I let out a heavy sigh as I watched the screen. My Aunt, currently obsessed with the character-select screen, was being surprisingly meticulous. Not a single trace of a 'HOMU' could be seen in this so-called 'HOMU Impact.'
"So... for a game called HOMU Impact, there's a distinct lack of HOMUs in the prologue," I remarked.
"Oh, that? They said HOMU shows up as a supporter and the mascot character," Theresa replied offhandedly.
...Then what's the point of putting HOMU in the title?
I fought the urge to let that question slip out. After all, the person playing right in front of me was looking at the monitor with eyes full of genuine wonder and excitement.
Still, setting aside the fact that it's a dating sim—does it make sense for the mascot character to be the 'supporter'? Usually, isn't the main heroine the mascot?
No, wait... hold on.
Does that mean the 'Emergency Food' from now on is going to be a HOMU?
No, there's no way. Even the developers wouldn't be crazy enough to give die-hard HOMU fans an option like that. They'd be buried in complaints.
For the most part, the story followed the original Genshin plot I remembered.
"Ahaha! Did you see that, Captain? A mascot caught on a fishing line...! And the design is actually really cute!"
As expected, a HOMU appeared in place of Paimon. Theresa reacted with instant, fiery enthusiasm the moment it popped up. To be fair, the design felt like a 'best-of' collection of every HOMU iteration in history. It was remarkably well-made.
[ "Who is this mascot-looking thing?" ]
[ 1. A friend. ]
[ 2. Emergency food. ]
"Heh... what an interesting set of choices."
Wait, they actually put that in?
Did they really use that exact line? I felt a sudden wave of anxiety as my Aunt fell silent. I glanced over and saw the corner of her mouth twitching upward.
It was a look that seemed to say, 'You really think you can put this kind of choice in front of me?' I instinctively swallowed hard.
"Obviously, number two!"
"Huh?"
[ "What? I'm even worse than a mascot!" ]
As the familiar line of dialogue played back following her choice of the second option, I stared at Theresa in disbelief. Realizing what I was thinking, she shot me a look of pure, triumphant confidence.
She wagged her index finger at me, explaining exactly why choosing the 'friend' option was the wrong move.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk! You're still so green! If you're a true fan—a real, die-hard devotee—you have to pick option two!"
"I-is that how it works?"
"Of course! This choice shows me that the developers really cared about the fan experience!"
Seeing her eyes sparkle with such immense satisfaction, I gave up on trying to understand her logic. To any sane person, that's how you treat a friend, not a mascot you 'worship.' But since she was the self-proclaimed 'True Fan,' I figured there was some profound abyss of fan culture that I simply hadn't plunged into yet.
...Wait, don't tell me my wife liked that choice too when she played the game?
* *
"A-achoo!"
"CEO? Do you have a cold?"
"...No. My nose just felt itchy all of a sudden."
"It's probably the dust. We were supposed to clean, but we haven't opened the windows yet. I'll get some fresh air in here."
"Yes, please. Thank you."
* *
Nah. There's no way. Regardless of being a fan, my wife is the CEO of the company now. She wouldn't be that immature.
I pushed the thought to the back of my mind after seeing Theresa's reaction, but for some reason, I couldn't shake the gut feeling that my suspicion was exactly right.
"So."
"...Yes?"
"What's the real trouble weighing on your mind?"
The sudden, sharp pivot caught me off guard. My eyes widened as I looked at my Aunt. She was still manipulating the controller with the excitement of a teenager, a perfect match for her youthful appearance.
However, her gaze—those eyes—were steadier and more perceptive than I had ever seen them. I realized immediately that I hadn't misheard her.
"Ah, well, like you said earlier, I was worried about the implications of a polygamous marriage—"
"Liar."
She was blunt. Extremely blunt.
But she was right.
"How did you know?"
"I might look like this, but I'm still your senior in life!"
"...Your insight is truly something one could never guess from your outward appear—"
**"Do you really want to have a TALK, Kevin?"**
"I'm sorry!"
I practically slammed my head into the floor in apology. Seeing this, my Aunt stopped radiating that dark, ominous aura. She let out a small huff and went back to the controller with a smile.
"Honestly. Stop with those jokes."
"Understood."
Behind her, I saw the cross of Judah—which had manifested out of thin air—finally retract its golden spears and vanish. I let out a breath of pure relief. Lesson learned: never make jokes about a woman's age to her face.
Well, it's a bad habit of mine to tease, but... sometimes my Aunt acts so much like the teenager she appears to be that the jokes just slip out.
"So, what are you actually agonizing over? Is it something about Rita?"
"...That's part of it, but she said she's coming here herself later, so I decided to think about that then."
"Then what?"
I watched as she vigorously pummeled Dvalin's back on the screen. I slowly opened my mouth.
"It's about Selene."
"Selene?"
"Yes. There's a part of this I just don't understand."
My future self supposedly came to the past to have a relationship with Bianca, all to ensure that Selene wouldn't vanish from existence. He claimed that this was also the reason for the polygamous marriage... but I can't help but feel that's not the whole story.
Because my wife—the current Bronya—already gave her blessing for me to marry other women due to her own past actions. And it was blindingly obvious that the other women were making their moves quite aggressively.
"The moment Seele suggested the polygamous marriage, my future was basically set in stone anyway."
"...Wait, you laid hands on Seele, too?"
"Ah, that..."
Did she not know about this part?
She looked at me with a mix of exhaustion and the gaze one reserved for a 'public enemy of women.' I hesitated, wondering how to explain. But since it was already out there, and I had planned to introduce Seele to my parents before the others anyway, I decided to just come clean.
"Yes, that's right. Although alcohol was... a significant factor."
"Alcohol, huh..."
—I didn't expect that part.
"Sorry?"
She muttered it so softly I missed it. When I asked her to repeat herself, she just gave me a sweet smile and said it was nothing. I was about to let it go, assuming she was just engrossed in the game, when a certain word she used struck me as odd.
Wait. If my ears didn't deceive me...?
"Um, Aunt Theresa?"
"Yes?"
"What did you mean by 'Seele, too'? It sounded like you were implying I'd already touched someone else besides—"
Before I could even finish the sentence, the calm, smiling mask on my Aunt's face literally cracked. The game controller slipped from her hands, clattering to the floor.