Returned from Another World, Earth Turned Out to Be Quite the Fantasy Too. Also, Losing Heroines, Stop Looking This Way. - V5 Chapter 15: “Wait, Abe-san’s Going Home Already?”

Chapter 15: “Wait, Abe-san’s Going Home Already?”

“Well then, I don’t really get along with the Institute’s psychics, but you guys are different. You’re all good kids. I’ve kinda grown fond of y’all.”

“Thanks for that.”

“If I had the time, I’d honestly wanna go grab drinks after this. But I’ve gotta head back to Kyoto. As useless as I seem, believe it or not, things go a lot smoother when I’m around.”

Yeah, no kidding.

Natsuki didn’t argue.

Shinonome Abe’s spiritual power was the real deal.

Even while they were chatting, Natsuki had been subtly gauging his strength—

And while Shinonome’s power wasn’t quite on par with Natsuki’s own magic,

It was damn close.

And truth be told, Natsuki hadn’t even gotten a full read on him yet.

Depending on how things played out, even with the difference between magic and spiritual energy,

Shinonome might actually be on his level.

Physically and magically, Natsuki still hadn’t hit his prime—strong, but a little unstable.

Shinonome, on the other hand, felt solid. Reliable.

If they ever fought for real, it’d be a straight-up deathmatch.

So yeah—sending Shinonome back to Kyoto wasn’t just about keeping the oni in check.

Even among the spiritualists, his presence probably helped keep the whole scene from falling apart.

“Alright, Onsa, Kirara—snap out of your daydreams already!”

He whacked both his sisters on the head—firmly, too—

Jolting them right out of whatever fantasies they’d been lost in.

“Ah, huh? I was living a peaceful life surrounded by three adorable kids…”

“Wait, I was already surrounded by great-grandkids and peacefully passing on…”

“…How did your fantasies go that far in just a few seconds? Onii-chan’s honestly kinda worried about you two.”

Shinonome let out a long, tired sigh as he stood up.

Then, he bowed deeply to the Minazuki sisters.

“Thank you for welcoming someone as uncouth as me into your home. Please know that the Abe family has absolutely no intention of messing with the Minazuki family. I’d be grateful if we could stay on good terms going forward.”

“…I’ll pass that along to our mother.”

“Truly—thank you so much.”

After another respectful bow, Shinonome turned to Natsuki and the others.

“I ended up liking you guys a lot, so would you mind sharing your contact info? Forget all the spiritual power stuff—let’s just hang out sometime. I still wanna talk more with Natsuki-kun about Madoka too. Sound good?”

“You’ve got full responsibility for our Kyoto tour now.”

“Haha, I hear you. Consider it handled. Oh—right! I brought souvenirs. Last time you said you liked yatsuhashi, so this time I brought both the manjuu and the hard kind. Enjoy!”

“Ooh! So this is the legendary hard yatsuhashi!”

“…It’s not legendary, you know.”

Especially Natsuki—he didn’t mind at all.

He still had a lot of questions about what had happened between him and Madoka—

So keeping in touch was just what he needed.

“Well then, we’ll be off now. Oh, right—about those hardliner types Tsukuyomi-sama captured. They’ve done some pretty nasty stuff, honestly. Yeah, they’re driven by revenge against the oni, but still… wrong is wrong. So I’m leaving them in Tsukuyomi-sama’s hands. Once things settle down, we’ll drop by and pay our respects. Thanks in advance.”

He gave Amaterasu-sama a deep, respectful bow—

But she was completely out of it, mumbling to herself, “Anaconda… big snake… ehehehe,”

Clearly not hearing a word.

…Or maybe, just maybe, Shinonome had said all that out loud for Tsukuyomi’s benefit,

Knowing he might be watching from somewhere behind the scenes.

After that, Shinonome grabbed his sisters by the collars and dragged them off toward the garden.

Just before leaving, he turned back to Natsuki and the others—

His usual playful grin fading into something quieter, more serious.

“I like you guys. So let me give you one piece of advice: Don’t come to Kyoto for a while.”

Before anyone could ask what the heck that was supposed to mean—

Shinonome was suddenly engulfed in flames.

“Well then, farewell, everyone. Let’s meet again someday. Fly, Suzaku!”

“KOKEEEEEHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!”

“Wait—hold up. That’s Suzaku!? The legendary Suzaku!? And that’s the sound it makes!? Kokeeehhhhhh is its battle cry!?”

Natsuki’s shout of disbelief went unanswered.

With blazing wings spread wide, Suzaku soared into the sky—

Carrying Shinonome, Kirara, and Onsa higher and higher

Until they vanished from sight.

“…WAIT! ARE WE SURE THAT’S REALLY SUZAKU’S BATTLE CRYYYYY!?”

Natsuki reached up toward the blue sky, yelling with everything he had.

But no one—not Suzaku, not the heavens, not even the wind—bothered to answer his deeply heartfelt question.

〜〜Afterword〜〜

Next time, we’re heading to the Abe household for more chaos and conversation!