Hm, mmm.

I was just waking up.

Because of Regenerate, my sleeping schedule was messed up for a while. But recently, I've learned to use it to basically fall asleep whenever I want. The power to always have your body at your perceived ideal condition is quite handy.

Of course, I had slept in Healing Lovers room. Which makes me wonder why I even have a proper single bedroom if I've never used it and probably never will, but that's beside the point.

Needless to say, I didn't sleep here alone. In bed with me were Stella and Neith. And obviously, all three of us were naked.

They're still sleeping. I can't blame them for that, last night I was… well, a little overexcited. I'll blame Regenerate for that as well.

To be fair, we had to go a bit extra yesterday because we've been trying to get my Cards to also talk with their Arcanas, like I talk with Sein.

I thought it was as simple as asking their Arcanas to talk with them, but apparently not. At least, Sein said it wouldn't be that simple. Apparently, a connection needs to be built first.

Any luck with that, by the way?

[Progress was made, but they probably cannot communicate with each other yet.]

I see. Oh well, guess we'll just have to try again another day.

As much as I would like to just stay here and admire them, we have to go to Ginsei Academy, so I should wake them up.

That said, just waking them normally would be boring. I'll wake them up Lovers style.

I grabbed a breast from each, and then began to play with them. Once their nipples were erect, I began to lick and suck on them.

My objective was to wake them up, so I wasn't being sneaky. I was teasing them in a way meant to wake them up. The first one to wake up was Neith.

"Mm, Yuuto-kun…?"

"Good morning. It's time to wake up."

Since Neith had woken up, I let her go and focused on Stella's breasts.

I had spent the entire night having sex with the former world's top idol, and now I was doing this first thing in the morning. Surely, a number of her fans would be jealous of me if they knew about this.

"Mmn, wha- n? Yuuto? … Wait, are you actually waking us up by playing with our breasts?"

"I thought it would be nice."

To be fair, there are many worse ways of being woken up.

"I don't know if you planned this or if it's just your luck, but you do realize that now you're excited and so am I and Neith, right?"

"Now that you mention it…"

That is true. Now, rather than getting ready for school, I feel like doing more Healing Lovers.

Well, we were going to have to try again anyway. Maybe this is fate telling us that the time is now.

"Maybe we can help Yuuto-kun~?"

"Neith, get those hearts out of your eyes. Let him get blue balls for a while. He has to learn to keep it in his pants sometimes. Besides, he'll get someone to relieve him once we come back, or maybe in the academy."

Neith seemed to be on the same wavelength as me, but Stella stopped her. Unfortunately, lady luck didn't smile for me today.

After a shower and fixing ourselves, we went to the dining room to have breakfast with everyone. After that, everyone who would go to school went to get ready, and then we met up at the mansion's entrance.

We'll be going to Ginsei Academy by car, but it's not exactly the same as before.

Previously, the car was being rented by Lizel, and she was also the one hiring the driver. Now, I'm the one paying for everything, thanks to Miyako and Rumi's sponsorship.

By the way, if you're wondering, the driver is still the same as before, and she's a woman. There seems to be a bit of an unspoken rule that I'm the only man allowed in Lovers' Mansion.

Personally, I find that questionable, since we hosted the Party here and all. But well, I also don't want other men snooping around here, so let's just leave things as they are.

"Good morning."

"A-ah, good morning."

Someone greeted us when we entered the car. It was Lizel, or rather Lysel, the homunculus.

I knew it was her because Lizel had just seen us off, I even looked out the window to make sure I was right. But there really was no telling them apart by appearance.

By the way, the people going to school were me, Lysel in Lizel's place, Miyabi, Reina, Stella, Neith, Rebecca and Maki.

Swordia and Poran couldn't come since they weren't noble devils. Swordia only got some basic education and the rest was homeschooling. Poran never went to school. Just another reason why the current devil society doesn't work and why I should just break it down and rebuild it.

As for Hisoka and Rinne, Hisoka hasn't gone to school since she became a Candidate, and honestly she doesn't seem mentally ready to go back. Rinne… she just doesn't want to go, so I won't force her.

Although I could just use Transite to teleport everyone to school, all of us going like this is also fun. Since we're not running late, we should enjoy these times that will become good memories when we're older.

The girls had fun chatting between themselves and I also had fun joining in every now and then.

We eventually arrived at Ginsei Academy, and from there we split up. Miyabi and I headed to our classroom.

People were generally avoiding or ignoring us. It's not surprising. Things have calmed down a bit since it's been a few days since my Party, but it's still like everyone's stepping on eggs.

There was only 1 exception.

…

Or there should have been.

"Good morning, Hinata."

"A-ah, good morning to you as well, Yuuto."

Despite everything, the one person who never failed to greet me every day was Hinata. We had never really talked before, but, after the Labyrinth Battle Royale, I think I could even say we became friends.

Yet, she didn't greet me today. I wonder if something happened since yesterday. … Maybe something to do with her family's assassin business.

Well, that's not unexpected and there's no reason for me to be outright aggressive to her. A greeting can't hurt.

After that, I took my seat and it wasn't long until Nagasawa-sensei started the class.

… Although she was still as good of a teacher as always, I have to admit I was having trouble concentrating. I kept thinking back to…

"Yuuto, Yuuto."

"What is it?"

Suddenly, Miyabi whispered and poked me from behind.

"Should I ask senpai to buy a teacher cosplay?"

"I-it's not that."

I mean, it is, but I can't say it, especially in the middle of class.

Luckily, Nagasawa-sensei didn't notice us.

Well, that was a one time thing. Her memories are sealed, so I shouldn't do anything suspicious. I should just let it become another perverted dream.

And so the hours passed, and another day of classes ended.

After classes, we went by the Palace for a bit. It was important to make sure we could use it as a backup base in case of an emergency.

Then, we all met up and went home by car. Once again, we had a fun time chatting about random stuff that happened on our day.

Once we were inside Lovers Mansion's barrier, we could talk without worrying about being spied on.

"I think Hierophant will finally start moving."

I told the girls after we were inside the barrier. I explained my reasoning to them, and they generally agreed with me.

Well, like I said before, it's not unexpected, and we've been preparing for a while. We just have to keep doing our best.

"Oh, looks like I arrived just in time today."

Just as we were arriving, Miyako was also arriving at Lovers Mansion. I originally asked her to come here a few times per week to help train Poran, but she kind of became everyone's trainer in physical combat.

"Will you be joining us today, Yuuto?"

"N-no, it's a bit hard for me to train with everyone."

Poran, Lizel, Miyabi, Hisoka, Rinne, and everyone else. Quite literally everyone is being trained by Miyako. The objective is for everyone to be able to defend themselves at least a little, even if unarmed.

I did try to join them for a few lessons, but… I'm Lovers' Candidate. I can't be around women who are sweating and breathing hard, otherwise my mind will go straight to the gutter.

So, while they train, I'll go to my study to see what I can do there… besides, I can spy on the rest of the mansion from there, so I still get to enjoy watching them.

And so the afternoon passed with me enjoying studying magic and also watching the girls exercise. Miyako left after her lessons were done, and we all enjoyed dinner together.

From there, it was just a matter of killing time until I headed to Healing Lovers room. Unlike yesterday, I don't know who will be waiting for me there. The surprise works to increase the effectiveness of Healing Lovers, so the girls organize themselves without letting me know.

And I have to give it to them, it works. You know when you're excited for something and it feels like time doesn't move? That's basically how I'm feeling.

But, after Healing Lovers, I'll basically just go to sleep.

That's generally it for my average normal day.

"Report."

Hierophant's Candidate, Hirono, said to his Cards.

Ken, the Knight Card, was the first to stand up and speak.

"In terms of weapons, Lovers' side focuses on Devil Swords. While they do have access to other types of weapons, such as the Himekamis' Cupid or whatever they may have in their particular Storage, they don't seem to make much use of it. It is safe to assume that, other than Yuuto himself, the only ones who will use weapons are Reina Morioka and Swordia Nihondou, both Cards of his."

While Ken was primarily a swordsman, he knew a lot about many weapons. That's because his role in Hirono's team was to investigate the enemy's weapons.

Knowing which weapons your enemy has access to and how they use them is the first step to assuring victory.

"I plan to deal with Yuuto. Ken, do you think you can win against Yuuto's Knight and IX Cards?"

"Going by their battle in the Sannou region of the Devil World a while back, as well as their previous fights, and estimating their growth… taking them both at once might be tough, but I believe I can manage."

This is one of the things that made the Hiraizumi family scary. No matter how small the detail, be it Swordia becoming Yuuto's Card, or her match with Reina on her parents' dojo, it would not escape their sights.

Once Ken sat down, Sol, Hierophant's Prince Card, stood up to deliver his report.

"Other than Yuuto himself and Miyabi Yuugaoze, Lovers' team has little training in martial arts. Most of them would be helpless if forced to fight like that. That said, recently, Miyako Yuugaoze has been frequenting the mansion more. Considering she is the one who trained her daughter before the Devil King War, it's likely Lovers team is trying to get rid of that weakness."

Just like how Ken was in charge of investigating the weapons their enemies might possess, Sol was in charge of investigating how capable they seemed in unarmed combat.

"It would be helpful if we knew how that was coming along. Nana, your report."

Nana was Hirono's Princess Card, and the one responsible for investigating the opponent's magic capabilities.

"Y-yes. The biggest highlights when it comes to using magic in Lovers team are Yuuto and Lizel. However, Hinata's investigation a few months back revealed that Lizel no longer had her magic circuits, that those now belonged to Yuuto. But, recently, Lizel doesn't seem to have any trouble with magic."

For the longest time, Lizel had hidden the fact that she had lost most of her magic circuits by simply playing the part of a prideful woman who viewed herself as greater than everyone else. Even if a teacher asked her to perform magic, she would often ignore them, as if she had no intention of "lowering herself" for that.

Given everything she'd accomplished even as a child, even the teachers had to give in to her. And so the years passed without Lizel performing any great spells.

But of course, given enough time, people started to become doubtful, though no one had the courage to say it out loud. That's why, when Lysel took Lizel's place, the act changed. She was no longer a woman above everyone else, but rather a changed woman thanks to Yuuto, who would properly follow the teacher's instructions and even help her classmates.

"Hinata, your opinion."

Hinata, Hirono's sister and Queen Card, was the one in charge of the general investigation. While everyone focused on specialized knowledge, she was the one who connected it all together and also who investigated every other aspect of the target's life.

"I… see 2 possibilities. Either Rinne Shimokadzuma's Characteristic Magic evolved so much thanks to Yuuto that she was able to restore Lizel's magic circuits, or they are using some kind of body double, either to take Lizel's place in public or they used it to transfer their magic circuits to her."

"Which one do you believe to be real?"

"I… don't know."

This was something Hinata would never say. Even if she didn't know, she would try to formulate a possibility or explain why trying to arrive at any conclusion early wouldn't be advised.

However, this wasn't too unexpected. Hinata always seemed unwilling to do her job when it involved ruining or ending another person's life. That was something everyone in the Hiraizumi family knew.

For instance, in the current case, it would be easy for her to arrive at the correct answer from the information she herself had just presented.

They knew about Yuuto's ability to evolve his Cards' Characteristic Magics. So, while Rinne's evolved Characteristic Magic being able to heal Lizel's magic circuits was a possibility, there would be no reason to show it off in Ginsei Academy. Rather, from how Yuuto and his team had been acting, they would have kept it hidden if that was the case.

That left the possibility of a body double. Simply by knowing Yuuto's character, she should have been able to deduce that they didn't take anyone's magic circuits to put in Lizel. While doable, it is a painful and inhumane process for the person having their circuits taken, something Yuuto wouldn't allow.

That only left the possibility of a homunculus taking Lizel's place, probably one of Yotaka's, since they were taken by Yuuto after her defeat. And it could be easily confirmed with a special magic, known only inside the Hiraizumi family, that tells the caster if the target is a homunculus or not.

Again, Hinata was clearly strange. As much as Hirono would like to do something for his sister, all he could do was wait for her to come to terms with things.

"We don't have enough information. That mansion is becoming a problem. Let's try to see if we can't find out what goes on in there while I draft a plan."

""""Understood.""""

"And Barbara, how about your report?"

"Zzzzz… huh, wha-? My turn already?"

The last member of the current Hierophant team, Barbara, the Ace Card.

She was not suited for investigation, or any undercover business really, so she was relieved of those duties to focus on her own training. The power in her blood had awakened during the Labyrinth Battle Royale, and it might not be an exaggeration to say that it would become of great importance for their battle with Lovers.

Still, Hirono couldn't simply accept that she slept through their meeting. He would talk to her about it, but he knew it would amount to nothing, so he decided to not waste his efforts.

"Well, I've been doing alright. Getting the hang of stuff."

"That's not a report… whatever, I'll trust that you'll be ready when the time comes."

"Yup, leave it to me."

Barbara's carefreeness worried Hirono more than anything else really. But it was also the one thing he couldn't do anything about.

With the meeting over, Hierophant's team disbanded for the night. Their investigation would continue until they found a way of killing Yuuto.