Nino couldn't take it anymore. She had reached her breaking point.
It was the final day before the deadline of the "test." Early that morning, after finishing breakfast, Nino marched into Rin's room to drag him out of bed. Usually, she would just call his name and leave, but today, she physically hauled him up.
"Seriously... how much longer are you going to keep up this act!?"
Every single night for the past week, they had been "testing" Rin. And every single time, he "failed" to identify them, using "Deepening Our Understanding" as a shameless excuse to play with their bodies.
"You can recognize the other four perfectly, but you just happen to miss me every time!?"
"It's only because your acting is too good, Nino," Rin said, stifling a laugh.
At this point, Rin wasn't even trying to hide it. Initially, Nino thought no one was cheating for him, but she eventually realized the truth: Rin knew exactly who she was; he was just pretending not to know her!
It was intentional. Purely intentional. Nino was fuming. He was clearly just looking for excuses to mess with them!
And the worst part? Her sisters were incredibly obedient. Especially Itsuki—she followed every single one of Rin's instructions like a devoted little daughter.
Rin had done everything to them short of the final act. One night, he even made them "juice" on the sofa to see who could squirt the furthest! And both Itsuki and Yotsuba had played along with him!
Seeing Rin's smug, playful grin, Nino felt like she was about to explode.
"I'm telling you, if you don't recognize me during tonight's test, I'm going to tattoo your name right on my body! Let's see if you can miss me then."
"Whoa, hold on, don't do that..."
Rin dropped the playful act. Nino liked the biker/delinquent aesthetic; if she said she'd get a tattoo, she might actually do it. Even if it was his name, Rin wasn't a fan of tattoos in real life, regardless of what he saw in movies or doujinshi.
In fact, Miku and the others used to think Nino had a secret tattoo, but after being seen naked during their "understanding" sessions, they finally believed she was clean.
"If you want a tattoo, just use a temporary sticker. It doesn't hurt, and you can change it when you're bored. A succubus crest would look pretty good on you."
"Hmph..."
Nino huffed. The tattoo threat was mostly talk, but if Rin had actually agreed, she might have gone through with it. However... since he didn't want her to get a tattoo, she could use this as leverage.
"Not letting me get a tattoo? Fine. Then give me something that will let you recognize me at a single glance. Something that ensures you'll never, ever mistake me for someone else again."
"This..." Rin blinked. "Are you asking for a token of commitment?"
"!!!!"
In the next second, Nino's face turned bright red. Then... she nodded honestly.
"You really want one?"
"I... I do," Nino muttered, looking down. When they first met, her tsundere nature was 90% "tsun" (cold) and 10% "dere" (sweet). But after Rin won over Miku, Yotsuba, and Itsuki—fulfilling her wish for the five sisters to always stay together—she had shifted to 10% "tsun" and 90% "dere."
She was actually nodding in agreement to wanting a token of love.
In Rin's memory, this was exactly how Nino was. Once she fell in love, she became a runaway train, crashing through any obstacle regardless of how embarrassing it was. Even if it was a shameful play—like the "who can squirt furthest" contest—Nino would participate.
"Alright. I'll think of something today."
"Hmph... that's more like it. Now get up and eat breakfast!"
With a smile on her face, Nino ran out of the room to wake her sisters. Unlike the first day, she now prepared Rin's breakfast for him instead of making him serve himself.
After they left for school, Rin was left with a dilemma. What should he give her? A black leather jacket she liked? No... she wanted an accessory that could distinguish her from her sisters at a glance. Earrings? A studded collar? He couldn't decide.
[Daddy, you can let Mommy help you pick!]
[Hiss... good idea.]
Asking Kaede to pick out a love token for another girl sounded incredibly cuckold-ish on the surface, but in reality, it was like seeking her permission. To a pessimist, it was like "getting cucked and being forced to watch," but to an optimist like Kaede, it was more like: "I'm the one who chose your love token, you have no chance of stealing him from me."
Kaede was definitely an optimist. Rin sent her a message.
Rin: [Nino wants me to give her a token of commitment. What do you think I should get?] Kaede: [You're asking ME for a love token?] Rin: [Just wanting your opinion.]
Is his brain broken? Asking his girlfriend what to give another girl? Kaede thought. But then she reconsidered. Nino had to beg for a token, and Rin came to her for the choice. He obviously loves me the most! The others are just for fun! Trying to steal him? Impossible!
Kaede smiled mischievously. Nino doesn't even know I exist yet... I wonder what her face will look like when she finds out I'm his actual girlfriend and I'm the one who picked out her 'precious' gift?
Hehehe...
Kaede felt a surge of pleasure. She opened the system interface and pulled up Nino's profile. Height, weight, hobbies, even her climax count—everything was there.
Her hobbies are a bit unique. She likes that delinquent, bad-girl style accessories.
A token of commitment... Got it.
Kaede: [Wait for me at home after school. I have some small gifts that would work perfectly. You can come pick them up.]
Rin stopped thinking and took a nap. He spent the rest of the day working on his computer until he heard Nanami and Mashiro return. The girl on his screen was just a line drawing, but she was so lewd and seductive that anyone looking at her would feel a stir in their loins.
Rin's artistic skills were improving daily. Comparing his work from two months ago to now showed a massive leap. While his "Netori Manga" proficiency in the system was increasing, the actual quality of the art was something he had to earn through experience. His improvement came from his real-life encounters with all these beautiful girls.
Rin saved his progress and met Nanami and Mashiro in the hallway. After a quick greeting, he headed next door.
"Tsk, tsk... so eager to get a gift for your little mistress?" Kaede teased, wearing loose house shorts and a T-shirt.
"You seem... different today."
Usually, Kaede's teasing had a hint of jealousy. Today, she just looked like a kid about to pull a prank.
"Different? Why? Should I be cutting your cheating head off instead?" Kaede laughed, grabbing Rin with one hand and Suzu with the other. "Come on, to my room."
Inside, she pulled out a drawer containing five small, ribbon-wrapped square boxes in yellow, black, blue, green, and red.
"The black one is for Nino. She'll love it." Kaede toyed with the black box before handing it to Rin.
"Is this... a ring?" Rin asked. A square box with a ribbon screamed "jewelry."
"Close enough." Kaede's tone was ambiguous and playful. "The items inside are all the same, just different colors. I guarantee Nino will love it. If the others see it and want one too, you can give them the rest."
"Hiss..." Rin hesitated. This ambiguity felt like a trap.
"Relax, I won't hurt you. Just give it to Nino. She'll definitely love it! And no peeking!"
Since Kaede insisted, Rin nodded. It was just a small gift, after all.
"By the way... why do you have these ready?" Rin asked.
"No reason. I planned to give them to someone else but never did. Don't worry, they're just things like rings or earrings."
"Fair enough."
Rin took the gifts and headed to the sisters' apartment. Nino, who was cooking, brightened up the moment she saw him, her eyes practically sparkling with anticipation. Rin nodded slightly and flashed the black gift box.
Kaede had guaranteed Nino would love it, and the others were "backups." Since they were quintuplets, their mother never bought things that only had one free gift, fearing they would fight. To prevent that, Kaede had provided a set. Kaede is actually being quite thoughtful, Rin thought.
In the Nakano household, Nino and Yotsuba were the cooks. Lately, since Yotsuba was busy with clubs, Nino did most of the work. She was dying to see the gift, but she had to finish dinner first.
After dinner, Nino made Miku and the others handle the cleaning while she dragged Rin into her room. She shut the door tight and looked at him expectantly.
"Don't be impatient, it's right here."
Rin smiled and handed over the black box. Despite his calm exterior, he was curious to see what Kaede had chosen.
Nino slowly untied the ribbon and opened the box.
Inside was a black gemstone attached to a fine chain, which in turn was connected to a silver ring.
"Earrings? They're nice... but wait, this looks a bit strange?"
At first glance, it looked like an earring. But a closer look revealed a unique structure. The silver ring was small but had a clever clasp; one side of the opening was as sharp as a needle. It looked like it was designed to pierce the skin as it was closed.
Wait...
A bold thought struck Rin. This isn't an earring. If it were, Kaede wouldn't have been so secretive. And the other sisters wouldn't "refuse" earrings.
Is this... a nipple ring!?
Nino, with her love for the delinquent style, might actually accept a piercing. The others probably wouldn't. That's why Kaede told him not to give it to Ichika and the rest unless they asked for it.
No, this is too much, Rin thought. He drew this kind of stuff in his manga, but in reality, he didn't like things that caused physical harm. Clamps were his limit. What if she can't breastfeed later? Who the hell was Kaede going to give these to? Kalen!?
Bzzzt—
His phone vibrated. It was a message from the "System Daughter."