Sayuri and Eriri hesitated to touch the broken pieces of the fox doll, even though Ryuji assured them nothing would happen sihe cursed spirit had already bee with.

  "Dissipate!"

  With just that single word, Ryuji cast a spell, and the broken pieces of the cy doll disied into ashes and vanished. Ryuji couldn't help but appreciate how versatile his spellcasting had bee. It made him realize just how valuable such abilities were in dealing with situations like this.

  Late at night, Ryuji wasn't in a hurry to head home. Instead, he stayed with Eriri, f her and helping her fall asleep. After all that had happehe girl was uandably shaken, ging to him as if she'd break down the moment he left.

  Ryuji could only sigh in uanding. He didn't mind staying by her side, literally just sitting there while she slept. It wasn't the time to think about anything else.

  Once Eriri's breathing became steady and she was sound asleep, Ryuji quietly left the room. The house was mostly dark except for the faint glow of the living room lights. He walked downstairs and saw Sayuri sitting at the dining table, a half-empty bottle of red wine in front of her. She had been drinking alone, and her flushed cheeks showed she'd probably had more thaended.

  "Ryuji-kun," she said softly wheiced him ehe room.

  "Eriri's asleep," he replied, sitting down across from her.

  Sayuri nodded, but didn't say anything at first. She simply poured anss of wihen pushed the bottle toward him. "Will you have a drink with me?"

  Ryuji hesitated but picked up the gss, tasting the wi was expensive, no doubt, but not to his liking. He put it down after just one sip.

  Sayuri stared at her gss for a long moment before speaking. "Do you think I'm a failure as a mother, Ryuji-kun? If I had divorced Spencer earlier, maybe our family wouldn't have ended up like this. Maybe Eriri wouldn't have gohrough what she did today."

  Ryuji didn't respond immediately, instead choosing his words carefully. "Even if you had divorced him earlier, Eriri would still be his daughter. Spencer was already toone. He would have tried something regardless. The ties of blood aren't something that just be cut off with a piece of paper."

  Sayuri sighed heavily, realizing the truth in his words. The hand holding her gss tightened, and veins stood out on the back of her hand. "That man..."

  Ryuji didn't add anything more. It wasn't his pce to get involved in their family matters beyond what he'd already done. After a long silence, Sayuri spoke again.

  "Thank you for everything you've done, Ryuji-kun. Without you, I don't know what would've happeo us."

  "It's nothing," he said, shaking his head.

  Sayuri smiled, though it was bittersweet. "You're a hero, you know that? You saved us."

  Ryuji ughed lightly, not because he found it funny, but because the whole situation had been so surreal. "A hero, huh? If you say so."

  The soundproofing in the house was good enough that he didn't worry about the noise waking Eriri. Sayuri's gaze remained fixed on him, and she propped her on her hand, her eyes gssy from the alcohol.

  "You really are my hero, Ryuji-kun," she said, her voice soft and warm. "I don't know what I would have dohout you."

  Ryuji waved it off. "It's no big deal. I'd have dohe same for anyone, especially for Eriri."

  Sayuri's expression shifted, her eyes flickering with something else. Uhe table, Ryuji suddenly felt something brush against his leg, and when he looked down, he realized it was Sayuri's foot, pyfully nudging him.

  "Is it really just for Eriri?" she asked, her voice dropping to a more suggestive tone. "'t it be for me too?"

  Ryuji raised an eyebrow. "Are you drunk?"

  "I'm not drunk," Sayuri said, leaning in a little closer. "I'm just grateful. And a hero deserves a reward, doesn't he?"

  Without waiting for his response, Sayuri's hand slipped uhe table, and Ryuji could only stare for a sed, pletely caught off guard by her sudden boldness.

  ---

  The m, Eriri came out of her room, still groggy from sleep. She gnced around the house, notig Ryuji was o be found.

  "Where's Ryuji-kun? Did he already leave?" she asked, rubbing her eyes as she shuffled into the kit.

  Sayuri, who was in the middle of preparing breakfast, gnced up with a smile, though she was moving a bit slower than usual. "You woke up too te. He left a little while ago."

  Eriri pouted. "I wao see him before he left."

  Sayuri limped slightly as she moved around the kit, and Eriri frowned, notig. "Mom, are you okay? What happened?"

  "Oh, it's nothing. I just twisted my a night," Sayuri said with a wave of her hand, brushing it off.

  Eriri looked relieved. "Be careful ime, okay?"

  Sayuri nodded, sitting down at the table with a slight wince as she pced the food in front of them. "Don't worry, I'll be more careful."

  Despite her casual demeanor, Sayuri's mind wandered back to the night before. She was still a bit embarrassed by what had happened, but there was a strange sense of satisfa as well. Even though she knew what had transpired wasirely proper, she couldn't help but feel that she had finally taken trol of her life after being stuck for so long.

  "Mom, you're spag out again," Eriri said, snapping her out of her thoughts.

  Sayuri shook her head quickly. "Sorry, just thinking about some things."

  Eriri shrugged, letting it go. "By the way, does Ryuji-kun have a lot to do at school?"

  Sayuri raised an eyebrow at the sudden ge in topic but went along with it. "I imagine so."

  Eriri's face brightened. "Yeah, he's always helping people. You wouldn't believe the kind of stuff he deals with. Ahe top student in our css! He's amazing at everything!"

  Sayuri watched her daughter gush about Ryuji with a small, knowing smile. She could see it clearly, Eriri was head over heels. But at the same time, Sayuri knew something else that Eriri didn't.

  "You 't handle someone like Ryuji,"Sayuri thought to herself. "But maybe... just maybe, I fix him."

  ---

  Meanwhile, Ryuji arrived at school that afternoon, stretg zily with a tented smile on his face. He felt lighter than usual, almost as if a weight had been lifted from him.

  The day had barely started, and he already had a message from Sayuri. After everything that had happened, it seemed she was eager to see him again. She had already booked a hotel room for the evening and asked if he could meet her there.

  Ryuji smirked as he read the message. "A hotel, huh?"

  He typed back quickly, teasing her. "Aren't you worried Eriri might find out?"

  Sayuri's reply was immediate. "She won't. I've made sure of that."

  Ryuji chuckled to himself. It seemed like another long night awaited him.

  Back at the house, Sayuri sent a quick text to Eriri, telling her she had some work to take care of and wouldn't be home that night. Eriri, still unaware of her mother's true pns, didn't think twice about it.

  By the time Ryuji arrived at the hotel, Sayuri had already been waiting for him, her smile pyful and a little mischievous. As soon as he stepped inside, she let her coat fall to the floor, revealing the more daring attire she had on underh.

  "How do I look?" she asked.

  Ryuji grinned. "Perfect."

  It was going to be another eventful night.

  ---

  Meanwhile, somewhere else, Yukino was also preparing for something. She had just fiaking a shower and stood in front of her mirror, cheg her refle. She usually didn't wear makeup, but today, she had applied a light yer, her cheeks flushed with nervousness.

  "I must be crazy," Yukino thought, patting her face to calm herself down. "Why am I getting so worked up?"

  She had lost a bet to Ryuji, and as part of the deal, he was supposed to e over tonight. But as the clock ticked oill hadn't shown up.

  She g the time again. "Where is he?" Should she call him to check? Her fingers hovered over her phone, but she hesitated.

  "No, I 't call him. That'd be too desperate."

  Yukino shook her head a her phone down. "I'll just wait a little longer. He'll e," she said, trying to reassure herself.

  But as the minutes dragged on, her eyes began to droop, aually, exhaustioook her. Yukino fell asleep, still waiting for Ryuji to arrive.

  Ryuji, however, had pletely fotten about the bet.