Seeing a look of worry on that frivolous face was actually quite satisfying.
"Fine. We'll talk about the details later," Sū ěr nodded. He looked at Araragi, who was silent and frowning. "So, are you going to risk your life to fight for Kiss-shot?"
"What do you think, Araragi-kun?" Oshino patted Araragi on the back. "This is the best way, right? If we don't do a fair duel, those guys will probably flee the country with her limbs. Then finding them would be like finding a needle in a haystack."
For Kiss-shot, Oshino's plan was undoubtedly the most beneficial.
But what about Araragi?
"Ah~ right. Although it might be a bit early for you, Araragi-kun, you should probably think about this ahead of time~" Oshino said, rubbing his stubble. "The King of Oddities isn't known for indiscriminate slaughter or eating humans, but if a vampire wants to continue existing in the world, they must consume life."
"...Consume life?" Araragi pupils shrank as he murmured the words.
"Oh? She hasn't started educating her thrall yet?" Oshino looked surprised. "To put it simply, for a vampire to live, they must eat humans~ But for pure survival, eating one person a month is enough. Twelve a year. Even if you live to be over five hundred like her, that's only about six thousand people."
"S-six thousand people?" Araragi face turned deathly pale.
"People are dying every second in this world. The number is much higher than that. To be honest, that number is lower than the death toll from a small war in the Middle East. Besides, for those six thousand people, you could choose criminals who have committed murder or other sins... Hmm, that number might even be much lower. After all, can you even live to be five hundred, Araragi-kun?" Oshino laughed as he remembered something interesting. "Apparently, whether they're born vampires or humans turned into vampires, they usually commit suicide around age two hundred."
"Suicide? Why?" Hanekawa asked curiously.
"Boredom from living too long? Watching everyone they know grow old and die? Unable to adapt to a rapidly changing world?" Oshino shrugged. "Who knows? I'm not a vampire."
Silence fell around the table, broken only by the sound of someone sipping cola.
Oshino's words weren't just a warning for Araragi; they made Sū ěr think as well. He also possessed eternal life. He wasn't bored now, but what about when he was two hundred?
Two hundred... I'm just afraid the world won't be interesting enough.
"I think... if Araragi-kun committed suicide, the vampire would be sad, wouldn't she?" After a long silence, Hanekawa spoke while lost in thought. "Based on what Oshino-san said, Araragi-kun is only the second thrall she's created in five hundred years. What happened to the first?"
In five hundred years, there had been zero rumors of her first thrall, only the things she had done herself. From that perspective, the first thrall she turned from human to vampire probably... committed suicide, didn't they?
Following that logic, it even explained why she was so reluctant to create thralls.
'Is that so?' Araragi couldn't help but think of the child-vampire whose eyes lit up whenever he brought donuts. He suddenly realized she might be much gentler than he imagined.
"And following that logic, the reason why Miss Kiss-shot suddenly came to Japan—the reason Oshino-san was curious about—can be guessed as well. Could she have come here to commit suicide?" Hanekawa said calmly. The clever girl always thought of many things.
"...Is that so?" Araragi murmured, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. He wanted to rush to Sū ěr house and ask the vampire child, but he suppressed the urge for now.
"Well~ there are many possible reasons. We can talk about that later," Oshino waved his hand. "So, Araragi-kun, you can think about it for now~"
"Then what does Oshino-san think?" Hanekawa suddenly turned her fire on Oshino. "You must have a solution if you're raising this question, right?"
"No, no, I don't have a solution. The decision has to be Araragi-kun's, right?"
Without having discussed it, Meme Oshino spoke the same words Sū ěr had—it was Araragi decision.
Meeting Araragi eyes, Sū ěr said calmly: "What I said before still stands."
"Hmm?" Oshino tilted his head, but neither Sū ěr nor Araragi intended to explain.
After all, the frivolous blonde's stance was still uncertain. Or rather, he had only one stance: maintaining the balance between humans and oddities. He would repeatedly flip between sides for the sake of that intangible balance.
Just as he stole her heart for balance, he was now sitting here with Sū ěr and the others, plotting.
"Alright then~ is it a deal?" Ignoring the cold shoulder, Oshino raised his cola. "The time will be seven days from now. The location... let's make it Araragi-kun's school—at night."
"If you can defeat those two hunters, they'll return her limbs as they were. And I'll return that heart too," Oshino said with a smile. "So, work hard during these seven days!"
"...Yeah," Araragi nodded silently.
"What about me? Who do I fight?" Sū ěr was curious.
"No, no, no! Only Araragi-kun needs to show up. Actually, the reason they asked me to mediate was specifically to make sure you don't personally interfere, Sū-san. And the person at your house shouldn't interfere either," Oshino's head shook like a rattle.
"In fact, the reason they waited so long to ask me to come to the door was precisely because of you, Sū-san. They're quite terrified over there~"