Chapter 657: Escaping is Shameful but Effective
Sunlight streamed through the Shinkansen window into the adjacent seat. Kazumi lowered her head, her slender fingers unconsciously fumbling with her blouse. The scenery outside blurred past, failing to capture her attention.
She couldn’t help but glance at Sato Shin’ichi, who was sitting next to her. The young man was lying on the seat, engrossed in watching short videos on his phone. From the content she could glimpse, it seemed to be a tutorial on combat moves. He was so focused that he didn’t even notice her gaze.
…
She withdrew her attention, her gaze falling back to her own feet. Her mind, however, was racing.
Kazumi had to admit that her caution had saved her life. Shin’ichi had mentioned some time ago that besides introducing her to his friends for them to play together, he had a surprise prepared for her. At the time, Kazumi had tried to ask a few questions, but he’d brushed them off, citing it as a surprise. Back then, she hadn’t thought much of it, assuming it would be a small gift or a trip to a scenic spot. After all, she didn’t know much about boys, so she let him be vague about the matter. But today, on a whim, she’d pressed him for details, and Shin’ichi’s answer had given her a huge shock.
“Why is there even a way for civilians to gain a power?! And doesn’t this kind of thing, no matter how you think about it, seem incredibly precious? Sato Shin’ichi, are you treating it like a casual outing?!”
At this moment, Kazumi could truly understand why pursuing girls was so simple for some people. Look at the guy she was with – this clueless kid who didn’t know the value of anything, treating such a thing like a gift he could hand out casually. And he called it a little surprise for her? It was too much.
Sato Shin’ichi would never lie to her, so this ability to grant powers to ordinary people must exist and be feasible. In her previous life, this kind of benefit, equivalent to getting a job in a provincial capital or a postgraduate position in a top-tier university, a boyfriend providing this level of favor was truly… Even Kazumi couldn’t help but want to repay him handsomely.
“He hasn’t woken up yet. The favor is too great; I can’t repay it at all.”
This was the kind of overwhelming influence a privileged young man with no experience could have. From Kazumi’s perspective, setting aside the little schemes she harbored in her heart towards Shin’ichi, they had only been together for less than half a year. Their intimate contact as a couple had barely progressed beyond kissing on the cheek. This was an unchangeable objective fact.
Yet, even with this level of intimacy development, simply because she had expressed unease about the difference in their statuses, Shin’ichi had actually found a way to make Shimizu Kazumi, an ordinary person, into a psychic – even someone who could become a hero.
She didn’t know whether to call him foolish or devoted, but to her, this matter alone was enough to move her cold heart.
“This… this guy really…”
She couldn’t help but glance at the young man beside her again, and Kazumi couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.
Although the soul within Shimizu Kazumi’s body was from a man in another world, Kazumi was a young person of the new era with a normal education and good values. While she prioritized her own interests in some respects, she couldn’t bring herself to act like those women she despised in her past life, accepting such a great favor with a clear conscience and treating him the same way. Moreover, Shin’ichi had been so good to her for so long, she couldn’t find a single fault with him.
“At worst, at worst, I’ll just be kinder to him in the future.”
The dangerous thought that surfaced in her mind was shattered. Her cheeks inexplicably began to feel warm, and the girl forced herself to stop thinking about such emotional matters, as the truly significant part of this situation was yet to come.
Shin’ichi’s mention of powers, if possessed by Crimson Maru, or more famously, the Emperor Yan, made a sort of sense. Emperor Yan was once the number one hero in the Heroes Association, but he failed in the competition and, coupled with his conflict with Hamano Tsukasa, chose to leave the Heroes Association and return to Nagoya to live his own life.
But leaving other things aside, the mere fact that he could compete with Hamano Tsukasa for the top hero title was enough to attest to his immense strength. Combined with his years of experience serving in the Association, Kazumi’s current worry was whether she would expose her identity due to some mistake under the gaze of this absolute powerhouse who had no preconceptions about her. After all, this time there would be no room for her body and consciousness to take over.
And most importantly, the matter of powers! Thinking this, Kazumi’s already furrowed brow seemed to draw closer together. If she could navigate all these concerns smoothly, and using Sato Shin’ichi’s girlfriend status, successfully reach the final step to receive the gift of power… but she mustn’t forget, she already possessed powers!
Regarding ordinary people gaining powers, there was no description in textbooks, only mentions of ordinary people potentially awakening powers due to some external factors. Moreover, these late-awakened powers were usually weak, so there wasn’t much special attention given to them. Even the injection developed by her parents for the “Dark” organization required matching the user’s innate talent and an extremely focused mental state to have a chance of successful awakening. The situation Shin’ichi described, where ordinary people could gain powers, was something Kazumi had never heard of, sounding like a fantastical tale.
So now, Kazumi had no idea what would happen if she, who already possessed powers, were to receive this power-granting gift, or whether it would lead to the exposure of her original powers. Everything was an unknown, with the possibility of exposing her hidden identity.
Constant thought caused a thin line to appear on Kazumi’s forehead, her lips pursed into a straight line. Finally, a potential solution surfaced in her mind.
What if she pretended to be sick and said she wanted to go back this time?
