'A cat-eared, collar-wearing, flat-chested girl.'
Kaoru stared at her without restraint.
The small flower bud seemed shy and timid, slightly raised yet exuding a delicate warmth and fragrance.
A plum-like center resembled the blush on her face that she desperately tried to conceal. Her snow-white arms hung down, partially blocking his view.
"Quite unique taste. Do you usually play like this?" Sakayanagi Arisu feigned composure.
Had it not been for this situation, the cat ears she now wore would surely have earned Ichinose Honami's approval—they were simply too adorable!
"I didn't ask you to speak," Kaoru stated.
Sakayanagi Arisu closed her mouth, though her eyes still shifted slightly.
She continued to hold her neck high with an air of superiority, as if believing she stood on equal footing with Kaoru.
"Since you're wearing cat ears, you are now a cat. Aside from meowing, you have no other sounds. Understood?" Kaoru said. "If you can't manage that, I'll call Kikyo over. She'd likely be very interested in you."
At these words, Sakayanagi Arisu's expression shifted—whether due to the meowing or the mention of Kushida Kikyo remained unclear.
"Understood?" Kaoru asked.
Sakayanagi Arisu recovered quickly, her eyes glistening as she gave a slight nod.
She neither spoke, avoiding Kaoru's trap, nor meowed to satisfy his twisted whims.
Instead, she looked at Kaoru with a hint of provocative smile, as if challenging him.
"What can you do about it?"
Soon, her smile froze.
"Now, let me hear you meow."
"Meow..."
Sakayanagi Arisu reluctantly forced out a sound, "Meow, meow, meow."
"So cute."
Ichinose Honami couldn't help but murmur softly.
Ignoring the voice from the side, Kaoru made Sakayanagi Arisu meow more seductively, as there was no hint of a kitten-like feeling in her previous attempts.
Taming someone essentially means forcing them to accept your commands.
And now, Kaoru could forcibly impose his will on Sakayanagi Arisu.
She couldn't refuse and had no choice but to endure and comply with his orders.
Some things have always worked through gradual influence.
Kaoru wasn't the least bit impatient.
Without meeting Sakayanagi Arisu's furious gaze, he commanded, "Move your hands away. Everything about a pet should be visible to its owner. There's no need to hide."
Sakayanagi Arisu's face flushed red.
Though she tried to maintain her composure, she still felt a basic sense of shame, which was why she had been subtly blocking Kaoru's line of sight.
By telling her to move her hands away, Kaoru was clearly stripping away another layer of her defenses, leaving her completely exposed to his gaze.
At this moment, the humiliation and shame she had barely suppressed erupted once again.
"Can't do it?"
Kaoru's voice seemed to come from a distant sky.
Sakayanagi Arisu remained silent for a moment before slowly moving her hands away.
However, she hadn't expected Kaoru's voice to grow even colder.
"Spread your legs too."
....
After Sakayanagi Arisu left, Kaoru shifted his gaze to Ichinose Honami, who seemed deeply hesitant.
"Just now... you seemed like a different person. It was really scary."
Ichinose Honami had witnessed the entire process. No one could have felt a stronger sense of dissonance than she did.
"I've always been like this." Kaoru thought of the agency. He had once manipulated a few idols and wondered how they were doing now.
Ichinose Honami stared at him for a long moment before saying, "I can kind of see it. When you threatened me... bullied me before, your eyes were like that—like you could see right through me, but I could never figure you out."
Of course.
His real age wasn't that of a high school student. How could he not see through the thoughts of a few kids?
"You'll understand when you grow up."
Kaoru said casually, "You didn't stop me earlier. Did you think it wasn't forceful enough?"
Ichinose Honami froze for a moment, unsure how to respond.
Perhaps, seeing Sakayanagi Arisu's defiant attitude, she had actively participated, so she didn't know whether it counted as coercion.
"This kind of play is dangerous. Even though there's no Hypnosis App in this world, there are methods with similar effects."
Kaoru said, "Some scammers can manipulate people effortlessly, not because they're smarter than the average person, but because some people are overly confident in their own intelligence, making them easier to deceive."
Why can scams that should be easily exposed still trick people?
Perhaps it's because there are too many overconfident people.
"Arisu thinks she's clever and has confidence in herself. She believes that even with Conditioning, she won't fall, which is why she didn't resist my methods—she wants to retaliate against me in the future."
Kaoru spread his hands, "But the more confident she is, the more I can take advantage of her. In fact, it works even better than a Hypnosis App."
Ichinose Honami looked at him and whispered softly, "So, Kaoru is a very skilled liar?"
"I might have deceived you before."
Kaoru met the girl's gaze calmly. "Do you think someone who gets handsy with you upon first meeting could be a good person?"
Unconsciously, the girls around him seemed to have developed a beautiful misunderstanding, viewing him through a strange boyfriend filter.
Kaoru wanted to tell Ichinose Honami that he didn't possess such a filter.
Therefore, he let Ichinose Honami witness a strange Conditioning.
To the young girl, it was undoubtedly strange Conditioning.
Because Kaoru's relationships with Kushida Kikyo, Horikita Suzune, or Karuizawa Kei weren't like this - they were purely master-servant relationships.
Sakayanagi Arisu had merely been a little slave girl he had used moments ago.
She couldn't even speak normally, only meowing like a cat.
Ichinose Honami had witnessed everything. What kind of emotions must she be feeling now?
Kaoru waited quietly for her.
There were some things he needed to tell her.
However, Ichinose Honami didn't show the expression he had anticipated.
"Actually, I never said Kaoru was a good person?"
The girl tilted her head. "How should I put it? I think Kaoru is a bad person who isn't bad enough, but not purely good either. You play tricks on girls but also protect them - like a hero with two sides."
That's too high of an evaluation, Kaoru averted his gaze.
"Moreover, I never demanded that Kaoru must be a good person. What I like is Kaoru himself, not the concept of a good person."
Ichinose Honami cupped his face. "Hehe, and also, I really like how you get shy when your girlfriend praises you!"
Kaoru once again experienced the maternal warmth radiating from the girl.
This girl is too gentle, no wonder people call her an angel.
"By the way, I need to add something to what you said earlier."
Ichinose Honami put on a serious face. "Although I don't fully understand Sakayanagi-san's feelings, for a girl to be willing to accept your Conditioning means she has already fallen for you."
Kaoru was slightly taken aback.
"How could any girl be willing to let a boy see her body like that!"
Ichinose Honami puffed her cheeks, thinking both Kaoru and Sakayanagi Arisu were stubborn in their denial.
The fact that Sakayanagi Arisu could accept Kaoru's [Game] certainly had an extremely important prerequisite!
Even Sakayanagi Arisu herself had overlooked it!
As an observer, Ichinose Honami could see everything clearly.
This was why she hadn't stopped Kaoru.
Kaoru finally understood, his expression turning peculiar before he sighed.
"It seems this is still my problem. You're right to scold me, Honami."
Ichinose Honami showed a triumphant expression, as if saying "Aren't you going to praise me?"
Kaoru remained silent for a moment. "I have something to tell you."
Perhaps because his expression was very serious, combined with tonight's events, Ichinose Honami seemed to sense something and composed herself, watching him intently.
"A year ago, I was a producer at an agency."
Kaoru revealed the explanation he had prepared for a long time. "The reason people say I resemble a certain celebrity is because I've appeared on several variety shows and interviews."
"The genius composer with the same name as you?" Ichinose Honami asked.
"That's right, at first I thought you were complimenting my looks..."
Mid-sentence, Kaoru suddenly realized something, "You've looked into me?"
Knowing about someone with the same name naturally meant she'd seen his videos and photos, and probably knew about 283 Agency too.
"I've heard these discussions before, but I never paid them much attention."
Ichinose Honami looked somewhat embarrassed, "It wasn't until after the training camp exam that Sakayanagi told me about your situation."
Kaoru was surprised and asked, "Don't... don't you have anything you want to ask me?"
Ichinose Honami lowered her head, "I didn't know how to bring it up. I felt like if I asked, you wouldn't be the Kaoru I know anymore."
An middle-aged man turning into a high school student, a producer who should have died by hanging suddenly coming back to life - who would believe such a story if told?
This situation was beyond what Ichinose Honami could handle.
That she could endure until today showed she had stronger mental fortitude than most people.
"Do you think I'm a ghost or human?"