Chapter 309: Divinely Assisted Tohka
As Franklin's words fell, he saw the Tohka between the future Tohka and himself vanish abruptly. It must have happened because he didn't mention a specific time during the summoning. Because she was his "true love," the time period summoned was a Tohka who had already been captured by him. Since the past Tohka had always been there, and given the clothes she was wearing, it could only be a Tohka from the future. Fortunately, the temporal conflict wasn't too intense; the difference was merely a dozen seconds or so. Next time, he would have to make sure to include the exact time as well.
"Mhm, that should be it. Before signing the contract, I did indeed see my future self, and I also heard the words you just said, Franklin."
After confirming his thoughts, Franklin let out a soft breath and tightly embraced Tohka in his arms. "I'm sorry for putting you through so much. Now that we are bound by the contract, I think you shouldn't have to worry about me leaving you anymore, Tohka."
Hearing Franklin's words, Tohka also hugged him tighter. "Of course I have to worry, otherwise you definitely wouldn't pay attention to me, Franklin. With so many girlfriends, your attention will definitely be divided. Although I don't care about that anymore, there are still some things I have to fight for myself. Haven't I fought for a lot of time to spend with you now, and even successfully signed a lifelong contract with you?"
Looking at Tohka's innocent smile, Franklin gently kissed her forehead. "I won't stop paying attention to you. Rest assured, Tohka, you will always be my true love."
At this moment, the Inversed Tohka's brow was completely furrowed. Her mood had started deteriorating ever since one of the Tohkas vanished. Now, watching Tohka being all lovey-dovey with Franklin, the Inversed Tohka felt her mood worsen even further. Weighing Nahemah in her hand, she slowly floated over to the two of them and directly wedged the blade between their heads. "I have been here the whole time, and there are still some matters that haven't been resolved."
It was only then that Tohka noticed the girl beside her, who, aside from the color of her eyes, looked exactly like she was carved from the same mold. "Franklin, could this also be a future me? She's dressed so revealingly. It feels completely different from me; she looks so cold."
Hearing Tohka's words, the Inversed Tohka's vision instantly went black. Letting out a soft breath, she looked at Franklin with a serious expression. "Explain my identity to her!"
Listening to those half-threatening, half-intimidating words, Franklin was instantly somewhat speechless. "How do you expect me to introduce you? Say you're Tohka's inversed form? Or say something else? I really don't understand you all that well myself."
Hearing Franklin's words, the Inversed Tohka was instantly dumbfounded. After a brief thought, she looked at Franklin again. "Hey, give me a name. It needs to sound nice and be something I like. From now on, I am Tohka's older sister; she's under my protection."
Hearing that boss-lady-like declaration, Franklin was instantly somewhat speechless. Before he could say anything, Tohka had already stepped between the two of them. "Inversed form? Are you my inversed form? You feel different from Origami's and Yoshino's. Why do you get to be my older sister? Can't I be the older sister?"
This adorkable statement caused the Inversed Tohka to instantly sink deep into it. The Nahemah in her hand vanished at this moment, and the Spirit Dress on her body gradually transformed into casual clothes similar to what Tohka was wearing. "Well... I was born slightly earlier than you, so it's more appropriate for me to be the older sister. Plus, I have to prevent you from being deceived by that bastard."
Following her finger, Tohka saw that the person the Inversed Tohka was pointing at was exactly Franklin. "Franklin didn't deceive me. He always does what he says. Have you misunderstood something about him?"
Hearing Tohka's words, the Inversed Tohka was instantly left speechless. It had indeed been like this all along... "No, there is one thing he violated. When you first woke up, his promise to you, Tohka, was that he would only capture spirits and no one else. But he has already promised to capture Yoshino and Yoshinon's mother."
Hearing the Inversed Tohka's reminder, Tohka finally remembered the initial promise Franklin had made to her. At this moment, Franklin, who was continuously thinking about what name to give the Inversed Tohka, suddenly felt a chill run through his body. Looking up, he saw the two Tohkas staring intently at him. "Franklin, you promised me before that you would only capture spirit girls. Why did you agree to Yoshino and Yoshinon to make a move on Miss Nagisa?"
Franklin, with cold sweat breaking out on his forehead at this moment, was completely thrown into a panic, but a flash of inspiration also appeared in his mind. Tohka... Toh... Ten... Tian... Tenka.
"Mhm, how about your name be Yatogami Tenka from now on, Inversed Tohka?"
Hearing Franklin's words, the Inversed Tohka furrowed her brow tightly. After a long while, she nodded gently. "Tenka, huh? It's indeed not bad, but your method of changing the subject isn't very clever. Better explain Tohka's question first. I've said it already: Tohka is under my protection, and I really enjoy hacking at you."
Looking at Tenka's eager-to-fight appearance, Franklin looked at Tohka, who was staring fixedly at him. "I'm sorry, Tohka. When I agreed to it at the time, I didn't think that much about it. It was only after agreeing that I realized this point. After all, Yoshino and Yoshinon are also spirits. The two of them normally don't have many desires or demands and won't bother us. I was just focusing on soothing the spirits' emotions first, and then..."
Before he could finish speaking, Tenka had already frowned and summoned Nahemah. "Those are all excuses. With me here, don't even think about tricking Tohka."
Hearing Tenka's words, Tohka, who had already believed Franklin's explanation, instantly glared at him.
"That's right, those are all excuses. They aren't valid reasons for you to break your promise, Franklin. I don't want to hear them."
Letting out a soft sigh, Franklin directly gave a slight bow and said, "I was wrong. I can guarantee that this will be the only time, and I will turn Miss Nagisa into a spirit to ensure that the initial promise is not broken."
Hearing Franklin's words, both Tohka and Tenka furrowed their brows.
"Oh, I remember now. Franklin, you also turned your two younger sisters into spirits. Did you make that choice because you remembered your promise to me, Franklin? Then from now on, whenever you see a girl you like, are you just going to turn her into a spirit to capture her?"
At this moment, Franklin really wanted to tear his own big mouth apart. Just how much nonsense had he spouted in a single day?
"...This is absolutely the last time. While in this world, I will never transform any other girl into a spirit."
Hearing Franklin's guarantee, Tohka finally nodded in agreement. Just as she was about to speak, Tenka gently tugged Tohka aside and whispered a few words in her ear. Immediately after, Tohka was seen nodding in agreement.
"Ahem. Franklin, you don't have to be so absolute about it. As long as you discuss it with me, if it's doable and not too excessive, I might just agree to it. After all, making things too absolute isn't always a good thing."
Listening to Tohka's carrot-and-stick approach, Franklin still found it quite reassuring. Although he knew it was just a method Tenka had taught Tohka to mitigate any potential future conflicts, it was indeed very effective.
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