Journey to Godhood Begins in Frieren

Dinner concluded, followed by a brief Q&A session, and Inoue Takina had more or less integrated herself into the family that included Shichen and the others—but more problems had also arisen.

After all, at the end of the day she was still just a teenage girl, and at that age, it's hard not to care about certain things.

Nevertheless, her main goal for now was simply to return to DA, so she wasn't desperate to figure everything out. She could tolerate the confusion.

After dinner, they tidied up the kitchen together and headed upstairs.

Inoue Takina's routine was disciplined; she went straight to take a bath and prepare for bed.

Shichen, meanwhile, took Tohru and the others up to the third floor to try out the games he'd bought.

Tohru and Chisato naturally found games interesting under his guidance, but Kasumigaoka Utaha had no time to play—she needed to write her novel.

"Shichen," she called on her way to the study, "once I'm done writing, teach me magic."

"Sure, I can teach you all night if needed."

"Hmph~ With my brain, I won't need a whole night."

"Chen-nii, what's that about learning magic?" Chisato asked curiously.

"Like this."

As he spoke, he extended one hand, palm upward, from which flames sprang forth—holy-golden flames, imbued with a sacred aura brimming with life.

It was the ability Shichen gained after awakening his first beast-vassal, the new power that came with that vassal's presence, and he could freely use it.

"Whoa!" Chisato stared at the flames in Shichen's palm, feeling a certain familiarity.

"There's something so familiar about it."

"Oh?" Shichen wasn't surprised at all.

He recalled that Chisato carried two Divine Fragments—one belonging to the first beast-vassal he'd obtained from Frieren's world, and another she'd had from the start.

Though that fragment now also existed in him, it remained simultaneously in a "Schrödinger's" state. Having the ability to time-travel, presumably one can walk outside paradoxes. It made sense the fragment existed in both of them.

He was more puzzled, however, about why he still couldn't acquire the other fragment from Chisato's body.

Even the method of acquiring it hadn't appeared yet.

He didn't think they lacked trust or affection at this point—so there had to be some other reason.

On the other hand, the conditions for obtaining Kanna's fragment had already been met as of early that morning. It had only taken one night.

Sure enough, Kanna was basically a child, even if she'd lived over ten thousand years as a dragon. She was simply too quick to trust once Tohru trusted him.

If Tohru hadn't been here, Kanna wouldn't have gotten close to him.

"Chen-nii, can I learn magic too?" Chisato asked.

"You're interested in magic as well?"

"Of course I am! You can just conjure fire out of thin air."

"That's just the simplest demonstration. I can also conjure an entire flower field, and there's a spell that keeps you clean without needing to wash."

"A spell to skip washing? I'll pass on that—I feel better scrubbing up. But I do love the idea of conjuring a flower field!"

Chisato's eyes sparkled.

"Yet that cleaning spell leaves you perfectly spotless, while washing might not be so thorough... You could cast the cleaning spell first and then wash up if you want," Shichen analyzed with a grin.

"True, that does make sense," Chisato acknowledged.

"So, do you still want to learn it?" Shichen teased.

"I want them all!"

"Heh, don't get too excited just yet. What if you can't cultivate the mana needed for magic? Without mana, you can't cast spells."

"Ehhh—" Chisato scrunched up her face in worry.

"Haha, there's no need to fret." Shichen dispersed the golden flames, then gently ruffled her hair.

"Even if you can't cultivate mana, I have alternative methods."

"Chen-nii, you big meanie! You were just scaring me!" Chisato pouted and threw herself into Shichen's arms, lightly pounding his chest.

"How is that scaring you, though?" He laughed, hugging her back.

"It's the truth."

"Yes, it is!" she said, annoyed.

"All right, all right, it's my fault. Happy now?"

"Not enough—I need compensation!" Chisato looked up, eyes fixed on him, lips pursed.

"Compensation? What do you want?"

"Heh-heh~" She giggled, then lifted her face and closed her eyes.

"..."

Naturally, Shichen understood what she meant. So she wanted to sneak a little advantage again—but the problem was the eyes of the two dragons in the room:

Tohru was eyeing him suspiciously, Kanna was gazing at him with curiosity.

"Shichen? Are you going to do something?" Kanna asked, blinking innocently.

"Ah...we're not doing anything." Shichen promptly set aside the idea of "compensating" Chisato with a kiss.

"All right, let's get back to gaming," he said.

"Awww—Chen-nii?" Chisato lamented, disappointed.

"Don't worry—some other time, for sure."

"How could you!" She puffed her cheeks in annoyance.

"Ehem-hmm~ Serves you right," Tohru taunted smugly.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Chisato retorted gloomily, "I only asked for a kiss. You have an issue with that?"

"As if that's my call. If Chen-dono won't do it, then too bad, right? But come on, you're trying to do that right in front of Kanna. Chen-dono clearly wouldn't do it at such a time," Tohru reminded her.

"Oh, yeah...huh?" Chisato blinked, then stared at Tohru.

"What?"

"You're not jealous of Kanna anymore?"

"Hmph. She's only a child. Chen-dono sees her as just a kid."

"You sure caught on fast."

"Because of your reminder. I guess I should thank you," Tohru admitted, glancing aside.

"Is that so? Is that so?" Chisato waggled her brows, stepping closer with a grin—about to drape an arm around Tohru.

"Don't touch me. Only Chen-dono can hug me!" Tohru shoved her away and marched into the game room.

"..."

Chisato pursed her lips, eventually following her.

Inside the gaming area, Shichen continued teaching Kanna how to play. She was focusing on Pokémon, an older version that he still vaguely remembered. She'd fully immersed herself in it, perched on the sofa, hands never leaving the controls.

~~~

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