Becoming a god in a low-key way in the supernatural world

“Qingkong bets he won’t, but I bet he will…” Hu Tao gently bit his earlobe and said with a smile, “If I had won, Qingkong would have agreed to let you stay. Unfortunately, I lost the bet.”

Furotekawa: "..."

Chapter Sixty-Three: Sunrise over the Snow-capped Mountains (Part Two)

With more than ten minutes to go before sunrise, the sky began to lighten. A group of people were still warming themselves around the campfire. No one spoke for the time being, and the atmosphere was strangely quiet and a little eerie.

Yuka took small, quick steps, her gaze shifting back and forth between Kotegawa and Kurumi, filled with deep suspicion.

Not only did she have strange looks, but Takanashi, Senko-sensei, and even the usually quiet Chinatsu kept pushing up their glasses, using this small action to keep their eyes moving between Kotegawa and Kurumi.

Kotegawa, holding a bowl and chopsticks for picking out food, looked back and forth at them with a puzzled expression: "What's wrong?"

Yuka and Takanashi immediately avoided his gaze, each glancing at the sky.

He could only look up at the clear sky.

Qingkong rolled her eyes, casually brushed the hair behind her left ear, and touched her earlobe in the process.

Kotekawa paused for a moment, put down his chopsticks, and touched the earlobe that had been pinched by Kurumi earlier. It felt slightly slippery to the touch. He looked down and saw a trace of rosy red on his fingertips.

He glanced silently at Hu Tao, who was playing with Xiao Qianzao, her cherry-colored lips glistening with a bright red sheen.

Teacher Qianzi's gaze towards him changed, revealing a mixture of strangeness and shock, with a furrowed brow.

Kotegawa, his mind racing, tried to remain calm. He finished the last few bites of rice, cleaned up the dishes, and then pointed behind him, suddenly saying, "The sun is about to rise."

Everyone instinctively turned around and looked at the increasingly bright horizon.

Kotegawa also stood there, tucked his sleeves in, quietly waiting for the sunrise.

The bright red sun peeked out and slowly rose higher.

The rising sun was not intense at all; its rosy hue was breathtaking.

"Such beauty is beyond words!" Kotegawa exclaimed.

Several people around her listened somewhat absentmindedly, but Chizuru, who was still in elementary school, giggled and tugged at Kurumi's hand, asking, "What does this mean?"

"It means it's too beautiful to be described in words." Hu Tao smiled, the morning light falling on her face, making her breathtakingly beautiful.

Xiaoqian stared blankly at her.

Once the sun had risen high in the sky and the sunlight was so intense that it was impossible to look directly at it, the girls finally looked away and began to survey their surroundings.

The mountains on both sides are layered and white, and in some places they even sparkle in the sunlight, more beautiful than the sunrise.

After enjoying the sunrise and snow scenery, and taking plenty of photos with their phones, they finally returned home satisfied.

After they got home, while Kotegawa was unloading the car, Yuka and Takanashi Hana quietly pulled Haruka upstairs and into Kotegawa's room.

Yuka carefully closed the door, then stood behind it and listened for a while, pressing her ear against the door. After confirming that no one was coming up, she turned and nodded to Takanashi.

Little Bird's eyelids twitched, and it turned its head to look at the clear sky, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping itself.

Seeing that she was dawdling like this, Youjia couldn't hold back any longer. She hopped over to the bedside and placed her hands on Qingkong's shoulders.

The clear sky patted her chest so hard it bounced up and down a few times, almost making Youjia dizzy.

Her eyes widened, and she instinctively reached out to grab him, but Qingkong slapped her hand aside before she could, looking at her speechlessly: "What's wrong with you?"

The little bird coughed twice loudly beside her, and Yujia finally snapped out of her daze. Her little face instantly turned serious: "Senkaku! Did that kid cheat on you?"

Kotori chimed in from the side, "We all saw the lip gloss on Kotegawa's ears..."

Yuka wrinkled her nose and said to Kotori, "It seems I misjudged him a bit."

Takanashi paused for a moment, already having a guess in her mind. Looking at the clear sky, she tentatively asked, "Is it convenient to tell you?"

Looking at them, Qingkong said softly, "No, he didn't cheat on me."

"Huh? But it's lip gloss..."

Qingkong hummed in agreement: "This matter is a little complicated."

Yuichi raised his hand and corrected, "You can complain about my small breasts, but you can't doubt my intelligence! I'm still a top 20 student in the general studies department! In that respect, even Kotegawa can't compare to me!"

Qingkong thought for a moment and said, "If you swear you'll keep it a secret, I can tell you."

Yujia immediately raised her right hand and solemnly swore an oath.

Then, she and the little bird, Yuuka Hana, pricked up their ears and listened carefully.

Looking at them, Qingkong took out a lip gloss from her pocket and said softly, "Well, the lip gloss on his earlobe is mine."

Yuka and Takanashi were both stunned, then exclaimed "Eh!" in unison.

"It's yours? How is that possible? There were only Kotegawa and Kurumi in the back of the car at the time!" Yuka didn't believe it.

"They stayed in the back of the car for a while, but that lip gloss was mine."

Takanashi hesitated for a moment, then blushed and asked softly, "W-when did you kiss?"

"When I was looking for a place to use the restroom earlier."

"Going to the toilet? How exciting!" The two girls were startled again.

"What are you all thinking!" Qingkong was silent for a moment, then continued, "He just kissed my earlobe, nothing else."

"Really?" Yu Jia deliberately drew out her voice.

Clear Sky: "..."

Yu Jia said awkwardly, "Just kidding... Since that's the case, then it's alright, um, misunderstanding cleared up... I'll go downstairs to find something to eat."

Little Bird Dance Flower Dance didn't leave, her face hesitant. When the clear sky looked at her, she mustered her courage and said, "Th-that walnut..."

Qingkong looked at her and finally nodded gently: "Yes, that's what you think."

Takanashi Hana-mai froze, completely at a loss for what to do: "Huh? Eh? Eh?"

"It's a long story..." Qingkong tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and said quietly, "Do you remember that kid saying he wanted to become a god?"

Takanashi's voice was weak: "...I always thought it was a delusion."

“That kid is bold and decisive, I can’t just watch him go out every night to fight monsters.”

"...So you agreed to such an absurd thing?" Takanashi still found it hard to accept.

“It’s not entirely because of that.” Qingkong sniffed lightly. “He spent three months searching for medicine in the mountains because of Hu Tao’s injury. Even if he doesn’t say anything, Hu Tao can’t let it go.”

"But that still shouldn't be a reason to accept it, right?" Takanashi still couldn't accept it: "So, does that mean Yuka also has to be with him? Kotegawa went to the land of demons to find her!"

Upon hearing this, Qingkong hesitated, "Of course, there are many, many other reasons..."

For example?

"He...he..." Qingkong glanced quickly at the door, her cheeks flushing, and her voice was low: "His stamina is too good..."

Takanashi didn't understand, his eyes showing confusion: "What does that mean?"

Qingkong took a deep breath, leaned close to her ear, and parted his lips.

Takanashi listened, increasingly dumbfounded, until finally her cheeks turned bright red.

"Outrageous! Absurd!"

Chapter Sixty-Four: How Wonderful!

On New Year's Day, after watching the sunrise and snow scene, the group rested at home for a while and then went out together to perform Hatsumode (first shrine visit) at a small shrine in the north of the village.

The villagers value this very much; the earliest people get up at three in the morning to come to the shrine, making it lively for half the night. Now that the sun is high in the sky, there aren't many people left.

After the first shrine visit, more than half of the New Year has passed.

Kotegawa took out the computer he brought home from Tokyo and started looking up information about Matsumoto Castle. Considering that Takanashi and Ms. Chiko would be returning to Tokyo tomorrow, he knew he had to go there this afternoon no matter what.

However, he didn't know if it was just his imagination, but ever since they went to the Hatsumode ceremony, Takanashi had been looking at him strangely.

On the contrary, Ms. Senko, who had initially frowned, returned to her former enthusiasm.

I don't know what exactly happened.

"that……"

Kotegawa, who was still planning his trip to Matsumoto Castle, looked up at Takanashi, who was calling out to him from across the street.

Takanashi's gaze wandered, never looking at him, as if she were talking to thin air: "I won't be going to Matsumoto Castle. I have work tonight, and I'll probably have to rush home this afternoon."

Kotegawa paused for a moment, then nodded silently: "I'll take you and Ms. Senko to the station this afternoon."

Takanashi was still standing there, her gaze shifting slightly towards him: "There's still a week before school starts, when are you going back to Tokyo?"

"I still have some things to take care of here, so I'll stay for another three or four days before going back," he said softly. "Qingkong and Youjia might leave earlier."

Takanashi nodded and turned to go upstairs to tidy up.

Kotegawa closed his laptop, put it aside, and gently rubbed his temples.

Kurumi, who was playing with Chiyomi outside, walked in and asked, "Are we going to Heian-kyo the day after tomorrow?"

Kotegawa pondered for a moment: "We'll send Haruka and Yuka back to Tokyo first, and then we'll go together, so he won't run into any accidents when he goes out alone."

Although he "killed" a wave last time, it was nothing to bounty hunters who valued money over life, unless they were on the verge of death.

Hu Tao nodded, turned around and looked around the house, then blinked and asked, "Isn't Aunt Qiuye home?"

"They went to the orchard," Kotegawa said casually. "Aunt Akiba and Uncle Kenji are at the orchard; they're going to pick a batch of fruit tomorrow."

"That's perfect, we can help!"

Hearing that no one was home, Hu Tao walked over with her hands behind her back, looked at the bright sky outside, and blinked: "But what should we do today?"

"Cough cough!"

Suddenly, a cough came from the stairwell. Takanashi came down the stairs, carrying his guitar case, and pointed to the yard, saying, "I want to practice for a while. I hope I won't disturb you?"

Hu Tao waved her hand: "How could that be? Listening to Hua Wu's zither music is a pleasure."

Takanashi nodded: "Then let's listen together?"