"I can be your dog, right?" The girl—young-looking, overly cute to the point of being almost unreal—repeated the same words again.
Looking at Kisara's large, watery eyes staring straight at him, Luo Shu took a deep breath and finally said, "You can."
Then he added, "But… from now on, only the two of us are allowed to know about this. No third party must ever find out. Understood?"
In the end, Luo Shu couldn't resist that tiny, selfish desire in his heart.
Maybe that's why, when he imparted knowledge to Kisara, he somehow managed to pass on this absurd mess of thoughts as well.
So… I actually want to keep a beautiful girl as a pet?
Am I really that twisted inside?
As Luo Shu started to seriously question whether he had some kind of perverse kink, Kisara, having received his response, beamed with a bright and joyful smile.
Seeing her smile so purely, Luo Shu, who had been brooding just a moment ago, couldn't help but sigh. He placed one hand on his hip and spoke with a helpless expression, "You're really that happy about it..."
After that, he shook his head and looked at her again. "Do you know your own name?"
"Kisara?" she tilted her head slightly as she sat up from the white hospital bed and stared at him with innocent curiosity.
"So, you only remember the name I taught you. You don't have any memory of your original one?"
Although Luo Shu was quite curious about Kisara's past, he had absolutely no leads to go on. The only person who might have known something—Isaiah—had already been toyed to death by his own hand. So, the chances of uncovering her origins were slim to none.
"Well… in a way, maybe it's not such a bad thing that nobody knows where you came from—not even you."
Luo Shu hadn't forgotten that Lacus had gone as far as to collaborate with him just to place Kisara somewhere secure—planning to open a new SDS branch in Tokyo as a result.
With that much upfront investment, if someone else were to swoop in and steal the prize, Luo Shu knew he wouldn't be able to take it.
That's why, while Kisara's background remained a secret only to their side, Luo Shu figured it might be best to help her erase her demonic identity and give her a fresh start—thus avoiding most unnecessary trouble.
Thinking this far, Luo Shu instinctively looked at Kisara again—only to notice that the thick black aura of misfortune usually swirling around her had significantly diminished.
Did her calamities just decrease? Because I decided to help hide her demonic identity?
So even unacted intentions, as long as they're conscious, can reduce one's misfortune?
That's a bit… karmic, isn't it?
That said, the Harbinger of Calamity profession is really something else.
With this new insight into his class's abilities, Luo Shu turned back toward Kisara. "You're able to stand now, right?"
"Mm. I can," Kisara nodded. She scooted over slightly on the bed, then lightly hopped down, her bare feet landing on the floor.
Seeing that, Luo Shu frowned a little. "Wait a sec."
He looked around and spotted several pairs of dark green foam slippers by the door. He grabbed a pair and placed them at Kisara's feet.
"Put these on. If I take you out barefoot like this, people are going to think I've been abusing you."
Kisara blinked up at him, then bent her head down and, using what little knowledge she had, carefully slipped her smooth little feet into the slippers.
The moment she finished, her eyes went wide in surprise. "Waa~" she exclaimed as she spun in place, the slippers squeaking noisily against the floor with every step.
"All that over a pair of shoes..."
Watching her lively demeanor, Luo Shu felt himself relax just a little. Then he glanced at the stone-like armor that still covered her body.
"That outfit—can you take it off?"
Kisara paused, then reached toward her collarbone and grabbed a chunk of the stone near the edge. With a bit of effort, she tore it off.
Clatter, clatter! The stone armor shattered and scattered on the floor.
Along with the fragments, Luo Shu's eyes practically fell out of his skull.
Maintaining an expression of calm, he looked Kisara up and down for a long moment before grabbing a blue-and-white striped patient gown and handing it to her.
"Put this on. And uh… very impressive development, by the way."
"??"
Kisara blinked innocently but accepted the gown and began to change. Only after she finished did Luo Shu turn around again.
"Come with me," he said. "If you really want to stay by my side, we'll need to inform Lacus. There's no way around it."
More precisely, hiding Kisara's demonic identity without Lacus's help would only create unnecessary problems—and Luo Shu wasn't a fan of unnecessary problems.
But speaking of Lacus reminded him of Kisara… and thinking of Kisara brought back memories of the soft, snow-like skin he saw just now... and suddenly a thought popped into his head:
Wasn't Lacus's figure even better than Kisara's?
His steps faltered for a second, but he quickly shook it off and continued forward, pretending nothing had happened as he led Kisara out of the cabin.
As they walked through the corridors, some of the medical staff spotted Luo Shu leading what was clearly a patient and looked visibly stunned.
A few even stepped forward to stop him.
But Luo Shu simply raised a finger to his lips in a "shh" gesture. Remembering his frontline status and authority, the medics reluctantly stepped aside to let them pass.
Kisara, following behind, bowed politely and whispered, "Pardon us for passing through."
The gesture left the medical staff utterly speechless—as if they had seen a ghost.
Before long, Luo Shu brought Kisara to the stairway leading up to the deck.
The moment his foot touched the deck, he could hear the unmistakable sound of gun bolts being locked and loaded from all directions.
A faint wave of threat washed over him. Luo Shu immediately lowered his foot again.
Standing on the stairwell, he looked down at his chest—now dotted with twelve red laser sights. Then he looked up again, completely bewildered, as he stared into the fire-breathing eyes of his fully-armed, gas-masked comrades.
"Okay, I admit bringing Kisara up here was a little risky… but seriously, don't you think you're pointing those things at the wrong guy?"
Next to him, Kisara, who now understood the situation thanks to the knowledge Luo Shu had given her, also nodded earnestly in agreement.
At the same time, though, she couldn't help but feel confused.
Because judging by the looks in these agents' eyes—full of hostility and suspicion—it seemed like they hated Luo Shu even more than they hated her… the literal demon capable of threatening everyone present.
So, in the end… who's the real demon here?