Zongman I fight weirdness in everyday world

“I… I’m embarrassed…”

“Heh heh.”

Kawasaki Saki rolled her eyes and retorted.

“Then when he was drawing tallies on your leg, how were you not embarrassed?”

Hearing this, Kitagawa Marin’s face instantly turned red, and steam seemed to be rising from her head.

“I… I… I…”

“Alright, stop with the I-I-I, it’s really worrying.”

Kawasaki Saki interrupted impatiently, then lightly snorted.

“I asked Suga Natsumi, and she said that on March 4th, which is in a few days, there’s a very popular large-scale comic exhibition, held in Shibuya, Tokyo. You definitely want to go, right?”

“I want to… but…”

Kawasaki Saki waved her hand.

“No buts. I’ve already made the costume for you, that succubus cosplay thing. I was originally planning to give it to you on your birthday, March 5th, but I’ll just give it to you early.”

Hearing this, Kitagawa Marin looked touched, took Kawasaki Saki’s hand, and her eyes, with their colored contacts, sparkled.

“Saki…”

“Alright, stop being so mushy.”

Kawasaki Saki lightly snorted, using an awkward tone to conceal her concern for Kitagawa Marin.

“It’s too dangerous for you to go to Tokyo for the comic exhibition alone. You might get targeted by some pervert or something, so I’m letting Yozora go with you. Go on the 3rd, attend the comic exhibition on the 4th, and come back on the evening of the 5th, got it?”

Kitagawa Marin was stunned for a moment, then couldn’t help but cover her mouth and giggle.

“Saki, you’ve arranged everything for me. You’ll definitely become the perfect wife in the future.”

“Alright, alright, stop praising me.”

Kawasaki Saki looked serious, stared at Kitagawa Marin, and said solemnly.

“For you, I even went to ask Suga Natsumi, my rival in love, for help. And that outfit, you better not disappoint me.”

While Kawasaki Saki was earnestly advising Kitagawa Marin to quickly join the battle and stop being oblivious, Yozora was saying goodbye to the Kofune sisters.

“Yozora-kun, have a safe trip.”

Kofune Ushio, looking carefree, reached out as if to put her arm around Yozora’s shoulder, but stopped halfway, her face slightly red.

“Um… anyway, have a safe trip.”

Noticing her older sister’s subtle movements, Kofune Mio knew, this was bad.

Her boyish sister was suddenly being cautious around a boy, even with physical contact like putting an arm around his shoulder. What did that mean?

It meant that she either really hated and despised him, but according to Kofune Ushio’s personality, if she really hated Yozora, she would have shown it on her face long ago, without any pretense.

Then there was only one possibility…

“Um… Yozora-kun…”

Kofune Mio also stepped forward, handing a bento box to Yozora, and tucking a strand of black hair behind her ear. Luckily, because of years of sports, her skin tone was darker, otherwise the blush on her face would have been too obvious.

“This is a bento I made… take it with you to eat on the way. As for the bento box… you can return it to me next time you come here.”

“You’ll come again, right?”

Seeing the hopeful look in Kofune Mio’s shy eyes, Yozora shook his head.

“I probably won’t.”

Not only Kofune Ushio and Kofune Mio, but even Minakata Hizuru, who was pretending to be calm, couldn’t help but show a hint of loneliness in her eyes when she heard this.

It wasn’t purely because of romantic feelings. After all, they had only spent less than a month together, and they didn’t have the memories from the previous timeline, nor had they participated in the final battle with the evil god Izanami. To say they liked him would be a bit of a stretch.

The main reason was that Yozora had rescued Hitogashima from the centuries-long rule of Hishigata and Shide, and permanently eliminated the Shadow Sickness.

No matter what, he was considered the benefactor of the entire Hitogashima, and the thought of not seeing him again inevitably made them feel a little lost.

“No, why are you all so sad?”

Noticing that the atmosphere in the room was a bit heavy, Yozora said with a smile.

“Don’t we have each other’s contact information? When you have time, you can come to Kyoto to find me at any time, or during vacations, you can still come to Kyoto and train with me.”

Kofune Ushio and Kofune Mio looked apprehensive and waved their hands at the same time.

“Um… it would be nice to hang out with you, of course, but as for training… let’s try to avoid that as much as possible…”

“Anyway, just come find me when you have time.”

Just as Yozora was about to turn and leave, Minakata Hizuru suddenly ran over, grabbed his sleeve, and said softly.

“Regarding the suggestions for that book, I’ve already sent them to you by email. Also… I’ve contacted my editor to handle the publicity. On the title page of my next book, and on my homepage as an author, I’ll recommend that book, 'Love Metronome'.”

Yozora nodded and replied with a smile.

“Thank you.”

“No, I should be thanking you.”

Minakata Hizuru pushed up her black-rimmed glasses and said softly.

“After listening to your words that day, I thought a lot. Ryunosuke should also want me not to give up. Since I have this ability, I should continue to act. I’m planning to leave Hitogashima soon and travel around Sakura Province, writing books and sightseeing, and by the way, see if I can solve some evil existences like Shadows.”

Speaking of this, Minakata Hizuru paused, and a rare hint of shyness appeared on her usually expressionless face.

“If… I mean if, if I come to Kyoto to find you… can I stay in Kyoto in the future?”

Yozora nodded without hesitation.

“Sure, my house is big.”

'Screw you, who wants to live in your house, I know how to buy my own house.'

“Oh, you’re quite rich?”

“I’m a prize-winning, well-known author, okay?”

“Ryunosuke Nan-un is the well-known one, not you, Hizuru Minakata.”

Minakata Hizuru: “… That’s the first time I’ve heard that. Thinking about it, it seems quite philosophical.”

…

The next day, in the morning.

“Finally back…”

Yozora looked at the familiar high-rise buildings in front of him and stretched out a long yawn.

“As expected, Kyoto is the place where I can feel most relaxed.”

Just then, Kawasaki Kyoka suddenly tugged at her older sister Kawasaki Saki's sleeve, looked up, and pointed at the sky.

“Sister, look, it's an airship.”

Kawasaki Saki followed the direction of her younger sister's finger and saw several airships flying in the sky.

Just as she was about to reply with a smile, she saw leaflets suddenly scattering from the airships.

The leaflets fell from the sky, drifting to the ground in Kyoto City with the breeze, like willow catkins.

“This is…”

Yozora reached out and caught a leaflet. When he saw the content clearly, he couldn't help but frown, his heart sinking.

“Hello everyone, when you see this leaflet, it means I have failed.”

“Let me introduce myself, my name is Sakurakawa Rikka, the true form of Izanami, also known as the 'Sinner' in 'Mask'’s mouth.”

“'Mask', and those assisting him, including myself, all obtained our abilities through awakening.”

“In this world, there are indeed abilities beyond ordinary people's imagination. After watching that battle, you should know that I am not lying.”

“And the way to awaken this ability is very simple, that is…”

Chapter 353: The Collapsing World, 'Mask'’s Response

“The way to awaken this ability is very simple. First, be certain that there are extraordinary powers in this world, that is, believe in the existence of evil spirits, ghosts, and psychics.”

“The second condition is to have a strong desire in your heart, whether it is a desire for money or a pursuit of social status. As long as it is a desire, no matter what the purpose or type, as long as it is strong enough, you can awaken your ability.”

Seeing this, Kawasaki Saki and Yurikawa Hana, who had become spirit users and knew the inside story, frowned slightly. Kawasaki Saki walked to Yozora's side and lowered her voice.

“This… she said that if the desire is strong enough, you can awaken psychic powers? That's not right… isn't it necessary to face your true self to awaken? Is she deliberately hiding something?”

“It shouldn’t be.”

Yozora shook his head. Facing this leaflet that revealed the secrets of spirit users, his expression was not as horrified as the other members, but he analyzed calmly.

“She has painstakingly left behind this kind of trump card that can plunge the world into chaos even after her death. She must hope that more spirit users will awaken. The only explanation is…”

“Her way of awakening psychic powers is different from ours.”

As he said this, the phone in Yozora's arms rang. When he answered it, he heard Rio Futaba's voice as expected.

“Have you returned to Kyoto?”

“Yes, I just arrived.”

“That’s good… that’s good.”

Hearing that Yozora had led the members of the special training back to Kyoto, Rio Futaba obviously breathed a sigh of relief.

“You should already know about those leaflets, right? Hirono-san and Yagami Light both called. The same thing happened in Chiba and Tokyo. The leaflets scattered by the airships covered the entire city, and the Internet is full of discussions about this. This scale makes it impossible to block the public opinion.”

“I see…”

Yozora didn't even need to look specifically to roughly guess the development of the situation.

To be able to use airships to distribute leaflets in various cities of Sakura Province at the same time, so that the public opinion is so large that even the authorities are powerless to control it, even Sakurakawa Rikka would need a long time to plan such a thing.

Perhaps before going to Nichito Island… no, even the first time she knew of 'Mask'’s existence, Sakurakawa Rikka was already planning this final plan that could plunge the world into chaos even after her death.

As spirit users, the members of the Overload Society knew best how powerful, or rather, how terrifying this power was.

“Sakurakawa Rikka’s awakening method seems to be different from ours. The so-called strong desire…”

Although Rio Futaba tried her best to maintain a calm expectation, the things that had just happened were obviously too shocking. Even she, who had always maintained calmness, couldn't help but have a trembling voice.

“Awakening as a spirit user through this method, not all… at least most, will definitely use their newly acquired power to do some shocking things, just to satisfy their own selfish desires…”

“Sakurakawa Rikka is dead… but she had already thought about how to create more people like her in this world… to destroy this world…”

“This guy… is really a madman…”

Yozora nodded noncommittally and said softly.

“Come to my house for a meeting first. A lot has happened during this special training period.”

… …

That afternoon, at Yozora's house.

“So that’s how it is…”

Rio Futaba looked at Kawasaki Saki and Yurikawa Hana, as well as Kitagawa Kaimu and Anjo Naruko, who were participating in the Overload Society for the first time and seemed a little at a loss, and nodded slightly.

“Kaimu finally knows the truth, and there are three new spirit user members. It can be regarded as completing the initial goal of the special training.”

“It’s more than that.”

Yozora pointed to Menma, who was squatting in the corner, chatting with Hachishaku-sama.

“Menma now has a certain degree of combat power.”

Hearing this, Kawasaki Saki and Anjo Naruko, the members who had just become spirit users, didn't react much.

But Rio Futaba and Mai Sakurajima, the veteran members, looked at Yozora, who was sitting there, with very complicated eyes, looking at Menma, who was holding her cheeks in both hands, wearing a pure white dress, squatting there and chatting with Hachishaku-sama with a smile. Although she had the body of a girl, her cute little face was still filled with the innocence of a little girl.

Mai Sakurajima pursed her lips and said meaningfully.

“I really don’t know how you could do it…”

“Eh, Mai, what are you talking about.”