Oshimizu Nako, who had been on Hachiman's right side, was now on his left, scrubbing soap bubbles onto his arm and thigh. Soon it would be her turn to kneel in front of him. She finally mustered her courage and whispered a reminder.
Though everything she'd said about him being good-looking was completely true, if she had to face that "terror" directly, she felt like she might actually pass out.
"Then let's go soak in the hot spring. Nako, go to the kitchen and bring some things over."
Seeing Oshimizu Nako's eyes uncontrollably drifting toward him, Hachiman smiled, didn't tease the innocent girl further, and stood up to look at Hayasaka Ai, Yukino Chitose, and Matsumae Ohana.
He remembered that Oshimizu Nako was good at swimming. In the future, he'd be able to fully appreciate her agile, graceful form in the hot spring. No need to tease her too much now, there would be plenty of chances later.
Like Kaede's good friend Tsubaki, who still hadn't fully adapted to her own rise in status, still saw herself as Kaede's best friend, and every time he flirted with her in front of Kaede, she'd whisper and beg him not to embarrass her in front of Kaede.
But the truth was, the one who often pushed Tsubaki forward as a shield was Kaede herself.
"O-okay! Master! I'll go right away!"
Oshimizu Nako felt a huge weight lift off her shoulders. She didn't even bother drying herself off and quickly walked out of the bathroom.
Once in the bedroom, she picked up her clothes from the floor and put them on.
She had always been skilled at dressing, and this time she was faster than ever.
By the time Hachiman and the others came out of the bathroom, she was already fully dressed and running toward the kitchen.
She really needed to calm down, or else if their master "ate" her later, she might not even realize whether she should refuse...
Hachiman didn't pay much attention to Oshimizu Nako's flustered escape. He wrapped his arms around Yukino Chitose and Matsumae Ohana and walked to the small open-air hot spring in the courtyard, slowly easing in.
Although the small open-air hot spring in the courtyard wasn't large, as an exclusive one made for him, it could still hold a fair number of people.
Looking up at the starry sky beyond the barrier while holding soft, fragrant, delicate girls in his arms...
"Master..."
Matsumae Ohana, feeling Hachiman pull her closer and closer, pursed her lips.
So much for feelings growing over time, how was it already moving to the next step so quickly?
Even though that's what she was thinking, she didn't have much resistance.
For a moment, she did feel like running away like Oshimizu Nako, but where could she run?
Her early-departed father, her unreliable mother, her stern grandmother, the debtors who couldn't find her mother and might come looking for her.
The only place that could give her a warm, reliable refuge without danger was this place she'd just joined, Kissuiso, or rather... this Service Inn?
Even though the true owner of the Service Inn, Hachiman, was quite fickle, and the heiresses staying at the inn had special relationships with him that she couldn't quite describe.
Yet it was precisely this fickle, unfaithful man who cared about her the most, treated her the best... made her feel the most at ease.
"Master, please cherish Chitose..."
On the other side, Yukino Chitose had nothing more to say. She just silently held Hachiman tighter, pressed herself against him, and whispered softly against his ear.
Before Matsumae Ohana had opened her heart, Chitose had already staked everything she had on Hachiman.
She didn't desire much, and she didn't dare hope for sweet romance.
All she wanted was for Hachiman... for their master to think of her once in a while, come to the inn to sleep for a night, and let her serve him by his side. That was enough.
"You're having a nosebleed again. Looks like I really need to strengthen your constitution, Ohana."
Hachiman kissed Yukino Chitose and Matsumae Ohana on the cheek, then cupped Ohana's face in both hands, looked at her red-rimmed eyes, and gave a helpless smile. He wiped the glistening tears from the corner of her eyes with his thumb, then leaned down and gently bit her soft lips.
He just didn't like being proactive, or rather, he was too lazy to be. Since Matsumae Ohana and Yukino Chitose had been brought before him and he'd seen them, he wasn't going to let them leave.
Rather than letting them go off to find their own happiness, he'd give them happiness himself.
"Mmm..."
Matsumae Ohana's eyes went wide. But the next moment, she tightly wrapped her arms around Hachiman's neck.
Yukino Chitose let go of Hachiman at that point and quietly watched the two of them from the side, her eyes filled with both envy and relief.
She had already become a magical girl first. Now it was Ohana's turn.
Their master definitely couldn't only have them, but she and Ohana could become good sisters.
And there was Oshimizu Nako, who had just run away, she and Ohana could think of ways to have Nako serve their master properly too.
Their master did have many, many girls around him, and even heiresses that she couldn't even dream of reaching were numerous. But as long as they knew their place, she believed their master wouldn't tire of them.
Take this blonde maid beside them, just a maid, yet she could still wait on them at a time like this. Even those heiresses couldn't manage that, could they?
Glub! Glub! Glub!
The blonde maid Hayasaka Ai, who had somehow been turned into a role model, didn't want to say anything. Noticing Hachiman beginning to awaken Matsumae Ohana's magical girl talent, she silently blew bubbles underwater.
Being a maid was actually quite tough, especially when dealing with a troublesome master.
Still, compared to her previous life with Kaguya-sama, she found the maid work now much easier.
Supposedly a personal attendant maid who ate, drank, and played alongside him and did everything, in reality she only had to handle small tasks. Most things could simply be delegated.
In theory, as his personal maid, she was supposed to do that with him, and when their master was tired, she was even supposed to help push things along. But actually, there were tons of people eager to take her place in that regard.
If she wanted to take bribes, she could probably rake in money while standing, and the heiresses she sent to their master's bed would even thank her.
The only slight issue... was probably that their master was too "selfless", liking the new without tiring of the old, and trying to meet everyone's expectations.
Even a maid, even a waitress, would be doted on.
"Hm?"
After some time, sensing someone entering the room, Hayasaka Ai lifted her head from beneath the hot spring's surface.
Wiping the water from her face, she narrowed her eyes slightly at the tall, voluptuous figure standing on the wooden veranda edge, arms crossed beneath her chest, making it stand out prominently.
This was Service Inn time. The inn's poster girls and waitresses hadn't finished serving their master yet.
Who was this clueless person barging in at a time like this?
Who was she?
Hayasaka Ai had sensed the appearance of an unfamiliar woman, so naturally Hachiman had as well.
But the other party bore no hostility, she was even quite "weak."
Any woman who could appear in this Service Inn was either a formal member of the Service Club or a preparatory member, perhaps even a surprise that some girls had prepared to please him.
So Hachiman didn't rush to let go of Matsumae Ohana. He just slightly accelerated the pace of completing the magical girl talent awakening ceremony.
After a while, a dazzling light flared.
Matsumae Ohana, her neck arched back, was now wrapped in an exquisite, beautiful magical girl battle dress. The other party still showed no sign of speaking up.
"Ohana, take a rest first. You can chat with Chitose a bit about what it's like being a magical girl."
Hachiman looked down at Matsumae Ohana, whose cheeks were flushed and rosy, her breath growing stronger, her eyes regaining clarity. He pulled over Yukino Chitose, who had been assisting for a while, and with one hand on each, gently pinched their soft, lovely cheeks, each with a different feel.
Everything that needed to be done had been done. After communicating heart to heart, they both understood his feelings.
He didn't need to do anything more intimate to further bridge the distance.
"Mm... okay..."
Matsumae Ohana lowered her head, too shy to meet Hachiman's eyes, and nodded softly. She relaxed, lying against his chest, whispering quietly with Yukino Chitose, who had a faint smile on her lips.
But feeling the steady replenishment of mana, the blush on her cheeks never faded.
Because she had overheard the magical girl knowledge shared with Yukino Chitose, she knew that in magical girl form, they could convert Hachiman's life force into mana to quickly recover their condition.
So now Matsumae Ohana didn't dare to cancel her transformation. She could only try to chat casually under the watchful eyes of Chitose and Hayasaka Ai while struggling to endure this embarrassing state.
Compared to the responsibility of bearing a new life, wearing a magical girl outfit and lying soaked in the hot spring in Hachiman's arms was nothing.
She wasn't prepared for that at all. Even if she had no expectations of her unreliable mother, that didn't mean she wanted to become a mother like her.
And right now, it wasn't just her, Chitose, and Hayasaka Ai in this courtyard.
On the wooden planks not far from the room.
A mature woman stood there, arms crossed in front of her chest, expressionless, looking down at them from above.
"Aunt Touka?"
"Are Suiren and Aoi here too?"
Hachiman, who hadn't had a free hand, took a sip of the cold drink Hayasaka Ai brought to his lips, then casually turned to look at the veranda edge.
Seeing her posture and face, he finally realized who this woman standing and waiting had been, and looked behind her in surprise.
In Chiba City, he had grown up with the twins Kaede and Hoshizuki Suzu as childhood friends. In the countryside, he had another pair of sisters as childhood friends.
The older sister, Suiren, was older than him; the younger sister, Aoi, was younger. Unlike Kaede and Suzu, who were the same age as him.
Perhaps because of the worsening declining birthrate and the big cities draining away the young working population, the countryside always had fewer boys and more girls, with women making up the majority of those working in the fields.
At least, that was the case in his rural hometown in Chiba. As one of the few boys, he was indeed very close with Suiren and Aoi. However, in terms of time spent together, they couldn't compare to Kaede and Suzu. After growing up, he mostly only went back to the countryside during holidays.
And this woman with the cold expression was the mother of Suiren and Aoi, Asakawa Touka.
Now that Asakawa Touka was here, the sisters Asakawa Suiren and Asakawa Aoi should be here too.
Though Kaede, Suzu, and Tsubaki had mentioned discussing with Auntie Touka the transfer of Suiren and Aoi to Sobu High, at a time like this?
If this was the surprise that Kaede and the others had prepared for him, he had to admit it was indeed a big one.
"I thought you'd have forgotten about me."
Seeing Hachiman instantly call out her name, Asakawa Touka's sharp gaze softened involuntarily. Still, she kept a straight face as she stared at him.
"But you're calling me Aunt Touka?"
"Teacher Touka, where are Suiren and Aoi? If they came with you, let them come out. I haven't seen them in a long time either."
Hachiman sighed helplessly and immediately corrected himself.
Asakawa Touka was a teacher in the countryside; she had even been his teacher before he went to Chiba for school as a child.
Though she looked stern and expressionless, and her tone was often cool, she genuinely cared for her students and was very responsible.
This was also the difficulty in having Suiren and Aoi transfer to Sobu High. Asakawa Touka herself was staying in the countryside. It was unlikely he could have Suiren and Aoi leave without her.
But having Asakawa Touka leave the countryside with them meant she would have to abandon her students there. Because the rural areas had few students, there were also few teachers.
To really get the Asakawa family to Sobu High, Suiren and Aoi would probably need to bring some classmates and friends with them to Sobu High, so Touka could also join the faculty with peace of mind.
Kaede was in favor of recruiting more ordinary students to balance the increasing number of heiresses at Sobu High, and fully supported this arrangement.
Hachiman also thought it was a good idea. In his memory, the girls in the countryside had the same surprisingly high proportion as those at Sobu High. There were probably quite a few "inner world" and "surface world" female leads too.
But since he hadn't been back to the countryside, he couldn't be sure based solely on his rough memories.
Now it seemed that before negotiations had even begun, things were already falling apart. After he'd been so intimate with several girls right in front of Asakawa Touka, would she still feel comfortable entrusting her two daughters to him?
"Haven't seen them in a long time? Do you look like someone who misses them? I said, can you stop for a moment! Haven't you had enough fun yet?"
Asakawa Touka didn't directly answer about Suiren and Aoi. Seeing Hachiman call her "teacher" while still holding two charming, lovely girls in his arms, she opened her mouth to mock him, but barely got two words out before she couldn't hold back her rising anger.
She, Suiren, and Aoi had waited so long in the countryside. Not only had Hachiman not come, but now that she was standing right in front of him, he was still being intimately playful with these girls.
And yet Suiren and Aoi had been thinking about this heartless Hachiman all this time.
"Teacher Touka, you're getting a bit worked up. I think you should go calm down."
Seeing the angry Asakawa Touka, Hachiman shook his head and didn't stop what he was doing.
"I'll go find Suiren and Aoi later. If there's something you want to talk to me about, we can discuss it then."
Though he and Suiren and Aoi were close, and he wouldn't hesitate to help Asakawa Touka if she had any trouble, that didn't mean he'd grovel to her.
If he did that, given the Service Club's current membership, he'd have to suck up to countless elders.
Even Hayasaka Ai, who was in charge of serving him personally, didn't know about Asakawa Touka. That meant Touka was almost certainly not a prearranged surprise, but someone who had come on her own.
After all, he didn't mind Touka interrupting, that was already out of consideration for Suiren and Aoi.
If Touka minded, she should leave on her own and come back at a more appropriate time.
"..."
Watching Hachiman lower his head and continue bonding with Matsumae Ohana and Yukino Chitose in his arms, while the blonde maid Hayasaka Ai beside him leaned against the edge of the pool, biting into a sweet, juicy strawberry and leaning in to serve Hachiman, Asakawa Touka's expression grew even colder. Her heaving chest seemed ready to burst with rage.
But then, as if she thought of something, her anger instantly cooled.
Asakawa Touka said nothing more. She just silently raised her hands, undoing the buttons of her shirt while keeping her eyes fixed on Hachiman, who was acting as if no one else was there, and turned to walk into the bathroom.
[T/N: New fanfic chat—"Genshin Impact: Just Another Guy who Transmigrated". Currently, it has a Powerstones Goal for 5 bonus chapters. It ends on Monday, so rain those Powerstones.]
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