Chapter 453: Sapphire's Choice (Part 3)
However, this "bad" couldn't truly be called evil, and it had nothing to do with being a homewrecker.
Even if Sapphire and Toujou Basara were to reconcile and decide to maintain their mother-son relationship properly, Toujou Basara had no reason to interfere with Sapphire's pursuit of a romantic partner.
Moreover, Sapphire was still a virgin, and Haruto had no intention of scheming behind the scenes.
It could only be said that because he was close in age to Toujou Basara and had become friends with him earlier, his position in this matter was somewhat untenable.
Otherwise, no matter where he went, he would have been fully justified.
At first, the atmosphere was quiet, with only the clinking of cutlery breaking the silence.
With the two main characters remaining silent, the others didn't know how to start a conversation.
Toujou Jin wanted to chat with Sapphire, but she completely ignored him. After several unsuccessful attempts, he wisely resigned himself to drinking and eating alone.
Naruse Mio and Maria were there to lighten the mood tonight. Seeing the awkwardness, the Succubus Loli was the first to liven things up.
With Naruse Mio's cooperation, the atmosphere soon became harmonious, at least to the point where Toujou Basara and Sapphire weren't too tense to speak.
As the dinner drew to a close, the most critical issue could no longer be avoided.
Fortunately, over the course of the meal, Sapphire and Toujou Basara had grown more familiar with each other. Though there was still some stiffness, they could at least carry on a conversation smoothly.
"Basara, I'm sorry... for not visiting you all these years..."
Sapphire lowered her head and spoke softly.
Toujou Basara scratched his head, feeling somewhat embarrassed by Sapphire's apology.
To be honest, growing up without a mother had been difficult. A child's emotions are the most sensitive, and even though Toujou Jin was a good father, there were details he couldn't fully address.
Fortunately, Toujou Basara had an inherently resilient personality, and with Toujou Jin's reputation as the War God, he was spared from particularly harsh experiences. Otherwise, the world might have gained another supervillain.
"It's fine, it's all in the past now."
Faced with Sapphire's apology, Toujou Basara couldn't say he was completely unaffected. But now, after seeing Sapphire's attitude, the last trace of resentment in his heart had completely dissipated.
Since there was also Raphaeline present, Toujou Basara decided to address her by name, though the unnatural tone in his voice was noticeable to everyone present.
This was perfectly normal. When facing a woman he was meeting for the first time, even if he clearly knew she was his biological mother, it was difficult to naturally call her "Mom."
"I suppose Mom... Sapphire must have had her own difficulties. Moreover, when you conceived me, you were also a victim."
It was precisely because of this that when Toujou Basara was born, Sapphire felt not joy but anger.
By the time she later realized the child was innocent, it was already too late to meet him.
Toujou Basara's understanding nature eased most of Sapphire's worries, while also making her feel even more indebted to him.
"Well... Basara, I don't have anything particularly valuable, but this is a weapon forged from ore unique to the Underworld. Please take it."
After steadying her emotions, Sapphire remembered she hadn't yet given him the gift she had prepared for their first meeting.
As she spoke, she materialized a slender, pitch-black katana.
The blade was engraved with intricate patterns, its edge shimmering with an ominous black light. The hilt had a sunken, jade-like luster, making the weapon appear both handsome and formidable.
This weapon was one Sapphire had used in her youth, crafted from the finest materials and with superior craftsmanship. However, as it was designed for a woman, it looked somewhat too slender.
Especially since Toujou Basara was accustomed to wielding the broad-bladed Brynhildr, this black sword, though impressive, wasn't something he particularly wanted.
"No need, Mom... I already have Brynhildr. Giving this weapon to me would be a waste."
As he spoke, he materialized a large silver-white greatsword.
A pale green spiritual energy flowed around it, and for a moment, the immense power of the Satan-Class surfaced.
Haruto glanced at him twice. His strength had indeed improved rapidly, as expected of a prodigy with mixed blood from four races.
Even without tapping into the divine and demonic powers within him, relying solely on his human and dragon bloodlines, he had already reached Satan-Class level at such a young age.
If all four bloodlines were fully developed, he probably wouldn't be far behind Haruto himself.
Sapphire took combat matters seriously. Seeing that Toujou Basara truly had no need for the weapon, she didn't insist, silently resolving to find a different gift to make up for it later.
Putting away the black katana, Sapphire felt considerably more at ease and began chatting normally with Toujou Basara.
They mostly talked about Basara's childhood, with Sapphire occasionally testing his attitude.
Haruto and the others did not interrupt, allowing the two to converse freely.
Only after over an hour had passed, when they had exhausted all topics, did Sapphire hesitantly ask, "Basara... do you want me to be your mother?"
"Ahem..." Haruto interrupted, "Speak more clearly to avoid misunderstandings."
Following his gaze to Toujou Jin across from her, Sapphire quickly added, "Basara, I mean I want to fulfill my responsibilities as a mother, not that I want to be with that Toujou guy."
Toujou Jin, being wise with age, had already noticed something unusual between Haruto and Sapphire.
A faint sense of loss flashed through his mind, quickly replaced by strong voyeuristic curiosity.
He glanced at Basara and Haruto, then at Sapphire, shrugging as he said, "Don't mind me. Basara will be an adult soon, and I might not even come home once a year after that."
"As if you came home frequently before..."
Toujou Basara rolled his eyes and muttered sarcastically.
Ever since he was in third grade and could take care of himself, Toujou Jin had rarely been involved in his life, returning home only two or three times a year.
"Sapphire... Mom, like Dad said, I'll be an adult soon. Actually, you don't need to..."
Seeing Sapphire's expression turn somewhat downcast, Toujou Basara quickly explained, "I'm not blaming you. I'm willing to acknowledge you as my mother. It's just that even in ordinary families, children become independent after reaching adulthood and rarely continue living with their parents..."
This was true. Most people, once capable of living independently, don't want to continue living with their parents.
On the other hand, while Sapphire wanted to fulfill her maternal duties, she actually had no idea how to take care of Toujou Basara.
She might be good at fighting, but when it came to laundry or cooking, she would only make things worse.
"I see... it's really too late now..."
Looking at Toujou Basara, who was now taller than her, Sapphire sighed softly.
Some things, once missed, are hard to make up for.
Her child had grown up. As a mother, she should let go, especially since she hadn't been involved before. Trying to parent now...
She wasn't that shameless.
"Alright. If there's anything you need help with, remember to tell me."
"Okay, Sapphire Mom."
In the end, Sapphire and Toujou Basara acknowledged each other as mother and son.
Though they had reconciled, it didn't really change either of their current lives.
"Alright, let's talk about rescuing Raphaeline now."
Seeing that Sapphire wasn't being stubborn, Haruto breathed a sigh of relief and directly moved the conversation to Sapphire's other concern.
Raphaeline was not only Sapphire's concern but also Chisato Hasegawa and Toujou Basara's.
Toujou Basara was fine - he had only recently learned that one of his two mothers was imprisoned, and given his personality, he naturally wanted to rescue her.
But Chisato Hasegawa and Sapphire had been worrying about this for over ten years. Unfortunately, even after all these years, they still had no way to rescue Raphaeline from the Ten Chief Gods.
Haruto's topic change was successful - Sapphire, Toujou Basara, Naruse Mio, and Maria were all captivated.
However, Toujou Jin, who hadn't seen the drama he expected, didn't fall for it and deliberately brought the topic back.
"Rescuing Raphaeline isn't urgent. With just a few of us, it's not enough - we need more people."
He stared at Haruto and Sapphire, speaking in a flippant tone, "Before that, shouldn't you explain what your relationship with Sapphire is, Haruto?"
"What do you mean, what relationship?"
If anything, because of Mio Naruse and Maria, Sapphire could be considered Haruto's aunt?
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone reacted differently—except for Toujou Basara, who looked confused.
In his view, Sapphire had merely happened to meet Haruto during the Underworld incident, then temporarily stayed because of Mio Naruse, waiting for him to return and recognize her.
Suddenly addressed like this, Sapphire was startled, instinctively separating her hand from Haruto's under the table and leaning away.
Once she realized her reaction was excessive, a faint blush spread across her beautiful face.
Haruto, however, was fine with it. He hadn't planned to keep it a secret forever—he just intended to wait a few days since Toujou Basara had only just reunited with Sapphire.
Since Toujou Jin brought it up directly, he decided to clarify things outright.
"I'm pursuing Sapphire, and she's almost agreed to it."
Ignoring Sapphire's warning glare, Haruto plainly stated their relationship.
As if afraid Toujou Basara wouldn't believe him, he even demonstratively wrapped an arm around Sapphire's slender waist. But when he tried to kiss her, her delicate hand pressed against his face and pushed him back. Haruto's intentions were no secret—Mio and Maria had known for a while.
The Succubus Loli was now grinning gleefully, her black heart-tipped tail wagging incessantly. If not for fear of Haruto's iron-fisted retribution, she would've loved to record the scene with a camera.
Mio Naruse sighed helplessly as she watched her aunt, who bore a sixty to seventy percent resemblance to her.
She didn't know the progress of Haruto and Sapphire's relationship, but judging by their expressions, it was probably almost settled.
Toujou Basara finally understood. He'd always known Haruto had no boundaries and kept messy relationships around him.
He thought his two cousins, Mio Naruse and Maria, were the deepest involved—never expecting his newly reunited mother hadn't escaped either.
His vision darkened, and his friend's handsome face now looked utterly punchable.
Thinking it, he acted on it.
Toujou Basara no longer cared whether he could defeat Haruto—without a fight, he couldn't vent this frustration.
Boom!!!
Brynhildr appeared again, dense turquoise spiritual energy transforming into a massive crescent-shaped shockwave flying toward Haruto.
The fine solid wood table split in two. Everyone except Haruto leaped back swiftly, toes lightly touching the ground.
Facing the furious Toujou Basara, Haruto smiled wryly and chose to take the hit head-on.
He had anticipated Basara's reaction, and both emotionally and logically, he couldn't fight back—at least not enough to half-kill him in return.
Yesterday, he'd tried to use training as an excuse to beat Basara up first, planning to consider it even afterward, but Basara had started slacking off.
With the plan failed, he could only play the role of a non-retaliating sparring partner this time.
As for Haruto taking a complete beating—that was impossible. Besides, it probably wouldn't let Basara vent his anger anyway.
Facing a completely unresisting Haruto, Basara couldn't use his full strength, so his frustration remained.
Even going all out like this, he still couldn't harm Haruto in the slightest, but seeing him in such a disheveled state was what truly satisfied him.
Boom...
Crash...
Crack...
The battle lasted over ten minutes, reducing the luxurious living room to ruins.
If not for Sapphire using a barrier to block the impact, not just the living room but the entire house—even the area within a one-kilometer radius—would have been reduced to rubble.
The destructive power of a Satan-Class being could easily annihilate an entire city. Only someone with god-level strength could fully suppress it within the confines of a living room.
Of course, this was also due to Haruto's efforts to neutralize the damage and the fact that Toujou Basara hadn't intentionally caused destruction.
"Phew—"
As the dust settled, Toujou Basara let out a long breath, sheathed Brynhildr, and glanced at Haruto, who stood opposite him with tattered clothes and a dust-covered face. Without any change in expression, he turned and left.
"Cough, cough—"
Brushing the dust from his eyes, Haruto called out somewhat awkwardly, "Now that this is over, you can't bring it up again later!"
Toujou Basara had no intention of responding. He had finally realized that Haruto would make a move on any beautiful woman, especially powerful goddesses.
His other mother, Raphaeline, was likely also part of Haruto's plans—no wonder he had been so eager to rescue her earlier.
Haruto had no idea what Toujou Basara was thinking. If he had known, he would have said...
"You're damn clever—you actually figured it out."
But even if he did find out, so what? At worst, he'd just have to play the role of a training dummy again. Destroying a living room and a set of clothes was nothing compared to winning over a goddess.
When Toujou Basara didn't respond, Haruto continued, "You can't just pretend you didn't hear me! Next time you pull something like this, I'll fight back—I mean it!"
Toujou Basara paused mid-step, veins bulging on his forehead. If he weren't outmatched, he would have turned around right then to fight Haruto again.
At the same time, his previous desire to slack off completely vanished.
If nothing else, he would strive to improve his strength just for the chance to properly beat up Haruto.
"Little Basara seems motivated again."
Toujou Jin was the first to notice the change in Basara's attitude—unsurprising, given how many years they had spent together as father and son.
He grinned, slung an arm over Basara's shoulder, and waved. "We're heading back now. As for rescuing Raphaeline, we'll discuss it after your break."
Final exams were approaching. Though they weren't too concerned about them, there was no need to rush things in just a few days.
Once Kuoh Academy went on break, everyone would have more flexibility to act.
Moreover, Chisato Hasegawa was the most crucial member for rescuing Raphaeline.
Without her, things would become much more complicated.
After the Toujou father and son left, Sapphire dispersed the barrier, shot Haruto an annoyed glare, and then returned to her room.
Haruto chuckled and quickly followed.
He knew he had upset her. Even if the outcome was good, he still needed to make amends.
Once they had left, Yubelluna and the other girls came in and began cleaning up and repairing the damage.
They could handle just a living room on their own.
If the area had been any larger, they would have needed to notify the Underworld and send over demons specialized in construction and decoration.
Haruto followed Sapphire back to her room, but before he could even take a shower, Liala pulled him aside with a curious expression and began questioning him.
Despite the barrier containing the energy dispersion, the massive commotion from the battle was clearly perceptible to everyone else in the house.
Haruto, cornered by Liala, had no choice but to recount the earlier events.
As Haruto retold the story, Mio Naruse and Maria found themselves in a similar situation—surrounded by others, they felt like storytellers narrating a tale.
After hearing the account, the women's reactions were largely the same: they all felt Haruto had gotten what he deserved.
However, this commotion did clear away any remaining barriers between him and Sapphire.
Once Sapphire's anger subsided, she and Haruto would likely begin their cultivation.
At the latest, it wouldn't extend beyond the time set for rescuing Raphaeline. They had even anticipated how Haruto would broach the topic then.
Facing the Ten Chief Gods to rescue Raphaeline made pre-battle power-ups perfectly reasonable. With such a convenient excuse, Sapphire would surely acquiesce, albeit half-heartedly.
But things unfolded faster than they had imagined—much faster.
That very night, Haruto ended up staying in Sapphire and Liala's room.
Provoked by Liala's teasing, Haruto couldn't resist and began cultivating right in front of Sapphire.
At first, Haruto worried that Sapphire might be displeased. To his surprise, she didn't say a word, merely watching quietly.
After Liala reached her peak once, Sapphire proactively removed her seductive armor and pressed herself against Haruto from behind.
Haruto, still unsatisfied at that moment, had originally planned to push through and complete one round of cultivation. Seeing her initiative, he simply shifted his focus.
"Sister Sapphire, are you not angry anymore?"
The two embraced each other, completely naked. Feeling Sapphire's smooth, taut skin against his, Haruto grew even more excited.
His fiery, thick dragon slid between Sapphire's slender, beautiful legs, enveloped by her plump, soft thighs, throbbing with pleasure.
"I was never angry to begin with…"
Sapphire shot Haruto a coquettish glare. She truly hadn't been angry—just a little embarrassed.
Having lived her whole life as a Valkyrie, she had never experienced such an awkward situation before.
If Toujou Basara hadn't acted quickly, she would have undoubtedly fled in panic first.
When the battle ended, although Haruto's words had been somewhat provocative, they had also dispelled her last lingering concern.
Since Toujou Basara hadn't objected, it meant he tacitly accepted her relationship with Haruto, ensuring it wouldn't affect their mother-son bond going forward.