Chapter 67

"Ah, I promised you."

Under the night sky, in a small grove, two figures stood facing each other, one tall and one short. The tall one, Levi, lowered his head and spoke these words. Without waiting for the shorter girl to respond, he seemed to remember something.

"What if she comes to me on her own?"

"Hmph, as long as you don't seduce Onee-sama, why would she come to you? You're just being presumptuous."

As long as Levi agreed, Kuroko's goal was achieved. With the system in Academy City, the chances of Misaki coming out were few and far between, so there was no need to worry.

Besides, although she seemed to be纠缠 this issue, how could Levi know her true thoughts?

From the moment they met, she had been aggressive. Why would a student like Kuroko, who had a good reputation in school, act that way?

Kuroko, a student praised by teachers and classmates alike, had no significant flaws in her interactions. For a girl like her, who had been carefully taught by Levi to use her esper abilities, could she not feel a bit of gratitude?

Of course not.

By removing Misaki as an obstacle between them, Kuroko could at least interact with Levi in a normal teacher-student relationship. In fact, before she developed feelings beyond friendship for Misaki, she was a very respectful student to Levi.

Kuroko, while on patrol, happened to see Levi's figure. Her initial thought was to greet him and give him the extra ticket to save her the trouble of waiting in line. But after running a few steps, her pride and stubborn personality, combined with Misaki's influence, led to the current situation.

"I'll have the ticket sent to you by courier tomorrow. You haven't moved, right?"

With the agreement reached, Kuroko's awkward gift-giving was complete. The condition of not actively approaching Onee-sama was just a result of her bad temper, similar to the small pranks that Rin Tohsaka often played on Levi.

The mature Kuroko had long seen that Levi had no romantic interest in Misaki and knew that her Onee-sama's feelings were merely an innocent admiration for adult men. After all, they attended an all-girls school, and in Academy City, where most people were students, encounters with adult men were rare.

However, if something unexpected and undesirable really happened, Kuroko wouldn't hesitate to use the agreement she had with Levi. Whether Levi kept his word didn't matter; Kuroko's trump card was the recorded conversation on her secretly opened phone.

What would a girl think if she heard that the man she admired gave up on pursuing her just for a concert ticket? Kuroko found the idea amusing, even though Levi had never intended to pursue her Onee-sama.

After confirming the delivery address with Levi, Kuroko turned and returned to the venue to continue her work. Levi, left alone with only a small figure in front of him, didn't realize he had been outsmarted by a first-year middle school girl. He was preparing to inform the girl he had a date with about the tickets. Kuroko's reliability was still good.

Standing on the outskirts, watching the dense crowd on the square, Levi forgot the suffocating heat he had felt earlier. Instead, he felt that the humid air, mingled with sweat and body heat, showcased the youth and passion of the students.

However, if he hadn't already reserved tickets for the concert, he wouldn't have the leisure to appreciate such youthful passion. Human thinking is so peculiar; a change in circumstances and perspective can reveal a different scene. And such changes often occur faster than one expects. Levi was currently demonstrating this principle.

Scrolling through his contact list for several pages, he realized he had never exchanged contact information with the alien girl. Not just her phone number and address, Levi found he didn't even know which class the girl named Yuki Nagato was in. The only thing he knew was that she was a first-year high school student, which he had deduced from her school uniform.

—Maybe tomorrow.

Originally, he planned to take a different route home to enjoy a different view, but after realizing he had no one to boast to about his excellent work, his enthusiasm was dampened, and he changed his mind.

Turning a corner, he returned to the familiar intersection, deciding to go home quickly and rest. He wasn't one of those introverted thinkers who wandered the quiet streets at night; lying in a comfortable bed with a small-sized body pillow was far more pleasant. Although admitting this might affect his image, Levi was a lazy person and never denied it.

'But' is a truly magical word. Depending on when you see it, it can have completely opposite effects.

When you see a good number on your report card, and the teacher starts with 'but' to make a seemingly encouraging but actually demoralizing speech, the excitement you just felt can plummet. But when you hear bad news from someone else, the 'but' that follows can fill you with hope, as if the bad news never existed.

It's such a magical word, always having an instant reversing effect. Levi, who had rushed home, was now experiencing this magical effect as he stood at the door of his room on the second floor.

Click, click, click, click, click, click...

Was the lock broken? No, with the all-capable maid Chachamaru, nothing in the house would be left unrepaired. Or perhaps the lock just happened to break between Evangeline entering and Levi returning. While possible, it was so unlikely that Levi didn't even consider it.

The truth was very simple. The scenario of a husband being locked out by his wife is common in movies and novels, and now Levi was experiencing it firsthand.

Maybe Evangeline accidentally locked the door? Levi immediately dismissed this overly optimistic thought. Given her recent behavior, he deserved it. He had brought four female lodgers into the house, and the stubborn vampire girl had probably reached her limit.

Evangeline's patience was never something to boast about, and today Levi had sneaked out and returned late at night...

Should he open the door? Levi touched the key in his pocket, hesitating.

The fact that she could lock him out showed how angry the vampire was, completely disregarding her noble dignity and acting like a petulant woman.

Based on Levi's experience, it was best not to provoke her at such times. Evangeline's anger came and went quickly, and by morning, things would likely be back to normal. On the contrary, if Levi used the key to open the door now, she would definitely not be in a good mood.

—Forget it.

Levi took his hand out of his pocket. He suddenly realized he hadn't slept in his own bed for several days, not since he sent Berserker back to the Throne of Heroes.

But how would he spend the night?

Thinking of what happened in Evangeline's room last night, Levi subconsciously turned his gaze to the other end of the corridor.

—Hm?

Evangeline's room was fine, but the room diagonally opposite was emitting a flickering light from under the door. Concentrating, he could faintly hear a crackling sound, like plastic items rubbing against each other.

That room... Levi scratched his head, thinking. The occupant should be... Kaguya Houraisan?