"Damn it! Is dating her that much fun!?" (〃＞皿＜)!!!!
Although Kaede had willingly set up the date between Rin Ito and Karen, seeing Rin Ito and Karen chatting and laughing on their date still made Kaede feel a twinge of jealousy.
"That Karen, she's so arrogant and has such a terrible personality at school, why is she suddenly so well-behaved in front of him!" I'm angry! So angry!
Kaede and Suzu followed the three of them all the way, watching them go into a cat café and then an arcade.
"Why is this claw so weak!!! It's not going to grab anything, is it?"
In front of the claw machine at the arcade, Karen pouted, staring at the doll that slipped out of the claw yet again. She had tried several times, and each time the doll slipped out of the hook.
Rin Ito naturally reached from behind Karen, held her hand, and maneuvered the claw. He spoke softly into her ear, "Don't worry. You want this one, right? I'll help you."
"!!!!!" Karen instinctively held her breath and hummed a response, her voice barely a whisper. Karen, who had never had such intimate physical contact with a man, froze in place. Shion next to her looked helpless. He's just a pig! How can she be the Oonji family heir if she gets shy from being touched by a pig?! It looks like I, her sow of a master, need to teach her a lesson.
It took only a few tries for Rin Ito, holding her hand, to successfully grab the small dog doll she wanted. Karen held her breath, her eyes fixed on the trembling doll that looked like it might fall at any moment, until the claw moved to the exit and the doll dropped.
"Yay~~~" Karen excitedly turned and hugged Rin Ito. Her ample chest, which was no less than Suzu's, was pressed and distorted, looking like it would overflow at any moment. After a warm embrace, Karen squatted down to pick up the small dog doll.
"Hehe~ Shion, look~" Karen showed off the doll in her hand to Shion. It's a small dog doll!
"That's wonderful, Miss Karen," Shion looked at the cheap doll and deadpanned her congratulations with a blank expression.
Karen might not have known, but Rin Ito was well aware of the trick. Typically, these claw machines are set to have a strong grip once every certain number of tries. Rin Ito had calculated that it was about time for a strong grip before stepping forward.
"I want this one too! Help me grab it." Karen took light steps, pulling Rin Ito towards another claw machine. Halfway there, Karen turned her head and looked at Shion. "Shion, go get us some more tokens."
"...Yes, Miss Karen." Shion turned around, twitching at the corner of her mouth, but still followed Karen's instructions and exchanged a basket of tokens at the counter.
As the tokens dwindled, the number of dolls in Shion's hands grew, until finally, dolls were hanging all over Shion.
"Miss Karen, it's getting late. It's time for lunch."
"Eh?" Karen looked at her phone. "Time flies so fast. Are you hungry? Let's go eat. What should we play this afternoon~?"
Leaving the arcade, Shion went to the parking lot first to put the dolls back in the car. Rin Ito and Karen went to rest at an ice cream shop first. After a morning of fun, Karen's cheeks were flushed with a rosy hue. Rin Ito ordered three lemonades and spoke to Karen while drinking.
"It's a shame Kaede and Suzu couldn't come today."
"Y-yes..." Karen paused, her expression suddenly turning gloomy. She had almost forgotten that the person in front of her was Kaede's boyfriend, not hers. Karen sucked on the lemonade; it wasn't just her mouth that felt sour, but her heart too.
"Do you really like her?"
"Kaede? Yes... of course. We're childhood sweethearts, you know. I'm a bit older than her, so I used to take them out to play when they were little. Did you know that when she was little..." Rin Ito talked endlessly about Kaede's good qualities and funny stories from childhood.
The more Karen listened, the more sour she felt, even inexplicably wanting to cry. As the future heir of the Oonji family, Karen was overwhelmed with various lessons when she was young. Although it became easier after she started school, that was only concerning her coursework. At school, there were even some people who specially transferred their children over just to cozy up to the Oonji family. The only person Karen could truly call a friend was Shion.
Rin Ito spoke while subtly observing Karen. Suzu and the System had already told Rin Ito the specifics. Rin Ito could tell that Karen rarely encountered such down-to-earth things. The more she envied them, the more Rin Ito spoke. The less one understands something, the more one yearns for it, much like how some people long for a relaxed, stress-free pastoral life of working from sunrise to sunset. Yet, when they are actually thrown into the fields on a mountain, they want to go home within a week. Just like those videos, Rin Ito's artistic embellishment made Karen exceptionally envious. Soon, Shion, who had gone to the parking lot to drop off the dolls, returned. Rin Ito handed her a lemonade.
"Miss Karen, Mr. Ito, shall we go?"
"Wait a minute." Karen looked at Rin Ito. "We still have the afternoon to play. Do you have any recommendations for nearby places?"
"As for recommendations..." Rin Ito pretended to think. "I do have a recommendation. I know a very delicious small food stall nearby, but I don't know if you'll like it." Karen was the Oonji family's young lady; what expensive restaurant hadn't she been to? It was better to try an unconventional approach and take her to eat at a small stall hidden in an alley that she wouldn't normally go to.
"It's fine! I'd love to try it!" Karen agreed without hesitation, which made Shion completely speechless... Is Karen a dog?! She's practically licking him!
Forget it, forget it. Although Shion didn't know what Kaede Hoshizuki was planning, Kaede was definitely aiming to mess with Karen. Karen would learn her lesson soon enough.
After having lunch with Karen and Shion, it was time for the afternoon activities. They went pottery making and watched a movie. Rin Ito took Karen and Shion through a series of typical date activities in the afternoon. Rin Ito treated Karen just as he would treat Kaede and Suzu on a date, casually making some intimate gestures. For instance, he held Karen's hand while making pottery, or when watching the movie, he bought popcorn and timed it perfectly to "accidentally" reach for the bucket together.
Although there was some physical contact, Rin Ito made it seem like it was all done unintentionally, as if he didn't notice Karen's blushing and pounding heart.
The movie finished, and it was already four o'clock in the afternoon. It was too early for dinner, and there wasn't enough time to play anything else. Looking at Karen, who was completely absorbed in the moment, Shion quietly took out her phone and sent Karen a message.
Shion: [Miss Karen, did you forget the purpose of this outing?]
Seeing the message from Shion, Karen suddenly realized. Oh no... I forgot the whole point of coming here was to cuckold Kaede.
"Ugh... I feel a bit tired after playing all day." Karen stretched languidly, as planned.
Shion spoke subtly, keeping her expression neutral. "Miss Karen, there's an Oonji family hotel nearby. Why don't we go rest for a bit, and then come out later for dinner?"