"You must have misunderstood." Natsuki said seriously, "Come over, I'm showing you something proper."
"I'm not going."
The the timid girl covered her chest with both hands, shaking her head repeatedly.
If she went over, she would definitely be taken advantage of; she didn't believe Natsuki would behave properly.
Natsuki sighed, his tone drawn out:
"We're in a relationship, yet Shoko doesn't trust me."
The the timid girl's eyes were vigilant; she wasn't easily fooled:
"…In any case, I'm not going over."
"Alright then." Natsuki stood up, and as he spoke, he reached into his shorts pocket, "To prove my innocence, I must show it to Shoko."
"Ugh…"
The the timid girl's pretty face was crimson like fire; she hastily raised her hands to cover her eyes, leaving only a tiny gap between her fingers, and said in shame:
"N-no!"
She had thought Natsuki would at most kiss and hug, but he was actually going even further.
She didn't want to see it!
She absolutely didn't want to see that kind of thing!
Natsuki said:
"Don't be afraid; you've seen it many times; you should be very familiar with it."
Although she had been forced to see it, she wasn't familiar with it at all!
Natsuki continued:
"Once you see it, you'll definitely like it very much."
The the timid girl stammered, shouting in shame:
"I won't like it at all!"
Thwack.
A card with flowing light was slapped onto the table.
Natsuki pushed the Skin Card forward:
"This is it."
"Eh?"
The the timid girl's hands, which had been covering her face, dropped in confusion.
She looked down at the card on the low table.
A card with light slowly flowing along its edges; it clearly wasn't ordinary.
The the timid girl was indeed very familiar with it; this thing was clearly a Skin Card.
"This is a Skin Card rewarded for defeating an anomaly; it's very suitable for you, Shoko, you should like it." Natsuki explained, "I wanted to give it to you that night, but I ran into Juju in the corridor… Ahem, anyway, take a look at its attributes first."
"…"
The the timid girl finally confirmed that what Natsuki wanted to pull out of his pocket was this Skin Card, not some other frightening thing.
"Let me see…"
The the timid girl pursed her lips, curiously picked up the Skin Card, and her beautiful eyes quickly lit up.
[Skin Card: Ostrich Suit]
[Attribute: Special Item]
[Inherent Ability: Instant Change]
[Attribute Bonus: Stealth Enhancement]
[Ability Two: After equipping this Skin Card, you will gain Ostrich Form; your presence will be greatly weakened, and most creatures will ignore your existence]
[Remark: Life doesn't necessarily have to be about challenging storms; being a stable and secure ostrich is also quite good]
"Do you like this Skin Card?"
Natsuki asked with a smile.
"Mm-hmm."
The the timid girl nodded subconsciously, feeling that the remark was perfectly to her liking.
The world was vast, and she was small.
The small her, in fact, only wanted an ordinary life.
"Equip the Skin Card." Natsuki said, "Let's see the specific effect."
The the timid girl nodded, silently choosing to equip the Skin Card.
The next second.
The Instant Change effect activated, and Shoko's body was adorned with a cute uniform resembling pajamas.
"No wonder they call it the Ostrich Skin." Natsuki commented, "It's an ostrich pajama."
The the timid girl didn't mind, though; she turned around in front of the mirror, indicating she was quite satisfied.
"The specific effect is to hug your head with both hands and softly chant 'Can't see me' to trigger the skin's special effect." The the timid girl whispered, "Existence is greatly reduced, which can prevent being discovered."
As expected of the Ostrich Skin, it even required self-deception to be effective.
Natsuki said with interest:
"Shoko, try the effect now."
"Mm-hmm."
The the timid girl was equally curious.
She knelt on the floor in a duck-sit pose, hugged her head with both hands, and softly chanted, "Can't see me, can't see me."
About ten seconds later.
Natsuki felt Shoko's presence rapidly thinning; even though she was right in front of him, his gaze would turn and she would disappear from his mind.
"Huh, where's Shoko?"
Natsuki showed a surprised expression, looking left and right.
"Can't see me, can't see me…"
The the timid girl softly chanted while watching Natsuki search left and right, her lips unconsciously curving into a slight smile.
"She really disappeared; I'll try to find her."
Natsuki spoke as he fumbled around the room.
Komi blinked, chanting "Can't see me" while cautiously beginning to dodge.
But the room was only so big, and before long, Natsuki grasped one of her doll-like feet.
This the the timid girl liked to wear pantyhose when going out, but naturally wore nothing while resting at home.
The girl's skin was warm and delicate, cool and smooth, and very elastic.
"What is this thing?"
Natsuki looked elsewhere, saying earnestly:
"Let me feel it and see."
"N-no…"
The the timid girl quickly realized Natsuki's sinister intentions, and her pretty face rapidly flushed red.
After grabbing her foot, he was actually talking while moving his hand upwards; he clearly just wanted to take advantage of her!
Natsuki said with a blank gaze:
"Can't hear, completely can't hear."
The the timid girl: "…"
A moment later.
Seeing that Natsuki had already touched her thigh and, instead of stopping, intended to continue upwards, the the timid girl finally panicked.
She hastily deactivated the Skin Card, tightly pressed down on Natsuki's right hand, and whispered frantically:
"Th-that's enough!"
Natsuki's eyes were blank: "I can't see…"
"Take advantage of!"
The the timid girl puffed out her pink cheeks upon hearing this:
"The Skin Card is already put away!"
"Sorry, I really can't see." Natsuki said shamelessly, "In ancient times, there was a blind man feeling an elephant; today, I touched a strange doll-like foot and wanted to investigate it thoroughly, isn't that reasonable?"
"N-don't go up… What if Mommy suddenly barges in…"
The the timid girl remembered the experience Juju had taught her, and her voice quickly became aggrieved.
At such a moment, if she could be teary-eyed, the effect would naturally be even better.
Unfortunately, the the timid girl couldn't cry.
Under Natsuki's subtle influence, she had already tacitly accepted the fact that she was dating Natsuki.
Just being touched on the thigh by the boy she liked, she couldn't cry at all.
"Alright."
Natsuki withdrew his right hand, temporarily letting Shoko go.
Seeing Natsuki sit up straight, the the timid girl's lips curved slightly, a fleeting moment of happiness.
"Hmm?" Natsuki raised an eyebrow and looked over, "Was Shoko just smiling?"
The the timid girl quickly shook her head, nervously averting her gaze, and whispered, "No, no smile..."
Natsuki's face hardened and he said,
"Lying is not what good children do."
The the timid girl became even more nervous: "I'm not lying..."
You say you're not lying, but your nervousness is already written all over your face!
Natsuki said,
"This Skin Card is for Shoko to use, shouldn't Shoko give me a reward?"
"No reward." The the timid girl was no longer a pure innocent girl; she clearly understood Natsuki's lewd nature, and quickly got up, one hand covering her chest, the other opening the wardrobe to take out clothes, "I'm going to the bathroom to change!"
Natsuki said,
"Change in the room, I promise to close my eyes."
"...No way!"
The the timid girl was absolutely unwilling to change in the room, and she bolted out of the room.
Natsuki sighed helplessly, tidied Shoko's room a bit, then, with a slight thought, took out his phone, snapped two photos, and clicked send.
A few seconds later.
Juju: "Is this Shoko's room?"
Juju: "Stupid Natsuki, why are you at Shoko's house?!"
Sure enough, Juju had visited Shoko's house before and could recognize it at a glance.
Natsuki replied with a smile:
"It's a long story, I won't explain it for now, I'll just say one thing... Juju wouldn't want Shoko to be taken advantage of, right?"
Juju: "Stupid Natsuki! Control yourself! You'll scare Shoko if you go too far!"
Natsuki: "So I'm still holding back. As long as Juju comes out to play this afternoon, I promise not to take advantage of Shoko."
Juju: "...It's so hot, who wants to go out and play with you!"
Natsuki: "Then let's go on a date."
Juju: "Pfft~ You wish!"
"..."
After a good while, the door finally clicked open gently, and a Shoko stood outside the door, cautiously calling out,
"Mom has already made dinner, Natsuki, come out and eat."
Natsuki looked over speechlessly, and said faintly,
"Shoko, you took half an hour to change clothes?"
The the timid girl's gaze drifted, and she stammered softly,
"It just takes a long time for girls to change..."
This was a lie.
In fact, she had changed her clothes long ago, but she hadn't dared to come back; if she had come back early, she would definitely have been taken advantage of.
Natsuki's face hardened and he said,
"This is my first visit, and you left me alone in the room, Shoko, that's too much."
"I, I'm sorry..."
The the timid girl instinctively bowed in apology.
Natsuki pointed to his cheek and said,
"Come and kiss me, and I'll go downstairs to eat."
"Ugh..."
The the timid girl tried to use the same trick again, looking over with pitiful eyes.
"Playing pitiful won't work." Natsuki was unmoved. "Hurry up and kiss me, if you don't, I'll tell Auntie."
"No, no!"
The the timid girl knew she was in the wrong, so she could only blush and walk over hesitantly, standing on her tiptoes slightly and leaning in for a kiss.
This Shoko is one meter sixty-nine tall, which can be said to be quite tall among girls.
She only needed to stand on her tiptoes slightly to kiss wherever she wanted.
"And here."
Natsuki pointed to the other cheek.
The the timid girl obediently complied.
"Finally, here."
Natsuki pointed to his lips.
The the timid girl had no choice but to blush and kiss Natsuki's lips.
Natsuki couldn't help but want to reach out and hug her, but Shoko was already prepared, dodging away and running out of the room:
"Hurry downstairs!"
"..."
Natsuki tidied up briefly and went downstairs.
In the living room, besides Shoko, there was also a junior high boy sitting on the sofa watching TV.
Seeing Natsuki come downstairs, the junior high boy was expressionless, slowly withdrew his gaze, and looked back at the TV.
Natsuki didn't care, instead, he smiled and greeted him.
Earlier in the room, Shoko had said that her younger brother also had a communication disorder; they were truly siblings, the power of genetics was indeed strong.
"Natsuki-kun, come sit down." Komi's Mother smiled brightly, happily waving him over.
Natsuki walked over and sat down, smiling:
"Thank you, Auntie."
Komi's Mother puffed out her cheeks, leaning slightly forward and said,
"What did Natsuki call me?"
Natsuki immediately changed his address, readily saying,
"Thank you, Shuuko-neechan."
"That's right." Komi's Mother smiled again, with her right hand on her hip, she said, "Eat, eat."
"..."
At the dining table.
Shoko and her younger brother both didn't say a word, but there was no need to worry about awkward silence, because Komi's Mother was enough for two, she was practically a chatterbox.
"Natsuki, this is Shoko's favorite dish, try it."
"Thank you, nee-chan."
"Natsuki, when did you and Shoko first meet?"
"That was on a night long ago..." Natsuki recalled their first meeting in Haunted Town, and began to elaborate and adapt, "In short, it was love at first sight."
"Eh, how romantic!" Komi's Mother exclaimed softly, her eyes shining, her face full of gossip, "It feels like a first meeting to be remembered for a lifetime!"
Natsuki said seriously,
"Shuuko-neechan can remove 'feels like', the scene of my first meeting with Shoko has already been etched into my soul."
"Hahaha." Komi raised her hand to cover her mouth, giggling, "Now that I've handed Shoko over to Natsuki, I feel at ease."
The the timid girl's pretty face was flushed, she didn't say a word, and ate silently with her head down.
However, the conversation between Komi's Mother and Natsuki became increasingly inappropriate, quickly reaching the the timid girl's limit.
"When do you plan to marry Shoko, Natsuki?"
Komi's Mother asked without any hesitation.
Natsuki said earnestly,
"Shoko and I have discussed it; we'll get married after graduating from high school."
The the timid girl's body trembled, rice falling from her chopsticks, and she looked at Natsuki with embarrassment:
We never agreed to such a thing!
"I approve of this marriage." Komi's Mother said with a smile, "Father definitely won't refuse either."
Natsuki said seriously,
"Thank you, Shuuko-neechan, I will definitely take good care of Shoko."
"I've already agreed to the marriage, but..." Komi's Mother held up a finger, shaking it gently, "Before you two get married, make sure to take safety precautions..."
The the timid girl's sense of shame finally reached its limit, her pretty face so red it almost seemed to drip blood, and she walked towards the kitchen, holding her bowl and chopsticks:
"I, I'm done eating!"
"..."
The meal was enjoyable for both host and guests.
Except for Shoko being extremely embarrassed, Natsuki and Komi's Mother were both very happy.
After lunch, Natsuki sat for a while longer, then, not staying long, stood up to prepare to leave.
"Eh?"
The the timid girl's beautiful eyes widened in surprise, and she stared blankly at Natsuki.
She had thought Natsuki would try every means to stay, but she didn't expect him to volunteer to leave.
"I have other things to do this afternoon." Natsuki stroked Shoko's head, "I'll come over to play in a few days."
"No, no need..."
The the timid girl quickly shook her head.
"It's very necessary." Natsuki said earnestly, "For our marriage, of course, I have to come often and get along well with Shuuko-neechan."
The the timid girl: "..."
Leaving the Komi's house, Natsuki walked slowly towards the train station under the sun.
The journey was silent.
Arriving at Akihabara Station, Natsuki stepped off the train and saw a the child in a white dress standing in the corner, eagerly looking around.
"Juju, I'm here."
Natsuki walked over to Juju's side.
Seeing Natsuki, Juju's small face showed a hint of joy, then immediately tightened her face and said,
"Why are you so late?"
"Sorry, sorry." Natsuki raised his hands, apologizing sincerely, "I was having too much fun chatting with Auntie Shuuko and forgot the time."
"Huh?" Juju's eyes widened upon hearing this, and she couldn't help but exclaim, "Stupid Natsuki, that's Shoko's mother! If you lay a hand on Auntie Shuuko, Shoko will definitely not forgive you."
"I'm not, I didn't, don't talk nonsense." Natsuki ruffled Juju's hair, saying speechlessly, "Shoko was by my side the whole time I was chatting with Auntie Shuuko, and ten Auntie Hidekos wouldn't compare to just one Juju."
"Tch." Juju crossed her arms over her chest, disdainfully huffing, "Only elementary school students would believe something like that."
Natsuki smiled:
"Today's Juju is super cute."
Juju's lips curved slightly, then she quickly tightened her small face, lightly huffing:
"Flattering me won't work."
There was no other way; this Juju just loved to be contrary, only becoming obedient when she was crying and begging for mercy in certain situations.
Natsuki extended his hand:
"Shall we go on our date?"
"Don't touch me, I can walk by myself." Juju lifted her chin and trotted forward, "And it's not a date, it's just for Shoko!"
The only reason she came out on such a hot day was for Shoko; it wasn't because she wanted to come out, and she certainly wasn't looking forward to a date!
As a typical otaku girl, Juju coming to Akihabara for a date was definitely not the wrong choice of location.
Natsuki said:
"Shall we go to the bookstore first?"
Juju lifted her chin and uttered one word:
"Go."
The two arrived at the bookstore and began buying recent popular light novels and manga.
As a player, he had basically achieved financial freedom, buying things without hesitation, purchasing everything he liked.
Natsuki lowered his voice:
"There are restricted works up ahead, want to buy a few?"
Looking at the adult-rated works ahead, Juju's small face flushed red, and she said indignantly:
"Pervert! If you want to look at that stuff, buy it yourself, don't drag me into it!"
"I'd be too bored alone; since it's a date, of course we have to look together."
Natsuki said as he pulled Juju over.
"Stupid Natsuki, let go of me…"
Juju's small face was full of reluctance.
A moment later.
Juju shoved two books into Natsuki's arms, turned her head away, and lightly huffed:
"Go pay quickly!"
After buying manga and light novels, the two went to a figure shop to buy figures, took sticker photos together, and played the claw machine together.
Unconsciously, several hours passed.
"Hoo…"
Juju stretched lazily, and seeing Natsuki's hands full of bags, she lightly snorted:
"Let's go find a place to rest for a while."
Natsuki immediately said:
"Okay, I'll lead the way."
"…"
A moment later.
Looking at the neon-flashing Love Hotel sign above their heads, Juju's small face quickly flushed red, and she angrily clenched her small fists, gritting her teeth:
"Stupid Natsuki! When I said rest, I didn't mean resting in a place like this!"
Natsuki said innocently:
"It has air conditioning, free drinks, and we won't be disturbed. It can be used for resting, right?"
"Ptooey!" Juju's small face was crimson, and she pinched Natsuki's waist, "I'm not going in with you!"
When a girl says she won't go in, it doesn't necessarily mean a real refusal.
For example, now.
Juju said she wouldn't go in, but her feet didn't move. She neither turned to run away nor strongly resisted. After Natsuki held her hand, she only struggled symbolically twice, then lowered her head with a red face and followed him inside.
"First, choose a room theme…"
"Stupid Natsuki, explain to me, what does 'Summer Camp Theme' mean?!"
"It doesn't mean anything…"
"Die!!!"