The next day.
Morning sunlight slipped through the gap in the curtains, casting warm patches of light across the floor.
Akuto was the first to wake. Shizuka was still sleeping soundly, her dark brown hair spread over his shoulder, a few playful strands clinging to her damp forehead. Her small face still carried a lingering flush. Her long lashes cast faint shadows beneath her eyes, and her rosy lips were slightly pursed, making her look both tempting and adorable.
Akuto's gaze moved downward, landing on Shizuka's pale thighs. Those youthful, supple curves extended all the way down before disappearing into a pair of white knee-high socks. Above the cuffs, large stretches of snowy skin looked all the more dazzling against the white fabric.
The edges of the sock cuffs outlined the lines of her legs, giving her a delicate, girlish elegance. Her small feet were hidden inside the socks, with only the rounded, adorable shape of her toes faintly visible.
From the way the toes and heels of the knee-high socks looked more worn and translucent than usual, it was obvious Shizuka had been moving around quite a lot last night.
Unlike Erica and the others, Shizuka had truly exhausted herself. After all, she had only been an ordinary person. She did not have the physiques of Erica and the others, which had once been comparable to divine beasts and were now comparable to gods.
"Tch~"
With a soft sound, Akuto kissed Shizuka's slightly pursed red lips.
"Mm..."
Shizuka opened her eyes in confusion and saw Akuto kissing her. A trace of bewildered helplessness flashed through her eyes.
Clearly, she was supposed to be the younger sister, yet for some reason, she always felt an urge to spoil Akuto unconditionally and satisfy him. Perhaps this was what people called "maternal instinct."
When she thought of Akuto, who could command storms outside, seeking from her the kind of affection only she could provide, a mixture of sisterly cuteness and maternal indulgence, Shizuka could not suppress the urge to dote on him.
So Shizuka skillfully wrapped her arms around Akuto's head from behind, letting him better feel the closeness of their kiss.
Although Shizuka had previously been only an ordinary girl, after undergoing the bloodline infusion method for an entire night, her physique had already evolved to a level comparable to a divine beast.
That was precisely why Shizuka could recover so quickly. Otherwise, with the recovery speed of an ordinary person, she might not have woken up until the afternoon.
After a long while, Shizuka finally came back to herself. She glanced at her stomach, which had already been slightly rounded and now looked even more noticeable, then gave Akuto an exasperated look.
Akuto-nii really did love acting spoiled with her~
At that moment, Kusanagi Shizuka understood.
Or rather, she had already understood last night.
She had no need to fight Mariya Hikari over the role of younger sister. Her own role had been different from Hikari's from the very beginning. Aside from being the younger sister who loved acting spoiled with Akuto, she also had the position of a motherly figure who loved watching Akuto act spoiled with her.
With those two roles layered together, every time she took the initiative to ask something of Akuto, or Akuto asked something of her, Shizuka could feel supreme happiness.
And so, Shizuka spent another happy morning.
By noon, Akuto had originally wanted to remain with Shizuka a little longer, but after hearing the sound from her stomach, he gave a teasing smile and got up to prepare lunch.
"Mm..."
Shizuka was shy at first, then looked at Akuto with a face full of smiles as he prepared lunch for her.
Although Akuto did not cook often, in her memory, his culinary skills were quite good.
However, as Akuto was cooking, the phone he had placed off to the side suddenly vibrated. The screen displayed an international call notification.
Old Crannichar... which meant Liliana's grandfather? Why is he calling me?
Akuto raised an eyebrow slightly and pressed the answer button.
The call connected quickly.
However, what came from the other end was not the familiar voice Akuto knew, one with a faintly rigid aristocratic tone, but an aged, hoarse voice filled with endless authority and arrogance.
"You are Akuto?" The other party called him by name, his tone icy and without the slightest courtesy.
"That's me... and you are?" Akuto's voice was calm and unruffled, though his eyes sharpened.
"Sasha Dejanstahl Voban."
The old man on the other end reported his name.
Sasha Dejanstahl Voban... in other words, Marquis Voban!
"I missed the farce in Italy. I heard you beat up that ignorant brat Salvatore? Hmph. Well done."
Marquis Voban's tone carried a hint of disdain toward Doni, as well as a certain degree of approval toward Akuto's actions. Though that approval sounded more like an evaluation that a task had been completed to standard.
Akuto did not answer. He merely waited for what came next. He knew that one of the oldest Campione would never call him just to say "well done."
Sure enough, in the next second, Marquis Voban's voice abruptly turned cold, taking on an unquestionable commanding tone.
"As compensation for stealing this old man's prey, I want two people from you."
"Liliana Crannichar and Mariya Yuri. Those two survived the last divine summoning ritual, making them high-grade sacrifices."
"To make up for this old man's regret at not participating in the slaying of those four gods in Italy, I intend to have those two summon a god for me once more."
At this point, Marquis Voban paused, then added as if granting him charity:
"Of course, this old man will not let you suffer a loss. I will choose two Great Knight-level items from my collection and give them to you. Though they are already dead, in terms of combat ability, they can still be considered rare specimens."
...
Marquis Voban believed himself to be quite sincere. Usually, if he wanted something, he simply demanded it. If he could not get it, he took it himself.
The fact that he was willing to exchange with Akuto today was only because Akuto had beaten that brat Doni senseless.
Akuto had beaten Doni, and Doni had once stolen his prey.
The two matters canceled each other out, so Marquis Voban considered himself to have forgiven Akuto's rudeness in stealing his prey this time. After all, he usually wandered the Netherworld searching for traces of Heretic Gods, so he received information a little slowly. By the day he learned of the battle, it had already ended.
Even so, the marquis still believed he had done Akuto a favor. No matter how one looked at it, he had not taken action to obstruct Akuto's god-slaying, had he?
Therefore, according to Marquis Voban's logic, asking Akuto for some trivial compensation afterward and summoning a god to soothe his fragile heart was absolutely reasonable.
...
Although Marquis Voban had already received the news, and reports said Akuto had defeated Doni with overwhelming superiority, battles between Campione were theoretically very difficult to decide. Akuto, who had easily defeated Doni, should have earned the wariness of other Campione.
But... that logic probably only worked on the Black Prince. Or rather, the Black Prince, who knew he might not be the opponent and therefore avoided taking risks, was the true oddity among Campione.
Of course, aside from leaning on his age and believing himself no weaker than Akuto, or even stronger, Marquis Voban did have capital for his arrogance.
According to the reports, when Akuto fought Doni, a second sun had appeared over Italy.
In other words, Akuto had most likely used a solar Authority that countered Doni, melting through Doni's steel armor.
But that move would have no effect on him.
The sun? As one who possessed Apollo's Authority, he fed on the sun itself!
In short, due to a series of coincidences, Marquis Voban did not consider Akuto's defeat of Doni to be especially worthy of praise.
...
Akuto held the phone and stood in the morning light, almost unable to resist laughing.
No, seriously. Were old people these days all this funny?
Akuto looked toward the bedroom. Shizuka seemed to be casting him a puzzled look because he was taking a phone call.
Considering that making food for Shizuka was far more meaningful than bickering with Marquis Voban, Akuto had no intention of continuing to argue with him.
A few seconds later, Akuto spoke into the receiver, his voice clear and calm.
"Voban, Mariya Yuri and Liliana are mine."
"If you want them, come to Fusang and find me yourself. I will give you a complete defeat here."
"Also, do not bother doing something boring like kidnapping those two."
"I said I will give you a complete defeat. Therefore, as long as you come to Fusang, I will fight you." To prevent Marquis Voban from pulling a boring move like kidnapping Mariya Yuri as he had in the original plot, Akuto deliberately added that last part.
"..."
Marquis Voban was silent for several seconds. Then, he burst into three unprecedentedly hearty peals of laughter.
"Hahahahahahaha!!~"
"Beep, beep, beep~~~"
Before Marquis Voban's laughter had even ended, Akuto had already hung up the phone.
"..."
Listening to the beeping sound from the phone, the corners of Marquis Voban's mouth twitched violently.
No, at least let him finish speaking! Young Campione these days had far too little respect for their elders!
"Hmph! When this old man reaches Fusang, I will make sure you understand proper manners!"
Marquis Voban gave a cold snort and smashed the phone directly onto the ground.
Off to the side, Old Crannichar silently watched Marquis Voban smash his phone, not daring to move a muscle.
All he could say was that this was what he deserved.
If he had not been closely connected to Marquis Voban before pledging himself to Akuto, Marquis Voban never would have found him in the first place.
As for smashing his phone?
Old Crannichar could only say that it was a good thing. If Marquis Voban smashed his phone, then the odds of him smashing Old Crannichar himself became much lower, did they not?
Still... even if he had to face the worst-case scenario, Old Crannichar did not care anymore.
In any case, his granddaughter Liliana had already become Akuto's woman. Even if he died here, the Crannichar family would undoubtedly march toward a new age of glory.
(End of Chapter)
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