Infinite Skill Devourer
Chapter 72: The Guild’s Home Base IV

Chapter 72: The Guild’s Home Base IV

Outside Kaori’s apartment, Hwa and Erina sat on the bench by the railings.

With their backs facing the door, and front facing the drop.

Hwa stretched her arms above her head, glancing at the buildings around.

"So, Ryuen’s sister, huh? Bet she’s got some interesting stories about him."

Erina tilted her head. "She might be... kind. Not like him."

Hwa snorted. "Kind’s overrated. I prefer interesting. And Ryuen? He’s a real mystery." She leaned back, staring at the sky.

"Bet there’s a hundred things about him we don’t know."

Erina didn’t respond, her thoughts wandering.

Despite Hwa’s teasing, she couldn’t help but feel a strange sensation around Ryuen—a feeling she hadn’t experienced in years.

It wasn’t long before the three emerged from the apartment, each carrying a bag.

Kaori followed behind, her arms crossed.

"I’m coming with you," she announced.

Ryuen paused, turning to her with a raised brow. "No, you’re not."

Kaori glared at him.

"Yes, I am. Don’t think I’m staying behind in this empty apartment while you go off doing who-knows-what."

Hwa perked up, grinning. "Ooh, family drama. This should be good."

Ryuen sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Kaori—"

"Don’t ’Kaori’ me," she interrupted, stepping forward. "I’m coming, and that’s final."

Ryuen stared at her for a long moment, then shrugged. "Fine. Do what you want."

Kaori smirked triumphantly. "I always do."

Yurei muttered something under her breath, clearly not thrilled about the new addition to their group, but no one protested further.

Since she was living with her, and was always the bad house mate, she wouldn’t want to get under Kaori’s hair.

Knowing what she was capable of.

"Yuri," Kaori called softly as she walked by her side with a smile. "You look well."

"So do you."

"Still covering up everything, huh?" Kaori said, trying to fill the void between them.

She sighed. "When are you going to stop?"

"Not anytime soon. I’ve told you before, I can’t work properly without covering up completely."

"You do the same even off work. You’re always covering up."

Yurei sighed and moved her gaze to Ryuen and the others, then whispered.

"If my condition lets me, then maybe I can. At the moment, I can’t touch anything without getting reactions."

"The hospital could help."

Yurei averted her gaze from Kaori. "I don’t like it there. Besides, those people touch too much."

Kaori chuckled and stepped closer.

"Do you also feel burns while around him?" she asked with a sly, mischievous smile, one that showed she was up to no good.

But Yurei, as dense as ever, stared at her like she was saying something strange.

"I’m confused. Who?"

"Ryuen... Have you tried staying close to him without the strapping?"

Yurei dropped her head. "No."

Kaori’s smile turned into a grin.

"This is your last chance to find out if you can’t be cured... if you don’t react close to him, then there’s a way you can heal."

"Uhm... I don’t really think I’d want to go close to your brother," she said.

Ryuen glanced at her, holding her gaze for a while before moving it to Hwa when she called him.

"That’s a sign that he likes you. Just give it a chance."

A small chuckle escaped Yurei’s lips. "I don’t want to."

Kaori frowned and scoffed. "You should just say you’re a chicken."

"Eh?"

"Yes, you’re a coward who doesn’t even want to take a risk. Ryuen is very accommodating, and he doesn’t particularly hate you, so..."

"Kaori..."

"I dare you to make physical contact with him."

Yurei’s jaw dropped, she hadn’t expected Kaori to suggest such.

She turned her head to look at Kaori, expecting it to be a joke, but Kaori expression was very serious.

"You’re joking... right?"

"Do I look like I am?"

"No." Yurei raised her hand to touch her head, then exhaled. "I’m not sure I can do that. He’s not human, and it might have worse effects."

"I’m sure you have nothing to worry about. It’s a good thing physical touch is his love language—"

Kaori trailed off, her brain working slowly backward to replay what she had just said.

She slowly turned to look at Yurei.

"Ryuen is not human?"

"Yes."

Kaori’s brow rose. "You don’t know?"

"We were born human, and we still are. What do you mean by that?"

Yurei sighed loudly. "I don’t know what happened, but he’s not a normal human. Probably mixed, or maybe something awakened in him."

Kaori remained silent, slowly turning to look at Ryuen, who was conversing calmly with Daiki and Hwa.

He had his hands tucked in his pockets, his posture relaxed, and he didn’t give off any strange energy.

"He seems normal."

"I’ll show you proof once we settle."

"Alright, but you’re still going to make physical contact with him."

Yurei groaned lowly. "Does he have self-control?"

Kaori shrugged. "Not sure, but he doesn’t get seduced easily. Besides, you cover up most of the time, so he can’t see anything."

Yurei’s cheeks slowly turned a faint pink. "Not like I have anything he’d like."

Kaori’s eyes narrowed. "Are you kidding me?"

"What?! It’s the truth."

Kaori facepalmed in response, then called Hwa’s attention.

When Hwa excused herself from Ryuen’s group and walked over to them, she smiled.

"Do you need me to check her?" she plainly asked Kaori, shocking them both and revealing that she had been eavesdropping.

Kaori just exhaled. "She said she’s got nothing Ryuen would like. What do you think?"

Hwa shrugged. "I can’t know, and besides, I just met her today... compared to you."

Kaori rolled her eyes. Hwa was actually right—they had been friends since she arrived in the city.

But after a year, Hwa had to leave for other duties, and her job wasn’t as stable since she was always moving from city to city.

"Tch." Yurei scoffed. "I’m not letting him touch me, and that’s final. I don’t even know him."

She spoke out of frustration and walked off, leaving them behind.

A smirk crept up Kaori’s lips, one that Hwa mirrored as she dragged her gaze between Ryuen and Yurei.

"Are you thinking what I’m thinking?"

"Of course. We’re going to seduce the boss."

"Wait, what?!"