"Come to think of it, Tina getting upset seeing me kiss someone else... isn't that basically jealousy? I don't get it, we barely even know each other, right?" Tatsuki mused aloud.
Tina straightened her little face and very seriously told him, "God-sama, I like you!"
"..."
Tatsuki went silent. Such pure, straightforward emotion. Were most of the Cursed Children really this pure? He couldn't help but feel a sense of gratification at his actions, at least gaining the affection of these lovely girls.
"Hey, hey." The Saint poked Tatsuki softly and whispered, "This kid... she keeps staring at your lips..."
"Hmm?" Tatsuki met Tina's gaze, and sure enough, she was fixated on his lips, unblinking.
Puzzled, he asked, "What's wrong?"
"I want a kiss!" Tina declared without hesitation.
Facing such earnest, pure desire, Tatsuki didn't know whether to laugh or sigh. But facing a girl so enthusiastic, he naturally granted her wish. He gently kissed the corner of Tina's lips.
"God-sama!!!" Tina cupped her mouth, her face blooming into a sugary, blissful smile. She wanted to tell all the Cursed Children that she had received a kiss from God-sama!
"Do you have any plans from now on, Tina?" Tatsuki asked.
"Not yet." Tina shook her head.
"Want to stay with me?"
"Really?!" Her crimson eyes widened.
"Of course. From now on, just call me Tatsuki-nii, okay? That's my name." Tatsuki softly ruffled her hair.
Tina practically leapt into his arms, crying out happily, "Tatsuki-nii!"
...
Back at the Saint's residence, Tina met Kayo and the others. Tatsuki, Enju, and a few other girls had taken over the Saint's household. Meanwhile, Shinobu and the others arranged by the Saint were staying elsewhere.
Tina, still full of energy, chatted animatedly with everyone.
Listening to the girls discussing how much the Cursed Children adored God-sama, Tatsuki couldn't help but shake his head and smile.
Not wanting to disturb the girls, he and the Saint moved to another room—the Saint's bedroom.
"Tatsuki-kun, you're really popular with the Cursed Children," the Saint said, half in amazement.
"I honestly didn't expect it either," Tatsuki chuckled. Originally, he had just intended to change the world a little. Yet, hearing from Tina that most Cursed Children revered him from the bottom of their hearts—even without having met him—made him feel... humbled.
Recalling Tina's brave actions, the Saint felt a surge of courage herself.
"I like you too, Tatsuki-kun!" she blurted out, then lowered her head, too shy to meet his eyes.
Tatsuki smiled gently and waved his hand, causing the door to close automatically.
Some things didn't need to be said aloud—a single hint was enough.
...
Knock knock.
In the dead of night, just as Tatsuki was preparing to sleep with the Saint nestled in his arms, someone knocked at the door.
At this hour?
He carefully tucked the blanket around the Saint, threw on a robe, and went to open the door.
Standing there was... Shinobu?
Shinobu glanced into the room, took a sniff, and immediately understood. Her cheeks flushed pink, and she forced a slightly awkward smile.
"Ah, seems like I came at a bad time..."
Tatsuki smiled lightly. "No, you came at the perfect time."
Because he had just finished handling everything.
...
After gently closing the door, the two sat in the living room.
"What brings you here?" Tatsuki asked directly.
Shinobu looked a little stiff. "May I... see my sister?"
"..."
Tatsuki was a bit at a loss. It wasn't that he hadn't wanted Kanae to reunite with her sister these past few days—it was just that Kanae was still mortified about the incident with the water splashing and had been too embarrassed to show herself.
"Is there a problem?" Shinobu tensed.
Scratching his head awkwardly, Tatsuki decided to just tell her, "The issue is Kanae herself. She's too embarrassed to come out."
"What?" Shinobu froze as if struck by lightning.
No wonder she hadn't seen her sister in four days. So it wasn't that Tatsuki had forbidden it—Kanae herself didn't want to meet her.
"No, it's not like that!"
Worried she'd misunderstand, Tatsuki quickly explained, "It's because of what happened that day... she's too embarrassed."
Hearing that, Shinobu remembered the incident vividly—getting drenched, the warmth of the water splashing on her face...
"..."
She hurriedly took a sip of water to hide her own embarrassment.
The atmosphere turned weird.
"Wahhh! Shinobu! Don't think about it!!"
Finally, Kanae couldn't stand it anymore and charged into the room, throwing herself onto Shinobu and rubbing her face wildly, desperate to stop her from thinking about it.
The moment she laid eyes on her sister again, Shinobu found herself less excited and more... embarrassed.
"Uh... long time no see, Onee-chan..."
It was the most awkward greeting in history.
"..."
Kanae stayed silent for a moment—then gave up entirely, flopping into Tatsuki's lap.
"Sigh, Tatsuki, why don't you just... take Shinobu too?"
Her logic was simple.
If Shinobu joined their family, then there would be no more awkwardness.
"Huh?" Tatsuki blinked. Wow, what a great sister! Say more things like that!
"Take her too..."
Shinobu stared at the two, her mind blank.
Their relationship... had clearly reached that point.
And what was with Kanae suggesting she take her as well!?
"Cough cough." Tatsuki cleared his throat awkwardly. "Kanae, don't say weird stuff. It's not like I get to decide that."
"Hey... you shouldn't be moving around like that..."
Kanae mischievously started fidgeting her butt against him, clearly on purpose, right in front of Shinobu.
Tatsuki lost his cool. "Fine, if you're gonna mess around like this, don't blame me for what happens next!"
...
The next day, Tina—who had been super energetic the night before—was completely out of it.
Thanks to her owl genes, she was a total night owl.
Her pupils even turned light blue as she yawned endlessly.
Enju and the others looked a little tired too.
As for why... well, their eyes kept darting toward Tatsuki, the Saint, and Shinobu.
Especially Enju, who kept pouting fiercely.
"Yo, Tatsuki, full of energy today? Must've had a great night's rest?" Exusiai teased, grinning.
"And the Saint and Shinobu, too. You both seem... very charming today," she added meaningfully.
At the mention of last night's madness, the Saint and Shinobu turned beet red.
The hidden meaning was clear.
Shinobu had spent the entire night blushing like a tomato, frozen in place. And Kanae, well, she had truly lived up to Tatsuki's expectations.
"Cough cough. Let's focus on the mission," Tatsuki quickly changed the subject.
"Tatsuki-san, is there anything I can help with?" Reinhard asked politely.
"No need. Leave everything to me."
"OK then, guess we'll just chill and stream the show," Exusiai said, grabbing a folding stool.
Honestly, there wasn't much to stream. Tatsuki was simply replicating what he had done in Esdeath's world: ending the apocalypse.
First, though, he needed to deal with the Gastrea Virus.
Closing his golden eyes, he opened them again, revealing icy blue irises laced with hints of rainbow light.
Mystic Eyes of Death Perception.
Gazing at the world, Tatsuki saw countless lines of death crisscrossing everything in sight.
But he didn't need to manually cut each one.
His Mystic Eyes could filter out the death lines he wanted to see—those linked to the Gastrea Virus.
Sure enough, the cluttered lines faded away, leaving one thick black line as wide as his arm, stretching between heaven and earth.
"There you are."
The death line of the Gastrea phenomenon itself.
Gripping his Zanpakuto, Tatsuki took his first swing—not against a living being, but against the world's disease.
He could've used another method, but cutting it with a sword just felt more satisfying.
Everyone else only saw Tatsuki slash the air but in his sight, the death line snapped.
And the effects?
"Eh? I feel like I'm getting weaker!" Enju gasped.
"Me too," Kayo added.
It meant the Gastrea Virus was truly dead.
That didn't mean the Cursed Children were now powerless, though.
Their bodies had long been genetically altered.
The virus merely amplified their abilities.
Like Kayo's high IQ—it was innate. Losing the virus wouldn't make her any less brilliant, just less boosted.
Or Tina, whose nocturnal habits were already part of her genetic makeup.
"Don't worry. The Gastrea Virus is dead. It's completely gone from this world," Tatsuki assured them.
"Eh?" Kisara couldn't believe her ears.
She had only seen Tatsuki swing a sword into thin air—and yet the virus was gone!?
When she met Tatsuki's ice-blue gaze, she shivered. In that instant, she understood.
When Tatsuki said "kill," he meant it—absolutely, utterly, without question.
"Now, let's begin the final step."
"Samsara of All Things—Return Unto Me!"
...
All around the world, people waited nervously for this "Fourth Day."
Would something happen?
For ordinary people, nothing felt different.
"See? That so-called God's Judgment was all bullshit! Nothing happened!" Some people even popped champagne early.
They celebrated too soon.
Tatsuki's voice resounded across the world.
[Everyone, the time for judgment has come!]
"!!!"
The entire planet froze.
He was here.
He was real.
Some panicked. Some trembled in excitement.
Tatsuki had given them four days—to reflect, to change.
Now came the reckoning.
[Before judgment begins, know this:]
[The Gastrea Virus has been completely eradicated.]
[The Cursed Children are now restored to normal humanity.]
"God-sama!"
The Cursed Children, sensing the changes in themselves, wept tears of gratitude and worship.
Ordinary humans, however, were thrown into confusion.
The virus was gone?
The Gastrea were gone?
The Cursed Children were human again?
The news struck them like a thunderclap.
Tatsuki's last mercy.
Now, if anyone still hated the Cursed Children... they deserved to die.
[Now—the judgment begins!]
[Those who hate the Cursed Children...]
[Those who abused them...]
[Those who persecuted them...]
[Your sentence: death by self-hanging!]
At those words, worldwide—
Eyes glazed over.
People jumped from buildings.
Hurled themselves into rivers.
Smashed their heads against walls.
Suicide by hanging, everywhere.
"No... everyone, stop! Please, stop!!!" Rentaro Satomi screamed, tears streaming down his face.
He had wanted to protect humanity, protect law and order but he could do nothing—only watch.
Suddenly, an idea struck him.
"The Cursed Children! They must help! They must save everyone!"
He ran toward the sewers where the Cursed Children often hid...
...
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