Horizon:Volume 10B Chapter 51
Chapter 51: Honest Girls in a Secret Place[edit]
Hey, wait!
Listen!
Stop talking
And listen to me!
Point Allocation (Yeah, That’s Not Happening)
●
Asama: “Okay, everyone! Let’s all calm down! Take a deep breath…and let it out! There, now we’re calm! So let’s all look to a brighter future!”
Horizey: “Asama-sama, I already knew you were the ultimate lewd shrine maiden, but you have outdone yourself by publicly announcing your intention to combine. I am unsure how to even describe this.”
Asama: ‘H-Horizon, you did the same thing three weeks ago!”
Gold Mar: “I’ve been out of touch for three weeks, but why is Asama-chi making such an ultra blunt statement?”
Art-Ga: “Asama, have you forgotten I hold a pen in my hand? I’m going to give every entry in your series a happy ending now.”
Asama: “That would actually be preferable, but, w-wait, everyone, please calm down!”
Unturning: “Will you explain yourself if we do?”
Horizey: “What’s this!? A harsh addition by Narumi-sama. Asama-sama has been rendered immobile. Kimi-sama, what do you make of this?”
Wise Sister: “I would say the ‘Calm Down Reversal’ acted as the finisher here. Now she had no choice but to explain. Heh heh heh.”
Silver Wolf: “Um, Tomo? I’m supposed to be working with you to bring him back, so what in the world are you talking about?”
●
Mitotsudaira saw the shrine maiden next to her in the spring hold a hand to her chin in thought.
“Hmm,” groaned Asama. “This is going to be a pain.”
“I can deal with that,” said Mitotsudaira and both Horizon and Kimi nodded in agreement.
The look on Kimi’s face said she was hoping for some entertainment, like she was watching some strange new creature. If only that look wasn’t directed our way.
“Um,” began Asama. “Ordinarily, it isn’t possible to resurrect the dead. In Shinto, the entrance to Yomi was sealed with a boulder after the mess with Izanagi and Izanami.”
Scarred: “I wondered about that when I was studying Shinto before. Wouldn’t that also keep the dead from entering Yomi?”
Novice: “Another harsh comment! But if we think of Yomi as a world surrounded by walls and the dead either fall from the sky or well up from the ground, then sealing the entrance causes no contradiction!”
Flat Vassal: “But then why did it have that entrance in the first place?”
Novice: “S-so people could go there to visit like Izanagi did?”
Horizon’s suggestion of “For ventilation?” sounded more plausible, but wouldn’t that mean Yomi now had an atrocious ventilation situation?
And while everyone was considering that issue, Asama saw her chance and spoke up.
“Anyway, that’s why not even Sakuya can bring Toori-kun back once he enters the world of Yomi. Sakuya is an earthly god, so it’s hard for her to defy the actions of heavenly gods like Izanagi.”
“Wouldn’t that mean there is no way of bringing Toori-sama back?”
“Correct. Which is why I made a deal with Sakuya where she holds Toori-kun in place before he enters Yomi.”
“Hm?” Everyone tilted their head and eventually Horizon raised a hand.
“You can do that?”
“Well, it’s more like taking advantage of a loophole or mistake, but it’s working for now.”
Asama thought for a bit before continuing.
“But the truth is that the decision lies with Toori-kun. So if we go to him and explain the situation but he refuses, it all falls apart. Then he will enter Yomi.”
“Huh? What decision? Is there some kind of condition?” asked Mitotsudaira.
“I can’t tell you that part. To be blunt, this is all divine level stuff, but if I say it aloud and a god hears it, they could interfere or spread the word until another nation’s Shinto intervenes. …Toori-kun will have to hear it directly from me. So don’t ask me to explain it here.”
Very well, obediently thought Mitotsudaira because she sensed the strength in Asama’s words.
The condition here was probably a special one. But she demonstrated the strength needed to ensure it worked.
“Asama-sama, I have one question.”
“Yes?”
“Can you promise me this will not mean losing or harming you, or the same to anyone else?”
Asama paused before putting on a smile.
“I had thought up a condition that would ensure none of that happened and Sakuya made a suggestion that also ensured none of that would happen. But…”
“But what?” asked Mitotsudaira.
“Well, depending on how this turns out…I might have to give up my position as an Asama Shrine shrine maiden – or at least as the shrine’s representative.”
Mitotsudaira reacted with a surprised “eh?”, but Kimi burst into laughter and pointed at Asama.
“”Heh heh! Sure enough! Doing that would mean that!”
“Wh-what are you talking about?” asked Mitotsudaira.
“Oh, nothing.” Kimi patted her on the shoulder with a knowing look.
“Is that so bad?” said Kimi to Asama. “Either way, combining with my foolish brother will mean violating your shrine maiden dedication to your god, so you would lose that position regardless, wouldn’t you?”
“No, then I would only became a shrine maiden who is not dedicated to her god. But there are protections and spells I only have permission to use because of that dedication, so it would make me weaker.”
“Does that include your archery spells?”
“Those are unrelated to Sakuya, so I could still use them.”
Gold Mar: “Eh?”
Art-Ga: “Weaker my ass. Focusing you on that job would only make you stronger.”
Asama: “O-Overall! Weaker overall!”
“But what happens to us in that case? You look after us now, don’t you?” asked Mitotsudaira.
“Oh, that.” Asama stopped to think again and then raised her index finger. “I did discuss this with my dad and it should work out if Toori-kun’s decision goes well and we bring him back. …Probably. I can’t be certain, but I should be able to continue to provide you all with the same protections and spells with the same settings as before.”
“A non-dedicated shrine maiden can do all that?”
“I see.” Horizon nodded. “I would personally find it easier- that is to say, my life would be easier- I mean, I would appreciate it if you would continue to provide me with the same spells and protection settings.”
“I should be able to do that.”
“Th-then what is this about combining with my king?”
“Hmm.” Asama groaned in thought again.
●
“So that’s what they’re going with,” Naomasa heard Masazumi say.
“Is Asama-chi planning something weird?”
“Judge. It does come down to Aoi’s decision, but it would work.”
“Is it something you can’t say out loud, Vice President?” asked Adele.
Naomasa looked to Masazumi, who nodded.
“Asama was worried about that from the Shinto front, but it’s also best left unsaid for political reasons. The other nations would probably intervene.”
“What do you mean?” asked Naomasa.
“Let’s see.” Masazumi crossed her arms, tilted her head, and groaned in thought. “Simply put, it will mean giving that idiot Aoi more power. Not a bad thing if you ask me.”
●
“Now, we will be bringing Toori-kun back, but, like I said, you generally can’t bring the dead back to life.”
“But my king is waiting out in front of Yomi, right?”
Asama nodded at Mitotsudaira’s question but then shrugged.
“However, he has still gone to the world of the dead. The link between his soul and his body has been severed, so we can’t return his soul to his body.”
“Then what can we do, Asama-sama?”
“That is why we will be using the logic of a ‘birth’, which happens to be Sakuya’s specialty.”
Kimi tilted her head. She placed a towel on her head and sighed.
“You mean you will be giving birth to my foolish brother?”
“No, that would not return Toori-kun here. Even if we did place him inside us and birthed a child, we could only bring back that child. That would actually eliminate Toori-kun entirely.”
“Then how can we bring my king back?”
“Using Izanagi and Izanami I mentioned before.”
Scarred: “You mean the birthing story!?”
It was nice having someone around who had seriously studied these things.
The other three here looked puzzled, so Asama raised both her hands.
“In the story of Izanagi and Izanami, the two of them had a discussion from either side of the boulder sealing the entrance to Yomi. Izanami, who was dead, said she would kill 1000 people each day and Izanami, who was alive, said he would bring about the births of 1500 people each day.”
“That’s a pretty well-known story. That determined the balance of deaths and births, so the population of the living world increase by 500 people each day.”
“Right. That means Heavenly God Izanagi is working hard at his job of ensuring at least 1500 people are born each day.”
“Oh,” said Mitotsudaira.
She must have arrived at the answer. Yes, the method was simple.
“Toori-kun and the two of us just have to trigger the counter for births 1501 times in that world. That will create an extra spot among the children born that day. Then Sakuya can give that extra spot to Toori-kun.”
As soon as she said that, Mitotsudaira, Horizon, and Kimi all glared at her.
●
…Huh?
Asama assumed those three’s reaction meant she had screwed something up, but then they turned to face each other and held a whispered discussion. It was incredibly awkward and Asama felt so much like she had made a terrible mistake.
“Um, I’m not done with my explanation.”
Kimi silently held out her right hand. That apparently meant “silence”.
Around thirty seconds passed. Then the three split up and a blushing Mitotsudaira raised her right hand while hanging her head.
“May I ask something, Tomo?”
“Of course. What is it?”
I bet I know what this is going to be, she thought and that was exactly what it was.
“You say we have to trigger the counter with my king 1500 times, but even divided between the two of us that would be 750 times! How much do you expect us to do it!?”
Yeah, I had a feeling she would ask this.
●
Kasuya was listening to her mother’s mother. For some reason, the discussion rapidly turned in a blush-inducing direction whenever the topic shifted to her mother’s father, but a lernen figur opened next to the woman this time.
“Oh? It’s from Nate.”
…From mother!?
What could this be about? She thought it might be something secret or about herself. She couldn’t have been more curious, but she also couldn’t actually ask.
“What is it, Nate? 750 times!? So you’ve finally decided to challenge your great and super cool mother’s record!? But I am the four-digit record holder, so you’re going to have to do better than that.”
The lernen figur shattered on its own. The other side must have shattered it.
Kasuya looked to her mother’s mother, curious what they were talking about.
“Hee hee. Curious?”
“Oh, testament. What did my mother want?”
“Well, she is planning a, shall we say, ‘sparring session’ with her king and the shrine maiden.”
“Sparring session!?”
Mouri-01 spat out the drink she had just taken a sip of, but Kasuya didn’t understand why. Her mother’s mother held a hand to her cheek and sighed.
“So that girl is finally growing a spine and making her move. You need to watch out. When a wolf captures her prey, she will do anything to ensure it isn’t taken from her.”
●
Silver Wolf: “She is talking about even bigger numbers, so we aren’t going to get any help there!”
Asama: “S-see, 750 times isn’t unprecedented!”
Almost Everyone: <Discussing>
Asama: “Oh, you’re not going to let me have this, are you!?”
Gold Mar: “Wait, if we let Ture-yan handle this, could she resurrect him several times over?”
Art-Ga: “Damn, we’re just getting to the good point, but I’m out of time. I have to transfer my points over now! Anyway, keep talking and keep a log for me to read later!”
●
Mitotsudaira saw Horizon raise a hand. While glaring.
“How long do you expect this to take, Asama-sama?”
“Oh, um.” Asama waved her right hand dismissively. “There is a time limit.”
“What is it? Two years?”
Won’t it take even longer than that? thought Mitotsudaira while Asama answered with a smile.
“Don’t worry, Horizon. It has to be done before dawn tomorrow.”
“You expect us not to worry!?” shouted Mitotsudaira.
●
Gold Mar: “Has she completely lost it?”
Worshiper: “Naito-kun, you have been even wilder than usual since returning, but I agree with you for once.”
Flat Vassal: “Um, I know this because of my early morning dog walking, but dawn is at around 5:30 tomorrow.”
Unturning: “It’s 7:30 PM now, so if you start at eight, would you have nine and a half hours?”
Silver Wolf: “That means around 158 times per hour! Tomo! Tomo! Are you serious!? I don’t see how we can revive my king without breaking some speed records!”
Asama: “Well, I will be using a copy spell or something to split Toori-kun, so we should only need half that.”
Unturning: “But that’s still 79 times an hour.”
10ZO: “Once you have a quota, it starts to feel a lot more messed up…”
Still Got It: “My! Nate! You’ve decided to go for the speedrun record because you know you can’t challenge your lovely and super cute mother’s high score!? But there is love there too! I think I’m going to attempt that for about an hour after this!”
Silver Wolf: “Where is the love in that!?”
Scarred: “Um, I hate to interrupt when everyone is so excited, but…you will be taking advantage of the time differential between worlds, won’t you?”
●
“That’s right,” said Asama, agreeing with Mary’s post.
While the other three responded in surprise, she opened a sign frame and explained. She displayed a diagram of this world, the afterlife, and the boundary between.
“The afterlife is a world of pure ether so we will have a physical form as part of the world’s format, but maintaining that physical form is much less of a burden than in this world.”
Smoking Girl: “Is it like when we join with a god of war?”
“Yes,” she confirmed. “When the gods are performing some kind of task, they will increase the time density of their domain and, when seeing what result it has on our world, they decrease the time density. In other words, the flow of time there is, to an extent, variable.”
“It is true the artists who were summoned there will say only a few seconds passed when they return, or that a hundred years passed.”
“This is the same. Sakuya will increase the time density for us, giving us a year or two to work with. That should be enough.”
While the others considered this, Horizon responded.
“Judge, with this talk of combining, I now understand why you offered to give up your position to me. So while it is around nine hours for me, you will have a year or two with Toori-sama all to yourselves?”
“I will work hard to keep it down to half a year – or maybe three months? – but I do think it will take a fairly long time.”
And the entire time, they would be doing that sort of thing. Asama and Mitotsudaira had no experience there and only had their knowledge to go on, so it was hard to say how it would actually go. But Horizon had another question.
“Will there be any effect on your real bodies?”
“No, there won’t. It will affect our souls, but out bodies will be unchanged.”
“So you are saying that boy gets to enjoy it twice!?”
“Well, um,” said Asama before realizing that Horizon’s questions were based on the assumption that Asama would be the one going. “Um, Horizon? Are you sure you’re alright with us going?”
Horizon would not be trading positions. Mitotsudaira also gave Horizon a look as if to ask if that was really alright. And…
“Promise me one thing.”
“Yes?”
“Create a space in which I can do it 752 times afterwards.”
“––––”
“When attacked, strike back – that is the Horizon Rule. This will mean even more luck for Toori-sama, but he will just have to deal with it. …Asama-sama, Mitotsudaira-sama, we can continue to follow this rule from now on. I am shy, so I would like to use the two of you as justification if I can.”
Kimi burst out laughing and, after a pause, Asama did too. Then Asama and Mitotsudaira shook Horizon’s hand.
“I will let Toori-kun know in advance. He will probably complain about being treated like an object.”
“Judge. It is good that coward knows his place.
“But,” continued Horizon. “I see another bigger problem.”
“Oh? W-what’s that?”
“Well,” said Horizon. “Won’t you get bored of it eventually?”
●
“That is the question, isn’t it?”
Is this really something a shrine maiden should be worried about? wondered Mitotsudaira. Then Asama opened a sign frame.
“According to the Asama Shrine’s statistics, men start to feel bored after around a hundred times with the same partner.”
●
“My! What is it, Nate!? You have a question for your beautiful and super youthful mother!? …Eh? What’s that? Variety!? It all comes down to compatibility and love! Then you can switch up the time, place, outfits, and situations for unlimited possibilities! Wait just a moment!”
(Time: Morning, Midday, Night) x (Place: Academy, At Home, Outside, Bedroom) x (Outfits: Summer/Winter Uniforms, Combat Uniform, Swimsuit, Nude) x (Situations: The Usual, Switch Roles, Teacher and Student, Master and Animal, While Eating, etc.)
“The basic options alone give you 4x3x5x5 for 300! And with a ‘let’s do that one again’, you’re up to 600! Then you can change the docking position you use for – well, you get the picture, don’t you!?”
●
“Her answer is probably useful, but I would prefer not to repeat it.”
“W-well, I’m not sure when it would be useful, but let’s save it just in case.”
“Heh heh. I have an idea. Wouldn’t the Asama Shrine have ways of boosting those abilities?”
“Well.” Asama tilted her head. “I will be bringing some data related to our ordinary lives there. Like clothing data. I don’t want to waste time getting accustomed to an unfamiliar location. And personally, I would prefer not to rely on things like spells and drugs. Yes.”
●
Adele saw Asama’s father in the shrine building stacking up products labeled “Soft Shell Crab Aphrodisiac Power! Works in Other Worlds!”, “The Original Smooth-and-Shiny – Bath Lube for Use in Other Worlds”, and “Male Rejuvenation Spell”.
Flat Vassal: “Asama-san! You’re lying again, aren’t you!?”
Asama: “N-no, dad’s list only had things for Toori-kun to use. It’s all for Toori-kun!”
Noriki: “Is he going to die over there?”
“I won’t let him!” said Asama’s father, but apparently this was a big deal.
Horizey: “If Toori-sama tries to pull away, feel free to pin him down.”
Asama: “If you say so…”
●
“But anyway…”
Kimi saw Asama hang her head.
“When I originally made that spell with Toori-kun and used it at Mikawa, I planned to give half my soul to him if this happened.”
“…You can do that?” asked Mitotsudaira.
“Like I said, this is taking advantage of a minor mistake Sakuya made, so it should work. Sakuya is a god of births, so she can handle and swap out living souls. Now, some traces of Toori-kun’s soul do remain shortly after his death, so while 50:50 wouldn’t work, 55:55 would just barely be enough to keep him in this world and then we could apply Blessings to restore his soul over the course of ten years or so.”
“Heh heh. Why did you end up doing this instead?”
“After I moved to the Main Blue Thunder, Sakuya noticed her mistake. Yes. And when I discussed all this with her and what we could do if it came to it, she sent me this.”
Asama opened a sign frame. It was signed by Sakuya.
<You really are stubborn, aren’t you? I won’t approve any other course of action. By, god>
Everyone recoiled in understanding.
“In other words, your god pushed this option with the force of a kick to the face, Asama-sama?”
“Tomo? How stubborn are you if your god is getting after you about it?”
“Yeah… Sorry for getting you caught up in it, Mito.”
“No, as a Loup-Garou, I am something like a spirit and offering a portion of my soul would reduce my strength. I think this method is the best choice.”
“I appreciate your saying so,” said Asama before turning toward Kimi. “Anyway, Kimi, I need you to work hard at calling to Toori-kun’s soul. There is something that Mito, myself, and maybe Kimi too need to watch out for related to Horizon.”
“What is that?” asked Kimi, curious how this would be related to her role.
The Shrine maiden gestured back to her diagram of the other world and this world and then looked to the group.
“Mito, Toori-kun, and I will be somewhere in which we do not have physical bodies. We will still be linked to our bodies, but we will be stripped of them on the other side. Horizon will be acting as our access point, but that makes her both an anchor and a crane for us. She will be the one to grab us and pull us out. The same goes for you, Kimi.”
“Heh heh. And how is that a problem?”
“Traveling to that other world will have a lasting effect on us. We could gain divine power or see invisible things. …In this case, I think our souls – or our ether molds really – will easily influence each other.”
What did that mean?
“Once we return, we will have a strong intuition for what the others are thinking and have a general idea what the others are doing as a sort of ‘sixth sense’. Also…”
After some hesitation, the shrine maiden continued.
“Maybe it was already the case from a past life, but I think this will strengthen the bonds between our souls so we will be reunited even after we die and are reborn. Is that alright?”
“I wouldn’t want anything else.”
The wolf didn’t hesitate. But what did Kimi think?
“So I will always be my foolish brother’s wise sister? Hm, choosing it for myself would be one thing, but I don’t like the idea of the rails of destiny forcing it onto me.”
“Is that… a no?”
…Oh, dear. She looks so despondent.
She really has stopped putting a lid on her feelings. I’m glad, thought Kimi with an inward smile for her friend.
But what if Asama’s prediction were true? It was possible this had already been preordained from a past life.
If so, how had her past self accepted those rails?
…Yes.
“Even if I am locked in as my foolish brother’s wise sister, there are things those rails don’t tell you.”
Like…
“My foolish brother…turning into my wise brother.”
That was something the rails couldn’t determine.
“Establishing a relationship isn’t enough for that – you need to deepen it first. …I think I must have understood that back in the Age of the Gods. And that process is still in progress. Which must mean I am greater than a god. Oh, dear. Have I just arrived at the truth of the world!? What are you going to do, Asama!? Worship me already!”
“Yes, yes. Um, Horizon…”
Asama turned around to see Horizon’s reaction.
She was crying.
●
Oh, my, thought Horizon. Asama was clearly concerned.
“Um? Horizon?”
“This is no more than some eye juices. Yes, eye juices.”
“Eye juices.”
Let’s leave it at that. But she was certain of something now.
“It is all about relationships.” She relaxed. “I was alone. I found myself alone on the Musashi, but then I met Manager-sama, Black Algae-sama, Masazumi-sama, and the rest of you and gained the relationships I have now. But three weeks ago…I learned that Toori-sama and I were not in the future world. And I learned that our child is now missing.”
So…
“Toori-sama and I were removed from your web of relationships…which made me less than alone. I learned a world like that can exist.”
But things had changed.
“For whatever reason, Toori-sama and I survived the Battle of Mikawa. And now I have Asama-sama, Mitotsudaira-sama, and Kimi-sama too. I am not alone and I am not missing. Furthermore…now you say it may have turned out this way in a past life and it may again in a future life. In that case…”
There was only one option.
“Let us bring Toori-sama back. We cannot leave him all alone. I believe that is what it means to keep him from being lost.”
●
Incredible, thought Asama of Horizon.
Horizon didn’t think of it as a nuisance or a burden. She might be pushing this onto them, but she was prioritizing something else over that. In other words…
“It might not be right, but it isn’t wrong. Is that it?”
“If he wants to be alone, then he can just do that. If it is an intentional choice, then there is nothing he can lose, which does sound like a luxury.”
“I see,” said Asama with a nod and then a sigh.
She had more or less already explained the “method” along with the related warnings.
The only other problem was something beyond the “method”. In other words…
“It’s a personal issue for Toori-kun, isn’t it?”
“A personal issue for my king? What do you mean?”
“Oh, um.” Asama paused. He had actually talked about the possibility of this kind of thing happening eventually. But…
“Will he actually agree to do this kind of thing with us?”
●
Almost Everyone: “Is he going to chicken out after all this!?”
Asama: “W-we can’t actually know without asking him! Don’t you agree, Mito!?”
Silver Wolf: “No comment!”
Flat Vassal: “I feel like he’ll instantly agree if Asama-san and the 5th Special Duty Officer approach him in swimsuits or something.”
10ZO: “Toori-dono can actually be weirdly strict. When he ends up on the wrong route in a porn game, he will start over because ‘I didn’t see everything I wanted to see yet’.”
Wise Sister: “Heh heh. So the question is whether or not he thinks he’s on the Asama and Mitotsudaira route?”
Horizey: “If he’s going to be that difficult, I say you pin him down and hold a ‘vote’ with a spell or something.”
Asama Dad: “No, I believe in Toori-kun! And I believe Tomo won’t have to rely on anything like that!”
Tachibana Wife: “I do hope this belief doesn’t mean the end of the world.”
●
…Hmm…
This was one thing not even Asama could know. As much as she enjoyed her current relationship with him, she would be willing to cross the next line, but that didn’t mean he would.
Kimi smiled a little and looked her way.
“Asama? Did you want to do this kind of thing with my foolish brother?”
That question got an “eh?” out of her. But now wasn’t the time to be hiding it.
She took a breath before speaking her mind.
“Yes,” she replied.
She felt this had taken a lot of guts on her part, but she had done it. You don’t have to applaud, Horizon. Really, you don’t.
And Kimi nodded once.
“Heh heh. Thank you. Then let me ask another question: is that because you care for my foolish brother?”
“Yes. So many times I have wanted to confirm that I am with him in many more ways.”
She was saying some incredible things here. But it was all true.
But she felt like this wasn’t enough. So she said more.
“But that’s why I could never take the next step. I was afraid. …As pathetic as that is.”
“True. And I’m sorry. But while this is an emergency, it also gives you the chance you need to take that next step, doesn’t it?”
Asama thought about what that meant. And she nodded.
“There is more to it than that, like that I don’t want to lose him, but that is a part of it.”
“Then,” said Kimi, narrowing her eyes in a smile. “Make what excuses you need – just show him how much you care for him in every way you can. And after that, you can do the same thing without the excuses. Continue that long enough and then you will care for anything and everything.”
“But…”
“It’s the same for my foolish brother. He cares for you as much as he does us. So go to the afterlife and make an excuse to have a moment just between the two of you. And whenever you start coming up with an excuse afterwards, you can remember what happened here.
“Listen,” said Kimi. “Making excuses is not pathetic. Excuses are a form of courage you have yet to surpass. And once you do surpass them, you will be invulnerable to yourself.”
●
“Yes,” agreed Asama.
Words carried power. A shrine maiden wielded that power. So she trusted in that and…
“For the first time ever…I’m thankful to have you around, Kimi.”
“Heh heh. This poor girl is so used to having me around she takes me for granted.”
Asama had calmed down enough to say “maybe so”. And next…
“Mito…what do you think about all this?”
●
…Why would you ask me that!?
Mitotsudaira saw everyone looking her way and Horizon was holding out a waterproof book titled How to Raise Dogs – Wolf Edition.
“Um, Horizon? What is that?”
“Well, Mitotsudaira-sama, I was thinking you could read this and come up with countermeasures.”
That idea had never occurred to her, but she had lately stopped minding the petting so much and even enjoyed it as a form of intimacy.
However, that was enough for her.
“I mean, I am a knight and my king is a king. …You could see this as the knight going to rescue her king and the king rewarding the knight, so I can’t help but think of it in terms of that excuse.”
●
Asama: “What do you think, Mito’s mom?”
Still Got It: “Only ever doing the king and knight scenario!? What a waste! Her father and I enjoyed the ‘short upperclassman and tall underclassman’ scenario just last night!”
Silver Wolf: “That could work for father, but it’s a real stretch for you, mother!”
Gold Mar: “Isn’t that what makes it fun?”
●
She received a weirdly calm reply from Margot, but was that really how it worked? Anyway…
“It is a tricky situation. Without an excuse, it would mean I was serving my king as a knight while he was viewing me ‘in that way’.”
Flat Vassal: “Um, while they usually did it in secret, if you look at the history recreation, it was fairly common for kings and knights to sleep together.”
“Heh heh,” laughed Kimi. “It’s a matter of pride for Mitotsudaira. …Because she was given her place as a knight without that concept in place.”
“Judge. I want to maintain a relationship where my king is a king and I am his knight. Without that, the boundary between us will blur.”
“What’s wrong with letting it blur?”
She could cite precedent here.
“I would become like my mother. Probably.”
That shut everyone up.
Horizon was sweating for a reason other than the heat of the spring.
“I could see her abducting him and going missing for three days straight.”
“And after doing a job as a knight, she would shout, ‘I need my reward!’, snatch him away, and do it wherever she was, even outside.”
“Heh heh. And she would be licking all over him during class.”
Mitotsudaira honestly couldn’t deny it. After all, there was precedent in her family. She had that blood in her.
“Because I control myself so strictly, I think the rebound would be even worse if I ever lost control. My mother doesn’t mind at all, so I feel like the same would happen to me if I let it. But are you okay with that? I have the greater speed and strength.”
Horizon held out a waterproof copy of How to Raise Dogs – Loup-Garou Edition and Mitotsudaira noticed the author’s name was Ennerut. Isn’t that mother’s inherited name spelled backwards?
Just as that occurred to her, her mother spoke to her.
Still Got It: “You’re so silly, Nate. Do you remember what I said before? He is a king. If facing him as a knight feels like an excuse…then you just have to face him as the next Reine des Garous, making you his equal.”
And if she didn’t like that, she could do this.
Still Got It: “You are a werewolf princess who fell in love with a human king, became his knight, and began dating him as a student. That sounds like an excellent scenario to me. That lets you spice things up between the two of you whether you want to abandon your position as a knight or not.”
●
Asama watched Mitotsudaira slowly collapse onto her side in the spring.
After a few seconds, her voluminous hair acted as a float to rotate her around, submerging her body.
Air bubbles intermittently rose to the surface for a while, but then they stopped.
“Um, hey.”
Asama called out, but Horizon stopped her.
“No, Asama-sama! Mitotsudaira-sama is attempting a folk ritual where you hold your breath and pray your boobs will grow!”
“I am not!”
The water splashed up as the wolf sat back up.
“Oh?” Kimi raised a hand. “Did you find a good compromise? Instead of just doing what your mom says?”
“Well…”
Mitotsudaira blushed but raised her eyebrows.
“Our knight and king relationship will not change. I have no intention of changing it. However…”
Mitotsudaira sighed and sank up to her shoulders in the spring.
“I want my king to show me more love and I want to let him know I want to be by his side more.”
Horizon produced a waterproof copy of How to Raise Dogs – Pet Edition. How many editions of that were there? Mitotsudaira smiled bitterly at it and spoke up in apparent resignation.
“Yes, we are king and knight.”
But…
“But I am a wolf. And I think my king sees it that way too.”
●
Asama: “Yes, Toori-kun has been doing some crazy stuff with Mito lately.”
Gold Mar: “I thought sticking his hands in her tights was about as good as it gets, but has he gotten even crazier since?”
Unturning: “The way he hid in her hair and licked her back was impressive from a practical standpoint if you ask me.”
Horizey: “In that case, Mitotsudaira-sama was ready to go and our concerns were unnecessary.”
Silver Wolf: “Don’t put words in my mouth!”
●
Asama thought the discussion was just about over.
They had arrived at a consensus and…
“Does anyone have any questions?”
“Would it be alright if I played games? I want to make enough progress to rub in Toori-sama’s face when he wakes up.”
That sounded like the usual Horzion. And Asama thought she would worry about the same thing in that position, so she said it wouldn’t be a problem.
“There will probably be some mysterious phenomena around you, like strange lights and seeing distant locations, but do not leave your designated position. So make sure you use the bathroom beforehand.”
“As an automaton, I can switch off that setting, so it will not be an issue. Yes.”
Apparently her usual way of going “excuse me!” and doing it was a sign she had opened up to the others. Asama felt like they had made years of progress in getting to know each other over the course of this conversation. But…
“We will likely get to know each even better from here on.”
“But we have to bring my king back first.”
“Heh heh. And we need to stop the Genesis Project.”
They all left the spring without being told. There was still a lot they had to discuss, but they had to get moving to set those things in motion.
“But,” said Kimi. “This was the worst girls talk session yet. We deserve some praise for getting through it. Especially me.”
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