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'I just have to hold out until tomorrow morning. Then I win, and I can make all the demands. I'll claim him for myself. After doing something so awful, he has to take responsibility. Yes... that's it!' Having made her decision, she seemed to resolve herself to just lie back and take it.

When I saw her eyes close again, I felt a jolt of surprise, my own eyes narrowing.

I had only meant to tease her a little, but her tolerance was incredible. Instead of revealing herself, she was letting me do as I pleased. 'She's not going to stop me? Since you're offering, it'd be rude to refuse.'

Her quiet submission only fueled my desire to push further. What had started as a light probe was now escalating into a more detailed exploration.

Let's see just how long she can last.

My hand slid from her waist down to her thigh. Compared to the soft slimness of her waist, her thigh was firm, full, and smooth as silk. If you were to ask what in the world had the most perfect texture... it was, without a doubt, a girl's leg.

It radiated an intoxicating aroma.

The silky feeling was incredible, but I had a much greater goal in mind. Compared to that, all other desires had to wait.

I felt her suck in a sharp breath, her eyelashes fluttering rapidly, but she still didn't open her eyes.

Even at this point, she wasn't stopping me. A strange look flashed in my eyes.

'This... this is just illogical!'

She was letting me get this far?

This was right next to what people call a girl's "absolute territory" After being pushed to this point, not only did she not reject me, but she continued to endure it.

Tsk, tsk, tsk.

This is the problem. This kind of spineless attitude just encourages people to get more aggressive and bully you even more. This is how society goes wrong.

My expression turned deadly serious.

It seemed I had a duty to teach Natsumi a lesson. I had to make my future girlfriend understand that being a doormat would only feed my arrogance.

As her mind raced, I stopped hesitating and reached out with both hands.

"Nghh..." A soft moan escaped her lips.

Natsumi, who had been prepared to endure anything, suddenly flinched. Her eyes flew open, and she stared at me with pure, undiluted fury.

"..." He really... This total pervert!!

After a moment, I finally retracted my hands and released the stunned girl, a smile on my face. "Alright, that's enough teasing. Let's get back to looking for Natsumi."

"R-Right..." Natsumi nodded quickly, her entire body instantly relaxing.

But thinking back on what had just happened, she was so mortified she wanted to find a crack in the floor and disappear into it.

"Weird? Tohka, did you put on perfume? Your scent is different."

"I don't remember you ever wearing perfume before," I continued, leaning in closer. "But it smells nice! Sniff,"

I gazed down at the beautiful girl in my arms, inhaling her unique fragrance, letting it fill my lungs.

At my words, Natsumi's body went rigid, terrified I had figured her out. But when she saw I wasn't acting suspicious, she breathed a sigh of relief, a smug little smile curling her lips.

She sniffed the air around herself but smelled nothing. She blinked and looked up at me.

"I can't smell anything."

"You little dummy. You're so used to your own scent you don't notice it," I said, stroking her head affectionately. "But I think it smells wonderful."

"Really!? Ehehe."

Natsumi let out a silly giggle, seeming to genuinely enjoy the praise. 'But... do I really smell that good? This is the second time someone has complimented me like that. Hmm... I think the first time was also this big jerk. But... When I think about it, maybe he's not so bad after all...'

She was completely lost in her own happy thoughts, totally oblivious to the fact that I was basically spelling it out for her.

Seeing her so unguarded, I couldn't help but sigh internally. 'This silly girl. She'd probably help count the money after being sold. I'm giving you so many hints, and you still have no idea!? Looks like I'll have to play along for now.'

I put on a puzzled expression, speaking my thoughts aloud as if to myself. "Strange. We've searched all of Tengu City, but there's not a single trace of Natsumi."

My eyes drifted to the girl in my arms. "Unless… she didn't hide, but transformed into something?"

I felt her flinch. She still wore Tohka's face, but panic flashed behind her eyes before she smoothed it over, feigning ignorance.

"Uh… maybe she's just hidden somewhere really well. It's a big city, after all." I paused for a moment, pretending to consider it.

"That's a good point," I said, nodding slowly. "You're pretty smart~"

I pulled her a little closer, ruffling her hair.

Hearing my praise again, a smug, silly giggle escaped her lips.

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'You little dummy. Do you still not realize I'm dropping hints for you!? Hurry up and change Tohka back, then go hide somewhere!' I couldn't just call her out.

If I did, she'd know I'd seen through her disguise from the very beginning. She'd realize I had been deliberately bullying her this whole time. Given her personality, she would absolutely explode.

Tsk, tsk. Looks like I have to take back what I said before. This silly girl… I could talk her into anything.

It was a strange sensation—Tohka's appearance, but Natsumi's reactions.

As the afternoon wore on, I could tell Natsumi was getting antsy; the other girls would be home soon. She finally came up with an excuse to get rid of me.

"Kyoya~ You go meet up with Kurumi and the others. I'm just going to the bathroom, I'll be right there."

Finally, she gets it.

I felt a wave of relief. Before leaving, I leaned down and planted a soft kiss on her forehead.

"I'll go on ahead, then."

"Mhm~"

The moment I was gone, a deep blush stained Natsumi's cheeks. She leaped to her feet, buried her face in a sofa pillow, and rolled back and forth, a strange mix of shame and joy bubbling up inside her.

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