Erina Nakiri's Shock

— — — — — — 

Lynn's voice snapped Avrora out of her daze.

She lowered her head and took the blessing status sheet handed to her.

Then, suddenly, she felt a chill on her chest.

Avrora: "…"

Smack!

She immediately slapped the sheet onto her chest to cover herself.

And the worst part? It fit perfectly.

Lynn's expression turned a little awkward. He reached out to pat her head and offered a small consolation. "Don't worry, small is cute too. And I had seen worse."

"???"

Avrora's eyes went wide.

S-small?

SMALL?!

She looked down, then slumped forward like the air had been sucked out of her.

W-well, she didn't exactly have a comeback for that.

But still!

Did he really have to say something so mean?!

Avrora puffed up her cheeks in protest and shot him an angry glare.

Lynn, completely unfazed, gave her another head pat and nudged her, "C'mon, check it quick. Our guest'll be here soon."

"The one who's amazing at cooking!"

Avrora's eyes lit up instantly. She stopped sulking in an instant and, still using one hand to guard her modesty, eagerly began looking through her blessing sheet.

Her gaze paused for a second on the "Master" section, then drifted downward.

"Kaleid Blood…?"

Her eyes widened in shock.

Wait a sec, isn't that the title of the Fourth Primogenitor?!

She read the skill description more carefully—and her expression turned weird.

What the hell?

Did she become the Original Fourth Primogenitor now?!

— — —

Meanwhile, inside the Devil space...

Cyrora let out two sneezes in a row.

"???"

Can souls even sneeze?

She blinked, puzzled.

Then suddenly—shiver. A chill ran down her spine. Something felt off.

Like someone had stolen her life.

Why did she feel that way?

She frowned, discomfort bubbling up inside her.

Shaking her head, she pushed the strange feeling aside and looked toward where Lynn had just disappeared.

So he really just left?

Wasn't he going to take her with him?

Cyrora bit her lip.

Sure, this place was lively and all, but she was stuck at the bottom of the food chain. No matter how "lively" it was, she couldn't enjoy it.

She looked up again, her eyes filled with frustration as she glanced at the Azure Ice Princess.

In the end, she sighed, hugged her knees, and curled up into the corner.

Fresh out of one ice coffin prison, only to end up in another.

— — —

Back in the real world.

After reviewing the ability [Kaleid Blood], Avrora focused on her connection with Azure Ice Princess.

"Hmm..."

It felt stronger than before—more tightly linked. She could control it more directly now?

Back then, she'd only served as a vessel to this 12th familiar. If she wanted to use Azure Ice Princess, she had to rely on the Original's power. There was always a layer in between.

But now? That layer felt like it was gone.

It was like she'd also broken free from the Original's chains—and the Azure Ice Princess inside her had done the same.

Avrora's face twisted with a complicated expression.

She really was turning into the Fourth Primogenitor.

Then she looked at another skill: [Devour Devil].

Yeah, let's be honest.

She basically was the Fourth Primogenitor at this point, right?

No—maybe even a buffed version of it.

And if she really collected all the familiars?

Gulp.

She didn't even want to imagine how powerful she'd be.

And unlike the Original, whose devouring ability was limited in scope.

Her [Devour Devil] was way more versatile. It could even devour divine beings—and permanently steal one of their abilities!

Way stronger than just munching on vampires, that's for sure.

Still, Avrora wasn't exactly obsessed with getting stronger.

If she could choose, she'd rather just be a normal girl. Go to school, enjoy delicious food, live a peaceful life.

But her origins had already sealed her fate.

It was either seal the Original—Or be devoured by it.

Now, though, she'd finally escaped that doomed path.

Avrora lifted her head slightly, her ocean-blue eyes settling on Lynn.

At first, she only followed him because of that bottle of milk.

But she never imagined he'd give her more than just good food.

He gave her a new future.

When she first agreed to go with him, she'd been full of doubts.

But now, all she felt was gratitude.

Knock knock!

Suddenly—there was a knock on Lynn's bedroom door.

Hayasaka Ai's voice came through from the other side.

"Lord Lynn, two visitors just arrived outside the villa."

Lynn's eyes narrowed slightly. "That was quick."

— — —

Outside the villa—

Hisako Arato parked the car nearby.

Nakiri Erina looked at the sprawling estate in front of her, awe flashing in her eyes.

"Whoa!"

"This place is so massive!"

She clicked her tongue.

Yeah, definitely looked like a devil's lair.

But wait—Devils live in the human world?!

Erina felt both curious and a bit uneasy.

She hadn't seen what a "devil" actually looked like yet, but standing in front of this mountain estate, it felt more like a den of monsters baring their fangs at her.

And yet—when she peeked past the gates into the villa grounds, confusion clouded her eyes.

There were so many people moving around inside.

Wait, were all of them devils?

But they all looked human.

And—Why were they all girls?!

Erina stared blankly for a moment.

She scanned the area again. Small groups of beautiful girls were chatting and walking together. Her eyelids twitched.

Some of those faces even looked… familiar.

Like she'd seen them before.

Erina furrowed her brow, trying to recall.

"Hmm…"

My Academy? Shuchiin?

A few seconds later, her eyes lit up—she'd figured it out!

Even though she was in Totsuki's section of the campus, it was all part of the same school grounds. It wasn't unusual to run into students from other departments.

Over time, their faces had stuck in her memory. Like that one with huge boobs who kept stuffing snacks in her mouth. Wasn't her name Hana?

Wait a sec!

Erina's eyes went wide.

"Shinomiya Kaguya?!"

"Wearing a maid outfit?!"

Erina stood there, eyes wide in disbelief.

"That's… that's the Shinomiya heiress!"

She was completely fixated on Shinomiya Kaguya —more specifically, on what she was wearing.

Gulp.

She swallowed hard, unable to control the reflex.

Kaguya in a maid outfit?

Erina blinked blankly. "Hisako… I think I'm dreaming. Pinch me."

There was no way this was real. This had to be a dream. It had to be.

Devils and whatever other nonsense—obviously just part of this crazy dream. Stuff like that doesn't happen in real life.

Otherwise, how else could she possibly be seeing the proud Kaguya, that Kaguya, in a sexy maid outfit?!

We're talking about the eldest daughter of the Shinomiya conglomerate. The ice queen of Shuchiin Academy!

Someone that untouchable working as — A maid?!

Erina rubbed her eyes hard, just to make sure she wasn't seeing things. When Kaguya didn't magically disappear or change back into a business suit, Erina became even more convinced she was in some bizarre dream.

Was it because her "God Tongue" had been so picky lately that it triggered this weird stress nightmare?

Erina fell deep into thought.

Hisako Arato: "..."

She glanced down at her own hand, then looked at Erina. Her eyes scanned up and down, clearly debating the best place to pinch.

But in the end, she remembered she was dealing with the proud Miss Nakiri and wisely decided not to commit career suicide.

Instead, she pinched herself.

Feeling the sting of real pain, Hisako said seriously, "Miss Erina… this isn't a dream."

She too was staring at Kaguya in the maid uniform, trying to process how surreal it all felt.

The Shinomiya family… and Kaguya herself—they were names that carried real weight.

Sure, the Nakiri family was a culinary powerhouse with deep roots, but compared to the vast Shinomiya enterprise that had its hands in multiple top-tier industries across Japan? It wasn't even close.

Yet here was their high-and-mighty heiress, in a maid outfit.

Did her family go to hell or what?

What the hell happened to make Kaguya Shinomiya end up like this?

Hisako remembered hearing something—just a snippet of gossip from the headmaster.

Something about trouble in the Shinomiya family?

At the time, she figured she'd misheard, but now yeah.

There's definitely been trouble.

But even then, what kind of family drama would land their heiress in maid service?

Besides, there hadn't been any news about the Shinomiya conglomerate collapsing or anything like that.

The more she thought about it, the less sense it made. Her usually sharp mind just couldn't find a logical explanation.

"Wait… this isn't a dream?" Erina snapped out of her trance at Hisako's words.

"No way."

"No freaking way!"

"Erina Nakiri?"

The sudden cold voice froze her in place.

Erina instinctively lowered her gaze.

A beautiful girl stood in front of her, dressed as a maid, her long black ponytail swaying slightly, and her blood-red eyes sharp enough to send chills down her spine.

Gulp.

The moment Kaguya locked eyes with her, Erina felt a chill run through her whole body. Her posture stiffened like a statue.

They were both daughters of elite families, but Erina could feel it—the overwhelming pressure. She was being completely overshadowed.

So this was a true top-tier heiress.

A trace of fear crept into Erina's heart.

She'd always been proud, borderline arrogant—but standing here in front of Kaguya Shinomiya, she felt none of that confidence.

Even though Kaguya was wearing something as uncharacteristic as a maid outfit… she still had that powerful, untouchable aura.

Damn it!

It was the first time Erina had ever felt so humiliated. She clenched her fists in frustration.

Kaguya didn't seem to care about what was going on in Erina's head.

She simply stared at her blankly after saying her name, as if waiting for a response to confirm her identity.

Which only made the pressure on Erina worse.

Trying to calm herself down, Erina took a deep breath and forced herself to speak evenly. "Yes. That's me."

Kaguya nodded once. "The Master is waiting for you in the living room."

Master?

Both Erina and Hisako twitched at the word.

Kaguya had said it so casually, like it was the most normal thing in the world. But to them, it was like someone just smacked them in the face with a sack of bricks.

Kaguya had called someone Master.

And she looked completely serious.

No explanation, no hesitation. And most shockingly of all—no shame.

She wasn't embarrassed. She wasn't reluctant.

If anything, she seemed proud.

Proud to serve this so-called Master of hers.

Most people wouldn't even qualify to be served by someone like her.

She turned away coldly, not even sparing them another glance.

That cool, indifferent vibe? Exactly the same as how she acted at school.

The only time Kaguya ever showed real emotion was when she was with Lynn. That's when the switch flipped and her chaotic rich-girl mode activated.

But to everyone else?

She was still the same frosty ice queen who didn't give a damn.

Erina and Hisako watched her walk away, then exchanged a silent look.

They both saw the same stunned expression reflected in each other's eyes.

---

In the end, it was Erina who nodded first and started walking after Kaguya.

Hisako quickly followed behind.

But now, their steps were a lot more cautious, and both of them were starting to feel nervous.

Who was this "Master" Kaguya spoke of with such loyalty?

Could it really be the devil people were whispering about?

Erina started furiously pinching her own thigh, trying to snap herself out of this madness.

But clearly, Hisako hadn't lied.

This wasn't a dream.

This was real.

Deep breath.

Erina inhaled a few times, clenched her lips, and tried to psych herself up.

"Come on, Erina. Don't chicken out now!"

Fwooosh—!

Suddenly, a gust of wind blew past.

Something black darted across the sky overhead.

Erina blinked and looked up on instinct.

And then she saw it.

A little girl. Flying. With wings.

"...?"

A giant question mark might as well have popped up over Erina's head.

What the hell was that?!

Wings? Flying?!

Is this even still Earth?!

In that instant, she felt like she'd been yanked through a portal into some kind of fantasy world she'd only seen in anime or video games.

Right beside her, Hisako's jaw dropped too.

For a second, she seriously reconsidered whether that pinch from earlier had been thorough enough.

Maybe she should do it again. Just to be sure.

.

.

.