Challenge: The Fool with the Surname Okayamine

Chapter 143 Rinne's Story: "The Forced Termination of the Date"

As this memory of Yoshino flashed through his mind, Shido's eyes widened, momentarily stunned. However... in his entire life, he was certain he had never done such a thing.

'Wait...when did this happen? When did I meet Yoshino...?'

"..."

At the same time, Rinne seemed to sense it as well. Her eyes narrowed slightly as she stared at Shido for a moment, then quickly looked away as if confirming something.

Once he regained his senses, Shido subconsciously glanced at Rinne, who was still eating an ice cream, hesitated, and finally asked:

"Um...Rinne...I have a strange question to ask..."

"...This is really difficult."

After hearing Shido's question, she murmured to herself, and for some reason, her voice seemed to carry a hint of weariness.

Shido looked at Rinne with some confusion.

"Huh...what?"

Rinne immediately stopped speaking, quickly returning to her original gentle expression as she looked at Shido's fingers.

"Ah, Shido... really, the popsicle melted... leaving a finger behind."

As she spoke, Rinne squatted down, lifted her hair, and put Shido's fingers into her mouth.

Feeling Rinne sucking on his finger, Shido's expression instantly changed with shock, as if he'd been electrocuted.

"Ah—! Rin...Rinne, what are you doing!"

"Don't move..."

A slightly warm tongue licked his fingers, which were being chewed, and his fingers became a little wet from the saliva.

"I want to... help you... lick it clean..."

She spoke in a somewhat shy voice while sucking on Shido's finger.

"But...but..."

While Shido was still in shock, another non-existent memory flashed through his mind.

The way Kurumi licked the ice cream off her hands overlapped with Rinne's current actions; the warm, smooth touch was so similar.

'This...this is also...something that happened before...?'

Coming to his senses, Shido turned to Rinne again, then said somewhat absentmindedly:

"Rin...Rinne! Enough...enough!"

Shido then withdrew his finger from Rinne's mouth, but the girl only lowered her head, her expression somewhat forlorn, and murmured to herself:

"So...it really won't work?"

"Are you alright, Rinne?"

Upon hearing the concern, Rinne looked up at herself, seemingly forcing a smile.

"Huh...? Ah... um, I'm fine... I just... I ate too many popsicles...!"

Looking at Rinne's somewhat flustered expression, Shido was also surprised by her reaction and could only nod and ask with concern:

"Oh...I see...Don't force yourself. If you force yourself to eat, it won't taste good."

"Hmm... what you said... makes sense..."

Rinne's face was full of fatigue, and her tone of reply gradually became haggard. For some reason, sweat slid down her forehead, and then her vision went black, and she fainted to the ground, her body crashing heavily to the ground.

The incident happened so suddenly that Shido had no time to react. Seeing Rinne suddenly collapse, he hurriedly bent down and shouted:

"Huh?! Hey! Rinne!!"

The voice reached Rinne's ears, and she reopened her eyes to look at Shido, who was concerned about her. Her expression was somewhat strained, but she still spoke to him:

"Hey...hehe, I'm...sorry, it's probably just mild anemia?"

"Are you alright?"

"Hmm, it's alright... I just need to rest for a bit... and I'll recover..."

"That's good. Anyway, you should rest now."

Rinne took Shido's outstretched hand, then, using Shido's shoulder for support, slowly sat back down on the bench.

After sitting back down on the bench, Rinne looked at Shido with a hint of regret. A thousand words welled up in her heart, but in the end, they all coalesced into a heartfelt apology:

"I'm sorry... Shido. This rare date was ruined by me..."

Kashido simply waved his hand, "It's okay, it's okay, your health is the most important thing."

"Thank you... but the popsicle... has melted..."

She pointed to the popsicles placed to the side. Unfortunately, several of the popsicles they had bought had melted before they could taste them.

But Shido shook his head and gently comforted Rinne:

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it. Just eat it next time, it'll be fine."

"Um... thank you, Shido."

Gazing at Rinne, who had recovered considerably, Shido's mind raced. "...Is Rinne really alright? ...Maybe I've been too dependent on her."

"...Shido?"

Seeing that Shido seemed a little lost in thought, Rinne spoke up to remind him.

Hearing the reminder, Shido, realizing what was happening, stared blankly at Rinne, "Huh, wh...what's wrong?"

"I've mostly recovered... Shall we go home together?"

"Is...is that so...then let's go back. But if you feel unwell, please do so. We can walk for a while and then rest, or I can carry you."

Rinne blushed slightly and nodded gently.

"Um... thank you, Shido."

"Oh……"

The two got up and slowly walked towards home. Along the way, Shido would occasionally look at Rinne with concern, while Rinne quietly followed beside him.

...Tick-tock transition sound effect~

After Shido and Rinne continued their date the following day, the morning sunlight warmed them, adding a touch of warmth to the beautiful moment. However, at that moment, something unexpected happened.

Rinne picked up a piece of soybean flour bread, ready to enjoy a delicious breakfast.

As she took a bite, her figure suddenly overlapped with Tohka's.

At that moment, time seemed to stand still. Shido stared wide-eyed at the scene before him in astonishment.

Afterwards, they continued their dates, going to play hockey together. On the field, Rinne ran and hit the ball with abandon, her figure once again overlapping with Origami's.

This time, Shido felt a complex emotion welling up inside him. He began to realize that Rinne seemed to have an unusual side.

As the date progressed, Rinne gradually revealed her personal thoughts.

She told Shido about her desires, her confusion, and some secrets deep in her heart.

However, Shido finds himself unable to fully understand Rinne's thoughts, and the date ultimately ends in failure after Rinne mysteriously faints once again.

As night fell and the city lights came on, the time after dinner was always so peaceful and pleasant. Rinne gently pushed open the door to Shido's room and walked in hesitantly.

A hint of apology appeared on her face, as if she had something on her mind.

Shido, who was also somewhat displeased, heard the sound of the door opening. He looked up and saw Rinne standing in the doorway. He smiled slightly and gestured for her to come in.

Rinne slowly walked up to Shido, her head down, her hands unconsciously fidgeting with the hem of her clothes, appearing somewhat uneasy.

After a while, she finally mustered up her courage and said softly:

"Shido..."

"Rin...Rin you!?"

Are you free now?

Shido blinked, looking at Rinne who had suddenly barged into his room with a suspicious expression, wondering why she was asking this question all of a sudden.

"Wha...what is it?"

As Shido spoke, she lowered her head, her expression gradually turning ashamed.

"Um...I feel really sorry, both today and yesterday..."

"Hey……"

Before Shido could react, Rinne continued, bowing her head in shame, and said:

"I have absolutely no idea how to date a guy..."

"No...you don't need to apologize."

"Is...is that so?"

Shido nodded without hesitation.

"Hmm... dating is a matter between two people... if problems arise, it means I also bear some responsibility..."

“Besides, it’s already great that you insisted on going on a date with me even though you weren’t feeling well,” Shido said sincerely.

Rinne raised her head slightly, her eyes sparkling with emotion, her cheeks flushed, and she took a deep breath, as if she had made a great decision.

"Shido, would you still like to go on a date with me tomorrow? I want to regain my former calm and reliable image."

"Oh, of course I would."

"Okay, thank you. Well... see you tomorrow. Goodnight, Shido."

Oh, goodnight.

Rinne gently closed the door, and Shido leaned back in his chair, ready to go to sleep.

Suddenly, there was another knock on his door, 'knock knock knock~'. Shido got up and went to open the door, somewhat puzzled.

The door opened, and the person who came out was...

Let's shift our focus to a few hours ago.

When Kotori walked out of the school, her figure was exceptionally clear in the sunlight.

Kotori and two classmates were walking home when suddenly a long-haired figure wearing a sheep's head mask blocked their way.

Upon seeing the newcomer, Kotori instantly became alert. "How is it you... [Flame Beast]!"

"Yo~ Nice to meet you, Commander of Ratatosk—Miss Kotori Itsuka~"

Kotori frowned, her hands clenching unconsciously as she warily stared at the person before her who called himself the "Flame Beast."

What do you want? Don't think I'm afraid of you just because you're wearing a mask.

The two classmates next to Kotori were trembling with fear at this sudden turn of events.

Ming casually crossed his arms and let out a low chuckle: "Don't be nervous, Miss Kotori. I just want to borrow something from you for tomorrow's grand show..."

'Ding~'

A strange feeling suddenly welled up in Kotori's heart, as if a voice was softly echoing in her mind. However, she didn't pay much attention to it. Suddenly, she realized that her spiritual power had returned.

Feeling the spiritual energy surging within her body, Kotori's lips curled up in a smile.

"Heh, it seems you're really out of luck, Flame Beast. I was just about to come to you about my brother's matter, but since you've delivered yourself to my doorstep, I'll show you who the real Flame Spirit is!"

As soon as Kotori finished speaking, she summoned her Divine Armor, Fifth Form, with raging flames burning around her.

Ming remained silent, only activating his black Susanoo, preparing to manipulate Kotori.

Then Kotori just used her [Burning Demon Slayer] to instantly kill him with one axe strike.

"Hmph! It's just a black plastic bag, it's a little more durable."

With difficulty, Ming, who had been split in two, raised his head: "I'm so sorry I couldn't satisfy Lady Kotori's enjoyment..."

Because Kotori defeated Mei, she was praised and worshipped by Shido, and because of her merits, she became the Prime Minister of Japan. In the end, she married Shido, who admired her...

"Hahahaha, Shido, come to my room tonight and let me show you my sister's strength... Ah~ you're really strong~ But I won't lose either~"

……

in reality

Kotori, dressed in her spirit attire, stood silently on the road with lifeless eyes. Her classmates behind her had already scattered and fled because of the heated debate, but Kotori Itsuka, who was laughing wildly, remained alone in the same spot.

【Soul-Suppressing Demoness - Enchanting Melody】

Ming looked at Qinli, who was grinning foolishly, and covered his mouth to try not to laugh.

"That's it? You really think I'm a useless piece of trash who can only use shockwaves after developing the Ninth Demon King? I didn't use it simply because of my humanitarianism, I didn't want to cripple you all..."

While muttering to himself, Ming Xianting strolled over to Qin Li, who was still laughing wildly, and looked at her pink heart-shaped eyes that had appeared because she had used her power.

He couldn't quite hold back, but seeing Kotori fantasize about her brother enjoying being beaten and scolded by her in her dream when she activated her ability still gave Shido a cold sweat.

"Alright, just find somewhere to sleep for the night. Can you understand me?"

"Can..."

Kotori answered like a puppet on a string, then dug a hole and jumped in.

"Uh... this shouldn't be my problem, and besides, she has the Flame of Regeneration, she won't suffocate..."

Ming didn't pay much attention. He casually poured a bucket of water into the pit to ensure there wouldn't be a lack of oxygen, then the flames began to burn his body, burning and scorching his skin...

"Flame of Rebirth: The Creation of Reason"

The flames burned fiercely, but instead of engulfing Ming, his form gradually changed under the influence of a strange power. When the flames died down, what appeared in the spot was Kotori, naked.

She tossed her red twin ponytails, patted her flat chest, feeling her skin which was much smoother than usual, casually put a pearl she had bought on the way into her mouth, and exclaimed in admiration:

"Hmm, this should be enough... Knowing the appearance and reshaping the body into this shape shouldn't be too difficult, right? But this height... I'm really not used to it."

"Never mind, let's just use it like this for now."

With that, Ming used his spiritual power to reassemble himself into a school uniform, then picked up Kotori's schoolbag and skipped off toward the direction of Itsuka's house.

(It has some physical influence. In the Date A Live universe, the body and soul are one. If the body changes, the soul will be affected to some extent.)