Zen Toono's gaze swept across the crowd, finally resting on Gabriel, as expected.
In the entire class, only one student was slumped over the desk sleeping; it was hard not to notice.
Following his line of sight, the other students also spotted the fast-asleep Gabriel.
"Tenma-kun hasn't been in good condition lately. Her hair looks fluffy and unkempt, as if it hasn't been styled in a long time. Could she have been staying up late recently?"
"Maybe she's been cramming for classes in private? After all, Tenma-kun's grades have always been stable; she's never fallen from her throne as number one."
"Does Yotsuya-san know what's going on? I remember you two live together."
"That's right! There's a rumor that Tenma-kun has already married into the Yotsuya residence as a live-in son-in-law. Is that true, Yotsuya-san!"
As they chatted, the group's topic dragged Miko Yotsuya into the mix.
Facing the gossiping looks darting in from all directions, Miko Yotsuya wore a face full of embarrassment and let out a few dry laughs, shaking her head. "Stop making wild guesses. It's class time; the teacher is watching from up there."
What live-in son-in-law! Do they dare make the rumors any more ridiculous!
"Everyone, be quiet. Would someone wake Tenma-kun up? We are officially starting class."
Zen Toono's expression was flat. After Miko Yotsuya woke Gabriel, he opened his textbook and began lecturing in a methodical, business-like manner.
At her desk, Gabriel propped up her chin, staring blankly at the blackboard with lifeless eyes.
She wasn't actually sleeping just now; she was painstakingly improving the divine arts known as cognition filter version 20.
Once she performed a final check for loopholes, she could put it into practice.
She hoped Yuria would be able to hold out.
"Speaking of which, Zen Toono is also a person with a story."
While Gabriel performed the final leak-checks and repairs on the new divine arts, she looked at the new teacher on the podium out of the corner of her eye.
Zen Toono's childhood was very unfortunate. His father was a scumbag who abandoned his wife and son, irresponsibly running away early on, and his mother was a perverted lunatic.
Due to the betrayal, his mother's desire for control and possession became extreme.
To keep Zen Toono firmly in her grasp, she used various excuses or coercive methods to force Zen Toono to sever ties with his friends.
That wasn't even the end of it. She even used methods bordering on torture to kill a black cat Zen Toono had adopted as a child, causing him indelible psychological trauma.
And all of this was done solely to control Zen Toono and keep him for herself.
In the end, even in death, she had no intention of letting Zen Toono go.
Suddenly, from a perspective invisible to ordinary people.
The cat evil spirits on Zen Toono's body began hissing incessantly toward the window, their blood-red eyes filled with hostility and ferocity.
Bang, bang!
At that moment, the third-floor window vibrated mysteriously, as if an invisible giant hand were slapping the glass, leaving behind black palm prints emitting an ominous aura.
A woman's face was pressed tightly against the glass, her eyes glaring spitefully at the students in the classroom looking at Zen Toono. Her mouth, which featured spider-like mouthparts, split open as she roared in resentment.
"Don't look!"
"You aren't allowed to look at him!!!"
The two-meter-tall woman squeezed into the classroom, waving her lower body and several spider-like legs as she rushed toward the students in the class staring at Zen Toono.
Among them was Gabriel.
"..."
Gabriel watched silently as the evil spirit, who now blocked her entire field of vision, craned her head forward and glared with eyes that looked like they wanted to devour her.
This was Zen Toono's mother, who was unwilling to grant her son freedom even after death.
And just because Gabriel had looked a few extra times just now, she had such a huge reaction.
This woman is such a disgusting woman!
With a mother like this, Zen Toono's childhood must have been incredibly suffocating.
Gabriel felt some sympathy for Zen Toono; as that face pressed closer and closer, her fist gradually clenched tight.
Soon, she dismissed the impulse to instantly kill the opponent.
"The large dog at home has been a bit too idle lately. I might as well let him out for a stroll; it's the perfect chance to test if summoning divine art is effective."
"If it works well, I can use it to summon the ghostly gods of this world and let those professionals harvest the evil spirits wandering the earth. It would also count as finding some backing for Mitsue Takeda and the others."
"They can't just come looking for me every time they encounter an evil spirit they can't solve. Wouldn't that be a deadly amount of trouble?"
Thinking of this, Gabriel slowly relaxed her clenched fist and began using sound transmission art to communicate with the large dog at home.
The Yotsuya residence.
"Good dog, help me take out a disgusting woman."
Gabriel's voice rang out. The large dog, crouching in front of a computer, lifted his head and asked in a raspy voice, "Is this... Gabriel's... voice... where are you?"
But after scouting the area, he still didn't see Gabriel's figure.
"I'm at school right now. If you're willing to come help me with this favor, I'll buy you the five skins you like best in your game!"
"Is that true?!"
"I never break my word!"
"Fine!"
...
The school.
The moment Miko Yotsuya saw Zen Toono's mother appear, she was caught off guard and startled.
But when she saw the entity go to find trouble with Gabriel, her heart was instantly filled with speechlessness.
"Is she worried she won't die fast enough, actively going to seek her death?"
Just as Miko Yotsuya was thinking this, she suddenly heard the clashing of chains echoing in the classroom.
"Hey, have you had enough? You really think no one can handle you?"
Gabriel moved her lips silently, deliberately magnifying the volume using sound transmission art to funnel the words directly into the ears of Zen Toono's mother.
At the same time, a golden light flashed through the depths of her eyes. On the floor that was originally empty, golden chains began to emerge.
In less than a second, a mass of golden chains resembling a silkworm cocoon appeared beside Gabriel.
"Damn it, damn it, damn it... What kind of thing are you to dare lecture me! I'm going to tear your face to shreds!!"
Zen Toono's mother clutched her ears in pain, her body retreating a few steps uncontrollably.
Her ears had suffered temporary deafness from the blast of the sound transmission art.
Realizing Gabriel could see her, once Zen Toono's mother recovered, the thick legs beneath her began a frantic sprint, closing the distance between herself and Gabriel.
"Go to hell!"
She simultaneously extended her arms, using claws sharper than knives to swipe at Gabriel's harmless little face.
After all the chains vanished into thin air, a monstrous dog larger than a calf stood up from within.
"Kill this disgusting woman for me, but don't let her die too easily."
Gabriel instructed via sound transmission art.
Hearing this, the ears on the large dog's head twitched. He stared at Zen Toono's mother in front of him, and a ferocious smile appeared on his human-like face, revealing a mouth full of fangs.
With a swipe of his paw, he swatted Zen Toono's mother—who couldn't brake in time—away, a spray of blood splashing into the air.
Subsequently, her body passed through the wall and fell downward.
"Skins... don't run!"
The large dog shouted excitedly, passing through the wall together with her as he gave chase.