Souta's expression turned serious as he quietly said to Kurumi:
"You previously had a conflict with Itsuka Kotori. Since she's the commander of Ratatoskr, do you think she might be using the ship to track and monitor you?"
Kurumi pondered for a moment before shaking her head.
"Kotori... she probably thinks I'm already dead."
Souta, however, wasn't so sure.
"I doubt it. You do have a record of 'coming back to life'—she should be able to find that out."
After thinking for a bit, he suggested:
"Just to be safe, we should probably disguise ourselves."
Kurumi thought it over and agreed.
The two of them headed to a clothing store.
Souta helped Kurumi pick out a stylish hat, along with some other fashionable outfits.
Kurumi even tried some of them on for him.
What started as "disguising themselves" soon turned into a shopping spree.
Souta's eye twitched—Kurumi seemed to have zero sense of urgency.
But seeing how happy she looked, he didn't have the heart to say anything.
After buying clothes, they went out to eat.
Even though this was an isekai world, the food tasted just like Japanese cuisine.
After their meal, Kurumi dragged Souta to a movie theater.
She genuinely seemed to enjoy spending time just hanging out.
By the time they finished, Souta realized something odd—
He was supposed to be the visitor in this world.
Yet somehow, it felt like Kurumi was the one experiencing a new world instead.
Since Souta didn't have any money in this world, all the expenses—meals, movies, shopping—were paid for by Kurumi.
This was his first time experiencing the "freeloader lifestyle", and honestly...
It was kind of refreshing.
Originally, Souta had wanted to go see some of the other Spirits from Date A Live.
But after asking Kurumi, he learned that none of the Spirits had appeared in Tengu City yet.
In other words, the main plot hadn't even started.
A bit disappointing... but nothing he could do about it.
Time passed quickly, and soon, it was nighttime.
After finishing the movie, Souta and Kurumi made their way to a hill on the outskirts of the city.
From there, they had a breathtaking view of the city's nightscape—
Neon lights flickering, the streets still buzzing with life.
"Thanks for spending the whole day with me," Souta said, glancing at his phone.
It was already 9:30 PM.
Kurumi also checked the time.
Her expression was soft, and despite walking around all day, she showed no signs of exhaustion—if anything, she seemed even more energized.
"If anything, I should be thanking you."
She gazed at the glowing city below, her eyes filled with nostalgia.
"It's been... a long time since I've had an experience ."
"If you ever want to do it again, just message me."
Souta waved his phone, then added:
"The system already told me—since I accepted your invitation, I can now come and go from this world freely."
Then, smiling, he said:
"Alright, now it's my turn to be the host. Let's go—it's time to visit my world."
But just as he finished speaking, his smile stiffened.
Because he suddenly remembered...
The system's ridiculous rule—
"Female friends must hug the host to travel between worlds."
Kurumi noticed the change in his expression, and after realizing what was on his mind, she gave him a mischievous look.
She clearly enjoyed teasing men.
"It's nothing. Let's just get going."
Souta suddenly felt like he was being looked down on by a little girl.
Even though Kurumi looked like a 16- or 17-year-old girl, given the nature of Spirits, she was definitely older than she appeared.
A girl's body, but a mature woman's mentality...
...Well, in that case, getting teased by her didn't seem so bad.
Souta looked at Kurumi and asked:
"So... do you want to do it, or should I?"
"Hmm? Do what, exactly, Rokuhara-kun?"
Kurumi stood completely still, a relaxed expression on her face—
Looking like she was enjoying the show.
He took a step forward, spread his arms, and gently pulled Kurumi's delicate body into an embrace.
His hands rested lightly on her soft back.
Kurumi let out a soft hum, her sultry voice brushing against Souta's ears, making his heart skip a beat.
A faint, floral fragrance filled his nose—
The scent of her hair.
Souta inhaled softly, feeling the warmth and softness of the girl in his arms—
His mind subtly wavering.
Glancing down at Kurumi, he noticed something surprising—
Despite her usual elegance and confidence, at this moment, her eyes slightly averted his gaze—
And her cheeks were tinged with red.
She looked incredibly charming.
"I thought you didn't get embarrassed," Souta suddenly remarked.
Kurumi met his gaze, then quickly regained her composure.
"Shall we begin?" she said, pretending to be completely unaffected.
Souta decided not to call her out on it.
Instead, he simply nodded.
"Alright, System—initiate teleportation."
A brilliant white light enveloped the two of them.
In the darkness of the night, no one noticed their departure.
As the light faded away—
Rokuhara Souta and Tokisaki Kurumi vanished from this world.
At exactly 12:00 AM, inside a small one-bedroom apartment—
A white light flashed, and two distorted figures gradually emerged from it.
As the light dispersed, their forms became clear—
Souta and Kurumi had returned.
Opening his eyes, Souta scanned his surroundings.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
There was no place quite like home.
As much as he had enjoyed exploring another world, nothing could replace the sense of comfort and familiarity that came with returning to his own space.
Still wrapped in his embrace, Kurumi curiously glanced around the apartment, her golden eye shining in the dim moonlight.
Her expression was one of intrigue.
She wasn't quite convinced yet—
Had they really arrived in another world?
After all, from her perspective, it just felt like they had teleported somewhere.
That, in itself, wasn't too impressive.
After all, her "Shadow Manipulation" worked in a similar way.
She could use shadows to disappear, hide herself, and even store her clones.
If she needed to, she could also reappear at any location instantly.
So simply "jumping between places" wasn't enough to convince her...
That they had truly entered a different world.
"This is my rented apartment."
Souta explained as he let go of Kurumi and walked over to the wall switch, flipping on all the lights.
The bright glow immediately filled the room.
Glancing at his phone, he noticed the time—
Souta frowned in surprise.
"Huh? Does this phone automatically adjust to the current world's time? I remember before we traveled, it was only a little past 9 PM."
The entire teleportation process only took a few seconds—so how had two hours passed?
He walked over to the window, looking outside.
It was completely dark, and the neighborhood was quiet, just like a typical midnight atmosphere.
"System, do different worlds have time differences?"
"Well... that explains it."
Souta nodded in understanding.
At that moment, Kurumi, who had been observing her surroundings, murmured:
"So this really is... another world?"
"That's right—100% real."
Having his own world labeled as an "isekai" felt a bit strange.
Suddenly, he remembered something important and quickly warned her:
"Oh, and whatever you do—don't trigger a Spacequake here! This world doesn't have any supernatural powers. It wouldn't be able to handle it."