For a moment, I couldn't believe my ears.
"What, …did you say?"
Her empty eyes, glistening with unshed tears, seemed to swallow the light. But her smiling lips sent a shiver down my spine, creating a sense of unease.
Chris answered my question again.
"I… I'll be Emil's tool…! No, I want to be…!"
"..."
I hadn't misheard.
'A tool…?'
Was it a man's instinct? Or was Chris speaking with that intention? My mind was immediately flooded with dark fantasies. After all, if a woman were to become a man's tool, that's usually what it implies. So, I first took a step back from Chris.
"No, wait, Chris… It's so sudden that I…"
At that, she.
Stepped forward.
"Gah…!"
Chris came even closer to me, pressing herself against me, closer than I had backed away.
"Oh, I'm sorry… I surprised you by saying something like this so suddenly, didn't I? But I'm serious… I've been thinking about it for a long time… about how I can atone."
"..."
Chris's dark eyes trembled as she cautiously looked at me.
"Of course, I even considered dying. I deserve to die. Because of me, Emil… went through all that… But no matter how much I thought about it, I didn't think Emil would be happy if I died…"
"..."
"Ah, h-hold on, did I judge wrong? If my death would make you feel relieved, I'd gladly…!"
"No, no, no! Chris! You're right! I don't particularly want you to die…!"
"Ha, haha… I knew it, didn't I? There's no way things would be okay with the life of a worm-like woman like me… Yes, I guess I thought it through well…"
"..."
Chris's state was strange. No, of course, I had expected it. Mari's state had been strange back then too.
'Couldn't she just be normally sad and feel a little guilty…?'
Honestly, her reactions were a bit more extreme than I'd wanted.
"So, I…! This is the answer I came up with after much deliberation!"
As if unaware of my thoughts. Chris leaned her upper body towards me with an earnest expression. Thanks to that, the distance between us, which had already been close, became even closer. Just a slight movement and we would touch. Her chest, moving with her breath, and her trembling lips caught my eye.
Gulp…
"I'll be Emil's tool…! Whatever Emil wants to use, however he wants…! I'll become a tool that's used and then discarded!"
"However you want… What exactly does that…?"
"'However you want' means… exactly what it sounds like. You can… use me however you want…"
Chris answered that way and then moved about a handspan away from me. Then, as if embarrassed, she lightly flushed and gently ran one hand down her chest. I saw her smooth legs, hidden beneath her skirt, pressing tightly together.
"If Emil wants… I can be used however you like, it's fine…"
"..."
"Ah…! O-of course, if Emil thinks I'm dirty, you don't have to use me at all, it's fine… B-but I… I'm a virgin, for now… So… that is…"
Even without me asking anything, she continued to explain various things herself. As if teaching me how to use her.
Slide…
Chris gently took hold of the cuff of my sleeve.
"...When you want to let it out, I'll be there for you to use, anytime, anywhere."
"..."
How did she end up so broken? No, I knew the reason.
'Memories of Despair'
It was the influence of the power I gained as an Easy Mode bonus. Of course, I had hoped that through it, she would recall her memories from previous timelines and suffer.
'What to do…?'
It became more troublesome than I expected. What would happen if I refused her like this?
…Honestly, I felt like she might commit some extreme act herself.
"Okay, I get it for now, Chris. So, c-calm down."
"U-un, okay. I'll obey."
At my words, Chris immediately put distance between us. Then she placed her hands over her chest and took a deep breath. She was seriously trying to calm down at my suggestion.
"I-I think I've calmed down a bit."
"Really? Ah, yes, you did well."
"...Thank you, heh, het."
When I praised her, she blushed happily and shyly lowered her head. Her previous sharp and cold demeanor had completely vanished.
'…Is she really going to obey everything I say?'
First, to confirm her sincerity, I decided to test her.
"Chris."
"Yes…!"
"Raise your left hand."
"L-like this?"
"Raise your right hand too."
"Understood…!"
When I gave her instructions, she followed them with a smile, as if the command itself was a blessing. At that, I hesitated for a moment before giving the next instruction.
"Then, hold them up like that, and try doing push-ups without using your hands."
"..."
I wasn't really trying to play a prank. I just wanted to see how she would react.
And Chris.
"Understood…! I'll try it!"
She really tried to do push-ups without using her hands, exactly as I instructed.
Whoosh!
Thud!
"Ugh—! I-I'm sorry…! I'll try again!"
"...Uh, what?"
Whoosh!
Thud!
"Uuugh…! Again…! Give me another chance…!"
Whoosh!
Thud!
Chris didn't use her hands. She lay on the floor without using her hands. She lifted her upper body using the momentum from her legs. That alone was an astonishing feat.
Whoosh!
Thud!
"Kyaah!!"
Naturally, her upper body, not being supported by her hands, hit the floor again. Chris pressed her side face into the floor, letting out a pained sound. But her tormented expression wasn't due to the pain of hitting her face.
"I'm sorry…! H-huh, I'm sorry! I'll do it properly this time…! So, j-just a little more…!"
She showed a desperate expression at her inability to perform my instruction.
"Ah, no, no! Chris! Stop it!"
Only then did I come to my senses and give Chris a command to stop.
"H-huh, ugh, I'm sorry…! I'm sorry…! You ordered me… and I couldn't even do that properly…"
"No, Ch-Chris… You did very well. Just by trying, it's as good as fulfilling my request."
"Really…?"
Chris smiled brightly. But her eyes remained empty, devoid of light.
For now.
Her words about becoming a tool were confirmed to be true.
***
In Mari's case, she became a stalker.
In Chris's case, she became a plaything.
'If this keeps up, I'll have big worries for the next capture target…'
The next capture route begins right after summer vacation starts. In terms of time, there were only a few days left.
"What are you thinking so hard about?"
"Huh, what?"
At Sierra's voice, I snapped out of my thoughts and looked at her sitting beside me. Sierra was looking at me with her spoon in her mouth.
"Ah, just a momentary distraction…"
"Hmm~, you invited me to sit next to you, and now you're spacing out?"
"…No, you were the one who invited me in the first place."
"Ugh! Anyway, you were the one who suggested we eat together today!"
"Mm, sorry."
"Hmph."
Sierra puffed out her cheeks, then put a side dish from her lunchbox into her mouth. Currently, I was having lunch with Sierra. The location was a bench on the academy's promenade. It had been a day since I heard Chris's declaration to become a tool.
'Normally, I would have been happily chatting and eating…'
It seemed it was hard to maintain my composure with Chris acting so extremely.
Then, Sierra, who had been quietly eating, poked my side repeatedly with her elbow. When I turned my head, Sierra glanced at me.
"So? What were you thinking about?"
"Huh…?"
"You said you were spacing out. Let's hear how magnificent your thoughts were."
"Ah, well…"
No, there was no way I could say it.
'You know Chris, right? Haha, I had lunch with her yesterday, and she said she'd be my tool? Even offering sexual services, whatever I wanted…'
I wouldn't say it unless I got shot in the head. Though there aren't any guns in this world.
Anyway.
"Just… summer vacation? Thinking about it a bit…"
I vaguely deflected. Saying I was thinking about summer vacation wasn't even a lie. Since it was the stage for the next capture target, no less.
"Ah, summer vacation!"
And Sierra, too, seemed to understand with an excited expression at my words.
"Hehe, what, what? A goody-two-shoes like you is looking forward to summer vacation?"
"I'm not a goody-two-shoes, but more importantly, can't goody-two-shoes look forward to summer vacation?"
"No? Of course you can. So? What are you planning to do during summer vacation?"
For some reason, Sierra showed great interest in the topic of summer vacation and asked me. Forgetting that she had been pouting and puffing out her cheeks just a moment ago.
"What is it? What, what is it? I'm curious!"
"Hmm…"
Poke poke.
Her elbow, poking my side as if urging me to speak quickly, intensified.
'Well, I guess I can say this much.'
After a moment of thought, I spoke to Sierra, who was tapping her foot impatiently, urging me to answer quickly.
"When summer vacation starts, there are students who stay in the dorms, right?"
"Yeah, yeah, there are, right?"
"I'm thinking of joining a club that those students gather for and run for a limited period."
"Oh? A club?"
At my words, Sierra's eyes widened and she tilted her head.
"There's something like that?"
"There are various ones like sports, music, exploration. Didn't you know? There are recruitment posters plastered all over the central bulletin board."
"Ah! That's what that was! I definitely thought they were for the next semester."
She might think that.
'Come to think of it… what did Sierra do during summer vacation in the original story?'
Of course, it varied depending on the player's choices. I carefully tried to recall what she might do. After all, it was the same with Mari, and the same with Chris. For some reason, Sierra always seemed to get entangled in the capture stage.
'If she keeps getting entangled every time I go for a capture, it might become more and more troublesome.'
If possible, I wanted to keep her away from the capture stage.
Just then.
"Hmph~, what, so you were just planning to do something like that."
"Hm…?"
Sierra, who was next to me, mumbled that in a somewhat deflated voice. When I looked at her questioningly, she glanced at me and then.
"No, well, it's not like I… stayed in the dorms specifically. I certainly didn't think we'd do anything together, not even a little."
"...What on earth are you talking about?"
"That's enough! If you don't know, just be quiet! You're just good at studying and a pure idiot, a blockhead!"
"Wha, what?"
Sierra's face once again became extremely sullen, and she snapped her lunchbox lid shut with a snap!
"I'm done eating! I'll go first!"
"..."
Sierra stood up and walked away. As she walked back to the academy, she glanced back at me again and again. When she reached the entrance, she disappeared from view.
"What was that, really?"
Confused, I just stared blankly at the scene where she had disappeared.
And a moment later.
Hoo…
I also closed my lunchbox, leaned back against the bench, and looked up at the sky. And I recalled my conversation with Chris yesterday.
'Ah, Edric…? Hehe, it's fine, Emil. Edric won't be able to do anything now.'
'Huh? If he died? …Well? If he were alive, wouldn't he have returned to the academy?'
"..."
I couldn't ask about Edric's specific whereabouts anymore. If I had asked, Chris would have undoubtedly answered with utmost sincerity. But I didn't ask.
'The next capture… I hope Sierra doesn't get involved.'
Malcolm also disappeared. Edric also disappeared.
"..."
Desiring all heroines in the 6th run was my way of resolving my long-held regret. So, I had no intention of giving up.
However.
As I continued the capture routes, a dangerous atmosphere pervaded. I didn't want Sierra to get caught up in it.
"...Should I go too?"
I picked up my lunchbox and walked in the direction Sierra had gone.
That's how the academy's day ended.
A few days later.
The academy welcomed summer vacation.