Anime Crossover: Eating Evil in a Daily World — Chapter 97

Chapter 97: Yozora, the Underwear Thief; Mai Sakurajima, the Understanding One

Yozora launched his direct verbal assault once again. His skill in this arena had absolutely no cooldown, operating like a battery of infinite firepower.

The output didn’t stop for a single second.

This time, the target caught in the crosshairs was Mai Sakurajima.

“You… this… I…”

Faced with such blunt, unwavering words, Mai instantly panicked. Her usual cool composure shattered, leaving her entirely at a loss for what to do.

How much weight did that simple sentence, ‘Mai Sakurajima is Mai Sakurajima,’ truly carry?

Even her own younger sister and mother had forgotten her existence. That cold reality proved that in the minds of her two closest blood relatives, the actual Mai Sakurajima and the hollow identity of a former national idol actress had irreversibly merged into a single concept.

It was precisely because of this phenomenon.

When Mai wished for the whole world to forget her as a national idol, her mother and sister naturally forgot her as well.

Yet Yozora could still perceive her. He stood as the absolute anomaly—the only person in the entire world who could still see her, hear her, and acknowledge her existence.

Mai even felt a sudden, sharp pang of guilt, thinking she didn’t deserve such devoted treatment.

Of course, she wasn’t Kazusa Touma. Mai wasn’t lacking in self-awareness; she was simply overwhelmed by the sheer surprise of it all.

“Yozora… I…”

She didn’t know what words to use. Whatever she said would only sound pale and powerless in the heavy, emotionally charged air of the room.

So, she decided to express her feelings through action.

Mai leaned forward, wrapping her slender arms tightly around Yozora’s neck.

The kiss that followed was far more passionate and desperate than the one they had shared in that Wakayama hotel room.

Cold, objective fact: lip contact is merely a peck. Anything deeper, anything that steals the breath from your lungs, is a kiss.

Mai’s movements were slightly clumsy, betraying her lack of experience, but the raw emotions poured into the gesture were fervently hot. She closed her eyes, completely surrendering herself to the long, lingering sensation.

Until a distinct click echoed between them.

Mai’s eyes snapped open, wide with shock. She immediately pushed herself back, separating from Yozora as her arms instinctively crossed over her chest to shield her front.

“You—you—you!”

She could feel the delicate, small piece of fabric beneath her shirt slipping loosely down to her waist.

Biting her lower lip, her beautiful face flushed with a brilliant, shameful red. She glared at Yozora and delivered a classic, flustered line.

“You… why are you so skilled at this?!”

“Heh.”

Yozora casually waved his right hand in the air a couple of times, adopting the deep, untouchable aura of an otherworldly grandmaster. He lowered his voice into a deep, philosophical register.

“I can wield the legendary Onimaru Kunitsuna with ease. Unhooking a mere undergarment is nothing but child’s play.”

Mai stared at him, utterly speechless, not even knowing where to begin dismantling that ridiculous logic.

However…

If she were being completely honest, Yozora’s sleight of hand just now was genuinely terrifying. She hadn’t felt a single thing until the actual sound of the clasp coming undone reached her ears. Only then did her brain register the sudden lack of tension across her back.

So fast! He’s practically a phantom thief!

Just as Mai was silently cursing his unnatural dexterity, Yozora let out a low chuckle.

“Well, since it’s already off, why not…?”

Mai instantly caught his meaning.

After a brief, agonizing hesitation, her blush deepened. She pointed a trembling finger toward the ceiling and whispered, “Futaba-san is still sleeping right upstairs. Isn’t that a bit… inappropriate?”

Yozora cut her off with absolute seriousness. “If she finds out, we’ll just invite her to join the battle.”

Angered by his shamelessness, Mai slapped his chest lightly and hissed, “What kind of nonsense are you spouting? How could Futaba-san ever agree to that?”

It was only after seeing the teasing, half-smile playing on Yozora’s lips that Mai realized she had fallen into his trap. She hurriedly tried to correct herself. “A-and of course, I wouldn’t agree to it either!”

“Really won’t?”

“Absolutely impossible.”

“Hard to say.”

“It is not hard to say!”

Mai clearly had no intention of continuing this dangerous line of conversation. She immediately pivoted, changing the subject by force.

“It’s past twelve. Let’s go to sleep.”

After entering the room and flicking off the lights, Mai and Yozora lay side-by-side on the bed. The darkness brought a very fresh, intimate sensation.

Although she had been living at Yozora’s house for quite some time, this was her first time actually sleeping in his bedroom.

Before the lights went out, Mai had taken a good look at the room’s furnishings. Or rather, the complete lack thereof.

There were only two bedside tables flanking a single bed. Nothing else. The plain white walls were entirely bare, giving the space a desolate, almost sterile atmosphere.

Should I buy him a gift to decorate this place? she wondered.

“By the way…”

Mai, who had been feeling a wave of exhaustion just moments ago, found herself completely wide awake after Yozora’s teasing and their deep kiss.

She turned onto her side, looking at Yozora’s profile in the dim light, and spoke with a meaningful tone.

“That Touma-san… she’s quite beautiful, don’t you think?”

Yozora’s answer was immediate and sincere. “Yeah, she’s definitely good-looking.”

Setting aside her freezing, unapproachable personality, Kazusa Touma’s appearance was objectively top-tier. Long black hair, sharp, delicate features, a tall figure, and certainly not lacking in curves. She looked far more like a runway model than a high school pianist.

It made sense. Kazusa’s mother, the world-class pianist Youko Touma, was a legendary beauty in her own right. Thanks to the absolute power of genetics, the daughter naturally inherited those flawless traits.

Mai’s voice carried an undisguised edge of jealousy. “The girls buzzing around you all seem very cute. Not a single one of them is inferior to me.”

“Is that so?”

Yozora replied noncommittally, reaching out to pinch Mai’s soft cheek. “Then aren’t I still the one sleeping in the same bed as you right now?”

Hearing this, the corners of Mai’s lips couldn’t help but curve upward.

He was right. She was definitely the first—and currently the only—woman to share a bed with him. This sudden spike of jealousy was a bit unreasonable.

But then, Yozora’s next sentence caused her entire body to burn up.

“Sigh. If only ‘sleeping’ could become an active verb in that sense.”

Although Mai had zero practical experience in that particular field, she wasn’t an idiot. She knew exactly what Yozora meant by ‘verb.’

She pursed her lips, her eyes misting over with a mixture of shyness and affection, and replied in a soft, trembling whisper.

“When… when this busy period is over, and Rio Futaba and the others aren’t around… when it’s just the two of us… would that be okay?”

“No problem.”

Yozora naturally understood the situation. With Rio sleeping just one floor above them, it would be far too embarrassing for Mai. Despite her mature, elegant exterior, she was incredibly innocent and easily flustered at heart.

Anyway, it was only a matter of waiting a couple of days. There was no need to rush the main event.

Besides, the bunny girl outfit absolutely had to be unlocked first. That was non-negotiable.

But then, Mai said something that caught Yozora completely off guard.

Her pretty face flushed a darker shade of crimson. She secretly glanced down at a certain elevated portion of Yozora’s blanket, her voice dropping to a shy murmur.

“Um… I heard that in situations like this, if a guy is forced to hold back, it can be really uncomfortable. So… I… I…”

By the time she reached the last few words, her voice was as faint as a mosquito’s hum.

“I’ll help you out.”

“Alright.”

Yozora was a healthy young man, not a monk. He naturally wasn’t going to refuse such a generous offer.

However, after making the bold declaration, Mai cautiously extended her delicate hand under the covers, only to freeze mid-air. She hovered there, looking completely lost.

Seeing her frozen state, Yozora asked curiously, “What’s wrong?”

Mai lightly bit her lip, her eyes darting away in embarrassment. “I… I don’t actually know how to do it.”

“That’s just perfect.”

“What did you say?”

“Oh, nothing. I said if you don’t know how, I can teach you.”

Mai nodded slightly, looking like a startled little rabbit. “Then… then I’ll leave it to you.”

“No problem.”

Yozora, adopting the gentle, patient tone of a dedicated mentor, smiled in the dark.

“First, come closer. Then, slightly open your mouth, and then…”

The next morning.

“Good morning, Mai-senpai.”

When Rio rubbed her sleepy eyes and padded downstairs, she found that Mai had already prepared a lavish breakfast and arranged it perfectly on the dining table.

“Good morning, Futaba-san.”

Mai offered an impeccable, welcoming smile. She pointed to a steaming mug and a carton resting beside it. “I didn’t know which you prefer in the morning, so I prepared both coffee and milk.”

Standing in the kitchen doorway, Rio suddenly felt an immense, suffocating pressure—like a mistress being graciously hosted by the legitimate, flawless wife.

A strong sense of crisis surged in her chest, an emotion she had rarely experienced in her logical, science-driven life.

This Mai Sakurajima… isn’t she just too perfect?!

Her appearance was flawless. She was a former national idol. She had starred in countless hit morning dramas. Over ninety percent of Japan’s population recognized her face. But those were all superficial, external facts.

The real terror lay in the details. After interacting with her, Rio discovered that Mai’s voice was soothing, her personality was gentle yet generous, and her cooking skills were genuinely top-tier.

To be completely honest, if Rio were a guy, she probably would have fallen head over heels for Mai a long time ago.

Rio analyzed the situation for a long time and could only pinpoint one single advantage she held over the actress: she had awakened the ability of Soul Manifestation. She could fight evil spirits alongside Yozora, while Mai could not.

Mai’s deep inner longing had triggered her Puberty Syndrome, causing the entire world to lose perception of her. Rio theorized that the actress likely possessed the latent qualifications to awaken Soul Manifestation as well.

What if Mai actually awakened it?

Rio’s one and only advantage would instantly vanish into thin air.

The enemy is too strong. I need teammate support.

Rio pondered this grim reality as she walked to the table and took her seat.

Without a second thought, she looked between the freshly brewed coffee and the carton of milk, decisively reaching for the coffee.

She pushed the milk carton across the table toward Mai, adjusted her glasses, and said softly, “Mai-senpai, you drink the milk.”

Before Mai could formulate a polite reply, the first-floor bedroom door clicked open, and Yozora strolled out into the living room.

“She’s already had some.”

“Oh, I see.”

Rio, entirely oblivious to the underlying context, didn’t notice the way Mai’s beautiful face instantly ignited into a furious, bright red blush. The actress shot Yozora a lethal, annoyed glare that promised future retribution.

Rio only knew that the breakfast Mai had prepared was genuinely delicious.

Looking down at the steaming bowl of miso soup in front of her, Rio couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.

It was just miso soup. The ingredients were standard. Yet, some people cooked it like they were brewing a toxic magic potion, while others—like Mai—made it so incredible that even Rio, who rarely cared about food, wanted to scrape the bowl clean.

How could the gap in human capability be so vast?

Taking another sip, Rio revised her previous tactical assessment.

Requesting teammate support is only a valid strategy if the teammates can actually help.

The three of them—herself, Yui Yuigahama, and Miko Yotsuya. If they combined their forces against Mai Sakurajima…

Why did it feel like their disadvantage would only grow larger?

In a flash, it was Saturday.

Yozora’s primary schedule over the past few days had been incredibly straightforward:

Dining on evil spirits in the Inner World.

Taking Miko and Rio to dine on evil spirits in the Inner World.

Dining on evil spirits in the Inner World by himself.

No matter the context, the goal was the same. Just eat the terrifying supernatural entities and be done with it.

Now, only one day remained until the end of Spring Break.

Yui Yuigahama was currently looking deeply troubled. It wasn’t that she simply wanted more time to play around. The main issue was that once Spring Break ended, the school would immediately announce the exam grades on the very first day back.

She hadn’t exactly been diligent with her studies recently—especially after getting dragged into the chaotic world of the Supernatural Society.

Though, in all fairness, even if she hadn’t joined the club, she definitely wouldn’t have spent her free time studying anyway.

As the break neared its conclusion, the Supernatural Society was also facing an extremely difficult, practical problem.

Mai Sakurajima had skipped her final exams.

Originally, she had fully intended to take them. But because her existence couldn’t be perceived by anyone at the school, the teachers hadn’t even bothered to hand her an exam paper.

, even if Mai had actively stolen a test paper and filled it out, the moment she wrote her name at the top, the paper itself would become unobservable, infected by her Puberty Syndrome.

In the grand scheme of things, this wasn’t actually a massive issue.

It was Sobu High School’s absolute honor that a former national idol—a stunning girl with over ninety percent national recognition—chose to enroll there.

So what if she skipped an exam? Did the administration really have the guts to expel her?

The real problem was that Mai stubbornly refused to enjoy such privileges.

During her first year of high school, she had reported late because she needed to wrap up unfinished acting contracts, which had already made it difficult for her to integrate into the class dynamic. If she skipped her exams now and received zero punishment from the school, the resulting social friction would be unbearable.

Not that Mai cared about what her classmates thought. She simply wanted to completely sever all ties with the ‘Mai Sakurajima’ who was an actress. To achieve that, she absolutely refused to use her former identity to secure any special treatment.

Yozora had only one comment regarding her stubborn approach:

She was purely making trouble for herself.

Wasn’t human society built entirely upon privileges? People who are beautiful, people with outstanding talents, people highly skilled in specific fields, or even just people who are naturally popular—everyone enjoys some form of privilege.

Of course, Yozora only voiced that opinion once and didn’t actively interfere with Mai’s decisions. At worst, she could just take a make-up exam later.

Today, however, Yozora had other plans.

Whether these plans were related to the Supernatural Society or not entirely depended on how the upcoming conversation developed.

“Ito-kun.”

Light Yagami, dressed in sharp casual clothes with his brown hair falling naturally around his face, wore a perfectly crafted, friendly smile. Spotting Yozora leaning against a brick wall in the bustling Commercial Street looking utterly bored, Light immediately quickened his pace and greeted him with intense enthusiasm.

Yozora briefly glanced up from his phone screen and replied with a deadpan drawl. “You’re here.”

“Yes, I’m here.”

Being a Saturday, the Commercial Street was packed with pedestrians. Light and Yozora—two exceptionally handsome high school students standing side-by-side—instantly drew the lingering gazes of countless passersby.

“Everyone’s staring at you, Light.”

Facing Yozora’s casual teasing, Light maintained his flawless smile. He shook his head slightly, his voice dropping to a soft, intense murmur. “A bunch of vulgar people. I have absolutely no interest in them. All I see in my eyes right now… is only Ito-kun.”

Hearing this, Yozora’s brow furrowed so deeply it nearly cramped. He immediately fired back with a barrage of responses that Light had never, in his wildest calculations, anticipated.

“Damn it, can you stop being so completely disgusting?”

“How can you look another man in the eye and say such nauseating things with a straight face?”

“If you have nothing better to do, go check yourself into a psychiatric ward when we get back to Tokyo. I seriously think you might have a terminal mental illness.”

The sheer bluntness of Yozora’s verbal assault left Light momentarily stunned.

No one—literally no one in his entire life—had ever spoken to him like that.

Recovering quickly, Light’s smile only grew brighter, taking on a slightly sharper edge. He looked directly into Yozora’s eyes, his tone slow and measured. “Indeed, you are entirely different from everyone else. You are someone who can truly—”

“Hold it.”

Before Light could finish his dramatic villain monologue, Yozora raised a hand, cutting him off instantly.

“If you have actual business, spit it out quickly. Don’t waste my time.”

Light showed no outward signs of anger. His smile merely softened as he nodded. “Of course. Since I asked you out here, I naturally wouldn’t do anything meaningless.”

Reaching into his pocket, Light pulled out his smartphone, opened a digital map of Kyoto, and tapped a specific location situated out in the suburbs.

“Do you know this place?”

Yozora barely glanced at the glowing screen before replying with absolute indifference. “Yeah, I know it. It’s about a twenty-four-minute ride by taxi from here. If you manage to catch a train immediately, you can cut it down to eighteen minutes.”

Light froze, genuine shock flickering in his eyes.

He hadn’t expected ‘Ito-kun’ to know Kyoto’s layout so intimately. He had merely pointed to a random spot on the map, and Yozora had instantly calculated the exact travel times down to the minute.

Light asked himself: even growing up in Tokyo, did he know his own city as deeply as this guy knew Kyoto?

He didn’t believe for a second that this was a mere coincidence. Clearly, the other party had put an immense amount of effort and terrifying preparation into gathering local intelligence.

Watching the subtle, calculating shifts in Light’s expression, Yozora could easily guess the wild conspiracy theories spinning in the honors student’s head.

Light’s logic wasn’t entirely wrong. It wasn’t a coincidence.

However, there was absolutely no ‘immense effort’ involved.

The reason Yozora knew Kyoto’s traffic conditions and street layouts with such terrifying precision was incredibly simple:

He had recently eaten several evil spirits who happened to be veteran taxi drivers when they were alive.

“Don’t look so surprised.” Yozora waved his hand dismissively, his posture the picture of calm composure. “Not only do I know the exact travel time between any two points in Kyoto, I even possess an astonishing, peerless secret that ordinary people could never grasp in their entire lifetimes.”

Since meeting Yozora, this was the very first time Light had heard him speak in such a grave, serious tone. The bait was irresistible.

“What peerless secret?” Light asked, his eyes narrowing with intense curiosity.

Yozora glanced left and right, ensuring no pedestrians were eavesdropping. He then beckoned Light closer with a subtle wave of his fingers. “Come closer. Listen carefully.”

Drawn in by the heavy, mysterious atmosphere, Light’s curiosity peaked. He obediently leaned his head in.

Yozora clapped a hand heavily onto Light’s shoulder and whispered into his ear.

“I know the exact location of every single hostess club in Kyoto. I also know which ones have the highest quality girls, and which ones offer the absolute best value for your money.”

Light stiffened, his brain short-circuiting. He pulled back, staring at Yozora in utter bewilderment. “…That is your peerless secret?”

“Of course, it doesn’t stop there.”

Yozora flashed a deep, worldly smile, his voice dripping with sagely wisdom.

“Some of the higher-end clubs even offer what they call ‘parent-child discount packages.'”

“As the old saying goes: brothers in battle, father and son in arms.”

“My professional suggestion is that you take Chief Yagami with you to blow off some steam. It’ll be a great bonding experience.”

Yozora patted Light’s shoulder one last time. “And as a bonus, it might just cure whatever mental illness is making you say such disgusting things to me.”