Leave a comment

Aya left surprisingly quickly. I don’t know if it was her being considerate, though. I don’t believe she has enough kindness in her heart to be considerate. After all, she’s someone who loves to chase after fun the most. Or maybe she sensed something else.

“Mister. It’s a bit abrupt, but are there no movements from the rogue’s den?”
“Where did that come from?”
“I just have a bad feeling.”

The first thing that came to mind is the possibility of the rogue’s den people coming to this place. It happens every now and then, which leads to the two of us making an escape. It is a kind of game, but it doesn’t end well if we get caught.

“There’s no movements in the group chat.”

I asked him to check his smartphone, but there doesn’t seem to be anything relating to this. Currently, they’re reflecting on how mister managed to escape and how to obstruct him next time. He can actually see the whole conversation, what are they even doing?

“I hope it’s just my imagination.”
“There’s no way to anticipate their movements, so you really can’t be too sure.”
“It’s hard to anticipate their timing since they only attack occasionally.”

It’s not like there’s any warning signs we can watch out for. They just suddenly arrive, so there’s no way to prepare for them. We just have to be flexible and escape from them. Or depending on their combat potential, we might have to consider fighting them off as an option. Mister had taught me what to do as a last resort, though.

“How many times have you been dragged into their mess?”
“Three times. The first time even got my security team involved, you know?”
“I really worked hard to keep that disaster from happening, you know?”

The reason why he’s started desperately running away from the rogue’s den people is that he doesn’t want to cause a huge ruckus. Those people have already received a good scolding from their mortal nemesis back then, yet they still refuse to learn their lesson. Do they mistake everyday for a festival?

“On the second time, you sold me out.”
“Sorry. It was already a checkmate situation.”
“I can’t come up with any ideas for that situation either.”

It was a perfect ambush. If I can recall, we were playing billiards at that time. Before we could realize it, we were already surrounded, and the main force were all competent. All we could do was raise the white flag. Our lack of vigilance was the reason for our defeat.

“If you join us, the burden on me would decrease and that would really help.”
“My burden will increase greatly.”

They’re all working adults, but they don’t show any reservations towards me, a member of the twelve families. I was teased about my appearance and my relationship with mister and arbitrarily saw me as a rival too. I’ll never forgive Ayaka for taking my first kiss.

“Normally, you wouldn’t kiss a girl you think your friend is in a tryst with, right?”
“I really don’t understand that one either. The others got pretty hyped, though.”

I really don’t understand what she was trying to achieve with that. I reflexively hit Ayaka with a short uppercut squarely on her chin, but I’m not in the wrong. According to Nako, my swing was perfect. I would have preferred if she tried to stop it instead of observing.

“She was knocked out looking satisfied.”
“I really wanted you to protect me then.”
“Funny joke.”
“Isn’t this where you should say that you’ll absolutely protect me?”
“I don’t have the confidence to fend those idiots off.”

Don’t admit that. The other caretakers enacted punishment on the knocked out Ayaka, though. I’ll say this, it’s wrong to wake people up with a Cesaro swing. It should have been obvious what would happen if you swing around someone who’s drunk.

“She vomited a lot.”
“Yeah, after being swung around, dragged, and chucked into the toilet.”

While it was correct to punish her, couldn’t they have come up with a different method? From the moment they decided to swing a person around, they’ve already shown a lack of consideration for others. Were the men serious about catching her back then, or were they just playing along? Everyone has some perversion in their heart.

“Is it always that chaotic during your drinking parties?”
“It’s them, you know?”
“That explains it.”

The fact that I understood it just from that shows how much they’ve influenced me. The times I’ve been with the rogue’s den people haven’t reached double digits yet, but I’ve gotten quite familiar with them. That’s just how intense their personalities are.

“How many establishments have you been banned from?”
“You think I can keep track?”

I recall being told that they’ve given up on finding places in their hometown. Also, that there’s someone among them who runs a pub, so it’s not an issue. I’ve also been told that they don’t choose public establishments since they won’t have the freedom to go wild.

“It would be nice if you people could be a bit calmer.”
“We wouldn’t have gotten a shameful name like rogue’s den if we could.”

The fact that they actually call themselves that tells me that they don’t find it shameful. I think I recall someone telling me that they got the name during their second year of high school. It was apparently because the whole class went full force for some sort of event.

“Just what did you do to receive such a name?”
“Like I’d talk about it, that out-of-control mess.”

Even if he doesn’t say it, I’m sure someone else from the den will proudly talk about it if I ask. Mainly the pleasure seekers. I don’t want to ask them either. After all, that’ll just come back to bite me.

“I appreciate that my social circle has expanded, but I would never want to ask for their help.”
“Their abilities are top-class, you know?”
“Don’t you know personality issues can be a cause for problems?”
“You say it.”

Does he realize that I’m also talking about him? I would only consider asking for his help when it concerns the den. For any normal problem, I would never think of asking anyone from the rogue’s den for help. Since it’ll only result in more damages.

“However, they are the most reliable force. If there’s someone you really want crushed, that is.”
“They wouldn’t refuse a request from you, after all. It just shows how much they like you.”
“The price for it is heavy, though.”

After all, what they want isn’t monetary compensation but fun and entertainment. And of course, I’m going to become their entertainment. It’d be safe as long as I can prepare a sacrifice, but I don’t have any acquaintances that would catch their interest.

“They’re not the type to threaten you with blackmail.”
“But they are the type to tease you with blackmail material?”

My question caused his eyes to swim and had him looking away.

“I’m sure you already know that.”

Naturally, as a victim. Those people really should learn to play around in moderation. Besides, whenever I play with them, it results in the mass production of shameful images. If that ever gets leaked among those of high society, my life would be over.

“Who knows how much dirt they have on me.”
“That’s making me curious.”
“Absolutely don’t ask about it. The idiots will definitely be happy to tell you.”

Is this a roundabout way of saying that he trusts me? He’s practically enticing me to ask. I’ve heard about their antics as a group, but I don’t know many of mister’s personal antics.

“Will you be angry if I ask?”
“If you promise to take this secret to the grave, then I don’t mind.”

So it’s fine as long as I keep it close to my heart. As usual, he’s soft with people that he trusts. That must be why the rogue’s den people mess around and cause chaos when he’s present. It’s because they’re sure that they can trust him with the aftermath.

“You’ll regret it someday, you know?”
“That’s my own problem to contend with.”

There must be someone to protect his softness. No one is strong all the time. The rogue’s den may rely on him, but that’s different from protection. They might have subconsciously leaned on him as an emotional pillar.

“You should try depending on others.”
“I rely on others when I need to, you know.”

If he thinks he can do something alone and doesn’t consider help necessary, he would never depend on anyone else. Isami’s very existence serves as an emotional pillar for mister too, but that’s still not enough. He needs someone concerned for him to the point of overprotection.

“Maybe we should increase it from once a month to once a week.”
“Did you say something?”
“No, not at all.”

I’m fully aware that it’s not possible. He’s also busy with other matters, so there’s no assurance that we can meet frequently. It might just cause him more burden instead. If being overprotective I become a burden instead, it’ll be all in vain.

“By the way mister, is there something on your mind?”
“What makes you think that?”
“It shows in your habits.”

He’s tapping his finger on his arm at regular intervals. That’s his habit when he’s thinking of something. And since he’s not telling me what this something is, then it must be something that relates to me. If you don’t spit it out soon, I won’t be able to have peace of mind.

“I guess there’s no hiding it, huh.”
“Well then, I suppose we’re done for today. I’ll be leaving now.”
“Wait, I’ll treat you to something.”
“I appreciate it, but I don’t have any intention of letting you buy time.”
“Isami would have completely fallen for it.”

I understand that Isami’s brain turns off when it comes to mister. But I’m different. Even if it’s mister, I’ll doubt his intentions when necessary. Mainly concerning matters concerning the rogue’s den.

“The truth is, I got contacted by the den that we’ll have a drinking party.”
“And?”
“I was told to secure Kotone.”
“I wholeheartedly refuse.”
“Just for the sake of it, let me ask for your reason.”
“The safety net Nako won’t be there.”

The most powerful woman is currently busy pressing her writer to finish before the deadline, so she’s unlikely to join the drinking party. Moreover, I currently don’t have any information regarding the other participants. Like I would willingly go to a party that’s sure to lead me to a shameful fate.

“True, Nako likely won’t come. And there’s no confirmation on the participants yet.”
“In that case, I have no intention of participating.”
“Even with my invitation?”
“The answer is no.”

Rather than my budding feelings of love, my own safety takes precedence. It’s a natural action to take. However, I know that he won’t give up on this. From here on out, our battle will commence. Still, it’ll be boring if I simply try to run away.

“Then let the game begin.”
“I wonder what words you’ll use to entice me.”
“You think that’s all I’ll do?”
“Oh, I’m sure you’ll use every card in your hand.”

Enjoyable times, happy moments. Events that abruptly interrupt a normal, uneventful day. These things that I wouldn’t have been able to experience before, I now do thanks to him. I’m truly grateful for this, and I hold great affection for him. These feelings I have are too embarrassing for me to say, so I’ve kept them close to my heart. Someday, I’ll gain the courage to say these words out loud.

Thank you, and I love you.

‘Why couldn’t it be like this in my world?’