Cote : I Just Want to Grant Your Wish!

Kaoru received Sakura Airi's tip-off.

Although the girls' nighttime discussion had been a little unexpected, it was also perfectly reasonable.

No girlfriend could remain completely indifferent toward her boyfriend's exes, especially when there were more than ten of them.

Because persuading Sakayanagi Narumori had taken quite a bit of time, Kaoru ended up taking one more day off than originally planned.

By the time he returned, the girls pinned him down on the bed without giving him any chance to explain.

Perhaps it was the frustration of not seeing him for two days, or perhaps it was the stimulation brought by the agency topic.

In any case, all Kaoru remembered was that the "battle" had been intense.

White socks, black socks, tights, bare legs—everything blurred together into one chaotic memory.

The wish machine, in particular, spent the whole night angrily rinsing its mouth while muttering "peh, peh," and perhaps only it knew exactly how many times Kaoru had been pushed to his limit.

By the time Kaoru woke from his daze, it was already the next morning.

But the moment his consciousness returned, Kaoru sleepily realized he could not feel his right hand. He moved it a few times, only to accidentally touch something soft and springy, like a warm, delicate cushion. His fingers sank in slightly, and for a moment, he did not really want to pull them back.

Because the feeling was so comfortable, Kaoru instinctively started kneading it.

That movement also made him aware of something even softer pressed against his chest, lightly rubbing against him through the thin blanket and slowly stirring up a buried impulse.

At that moment, a familiar cool voice sounded beside his ear.

"You're finally awake, pervert-kun?"

Kaoru opened his eyes and immediately met Horikita Suzune's slightly cold gaze.

The two of them were very close. Their breaths almost mingled together.

Not only that, but Kaoru could see Suzune's shoulder exposed outside the blanket, her smooth pale skin looking far too tempting in the morning light. Under the thin blanket, the soft outline of her body pressed lightly against him, rising and falling with her breathing. He could even feel the faint rhythm of her heartbeat.

So the thing in his arms was Suzune.

Realizing that, Kaoru unconsciously gave another squeeze. The place he had touched earlier was probably the girl's hip.

Although Suzune usually looked cold and untouchable, her body was far softer than her personality. Once his hand rested there, it was surprisingly hard to let go.

"Good morning, Suzune."

Kaoru smiled faintly. Maybe he had used the girl as a pillow last night, because his right arm was still trapped beneath her and had gone numb.

"Pervert."

Suzune glared at him. He was clearly awake, yet he still kept touching her. "We still have class today. How long are you planning to stay in bed?"

"Where are Kikyō and the others?"

Kaoru noticed that only Suzune was still on the bed and found it strange.

"They were afraid you'd get revenge in the morning. Honami and Airi ran off during the night, while Kei and Kikyō escaped just now."

Suzune's face was expressionless.

In truth, she had woken up much earlier. But Kaoru had been holding her like a pillow, so she could only endure until now and let him keep hugging her.

Kaoru took a deep breath.

The room was quiet, with only the sound of his and Suzune's breathing and heartbeats. The air still carried a faint trace of the previous night.

"Suzune, how many times did I tease you last night?"

The instant Kaoru asked, a thin blush appeared on Suzune's face, and her eyes filled with embarrassment and anger.

"H-how would I remember something like that?"

Seeing her face turn red, Kaoru smiled at first. Then he kissed her hair, her nose, and finally touched his forehead lightly against hers.

"I just suddenly remembered that ever since the first time, we basically haven't been very careful. Suzune might already have a baby."

Suzune's cheeks became even hotter.

Of course she was aware of that. That was exactly why she had felt so embarrassed when Kaoru asked her just now.

"P-probably not..."

Suzune whispered, even though her period this month was already a few days late.

"Actually, I don't really want any of you to become mothers this soon. Putting school aside for now, do you remember the agency I mentioned last time?"

"I remember."

"Does Suzune want to meet them?"

The topic changed so suddenly that Suzune could not immediately keep up. She looked at Kaoru in confusion, as if asking what that had to do with her, a mere "cup."

"I know I still have so many exes and that the matter hasn't been properly resolved. If I carelessly let Suzune end up with a baby before that, it would be too much."

Kaoru touched her cheek. "So I was thinking that, at the very least, you should meet them. Suzune has the right to know my past."

This was his hint.

No, it was practically an explicit statement.

However, Suzune slightly turned her gaze away and whispered, "You should say these things clearly to Honami and Kei, not me. I'm only..."

"Only my cup?"

Kaoru smiled. "How strange. When I forced you back then, you looked completely unwilling. But after Kikyō explained what that meant to you, you accepted it so quickly."

For no reason, Suzune felt heat rush through her. It was like trying to be a good student, only for a classmate to discover an embarrassing secret video of her. Along with guilt, there was also a wave of anger and shame.

"It's... it's different. I was forced by you... and the role of a cup is like that..."

For the first time, Kaoru realized there really was someone in this world who could identify with an object this strongly.

It was almost funny.

Perhaps in Suzune's eyes, she had only been forced by Kaoru, and a cup was precisely something meant to be used. It fit her identity perfectly.

As for liking him, Suzune would never say that so easily.

Even though she had already said it once before.

"Even if Suzune is my cup, I still want to share my past with you."

Kaoru pinched her nose. She clearly cared deep down, yet pretended she did not care at all. "If you refuse, I really will treat you like a cup and keep you with me all day."

Suzune pushed him away with a flushed face.

Why were this man's threats always so shameless?

...

Although Kaoru had returned from leave, Arisu had not yet come back. After all, her body had undergone a complete transformation, so she needed a little time to cover things up properly.

The moment Kaoru returned, Kamuro Masumi looked him up and down with a deeply suspicious gaze.

"Masumi, your eyes are kind of scary."

"Tch. Lolicon."

"If I were a lolicon, I wouldn't like you this much, Masumi."

"That's even more disgusting."

For some reason, after being insulted by her a few times, Kaoru felt a strange reaction and began worrying about his own preferences.

At that moment, Masumi poked his arm with the cap of her pen.

"What happened to Sakayanagi?"

So she did not know what had happened.

Kaoru had thought Arisu would have told her.

"Her illness can be cured now. In a few days, you may see an entirely new white-haired little tyrant."

Kaoru felt that the sight would shock many people. In truth, even he was somewhat looking forward to seeing what Arisu would be like without needing her cane.

"You're not lying to me?"

Masumi found it hard to believe. She suspected that Kaoru might have pushed Arisu too far and gotten her hospitalized instead.

"Masumi is this cute. How could I lie to you?"

Kaoru did not know what she was suspecting. "If you're worried, you can call Arisu. She's probably very free right now."

Seeing how confident he was, Masumi believed him halfway.

The reason she did not fully believe him was because she had never imagined Arisu's heart disease could actually be cured one day.

"How do you know?"

The girl asked naturally. "Did you go to the hospital with her?"

Kaoru looked toward the girl's legs. Beneath the hem of her skirt was a stretch of smooth, delicate skin, while her calves were wrapped in black knee-high socks. Whether it was the socks themselves or the absolute territory above them, they were especially eye-catching right now.

"Perverted lolicon."

Masumi coldly spat out the words.

She understood Kaoru's reaction too well.

He had not even bothered changing the subject. He was only staring at her legs, which meant he had practically admitted it.

Masumi did not need to think about the details. If Arisu's body could endure it, the two of them had probably already done what they wanted. There was no point expecting Arisu to resist either. She was probably more than willing to tempt Kaoru.

Assuming Kaoru was not lying and Arisu really had recovered, without her physical limitations, what else could they do?

Obviously, they would get carried away.

That was why Masumi had suddenly insulted him.

Kaoru did not refute it.

After all, it was true.

Soon, it was lunchtime, and Komiya Kaho came over with a bento.

"Hello, Kamuro-senpai! I'll be borrowing Onii-chan for a bit again today!"

Compared to Kaho, who was like a bright little bundle of energy, Masumi clearly did not know how to respond. She simply turned her gaze away.

"Mm. Hurry up and take this lolicon away. I don't want to see him today."

Kaho blinked.

Lolicon?

What a familiar accusation.

Before she could exchange a few words with Masumi, Kaoru had already taken her and left the Class 2-A classroom.

"Kamuro-senpai seems angry. What did Onii-chan do this time?"

Kaho giggled and bumped Kaoru's shoulder with her own.

Ah, lolicon.

What a nostalgic word.

"Kaho can even tell that now?"

Kaoru rubbed her hair.

"Uwaa, don't mess up my hair! I worked hard to fix it!"

Kaho puffed up her cheeks. "It must be because Onii-chan likes younger-looking girls, so Kamuro-senpai got angry."

As she said that, she sighed to herself.

"Honestly, Onii-chan is hopeless. From back then until now, your weird preferences haven't changed at all. You like girls' feet, you like girls scolding you, and you even like elementary school—"

Toward the end, Kaho suddenly could not continue and felt embarrassed.

Because everyone back then had always liked saying Kaoru was a lolicon, and she had been the elementary schooler at that time.

Did that not basically mean they were saying Kaoru liked her?

"Don't talk nonsense. I have never had any thoughts about elementary schoolers."

Kaoru mercilessly interrupted her embarrassment. "Even if I liked cute younger types, I would only like mature ones."

"What? That kind of younger type is fake! Onii-chan is the one talking nonsense!"

Kaho was unconvinced. "Back when I did photo shoots, Onii-chan was always staring at me!"

"I was only... surprised that Kaho's figure was... slightly more mature than girls your age."

Kaoru shifted his gaze away. "At the time, I was checking whether Kaho could handle the photo shoot properly. I didn't have any strange thoughts. Otherwise, how could I shoot MVs for you later?"

At the mention of MVs, Kaho's face suddenly turned red, and her small hands gripped the hem of her skirt.

"As expected! Onii-chan really wants to shoot a naughty MV with me! Onii-chan, you super pervert!"

Kaoru froze, then suddenly remembered a certain MV he had filmed with the girls before and hurriedly said, "Wait, I meant a proper MV. That kind of MV—I definitely wouldn't force you all to shoot one again!"

"Uuu, I don't believe you. Onii-chan said the same thing to Chiyuki-senpai, but in the end, you were the director, cameraman, and male lead. It was so indecent!"

"I didn't release it. Later, I still filmed a normal MV with Chiyuki and the others."

"Uuu, everyone knows. Onii-chan secretly filmed a private version to keep for himself, then filmed a normal version afterward... Onii-chan really does want to shoot a naughty MV with me. I guess there's no helping it. I can only agree to Onii-chan's request..."

"No, I only did that once. Only Chiyuki and a few of them should have known. Why do even you know about it?"

"..."

"Kaho?"

"Ahaha. Kaho doesn't know anything. Kaho doesn't understand a thing. Kaho only knows Onii-chan said he wants to shoot an MV with Kaho. I'm so happy."

Realizing that she had gotten carried away and accidentally exposed everyone's secret, Kaho immediately played dumb.

The corner of Kaoru's mouth twitched.

He finally understood why, later on, those girls had kept indirectly asking him to shoot MVs with them.

"Kaho."

Kaoru flicked her forehead. "That's punishment. If you do this again, Onii-chan will smack you."

"Uu!"

Kaho was very upset.

She also wanted to shoot a shameless MV with Kaoru. Kissing the person she liked in front of a camera was surely an idol's lifelong dream.

"That MV wasn't leaked, right?"

Kaoru remembered destroying it. It was possible they had secretly kept a copy.

"Of course not!"

Kaho huffed. A video that shameless could never be leaked. Aside from Kaoru, only the people inside the agency could watch it.

Kaoru relaxed.

After all, that MV had been the result of him completing a wish back then. The footage was far too embarrassing and could not be shown to anyone outside the agency.

As the two walked, Kaoru suddenly noticed a somewhat familiar figure.

A first-year student.

Tsubaki Sakurako.

Because there were quite a few wishes connected to her, she stood out especially clearly in the crowd. She also had a lollipop in her mouth.

Kaho noticed Kaoru's gaze and looked over in confusion.

"Onii-chan knows Tsubaki-san?"

"You can tell who I'm looking at from this far away?"

"Because Onii-chan is easy to read. You just have to see who the cutest girl nearby is."

Kaho spoke with complete confidence. "Although Tsubaki-san's figure isn't that indecent, she's very cute. She's the cool, distant type, and it's hard to tell what she's thinking. Onii-chan definitely likes that."

"Kaho, I don't have any special desires toward Madoka."

"Oh my, oh my. I didn't even say Madoka-senpai's name. Why did Onii-chan think I was talking about Madoka-senpai?"

"..."

Kaoru was momentarily speechless.

It was because they always suspected there was something special between him and Higuchi Madoka, forcing him to explain every single time.

"How strange. If Onii-chan wants a cute girl to scold him, there's one right here!"

Kaho raised her hand as if eagerly signing up for some limited-time event. "Kaho has always wanted to scold Onii-chan a few times like Madoka-senpai does."

Kaoru was just about to tell her not to mess around when he noticed that Sakurako was looking this way.

Their eyes met.

Sakurako held the lollipop in her mouth, expressionless.