CubexCursedxCurious:Volume13 Chapter3

Chapter 3 - Beauty and the Beast? ~Sakuramairi Shiraho on a Rampage~

Part 1

—Hence, Fear visited that place once again.

"I've... finally... returned..."

While her eyes were staring solemnly straight ahead, her shiny silver hair was fluttering in the wind. As though trying to confirm various complex thoughts and emotions in her mind, she murmured softly:

"I've filled with regret every time I recall the scene back then. Why didn't I move my hands more? Why didn't I move my feet more? Why didn't I open my eyes more? Why didn't I do more—Ahhh, ultimately, I didn't get to do what I was supposed to do. Everything was incomplete, nowhere near enough. That's why—"

Fear was eagerly waiting with impatience for the instant when these desires exploded. Overflowing from her heart, these desires turned into countless breaths, swirling in her surroundings.

Nervousness and tension.

Unease and anticipation.

While monologing, she slowly took a step forward. The breaths hanging in the air were conferred the mission of breaking through the impasse.

"That's why I have to start all over again. I have to let everyone know that I'm no longer my past self. Even if it means crushing my feet, I won't halt my steps; even if it means tearing off my arms, I won't regret. I will carve everything into my memory, branding all sights into the back of my eyes. All this is for overcoming my foolish regrets!"

Then forward.

In the beginning, she simply walked slowly, then gradually she accelerated, soon reaching her fastest speed. Simply advancing nonstop, forward, forward!

Charge, charge, charge—

Watching Fear from behind, Haruaki narrowed his eyes and yelled to her. But surely, she could no longer hear him.

"Hey Fear, I'll first say this just in case. Your excitement is directed in the wrong direction. None of us can keep up with your pace."

Fear's gaze was locked onto the place she was currently about to rush into.

The words on the sign were no different from what they saw on their last visit.

Namely, the Woof Meow Friendship Park—

The name of the addictive paradise that made Fear rationality.

One ordinary Sunday morning, a dramatic change was brought about by Fear's sudden whim. Indeed, before that, the day was definitely as calm and peaceful as usual.

Haruaki was about to finish washing the breakfast utensils. While helping out, Konoha was preparing tea. Going off to work at her beauty parlor, Kuroe had opened the front door noisily and announced: "I'm off~..." On the other hand, Fear was lying on the tatami in boredom, watching television while saying: "Hmm~ What should I do today...? So bored."

However, a furry puppy television commercial started it all. As though suddenly recalling something, Fear stood up at once and yelled:

"Oh right! It's called the Woof Meow Friendship Park! Let's go there again! 'Cuz if you ask me whether I had enough fun there last time, I definitely can't answer affirmatively, besides, today is so free and the puppies and kittens are so furry and fluffy! Yes, let's do it! It's decided!"

In that instant, Haruaki almost dropped the plate he was washing, Konoha sighed deeply while Kuroe suddenly closed the front door that she had opened halfway, making a hundred-eighty-degree turn and declaring: "I'm off~ ...Not!"

"S-So sudden!"

"Getting ready to go out now would be somewhat troublesome. Why not relax and spend today casually at home?"

"What what? We're going out to have fun?"

"Guh, I can't believe you came back as her ally. If only you left for work a second sooner!"

"Oh dear~ Although I will always stand on Ficchi's side, somehow I'm really getting the feeling recently that I'm slacking off a bit too much. As a result, I'm just coming back to listen to the situation. I'll take a neutral stance this time. If you're going, I'll come along. If you're not going, I won't go either. Thanks for having me!"

"You're just feeling lonely if we leave you out, right?"

"That works too."

Confronted with the sudden suggestion, Haruaki and Konoha showed hesitancy on their faces while Kuroe remained neutral. However, Fear's determination was firm and she had already ran back to her room to begin rummaging seriously and prepare for an outing.

"You guys may say no, but it's really too boring. Since I know the location anyway, I must go even if I have to go alone!"

She showed no signs of giving up at all. However, it was definitely too worrying to let Fear wander far away on her own, to play outside unattended. Hence, Haruaki's group had no choice but to compromise in the end.

After getting ready to head out, they then took a bumpy bus ride for dozens of minutes. As soon as they arrived at the destination, Fear sprinted ahead, resulting in the current situation.

"Hmm... She really can't hear me."

Even though Haruaki had tried to remind Fear that her excitement was misdirected, naturally, none of it reached her ears. Looking at the back of the silver-haired figure as she ran into the entrance, Haruaki sighed.

"What starting all over again? ...She was clearly having a ton of fun last time, right?"

"It is true that she was having fun, but that child probably doesn't think so herself, sigh~"

"Because last time's situation required us to pay attention to clocks all the time. Although Ficchi looked like she was having fun to the max, I don't think that was actually the case."

"What are you guys doing!? Hurry and come in, hurry!"

Fear had already passed through the gate and was waving vigorously at them. She had apparently paid the entrance fee herself. Since the ticket was not expensive, she probably used money she had saved up from all her part-time jobs so far... Seeing her growth, Haruaki spontaneously felt happy for her but also experienced a sense of loneliness.

"Ehehe, O~nii~chan~♪ Ticket please!"

"Stop suddenly acting cute and saying nonsense. Working members of society should pay for themselves."

"Muu~ I was just thinking I should have you spoil me on Ficchi's behalf, Haru. Although I'm in the workforce, the economy has been bad recently. It's a huge problem for me too."

"In that case, that's even more reason for you to open shop and go to work, right? I can't believe you gave up on earnings completely on a valuable Sunday."

"Ah~ ah~ I can't hear anything~"

Haruaki bought his ticket while looking at the poster put up at the counter. Indeed, they were in quite a flustered state the last time they visited and could not spare any thoughts on leisurely browsing the park's maps, events and other promotional posters.

This Woof Meow Friendship Park was an integrated facility combining a zoo with an athletic park where visitors could bring pets in to play. Despite being a zoo, attractions were ultimately limited to the level of dogs and cats without offering large exotic animals like elephants or pandas. The promotional posters listed out various events such as "Come hug bunnies!" or "Pony Test-Riding Experience." Today's event turned out to be: "Monthly Tradition: Woof Meow Friendship Park's Couples Battle! The winning couple will be presented with an extravagant prize!" For some reason, wedding photos of random couples were put up next to the poster. What did it mean?

After waiting for Konoha and Kuroe to buy their tickets, Haruaki entered the gate as a trio. As soon as Fear saw the dog exercise plaza stretching before her eyes, she began to grow restless.

"Wow, wow... This place is really awesome! Furry little doggies over there, wait for me...!"

Probably reaching the limits of self-control, Fear took a step forward unsteadily. Haruaki hastily grabbed her by the collar.

"Shouldn't you plan a little first? You came here to have as much fun as you can, right...? I've brought the map so have a look first and decide which places you want to visit. There's still plenty of time."

Saying that, Haruaki glanced at the large clock standing in the plaza. The clock hands were concretely tracing out the passage of time—Haruaki could not help but feel guilty slightly, although back then, they had no choice.

"Muumuu. You have a point. After all, I can visit this park any time and I'll surely see doggies everywhere. So let's have a look at other attractions... Oh, here's the cat petting house I visited last time, it's a wonderful place. I have to go again. Also—this rabbit garden looks nice too. After all, as one of the twelve animals of the oriental zodiac, the rabbit mustn't be missed out. Do they allow petting? It'd be nice I could pet them. Rabbit fur probably feels different from dogs and cats. I never knew there were so many places to visit, like the pony farm or the aviary. Oh man, where should I start—Uhahahahahaha!"

"Crap, she can't stop laughing from over excitement. Ficchi, you've got to calm down!"

"She can't possibly calm down, right?"

"Indeed, it is impossible."

Haruaki and Konoha sighed deeply. Instantly, Fear snatched the map from Haruaki's hands and broke into a sprint.

"Okay, let's start over here! Hurry up or else I'll leave you guys behind! Don't get lost!"

"That's totally our advice to you!"

"I'm actually relieved that everything is happening too predictably. Fear, we're coming too, so wait up, stop running—!"

Part 2

After that, Haruaki casually accompanied Fear to tour the park. He did not actually dislike animals and was only startled earlier when Fear suddenly suggested going out. Once arriving here, he decided that it was not a bad idea to spend a boring Sunday in this leisurely manner.

"Wow~ They're getting very used to this and don't struggle at all... But this kind of temperament is probably why they were placed here in the first place."

"In other words, cats for greeting visitors? Ufufu, this little one is a little chubby and reminds me of the manager... Mister manager, thank you for working so hard~"

What a peaceful time. Currently, the group was at the cat petting house that had Fear salivating completely. In terms of appearance, it resembled a small community center or daycare facility, equipped with playgrounds and cradles with blankets inside. Naturally, as the main attractions, the cats were also doing their own things as they pleased. Visitors were allowed to freely pet these cats inside this space.

Picking up a calico cat that was not afraid of strangers, Haruaki took a brief look all around. Konoha was using a foxtail toy that was kept here to play with a chubby cat. Fear was having a staring contest at eye-level with a cat with large round eyes. She did not pick the cat up. Instead, she had her chin pressed against the floor, her bottom sticking up, a rather unseemly posture. Not only her posture but of course, her hazy eyes and the drool about to drip out from the corner of her lips were unseemly to the extreme.

"Ehe... Really too cute... Fufuhe~"

Then Fear wriggled and lifted her chin, supporting herself with elbows against the floor. Her level of unseemliness sort of dropped a notch.

"O-Okay, that's about it for visual appreciation. I'm just warming up in consideration for the burden to my heart. If this were enough to satisfy me, my priorities would be totally wrong. Next, finally, it's time to... pet...!"

Still with her elbows against the floor, Fear slowly extended her fingertips towards the cat. The cat cocked its head and stared blankly at Fear. However, just as Fear was about to touch the cat, it started approaching Fear instead, taking tiny steps.

Fear was still in the same posture with her bottom up, elbows against the floor. Naturally, her collar was hanging low as result of gravity. Combined with the fact that Fear was modest in bust size, a vast cave naturally opened up beneath her collar. Cats were a type of creature that loved squeezing into narrow spaces, in other words&mdash

The cat jumped into Fear's bosom all at once.

"Howawa! Wait... You ran there... Huahhhhhhh, but it's furry, it feels so furry in front of my chest! Hold on, if you move carelessly, you'll touch weird places, ahaha so ticklish... Mmm! Hey..."

Laughing one moment, going red in the face sometimes, making strange moans on occasion, Fear was making a ton of noise. The front of Fear's clothing shook as the cat moved about. Fear reached inside her collar, desperately trying to rescue the cat. Her collarbone flashed in and out of view while the dark expanse of unguarded space stretched beneath. Don't pull too hard or else your collar be stretched out of shape—Haruaki thought with escapism while quietly turning his gaze away as usual.

But just as he turned away, he saw Kuroe. She was staring at him intently with a bit of a sad look in her eyes.

"Ficchi ended up stealing naturally... what I was planning to do deliberately. This makes me feel... a little... jealous."

"W-What are you talking about?"

"Hmm. Hey, Haru, look..."

Kneeling on the floor with her calves against the outside of her thighs, Kuroe grabbed her skirt with her tiny hands. Then slowly, she lifted the hem, revealing her calves, then her knees, then her thighs—

"Hold on... What are you doing?"

"Don't ask so many questions. Just watch. I can't bear it any longer... So ticklish and so hot. So, have a look..."

"Wah—!"

Just as Haruaki was about to turn his gaze away again, out from between Kuroe's legs—in other words, beneath her skirt—a black cat poked its head out. Having lost the dark place where it had been resting quietly, the black cat made a discontented expression, got up on its little legs and walked away in search of new shelter.

"..."

"Bye bye~ Hmm... You have no idea how much effort it took me to drive that cat into this place! Not only do I need to consider the most comfortable size of the space but also calculate how far apart my legs should be... Even I can't help but feel jealous of Ficchi! That's why I gave up on the 'using suggestive language to make Haru misunderstand and get flustered' operation. Since it's lost its novelty, there's no point in delaying the delivery. Onwards to execute the next plan!"

"You don't have to execute anything! Jeez, I can't believe you're doing this kind of stuff while I'm not paying attention!"

"But then again, after experiencing this furry feeling in a spot I've never tried before, I'm beginning to find it kind of nice... Huhya! Hmm... Hyah!? No, it's no good, seems like it's no good after all, hey—You should come out too! Ooph—!"

—In any case...

Haruaki concluded that the girls all seemed to be having quite a fun time in their own respective ways.

Part 3

After spending quite some time interacting with animals, Fear and company started to feel a bit hungry. Hence, they went for some simple food at an area lined with gift shops and restaurants. Although it was still too early for lunch, filling their stomachs was crucial because they still had not visited half the places they were supposed to go, due to going on many detours on whim.

Fear finished her after-dinner tea in one gulp.

"Hey Haruaki, you guys are going to take a break here for a while, right? Then during this time, can I go over to the gift shop to have a look?"

Haruaki was sitting before the restaurant table, sipping tea absentmindedly. Hearing Fear, he turned his head to face her. What a carefree guy he was. Come on, in order to try out all the facilities without leaving any regrets, even a single second must not be wasted.

"Sure... But don't buy things yet because it'll be troublesome to carry around."

"I know. I'm just gonna look."

Fear walked over to the gift shop near the restaurant. Inside, all sorts of goods were laid out. There were stickers, desk pads and key holders emblazoned with the logo of the Woof Meow Friendship Park. Other relatively unusual products included pet collars, leashes and dog clothing with the same logo. The targeted customers were probably the visitors who brought their own pets to the park. In addition, there were many other goods that did not seem very related to the park, but simply placed together due to relevance to cats and dogs, such as stationery, piggy banks, plush dolls...

"Muu, mumumu!?"

Fear suddenly stopped walking. Her gaze drawn to a certain location, her feet could no longer move. She crouched down on the spot, gazing intently at the massive object displayed behind a fence to prevent visitors from touching it.

One could categorize it as a plush doll. Also a cat. But no ordinary cat.

"I know... what this is. It's the park's most popular mascot, MeltyCat...!"

At all of the park's cat zones they had visited so far, virtually all the signs and buildings depicted this mascot. A lethargic in a lying down posture, drawn in an extreme version of super deformed style. Looking as though it was about to melt from heat, the cat's outline was a bit indistinct. Nevertheless, the distorted lines produced an unusual sense of adorability and comicality.

While staring at that thing, Fear slightly expanded her awareness into the surroundings. Apparently, the vicinity of this fence was the corner focusing on MeltyCat merchandise, including various things like key holders and cellphone straps. As though guarding the goods and also like the master of this corner, the massive MeltyCat plush doll, standing over a meter tall by visual estimates, was displayed prominently in the very center.

"Guh!? N-Now they've really got me—Is this a trap they set, knowing I'd be captivated by MeltyCat as soon as I laid my eyes on it!? I-I really want it...!"

Fear swallowed.

"Oooh... But, 'Not for sale, please do not touch' huh... Makes sense. As the master here, it won't be very dignified if anyone could buy MeltyCat. Even if it's for sale, I'm guessing that the price is definitely beyond the money in my purse... So it's telling me to settle for buying other MeltyCat merchandise..."

But Fear was unable to tear her eyes off the plush doll. Staring intently at the adorable yet solemn fact, she then breathed out, long and deep. At the same time, she also heard a sigh from beside her.

"S-So cute. Unimaginably cute..."

"Yeah, it's really unimaginably cute..."

The other person was probably just murmuring to himself, but Fear could not help but concur because their sentiments matched completely. She also found the youth's voice a little familiar. But because her eyes were glued to MeltyCat, Fear did not turn to look at the voice's owner. All she could tell was that the other person next to her was crouching as well, staring in mesmerization at the same plush doll.

"Sigh... How could it be this cute...? I guess it's fully of mystery..."

"The greatest thing is how it looks so furry and soft. There this mysterious sense of balance in appearance... I really wanna try touching it. Who knows what it feels to the touch..."

"Definitely furry and fluffy. Ooh, just imagining it is making me feel unbearable!"

"If I could hold it in the palms of my hands... Who knows what I'm going to do to it."

"I really wanna put it on my head!"

"When sleeping, crawling under this soft plushie to use it as a blanket... Then of course, waking up in this state would mean having MeltyCat's face dominate your entire view! Ahhh, I'd die of happiness first thing in the morning! And thus, a space even harder to leave than the kotatsu is born!"

"Oh look! The mini-plushie is labeled 'Changes color when dipped into hot water'!"

"What!? W-What if that kind of high-tech function is also installed in the master... H-Holy cow!"

Fear turned her head in surprise, intending to check out what the youth was pointing to—As a result, she finally saw the face of the person whom she had been talking to all this time. Gazing into each other's eyes, they both exclaimed in surprise at the same time:

" "Eh?" "

No wonder Fear had found the voice a bit familiar. But only just a bit, so she could hardly be blamed for not noticing instantly. Because speaking of which, he usually appeared before Fear's circle as "her" instead.

"Sovereignty, sorry for keeping you waiting. There was a bit of a crowd at the washroom...!"

"Hey~ Fear, break time's over. It's time to get going—Oh, it's you guys!"

Hearing this, Fear looked back.

Considering Sovereignty was present next to her in male form, then most naturally—

Sovereignty's lover Shiraho must be standing behind. As soon as Shiraho spotted Haruaki's group, she backed away repeatedly in surprise and alarm.

Such a stomachache, and a convulsive one at that.

(Urgh...)

Fear and Sovereignty were currently side by side, crouching on the roadside inside the park, petting and playing repeatedly with a large dog, laughing happily. Standing behind the pair, Konoha was craning her neck, looking eagerly at the same dog. She looked like she really wanted to pet the dog as well, but she was having difficulty bringing it up because of her sense of pride in front of Fear.

Although this was clearly a heartwarming scene that should naturally bring a smile to one's face—

What Haruaki heard from beside him was irritated tongue clicking.

With trepidation, he glanced to the side—Her attitude had remained unchanged since a while ago. Arms crossed, a scowl on her face, she kept tapping her fingertips against her elbow.

"By the way, Kuroe-san sure is taking her time at the washroom."

"Yeah, she should be back soon—Woah!"

"I'm back—"

Fear and the others were taken aback with surprise when Kuroe happened to return at this time. Despite clearly wearing normal clothes before going to the washroom, for some reason, she had returned in what appeared to be a loose-fitting dog mascot costume.

"Wow~! Kuroe-chan, what's that? It's so cute—!"

"It seems to be pajamas~ I found a shop selling this kind of stuff when I was coming back from the washroom. Unable to resist the impulse, I bought it."

"If it's pajamas, can't you just wear it at home? There's no need to put it on immediately, right?"

"No no~ I have to put it on ASAP to publicize my cuteness! This is my mission as a mascot!"

"I've no idea what place's mascot you are, muu, but these pajamas are really quite nice. Apart from the MeltyCat merchandise, there's so much I wanna buy... What a dilemma!"

But, it's really so cute~ Sovereignty patted Kuroe on the head, dressed in the mascot costume pajamas. On the side, Shiraho's breathing quickened as the speed of her fingers tapping on her elbow gradually accelerated.

Thinking it would be a bad idea to stay silent, Haruaki gulped and spoke up:

"B-By the way, what a coincidence. Fancy coming to the same place on the same day to have fun—"

"We are not here for fun, human."

A terrifying voice. Shiraho simply turned her eyes sideways to look at him. That gaze resembled that of emotionless insects, almost enough to freeze people on the spot. Someone with a bad heart might probably get a heart attack immediately—

"We... Are... Here... On a date. Do you understand...?"

Haruaki could feel goosebumps rising on his back nonstop. She had deliberately fragmented her sentence, delivering her words slowly with a great sense of pressure, as though the grim reaper was riding upon her words, scythe in hand, hovering in approach.

"I-I get it...! Umm... How should I say this? This is really unfortunate, I feel very sorry for you two as well..."

"Oh really... You get it? Then I hope you can answer me, human. Because I haven't had a chance to go on a date with Sovereignty lately, I was thinking we must go on a date on this day, beginning preparations from a very long time ago, making plans, resolving to spend time alone together, just the two of us. Indeed. JUST. THE. TWO. OF. US, spending a most happy day together, having as much fun as possible, allowing the body to replenish the kind of happiness element that resembles narcotics yet surpasses narcotics, in other words, the Sovereignty element, to an overflowing degree. Given my plans, what do you think is the proper method for me to deal with insensitive, cruel, irrelevant, meaningless and aimless interlopers getting in my way?"

One step, another step. Like a ghost, Shiraho exuded a cold aura that was antithetical to the concept of life, finally approaching Haruaki. With a sneer that resembled a smile but was definitely no smile, she approached him.

"E-Eeek..."

"Okay, hurry up and tell me, human. What level of punishment can you accept? By the way, my lower limit is somewhere in the area of abandoning corpses or destroying corpses."

"So you've taken murder for granted as a matter of fact!? No wait, calm down, I said that this was just an unfortunate coincidence, we have absolutely no intention of getting in your way—"

"Regardless of intention, the fact is you have already succeeded in obstructing us! Seriously, as expected of a low-level human who only possesses intellect on the level of maggots...! I really hope you can die immediately and reincarnate into maggots matching your intellect, then gathering upon your own corpse to help me eliminate the evidence of abandoning the corpse. In this sense, it would be quite a perverse form of masturbation, rather fitting of your style. Does it feel good? Does it feel good? Then by the logic that I am making you feel good, I definitely won't be accused of committing a crime, then I shall murder and destroy the abandoned corpse without worry, and after that—"

"Shi~ra~ho~!"

Shiraho was saying things that were definitely on a level enough to require calling the police while she slowly approached Haruaki, exuding murderous intent all over. At this moment, Sovereignty hugged her shoulder from the side. Rather than stepping forward to rescue Haruaki, Sovereignty was simply talking to Shiraho while using the opportunity for intimate contact as usual.

"Kuroe-chan is back now, so let's continue to the next location?"

Shiraho's transformation was excessively fast and overly natural. Making a tender smile of happiness towards her lover, she murmured softly with gentleness and loving affection, almost enough to melt someone.

"Fair enough, let's be on our way. However—"

"Umm, Sovereignty..."

Haruaki could not help but interrupt. While Sovereignty turned to look at him, Shiraho hissed and glared viciously at him, giving off an aura like that of underworld deities. Uh, hold on, I'm speaking up because I'm trying to help!

"Haruaki-kun, what's up?"

"Uh... You're on a date with Shiraho today, right? It's just coincidence that we're here, so it's not good if we get in your way... So how about we move separately?"

"Yes, Sovereignty, let's do that! This is the suggestion the foolish human came up with by racking his brains of maggot intellect. He'll end up being so pathetic if you don't accept the suggestion!"

"Eh~ It's a rare chance so wouldn't it be nice to walk around together?"

However, Fear failed to read the mood and objected. Caught in the middle, Sovereignty hunched her neck slightly and said:

"Ah, yeah. Uh... What should we do? I'm actually fine either way..."

"If either way is fine, then let us follow our original plan. We'll tour the place on our own, just the two of us. Then next up is... This place, the aviary."

"The aviary? We're planning on going there next too. Since our destinations are the same, we can go together."

"—That was the original plan, but let us change our route, Sovereignty. In fact, I don't like birds very much. If I were to see an owl turning its head a 180 degrees, I might be tempted to forcibly twist it another revolution or two. So for the sake of the owls' lives, we shall skip the aviary."

"B-But I really like owls! Not only are they fluffy but cute as well... Say, Shiraho, you don't have to hate Fear-chan and the others so much."

Shiraho sighed deeply.

"It's not that I hate them but I do find them obstructive and don't want to encounter them. That's all."

"Since today's supposed to be a date with you, Shiraho, I was basically planning to go around the place with you alone... But changing our route just to avoid running into them, that's going a bit far... Just keep things the same as usual. If we run into them, then just say hi or chat for a bit, there's actually nothing wrong with that—"

"No. In any case, I don't want to. Okay, Sovereignty, let's go!"

"Wahhh, Shiraho, don't drag me—! Uh, so that's what's happening, I'm sorry! If we run into each other later, let's say hi again~!"

In this manner, Shiraho dragged Sovereignty and they disappeared into the distance. Seeing that, Fear cocked her head, utterly baffled and said: "Umuu... I really don't get why Shiraho is in such a bad mood... Did we do anything wrong?"

Of course, rooted to the spot, Haruaki and the others could only exchange glances, shrugging helplessly.

Then they resumed what they were doing before encountering Shiraho and Sovereignty, resuming a leisurely tour of the park—As much as Haruaki wanted to say that, however...

"Ohoh, they're bunnies! Bunnies! White ones! Red ones! Fluffy ones!"

"Eh!? Where, where's the red bunny? Is it like a Char-custom!?"

"No, I mean the eyes. Oh it's you, Sovereignty? We meet again—"

"Okay, let's go, next location. Also, Sovereignty, no touching bunnies today, apparently!"

As soon as the group reached the bunny square where Shiraho and Sovereignty were already present, Shiraho strode forward, pushing Sovereignty's back. Of course, at the same time, she was glaring at full power towards Haruaki's group like laser beams as though saying "Don't follow us, or else I'll kill you all!"

After spending lots of time appreciating the rabbits, Haruaki's group moved onto the next location. However, they rean into Shiraho and Sovereignty again. Despite deliberately walking in the opposite direction, they ended up meeting again for some reason. The same thing happened the third time, then the fourth. Every time, Shiraho would click her tongue hard, forcibly interrupting Sovereignty's conversation with Fear and the others, and either pushing the back or pulling the arm of her lover, she would continue their journey of escaping, just the two of them.

"Is their luck that bad or what...? We really have no intention of stopping them from having time alone together."

"Hmm... They should simply give up and just tour the place with us. Sheesh, that damn Shiraho, I can't believe she's keeping Sovereignty all to herself... Oh, another encounter."

Noticing something, Fear stopped walking. Within the park were a number of athletic grounds for dogs to run around. Next to one of these grounds was an area resembling a resting zone, with rows of benches and a few mobile vendors. Sovereignty was there. But unlike all the times earlier, Shiraho could not be seen anywhere nearby.

"...?"

Haruaki suddenly felt a sense of dissonance. Of course, Shiraho's absence was one of the reasons, but Sovereignty's attitude also seemed a little different from before.

His eyes, staring blank towards the dogs running on the athletic grounds—

Seemed slightly lonely, slightly sad and slightly in pain.

Such were the complicated emotions residing within those eyes.

Part 4

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Part 5

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Part 6

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Part 7

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Part 8

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Part 9

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Part 10

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Part 11

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