'No, no, what am I thinking! This moment is Hachiman's and mine, my sister doesn't even know, so sister should be the one hiding.'
'Uh... well, that doesn't seem quite right either...'
If her sister really saw her and Hachiman playing games in the living room, she might get very angry and try to rescue her from under Hachiman, or she might, like Yukinoshita Haruno and Tohsaka Touka, choose to take her place.
As for her sister joining in, Ichiji Nijika looked up at the ceiling projection, where Yukinoshita Haruno and Yukinoshita Yukino were clinging to each other, exhausted and helpless.
She watched as Hachiman, sitting up, pulled them both into his arms, kissing one on the left and the other on the right at the same time.
Splash!
Glug! Glug! Glug!
Nijika, who had mentally swapped the hair colors of Haruno and Yukino to blonde in her mind's eye, suddenly plunged her body into the water, leaving only her eyes and above visible as she stared at the deeply bonded Yukinoshita sisters.
"Nijika, you..."
Miura Yumiko, lying along the edge of the bath with Yamada Ryou and Kitagawa Marin, watched Nijika's unusually bizarre behavior in the water, the corners of her mouth twitching slightly.
As expected of Nijika, the one among them whose strength had improved the fastest, she could still run a fever even in this situation.
Yumiko strongly suspected that Hachiman had his eye on Nijika long ago, and that the two of them had done many things in private behind her back after that train incident.
She'd heard from the three gyaru girls, Yuina, Minami, and Rin, that Hachiman liked easy-to-hold-girls in his arms, kind-hearted, gentle, and considerate blonde girls. Wasn't that describing Nijika to a T?
Granted, Gabriel also fit the bill, but Nijika was clearly a better match. Nijika was so kind and innocent, and she'd been in the same class as Hachiman for quite some time. Before Gabriel transferred in, Nijika was basically the only person in their class who fit the description of Hachiman's ideal type.
Hachiman must have had a secret crush on Nijika for ages. Knowing that Nijika's band couldn't find a guitarist and couldn't perform on stage, he'd immediately taken the initiative to seek out Bocchi-chan, who was great at guitar, became friends with Bocchi-chan, and convinced her to help Nijika.
But... well, there's no point in saying this now. She might as well think about how to find a few more gyarus to "bully" Hachiman together, and whether there was any chance to correct his perverted tastes.
Miura Yumiko's mind kept tracing back through the progression of Hachiman and Nijika's relationship, reconstructing how Hachiman had, step by step, managed to make Nijika willingly let herself be devoured by him.
But then she suddenly remembered that her good friend Nijika had originally been pulled in by her. She'd gotten Nijika and Marin to join her in "bullying" him, hoping that through this "bullying" therapy, a pervert like Hachiman could get back on the right track. The righteous indignation she'd been storing up for so long instantly deflated.
She'd been so naive back then, wanting to help Hachiman escape the "bullying," but now here she was, actively looking with Nijika and the others for more people to "bully" him together.
"Yumiko, how much longer can you hold on... Kita? What's wrong? Can't hold out any longer?"
Kitagawa Marin noticed the small puddle beneath Miura Yumiko had grown a bit more. Just as she was about to ask about it, she suddenly realized that Kita Ikuyo next to Yumiko was in an even worse state. It looked like her foot might have cramped up; her petite, flat body had suddenly gone rigid for quite a while. Marin quickly asked.
"I... I can't take it anymore... I want to go back and rest first... Goodnight, everyone!"
Kita Ikuyo's fair skin had long since turned thoroughly flushed and delicate, as if she'd been steamed. Seeing everyone's attention suddenly fall on her after Kitagawa Marin's words, her body trembled even more violently. She hurriedly blurted out a goodbye and hastily teleported away.
Leaving Miura Yumiko, Yamada Ryou, and the others staring wide-eyed at the glistening little puddles on the smooth floor.
"Sh-should... should we pull out too..."
"Hachiman's been getting called to the student guidance office a lot lately. What if he actually shows up to class tomorrow?"
"Uh... then... let's pull out."
With Kitagawa Marin taking the initiative to speak, Miura Yumiko, Yamada Ryou, Ichiji Nijika, and Gotou Hitori exchanged glances, then looked up at Hachiman, who still seemed to be on an unstoppable rampage. In silent agreement, they chose to bow out and be eliminated, teleporting away one after another from the Service Club.
Better to save some energy and stamina for classes.
If Hachiman got pinned down in class tomorrow by Kirisu-sensei or Hiratsuka-sensei and forced to pay attention seriously, they'd inevitably have to suffer through it with him.
———
[The Kita Household, a Pitch-dark Bedroom]
Thud!
Kita Ikuyo, having teleported back, slammed heavily onto her bed. The moment she rolled onto the mattress, she frantically grabbed the blanket and wrapped herself entirely inside it, shrinking into a cocoon.
A good while later...
Kita Ikuyo finally flung back the still-trembling blanket. Lying on her back on the blanket soaked with who knows whether sweat or bath water, she stared blankly at the dark ceiling, her chest heaving violently. She opened her small mouth and gasped for air in huge gulps.
"I-I almost... completely embarrassed myself to death..."
In a firsthand experience, the more someone liked Hachiman, the higher her Service affinity, and the easier it was for Hachiman to break down her defenses.
But with the empathic connection, it was the opposite.
For instance, Bocchi-chan, who often hid on the sidelines, clearly lacked physical training, and had poor stamina, could still hold on until the end just like Nijika, who had taken the most "punishment" among them.
It was because Bocchi-chan had long since grown accustomed to that intensity herself.
For someone like Bocchi-chan, who considered Hachiman the best friend in her life, and once her only friend, even when compared among the many heroines of the inner worlds, her intensity level was among the highest.
Among them, Kita Ikuyo had the least contact with Hachiman. She had genuinely been pulled into this by Yamada Ryou and the others, and had truly developed feelings for Hachiman over time.
It wasn't that Kita Ikuyo was dissatisfied with this bizarre and novel development. Compared to going through the motions with the current JK students in her class, with no novelty in their interactions, she much preferred making friends with the elves, vampires, mermaids, and magical girls in the club. It was just that she didn't quite know how to confess all this to her parents.
She might never confess, probably.
Unless her parents could accept the fact that her simply eating, drinking, and having fun at the club could get them promotions and raises at work.
Both her parents were civil servants. Her mother was especially strict and meticulous, even opposing her ambition to become a band member in the future, let alone this way of life of hers now, which was far more unconventional than being a regular band member.
After another while, having successfully recovered, Kita Ikuyo hopped off the bed barefoot. She pulled a carton of milk from a box by the bed to replenish fluids. While drinking the milk, she used a cleaning spell to tidy up the bedding, picking up the bell collar that had automatically unfastened from inside the blanket.
Ring! Ring!
She gently flicked the golden bell on the red collar, and a pleasant ringing sounded.
Kita Ikuyo placed the bell collar, which she'd surely use again later, on her study desk. Then, she put the girlish pink empathic service wristband back on, lay down on the bed again, selected a target with a lower intensity level of empathy, and let out a long sigh of relief.
Even though she didn't want it, with everyone else, it was incredibly thrilling. For her, being able to adjust it freely and pause anytime was definitely more comfortable.
Actually, they could play the "blindfold guess-who" game every day. She could play while hiding alone under the covers at home.
Except, they'd be guessing who was currently biting Hachiman, who was currently being held by Hachiman.
"Hachiman-kun... he's planning to keep going until dawn..."
Kita Ikuyo pursed her lips, gently biting the straw, slowly savoring the silky, sweet taste on the tip of her tongue.
'This time, it seems... another new girl?'
'Is it Raphiel-san, rumored to actually be an angel?'
'Or Lala the alien princess's younger sisters, Momo and Nana?'
'Or could it be... hiss...'
Over the course of the night, through the empathic connection, Kita Ikuyo had relived her first time several times in a row. Her small, delicate, smooth feet instinctively pressed hard against the corner of the blanket, and her petite, soft body rolled once more, shrinking into the covers.
———
Gulp! Gulp!
While Kita Ikuyo was drinking milk under the covers, replenishing fluids, Yukinoshita Yukino in the family restaurant was also replenishing fluids.
However, unlike Kita Ikuyo, who had already become a magical girl, recovered swiftly, and was even comfortably hiding under the covers secretly enjoying herself, Yukinoshita Yukino, who had not become a magical girl, was still continuously covered in sweat, even though she'd received special care and had her bell collar unfastened promptly.
"Is... is it... okay now..."
Her jet-black long hair cascaded down her smooth, soft shoulders. Yukinoshita Yukino, soaked in fragrant sweat, didn't bother wiping the corner of her mouth. She looked up at Hachiman, who seemed to know they had nearly reached their limit and had switched to continue training with someone else. She suddenly felt a sense of disbelief.
Just moments ago, she'd thought she would have to endure this deplorable state until dawn, possibly even until school time, which might have made it impossible to go to school.
After all, none of them had slept a wink all night. Even if they went to bed immediately, it would be hard to drag their exhausted and powerless bodies out of bed and get to Sobu when class time came.
She hadn't expected Hachiman, after helping her sister awaken her magical girl powers and then marking her three times, to simply set her aside as she knelt on the floor.
Even though she'd already mentally prepared herself.
"Mm... Yukino, remember to eat it all up next time. This is the reward of your hard work. Even though you haven't become a magical girl yet now, the effects of the training will be reflected later."
"The magical girl awakening ceremony is also part of the magical girl's daily training. Yukino, if you want to become stronger than the others, you cannot casually waste a single drop of the fruits of hard work each day, from now on."
Yukinoshita Haruno slowly propped up her body. Her delicate, jade-white fingers gently traced the corner of Yukinoshita Yukino's mouth, making her swallow the last few drops of water. Then, while massaging her own sore and weak legs, she quietly instructed Yukino, whose expression was complicated.
Although she had only truly stepped into the world of magical girls tonight, she had been observing the training of the club members for the past few days and knew everyone's training process like the back of her hand.
The Service Club's late-night game activities seemed like nothing more than absurd play on the surface, but they were actually a method to make the club members' strength soar.
The specific mechanics behind this improvement in strength seemed to be unclear even to the elf princess. All anyone knew was that Hachiman's life energy was exceptionally abundant and vast, as scorching and dazzling as the sun itself. Even the demi-humans longed to receive Hachiman's aid and bear his children.
But with so many club members saying their strength had increased, not just Touka, who was growing stronger every night, but now even she herself had awakened the power of a magical girl. It certainly couldn't be wrong.
If Yukino didn't like this, or hadn't taken this step, then that would be that. She herself would work hard enough for both of them, protecting Yukino and Mother. But now that Yukino had actively joined the late-night service activities, she hoped Yukino would fully commit and participate with all her might, not giving up halfway or wavering in timidity.
No matter how many allies Mother helped pull in, it wouldn't be as good as the Yukinoshita family growing stronger themselves. The Yukinoshita family only had her and Yukino in the Service Club.
They couldn't even compare to the Tohsaka family's three sisters, let alone the numerous demi-human races. That was why every drop of the fruits of labor they shed blood and sweat for, so painstakingly earned, not a single drop could be wasted.
"Improving strength... not wasting a single drop of the fruits of hard work..."
Yukinoshita Yukino watched her sister, Yukinoshita Haruno, licking her glossy lips while wearing a serious expression. She couldn't help but look up again at Hachiman and the people gathering around him, Rurikawa Tsubaki, Ichinose Ayano, and others, still feeling a sense of absurdity in her heart.
Though, if it weren't for such a relationship of interests, she would also find it hard to imagine how so many beautiful girls, peerless in status, position, appearance, and temperament, could all fall for Hachiman.
Even if one or two people could easily be fooled, surely not everyone could be fooled, right?
This utterly outrageous, shocking fact was precisely the truth.
But if that were the case, just how much power did Hachiman hold in his hands? Did his every move influence the political, economic, and military landscape?
With so many daughters of major zaibatsu and princesses of demi-human races prostrating themselves beneath Hachiman, the fact that Hachiman could peacefully stay at Sobu, playing with women, was perhaps a result everyone was glad to see.
"Yukino? What's wrong? I'm sorry. Just now, I didn't consider your feelings. I knew it was your first time, yet I still made you suffer for so long. In the future, when you can't hold on, I will stop immediately."
Seeing Yukinoshita Yukino staring blankly at Hachiman, Yukinoshita Haruno thought Yukino might have some issue with being toyed with by Hachiman for so long without actually entering the awakening ceremony and becoming a magical girl. She quickly apologized and tried to comfort her.
She had to remember that just now, both she and Yukino were wearing the empathy bracelets. You could say that whatever she felt, Yukino felt.
But she had endured bitterness to reach the sweetness, becoming a magical girl, while Yukino was still an ordinary person.
"Sister, you don't need to worry about me. I'm not hung up on that. Besides, Sister, yours was the true first time."
Yukinoshita Yukino took a deep breath and gently shook her head at the anxious Yukinoshita Haruno.
"Once I've adapted, the effect of my awakening ceremony might end up even better than yours, Sister. When that time comes, I'll be able to help you."
Although her sister urgently needed powerful strength to secure her position as the vice-captain of the Service Club, Yukino naturally understood that her sister hadn't persisted until her well-trained, slender legs gave out simply out of a desire to gain power. There was also an element of sacrificing herself to help Yukino adapt.
According to what her sister and Koneko-san had said, while training increased strength every time, the magnitude of the first increase was the largest.
The longer someone endured their first time, the stronger the power they would obtain after awakening their magical girl talent.
The reason she hadn't completed the awakening ceremony entirely today was partly because there were many people, and it would take more time for the sisters to awaken consecutively. The other reason was to allow her own first time to last a bit longer.
Mm... the latter was the main reason, since she couldn't endure for long anyway.
"Yukino... I'm sorry..."
Yukinoshita Haruno looked at Yukinoshita Yukino, who had only thought of her and hadn't considered herself. Once again, she opened her arms and pulled Yukino into a pained, tight embrace.
This time, not while straddling Hachiman, neither of their bodies trembled anymore.
Perhaps it was due to the immersive empathy, having shared hardships and blessings together, a tacit understanding had formed between them.
Yukinoshita Yukino, who had originally just been blindly chasing after Yukinoshita Haruno, now found it easy to put herself in her sister's shoes and was beginning to understand her sister's ways.
Yukinoshita Haruno no longer needed to play the "enemy" to her younger sister Yukinoshita Yukino, pushing her sister to grow.
Although neither of them knew about the Service Halo.
Nevertheless, the magnitude of strength improvement from the Service Halo correlated positively with one's Service Affinity. In terms of observable form, it was indeed true that the longer one endured, the greater the strength increase.
Setting aside the side effect that the more one liked Hachiman, the easier it was to be pushed past one's breaking point: the stronger one was, the longer one could endure; the longer one endured, the easier it was to fall for him; the more one liked him, the higher the Service Affinity; and the higher the Service Affinity, the greater the strength improvement.
After their moment of sisterly bonding, Yukinoshita Haruno and Yukinoshita Yukino stood up and moved to sit in chairs at a dining table nearby, watching as the Tohsaka sisters, similarly taking a break, approached and took seats next to them.
"..."
The Tohsaka sisters and the Yukinoshita sisters sat face-to-face at the table, looking at the marks not yet fully faded on each other's fair skin. For a moment, the atmosphere was rather delicate.
Though the daughters of the Tohsaka family and the daughters of the Yukinoshita family were close enough to be open and honest with each other, bathing together, having saunas together, closer than real sisters.
But it was apparent that the "openness" of days past and the "openness" of tonight were not the same thing.
═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═
[email protected]/AmbitiousTranslator
🥳Joining P@treon keeps me motivated and eager to work diligently, so please consider joining.🥰 You can access upto 20 advance chapter through P@treon.