Morningstar Campione

Hoshino Kun's POV

"Have your schemes sunk so deep that this naïve girl hasn't even noticed how truly scummy you are, Hoshino-kun?"

My former demon—my former teacher, the one who once bestowed upon me a surge of strength, transforming me from a powerless human into the person I am today—spoke with a mocking tone dripping from her every word.

Her once amiable face, which had guided and supported me in the past, was now inaccessible, replaced by an expression brimming with sarcasm and distrust.

It was a cruel reminder of how far apart we had grown.

Understandable…

I had used her. I had treated her not as a partner but as a mere tool to secure my survival and achieve my ambitions.

She had every right to be furious with me, to hate me with every fiber of her being.

"I didn't use her or manipulate her. She came to me of her own free will," I said casually, leaning back in the plush seat of the car.

The atmosphere inside was stifling, despite the hum of the engine.

Scarlet, my butler, sat in the driver's seat, her piercing gaze fixed on the road ahead, unfazed by our conversation.

Princess Hatsune rested peacefully in my lap, her delicate breathing soft and rhythmic.

As I cradled her head, I caressed her cheek gently and hummed a soothing melody, my fingers brushing stray strands of hair from her face.

Her trust in me was both a blessing and a curse, a weight I could not afford to drop.

"Then why don't you tell her the truth?" Mujika spat, her voice filled with venom.

She floated languidly beside us, her translucent form shimmering faintly. "Tell her what a depraved hypocrite you truly are. You already have Ai, yet here you are, acting as if you love Miku. Pretending to be sincere, pretending to care, when in reality, you're nothing but a liar."

Her words stung, but I didn't flinch.

I kept my composure, my expression betraying nothing.

Closing my eyes for a moment, I refused to argue.

"Are you mad because you think I abandoned you, Mujika?" I finally asked, breaking the silence.

My voice was calm, deliberate, yet it carried an edge. "You're angry that I gave you to Miku, angry that our supposed contract was tainted by a third person, angry that I no longer need you. Isn't that it? You never wanted to reconcile with me. You never spoke a single word in all this time. So, why now? Why are you so angry?"

I paused, letting my words hang in the air, before continuing, "I freed you, didn't I? Freed you from the wretched person I am. Now, you have a better master—someone who might even grant you the freedom I never would."

"Miku is kind, far kinder than I ever could be. She's a good girl, and I'm not. I will never be. I'm not capable of giving you freedom. But she might. So tell me, Mujika, what is it you're really angry about?"

"How narcissistic of you to assume I'd miss you, Hoshino-kun," Mujika shot back with a sneer.

Her lips curled into a cruel smile, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "I just want to see what would happen if I told Miku the truth—told her how much of a hypocrite you are."

"What would you do then? Would you silence me? Drag me back into your grasp and prove, yet again, what a hypocrite you really are?"

"I'm her demon now, remember?" she continued, her tone taunting. "I have every opportunity to tell her everything. Should I test her faith in you? Should I tell her how twisted you really are?"

I couldn't help but laugh softly, as though I'd just heard the most absurd joke in the universe.

"Go ahead, tell her," I replied, my voice laced with quiet confidence. "No one would believe you. Not Miku, at least. She trusts me more than she ever will you. To her, you're nothing but a demon, Mujika. And I'm…"

I paused, my fingers still gliding over Miku's skin, "…someone she loves. You can't take that."

I kept my focus on Miku, ensuring her breathing remained steady and her heartbeat calm.

There were no signs of restless movement, no hint of her waking.

It seemed she truly was asleep. Still, I wasn't willing to take chances.

Whispering a soft incantation under my breath, I cast a spell to deepen her slumber, ensuring she wouldn't stir, wouldn't wake to overhear the venom Mujika sought to pour into the air.

My hand lingered on her cheek as I continued humming, my voice low and soothing.

I wouldn't let anyone disturb her peace—not even my past.

"How careful you are," Mujika said mockingly, her tone dripping with disdain as she watched my cautious movements.

I merely shrugged in response, unwilling to engage in her provocation.

Every woman during their menstrual cycle seemed to behave unpredictably, their moods swinging like a pendulum.

So, it was hardly surprising to see her acting so menacingly now.

"Now, be a good girl, Mujika," I said, my voice soft yet carrying an undeniable edge of authority.

"Your task is to protect her—to make sure she's safe, to help her grow stronger. The moment you overstep the boundaries, the only thing you'll earn from me is my hostility. And believe me, you don't want to end up on my bad side. Do you, Mujika?"

Despite the gentle cadence of my voice, the threat was unmistakable.

We both knew it.

Mujika huffed, her annoyance evident, before vanishing into a wisp of smoke.

She retreated into Miku's soul, her essence disappearing for now.

Who could say how long it would be before she surfaced again?

Did I miss the Mujika of old?

The one who was gentle and kind, the version of her that didn't bristle with antagonism at every turn?

Perhaps.

Perhaps not.

I had long forgotten what it truly felt like to miss someone—what it meant to ache for their presence—after experiencing loss so many times that the edges of grief had dulled into a distant numbness.

"Hoshino-kun, treat her better," Mujika's voice echoed faintly, the words reverberating within me like the tolling of a distant bell.

"I hope that this time, you will change. Don't see her as a tool. Even if you do, never show it to me. I don't care about your plans for her—or for us. I ask for one thing: never reduce her to a mere object in your schemes."

"I don't see anyone as a tool anymore, Mujika," I replied, my voice steady yet tinged with an undercurrent of bitterness.

"When I was weak, perhaps I did. But now? Now, I'm strong enough to form connections without exploiting them. You know better than anyone that it wasn't personal—it was about survival."

"You saw what happened. If I hadn't adapted, I would've died. If I had treated you as a 'friend' back then, I would've ended up dead, reduced to nothing more than a memory to fuel your idealistic dreams and ambitions."

"Your ideals, Mujika—they were beautiful, but they were never realistic. I couldn't fulfill them when I was weak, not when those demons saw me and my sister as nothing but prey."

For a moment, silence stretched between us, heavy and unresolved.

Then, with a reluctant tone, Mujika finally responded.

"I trust you this time," she said, though her voice carried a faint tremor of hesitation.

You'd better, Mujika, I thought grimly.

Turning my attention back to Princess Hatsune, I reached out and pinched her cheek roughly.

She yelped, her eyes fluttering open as she glared at me with an expression of wounded indignation.

"Hoshino-kun... You..."

Before she could launch into a full-blown complaint, I cut her off with a soft, measured tone.

"We've arrived, Princess," I said softly, my fingers threading through her silken locks.

Her indignation melted away, replaced by a glimmer of understanding as she adjusted herself, her posture now tense with determination.

"Now," I continued, my voice low and firm, "let's our plan begin. Starting with Sun Wukong, we'll make Susanoo and everyone else who wronged you regret ever being born into this world."

A fire ignited in her eyes as she nodded.

The game was about to begin, and this time, the rules were ours to write.

...

A/N: Yeah, my fingers are almost getting crushed from typing 4.5k words in the span of a day, even though there are only 2 chapters.

So, here, I adapted some strategies from this site on how to enjoy myself while simultaneously earning many power stones in the process.

From now on, whether you get 1 chapter per day or 2 chapters per day, you should follow these rules.

Here the rules, one chapter per day, the following condition apply:

Weekdays only (Monday to Friday): Requires 50 power stones per day.

Including weekends (Monday to Sunday): Requires 75 power stones per day.

To increase the regular update frequency from one chapter to two chapters per day, the following conditions apply:

Weekdays only (Monday to Friday): Requires 150 power stones per day.

Including weekends (Monday to Sunday): Requires 300 power stones per day.

For every 500 power stones, I will add one bonus chapter.

If the required number of power stones isn't met, the update schedule will be limited to three chapters per week.

In summary, if you can throw 500 power stones per day, you will receive 3 chapters per day in return, ensuring this fic's update stability and faster releases.

However, if the number of stones is too low for my liking, you will get fewer chapters, and I will only update when I feel like it or am in the mood.

Additionally, I went ahead and deleted the annoying hater's review along with my previous rant about it. Why? Because after digging into the situation a bit more, I realized the guy was just a clown using bot accounts or alternate accounts to like his own review.

The truth hit me after I talked with someone who replied to his review—a person I initially thought was another hater. Turns out, he wasn't. He actually wasn't on the reviewer's side at all.

That's when it became crystal clear: the guy who wrote the review was just a pathetic loser, inflating his own ego by faking support.

I've never seen him in the comments, top fans, or the review section of my stories. I don't know where he came from or why he's claiming to be one of my readers when he's never contributed anything—not even a single interaction—to my story.

Since he wasn't legit and just seemed desperate to be a nuisance, I blocked him. That's it. End of story. He can stay out there whining to his fake accounts for all I care.

For now, enjoy, my friends, and goodbye! I hope you like the story and continue supporting it. 😊