The Incompetent Noblewoman Marries the 'Devil of the Far East' as a Substitute Bride—Told by Her Parents to 'Die in Place of Your Sister,' She Left the House, but Her New Family Turned Out to Be Wonderful and She's Happy - Episode 1.32

After finishing our audience with the King of the Far East, Satoru and I were heading to a certain place in the royal castle.

The purpose of coming here today is twofold.

Greeting the king, and having my special abilities examined by the science team.

What kind of people are the science club members?

“One of the five clans, centered around the Watanuki family, is a team dedicated to the advancement of science and technology in the Far East.”

“Watanuki…?”

“April 1st, written as Watatsuki. The person we are going to meet now is the head of that place, April 1st Watatsuki Momoharu.”

Far Eastern Wuhua Clan.

In this Far East, the five houses with great power.

“The fact that Far Eastern science has developed to this extent is largely due to the power of the April 1 Watanuki family. In particular, Momoharu Hyakuharu is a genius craftsman with unparalleled technical skill even within the April 1 Watanuki family.”

“You’re an amazing person, aren’t you?”

Then, Satoru-sama makes a grim face.

“I’m worried… about introducing Rei to Momoharu.”

“Why is that?”

“He’s a bit of an oddball.”

While all this was happening, I arrived in front of the science club’s laboratory.

“It’s terrible! The squad leader!”

“Leaderrrrrrrrrrrrrr!”

From beyond the laboratory, I heard some kind of scream.

We step into the laboratory.

The room is cramped, overflowing with chemicals and mysterious items.

In the back… people in lab coats are gathered.

“Did something happen?”

“Ah! The head of the Ichijo family! Just the person I needed to see! The squad leader!”

“What’s wrong with Momoharu Momoharu?”

“The squad leader… isn’t waking up!”

Oh no…! I don’t know what happened, but I have to help right away…

I will leave Satoru-sama behind and head to the place where everyone is gathering.

There stood a boy with pink hair.

The boy is slumped over the workbench, utterly exhausted.

In that hand, a hammer was gripped, and nearby, a cracked crystal.

“Squad leader! Please wake up!”

On April 1st, Watanuki-sama had a pale face and didn’t move an inch.

Even shaking his shoulder, he doesn’t wake up.

“Not… breathing…”

The crowd stirs with unease.

I realized that on April 1st, the flame of Watatsumi-sama’s life was flickering.

What should I do?

First, I need to check if I’m alive…!

I take out the glasses artifact that I borrowed from the Tsukumogami.

This can see spiritual power.

Previously, I was taught by Satoru-sama.

The dead have no spiritual power, they say.

In other words, if there’s spiritual power, it means they’re still alive.

I cast the Noble Phantasm and observe the body of Watanuki-sama on April 1st.

From his body, the light of spiritual power was felt.

“Thank goodness… I’m alive… barely.”

We let out a sigh of relief.

“But, why won’t they wake up…?”

Then, Satoru-sama approached and examined Watanuki-sama’s hand.

Looking at the cracked crystal, he says.

“This is the mausoleum of Momoharu Hyakushun.”

“Wasn’t it a crystal that seals demons, held by the equipped-type ability users?”

“That’s right. Momoharu mausoleum is cracked… If we repair the mausoleum, it might awaken.”

“!? What does this mean?”

“The Reibyo is a crystal created from the soul of an equipped-type ability user. If the Reibyo gets damaged, it means that this person’s soul has been harmed.”

I see, then if we repair the mausoleum, the soul might be restored, and he might awaken…

“I’ll fix it with a curse.”

Satoru-sama takes a talisman from his pocket and breathes sunlight into it.

The talisman swells up, and a small doll… becomes a shikigami.

The shikigami extends its hand towards the cracked shrine, sending forth the energy of the sun.

Cursed prohibition.

It is a technique that outputs spiritual energy (yang energy) to heal injuries, illnesses, and repair broken objects.

“Sorry, Rei. It seems my curse-breaking technique can’t fix it. It looks like a considerable amount of sunlight energy is needed to repair the mausoleum.”

“Understood. I will also use a curse.”

The science club members murmur…

“A woman using a curse-repelling spell…?” “That’s absurd. How can a woman who only possesses negative energy use positive energy…?”

I harbor the energy of yin in both hands, and then, in one swift motion, I channel the energy of yang into the mausoleum.

Before my eyes, the cracked mausoleum was returning to its original state.

And then, the cracks had completely disappeared.

“As expected, Rei. You really are amazing.”

I’m happy to be praised, but I’m more worried about what will happen if Watatsumi-sama doesn’t wake up on April 1st…

“I see, I see…”

With a start, Watatsumi-sama awakens on April 1st.

“Oh, I see. So by physically destroying the shrine, you can also neutralize the ability user. That’s some good data we’ve got here~”

On April 1st, Watanuki-sama gets up.

…a naive face with big, bright double eyelids.

Quite cute, with a charming face that could easily be mistaken for a girl’s.

On April 1st, Watanuki-sama got up, pulled a stack of papers close to him, and started writing something.

“The Reibyou has a daily usage limit. Exceeding that limit will cause the Reibyou to stop functioning, and the ability will no longer be usable. However, if the Reibyou is physically destroyed while there are still uses left, the user may stop functioning and, in the worst case, could die… Hmm, interesting! Truly fascinating!”

April 1st-sama… smiles and holds my hand.

“Thank you, Rei-kun! We got some great experimental data!”

Wasn’t this person on the verge of death…?

“Um, excuse me… how is your health?”

“Hmm? My body? Why?”

“Because I was on the verge of dying…?”

“Why?”

Uh, uh, uh…

“Hey, Momoharu Momoharu”

“Satoru-kun, right? What’s wrong?”

Sigh… Satoru-sama lets out a sigh.

“You… you damaged your own mausoleum with that hammer, didn’t you?”

Huh, huh?!

“Yeah, so what?”

That is…

“I’ve been wondering for a while now. I wonder what would happen if we physically attacked the mausoleum.”

“Were you curious about it, so you tried it?”

“Yeah. Since it’s a crystal of the soul, it turned out just as I predicted—there’s a possibility of death!”

Knowing the possibility of death, this person… harmed the mausoleum…?

“Hey, isn’t he a strange one?”

“Y-yes…”

Then, on April 1st, Watanuki-sama said with a very innocent smile.

“Once again! I’m Watanuki Momoharu from April 1st. Nice to meet you, Rei-kun!”