kisses. That was the fourth kiss of the week, the fifth since she entered the schedule, and the sixth overall. After a while, she kissed him back.

It was as long as the recent ones, and they were out of breath when it was over, Kanon having a deep blush, Keima a slight one.

Kanon frowned. It was still so unfair that the feelings and reactions were all so one-sided. Oh well. She still had five years to correct that.

"Shall we?" said Keima.

"Yes. Your arm, please?"

Keima sighed and rolled his eyes as he offered his right arm, which Kanon grabbed. The couple walked to Café Grandpa.

When they arrived just in front of his house, he looked at his watch as the seconds ticked. Finally, when Kanon's hour ended, a limousine arrived.

"Well, see you later, Exalted Brother," the idol said with a smile on her face as the illusion spell wore off, and she entered the vehicle.

Part 257 – Elsie's Proposal

Earlier…

"Mom, can I ask you something?" Elsie asked Mari as the two were in the Café Grandpa after the restaurant had closed for the day.

"What is it, dear?" the mother cheerfully asked as she balanced the Café books. She was happy that she had persuaded Keima to spend time with Tenri. She was so proud of herself! She still had it in her to be a matchmaker!

"Well, I kinda did something bad."

"Bad?"

"Yes. I kinda blabbed to some of my friends in school what happened between Divine Brother, Kanon, and Tenri. I know, I'm sorry, I wasn't supposed to tell anyone, but I was careless!"

"As long as they promise they won't tell anyone, it's fine." Mari sighed. Elsie could be such a gossip.

"Well, they did say that, but there's something else. Um, you see, all of those friends, well, um, they are kinda in love with Divine Brother, and they want to have the same deal that Kanon and Tenri had. I kinda told them that Beloved Brother could have as many girls as he likes, as long he doesn't give more than what he can give to Kanon. I'm so sorry for saying that!"

Mari stopped what she was doing. "What?"

"They want me to ask my brother to give them time like he did Tenri and Kanon," Elsie confessed. "But I can't tell him that. He'll kill me! Can you ask my brother for me? I promised my friends that I'd ask, but it's so embarrassing!"

Mari groaned. What was the world coming to?

"How many? Two? Three girls?"

"Five."

"Five?"

"Yes. Ayumi Takahara. Chihiro Kosaka. Shiori Shiomiya. Tsukiyo Kujo. And Yui Goido."

"Wait! Wait! Wait! I remember those names! Aren't they the same girls that went here to sample my son's coffee?"

"Yes, Mom."

So I was right. They all like my son! And here I thought that I was lucky that two girls happen to like him! And look at him now! He has so much to choose from!

"So Keima has seven girls after him?"

"Yes."

Mari just looked at Elsie—dumbfounded. The mother slumped against her chair. "Oh, this is giving me a headache!"

"So, will you ask my brother?"

Mari wanted to say no. Seven girls at the same time would be too much! Heck, two girls at the same time would be too much already! And she approved that!

"Wait! They do know that they will have to share Keima with Tenri and Kanon, right?"

"Well, they said that if Exalted Brother can have two girls at the same time, there isn't any reason why he couldn't have more. They're all in love with him, Mom. And I don't think it's fair that Kanon and Tenri have the Divine One all to themselves, and the others can't have a share."

"Wait! You think that it's unfair? So you like your brother to have more girls?"

"Why not? Every girl in school is destined to fall in love with Big Brother," Elsie declared with conviction. "If the girls want it, and my brother says yes, I don't see why not?"

"You're so naïve, Elsie," Mari answered. "He already has Kanon and Tenri. Why would he want more girls?"

"Well, both girls are wonderful. But don't tell anyone, but I think Tenri is too timid to act as his wife and Kanon? Well, she's made so many mistakes when it came to the Divine One. And she always follows what Okada wants, and I don't think her manager has the best intentions," Elsie whispered. "Maybe if they have more competition, they would try to become better for my brother? After all, Beloved Brother only deserves the best."

Mari was flabbergasted. It was as if Elsie was reading her mind. And her daughter made a fair point. Mari approved of Tenri as a future daughter-in-law, but only in comparison to Kanon. Both were unsuited, if Mari was honest with herself, only that Tenri was less unsuited than Kanon. Hardly a recommendation. So if with another girl in competition, they would do their best, how much more if there were six others?

Besides, one of those girls might be the perfect girl for her son. But Mari would never know if she never approves of this idea, would she?

So she was tempted. And after all, Keima would choose only one girl after five years. It's not as if the arrangement would be permanent. And Elsie was right. After she approved of two girls for Keima at the same time, it was not such a leap to go from two to three, four, or even seven at the same time, since Keima had already broken the sacred rule of that there should only be one boy to one girl at one time.

Still, such a thing was silly. Seven girls at the same time? Has the world gone mad? How could she approve of such a thing? Keima would never allow it to happen! It would take too much of his gaming time. And even as a mother who wanted him to spend more time in the real world, she would not dream of unduly taking away his precious gaming time. She understood how important it was for Keima to play games.

And were the girls even sincere?

"Are those girls really in love with my son? Don't take this the wrong way, but Keima is well known as Kanon's brother. What if they're after your brother just to get close to Kanon?" Mari asked. "And would Kanon and Tenri approve? Even if, in principle, they agreed that he could have other girls, that's just in theory. If they actually see that there are other girls in the flesh, would they still be so sharing?"

"Why don't you ask them?" Elsie answered.

If it were that simple. But first, they need to ask the most important person—Keima.

Part 258 – Keima's Approval

"Does Keima know?"

"Of course not. My Divine Brother knows nothing. He thinks that they're just friends," Elsie answered.

"Listen, Elsie. It's not my call. It's Keima's. And I don't think he would want this. Keima is no playboy."

"But I already promised my friends that they would at least get to ask him," said Elsie. "They'll think I'm a liar if they won't get this. Please, Mom! Say yes."

"Only if Keima approves," Mari asserted.

"So if Divine Brother says yes, you'll say yes too? You'll help me?"

Mari looked at the pleading Elsie. Elsie seemed so pitiful, with those puppy dog eyes. Poor Elsie. She was inclined to humor her daughter. And why not? It's not as if she's committing something that Keima will not do. Keima would have the final say, and she knew that Keima would say no.

"Yes, if Keima agrees, I promise you that I'll allow Keima to have those five girls at the same time, with Kanon and Tenri," Mari conceded. That would at least save her daughter's trustworthiness to her friends. The onus of rejection would be on Keima, who would not care about it in the slightest.

"Really?"

"Yes, Elsie," the mother said.

"Thanks!" said the daughter as she hugged Mari.

…

Keima Katsuragi entered their house and walked into the living room, and found Mari and Elsie waiting for him.

"So how was your date with Tenri and Kanon?" asked the mother.

"Both were fine, and both were lots of fun," he answered in a neutral tone.

"Keima, I have something to ask of you," Mari began. The mother already knew what his answer was going to be. He would refuse it. She knew her son. Two real girls were already too much on his plate. Still, she needed to placate Elsie.

"Yes, Mom?"

Mari looked at Elsie. "Tell him."

"Well, Ayumi, Chihiro, Shiori, Tsukiyo, and Yui want the same chance as Tenri and Kanon," Elsie said.

"What? That's impossible! They don't like me!"

"But it's true! They do like you, Exalted Brother!"

"I am the Otamegane! No girl can like me! Tenri and Kanon are just exceptions!" he declared. "You're deluded, Elsie, if you think that."

Mari wanted to smack her son. He was so naïve if he thinks that none of the girls like him. Then again, he was a gamer who knows nothing of the real world. Of course, he's that naïve.

"But they told me they like you!"

"Either you're lying to me, or they lied to you!" Keima cruelly answered. "I guess you're too buggy to see the difference!"

"That's so mean! I am not lying! They do like you!" Elsie shouted as she smacked him in the head with her broom.

"You're naïve to believe that!" growled Keima as he nursed a bump in his head.

"I am not! Well, if you're so sure, Divine Brother, why don't we ask them? If they say yes, then you should give them a chance like you did Tenri and Kanon!"

"Don't be silly! That's a hair-brained scheme!"

"But if you're so sure, why are you so scared?" Elsie taunted. "Give them a chance if they like you!"

"No way!"

"Please. I made a promise to the five of them that you'll at least listen to them," said Elsie, tears falling on her face as she bowed, then kneeled before him. "If you don't, then I would have broken my promise. And they won't ever believe me. Please, brother, if you care for me, just listen. If you think they don't like you, what harm would it do? I only did this for you, Divine One."

There was a tense stand-off, with Elsie on her knees, and Keima looking at her. Mari was reduced to a spectator, not sure of what was happening before her eyes.

"Fine. Just for you. Just to disabuse you of the idea that they like me. If they do like me, I promise you, Elsie, that I will give them the chance Kanon and Tenri has," said Keima. "Provided Mom approves, that is."

"Keima, are you sure about this? Do you really want an additional five girls?" asked the mother as Elsie celebrated in joy.

"Mom, this is a sure win for me. There's no way those five girls can like me! And even if they do, there's no way they're going to be willing to share. I'm just doing Elsie a favor. You know me, I can't say no to her," he whispered, looking at his mother. "And this would save Elsie's credibility with her friends. If I don't do this, I would never hear the end of it from Elsie. But I'll only do this if it's fine with you, Mom."

Elsie looked at Mari expectantly. Mari was trapped. She promised Elsie to say yes, thinking that Keima would say no. Now that Keima said yes, thinking that the girls would say no, she had no choice but to approve or risk the trust of her daughter.

"Yes, I approve, Keima!" she conceded. "So if it turns out that they like you, you'll give them the same chance as Kanon and Tenri, right?"

"As long as they agree! But that's not going to happen, right? So how will we do this?"

"How about we ask them here?" Elsie suddenly proposed. "I can invite them to a sleepover here, and you can ask them one by one? How about this Saturday night?"

Mari began to think. There was a possibility that she was mistaken in her assessment that they were in love with her son. Maybe their blush last Sunday was because of something else? She needed to be sure that those girls were not lying just to get close to Kanon's brother. She needed to grill them to make sure their intentions towards her innocent son were pure.

"That would be a good idea," Mari agreed. "This Saturday night's good. And invite Kanon and Tenri too. I need to ask them if they're fine with this. But don't tell any of them the real purpose of the sleepover."

Mari still couldn't believe what she and her son were getting into as she said those words. Maybe none of those five girls actually like her son?

End of Flag XXIII

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

Tenri - Visit to Neighbor – 1 hour

Kanon – Night Event – 1 hour

Total:

Tenri – 2 hour, 45 minutes

Yui – 3 hours

Kanon – 3 hours

Chihiro – 1 hour

Review Replies

To xellos540,

Once more, thank you for your review!

Once again, this is originally a PM that I posted here for the information and enlightenment of other readers.

I wonder how much excuses Keima could come up regarding the Club room? As long as nobody asks Kodoma, I reckon he could make anyone believe whatever he says about it.

As for the sudden kiss, it's part of Keima's new way of maintaining affection points for already conquered heroines—the sudden and unexpected kiss out of nowhere! He already tried it on Yui and Kanon, so he knew Kanon wouldn't object to it! XD

Yep, that would be a problem. But just remember the phase, "no member of the schedule could be admitted to membership".

Yep, Kanon loves it. She knows it all pretend, so to her, it's like they're acting out a play. It's lots of fun either way.

You're right about the girls becoming more scheming. It's not like Keima was naturally scheming, lying, and such before he met Elsie, because there's no reason he would be so. Keima, to my knowledge, was relatively honest before he became involved in the entire business. He was developed those scheming skills because it was necessary to save his own neck. The same happens to the girls, I guess. Especially Yui, Aoba, and Haqua, who have their own goals that Keima may not necessarily approve of.

Well, the timeline, to me at least, where Haqua did cast the spell was when she saved Keima, Ayumi, and Chihiro from Vintage's agents in the forest when Haqua firsts return from New Hell. Haqua cast the spell to help protect Chihiro, because she needed to see what was attacking her. After all, she saw Ayumi kiss Keima on the ship during Ayumi's "wedding" and saw Mercury emerge.

Was it an excuse from the beginning? Not really. It was mainly, at first, as the final step in the girls' acceptance of Keima's mission for New Hell. It was one thing to say it was fine for Keima to romance another girl and kiss her to save them. It's another thing to actually see it. If they can see Keima do it and accept it, that would be the final seal to their pact, which would be very hard to break. Of course, now that there's a reason for them gather together and see the Weiss, it's a very convenient event to use for other purposes and other plot points. It's the "oops, I cast the spell on Aoba too" was created after seeing what can I do once I created the scenario.

Yep, "some" girls are becoming more "evil" as the flags go on. That's what Keima gets for saying that it's okay to lie and deceive if it's for their own good. What's to prevent the girls from concluding that it was also okay to lie and deceive Keima if it's for Keima's own good? I mean, what's good for the goose is good for the gander.

Yep! Yui would be the single most responsible person in making Aoba part of the schedule if she actually succeeds! As for Aoba, well, Aoba is starting to move out from under Keima, even if in her mind, she's always under him. For example, the club thing, admitting Asami and Minami, and of course, the Keima running for the School council presidency. The last one's very close to outright disobedience.

The difference between the two was that no one's manipulating or making Yui do something, while Aoba was being manipulated by Yui.

Yep! Kaori's in class 2-A.

Yeah. Remember, Tsukiyo didn't originally want to learn to play games, but just want to know how Keima talks. Thus, she wants to learn gaming lingo. It's just that Aoba decided the easiest way to teach Tsukiyo was to teach her to play games. Then Tsukiyo got enamored of games herself!

That means that Aoba's subconsciously thinks of herself as a heroine! I wonder who's the player if that's the case? xD

True, it's not beautiful for Tsukiyo to do that. But it was not intentional. She just wanted to test herself and to impress Aoba by the way she talks. It just so happens that Shiori was there, and she's the only one who couldn't understand!

It's not that Aoba didn't expect Tsukiyo to find out about it, it's that she never expected that Tsukiyo would offer to help her. Given that all the girls who are now pledged to support her plans was because Aoba directly asked them to, she could be forgiven for thinking that if she doesn't ask someone for help, they won't try join.

Who says Akko and Saitou didn't tease her xD? Minami just didn't dwell on it as they always teased her, that it would be something unremarkable for her. So yes, they did squeeze the truth from and they teased her lots and lots before as they helped her.

As for Aoba slowly starting to make decisions for Keima, well, that's inevitable once Keima basically made Aoba do most of the work on the club. Of course, the final say would always go to Keima, but like the Minami case, a lot of times, things would go where Keima simply had no choice but to ratify what Aoba did or risk (to his mind) alienating Aoba. It doesn't hurt that Keima trusts Aoba a lot, so he is predisposed to approve what she does. That's how Asami got admitted in the first place.

I'm sure Asami felt jealous inside upon seeing Minami hug Keima. So all Asami needs is a good reason to hug him! I bet she's kicking herself for not hugging Keima when she got admitted.

Yeah, Keima would be very surprised at the very large audience of the duet contest. But Aoba was already doing lots of things that Keima might not be happy about—like trying to make him President without his knowledge or consent! And this was part of making Keima President. As for Minami seeing the Weiss accidentally, we'll see.

Well, Minami got a lot of her info about Keima's popularity from Akko and Saitou, so yes. It would not be apparent when Kanon confessed for the first time, because, after all, the Senpai factor takes time to work.

Now that would be funny if indeed, all of middle school witnessed that. And it would crush Aoba's plans, since that meant that all of middle school should forget the duet. But no, the kissing would be relatively private. For example, I don't think Miyako would notice her audience if Keima could help it.

Yep. Haqua knows too well how good Keima could detect her lies. She remembers how he quickly figured out that she lost a loose soul on their first meeting. So the best thing is not to lie at all, by making sure that she's telling the truth.

As for who knows Haqua's feelings? Well, we have Diana, Aoba, and Yui. That's it.

Yes, the next big event would be the duet concert. You can tell I like to do scenes that have multiple effects on different plot points. Let's just say that the story would be very different after the duet.

Good idea about putting the plot summaries on the profile page with a big spoiler tag, as well as the naming conventions. Anyway, the posting of the plot summaries would be a one-time thing. I won't post it on every chapter, for example. In Flag XXIII, I'll post the 'Keima and schedule' summary, and on XXIV, I'll post 'Miyako Conquest' and 'Mari Involvement' summaries. After that, I won't post summaries anymore, except those that happened in the previous chapter.

Yes, I think I'll develop my profile page, and I'll put the summaries in there too, and naming conventions but it'll take time, since there's a lot of things I'd probably like to put in there, and I'm not really sure how to organize my profile page.

Anyway, thank you for your review and your beta, xellos540!

The Schedule Plot Summary

First Week

Sunday...

Keima, right after the Goddess Search arc, after spending five days doing nothing but playing games, learned a terrible secret. The Goddesses, unwittingly, caused the life of their hosts to be in danger for the next five years. For them to live, the Goddesses must be nourished by their love for Keima. It must grow or be maintained. If their love for Keima dies, they will die too. This would continue until all the Weiss on earth were gone.

Keima decided on a plan to save the lives of the girls.

The Goddess hosts and Chihiro arrive at Café Grandpa. There, Keima confessed everything about New Hell, Loose Souls, his mission, and the Goddesses. But he did not reveal the danger to their lives. That had to be kept secret to protect the girls and for his plan to work.

He told them that he is a gamer and that he doesn't love any of them. But he cared for them. Because of his mission to capture the Weiss, he cannot be with them for the next five years. So they should just give up on him or wait that long. And he promised he'll choose at the end, but recommended that they choose someone else instead.

The girls, who were all deeply in love with him, would have none of it. They would all wait. Keima also stated that they should not see each other to avoid being hurt when they see him conquer girls to save them. But Kanon wanted to spend time with him even as they waited for his choice. All the girls seconded Kanon, except Ayumi and Chihiro, who had reservations about it.

Keima "reluctantly" agreed to their demand to spend time with them while they wait for his choice. He wrote a schedule on how he would spend time with each girl, and the rules for the schedule. All the girls accepted it, glad to have time to spend with Keima. The general thrust of the rules was that Keima would guarantee that the girls have rights to at least three hours from Keima, but in exchange, they would leave him alone outside of their time except if they have a "valid reason." It suited all parties since the girls would have guaranteed Keima time, while Keima would have lots of free time for games, and the girls would leave him alone outside their time.

Monday...

Tenri is the first girl to spend time with Keima officially. The two walked fifteen minutes to school together. Tenri said that she knew she has no chance, but she'll be happy for the next five years. Keima admitted that he wouldn't choose her at the moment, but he could change his mind and eventually select her in the end. He looked her in the eye and told her she had a chance, and she believed him. He kissed her on the lips.

In the meantime, Yui tried to use the rules in her favor by inventing a valid reason—giving Keima notes from his absence in exchange for Keima checking her homework. Yui was determined to play by the rules to win Keima.

Chihiro got one hour during lunch. It was complicated for Chihiro. Unknown to everyone else, Keima loves Chihiro. But Chihiro was still hurt about her rejection, especially by how she was rejected. And to complicate matters, Haqua had earlier informed Keima that since she's not a Goddess host, for her to keep her memories, she must remain in the schedule.

Chihiro, when asked, told Keima that she wanted to keep her memories. So Keima had no choice. He explained his actions while lying a bit about his actual motivations, and Chihiro believed him. He said she deserved better than him and made a motion to leave her forever. But Chihiro intercepted him and kissed him, and said she would win him in five years, and that she would be in the schedule.

Elsie discovered that Miyako has a loose soul.

Chihiro told Ayumi she would be part of the schedule and fight for Keima. Not wanting to compete over a boy, she decided to withdraw from the schedule and support Chihiro instead. But Keima outfoxed her. During his first hour with her after school, she used Miyako's situation to rope Ayumi in and make Ayumi want to fight for him, kissing Ayumi in the process, and Ayumi kissing him later. Ayumi became part of the schedule.

After that, Keima went to Tenri's home, where he gave Tenri 45 minutes of official time. Tenri figured out that he still loves Chihiro, but Keima assures her that he can still change his mind and love someone else at the end of five years.

Tuesday…

Keima spent one hour with Ayumi for lunch. After school, he spent another hour with Chihiro on the playground. He showed off his acting abilities to both Ayumi and Chihiro.

In the evening, he went to the library to spend time with Shiori. The librarian first showed the manuscript of her novel, then ended up giving a tour of the library to Keima. They met Aoba Fuse in the process. There, Keima apologized and told her that she need not be part of the schedule, but Shiori was determined to win Keima. She would remain in the schedule, and he will choose her in the end. Keima said that she has a chance, and their story continues. They kissed.

He then met with Kanon, even if it was not her time, with the pretense that Kanon wanted to heal Keima after he was beaten up by bullies (it was actually Ayumi). The idol invited herself over to drink coffee at Café Grandpa, while still in her disguise. There, she saw Mari and sampled Keima's delightful coffee.

Wednesday…

Keima started the morning with a fifteen-minute walk with Tenri. Then at lunch, he spent one hour with Tsukiyo. The hour with Tsukiyo was stormy, as Tsukiyo accused him of cheating with Aoba Fuse, and Keima had to assure her that Aoba Fuse was merely his disciple, and besides, Aoba was not in love with him. Tsukiyo believed him. Keima then acted like he was not worthy of her, that she does not have to be in the schedule. After apologizing for all his faults, he said that it would be their last meeting.

Tsukiyo slapped Keima before rebuking him. She affirmed that she would be in the schedule. She would wait for five years. And they ended up kissing.

Keima introduced Ayumi and Chihiro to Aoba. Aoba managed to convince them that she's not in love with Keima. Keima then spent two hours jointly with Ayumi and Chihiro, with the two girls combining their time so they get two hours with Keima, even if they had to share. They went to Dezeni Sea and had "fun".

He ended Wednesday by spending another hour with Tenri at her home.

Thursday...

Keima first spent one hour with Tsukiyo in the Astronomy during lunch break. Tsukiyo gave Keima a bento lunch, then served him tea.

After school, Keima spent one hour with Shiori in the library. Keima was surprised when Shiori showed him a novelization of One Leaf, a game that starred his favorite heroine, Yokkyun. Keima was so happy that his favorite character and game got a novelization. He began to plot to acquire the book before he graduated. He decided the best way to get the book was to put someone friendly on the School Council Presidency.

For Shiori's second hour, they went to eat ramen in a store where they need not interact with people to order. He learned that Shiori wanted to be the Library Committee head but felt that she had no chance because of her shyness. After their date, he walked her back to school, where he kissed her before they separated.

After that, as Tsukiyo went to meet Keima for her last hour, she accidentally bumped into Shiori. They became best friends.

Tsukiyo and Keima met at the Maijima shrine. There, they gazed at the moon, discussed beautiful things like the moon and games, and danced. Keima closed the show by kissing Tsukiyo.

Friday...

The day started with the usual fifteen-minute walk of Keima with Tenri to school. Then during lunch, Keima spent one hour with Yui. There, Yui grabbed and held Keima, making him uncomfortable. She declared that she understood Keima's mission, that she was sad that the girls don't remember Keima saving them, that she would like to help him in his mission, and that she fell in love with him before she even regained her memories of her first conquest.

She had another two hours after school. She made him wear the Maijima High female uniform, on the excuse that she wanted to bring him home, and her parents forbade her to bring a boy to her house. She called "her" Keiko Katsura, and she brought him to her warehouse, where she kept the games and gaming equipment Keima bought when he swapped bodies with Yui. She let him play games and requested to witness his God of Conquest mode. Keima obliged. Afterward, she asked to be his disciple, but he told her that she must be good at games before she could qualify as his disciple.

In the meantime, the Yui, Tenri, and Tsukiyo got Aoba Fuse to teach them about games.

Saturday...

Keima met Kanon Saturday evening. Kanon first gave Keima PFPs to replace the one she destroyed when she tazed Keima the first time she met him. Keima said that they could not be together because of her idol career, and he was the Otamegane. Kanon tried to get Keima to drop the schedule and stick with her alone. Keima got angry at Kanon. He told her that if she continued to insist that she should have him by herself or if she refused to be part of the schedule, then they should part ways. Kanon, afraid of losing Keima forever, gave in and accepted the schedule. Keima kissed her to symbolize her forgiveness.

Afterward, they planned to get Kanon's manager Okada on board. They were able to trick Okada into agreeing to let Kanon make a speech about Keima being like her "brother" in exchange for Keima giving Kanon three hours of his time every week for the next five years while allowing Keima to have other girls to keep up the ruse.

Afterward, for Kanon's final hour, they went to a park, where, on a cold November night, while being protected by Elsie's bubble, they had a picnic. Then using Elsie's Magic, Kanon performed onstage while Keima pretended to be an enthusiastic fan. They closed the night by dancing, with Keima sealing it with a kiss.

(to be continued)