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"Magic purification complete. No need to worry about side effects."
Seeing the [Purification Complete] notification pop up on the game panel, Blake stood up with a satisfied stretch.
In just one afternoon, he'd earned 100,000 yen and picked up 100 universal EXP. Total win.
"Ruri, I'm heading home."
He had no intention of staying to celebrate with Kuroneko. Sagiri was still at home waiting for him—there was no way he could come back too late.
"Idiot Blake… see you."
Goko Ruri stood up and watched him leave for the station. Then her eyes lit up as she turned toward the shopping mall.
"Alright, let's go. Time to buy gifts for Mom, Dad, and my little sister."
"… "
The rest of the trip was quiet.
After getting off the train, Blake didn't go straight home. Instead, he headed to the supermarket to stock up.
He'd made good money today—of course he was going to treat himself.
Pushing a shopping cart into the store, he went straight for the ingredients section.
"Potatoes, beef, eggs, shrimp…"
He grabbed a bunch of green onions and tossed them into the cart, then let out a helpless sigh.
"Another day without ribs."
As everyone knows, most meat sold in Japanese supermarkets is boneless. If you want ribs, you have to go to a specialty shop.
Chewing tougher food actually helps stimulate tooth and bone development, leading to proper alignment. But since people here avoid bones—even fried chicken with bones gets complaints—a lot of people end up with crooked teeth.
Thankfully, both he and Sagiri had good genes. Their teeth were straight and neat.
He hadn't wandered long when a girl with dazzling golden hair suddenly came into view.
She was petite, with pale skin, a red ribbon tied in her hair, and a pink-and-white Lolita dress.
Yamada Elf.
Right now, she was holding a monster plush toy, secretly messing with a grade-school kid.
"Mom! The monster is moving!"
"Don't make things up."
"Mom, help! It's chasing me!"
"Even if there were a monster, you're not getting snacks today."
"…"
Watching the scene unfold, Blake felt a wave of speechless disbelief.
The "angel" didn't like using her abilities because it disrupted her peaceful life. Kuroneko wanted to use hers to make money.
Only a kid would use powers just to mess with people.
"…Honestly, it'd be better if I couldn't see any of this."
He quietly turned away and pushed his cart in the opposite direction.
Unfortunately, it didn't take long before a clear, pleasant voice called out behind him—
"Servant, you're here shopping too?"
"… "
Blake kept his eyes forward, pretending he hadn't heard.
He couldn't exactly go invisible. With people around, if he suddenly started talking back, he'd look like some delusional weirdo chatting with thin air.
"Servant, why aren't you answering?"
Yamada Elf clasped her hands behind her back and tilted her head, her golden hair slipping over her shoulders, gleaming under the lights.
Blake stayed expressionless. He picked up a carton of milk, checked the expiration date carefully, and put it in his cart.
"Huh?"
Elf blinked, then muttered to herself,
"Wait… does that mean he can only see me at night? Not during the day?"
Yeah, exactly. So please go back to messing with that kid.
A sly smile spread across her face.
"Looks like I can have some fun with my servant."
Blake: "… "
What's fun about teasing an adult? Go bother the kid instead.
From then on, Elf started quietly taking items out of his cart and replacing them with random things from the shelves, trying to mess with him.
Too bad her tricks were way too basic. Blake stayed completely stone-faced the entire time.
Child's play.
"Looks like my servant really can't see me during the day…"
Reaching a quiet corner with no one around, Elf sighed, looking bored. Then she grabbed the hem of her dress and slowly began lifting it.
"…Such a waste of the reward I prepared."
Blake's eyes widened in shock.
This is a public place! What are you doing?!
Even if you're invisible, have some shame! Don't just lift your skirt like that!
As the hem rose higher, her slender, straight legs came into view. She was wearing white thigh-high socks today, with little embroidered cat paws near the top—soft and tempting, like marshmallows.
And she kept going, with no intention of stopping. Her voice turned soft and teasing.
"Servant, I'm not wearing anything underneath today~"
"… "
At those words, instinct completely overpowered reason. Blake couldn't stop himself from glancing over.
A flash of blue entered his sight.
Didn't you say you weren't wearing anything?
That's clearly safety shorts!
"Hehe~"
Elf let out a smug little laugh, dropped her skirt, and proudly lifted her chin.
"Knew it. You've been lying—you can see me the whole time!"
"Manga was right. No boy can resist the ultimate 'skirt-lift' move from a cute girl!"
Blake kept a straight face. "My eyes were just a bit tired."
"Hmph, liar." Elf poked his arm with a slender finger. "So, servant, were you thinking something naughty just now?"
"I wasn't. Don't make things up."
"If you're lying, then from now on, every time you go out, your phone battery will always be at 1%."
Blake: "… "
That's evil.
That curse is way too evil!
"…Isn't it a bit much, using invisibility to mess with a kid like that?"
He quietly changed the subject.
"I wasn't bullying him on purpose," Elf puffed out her cheeks. "It's the kid's own fault."
"Oh?"
"I was just wandering around when I saw him secretly crushing snack packs—one after another—and he wouldn't stop." She crossed her arms, looking righteous. "That kind of behavior needs to be corrected, right?"
…Got it.
Guess I misjudged her.
Blake apologized silently, then said,
"Yeah, that does need correcting… but abusing your ability like that will bring side effects sooner or later. Didn't you learn your lesson last night?"
"I'm not abusing it!" Elf put her hands on her hips. "I'm gathering data."
"Oh?"
Blake looked at her, curious.
"Know your enemy and know yourself, and you'll win every battle. Only by fully understanding an ability can you avoid trouble."
She pulled out a notebook and began listing things off.
"For example, testing how long invisibility can last. Is there a limit, or can it go on indefinitely? I haven't hit a limit yet, so I'm still testing."
"I've also gathered a lot of useful data."
"Like how, while invisible, I can pick things up when people aren't paying attention. Anything I hold becomes invisible too, so no one notices."
"And also, invisibility doesn't mean my presence is completely erased. If I do something weird to someone, they can still notice. Like earlier, there was this little girl with super cute twin buns—I got curious and tapped her, and she clearly felt it, even though she couldn't see me…"
Blake listened quietly, surprise finally showing on his face. His impression of her shifted a little.
"I thought you were just messing around. My mistake. Sorry."
"Hmph~" Elf put her hands on her hips again, lifting her chin proudly. "You thought I was on the first level…"
"But actually, I'm playing up in the atmosphere."
"....."