Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? - Volume 3 - Chapter 3

Rare Cards and Beetles

Monday, August 11th

After enjoying the watermelon splitting to their fullest, Koutarou, the invaders, Harumi, Shizuka, and the cosclub members played until sunset. They were exhausted by the time they got back to the inn. Because of that, they all decided to take a trip to the hot spring to recuperate.

“Ahhhh... I feel alive again!”

As Koutarou dipped into the outdoor spring, he felt as if his exhaustion simply melted away. His tanned skin stung a little as he entered the water, but it wasn’t a sharp pain. It was simply the healing starting to take place in his tired body.

“The room is small, but this hot spring is so big...”

The hot spring here was separated for men and women, so Koutarou and the girls split up. And as there were no other guests around, Koutarou had the men’s spring to himself. It was almost like being in a large bathtub. Because his surroundings were always so noisy, this large and quiet hot spring was just what he needed.

“Today was fun... the perverts aside. We sure did play a lot...”

Koutarou recalled the events for the day. After chasing off the perverts(?), Koutarou and the others—a total of fourteen people with the cosclub—all played together. And they didn’t just go swimming. They also played beach volleyball and had a barbecue.

“And Senpai got along with everyone. It’s all good.”

Though Harumi didn’t swim because of her weak constitution, Koutarou had seen her, Yurika, Ruth, and some members from the cosclub playing on the beach. She even joined Koutarou for a little while to play beach volleyball.

Having fun really is the most important thing...

Harumi, who tended to be a loner, had been able to hang out with a bunch of other people. That was what Koutarou was the most happy about. Because of that, even after Harumi had returned to her villa, he was still in a good mood.

“...!”

“...?!”

Koutarou heard the voices of the Corona House girls coming from the women’s bath. Though it was through a wall and he couldn’t clearly hear them, it sounded like they were all discussing something together.

“Heh, are they at it again...?”

Normally Koutarou would get angry and shout at them to not cause trouble for the other customers, but not this time. He could hear that they were all talking calmly. The girls had played all day long and were exhausted too.

“You guys, don’t get too carried away...”

As Koutarou soaked in the water, he began to doze off.

Around the time that Koutarou was falling asleep in the men’s bath, the girls were discussing a special topic in the women’s bath. Without Koutarou around like he ordinarily was and enjoying their privacy as the only guests in the bath, the girls’ conversation naturally drifted towards things that didn’t often come up between them.

First, it was complaining about Koutarou. Normally he was straight on, but from time to time he would do something incredibly stupid. Dissatisfied by that, the girls were enjoying swapping stories about him.

“...That’s why, to tell you the truth, I’m not that attached to the throne. As long as I can protect my mother, I don’t need to become empress.”

Their next topic branched off from that. Due to Koutarou’s unexpected resistance on all fronts, the girls’ invasions weren’t going as planned. It had already been four months since they came to room 106, and each of them were starting to panic in their own way. But nobody was giving up, and that was because they all had different reasons not to back down. It came up organically as they continued to talk.

“However, to protect my mother who is the current empress, just being a princess is not enough. I need to show that I am also worthy of being empress, or the citizens will not approve of my actions. From there, I would just get absorbed into the military.”

“So you don’t want room 106 to become empress, but because you want to protect your mom?”

Oddly enough, Sanae had listened to Theia without making fun of her and was now looking at her with a serious expression.

“That’s right. So I definitely won’t back down.”

“Hmm, so you’re kind of like me.”

“Like you?”

And Theia was just as serious. She didn’t feel like making fun of her intentions. As her small body was soaking in the water, she cocked her head at Sanae.

“Yeah. I need to wait for papa and mama in room 106.”

Sanae sat down on the edge of the hot spring and began talking while lightly kicking her feet. However, since she was a ghost, she couldn’t stir up the water and her legs moved just like there was no water there.

“When papa and mama come back, they would be troubled if I wasn’t there, right? That’s why I definitely won’t lose either. That place is my home after all.”

“I see, so you’re doing it for your parents’ sake too... In that case you can’t back down either.”

Theia looked at Sanae sympathetically. Her normal aggression was nowhere to be seen. The fact that she was exhausted might have had something to do with it. Thanks to that, Sanae forgot the antipathy she had begun feeling.

“I-In that case, I can’t back down either!” Yurika piped up.

“You?” Theia asked skeptically.

“You’re just lying.” Sanae just shut her down.

“I’m not lying! I have a proper reason too!”

Yurika would usually back down at that point, but the serious atmosphere made her bolder than normal. Slightly excited, she clutched the towel she was playing with in the water.

“I’m interested. Tell me more, Yurika.”

Kiriha smiled next to her. Having entered the hot spring, her buoyant breasts looked even bigger than normal. And while Kiriha had her chest covered with a towel, she had gentle smile on her face.

“Y-Yes.”

Yurika was a bit at a loss at the unexpected support. However, she quickly pulled herself together and began explaining her situation.

“Actually, I’m a magical girl to fill in for the person who I owe my life to.”

“Owe your life?”

Shizuka, who was in front of Yurika, looked confused. With her hair down, it was hard to recognize her at first glance. Her long hair fluttered as she tilted her head. Shizuka had vague doubts about what it meant to owe your life to someone as a cosplayer.

“Yes. When I was in danger, she saved me. But in return, she suffered a serious injury...”

Yurika cast her eyes down sadly. It was clear she felt responsible for what happened.

“So you became a magical girl on her behalf?”

“That’s right.” Yurika nodded. “That’s why I’ll protect the peace of this world. I miss not being able to see my family, but this is something I have to do.”

“What do you mean about not seeing your family?”

“If a magical girl stays at home, she’ll just cause trouble for her family. That’s why I left before I put them in any danger. My predecessor also fought alone.”

“Oh... That’s an inspiring resolution.”

So she’s becoming independent before she ends up causing trouble at home as a cosplayer... And she started cosplaying to repay the kindness that was shown to her. I thought she was completely hopeless, but it seems she at least has some guts...

Even Sanae, who was always pretty harsh on Yurika, started to think better of her.

“I see. So you do have a proper reason of your own,” said Theia.

Theia felt similarly to Sanae, and she respectfully accepted Yurika’s story. And after lightly nodding at Yurika, Theia turned her attention to Kiriha.

“So what brought you to the surface, Kiriha?”

“I believe I’ve told you before. I’m here to reclaim what was stolen. That is all.”

Theia was unsatisfied with Kiriha’s answer.

“After spending several hundred years underground, there has to be a reason for suddenly planning to invade the surface, right? Why now?”

“How pushy...” With Theia staring at her, Kiriha smiled wryly and gave up on trying to hide her reasons. “With the advancements on the surface, we, the People of the Earth, have begun drastically dropping in population.”

“Your population?”

“As people have grown enamored with the modernized surface, our population is emigrating more and more. And at the same time, the resources underground are starting to dry up. Taking into consideration the decline in population and the diminishment of our resources, living underground will be infeasible within a few generations.”

Kiriha’s clan laid claim to scientific advances far superior to that of modern society. In the past, her people’s pride in that alone kept most of them from leaving for the surface.

But with the surface modernizing on a large scale, the underground began losing its appeal to them. Many of the underground dwellers sought culture, starting with art and music that had begun to greatly develop too. More and more headed for the surface and didn’t return. And as resources became scarcer underground, the emigration only accelerated.

“However, we can’t just wait for our extinction. That’s why we decided to come up to the surface. It’s the only choice we have to make a base and prosper again.”

“But the surface governments won’t allow that...”

“That’s right. But having been forced underground by the surface dwellers, that seems like a petty reason not to proceed.”

“I don’t really get it, but if you don’t invade, everyone will lose their homes, right?”

“Hah, bluntly put, but that is correct.”

In contrast to the seriousness of the situation, Kiriha was smiling, which only served to confuse the others.

“But you seem to be enjoying yourself, Kiriha-san.”

“Even though our clan will go extinct at this rate, it’s not something my generation alone can fix. We can’t back down no matter what, but on the other hand, we can’t force our way and cause irreparable damage. Because of our small numbers, we only have one chance.”

“I see. So you need a slow, careful, certain invasion over a long period of time. I assume you’re currently laying the foundation for that, correct?”

“Spot on, Theia-dono.”

Kiriha’s clan was a minority, so their biggest fear was being branded as terrorists by the surface dwellers. If that were to happen, they would meet the same fate several other minorities around the world had. But in a few generations, if they didn’t succeed in making a base on the surface, that would be the end for them. So to Kiriha who was leading the invasion, the most important thing was taking the slow and steady route to invasion. If they relied on force, it might mean an even sooner extinction.

In a way, her situation very similar to Theia’s. If the invasion wasn’t supported by the citizenry, victory would elude them.

“That said, it is true that I have been enjoying myself since I came to the surface.”

“Is there something you want to do while you’re here?”

Kiriha nodded at Shizuka’s question.

“I’ve been wanting to ride on a roller coaster for a long time.”

“A roller coaster?!”

Everyone was caught off guard, not just Shizuka.

“Actually, I once came up to the surface as a child. But back then, I was unable to ride one because I was too short,” Kiriha said nostalgically.

“So that’s why you want to ride one? That’s in surprisingly good taste for someone who’s lived underground.”

“If you told my father, he would scold me though,” Kiriha said as she shrugged her shoulders.

Infatuation with the surface was one of the reasons for the decline of Kiriha’s clans. The idea that the chieftain’s daughter wanted to ride a roller coaster was somewhat scandalous.

“As a generalization, it seems like everyone related to room 106 has complicated relationships with their families.”

That was the conclusion Ruth had reached upon listening to everyone, and Shizuka quickly agreed.

“Now that you mention it, that’s true. I want to take care of Corona House because my parents are gone. And Satomi-kun is living in room 106 because he didn’t want to cause any problems for his father. So we’re just like everyone else in that regard.”

By some mysterious coincidence, they were in similarly difficult situations. They were able to understand each other a little better, but that included why each of them couldn’t back down. Their fight over room 106 was far from over.

“Things sure have gotten problematic.”

“There is no problem. I’m going to win.”

“I-I won’t lose either!”

“I don’t understand why Yurika hasn’t lost yet. No matter how I look at it, she’s just so incapable...”

“That’s a horrible thing to say!”

“L-Look Nijino-san, they say luck is a skill...”

“Please don’t make it sound like this all comes down to luck!”

Cheerful voices filled the women’s bath. They were all enemies, and they would continue to fight, but oddly enough they were all smiling now. That was because they knew that deep down, they were both enemies and friends.

“Let’s go, Hachi.”

“Got it, Aniki.”

And it was at that peaceful moment that the ghost hunters attempted their plan B.

“Hm...? H-Huh? What?”

Koutarou woke up from his nap to a commotion from the women’s bath.

“Nooooooooooo, p-perverts! Peepers!”

“You bastards! You boldly come here to sully my noble body?!”

“Th-They tried to touch me! Those men tried to touch my breasts!”

“Karama, Korama, protect Ruth! Ruth, this way!”

“Would you guys give it a break?! Are you stalkers?!”

“Ahhh, I’ve had it! Just as we were really getting into the girl talk!”

He could clearly hear all six girls, but they all seemed to be enraged now for some reason.

“What’s going on over there?”

Having just woken up, Koutarou had no idea what was happening.

“Th-This is just a misunderstanding! We’re not into peeping! We have no interest in your normal bodies!”

“That’s right! We only want to catch and lock up that small girl over there so we can have a good time!”

He could also hear the familiar voices of two men. However, with his mind still foggy, Koutarou couldn’t quite place where he’d heard those voices before.

“Arghhh! Sh-Shizuka, c-can I blow these guys away?! I can’t forgive them for saying something like that to me!”

“That’s fine! This time’s special! Setting these no-good criminals free the first time was a mistake!”

“Blue Knight! Bring out the high convergence Anti-Personnel Beam Cannon!”

“Karama, Korama, set up an energy amplification field!”

“Understood, ho! Let’s go, Korama!”

“Now’s the time for our ultimate formation! Ho!”

“Waaaaaaaah, it’s all over!”

“Aniki! Anikiiiii!”

“Dieeeee! Perverts!”

A flash of light could be seen from the women’s bath.

“Whoa!”

Right afterwards, two men—charred black—came flying out of the women’s bath and landed right in front of Koutarou.

“You’re those guys from the beach...”

As he wiped away the water that splashed on his face, Koutarou finally remembered where they’d met before. The men now floating in the hot spring were the perverts that had tried to kidnap Theia at the beach.

“You guys are pretty gutsy to show up again after the beating you took this afternoon. I’ll give you that much...”

Their nefarious intentions aside, Koutarou had to give them some credit for their determination.

“Y-Young man, what’s up with th-those girls you’re with...?”

“I’m having trouble with them myself.”

“I-I see...”

But that was about as far as their perseverance got them. After being beaten to a pulp by the girls again, they were unable to do much else.

“Blub blub blub...”

“Please pass on...”

Koutarou watched on as the two men slowly sank to the bottom of the hot spring.

“Jeez, it’s gotten really late.”

Koutarou didn’t leave the bath until some time after the girls did. Since he was the only one in the men’s bath, it took a lot of work to drag the ghost hunters out of it.

“I’m back.”

Because of that, the girls should have gotten back to the room long before he did. But as Koutarou reached the room, he couldn’t hear any cheerful voices. It was oddly quiet.

“...That’s strange. They should have gotten back by now.”

Koutarou tilted his head, took off his slippers, and entered the room.

“Welcome back, Koutarou.”

The only one in the room was Kiriha. The lights were off and the room was dark, but the faint light coming through the window illuminated her silhouette as she sat on the sill. Her yukata and beautiful black hair fluttered in the breeze coming in from outside. She was looking out over the night sea. But even in the dead of night, the sea wasn’t pitch black. The same moon and starlight that was shining down on Kiriha was lighting up the sea as well.

Oh, so that’s why the lights are off...

With the lights in the room on, Kiriha wouldn’t have been able to see the soft light reflecting off the water’s surface. Kiriha’s profile as she stared out of the window was strangely serene, but she looked even mellower as she gazed down at what she was holding. In her hand was a small card from an old card game. Though the card originally had a metallic quality, time had taken its toll and it now had lost most of its sheen. The card’s surface also had something scribbled on it. As Kiriha traced the handwriting with her finger, her bright smile made up for the lost luster of the card.

That card must be something really precious to her...

Kiriha’s expression, the gentle movements of her fingertips, and her solemn stare led Koutarou to believe she was reminiscing over something that involved that card. He also had possessions he associated with precious memories, so he thought he understood how Kiriha might be feeling.

But what is this? I feel calm just watching her...

Koutarou saw Kiriha’s smile every day. She was very deliberate about that. But the smile he saw now was different from any smile she had shown him so far. That struck a chord deep inside of Koutarou. It made him lower his guard.

“What’s wrong, Koutarou? Why are standing over there?”

Kiriha broke the silence. She looked at Koutarou and smiled—a smile very similar to when she was looking at the card.

“Ah, u-um...”

Koutarou couldn’t say that he was staring at her in admiration, so he stammered for an excuse. Fortunately, Kiriha was holding the perfect excuse in her hand.

“That card looks like it’s something very dear to you, so I was just wondering what it is.”

“It doesn’t seem like me, does it? I’m well aware of that, but I just can’t part ways with it,” Kiriha said as she gazed down on the card again with a bittersweet smile.

But Koutarou shook his head.

“You don’t have to part ways with it. It’s a treasure to you, right?”

“Koutarou...”

Kiriha looked at Koutarou suspiciously. She was puzzled by his words.

“What’s the matter, Kiriha-san?”

“I thought you would laugh at me when you saw me carrying around something like this, so I was just a little surprised.”

“It doesn’t matter who you are, Kiriha-san. I couldn’t laugh at someone else’s precious memories. Besides, I have stuff like that hidden away too,” Koutarou said lightheartedly.

As he spoke, Kiriha’s mysterious smile from before crept back to her lips. It stirred something deep inside of Koutarou.

“...Thank you, Koutarou.”

“You won’t get anything for thanking me, you know.”

Koutarou tried to cover up his embarrassment, but Kiriha shook her head.

“That’s fine. I’ve already received enough from you.”

“H-Hey...”

Koutarou couldn’t hide his confusion anymore. This wasn’t the normal Kiriha he was used to dealing with. There was something honest and transparent about her now. The atmosphere around her was completely different. It was pleasing to Koutarou, even though he knew he couldn’t let his guard down around her.

“I got this card a long time ago from someone I loved. But I haven’t seen him ever since...”

“Do you want to see him again?”

“Yeah, I do... But I don’t know what I would do if we met.”

Kiriha was normally scheming, but the thought of using her own memories like that didn’t cross her mind. That meant this was the first time she had shown Koutarou a bit of her true self. It was a subconscious sign of gratitude to Koutarou for not laughing at her.

Is she trying to trick me again? She doesn’t seem to be, but... No, no, this is Kiriha-san we’re talking about. I have to stay on my toes. But are these really the eyes of a liar...?

But Koutarou had no way of knowing that. He was confused by her revealing herself in such a way.

“Ah, here they are! Koutarou and Kiriha, you two come too!”

“Wuh?!”

Sanae’s sudden appearance startled Koutarou so badly that he thought his heart might stop. For better or for worse, Kiriha had been the only thing on his mind at the moment.

“O-Oh, it’s just Sanae...”

“What’s wrong, Koutarou? You’re making a weird face. It’s gross.”

“L-Leave me alone.”

She’s right, this isn’t like me. I’m just feeling a bit generous after coming to the beach...

Though he had been incredibly surprised by Sanae’s appearance, it snapped him back to reality.

“Well, there’s a ping pong table over there, so you two come play too! We’re having a tournament!”

“Oh, that sounds interesting.”

Sanae and the others hadn’t come back yet because they had found a ping pong table on their way back. Kiriha, deep in thought, had returned to the room alone.

“Let’s go, Sanae!”

“Aye aye, sir!”

Hearing about the ping pong table, the sports-loving Koutarou dragged Sanae with him and dashed out of the room. With that, Kiriha was once again the only one left in the room.

“...How odd. Why did I tell Koutarou all that?”

Kiriha herself was surprised at opening up to Koutarou. Although she was happy that he hadn’t laughed about her card, when she thought about the fight for room 106, revealing herself would only serve as handicap. But even then, she couldn’t keep herself from talking. Part of her felt like she wanted to let him know.

“How careless. It’s like our positions have been reversed...”

Kiriha was trying to seize room 106 by finding her way into Koutarou’s heart. Yet instead, Koutarou was the one making his way into hers.

“I guess this is what you call a tactician outsmarting themself. Heeheehee...”

But despite what she said, Kiriha didn’t regret a thing.

Koutarou and the others went to bed after midnight. Normally they would stay up a while longer, but everyone was exhausted after playing all day. On top of that, they still had two more days to play on the beach ahead of them. So instead of forcing themselves, they all decided to get some rest.

But seven people sleeping in such a small room was no easy task. And it wasn’t just the lack of space. The heat wasn’t helping at all either. After a long discussion of how to fit everyone in, it was decided that Sanae would sleep in the ceiling, and Yurika, who had lost in rock-paper-scissors, would sleep in a sleeping bag. They had solved the problem of how to fit everyone in the room, but that didn’t do anything about the temperature. Fortunately, being so close to the beach, it had cooled off enough to sleep by 1 o’clock or so. And by 2 o’clock, everyone had fallen into a deep slumber. Little did they know that the night’s troubles were just about to begin.

“...Hmm... H-Huh...?”

Ruth was the first to notice the strange occurrence. When she tried to roll over or sit up, she was unable to move. It felt like something warm was covering her entire body.

“Fuh... Fuh...”

She could feel someone’s breath repeatedly stroking her cheek. The smell of unfamiliar body soap tickled her nose.

What is this, I wonder...?

She had no idea what was on top of her, but as the hot breath caressed her cheek, Ruth let herself go a little and felt a strange sense of freedom. She wanted to give herself over to that powerful warmth.

“This is mine...” a man’s voice whispered into her ear.

When the mysterious warmth on top of Ruth wrapped itself around her, she felt an even deeper sense of security.

A man’s voice...

However, that realization snapped Ruth wide awake.

“Wh-What is—?!”

When she opened her eyes, the first thing Ruth saw was the figure of a man on top of her. The perverts from the beach and hot spring came to mind and Ruth tensed up.

I-I’m being, a-attacked again?!

Ruth was practically paralyzed by fear and surprise. Unable to scream, she couldn’t do anything but stare up at the man over her. That was when a faint light came through the window and lit up the man’s face. Thanks to that, Ruth was able to identify him.

“...Huh? S-Satomi-sama?!”

That face belonged to Koutarou. Once she recognized him, Ruth’s tension vanished immediately.

“Oh, it was just you, Satomi-sama... Please don’t surprise me like that... Goodness...”

Ruth let out a sigh of relief and brought her cheek closer to Koutarou’s again. For a moment, the warm sense of security she had felt before returned. She enjoyed the sensation of his breath on her cheek until it dawned on her.

“...Wait! Satomi-sama?!”

Ruth tensed up once more. Fully realizing the situation, her mind went blank and she lost her ability to reason.

“S-Satomi-sama desires me... desires... Ahhh!”

Ruth wasn’t afraid like she was before when she thought she was being accosted by some pervert. This time, she was filled with a strong sense of surprise and embarrassment... possibly with a tinge of joy.

“Wh-Wh-Wh-What should I do?! I-I’m not prepared! Satomi-sama, this is too sudden!”

“I won’t hand it over to anyone...”

As those words leaked out of Koutarou’s mouth, he tightened his grip around Ruth even more.

“F-Fuaaaaah...” At that moment, all power left her body. “I-If you say something like that, I’ll go crazy!”

Coming from a noble family and being raised only around other girls, this situation was far too stimulating for Ruth. If it had been someone she hated, it would have been rather cut and dry, but she was dealing with Koutarou, someone she rather liked.

And then Koutarou brought his face closer to hers. Ruth’s intuition told her that he was going to kiss her, and she couldn’t help remembering when she had imagined kissing Koutarou back at the lottery tent.

“Th-This... At this rate I’ll... I’ll...!”

I-It’s fine, right?! A man who desires me has embraced so I can’t escape. This isn’t just some selfish delusion, right?!

Prompted by her throbbing heart, Ruth finally gave in. She raised her chin and closed her eyes in answer to Koutarou.

I’m glad... It was just a misunderstanding on my part...I thought he didn’t care about how I looked in my swimsuit... But he really does see me as a woman...

“I found this tree, Mackenzie. If you want a beetle, go find your own tree...”

Unfortunately, Koutarou didn’t see Ruth as a woman, but rather as a large tree with several beetles on it.

“Huh...?”

At that moment, Ruth’s mind went blank once more.

“Heh heh heh, I won’t hand over a single one to you...”

“H-He’s just dreaming...?”

Everything finally became apparent to Ruth.

Koutarou had unbelievably poor sleeping habits. He would always roll around when he slept, as evidenced by her stepping on him every morning. This time, Ruth just happened to be in his way. He was only clinging on to Ruth because he thought she was a tree.

“I win this year, Mackenzie... Bwahahaha...”

“He’s not after me, but... beetles?”

Ruth’s throbbing heart, the conflicted feelings of being desired, and the anticipation of being kissed... It was all just a misunderstanding on her part. That reality was just far too cruel for Ruth.

“N-Nooooo! This can’t beeeee!”

Ruth began struggling to escape—from the truth and from Koutarou. She desperately tried to push Koutarou away and started screaming out loud.

“A-An earthquake, huh...? That was close...”

“Nooooooooooo!”

Koutarou mistook Ruth struggling beneath him for an earthquake and held on to her even tighter in response. But that didn’t stop Ruth. Although try as she might, Koutarou just let her push him around in his sleep as he clung to her.

“Kyaaaaah!”

“Ugh!”

“Kyaaah! Wh-Who just touched my breasts?!”

“Wh-What?! What’s going on?”

Koutarou and Ruth were tumbling around the room now. They knocked over Yurika, touched Shizuka’s breasts, and rolled over Theia’s face. The only ones who were safe were Kiriha, who had noticed the commotion, and Sanae, who was sleeping in the ceiling.

“All right, let’s go, Hachi!”

“Got it, Aniki!”

But some people always have terrible timing. The two bumbling ghost hunters were a shining example.

“Satomi-kun, you pervert!!”

“Dieeeee! Pay for this with your lifeeeee!”

“Stupid Satomi-sama!”

The ghost hunters were planning on sneaking into the room after everyone had fallen asleep. But just as they tried to enter through the window, they were blown away by a stray bullet.

“H-Hachi... Wh-What exactly just...?”

“Wh-Who knows? But we found out something, Aniki.”

“What?”

“We should wait until that ghost is alone...”

“Th-That’s exactly I was thinking... This mission’ll kill us at this rate...”

The two had been kicked to the base of the inn and fainted on the spot. Just like that, their third attempt ended in a failure.

“What are you doing, Satomi-kun? Keep it together. What time do you think it is? Jeez...”

“I am really sorry. I have no excuse. I completely forgot about my own poor sleeping habits...”

It was now 2:30 AM. With the lights on now, Koutarou was repeatedly apologizing to the girls.

“What kind of dream makes you roll all around the room anyways?”

“Well, me and Mackenzie were hunting for beetles, but there was an earthquake all of a sudden. I held on to the tree with all my might, but apparently that’s when I started rolling around.”

“The shaking was only because you were rolling around. You really are an idiot... Besides, why would you be hunting beetles at your age?”

“But there was a big one over eight centimeters long. As a man I couldn’t just not—”

“Satomi-sama, that’s enough with the beetles! It’s really unpleasant!”

“S-Sorry.”

The girls were angry, but Ruth, who’d rolled around with Koutarou, was especially angry. She was so angry that her usual docile attitude seemed like an illusion. The only ones that weren’t angry were Kiriha, who hadn’t been involved at all, and Yurika, who was out cold.

“Hey, pleb.” Theia whispered as she tugged on Koutarou’s sleeve.

“What?”

“What did you do to Ruth? It’s abnormal for her to be so angry. Are you sure all you did was hold on to her and roll around with her?”

“Yeah, that should be all I did...”

Of course, Koutarou had no clue about why Ruth was so angry. All he was doing was hunting for beetles.

“Hmm, how unusual... This is the first time Ruth has gotten that angry at someone other than me.”

“This is bad...”

“When she’s like this, it’s best to leave her alone for a while. It takes about a week for her to cool down.”

“Your Highness! Satomi-sama! What are you whispering for?!”

Ruth’s eyes were burning with rage.

“N-Nothing.”

“I-It’s nothing. Nothing at all.”

Both of them caved before Ruth.

“...Don’t take me down with you.”

“Don’t be so selfish. You’re the one who started talking to me.”

“Are you listening to me, you two?!”

Sanae had the best grasp of what was going on.

“...”

That was both because she was the closest to Koutarou, and because she was a ghost. With a little bit of an outsider’s perspective, she had a pretty good handle on how they all felt about each other.

Theia and Ruth are interested in Koutarou... I need to do something fast or Koutarou will end up getting along better with them than with me.

“What’s wrong, Sanae? You’re making a funny face.”

“K-Koutarou?!”

But it was none other than Koutarou that managed to bring a halt to Sanae’s train of thought.

“I’m sorry. You’re angry too, right?” he asked as he apologized.

“I-I’m not really angry. I’m not one of the victims.”

“Really? Then why are you making that kind of face?”

“Why do you care about me?! In the end, we’re just enemies!”

In the end, we’re just enemies...

Sanae was shocked by her own words.

Koutarou and Sanae were enemies. Eventually, one of them had to go. That inevitable reality put a damper on Sanae’s feelings.

Compared to the two of them, Koutarou and Theia weren’t strictly enemies. Theia was after room 106, but she was ultimately trying to make Koutarou an ally. She had no need to chase Koutarou away.

Everyone had known that from the very beginning, but it was too much for Sanae right now.

“Yeah, you’re right. We really are enemies. It’s just as you say.” Koutarou shrugged and said no more.

“You’re right. We really are enemies...”

Koutarou’s words pierced Sanae, even though she knew that’s how Koutarou would respond. It still hurt.

I... I can’t take it... I’m... going crazy...

Tormented by the truth she couldn’t deny and the unease growing in her heart day after day, Sanae’s innocent smile disappeared.