Kitagawa Marin helped Majima Yuuri fasten the empathy collar around her neck, gave her a meaningful smile, and lightly pressed the hidden button on the collar.
"Even though I don't know whether the one wearing the empathy bracelet right now is Takina, Chisato, Kita, or Ryou."
"Why don't you experience it yourself? Marin, you—"
Majima Yuuri was about to ask more when she suddenly felt an extremely strange sensation spreading through her body. She hurriedly covered her small mouth tightly with both hands.
"Yuuri, if you want to scream, just scream. I know soundproofing magic."
Ijichi Nijika looked on sympathetically at Majima Yuuri, who suddenly bent forward, her body trembling uncontrollably, yet still kept her legs tightly pressed together, biting her lip and struggling not to make a sound, and sighed with emotion.
"Hachiman is really amazing. Even if a lot of people go at him together, they still can't match him. It's normal if you can't hold back, Yuuri."
"But I've heard that the longer you last the first time, the better the effect. Yuuri, you're already a goddess angel to begin with. If you also go through Hachiman's magical girl awakening development, the effect might even double."
Even though she herself didn't know whether her crude soundproofing magic could really block the hearing of the demi-humans around them.
But everyone had been through it before. No matter how loud someone screamed, no one would laugh at Majima Yuuri. As long as it could give her a bit of psychological comfort, that was enough.
"..."
Majima Yuuri had already gone limp on the sofa. Her arms were crossed tightly over her chest, hugging herself, her long, smooth, straight legs tensed, her face flushed red and her skin burning hot. Looking at Ijichi Nijika, Kitagawa Marin, Miura Yumiko, Gotou Hitori, and the others beside her, all wearing expressions of deep understanding and sympathy, she felt unbearably ashamed, practically on the verge of tears.
It felt like her tongue was tasting something, her mouth kept producing saliva, her chest felt stuffy as if it were being squeezed, there was a faint heat flowing through her body.
What in the world was this experience that almost made her roll her eyes? No matter how you looked at it, this didn't feel like magical girl training to improve strength. It felt more like something demons would do to collect desire energy, didn't it?
Did Teacher Suzune really go through this kind of training with Mr. Hachiman? Weren't Nijika and Marin lying to her?
———
The commotion over at Majima Yuuri, Kitagawa Marin, and Miura Yumiko's side did not escape the notice of the snow women and vampires in the central large living room.
Although today was the first time the snow woman clan and the Kiriya family vampires had come to the Service Club, and they hadn't rashly tried to eavesdrop on Miura Yumiko and the others' conversation, the reason they noticed Miura Yumiko's group among so many Service Club members was simply because that group stood out too much.
At present, almost all the girls here were permeated with a rich life aura belonging to Hachiman, but Kita Ikuyo, Miura Yumiko, Kitagawa Marin, and Majima Yuuri didn't have much of Hachiman's aura on them.
Aside from the maids and these newly arrived demi-humans, the only ones who stood out as clearly were ordinary humans like Miura Yumiko and Majima Yuuri, and a few magical girls like Hanabishi Haruka.
"Why haven't we seen that rumored lord all night? Didn't he ask us to come to this private place to meet him?"
Five snow women from the snow woman clan were gathered in the area enclosed by four sofas. The twin sisters Yukino and Mizore shared one sofa, while the other three snow women each sat on their own.
A black-haired snow woman with waist-length hair, lively eyes, a cool and detached air, wearing a loosely draped white kimono, her slender jade feet wrapped in pure white tabi socks, lay on the sofa eating snacks while observing the girls coming and going around her and the maids serving food and drinks, feeling deeply puzzled.
After obtaining permission to enter the Service Club, and after Aoe Kuon from the Aoe family went back to find her mother, they had arrived early and waited at the Service Club.
But from afternoon to evening, and now late into the night, they hadn't seen that mysterious lord even once.
They had thought he might have some special rule about only meeting people at night, but now it seemed like he didn't care about them at all. Even the girls who arrived later had been summoned by that lord, yet there was still no movement on their side.
"Mr. Hikigaya only allowed us to come here. He never promised to meet us."
Seeing her companion misunderstand the purpose of their waiting, Yukino, the elder twin in a light blue kimono with slightly pointed ears and long hair tied into a single braid resting against her chest, could only smile helplessly.
"After all, we haven't personally witnessed Mr. Hikigaya's strength yet. We're just preparing to make contact with him first, so Lady Iris had no intention of directly introducing us to Mr. Hikigaya."
Just from seeing so many beautiful girls in the Service Club, she already knew Mr. Hikigaya could definitely satisfy them.
After all, their needs were just a bit stronger. They were far from the point of having bottomless desire. If Mr. Hikigaya could assist the elf princess and the mermaid songstress while still maintaining close relationships with so many girls, then he could certainly satisfy them as well.
"If we joined the elf princess's demi-human assistance plan, we wouldn't need to keep worrying about waiting anymore. But there are too many girls around Mr. Hikigaya. Just the Kiriya family vampires alone are six sisters, not to mention the elf princess has a sister and guards, plus four elves protecting her."
"No wonder the dragon clan leader Ursula came to us for help. No matter how strong she is, she still can't compare to so many girls."
Mizore, the younger twin with a less steady personality, her long hair falling over her shoulders, looked gloomily at the other two companions who hadn't spoken.
"Mizore, are you really not going to go together with us? Once the dragon clan leader Ursula comes, we'll have to start competing with the elf princess and the others."
The Kiriya family's eldest daughter, Kiriya Nadeshiko, had already gotten a step ahead and built a relationship with Mr. Hikigaya. When they returned to the school building, they all noticed the surge in power around her, and that deliberately uncleaned, still scorching and enticing aura.
Yukino and she both wanted to receive such wholehearted assistance from Mr. Hikigaya too.
But the snow women had come together this time. Aside from the sisters themselves, it would be best to pull in the others as well.
However, unlike the elf princess, who could summon elves to sacrifice themselves for the clan at any time, the snow women valued their own feelings more. Mifuyu Yukino and Shirayuki Mizore had no intention of taking the initiative together with them.
"It's not that I don't want to go with you, Mizore… it's just… would Mr. Hikigaya really like us?"
Mifuyu Yukino, who was very introverted, still kept her head lowered even in front of her companions, her hands nervously placed on her thighs as she absentmindedly played with her fingers, her expression filled with melancholy.
"The girls here are all very y0ung, right…"
She had secretly observed them. The girls at Sobu High and the Service Club who had special relationships with Mr. Hikigaya were, for the most part, very y0ung.
There were only a few human girls who were slightly older, but that was only relatively speaking. Compared to the snow woman clan, whose lifespans were equally long, and compared to them, who couldn't get married, those slightly older human girls were still basically children.
"Uh… probably not… Those elves are also very old, aren't they? Even though Princess Iris does look much younger than us…"
At this point, both Mizore and Yukino hesitated a little.
Although they were still young and their appearances wouldn't change much even after decades, they did indeed fall into the 'big sister' category.
There were small and cute types among the snow women too, but aside from Shirayuki Mizore, the ones who came out this time were basically all big sisters like them.
"Don't worry. Since that lord is willing to let us come to his private harem, he must be willing to interact with us."
Seeing the companions worrying before even truly coming into contact with Hachiman, the black-haired snow woman licked the seasoning crumbs off her pale fingers and teased them with a grin.
"Isn't it said at school that there are exams these days? Maybe once the exams are over, he'll have time to be with us."
"Your looks and figures are no worse than anyone else's. You're even snow women. You can play many tricks that human girls can't. How could that lord refuse?"
"Right, little Mizore?"
As she spoke, the black-haired snow woman suddenly sat up from the sofa and reached out to tug at the blanket wrapped around Shirayuki Mizore on the neighboring sofa, trying to pull out the most girlish one among them to speak.
But just as the blanket was pulled back a bit, Shirayuki Mizore, her eyes exposed, grabbed it tightly and curled back inside.
The black-haired snow woman tugged a few times but couldn't pull it free. Not wanting to tear the blanket, she had no choice but to let go.
"If you want to find a man, go do it yourselves! Don't drag me along!"
Shirayuki Mizore's muffled voice came from under the blanket, with only a bit of purple hair showing. [T/N: Now I can confirm she is from Rosario+ Vampire.]
Unlike the others, who more or less had thoughts of finding a man, she had no such idea at all and just wanted to quietly stay at home.
She hadn't even wanted to go to school in the first place. It was only because this time it was a human school.
She had been forced out by her mother along with these people, told to find a man for the family.
However, although Hachiman's strong, abundant life force was very attractive to snow women who wanted to get pregnant and experience pleasure, it held no attraction for her at all.
"Little Mizore, don't be shy… fine then. Let's go back to figuring out how to take down that lord. Since we're snow women, we naturally have to make use of our snow woman advantages, hehe~"
Seeing that Shirayuki Mizore was as shy as ever, even curling up here, the black-haired snow woman could only give up teasing her. She stood up, grabbed a few more bags of snacks from the table, tore them open in her arms, stuffed them into her mouth, and started giving Yukino some mischievous ideas.
After finally getting out of the dull, boring snowy mountains in the countryside, and with free food and lodging provided here, plus a certain amount of covered expenses, this was practically the life of her dreams.
Even if she didn't plan on looking for the same man together with everyone else, she didn't want to leave this place. She planned to stick around for now.
Once Mizore, and the other snow women all went back pregnant, she would have the clan leader send other snow women over. She'd just stay here, working hard to help everyone get pregnant.
———
Not far from where the five snow women were gathered was the area where the six sisters of the vampire Count Kiriya were, they too were quietly plotting how to attract Hachiman's attention.
Unlike the snow woman clan, who had been invited by the dragon clan leader Ursula, the six sisters could only represent the Kiriya Count family. They had no backing, no support, their vampire bloodline awakening was abnormal, their strength was lacking, and they had obvious weaknesses.
They even had enemies watching these weak sisters.
So the atmosphere among the six Kiriya sisters was not as cheerful as it was over with the snow women.
The five younger sisters all focused their attention on the eldest sister, Kiriya Nadeshiko, who had already served Hachiman, listening to her share her experience of service.
"You don't need to worry too much about not serving well enough and making the master unhappy. I can feel that the master doesn't place much importance on those things. As long as you keep your usual personalities and show your own unique charm while serving the master, that's enough."
After finishing her brief account of her service experience, supplemented with a lot of theoretical knowledge she hadn't yet put into practice, Kiriya Nadeshiko once again emphasized the key points of serving, her serious gaze settling on the fifth sister, Kiriya Kurenai.
"Of course, that doesn't mean you can be willful and rude toward the master."
"Remember, serving the master is our honor."
Although she had already regarded Hachiman as her master and had gained quite a bit of strength under his favor, the master hadn't truly taken them in yet, saying he would wait until their crisis was completely resolved.
Considering that even if they eliminated the danger from the military, they still wouldn't be able to live carefree lives in this world, who knew when someone else might set their sights on the Kiriya family again, she had to properly teach her sisters and make sure they successfully won the master's favor.
She wasn't worried about most of her sisters. Even if they weren't refined, well-mannered ladies, they knew how to read the room and understood when to advance or retreat.
The only one she was a bit worried about was the fifth sister, Kiriya Kurenai, with her outward, tsundere personality.
Even though the master didn't truly treat them as slaves, they still couldn't be rude or disrespectful to him.
"What do you take me for, some naïve young lady? Do you think I'm someone who can't tell what's important? Still, directly acknowledging Mr. Hikigaya as our master does make me feel a bit complicated."
With black twin-tails, wearing a low-cut evening dress, a black decorative strap tied around her slender neck, Kiriya Kurenai rolled her eyes when she heard the pointed tone in her eldest sister's words.
She admitted that sometimes she had a bit of a temper and wasn't very honest in what she said, but she wasn't some clueless young lady who understood nothing.
She had always longed for the outside world. Now that she had a proper chance to walk openly in human society, how could she give it up so easily?
She had only known that the six sisters were coming to seek assistance from Mr. Hikigaya, who was on good terms with the elf princess, to help them get pregnant and defect to the elf princess's side.
She never expected that they would instead end up seeking refuge with Mr. Hikigaya himself, with having children becoming something to deal with later.
"Kurenai, you don't need to dwell on that. Lady Iris told me that the master is researching how to allow demi-humans to awaken their bloodlines safely and without side effects. There's already some progress."
Seeing that Kiriya Kurenai hadn't grasped the real point of acknowledging Hachiman as their master, Kiriya Nadeshiko could only reveal a bit more.
According to the original Kiriya family tradition, the six sisters would almost certainly end up killing each other. But now, kneeling together before the master and receiving his favor, their sisterly bond could last.
"Really? The master is human, isn't he? And he's researching something like that?"
Kiriya Kurenai's eyes widened, filled with disbelief.
The other four sisters also felt that what Kiriya Nadeshiko said sounded absurd. Even the fourth sister, Kiriya Fujino, who was the most knowledgeable among them, hadn't found any method to safely awaken a bloodline without side effects.
Perhaps there were methods that could succeed at an extremely high cost, with obvious aftereffects, but those weren't things they could bear. They were better off staying as they were.
"The master is researching bloodline awakening methods for the sake of the mermaid princess Melo, not specifically for us. There's no need for the master to lie to us about something like this."
Kiriya Nadeshiko shook her head. She also found it hard to believe, but she knew just as well that the master had no reason to deceive them.
Whether or not there was a way to awaken their bloodlines, they couldn't find a better protector than the master. In fact, if they couldn't awaken their bloodlines, it would be even easier to keep them.
The fact that the master was willing to tell them this news didn't it mean that he truly didn't care about these things and sincerely wanted to help them solve the bloodline that felt like a curse?
"In that case, him becoming our master—eh? At this hour, someone's still coming in? Looks like there are a few more humans who haven't been tainted by the master's aura."
Kiriya Kurenai nodded thoughtfully, acknowledging Hachiman's status as their master. But before she could finish speaking, her expression suddenly sharpened. Together with her sisters, she looked toward the entrance of the central living room.
———
At the living room entrance—
Ichinose Ayano, who had just walked over from the front desk maid, Shion, ignored the gazes turning toward her and pulled along Sugisaki Kasumi, who always wore thick glasses in class but had just taken them off after bathing, to find a place to sit and wait for the next chance to serve the master with dishes.
Her good friends Horigome China, Ichinose Marika, and the newly joined Ichinose family sisters hurried to follow behind her.
At the very end, Ichinose Honami showed a gentle, harmless smile to the girls looking her way, gave a slight bow in greeting, and then quickly followed after Ichinose Ayano.
Were there a bit too many people in the club tonight? Could it be another all-nighter without sleep?
She hoped that during tomorrow's exam, when Hachiman was playing with Nijika and the others, they wouldn't drag her along again…
———
[Service Club, Family Restaurant]
Following the Lycoris magical girl set meal, it was time to serve Kita and Chef Yamada's shared dish.
"Um… why is it my turn so quickly? Aren't there still a lot of people in line? Ryou just came in too…"
With her hands and feet bound together, lying sideways on the cold, smooth tabletop, Kita Ikuyo looked at Yamada Ryou across from her, her feelings complicated, on the verge of tears.
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