Led by Kaguya, Natsuki entered the villa and saw a group of people in the living room: maids, chefs, gardeners, bodyguards... fully embodying the luxury and decadence of capitalists.
Kaguya explained in a low voice:
"To prevent anyone else from triggering the rules, I had everyone stay together."
Having everyone stay together was the simplest and most direct method, but it was only a temporary solution, not a permanent one. People always need alone time, for example, to use the restroom. You can't just leave the door open for people to watch.
Natsuki softly said:
"You didn't tell them the truth about the Strange Tale, did you?"
"No."
Kaguya gently shook her head, "If we told everyone, it would inevitably cause panic."
In fact, even without telling these ordinary workers, everyone more or less perceived the danger. Their companions aging over a decade overnight was something no one could ignore.
The reason they didn't leave the manor in a panic... was naturally due to the power of money.
Kaguya's gaze shifted to a corner, and she softly said:
"Those are the people who encountered the Strange Tale."
Natsuki followed Kaguya's gaze and saw a man and a woman sitting on a sofa in the corner, their expressions clearly dazed and listless.
"Hayasaka."
Kaguya called softly.
Hayasaka stepped forward half a step and handed over the tablet she was holding:
"Kaguya, here you go."
Kaguya took the tablet, held it in front of Natsuki, and softly said:
"These are what they used to look like."
Natsuki tilted his head to look at the tablet. One person was a well-dressed middle-aged maid with a gentle smile, delicate skin, and a graceful figure. The other was a middle-aged man with black hair, looking full of energy.
However, at this moment, the two victims sitting on the sofa had sallow skin, no energy, and many wrinkles on their foreheads and around their eyes. Especially their hair, which was originally black and shiny, was now clearly mixed with strands of white hair, as if they had turned from middle-aged to elderly overnight.
Kaguya continued:
"They usually live in the manor and have their own exclusive rooms, but there are only surveillance cameras in the hallway, so we don't know what happened in the rooms."
Natsuki nodded gently, half-closing his eyes, to see if he could get any hints.
[After careful observation, you found that the two people in front of you were permeated with an anomalous aura. You decided to use a sting operation to find the mastermind...]
Sting operation?
The words clearly implied that he should be the bait.
"Yes, it's indeed an anomaly, not some kind of supernatural phenomenon."
Natsuki turned to Kaguya, "To catch the mastermind Strange Tale, there's only one way."
Hearing this, Shinomiya Un'yo immediately said anxiously:
"Natsuki-kun, how can we catch that thing? Just tell me if you need any help!"
"Then I'll tell you."
Natsuki smiled, "The current situation is that we are in the dark, and the Strange Tale is in the open. To eliminate the Strange Tale, we must first find it. If the Strange Tale doesn't want to come out on its own, we can only fish it out."
"What?"
Shinomiya Un'yo's smile froze, as he had already understood Natsuki's meaning.
Natsuki seemed not to notice his expression and continued:
"The information analyzed by the Strange Tales Management Bureau says that the Strange Tale likes to attack people living alone, right?"
"In that case."
"Please, Un'yo-san, stay alone in the room to lure the Strange Tale out. Shinomiya and I will lie in wait, and once the Strange Tale appears, we'll rush out and eliminate it."
"Cough, cough…" Shinomiya Un'yo coughed twice, embarrassed. "I'm old now, and my reactions are too slow. I might mess things up."
Natsuki smiled:
"It's alright. Both of them were middle-aged before, right? Perhaps that Strange Tale has a soft spot for middle-aged people."
Shinomiya Un'yo: "…"
As the third young master of the Shinomiya family, he would absolutely not put himself in danger.
"President, don't say any more." Kaguya stepped forward half a step, lightly tugged at Natsuki's sleeve, and whispered, "Let me do it."
Natsuki stopped there, saying:
"Since I proposed it, of course, I'll do it… I don't know when the Strange Tale will appear; it might not show up all night. I'll take a shower first; I feel sticky and uncomfortable."
Hayasaka bowed slightly and said:
"I'll go prepare your clothes."
"…"
Natsuki went to the bathroom and started showering.
As soon as he stripped naked, he heard a knock at the door.
Natsuki thought it was Hayasaka, so he casually turned on the showerhead and said without turning his head:
"The door isn't locked, come in."
"…"
Click.
The door was gently pushed open, and someone silently walked in.
Natsuki squeezed out shampoo, and while washing his hair, he said:
"Come help me scrub my back."
"…"
The person behind him hesitated slightly, then quietly walked behind Natsuki, took the towel, and began to scrub Natsuki's back.
"Hayasaka, why aren't you speaking?"
Not hearing Hayasaka's response, Natsuki couldn't help but feel suspicious.
Splash, splash.
Hot water poured down.
A deliberately lowered voice came from behind him, sounding indistinct:
"My throat… feels uncomfortable."
"Did you catch a cold from sleeping in the car earlier?"
"...Mm."
Natsuki said while washing his hair:
"It's just as you said, as soon as I arrived, I was pressured to get married."
The girl behind him mumbled a response, her hands never stopping, though her movements were somewhat clumsy and unpracticed.
Natsuki continued:
"Kaguya doesn't know about those things you've been secretly planning, does she?"
"…"
The girl's movements behind him paused slightly, then she deliberately lowered her voice and said:
"What things?"
Strange.
Very strange.
If it were the real Hayasaka, she wouldn't ask what things, so… who is the person behind him?
Could it be the Strange Tale?
Natsuki's mind raced, and he said calmly:
"Of course, it's Kaguya's forced pregnancy plan."
"Eh eh eh?!"
A soft gasp came from behind him.
At the same time.
Natsuki suddenly turned around and looked at the girl behind him; it was clearly a black-haired, red-eyed Kaguya.
"Kaguya?" Natsuki said in surprise, "How could it be you? Where's Hayasaka?"
Kaguya took a deep breath, laying her cards on the table, no longer pretending:
"Just now in the hallway, Hayasaka said she had other things to do and gave me the clothes, so I came in."
Natsuki said speechlessly:
"It's one thing for you to sneak in, but you didn't even say anything."
Kaguya bit her lip with her pearly teeth. Natsuki's previous movement was too big, and the splashing water accidentally wet Kaguya's clothes:
"I originally planned to just put down the clothes and leave, but the President asked me to help scrub his back…"
Natsuki said:
"It's over. Kaguya can leave now."
"Before you leave, President, please clarify what you just said." Kaguya bit her lower lip, her pretty face flushed crimson, and her beautiful wine-red eyes flickered with annoyance. She clenched her small fists and said, "What does that forced preg—preg… mean?!"
Oh no!
It sounded absolutely terrible!
The former Kaguya grew up in a sterile environment and had no understanding of dirty jokes. Later, she ran away from home, slowly came into contact with manga, and then, when the Yandere Kaguya wanted to reverse-push, Kaguya, not wanting to lose to her clone, also crammed a lot of knowledge. Now, she could be said to be 'full of wisdom,' with quite rich theoretical experience.
It was precisely because of this that Kaguya couldn't help but lose her composure.
Forced preg… that kind of thing clearly only appears in adult content!
Hayasaka was actually secretly plotting behind her back, wanting to force her to be humiliated?
Kaguya gritted her silver teeth, her tone exceptionally resentful:
"How many things have the President and Hayasaka done behind my back?!"
Natsuki coughed twice and said:
"This is a long story… You go out first, and I'll tell you after I finish showering."
"No." Kaguya puffed out her cheeks, her gaze firm, "I want to know the truth now!"
Natsuki pointed to himself and said:
"I'm still showering."
"Shower then shower." Kaguya lifted her pretty face, revealing her beautiful, long, swan-like white neck, "It's not like I haven't seen the President's body, and I've even touched, touched…"
Halfway through her sentence, Kaguya's sense of shame erupted, and she couldn't utter the rest of the words no matter what.
As a noble Kaguya, from childhood to adulthood, she was taught never to speak vulgar words. She had indeed touched, but such things could only be done, never spoken.
"Alright." Natsuki stood up, "Let me rinse off first. Shampoo in the eyes will hurt a lot."
Kaguya subconsciously glanced, then quickly looked away, not leaving, but hugging her arms, waiting for the truth.
Splash, splash.
Natsuki began to rinse himself in front of Kaguya.
Shy?
Given Natsuki's current level of shamelessness, the words 'shame' had long disappeared from his dictionary.
On the contrary, Kaguya, clearly not wanting to look or listen, always felt as if Natsuki's body had a magical pull, instinctively wanting to gaze over… That's right, girls also lust after guys' bodies. If you're good-looking, girls really will chase you.
"Finished."
Natsuki dried his hair while turning his body to face Kaguya.
"President, you're too lewd!"
Kaguya's pretty face flushed, and she quickly turned her head away.
Natsuki: "…"
I'm too embarrassed to expose you. You secretly looked so many times just now; don't think others can't feel it!
Natsuki said with composure:
"What I just said about Hayasaka's forced humiliation plan was actually a joke. The story starts from that night at the hot spring…"
"What?" Kaguya turned her head to look, her cheeks quickly puffing up, "The President also took a hot spring bath alone with Hayasaka?"
"It was the night we eliminated the hotel's nightmare Strange Tale and then took a hot spring bath together." Natsuki said speechlessly, "Didn't we get the Twin Golden Skill that night?"
Kaguya immediately remembered and said:
"Is it the [Strongest Descendant in the World] skill?"
"Exactly, that's the one." Natsuki nodded, "Hayasaka secretly told me that such a powerful ability would be a shame to only have one baby, so she borrowed the coin and also prepared a copy scroll, planning to copy a new skill for you."
"What skill?"
Kaguya couldn't help but ask.
Natsuki said softly:
"The name of the skill is… [Good Pregnancy in Pairs]."
Kaguya: "…"
She didn't even need to look at the skill description; she knew the ability's content just by the name!
To actually prepare something like this for her, and without even asking for her opinion, Hayasaka was too much!
Kaguya subconsciously covered her lower abdomen.
Carrying two babies at once is barely acceptable… Wait, she's still in high school, still just a child; it's too early to consider such things!
"That kind of thing, that kind of thing… isn't that a bug?" Kaguya turned her pretty face away, "It definitely can't be. It'll all be for nothing in the end."
Natsuki spread his hands and said:
"I told Hayasaka, but unfortunately, Hayasaka didn't listen."
Kaguya's pretty face was crimson, and she couldn't help but retort:
"I would never learn that kind of skill!"
Natsuki continued:
"In fact, Hayasaka has already successfully copied the [Good Pregnancy in Pairs] skill. She hasn't let you learn it yet, probably because she's found another new skill…"
"Eh?" Kaguya couldn't help but ask, "What skill?"
Natsuki said:
"The name of that skill is… [Five-Way Split Future]."
"Five, five-way split?!" Kaguya opened her eyes in disbelief, covering her lower abdomen with both hands, and subconsciously said, "Five is definitely too many to even think about! I'll only learn the [Good Pregnancy in Pairs] skill!"
As her words fell, Kaguya suddenly caught sight of the smile on Natsuki's face. Only then did she react, her pretty face flushing like fire, white steam wooshing from the top of her head, her eyes turning into mosquito coils, and she frantically turned to flee.
"I, I'm going out first…"
Natsuki naturally wouldn't let Kaguya go easily. He reached out and pulled Kaguya over, saying earnestly:
"Don't go. Your clothes are stained with shampoo foam. Since you're already here, you might as well take a bath together."
"No way…"
Kaguya still wanted to refuse.
The next second.
Natsuki had already lowered his head, blocking Kaguya's soft lips, delicate like cherry blossoms.
"Mmm..."
Kaguya's long eyelashes trembled slightly, and her body responded first—she closed her eyes, parted her teeth slightly, then raised her arms and tightly embraced Natsuki's neck.
Natsuki had traveled to the apocalypse via subway and had just returned. Because everyone was present, Kaguya felt too shy to be overly intimate and chose to be reserved. She had planned to see the president when fewer people were around, but then she received a call from the Shinomiya family... It had been a long time since they had any intimate contact.
At this moment, as their lips touched, a familiar electric sensation swept through her body. Kaguya's mind quickly went blank, no longer thinking about anything else, only wanting to kiss and hug properly.
After an unknown amount of time, a knock on the door suddenly sounded.
Bang bang bang.
Immediately following, Maid Hayasaka's voice rang out from outside the bathroom door:
"Miss, are you two alright?"
Hearing Hayasaka's voice, Kaguya, whose mind was dizzy and disoriented, suddenly sobered up and quickly said:
"I, I'm fine... Eh? Eh? Eh?"
Planning to leave the bathroom immediately, Kaguya looked down, and a bewildered expression instantly appeared on her pretty face.
"Strange, where are my clothes?"
"Why... why am I taking a bath with the president in the bathtub?"
Memories slowly returned to her mind.
Kaguya widened her beautiful eyes and quickly recalled everything that had just happened.
Because her clothes got wet, the president asked her to take a bath together. Because they were bathing together, she was hugged into the bathtub with the president. Not only that, the president even...
Looking at Natsuki, who was wiping his mouth, white steam billowed from the top of Kaguya's head, and her pretty face was flushed to the point of exploding, as if blood was about to drip from it:
"The, the president actually just... I'll never let the president kiss me again!"