"AHHH!!"
Makima's entire body convulsed as she felt the full intensity of "Pure Love." Even as foam began to gather at the corners of her mouth, she couldn't fathom what was happening to her. Her contract—usually capable of transferring all damage—was useless. She could only endure the unprecedented, agonizing soreness.
"You... exactly what are you?!"
Makima lay on the floor, glaring fiercely at Arata. Even though she had been "counter-controlled," her gaze remained steely. Before meeting Arata, Makima possessed absolute dominion; anyone who faced her did so with bated breath, walking on eggshells. Even Power trembled at the mere mention of her name. But now? She was being trained like a dog, stripped of all dignity.
"I told you already: I'm the Master. Why do you keep asking?"
"Denji, turn it up a notch."
"No problem, Master! I believe Makima-san will fall in love with calling you 'Master' very soon."
"AH!!"
Makima rolled on the ground. The Huskies circled her, sniffing curiously.
"If you call me 'Master,' I'll let you out."
"Never!!" Makima hissed through gritted teeth, her composure completely shattered. Pain has a way of stripping away a person's facade.
Meanwhile, back in the real world, Denji and the others had been searching for Makima and Arata for three hours.
"Have you found Makima-san yet?" Himeno asked, anxious.
"No. Arata's phone keeps going straight to voicemail, and the two of them are nowhere to be found."
"You don't think they pulled a 'disappearing act' like last time, did they?"
"Last time!" At the memory of Makima nearly being snatched away, Denji grew livid. His dream was not to be trampled upon by others, and the motivation to find her surged.
They searched every floor up and down the resort until they finally found a room guarded by two men. Recalling the previous incident, Denji was determined to see what was behind that door.
"Hey, what do you think you're doing!"
As Denji charged, the guards moved to block him, but Denji countered with a precise strike to their crotches. They collapsed, clutching themselves in agony. Finding the door locked, Denji transformed into Chainsaw Man, preparing to carve his way through.
Just then, the door swung open. Makima stepped out, her forehead slick with sweat.
"Makima-san, are you alright?"
"I'm fine. I was just taking a nap inside. How long have I been asleep?" she asked, acting as if nothing had happened.
"About three hours."
"I've been working too much overtime lately, so I accidentally drifted off." Makima wiped the sweat from her brow. "Denji-kun, why are you transformed?"
"I was worried about you, Makima-san! I was afraid something happened to you again." Denji quickly reverted to his human form.
"Makima-san, should we take you back to rest?" Aki asked, noticing her pale state.
"No need, Aki-kun. I'll go back on my own. You all continue having fun."
With that, Makima walked away. The woman who usually carried an aura of absolute dominance now seemed utterly "emo."
"Makima-san seems to be in a bad mood." Himeno, observant as always, noticed the subtle change.
"Maybe she just doesn't like hot springs, or maybe she caught a cold," Denji suggested, searching for a rational reason.
"Right, why were two guys guarding her door? I don't even recognize them." Himeno turned her attention back to the men still writhing on the floor.
"Speak! Why were you guarding Makima-san's door?" Aki grabbed one of them by the collar.
"Makima-san wanted to sleep, so she told us to guard the door."
"Did she go in alone?" Denji pressed.
"Yes."
After confirming, they released them. Just then, Arata appeared behind the group, cool as a cucumber, holding a soft-serve ice cream. Two disappeared, one returned in a bad mood, the other in high spirits—clearly, they hadn't been together.
"Arata, where did you go?"
"I went for a sauna."
"Which sauna? We searched everywhere and couldn't find you."
"I was invisible while I was in there, that's why you didn't see me."
"Huh?" Himeno didn't understand, but Aki knew better. Aki leaned into Himeno's ear and whispered the truth. Himeno turned pale—not only was he immortal, but he could collect corpses to grow stronger? This was insane.
"Himeno-senpai, keep your surprise to yourself; don't tell anyone else."
"Denji, want an ice cream?" Arata asked, forgetting to mention how Denji's power of "Pure Love" had been instrumental in Makima's training.
"Yes!" Denji followed him to the counter.
"Aki, when did you find out Arata had these abilities?"
"Last night. Also, every time a battle ends, he shows interest in the corpses. I've suspected he was collecting them since then."
"Great, so he's been keeping secrets from us." Himeno caught up to Arata, draping her arm over his neck. "Arata-kun, tell me—what's the price for contracting the Corpse Devil?"
"Accelerated aging of my organs and skin. But I have the Snake Devil, so my skin sheds periodically. As for the organs, I can just swap in a new body when I die, so the negative impact is minimal."
"How many devils' powers do you have now?"
"My math teacher was my gym coach, so I don't remember."
"Forget it then. Get me an ice cream, too."
"An ice cream? The Great Me wants one too!" Power, who had been sleeping while the others were "missing," had finally woken up.
"Himeno-senpai, let's head home after we finish these," Aki suggested.
"I don't want to go back! This place is big and warm, and everything is free—it's the perfect residence for the Great Me."
"Free? Are you kidding? Your spending is tracked by your wristband. I have to go pay the bill in a minute."
"Oh, is that so?" Power pondered while licking her ice cream. "Looks like it's time to go back and think about winning the Nobel Prize. Once I become Prime Minister, I won't have to spend money anywhere."
"You? Winning a Nobel Prize?" Denji scoffed. A devil-human who couldn't even flush a toilet couldn't research anything worthwhile.
"Looking down on the Great Me? Once I'm in power, you're the first one I'll have Makima execute!"
"With Arata's strength, a Nobel Prize seems well within reach," Himeno thought. Arata's standing in her mind had reached a new level. Praising Arata had become her new daily duty.
"I'm going to go back and write The Three-Body Problem. That's guaranteed to win me a Nobel Prize in science fiction."
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