章 22: Wake Up? Just Beat Them Again!

The three girls were stunned.

They never expected that Homura would be so powerful, taking down one person immediately.

The gangsters were also stunned, completely unaware of what had happened and why their companion was lying on the ground. Some of them were startled awake, and a few of the gangsters realized what was happening and rushed forward together.

Homura took a quick step forward, rushing to the middle of the two men and raising his hands...

*Thud!*

The two men's heads slammed together heavily, rendering them both unable to fight.

The last person remaining was dumbfounded, not knowing whether to advance or retreat.

Just as he was about to beg for mercy, Homura decided not to give him the chance, closing in on him and punching him in the jaw, causing him to lose consciousness instantly.

The three girls looked at Homura in disbelief.

'You took down all four of those tough guys in such a short amount of time? You really are something else!' They exclaimed in their hearts.

They had never believed in him before, thinking he was all talk and no action. After experiencing this thrilling scene, the three girls were still in shock.

Eriri asked, "What should we do now? Should we call the police?"

"Forget it, calling the police won't do any good. These gangsters are very familiar with the police station. Even if they get caught, they'll be released the next day," Homura explained. "Let me call my dad and hand this over to him. How to deal with it will be his problem!"

"You girls wait for me!" With that, he took out his phone and dialed his father's number.

===

In an office, Homura's father, the head of the Minamiya Family, Minamiya Kosuke, was chatting with his wife, Sagiri's mother, Minamiya Shizuka.

The phone rang, and Kosuke picked up his mobile phone and glanced at it before turning to his wife and saying, "It's Homura. How come this brat remembers to call me?"

"Never mind that just answer it. Homura-chan must have something important to tell you," Shizuka urged.

"Hey, brat! What's up?" Kosuke's tone gave no indication of whether he had a good or bad relationship with his son.

On the other end of the phone, Homura's eye twitched as he said impatiently, "I need your help with something. I ran into a few drunk troublemakers on my way to escort friends home, and we had a little scuffle so I beat them up. We're near Nozokizaka Slope. Can you help me out?"

"I don't care if you took care of a few troublemakers, but is it really necessary to call me for something so trivial? Are you afraid of retaliation or something?" A playful voice challenged Homura's endurance.

"I'm not afraid for myself, but what about the three girls with me? What if someone comes looking for them while I'm not around?" Homura spoke calmly, waiting for a response.

"...Fine, leave it to me. Is there anything else?" After a brief silence, Kosuke heard the seriousness in his son's voice and stopped joking around, giving a positive response.

"...There's one more thing. Sagiri can speak to me face to face now, and she'll be able to leave her room soon." After giving a brief update on Sagiri's condition, Homura said, "That's all. I'm hanging up now!"

"Wait..." Before Kosuke could say anything else, Homura hung up the phone.

"This brat! How dare he hang up on me!" Kosuke's forehead veins bulged with anger.

Shizuka next to him asked, "What does Homura-chan want to call you for?"

"Oh, he beat someone up and asked me to handle it!" Kosuke casually replied.

"Beat someone?!" Shizuka was surprised to hear this.

"This brat was escorting a few girls home, and some gangsters came up looking for a fight!" Kosuke explained briefly.

"A few... a few girls? What's going on? Did Homura-chan become delinquent?" Shizuka asked, now a little worried.

Kosuke's mouth twitched slightly. How could his son not explain this clearly? The problems just kept piling up.

"Don't worry! Based on what I know about him, he won't do anything extreme!" Kosuke reassured her.

"Wait a minute, let me make a phone call first."

"...Yes, it's me... I have a task for you... have your people search for some gangsters near Nozokizaka Slope and warn them not to mess with the wrong people! It's better to make them disappear completely... okay, that's it. Hang up!"

"By the way, that brat just said that Sagiri should be able to leave her room soon!" Kosuke quickly changed the subject, afraid that Shizuka would ask more questions.

"What?! Sagiri can leave her room?!" Shizuka was surprised and a little annoyed.

Even though, she's supposed to be Sagiri's mother! Why did she find out so late?

"Not yet! There are signs that she might be able to leave soon!" Kosuke said with a headache.

"Hmph! I'm going to complain to Sagiri-chan!" With that, Shizuka ran out of the room.

Kosuke shook his head helplessly, thinking of Homura's words, and a slight smile appeared on his face...

===

Putting away his phone, he returned to the three girls and a cat.

Seeing their curious looks, Homura made an "OK" gesture to indicate that everything was taken care of.

"Let's go before they wake up! So I don't need to beat them up again!" He said nonchalantly, but the three girls looked at him with dark expressions, wondering why he spoke like a bully.

Watching their reaction, Homura helplessly explained, "They were all drunk, and although I knocked them out, they probably won't wake up easily. Even if they do wake up, they'll likely not remember what happened before and repeat the same deed again. What else can I do than beat them again?"

Hearing Homura's explanation, they all nodded in agreement and continued on their way home with him.

"Speaking of which, I'm glad I escorted you all home, or else I would regret it for the rest of my life!" Homura exclaimed.

It was also perfect timing for his Level up, otherwise, his Level 1 Tai Chi experience might not have been enough for such an easy task.

The three girls blushed slightly at his words and felt grateful for Homura. Perhaps they should just stay over at his house in the future?

"By the way, Homura-kun, how did you become such a good fighter?" Utaha asked curiously.

"Yeah, I'm curious too!" Eriri added.

Megumi also looked over curiously, waiting for his answer.

"This doesn't mean I can fight, it's just a bunch of drunk gangsters who couldn't even control their bodies properly! Anyone who knows some combat skills can do it," Homura waved his hand, answering the girls' questions.

While they were talking, Utaha and Eriri were sent home one after another. Homura didn't see Utaha's parents, but he did see Eriri's mother, Sawamura Sayuri.

Sayuri's eyes kept scanning between Eriri, Homura, and Megumi until Eriri got embarrassed and put an end to it, while Sayuri revealed an "I understand everything" expression...

Eriri gritted her teeth and pushed her mother into the house, and Sayuri left with, "Homura, come and play often when you have time!" before she disappeared from Homura and Megumi's sight.

Homura scratched his head awkwardly and didn't say anything.

===

"Mission accomplished! I safely delivered you all home!" At Megumi's doorstep, Homura took the cat from her and breathed a sigh of relief.

Seeing the little one's lack of response, he smiled at Megumi and said, "It seems that she's already used to you!"

Hearing this, Megumi reached out and stroked Haru's head, saying, "Is that so? That's great, I really like Haru-chan too."

"Well then... see you tomorrow, Megumi."

"See you tomorrow, Homura-kun. Goodnight."

"Goodnight..."

Homura waved goodbye, took the little one, and headed home.