Sixth Unit Headquarters.
Living Room.
An awkward silence blanketed the room. On the sofa, Yachiho—who normally carried herself with chest-puffed confidence—could only stare blankly. Beside her, Sahara, who always looked drowsy and languid, had opened her eyes wide. Their gazes were locked on the white-haired young man sitting calmly beside their Chief.
Moments ago, their Tenka had introduced her boyfriend. If that had been all, their reaction wouldn't have been this extreme. What truly shocked them to the point of shaking their entire worldview was the fact that this man had succeeded in awakening a Peach Blossom Blessing after consuming one.
And not only that—Naoki's power was said to be on par with the Anti-Demon Corps' Supreme Commander herself, Yamashiro Ren.
"Ugh... Give me a moment to process all of this, Chief."
Yachiho blinked several times. Then she pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to dispel the sudden dizziness that had struck.
"April Fool's is still a month away." She looked at Tenka with an expression halfway between belief and disbelief. "This is a joke that isn't funny."
"Chief... You're not pulling our leg, are you? If this is a prank, I'm really going to fall asleep." Sahara asked in her characteristically listless tone.
Tenka smiled. Not a teasing smile, but one full of understanding.
"I know it's hard to believe. It's faster to just show you directly. Naoki-kun."
"Alright."
Naoki stood. Under the gazes of Sahara and Yachiho—still caught between skepticism and curiosity—he activated «Pandemonium».
His pupils changed. The inverted cross pattern in dark gold appeared. Behind him, the Qliphoth Tree diagram manifested. Then a golden aura enveloped his body.
Yachiho jolted. Her mouth opened, but no sound came out.
For the first time in a long while, Sahara was genuinely awake. Her eyes, which were usually half-closed, were now wide open.
"That's «Crazy Sheep»—mine!"
Yachiho fixed Naoki with a new intensity. Her sharp mind worked quickly, connecting the dots.
"Chief, is your boyfriend's Peach Blossom Blessing ability copying?" Yachiho guessed. After all, her younger sister Himari's Peach Blossom Blessing worked similarly.
"Yes. Yachiho-chin is right. It's called «Pandemonium», and it allows Naoki-kun to perfectly copy ten Peach Blossom Blessings without any deficiencies." Tenka gave a light nod, then turned to Sahara and spoke in an apologetic tone. "Sahara-chin, I'm sorry—Naoki-kun copied your Peach Blossom Blessing without permission."
Sahara waved her hand dismissively. "Chief doesn't need to apologize. I don't mind at all. In fact, I'm glad my power can be of help to someone else."
Tenka smiled with relief. "Glad to hear it."
Suddenly, Yachiho sat up straight. Something had just occurred to her—something important.
Her expression shifted to one of alertness. "Wait a moment! Could it be that my «Golden Hour» was also copied?"
"Yes."
"When did you copy it?" Yachiho looked at him with suspicion, her body tensing.
"About a month ago. Is there a problem? It shouldn't have left any complications."
"Th-There isn't! I was just asking!"
Yachiho turned her face away, her cheeks flushing faintly, no longer willing to meet Naoki's eyes. She had just been reminded of the mortifying incident a month ago—when she and Sahara had suddenly wet themselves without any apparent reason.
And now this man was saying he had copied «Golden Hour» at exactly the same time.
(That embarrassing incident couldn't have been caused by this man, could it? Impossible. There's no connection. It was purely a coincidence.)
With her intellect, Yachiho vaguely sensed there was something more to it. But without evidence, she couldn't voice her suspicion. She calmed her churning thoughts and drew a deep breath.
When she looked at Naoki again, he had already returned to normal. The Qliphoth diagram had vanished, his eyes back to their usual dark red. He had settled back beside Tenka with composure, as though nothing had happened.
Yachiho decided to redirect the conversation. Back to safer ground.
"Listen, Naoki." She crossed her arms in front of her chest, chin raised. Her confident posture was back in place. "This is my advice as the original owner of that Peach Blossom Blessing."
"«Golden Hour» is nearly unbeatable." Her voice carried full conviction. "You can stop or rewind time by up to five seconds. In battle, this allows you to evade attacks that should have been fatal, or instantly correct a strategic mistake."
"But!" Yachiho put on a serious expression, pointing her finger at Naoki. "That's just the false sense of security that you can't lose. Activating «Golden Hour» is extremely taxing on stamina. If a battle drags on too long, you'll quickly reach your physical limit and become completely powerless."
Tenka and Sahara exchanged glances in quiet surprise, not having expected Yachiho to say such things. Normally, Yachiho was confident and condescending—not unlike Ren. This unexpected show of consideration toward Naoki caught them off guard.
Sensing both their stares, Yachiho hurried to clarify.
"I'm only doing this so this man doesn't embarrass my Peach Blossom Blessing while it's in his hands!" Her voice pitched slightly higher. "He has to be elegant! No half-measures! I refuse to have my exceptional ability used in any shameful way!"
Watching her scramble for justifications, Naoki let out an amused laugh. His gaze drifted to Yachiho's twintails, and he quietly lamented that her hair wasn't blonde—the classical tsundere standard.
Naoki nodded, accepting the advice sincerely. "Thank you for the counsel. I'll keep it in mind."
He looked at the three girls before him. The atmosphere had eased considerably after the demonstration. Now it was time for something more important—building a good relationship with his new teammates.
"Alright." He stood and patted his thigh. "Since I've officially joined the Sixth Unit today, let me celebrate that."
Yachiho frowned. "Celebrate? What do you mean?"
"I'm going to cook." Naoki smiled faintly. "A special lunch for all of us."
He looked at each of them in turn. "Tell me what you'd like to eat. As long as the ingredients are available in the kitchen, I can make it."
Sahara, who had been half-lying on the sofa up until a moment ago, immediately sat up straight. Her usually drowsy eyes now sparkled—something that rarely happened.
"I want curry!" Her voice carried genuine enthusiasm—equally rare. "Thick Japanese curry, with soft potatoes and sweet carrots. And meat. Lots of meat."
"I want steak, cooked to perfect doneness!" Yachiho declared, not about to be outdone. "And remember—it has to be elegant!"
"I'll leave it up to you, Naoki-kun. Whatever you make is bound to be delicious." Said Tenka in a gently spoiled tone.
Naoki headed straight to the kitchen to cook.
◆━⊰✿✧✿⊱━◆
Before long, the food was served at the table. They ate together in a warm and easy atmosphere.
"It's... delicious..." Sahara murmured softly, spooning her curry at a pace unusual for someone as unhurried as herself.
"Hmph, not bad. The steak is cooked just right." Yachiho gave her compliment, even though in her heart she wanted to proclaim this was the finest meal she had ever eaten.
Meanwhile, Tenka looked enormously proud, puffing out her chest as though she herself had prepared the meal.
"Glad you enjoy it." Naoki said with a quiet smile.
◆━⊰✿✧✿⊱━◆
After lunch, Sahara stretched out on the living room sofa. Her right arm lay across her forehead, her left leg dangling toward the floor—the very picture of total laziness.
"Full..." She murmured contentedly. "I want to sleep."
Yachiho sat in the reading chair near the window, a book in her lap. Her eyes moved across the pages, but occasionally drifted toward the kitchen, where Naoki was tidying up the dishes.
Tenka approached Naoki once he had finished washing up.
"Naoki-kun."
"Naoki-kun will be sleeping in my room. As a couple, that's only natural, isn't it?" Tenka said casually, before taking Naoki's hand and leading him upstairs.
Yachiho and Sahara could only watch in speechless resignation as that shameless couple flaunted their affections in front of single women like themselves.
Not long after, the quiet of the afternoon was shattered. Yachiho and Sahara, relaxing downstairs, heard the rhythmic creaking of a bed, the collision of bodies, and Tenka's stifled moans, all of which carried clearly down to the floor below.
Yachiho froze in her seat, the book in her hands nearly slipping to the floor. Heat rushed to her face.
"Th-They're supposed to do that kind of thing at night—it's still the middle of the afternoon!" She sputtered, flushing deeply, pressing her hands over her ears yet failing to block out the sounds.
Beside her, Sahara, who had been drowsy just a moment before, was no longer drowsy at all. Her face was flushed red, visibly flustered by the intense commotion coming from above. A warmth spread through her body, and a strange, ticklish sensation crept through her lower half that left her shifting restlessly on the sofa.
"They're so brazen..." Her voice trembled, entirely unlike her usual self.
"Completely shameless!" Yachiho added, her face as red as a ripe tomato.
🎇Keep reading and support this story on Ko-fi:
📎Ko-fi: ko-fi.com/lovefanfiction or bit.ly/4sbFiOM
✅More early access chapters from WebNovel
✅5 translated fanfic chapters & 1-2 new original fanfic chapters every day (Monday-Saturday), exclusive on Ko-fi.
Thank you so much for your incredible support!