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Chapter 23: Since It's Come to This, Might As Well...
Nighttime.
Saeko tossed and turned in bed, completely unable to fall asleep.
Part of it was due to not being used to her new environment yet. But mostly, it was because of Marikawa Shizuka's sudden intrusion during dinner earlier. Especially Shizuka's questions: Why are you in my house? And why are you wearing my clothes?
Every time she thought about it, Saeko felt a mortifying urge to wrap herself up in her blanket and writhe around on the bed like a frantic caterpillar.
She let out a long sigh. She thought about the outfit she had bought but never once worn—the one she had finally worked up the courage to wear for Suyan tonight.
It was a pity. But she'd just have to wait for next time.
The girl sat up in bed, deciding to go out and get a glass of ice water to properly calm down. Walking to the door, she quietly cracked it open.
Good, there were no lights on outside. It seemed Suyan and Shizuka had both returned to their rooms to rest. This allowed Saeko to breathe a sigh of relief.
She slowly opened the door and crept into the living room under the cover of darkness. The barely-touched dinner was still sitting on the dining table. After some thought, Saeko decided she might as well pack up the leftovers to prevent the food from spoiling. After all, Suyan had cooked quite a lot; there would be more than enough to serve as their lunch bentos tomorrow.
It didn't take long for Saeko to deftly pack up the dinner. She then poured herself a glass of ice water from the fridge and chugged it all down in one go.
Just as she was about to return to her bedroom to sleep, she noticed a very faint, eerie noise echoing from somewhere in the house, sounding almost like the mournful wail of a female ghost. If it hadn't been for her Nen training, which had slightly enhanced her vision, hearing, and physical constitution, she might not have noticed it at all.
Also because of Nen, she, who normally scoffed at the idea of ghosts and gods, began to harbor some alternative thoughts. In modern society, killing people was illegal. But what about killing ghosts? Killing monsters? Killing spirits?
Saeko couldn't help but feel a twinge of curiosity. If Nen worked against 'those kinds of things', and assuming the entity had nothing to do with Suyan, perhaps she could slay it and indulge her desires a little?
Following the source of the sound, she arrived in front of a bedroom door. Instantly, she knew she had misunderstood.
Still, she couldn't help but be curious about the commotion inside. Besides herself, the only other woman in the house was Shizuka. And since Shizuka had mentioned earlier that this was her house, it was obvious this bedroom belonged to her.
But why was Shizuka making such strange noises in the middle of the night?
The girl curiously pressed her ear against the door to hear what was happening inside more clearly. What she heard were Shizuka's begging cries.
Phrases like, "I was wrong, please let me go," "Please don't do it again, I really can't take any more," or "No, not there!" mixed with agonizing wails.
Coupled with Suyan's occasional remarks: "This is what you get for ruining my good time," and "You don't know you were wrong, you just know you're at your limit." Judging from the dialogue, Suyan was in there teaching Shizuka a lesson, right?
Saeko nodded in agreement. Shizuka definitely deserved it. After all, if it hadn't been for her sudden intrusion, given the romantic tension at dinner, she and Suyan would definitely have created a beautiful night together by now.
However, as Saeko continued to listen, she increasingly felt that the noises inside didn't quite sound like a normal punishment.
Soon enough, realization dawned on her. Saeko's face instantly turned flush red, her entire body involuntarily radiating heat. It felt as though a raging fire was burning in her chest, and she vaguely felt as if steam was about to rise from her head.
Despite having just chugged a glass of ice water, her mouth felt impossibly dry. This agonizing sensation was like countless ants crawling over her skin, making her want to flee, yet her feet stubbornly refused to take a single step away.
Saeko was utterly dumbfounded. She had never expected Suyan and Shizuka to have that kind of relationship. Just this afternoon, she had actually been considering helping to push that girl, Miyamoto Rei, toward Suyan!
If it were any other woman, they might have furiously denounced Suyan's scummy behavior of guarding the bowl while staring at the pot. But Saeko was different. She genuinely believed that her flawed, broken self was completely unworthy of the perfect image Suyan held in her eyes. Instead, seeing Suyan display these minor flaws of human nature made him feel much more real to her. It gave her the illusion that, perhaps this way, she could actually be worthy of him.
Therefore, she didn't care how many women Suyan had around him; her only regret was that she wasn't his first. She just wondered if the "senior" Shizuka would be able to tolerate her presence.
After an unknown amount of time, a weak-kneed Saeko dazedly returned to her room.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, she lowered her head to look at her pillow, feeling absolutely zero sleepiness.
Great, now I definitely can't sleep.
Since it's come to this, might as well practice.
Saeko crossed her legs and, following Suyan's instructions from that afternoon, repeatedly practiced Ten, Zetsu, and Ren—the fundamental techniques of the Four Major Principles of Nen. As her training deepened, her mind gradually began to calm down.
Yet, the girl's thoughts couldn't help but drift toward Hatsu, the final of the Four Major Principles.
Even though Suyan had told her that this was an ability Nen users only attempted to develop after proficiently mastering their own aura, she still wanted to try.
She glanced at the headboard where she kept her White Oak Bokken, the weapon she always carried with her. Although it seemed like an ordinary wooden sword, it wielded incredible power in her hands. However, she couldn't take it everywhere. For example, when taking the train, she constantly had to explain herself to the conductors.
Even though she had now learned Nen—making her bare-handed self far stronger than her old self with a wooden sword—for someone who had studied Kendo since childhood, only having a weapon by her side could truly give her peace of mind.
Instantly, the image of Suyan effortlessly conjuring a White Oak Bokken right in front of her flashed through her mind.
If I could do that too...
But how do I do it?
Saeko opened her palm. First, she tried using Ren to project the Nen from her body out through her palm. Then, she tried using the technique of Ten to gather the released Nen into her hand. She imagined the shape, weight, and texture of her usual White Oak Bokken, slowly condensing a sword-shaped aura prototype.
It's working!
However, with just a split second of lost focus, the barely-formed aura prototype dissipated completely.
Saeko's eyes narrowed in concentration. Sure enough, this wasn't as simple as she had thought.
Refusing to accept defeat, Saeko continued her experiments.
She didn't know how much time had passed, nor how many times she had tried.
Finally, a flash of joy crossed the girl's face.
I did it!
A longsword, identical in every way to the White Oak Bokken she always carried, materialized in her hand.
In that instant, the Nen inside Saeko's body went completely berserk, uncontrollably and frantically surging into the wooden sword in her hand.
Little did the girl know that in this very moment, the weapon bearing her 'Vow and Limitation' was born!
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