Chapter 60: The Strongest War God on Earth, Kami-nii-sama!
"You... It's you?!"
The clerk turned his head in terror, only to see the very person he had been cursing—Katsuragi Keima—standing not far away, his terminal's recording function activated.
"That's right, it's me."
Keima walked slowly toward the man, his gaze filled with utter disdain. "Existences like you are exactly why I hate reality. An adult attempting to use force against a young girl... you are truly pathetic. If word of this gets out, your life will be over, won't it? No company will hire you, and neither your friends nor family will look at you with anything but contempt. You'll become the trash of this world."
Keima's gaze pierced through his lenses and landed on the man's face, sharp as a blade.
"I—I didn't! It... It's because this girl wanted me to teach her how to use a digital camera! That's all it was!" the clerk scrambled to defend himself, casting a piteous look toward Sakura Airi.
However, the only response he received was Airi's voice, filled with absolute loathing: "That's not it at all!"
"You ugly girl! You ugly girl! You didn't actually think I liked you, did you?! You ugly wench!" The clerk flew into a rage, hurling insults at Airi.
"Are you blind?" Keima interjected in a cold tone. "She is clearly beautiful. Just because she won't endure your harassment, you resort to slandering her as ugly? You really are miserable."
Keima continued, "I've recorded everything that just happened, and I contacted security in advance. They should be arriving shortly—"
"Get lost!"
As soon as the words left Keima's mouth, the clerk fled like a madman, dashing around the corner ahead. As a school employee, he knew very well that there were no surveillance cameras in this specific area! His mind couldn't process much; his only thought was to escape this place immediately.
Keima didn't choose to give chase. He simply walked to the corner and watched the sound of the clerk's frantic running. He knew perfectly well that the man couldn't escape. When he had contacted security, he had even mapped out the suspect's likely escape route for them. Soon enough, the clerk would run straight into the security team.
At that exact moment, Keima's eyes caught sight of a strange presence.
'Something... is flying in the sky?!'
A black body, massive wings... though the sky was growing dark, Keima could still see the object with startling clarity.
'Is that a freaking demon?! This is definitely Elsie's doing!!!'
Just then, the creature from Hell seemed to notice the sprinting clerk. It descended directly in front of him. The clerk didn't have time to react; he was sent flying by the impact, rolling several times on the ground before struggling to crawl back up.
"W-What is that thing?!" His voice trembled, and for a moment, he thought he was hallucinating. What kind of creature was this?! Wasn't this a monster that only appeared in games and movies?!
"So you were here!" A sharp voice rang out from above.
Elsie was descending from the sky, riding a broom. The clerk looked at Elsie in horror. In his eyes, Elsie was a girl who looked as ordinary as could be. But... was she just flying?
Then, he noticed something in Elsie's arms. It was a small box, but through a slightly opened gap, countless eyeballs were clustered together like grapes. In the next instant, dozens of tentacles shot out from the box, completely binding and compressing the other monster before dragging it directly into its body!?
Simultaneously, a tentacle quietly snaked around the clerk like a python, hoisting him several meters into the air. However, seemingly deeming him not as food but as something akin to trash, it slammed the clerk heavily onto the ground like a stone.
"You! Why are you here?! What is all this?!" Keima rushed to Elsie's side and asked in a panicked voice.
"Ah! Kami-nii-sama! You... didn't you go back to the dorm to play games?"
"No! Tell me what's going on first!"
"Oh, doesn't Kami-nii-sama understand? Didn't I have to prepare lunch for you at noon? Well, one of the ingredients accidentally escaped! But please don't worry, Kami-nii-sama, that ingredient has just been recycled! Also, don't worry—I used my raiment to block the surrounding surveillance, so they couldn't see me along the way!!!"
"What do you mean 'an ingredient accidentally escaped'!!!"
Keima felt powerless to even retort. What on earth did Elsie consider "ingredients"?!
"Security is going to be here any second. Get out of here, fast!" Keima glanced at the strange creature in Elsie's arms and surveyed the surroundings. Fortunately, there really were no cameras nearby.
"Got it, Kami-nii-sama!" Elsie then flew into the sky and vanished.
"Speaking of which..." Keima looked down at the clerk lying on the ground, who appeared to have lost consciousness.
'The guy certainly deserved it. He probably didn't see all that anyway.'
At the same time, Sakura Airi, who had been incredibly worried, finally caught up. She was surprised to see the clerk collapsed on the ground.
'Did Katsuragi-kun... take him down?'
Soon, several school security personnel arrived. Each was tall, moving with unified discipline—definitely not ordinary guards, but more like soldiers.
"Is this the suspect?" A security officer looked doubtfully at the unconscious man on the ground, who was covered in dust, and then at Keima. This boy was thin, yet he had taken down an adult much larger than himself? And left him in this state?
Keima gave them a brief overview of what happened. They subsequently took the suspect away for investigation, intending to send him to the hospital first. At the moment he was lifted onto the stretcher, the clerk seemed to regain a sliver of consciousness. His glazed eyes landed on Keima, and the terrifying memories from a moment ago flooded back.
"Monster! Monster!!" He let out two screams before falling unconscious again.
The security personnel looked at Keima in surprise. The latter pursed his lips and shrugged, pretending to know nothing. "It seems like... he fell on the ground and broke his head."
The security team didn't say much more and quickly escorted the unconscious clerk away. It wasn't until they were out of sight that Airi finally snapped out of it. Everything that just happened felt surreal...
'Thanks to Katsuragi-kun, I was saved...'
"Keima-kun... why were you here?" Airi asked curiously.
"Because I was worried about you, Airi, so I followed," Keima replied.
Hearing him say he was worried, the tips of Airi's ears turned bright red. Her fingers unconsciously toyed with the hem of her clothes, and she seemed to shrink into herself.
"I'm sorry for causing you trouble, Keima-kun... I'm really useless... in the end, I couldn't do anything myself."
"No, Airi, you were great. Being able to face a guy like that and bravely express your true thoughts isn't something just anyone can do." Keima looked at Airi, and their eyes met.
This time, Airi didn't look away. Looking into Keima's eyes, the fear in her heart had completely vanished.
"As I thought, it's only Keima-kun..."
"What?"
"N-Nothing!"
A smile bloomed on Airi's face, her blue eyes bright as gems. After a moment of thoughtful silence, she spoke again: "Keima-kun... if I stopped wearing glasses and changed my hairstyle in the future, would everyone notice...?"
As she spoke, she took off her glasses. Her "rule-breakingly" cute face was revealed to Keima without reservation for the first time.
"They would definitely notice. You're so beautiful, Airi; it would be hard for your classmates not to notice you."
"..."
Airi instantly fell silent from shyness and lowered her head again. The steps she thought she had taken forward seemed to return to the starting point upon hearing Keima's praise. But she was incredibly happy.
"Thank you, Keima."
This time, Airi didn't use the "kun" honorific.
"Don't mention it. Like I said, if you need help with anything, feel free to come to me."
Suddenly, Airi recalled something. Keima had just helped her out of that bind...
'Does that mean he heard everything I said before that?!'
"Ke-Ke-Keima, did you hear what I was saying to that person earlier?" Airi asked with extreme urgency.
"I didn't hear clearly. Why?"
"N-Nothing!!!" Airi's head shook back and forth like a metronome.
Just then, the sound of high heels clicking on the pavement rang out. Chabashira Sae, dressed in a suit with black tights outlining her legs, walked quickly toward them.
"Chabashira-sensei, why are you here?" Keima asked, while Airi hurriedly put her glasses back on.
"I just received a notification from the school. I heard something happened to you two, so I rushed over. What happened?"
Keima didn't answer immediately; instead, he tilted his head slightly toward Airi. Seeing her nod, he spoke: "Sakura-san was harassed by a clerk from the school supermarket. Fortunately, she's fine now."
"I see. As long as you're okay." Chabashira Sae nodded dismissively. Just then, her phone rang. She answered immediately, her tone becoming very respectful.
"..."
Chabashira hung up quickly and turned her gaze back to the two of them. "You two, come with me."
"What's wrong?"
"The Chairman wants to see you."
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"The Chairman?"
Further away from the three of them, a pair of eyes was watching them intently.
Kamuro Masumi. She was under Sakayanagi Arisu's orders to secretly tail and monitor Katsuragi Keima. To avoid exposure, Kamuro had maintained a certain distance. She had seen Keima confront the clerk, and seen the man try to run, though she had to change positions to get a better view due to the angles. By the time she found a suitable vantage point, she saw the clerk lying on the ground with Keima beside him.
Undoubtedly, Keima had defeated him. And in less than a minute...
'This guy... is he actually that strong...?' Kamuro couldn't help but swallow hard.
'In Class D... there's a monster...'
A short while later, Chabashira Sae led the two of them to the Chairman's office. Opening the door, Chabashira stood respectfully to the side. A middle-aged man with slightly graying hair and a thin build stood before them.
"You must be Katsuragi-kun and Sakura-san. Pleased to meet you. I am the Chairman of this school, Sakayanagi Narumori."
The man identifying himself as Sakayanagi Narumori wore a polite smile. He spoke in a very kind, humble manner. Noticing that Airi seemed a bit frightened, he said in a gentle tone: "Don't be afraid. We have already investigated the suspect's phone and his recent movements. His guilt is beyond doubt. As the school Chairman, it is my failure that such a thing occurred. I am deeply sorry. I asked you here simply to ask for the specifics of what happened to confirm certain details. Please be as detailed as possible."
Airi took a deep breath. Although she was timid—partly because this involved her other identity—she knew the school likely already knew about these things. She didn't hide anything and mustered the courage to recount everything from today until Keima came to her rescue.
"I see... I am truly sorry this happened. However, Katsuragi-kun, Sakura-san said she only saw you chase after him. What happened after that?"
Sakayanagi Narumori narrowed his eyes slightly, his scrutinizing gaze focusing on Keima.
"He fell while he was running away," Keima answered without skipping a beat.
"Fell?" Sakayanagi Narumori's brow furrowed slightly as he picked up a report that had just been sent to him. "You mean to say the suspect accidentally fell, and subsequently broke four ribs, fractured both arms, strained his ligaments, and suffered a moderate concussion?"
"That is correct."
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