Kawaii Onnanoko ni Kouryaku Sareru no Wa Suki desu ka? Volume 2 Chapter 4

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Editor: karap

Entering Priesthood

At this rate, it will end up in failure—or so Mikado thought to himself.

“Good morning. I have come to greet you today. I thought it would be a good idea to walk to school together like other couples would.”

Monday morning. As a pleasant breeze flew past the entrance of the Kitamikado Family’s residence, Rinka gracefully appeared. Her bright skin was almost transparent and uniform was clean and proper, her glittering black hair perfectly arranged. No matter where one looked, she was the perfect Yamato Nadeshiko who showed Mikado a smile overflowing with affection for him.

“Well… I think that going there separately would be better…”

It would lessen the risk of any possible ruckus being caused by their classmates. Gathering rumours about oneself was a thing disliked in the Kitamikado Family. But Mikado’s personal reason was that he wanted to avoid lowering Kisa’s affection for him in any shape or form. However, Mikado’s parents, who had just finished their breakfast, appeared behind his back.

“Oh my… How wonderful. Coming to greet one’s future husband this early in the morning, the perfect example of a Kitamikado Family wife. This will surely keep the swarm of insects in check.” said Mikado’s mother, hiding half of her mouth with the palm of her hand as she let out a faint giggle.

“I’m glad to see that you have gotten this close. Despite being a fiance, but still cultivating one’s love for each other is a wonderful thing to see. If it were to grow too cultivated, I wouldn’t mind pushing forward the marriage either.” commented the current head of the Kitamikado Family, his arms crossed.

The mother nodded along.

“Indeed. Guaranteeing a healthy successor can never be done too early. We will take care of the school, so you two can just enjoy yourselves to your heart’s content. I won’t allow any birth control though~”

Rinka gave a deep bow.

“Yes… I am eternally grateful for these kind words! I will do my best to create healthy and energetic children with Mikado-sama!”

“Aren’t you all a bit too blatant?!” Mikado complained, as he felt immense pressure from his parents and fiance.

Those calling themselves the son of the Kitamikado Family cannot break down from this sort of pressure by any means, but letting things get any more serious than this would certainly not be a good policy. If he drove Rinka away right here, he would be thoroughly questioned by his parents and he would have to worry about them finding out about his love game with Kisa. However, the biggest problem of them all was—

“Mikado-sama… Did I… bother you with this…?”

Rinka gazed up at Mikado, her eyes filled with anxiety, afflicting him with a harsh desire to not hurt her more than necessary.

“…It wasn’t a bother. I was just a bit surprised.”

Mikado let out a sigh inside his chest and sat inside the white limousine provided by the Shizukawa Family. With the sound of the engine softly revving up, the limousine slowly started to accelerate. The small space that Mikado and Rinka were in was completely sheltered from the driver in the front. Like a small and secret room for them. Mikado tried his best to not be alone with her, but this was a special situation he couldn’t avoid. Rinka rested her slender body against Mikado and softly whispered as her cheeks grew more redder.

“We really have to respond to their expectations. I wonder what kind of baby will be born from the two of us…?”

“W-Who knows…? I can’t imagine…”

Naturally, Mikado was imagining it with a heavy mind. But the problem was less the actual baby, and more the process of making it. No matter how he was raised, he still was a healthy boy in his teens. Being involved in such talk this early in the morning, with a beauty like Rinka next to him, not growing conscious of her was close to impossible. Not to mention the fact that she was pressing her knees against his as she sat next to him. Sitting so close to the perfectly healthy and beautifully balanced body of Rinka, Mikado would grow flustered whether he wanted to or not. Even more so as Rinka pulled on his sleeve, softly whispering to him.

“I… imagine it, every evening. Doing it with Mikado-sama.”

“Every evening?!”

With this bold confession, Mikado could feel every single ounce of his blood burning fiercely. Thinking about what his imaginary self was doing in this pure girl’s fantasies, his reasoning began to crumble. However, he barely managed to survive through that long, oh so long bittersweet experience. The limousine arrived at Sousei Academy where Mikado immediately separated from Rinka as if running away. If he were to suffer any more passionate affection from his fiance like that, something bad might very well happen. However, right when he thought he had gotten away from the dangerous landmine, another assailant appeared.

“Mikado-kuuuuuuuun! Good morning~! You’re as cool as ever!”

Waving her student bag at him, Mizuki dashed at full speed and jumped into Mikado’s arms. Because of the suddenness, Mikado was too slow to react as Mizuki clung to his head, her slender waist glued to his chest. As a result, her modest chest was pressing against his mouth and nose.

“Mugh?!”

Feeling them this close, her breasts had more volume than they originally looked to have. There was also a sweet odor leaking from them which played with his reasoning.

“What’s wrong~? You seem to be in real pain for some reason.”

“Because you are choking him! Get away from Mikado-sama this instant!” Rinka tried to peel Mizuki off.

However, Mizuki showed no signs of giving up on her pole position.

“No can do~ It’s a special service for him. Mikado-kun, how is it? These are the breasts Onee-chan had when she was 14~ I even put on the same bra as her~”

Having those teasing words whispered into his ear, Mikado faltered. His thoughts acted faster than his reason, and he imagined what it would have been like to be embraced by Kisa like this.

“I believe that things will get out of hand soon.”

The home office of the current head of the Kitamikado Family. Mikado stood in front of his father with a heavy heart and the intention of asking him for advice. His office was in perfect Japanese manner, filled with tatami mats, and displayed on the wall was the hanging scroll of a white dragon. Inside this room, completely sheltered from the outside and loud sounds, a strong sense of pressure bore down on Mikado.

“What do you mean by ‘out of hand’?” asked the head, not even raising a single eyebrow.

Taking a deep breath, Mikado started explaining his previous words.

“I feel like my heart has started to grow weaker as of recently. I am influenced by the words and actions of those around me, my thoughts and feelings move in an odd direction, so to speak. It feels like I’m starting to sway back and forth.”

The head lifted up his chin with a stern expression.

“Hm…I see. Your sexual desires have gotten stronger, and you’re troubled by that.”

“Why were you able to perfectly pinpoint my worries like that?!”

Mikado cursed, as he had hoped to keep the actual problem as hazy as possible.

“Being at that age, it is a wall every boy has to eventually overcome. Naturally, that involves myself as well, as I was your age before. Yes, back then I—”

“It’s okay! I don’t need to hear any of that, Father!”

The family head however just shook his head.

“Don’t panic like that. For now, let’s start with my fiance back then… Let’s start by calling your mother ‘The Goddess saving my destiny’.”

“We don’t have to start! Take that personal information to your grave, will you?!”

Mikado tried his hardest to stop his own father, who was weirdly eager. If he were to hear too much information about their youth, it would only make their relationship as a family more awkward.

The head let out a sigh.

“No helping it then. About the method to strengthen your heart… to not fall to any temptations… is easy. Just reduce your stress with the young Shizukawa woman.”

“Excuse me?!”

“As long as it is your fiance, there is no problem, right? Don’t worry, we will follow up and take care of things on our end.”

“That’s not what I meant… I want to strengthen my heart so that it doesn’t even come to that…”

With his current endurance, it wouldn’t take long for him to lose the love game. If he didn’t raise up his own defence soon, there would be no future for him. That is the deadly premonition that constantly weighed down on Mikado’s heart. It wasn’t just a problem like his desires not allowing him to study or the like. It was on a way more important level.

“Then, entering priesthood.”

“Entering priesthood?!”

“Indeed. There is a cloister that the Kitamikado Family has good relations with. They accept children of the political world, giving them a place to find themselves and regain their purity. If you manage to pass through their harsh training, you will surely be able to find results.”

“It’s true that it might bear results… but going that far is a bit…”

Mikado only felt the need to raise his own durability, not any desire to become a monk. Once he managed to bring down Kisa, he was planning on enjoying his youth together with her. Entering priesthood would most likely bring about more problems than solutions.

“I only suggested it to you as a possible solution. It’s your responsibility to pick the right path.”

“…I understand. For now, I’ll hold off on that.”

Mikado bowed to his father and left his office behind him.

As Mikado was dwelling in his own thoughts in his classroom at Sousei Academy, Kisa called out to him with a suspicious gaze.

“Mikado, what’s wrong with you recently? You’re spacing out all the time. Did your IQ drop?”

“Of course not. I was just thinking about some stuff.”

Mikado was still busy calculating the merits and demerits of his father’s advice. Whilst thinking about other possible methods to make his heart more resistant, he was unable to think of anything.

Kisa showed him a cheerful smile.

“Dwelling on it on your own for too long isn’t good, so let me help you, okay? Let’s both think about ways to efficiently lower the human population on this earth.”

“I never once thought about that, and probably never will!”

“Then what is it!? Just spit it out! So cheeky of you!” Kisa slapped her hand on Mikado’s desk.

“Then… Well, you know. Kisa… what do you think about entering priesthood?”

“You can’t go on dates, and you won’t be able to eat anything delicious anymore. It’s basically a graveyard.”

“Thank you for your precious opinion.”

Cut in two with a single strike, Kisa’s words almost sounded like she had prejudices against it.

“Still… Not being able to go on dates… That really hurts…” Mikado muttered to himself, and Kisa didn’t miss that.

“Yeah, I understand you. You want to go on a date with me so badly that you can barely hold yourself back, right?”

“…That’s not the case.”

Naturally, she hit the bulls-eye perfectly. If it didn’t break the rules, Mikado would have been ready to use half of his family’s fortune to give her the greatest date of all time. At the same time, Kisa’s cheeks burned red.

“At least give affirmation there! That makes it seem like I’m excessively self-conscious!”

“Because you are.” Mikado shrugged.

“It’s not excessive! You actually wanted to take a walk with me down a sandy beach, with rows of trees lining both sides, right? Then feeding each other parfait at a cafe like lovers, right?”

“Your ideas are pretty cute alright…”

“T-They aren’t cute at all! Absolutely not! Are you making fun of me?!”

Yet again Kisa slammed her hands down onto the desk, throwing a sharp gaze at Mikado like she was about to slap him. Seeing her eyelashes shake at close range and her pearly teeth biting into her lips, that alone was enough to throw Mikado’s heart into chaos. He wanted to take her by the hand, and take her out on a date. Throw out the love game that would decide the fate of Japan and embrace her body to his heart’s content.

—Yeah, this really is getting out of hand.

Kitamikado Mikado decided to enter priesthood right then and there.

Thus, he was sitting in the main temple building removed from any worldly wisdom, as his dialogue with the monk priest began. The ceiling was high and supported with wood planks, beneath that, a large hall surrounding a massive enshrined sculpture. In this atmosphere, colored by tranquility and silence, the priest started with a simple question.

“What exactly did you come here for?”

“To rid myself of the various worldly desires.”

The priest just shook his head towards Mikado’s resolute answer.

“The wish itself to rid yourself of worldly desires is a worldly desire in itself. As long as you wish for something, you cannot escape from any desire.”

“Then…what should I do…?”

“You have to accept it…this world.”

“Accept…the world…?”

Mikado was at a loss.

“Once you accept this world, you will become one with it. There exists an algorithm, and past that is the harmony called Eunatai.”

“I have no idea what you’re even talking about!”

However, there seemed to be no problem in his words, so Mikado held back his anger.

“At first, you most likely will be surprised, but eventually, you will be able to see the truth yourself. As your first ascetic practice, we will have you test if the mosaics of AVs are perfectly applied to law criterions.”

“Does that really count as ascetic practice?!”

The priest showed a kind smile.

“It is indeed. On the verge of desire and forfeit, you will very well arrive at the truth. Sex and lust will become inconsequential, and you will join us on the path of enlightenment. Believe. Salvation is right there.”

“…Then, I will. Either way, I don’t have any other options available anyway.”

In order to gain strength to stand victorious at the end of the love game, Mikado set foot into the struggle for enlightenment.

One week later, during lunch break.

“H-Hey. Mikado-kun? Am I… a bother or anything?” Mizuki asked carefully, as she forced herself on Mikado’s lap in the classroom.

“Of course not. If you want to use half of my chair, you can do that. It’s not troubling me in any way.”

“O-Okaay? Your heart’s not racing faster by any chance? Or maybe you’re panicking?”

“Why would I panic here, or even get flustered? The only thing I am worried about is the possibility of you falling off me, and hurting yourself. So let me help a bit.”

“Hya?! Mikado-kun?!”

Mikado embraced her with his arms, running them down her back. While even Mizuki was growing flustered at that, Mikado’s heart was as calm as it could be. Before, his heart rate might have gone up at top speed because of her seductive scent, but there were no signs of that in the slightest. All that filled his chest was the desire to make sure she would not hurt herself.

“T-This is kind of embarrassing after all…My chest is hitting you…”

“Don’t mind it. A chest is nothing more than fat.”

“Well I do mind it! Also don’t go calling it fat! That’s basically an insult for girls!”

“I will apologize to you, and correct myself then. Breasts aren’t just lumps of fat…they are a rich mix of proteins and liquid.”

“That’s not what I meant! What’s with you today, you’re scaring me!” Mizuki escaped from Mikado’s arms.

She looked like a terrified squirrel, frantically trying to put distance between them. At the same time, Kisa carefully approached Mikado, as if to test him.

“U-Um…Mikado-sama? If you have time after classes today, would you be okay with joining me in my room? There is something I would like to show you…” Rinka started fidgeting, sneaking glances at Mikado.

Though she seemed to be holding herself back, this was clearly an invitation. Her dampened eyes and rosy lips were clearly demanding Mikado’s everything. If this was the Mikado from a week ago, he might have felt his body temperature rise.

“Sorry, but I’m busy copying sutra today. Feel free to invite me another time.”

“Sutra?! You mean Buddhist scriptures?!”

“No, I have to write down all the expertise I gathered from my union with Eunatai, about the truth of this world. It is important to write down the experiences and knowledge we have acquired. Be it humans, society, life itself… the sacred scriptures exist so that we may understand their existence, and how to arrive at the summit.”

“I-Is that so…? Well, if you are too busy with your sutra, then it cannot be helped…” While shaking furiously, Rinka returned to her own seat.

During that entire scene, Rinka gazed over at Mikado like he had said something horrifying. At times, tears started building up in the corners of her eyes.

“Mikado! Eat this! And there’s no right to decline!” Kisa forced a part of a hamburger into Mikado’s mouth.

Since he hasn’t prayed yet before his meal, he quickly clapped his hands together, enjoying the hamburger quickly after. Having chewed on it 30 times as always, he nodded along in a calm manner.

“Delicious. You worked really hard for me, didn’t you, Kisa? I’m always thankful towards you.”

Kisa was aghast.

“Why?! Why are you so calm?! For today’s lunch, I put the most amount of aphrodisiac in to definitely make you my slave after just one bite!”

Mikado rested his chin in one hand, as he returned a smile.

“Fufu, you shouldn’t go around pulling these childish pranks. Well, that’s also one part of your charm.”

“Why aren’t you getting angry?! This feels weird! Did Mikado get replaced by an alien?!” Kisa showed true fear, as she took a step back.

She looked like a terrified stray cat that was hissing at him.

“Eh, an alien?! When was Mikado-kun turned into an alien?! Parasitism?! I have to take a picture!” Kokage approached the group with her camera, turning the lens towards Mikado.

In response, Mikado crossed his legs whilst sitting on the chair, taking a confident pose.

“Take a good one, okay? Being the son of the Kitamikado Family, I can’t show the populace any pathetic side of me.”

“He actually gave me permission after always ruining my camera with glue?! What’s going on with Mikado-kun?! Well, I’ll gladly take a picture though!” Kokage hesitated for a second, but pressed the shutter of the camera.

As Mikado kept smiling calmly, the girls were watching in mute amazement.

The three girls, Kisa, Rinka, and Mizuki gathered in an empty classroom nearby. Although they were all fighting for Mikado in their own right, there were no signs of the usual sparks of rivalry between them. Rather, it felt more like a coordination of people from all over the world, trying to avoid a natural disaster.

“I’m assuming you know the reason we gathered here.” Kisa gazed around, to which Mizuki and Rinka nodded along.

“Onee-chan finally decided to have Rinka-chan and me drown in Tokyo Bay. You’re planning on taking us to a nearby family restaurant to give us a false feeling of security, only to make us heavier so that we sink faster.”

“Eh, is that true?! I was sure we would be talking about Mikado-sama…”

Rinka’s eyes opened wide in shock, to what Mizuki started explaining.

“Rinka-chan, you can’t let down your guard, okay. Once Onee-chan decides on something, she won’t stop until it’s done. The most important thing is to make contacts in our private corps.”

“I won’t do that today! Just as Shizukawa-san stated, I called you here because of Mikado! Also, if you two disappeared at the exact same time, I would be the most suspicious person, right?!”

Mizuki showed relief.

“I see~ So you’ll make us disappear one by one then!”

“Exactly!”

“Eh, really?!” Rinka took several steps away from Kisa.

They were still enemies in the love game, so it made sense that they would show the highest amount of wariness. Kisa coughed once to get back on track.

“Anyway, the problem at hand is Mikado’s attitude and behaviour recently…It definitely is weird, right?”

“It really is! No matter how much I cling to Mikado-kun, he’s not panicking at all! I even put on the same perfume and underwear as Onee-chan, and even that didn’t get him flustered at all!”

“Since when have you been using that?!”

“Always! It’s the Nanjou Family’s way to use whatever we can, right?”

Mizuki skillfully dodged the impending Iron Claw from Kisa. Meanwhile, Rinka started to ponder about something.

“Recently… When the two of us are eating dinner together, Mikado-sama would always pray for at least 20 seconds…The employees of the store we’re always visiting are completely terrified now…”

“You’re always going out for dinner?!”

Kisa yet again realized her inferior position against Mikado’s fiance. So much that she felt the urge to rename herself Shizukawa Rinka. However, she decided to leave that thought alone for now, as she put one hand on her cheek.

“I wonder what happened to Mikado…? That calm and benevolent Mikado isn’t the real one. The normal Mikado…would try to deny any of my plans at full force, a bastard way too serious for his own good, always thinking like he’s someone better than me!”

Rinka could only gaze at Kisa in amazement.

“You keep talking badly about him like that, but you actually love him, don’t you…?”

“Hya?! W-W-What might you be talking about?! H-How could I have feelings for Mikado?! Really, what kind of accusation is that!?” Kisa pressed both her hands to her burning hot cheeks, furiously shaking her head.

At the same time, Mizuki let out an exasperated sigh.

“Onee-chan…your face is as red as tomato ketchup…”

“It’s not! Why would I get flustered because of such a baseless accusation! I am just agitated, and that is the normal reaction!”

“It really is unfair how you can be pure evil and so cute at the same time, Nanjou-san…” Rinka let out a pained sigh. “I also thought that something was off, so I decided to ask Mikado-sama’s father for any information, and he told me that Mikado-sama has just entered priesthood.”

“Entered priesthood?! Did he become a monk?!”

“Ehhh?! A bald head definitely won’t fit Mikado-kun! Wait… so his current hair is just a wig…?”

“Who cares if it is! Mikado is still Mikado!”

Kisa didn’t care too much if he turned bald, or had plastic surgery, but priesthood would be troublesome. All the things she wanted to do with him after making him her slave would be impossible.

“Apparently, he isn’t aiming to become a monk though, he is just trying to cleanse his head. He’s staying over on the weekend, and has to complete several ascetic practices at a famous temple or the like, to rid himself of his worldly desires.”

“So basically…that’s why he’s in that pathetic state? It’d be troublesome if he lost his worldly desires.”

“Right! I won’t be able to do perverted stuff with Mikado-kun anymore!”

“I still am not handing Mikado over just so you can do as you please with him, Mizuki…”

At this rate, the love game will be heading towards Kisa’s inevitable defeat. If Kisa’s plans stopped having any effect on Mikado, while she would continue to receive damage, it’d become a one-sided slaughter, an easy win for Mikado.

“Mikado-sama having no interest in being a married couple… I cannot let that happen… I have to steal it aggressively…”

“Steal what?!”

“Kyaa! Rinka-chan, you pervert!”

“And, what should we do now?” Rinka brought the focus back to the original problem with pure feelings, as she gazed at Kisa.

“Let’s put up a temporary joint front here. I don’t know what kind of sketchy Buddhist temple this is, but I will not allow anyone to snatch Mikado away from me. We’ll definitely pull him back to the mundane world with us in it!” Kisa announced, as she crossed her arms.

Inside the peaceful main hall of the temple, Mikado and the priest were sitting next to each other, facing the girls. Kisa, Mizuki, and Rinka were all wearing their own unique and lovable private clothes, dazzlingly staring at Mikado.

“I assume that you all are hoping to undergo our ascetic practices?”

From the appearance itself, you couldn’t even quite make out the sex and age of the priest anymore. With courtesy filling her seiza, Rinka nodded to that question.

“Yes, I am Kitamikado Mikado-sama’s fiance, Shizukawa Rinka. Watching my husband try to cleanse his soul, I decided to join him in that endeavor. I hope to receive an equal amount of guidance.”

“Good way of thinking indeed. By cleansing and polishing your heart, you will be able to reach a unity with Eunatai. Please, teach them.” Mikado lowered his head towards the priest as well.

“If the young lady of the Shizukawa Family asks me, then I have no reason to deny it. However…those other two, I can feel darkness and evil emitting from you like I have never seen in this world…” The priest directed their gaze at Kisa and Mizuki.

Kisa countered that with a snicker.

“Everyone keeps saying that about me. I’m just a benevolent, virtuous person towards everyone around me, so I was thinking that maybe people would think differently if I learned at a temple like Mikado does.”

“Vir….tuous…?! Onee-chan is?! No wa—!”

Right before Mizuki could finish her sentence, Kisa gave her a quick jab to her side, Mizuki crouched down on the ground and writhed in agony. Kisa didn’t even flinch at that, and just kept smiling. At the same time, you could hear the priest gulping heavily.

“…W-Well, n-no matter how evil you might be, now that you have sought help at our temple, we will not close our doors towards you. We will save your tainted soul from the dark world that you are entrapped in.”

A high ranked priest just called the soul of a high school girl tainted. In the priest’s eyes, Kisa was not a human, but something akin to a monstrous apparition. That’s the daughter of the Nanjou Family for you. However, for Mikado, who has already undergone this harsh training, seeing Nanjou Kisa here was a chance. Making her the object of salvation, he could possibly pull her away from the Nanjou Family.

“Everyone, let us try our best from today on. I will try to support you as best as I can.”

“Yes…please teach me as thoroughly as possible…”

“Fufufu, I’m really looking forward to this…”

“You better prepare yourself, Mikado…”

Mikado showed a kind and responsible smile, as the other three girls all muttered to themselves, looking at him like a hunter at its prey.

Zen meditation.

This term describes the act of sitting in a cross-legged position and ridding yourself of any idle thoughts to gain complete control over your spirit. An ascetic practice that is made to regain and heal the harmony between body and mind.

It might be simple, but it needs a high level of mental control and the riddance of worldly desires is very effective. Even a normal person, born in the common world will be able to achieve results after three hours… However, having a beautiful girl sitting on your lap for that entire time changes everything.

“Heeey, Mikado-kun? Why have you been keeping quiet for a while now? Come and talk to meee~ Come on? Hey~”

Sitting on Mikado’s lap, while whispering in his ears with her soft voice, she rubbed Mikado on the tip of his nose. A normal person would most likely refer to the past three hours as hell.

“Did you not come here to work on your worldly desires…?”

Even the experienced Mikado couldn’t maintain his focus, and asked Mizuki in a frank, annoyed manner.

“I came here to play with Mikado-kun~! I’m bad with bothersome and difficult stuff!”

“Then go home! This is a place for ascetic practice!”

“Then I’ll do that! Where should I start stripping from?!”

“Why would you strip in the first place?! What kind of training are you planning on doing?!”

“I was planning on sitting next to Mikado butt-naked as you’re doing your own zen meditation, to see if I can bear the cold! My last record was five minutes before I caught a cold!”

“Don’t catch a cold intentionally like that! And that image is way too surreal!” Mikado quickly jumped to stop Mizuki, who was about to open up the first button of her blouse.

Normally, Mikado would only take this as a joke and that would be the end of the conversation, but that girl sadly isn’t normal in the slightest. No matter what you said to try and convince her otherwise, she would strip at all costs.If it came to that, Mikado wouldn’t be able to get out of it unscathed. Basically, Mikado would get kicked out as a pupil, and on top of that, reported to the police, which would result in a scandal for the Kitamikado Family.

“Come on, Mikado-kun~ You actually want to play with me, right?” Mizuki snickered in a teasing manner.

“Not at all.”

“You don’t have to be flustered like that! I know it very well. You were enjoying our date together, right? Your eyes were sparkling the entire time when you saw all those new things~”

Mikado let out a faint sigh.

“That might have been the case back then, but I am different now. I have freed myself from any desire for enjoyment and pleasure. I have become a part of the entire cosmos, with the mindset of the vast space and universe.”

“Scary! Mikado-kun, you’re scary! You totally got wrapped up in some dangerous religion here!”

Mikado just confidently shook his head.

“It’s not dangerous at all. My heart feels even lighter than before. A loaf of bread and a beautiful girl completely look the same to me right now.”

“So you want to do perverted stuff with bread now?!”

“The other way around! No matter how attractive your body might be, I will not be influenced by it in any way!” Mikado announced, pushing out his chest.

In order to arrive at this level, Mikado stood beneath a waterfall, enduring no matter how cold the water was and stepped over burning charcoal with his bare feet. He now possessed the pride and confidence of conquering many challenges like that. He managed to gaze at his true self, and overcame his weaknesses… However—

“Ohh? But, is that really the case? You still have worldly desires left, don’t you~?”

“What…are you talking about?”

“I mean, because I’m riding on you like this, you’re getting all energetic, right?”

“…………!”

Mizuki looked down at her own butt, and snickered.

“That’s just a physiological phenomenon! It’s not related at all to my own intention and philosophy!” Mikado tried to argue.

“I wonder about that~? So it’ll be perfectly fine no matter what I do, right?”

Mizuki put her hands on Mikado’s thighs, and started rubbing her petite behind around while still sitting on Mikado like that, stimulating all five of Mikado’s senses..

“Stop…”

“Come on, come on~ You’re being teased by a middle school girl three years younger than you~ Ahaha, I really like the perverted Mikado-kun, you know?”

“I already…threw away all my worldly desires…”

Mikado forcefully pulled away his consciousness from Mizuki’s body temperature and soft sensation.

“Fufu…Mikado-kun…Let’s play some more~”

Mizuki put her lips just close enough to Mikado’s ears to not touch them, as she softly whispered.

“Finally…escaped…”

Having finished his practice at the main hall, Mikado quickly dashed away from Mizuki, making his way to the baths, letting out an overblown sigh. The entire time up until the main temple building closed, Mizuki continued to torture Mikado as she sat on his lap. Of course, she had no ill-will in this at all. Because she was innocent and cute about it, Mikado couldn’t exactly get angry at her, but that doesn’t mean that she wasn’t greatly destroying any sort of hard work that Mikado put into ridding himself of worldly desires. Having just started this training for about a week, it came as no surprise that Mikado would be faltering at this.

However, before he worried about that, his thoughts drifted towards Kisa. About why she and the others suddenly appeared at this temple. And, if their goal really was to complete this place’s training. First and foremost, he wondered if Kisa actually possessed the mindset to go that far, the girl being even more self-conceited than Oda Nobunaga, who would most likely hesitate even less than him¹. The more Mikado thought about it, the more he judged the restoration of her good soul as the utmost priority.

Mikado sunk into the hot water till it reached his shoulders, he felt his own exhaustion start to heal. For tonight, it was reserved just for Mikado, but depending on the season, other people in training would also use this bath, and the temple turns into a sort of bathing place.

“Fuuu…I’d like to visit this place again one day, unrelated to my training…”

As Mikado was resting his body, he suddenly heard the door behind him opening.

Following that were footsteps, as a person entered the bathing place. Wondering who it was, Mikado turned around to identify the sudden visitor.

“What are you doing?! This is the man’s bath, you know?!”

Standing there was the immodestly clothed Rinka. Normally she would be wearing clothes that had no skin showing whatsoever, but now her beautiful skin was on display everywhere. Her long and slender legs with her willowy waist gave her the looks of a goddess. She did have a bath towel wrapped around her tender body, but that was barely an excuse for a cover, as she couldn’t hide her well-endowed chest in the slightest. In short, her appearance was basically naked but not quite, making it feel even more erotic than if she was butt-naked. Reflexively, Mikado gulped audibly.

“I-I have come to wash Mikado-sama’s back. You must be tired after all that training, aren’t you?”

Holding a smaller towel in her hand, Rinka confessed her intentions, as her face burned up. Presumably she was nervous, since her voice was trembling. Her thighs were fidgeting against each other, a truly adorable gesture, but Mikado had no time to enjoy that as her towel was about to fall off.

“No…I’m perfectly fine. Just washing my own body won’t tire me out that much.”

Though Mikado’s denial also grew a bit shakier, he had to get her to leave as quickly as possible. That was just how lively and seductive her body was, as he got close to just staring at her without any restraint.

“Don’t hold back like that. I am Mikado-sama’s fiance, so of course I would try my utmost to make your life easier as much as I can.”

“I am not holding back. You should just treasure yourself a bit more.” Mikado forcefully averted his gaze from the approaching Rinka.

As long as he didn’t see too much of her now, he would still be able to escape this without receiving too much damage. However, Rinka lowered the ends of her eyebrows, as if she didn’t like that response.

“It’s because I’m actually treasuring myself that I came here right now. Are you properly aware of the determination that I possess, Mikado-sama?”

“I do…but…”

At that moment, Mikado heard sounds coming from the changing area before the bath. Even Rinka turned around in shock at that, the two of them grew warier.

“Young master of the Kitamikado Family, how is the water~? If there is something missing or not to your liking, please feel free to tell me!”

Calling out to Mikado with a thick voice was the old man tasked with the tending and service of the bath.

“Y-Yeah, everything is perfect. You don’t have to worry about it.”

“Is that so? Then, I will be finishing my floor cleaning over here, but do feel free to call out to me at any time.”

“Ehh…” A voice leaked out from Rinka, clearly conflicted.

Mikado quickly jumped up to close off her mouth. Even if she was his fiance, being together in a bath like this, completely naked as they were, it would prove troublesome to clear up. Though it would most likely be very welcomed by Mikado’s parents. Incidentally, because he suddenly jumped up from the water, his lower half, previously hidden by the water, was now fully revealed. Rinka’s gaze was pulled towards it, her eyes turned into small dots.

“Ah…” Mikado reacted too late.

“T-This is…Mikado-sama’s…”

The shock must have been too great for the pure Rinka, as she immediately collapsed on the floor.

“Careful!”

Mikado went to quickly grab Rinka’s body. As a result, he could feel her soft, naked body pressing against his. Her tender skin, as well as her two bulges were a two-hit attack on Mikado’s brain.

“Ugh…!”

Mikado quickly tried to turn his consciousness towards the pure and proper, but he didn’t make it in time. His body temperature rose up exponentially as he equally lost his balance, collapsing on the floor. A big splash of water rose up into the air. Mikado fell on his back, completely defenseless since he was covering for Rinka. Through the chest that was pressing down on him, he could perfectly feel her heartbeat. Droplets of water came falling down from her slim chin, onto Mikado’s lips.

“Mikado…sama…” Rinka muttered, seemingly still a bit intoxicated from the previous sight.

Every light disappeared from her eyes, as she just gazed down at Mikado.

“You’re not hurt anywhere? You okay?” Mikado showed worry and concern, to which Rinka shook her head.

“I am most definitely not okay! In…in this situation…how could I…?”

“Eh…?” Mikado grew concerned about her reaction.

“I can’t…hold back anymore…”

After she barely forced out those words, Rinka opened her lips. Appearing from that opening was her red tongue, which she used to lick down Mikado’s cheek.

“Hey…Rinka…?”

“Haa…Mikado-sama’s cheek…So delicious…I could lick this for hours…”

“Rinka?! Are you really okay?!”

“Haa…Haaa…Licking my husband…” moaned Rinka, as she ran her tongue over Mikado’s face.

“Respond to me! You’re really scaring me with that, so please respond! I don’t remember my fiance, called Shizukawa Rinka, being like this!”

Mikado at least wanted to understand what she was even doing to him at that moment.

“When I was younger, specifically when I got haircuts, I would always receive some candy as a reward…however…Mikado’s cheek is at least 100 times more delicious!”

“I don’t care about an old story like that! And I’m not candy either!”

“Haa…Mikado-sama…I will lick every corner of your body…”

Rinka wrapped her soft arms around Mikado’s neck, as she softly whispered.

Mikado found himself unable to sleep well. Whether it was because of the sudden appearance and attacks from the girls, or because his body was tired from all the training these past few days, Mikado did not know. He was only sure of the very fact that his sleep was not very deep. Inside a tatami-floored room provided by the priest, Mikado opened his eyes. His limbs were stiff, and he found trouble in breathing freely. His eyelids felt as heavy as lead, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t open them. Since he felt the hardness of the futon, he realized that it wasn’t his own room at home. However, the pillow below his head had a sensation he had never experienced before. Although the surface felt soft and spongy, it also had a certain sense of solidity deeper down.

“Fu…Fuu…Fuu…Fuuu~”

Close to him, he could hear rough breathing akin to a wild beast. A soft scent ran up his nasal cavity.

—W-What…is this thing?

Mikado tried his best to push his body up, but it felt like his body was bound down by strips of metal.

—Is this..sleep paralysis?

Mikado could feel a cold sweat run down his cheek. Though he had experienced these feelings several times before, this was the first time it had felt so real. Both fear and frustration started to well up inside his body. However, even after a bit of time had passed, this sensation did not lighten in the slightest, so Mikado could only forcefully push open his eyelids.

“…Oh my. You’re awake.”

Eyes emitting pure impurity started down at Mikado from a close distance.

“…………!!”

His voice was about to leak out, but ‘it’ just pressed down on his mouth with the palm of a hand. It was the soft, smooth sensation of skin. Since his nose was left untouched, he could still breathe perfectly fine.

“Shhhh, keep it down, or you’ll wake up the others.”

It was a slightly panicky voice, a one that Mikado was very familiar with.

—Eh…?

Getting a closer look, it was neither a youkai nor a demon gazing down at him, but Kisa. However, there was even greater malice leaking out of her than from even the demon lord. Great killing intent, as well as the pure desire to eat one’s soul washed at Mikado’s body, sending a shiver down his spine, still, her face itself was as beautiful as ever. Right now, she was wearing a very suggestive and lascivious babydoll. Past the very thin and almost see-through clothing, he could spot her snow white skin.

Apparently, Mikado’s head was currently resting on Kisa’s thighs. Experiencing the so-called lap pillow that he had never felt before, his heart quickly accelerated past its normal speed.

“What…are you doing…?” A meek, husky voice came from Mikado.

His consciousness felt heavy, as if he was given some sleep medicine during dinner, and the tips of his fingers were numb.

“Now…I wonder…?” Kisa just showed a charming smile, as she took out some sort of metallic stick from the pillow.

It shone quite sharply in the moonless night. Identifying it as a weapon, Mikado tried to pull his head away in fear.

—I’ll be done in!

Mikado prepared himself for death. Whilst not even knowing why he would be killed right there, he was left unable to resist nonetheless. However, no matter how long he eventually waited, no blood spilt from his head, and instead…

“Coochy-coo…”

“Ugh…?!”

Kisa just pushed one end of that stick into Mikado’s earlobe, rubbing it against the interior. Everything, extremely carefully.

“If you’re going to kill me…just get it over with…!”

“I won’t kill you! Even if I killed every single person in this world, you’d be the only one I would leave alive!”

“A living hell?! Then, what are you doing here?! What’s your goal?!”

Kisa gave a faint snicker.

“I think this was called…Ear cleaning?”

“Ear…cleaning…?”

Now that she mentioned it, Mikado finally realized. Though he was a bit perplexed at Kisa being the one doing it, with this tool and her movements, there was no mistaking it.

“But…why would you enter someone else’s room to clean their ears…?”

No matter how much he turned and twisted the facts, that single truth didn’t make any sense. Murdering him in cold blood in absolute darkness, that would make sense. Well, he still wouldn’t quite grasp the reason behind it, but it was far more logical than Kisa cleaning his ears for no reason like this.

Isn’t that an action that can only begin once both people have agreed to it? At the very least, it isn’t something that should happen out of the blue like this.

“You should be able to understand it as well, Mikado… Ear cleaning like this is pretty much the same as an act of reproduction.”

“I don’t understand it, and I don’t want to either.”

“Well think about it this way. The ear’s peripheral nerves are surprisingly developed, and all your body’s acupuncture points are focused there. If you stimulate such a sensitive mucous membrane, you will fall into pleasure… It’s exactly like an act of reproduction!”

“Is…that so?!”

Mikado received a huge shock. That would mean that he was basically masturbating while cleaning his own ears.

“Exactly! Currently, you are doing indecent things with a woman that isn’t even your wife. And, once you have experienced this pleasure, you will have to listen to every single word I speak!”

“Shit…! As if I’d let you have it your way!”

Mikado tried to escape from Kisa’s soft thighs, but his body wouldn’t move. Even though he should have awakened already, it felt like he was still suffering from sleep paralysis. In reality, he was actually being restricted by visible metal strings running around his entire body.

“This is…?!”

“So that you can’t resist me, I prepared something fitting, nothing more. How about you just give in now? After this, you will become my victim of love for the rest of your life…and then, you will return to the world of desires…”

Laughing in anticipation, Kisa shoved the stick into Mikado’s sensitive hole. From then on, she softly, oh so softly moved it along the interior, to guarantee utmost pleasure.

“Ugh…Ah…”

The pleasure originating from his ears ran through this brain like an electrical current, forcing a moan out of Mikado’s mouth.

“Ara, what a cute voice. Can you really call yourself the successor of the Kitamikado Family, faltering because of something like ear cleaning?”

“Sto…p…”

“Fufu, there’s absolutely no strength in your words, I see. Just go ahead and give in to me, and become my slave for all eternity…I will let you drown in pleasure for all eternity…”

Lovingly caressing Mikado’s earlobes, she pushed the cotton swab deeper into his ear. Near his eardrum, she continued to carefully move around. Pleasant goose bumps ran down Mikado’s back. With her devilish smile, her current attire overflowing with her odor, as well as the soft feeling at the back of his head, Mikado could feel himself approaching his limits.

“You better…remember this…” Mikado forced the words out of his parched throat.

“Of course I will. The face of Mikado, melting away because of pleasure. But, there might just be the chance that you won’t even be able to remember it…” Kisa’s soft voice ran out in the scorching hot and passion-filled room.

Mikado was busy chanting sutra. He pushed both his hands together as forcefully as he could and continued chanting sutra in the open main hall of the temple.

“Disperse, my worldly desires! Disperse, my worldly desires! Disperse, my worldly desires!”

He forced out all the desire and lust his young body could hold. He had to forget about the sensation of Mizuki’s butt at all costs, he had to forget the silhouette of Rinka’s well-endowed chest at all costs, he had to ban any desire of wanting to feel Kisa’s ear cleaning ever again.

Though he didn’t know what the girls were thinking by assaulting him like this, he could not show any reaction to it. He had to become one with Eunatai.

“Fuu…finally back to my senses…”

As a result of the sutra chanting, Mikado felt the burning hot desire in this body simmer down to a comfortable degree. Any unholy lust and desire was slowly drifting out of his body as his soul closed in on reaching zen.

“…Fufu, what futile resistance.”

He suddenly heard Kisa’s temptatious voice behind his back, a hot breath reached his ears. That alone made his hip grow weak, as he had to put one hand on the ground to support his body. His desires were all rekindled, making all his training for naught.

“Y-You…”

“What’s wrong? Did I bring you down just by breathing on you?”

As if she wanted to tease him, Kisa pushed her face closer to take a peek at his. Since it was noon time, she was properly wearing a blouse and skirt, but the memories of her attire the previous night were flashing back into Mikado’s head.

“You’re staring like crazy. Was I really that good last night?”

“Of course…not…”

“Full of lies. You keep remembering the feeling of my ear cleaning, forcing you to react this way. Sutra won’t help you.” Yet again, she brought her lips closer to Mikado’s ear.

“As if I’d let you!” Mikado jumped away.

“Oh…are you running now? As long as you stay in this temple, you won’t be able to run away…”

With two ear picks in her hands now, she approached Mikado who was trying to gain distance, walking through the main hall. If he were to experience a double ear cleaning, he didn’t have the confidence that he’d be able to stay strong through that.

“Now…prepare yourself!”

Like a leopardess, Kisa jumped at him, forcing Mikado to pick up the speed as he dashed out of the hall.

Kokage snuck from thicket to thicket, looking for a chance to press the shutter of her camera. Since she had been crouching on the dirty ground for a while now, the sleeves of her uniform had gotten dirtied greatly, but she paid no mind to that. Her skirt was equally flipped up in disarray, but she didn’t try to fix that either

—I have to get the biggest scoop ever!

Kokage arrived at this mysterious temple around three days ago. Having caught wind of information regarding the young followers of the Kitamikado, Nanjou and Shizukawa Family having entered this temple, her sense of smell for a scoop went off like never before. Recently, she kept spotting the three families’ successors together, so there must be something going on behind the scenes. And, finding the biggest scoops in history was engraved in the Kawaraya Family bloodline.

—Hm? There’s some noise coming from over there…

Picking up a familiar voice resounding from the main hall, Kokage slipped through the shadows towards that location. Using the lens to get a better view of the situation, she spotted three girls having an intense verbal battle.

“Nanjou-san! It should have been my turn, right?! We were talking about splitting up turns in order to fix Mikado-sama’s behaviour, weren’t we!?”

“Right right! It should have been my try, so why are you just going and blowing into his ears like that!? Unfair!”

At the guardrail of the main temple building, Rinka and Mizuki were aggressively closing in on Kisa. However, Kisa herself showed a calm expression like always.

“Our goal is to bring back Mikado to the world of desires, and to take him away from this temple. It shouldn’t matter how we do that, or who does it. It’s far more efficient to use the most effective method against him so that he won’t be able to run away, right?”

“T-That might be the case, but still…I am not satisfied by this!”

At first glance, Rinka might have seemed a calm and dignified young lady, but today, she was oddly agitated.

“So that means we can just do whatever we want as well? You’re fine with that, right, Onee-chan? All we have to do is get him out of this place. That’s what you said.”

“W-Well, yeah.” Kisa nodded, albeit rather hesitantly.

“Then I will just do as I please as well. Without hindering the other person’s advances. All so that we can get Mikado-sama out of here.”

A bright smile appeared on Mitsuki’s face.

“Right! Everything will be forgiven as long as we cure Mikado-kun!”

“Y-Yes, it’s all to cure Mikado…It’s not related to affection at all…” Kisa muttered.

—What is going to happen to Mikado?! Will he turn into a merman?!

Kokage yet again felt fear after picking up this conversation. Fear for her classmates who she had believed to be of the good kind. As a member of the information broker family, she could not ignore this situation. In order to not miss this decisive moment, she decided to follow Mikado everywhere with her lens.

“If it comes down to it, I have to save Mikado myself!”

With these feelings, Kokage dove deeper into the thicket again.

The soothing chirp of the birds and the bright morning sun entered through the opened paper sliding door. The tatami mat gave off a vivid herbal scent. On top of that, a sweet scent tickled his nose together with one akin to fresh flowers. Thinking that his futon was softer than usual, Mikado slowly opened his eyes. Mizuki was using his arm as a pillow, sound asleep.

“?!”

Mikado’s body stiffened up in response.

“Munya….Hehe…Mikado-kun, you pervert…” Mizuki was sleep-talking cutely.

There was even a bit of drool running down her soft cheek. Mikado guessed she might have just been wearing a shirt, because the feeling on his legs were oddly natural. At the same time, he felt two big bulges pressed against his back. The black hair widening behind him looked oddly familiar.

“Sniff… Mmm…This is…Mikado-sama’s morning scent…Haa…wonderful…” groaned Rinka, his fiance, as she sniffed him.

She might be thinking that Mikado hadn’t woken up yet, or maybe she even lost herself in the act.

—No wonder my futon felt so soft this morning!

Mikado’s consciousness shot wide awake immediately. Being surrounded by two girls, Mizuki from the front, Rinka from the back, he couldn’t move his body. If someone saw them like this, they would most likely get the wrong idea about it, no doubt. And of course, right when Mikado arrived at that conclusion, Kisa stepped inside the room.

“Mikado, are you awake? I was thinking of doing a morning wa—” Mid-sentence, Kisa’s eyes opened wide.

Being wrapped between her little sister and his fiance, with a sweet scent all over, Mikado’s brain was a tick behind.

“…Sorry for disturbing.” Kisa tightly pushed her lips together, and stormed out of the room.

“Wait! Kisa! Hold on!” Mikado got up from the futon lightning-fast.

“Fuah?! What’s going on?! An earthquake?!”

“Mikado-sama?! You were awake?!”

Mizuki showed pure surprise and uncertainty at what was happening, while Rinka panicked, worrying that Mikado might have heard everything just now. Nevertheless, he just left those two behind in the room, put on his zôri² and chased after Kisa.

He had never seen such a pained expression on Kisa’s face before. He had never heard Kisa apologize with such words. He didn’t know why she would receive such a huge shock from this. Her heart was as difficult to grasp as a cloud soaring through the open sky, and he could never truly manage to gain her trust. However, even if that was the case, he couldn’t leave her alone. Just by merely reminiscing about her meek and fragile expression just now, he felt a sharp pain run through his chest. Even more than all those times when she tried to seduce him, he felt an intense urge to tightly embrace her. Mikado ran, kept running, and ran even further.

Dashing through the gravel of the temple grounds, slipping past the sacred tree, Mikado didn’t stop once. When Mikado finally caught up to Kisa, she had just set foot into a small copse, far away from the main temple. She must have been in such a rush that she didn’t put on her zôri, since her feet were covered with dirt.

“…Here, put these on.”

When Mikado took off his own sandals to hand them over to Kisa, she just kept quiet as she followed his instructions. An awkward silence followed, with Kisa not uttering a word as she just gazed down at the ground. Unable to bear that atmosphere anymore, Mikado struck first.

“I was just as surprised as you, you know? I didn’t think that I’d wake up with the two of them next to me like that.”

“That’s a lie. Being surrounded by cute girls like that, you must have been enjoying yourself. You must have welcomed them. Of course, a man would always prefer being surrounded by beautiful women, it’s in their nature, their instincts.” A cowering voice. Kisa wouldn’t even try to look at Mikado.

“No, I…”

“This game was supposed to have only been between Mikado and I!” Kisa’s shoulders jolted up, as she formed fists with her tender hands.

“Eh……”

“Why did those two strong girls have to enter as well?! They’re clearly better, and more lucrative than me! Even though…even though I was the first one! I have to be the one to capture you! So why?! Tell me, why?!” Kisa screamed at the top of her lungs.

“Kisa………”

Mikado didn’t know how to respond to that. The normally arrogant, and overconfident Kisa suddenly brought out her honest feelings, not even trying to hide it under a lie.

“I’m sure that Shizukawa-san or Mizuki are a better catch than me. You must have already done it with them, right? You’re already a father of two, right?!”

“Aren’t you jumping the gun here?!”

“I’m not! Rather, I missed the gun! Mikado is just the worst kind of man! Unlike me, you’re liked by everyone, kind to everyone, someone that goes to save as many people as he can! You’re human trash! You idiot!” Insulting Mikado in the weirdest way possible, she grabbed hold of Mikado’s chest.

Big, round tears were building up in her eyes as she glared up at him. Just by that, Mikado felt a thorn stab right through his heart. Whatever the reason might be, he couldn’t forgive himself for having made the girl in front of him cry. He wanted to wipe away her tears.

“Please…don’t cry.”

“I-I’m not crying! As if the successor of the Nanjou Family would cry from something like this! I would never…cry…”

Kisa tried her hardest to hide her tears with her hands, but they just kept flowing. Her delicate lips were shaking. In this place, surrounded by trees on all sides, this adorable devil in his arms seemed so small and fragile that she could break into a thousand pieces with just a faint gust of wind. Mikado unconsciously felt his arms reach out towards her in an attempt to embrace her, but he stopped himself halfway and muttered a response.

“I…know about your good qualities.”

“Eh…?” Kisa’s eyes opened wide.

Mikado took a deep breath, steadying and preparing his voice. Saying it again would be embarrassing and he was afraid that she’d be able to grasp his weakness through this, but he had to put those feelings into words.

“You…guided me to a new world. Guided I, who only knew the rules of the Kitamikado Family, and brought me to a new, wider world. Ever since I met you at that party back then… you were like an eagle, freely able to soar through the open skies, and I followed you with my eyes.”

“I-Is that really a good idea… calling a girl an eagle…?”

Though Kisa pouted, showing discontent at Mikado’s description, she did not avert her gaze from him. Her eyes, looking as if the whole void of the universe was resting behind them, wanted to hear more words from Mikado, she wanted to hear his feelings. Drowning in that exact feeling emitted from her, he calmly continued.

“Looking at Kisa is fun. You laugh, you panic, you act all proud and you show me fighting will. Just by watching your ever changing expression, I find joy in living myself. Wondering about what kind of trap or plan you’ll try next, how you’ll fail at that, I always find myself looking forward to it.”

“I’m not failing at it! Did I ever really fail?!” Kisa complained, her face burning up like a tomato.

“Look, that face. Your angry face…is just as cute.”

“Uuuu…Ah…C-Cute…?”

Her reddened facial expression turned from anger to embarrassment. That gesture of hers, looking up at Mikado in hesitation, sent a shiver of happiness and joy through his body. He softly grabbed the Kisa’s wrist. She showed no signs of pushing him away, instead just gulping heavily.

“I have to make you mine at all costs. Your body, your heart, your soul, everything. The only person I want to win against in this battle, and make my slave, is you… Kisa. You, and only you.”

Yet again, tears started to build up in her eyes. Kisa jumped onto Mikado, who was unable to stand his ground and fell backwards onto a bed of leaves. As Mikado layed on the ground, Kisa rubbed her head against his chest. At the same time, she wrapped her arms around him, softly whispering.

“Idiot… you know that I will be the winner of this game. You’ll be the one turning into a slave.”

“Nobody can tell what the future will bring,” Mikado laughed.

“No, I can. I will make you mine at all costs. Because I decided on that. I will not hand you over to any other woman.”

Her charming eyes gazing directly at him, the soft and pleasant feeling of her body, the palms of her hands wrapped around his neck and the sweet scent reaching up from her body, everything made Mikado’s heart beat faster.

“Hey… Mikado. It’s okay…right?”

“What…do you mean…?” Mikado responded, his throat dry.

Kisa’s damp eyes turned towards Mikado’s lips.

“It’s fine… this isn’t an expression of my affection, but just a way to bring you back to the normal world…a way to cure you…”

If it’s unrelated to the game, then it should be fine, Mikado found himself thinking. No, he wanted Kisa’s everything, so even if his brain told him to, he wouldn’t be able to move a muscle now.

“Kisa…”

“Mikado…The thing is, I actually…”

The second their lips were about to overlap.

“Ahhh, I can see Onee-chan and Mikado-kun~!”

“W-What are you doing?! What kind of situation is this?!”

“I’ve encountered the decisive moment!”

Both Mizuki and Rinka spotted the two of them at the same time. Even Kokage appeared, sliding in, where she pressed the shutter at the best possible timing. Following that was a dazzling flash. Immediately after, Kisa jolted up from Mikado, who equally tried to put distance between the two.

“You were about to kiss there, right?! You were about to do perverted things, right?!”

“We didn’t! We’d be total perverts if he did it outside in the woods like this!”

“Then where else were you about to?!”

“Nowhere, and nothing at all! That just now was an accident. There was this huge earthquake just now, so I fell over, all natural!”

“I didn’t feel a single bit of an earthquake! A loose excuse, nothing more!”

“Confess! We already have enough proof!”

Both Rinka and Mizuki were aggressively closing in on them as Kisa turned beet red. Because of so many things happening at once, she must be having trouble keeping calm.

—As troublesome as always.

Mikado let out a sigh. He broke in between the three girls and took Kisa’s hand by force.

“Eh, wai—Mikado?!” Naturally, Kisa was perplexed.

“Just follow me! This is the morning walk you mentioned before!”

Pulling her by the hand, he started a full-speed dash. As they went deeper into the thicket, Kisa returned the grip on Mikado’s hand.

*

They arrived in the deepest recesses of the forest. The seven year old Kitamikado and Nanjou Kisa were puzzled. After running away from the ruckus at the party, they just kept moving forward without taking notice of their surroundings, and had now gotten completely lost.

“How troublesome… because you blew up the cake, we ended up like this.”

“You were the one who did it, right?! I kept warning you not to, and you even wrangled me into this! It’s all you!”

“But…I thought it would be fun.”

Kisa was puffing out her cheeks, but her slender knees were shaking. She must be putting on a confident act, but was actually quite scared right now. Their surroundings had gotten completely dark, and the cold of the night was slowly closing in on them. From between the trees in the distance, they could hear the sounds of unfamiliar animals. Even if it was someone from the Nanjou Family, ruling over darkness itself, a seven year old girl like her would be scared either way.

“Come here. It’s probably over there.”

“Eh, you know the way?”

As Mikado started walking, Kisa quickly lined up next to him.

“From the position of the stars, I can barely figure out our position. At the very least, we should come out at a bus stop.”

“Ohhh…you’re actually pretty reliable.”

“That’s to be expected from the kid of the Kitamikado Family.”

“Hmmm…”

Being stared at by Kisa, Mikado felt weirdly bashful. The rivalry between the Kitamikado Family and the Nanjou Family had been going on for a long, long time. And now, their freshest newcomers were suddenly in such a bizarre situation. Just walking along while keeping quiet would have been too awkward, so they exchanged some words.

“…Say, you’re always alone at parties. Do you not have any friends?” Mikado asked.

“Same to you, you’re always alone as well,” Kisa retorted.

“I’m not alone by any means. I’m just busy greeting everyone, that’s all.”

“So you’re all alone. That just means that you don’t have any friends either. You always look so lonely at the parties after all.”

“……”

Her hitting the bullseye made Mikado swallow his words. He was planning on returning that remark with his usual flawless smile, but he was worried that she would be able to see right through that.

“The Kitamikado Family stands at the top of Japan, carrying forth its light. There is nobody who wants to approach us purely seeking friendship.”

“Same here. Since I’m from the Nanjou Family, who rule Japan’s darkness, nobody dares get closer to me, they’re all scared.” Kisa’s body shivered, unable to resist the cold anymore.

In her eyes was a shadow different from the darkness she was talking about. Kisa put one hand on her waist, as she pouted.

“Also, everyone’s just way too dumb! No matter what I say, nobody gets it! They’re all just rotten in their heads!”

Mikado nodded along.

“Really gets you fed up with the guys that are just in it for the profit. They’re just giving me the creeps with their fake happy attitude!”

“Just because I have good grades, everyone gets jealous of me! They just have to work harder themselves if they’re not satisfied!”

“They all say how nice it must be to grow up in a family like mine, but it’s not all that great. I have to study every day, there’s training even between that.”

Both of them heated up as they kept on rambling.

“…Nobody understands us, our feelings.”

“Do you want them to?”

“Not… really. What about you, aren’t you lonely?”

Kisa asked about the Mikado’s innermost emotion, to which he averted his gaze.

“I’m not… lonely at all.”

“Neither… am I.”

They just muttered, while holding the other’s hand. Like this, they wandered through the deep forest.

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1 Refers to the Siege of Mount Hiei in 1571, where Nobunaga burned down around 300 temples and other buildings in the vicinity

2 traditional Japanese thronged sandals