Chapter 67: Yukino Shocked! Is This a Superpower?

For Shirakawa in his current state, this level of impact posed no threat to him at all. Even the enhanced girls who had become superhuman experienced comprehensive improvements in all aspects of their physical capabilities.

But after several rounds of battle, they could only passively defend and were no longer able to resist effectively. By the time the battle ended and they returned to the real world, it was already early morning.

Based on what Miura Yumiko had told him last night about the events at school, Shirakawa had no plans to continue skipping. Yukino had sought him out.

As for heading to the Danmachi world, he only needed enough spare points.

But the danger level had to be considered.

The most critical issue was still the activation of the blank profession panel. Among the worlds currently available in the chat group, the options worth considering were still limited. Sakurajima Mai's world, for example had a bit of fantasy in an otherwise normal daily setting.

In Asuna's SAO game world, players likely had game-related professions, but the power-up potential wasn't very high.

If he really wanted to pick a profession, then it had to be one with high growth potential, and ideally could break through via reputation points. He pondered carefully.

"The Hero from Goblin Slayer's world… the timeline hasn't emerged yet."

"And there are no new worlds in the chat group for now. Kazuma... his most basic profession is Adventurer. If I remember correctly, isn't that the class that can learn all skills?"

While brushing his teeth in the bathroom—

Now with a rare moment of peace, Shirakawa found himself thinking about the blank profession slot and suddenly remembered the protagonist he replaced—Satou Kazuma.

All of his base stats were low.

Even his Adventurer class was the lowest tier. The only real advantage he had was the ability to learn all types of class skills. Not even the proficiency panel could replicate that.

His golden finger, the proficiency panel, was based on foundational job systems, allowing unconditional learning of skills "within" the same job. With that in mind—

Shirakawa made up his mind completely.

"Then it's decided. I'll choose the Adventurer class!"

When he stepped out of the bathroom—

He saw Miura Yumiko still lying in bed browsing her phone, lazily unwilling to get up. The real reason was, of course, Shirakawa himself.

Anyone who had flirted a bit knew—sometimes just being around each other made you want to hold hands, then a hug, then a kiss.

One thing led to another—kissing led to cuddling, cuddling led to undressing. It was a chain reaction passed down through generations.

Shirakawa was no exception.

After exchanging a quick morning greeting with Izumi Mio, who was busy in the kitchen, he smiled and said, "Good morning, Mrs. Izumi."

"You too, Shirakawa-kun."

She wasn't too fond of being called "Mrs.," but it was still better than "auntie." Carrying the prepared breakfast to the table—

She didn't constantly watch over Shirakawa.

But since she didn't need to make a lunchbox today and sometimes didn't even see him around, Mio had a sense that—

He was clearly keeping busy with something these days.

Still, seeing him in his Sobu High School uniform, Mio smiled and asked, "Do you need me to prepare a lunch for today?"

"There's still time."

"But it's not necessary."

He had already made lunch plans with Miura Yumiko at a restaurant near the school. Making a lunchbox now would be a bit too rushed.

Shirakawa smiled and shook his head.

Looking at the surprisingly rich and nutritious breakfast, he could tell Mio had put a lot of effort into the meal.

"I already made plans to eat out with a friend. No need to trouble you, Aunt Izumi."

"No..."

"You're the one taking care of me."

Upon hearing this, Mio quickly shook her head. Even as a home-based erotic manga artist, she wasn't that out of touch with reality.

A typical rental in this area cost at least 80,000 yen per month.

Now she only needed to spend two hours per week helping with light cleaning to cancel out rent entirely.

Even the so-called help with lunch and dinner—

It was more Shirakawa looking after her financially. Now, hearing him say she was the one being cared for, Mio couldn't accept it.

"If it weren't for you, Shirakawa-kun, I honestly don't know how I would have paid rent this month... I don't even know how to repay you."

"There'll be opportunities."

Considering that Miura Yumiko was still in the bedroom, even if he had other ideas, Shirakawa wasn't about to say anything to Mio right now.

There were no limits to how many could be chosen by the God of Pleasure.

The more there were, the greater the enhancement to his attributes. Still, he didn't plan to go for quantity—only those he was close with—

And who were willing to offer complete loyalty!

"..."

"If there's ever a way I can help you, Shirakawa-kun, I won't refuse under any circumstances."

She didn't treat this as a joke. Mio said it seriously. But the moment those words left her lips—

Her mind suddenly conjured scenes straight from an erotic manga.

If he really did need something like that… would she say yes?

She couldn't even meet Shirakawa's eyes now. After washing the frying pan she'd used, she escaped the house with a clumsy excuse.

"Hopefully..."

"..."

With the sound of the front door locking, Miura Yumiko—now fully dressed in her Sobu High School uniform—peeked out from the bedroom.

Her expression was one of obvious curiosity.

She had left early yesterday and hadn't realized someone else lived here. What just happened was too hard to ignore.

"What was that about?"

"She's a tenant in this building. She works as an illustrator with an unstable income. I was too lazy to clean, so I asked her to help."

"In exchange for reduced rent."

His relationship with Izumi Sagiri was still entirely innocent, so when explaining things to Miura Yumiko, Shirakawa was particularly confident and straightforward.

He kept it simple.

However—

Miura Yumiko's gaze never left Shirakawa's face. Especially when she recalled the typical harem tropes from light novels, her expression turned a little strange.

"Shirakawa-kun… don't tell me you're planning to start a harem?"

"Of course."

Facing Miura Yumiko—

From any angle, their relationship couldn't be considered pure romance. To be precise, it was a bond formed through spiritual-sense abilities.

So—

Shirakawa didn't bother to hide his thoughts at all.

He shook his head with a smile. "And besides, how could this be called a harem? I just want to bestow the title of Chosen of Pleasure on those I hold expectations for."

"Then why didn't you give that title to that onee-san... directly?"

"Out of respect for her will."

Now that his divine profession had broken through smoothly, Shirakawa didn't see the point in forcing someone to change their faith.

That said—

When he recalled the people who had become Chosen of Pleasure—Miura, the urban legend ghost, and Saeko Busujima from the apocalypse world—

Most of them had already shared some physical intimacy with him beforehand.

If there was an exception…

It would be Darkness from the Konosuba world—who was a masochistic pervert knight. The progression of that relationship had been way too fast. Looking at Miura—

Shirakawa asked, "After becoming a Chosen of Pleasure, aside from the physical enhancements, what's the most noticeable change for you?"

"Uh…"

Recalling how she felt last night, Miura Yumiko's brows knit slightly. Her tone was uncertain. "It's like... everything..."

"All desires became magnified?"

"Uncontrollably so—yes, all kinds of desires… you know what I mean." She suddenly went quiet at this point.

That was exactly how it had felt.

But—

As she gradually adapted to being a Chosen of Pleasure, those impulses began to fade. Besides, she wasn't particularly resistant to them to begin with.

"I see..."

Listening to her explanation in detail, Shirakawa's previously furrowed brows relaxed. It seemed to be a change brought by the divine nature of pleasure.

The profession panel didn't provide detailed skill descriptions.

Corruption?

He was a proper God of Pleasure—there was no way he'd do something like that!

Putting that matter aside—

Miura Yumiko glanced at Shirakawa, who had changed into the Sobu High uniform, and asked with a strange look, "Why are you suddenly going to school today?"

"Don't tell me… you want to see that Yukinoshita girl?"

"That's part of it."

"But I also want to see whether, after becoming a priest, you can handle evil spirits on your own. As long as you're not in serious danger..."

"I can leave the rest to you."

Shirakawa spoke in a relaxed tone.

The world was gradually becoming less like ordinary daily life. There might be threats besides evil spirits. So he needed to keep an eye on Miura Yumiko.

To help her get used to being an adventurer.

As for whether Miko, Hana Yurikawa, or Izumi Miori would also become Chosen—that needed to be nudged forward bit by bit.

They had moved into the apartment.

It was obvious this wasn't heading toward just a casual friendship.

"Alright."

Even though his answer was a bit lacking, Miura Yumiko didn't care about the details. After becoming an adventurer, she did feel nervous about facing evil spirits alone.

But—

With Shirakawa at her side, she didn't feel that anxious.

Though he was indeed... a bit of a playboy, his attitude toward her had been solid. And as a god, he had plenty to take care of.

Thinking it over, Miura Yumiko could understand it.

She didn't want to become a burden to Shirakawa either. With a confident smile, she said seriously, "I absolutely won't drag you down."

Since they still had to attend regular classes, and since Miura Yumiko spent most of her time at Sobu High, they chose the school as their testing ground.

In a quiet corner—

Especially after last night, the number of evil spirits in Sobu High wasn't small. But very few students had spiritual-sense abilities.

So it wouldn't affect the school's operations.

There was still plenty of time before classes started, and aside from the international class, few students passed through this building.

"Your profession's skill has a natural restraining effect on evil spirits."

Shirakawa fully suppressed the [Diamond Body] ability of the Exorcist profession—removing any natural intimidation toward the spirits.

As a result, the wandering evil spirits began to focus on Shirakawa and Miura Yumiko, inching closer.

"..."

The method to activate the skill was simple. Even someone like Miura Yumiko, who had never played MMOs, quickly got the hang of it. By channeling mana—

She could activate it.

[Holy Light Baptism]—

It was her priest profession's core skill. As her mana drained, a gentle, holy light appeared in her palm, and as she focused it—

She decisively fired it at the approaching spirit.

It was a spell from another world. The evil spirit hadn't realized the seriousness of the situation, acting only on instinct to escape.

But the moment it had chosen to approach, its fate had already been sealed.

Zzzzzz!

The moment the holy light touched the ghost, the thick miasma surrounding its body sizzled into foul-smelling smoke.

Then it was completely vaporized.

Even Miura Yumiko, watching with wide eyes, hadn't expected these terrifying-looking spirits to be handled so easily!

And after witnessing the death of their kin—

The rest of the hostile spirits froze in fear and didn't dare come any closer.

Seeing this, Shirakawa gave Miura Yumiko a silent thumbs-up for her adaptability and said lightly, "You'll see for yourself—"

"With your adventurer status now, taking down evil spirits is a breeze!"

---

Evil spirits—

They were real!

That fact alone was earth-shattering for Yukinoshita Yukino. Even now, she couldn't forget what happened in the clubroom that day.

The foul stench, the grotesque appearance—those spirits had become a nightmare lodged deep in Yukino's heart.

"...."

Thanks to Chitanda's help, she had managed to add Shirakawa on Line. She was hoping to apologize through chat.

But doing it that way—

Felt disrespectful.

The Classic Literature Club seemed to have ceased all activity, and she didn't find Shirakawa there.

So she went to Class 2-F—

But he wasn't there either.

"Is there really no other way?"

Every time she woke up, Yukinoshita Yukino felt like something was hiding in the shadows of her home.

Even on the way to Sobu High—

She would occasionally glimpse black blurs, ghostly figures whose faces she couldn't make out.

If what Shirakawa said that day in the clubroom was true...

She probably had a weak spiritual-sense ability.

Trying to ignore the spirits and focus on her studies felt like a luxury—let alone running the Service Club.

Just as she composed herself, ready to leave for school—

She saw a small old-man-looking ghost in the corner of her apartment entrance. It was about the size of a doll, and when it saw her—

It jumped in fright.

"...."

It wasn't particularly strong, but Yukino, already in a foul mood, became even more irritable.

This had become her daily routine for the past two days.

Thankfully, she had a family car to take her to school, avoiding many of these incidents.

What she was really curious about now—

Was Miura Yumiko, who also had spiritual-sense abilities.

How did she deal with it?

Judging by how confidently Miura had approached Shirakawa—

Her spiritual-sense was probably far stronger than Yukino's.

"So, how exactly should I bring it up?"

Yukinoshita Yukino had always been a bit difficult personality-wise. Carrying mixed emotions, she arrived at Sobu High, and it was still early before classes began.

There weren't many students at the school.

Only faculty members were cleaning fallen leaves off the ground. A casual glance toward a dimly lit corner would reveal curled-up ghosts.

They weren't particularly aggressive.

"Should I really pretend not to see them? Is there no way to deal with this spiritual perception...?"

Yukinoshita even found herself missing the quiet, peaceful life at her previous normal high school. That kind of daily life felt increasingly distant.

She went up the stairs.

Her destination: the second-year international class.

But the figure of the blonde gal at the far end of the hallway looked very familiar—Miura Yumiko, with her blonde hair tied in a ponytail.

Her pleated skirt wasn't as short as it used to be.

Whatever had happened that made Miura Yumiko gradually change her old habits—Yukinoshita Yukino wasn't particularly curious.

However—

When she spotted a ghost emanating a strong aura in the hallway and was just about to warn her, what she saw next would remain etched in her memory for life.

In Miura Yumiko's hand glowed a gentle, sacred light.

As if It was magic from a light novel. Facing a ghost radiating terror, she launched the gentle light at a speed too fast for the naked eye to follow.

It hit the ghost directly!

Yukinoshita could practically hear the ghost's shrieks. The holy and gentle light erased the ghost on the spot, leaving no trace behind.

"Was that an exorcism?!"

The sudden scene left Yukinoshita Yukino momentarily brain-dead.

If she couldn't see ghosts herself—

She would've thought this was just some video recording.

She paused halfway up the stairs.

Miura Yumiko, having dealt with the ghost, sounded rather excited. "Shirakawa-kun, I think I can finally take care of these ghosts now!"

That familiar name made Yukinoshita's face freeze. Following the sound of footsteps, she looked up.

And saw Shirakawa, the very person she had been unable to find the day before.

Their eyes met.

He noticed her too.

He didn't seem bothered by her presence.

Shirakawa's tone was relaxed, even teasing. "Hm, Yukinoshita-san, so you can see ghosts too now?"