"Hahaha!"

  Nanako and Mimiko's words made Geto Suguru ugh heartily. Seeing him ugh, the two sisters beamed with pride, clearly pleased with themselves.

  Looking off into the distance, Geto's gaze turned ptive, a subtle seriousness settling in.

  No matter what, his inal pn would not ge. It seemed he couldn't master Domain Expansion before the pn kicked off. But that didn't matter there were always other ways.

  "Gojo… just wait. I'll definitely create a new world," he muttered to himself, his mind already calg the steps.

  ---

  Ba the business car, during a brief moment of rest, Ryuji took a look at the goldery he'd triggered from the special-grade cursed spirit.

  "Goldery: Shadoution!"

  Not bad it was the power to trol shadows.

  Ryuji gave it a try and found he could not only manipute his own shadow but also the shadows of others. This teique definitely had a high ceiling frowth and mastery.

  "Load it," he decided. For abilities like this, keeping them was a no-brainer.

  Only abilities that were truly useless would get discarded.

  "Talery System:

  [Talery system]

  Host: Ryuji Hoshino

  Bloodline: Human

  Loaded entries: Soul Dev [Red], Yin-Yang Eyes [Gold], Presence cealment [Gold],Tranquility [Gold], Reverse Cursed Teique [Gold], Motrag Physique [Gold], Third Dimension, Dreamwalker [Gold], Physical Strengthening [Gold], Cursed Speech [Gold], Shadoution [Gold], Iron Fist [Purple].

  Points: 74,120!"

  Ryuji smiled at the progress. His stats were really starting to stack up.

  pared to the nearly empty panel he'd started with, his abilities now were pretty stacked.

  After returning home, it would be a good time to practice more with his shadoution. Si was a newly acquired ability, it esting and refi. After gng at his panel for a moment, Ryuji closed it with a satisfied grin.

  Turning his attention to Haruno, who was kneeling in front of him, Ryuji reached out and pyfully patted her cheek, grinning.

  "Well done," he said with a satisfied tone.

  Thank goodhis business car had enough spa the backseat. Otherwise, things would have been a little too cramped for fort.

  "..."

  Haruno shot him an icy gre, uo say much, though her expression was one of frustration and exhaustion.

  Just then, the car stopped.

  "Mr. Ryuji, we've arrived," Fumino's voice came from the passenger seat.

  She had even instructed the driver to take a few extra loops around the block, giving them plenty of time.

  "Alright," Ryuji replied casually, watg as Haruno hurriedly tidied herself up. He smirked, stepped out of the car, and stretched his arms.

  "Thank you, Mrs. Yukinoshita, for the ride home," he said politely.

  "It's nothing at all," Fumino responded with a calm smile, maintaining her posed demeanor. "If you ever have the time, Mr. Ryuji, feel free to visit our house."

  "There'll be a ce for sure," Ryuji grinned, giving a short wave as he walked off.

  Once he was out of sight, Fumino instructed the driver to start the car again. As the vehicle began to move, she turned her attention to her daughter, who sat in the back with messy hair and a flustered look.

  "Haruno, care to expin how you and Mr. Ryuji became acquainted?" she asked with a knowing look.

  "You didn't know him at all a, you were fine leaving me aloh him?" Haruno shot back, rolling her eyes. Despite her irritation, there was a strange sense of security she felt from Ryuji. He was now someone she trusted deeply.

  "Well, what could I have done? If you didn't want to, I couldn't have forced you," Fumino replied indifferently.

  She uood her daughter well. Despite Haruno's outwardly obedient nature, when it came to matters of principle, she wouldn't back down easily. Fumino had entered her daughter's stubborance many times especially when she had suggested taking Yukino to high-css social gatherings, only to be firmly opposed by Haruno.

  Haruno had always insisted that her younger sister deserved to enjoy a normal, carefree school life, and as the eldest, she would bear the burden of their family's responsibilities.

  "..."

  Seeing her mother's pierg gaze, Haruno had al. Deep down, she knew her attra to Ryuji was real, even though she had initially resisted it.

  She sighed in resignation. "Fine, whatever. Think what you want."

  Fumino shook her head, a small smile pying on her lips. She didn't o pry any further. As long as her daughter uood the stakes, that was enough.

  "I'm tired. Let's just go home," Haruno said, waving her hand dismissively.

  "Of course," Fumino replied, turning back around, satisfied with how things had gone.

  ---

  Meanwhile, after arriving home, Ryuji noticed that Miko still hadn't returned. He made a quick call and learhat she had been busy apanying her mother.

  Ryuji didn't mind. In fact, Miko had even suggested that he could visit her at her mother's house if he wahe upstairs rooms were soundproof, after all.

  Ryuji's immediate reply was, "Sounds good!"

  Yeah, just cheg on the soundproofing nothing more.

  Suddenly, the doorbell rang, interrupting his thoughts. Curious, Ryuji walked over to a.

  When he opehe door, he was greeted by the sight of Izumi Sae standing awkwardly at the entrance. She looked a little flustered.

  "So, what's wrong this time? Another broken water pipe?" Ryuji asked with a pyful smirk.

  "The kit…," Sae muttered guiltily, avoiding eye tact. She was clearly embarrassed.

  Ryuji just stood there, looking at her for a long moment before letting out a soft chuckle.

  "Alright, I'll take care of it."

  ---

  Ihe kit, Ryuji quickly spotted the issue. As expected, the floor was flooded. The pipes were clearly busted, but upon closer iion, it didn't seem like normal wear and tear. This pipe had been tampered with.

  "You know, I just realized this wasn't caused by old pipes wearing out," Ryuji said, looking over at Sae with a raised eyebrow.

  Sae froze, guilt fshing across her face. She had definitely been caught.

  "..."

  She couldn't meet his gaze. Her eyes darted to the side, avoiding him entirely.

  "You broke it on purpose, didn't you?" Ryuji's grin widened as he leaned back.

  Sae's face flushed with embarrassment, and she stammered, "I—well… maybe?"

  "Uh-huh. Well, I think some punishment is in order for that, don't you?" Ryuji teased, his voice carrying a pyful edge.

  "W-Wait! You—" Sae tried to protest, but Ryuji wasn't about to let her off that easily.