Ryuto happily walked home, carrying several large bags. He muttered to himself, "Damn, so many new things in just a few days. It'll take me quite some time to go through all of them. Looks like tonight's mission will be a big one, but for me, the self-proclaimed 'God of ACG,' it's no problem at all."

As he walked, he passed by the park. Normally a bustling place, it was now empty. While it wasn't usually crowded, there would always be some people around. The same was true for the streets - there was no one in sight. Ryuto didn't find this situation too strange until the place he was standing suddenly darkened. He couldn't help but wonder why the sky had suddenly become dark, so he looked up. He saw a truck falling from the sky, but he didn't have time to see what model it was. Ryuto immediately instinctively ran towards the nearby park.

As the unidentified truck crashed to the ground, it kicked up a cloud of dust and made a loud noise. It seemed like it wouldn't be completely intact after the fall.

Ryuto waved away the dust in front of him and said, "Cough... cough... That was close! Luckily there weren't many people around just now. It's not like money falls from the sky, but a truck falling down? Who knows what model it was. Huh, where are the things I just bought? Could it be that I ran too hastily just now and it got crushed under the truck?"

After saying that, Ryuto immediately stood up and ran towards the unknown model truck.

At that moment, a voice suddenly came from somewhere. "You hid pretty fast just now, kid."

Ryuto looked around and saw a middle-aged man wearing a suit and a strange mask standing on a nearby rooftop. Angrily, he shouted, "It was you who caused all that just now! It's all because of you that my hard-earned things are gone. What are you going to do about it?"

For whatever reason, the middle-aged man didn't answer Ryuto's gripes with a mouthful, but rather stared at him with a slightly dazed expression, although it couldn't be seen since he was wearing a mask.

"What are you looking at? It's your fault. You have to compensate me for my loss. Don't even think about running away!"

Ryuto pointed at the man and shouted loudly.

Finally snapping out of it, the middle-aged man leaped down from the rooftop, revealing a terrifying smile.

Wow, that's a smile alright, but why is it so different? Is this what they call a hidden threat in a smile? Ryuto couldn't help but shudder at the thought.

"Hm... you really are a strange guy. You barely escaped a disaster and yet you didn't run away. But that's perfect, saves me a lot of trouble!"

Saying that, the middle-aged man casually grabbed the nearby utility pole with his right hand.

Surprised, Ryuto exclaimed, "Oh, is that a superpower or magic? That's amazing!"

The middle-aged man had a smug smile on his face.

"Since you're about to die, I'll tell you. My power is body enhancement. I can use my ability to enhance a certain part of my body, giving it strength beyond that of an ordinary person. My ability level is B."

Envious, Ryuto said, "Oh, it's really convenient. B-level is already so powerful. No, B-level is already a relatively high level. It must be very convenient to have this ability when moving things. It's really enviable. It would be very useful for a delivery person. Yeah, you have a bright future and a chance to become the fastest delivery person in the world. I believe in you, my brother."

Saying that, Ryuto put on a pleasing expression.

"Now that we're so close, there's something big I want to discuss... Could you prioritize delivering my packages in the future? It doesn't have to be specifically for me, just give them priority. I won't treat you unfairly. Please, our relationship is so good, you won't refuse me, right?"

Ryuto looked at the middle-aged man with an expectant expression.

"I've said what needed to be said. Now... die."

After the middle-aged man finished speaking coldly, he assumed a throwing posture, and at the same time, a murderous look appeared in his eyes.

"Wait a minute, I know this request is a bit unreasonable, but even if you don't want to agree, there's no need to do that, right? Besides, you haven't compensated me yet..."

Ryuto hadn't finished speaking when the middle-aged man had already thrown the utility pole. It flew towards Ryuto at an incredibly fast speed, too fast to determine exactly.Due to being too close, Ryuto couldn't avoid it at all. The middle-aged man, who was very aware of this fact, had a triumphant expression on his face. Although it could be said that the expression was similar to the one he had just now, it was slightly different. He thought that by wearing a mask, "I" wouldn't recognize him. How naive!

******************************************************

Just then,

"Ding-ding"

Ryuto suddenly heard a familiar sound of bells. Then he heard a girl's voice.

"In my name, appear! Flying beast of the sky, Hiyuki."

After saying this, the girl threw a piece of talisman paper in her hand, instantly creating a dazzling white light. Yes, it was quite dazzling.

The talisman paper transformed into a horse with horns in the white light... no, it should be a unicorn.

The unicorn rapidly rushed towards Ryuto, quickly grabbed onto his clothes, and then stepped on the air, "flying" into the sky.

The utility pole crashed into the wall behind Ryuto.

"Wow, this is even more amazing! It can fly without wings! What's the principle behind this?"

Ryuto exclaimed in surprise, looking at the girl from earlier.

He saw a long-haired girl in a shrine maiden outfit standing on the nearby roof. Perhaps because she was standing on the roof, the wind was a bit strong, causing the girl's long hair to sway in the breeze. She had a bell-shaped hair accessory tied to the front of her hair and a white ribbon tied to the middle and lower part of the back of her hair. There was a suitcase next to her. After glancing at Ryuto, the girl had a relieved expression on her face.

"So this is the legendary shrine maiden outfit? I've only seen it in manga before, this is the first time seeing it in person. Seeing is believing, really lucky! Good things happen while alive!"

Ryuto appeared somewhat excited, unable to help but marvel at how lucky he was today, as if all the bad things that happened earlier didn't exist.

The middle-aged man didn't pay any attention to Ryuto. He looked up at the girl, or more specifically, he frowned upon seeing the girl's attire, showing a troubled expression and a change in his expression.

"Eastern Sword Wielder, huh? Such a troublesome character. It looks like I have to take care of you quickly!"

Sword Wielder? What is that? A combination of swordsman and shrine maiden? A shrine maiden who can use a sword? Ryuto seemed confused.

The middle-aged man lowered his center of gravity and then jumped up in place, kicking towards Ryuto with great force.

"Damn, he's attacking again! This is a bit frustrating."

Ryuto shouted as he faced the middle-aged man's attack.

"You won't succeed!"

The girl immediately conjured a long sword with a piece of talisman paper and leaped in front of Ryuto, blocking the middle-aged man's kick with the sword. The man's foot collided heavily with the girl's sword, making a dull sound. Despite receiving a powerful kick from the middle-aged man, the sword didn't bend at all. The man didn't seem surprised by this, but rather showed a slightly annoyed expression.

"You actually blocked with the back of the sword. I underestimated you. It's better to deal with you first!"

Changing his mind, the middle-aged man forcefully landed on the ground and quickly kicked off the ground, charging towards the girl with high speed, swinging his fist to attack. The girl calmly lowered her body and had a "relaxed" expression, but it was different from ordinary relaxation.

Then, she skillfully waved the long sword in her hand, one by one, resolving the middle-aged man's fierce attacks. Once again, a fierce collision sound came, and an intense impact was generated with the two of them at the center. The strong impact seemed to shake the air, and the sound of the vibrating air could be heard. The silhouettes of the two continuously changed at a very fast speed. Witnessing this intense battle before his eyes, Ryuto couldn't help but feel excited. This is more exciting than a movie! Although I'm not a big fan of movies, and it's free too. Today is really an extraordinary stroke of luck.

At a certain moment, both of them simultaneously jumped backwards, creating distance between them.

"Tch... the clairvoyance of a shrine maiden, huh?"

The middle-aged man was astonished that all his attacks had been resolved, but it only lasted for a moment. He then effortlessly picked up an electric power pole from the side of the road and assumed a throwing posture once again. He then forcefully smashed it towards the girl. The power pole left the middle-aged man's hand at a fast speed, heading straight towards the girl. However, the girl remained calm just like before, slowly raising the long sword in front of her. Although it was said to be a slow movement, it was only in comparison to her previous swift actions. In reality, her sword-raising speed was still very fast.Immediately, the girl raised her long knife in front of her, facing the approaching utility pole. The flying utility pole collided with the girl's knife.

In the next instant, the utility pole split apart from the point of contact with the knife, just like a piece of paper. The two separated parts flew past the girl's body on either side, crashing into the wall far behind her. The utility pole's speed did not decrease in the slightest, but rather effortlessly split it in half.

Impressive indeed, it's on par with unarmed combat against blades.

Just as Ryuto couldn't help but exclaim in awe, he suddenly saw a middle-aged man running towards him. It seemed that the middle-aged man had anticipated that the previous attack would be ineffective, so the attack was just a feint, merely meant to delay the girl's movement. His real goal was to take Ryuto's life while the girl was distracted. Realizing this, Ryuto couldn't help but sigh.

"Although it doesn't cost anything, it seems like it can be life-threatening."

Just as Ryuto shouted, the girl's figure suddenly disappeared and reappeared in front of Ryuto, just like before, blocking the middle-aged man's attack.

"Was that a flash step this time? It's even more troublesome than I imagined. It seems I underestimated the other side."

"Um, excuse me, can you pause for a moment and explain the clairvoyance and flash step you mentioned just now?"

Ryuto suddenly made this request.

He expected to be rejected, but unexpectedly, the middle-aged man did not ignore him. Instead, he put on a serious expression and even coughed deliberately. Why would this guy be an assassin? What could have caused such a big difference? But Ryuto understood that it was probably pointless to say these words to someone who had already entered the lecture mode.

"Listen carefully!"

The middle-aged man solemnly began speaking, adopting a tone reminiscent of a teacher.

"Clairvoyance can be considered a unique skill of shrine maidens. The reason why I say this is because this ability is basically inherent in shrine maidens, but not all shrine maidens possess it. The basic requirement is to have a good lineage, specifically the bloodline of a famous Onmyoji family. Therefore, this type of ability is very rare. Its effect allows a shrine maiden to see future scenes, commonly known as predicting the future. It enables them to anticipate their opponent's movements. However, the time and accuracy of the predictions rely on training and practice. It is said that the powerful ones can even see the distant future."

"So that's how it is. It's really impressive, both the technical explanation and the skill itself."

Ryuto nodded in understanding and sincerely admired.

"As for the flash step, it is a relatively common skill that does not require any special conditions. Its principle is to gather magic power beneath the feet to achieve high-speed movement. Although it is ordinary, it does not mean that it is easy to master. Compared to the hands, gathering magic power beneath the feet is more difficult, both in terms of the amount and accuracy of the gathered magic power. The speed and distance of the movement are directly proportional to the amount of gathered magic power, while the accuracy of the movement depends on the precision of the gathered magic power."

"Oh... Is it clear? You have the potential to be a teacher!"

Ryuto couldn't help but praise.

At this moment, the middle-aged man made his final summary with a somewhat smug tone.

"In conclusion, sword witches are more suited for close combat, but that doesn't mean they are incapable of long-range magic."

"You've even explained things I didn't ask about. It's like receiving extra lessons. Truly a conscientious professional."

After the middle-aged man finished speaking, his expression immediately changed. He lowered his center of gravity again, clenched his teeth, and tightened his whole body as if gathering strength. It seems that he was mustering his power, probably... well, it looked like he was trying really hard. Even Ryuto, who always lagged behind, couldn't help but cheer him on silently, "You can do it, young man!"

After a moment, the middle-aged man suddenly thrust off the ground with even greater speed than before. He twisted his body and threw a punch towards the girl. The girl once again used the back of her knife to block from the front, but this time it didn't seem as easy as the previous few times. The stalemate lasted just a moment, and then the girl quickly backed away.

"After gathering strength, the power is quite substantial! Is this a finishing move? It's really powerful!"

Ryuto couldn't help but comment on the sidelines.

The middle-aged man slowly stood up, looked up at Ryuto, and said, "You're next!"

And he prepared to jump up and attack Ryuto. Suddenly, the ground cracked open, and the whole earth seemed to tremble."That's ridiculous. We're done for this time!" Ryuto couldn't help but exclaim.

Suddenly, a fireball appeared from somewhere and headed towards the middle-aged man. It seems he truly has a wealth of experience, as he narrowly dodged it. However, his suit was inevitably ignited, resulting in a large crater on the ground. It seems he barely managed to avoid it.

"Now is not the time for a prolonged battle. It's better to retreat first," the middle-aged man said with a completely different, serious expression, as if facing a formidable enemy. He quickly took off the burning suit, leaped onto the roof, and disappeared, leaving the surroundings instantly quiet.

The scene changed too quickly, and I couldn't react in time. Ryuto looked confusedly in the direction where the middle-aged man disappeared.

It should be safe now, as the unicorn flew Ryuto to the girl's side. The girl turned her sword back into a charm paper and put it away. She stood up and looked at Ryuto.

"Are you okay, Lord Ryuto? Were you hurt just now?"

"I should be asking you the same. Are you alright? Oh, wait, how do you know my name? It's strange because, if I'm not mistaken, we've never met before. Today seems to be our first encounter."

"Oh, I'm really sorry. I forgot to introduce myself in the urgency. I'm Tsuchimikado Hiyori!"

"Oh, I'm Amagi Ryuto. Thank you for saving me earlier." Ryuto spoke with a grateful tone.

"No need to thank me. It's my duty because I came here specifically to protect Lord Ryuto!"

Ryuto's expression turned surprised at her words, but he couldn't say anything. He just stood there dumbfounded.