I Sealed Sukuna’s Finger#517+518: Sheila! All Hands on Deck!

According to Bokue's original plan, after treating a certain nightmare girl to a drink, that should've been the end of it.

However, what Bokue hadn't anticipated was that this one little beverage would result in her latching onto him completely.

The scene shifted—the two had already left the café and entered the shopping center on the same floor.

Following Yukina's earlier instructions, Bokue needed to buy several days' worth of groceries and bring them back before evening.

But because Eguchi Yume kept following him, they ended up navigating the shopping center together—one tall, one small.

Though that wasn't really a problem.

After all, Bokue pushed the shopping cart the entire time, walking ahead, while Yume followed behind him like she'd activated auto-follow mode.

Plus, considering Bokue's handsome appearance and upstanding demeanor, even if people noticed them, they'd most likely assume he was an older brother out shopping with his little sister—not anything along the lines of "three years minimum, death penalty maximum."

"Hey~ what does big brother do anyway? You can resist Ririu's powers, so you definitely can't be an ordinary person, right?"

"Me? I used to be an onmyōji. Now I'm basically just coasting through life."

"Onmyōji? Like those mage-types who throw talismans around and summon all kinds of animals?"

"That's just one type. As for me... I'm a bit different from them."

"Could other onmyōji also resist or dispel Ririu's mental control?"

"Mm... no, they couldn't."

Bokue gave that negative response without even thinking.

Eguchi Yume's natural talent as a nightmare was undoubtedly quite impressive. The fact that she could instantly hard-control both Yukina and Sayaka was proof enough of that.

Though it didn't work on him at all, but... there was a saying: you can't judge everyone by the same standard.

And if Yume could instantly control Yukina and Sayaka, then she could undoubtedly lock down the entire Keikain family just as effectively.

After all, in terms of mental fortitude, those two girls from the Lion King Organization weren't inferior to Keikain family onmyōji—in fact, their stronger physical bodies made their mental resilience even tougher.

Yet even so, they'd been controlled by Yume without any resistance.

"Is that so?"

As they moved through the aisles lined with vegetables, the nightmare girl walked behind Bokue with her hands clasped behind her back, tail swishing rhythmically. Hearing this, she tilted her head thoughtfully.

"So does that mean big brother is special to Ririu?"

"Objectively speaking, yes. But I get the feeling you're implying something that could easily be misunderstood."

"Eep~ Not at all!"

Without suppressing her nightmare features, Yume's personality had shifted into something resembling a little devil or bratty kid. Seeing Bokue call her out directly, she covered her mouth and giggled softly.

"Big brother's the one with a dirty mind, you know? Or are you actually the type who's interested in elementary school girls?"

"You're way off base there. Personally, I prefer them bigger."

Bokue shrugged.

He wasn't lying about that. Even Yukina and Nagisa were already quite well-developed for their age group—it was just that everyone else was so absurdly top-heavy that by comparison, those two seemed small.

Especially once you got to Rias, Mio Naruse, and Akeno's level—those were genuinely bigger than their heads. Normal development couldn't compete at all.

"Oh~ so all guys really are the same in that regard."

The nightmare girl walking behind him hummed.

"Never thought big brother would be such a shallow person."

"...You can't call someone shallow for liking big ones only when you don't have them yourself."

"Eh? What?"

"I'm saying that when you grow up, you might develop really well and end up like that too. If you're calling it shallow now, won't that just boomerang back on you later?"

Bokue rephrased it into something an elementary schooler could understand.

He'd expected Yume to stubbornly insist she'd never want to grow that big because it looked awful or something.

But what Bokue hadn't anticipated was that after hearing those words, the nightmare girl behind him suddenly slowed her pace, lowered her head, and fell silent for a moment before finally mumbling indistinctly:

"Maybe... if... Ririu even has a future..."

"What?"

Bokue hadn't quite caught that.

"Mm~ nothing!"

The nightmare girl shook her head and smiled again, quickly catching up.

"Just saying I hope big brother's right... Oh yeah! Instead of that—since big brother said you like bigger girls, which of those two big sisters from this morning is your girlfriend? Wait, let Ririu guess! It's probably the tall one with the high ponytail, right?"

She was obviously referring to Sayaka.

That made sense, actually. Compared to Yukina's development, Sayaka was indeed more advanced. After all, age wasn't for nothing.

Unfortunately, she'd guessed wrong.

"It's not 'which one'—they're both my girlfriends."

Bokue gestured toward the shopping cart in front of him.

"They're at home right now. I came down here to buy ingredients for tonight's dinner."

"Down... here?"

Yume looked upward curiously.

"Does that mean big brother lives inside the Keystone Gate?"

"Pretty much. Right at the very top."

Bokue didn't bother hiding it.

"Though I'll be heading back after I finish shopping."

"Mm-hmm, Ririu understands."

The nightmare girl smiled obediently.

Looks like I'll have to come see big brother again next time. Mm... hopefully there is a next time.

And so, twenty minutes later, having purchased everything on Yukina's list, Bokue parted ways with a certain nightmare girl at the shopping center entrance, then teleported back to the peak of the Keystone Gate.

However, the moment he materialized, a soft, petite rear end gently settled on the young man's shoulder.

Accompanying it was a certain nightmare housewife's teasing voice.

"I knew something was up when you went out alone. Turns out you went to meet another girl—and judging from the lingering scent, a very young girl... Hmm, never thought you'd be into that type, Bokue... huh?"

She stopped mid-sentence.

Sheila leapt down from the young man's shoulder, hovering in midair as she floated before Bokue. She bent forward, bringing her face close to his waist and hands, sniffing carefully. Then her expression changed drastically.

"Wait, this power—could it be...??"

"What's wrong?"

"This... this is the power of Lilith, the Witch of the Night!"

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Sheila-san's reflexes were just too fast and precise—even a certain long-haired black cat girl currently rolling around on the living room sofa at home, brain full of schemes about how to thoroughly make kittens tonight, didn't have time to react.

And so, having just returned from the shopping center below with groceries, Bokue hadn't even had a chance to go back to the apartment and set things down before a certain nightmare housewife dragged him directly to her own residence.

The scene shifted to a familiar hotel suite—

"Sniff sniff..."

On the living room sofa, Sheila crouched over the young man's lap like a cat searching for the scent of fish, burying her face around his waist level and constantly sniffing around.

This was naturally still at the peak of the Keystone Gate.

Sheila, along with Mio Naruse, Maria, and the others, were still living in the same hotel suite they'd occupied back when they were in Tokyo. When Bokue had previously claimed Itogami Island, their suite had been relocated here as well—just like Yukina and Nagisa's apartment, with the space connected seamlessly.

After all, this way they were already comfortable with their living arrangements. Plus, Sheila was quite fond of this modern-style open-plan suite.

Though it was completely different from the traditional demon realm noble castle aesthetic, in Sheila's own words: castles were too heavy and oppressive, whereas these open-plan suites felt refreshing and spacious.

"Mm~ just as I thought—it really is Lilith's power."

Taking a long breath, Sheila pushed herself up from the young man's embrace with both hands.

She'd been sniffing continuously for a good two or three minutes. Having kept her head in a lowered position for so long caused blood to rush to her head, bringing a subtle flush to her delicate face. Her silver hair—identical to Maria's—had become slightly disheveled from her earlier movements.

Bokue slipped his hands under her arms, lifting her up and setting her properly on his lap. The nightmare housewife cooperatively smiled faintly, extending both arms to wrap around the young man's neck.

"So who is this 'Lilith' you're talking about, Sheila?"

"Mm, how should I explain this~"

Sheila pressed her lips together, tilting her head as she thought seriously.

"Bokue, you know the origin of the current Four Great Satans' names in the demon realm, right?"

"More or less."

Bokue nodded.

To be precise, the titles of the demon realm's Four Great Satans had never actually changed. Lucifer, Leviathan, Beelzebub, Asmodeus... these were all names of the original Satans—the first demon realm powerhouses to break through to Satan-class and reach the pinnacle.

Each subsequent generation of Satans—whether to commemorate them or simply for unified convenience—would change their surnames to match the original Satans' names upon ascending to that rank.

Like Sirzechs Lucifer, or Serafall Leviathan.

The Satan surnames could even be passed down to descendants, like Vali Lucifer.

Of course, all you inherited was the surname itself—proof that your ancestors had once been great. Whether you could reach those heights yourself still depended entirely on your own abilities.

"Well, that makes this much easier to explain."

Sheila smiled, her fingertip tracing across the young man's Adam's apple. She paused there briefly, lightly scratching it, instantly raising the atmosphere's intimacy level by thirty percent.

"Simply put, Lilith is the same deal. As the first nightmare to reach the pinnacle, Lilith's mental control abilities alone put her on par with Satan-class beings."

"So you're saying that girl is this generation's Lilith?"

Bokue raised an eyebrow.

Following logical reasoning, that should be correct. However, the nightmare housewife's next words immediately overturned his assumption.

"Mm, not quite. Lilith's title doesn't work like that—there's no inheritance involved. No one has managed to claim her mantle yet. The reason is quite simple..."

"As far as I know, Lilith—the first nightmare to reach the pinnacle—is still alive to this day."

Oh?

Bokue paused slightly, though he wasn't particularly shocked.

It made perfect sense. The reason the demon realm's Four Great Satans had all been replaced over the years was fundamentally because they'd gone too hard during that great war and gotten themselves killed.

But that didn't mean demons died easily. Quite the opposite—even the weakest low-class demons possessed lifespans so long they were practically eternal.

In other words, if this Lilith hadn't been suicidal enough to participate in the tripartite war, surviving until now was entirely reasonable.

"However, regarding the girl you met today, Bokue..."

Sheila paused again here, thinking for a moment before continuing.

"She definitely inherited the Witch of the Night Lilith's power. Though it's still quite weak, it's genuine... Of course, to you, Bokue, it doesn't matter at all."

After all, the Magnetic Field's greatest strength was willpower—a soul or spirit so powerful it surpassed even an invincible physical body.

Especially now that Bokue had successfully reached the final realm. With his current strength, even if a thousand Liliths personally descended to use mental control on him, Bokue could casually reverse it with a single thought, turning them all into a thousand bent-over pushovers.

"Well, though this was unexpected, it's probably better to remove it."

As Sheila spoke, she reached out to brush at Bokue's waist.

"There's a saying: rivals in the same trade are enemies. We nightmares really hate having other nightmares' magical energy on our men. For me, the only two I could probably accept would be Maria and—"

"Mother??"

Before she could finish, a girl's voice rang out. Both Bokue and Sheila turned their heads simultaneously toward the source, only to see a tall, mature-figured silver-haired nightmare girl—about seventy percent similar in appearance to Sheila—standing at the hallway entrance leading to the bedroom. She stared at the embracing pair on the sofa with apparent surprise.

"Oh my? Did we accidentally wake you up, Lucia?"

Sheila blinked, equally surprised.

"Weren't you taking an afternoon nap? You're up early today."

"I ate something a bit salty at lunch, so I got thirsty. After drinking some water on my way back, I heard voices in the living room..."

Lucia's gaze wandered, seemingly reluctant to look directly at the overlapping figures on the sofa.

"I see."

Sheila appeared completely unconcerned, even patting the sofa beside her.

"Then why not sit down and chat with us for a bit?"

"N-no thanks. I'll head back to my room..."

Though understanding her mother's intentions, Lucia—who still couldn't accept them—simply shook her head before turning and disappearing down the hallway.

The nightmare housewife on the sofa watched her daughter's departing figure, gradually reining in her expression before finally pouting with resignation.

"That girl really is... sigh... looks like she still needs more time."