Date a Live:This is not the date I wanted! Chapter 154 154: Minimum three years, maximum death penalty

"Ugh... I'm back?"

As his consciousness gradually cleared, Shido slowly sat up from the machine. Looking around, he saw rows of full-dive equipnt used for the virtual world. His right hand was still tightly holding Yutsuki's small hand.

Shido was certain he had returned to the real world.

"Yo, Shido. You're back."

"Kotori?"

Seeing Kotori suddenly appear, Shido was a bit surprised.

"Why are you here?"

"Why am I here? That's a weird question to ask. Did you train so hard that the last remaining brain cells in your head turned into muscle?"

Kotori, rolling a lollipop in her mouth and with her hands on her hips, spoke with her usual sharp tongue. It's just that, paired with her current petite body, it made her look like a kid trying to act grown-up.

"This training plan was Yutsuki-nee's proposal to begin with. Since I approved it, I obviously have an obligation to co check if there are any problems. Speaking of which... I know you two are close, but isn't it about ti you let go? My dear loli—con—Onii-chan."

Saying that, Kotori stared at Shido's right hand, which was holding Yutsuki's little hand, her big round eyes showing considerable dissatisfaction.

"Uh. Haha..."

With an awkward smile, Shido hurriedly let go of Yutsuki's hand.

"Hah~ It's finally over."

Just then, Yutsuki finally woke up from the dive gear as well. She let out a long yawn and rubbed her eyes like a child who had just woken up.

Seeing Kotori, she wasn't surprised and waved a greeting.

"Yo, Kotori-chan, you're here?"

"Mhm, good work, Yutsuki-nee. So, how were the training results?"

"Well, about that..." Yutsuki glanced back at Shido and shook her head. "Completely hopeless. This guy just isn't cut out to be a warrior. The way I see it, if he actually went onto a battlefield, he's the type who'd be dead in three minutes."

Shido, who had been puffing out his chest feeling a bit proud, instantly looked bitter.

"Isn't this usually the ti you praise and give so confidence?!"

"How am I supposed to give a good review to a guy who runs over to act as a at cushion for the enemy during a fight?"

"That wasn't for the enemy, it was for you, Yutsuki..."

"Hm? Did I say sothing wrong?"

"No..."

Kotori wasn't surprised by this and sighed as if she had expected it all along.

"So that's how it is. But it's not strange. After all, even after conquering so many Spirits, Shido is still a useless guy reeking of a passive virgin."

"Pfft—!"

Shido felt his heart take unprecedented heavy damage. He just wanted to curl up in a corner and rot.

"Well, I never planned on dragging Shido into a war anyway, so that doesn't really matter. On the contrary, if it's acting as a knight to protect everyone, there's no one more suited than Shido."

Yutsuki smiled slightly, winked, and added.

"Yutsuki... couldn't you have said that at the beginning?"

"Well~ I'm the type who likes the bitter before the sweet."

Seeing Shido's expression, caught between laughing and crying, Yutsuki couldn't help but smile happily.

To be honest, Yutsuki felt Shido had really done a great job. Putting aside the fact that he made significant progress in controlling Spirit power in just seven days, just the fact that an ordinary high schooler was resolved to take up arms for the sake of others was incredible in itself.

Of course, in Yutsuki's eyes, Shido was still very naive in many ways. But Yutsuki didn't actually intend to turn Shido into a battle-hardened warrior. To protect the Spirits' safety, those traits were actually indispensable to him.

"But, with Shido's personality... if he's going to protect everyone. Rather than my Ratziel, an Angel that completely abandons attack power for pure defense would suit him better, right?"

Yutsuki shrugged and said jokingly.

"Yeah. And I bet a Spirit with that kind of Angel would also have a mature, voluptuous figure and give off a gentle Yamato Nadeshiko (ideal Japanese woman) vibe. A passive guy like Shido would fall into her gentle embrace and never be able to get out."

Kotori nodded in agreent.

"I feel like you two are underestimating . There's no way I'd conveniently run into a Spirit like that."

Seeing the two little girls making fun of him, Shido had black lines all over his head and sighed speechlessly.

(Well, if a Spirit like that really existed... I feel like she'd be soone like a shrine maiden serving the gods.)

Shido thought casually.

"Well, jokes aside. It looks like you have sowhat mastered the Spirit power. But Shido, you have to rember. Other than when a Spirit is in danger or when you're protecting yourself, you cannot use this power for any personal reasons. If the AST or soone discovers you and mistakes you for a Spirit like entity, it'll be huge trouble. In the worst case, you won't even be able to live a normal everyday life anymore. Understand?"

Dropping the teasing smile from earlier, Kotori warned Shido in a serious tone.

"Yeah. I understand."

When they were in the virtual world, Yutsuki had told him the exact sa thing. Shido nodded in understanding.

"Hah~ Then let's get ready to head back."

Yutsuki let out a tired yawn and said sowhat groggily.

And so, Shido's first training session in the virtual world, lasting seven days, ended after only ten minutes had passed in the real world.

_________________________________________________________________________

"Hah~"

Early the next morning, Shido let out a long yawn and walked into the kitchen to start preparing breakfast.

Because everyone had turned into kids and needed looking after, they didn't return to the Spirit apartnt complex next door like before. Instead, based on the situation, they split into the Shido's Room Group (Shido, Tohka, Yoshino, Miku) and the Kotori's Room Group (Kotori, Kaguya, Yuzuru, Yutsuki) to sleep.

According to Yutsuki, having several little girls sleeping next to you was probably a dream co true for a certain demographic of enthusiasts. But in reality, before going to sleep, Shido had to take care of them like any other kids—telling stories and singing lullabies to coax them to sleep. And after they fell asleep, Yoshino and Miku hugged his body, while Tohka laid directly on his chest. The restricted breathing and movent ant Shido barely got any rest the entire night.

Thanks to this, Shido snapped back to reality from his seven days of virtual training, rembering the exhaustion and trouble of having to run a daycare for a bunch of super-energetic little monsters because of Natsumi.

(Well, thanks to resting properly before returning, I'm not that tired.)

Today's breakfast was French toast, known for being simple, delicious, and budget-friendly. He soaked sliced bread in a mixture of eggs, milk, and sugar, and pan fried them in a buttered skillet for a short while until done. He also prepared a salad and clear soup while the bread soaked up the flavor. In less than twenty minutes, the dining room of the Itsuka house was filled with the aroma of food.

"Hah~ You're up early, Onii-chan."

"Good morning, Shido-kun~ It must be hard work getting up so early to make breakfast for Yoshino~ As a reward, do you want a good morning kiss from the super cute Yoshino~"

"Y-Yoshinon! Um... I'm here to help,Shido-san."

"Darling, ohayou. I've co to taste the breakfast of love you made for your wife~"

"Kuku—Did you purposely let the scent of the offerings drift to awaken from the endless darkness? You're quite capable, Shido. Let thoroughly enjoy this morning offering."

"Drooling. Attracted by the sll of food. Shido, is breakfast ready?"

"Ugh... I sll sothing... yummy... zzz..."

Before long, Kotori with her white ribbons; the shy Yoshino holding Yoshinon; the energetic Miku; the Yamai sisters awakened by the sll of food; and Tohka, who was drawn by the food but hadn't quite woken up yet, all arrived in the living room one after another. It seed that even though they turned into children, their daily routines weren't affected too much.

"Huh? Where's Yutsuki?"

Seeing that a familiar face was missing among the little ones gathered in the dining room, Shido couldn't help but ask.

"Ah, Yutsuki-nee is still sleeping in my room."

Kotori said.

"Eh. Still sleeping?"

Shido was a bit surprised. After all, in his impression, Yutsuki was definitely the type to wake up on ti.

"Kuku—I'm also quite surprised about this. My comrade, who usually wakes up from my sweet dreams before the Bell of Awakening (alarm clock) even rings. To think there'd be a day she was defeated by the sleep demon. Although I wanted to tease her a bit, since my friend is rarely lazy, I showed rcy and let her off."

"Emotion. Even though I didn't hear Yutsuki's voice before the alarm rang, my body still woke up instinctively. Yuzuru's feelings are a bit complicated right now."

Yuzuru and Kaguya both said, looking a bit worried.

(Rather than being considerate friends, you sound more like worried mothers.)

Hearing Yuzuru and Kaguya's words, Shido couldn't help but think speechlessly.

However, Yutsuki herself had said that after shrinking, she often had a hard ti waking up because of low blood pressure.

Since it was still early, Shido decided to let Yutsuki sleep a little longer. After breakfast was ready, Kotori, Miku, and the others very diligently helped Shido clear the table and set the tableware. Although it wasn't a rare sight, seeing them looking like little kids now gave off a strong "kids helping out with chores" vibe.

"It's getting late... I'll go wake Yutsuki up."

Seeing that breakfast was ready and even Tohka had fully woken up thanks to the delicious food entering her mouth, but Yutsuki still hadn't appeared in the living room, Shido felt a bit worried.

"Yo, yo~ Is Shido-kun going to attack Yutsuki-chan? How bold! You know the law says a minimum of three years and a maximum of the death penalty, right!"

Hearing Yoshinon's comnt, everyone's gaze shifted towards him. Shido hurriedly waved his hands to deny it.

"I'm just going to wake her up normally. I'm not going to do anything."

"Well~ You never know. After all, unlike her usual self, a sleepy Yutsuki has a demonic charm that feels almost holy."

"Evaluation. Like a baby bird just hatched from an eggshell. Even Yuzuru was almost shaken."

"Onii-chan, don't walk down the path of cri!"

"I told you I'm just going to wake her up normally!"

Shido sighed, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. He took off his apron and got ready to go up to the second floor to wake Yutsuki.

_______________________________________________________________________________

Entering Kotori's room, Shido imdiately saw sothing bundled up in the blanket on Kotori's bed, rising and falling with regular breathing. As for what that sothing was, Shido knew without even thinking.

"She's actually still asleep..."

Shido scratched his head in surprise. After all, according to Yutsuki herself, "An irregular otaku lifestyle isn't enjoynt, it's degradation." She lived a very disciplined life every day, so oversleeping like this was truly rare.

"Hey, Yutsuki, ti to get up. The sun is already high in the sky."

"Ugh..."

Hearing Shido's voice, the little figure under the blanket shifted slightly, then slowly poked her head out like a turtle.

Normally, Yutsuki seed careless but was actually very reliable. Although Shido felt she hadn't changed much even after turning into a child, seeing a new side of her he'd never seen before... how should he put it, it subtly hit his "moe" weak spot.

"Get up, Yutsuki, breakfast is ready."

Shido reached out a finger and gently poked Yutsuki's cheek. Because she turned into a child, her already smooth skin now felt incredibly soft, like a marshmallow.

Being poked by Shido, Yutsuki reacted slightly. She rubbed her eyes, looked at Shido's face, and mumbled groggily.

"Ugh... Papa?"

"Pfft—!"

Shido almost spat out blood on the spot. Caught between laughing and crying, he picked up the half asleep Yutsuki, shook her gently, and said.

"Wake up, Yutsuki! It's , Shido!"

Yutsuki looked at Shido with half-open eyes for a mont, then tilted her head cutely and said.

"Shido... is Papa?"

"Absolutely not!"

Shido denied it without hesitation. If he agreed to that, wouldn't he beco a perverted daughtercon who likes little girls calling him papa?

Probably because she wasn't fully awake yet, Yutsuki's eyes drooped with sleepiness, looking like she could fall back asleep at any mont. To Shido, she looked like a sleepy kitten curled up.

(It'd be even more perfect if she owed.)

Shido couldn't help but think.

"ow..."

(She actually owed!)

Shido covered his mouth with one hand, forcing back the scream he desperately wanted to let out.

(I heard from Yutsuki that she gets low blood pressure when she turns into a kid, but I didn't expect it to be this...)

Yutsuki curled up in Shido's arms. As if finding a warm nest, she rubbed her little head against him a few tis, a happy smile appearing on her face.

"Shido... I love you the most..."

She's so cute it's unfair, isn't she!?!?!?!!?!?

The delicate, fragile little body was like a budding flower, feeling incredibly light and soft in his arms. A faint, refreshing scent drifted from Yutsuki, lingering around Shido's nose. It created a strong contrast with the girl's usual reliable and easygoing image. That innocent, pure sleeping face, like an angel, drew Shido's gaze as if it had demonic power.

(C-Calm down. Itsuka Shido. You don't have any weird hobbies. You just got montarily dizzy from sothing called 'gap moe'. Sure, Yutsuki is super cute right now, but like Yoshinon said, minimum three years, maximum death penalty. Yes—that's right, minimum three years, maximum death penalty. Minimum three years, maximum death penalty. Three years of blood earned, death penalty is not a loss!)

Gulp—

Following his gaze downward, through the slightly loose collar of her pajamas, the girl's delicate collarbones and faintly visible underdeveloped chest were clearly imprinted on his retinas. Shido swallowed hard and couldn't help but reach out his right hand...

"Like hell it's not a loss!"

He slapped himself across the face.

"Phew... that was close."

Shido breathed a sigh of relief. If he hadn't used his last shred of reason to slap himself in ti, maybe he would have walked down the path of cri even before Natsumi humanely destroyed him.

"Mhm... Shido?"

The loud sound of Shido slapping himself gradually woke Yutsuki up from her sleep.

"Good morning... Also, is that handprint on your face the equivalent exchange for accidentally triggering a lucky pervert event with soone?"

Seeing the bright red handprint on Shido's face, Yutsuki asked with a helpless look.

"No. Just a little self-warning."

Shido shook his head and gave a dry laugh. Seeing Yutsuki's slightly confused look, Shido hurriedly changed the subject.

"Anyway, hurry up and get out of bed. Breakfast is ready. If you're still sleepy, eat first and sleep later."

"Yeah, got it... Ah, crap... did I oversleep."

Realizing she had accidentally overslept, Yutsuki scratched her head in frustration, hopped down from Shido's arms, and got ready to brush her teeth and wash her face before eating.

"Phew..."

It seed Yutsuki didn't rember what just happened, and Shido secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Putting aside his own awkwardness, just the scene of Yutsuki calling him papa and owing while half-asleep... thinking back to when he caught the girl wearing a cat-ear outfit and teasing a cat, and her berserk state wanting to physically erase his mory... Shido decided to take what just happened to the grave.(TL:oh shit that already happned here huh? then it's ti to translate the encore side story I guess...)

Speaking of which, why was Yutsuki so sleepy today?

Shido suddenly thought of this question and fell into deep thought.

Was it because she didn't sleep well yesterday like him? Or maybe...

Shido suddenly rembered that last night, when they returned from the real world, Yutsuki didn't wake up at the sa ti as him. She woke up after he had chatted with Kotori for a while.

Although it could be a difference caused by individuals, it was also possible that Yutsuki was still in the virtual world during that ti.

According to Yutsuki back then, the ti ratio between the real world and the virtual world was about 1 to 1000. It took about 40 seconds from his conversation with Kotori until Yutsuki woke up. Converting that, Yutsuki might have stayed in the virtual world for about half a day longer than Shido.

"Half a day... what was Yutsuki doing in the virtual world?"

Looking at Yutsuki, who was still a bit groggy at the sink, Shido couldn't help but worry.

(TL:Dawg shido is this close to be on the files this chapter)