Despite her clear embarrassment, Yukino's flustered reaction only piqued Nanashi's interest further.
Smirking, he leaned against the doorframe and said, "But you're the one who invited me here, Yukino. What's the matter? Did you want me to admire your beauty fresh out of the bath? I have to admit, the view is... quite tempting."
"Y-you…!"
Her ears and cheeks turned a shade of deep crimson.
Composure? Gone.
Nanashi decided to stop teasing her before she exploded.
His smirk faded, and he got straight to the point. "So? What happened?"
Shooting him one last glare, Yukino took a deep breath, regaining her cool.
She adjusted the towel with her left hand, then—without warning—grabbed his wrist with her right.
Without even giving him a chance to remove his shoes, she dragged him inside.
Nanashi, ever mindful, reached back and casually shut the door behind them.
Yukino led him straight to the bathroom.
The door was shut.
Water stains dotted the floor near the entrance.
Clearly, she had rushed out of the bath in a hurry.
She pointed at the door, her voice dropping to a whisper. "There's a monster… in there."
Nanashi raised an eyebrow. "A monster? Scarier than zombies?"
Considering Yukino had slain countless zombies with her own hands, he found it hard to believe there was anything left that could shake her.
"It's… different."
Yukino's voice was unusually tense.
Without another word, Nanashi stepped forward and opened the door.
And then—
A black, grotesque, reptilian abomination stood before them.
Its twisted body was covered in dozens of interwoven arms and hundreds of shifting eyeballs.
Every single eye snapped toward them the moment the door opened.
Its mouth opened, revealing jagged, unnatural teeth, and from its throat came a hoarse, eerie murmur:
"You can see me? You can't see me?"
"Can you see? Can you see me?"
"No… you can't see… You can't see!"
It repeats the sentence over and over again.
Being so close to the grotesque creature, Yukino's body trembled.
Her left hand instinctively grasped Nanashi's.
Yet, instead of fear, all she felt from him was... disappointment.
Nanashi sighed. "Oh, I thought it was something serious. Turns out it's just the weakest kind of evil spirit. How boring."
The creature's voice rasped. "You can see me?"
Ignoring its question, Nanashi gently squeezed Yukino's soft hand, a silent attempt to calm her.
Then, he suggested, "Yukino, why not try using your ability against it?"
Evil spirit?
Yukino frowned slightly at the term.
But if Nanashi said so, it meant he was confident.
That was reassuring.
And if her abilities worked on it…
Then she wouldn't have to be afraid anymore.
Determined, Yukino raised her right hand.
The sudden movement drew the creature's attention.
Hundreds of grotesque eyes locked onto her.
It let out an eerie, guttural shriek.
"You can see me! You must see me! I'm going to eat you!"
The twisted, monstrous form lunged straight for her.
But…
She wasn't afraid.
A warmth enveloped her hand—a steady, reassuring presence.
With Nanashi at her side, she didn't fear anything. Like the time when she was in the Doomsday Game.
She took a sharp breath, eyes flashing with resolve.
"Ice!"
A single word left her lips.
In an instant, seven or eight razor-sharp ice spears, each thirty to forty centimeters long, materialized in midair.
The evil spirit's many clawed hands reached out.
But before they could touch her—
Shhfft!
The ice spears shot forward in a deadly volley.
For a moment, there was no sound.
Then—
The spears pierced through the creature's writhing mass.
A heartbeat later, something incredible happened.
The spots where the ice had struck began to freeze.
The frost spread rapidly, consuming its body.
Until—
Crack!
The evil spirit shattered into black shards.
The dark, inky substance dissolved, fading into nothingness along with the ice.
"I did it!"
Yukino clenched her fists in excitement.
But in her moment of triumph…
She forgot one very important thing.
Her left hand was still holding Nanashi's.
Her right hand had just moved.
The towel she had loosely wrapped around herself?
It was no longer secured.
A single knot was never enough.
And Yukino's figure, though elegant, didn't have the necessary… assets to hold it up.
Combine that with her sudden movements—
And, as expected…
The towel slipped.
And just like that—
Snow-white, flawless skin was revealed before Nanashi's very eyes.
"..."
Nanashi froze, his brain momentarily short-circuiting.
Yukino, on the other hand, stood utterly petrified.
Her mind, for the first time in ages, went completely blank.
Seconds passed.
Nanashi had already committed every inch of this scene to memory.
Then—finally—Yukino moved.
But unlike a certain angel, she didn't scream.
She didn't panic.
The only difference between her and Lemuel was this:
Lemuel had laughed and simply told him to leave.
Yukino, however, calmly raised her hands and covered her chest.
She didn't bother with the lower half.
Or perhaps… she was too mortified to move.
Her cheeks burned red, but her voice remained cool.
"Can you please turn around?"
"Huh? Oh. Right. Of course."
Nanashi spun around instantly.
But he could already hear the suppressed tremor in her voice.