Shota is surrounded by monsters!

"Um, Rea... I have something to tell you."

Shota took a deep breath. He didn't want to hide anything from Rea anymore, so he said:

"Hagoromo Gitsune... Although I don't have a particularly deep relationship with her, if I had to say... I made a mistake back then."

With a hint of remorse, Shota confessed everything to Rea, saying, "Actually, my first time was taken by Hagoromo Gitsune in an accident."

I still can't bring myself to say things like I want to use Hagoromo Gitsune as a sex toy!

Sure enough, upon hearing Shota's words, Rea's face suddenly turned deathly pale, and she opened her mouth...

"Was the first time...that?"

"It's just what you think..."

Shota sighed, and just as he was about to continue, he noticed a sudden knock on the door.

"I'm coming in."

The voice of Hagoromo Gitsune came from outside.

"A chaotic situation caught between my girlfriend and the mother of my child."

Shinobu astutely predicted what was about to happen.

Chapter 169. The Battlefield (2)

Naturally, even a locked door couldn't stop Hagoromo Gitsune; merely giving her a reminder was already a great favor to Shota. Therefore, before Shota could even react, the door opened automatically, and Hagoromo Gitsune walked in alone, glancing around the room and frowning.

"The environment here is not good for children."

"It's better than your underground black pool!"

There's no place like home, no place like a golden nest. When he heard someone criticizing his home environment, Shota instinctively replied with that.

"What child?"

Rea's icy voice cut between the two, making Shota shudder. He quickly turned around and looked at Rea, whose eyes were now covered by her bangs, and tried to explain.

"Of course, it's my child."

When the topic of children comes up, Hagoromo Gitsune becomes a completely different person. What was once merely coldness is now softened by a touch of tenderness—though this tenderness is directed only at the child who doesn't currently exist, not at Shota.

"What exactly happened?"

If she could shed tears, Rea's eyes would surely be wet with tears by now, but even so, her pupils are still moist—those are tears of blood.

He had a child with his concubine.

Before Shota could answer, Hagoromo Gitsune preemptively answered Rea's question, then countered with, "Are you his wife?"

For Hagoromo Gitsune, the concept of a girlfriend was still somewhat new. So even after Shota's explanation, Hagoromo Gitsune still didn't quite understand the relationship between the two.

"So... what you wanted to tell me, Shota-kun... is this it?"

My boyfriend is pregnant, but the child isn't mine.

Realizing this cruel reality, Rea had clearly fallen into the abyss of despair. No wonder Shota was never in a hurry to have children. It turned out that he had been pregnant all along... but Rea didn't know it. What did he want to do by bringing the mother of his child to see her at this moment?

Rei, conjuring up the worst possible answer in her mind, was heartbroken. Her rebirth was because of Shota, and everything she had after her rebirth belonged to Shota. But at this moment…

The mountain flowers bloom in seven or eight layers, yet pitifully, not a single grain is found.

She instantly understood the feelings of the woman in front of her back then, except that the woman had chosen to leave quietly, while she herself had ended up like this.

Indeed, for a girl like me who cannot carry on the family line, is it better to leave quietly?

"Wait, Rea!"

Seeing Rea's expression change rapidly, Shota feared she might have some bad intentions, but just as he was about to explain, Hagoromo Gitsune seemed about to say something else...

"This concubine..."

"Shut up!"

Shota's shout nearly shattered everyone's eardrums, and even the house shook slightly with the sound.

Hagoromo Gitsune looked at Shota, who had suddenly interrupted her, with some surprise, and finally... chose to obediently shut up and tell the truth.

"Reiya!"

Shota shook Rea's shoulder hard, but found that she seemed a little absent-minded, so he called her name again.

"Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals, Mi rituals..."

And so, Shota repeated Rea's name over and over again, while Hagoromo Gitsune seemed to sense something and glanced at Rea with a knowing look.

"Have you come to your senses yet?"

Shota pulled Rea into a tight embrace, feeling her cold and somewhat stiff body, and whispered to her, "Can you let me explain myself first?"

"Is there anything else you'd like to say...?"

There wasn't a trace of hatred in Rea's words. No matter how she acted, no matter how much she talked about getting a tubal ligation, when faced with this situation, she would still choose to leave on her own.

If I had to blame someone, I could only blame myself.

This is Rea, who grew up in that kind of environment but remains innocent and naive, and would never do anything to hurt others...

"The first thing is, I like you."

Shota said softly but firmly, "As for Hagoromo Gitsune, to be honest, her personality is completely not my cup of tea. If it were Yamabuki Otome, she would be passable, but she clearly has some of Hagoromo Gitsune's cold aura now... How could I possibly like someone like that? Rea, you're cuter than her, and you have a better personality than her. In two or three years, you'll definitely be even sexier than her. How could I choose her instead of you?"

Hagoromo Gitsune was originally indifferent, but seeing him deliberately belittle himself and elevate another woman, she felt... a slightly subtle sense of unease.

For the sake of the child, I won't hold it against you. Pregnant men need to maintain a good mood...

The thought of children brought out all the gentleness in Hagoromo Gitsune's body, and she dismissed Shota's words as just a child's whims.

"Because she can make you have children..."

Reiya pinpointed the crux of the problem.

"...But that's different!"

Shota said very seriously, "Okay, I'll tell you everything. Back then, well, I was in my teens, and when I saw Hagoromo Gitsune... I naturally wanted to sleep with her... Anyway, since this kind of youkai has done so many wrong things, I can just kill her twice as a tool to vent my frustrations..."

Calm down... Don't argue with someone who is pregnant with your child.

Even with her good temper, Hagoromo Gitsune gradually grew angry at being spoken to like that. She was the one who should be the victim; how could someone be so shameless as to say such a thing?

No, no, I absolutely cannot let this person take care of my child in the future...

"So that's what Shota-kun is like."

"That was then... Well, I don't want to explain this anymore. Anyway, I know I was the one who was wrong, and I can only make up for it with my actions in the future. This was a mistake. But please rest assured, I will definitely stay by your side from now on, and I will never think of anyone else."

Shota quickly made promises, and Rea in his arms seemed to be gradually calmed down, and began to wrap her arms around Shota's waist.

Great……

Shota secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

"Actually, I'm quite happy to hear Shota say that..."

Rei's voice calmed down slightly.

"At least I still hold some place in Shota's heart, but... since she's already here, it would be too shameless of me to stay here any longer."

Rea pulled away from Shota's embrace, turned her back, and said, "As expected... this is the only outcome if you can't have children. But thank you anyway. I've had a really great time with you, Shota-kun..."

Whether it was triggering Yamabuki Otome's memories or not, there seemed to be something different in Hagoromo Gitsune's gaze as she looked at Rea.

"The kerria japonica blooms seven or eight times, but the flowers do not bear fruit, which saddens the heart."

After she softly recited the poem, her eyes gradually dimmed.

Rea had clearly heard Hagoromo Gitsune's whisper, and as if wanting to escape, she pushed Shota aside and ran towards the door...

"Stop!"

Shota's words struck Rea like a bolt from the blue, leaving her frozen in place.

"Turn around!"

As if commanded, Rea's body turned around uncontrollably. Her face still held an expression of incomprehension and sadness.

"I didn't want it to be like this."

Shota has a cheat code. Rea's blood originates from him, so whether Rea is a zombie or a vampire, she can be considered his servant in a certain sense—among yokai, the bond of blood is the deepest, and the hierarchy established by this bond is the most rigid. Therefore, Shota has absolute control over Rea.

His eyes were clouded with a layer of blood mist, and so was Rei's; their bloodshot eyes stared at each other.

"Come here and sit next to me. Calm down first."

Shota sat back down on the sofa, and Rea uncontrollably sat down beside him, though her heart resisted—but it was all in vain. Shota gripped her hand tightly, their fingers intertwined.

But I couldn't feel that racing heartbeat I used to have.

For now, this is the only way.

"Hagoromo Gitsune. Sit down. Let's get everything straight."

Shota gestured to the seat opposite him, indicating that Hagoromo Gitsune should sit down so they could discuss things further. He believed that after talking with Hagoromo Gitsune, Rea would be able to calmly reflect on what had happened, instead of running away so rashly.

"A man who would use such methods..."

When Hagoromo Gitsune saw Shota resorting to such tactics, she smiled but ultimately said nothing.

Because Hagoromo Gitsune's memories tell her that this is what a real man is, but Yamabuki Otome's memories tell her that doing this kind of thing doesn't make one a man at all.

Hagoromo Gitsune sat down on the sofa and asked Shota, "Is this the kind of method you intend to use to keep your lover?"

"Don't worry about it."

Shota muttered something, just about to start explaining...

"Shota, what are you doing?"

Huang Quan's somewhat angry voice came from the doorway. Although she said she would avoid the situation, she had been paying close attention to what was happening. Seeing that Shota was now using such despicable methods...

Does he really intend to completely enslave Rea, and then... open a Crystal Palace?!

Huang Quan was originally unwilling to think in this direction, but current developments seem to be moving in that direction.

This isn't the Shota we know...

"Ok."