“I don’t think anyone can fool me.”
Yukino dodged her sister's affectionate attack with disdain, her tone flat: “How much longer are you going to stay? Don’t you need to take care of family matters in Chiba?”
“You’re the new head of the Yukinoshita family, after all.”
“Hee hee, now that we have computers, many things can be easily solved online.”
She leaned back, her smile a carefully crafted facade, honed through countless trials.
Yori seamlessly changed the subject.
She didn’t want her sister to see the worry hidden in her heart.
The Yukinoshita family had been going through a rough patch recently.
In previous years, under the leadership of the family’s matriarch, known as "Snow Mother," the family business flourished, even expanding its influence to surrounding cities.
As the successor, Yukinoshita Yori intended to build upon this foundation, creating an even grander enterprise, but her plans were cut short.
A rapidly growing organization called "Jujitsukai" in Chiba had set its sights on them.
At first, Yori dismissed the name Jujitsukai.
She assumed they were targeting her family because they were a wealthy clan.
But recently, as conflicts and tensions escalated between the two parties, reaching a point of no return, she finally realized the true nature of the monster she had provoked.
Jujitsukai might not be skilled in business, but they were masters of shady, illegal methods.
They had gathered under their banner numerous superhumans with immense power.
Under the relentless pursuit of these superhumans, the Yukinoshita family suffered heavy losses, their numbers dwindling rapidly.
If they hadn’t feared official investigations for their actions, Yori might not be standing here today.
Driven into a corner, Yori, under the instruction of Snow Mother, had come to Tokyo alone to live with her sister.
One purpose was to lay low, to avoid the spotlight.
The other was to seek opportunities to bolster the family’s strength. If they could find a powerful superhuman to protect them, just like Jujitsukai, those damned bastards would no longer dare to attack their family.
But where could one find a powerful superhuman?
From Yori’s personal experience, these superhumans, after gaining their powers, inevitably became arrogant.
They looked down on others, demanded exorbitant fees, and some even coveted her beauty.
If not for her mother finding the sorceress called "Mumu" who drove those men away, her fate might not have been so good.
Such is the state of the world today.
On the surface, peace and harmony reign, but beneath the veneer, the stage is set for superhuman forces.
They operate with impunity, flaunting their supernatural abilities, rising to power by oppressing the weak.
Yori’s strong spirit couldn’t tolerate this.
She wanted to protect her family herself, not rely on others.
To achieve this, she didn’t hesitate to spend a fortune, pleading with Mumu to test her aptitude for becoming a sorceress.
Mumu was a woman of action. After receiving payment, she began the test.
Everything seemed to be going well.
But…
Reality often chooses to show its cruel side when hope emerges.
The test results revealed that she lacked the qualifications to become a sorceress.
…
“I’m very sorry, Yori-san. You lack the qualifications to become a sorceress,” said the elegant, athletic sorceress with long hair that hid her eyes, regretfully informing the short-haired girl before her.
“Is… is there no other way? Mumu-san!”
Yukinoshita Yori, always so confident in front of others, now revealed her despair, clenching her teeth in frustration.
“Seeing as you paid handsomely, I'll give you some advice.”
In the dimly lit room, Mumu sat on a gray sofa, her long, shapely legs crossed.
Her slightly husky voice echoed through the empty space.
“To find a powerful enough individual to protect your family, you should seek out my junior.”
“My junior knows how to contact that guy. He always keeps a low profile, refusing to show his face, yet he’s strong enough to have single-handedly slain a Special-Grade Curse.”
“What? He single-handedly defeated a Special-Grade?!”
Yukinoshita Yori’s head shot up upon hearing this.
Hope flickered in her eyes.
She was no longer naive.
She understood the significance of slaying a Special-Grade Curse.
Even those arrogant superhumans who looked down on others, or even the entire Jujitsukai combined, wouldn’t be a match for this mysterious individual.
“The good news is, he’s incredibly powerful, even Special-Grades are no match for him.”
“The bad news is, you have absolutely no idea what he looks like, not even what his hobbies are, or where he lives… A person who keeps such a low profile, the chances of him agreeing to help your family are incredibly slim.”
Mumu, usually a woman of few words, spoke at length for once, leaving Yukinoshita Yori lost in thought.
Her family was on the verge of collapse, teetering on the edge of a precipice.
Jujitsukai was becoming increasingly brazen, even sending out spiritual power users to harass them in broad daylight.
Mumu was limited in what she could do alone. Her signature spell, "Black Bird Manipulation," was good at surveillance, but its offensive power was extremely limited.
She’d made her position clear. If the enemy were to attack with everything they had, she’d rather abandon the money than stay.
If their only hope were to run away to save his own life, no one else would protect their family.
The weight of it all pressed down on the young woman, like towering mountains, threatening to crush her.
Though exhausted physically and emotionally, she kept all her negative feelings hidden.
She flashed a radiant smile at her sister.
If Miss Sanrin agreed to invite "Saber" to help, and provide protection for the Yukinoshita family, all their troubles would be resolved.
But…
If she didn’t agree, or simply didn’t want to meet them, then she would truly be helpless.
This was a cruel gamble.
The wager was nothing more than "Saber's" thoughts.
If she lost, the price would be the lives of her entire family.