So clearly, he could sense the fresh fragrance coming from the girl's hair.
And the warm, soft sensation transmitted from her body.
The atmosphere turned somewhat delicate.
Takumi could feel the restless emotions stirring within his heart.
"Um…"
Chika tilted her head to the side, shrinking back slightly, not daring to meet Takumi's gaze.
Her voice weakened, turning soft and gentle, having completely lost the liveliness from just moments before.
Should he put her down?
Just as that thought surfaced, Chika's hand was already resting on Takumi's shoulder. Then the girl took a deep breath, turned her head back, and looked at Takumi seriously, her chin lifting slightly along with it.
And Takumi, drawn by the strong surge of courage she had mustered, could not help but meet her eyes.
"…"
"…"
Both of them fell silent.
In the quiet little room, they simply looked at each other like this.
Takumi saw the sea.
Different from Maki's deep, brown-violet, gemlike eyes that seemed to hide countless little secrets, these were eyes like the ocean beneath a blue sky—deep blue and dazzling.
At this very moment, reflected in those eyes was his own slightly awkward face.
Who would have thought that he would actually come out at a disadvantage with this girl?
As Takumi sighed faintly to himself, he slowly leaned his head closer to the girl before him.
And Chika remained motionless in Takumi's arms, eyes wide open, watching as he drew closer little by little, and then—
She closed her eyes.
It was very warm.
Chika's lips were very warm.
With just the lightest touch, he could feel that scorching warmth.
Just like her personality—brimming with vitality, full of energy and life, an incomparably warm sensation.
The girl in his arms trembled lightly.
Her arms wrapped around Takumi tightened a little more, until her body was almost pressed completely against his.
In this posture, Takumi could no longer maintain a princess carry, so he loosened his hold slightly and shifted into a more normal embrace. But because Chika was even shorter than Maki, even in this situation her feet still could not touch the ground—she was almost entirely held in Takumi's arms as they kissed.
Slowly, their lips parted.
Chika still kept her eyes tightly shut, her body trembling uncontrollably.
By now, her cheeks were completely flushed red—far redder than Maki's had been when she kissed Takumi earlier. As she breathed, the rise and fall of Chika's chest had already become somewhat intense, yet the hands holding onto Takumi showed no sign of loosening, still tightly wrapped around his shoulders.
Seeing her tense, shivering state, Takumi could not help but pause to admire her for a moment, a trace of inexplicable mischief stirring in his heart.
"Um… then… aren't you going to kiss me anymore?" After quite a while, noticing that Takumi did not seem to have any intention of continuing, Chika cautiously opened her eyes and asked in a small voice.
"Do you want me to keep kissing you?" Holding Chika, Takumi lowered his head and looked at her as he asked.
"Who asks a girl something like that… Takumi, that's already bullying me. I mean, I made a huge decision just to stay, you know…" The girl, who had completely lost her lively demeanor, spoke softly. Beneath her coquettish tone, she no longer had the courage to meet Takumi's gaze at all. She simply closed her eyes again, her body tensing slightly as she assumed a posture of letting him do as he pleased.
Something was a bit off.
Takumi could sense that the girl in his arms was in a subtly abnormal state at this moment.
But he remained silent, only leaning in once more toward Chika's face and gently kissing her lips.
This time, he could feel the girl's somewhat awkward response.
Her movements were clumsy, completely unrestrained—she was entirely just imitating Takumi's actions, engaging in tentative interaction.
So Takumi simply became more forceful, fully sealing Chika's lips, suppressing her completely with a nearly suffocating deep kiss. Then, holding Chika like this, he took a few steps forward. When he reached the bedside, he directly fell down with the motion, pressing Chika's body beneath him.
He could feel her body shudder violently in that instant.
Slowly, Takumi released Chika's lips, and the girl immediately could not help but gasp for breath.
Then, he lowered his head and kissed her on the side of her face.
He could feel her body tense up.
And Takumi, without any regard, kissed her neck as well.
The girl did not move at all, lying stiffly on the bed like a corpse.
After that, Takumi reached out and undid the buttons on her clothes, gently pulling them apart a little to reveal her smooth shoulders.
And the girl still made no movement at all, simply lying there motionless like a puppet.
So Takumi finally could not help but stop. He raised his head and looked at her face—at Chika's face, tears already streaming down, yet her eyes still tightly shut, unmoving.
"If you're unwilling, then why force yourself like this? Seeing you act like this makes me very uncomfortable too."
Back when they were kissing, Takumi had already realized that Chika was actually forcing herself—deliberately pushing herself to entice him and bring all of this about.
As far as acting went, there had basically been no problems from start to finish. But once it reached real, physical contact, this girl could not help but reveal her true feelings. And through the sensing blessing he had obtained at the Shirakawa Apartments, Takumi could clearly perceive the growing sense of aversion in Chika's emotions, one that she could no longer hide.
At the beginning, Takumi had not been very clear about this girl's purpose, so he simply went along with her act. It was only just now, when he finally figured out what Chika was thinking, that he stopped.
"Huh? I–I wasn't forcing myself or anything… um, if Takumi wants it, then, well, I'm fine with it…"
Not expecting Takumi to stop, Chika opened her eyes in surprise, only to realize that she had already burst into tears. She quickly raised her hand to wipe them away. But she could not hide the sobbing in her voice, and Takumi's brows furrowed even deeper.
"Alright, get up. Put your clothes back on. I admit I'm a pretty horny person, but I'm not so far gone that I'd do something like bullying someone. Sit up, calm down a bit, and tell me what's really going on."
Letting out a sigh, Takumi sat down beside Chika, casually adjusting his pants and posture. Then he continued speaking with an unchanged expression.
"…Takumi, you actually really stopped? Even though Kaguya and little Maki both said you're a lewd demon who'll take advantage of girls the moment you get the chance."
This time, Chika was truly shocked. She pulled her clothes back up over her shoulders, sat upright, and looked at Takumi as if she were seeing him anew.
"That's incredibly rude. I'll openly admit that I'm very horny—big or small, as long as they're pretty, cute, and not troublesome, I like them all and want to get close. But no matter what, I'm still someone with normal values. With your unwillingness being that obvious, I'm not an idiot. How could I possibly just force things without regard under those circumstances?"
Takumi let out another deep sigh and looked straight at her as he continued.
"…Eh? W–was I really that obvious?"
Chika shrank back slightly, lowered her head, and once again raised a hand to wipe away the tears at the corners of her eyes.
She really was forcing herself.
Throughout the entire day—during the three-person date with Takumi and Maki; after reminding Takumi to comfort Maki and then leaving on her own; after lying to Kaguya that she had something to discuss and asking her to help cover for her; from waiting alone at the door of Takumi's home for him to return; and finally, after entering the house and spending that stretch of time alone with him as a man and a woman—Chika had been forcing herself the whole time.
She had always been a very clear-headed person. Although she usually seemed carefree and loved to have fun, after going through the bloody and brutal death adventure of the Sacrifice Game, she knew that she needed to bind herself to the team Takumi belonged to, and that she needed to maintain that team properly. So she first provoked Maki, then deliberately gave way, making it even harder for her to let go of her feelings for Takumi. As for herself, she took the initiative to come to him at night, prepared to be completely taken by Takumi, so that her weight in this man's heart would reach its maximum.
After that, she still had many plans to regulate the team. In short, she wanted to establish an adventure team centered on Takumi and ensure everyone's safety. And in order to realize this idea, the progress made tonight was absolutely necessary. She knew that Takumi was a man full of desire and action. If she were just a little more proactive, he probably would not refuse. Once this step was completed, there would be many things she could do, and stabilizing the team would become much easier. This was something only she could do, because whether it was Kaguya or Maki, both were very passive when it came to emotions. Relying on them alone, it would be very difficult to properly handle their relationship with Takumi.
Of course, this was not some kind of self-sacrifice. The help Takumi had given her in the Red Nut Grey Cave, and the experience of the two of them risking life and death together, had already made her genuinely like him. Especially during that one month that had vanished due to the rollback—after learning from Maki and Kaguya about how Takumi had endured the torture of boiling water and having his mouth sewn shut with needles and thread, all while arduously leading the team to clear the instance—she had come to like and admire this man from the bottom of her heart even more.
So, if it was him, she could accept it.
It was fine. He would definitely accept her. After all, Takumi really was very lewd. Even when he was helping her wrap bandages around her chest, he had looked like he was struggling to endure himself. So as long as she was willing to take the initiative, he would definitely not refuse her.
Chika had already made her resolve.
She would not shrink back. This was a decision she herself had made.
However, deep down in her heart—the part of her that still belonged to a peaceful society and had not yet completely faded away—there was still a trace of grievance and sadness flowing through her, and she still could not fully accept something like this happening.
After all, she, too, longed for romance. She, too, wished for her other half to belong to her completely. She had also fantasized about scenes of leaning on one another with the person she loved—and that image would never have been like this, never something where she forced herself to deliver herself to his door, using her own body as a tool.
She had thought she was hiding it well, yet Takumi had actually seen through it.
Lowering her head, Chika could not help but feel a little dejected.
"I won't do anything like abandoning you, or Maki, or Shinomiya-san."
Then she heard Takumi speak with utter seriousness.
"Eh, that's not what I meant…"
Chika lifted her head in a bit of panic, wanting to refute him, but Takumi reached out and pressed a hand against her head.
"Don't take me for an idiot like Maki, you troublemaker. You really are worthy of being a politician's descendant—your calculations are loud and clear. But seriously, don't underestimate me either. Who do you think I am? Do you think I went through all that pain and suffering just to survive? What I want is for everyone around me to live well, to get through every task safely. I won't give up on anyone. And I don't need anyone to stabilize the team through self-sacrifice. To me, the three of you are all my most important partners. I won't abandon a single one of you." Takumi spoke with absolute solemnity.
"That kind of statement really makes you sound like a playboy—and so Kaguya is also among Takumi's hunting targets after all?"
The next second, Chika's quiet jab instantly left Takumi at a loss for words.
"Well… at least for now, I want to properly sort things out between you and Maki first. As for what comes later, I'll leave that to my future self."
After hesitating for a moment, Takumi decided it was better not to speak too definitively in front of Chika. After all, Maki was already a precedent.
"That kind of statement is pretty unqualified, you know. If you took that to a press conference, you'd definitely be demoted the very next day. Takumi may be smart most of the time, but when it comes to handling emotions, you really are an idiot."
As she continued teasing him, Chika reached out and gently placed her hand over the one Takumi had resting on top of her head.
Takumi's hand was very large.
Rough, and slightly cooler than her own body temperature—cool to the touch.
The fear and pain that had lingered in her heart just moments ago now seemed to have completely dissipated, leaving behind nothing but a deep sense of reassurance.
Perhaps there were still many things about this person that she did not truly understand.
Ding-dang dang, ding-ding dang~
Amid the clear, rhythmic singing, the alarm on Takumi's phone rang.
"Huh? Did someone call Takumi?"
Startled for a moment, Chika watched Takumi take out his phone and swipe the screen, then asked curiously.
"No, it's just my alarm. It's the ten p.m. alarm. I usually go wash up around this time—this one's there to remind me not to get too absorbed in gaming."
Takumi scratched his head as he explained.
"Oh, oh… I see…"
Half-understanding, Chika nodded lightly. She subconsciously reached out and tugged at her clothes, letting out a soft breath.
Then, with her face faintly flushed, she lifted her head and looked straight at Takumi without blinking.
"Um… Takumi, do you have any spare clothes at home?"
She asked softly.
"I came over in a bit of a hurry today, so… I didn't bring any sleepwear…"
As she said the last line, Chika lowered her head once more, her face growing rosy again from embarrassment.
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