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 thank you to xellos540 for the beta!
Summary of the Last Chapter
The girls continue their sleepover fun. The girls vote on Aoba Fuse. How will the girls vote, and how will Keima and the others react to it?
ARC III – THE DISCIPLE
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.
Flag XXXIII
Aoba Fuse
Part 357 – Keima's Decision
Keima Katsuragi had made his decision. And once he did, he was at peace with himself, even if he knew he would hate himself for the rest of his life. Aoba was lucky—she would forget everything, so she would not get hurt.
He wished he could do it all over again. Maybe he could have come up with a better plan. Perhaps he would have made Aoba join the schedule like he did to Chihiro. He still could do it, but that would take time that he does not have. Plus, his disciple was an extraordinary girl, and she would immediately know what he was up to. Unless, of course, he picked up a scenario from a game that Aoba has not yet played. But right now, he was not completely familiar with the games she had or had not yet played. If he tried a scenario, and it happened that Aoba had played that game, she would be able to outwit him.
If only Aoba were willing, then it would be so simple.
But she was not.
Knowing the futility of asking, the only option was to skip the asking part. Go straight to the point—erase her memory and let all of it end.
He hated himself.
As Ayumi said, he was the worst!
He would call Haqua and tell her to do it.
Forgive me, Aoba.
But first, he needed a cup of coffee to steel himself.
It was like, and at the same time, different from when he dumped Chihiro during the Mai-High Festival.
Like before, he was going to hurt and betray an innocent girl for necessary reasons. It was different in that, before, he did not realize he was committing a monumental blunder until after the fact. Today, he was fully aware of what he was doing, and he was a bit shaken. He would drink alcohol if he were older, but right now, his coffee was the perfect drink.
He wished he could go and say goodbye to his disciple, but he could not bear to look at her while betraying her.
He stepped out of his room and went downstairs, heading to the kitchen. Luckily, he also kept his coffee ingredients in the kitchen, and not only in the café. It would be inconvenient for him to go inside a place with eight sleeping girls inside.
Once inside the kitchen, he headed to the cupboard and was about to open it.
"Keima?" a voice behind him called, and he turned.
It was Tenri Ayukawa.
…
His neighbor was in a rumpled state. Her nightwear was creased all over. There was a bit of saliva trail from the corner of her mouth. Her hair was standing and pointing in every direction. Her eyes were half-open. And her voice was tired and sleepy.
Keima smiled. Despite her disheveled look, if there's one thing that could make him happy, it was seeing his neighbor and childhood friend. According to the ideal, a childhood friend is the least likely heroine to win, yet if it were up to him, if the childhood friend were like Tenri, they would always win.
Looking at her, he was sure that Tenri was the second girl that he may fall in love with. That was why his smile was genuine.
Part 358 – Talk With Tenri
"What are you doing here at this hour?" asked the gamer.
"I needed to have a glass of water," she answered before she gave an adorable yawn.
"Oh, let me do it for you," he offered as he poured her a glass of cold water.
"Thank you, Keima," said Tenri before she opened her mouth and sucked oxygen once again, before taking a sip. "Sorry for disturbing you."
"No, I'm still awake."
"Oh. I guess you're excited to ask Miss Fuse to join the schedule," she mentioned before she gave another yawn. "You're looking forward to it, right?"
"Yes," he automatically said before he realized his mistake.
Tenri stopped her drink, and her eyes became wide. The way he said it, the tone, the look on his eyes. Almost no one else could detect it, but Tenri could. "You're not?"
Keima internally cursed. And why did I forget that she's my lie detector?
Despite being sleepy, she pressed on. "You do like her to be part of the schedule, right?"
"Yes, Tenri," he honestly answered. If he had answered that the last time she saw him, then the answer would have differed.
"So why don't you ask her?" she asked. "Are you scared that she'll say no?"
"I'm not afraid of that! I've confessed to more than a dozen girls!" he answered.
That didn't fool his childhood friend. "You are afraid."
Keima wanted to deny it, but thinking about it, what he was doing looked cowardly. Maybe he was. Perhaps he was running away. He did not care. He was doing the right thing.
"Would it matter? I already know what she'll say. I don't need to ask. Why waste my time on it?"
"Keima, are you giving up?"
"I've already lost. So I'm just limiting the damage. Everyone would be better off with her forgetting anyway. You and the others would have one less rival, and you don't have to pretend to be thrilled to welcome her. She would have her life back and would stop fawning over me. And I, I…. I would have one less girl to worry about."
"But you want her to be in the schedule, Keima," she uttered. There was a part of her that agreed, but she put it away. She valued the friendship of the blue-haired girl too much by that point.
"Yes, but what I want does not matter in the slightest! She will lose her memories because she will refuse when I offer her membership in our little club. I had a plan that I thought would save her memories, but guess what happened? It failed because I was stupid! Now I will lose her, and I can't do anything! Do you think I can look at her face when she says no and then lose her memories? When I'm responsible for her losing everything? I can't! I just can't. I want to get this over with as soon as possible with the least amount of pain to everyone involved. I'll ask Haqua to take it away."
Suddenly, Keima felt a stinging slap on his cheek, and with such force that he fell to the floor. He held his aching left cheek, surprised that the timid girl in front of him did it. He gazed at Tenri, but the girl had fierce pink eyes and a halo.
"Diana, what are you—"
Part 359 – Goddess Scolding
"Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!" the Goddess shouted as she bent down and grabbed him by his shirt. "Listen to me, Katsuragi! You just said a lot of things, and you're only right about one thing. Want to know what it is?"
Keima just stared at the angry Goddess.
"When you said, 'I was stupid', that's the only thing I agreed with! Keima Katsuragi, for someone who I consider a brilliant boy, you can act so dumb! For someone who claims to know how real girls work and has the girls to prove it, you could be so ignorant it hurts! I love you, Katsuragi, but looking at your pathetic actions, I wonder what happened! Because you are not acting like yourself."
"Diana, I don't know what—"
"Shut up, boy!" Diana continued as she shook him to emphasize her point.
"Before you do anything stupid, consider this. You lie and manipulate us like marionettes, and we tolerate it because we know that you do it for our own good and because you often know things that we don't know and that you can't talk to us about. And we have no problem with it if we know you have no alternative. And often, you don't. But now? You won't even try to ask that Fuse girl, and you'd tell Haqua to erase her memories just because you think she'll say no, and it will hurt you?"
The intensity of those pink eyes shook Keima. Unlike before, the tsundere Goddess was really angry.
"But do you consider how much it would hurt us? It was such a struggle to consider voting for Fuse. Do you know how much effort it took to welcome that girl into our little group when I'd rather not? And not only me! All your girls did not want to include her at first—do you think that they were falling all over themselves to do so after they saw her kiss you during the piano duet? No! But they did so in the end! Why? Because they care about you, they love you, and they want you to be happy! And that includes Tenri. They know how much you would want Fuse to be part of the group!"
"What's your point?" Keima finally asked.
"My point is, telling Haqua without even asking Fuse is telling the other girls that their efforts mean nothing to you. That you do not think much of their hard work and what they are willing to do for you. You are throwing their struggles back in their faces!" she scolded. "And not only them but the Goddesses too! It was excruciating for us to agree that Fuse should join the schedule, but we did it for our hosts! But you don't care about us, right?"
Keima had nothing to say to that as his eyes widened at her admonishment. Diana was right. He never considered how hard it was for the girls to vote for Aoba.
"We want you to be happy, Katsuragi! We are doing this for you. So don't throw your happiness away without even trying," the Goddess pleaded. "Because if you do what you're planning to do, then I would never forgive you."
Part 360 – Saving Keima From Himself
Then Diana gave control back to Tenri. The timid girl found herself straddling a prone Keima with her hands on his shirt. She shrieked as she stood up.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't know Diana would do that," she apologized as she stood up, thoroughly embarrassed by her position.
"It's fine," Keima said as he too stood up.
"So Keima, what happened? You said you wanted her to join, but why won't you ask? If you're sure that she will say no, why organize the vote at all?" asked a curious Tenri.
The gamer debated whether to tell his neighbor what had happened. In the end, after swearing Tenri and Diana to the strictest secrecy, he told everything.
…
"You really are stupid," Diana muttered through a small hand mirror on the table. There was no anger, but only disappointment in those pink eyes.
"You don't have to tell me," Keima admitted.
"I knew it!" Tenri exclaimed as she gave a small smile.
"Knew what?" asked the bewildered gamer.
"That you really wanted her in the schedule," the neighbor girl said confidently, "from the very beginning."
"I only decided I wanted her to join a while ago," he objected.
Tenri smiled. "You only admitted that you want her in today, but ever since the piano duet, you wanted her in, at first, to save her, then because you wanted to give her a chance."
Keima wanted to object, but could not. He searched his feelings, and Tenri was right.
"You couldn't say that you wanted her in because you're concerned about how the rest of us would react," she continued.
Keima opened his mouth, but no sound came out.
Tenri was right. It seemed that she knew him better than he did himself.
"Guess I messed it all up. I tried to make you and the Goddesses responsible for it, but in the end, it's my responsibility. Now you know why I don't need to ask her. She already told me that she wouldn't join the schedule."
"Are you sure, Keima?"
"Yes. If there were a chance that she would join, I would have done something different, but look at me now. I have no idea what to do, and I have no time left," he said in a tone so defeated that even Diana was moved to pity.
"Then there's no harm in asking, is there?" Tenri asked.
"Even if you know she'll refuse, you still want me to ask her?"
"I don't know that she'll say no for sure. Maybe you misheard her. Maybe she misspoke or didn't mean it. Maybe she changed her mind. Maybe she's lying."
"You don't know Aoba as I do."
"I don't, but I know you very well, Keima. And she's like you," the neighbor pointed. "Anyway, could you do me a favor?"
"A favor?"
"Please ask Miss Fuse to join, as a special favor for me, pretty please?" she pleaded, looking at Keima with earnest eyes.
And that cinched his decision.
"Fine. As a personal favor to you, I'll ask her," he sighed. "But you'll owe me when she says no."
Tenri's eyes brightened. "Thank you, thank you. I won't forget this."
"I won't either."
"And Keima?"
"Yes?"
"When Miss Fuse gets in the schedule, will I still have a chance in five years?"
He looked at her, and there was apprehensiveness in her dark eyes. Was she still so insecure about Chihiro? Why did she have to figure that out?
"Yes. I love Chihiro. You know that, but that doesn't mean that I can't love someone else more at the end of five years," he admitted. "I will be fair. I won't decide until the very last moment. And I promise you that you have a chance. All your efforts today are not for nothing. I appreciate everything you did for me. Especially tonight."
Tenri nodded. "Thank you. And I know it's not my schedule right now, so I'm sorry."
"It's fine. You didn't know I was here," he said.
"Not for that," Tenri said, "but for this."
She walked towards him, wrapped her arms around his neck, tiptoed as she also pulled his head down, and pressed her lips to his.
To say that Keima was surprised was an understatement.
"You do know that you just violated a rule of the schedule," he mumbled after the kiss was over.
"I know. I'm so sorry. It won't happen again," she said. "But, I am the first girl to kiss you outside the schedule since the Schedule got formed, right?"
"Yes. But don't tell anybody what you did, or the other girls might get ideas," he said. "That goes for Diana too."
The timid girl agreed. "I won't."
"Be thankful that I won't either," Diana answered through the mirror. "I don't think you'd want to face Eldest Sister Vulcan if she finds out what you were about to do. She doesn't like being made a fool of."
Part 361 – Keima and Aoba Preliminaries
…
Several minutes later...
Keima wondered about the best way to wake the girl gamer when he noticed a faint light seeping through the edges of the game library's door. Funny, he remembered putting out all the lights.
Slowly, he opened the door and noticed that Aoba was awake, sitting on a chair, playing games
"I thought you were asleep," he exclaimed.
"Divine One, looking at all the games here, it would be a crime if I wasted time sleeping when I could be playing," she answered. "I could sleep at home. I've played all the games there, at least."
"That's right! I agree with you a hundred percent!" Keima concurred. Perhaps this was why he wanted her in the schedule—she naturally loves the same thing he does, unlike the other girls. If they say they love gaming or love playing games, he knew it was to win his heart—not so for Aoba. She loves gaming for itself, and nothing more. And he admired her because of that.
"I love games so much," he whispered as he stared at the disciple.
"I love games too! It's my life! Nothing can compare to the joy of making choices and making your heroine or hero have the ideal ending!" Aoba concurred.
"And it's a curse having this real body that needs real things like food and sleep!"
"Yes! The ideal is the best! Unfortunately, the upkeep of the real is needed to enjoy the ideal! If I could nourish myself with game food or only sleep inside the game—" she began. Even if she did not go to the extremes that her Master does playing games, she still concurred with the spirit of his assertions about real food.
"That would be paradise," he finished. "We both are kindred spirits! We know the truth, we know the right way, we both are of the ideal!"
"Yes, yes, yes! Games are the ultimate source of truth! Whenever there are things in life that I'm not sure of, the true answers are always in the games," the girl genius added. "I don't need the real! The ideal, by its very nature, trumps the real."
"You speak the truth, my disciple in the ideal," he agreed wholeheartedly. He could tell by her tone and her eyes that she meant every word. She really was perfect.
If only…
"So why are you telling me this when you could be playing games?" Aoba finally asked as she reached the 'GOOD END' screen on her PFP. She had no idea why he was suddenly preaching to the choir, but she did not mind. It tickled her that Keima would willingly tell her his ideals, even if it was the umpteenth time that she had heard those wonderful words.
"The real keeps interfering with my life," he growled.
"Tell me about it! I wish the real would just bend over and let the ideal take over," she sighed wistfully.
Part 362 – The Question
"Yes. You understand the truth so well, Aoba. It makes me wish that you can be part of the schedule," he said in a carefree manner as if it was just a slip of a tongue.
"It makes me wish you could ask me," she sighed, her tone matching her master's.
And that made him wince. What kind of answer is that? Is she telling me that I can't ask her because she will reject it immediately?
He decided to hedge. "Will you accept if I ask?"
She gave a brief laugh before saying, "only if you and the rest of the girls beg me to, then I may consider it."
"So, if that happens, you'll join?" Keima followed up. "What happened with 'I will not beg for you or the other girls to let me join the schedule'?"
"That's different! I will never debase myself by begging like a dog to join the schedule! But if you, and the rest of the other girls too, beg me instead, I may join. After all, you are my master, and they are your girls. I may do so just as a favor to you and them," she haughtily proclaimed as she finished a game.
Keima wanted to laugh. But he was running out of time. He looked at his watch. The two hours were nearly up.
He suddenly genuflected and took her hand, and she suddenly blushed.
"Aoba Fuse. I beg you, please join the schedule!" he suddenly pleaded in his most sincere voice.
"That's really funny! Who are you planning on conquering next?" she asked. "Did you come here just to practice your conquering skills on a real girl?"
"I'm serious! I want you to join the schedule."
Aoba laughed. "If I didn't know that the other girls would never vote for me, I would have fallen for it! Divine One, you're a great actor!"
And Keima was getting desperate. Of all the times that his disciple would think that he was acting!
"They did vote for you!" he blurted out.
"Now, you don't have to lie to me," Aoba chided. "Tell me the girl you're targeting, and maybe I can advise you if your tactics are working."
Keima was getting aggravated. "Fine. Maybe I am lying. Anyway, just answer me honestly. Hypothetically speaking, suppose the girls did vote for you, and suppose I also want you to join, and in both cases, you don't have to beg for anyone to let you in the schedule, what will your reply be."
"If that's the case, then my reply would be yes. I would love to join the schedule," she answered.
And Keima wanted to smile as happiness engulfed him. Aoba wanted to join! If only that girl gamer believed him. She was too smart for her own good.
"Why? Who's the girl you want to join?" the girl gamer asked.
"You."
"Very funny, Divine One."
"I'm serious."
"Really? I know you don't like the schedule, and you consider it a burden, right? Don't lie, Master."
"Aoba—"
"And growing the schedule would add more problems to you and less gaming time. So even if the other girls agree, you wouldn't," she continued.
Keima grabbed her by the shoulders.
"I am not joking. Please join the schedule."
Part 363 – Aoba's Answer
And anger filled Aoba's eyes. "Don't you dare say that! Are you making me hope, Master? I know that you and the girls won't ever agree with me being part of the schedule! And why should they? I lied to them! I told them I don't love you, that I am no threat! And they befriended me because of that lie! And how did I repay them? I confessed to you in front of them and kissed you too!
"I already made my peace. Why give me false hope? Don't—I don't think I would be able to bear the disappointment if I let myself believe in that fantasy again. I want to be part of the schedule, Master, but you and I know I can't be!"
"Listen, you are wrong. You can! The other girls and I already agreed. Please."
"I don't think—" she tried to protest.
Aoba was cut off when his lips pressed against hers. Her eyes widened at the sudden action, then she slowly closed her eyes as feelings buried deep within her came forth.
When their lips parted, he looked at her and said, "that's the proof that I'm telling you the truth."
Even if Aoba knew that same line was used by countless players in countless games, even if she knew Keima was probably lying, she couldn't help but believe him. This time, her skepticism crumbled. He might be lying, but she desperately wanted it to be true. And even if he was, she had faith that the God of Conquests had some grand plan that would redound to her benefit in the long run.
"Can you ask again, Master?" she asked softly, her face red as she stared at his brown eyes behind his spectacles.
"Aoba Fuse, the Seven Girls, just a few hours ago, conducted a vote. They all voted, all seven of them, to admit you as a girl of the schedule. And that is my sincere wish too, Aoba. I wish you to be part of my life in the next five years, not only as my dear disciple but as someone who would be a candidate for my heart. I want you to be there when I make my final choice. I cannot promise you that you will be chosen, but I promise that I'm giving you the chance to make me choose you. Will you?"
"Do you love me, Divine One?"
"No. But I am not sure that I cannot love you after five years," he answered.
As Keima spoke, tears began to drip from her eyes. And when he finished, she broke down and grabbed him, and sobbed into his chest. He comforted her as best he could, stroking her hair and holding her against him.
"I'm so happy, Divine One! I thought it was just a naïve dream, but it finally came true! I don't know why you decided to give it to me, but I don't care! I accept! I will be the eight girl of the schedule," Aoba said. "I can remain your disciple as long as I want to, right? Even if you don't choose me in the end?"
"You will always be my disciple. At least until you become my equal in the ideal," he said.
"I don't know if I can ever reach you, but I'll try even if it's impossible!" she exclaimed.
He nodded as he internally sighed of relief. This was the biggest surprise of all. He never expected Aoba Fuse, of all people, to agree. Granted, she was in love with him, but still… He wanted to laugh. He had misinterpreted her words so badly.
Part 364 – Loose Threads
"Still, forgive me for this, but this is required. I asked this of all the other girls," he started.
"Ask away."
"First, you do know that if you're part of the schedule, you have to share me with seven other girls. Are you okay with that? If you can't share me, then you can't join."
"I am aware of that, and I am willing to share you, Master," she said.
"So you're okay with me cheating on you, even if you can't cheat on me?" he asked.
"It isn't cheating as long as I approve of it, and I'm aware of it."
"Second, I am still in the business of hunting loose souls. You know what that means."
"Yes. You will romance possessed girls and kiss them to catch the inhabitants of Old Hell called Weiss. Yes, I understand. You will die if you don't do it. But please, let me help if I can," she asked.
"Fine."
"Is that all, Master?"
"Finally, this is something new, but you need to do it nonetheless. You need to ask my mother to join Kanon and Tenri for the next five years. And you need to tell her that I still don't know about your feelings for me when doing so," he said. "I'm not sure if Mom will approve of you, but I can give you some tips if you want."
Aoba nodded.
"So all that's left is to inform the others of your acceptance, and we can officially—"
"Divine One, you can't do that!" Aoba exclaimed.
"Why not?"
"As far as the others are concerned, I'm not here," she informed. "I don't know why they approved of me, so I don't want another black mark against me." To prove her point, she opened the email section of her PFP and showed several messages from Yui, Chihiro, and Elsie.
All had basically the same contents—Miss Fuse/Fuse/Aoba, please come to the Katsuragi's home/Café Grandpa/Keima's house as soon as you wake up. Keima/Divine Brother/The Dweeb has something to tell you.
Keima wanted to smack himself for forgetting about that. And then the wheels of his brain began to turn, and a small smirk formed.
"Don't worry," Keima assured. "You can act, right? Now listen."
…
"I hope this works. I'm counting on you, Aoba!" Keima explained. "And like you, I'm really not sure why the girls voted for you, so it's best if they don't know that you're here the entire time, or they might change their minds."
"Understood."
Part 365 – Chihiro's Vote?
"And one last thing. I hope you don't mind, but Chihiro would bring something up after you've been accepted," he warned.
The girl genius raised an eyebrow. "Something?"
"Yes. She wanted to hold a vote that would ban disciple activities between the schedule members and me if it's not her schedule. Theoretically, it applies to all the girls—"
"But in reality, it's aimed at me. They think that being a disciple outside of my time is an unfair advantage."
"Is it?"
"I promise that disciple activities outside the schedule would strictly be about the ideal. I would not use my time as a disciple to make you do things that the others can only do during their time, or directly do anything that would win you over."
"That's reasonable. If you can explain that to them, maybe I can think of something to scuttle Chihiro's plan," he answered. He wanted to slap himself. The reason he didn't plan for it was that he thought it was redundant. Now that Aoba was becoming part of the schedule… "We need at least six votes in our favor, a majority—"
"I thought unanimous votes were required?" she wondered.
"Yeah, but we temporarily amended that rule to a majority. Chihiro thinks that she couldn't get a unanimous vote with it.'
"You'll vote against it?"
"I'll vote with the majority. Maybe she thinks that I may influence Elsie to vote against her," Keima shrugged. "Anyway, I have to influence that vote without looking like I was behind it."
"You don't need to. I'll vote for her proposal," the disciple offered.
That floored Keima. "Huh? What?"
"I have committed a grave sin by lying to them. They were angry at me. I'm not sure why they changed their minds, but whatever it was, I know it was not easy. I want to make it up to them."
"Are you sure? Because I'm not sure we would have enough time both for disciple activities and the things we do during your scheduled time. Three hours per week is so little, if you think about it," Keima said.
"I know. But we have no choice. As a newcomer, I must abide by what the majority decides. You don't have to plan anything."
And Keima was flummoxed. "Are you sure?"
"Yes. I wouldn't want to be hated by my new colleagues, would I?" Aoba said. "And you're going to vote last, right?"
"As the Presiding Officer, yes," he answered.
"Then vote with Chihiro, but don't tell anyone beforehand," the girl urged.
"Why would I vote for that? Who does she think she is? She's trying to dictate how we conduct ourselves as Master and Disciple. This has nothing to do with being part of the schedule."
"When I'm part of it, our relationship as Master and Disciple, even if we both know it is only about perfecting the ideal, would be intertwined with the schedule. There's no escaping it," she explained. "So vote with her. That way, no matter what the result, nobody will accuse you of being biased for me. Remember, Master, that you can't favor me over the other girls during the five years. Unless you want a civil war on your hands."
Keima swore she was planning something, but dismissed it. He had no idea what she could possibly do. And besides, Aoba was right. He had to be even-handed. And that meant voting for Chihiro's motion, however opposed he might be to it.
"Are you up to something?" he asked, hoping that she would divulge it if it were the case.
"No, I'm not," she said as she stared at him. "I won't do anything, I promise."
Part 366 – Saving Aoba's Memories
He looked at his watch. It was precisely two hours since Haqua's warning. "I need to talk to Haqua. Wait here!"
"Are you coming back?" she said as she loaded another game to her PFP.
"Yes. Don't worry. I won't be out too long."
…
"Haqua!" he called.
And the valedictorian appeared, still in Mrs. Katsuragi's nightgown.
"You watched everything, right?"
"I did. You kissed a girl outside of the schedule, you naughty boy!" she accused.
"It was necessary to get her in," he said, brushing off the accusation. "You heard her. She accepted. She's as good as in."
"I heard everything. Even if technically, she'll only be in once the other girls know about it, I'll let this slide. She can keep her memories. But only as long as she remains in the schedule. Once she opts out of this, she'll lose everything."
"So basically, she's stuck with me for the next five years?"
"Pretty much. The good news is, neither Aoba nor Chihiro would lose their memories if you chose neither of them at the end," the valedictorian informed.
"Good. Thanks, Haqua," said Keima. "I have another thing to ask of you."
"Does this still have something to do with Fuse?"
"Yes. It's not over yet."
The purpled-haired devil sighed. "Fine. Out with it!"
Keima smirked. "Thanks. First up, you should remove the spell on my mother. Wake her up at this time…"
…
"What was that about?" asked Aoba when he returned to the game library.
"Hell business. It's classified."
"I guess they spotted another girl with a Weiss?"
"I can't tell."
Aoba nodded. Her attention was on her game.
"I don't think I can go back to sleep," Keima said. "And I still have not cleared my backlog. Sleep is overrated anyway. I can doze off in the afternoon."
"Agreed. Are you going to play on your throne once more?"
"Negative. I'd lose too much energy if I do that, and I need to be there when you meet the rest of the gang."
"How about if I feed you while you're in the mode?"
"No. That would mean less game time for you. I'll just play my PFP."
"Are you going to play in your room?"
"Perhaps. Where would you like me to play?"
"Here," she answered without hesitation. "In your room, you might be tempted to go to bed and oversleep. Here, we can keep each other awake."
"Good point," he agreed.
"And I have another idea to make sure we both won't fall asleep," she suggested.
"And what's that?"
"We can do what Aya and Haruka did in Country Town Love part 6 in route 14 when they needed to stay awake!"
Keima smiled. "You know that that's a flag, and it's not your schedule!"
"The rules do not bind me until the others formally accept me," she pointed out. "Oh, since I don't have to follow it yet, guess I can do this."
"Do what?" asked a curious Keima.
"This," Aoba said as she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him in the lips. That was the third kiss they shared since she became his disciple and fourth overall. And it felt so good that Aoba did not want to let go.
Eventually, the need to breathe meant she broke off, and she blushed a bit.
"What was that about?" he asked, even though he already knew the answer.
"I know that when I'm in, I can't kiss you outside of my time. But now, I still can."
"Just as long as the others don't find out about this. Otherwise, they might change their minds," he sighed. That was the benefit of the schedule. It serves to discipline the actions of the girls. For example, he tried to imagine what Yui would be up to were it not for the schedule, and he shuddered.
"Should we reenact route 14 of Country Town Love?" asked Aoba.
And even if Keima knew it was a flag, he could not resist. Country Town Love Part 6 was one of his favorites. He even proclaimed such on his website. And he absolutely loved that specific scene in Route 14.
He sat down on the chair and sat straight. Then Aoba sat on his lap and leaned back and rested on him. Then she proceeded to play her PFP. Keima then put his arms around the small girl and played his game on his PFP.
"This is one of my favorite scenes in the games I played," admitted Aoba. "I have wanted to reenact this scene so badly since the first time I played it."
"Me too," Keima admitted. Despite the title, Country Town Love Part 6 was actually a story between two gamers. One of the scenes that captivated him in Route 14 was when Aya sat in Haruka's lap while both played games. He wished he could try that scene in the real world, but to properly set it up, the girl, like the 2D Aya, needs to love gaming as much as the boy, Haruka. So none of the other girls of the schedule could qualify. Second, the girl must initiate the encounter as a way for both to play games while there's only one chair in a room.
As he played his game, he again recalled Country Town Love, and he was happy that the scene, in reality, was as exciting and relaxing as he imagined that scene in the game.
Damn Aoba. He wondered if the girl gamer knew all his favorite games and scenes? He remembered that he posted his favorites on the website. No wonder Aoba knew what buttons to push. No matter. He was thrilled that the blue-haired girl also liked the same scene.
…
Part 367 – Informing Mari
It was already three-thirty in the morning. Keima was too excited and full of energy that he could not sleep. He looked at Aoba, and she was still concentrating on the game, not saying anything to disturb him. Just like Aya in the game. And despite having her on him for so long, his attention was also focused on saving the 2D heroine on his PFP, just like Haruka did.
On any other day, he would have scolded Aoba for doing such things outside the schedule. But he also recognized that their activity was also related to gaming, and thus could also be plausibly allowed under the Master Disciple arrangement.
I guess Chihiro was right to prohibit disciple activities outside her time. Not that it justifies her interference…
…
Mari Katsuragi's eyes suddenly opened. She yawned a bit and reached for her husband, only to find empty space beside her.
Oh, Keiichi, I wish you stayed home more often. I miss you. And after the harem shenanigans of her son, she was more forgiving of her husband's infidelity. After all, Keima has seven girls at the same time. Her husband only had two—herself and Elsie's mother—and that was a long time ago. At present, she had him for herself. Maybe her husband had gotten into a situation like Keima, and it really was not Keiichi's fault?
She felt the call of nature, and so she got up and went to the bathroom. On her way back, she ran into Aoba.
"Miss Fuse?" she greeted as she yawned. She assumed that the girl gamer was headed towards the bathroom.
"Hello, Mrs. Katsuragi," she greeted.
Mari smiled as she waved her off and continued to her room.
"I wish to have the same deal as the seven other girls," she said. "May I?"
And Mari halted and turned around. Did she hear right?
"You're changing your mind, then?"
"Yes. I feel that I have a chance at joining, and I would be a fool if I let go of this chance."
"So, what made you change your mind?"
"Mrs. Katsuragi, I told your son, and I guess he told Fuse that the other girls wouldn't mind having her around as his eight girl," Haqua, who appeared, said. "Um, I need to go to the bathroom."
"How did you know that, Haqua?" asked Mari. "And how did you know about this entire thing?"
"The girls gossip a lot," Haqua informed.
"And you told my son what they were gossiping? Shame on you, Haqua!" Mari rebuked. "Anyway, what did Keima say?"
"I wouldn't mind Aoba joining," Keima suddenly said, appearing from the room.
"Shouldn't you be in bed, Keima?"
"The ideal does not wait for me to wake up!" he declared, and Mari just rolled her eyes.
"So let me get this straight. Miss Fuse, you are willing to join seven other girls. You do know that you would share my son, and that he can't give you all his time, right? In fact, he would only be giving you three hours per week."
"I am fine with that, Ma'am," the blue-haired girl answered.
"As long as the seven other girls agree, then I have no objection," said Mari, delighted that Aoba was also a part of it. I'm glad my talk with her had an effect.
"So, you're planning on asking the girls in the morning?"
"About that, Ma'am. They're not supposed to know that I'm here, or they might get angry with me."
"Oh yes, that is a problem," Mari agreed.
"Maybe we can fix that," Keima suggested. "Haqua, are you sure that they are okay with Aoba joining?"
"Yes, I'm very sure of it," the valedictorian said. "Just don't tell them I told you."
"Don't worry, I won't," Keima said. "Now here's what we can do, if it's alright with you, Mom…"
…
Part 368 – Morning Shenanigans
Yui Goido opened her eyes and yawned. It was about seven in the morning. She wondered why her bed wasn't as soft as she remembered and why the ceiling looked unusual. Then sat and looked around. The other girls were still sleeping.
"Oh, yeah. Sleepover," she mumbled as she wiped the saliva trailing on her mouth and reached for her phone.
She checked her messages, and her eyes widened.
Received your message. I am coming to the Divine One's house at 9 a.m.
She nearly shouted before realizing that the others were still asleep. She checked to see if someone was already awake.
Tenri was not in her bedroll.
Yui went to the kitchen when she heard something, and sure enough, Tenri was helping herself to a glass of water. She too was still in her pajamas.
"Morning, Miss Goido."
"Morning, Ayukawa. Is Darling awake?"
"Maybe. I'm not sure."
"Well, I need to tell him something," the crossdresser exclaimed.
"Don't wake him up if he's still asleep," Tenri warned.
"Don't worry, I won't," Yui said as she ran upstairs.
She silently walked up to just outside of Keima's room. She turned the doorknob. It wasn't locked.
She opened it, and there he was, sitting on his bed, still wearing his school uniform. He had enormous eye bags, and his bed had no signs that it had been slept in. He looked terrible.
"You didn't sleep?"
"I didn't invite you in," Keima said as he played his game, not even glancing at the girl who invaded his domain.
"Darling, I have a message from Fuse! She's coming!" Yui announced as she shoved her phone in front of Keima.
Luckily, he anticipated Yui, so he was able to save his game.
"Yeah, I sent a message to her and told her to come here when we're ready."
"Huh?"
He showed her his email to his disciple.
Aoba, come here later. I will send you a message when it's time. Keep your day open.
"The distance between her house and mine is about ten minutes if she walks, give or take. If she walks while playing a game, that will increase the walk time to fifteen minutes. So when it's time, I'll send a message."
"But she says she'll come at nine!"
"Not anymore," he said as he put his PFP away.
Sure enough, Yui received a new message.
I'm not sure if I can come at nine. It depends on the Divine One.
"So could you do me a favor?" he asked.
"Anything, my darling."
"I want you to wake the rest of the girls. Send me a message when you're all ready," he instructed.
"Of course, Keima!" she exclaimed and eagerly ran downstairs.
…
On the way to the Café, she glanced at a mirror on the wall and nearly gagged.
"Do I look like that?" Yui exclaimed as she stared at herself. "Did I show myself to darling looking like a wet chicken?"
She just woke up, and it showed. Her hair was a mess, going in every direction, even standing up. Her eyes still had sleep dust, there were saliva trails on her chin, and her pajama's top button was undone. Even if she was acting like a boy, she's still a girl, and she still wanted to present the best image of herself to the boy she loved.
"Why are you so down?" Mars asked as the Goddess appeared in the mirror.
"Keima saw me looking like this. This is horrible! Keima will never marry me if I look like a wet chicken!"
"You're exaggerating," Mars chided. "Remember, your beloved doesn't, as he puts it, care about the physical parameters of his heroines. And you have a job to do. If you do this right, he'll forget about how you look."
"Right," said Yui, cheered by the helpful advice of the War Goddess.
Yui went to the café. Tenri had already washed her face, fixed her hair, and had just changed to her normal clothes. She was packing her things.
"Yui? What did Keima say?"
"He'll call Fuse when we're all ready," Yui said in a whisper as she went to her bag and got her supplies. She hurried out of the café and went to the bathroom.
Twenty minutes later…
The crossdresser was proud of herself. She looked in the mirror, and her appearance was her usual handsome self. She had washed her face, brushed her teeth, done her hair, and dressed for the day. She looked every bit like the son of a rich man that she wanted to project herself as, oozing charm and class, at least in her mind.
…
Yui went to the café and saw that Kanon was just waking up.
"Morning, Kanon!" she greeted.
The Idol gave a big yawn before saying groggily, "Morning to you too."
"Fuse is coming, so Keima asked that we all wake up," Yui said as she and Tenri began to wake all of the other girls up.
…
"What is it?" Chihiro asked, yawning. "It's too early. It's Sunday, and I want to sleep in."
Yui looked at the seven girls still sitting or lying on their sleeping bags, all looking as terrible as the heiress did when she woke up.
That gave her an idea.
"Fuse is coming, and since you're awake, you're ready," she said as she rapidly sent a text message, with the rest of the girls none-the-wiser.
"Oh, that? I guess that's fine," said Ayumi, still not fully awake as she stretched her arms.
A minute later, the door to the café room opened, and there was Keima.
"I'm glad you're all awake," said the gamer, staring at the sight of seven girls (including Elsie and Haqua) in their pajamas, newly awakened, and two girls—Yui and Tenri—looking bright and presentable.
Shiori suddenly shrieked and hid herself under her blanket.
The other girls then realized how they looked and got embarrassed.
Chihiro threw her pillow at Keima. "Get out! We're not ready!" she said as Ayumi and Kanon jumped and dragged Keima out of the café before slamming the door shut. "We'll call you."
Keima was bewildered by the turn of events. His PFP received an email. It was from Elsie.
I'm sorry, Divine Brother. But you know how girls are. We'll tell you when we're ready. Please go back to your room.
P.S. I'm excited Aoba's coming!
"I hate the real!" Keima muttered as he went back to his room. "I already saw them in their nighties during the Goddess search. What's the big deal? Oh right. They were asleep and didn't know about it."
…
Yui wanted to chuckle to herself as she watched the other girls scramble to be presentable. Mission accomplished. At least she wasn't the only one who embarrassed themselves before Darling that morning.
…
End of Flag XXXIII
Review Replies
To xellos540, thank you.
I've sent this via PM and I'm reposting it here for the enlightenment of the other readers.
Yeah. I'm dying to write Mari interrogating Haqua. But sadly, it will probably come far in the future when Haqua tries to join the schedule.
I don't think anyone could accuse Yui of being consistent.
My take on Yui was that despite dressing in boys' clothes and acting like a boy, she still retained lots of what her parents taught her in her first seventeen years. She became extroverted, expressive, lively, but she hasn't repudiated everything that she learned. And part of what she learned was the purpose of getting married.
Now Yui is a girl from a wealthy family. It is likely that in the ordinary course of events, she would have an arranged marriage to another wealthy family that would serve the interests of both families. (in Japan, arranged marriages are still a thing. Though not as common as it once was, but it still happens. It's called Miai.) So she would be conditioned to think of her family in her choice of marriage partners, and not just marry someone just because she loves him if he won't bring anything or would be detrimental to her family. Seventeen years of training aren't easily undone in a couple of weeks or months. And Yui agrees with it, but with the modification that she must love the guy she'll marry. That's why she wants Keima to be wealthy and respectable because it ties with what Yui considers an ideal marriage. There should be love, true, but also familial approval and benefits. Maybe she'll change her mind in the future, but right now, she still in the paradigm that her parents imposed on her.
So yeah, generally, it's not as business-like as she implies. But her frame of reference is her class and family, and for them, it's very businesslike. So she tries to do wife husbandry by tailoring Keima to her needs, as you said. Whether or not she'll succeed is another matter entirely.
Oh, in Japan, marriage between first cousins is allowed. So it's not incest. And not only in Japan, but in many places in the West too.
Yes, despite being quiet, Shiori could be fiercely possessive of Keima, just like the others. So Tenri was surprised!
I assumed that Yui also played games at home. I used Monopoly because I can imagine the Goidos using that game to get Yui to be interested in learning about business and how to manage it when she grows up. So she got good at it.
Yes. Remember that time when Kanon did not reply when Chihiro asked about how they'll vote? They all suspected that Kanon still isn't convinced. And by this time, they were too committed, for various reasons, for Aoba to join. And Ayumi is being smart, but she also knows how ruthless Keima can be. She saw Keima just casually dump Chihiro and started flirting with her right after. And now she understood that it was to save the world. She's telling the truth to scare Kanon into voting for Aoba. About Chihiro being understanding, I agree. She has grown too, and come to understand that her feelings were sacrificed to save the world.
Let's just say that Tenri really doesn't want Aoba to lose her memories. And she wants Keima to be happy, and if Keima chooses Aoba, so be it. Not that Tenri would give up before that happens.
It's a formal meeting of all members of the schedule. It's an informal club with rules and members.
And since it's a formal meeting, and Keima presiding, it's only right for Haqua to address him with sir, as she's acting as the secretary, at least for that meeting.
Yes, Fuse is not there. And Keima deliberately planned it that way because he thinks Aoba would lose and wants to spare her feelings.
Yes, Kanon's different! It's a Kanon that was just scared out of her wits by the other girls!
Well, "What's the tally" is just a formality.
And I knew you'd vote yea. Wait a minute!
Does that mean that if you voted nay, the vote isn't unanimous anymore, and Aoba's memories are gone! Whew Xellos! You are the true hero of the day! Aoba and Keima should thank you if they get out of this alive!
Yep. The outcome of the vote is anticlimactic. After all, the previous seven chapters tell us how six of the girls will vote, and only Kanon is undecided by the start of this flag. So it hangs on Kanon. Still, the reason is that it would seem unbelievable that the girls would vote for another girl to be a rival to them for Keima's love, so I need to explain why each girl would vote for Aoba. Each girl has her reason for it, and that is explored. Tenri just wants Keima to be happy. Yui and Tsukiyo want to control Aoba by bringing her to the schedule. Aoba was kind to Shiori and helped her with Keima. Ayumi wants Keima to be President. So does Chihiro. Kanon was afraid that Keima would dump her if she votes against her.
Well, Tsukiyo says it, but really, she believed that Aoba wasn't really in love with Keima, and agreed with Yui's plan only on the belief that it will amount to nothing. And when she learned that Yui's right, it was too late. So technically, she was in from the start, but really, Yui got her into that.
Yes, Aoba was "against" it. Or so Keima thinks.
"Chihiro thinks Keima wants Aoba out of the schedule?" Chihiro was actually referring to the vote about whether Keima could say that being a disciple can count as a "valid reason outside of the schedule" to spend time with Keima outside her schedule. She knows (correctly) that Keima is against it, so she suspected he got Elsie to vote against it. And one vote is enough to defeat it since a unanimous vote is required. So she changed the rules to make it a majority vote so she can win. But the plan is to switch back to unanimous vote after that particular vote. But of course, things don't always go according to plan.
(And yes, it's better that way, because it's easier to add new girls with just a majority than a unanimous vote).
I don't think that Haqua's concerned with whether lying to the girls is right or not. After all, she's routinely lying to ordinary people by saying she's just an ordinary girl who cosplays. So it's not like she doesn't lie before. She does, always, but only when necessary or white lies. To her, lying on behalf of Keima or Keima's request is simply part of her job.
It's not Haqua who needs the Goddesses. But Keima. But Keima made it look like it was Haqua who demanded it so the girls won't be suspicious of him.
Chihiro's not acting. She sincerely does not want the Goddesses to be involved because she thinks that the Goddesses will vote against Aoba and ruin everything. Yui thinks Keima knows that the Goddesses would vote for Aoba, but he's pretending, for some reason, to be ignorant of it. So she's just acting to cover up for Keima. And the other girls, who knew the Goddess would have to vote for Aoba, also figured that Keima knew that the Goddess would vote for Aoba, but acted because they think Keima has some plan involving him pretending that he doesn't know how they'd vote.
They're mostly thinking that he's calling the Goddesses to ensure Aoba's election is uncontestable by making it genuinely unanimous. But for some reason, Keima is pretending not to know.
And of course, the Goddesses voted with Aoba. It's obvious that they will since the bet with Vulcan.
Vulcan's just expressing how she really feels about Keima because she really does not want Aoba in the schedule but voted for her because of Tsukiyo.
We already know how Chihiro reacted to that speech. As for the others, Tsukiyo will probably scold her Goddess. As for the other girls, they will see it as Vulcan being Vulcan. And yes, there will be tensions between Diana and Vulcan in the future.
Yep! Aoba's upstairs blissfully unaware.
Haqua thinks she's helping. But of course…
"he sounds almost as if in love" Well, he's not. Not like he loves Chihiro at the moment. And even if he does, it would be irrelevant, like how his love for Chihiro doesn't guarantee he'll choose Chihiro at the end or influence how he'll act because he needs to consider the feelings of the other girls and the possibility that they will die if their love died because he chose another girl this early. Remember, it's not if he loves a girl. It's if his love for Girl A is greater than his love for Girl B. Because, this is probably a spoiler, but there's a strong possibility that Keima will fall in love with more than one girl at the same time. Like falling in love with a girl without falling out of love with Chihiro. And right now, the biggest candidates for his second love is Tenri and Aoba.
Not that any of the girls would know of this, of course.
Well, Aoba likes Galges exclusively at first, due to Keima's teachings. But Aoba is like Keima, and Aoba is a girl. And look at what happened when Keima became stuck in Yui's body. He developed a liking for girl games. If Keima, who exclusively plays galges before, became hooked on Otome games because he switches bodies with Yui, and only because of that, then how much for Aoba, who is a girl and is like Keima? Naturally, she would get hooked on Otome games as Keima did. Now she likes Galges immensely. But she likes Otome games more. It's just that she's such a genius and obsessive fan that you really couldn't tell as she's better than most boys at galges and is only second to Keima in that category. But at this point, she far surpasses Keima in the knowledge of Otome games (and yes, Keima did retain an interest in Otome games that carried over from the body-switching. He occasionally plays it because it's still part of the ideal, though mostly playing Yui's games or Aoba's games).
It's not that Keima cares about criticism. He generally doesn't. But now he has another counter when they mock him for his hobbies—Aoba Fuse. And Aoba is still a popular girl despite her weird hobbies.
Of course, Aoba is a viable choice after five years, like the seven other girls XD.
Yep. Keima already thinks he knows precisely how Aoba will respond, so he wouldn't bother asking because why bother?
Yes, the girls think that Keima wants the Goddess to be in the dark that he knew about how they would vote, so they acted to further his plan. Of course, they were wrong about him knowing how the Goddesses would vote.
I don't think Mars is particularly dumb. And she's just telling Yui what she saw and heard. She did not offer any keen insight into her conclusions. As for Yui? Yeah, but not much. Yui isn't stupid.
Sorry for the evil cliffhanger! Anyway, the next chapter is going to be very interesting! See ya!
To Red888, Thank you. I'm glad you enjoyed this story. And the Arc has not yet finished, even with this chapter, although the results are fairly obvious.