"Ha~"
"Feels like I should consider moving."
Under the gentle caress of the autumn breeze, a certain prince yawned melancholically.
The dark circles under his eyes and his messy hair clearly showed that he hadn't slept well last night.
Perhaps… he'd been tossing and turning over a girl.
"Ha~"
Kamishiro yawned again, exhaustion filling his eyes. He truly hadn't slept much.
And all of this was Kiyoko's fault for being way too clingy.
That's right—when Kamishiro got home last night, he found Kiyoko lying on his bed, waiting for him.
At first, her half-covered state even made him a little excited.
But the moment he saw her pale face, all desire vanished instantly.
Judging by the timing, Kiyoko really was a tormenting little demon—she was on her period and still came over.
He simply patted her head gently.
That night, Kamishiro spent the entire time comforting her.
They finally fell asleep late into the night. Just as Kamishiro thought he could sleep straight through to the afternoon, something unexpected happened…
While half-asleep, he was jolted awake by the sound of a door opening.
Looking up, he saw Sakurako staring at him in shock. At first, he didn't think much of it and sleepily invited her to come sleep too.
He immediately regretted it after speaking—
Because he felt the softness in his arms!!!
Kiyoko!
Looking at Kiyoko nestled against him with a blissful expression—she even snuggled closer—Kamishiro suddenly realized there was no way he'd be sleeping in today.
As expected, amid a piercing scream, Kamishiro fled in panic, deciding to leave the scene to the two girls.
As for whether Sakurako would take the chance to attack Kiyoko—Kamishiro was very confident.
Absolutely not!
Though Sakurako always portrayed herself as a delinquent green-tea villain, Kamishiro knew she was a good girl.
A very, very good one~
…
Meanwhile, completely unaware that Kamishiro had given her a "good person" card, Sakurako looked at Kiyoko curled up on the bed with utter disdain.
(?_?)
"So, someone actually runs over here even while having period cramps? What, were you planning to help him with your mouth and… some other place?"
Sakurako said sharply. She hadn't expected this woman to still be restless even during her period.
She'd prepared for a whole day-long date—only for her plans to be destroyed before they even started!
"Hehe~ you wouldn't understand. A delicate woman like me naturally needs someone to take care of her when she's uncomfortable~"
Kiyoko now looked completely different from her usual self, sweetly pulling up her blanket.
It was… it was exactly like Sakurako herself before!
Sakurako felt like she was looking into a mirror—and worse, the reflection was living a better life than her!
Damn it!
Is this tomboy sick?!
Did getting her period make her switch scripts and personalities?!
She's even more green-tea than me now!
Sakurako's eyes reddened with anger. The problem was, the woman in front of her looked so pale that Sakurako couldn't bring herself to do anything.
What if she fainted and tried to extort her?!
As a long-time rival, Sakurako had zero doubt that Kiyoko could pull something like that.
After all… her personality matched her nickname perfectly!
"You shameless tomboy!"
Seeing Sakurako's powerless rage, Kiyoko smiled happily.
This round… I win again~
Just as she was about to deliver her victor's declaration, a sharp pain suddenly struck her.
Damn it!
Why now?!
"Hm?"
Sakurako, who had been waiting for Kiyoko to mock her, looked over in confusion.
Why was this woman suddenly so quiet? That wasn't like her at all.
Upon closer inspection, she saw large beads of sweat forming on Kiyoko's forehead.
Sakurako: {{(°△°; "}}!
Th-this woman is unreasonable! I haven't even started trash-talking yet—how did it already get like this?! Is she trying to frame me?!
"Let me say this first—I don't have money!"
Sakurako clutched her small shoulder bag tightly. She earned that money through hard work—she wouldn't give a cent to this tomboy!
"W-who wants your money… If you're fine, just hurry and go home!"
Kiyoko curled up, gritting her teeth as she spoke viciously.
Clearly, she didn't want her rival to see her in such a miserable state.
It really hurt…
Seeing her face grow even paler from the pain, Sakurako irritably ruffled her hair.
Damn that Kamishiro—why did he run off so fast and leave me with this huge mess?!
If he doesn't make it up to me with at least ten days of dates, I'll never forgive him!
Sakurako sighed, took off her small bag, walked to the bed, refilled the cup with hot water, and then thumped it onto the bedside table.
"Hmph. There's hot water right next to you and you won't drink it—serves you right to hurt, you tomboy!"
Kiyoko stared blankly at the steaming cup of hot water, clearly not yet processing what had happened.
Th-this green-tea girl… is taking care of her?!
In disbelief, she turned her head toward Sakurako.
At this moment, Sakurako had already turned around and walked toward the kitchen.
"That bastard should have brown sugar at home, right?"
After all, she remembered there being brown sugar in the house when she stayed over last time.
Watching that busy figure in the distance, Kiyoko suddenly felt an indescribable emotion rise in her heart.
"Green-tea girl, you—"
"Stop right there!"
Before Kiyoko could finish speaking, Sakurako cut her off. With an annoyed look, she said,
"If you're about to say something sentimental, then save it. I'm only doing this because I'm afraid you'll die here and extort money from me!"
"Who wants your lousy money?!"
Kiyoko couldn't hold it in anymore. What kind of image did she even have in this green-tea girl's mind—some money-grubbing middle-aged man?!
She only wanted to say—
"Hmph, good. I thought you did it because you liked me. I was so scared just now that I almost rejected you."
Sakurako: ???
Holding the brown sugar, Sakurako stared in shock at the lump of self-absorbed unidentified lifeform on the bed.
Me?
Like this tomboy?!
Who gave her that confidence?!
No matter how she looked at it, this tomboy's face was still just as infuriating.
Sakurako suddenly regretted staying behind. Come to think of it… drinking brown sugar water probably didn't have to involve boiling it, right?
Looking at such a "lively" Kiyoko, Sakurako suddenly felt that this nemesis of hers probably wasn't suited for her gentle care.
Maybe she should be a bit more wild?
Brown sugar… chewing it dry should be fine too, right~?
!!!
Kiyoko: {{(°△°; "}}!
Danger!!!
…
"The weather's nice today~"
At the entrance of the diving shop, Kamishiro stood smiling as he enjoyed the autumn breeze, looking nothing like someone who had been half-dead with sleepiness just moments ago.
But that was normal. If anyone else had been hit on by countless beautiful girls along the way, their mood would probably be even more buoyant.
Compared to that, Kamishiro was already a battle-hardened veteran.
"Yo, Kamishiro, that's rare—didn't expect you to come this early today."
Just as Kamishiro was about to head inside, a familiar otaku voice came from behind.
Seeing Kohei still wearing his Rarako T-shirt, Kamishiro suddenly wondered how many of those he had bought. It was always Rarako—only the pose on the print changed.
And that shirt…
Kamishiro's eyes twitched. If he wasn't mistaken, the text next to Rarako read—
"I have someone I like!"
"..."
How could this guy wear something like that so openly?!
Terrifying. Absolutely terrifying.
Kamishiro swore for the nth time in his heart that he must never let Kohei find out about him and Maya.
"Morning, Kohei. You look pretty happy, did something good happen?"
Kamishiro asked while pushing the door open. Kohei's expression had been positively radiant since earlier.
The kind of radiance that couldn't be suppressed—just like Kamishiro himself after being hit on nonstop.
But clearly that wasn't Kohei's reason. A socially anxious guy would only be stressed by that!
"Heh heh, I can't believe you noticed even though I hid it so well. As expected of my best friend!"
Being noticed only made Kohei's expression even more blissful.
"Kamishiro, as a fellow man of culture, you must've heard about it too, right?!"
"Heard about what?"
Kamishiro was confused. He hadn't heard of any amazing new eroge releases lately!
"Yurika! That top-tier voice actress! She said on Twitter that there'll be a huge surprise for us this month!"
Kohei was visibly excited, his face full of longing. Waiting was torture—he wished he could know the surprise right now.
"Yurika?"
Kamishiro took three seconds to remember who she was. Ah—wasn't she the fiancée who still hadn't appeared in person?
Ikegoshi's fiancée!
A top-tier voice actress!
Someone who once voiced a magical girl together with Maya.
Voice actress. Magical girl.
Both flags checked—it wasn't surprising Kohei was this excited.
But still…
"Isn't she Ikegoshi's fiancée? That 'big surprise' might just be announcing their relationship."
After all, that information hadn't been officially revealed online yet. Even they only knew by coincidence.
If that TV station employee hadn't let it slip, they wouldn't have connected a fading idol with a top-tier voice actress.
"Besides, they're already at the age to—"
The moment the word "marriage" was about to leave his mouth, Kamishiro felt something feral locking onto him.
Turning his head, he saw Kohei with blood tears streaming from his eyes.
"Unforgivable… unforgivable…!"
(;?_?)
Great. He's entered the "no longer communicable" mode.
Ignoring the now-unhinged Kohei, Kamishiro walked straight into the diving shop.
He really hadn't seen Kohei get this worked up before. During the beetle incident, he'd clearly had a chance to kill Ikegoshi and replace him.
But Kohei had missed it himself.
So why was he so agitated this time?
Otaku psychology really was unfathomable~
What Kamishiro could never imagine was that the main reason Kohei was this shaken… was actually him.
Although both were top-tier voice actresses who had played magical girls, Yurika still ranked slightly below Maya in Kohei's heart.
He was just jealous that someone could marry a voice actress.
But—
This made Kohei subconsciously think of his Maya sama.
That is—Maya sama.
Maya sama already had someone she liked, which meant…
In the future, she might—no, she definitely would end up marrying another man, just like Yurika!
After all, Maya sama's charm was invincible. No man could resist her!
Which meant…
If that line of thought continued, Maya sama wasn't far from marriage either?!
The image of Maya sama in a wedding dress, walking into a sacred hall with another man, instantly filled Kohei with uncontrollable jealousy!
Sink him into the sea!!!
That man must be sunk into the sea!!!
…
Step.
Walking into the diving shop, Kamishiro immediately saw several faces on the couch wearing heavy expressions.
(′△｀)?
"What's wrong with you guys?"
Kamishiro scratched his head. Was it fashionable now to look like you had a tragic backstory first thing in the morning?
Kohei had good news—these people… definitely didn't.
The seniors looked so conflicted they hadn't even finished the beers in front of them.
Kitahara and Aina were whispering things like "the floor will get dirty."
Were they planning another dangerous club activity?
"It's Kamishiro…"
Someone finally noticed him. Aina greeted him with a strange expression, her eyes constantly flicking toward Kohei at the entrance.
"Morning. Why does everyone look so gloomy this early—did you see some terrible news on Twitter?"
Kamishiro casually grabbed the already-open beer in front of Azusa and took a sip while asking Aina.
Glug glug—ah~
Feeling the alcohol slide down his throat, Kamishiro smiled in bliss.
Drinking first thing in the morning really was amazing!
Drinking a beautiful onee-san's beer was even better!
Hearing his question, Aina didn't answer. After glancing at Kohei, who was still losing his mind at the door, she silently handed Kamishiro a phone.
Kamishiro took it, puzzled.
Then—
"Ikegoshi: I'm preparing to marry Yurika. Everyone, please come attend~
Address: Tokyo…"
!!!!
Staring at the digital invitation, Kamishiro was stunned. He instinctively looked toward the entrance.
Holy shit?!
Did my mouth just get blessed?!
I want a Rem figure!
Thank you! Please hurry!
…