Chapter One: The Incomplete Soul

Chapter 1: The Incomplete Soul

The next day, Schuster, who had collapsed onto his bed, finally awoke.

"Huh? How did I end up here?"

"Brother, what’s wrong with you?" Lolita stared at the bewildered Schuster, lines of frustration visible on her forehead.

"Hmm? Well, all I know is that I seem to have taken a trip to the Sanzu River and then came back..." Schuster curled into a ball, clutching his head in a cutesy, defensive crouch. "I can’t quite remember how I died... but my soul tells me it was a very happy death... Wait, what does that even mean?"

"..." Sakuya Izayoi, who had just arrived, also looked at the cutesy Schuster with a deadpan expression, her mind flashing back to the "chest crush" maneuver she had witnessed Jingchen perform the day before.

"Hmph!" (x2)

"Oh, Sakuya, Lolita, you're here! Can you tell me what happened yesterday? Why did I go to the Sanzu River?" Schuster asked with an air of pure, natural innocence.

"..." Lolita looked at Sakuya in silence, then began to convey messages through her eyes—or rather, she started batting her eyelashes and exchanging cryptic signals.

"???" Sakuya was momentarily stunned before deciphering Lolita’s code: *It seems he really has forgotten that memory.*

Nodding, Sakuya also began to blink and signal back: *It appears this death allowed him to happily forget it all.*

"Huh?" Watching the two of them exchanging glances, Schuster remarked with naive curiosity, "Since when did you two start becoming a yuri couple? You seem to have a great relationship!"

"#! You're the one who's a yuri!" the two snapped in unison, stumbling as they broke their silent communication.

"Are you being tsundere?"

"You're the one being tsundere!" they retorted together.

"I thought I heard someone talking about yuri just now, didn't I?" Jingchen’s voice drifted in from behind them.

"!" Upon hearing this, Lolita and Sakuya broke into a cold sweat and turned around mechanically. After all, the extent of Jingchen’s black-hearted nature had already left Sakuya, who had spent a month with her, and Lolita, who had spent only a day, feeling deeply intimidated.

"Oh... Good morning, Sister Jingchen! Haha," Lolita said with a dry laugh.

"Yes, Miss Jingchen, good morning. The young master just woke up, I’ll go prepare breakfast." Sakuya finished her sentence at top speed and immediately vanished using time manipulation.

"Huh? Why did Sakuya run off so quickly?" This was the only time Schuster had ever seen Sakuya look so unrefined.

"It’s nothing! Come here, my dear brother, let’s have a hug!" Jingchen chuckled and opened her arms, lunging toward Schuster. With her intellect, she knew perfectly well that Schuster had suffered from "happy amnesia," and she was determined to try it again.

*Whoosh.* Using a body-flicker technique to leap away from the bed, Schuster exclaimed in terror, "I don't know why, but my intuition is telling me I absolutely must not let you hug me, Sister Jingchen..."

"..." Even though he had suffered from "happy amnesia," his body remembered the lesson? What powerful intuition...

"Phew," Lolita, standing to the side, breathed a sigh of relief as she saw Schuster successfully avoid the embrace.

"Oh?" Jingchen’s expression faltered for a second before she put on a show, tears welling in her eyes, acting as if she had been abandoned by the person she cared for most. "Waaah, my brother hates me..."

"..." Schuster’s consciousness began to resist his body, but in the end, he overcame his reason—no, he overcame his instincts. With trembling steps, he walked up to Jingchen and said with a quivering lip, "Well... Sister Jingchen... come... give me a hug..."

"Waaah, my brother is the best after all!" Jingchen suddenly lunged forward, grabbed Schuster, and buried his face deep into her "size 95 weapons."

Lolita covered her face, feeling defeated. It wasn't that Schuster was hopelessly stupid, but rather that Jingchen’s black-heartedness had reached a divine level.

"Ugh, ugh, ugh..." Schuster, who had been struggling, eventually stopped, his arms dropping to his sides.

*Pop.* Crushed by Jingchen’s "chest-killing" hug, Schuster transformed into white mist and vanished.

"What!" Lolita and Jingchen cried out in unison. "It was a Shadow Clone!"

"Heh heh," Schuster’s voice came from behind them. "You two are still too naive! How could I not trust my own intuition?"

"Hmph, this brat." Jingchen turned around and said as if nothing had happened, "Good morning, brother! Time to eat."

"..." Schuster and Lolita looked at Jingchen with dark lines on their faces, watching her pretend that she hadn't just been trying to suffocate her brother.

"I’m telling you, Sister Jingchen, can we not play such dangerous games? I went to the Sanzu River yesterday! It’s a good thing the reaper on duty was that busty reaper Komachi Onozuka—achoo! Huh? Do reapers catch colds from sleeping outside?—otherwise, I might not have made it back!" Schuster hopped down with a wry smile.

*Thud.* A white, unidentified flying object moving faster than a bullet slammed into Schuster’s chest, knocking him flat on his back.

"Ouch." Schuster gently stroked the head of the creature, Snowball, and said, "You’ve put on some weight, little one!"

"Gawu!" Snowball bit him in annoyance.

"Ouch! The little guy is self-conscious about its weight! Hahaha." Schuster stood up with a chuckle, activated his wind-attribute power to blow the dust off his clothes, and placed Snowball on his head. "Let's go, time to eat."

"Okay," said Lolita.

"Yes, the meal Sakuya made today is definitely much better than usual," said Jingchen.

"Why?" they asked in unison.

"Because it’s a meal filled with love!" Jingchen shouted, loud enough that Sakuya, in the neighboring kitchen, shook and nearly dumped an entire bottle of soy sauce into her "love-filled" dish.

"What!!" the two exclaimed again.

Schuster’s face flushed red, remembering everything Lolita had told him about how Sakuya felt about him.

"Phew." Putting away her silver pocket watch, Sakuya let out a breath of relief. Thank goodness she had used time manipulation to catch the soy sauce; otherwise, she would have had to start the meal over.

Placing plate after plate on the dining table, Sakuya sat quietly at Schuster's right side. As a maid, she had to take care of her master in every aspect—or perhaps, it was because of her deep, intense love for him, while Schuster only held a high level of affection and a touch of romantic interest.

After taking a spoonful of the curry Sakuya had prepared, Schuster paused, then wore an expression of pure healing. "Sakuya! This is amazing! It’s been so long since I’ve had your cooking; I’m going to eat my fill this time!"

Lolita took a bite as well, wearing a similarly healed expression, and they both began to eat with gusto, though their manners remained quite elegant.

"Say, Sakuya, my own cooking has hit a plateau lately. Why don't you teach me how to cook tomorrow?" Schuster said happily.

"Certainly, Young Master. But the demons have been attacking quite frequently lately; are you sure that’s wise?" Sakuya was still worried about the elves outside.

"Oh, is there a problem with the city walls?" Schuster asked while sipping his miso soup.

"None at all," Sakuya replied truthfully.

"Then there's no need to worry. You have the day off tomorrow," Schuster said, setting down his bowl.

"But..." Sakuya started to protest, but upon seeing the expectant look in Schuster's eyes, she firmly replied, "Very well, Young Master. I will accompany you to learn cooking tomorrow."

"Lolita, you should come along too!" Schuster added.

"Huh?" Lolita was surprised at first, then nodded decisively. After all, they were once the same person; they understood each other’s thoughts perfectly.

"!" Jingchen, however, was no slouch in the intelligence department and immediately understood Schuster’s intent. *You’re planning to leave me alone to help those long-eared monkeys—whose yuri aura alone is enough to flip a nation—to defend against the demon invasion tomorrow! That’s a ruthless move!*

"Hey, Sister Jingchen," Schuster turned to her. "I’ll be leaving the defense to you tomorrow! I’ll be sure to make the most delicious meal to offer you upon your victorious return! Don’t let me down!"

"Sure, sure..." Jingchen agreed with a smile, but internally she was roaring: *This brat actually sealed off my escape route so ruthlessly! Oh, my brother has been corrupted! Which bastard did this?*

"Alright, time for a post-meal walk. Sakuya, clean up, we’re heading out..." Schuster wiped his mouth and hands before standing up.

"I am ready, Young Master." In the blink of an eye, the table was cleared, and Sakuya appeared by Schuster’s side.

"Let’s go, then. Let’s check the walls. Tell me about the current situation while we walk. How is the Eastern Empire doing?" Schuster led the way.

"The current situation is that the Demon Abyss in the south has been completely opened, while the interdimensional rift in the Eastern Empire has been fully sealed by three master-level powerhouses. The Eastern Empire is now safe, and the imperial capital is currently being rebuilt," Sakuya reported to Schuster and Lolita.

"Phew, that’s truly wonderful news," Lolita said.

"However, every empire is currently under attack due to the undead disaster, and the losses everywhere have been quite high..." Schuster hadn't finished his sentence when Lolita stumbled.

"Warning: Sub-personality Lolita’s soul is incomplete and cannot fully integrate with the body. Please consume her soul immediately or allow her to merge with another’s soul."

"What?" Looking at Lolita, who was being held by Jingchen, Schuster and Sakuya were filled with shock.