(Currently playing: Koi - Monogatari)'
Although Kiss-Shot wished she could stay bonded with Souta as his master for a little longer, she didn't force the issue.
Instead, she stated it plainly—
Because she had just regained her full body, her appetite was overwhelming.
And the time she could suppress her hunger...
"Once I can't suppress it anymore... I'll have to eat humans."
"As long as I evolve before that and remove the flaw, it'll be fine."
"At most, I have a day or two."
And so, she told Souta not to rush.
Souta had no objections.
Hell, whether it was one day or even two weeks, he had nothing better to do anyway.
The two of them waited from morning until sunset before leaving the abandoned cram school and heading toward the town center.
The sky wasn't completely dark yet.
The sun had just disappeared from view, like a summer evening around 7 or 8 PM.
Kiss-Shot, bored out of her mind, asked Souta to take her somewhere.
So, he decided to treat her to donuts.
Since her 27-year-old form was too eye-catching, it would have definitely caused a scene.
At Souta's suggestion, she transformed into her 8-year-old self.
Her elegant gown-like evening dress also changed into a simple white sundress.
And because she didn't feel like walking, she didn't bother creating shoes either.
She let Souta carry her.
With her arms hooked around his neck and his hands supporting her thighs, she clung onto him like a child.
"Mm-hmm, this position is very satisfactory."
Despite her young appearance, her tone remained proud and regal.
"Speaking of which, Minion..."
Kiss-Shot tilted her head.
That 'donut' you mentioned—it's a human-world commodity, isn't it?
You need money to buy it, don't you?"
Souta carried her without any difficulty.
After all, his vampire strength made her weight feel like nothing more than an empty backpack.
As he took in the pleasant scent of her hair, he casually replied:
"I don't have money, but I have an idea on how to get some." "Oh?"
Kiss-Shot's curiosity was piqued.
"Isn't it common for yakuza to run illegal loan businesses in Japan?"
"We could try looking for one."
"I mean, we have nothing better to do, right?
Might as well make this a... unique life experience."
"Taking out a high-interest loan... how interesting!"
Kiss-Shot was visibly intrigued.
Of course, she had no real concept of money.
What interested her wasn't the cash itself—
She narrowed her eyes.
"Do you even have a way to pay them back?
It's called a high-interest loan for a reason."
Why would I repay money I borrowed in another world?"
"If someone can cross dimensions to collect my debt, fine, I'll pay up."
"Minion, you have no sense of responsibility!
Once you leave this world, won't those loan sharks come after me?!"
Souta: "Would you actually pay them back?"
"Of course not. I'd just beat them all up."
In the end, they couldn't find any yakuza.
This small rural town barely had a nightlife scene, let alone organized crime.
"Hey, Kiss-Shot, could you use your matter-creation ability to make money?"
"Impossible. I've never seen what this country's currency looks like."
With no other choice, Souta led Kiss-Shot to a hotel.
Not because they needed a room for 'activities'—
(If they really wanted to, they could just... stay in the ruins. Cough.)
They were there to steal money.
As luck would have it, one of the hotel's guests was Episode—
The very vampire hunter Souta had beaten to a pulp two days ago.
Barely recovered from his last beating, he was immediately extorted by Souta and Kiss-Shot.
And because he wasn't cooperative at first—
Souta smashed his face with his phone a few more times.
His barely healed wounds split right back open.
Episode, now officially done with life, packed his bags and left town that very night.
He had no idea what kind of lunatic Souta was—
But he wasn't about to stick around to find out.
"I have to say—his escape was... super hilarious."
Now that they had money, there was no need to stay in a ruined building.
Since Episode had run off, they just took over his hotel room.
Didn't even need ID verification.
Souta finally took Kiss-Shot for donuts.
And the moment she took her first bite—
She looked as if she had just discovered a whole new world.
Her face melted into pure bliss.
You've presented me with the greatest treasure!"
By the time they left—
She had made Souta spend nearly all of Episode's stolen money...
To buy several huge bags of donuts to take back to the hotel.
She was utterly lost in the world of sweets.
"Minion! If you had told me about this earlier—
I wouldn't have even thought about killing myself!"
Souta: "...Are you serious?"
He knew donuts were a big deal for her, sure—
It was established in the story.
It's just that serious!"
Kiss-Shot declared with conviction.
"As long as donuts exist—
I will never destroy humanity!"
"By the way..." Souta asked, "Did you originally have the idea of destroying humanity?"
After all, in one of this world's alternate timelines, Kiss-Shot had truly wiped out all of humanity—and it had only taken her five days.
"Because I was bored," Kiss-Shot said casually, "Once you've lived long enough, you start wanting to try everything. Destroying the world is one of the few things I haven't attempted yet. I figured it might be an interesting experiment."
"Please, absolutely do NOT do that!" Souta's eye twitched. "If you want donuts, I'll buy you as many as you want! Just don't act on impulse!"
"Heh, you really know how to play along."
With a smug expression, Kiss-Shot took a bite of her donut and continued:
"By the way, my servant, I'm curious—what was my fate in the original timeline?"
"Hm?" Souta was slightly taken aback. "Didn't you say that keeping things unknown makes life more interesting?"
"But my encounter with you has already changed my future, hasn't it?" Kiss-Shot replied with a smirk. "If that's the case, then knowing my original fate won't make a difference."
"That's true," Souta admitted, thinking for a moment before answering, "But honestly, I don't remember too well. It's been a long time since I read Monogatari."
"A problem with memory? That's easy to fix."
Kiss-Shot put down her donut, her expression turning proud.
"I have a method—just do as I do. I'll demonstrate for you."
Then, she extended her right hand into a blade-like shape, brought it close to the side of her head—
And without hesitation—
Jammed four fingers straight into her own temple!