"Heya, dad, mom."

"Ruki."

"Oh, welcome back. How was the test?"

"Pretty good, should be able to get good grades."

Today was the day where tests were applied in Ginsei Academy. Of course, Ruki had taken her tests as well, and she was pretty confident she'd get good grades.

The people waiting for her at home were obviously her parents. Ruki was the splitting image of her mother, Rumi Kouma. As for her father, called Michael, but often called Mike by his friends, well… there was no doubt he was the father, but they didn't look the least bit alike.

Though Michael also made people confused about his gender, so in that sense Ruki was similar to him. Though she would rather not be.

"By the way, mom, dad, something happened today."

Ruki began to tell her parents about how Lizel came to talk with her earlier that day. Lizel told Ruki that Lovers' team was going to go on a training camp during summer break, and she also invited Ruki to come along, considering it would be best for them to be together on the off chance that they were attacked by members of Death's Group again.

Of course, Ruki wasn't telling that to her parents to ask permission, she knew they probably wouldn't object to her going. The biggest reason she was telling them that was because Michael was very interested in the current Devil King War, and Ruki would need Rumi's help with getting prepared.

"I see. Indeed, the chances of an attack are much lower if you all are together and in an unexpected place."

Michael gave a very simple analysis of what he had heard. He wasn't wrong, but Ruki felt a bit let down that he didn't show the least bit of a reaction with his daughter saying she's basically going to spend an entire month with Lovers.

But then again these kinds of "worldly desires" hardly passed by Michael's mind, it's a surprise Ruki was even conceived to begin with. That was not the case for Rumi, who was grinning from ear to ear.

"I see. Then we have to pick out some cute clothes, don't we?"

"A-ahaha… would you help me, mom?"

"Absolutely! Since it's probably going to take a while, we should get started right now."

Rumi basically dragged Ruki to her room. She then started going through all of Ruki's clothes, picking out what she thought was best.

Ever since Ruki was born, Rumi had always enjoyed picking out her clothes. Be it boy's clothes or girl's, Rumi always enjoyed dressing Ruki. She knew how to respect her daughter's choices, but she still liked dressing her like a doll from time to time.

"Let's see… picking a top is easy enough, so let's start with that. It's unlikely you'll go anywhere cold, so let's pick something with lots of cleavage. Oh, and you'll absolutely be wearing a bikini for your swimwear."

"W-wait, mom, Yuuto-kun's going to be there, you know? A-are you sure that's fine? Something with lots of c-cleavage I mean."

"I'm picking this thinking that he'll be there. But you're right, depending on the situation, you should be able to go topless. No man can resist a pair of breasts."

Rumi gave her daughter a thumbs up, as if to say "leave it to me" though she completely missed Ruki's intention.

"That's not what I mean!"

Ruki shouted to hide her embarrassment. It's true that the idea of showing off to Yuuto passed by her mind,but she wondered if it was fine. Maybe covering herself entirely was the best option, since…

"You might trick everyone, including yourself, but you can never trick your mother. I'm sure of it, Ruki. If you're not already in love with Yuuto, then you're going to fall for him soon."

"H-how can you say that?! Y-Yuuto-kun's just my friend"

"For one, you talk about him every day, and from your descriptions he may as well be a prince charming from a fairy tale. That's some friend."

"Uuhh…"

Ruki herself had already started to notice that Yuuto was becoming more than just a friend. But how should she go about that? Should she confess? But what about when Yuuto found out her secret?

Insecurities were common during the teenage years, but Ruki's were a little above the average girl's. And that's due to the heritage she got from her father.

But luckily, Rumi was there to give support. She looked her daughter in the eyes as she told her:

"Ruki, it's not like you have to decide your life right now. Go on the trip, get a little naughty with the boy you like, see what your feelings really are. As long as you don't get pregnant, there won't be any big issues."

"You should work on your motivational speeches, mom..."

"What do you mean? I think it was pretty good. Sex is one of the best parts of life, if not the best, so don't miss out on doing lots of it."

"I don't want my mom telling me that! … But thanks."

After Ruki's shout, she started laughing, and Rumi soon followed her daughter. Ruki's worries from before seemed to have settled down for now.

Mother and daughter continued picking out clothes. They also had some fun with some things Ruki would never have the courage to actually wear, but she had fun imagining herself showing off to Yuuto.

By the end of the day, Ruki was prepared to go on the trip, but she may have been a little too excited, given the dreams she ended up having.


Ever since Yuuto had made him get back up, Aspite had been busy catching up to everything that he'd missed. That went for both school and the Devil King War.

Luckily, Aspite was very smart. It took him less than a day to catch up with the lessons he'd missed. And now that the tests were over, that worry was completely gone from Aspite's head.

That left only the Devil King War.

"As I thought, it's better if I work alone."

He had been considering calling his former Cards back. After his defeat, Aspite had Released them all.

But taking everything that had happened into account, Aspite figured it would be best for him to have no Cards. Out of his former Cards, only the Court Cards had any noteworthy combat abilities, and out of those only Kilga and Haida were really worth going after.

Aspite wasn't sure if Haida had been killed after his attack at the Unveiling or what, but he was thankful to not have to deal with him again, so he wasn't about to go looking for him. As for Kilga, Aspite considered calling him back, but gave up on the idea.

Whatever the reason, Aspite had broken Kilga's precious family heirloom. He knew he had to apologize, but he hadn't even gathered enough courage to show his face again.

Aspite remembered what Lizel told him, that he couldn't be at the top. Looking back at his past actions, Aspite understood that when he was at the top, he was really just a prick, but after he'd tasted defeat, both against Lizel and Yuuto, he'd humbled down and become a much better person.

Though he'd never be caught dead admitting it.

"Whatever. The great Aspite Line doesn't need Cards. Even against Death's Group, I should be able to handle myself."

Needless to say, Aspite's research told him about Death's Group. Some members were still mysteries to him, but he had confidence to fight all those he had knowledge of at once if he had to.

And it's not like Aspite is their target, so this was probably a needless worry. Rather, all the other Candidates were probably thinking Aspite was no big deal, being defeated by a human. In a way, that became a good shield.

"In that sense, Yuuto Morioka is probably safe as well."

Yuuto had been attacked by Marios shortly before talking with Aspite, so that was a little worrying. And with Lizel, a Himekami, in his group, it was likely he'd have to face Hanged Man sooner or later.

In that sense, Yuuto was in a much more dangerous spot than Aspite. In case something happened, Aspite might have to lend his power to Yuuto, since he doesn't want anyone else but himself to defeat him.

Even though Yuuto defeated him, Aspite couldn't bring himself to hate Yuuto. Rather, after finding out the true reason behind their fight, and Yuuto's subsequent battle with Ibiza, Aspite had to even admire him a bit.

Though, once again, he'd never be caught dead admitting it.

"This is enough for today."

Staying up late wouldn't bring any benefits, so Aspite decided to call it a day. He'd have more work to do once the morning came, so his best choice was to rest for now.