.

*THUD*

Kazuya and the stranger crashed onto the ground. He was surprised that he was able to knock the person down so easily. He immediately took advantage of the situation and mounted the stranger only to be surprised at the familiar face of the stranger.

"(This person…)"

This was not the first time he saw this person. She was present both times that he was mocking Lee and had hidden herself from that guy's point of view. He labeled her as one of that snake's admirers. Kazuya thought that it was a waste that a pretty girl like this would have fallen for that petty-minded idiot so he recognized this person immediately.

"(Is she here because he saw Lee's anger? A stalker?)"

Before he could gather his thoughts, the stranger recovered and sent a counterattack. He had no choice but to jump backwards to evade her longer reach. He lost his advantage after a moment of hesitation and clicked his tongue in frustration.

"(Damnit, I've truly gotten rusty! This person knows martial arts too)"

"Jeez! Why did you do that all of a sudden!?" She stood up and straightened out her clothes. It was then that Kazuya noticed her attire.

"(Huh? An apron? Why would an attacker wear an apron? Camouflage? I should have expected as much from someone who likes that snake)" all sorts of weird thoughts in his head popped up as he remained vigilant against this person.

"You don't have to look at me with those scary eyes young master"

"Young… master? Me?" Kazuya was taken off guard. This person actually dared address him as young master. He thought that she might have some sort of backing since she uncovered his identity and still barged into their property without worry.

"Who else? Are you still asleep?" she frowned at him.

"Who are you? What are you doing in my house? Are you doing this for that fake guy Lee?" he used lighter words because he was afraid that she would attack if he insulted Lee.

"For Lee?" her eyebrows twitched. She immediately realized that this young master had come to the wrong conclusion and she was curious as to how far he had assumed about her.

"That's right. I've seen you both of the times he was glaring at me. Take my advice and stop liking that guy because you'll only get hurt. He's nothing but a wolf in sheep's clothing" he tried to reason with her to buy some time for himself.

"(Me? Like Lee?)" She was irritated at Kazuya's conclusion. She had only been following him because of him and now the same person who she did it for had assumed the worst.

"You're still young and there are many good people out there who are even better"

"(Still young? How old do you think you are talking like that?) Pu… HAHAHA" she couldn't hold it in anymore and began laughing out loud. His last statement was like a tickle that she couldn't help but laugh at.

"(D-did she lose it. I've recovered a little bit but it's still not enough to beat someone who knows martial arts yet)" worried that this person had lost her mind, he lowered his stance and even became more vigilant.

"You're really a funny one young master. You're speaking like you've had the experience but you're obviously still a child compared to me. I don't know how you came up with the conclusion that I'm in love with that animal but you couldn't be more wrong" she wiped the tears from laughing so hard and looked at the boy who had sunk back to his own thoughts.

"Wrong?" he lowered his vigilance a little and decided to listen as he focused on recovery. "Who are you then? What are you doing in my house?"

"Didn't granny tell you that there were helpers taking care of the chores in the house?"

"Chores? Then you are…"

"Fujiyama Yui, one of granny's beautiful granddaughters at your service" she stuck out her tongue and winked at the now embarrassed boy who jumped into the wrong conclusions.

"Then why were you looking at that snake secretly? Because of me?"

"Bingo! That's right! I was asked to observe his reaction when he found out that you transferred to our school. I'm actually surprised you were able to see me from that far and even recognize me. Did you see me both times?"

"Yeah. You weren't that hard to spot from my point of view. (So mom and the others did this…)"

"So am I cleared from suspicion young master?"

"Yeah. I apologize for suddenly attacking you. So does this mean the other person here is one of your relatives as well?"

"Huh? How did you know that my sis was here too?" she immediately got suspicious.

"Well…" he couldn't say that he sensed them through the formation and seeing the suspicious gaze she looked at him with, he panicked. "Because you're short. A taller person is needed to reach and clean the high places in this house and the ladder isn't enough to make you reach them so there should be a taller person who does them"

"Wha—" she was so surprised at his sudden reply that her mouth gaped. She immediately lost her temper as soon as she recovered and shouted "You're short! You're even shorter than me!"

"Of course I am, I'm only six years old. You're already in middle school but only a few inches taller than me. Girls at your age should normally be taller than boys" he spoke as if it was a matter of fact. He didn't think about what he said. He was just relieved that he was able to confirm her identity and her attention was successfully diverted.

"You!!!" she breathed hard trying to suppress her anger. It was true that she wasn't as tall as her sister was but she was confident that she had the looks to make up for it.

This was the first time that someone actually told her she was short to her face and it was after the fact that the same person attacked her. He even assumed that she was in love with that scum of a person she didn't even want to think about.

Yui trembled because she wouldn't hear the end of it from her grandmother if she hit this person. All the good things he heard about this young master had gone out the window. She had felt sorry for him after hearing what he had gone through but after speaking to him, she immediately thought that it was his own fault.

All she could do was vent her anger on the ground as she stomped her steps and headed back to the house. What she didn't know was that Kazuya didn't know what he said wrong. As a hero, he was used to being sucked up to and his bluntness grew because he was never reprimanded for it. He would be respectful and mindful of what he said when it came to people he should watch his language to like his parents, the elderly or teachers, but when it came to people close to his age, he was used to saying whatever was on his mind.

"Women…" he sighed and imitated the gesture Miyamoto had showed him. He had already recovered a little so he decided to sit back down on the ground to analyze the completed formation.

Kazuya had to make sure that there were no mistakes in the connections of the formation because he would not be able to successfully use his house as a point to gather mana if the formation goes haywire. He would be spending most of his time here so he had to make sure that this place wouldn't end up as a dead-zone.

Almost all major magic experiments have all turned various places into dead zones in Edea so making sure that there were no mistakes was a necessity. With the already low amount of mana on Earth, a formation explosion would cause all the mana in his city to lessen even further.

After making sure that everything was in place, he placed specific marks on the people currently inside the household. One good thing about the detection formation is that it could detect and deter small creatures so whatever pests that hid themselves well would no longer be an issue in the Kouzuki household.

He returned to the house and found Kyouko reading the newspaper. Fujiyama had just served her a cup of coffee and saw that Kazuya had arrived.

"Good morning young master. Would you like a beverage while waiting for breakfast?"

"Good morning mom and granny. Black coffee for me please"

"Kazuya I didn't say anything before but do you really like black coffee?" She looked at him and decided to ask "Where's Mei? Didn't she go with you? She's not in her room"

"Big sis should still be sleeping in my room and black coffee is—" Kyouko ran towards Kazuya's room before he could finish. He sat down thinking it was going to be a cheerful and noisy morning.

"Young master, there are some things that you need to know. Since the mistress is currently occupied with Kazuno-sama then I will inform you. Fujiyama explained the developments last night and warned him to be vigilant.

"I see… I will be careful. (I was the one who provoked him with the intent of making him go against me anyway)"

"We have coordinated with Shiroyuki-sama to ensure your safety. They will be responsible for picking you up from school to their dojo and afterwards, back to this household"

"Hmm… (Looks like that guy's in for a challenge if he wants to get to me at this rate. I should think of a way to get that guy an opportunity)" Kazuya decided to observe the current situation before coming with a plan.

"Is something wrong young master?"

"No, nothing. I was just thinking that we owe grandpa Jirou a lot since he's doing this much for us"

"This just goes to show how much he values your potential young master. The Kouzukis and the Shiroyukis may have close ties but Jirou-sama would not go this far if he did not think highly of you"

Running sounds came closer as Mei showed up still wearing only her white shirt and dashed towards Kazuya. She turned his chair before picking him up and placing him on her lap like usual.

"Kazu protect me. Mother-in-law is bullying me" Kyouko showed up and was immediately irritated to find that Mei had run towards her son for cover.

"Mei! Let go of Kazuya and get dressed immediately! Don't poison his eyes any further!"

"Poison? Kazu already knows my body well. He even said that my breasts were perfect yesterday! Isn't that right Kazu?"

"Kazuya don't go along with her shenanigans and don't be afraid to kick her out if she sneaks into your room again"

"That's not fair mother-in-law! I've been busy preparing to move here that I need to have my fill of my Kazu energy! Look at me? Aren't I looking better already?" She truly did appear better than in the few days that she looked a little pale.

"That's not the point! I didn't let you live here so you could stay in my son's room!"

"I'm going to need to stock up on my Kazu energy since I won't be able to see him for a few days when we go on our business trip" Mei retorted.

"Mei that—" Kyouko stopped as the atmosphere around Kazuya had a slight change. His peaceful expression turned a bit gloomy as he reacted to the sudden news.

"Business trip?" his gaze slowly landed on his mother. It contained a bit of pressure that he involuntarily released. He was a little bit sensitive upon hearing this because he had begun to be a little fearful when it came to 'trips'.

"You haven't told him yet?" Mei felt the sudden change too as a slight panic appeared on her face. She could do nothing but hug him hoping to pacify him while signaling to Kyouko to do something. They already talked about this and came to a conclusion that Kazuya was plagued by nightmares of them abandoning. His reaction just now served as proof regarding their deductions.

"You see Kazuya… the trip wasn't supposed to be until two weeks later but we decided to move it to the weekend so that we can cheer for you when you go compete in the tournament" She gestured Mei to back her up.

"Yeah, mother-in-law wasn't able to tell you because it was only confirmed yesterday. I was sent home early so that I could finish moving before we go on our business trip. She even lent me her car. That's why you saw that car in my apartment"

"I see…" the atmosphere cleared up a little as he gently freed himself from Mei. "I am feeling a bit unwell so please inform the school that I will not be attending today. I will be in my room resting. Please leave me alone for the meantime"

Kazuya moved back to his room and didn't look back. He didn't think that they would suddenly leave for a business trip so he was caught off-guard. This was of course something that was bound to happen and he already had a plan instore. If he knew about this firsthand then he wouldn't have completed the formation today.

He needed to make sure that nothing would happen. This was the only thing he could do for them at the moment. So despite the risks, he braced himself for what would happen next.