While Ren couldn't just send them away, it was getting dark. She had no choice but to go to the girls' house, explain the situation, and get permission to let them stay with her for a while. She knew they wouldn't back down easily. When she explained that she knew Shou and the others and simply wanted to talk to the girls, their parents agreed.
She took the two girls back to her house, endured Furi's exasperation, and offered them tea and light snacks.
"Can I ask why you said what you did?"
Having had some time to calm down, the girls didn't immediately snap at her.
"Because you were on a date with Ken and Shou."
They were about the same age as Shou and the others. One seemed active and the other reserved, somewhat mirroring Shou and Ken's dynamic. However, the girl who spoke first mentioned Ken's name. As Furi and Iris, who were listening, indicated with their expressions of "Ah, so that's who it is," both girls seemed to be in love with the type of person different from themselves. Their desperate expressions revealed their feelings.
Ren briefly wondered if she was starting to understand this because she had matured, but then the memory of Furi chastising her for being "too dense" made her deflate.
"Shou and Ken are acquaintances of mine. I'd call them friends, or rather, cute juniors."
Her voice naturally softened slightly when speaking to girls. She intended to explain so they wouldn't misunderstand, but the girls seemed to have grown even more suspicious. Their gazes sharpened.
"Then why were you on a date?"
"Because they asked me to. And of course, nothing inappropriate happened."
"It was during the day, and there were people around."
It would be hard to go unnoticed in a town where people of a higher level than Ren often shopped casually. If they insisted, they could ask around, and the details of the date would be perfectly clear.
"You don't have any feelings for Ken or Shou, do you?"
"You two like them, right?"
Instead of saying, Don't answer a question with a question, the girls looked slightly surprised and nodded, "Yes."
"I don't have any feelings for them. I have absolutely no intention of starting a romantic relationship with them."
"Then why did you go on a date?"
Ren thought for a moment. If she answered "Because they asked me to," the conversation would just loop. The meaning of "why" now was different from the "why" before. Furi also had a troubled expression. She likely understood their feelings as a fellow woman. Iris also looked puzzled about what to do. Mei, meanwhile, watched the proceedings with her usual emotionless face, but with a hint of excitement.
"They would have been depressed if I refused. They might even lose the motivation to try harder."
"But they don't have to explore the dungeon, do they?"
That was a line that would make the Sage depressed if he heard it.
"It's true that Ken and Shou don't have to push themselves."
"See?"
"But they want to. I want to respect that."
"That's selfish! You're giving them hope when you have no intention of dating them, and they'll get hurt eventually!"
She had a point. Since Ren had no intention of dating them, the boys would eventually face the shock of heartbreak. The longer it was delayed, the deeper the wound might be. In that sense, she should have refused when she was first invited—but at the time, she honestly hadn't thought they liked her "as a member of the opposite sex."
"...But still. Wouldn't it be weird to tell them, 'I have no intention of dating you, so give up,' when they haven't even confessed yet?"
Ren would certainly be heartbroken in their place. It wasn't that she necessarily thought they'd start dating right away. She just wanted them to let her dream for a bit... she might even develop a temporary distrust of women.
The girl frowned and said,
"In the end, aren't you just afraid of being disliked?"
"...Well, maybe."
She wanted to see happy faces rather than disappointed ones. She thought, If just hanging out with me can motivate Shou and Ken, isn't that good enough? So, she didn't say "No." Instead, she looked back at the girls.
"What you two are trying to say is, 'Don't take away the person we like,' right?"
"!"
They gasped, freezing up as if intimidated. Ren hadn't intended to glare. However, her non-human Succubus appearance might have been a bit intimidating. A man would likely put "erotic" first, but they were girls.
"D-don't change the subject arbitrarily! We're talking about how it's wrong for you not to reject Ken and Shou!"
"Yes, I know. ...So, why did you go out of your way to tell me that?"
"!?"
"If it was just a problem between me and Shou and the others, the situation would be simple. Maybe they would realize it themselves if I just kept dating them."
Explicit rejection is not always the best solution. There are no right answers in love. Even if there are generally accepted theories, Ren wasn't sure if they applied to her and Shou's group. It was wrong for outsiders to butt in with such strong opinions.
Yes, if they were outsiders.
"Essentially, you want me to reject them, right? Then you should just say so. Or rather, since I've told you I have no feelings for them, why don't you confess now?"
"...W-what if we're rejected after that!?"
Perhaps abandoning all pretense, they dropped the honorific language. That was probably their true feeling. They came to protest to Ren because it would be more convenient for them if Shou and Ken were rejected. It was certainly rational to try to maximize their chances of success before a challenge they couldn't afford to fail.
However, Ren didn't need to humor them.
"You don't have to give up just because you're rejected once. I know many stories of girls who confessed multiple times and finally won."
Furi made a face that asked, What manga are you talking about? but Ren ignored her. In reality, a man would usually give in if a girl confessed many times without giving up. Being told "I like you" by a girl was always encouraging and lifted one's spirits.
"What's that? ...I-I could never do that."
Ren knew it was difficult. It might be their first love, and being rejected must be terrifying. Still, if they didn't confess, nothing would start. Ren had said similar things to Shou and the others.
The girls fell silent, looking down. Ren sighed softly.
"You really like them, don't you? Have you known them for a long time?"
"Yeah. ...Childhood friends."
"I see."
It was a small town. It wasn't strange that all the kids their age knew each other. They would have met people who lived close to them many times. It wouldn't be strange for them to think, Ah, I'll marry this person someday, while playing together. Unfortunately, Ren hadn't heard the girls' names from Shou and Ken, so they were likely viewed merely as "bossy childhood friends."
"Guys really don't notice things like that."
"I-is that true?"
"Yeah. Young guys just fantasize about dating the girls they like. Even if they thought, 'Does she like me?' they'd probably mistake it for fantasy."
"...I-I see."
The girls looked up slightly, impressed. Furi chuckled.
"Hehe. As expected, your personal experience makes the explanation much more convincing."
"I apologize for the offense at the time."
Ren couldn't argue, as she had felt like the girl who talked to her every day considered her an "interesting toy." She covered her embarrassment with a cough.
"So, I think confessing will be effective. Whether you succeed or not, I can't say for sure, but I'm rooting for you."
The girls' expressions became conflicted.
"...I don't know what to feel when my rival says that."
"It's better than being treated as an enemy. I want Shou and the others to be happy, too."
Ren promised to reject Shou and Ken if they confessed directly, and the girls finally sighed in relief. Smiles returned to their lips.
"We apologize for being rude."
"I'm sorry for being harsh with you, too."
Apologizing to each other seemed to ease the tension.
"We heard that you—Ren-san—are a bad Succubus who confuses men's hearts, but you're actually a decent person."
"Wait. Where did you hear that rumor?"
"Huh? From our fathers, I guess...?"
The girls said this with a blank expression, and Ren buried her face in her hands, asking, "What does that mean?" Furi patted her shoulder.
"Now, now. It's probably just that Ren is so cute that men are tempted to cheat."
"No, I can't help that, can I...!?"
"Were our fathers using that as an excuse to cheat...!?"
"...Come to think of it, I don't recall them saying that when our mothers were around."
They probably thought they would be scolded if their wives found out they thought a girl the age of their daughter was cute. Ren and Furi exchanged a look of distant understanding.
Ren wasn't using her demonic eye, and she tried to choose long-sleeved clothes. Still, she wasn't completely covered, so her Charm had some effect. She sometimes smiled at shop owners and other people in town, but she felt it was unfair to be called an "evil woman" for just that.
"Hey, Iris. Does a beautiful woman just naturally charm people just by walking around town?"
"W-why are you asking me!?"
"Ren is kind of sexy, so maybe she's a special case."
"She is the Master, so it is unavoidable."
"What is that supposed to mean?"
Putting aside the natural charm of a beautiful woman for now. Ren decided to jokingly ask around in town about the source of the rumor later.
"You have to promise! You absolutely can't date Ken and Shou, okay? And don't do anything indecent!"
"I won't. I'm a former man, as you know."
The girls exchanged glances, then looked back at Ren.
"But you're a beautiful woman now."
"A S-succubus, too."
"Ah. So Shou and the others invited me on a date with that understanding..."
Her classmates knew her original appearance, and the Transferred people from other years generally accepted her change because they had experienced their own "changes." However, the people in town only had a limited view of Ren during her transformation (a hooded figure with a concealed body), so the fact that she was a former man was merely general knowledge.
"Honestly, even that 'ore' (masculine pronoun) doesn't suit you."
"...You're very blunt."
"But it doesn't!"
"If I change my speech pattern and start dating a guy, you'll be the one in trouble, you know?"
When Ren teased them a little, they quickly stood up, saying, "That's unfair!"
"I'm just kidding. ...But if you talk honestly like that, they might turn their attention to you."
"...Do you think so?"
"Yes, of course."
The two girls were cute enough in Ren's eyes. Of course, they were too young for Ren to consider them as romantic partners, and she had no intention of flirting indiscriminately, but she felt it would be a waste to ignore girls like them.
"So be confident. It's better to challenge them with the thought, 'I'm definitely going to succeed,' than with, 'I might fail.'"
"I see... Maybe you're right."
The girls were satisfied, saying, "Thank you!" When Ren walked them home, they were smiling, and she felt they might confess soon.
"Well, things don't go that smoothly, do they?"
In reality, it took them quite a while to confess, and in the meantime, Ren was dragged into a second date with Shou and the others.
"Why don't you confess soon?"
"H-how can you say that...!"
As a result, Ren was the one who had to hurry the girls along. She wasn't entirely sure why things turned out that way. But she simply felt reluctant to leave girls who were trying their best alone.
"You're kind, whatever you say, Ren."
"I'm not... am I?"
Fortunately, the boys and girls eventually began dating (after some twists and turns). Even after that, Ren was still relied upon by the boys and the girls, and she ended up taking care of them in various ways, but that is a story for another time.
--------------------
Incidentally, regarding the rumor, after questioning a few of the men, it turned out to be just a joke.
"They just say that because Ren-chan is cute."
It was a flattering comment, but since there was no point in getting angry, Ren just smiled and said, "Thank you." After that, Ren started worrying about her clothes again, but her grown wings and tail weren't something she could easily hide. Whether her figure could be concealed just by wearing a coat was also questionable.
"Um, and also, is Ren-san's charm only emitted from her skin? Doesn't it come out in your voice, too?"
"Ah. That's a possibility."
"Then should you wear a mask and be fully protected, Master?"
"No, that would definitely look suspicious."
A mysterious person who hides both their face and body and speaks in a muffled voice. She would likely gain notoriety as a villain instead.
"Then, perhaps Ren-san should just remain as she is?"
"...Yes, I suppose I will."
In the end, she decided not to worry about it too much.
============
🚀 Want Early Access & Bonus Content?
"Loving this story so far? You can read ALL chapters RIGHT NOW by joining my P4tr3on!
✨ Unlock instant access to the full completed novel
✨ No waiting for daily updates
✨ Support your favorite degenerate author (that's me!)
Only $5.99 for the full experience!
🔗 Check my profile for the Link!!
Free readers - don't worry, I'll still be posting daily updates here. But Pa4r3on members get the VIP treatment!
Your support helps me create more wild stories like this. See you on the dark side! 😈"