Chapter 254: The Date in Progress
Seeing Kotori finally walk out last—her hair tied into a single side ponytail with a black ribbon, wearing a red dress—Franklin's eyes instantly lit up.
"Completely different style. Totally unlike the little-sister vibe from before. It feels like Kotori suddenly matured a lot."
Kotori curled her lips slightly, shot Franklin a sharp glare, then turned around and went straight back into the fitting room.
Seeing this, Franklin scratched his head in confusion.
"Did I say something wrong?"
Yoshinon shook her head helplessly.
"You have to praise her. What you just said—were you praising how good the clothes look and how well they suit her?"
Hearing that, Franklin smacked his forehead. Indeed, not a single sentence had actually been praise—it even sounded a bit like teasing.
Domain expanded. Seeing Kotori about to take off her clothes, Franklin instantly appeared inside the fitting room.
Sensing someone suddenly appear, Kotori immediately attacked. After her punch was caught, she saw it was Franklin and relaxed slightly, then glared at him.
"Big brother, what are you trying to do? I'm changing clothes. Please respect your sister's privacy."
Franklin scratched his head and looked at Kotori seriously.
"I really like the style you're showing right now. Both the clothes and the hairstyle suit you very well—"
Before he could finish, Kotori stared at him with deep suspicion.
"You like this style? So that means you don't like the twin-ponytail little-sister style from before anymore?"
Faced with this life-ending question, Franklin felt his temples ache.
"No, that's not what I mean, Kotori. I mean I like both styles."
Kotori stepped closer.
"Both? If I forced you to choose one, which would you pick?"
"Which one would I pick?" Franklin never expected to face this question one day. Looking at Kotori's expression—clearly not backing down without an answer—
He decided to sacrifice the rook to save the king.
"Whichever one Kotori likes, I like. As long as it's Kotori's choice, I'll absolutely like it—unconditionally."
Seeing Franklin's overwhelming survival instinct, Kotori covered her mouth and laughed softly. She zipped the dress back up, then gently hooked her arm around his.
"That answer barely passes. Today, we'll go with this style. I'll help you properly deal with the Spirits, big brother. I'll also try my best to stop Tobiichi from interfering."
Seeing Kotori's bright smile, Franklin finally let out a sigh of relief.
"No need. It's a group date to begin with—we can't favor anyone. As long as nothing major happens, just go with the flow.
And Kotori, don't forget—you're also one of the date targets today. That's a very important point."
Pulling aside the fitting room curtain, Tohka, Yoshino, and Yoshinon were all eavesdropping with curiosity written all over their faces.
"You all heard everything. Today, everyone better get along properly, or it'll be troublesome."
At this moment, Origami returned from outside, holding a full-body photo. Seeing the female clerk behind her give Franklin a thumbs-up, he smiled and nodded back.
"Lin, it's for you."
Franklin accepted it solemnly, then smiled at Tobiichi Origami.
"Thank you. I'll treasure it."
Instantly, Tohka became unhappy. She puffed up her cheeks and looked at Franklin. Before she could say anything, Franklin directly changed the next stop of the date to a photo studio.
Only after taking group photos with every girl—and receiving signed photos from each—did the situation finally settle down.
Inside the arcade, Yoshinon and Yoshino grabbed their tokens and happily ran inside. After all, they really were still children.
These kinds of games were their favorite, and they had never experienced any of them—neither before Yoshino was hospitalized nor during her stay.
After becoming a Spirit, she hadn't even enjoyed a single day of happiness with her mother before everything reversed, her memories erased, and she was sealed into the Neighboring World.
Seeing the genuine smiles on their faces, Franklin also showed a heartfelt smile.
If possible in the future, he wanted to return to the past and change everything—or deceive fate itself.
After all, Himekawa Nagisa ultimately disappeared. Whether she died or lived could not be confirmed. Perhaps the world had already changed long ago, and it was only the memories that had yet to return.
Origami walked straight toward the crane machines with coins in hand. Franklin led Tohka and Kotori inside as well.
"Big brother, you should stay with Tohka. In arcades, I prefer playing alone."
Seeing Kotori wink at him, Franklin rubbed her head and gently shook his head.
"Let's go together. I don't really like games. You can take Tohka around and let her try more different ones."
Hearing this, Kotori looked completely puzzled. Franklin didn't explain—he simply pulled both of them over to a dance machine.
"How about this? Want to try it and see who dances better?"
Seeing Franklin's obvious interest in making them compete in dancing, Kotori immediately went speechless and curled her lips.
"Perverted big brother. No way I'm dancing for you."
As she spoke, Kotori dragged Tohka toward other small games. Watching the five girls spread out, Franklin let out a quiet breath.
Next was getting them familiar with each other and completely removing any barriers between them.
Rubbing his chin, Franklin walked over to Yoshino and Yoshinon. The two were playing a shooting game together, their coordination flawless.
"Lin, thank you. I've really never experienced things like this before."
"Thank you… Lin… I'm really happy playing together with Yoshinon."
Franklin smiled and nodded, gently patting their heads before heading toward Origami.
Yoshinon might be mischievous, but she didn't like scheming. Yoshino was gentle, kind, and sweet—a soft, adorable little girl who never caused trouble.
As long as they slept well, ate well, and played well, their affection would stay high. Time itself was the best way to win them over.
Arriving beside Origami, he saw her fully focused on repeatedly trying to grab a pair of black-and-white rabbit phone charms.
Franklin didn't disturb her, quietly watching from the side. When only twelve tokens remained, he helplessly shook his head and stopped Origami from continuing.
"This way won't work. Arcade crane machines are all rigged."
As he spoke, Franklin wrapped his arms around Origami from behind, inserted a coin, and gently held her hands, slowly moving the control lever.
He didn't directly alter anything with his domain. Instead, he calculated rapidly. When the timing was right, he guided Origami's hand to press the grab button.
The three mechanical claws swung down rapidly. Two hooks successfully slipped into the small holes above the two white rabbit charms.
As the claws slowly lifted, they perfectly caught the two pendants. When the claws retracted, inertia caused them to swing back—and the two white rabbit charms dropped straight into the prize chute.
"Thank you. But I want one black rabbit and one white rabbit. I want to give one to Lin."
Franklin smiled and said nothing, continuing to operate the machine.
In the end, he grabbed one black rabbit charm—and more than ten white rabbit charms.