"You really found a suitable person?" Koakuma had always thought the chance of Kars finding a suitable partner with his method was incredibly small, but the news he brought back—that he had actually found someone—left her feeling conflicted. Did this mean the 'benefits' she enjoyed would completely disappear in the future?
"Koakuma, why do you look so sad?" Kars asked curiously, seeing Koakuma look distressed after hearing his news.
"She's fine. Don't worry about her." Patchouli knew exactly what was wrong with Koakuma. Unsurprisingly, she was worried about losing her future 'perks.'
"But Kars, is that person truly as you described?" Patchouli felt she needed to properly understand the situation regarding Yuuka Kazami.
"Yes! Even though it was our first meeting, she felt incredibly gentle to me." Kars answered with certainty. "And she knows Teacher Keine, so she can't be a bad person."
That sounded logical, but Patchouli still wasn't completely reassured. Kars was like a child she had raised, so she wouldn't be casual about this matter.
"Later, I want to go to the Garden of the Sun. She offered to take me today, but I didn't agree because I thought it would be wrong to go without telling you first."
"She wants to take you home on the first meeting? She definitely has an ulterior motive!" Koakuma instantly felt something was very wrong. If she didn't have any hidden intentions, why would she invite a child she just met—and Kars alone—to her home?
"Ulterior motive? What motive could she have?" Kars was puzzled, then remembered something. Sister Yuuka seemed to really like touching my head. Could that be the motive? But that didn't seem like a big deal.
"Kars, did you think of something?" Patchouli asked, seeing the look on Kars's face. Had Koakuma actually been right?
"It's just that Sister Yuuka seemed to really like stroking my head."
"That's definitely it! She must be a shotacon too!" Koakuma felt she had proof. That habit of stroking a child's head and face was done precisely because they loved the way it felt! She herself often did that to Kars's face.
But even if I prove it, what good does it do? Thinking this, Koakuma became a little worried. Wouldn't that just make it easier for them to get together?
"So, Sister Yuuka likes me as I am now? If I grow up, will she stop liking me? Should I stop growing?" This situation made Kars conflicted. He preferred his adult appearance, but if Sister Yuuka liked him as a child, would she stop liking him when he grew up?
"Kars, you can't think that way. If she can't accept your adult self, it means she's only interested in your body and appearance. If she can't accept the adult you, will you truly be happy with her? After all, you don't want to stay a child, do you?" Koakuma spoke seriously, hoping to make Kars understand and not change his mind because of this.
"So, you can try meeting her after you've grown up a bit. Maybe then you can figure out what she's really thinking."
"Koakuma…" Patchouli called out her name. She could clearly see Koakuma's motivation—was she saying this because she was so reluctant to let him go? But even so, this advice felt slightly inappropriate.
That voice brought Koakuma back to reality. She realized her intentions were too obvious, though Kars was naive enough not to suspect anything.
"That makes sense, too." Kars agreed with Koakuma's words.
"I think, instead of discussing that, you should think about whether you can really be with her, Kars. You don't know what she's thinking, do you?" Patchouli brought up the most crucial issue: would Yuuka Kazami choose to be with Kars? These two hadn't even considered that aspect and were already focusing on other issues. Were they both so confident this would succeed? That was far too self-assured.
"R-right." Koakuma snapped out of it. It was true; everything so far was just a one-sided assumption, not a confirmed fact. Thinking about this immediately cheered Koakuma up.
"Why do you look so happy about that, Koakuma?" Kars noticed Koakuma's expression and couldn't help but ask.
"H-happy? You must be seeing things, ahahaha!" Facing Kars's gaze, Koakuma gave an awkward laugh. Thankfully, Kars didn't dwell on the issue, allowing Koakuma to relax.
"Then should I propose to her now?" Kars then thought that since the situation was unclear, he should go propose to Yuuka Kazami right away. This answer earned a helpless sigh from Patchouli.
"I knew you would say that. Frankly, a move like that is highly unlikely to succeed. If she's friends with Teacher Kamishirasawa, as you said, she must be a very old yokai. Even if she likes children, she won't agree to marry a child she just met one day ago."
"Then what should I do?" Patchouli didn't answer Kars's question. After all, how could she know what to do? She didn't know the person, wasn't familiar with her, and had never been in a romantic relationship herself. How could she offer any advice?
"In any case, you definitely need to get to know her better first. Otherwise, anything you try to do will be difficult."
"It looks like that's the only option." Kars nodded dejectedly. He wondered how long it would take to achieve the result he hoped for. He wished he could just fast-forward time to that day, but he knew that was impossible. He then lay down in Patchouli's lap, burying his face in her chest to ponder his life.