Asai Yu opened his laptop and checked the incoming messages, only to find that three more bands from Tsukinomori Girls' Academy had reached out, all wanting to buy songs.
Oblivionis's name had now completely spread throughout Tsukinomori.
"Look at these requests, and look at the pay they're offering. Stay awake, Sakiko-sensei—this is your life now. You're going to be busy from here on out."
Asai Yu spoke calmly.
"Ugh—" Toyokawa Sakiko let out a long sigh. When was this kind of life ever going to end?
In the blink of an eye, ten hours passed, and the time crept toward around four in the afternoon.
Asai Yu looked at the message Wakaba Mutsumi had just sent. His brows knit slightly, and the temperature in his eyes dropped by a few degrees.
Wakaba Mutsumi: Saki, he's still following me.
Wakaba Mutsumi: I don't know why, but he's staying really close. Saki, are you at home?
Asai Yu typed with both hands and replied: Yeah. I'm downstairs. Come over.
After that, he went down to the ground floor of the apartment building and quietly fixed his gaze on the far end of the street to the left.
About five minutes later, a light-green figure entered his field of vision. Close behind her walked a middle-aged man.
Over here, the moment Wakaba Mutsumi spotted the blue-haired girl not far away, she immediately kicked Mortis out of her body and switched back to herself.
Glancing behind her at the middle-aged man with reddened eyes, fear welled up in her chest. She subconsciously quickened her pace and headed straight toward "Togawa Sakiko."
"Saki."
Wakaba Mutsumi stopped in front of the blue-haired girl, her shoulders still trembling faintly.
Seeing this, Asai Yu reached out and gently patted the doll-like girl on the head.
"It's fine now. Go stand behind me. I'll handle this."
Saki… she's touching my head?
Wakaba Mutsumi's eyes went blank for a split second. She even forgot about the stalker behind her, standing there dumbly.
But she quickly came back to herself, carefully savoring the warmth coming from the hand resting on her head.
Even after that hand pulled away, she remained lost in the aftertaste.
Then, in the next moment, she seemed to remember something. Pain flickered in her eyes, and she shook her head with difficulty, forcing those sensations out of her mind.
No… she isn't the real Saki. The real Saki definitely wouldn't do something like this…
A conflicted, tangled look surfaced in Wakaba Mutsumi's eyes.
Asai Yu didn't spare the girl behind him a glance and instead walked toward Togawa Kiyotsugu, who stood a short distance away.
Before Asai Yu could speak, the man suddenly opened his mouth first.
"Little Saki… so you didn't go back to the family, but moved here instead? Your living conditions look a lot better…"
Togawa Kiyotsugu slightly raised his head, glanced up at the tall apartment building in front of him, then lifted the bottle in his right hand and took a big swig.
"I heard you're still playing piano inside RiNG to earn living expenses. Seeing such a hardworking little Saki, your old man is really happy."
"…It's just that I don't know if you ever thought about me after you left. Lately, I've really been living a miserable life, Saki."
Hearing this, the Togawa Sakiko inside Asai Yu's mind couldn't help but feel a twinge of pity.
No matter what, this was still the father who had raised her since childhood. She couldn't just watch him starve to death or collapse completely.
Compared to the real Togawa Sakiko, Asai Yu didn't waver in the slightest.
He stared at the middle-aged man expressionlessly and spoke in an icy tone.
"So this is your reason for stalking me and Mutsumi? Do you want me to personally escort you to the police station?"
Hearing this, Togawa Kiyotsugu froze for a moment, then suddenly dropped to his knees with a thud.
"I-I'm sorry, Sakiko! I really didn't mean it! It's just that without you, I honestly don't know how I'm supposed to go on living…"
As he spoke, the bottle slipped from his hand and rolled to Asai Yu's feet.
The two locked eyes, and something subtle and dangerous began to brew between them.
This time, Asai Yu had no intention of using the bottle. He was afraid that if he got serious, he'd actually cripple the man.
He stepped forward directly, used the surprising strength that came with a band girl's body, and hauled the middle-aged man up by force. Then he drove a heavy knee strike into him, drawing a muffled groan as the man doubled over.
That was followed by a left hook and a right hook, beating his face until it was swollen and bruised.
Finally, Asai Yu smoothly lowered his stance and kicked the back of the man's knee with his right leg. A sharp crack mixed with the dull pain of bones shifting echoed out, forcing him to kneel to the ground again.
"Sakiko… you… how can you be so heartless…"
Togawa Kiyotsugu endured the agony wracking his entire body, disbelief flooding his eyes.
Then he muttered softly,
"Are you really… still that little Saki?"
Hearing this, the real Togawa Sakiko's gaze shifted. She spoke quietly, almost pleading,
"Yu… that's enough. Stop…"
Asai Yu didn't respond. Instead, he continued addressing the middle-aged man in front of him.
"Of course I am. But I don't really agree with what you're saying. Don't you have plenty of money?"
Togawa Kiyotsugu lowered his eyelids, looking utterly hopeless.
"Money? Where would I still have money…"
"Bullshit."
Asai Yu snapped outright.
"You forgot about your little private stash?"
Hearing that, Togawa Kiyotsugu's expression flickered. After a brief pause, he put on an innocent look.
"Private stash? What private stash? What are you talking about, Saki?"
Asai Yu sneered.
"The stash that's more than enough to completely pay off a 16.8-billion-yen debt. Don't tell me you've even managed to fool yourself?"
Private stash?
16.8 billion?!
At this moment, Togawa Sakiko, who was listening to their exchange, was utterly shaken.
Seeing the cold confidence in the blue-haired girl's eyes, Togawa Kiyotsugu knew that his lie had nowhere left to hide.
His voice grew panicked.
"Where did you hear about this, Sakiko?!"
"So you admit it?" Asai Yu let out a light laugh.
It was actually true?
That bastard of a dad really had more than 16.8 billion yen saved up?!
No wonder Yu never paid him any attention.
The facts were right there. Even if Togawa Sakiko didn't want to believe it, she had no choice but to accept it now.
Then what were these past few months of suffering even for?!
And the breakup of CRYCHIC…
Fragments of her destitute past flashed repeatedly through her mind, and the anger igniting there gradually filled Togawa Sakiko's heart.
Just then, Asai Yu suddenly realized that his body was moving on its own, slowly walking toward the middle-aged man.
But he clearly hadn't made any move himself. That could only mean one thing— Togawa Sakiko was now controlling this body.
Did the system bug out?
Asai Yu was still thinking when he suddenly felt his right hand lift high into the air, then swing viciously toward Togawa Kiyotsugu's face.
From that punch alone, he could clearly feel the girl's rage and will—and, strangely enough, the peculiar sensation of a two-person mixed doubles beatdown.
And of course, it didn't stop at just one punch.
Togawa Sakiko wasn't very good at fighting, so Asai Yu did his best to coordinate with her movements.
By the time a full minute had passed, Togawa Kiyotsugu had been thoroughly beaten by the two of them, collapsing onto the ground, looking as though he were barely clinging to life.