Next Target, 400PS!
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Tomie Kawakami was growing weaker. By the end, she was visibly aging right before their eyes.
This sight made the other Tomies realize what was happening. The arrogance in their eyes vanished, replaced by sheer terror.
Thud!
Soon enough, the lifeless husk of that Tomie was tossed onto the ground. The moment she hit the floor, she shattered, falling into a pile of ash and fading without a trace.
Meanwhile, Sadako looked completely satisfied. Her cursed energy had grown a lot compared to before. It wasn't much to Kai, but it was still easy power for her.
It was just as he thought. As the most unique urban legend, Tomie embodied every negative emotion a human could have. And those negative emotions were the ultimate fertilizer for Cursed Spirits.
Eating Tomie gave free strength. Even better, Tomie's crazy regeneration and cloning meant that catching one Tomie gave him an endless supply.
"That's enough!" Just as Sadako geared up for seconds, Kai's voice rang out.
Sadako stopped and looked back at him. Kai thought he saw a bit of disappointment in her eyes, as if she was asking, 'Didn't you just tell me to eat? Why stop me now?'
"Now, don't be greedy," Kai teased. "You aren't my only Cursed Spirit. We have to save some for Spider Woman and the others!"
Sadako didn't argue, though she clearly wanted more. She stood quietly to the side, her eyes still fixed on the Tomies.
"No need to hurry. You know how Tomie works. As long as we keep one alive, there will always be more. I promise you'll get plenty!"
"!!!" Hearing that, a trace of realization flashed in Sadako's eyes. She nodded excitedly at Kai.
Tomie: ???
'Hey, if you're going to talk about using us like livestock, could you at least say it where we can't hear? We're right here!'
Even if they complained, Kai didn't care. The rest of the Tomies finally understood what he had in mind for them.
Tomie didn't fear humans, and she didn't fear Sorcerers. But she was terrified of other Cursed Spirits. As a unique curse herself, she was ironically the one most vulnerable to her own kind.
"Alright, let's keep going!" Kai said. He wasn't stopping there. After Sadako, it was Spider Woman's turn. He made sure to feed all his other curses too.
With Tomie as a source, even if he never caught another wild Cursed Spirit, he could build an army of Special Grades quickly!
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"Wait! No! Don't!"
At last, only the original Tomie was left. As the Cursed Spirits came closer, she stumbled back in fear. She moved no faster than a regular schoolgirl and couldn't escape.
"That's enough!" Just then, Kai waved his hand, recalling the final Cursed Spirit into the shadows.
He walked over to Tomie, who was slumped on the ground in terror. "You should know why I kept you alive."
He wasn't going to kill the last one, unless he found another Tomie somewhere else.
"I know! I know!" She wasn't stupid. Hearing that, she knew her purpose. She was the breeder for future clones.
"I can do it! I'll do anything, just don't kill me!"
Each Tomie clone had her own personality. When a Tomie died and came back, she became a new person. That's why she didn't care how many others died. As long as she survived, nothing else mattered.
"I can help you. I'll do whatever you want, Master! You're my Master!" It seemed the slaughter had genuinely traumatized her. She threw her pride away just to stay alive.
"Good girl." Kai smiled at the Tomie groveling at his feet. "As long as you behave, I won't just let you live. I'll let you live better than anyone else!"
"Y-Yes, Master!" Tomie didn't dare complain and nodded obediently.
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The next day.
When Eriri woke up and stepped out of her room, she called out, "Mom?"
She was about to call for her mother as she walked downstairs, but instead, she saw Kai bringing breakfast from the kitchen.
"K-Kai!" Seeing him first thing in the morning stunned her. She wondered if she was dreaming or maybe even sleepwalking. "Why... why are you..."
"Go wash up and get ready to eat," Kai said, acting perfectly natural. He shot her a passing glance and gave the order smoothly.
"Huh? Oh!" Still dazed, she nodded and went into the bathroom.
It was only while brushing her teeth that it hit her.
???
'Wait a second! That's not right. Why am I listening to him? Just because he gives an order, do I have to follow?' Her stubborn side kicked in.
But as she looked at her foamy mouth in the mirror, she gave up on arguing. She finished washing up, put on a bit of makeup, and left the bathroom.
By then, Kai had already set all the food on the table. "Not bad. You look pretty, Eriri!"
"O-Of course I do!" She looked away at his compliment, too shy to meet his eyes, but still stood a little taller. Her heart skipped with happiness.
'He said I look pretty. He's definitely into me.'
"Um..." Sitting at the table and looking at Kai across from her, Eriri felt like the whole scene was unreal.
Was she dreaming? No, that couldn't be. She had pinched herself in the bathroom, and it hurt. This was real.
"Don't overthink it," Kai said, reading her expression. "Sayuri was exhausted last night, so she's sleeping in. I made breakfast instead."
As expected, Eriri didn't notice anything strange. After all the drama yesterday, it made sense her mother needed more rest. Besides, Eriri was focused on something else.
"You... you made all this?" She stared at the breakfast in shock. She thought her mother had cooked and Kai just set the table. She never expected him to be the one who cooked.
"What's wrong? You don't like it?" Kai tilted his head, pretending to be disappointed. "If you don't want it, I'll just..." He reached across the table, acting like he would take her plate.
"Who said I didn't like it??" Seeing his hand move, Eriri instinctively shielded her plate.
She saw the teasing look in his eyes and blushed. She turned away, too embarrassed to meet his gaze.
"Alright, alright! Eat up!" Kai laughed. "After everything that happened last night, I wanted to make sure nothing else went wrong, so I stayed over. Don't worry, I slept in the guest room!"
The Sawamura villa had plenty of spare rooms anyway.
Technically, Kai wasn't lying. He did sleep in the guest room—right next to Sayuri. The master bedroom was a disaster. He had underestimated Sayuri...
"I-It's fine!" Eriri shook her head.
She wanted to make a snarky comment, but held back. Kai had really helped them. Besides, her mother had warned her: if she kept acting stubborn, she might lose him for good.
Thinking of that, Eriri lowered her head and said quietly, "Thank you."
"Hmm?"
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