"!!!"
Fortune's sudden awakening sent a ripple through Mizuno's composure that, just a moment ago, had been steady as a rock.
Seriously, sis, you pick now to wake up? Not earlier, not later—right when I'm lying about you still being asleep?!
"Gulp..."
His once-genuine, earnest gaze wavered for the first time.
Gold Ship didn't miss the shift. She leaned down and grabbed Mizuno's face, demanding with a scowl:
"Are you lying? She's not asleep?"
"N-no, no! She's definitely still asleep! How—how could I possibly lie to you, Broshi?!" Mizuno tried to wriggle out of it, but this time it was obvious. He was lying—no way to fool the bro who knew him inside out.
Gold Ship just chuckled, not bothering to argue further. Instead, she turned and pulled open the drawer of the bedside table, rummaging around.
"Broshi, what are you...?" Mizuno asked, suddenly filled with dread.
"Didn't you just say, if you lied, I could have you however I wanted?" Gold Ship answered, pulling a bottle of lube from the drawer, flipping the cap, and pouring it over Mizuno.
"I'm claiming that right now."
"GAH!!"
With his lie completely exposed, Mizuno could only look to Fortune for help.
[Mizuno]:Fortune, say something!
[Fortune]: ...
But she'd just woken up and hadn't figured out what was happening. Faced with Mizuno's plea, she was totally lost.
What was this love hotel-looking room?
Why were a guy and an Uma Musume, half-naked, piled up together?
What did "Mizuno wants you to say something" even mean?
Honestly, Fortune had no interest in these couple's quarrels and definitely didn't feel responsible for managing them.
But she couldn't just ignore her apostle's SOS.
If he got upset and went on strike, what then? She'd get snatched up by the enemy and turned into a company slave!
So, Fortune pieced together all the clues, ran the logic, and came to what she thought was a perfectly reasonable conclusion.
[Fortune]:Oh~ So you two are that kind of relationship~
[Fortune]:Best wishes! May you have lots of little ones soon. I'll let you get back to it, going back to sleep now...
[Mizuno]:?
[Mizuno]:Which part of your brain makes you think we're that kind of couple?! Can't you see I've been locked in a basement by Broshi?!
[Fortune]:Uh... I thought you liked girls like Gold Ship? Wasn't she the one you used to share a bed with every night?
[Mizuno]:?
[Mizuno]:Sharing a bed doesn't make us lovers! If that counted, I'd have eleven girlfriends, because I've shared a bed with eleven Uma Musume these past weeks!
[Fortune]:Wow~ That sounds really nice~
[Mizuno]:?
[Mizuno]:Don't play dumb! Can't you see Broshi is about to jump me? Are you really just going to sit there and joke while I get Uma Pyoi'd to death?!
[Fortune]:Don't panic, I know you're in a hurry, but try not to freak out.
[Fortune]:Do you really think Gold Ship wants to Uma Pyoi you?
"Oh?" Mizuno's brows arched, suddenly interested.
What do you mean by "Do you really think Gold Ship to Uma Pyoi you"?
[Mizuno]:So you're saying, Broshi doesn't actually want me, all of this is just an act to draw you out?
[Fortune]:Not exactly.
[Mizuno]:?
[Fortune]:...Honestly, I'm not sure what she's thinking right now. But I can tell you one thing...
[Fortune]:The warning light is yellow.
[Mizuno]:Yellow?
Mizuno vaguely remembered Fortune had some kind of danger alarm. If it turned red, it meant danger; green meant safety...
Yellow was right in between. What happened next depended entirely on what Mizuno did.
"Figures..." As Mizuno's mind spun, Gold Ship narrowed her eyes and slipped off him, heading for the kitchen to pour a glass of water, then returning to pin him back under her hips.
"Hey, Mizuno-dono..." Gold Ship held up a cup of steaming water, cradling it intimately as she brought it to his lips.
"Have some water first. Once things get heated, you won't get another chance to drink~"
"Gah!" Mizuno went pale.
She's a hundred percent serious about Uma Pyoing me!
[Mizuno]:Fortune, are you colorblind? It's already come to this and you're telling me it's yellow?!
[Fortune]:What do you mean? Don't believe me? Come look for yourself!
Since Mizuno was doubting her, Fortune yanked his consciousness into her space to see the alarm for himself.
"See? Yellow light!"
In that dim mind-space, a golden-haired goddess—similar in looks to Misfortune, but with a totally opposite aura—pointed proudly at a waist-high warning lamp.
"It's definitely yellow..." Mizuno stared, lips twitching, at the light that was already edging into orange, heading fast toward red.
"That's not much different from red!"
"Fortune! Use your invincible powers and help! Or I'm really going to get Uma Pyoi'd to death in here!" Mizuno wailed, clutching Fortune's long legs in desperation.
"Sorry..." Fortune sighed, patting him on the shoulder.
"I've only just built up enough energy to barely function. There's nothing extra to get you out of the basement."
"Huh? Then what am I supposed to do?!" Mizuno slumped to the ground, watching the warning lamp glow blood red.
"Am I really going to lose my first time to Broshi?!"
"I don't want that! I don't want things with Broshi to go beyond brotherhood!"
I want us to be bros for life... at least for another ten years before she gets me...
"Heh, don't worry~" Fortune crossed her arms and grinned with confidence.
"Even if I can't save you directly, I already sent a rescue signal through that Fortune sachet you gave Rice Shower. She'll see it and bring everyone here in no time."
"For real?! That's awesome!" Mizuno was overjoyed.
He had unconditional trust in his little sister Rice Shower.
If she could bring President Rudolf along, even better.
With President Rudolf's experience cracking missing-trainer cases, she'd surely get him out of Broshi's basement.
"Hoo~" Just thinking about it made Mizuno breathe a little easier.
But after the joy faded, a crucial question popped into his head:
"So what am I supposed to do to keep Broshi from Uma Pyoing me right now?"
"That..." Fortune thought for a bit, then shrugged with an awkward smile.
"No idea. I guess you'll just have to get Uma Pyoi'd..."
"?"