"Is…?" Rudy stared at Alice with a curious yet calm look on his face.

  Of course, he could read Alice's mind and know the answer, but he was afraid.

  "Listen, I understand why you want a hare, and honestly, you are trying to do a good thing by saving the girls. But I can't be part of your harem," Alice stated with a straight face.

  "……"

  "……"

  "……"

  SIGH!

  "Okay, I am kidding," Alice sighed. "But I am still against it. It is impossible for you to love every girl equally. And even if you think you can do that, you can't."

  "How can you be so sure of that?" Rudy asked with a curious look on his face. "You don't know the future."

  "I am a girl, and as a girl, I can understand other girls' feelings," Alice stated. "Suppose, you are talking with the pool girl, then the ghost girl would also want to talk to you, and so would I. Now, are you saying that you can talk to all three of us at the same time?"

  "Same conversation?"

  "No. Different conversation, and different topics."

  "……"

  "You seem it's not as easy as it looks. There are other things you have to consider, you know? While you are trying to save a girl, you might just end up breaking them even more. They might feel neglected and less loved. And I am telling you, that not all the girls would think the same."

  "I guess…"

  "And even if you do love them equally, the girls would always think you don't. That's a natural thing to happen."

  "You are right. But in such cases, you girls also need to be considerate of other girls and get along well." Rudy shrugged his shoulders and said, "Or you can come to me if there is something wrong. If you think I am not giving you attention, then I will give you more attention."

  "And what if every girl thinks that? Will you be able to give 'more' attention to all the girls?" Alice asked with a knowing look on her face.

  "Well…"

  "The thing is…" Alice held Rudy's hand in her hands and said, "All the girls would want your attention. They all would want to be loved, more than others. And why would they want to be considerate of other girls when they are their rival?"

  "……"

  "You are missing out on many things, Rudy. And the reason why nothing has happened yet is that one girl in your harem is a ghost, who is always with you. And another is a meek girl, who just wants to be loved by you."

  "And you…?"

  "I am not part of your harem."

  "Come on…"

  "What do you mean by come on? You have to convince me, and I know you are trying your best. But I seriously don't think it's going to work out as you think."

  After a brief pause, she added, "But… I want to believe in you."

  "Does that mean you are okay with harem?!" Rudy asked with a cheerful face.

  "I did not say that."

  "…… you are playing with my emotions right now…" Rudy muttered under his breath.

  "And what about you playing with every girl's feelings and lives?"

  "I did not think this would be hard~" Rudy groaned. "I thought you would either agree or disagree. But here I am, being played by you."

  "You should have thought of that earlier," Alice commented. "We are childhood friends, and you know how I am when it comes to claiming stuff. Once I have made a commitment, I don't back out."

  "Yeah…"

  "Just admit it. You entered the battlefield unprepared because you thought you would win using your superpowers," Alice remarked.

  "I am not going to use my powers to do that."

  "I mean, you can technically force yourself on me and take advantage of me. I wouldn't even be able to defend myself."

  "I just said I am not using my superpowers to do such stuff."

  "Are you sure?" Alice asked with a grin on her face. "You can control me using your powers. You can command me to do things I normally wouldn't agree to."

  "……"

  "Maybe, you can even order me to join your harem."

  "Stop trying to tempt me. I won't do that," Rudy retorted.

  "Why not?"

  "Because that's wrong. I wouldn't be happy if I force you to do something against your will," Rudy responded.

  "And is that more important than me not joining your harem?"

  "……"

  'I am genuinely missing Angelica. If she was here, she would have defended me and explained it to Alice. I would have let them talk since they both are the girls, and they would understand each other better,' Rudy thought.

  But then he recalled the moments when he was in trouble and Angelica laughed out loud.

  'Or she might have buried me into a deeper pit hole…'

  Asking Angelica for help was like a double-edged sword.

  "Okay. I have made my final decision," Alice said with a serious look on his face.

  "I am… ready…" Rudy prepared himself to hear Alice's answer.

  "I…"

  "Hmm?"

  "I need time to think about it."

  "……" Rudy stared at Alice in disbelief and let out a weary sigh with a loud groan.

  "Okay. Take as much time as you want. I am going home."

  Rudy didn't want to be persistent and pry too much, or that might have made Alice mad.

  Rudy got off the bed and walked to the door to leave Alice's room, but he was hit in the back by something soft.

  Of course, Rudy had already sensed that, but he didn't care to dodge it.

  He looked down to see Alice had thrown a pillow at him.

  "……"

  He glanced at Alice to see her pouting at him with a glare in her eyes.

  "What now…?" Rudy asked with a confused look on his face.

  "I thought you would try a little harder to convince me. But it looks like you gave up," Alice remarked.

  "I did not. You said you need time to think about it, so I am giving you time…"

  Alice squinted her eyes and said, "Where is my goodbye kiss?"

  "……what?"

  "My goodbye kiss!"

  'I seriously can't understand her. She is not sure about joining my harem, and yet she wants a kiss…?'