Senzaemon's voice came through the phone.
"As I said, you have a fiancée. My granddaughter, Nakiri Erina."
Akira blinked.
"…Huh?"
Senzaemon continued casually,
"It's a contract connected to your family. It was agreed upon from your side long ago."
Akira's thoughts stalled.
"…wait—"
Senzaemon continued as if he didn't hear him.
"We can discuss the details tomorrow when we meet face to face. Don't be late."
A brief pause.
"Oh—something just came up on my end. I'll send you the location and time later."
Then—
The call ended.
Silence.
Akira stood there, phone still in his hand.
"…What?"
His mind went blank.
Fiancée? Contract? Family?
The hell?
Erika, who had been watching him, tilted her head slightly.
"…What happened?"
Akira slowly turned to her.
"…Where's my sister?"
Erika blinked, caught off guard.
"In the training arena… I think?"
Akira nodded once.
"I'll be back."
Without another word, his massive black demon slayer sword appeared in his hand.
And in the next instant—
He vanished.
Erika had no idea what was going on. But Akira's expression made her uneasy, so she quickly followed, teleporting into the battle arena, only to see an absurd scene.
Akira, with his huge demon slayer sword, was advancing silently toward Selena.
And Selena was 'heroically advancing' in the opposite direction, shouting,
"Brother, brother—whatever it is, let's calm down and talk like normal people!"
Akira spoke in a calm voice,
"What did he mean by what he said?"
Selena exclaimed.
"What did who mean by what who said?"
Erika rushed to him immediately and, grabbed his arm to stop him.
"Akira, what happened? Calm down first."
Selena chimed in,
"Exactly. At least tell me what's happening before choosing violence."
Akira stopped and with a calm voice said.
"The old man, Senzaemon, called me. He said Nakiri Erina was my fiancée, and that it was a contract with our family."
He took a deep breath and added, "Tell me, sister… what is happening?"
Erika flinched slightly.
Selena also paused before sighing.
"Ah… so that's what happened."
She let out another small sigh.
"Well, I guess today was inevitable."
Akira's voice hardened.
"Tell me what is happening."
Selena raised her hands slightly.
"I will, I will… just put away your sword first."
And just like that, they teleported to the castle terrace garden.
The garden was quiet. Calm.
A complete contrast to what had just happened.
Selena glanced at them.
"So… coffee?"
Akira replied seriously,
"…Hot chocolate."
Selena and Erika both looked at him.
They weren't even sure if he was angry or not.
A moment later, they sat around the small table with their drinks.
Selena sighed.
"…So. Where should I begin?"
Akira didn't hesitate.
"Just tell me what's going on."
Selena nodded.
"…Alright."
A brief pause.
"What he said is true. That contract… was made a long time ago. When you were still a child."
Silence.
Akira spoke immediately.
"…Why didn't you tell me?"
Selena exhaled.
"I didn't exactly have a good time to bring it up."
Akira paused.
…That did make sense.
This is not a topic she could randomly bring up.
But he said anyway,
"I'm not doing it. I have a girlfriend now, and I don't even like that girl."
He turned to Erika.
"Don't worry, Erika. I'll definitely destroy this engagement immediately."
But Erika only looked at him with a complicated expression.
As if she wanted to say something but didn't know how.
Akira looking at her said with an anxious expression.
"Believe me, I'll definitely break it off, I promise."
Selena finally spoke.
"…Actually, brother… you see…"
She took a deep breath and continued.
"Nakiri Erina is… not your only fiancée…"
Akira froze.
"…What?"
Selena continued,
"She's just one of them. You have more, actually."
Akira shot to his feet.
"WHATTTTTTTTT?!"
He stared at her in disbelief.
"What do you even mean by multiple fiancées? Polygamy is illegal!"
Selena replied calmly,
"Brother, hacking military satellites of multiple countries to stream anime is also illegal."
Akira immediately shot back,
"I was in Antarctica. The internet is really bad there."
Selena didn't budge.
"That doesn't make it legal."
Akira waved it off.
"That's not important right now. How does this multiple fiancée thing even work?"
Selena sighed.
"Brother, it's actually completely normal in the supernatural world. It happens all the time."
Akira frowned.
"Maybe, but Nakiri Erina is not from the supernatural world."
Selena shook her head slightly.
"It's more complicated than you think, brother. It's completely normal for powerful families to get help from supernatural powers to maintain their power and position."
She looked to the sky and added. "Marrying off their children is one of the more humane ways to maintain alliances."
Akira ran a hand through his hair.
"I know, but why should I have to marry many people? That's impossible. I can't do it."
Then he noticed—
Erika was silent.
Thinking she was angry, he turned to her.
"Erika, this has nothing to do with me. I don't know anything about this. I promise I won't go through with it."
But Erika didn't look shocked.
She just avoided his gaze.
If anything… she looked like she already knew.
Akira narrowed his eyes.
"Wait… do you actually know about this?"
Erika sighed and nodded.
"…Yes. Selena told me before."
Akira stared at her.
"…What? When?"
Selena answered,
"The day after we met."
Akira turned back to her.
"Why did you tell her and not me?"
Selena crossed her arms slightly.
"You said you didn't mind me dragging you into things. You even agreed to that, remember?"
She smiled.
"I can do this to you, but I don't want to do that to Erika-chan. I had to warn her about what she was getting into first."
She sighed.
"Think about what would happen if she became your girlfriend and then I told her about you multiple fiancees."
Akira didn't know what to say.
He had said that once. He wouldn't mind if she forced him into things.
But he was expecting fighting monsters or something.
Not this.
And Erika knew too… and didn't tell him.
That confused him more than anything.
He turned to her.
"If you knew… why didn't you tell me before?"
Erika lowered her head.
"Selena told me it wasn't time to tell you."
Akira frowned.
"Why are you saying it like you agree with her?"
He paused.
"…And you're okay with that?"
Erika hesitated.
"…It's not that simple—"
Akira cut her off.
"But you're not even angry."
A beat.
"You're just… accepting it?"
Erika tried to calm him.
"Akira, calm down first. There's a reason for this. Selena will explain it to you."
But Akira looked hurt.
Truly hurt.
For the first time since this started.
He covered his ears, shaking his head.
"Nope, I'm not listening. I'm not listening. I'm not doing this."
Selena stepped forward.
"Wait, brother. There is a reason for this. Listen to me. It's because our family—"
Akira snapped,
"No. I don't care. I'm not doing it. If the marriage is for the family, you go marry them. I'm not doing it."
Erika stood up as well, reaching toward him.
"Wait, calm down—"
Akira shook his head.
"No. I'm not staying. Leave me alone."
And then—
He teleported away.
Escaping from that place.
The terrace fell quiet.
Erika stared at the spot where Akira had disappeared, panic rising immediately.
"Wait… he looked hurt. Selena?"
Selena sighed.
"Yeah… probably because you aren't mad, I guess."
Erika frowned.
"…What?"
Selena leaned back.
"You know how my brother is. He's really possessive. If the situation was reversed… and you suddenly had multiple fiancées,"
She smiled.
"He would probably nuke them from orbit and lock you away in his room so you would never leave him."
Erika's expression twitched.
But knowing Akira… she knew Selena was right.
Selena continued,
"So when you didn't react like that… he probably thinks you don't care about him anymore."
Erika immediately shook her head.
"What? That's nonsense."
She looked at Selena.
"I stayed calm because you told me that's for the best. But why would he run away thinking like that?"
Selena let out another sigh.
"Sorry about that. That should have worked normally, but right now his emotions are out of control. Sigh… he's more high maintenance than I thought."
Erika clenched her hands slightly.
"What should we do? We need to get to him and explain everything."
Selena nodded.
"Yeah. I didn't even get to the important parts."
Erika stepped forward.
"I need to find him immediately. Where is he? Is he in his room?"
Selena closed her eyes, as if focusing.
A moment later, she opened them.
"He's in the storage room… inside a cardboard box."
Erika blinked.
"…What?"
Meanwhile—
Akira was hiding inside a cardboard box in his direwolf puppy form.
"No one can find me here."
His mind was in chaos.
Why didn't Erika get angry?
He knew Erika cares for him.
But normally, in this situation, his girlfriend should be angry and jealous, right.
But she didn't show much of that.
"What would I do if she was the one in this situation?"
Some seriously dangerous thoughts crossed his mind.
He shook his puppy head.
"No."
Now he was just confused again. And also irritated.
"Who even wants a harem? Do I look like I have time for this? Why didn't my family tell me anything about it?"
He curled up inside the box.
Everything had been going fine.
He had a girlfriend. He was going on adventures across different worlds.
So why did a sudden harem plot show up out of nowhere?
Sure, he liked watching harem anime.
But that didn't mean he wanted to be in one.
As a self-proclaimed introvert, he never liked talking to that many new people.
And now—
He was stuck in a harem plot.
"I don't want this…"
Just then, he felt someone teleport nearby.
The cardboard box lifted.
Erika's voice came from outside.
"Caught you."
Before he could say anything, space warped again.
They were back on the terrace.
Erika picked him up from the box, holding him gently.
"Don't run."
Akira, in his puppy form, struggled to escape, he kicked his legs around trying his best.
"No, no, leave me alone."
But Erika hugged him tightly and sat back in the chair.
"Just shut up and listen."
Akira continued struggling for a moment, then gradually calmed down.
Selena immediately spoke,
"Brother, listen to me."
Akira turned his head away.
"No."
Erika tightened her hold on him.
"Akira, listen to her."
Akira shook his head.
"No. I won't marry them. I don't want a harem."
Erika frowned.
"Listen first. It's not like that."
Akira responded telepathically,
"No, I won't. Erika, why are you pushing me into this? Don't you… not like me anymore?"
Erika's expression shifted to irritation.
"You—"
She pinched both of his puppy cheeks hard.
"What nonsense are you talking about? How could I not like you."
Akira looked at her.
"But... Shouldn't you be more mad? More jealous? ...Shouldn't you want me for yourself?"
Erika didn't let go, still pinching his cheeks.
"Who said I'm not jealous? Who said I don't want you for myself? I would never give you away to anyone."
Akira hesitated.
"But you—"
Selena cut in immediately,
"I'm sorry, brother. It's my fault for not explaining it to you properly."
Both of them looked at her.
She continued.
"But this engagement is not normal. In fact, if you want to… you don't actually need to marry them."
Akira stilled.
"…What do you mean I don't have to?"