Translator: Nefarian

  「Danna-sama, I think we should keep this girl.」


  「You haven’t given an explanation yet.」


  Repeating the same retort, Taiyou was still demanding an explanation.

  Neither Taiyou, the three sisters and Aoba who had tried to come closer to the conversation between Kohaku and Pochi could have expected this outcome, they all had bewildered expressions. Only Shirokiyami maintained her boundless gaze, but even so there was no doubt that she was still looking with interest at the group.

  Everyone’s thoughts became one and the mood indicated that the people demanded an explanation about Pochi’s situation.

  「Please explain to me so that I can understand it more.」


  「In that case, let’s explain in order. Danna-sama is my Master jya」


  「Rather than Master, isn’t it closer to head of the household….?」


  Aoba was pointing out the difference between the two meanings as if explaining something to a foreign person. However, Kohaku didn’t mind the words and continued to talk in her own pace.

  「And I will become this girl’s Master. In such a case, it is only natural that I obtain permission from Danna-sama in order to keep her jya.」


  「Hang on a second, if you’re trying to explain things in order, I feel like there is something very important being left out.」


  「It’s a normal thing to skip past the boring process and just go straight to the result jya.」


  「What type of end game boss are you?!」


  「You shouldn’t worry about it, I don’t really worry about the small things.」


  「I’m telling you to explain so that I can understand what happened before.」


  「Umm excuse me……. The Master of my Master?」


  Taiyou was about to give a vehement retort to Kohaku when Pochi addresses him from the side. Her eyes were wet and moist, it was really reminiscent of the famous “puppy eyes” gesture.

  「Is it really impossible, to keep me?」


  「No no, to begin with, do you really understand the word “keep” in this particular context?」


  「Yes, doesn’t it have the meaning of “Providing food for a pet and fostering them”?」


  「You actually understood?! Eh, why are you answering in such a joyful way then?!」


  「Hey, Suzu-chan, Kaza-chan, even back when we were in the room a while ago, I have a feeling that this is…..」


  「Yeah, there’s no doubt about it, I’m looking it up in my smart phone right now.」


  「But, it might be just a coincidence so, let’s just wait a little while longer.」


  The three sisters were whispering something amongst themselves from the side, but right now Taiyou’s mind was filled with Pochi’s situation so he couldn’t really concentrate on what they were talking about.

  To such a Taiyou, Pochi attempts to give the finishing blow.

  「I would really love it if, the Master of my Master could keep me!」


  「For the time being, just wait.」


  「Yes!」


  Pochi immediately listen’s to the command “Wait”. Voices of admiration comes out from the surrounding women.

  「That’s not the kind of meaning I was intending! You girl’s also are having really weird responses!」


  「It wasn’t a “Wait” command?」


  「It wasn’t! So for the time being, please just stand over there on standby!」


  Raising his voice to a shout, he talked in a manner that wasn’t normally used in everyday conversations. Even so Pochi’s response was “I understand!” with great joy in her voice.

  「For now, Kohaku-san, please don’t try to rush off and give us a proper explanation, is that alright?」


  「Hmm let’s see, well, you’ve probably realized it long ago but, I plan on taking care of this girl.」


  「…. Yes.」


  After seeing that Kohaku was finally speaking in a serious tone of voice, Taiyou answers slowly with a nod.

  「First is that this girl is the daughter of an Eternally Little jya. I spoke a little with this girl when she jumped over and apparently she is able to smell a different scent when comparing normal human beings and the Eternally little. It seems that there is a smell that is peculiar to the Eternally Little jya. In other words, both Karina and I have the same kind of smell.」


  「You are both part of the Eternally Little after all.」


  Aoba who accompanied her to Karina’s mansion, was murmuring in acknowledgement.

  「That’s right jya. In addition to that, this girl has become emotionally attached to me. As you can tell her disposition is like so, perhaps she sees me as her mother and is seeking protection from me.」


  「I see.」


  「And one other thing. Would it be alright if you didn’t laugh after hearing this?」


  「What is it?」


  He looked towards Kohaku in a manner that implied that he wasn’t going to laugh. She had a serious look on her face.

  「Since a long time ago, it’s been a dream of mine to become a mother. Although she has been using the words “Master” to address us, for her this word is equivalent to the word mother.」


  「Ahh, Iwashiro-san also mentioned the same thing.」


  「I feel like this has been all according to fate. I will take this girl to the government office and make a proper family register for her and officially make her my daughter. If I do this, I feel like I can enjoy the feeling of being a mother that I’ve always wished for.」


  「You mean like a daughter-in-law? Wasn’t Iwashiro-san also in the same relationship?」


  「That’s a little different jya, she may think of me in that way, but I was merely acting as her supporter jya. I wasn’t her mother.」


  「I see.」


  Taiyou nods. She didn’t say the precise circumstances of the story but hearing the words “acting as her supporter” he could conjure up an image of what might have happened between the two. Certainly, in that sense she couldn’t really be called a mother, at the very least, she couldn’t claim to have felt “motherly feelings” from such a thing.

  「That’s why, I’m planning on taking her in jyaga….. As I’ve said before, I intend to offer my everything to Danna-sama—I will also keep doing it from now. That’s why, I really hope to obtain Danna-sama’s consent in the matter.」


  「So that’s how it was. By the way, what’s with her calling me the Master of my Master….?」


  「She’s just following along to what I was calling you, probably…」


  「So it’s cause of you?! Well, it certainly makes more sense now.」


  「After all, she has a submissive personality similar to a dog, so she may have recognized you in this type of way.」


  After Aoba mentions this, Taiyou recalls the specific behavioral traits a dog possesses. When a dog follows a ranking hierarchy within a human household, they sometimes recognize multiple members above its own ranking. That’s where this Master of my Master is coming from.

  「I suppose it’s similar to having an Alpha?」


  「She’s not doing this because she fears you or anything jya.」


  「No I wasn’t worried about that.」


  Taiyou exhales a small breath of air and faces Kohaku once again. She keeps her smile but also has this longing look in her eyes. That’s the kind of eyes Taiyou thought she had.

  ———–


  On their way back, they also used the trailer driven by Taiyou.

  It couldn’t really be called a comfortable ride, the three sisters were barely sitting on the edge of the seats and the newcomer Pochi was clinging on to Kohaku tightly. Just like how he arrived, he didn’t seem to be sweating in the slightest, by his side Shirokiyami’s silent footsteps could be heard as she kept up with him.

  From anyone’s perspective, they would seem like a strange line-up. If rumors were to be spread by witnesses, it was a sight that could easily become a ghost story or urban legend.

  Even though he was slower than when he arrived, it was still like he was driving a cross bike at full speed. With the wind blowing against them, the beautiful women had their hairs running wildly against the wind.

  Meanwhile, the three sisters were asking Pochi questions.

  「An Islamic countries royal family, or perhaps a lady’s room from a noble family. Or a single man with a lot of women attending him. Something like that?」


  「What do you think, Suzu-chan?」


  「It makes sense, but I feel like a different place also exists.」


  「I don’t think so, Suzu-chan, that kind of word is written like this in the dictionary. There is no mid part to what Suzu-chan is looking at.」


  「Ah, so that’s how it is.」


  「But you guys, seem to notice it quite early jya.」


  The women were chattering noisily with each other. Pochi included, they had a happy atmosphere around them.

  「It increased…. again.」


  Shirokiyami mutters.

  「Before I noticed it….. it keeps on multiplying. One moment there is one girl….. now there are three, hmm.」


  「You are also a girl, so can’t you stop talking in such a hypothetical manner?」


  Taiyou tries to give her a quip, but in the next moment it was like she disappeared from sight.

  「Besides, it didn’t really increase in the manner you were hinting, right? After all, Pochi is becoming Kohaku-san’s daughter.」


  「Eh?」


  「Huh?」


  Shirokiyami was surprised by Taiyou’s words and he was also surprised at her reaction.

  「What do you mean when you go “Eh”?」


  「Well, it’s cause, I know her secret… plan」


  「What did you say?」


  While running, he turns around. And met with Kohaku’s gaze.

  「As expected of Yami, I can’t hide anything from you.」


  「It’s not like… you really hid it.」


  「Wait a minute Kohaku-san, are you still hiding something from us?」


  「No, I’ve already spoken about it.」


  Kohaku speaks indifferently.

  「Just like Yami has said, I haven’t really tried to hide it jya. Rather, Danna-sama is the one who hasn’t noticed it jya.」


  「I’m the one who hasn’t noticed?」


  「「「Ohh!」」」


  Clap, clap, clap, sounds of clapping resounded. Leaving Taiyou aside, the three sisters already noticed it first.

  「W-What is it?」


  「Ahh, it’s natural if Aoba-san hasn’t realized it yet, when we talked about this in the past, you weren’t with us yet. When I declared that I was Danna-sama’s thing, I presented both my body and mind towards Danna-sama jya.」


  「Such a thing… Ah?」


  After Kohaku gives her a hint, Aoba seems to have understood the situation.

  「Hang on a minute, what are you guys…. Oh.」


  He was a little behind the girls, but Taiyou finally understood. He finally understood the meaning behind Kohaku’s words.

  「Kohaku-san… don’t tell me you…」


  While running with the trailer in tow, he looked behind and stared at Kohaku with a cold gaze. Kohaku was looking at him with a big smile on her face.

  「What comes after sisters mixed in a rice bowl is of course a mother-daughter bowl jya.」


  Taiyou was completely dumbfounded, he did not expect in the slightest that Kohaku would be scheming something like this.

  「If she’s your daughter, isn’t it obvious that this will become incest?!!」


  This was the loudest quip Taiyou gave in this day. He really did not expect for Kohaku to be planning something like this.

  CHAPTER 103: Girls in Distress / Sun Tzu’s Art of War

  Translator: Reflet

  Taiyou looked up at the night sky once he entered the garden, arms folded. The moon was hung high in the sky as if it were a plate decorated with the stars of the entire sky, and these two contrasts weren’t usually a visible sight from the city.

  「There are a lot of stars, but the moon is the same as ever, I guess.」


  「That’s…t, rue.」


  As he muttered to no one in particular, he felt Shirokiyami stand next to him. It wasn’t just her manner of speaking derived from her unique way of breathing; he had just recently sort of begun to recognize her presence. Taiyou, who was in love with her, thought very positively of that.

  「People long ago…looked at the moon that never changed even when they were on a trip…they were reminded of their, home town.」


  「Yeah, there was that sort of haiku or poem, huh.」


  「Yes, that much…doesn’t change, after all.」


  「I see. By the way, aren’t you going to enter the hot spring?」


  Taiyou listened carefully as he asked Shirokiyami. From the other side of the building, behind the detached area that had an open-bath family-oriented stall, he could hear high-pitched voices. Just earlier, the girls that had returned via the trailer had dubbed this as welcoming party and invited Pochi into the hot spring. The voices that he was hearing right now were the females entering the bath. Speaking of which, Taiyou was also invited, but he refused. Furthermore, he had left the building, trying to…avoid any potential disaster. Incidentally, Shirokiyami was also invited to come along, so he had really thought that she would enter the hot spring with them.

  「According, to…Sun Tzu.」


  Taiyou had a puzzled look on his face, questioning what she had suddenly started saying. A fastball thrown into the day after tomorrow. She would from time-to-time have this habit of refusing to follow up in the catch-ball of conversation.

  「What do you mean?」


  He somehow picked up that ball, attempting to throw it back.

  「Those who fighteth virtuously, are those who winneth against easy opponents.」


  「Sorry, can you say that in a more easy-to-understand manner? I mean, you’re saying it in a really fluent way so I’m sure that those are some really important words to you.」


  「We, don’t…fight losing battles.」


  「I’m starting to get this less and less.」


  「If you become an adult…will you, understand?」


  「So is this a question?」


  「Or maybe…soon, after this.」


  「What are you, a commercial!」


  A good-tempo back-and-forth conversation unfolded, but it ended with him still confused.

  「In any, case.」


  「Yeah?」


  「So, are you really going to go for…the Mother-Daughter Bowl?」


  「Not a chance.」


  In response to the new topic that she brought up, Taiyou laughed in a strained manner and shook his head.

  「Kohaku-san’s just saying that on her own, okay? I don’t have that sort of intention. And besides, Kohaku-san is just saying that as a joke, I’m telling you.」


  「I know someone…who is, like, that person.」


  「Huh?」


  「Saying that they’re nothing…people who add more, than they need, to.」


  That seemed to be yet another ball that went into the day after tomorrow, but this time it shifted to a Guin curveball with the likes of a magic ball. Unlike earlier, he got the gist of what Shirokiyami was trying to say.

  「…You’re saying that Kohaku-san is like that, aren’t you?」


  「That’s…how the, phrase went.」


  The phrase. Taiyou pondered those words in his head. The phrase that Kohaku often put to her mouth like a catchphrase. A phrase that every time it was uttered, he secretly felt that it was too much.

  ――I offer everything to you.

  Almost as if she were swearing an oath, she let that phrase out of her mouth at every opportunity. As if reexamining something within herself, she would turn to Taiyou and continue saying it.

  「That phrase, huh…」


  「That person is, serious…I, think. She intends to…strip herself of her daughter and, offer her to you.」


  「No way, that has to just be a play-on-words. Cause Kohaku-san usually does that sort of conversational exchange.」


  「But…power dwells, in her words. Just like how you say…that you’ll defeat, me.」


  「Yep, I’ll definitely defeat you.」


  Saying that, Taiyou took a step back into a fighting pose. Deciding that it was best not to dig too deep into Kohaku’s affairs, he attempted to change the conversation.

  「I’ve become a bit stronger, so can I come at you right now?」


  「…I, won’t.」


  But Shirokiyami didn’t play along. She wasn’t even paying attention to Taiyou, silently gazing up at the sky.

  Being ignored annoyed him so he thought to still rush at her…but he decided to stop. Looking at her from the side gazing at the moon, she was acting obscure as usual, and there didn’t seem to be any way to get ahold of her.

  Taiyou felt that her face was pretty. Her face-in-profile would be in the “best three” among the girls that he loved. If it meant wrecking that face and that atmosphere, then he didn’t want to forcibly challenge her.

  Taiyou was fascinated by the view of her sidelong face for a short while.

  If he were to take a picture and submit it for a contest, it would undoubtedly have the title of「Heaps of Corpses All Around」. That kind of scenery unfolded before Taiyou’s eyes when he returned to the room. The three sisters along with Kohaku, as well as Aoba. They had come out of the bath in their yukatas with a tinge of cherry blossom adorning their skin, but some of them were hanging their heads with their hands and knees pressed against the floor with the shape of the “orz” emoticon, while others were leaning against the wall with the air of a burnt-out boxer.

  These were clear signs of some form of severe psychological damage, not to be taken lightly.

  「What happened?」


  「I lost…」


  Aoba replied, dejectedly hanging her head. There was no power in her words.

  「You lost?」


  「To think they would be that big…」


  「They were way bigger than when clothed…」


  「That’s just…that’s just cheating…」


  「Kotone? Suzune? Kazane?」


  「You girls are still fine jya, I’m just…I’m just…」


  「Even you, Kohaku-san? What in the world happened?」


  「I get you, Kohaku-san! I’m of the same opinion!」


  「You understand me, Kazane!」


  The two small-framed individuals who had been fighting for first place tightly embraced each other inside the house. The atmosphere was just like those typical 8 a.m. public management broadcasts. Taiyou tilted his head some more after seeing that sight. Fidgeting in depressed and excited manners, those girls were clearly not their normal selves. He surveyed the inside of the room to figure out what the cause was.

  「Master.」


  「Ohh, it’s you, Pochi, what exactly――」


  Unlike the brides, Pochi’s voice coming from behind him was the same tone as before. Thinking he could find out something from her, Taiyou turned around, but what appeared before him stole his gaze.

  「Melon…」


  Taiyou muttered for some reason. In a moment, the room was filled with even deeper feelings of resentment. When wearing a yukata, Pochi boasted a volume that was vastly larger than when wearing her regular clothing. Taiyou looked at that, and looked at the girls. ‘I see’…he began to say but immediately swallowed his words.

  「And I thought that we’d be fine in this area.」


  「No Aoba, you’re pretty fine too, you know?」


  「I don’t need your obvious counseling!」


  Aoba screamed in a hysterical voice that felt quite exaggerated.

  「You’re going over the top…」


  And although he said that, Taiyou secretly felt that he somewhat understood. After comparing the girls, he attempted to say the results in his head.

  Aoba: Mediocre breasts.

  Kotone, Suzune, and Kazane: Meager breasts.

  Kohaku――Flat as a wall.

  And Pochi’s huge breasts dwarfed all of their sizes put together.

  （Priceless big breasts…）

  Saying that to himself looking at each of their chests in turn, Taiyou was reminded of a commercial rhythm that he had often seen a while back. But since putting that into words would result in something catastrophic, he resisted the urge. He also resisted the urge to praise Pochi’s rack. Glancing at his unnecessary conflict, the girls began to band together.

  「This is no good, I gotta start drinking milk from tomorrow onward!」


  「I’ll also prepare small fish, Aoba-san!」


  「We’ll also do our best!」


  「I’ll think up a get-big meal menu with my utmost effort, okay!」


  The sisters encouraging each other and Aoba. Kohaku who was ridiculing herself to the side.

  「I envy these youngsters, with nothing on their minds but their futures and hopes.」


  「Those were fine words, but is this really the place to use them!?」


  「Master…」


  Pochi was trembling. Her face showed that she understood that she had caused her mother-master and the others to become this way. But, she had not done one thing wrong. At least that’s what Taiyou thought.

  「No, it’s not your fault. If anything, it’s their own self-destruction.」


  「Self-destruction?」


  「Yes…because they challenged her, even though it was already clear…self, destruction.」


  Emerging suddenly by Taiyou’s side, Shirokiyami gave a supplemental explanation. It seemed that she hadn’t really taken any damage.

  「When did you get back. …Wait, so this is what you meant when you said you wouldn’t fight?」


  「Grasping your capabilities is…important, impor, tant.」


  She said nonchalantly.

  「Oh, you should also enter the hot spring, Taiyou-san.」


  「The hot water was amazing.」


  「Yes, the hot water was…」


  Somewhat depressed, the three sisters referred Taiyou to the hot spring. Taiyou did just that. There was no point being here, so he took a towel and yukata from them and headed to the hot spring. He undressed in the changing room and entered. That was a spectacular open-air bath. Possibly designed with families in mind, that separate, private place had a bath that could fit everyone with room to spare. Just standing at the entrance was enough to rub against his nasal cavity with the smell of sulfur, and top of that, for some reason there was a large volume of apples lightly floating on the hot water.

  「Perhaps it’s a form of medicinal water?」


  He wasn’t sure what their intention was, but at the very least thought that it brought about some sort of atmosphere.

  「Well, first I’d better wash my body――」


  「Please let me do it.」


  「Yeah, go ahead and――like hell I’d say that!」


  Instinctively responding, he turned around. Pochi was there. Having undressed at some point, she was standing there without a single thread covering her naked body.

  「Wait, why exactly are you completely naked?」


  「Umm…because Master said to do so.」


  「Kohaku-san!」


  CHAPTER 104: Girls in Distress / The Confused Elderly Woman

  Translator: Reflet

  Giving in to his emotions and raising his voice, Taiyou yelled in the direction of the room. Pochi, still naked, timidly peeked at Taiyou in response to him suddenly raising a loud voice. She wasn’t necessarily frightened, but was more of perplexed as to why he had suddenly raised a loud voice. Taiyou was also perplexed, but, his cause of perplexation was much clearer. After all, he was certainly not expecting to see Pochi naked and the sight was too dazzling for his eyes.

  Unable to face her head-on, he subtly avoided her with his eyes. Both in a state of perplexity, the two of them spent a brief moment of silence together. At length, Pochi gathered up her courage and broke the ice.

  「Please let me wash your back.」


  「N-No, you don’t have to do that.」


  In contrast to the courageous Pochi, Taiyou wavered like a middle-school boy.

  「You just entered the hot spring, right? So come in before it gets cold.」


  「Uuu…」


  As he rejected her offer, Pochi began to become more and more teary-eyed. A feeling of guilt pierced through Taiyou’s chest.

  「You don’t want me to…?」


  「No, it’s just…」


  「Uuu」


  「Umm」


  「Uuuuu…」


  「I get it I get it, just please don’t look at me like that.」


  Pochi’s eyes were like that of an abandoned puppy. Unable to last against that, Taiyou gave permission. As soon as he did that, her face burst into a broad smile.

  「Thank you!」


  「…Before we do that…」


  Taiyou diverted his eyes away from her and slipped past her side, making a mad dash for the changing room. Grabbing the door, he threw it open at once with a clatter.

  「Hyaa!」


  A female scream could be heard. The girls were gathered around the area where the door was thrown open. Kotone, Suzune, Kazane, Kohaku, Aoba, and even Shirokiyami were there. Leaving one exception, the girls had fallen down in surprise when Taiyou had suddenly opened the door.

  「…What are you guys doing?」


  「Erm, uhh…I was curious.」


  「「「We thought it would come in handy.」」」


  「To monitor mah daughter’s growth.」


  「Collective behavior is…important impor, tant.」


  Aoba answered with a faint voice, the disorganized sister trio actually answered in unison, Kohaku responded with a remark that was difficult to take seriously, and Shirokiyami was standing proudly without any prideful expression on her face for some reason.

  Though there were a variety of interesting reactions, suddenly, the girls let a gasp escape their mouths. These were tiny, inaudible screams that could not be conveyed in words. There were some who were red-faced, and they were all focusing on one detail.

  「What’s wrong…Oh.」


  Taiyou realized what had happened as he asked. Fitting for the bathhouse, he was currently entirely naked, and the girls had their eyes focused on the…thing that was laying idle.

  「S-Sorry.」


  Aoba, who had not experienced something like this before, turned as red as a lobster and bolted away like a startled hare. Chasing after her, the three sisters and Kohaku also left the changing room. The remaining Shirokiyami unexpectedly pulled out a katana from her skirt.

  The white blade poked out of the scabbard, making a “shing” noise.

  「Put away your…hazardous, material.」


  「How about you put away your hazardous material!」


  Exclaiming loudly, he shut the door slam with all his might. Shaking off the girls, he returned to where Pochi was.

  Having a change of heart, he sat in the bathhouse chair and had Pochi wash his back.

  （Just a wash, it’s just a wash）


  He repeatedly chanted in his heart with a Buddhist-like prayer. In fact, he felt as if he were about to slide into an “All Is Vanity” attitude.

  「Heave-ho, heave ho」


  Not comprehending in the slightest what was going on in his mind, Pochi made a hand towel sudsy and let out an sweet, enthusiastic voice as she began to scrub his shoulders.

  「How is it?」


  「Not bad.」


  He bluntly answered.

  「Okay!」


  Pochi put even more power into it. Impressed, Taiyou thought that was very commendable.

  「I’m skilled at rinsing people’s backs. This is because I used to regularly do it to my master.」


  「Master…as in Karina Nose-san. So you guys regularly went to the bathhouse?」


  「Yes, we went every day.」


  「I see. By the way, is it alright if I ask you what kind of person that Karina Nose-san was?」


  「What kind of person Master was?」


  Pochi’s perplexed presence transmitted from behind his back. Even so, the scrubbing rhythm of her hands showed no alteration. Taiyou gave her a helping hand.

  「Seems like she was a pretty small person, right?」


  「Yes, the same as my current Master.」


  「And did you ever call her “Mom”?」


  「I tried it a while ago, but it just didn’t feel right. I felt that Master was Master and no one else.」


  「I see.」


  Slightly nodding, he began to think. The title of “Master” didn’t seem to actually be forced on Pochi by Karina Nose, judging by what she said. Still having his back scrubbed by Pochi, Taiyou asked her various things about Karina Nose. Pochi answered each question faithfully after thinking earnestly each time. In the end, hearing mostly from a proud Pochi that she was doted on or that her relationship with Karina was quite close, he was able to reconfirm what the relationship between the two of them was like based also on Hanaeda’s stories and Karina Nose’s diary from before.

  「Umm, Master is Master’s Master, right?」


  「That’s complicated.」


  Taiyou smiled bitterly.

  ――Master Taiyou is Master Kohaku’s Master-Husband.

  Her statement would sound normal with an annotation, but if there were no annotation then her expression would sound very entangled. Of course, this was something that he could answer, so Taiyou distinctly nodded.

  「That’s right.」


  「And Master is also the Master of the other people as well, right?」


  「Huh? Oh, you mean Aoba.」


  He wasn’t able to immediately understand what she meant, so he answered after a short interval.

  「Well yeah, that’s also correct. Shirokiyami, that goth loli…wait, do you even know what “goth loli” means?」


  「Yes. Abbreviated from “Gothic and Lolita” , it is a fashion style unique to Japan that combines the usually different elements of gothic and lolita. And it is also a way of pointing out that subculture, right?」


  「I didn’t expect an answer like that, but well, yeah. That goth loli clothed girl is the only exception, but also isn’t exactly an exception.」


  「I see. Then should I call everyone “Master”?」


  「Huh?」


  Taiyou fell into further confusion. This time he purposefully organized her words in his head and finally understood what she was trying to say. She was asking if people like the sister trio and Aoba who were in the same position as the master Kohaku should be called “Master”.

  「No, you don’t have to. They’d get more and more confused if you called them that. And besides, you don’t really want to call them that, do you?」


  「If it is Master’s order, then.」


  Taiyou could tell that she was probably implicitly displeased with the idea.

  「Then you don’t have to call them that. Just stick with calling only Kohaku “Master”.」


  「Okay!」


  Pochi answered, putting more strength into rubbing his back.

  「Master, I’ll wash you off with water, okay?」


  「Yeah.」


  As he nodded, Pochi reached out behind him for the looming showerhead. At that moment, he heard a cute voice of “Hyan!” and a wet slipping sound. The next moment, weight pressed against his back. At the same time, a squishy sound effect echoed throughout his head. A unprecedented sensation that he had never felt even once since the day that he was born. The sensation of having boobs pressed up against his back.

  「S-Sorry Master! Are you hurt?」


  「No I’m――」


  About to say “fine”, he felt a tingling sensation surge through his back. He wasn’t sure why, but Taiyou felt like this was really bad. Without any particular reason, he felt that continuing on like this would be really bad. He halted the war-prepared objects with a forbidden move, then Pochi regained her posture, and with his back being washed, Taiyou was left imagining dirty things in his head until departing the open-air bath.

  Once everyone’s tempers had completely settled down, Taiyou returned to the room where everyone was. For some reason, the room was even gloomier than earlier. The wives resembled how they were after their bath earlier, but one step more depressed. Not understanding what had occurred, Pochi was at the sidelines in bewilderment.

  「W-What’s wrong?」


  Taiyou inquired, predictably worried about their demeanor, but.

  「Boobs…」


  「Big breasts…」


  「F cup…」


  「Cow…」


  「Calling her a cow is going too far!」


  Amongst the various statements uttered by the sister trio and Aoba, Taiyou thrusted into Aoba’s last statement. Nearby the distracted girls, Kohaku was gazing up at the moon from the windowsill. At a single glance she seemed to be composed, but…


  「What are you looking at, Kohaku-san?」


  「The moon, look, tonight is a splendid moon, hoho.」


  「Yeah, you’re right.」


  「Are ya familiar with the story about the moon’s appearance resembling a rabbit pounding mochi, Master-Husband?」


  「I think so, yeah.」


  「Perhaps if we could receive the rabbit’s luck, those things would become somewhat more levelled.」


  「You too!?」


  Taiyou burst in with wrinkled eyebrows and a sigh.

  「And wait, judging by your reaction, it sounds as if you saw the whole thing. You peeked in the end, didn’t you?」


  「Nah, Master-Husband didn’t seem like he wanted to be seen, so I risked mah life tah stop the peeking.」


  「It was worth risking your life for? Then why did――」


  「I…read their presence and, experienced, it.」


  「That’s seriously wasting your power! Wait, so why aren’t you shocked; you ran away when you were invited to the bathhouse earlier, didn’t you?」


  「It’s because I…made sure to…divert, my. Eyes.」


  「Your eyes have nothing to do with reading their presence!」


  An unprecedented issue had arised with Pochi’s membership, and Taiyou was concerned for the future.

  CHAPTER 105: Girls in Distress / The Females Sneak in at Night

  Translator: Reflet

  「Hey, so are we really going to do it?」


  Aoba, the person with the most common sense, asked in a low voice through the darkness. Surrounding her were the sister trio, Kohaku, Pochi, and even Hera. For some reason, everyone there except for Aoba had excited expressions on their faces.

  「Of course.」


  「If we didn’t then things would be inconvenient, you know?」


  「We’re going to be family from now on after all.」


  「I get that, but…」


  Hesitating to talk, she looked in Kohaku’s direction. Aoba’s intuition was that she was the eldest of them all, so if there was any way to stop what they were about to do, it would be a word from her. But, as if they were broken, or perhaps they had never existed from the start…Aoba could not feel the slightest intent from Kohaku to stomp on the brakes.

  「If yeh lost your nerve, then you can stay here. We’ll just go.」


  「I haven’t lost my nerve. I was just wondering if this is a good idea or not.」


  「’Course it is, right everyone?」


  「「「Yes!」」」


  「I don’t mean for everyone; I’m talking about Pochi-chan.」


  「Me?」


  Pochi tilted her head in puzzlement. Even a small movement like that caused her voluptuous breasts to sway from side to side, but Aoba chose to ignore that.

  「Yeah, are you really okay with this?」


  「Yes; it is Master’s order after all. And besides…」


  「Besides?」


  「I don’t understand why…we’re doing something like this, but I can tell that Master is thinking of me. So I’m completely fine.」


  「Huhu, ya know me well.」


  「「「Cool!」」」


  「Hey, don’t say things in such an amorous manner…」


  Aoba sighed lightly, pushing back her bangs. This was because the three sisters’ speech sounded like that of close friends.

  「But but it’ll be inconvenient unless we do itー, you get that too right Aoba-chan? You’ve experienced it after all.」


  This time Hera spoke. With the exception of Pochi, the females’ gazes focused on the floating fairy.

  「That’s…right. Pochi-chan seems to be fine, so…I understand, I won’t say anything anymore.」


  When Aoba said that, the girls exchanged glances and nodded once more, soon leaving the room in a swarm. There was a banquet hall beyond the sliding door, and another sliding door of the same making on the opposite side. When they opened that, there was a small room that was one-third the size of where the girls were. It was lit up by the faintest moonlight. There was a one-person futon, and Taiyou was there making quiet sleeping noises. Upon his insistence, males and females slept in different rooms at night. It seemed like the three sisters and others wanted to…sleep with him, but there was also Pochi and Shirokiyami, so Taiyou insisted that this was for the best. This was how the females ended up sneaking into Taiyou’s solo room at night.

  「I’ll beh going in first.」


  Kohaku said with a muffled voice, stepping into the room first. Her careful movements were reminiscent of infiltrating an enemy base.

  「H…mm」


  「――Nnh!」


  Taiyou turned over, letting out a voice. Kohaku stiffened up, taken aback by the sudden event.

  「…」


  Still stiff, she stared at Taiyou, and he once again started letting out quiet sleeping breaths. Realizing that he hadn’t actually noticed them, Kohaku took a relieved breath with a “phew”. Resuming the infiltration, time passed by slowly as she approached Taiyou’s side. Signaling to them with her eyes, this time the three sisters began sneaking into the room. Normally one would expect the sound of three people sneaking into somewhere would be three times louder, but this was not the case at all. With stealthy feet in perfect synchronization, even carelessness wouldn’t make them any louder than Kohaku’s infiltration. When they reached the area of Taiyou’s feet…


  「You there!」


  「「「Eeek!」」」


  The three of them let out adorable screams, stiffening up in response to the sudden loud voice. Wondering if they had been found out, they timidly looked at Taiyou, but he was still sprawled on the futon with no signs of getting up.

  「I can see you…there…」


  He continued in a mumbling voice.

  「He must beh talking in his sleep.」


  Kohaku said, and the three of them were relieved. At length they resumed their synchronized stealth feet and made it to Kohaku’s side. Next was Aoba. She made it to Taiyou’s side without any trouble, arriving on the opposite side of Kohaku and the others. When she tried to give a signal to Pochi outside…Taiyou sprang up. Pushing aside the light-fabric futon, he rose up. The females standing there gave small jumps all at once. He must have found them out this time――that thought raced through each of their minds. But Taiyou, who was standing up, did not aim his eyes at them but instead wandered his unfocused eyes from left to right. The females were beginning to feel relieved that he was only half-asleep, but…Taiyou suddenly gripped Aoba’s hand, squeezing it and pulling it towards himself.

  「Kyaa!」


  Aoba lost her balance and fell onto the futon. Meanwhile, Taiyou skillfully placed his body over Aoba, leaning on her. That position was just like pinning someone down.

  「Aoba…」


  「N-Natsuno-kun!?」


  「I love…」


  The sister trio and Kohaku held their breath watching the sight of Taiyou whispering into the ears of an immediately red-faced Aoba.

  「…」


  「…」


  「…」


  Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock. The wall-mounted clock’s sounds drifted through the room. Shortly afterward, Taiyou’s sleeping sounds could be heard once again.

  「So you’re not going to finish speaking?」


  Aoba lifted her voice loudly to the point of quavering, pushing Taiyou aside and getting up. Since Taiyou didn’t seem to wake up as a result, Pochi was able to normally enter the room.

  「Sheesh…」


  Muttering discontentedly, Aoba looked at Taiyou. Suffering a disappointment and being forced to have something postponed made her state of mind very complicated.

  「Well that’s a shame.」


  「「「Fight!」」」


  The senior wives encouraged Aoba. There were both happy and mixed feelings.

  「He was going…to say, me.」


  Shirokiyami, who was nowhere to be seen earlier, was suddenly next to Aoba.

  「Wha, why are you here?」


  「What…are you, doing?」


  Shirokiyami did not answer her question, instead hurling a question at them. The females exchanged glances, unsure of quite how to answer. Without hesitation, Pochi broke the ice.

  「It’s to make me kiss Master.」


  Hearing that, Shirokiyami looked at Taiyou, Kohaku, and Pochi who had answered in order.

  「…Incest?」


  She asked nonchalantly.

  「That’s indeed correct.」


  「That’s wrong, right? We didn’t have those intentions, right?」


  「I didn’t think that Yami-chan would comeー, what now?」


  Hera said as she flew through the air, starkly contrasting from the stealth feet of the sisters. Using that question as their opportunity, the females (with the exception of Shirokiyami) made a circular formation and began a strategy meeting.

  「So maybe something like explaining the situation to her?」


  「Even if we did, I don’t think that she’d understand.」


  「Yeah, I don’t think she’d accept our explanation unless we show her.」


  「Wasn’t Aoba-chan good enough of an example?」


  「Very true…」


  「At this point it would probably be best tah ignore Yami and progress.」


  「I think that’s goodー」


  「Are you sure…」


  As Aoba said that, everyone shot a glance at Shirokiyami. They were immediately startled. Shirokiyami had taken a katana out that hadn’t been there earlier. In the silence, Shirokiyami gradually and gently composed a fighting stance. Somewhere between silence and movement. The next moment, Shirokiyami performed an “iai”, drawing and sheathing her katana. The cutting edge glimmered in the moonlight, slipping right in front of the females. It did not cut anything up, since it attempted to slice Hera to no avail. Shirokiyami inclined her head, unsure of why nothing happened.

  「…H, mm.」


  「W-What’s wrong?」


  Aoba asked. Could Shirokiyami have sensed it…?

  「Everyone’s gaze was focused…there, so I tried, cutting it.」


  The females gave sighs of relief. It seemed that she had not recognized it. Hera puffed out her chest.

  「If she doesn’t kiss Taiyou-chan, she won’t be able to see me nor feel me, you seeー」


  「This just reconfirms it; as I thought, continuing like this will be bad fer evra’day life.」


  「Why is that so?」


  「If we don’t do it that way――Huh, Master-Husband!」


  Kohaku fell back. It was unusual for her to get this surprised. Taiyou was up all of a sudden, staring at everyone.

  「「「Y-You’re awake?」」」


  「Yes I’m awake. Anyone would wake up when people are talking all around and performing iais and the like.」


  Taiyou looked at them with reproachful eyes. Receiving that glare, the females once again formed an encirclement.

  「What now? Natsuno-kun woke up!」


  「Umu, this’s bad. If we were tah currently face off against Master-Husband as a group, we wouldn’t be able tah take him down.」


  「「「Should we start over?」」」


  「We ‘ave no better plans, so yeah.」


  Kohaku said, and the females nodded. As the conversation inclined toward retreat, Shirokiyami silently cut in.

  「Shall I…do, it?」


  「You’re going to actually do it?」


  She nodded, got up, and moved toward Taiyou. In the darkness, the silently moving goth loli’s form was reminiscent of a death god to the females’ eyes. Taiyou was also the same way, a perplexed expression on his face having barely gotten up.

  「What?」


  「Don’t…think badly of me.」


  「Why!?」


  「Is it…not, fine?」


  「Can you at least repeat that line twice!」


  「A little bit.」


  It seemed like she tried, but it was a bit of a letdown for what was supposed to be an “enthusiastic” voice. Right after, she struck one of Taiyou’s vital points with the katana scabbard. The afflicted Taiyou fell on top of the futon right away, unable to move.

  「W-What happened? My body won’t move.」


  「I struck the…secret, opening.」


  Shirokiyami said, giving the females a glance and then leaving the room, as if telling them to take their time. The females looked at one another, silently nodded, then also left the room with Pochi and Hera remaining inside. After shutting the sliding screen door, Taiyou‘s screaming voice could be heard, but…


  「This was indeed a good idea.」


  The girls decided not to pay it any heed.