After a brief moment of stunned silence, the five Nakano sisters all shrank together like frightened kittens.
Even though Ichika was scared herself, she still instinctively stepped in front of her younger sisters, staring at Ryuya with eyes full of fear.
This is the normal reaction, right?
Ryuya couldn't help thinking so. As expected, Sakurajima Mai really was the odd one out—she had stayed unbelievably calm when she first saw him.
He thought this without realizing that his own first reaction to the supernatural had been even more dramatic…
"W-Who are you? How did you get in here?"
Although Ichika had heard his introduction earlier, her brain clearly refused to believe it. She nervously asked again, voice trembling.
Seeing her fear, Ryuya took two steps back and raised both hands naturally, signaling he meant no harm.
"As I said, lovely young ladies—I am Ryuya Kurobane, a devil. I was summoned here to fulfill the wish you made."
As he spoke, he waved his hand lightly.
A flyer condensed out of thin air, formed from pure magic.
"This thing—you all remember it, don't you?"
His tone was calm. After speaking, he folded his arms and simply stood there, silent and composed.
It must be said—Ryuya's presence was quite striking.
Clad entirely in black, a fitted leather jacket outlining his figure, he looked cool and effortlessly handsome.
Standing there, he didn't give off any strange or eerie aura.
To the five girls, he could easily pass for a normal human.
Yet… his words were too convincing to ignore.
And with the magically recreated flyer right in front of them—well, that was evidence they couldn't deny.
"So what exactly is going on? Why did you come to our home?" Ichika asked.
As the eldest, she naturally placed herself between him and her sisters, who still huddled far away, visibly shaken.
"To put it simply—this is supernatural power. That flyer is our summoning medium. Humans make a wish, summon a devil, and we come to grant your request."
"Huh? If we're making wishes, shouldn't we be wishing to the gods? Wouldn't angels come instead? What does a devil have to do with it?"
Nino forced herself to sound bold, even though she was clearly scared.
Hearing the words "god" and "angel," Ryuya raised a brow but didn't react much. His voice stayed calm:
"Then tell me—when you made wishes to gods, did they ever send an angel to fulfill them?"
The girls froze, unable to respond.
Of course not.
If angels really appeared, they would've known long ago.
Ryuya continued smoothly:
"They didn't, right? Sorry to disappoint you, but the ones who actually come to grant wishes are us devils. Gods and angels are usually only interested in freeloading off your faith."
The sisters exchanged bewildered looks.
Suddenly, Yotsuba brightened up with excitement.
"Waaah—so it's real!? Devil-san, you really came because I summoned you!? You're really the kind of devil from myths?"
Full of energy and innocence, Yotsuba returned to her usual self the moment she saw how gentle and non-threatening Ryuya was.
Ryuya gave her a polite, professional smile.
"Yes. The real deal."
And with a soft sound—
a pair of demonic wings unfurled from his back.
"Woooow!!"
Yotsuba practically vibrated with excitement, eyes sparkling as she stared at the wings like she had just discovered treasure.
Seeing that the five girls finally seemed calmer, Ryuya smiled politely.
"May I take a seat?"
"Ah—y-yes, please… please do," Ichika said hurriedly.
Ryuya nodded and calmly sat down on the sofa across from them.
Ryuya looked at the five girls who were still huddled together on the opposite side of the room and couldn't help finding it amusing.
"You should believe by now that I mean no harm. Why don't you sit down? This is your home, after all."
"Uh… s-sorry for being rude…"
Ichika forced a stiff smile. The sisters finally sat back down—though their eyes stayed glued to Ryuya with clear tension.
"R-Ryuya-san… right?" Itsuki finally spoke up.
"Yes."
"H-hello… I'm Nakano Itsuki…"
She swallowed hard, then cautiously asked:
"You have supernatural powers—like what we see in movies, right? But why… why have we never heard of anything like this before?"
"Because if humans don't intend to accept a contract with us, we erase all memories related to devils from their minds. You forget everything and return to normal life. Neither side interferes with the other."
Ryuya explained patiently.
These five were clearly first-timers when it came to devils.
Not like Koneko or Akeno's regular clients—those people were repeat customers, which saved him a lot of explanation.
After hearing his words, all five sisters sat with their mouths slightly open.
"Memory manipulation? Really?"
Even Miku couldn't help whispering. She had been terrified just moments ago.
"Yes. Whether it's angels or devils, this kind of thing is trivially easy."
Yotsuba's eyes immediately sparkled.
"Amazing… Then you can really grant my wish?"
"Miss Nakano Yotsuba, your wish was to pass your exams together with your sisters, correct?"
Ryuya smiled faintly.
Being suddenly exposed, Yotsuba froze for a moment before her face turned red.
"Awawawa… don't say it out loud… If you say the wish, won't it stop working…?"
Ryuya almost laughed.
This kid is way too pure. It's kind of adorable…
He tapped his own temple lightly.
"I can manipulate your memory—make the things you study imprint deeply into your mind so you can't forget them even if you want to. If you wish, scoring perfect marks is easy."
"Really!?"
Yotsuba's eyes widened. "That's crazy strong!!"
"Yes. As long as you form a contract with me, I can fulfill your wish. And in return, I receive compensation through the contract. That is why I'm here."
"Wait… compensation? What do you mean by that?"
Ichika, being the most mature, immediately asked the important question.
Ryuya gave a calm smile.
"Have you heard the legends? A human sacrifices their anger, greed, sorrow—those emotions—to a devil in exchange for immense power, then uses that power to defeat monsters and save a loved one."
"Eh? So you do take sacrifices!? Isn't that really dangerous then!?"
Ichika and the others instantly stiffened, preparing to reject him.
"I didn't finish."
Ryuya continued slowly:
"What we collect truly is that kind of power, yes. But we don't strip you of emotions completely. It's more like a slow, continuous flow—gathered gently through the contract. Not some dramatic 'kill the chicken to get the egg' scenario."
Ryuya then tilted his head.
"And 'kill the chicken to get the egg' was just a metaphor, okay? No other meaning. Don't misunderstand."
"..."
There was really no need to add that last part!!
If you don't know how to talk, maybe just… don't…
---
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