"...And that's what happened," (Y/N) finished. "What do you think?"

King Enma tapped his pen against his cheek, smearing ink on his skin. It was lunch break, and the great king was horribly behind on his work, so (Y/N) had offered to watch him for Hozuki while he went to water his goldfish plants.

Now she was sitting on Enma's desk, legs hanging over the side, while they chatted about the previous day's events.

"It sounds like a date to me," the king replied. "Have you asked Oko's opinion?"

"Of course I have," (Y/N) answered, kicking her feet. "She said the same thing."

Enma sighed. "Ah, to think Hozuki of all people would ask a girl on a date..."

(Y/N) blushed. "Hey, there's no proof he sees this as a date. Chances are, he just wants to do something to Hakutaku, and is using me as an excuse."

Enma tilted his head. "Are you sure he doesn't want to show you off to Hakutaku?"

(Y/N) buried her face in her hands. "Don't say embarrassing things." She took a deep breath, and raised her head. "Anyway, thank you for helping me."

King Enma grinned. "It's no problem! Thank you for agreeing to my request. At this rate, Hozuki might actually get a wife!"

"Oh? And what request is this?"

(Y/N) froze. There was a murderous aura coming from behind her.

"H—hozuki!" Enma stammered.

(Y/N) turned around. Sure enough, Hozuki was stepping out from behind one of the pillars, eyes narrowed, club in hand.

"Hoz—"

In an instant, he appeared on the desk, club buried in Enma's skull. (Y/N) tumbled to the floor, landing on her back with a thud.

"I thought something was unusual," he muttered, "so I asked one of the minions to water the plants today. How many times do I have to tell you not to meddle with my love life?"

There was a gurgled reply from Enma before Hozuki turned to face (Y/N).

"As for you..."

(Y/N) screwed her eyes shut, raising her arms over her face. She heard Hozuki jump down beside her, and felt him grab her wrist. Soon, he was dragging her down the halls, (Y/N) scrambling to keep up.

"H-hozuki!" she stammered, "please stop! I'm sorry I agreed to Enma's request, b-but I only did it because I really do love you, Hozuki!"

He slammed her against the wall, pinning her arms above her head. (Y/N) closed her eyes, ready for anything.

Anything except a soft touch on her lips.

Her eyes flew open, and she squirmed in Hozuki's firm grip. Why would he kiss her? What was he thinking?

He slowly drew away, eyes fixed on hers.

"I love you, too."

She gasped.

Did that just happen?

(Y/N) crouched down, burying her cherry-red face in her hands.

"What's wrong?" Hozuki asked, kneeling next to her. "Was it a bad kiss? I did some research, but—"

"I-it's not the kiss..." she insisted. "It's..." she glanced at him through her fingers. "Do you really mean it?"

"Of course. I don't say things I don't mean."

As he stood up, (Y/N) grabbed his sleeve, gently tugging on it.

"Hozuki..." she murmured. "I'm sorry...for all of this."

He averted his eyes. "I don't care about that. I'm just glad...that you return my feelings."

He pulled away, and (Y/N) stared at him.

Is he blushing? It's so dark in these hallways, I can't tell.

"Now if you don't mind," he muttered, turning towards Enma's office, "I'm going to find our 'great king' and beat him until he forgets this ever happened."

(Y/N) chuckled weakly.

"And by the way," Hozuki glanced at her over his shoulder. "I'm sorry for the lack of clarity, but I did, in fact, intend for the trip to Shangri-La to be a date."

"Aah! They're so fluffy! I've never seen so many rabbits in my life!"

(Y/N) currently sat beneath a peach tree in Shangri-La, a whole pile of bunnies in her lap. Hozuki stood beside her, a rare, unnoticeable smile on his face.

"I heard about the rabbit population here," she continued, "but I thought it was an exaggeration."

"They're apprentice pharmacists. You shouldn't play with them," Hozuki advised, currently cuddling a rabbit himself.

(Y/N) ignored him, and pulled up a clump of grass to feed the animals in her lap.

"By the way," she murmured, looking up at her new boyfriend. "I've been meaning to ask you—how did you know something strange was going on with me and King Enma?"

"I heard that you threw a club at him," Hozuki promptly answered. "And besides, you would never be so bold as to ask me to go to the Mortal World with you under normal circumstances."

"I-I can be bold!" (Y/N) snapped, the rabbits scampering off her lap at the sudden change in volume.

Hozuki raised his eyebrows. "Oh, really?"

Glaring at him, (Y/N) jumped to her feet, grabbed the front of his kimono, and kissed him.

He stiffened, and she smirked. For once, she caught him off guard.

That was when the adrenaline wore off, and she realized what she was doing.

Blushing madly, she pulled away.

"Um...um..."

She turned and ran.

If she didn't know any better, she would've sworn she heard Hozuki chuckle behind her.

I-I can't believe I did that! What was I thinking? Does he think it's a good or a bad thing for a girl to be assertive? Gah, I don't know!

She was so lost in thought, she didn't notice she'd bumped into someone until she was lying on top of them, face buried in their chest.

"Oh, no!" she exclaimed, sitting up. "I'm so sorry! Are you okay?"

"No, it's okay. Especially when it's a cute girl like yo—"

They finally made eye contact, and froze.

"Hakutaku!" she screamed, scrambling backwards. This was bad. For him.

"(Y/N)!" he exclaimed, getting to his feet and extending a hand, "I didn't expect to see you here. Were you just that eager to see me again?"

(Y/N) reluctantly took his hand. "Did you seriously start flirting with me before even realizing who I was?"

The man shrugged, still not letting go of her hand. "Well, I could tell by your voice that you were cute."

I...don't even have a response for that.

"Well, anyway," she mumbled, pointedly tugging at her hand. "Can you let go of me?"

He pulled his hands back, smiling angelically. "Of course, of course! Say, do you want me to give you a tour?"

(Y/N) took a step back. "Um, thanks, but I should really get back to my companion..."

Hakutaku blinked. "Huh? You came with someone? But I thought I was going to take you here."

"Sorry, but I should really should be going."

"Wh—"

A fist came flying into their conversation, punching Hakutaku in the face and sending him reeling backwards. (Y/N) didn't even need to look to know who was responsible.

"Would you like me to cook you a divine beast for dinner?" Hozuki asked, marching over to Hakutaku and picking him up by the back of his shirt.

"(Y/N), help me!" the best screamed.

"I actually do wonder what he tastes like," (Y/N) mused. "But I'd prefer to eat him in his real form. Eating him now would feel like cannibalism."

Hozuki dropped him back on the ground, giving him a few good kicks. "I'll just have to pound him until he reverts back, then."

"(Y/N), why are you encouraging him?" Hakutaku cried.

(Y/N) shrugged. "We're joking, and besides," she blushed, "he's...my boyfriend."

Hakutaku paled.

"Now," Hozuki grunted, hoisting the divine beast over his shoulder. "I'm going to find a lake to drown you in."

(Y/N) chuckled, waving to them.

I have a feeling the rest of my life is going to be a lot of fun.