Once again, at the Roppongi Hills mall. Although the trio of women from the Three Realms had let him off lightly for his mistake, they insisted on him taking them out to the mall.

And since John realized just how much a bullet he dodged, he complied.

Which led to the current situation.

John frowned and looked between the three women sitting around a table outside the food court. “Are you sure you three will be alright by yourselves?”

Xuannu rolled her eyes and said, “We are not children, Johnny.”

John’s frown deepened and he glanced over at the various men staring in the distance. “That’s what I’m worried about…”

Daji giggled and then hid her mouth with her sleeve. “What? Is Big Brother jealous?”

“No. I’m just worried that some poor soul will get taken advantage of by you three vixen.”

Zhaojun smiled and said, “Worry not, Senior Brother. I will ensure that Sister Daji and Sister Xuannu act appropriately.”

John smiled back. “I appreciate that, Little Zhaojun. But…” He frowned. “I’m still a bit worried…”

Xuannu sighed. “Fine. If you are that worried…” She waved her hand and erected some subtle formations. Privacy wards and spells to divert attention.

Immediately, the people staring at the group lost interest and went on their own business again.

Xuannu looked back to John and said, “Satisfied?”

“I guess, but-“

Daji huffed and shooed John away. “Just hurry and get us our food, Big Brother! Look, the lines are already filling up!”

John sighed. “Fine, fine. Then I’ll be back. Don’t do anything outrageous, alright? I’m the one who will have to clean up the mess.”

Xuannu nodded. “Yes, yes. Johnny is a big man now with big man responsibilities. Now go get big sister’s order.”

John shook his head and then walked away.

The moment he did, Xuannu placed down another formation to block sound from leaving the table, as well as to blur their images to prevent lip reading.

Immediately afterwards, John’s spiritual sense swept around the formation. But just as quickly, he retracted it.

Daji rolled her eyes. “Big Brother is as overprotective as usual.”

Zhaojun smiled. “Senior Brother would not be Senior Brother if that was not the case.”

“True. But…” Daji glanced over at Xuannu and said, “Are we really letting him off that easy, Xuanni? I mean, I’m not complaining at getting my cuddle time with Big Brother, but he made a pretty big mistake.”

Xuannu sighed. “I wanted to scold him properly, but the little dragon seemed exasperated and overworked. Not to mention that we… have been a bit too enthusiastic with him being our tour guide.”

Daji blushed and said, “I-It’s not my fault that this world sells such pretty dresses!”

“I didn’t mention you, but…”

Daji puffed her cheeks and said, “Xuanni!”

Zhaojun smiled and then idly brushed a strand of her black hair away from her eyes. “Senior Brother still has his habit of causing trouble to his male acquaintances, it seems.”

Daji rolled her eyes. “You mean his habit of causing trouble for everyone.” She frowned and said, “I’m still cleaning up the mess he made at the Demon Realm, you know?”

Xuannu laughed. “It can’t be helped. Johnny is just that sort of man.” She shook her head and said, “Considering that he is still causing trouble even after transcending, it must be his nature.” She paused. “Or maybe it really is his bad habit…”

“Well,” Daji said. “I just hope he hasn’t been causing too much trouble for my Betty.” She frowned and said, “Knowing my responsible niece, she might have taken matters into her own hands considering how irresponsible Big Brother is. Especially since his latest project seems to have a lot of interaction with all of the mortals here and their rules.”

Zhaojun stared into the distance and said, “I am worried about Alphy as well. It must have been hard for her to adjust to such a peaceful world.” She frowned and fiddled with her sleeve. “She seems to be doing well now from that ‘stream’ we saw, but… I am still concerned.”

Xuannu nodded. “Yeah. I’m worried about Meggie too. Suddenly being in a world like this must be quite the shock. My cute little niece might be well-mannered, but that Princess kept her pretty sheltered.”

“Speaking of Big Sister…” Daji frowned and said, “Should we talk to her?”

Silence. None of the other two women seemed to have a response to Daji’s question.

But eventually, Zhaojun said, “What is there to talk about?”

Daji leaned forward on the table, propping her head up with her hands. “She’s pretty pitiful, isn’t she? Big Brother chose her, but Big Sister hasn’t spent as much time with him as we have. And with the way Big Sister has been acting since they got married, it seems she’s still worried that Big Brother will change his mind.”

Xuannu scoffed. “That stubborn idiot savant? Changing his mind?” She shook her head. “Impossible.”

Zhaojun let out a whimsical sigh. “Indeed. Once Senior Brother sets his mind upon something, he never goes back on his word. Furthermore…” A wry smile crossed the black-haired beauty’s face and she said, “Senior Sister is the one that Senior Brother truly loves as a woman. Even facing one with mastery over the Daos of Attraction and Love itself, he would not waver.”

Daji started to nod, but then she paused and narrowed her eyes. “Zhaozhao. That’s… awfully specific. Don’t tell me that you-” She shook her head. “No. Don’t answer that. Anyway…” The crimson-haired beauty frowned and said, “*We* know that Big Brother would never betray her, but Big Sister doesn’t. At least, it seems like her heart still doesn’t believe it.”

Xuannu shrugged. “And what of it? That Princess isn’t our concern.”

“Don’t be like that, Xuanni.” Daji leaned back and said, “Even if you don’t like her, Big Sister is still Big Sister. And it would hurt Meggie’s feelings if you don’t get along with her mother, wouldn’t it?”

“…True. But getting along with her doesn’t mean making her see the light.” Xuannu tucked a strand of her sparkling dark hair behind her ear and said, “Besides, that Princess is just as stubborn as Johnny when it comes to women. Or have you forgotten how she tracked down all the other women that Johnny came into contact with and forced them to sign a promissory note to never reach out to him again?” She frowned and said, “Little Xuan and Little Wu sealed themselves away because of it and Zhuque forcibly reincarnated herself as a mortal just to forget about him.”

Daji winced. “Yes… But surely Big Sister has gotten better about it? I mean, she let Big Brother come meet us, didn’t she?”

Zhaojun frowned. “That is true… Senior Brother over-accommodates Senior Sister, so he would hardly have come to meet us without her express permission.” She paused. “At least, he would not have been so calm about it.”

“Right?” Daji nodded. “So I think it’s time for us to talk with Big Sister.” She paused. “Actually, since she’s pregnant now, we probably can’t put it off much longer.”

“What,” Xuannu said. “Do you think that Princess will completely exclude us now?”

Daji shook her head. “No. But I heard from my maids that being pregnant makes even immortals lose control of their emotions. Considering that Big Brother’s latest business ventures seem to result in him meeting with more young women… and since he has a habit of picking up pitiful beauties and rescuing them from dire situations… isn’t this bad?”

Xuannu’s eyes widened and she placed her hand on her chin. “That’s true. And with how much that Princess suppresses her emotions… As much as I would enjoy seeing how Johnny resolves that situation, Meggie and the others would be caught up in it. Not to mention the blameless unborn child.”

Zhaojun hummed. “Even so, that will be difficult. Senior Sister is still wary of us. I doubt that will have changed so suddenly.”

Daji huffed. “Well, she needs to get used to it then. If Big Sister really wants to be our Big Sister, she needs to accept us too. It can’t just be us one-sidedly accepting her like this forever.”

Zhaojun nodded. “I agree. We are indeed long overdue for that conversation with Senior Sister. Furthermore…” Her eyes narrowed and she said, “We still need to decide on a proper punishment for Senior Brother leaving Senior Sister behind in such a vulnerable state.”

Daji laughed, but the mirth didn’t reach her eyes. “True. And it would hardly be fair for us to be the only one to punish Big Brother for his mistake.” She paused. “And maybe we can bond with Big Sister by sharing all of our embarrassing stories about Big Brother.”

“Ooh.” Xuannu leaned forward and said, “I *do* have quite the number of stories about Johnny that I’d like to share. And it would be nice to knock that man down a few pegs considering how he so arrogantly assumes he knows what’s for the best.”

Daji smiled. “Then it’s settled!” She clapped her hands together and said, “The first chance we get, we’re going to grab Big Sister and have a girl’s night out! …Whether she wants to or not.”

“Ah.” Zhaojun paused and said, “Before that… Do you think Senior Brother has had the chance to take Senior Sister out yet since returning to his home world?”

Silence.

And then Daji facepalmed. “No. Big Brother wouldn’t have done that yet, would he?”

Xuannu sighed. “Knowing Johnny, I doubt it.”

Zhaojun hummed and placed her hand on her chin. “Then it would be best for us to allow Senior Brother to take Senior Sister out on a proper trip first. Perhaps while we supervise the children?”

“Ooh!” Daji quickly nodded and said, “That’s a great idea! We get to spend time with our favorite nieces and get on Big Sister’s good side at the same time!” She smiled and said, “Zhaozhao’s so smart!”

Zhaojun blushed and said, “I-It’s nothing much. Sister Daji is much more impressive than a wandering musician like myself. Reigning over the Demon Realm is something that I could never imagine myself doing.”

Daji shook her head. “Don’t say that. Weren’t you going to be wed to an Emperor before Big Brother found you? I’m sure Zhaozhao would have done great!”

“Perhaps. But Sister Daji is the one who became aware of the rebellion in the Three Realms and gathered everyone. Compared to you, someone like myself…”

“Hey!” Daji huffed and said, “No looking down on yourself!”

Zhaojun paused and then smiled. “Yes, Sister Daji. I will remember that.”

Xuannu glanced off to the side and said, “Not to interrupt your touching moment… but it looks like Johnny is back.”

True to the goddess’s words, John returned, walking over with a tray of food in one hand and a drink tray in the other.

Xuannu dismissed her formations and then crossed her arms, pretending to be irritated. “It took you long enough.”

John sighed and said, “Sorry about that. It was a bit of a hassle getting everything, but I managed to sort it out.” He placed the trays on the table and then started handing out the food. “Strawberry crepes and a mocha for Zhaojun. Glazed donuts and a caramel frappe for Daji. And then a plain black coffee for Xuannu along with some toast.” After finishing passing everything out, John frowned and said, “I still don’t get why we couldn’t have just gone back to my place though. The quality of the food here isn’t that good except for Maji’s udon store.”

Xuannu grabbed her drink, the usual Starbux container, and took a sip. After, she said, “It’s a matter of principle, Johnny. When in a foreign land, it’s best to experience the culture directly.”

“…I’m from here though, so wouldn’t it have been fine either way?”

Daji rolled her eyes and sipped on her frappe. For a split second, her tails popped back into existence and she let out a happy smile. But they quickly faded. Looking over at John, she said, “Big Brother wouldn’t understand.”

Zhaojun unwrapped a pair of plastic utensils, pulling out a fork and knife and then cut a piece off from her crepe. After taking a bite, she nodded and said, “Senior Brother never did have a fondness towards travel outside of gathering treasures.”

John sat down and said, “Hey now, I enjoy traveling. I just have a bad experience with ‘experiencing the culture’ like Xuannu mentioned.” He frowned and said, “The last time I tried that… Well, it ended up working out, but I’d rather not go through that mess again if I didn’t have to. Not to mention everything that’s happened since arriving in Japan…”

Zhaojun picked up a napkin to wipe some of the strawberry jam off her face.

When she did, Daji frowned. “Hey Zhaozhao.” She pointed at the napkin with her straw and said, “What’s that?”

“Hm?” Zhaojun paused and then turned the napkin around. “A series of numbers and… a name?” She furrowed her brow, examining it further. “And such feminine handwriting- Wait. Is this not the same sort of custom as handing out cloths to…?” She cut off her words and then glared at John.

John let out a sheepish laugh and rubbed the back of his neck. “I said it was a hassle, didn’t I?”

Xuannu sighed. “I swear, Johnny…” She grabbed her cup of coffee again to take a sip.

Daji glanced over and then pointed with her straw again. “Wait! Xuanni, there’s something on your cup too!”

“Huh?” Xuannu paused and spun her cup around. Sure enough, there was a female name and some hastily scribbled numbers on the plastic cup, written with a black marker.

Daji frowned and then spun her frappe cup around as well. Seeing yet another female name and numbers, she turned to give John a blank stare.

He let out a wry smile and said, “I told you it would have been better to have breakfast back at my place.”

The three women shared a look and then sighed. After that, they all turned to look at John.

He blinked and said, “What?”

Xuannu waved her hand, setting up protective formations.

Daji flicked her sleeve, causing an illusionary field to obscure the table.

And then Zhaojun materialized a small zither, strumming a brief melody. With it, space rippled, giving off a deterrence effect towards mortals.

Seeing all of that, John started to sweat. “H-Hold on. What did I do this time?”

Daji smiled. “I was willing to let it wait since Big Brother seemed repentant, but this is serious.”

Zhaojun nodded. “Yes. We need to address this before Senior Sister is hurt even more.”

Xuannu sipped her coffee and then slammed the cup down on the table.

John flinched.

Xuannu turned towards him and said, “Now, my dear disciple. Tell me, what is the biggest mistake you made upon returning?”

“…Saying it would be better to have eaten at my place?”

Daji sighed. “No, dumb Big Brother! You should have talked about the numbers! It’s not a big deal to you, but it is to us! And what if it had been big sister instead and you just brushed it off like now?”

John blinked. “…But Yue’s the only one I love. And it’s just some lovestruck girls, so it’s not a big deal, right?”

The three women looked to each other again and sighed.