"I want you to kill Ebisu!"
The cat spoke calmly, without any hatred in its voice, as if it were asking a schoolmate to lend it an eraser.
"You want me to kill Ebisu? Fine, but what can you give me in return?"
Nakano Yu did not care why the cat wanted to kill Ebisu; he only cared about what kind of reward the cat could offer him.
No joke. Leaving aside what he would have to sacrifice to summon a disobedient god, it would still require at least ten thousand souls and two divine artifacts. And for what? To hunt a disobedient god that would not be of much help to him? To gain some power and then unconditionally help this cat?
Nakano Yu was no philanthropist; he was only interested in this creature.
Logically speaking, this should be Ebisu's divine beast, so why would it want to kill Ebisu?
Hearing that, the cat fell silent and remained speechless for a long time.
Yes, what could she offer Nakano Yu? In his eyes, she was like a toy, without any right to make demands or requests.
Honestly, the cat had initially thought Nakano Yu would not refuse her. In the cat's eyes, Nakano Yu's previous summoning of a Rebellious God in Tokyo's Minato district, which had turned the entire city into a city of ghosts, was actually nothing special. The cat had simply created the image beforehand that Nakano Yu was a being who hunted Rebellious Gods.
But now that she thought about it, if Nakano Yu wanted to, he could summon a disobedient god again at any moment instead of agreeing to her request to kill Ebisu.
"If you can't answer that, then get lost."
After Nakano Yu finished speaking, he raised his hand and used the wind to throw the cat aside. Eriri, who had been watching from the side, was completely stunned and did not dare move for even a moment.
She was not acting like that because the cat had started talking, but because of the conversation between the cat and Nakano Yu.
The man and beast were not far from her, and although Eriri had not gone closer, she could still hear them.
They had just been talking about… killing, killing a god?!
Eriri had been a longtime lover of manga and anime. Although she was not particularly interested in certain chuunibyou shonen manga, she still watched the ones with good ratings. As an experienced anime and manga fan, how could Eriri not understand the meaning of the word "godslayer"?
But… do gods really exist in this world? Does that mean her drawing doujinshi is completely transparent to those gods, even down to what kind of panties she is wearing today?
Thinking about that, Eriri's face turned pale.
If Nakano Yu knew what Eriri was thinking about, he would definitely be both amused and speechless. Leaving aside the so-called obedience of gods and their attachment to mythology, even if they were not bound, they definitely were not as omniscient and omnipotent as Eriri imagined.
Of course, this excluded a small number of disobedient gods, such as Jehovah God.
After throwing the cat aside, Nakano Yu lazily yawned. Although he had slept the entire day yesterday, he still felt sleepy, mainly because he was lazy, and there was nothing that could awaken his interest.
But the cat had begged him to kill Ebisu, and he had refused. Nakano Yu felt that this matter was not simple. If the cat had a personal conflict with Ebisu, then none of this would make sense.
Disobedient gods could not be considered true gods in the truest sense. Those beings simply did not fit into mythology and will, so they separated from mythology and manifested in the mortal world. Even if a disobedient god were killed, the other side would not be harmed or die; they would simply return to mythology.
Some disobedient gods even possessed the ability to reappear in the present world after returning to mythology. In short, if someone only wanted to vent hatred toward Ebisu by killing a disobedient Ebisu, then none of this made any sense.
But what if that guy simply wanted to use him to summon Ebisu into this world?
Thinking about that, Nakano Yu shook his head. That cat possessed part of the wisdom of mythical beasts, so it would not do something that stupid.
After all, Ebisu was not a god particularly skilled in combat. After being exiled from Takamagahara, he became the god of fishing and wealth worshipped by the Japanese. In terms of battle, he was far inferior.
If you think the summoned Ebisu can defeat him, then forget it.
Are you still not planning to leave?
Shaking his head, the young man stopped thinking about it and turned toward Eriri, who was staring blankly at him, her mind full of fantasies about Nakano Yu killing a god.
"Huh?! Ah! I'm coming!"
Hearing his voice, Eriri, who had still been lost in thought, came back to her senses and quickly responded. Somewhat unwillingly, she put down the manga in her hand and hurried after Nakano Yu. She glanced toward the corner of the wall, where the cat was curled up, as well as at the manga on the table. Eriri said nothing.
Although the cat's sudden arrival had frightened her, the cat had remained friendly and had not harmed her. It had even given her a completely new manga that was highly sought after.
That definitely was not bad for her.
Now that the cat was looking at her like that, Eriri felt somewhat… guilty.
Eriri was not stupid. Today's events concerned Nakano Yu, not her. She and Nakano Yu were not even friends, so why would she persuade him to agree to that cat's request? Just because the cat had been kind to her for a short time?
More importantly, this was about killing a god! The cat had said it so casually. Eriri did not know why the cat was begging Nakano Yu, but probably because Nakano Yu had the ability to kill gods. Just thinking about it felt dangerous.
Thinking about that, Eriri looked away from the cat and quietly stood behind Nakano Yu.
Nakano Yu seemed somewhat surprised when he noticed the change in Eriri's mood.
He had thought Eriri would beg him to help the cat kill the disobedient Ebisu, but surprisingly, Eriri did not react that way at all.
Yes, that cat had suddenly brought Eriri here, so the cat itself was to blame for that.
Without any hesitation, Nakano Yu immediately led Eriri out of the shrine.
Previously, whenever something like this happened, Nakano Yu would advise the Nakano Quintuplets and Nakano Reina's group to stay away from this place, but today Nakano Yu did not want to ruin the enjoyment of the Nakano Quintuplets and Nakano Reina.
Without saying anything, Nakano Yu secretly sent several Moon God Messengers to patrol Ukiyoe Street.
Then he led Eriri out of the shrine.
Although they could wait here for the Nakano Quintuplets and Nakano Reina's group to arrive, the most important thing tonight was spending time with family. Besides, Sawamura Sayuri had already sensed that something was wrong earlier, and if they did not bring Eriri back soon, it would inevitably cause concern.
Passing through the shrine's torii gate, the two walked down the stone steps. Along the way, they could hear the laughter and conversations of people going toward the shrine, except for Nakano Yu and Eriri, who were walking downhill in the opposite direction.
Walking right behind Nakano Yu, Eriri occasionally glanced at the young man ahead of her, while her mind was full of thoughts.
After what had just happened, Eriri had many questions she wanted answers to: Do gods really exist? Can Nakano Yu really kill a god? What does it feel like to kill a god?
She did not ask those questions only because she felt that she and Nakano Yu were not particularly close, so it would be too rude to ask such personal questions.
"Nakano… classmate, um… aren't we going to the shrine now to watch the fireworks?"
Eriri pursed her lips, finally realizing that it was not very appropriate to stay silent the whole time. Gathering her courage, she looked at the handsome young man beside her in a yukata, with a lollipop hanging from his mouth, and asked…
The lollipop had been given to Nakano Yu by a little girl when he was leaving the shrine. It was not one of those large candied apples on sticks, but an ordinary long lollipop. Of course, Nakano Yu had not refused the little girl's kindness.
After all, it was because of his charm, and refusing would have saddened the little girl.
Is the fireworks display important?
Hearing Eriri's question, Nakano Yu turned toward the girl beside him and responded with a question of his own.
"Ah?"
Caught off guard by the young man's reaction, Eriri was confused for a moment. Wasn't the purpose of going to a fireworks festival precisely to watch the beautiful fireworks?
If it were not for watching the fireworks, who would be willing to travel this far?
Coming back to her senses, although confused about why Nakano Yu was asking that, Eriri still gave her opinion:
"A fireworks festival… isn't it precisely for watching fireworks?"
Nakano Yu was not surprised by Eriri's answer. After looking at Eriri beside him, he said:
"Fireworks are not more important than spending time with my family. I would never try to grasp something fleeting."
After saying something completely unexpected, Nakano Yu quickened his pace down the mountain.
Eriri stood stunned as she watched Nakano Yu's carefree figure walking away. Seeing that the young man clearly did not plan to wait for her, she quickly sped up to catch up.
"Wait for me, Nakano-kun!"
"I was rejected."
The cat appeared on the shrine's torii gate.
Watching Nakano Yu leave, the cat muttered, while its bright yellow eyes glowed beneath the night sky.
Since Nakano Yu was unwilling to help her, then she would have to resort to special methods.
Thinking about that, the cat lightly touched the gate with its paw and jumped down from the torii gate, landing on the ground.
Watching the enormous crowd of people coming to offer incense and prayers to Ebisu in front of the Ebisu shrine, a human-like smile appeared on the cat's face.
Since that Campione is so stubborn, then I can only rely on these people.
Thinking about that, the cat walked toward the shrine with its silent feline steps.
Just as it reached the front of the shrine, a sudden gust of wind swept up the cat and lifted it high into the air. Then a piercing meow rang out, and the cat crashed heavily into the forest beneath the moonlight, turning into a pile of flesh and blood.
"Hmph, idiot."
Nakano Yu, who had already returned to Ukiyoe Street, suddenly smiled and quietly cursed.
While leaving the shrine, Nakano Yu had known there was something wrong with that guy. Although he was not some kind of demon, he could not leave someone who obviously posed a threat to the people around him.
And as for why he had not killed that guy immediately, Eriri had been there, and he could not do it in order to avoid ruining his image.
However… Ebisu.
If he had the opportunity, he would go see him with his own eyes.