Inside the girl's bedroom.
Nakano Nino changed her clothes while grumbling with irritation.
"That damn Miku… she totally did it on purpose!"
Her severe nearsightedness had only allowed her to vaguely make out that the person earlier was a decently handsome boy.
"An exorcist… if you can't cure Mom, just wait and see how I'll deal with you!"
Nino muttered to herself with a huff.
Her eyes drifted subconsciously toward a photo frame on her desk.
In the picture were two small children.
A little boy was lifting a red-haired girl high into the air, and her bright smile was more dazzling than the sun itself.
"I wonder… if that orphanage is still around." Nino fell silent for a long time before letting out a faint sigh.
Every time she saw that photo, it reminded her that those carefree, happy days hadn't just been a dream.
At that moment, Itsuki's voice called from outside, and Nino patted her cheeks before walking out of the room.
....
In a pure white, serene room, a frail red-haired beauty named Nakano Rena lay in bed.
Her skin was pale—deathly pale—nearly indistinguishable from the white bedsheets.
She turned to look at Shizuka Hiratsuka and Kuzeha Yuu, her expression calm, but her thin eyebrows twitched now and then from pain.
Around her were five beautiful girls with different hairstyles and temperaments, but identical faces.
Ichika, Nino, Miku, Yotsuba, and Itsuki.
They greeted Shizuka and then turned curious eyes toward Kuzeha Yuu.
Now wearing her contacts, Nino finally got a good look at the boy.
Height, aura, looks—flawless from every angle.
Definitely the type of guy the shallow girls at their school always gossiped about.
Not her type at all.
And yet…
As Kuzeha Yuu's reflection danced in her pupils, Nino found that she didn't dislike it.
In fact, there was a strange feeling of nostalgia.
"Shizuka, you're here."
Nakano Rena smiled. Once a commanding, elegant voice was now barely a whisper.
"Rena-sensei, this is my student, Kuzeha Yuu."
Shizuka patted the boy next to her and introduced him softly.
Rena's gaze slowly moved to Kuzeha Yuu and nodded gently.
"If he's your student, he must be excellent."
A faint trace of her former teacherly aura appeared in her tone.
"Sorry to trouble you, Kuzeha Yuu-kun. Is there anything strange about my condition?" She asked calmly.
She understood Shizuka's intentions.
But after years of fruitless treatments, she no longer held much hope.
On the contrary, the five sisters looked tense, clutching their hands together, eyes locked on Kuzeha Yuu.
Under their watchful gaze, Kuzeha Yuu stared at Rena, half-reclined in bed.
After a brief moment, he finally spoke.
"Sensei, have you heard of Fire Wasp Hunting?"
Rena's eyes flickered, then she slowly nodded.
But the five sisters were completely lost.
"What's that?" Nino asked.
Kuzeha Yuu explained,
"Fire Wasp Hunting was recorded centuries ago—originally an unexplained infectious disease."
"They say this illness causes extremely high fevers that leave the victim unable to move, eventually proving fatal.
It's like being stung by invisible wasps—burned alive from the inside."
The sisters all frowned at once.
Their mother's illness did involve recurring fevers, and the cause had never been identified.
"So it's a disease?"
Shizuka pressed urgently.
"At first, maybe. But over generations, it became something else—a supernatural phenomenon."
"They greedily drain life energy from the body until there's nothing left, then move on to the next host."
As he explained, Kuzeha Yuu's eyes fell on the bracelet on Rena's wrist.
"If not for that bangle supplying life energy, Sensei wouldn't have lasted this long."
Everyone turned in surprise to the jade bracelet on Rena's wrist.
Rena herself lifted her thin, pale arm in astonishment.
"This was passed down from my mother. She said it was a spiritual object, good for health and longevity… I always thought…"
She shook her head and laughed bitterly.
After so many years of pain, she never believed the bracelet did anything.
She only wore it out of longing for her late mother.
She had never imagined that without it, she would've already died long ago.
Kuzeha Yuu wasn't surprised.
In this world, there were countless hidden supernatural phenomena.
It was perfectly possible for an ordinary person to stumble upon a spiritual artifact.
That said, the bracelet's energy was nearly depleted.
Soon, it would become an ordinary trinket.
Just then, Rena let out a pained gasp.
Her skin flushed red at a speed visible to the naked eye.
"Mom's burning up again!"
The sisters panicked, rushing to prepare water and ice towels.
Itsuki turned to Kuzeha Yuu with desperation in her eyes.
"Kuzeha-kun, can you exorcise the thing inside her?"
Kuzeha Yuu nodded.
Supernatural beings were still spirits. And all spirits were within the domain of Spirit Confinement.
"Don't bother with that—it won't help."
He flicked his finger, sending particles of spiritual energy into the sisters' foreheads.
Then he took Shizuka's hand and channeled a bit of energy into her as well.
In an instant, their vision shifted.
Hovering around Rena, dozens of terrifying yellow-and-black wasps spun in the air.
They fought to sting her, draining her life essence with every bite.
Shizuka's eyes widened. She instinctively clutched Kuzeha Yuu's hand.
The sisters were petrified, covering their mouths in horror.
Now they understood why their mother often said her skin felt like it was being pricked—Every fever was these monsters hunting her life.
Seeing their mother's tortured face, all five girls turned their pleading eyes to Kuzeha Yuu.
"Kuzeha-kun…"
"Spirit Confinement."
Kuzeha Yuu raised his right hand.
The swarm froze in mid-air.
A terrifying force erupted from his hand, wrapping around the wasps like a black hole.
They were sucked in without resistance.
In just a few seconds, silence returned to the room.
Kuzeha Yuu didn't destroy the wasps.
They were perfect training material for his first disciple.
On the bed, Rena's brows slowly unfurrowed. Her breathing became calm again.
She opened her eyes—once dull and lifeless, now gleaming with vitality.
Gratitude overwhelmed her.
"Thank you… Kuzeha Yuu-kun."
She knew better than anyone—her life was already hanging by a thread.
She had often wondered what would happen to her five daughters if she died.
How would they face this cruel world alone?
Such a favor… even a lifetime of repayment wouldn't be enough.
"Just rest for a while now and you'll be fine."
Kuzeha Yuu said.
The sisters finally came to their senses and rushed to their mother's bedside.
Kuzeha Yuu and Shizuka quietly left the room, not wanting to disturb them.
A moment later, the five girls came out, eyes still red.
They bowed deeply to Kuzeha Yuu.
"Thank you, Kuzeha-kun!"
"This is our payment."
Itsuki handed him a bank card.
Kuzeha Yuu took it without hesitation.
"We'll leave you to rest. Let's go."
Shizuka and Kuzeha Yuu said their goodbyes to the Nakano family.
As the boy's back disappeared from view, the five sisters each had different thoughts—Shock. Admiration.
But without exception, they were all now intensely curious about the boy who had saved their mother's life.