"Well… alright, alright! Mr. Hikigaya, wait a second! I'll help you find the cats hiding."
Feeling Hachiman's "countdown" warning, Nishikigi Chisato gritted her teeth and sucked in a breath, quickly scanning her surroundings for someone she could "betray."
She did consider backing out, catching just one person for him and then slipping away. But everyone participating in the game knew the function of the X-ray blindfold he was wearing.
One mark, he could see the footprints they left three seconds ago.
Two marks, he could see the clothes on their bodies. Unless they stripped them off, hiding was almost pointless.
Three marks, and they were already eliminated, meaning their bodies would be completely exposed in his view.
In other words, once marked, if they didn't find a way to send someone else his way, they'd be eliminated first.
Tonight's hide-and-seek was completely different from usual. Instead of racing to gain an advantage, everyone was trying to send others to him to receive his "favor."
"Found anyone yet? Feels like you're stalling, Chisato. Or are you enjoying this kind of heart-pounding tension?"
"I actually remember which direction Takina went. Want to head that way?"
"Almost! Almost!"
Chisato's heart tightened. She stopped hesitating and started picking a target.
The living room had grown quiet. Aside from the singing echoing through the club, the sound of bells had mostly faded.
Even though many people had moved to the bath or the family restaurant, quite a few were still hiding in the spacious living room.
The elves Leona and Melaise, standing in flower pots pretending to be plants; Vigne and Gabriel, clinging to the ceiling, trying their best to stay hidden; the vampire girls Eto Yoshimura and Fujino Kirie, sitting inside the bookshelf reading to distract themselves; Yotsuya Miko and Yurikawa Hana, trembling under a table; Tohsaka Sakura, who tried to sit on the sofa and wait, only to have her mouth covered by her sister Tohsaka Touka, who dragged her away.
Aside from those hiding and the idol singers acting as background, some were lingering near the edges of the living room, ready to slip into the restaurant or bath at any moment.
Who should she betray?
They were all in pairs.
Looking around at everyone suppressing the same nerve-wracking sensation transmitted through their bell collars, Chisato hesitated.
She had never imagined she'd one day experience the pain of "betraying" her own people.
Although this kind of "betrayal" didn't involve life or death, it still affected their personal interests. Even knowing how absurd those "interests" were, Chisato had to choose carefully.
The Tohsaka sisters, Sakura and Touka; the close friends under the table, Miko and Hana; even though she didn't know them well, they were part of the human faction. Given a choice, she wouldn't target them first.
But Vigne and Gabriel, who were neither human nor demi-human, were stuck on the ceiling, hard to catch.
What exactly was their relationship with Mr. Hikigaya?
Chisato still didn't understand.
They looked embarrassed and reluctant to receive his rewards, yet they didn't leave.
From what she'd heard, neither of them had truly undergone magical girl development. Every time the elf princess dragged them into these late-night games, they'd only taste a little before running off.
And they were also close to his childhood friends, Kaede and Suzu.
Taking "social considerations" into account, Chisato's wavering gaze settled on the elves in the flower pots and the vampire girls on the bookshelf.
Elves and vampires, then. Both demi-humans. As a member of the human faction, it made sense to eliminate them first.
"F-found them! Found them!"
"Mr. Hikigaya! Please stop marking me!"
Watching Chisato, already marked once and about to be marked a second time, pant as she led Hachiman to capture the disguised elves and the reading vampire girls, Yotsuya Miko, trembling under the table, let out a small breath of relief.
But she didn't dare relax completely. One hand clamped over her mouth, which was often "possessed," while the other pressed against her bell collar, afraid of making any sound.
In theory, Hachiman was busy moving Leona and the others near the bookshelf, watering the "plants" while listening to the literary vampires read. He shouldn't have time to deal with her.
But it wouldn't be strange if she and Hana were dragged over to entertain as well. After all, several idol singers had already been brought to the stage.
Kujou Sakura, a currently popular pure-type idol; Elisa Himegami, a mixed-blood beauty and top-tier all-round idol; A-RISE, the school idol group from UTX Academy, one of the favorites to win the Love Live competition; even if none of them matched the world-class fame of the mermaid songstresses, they were all very well-known in Japan.
There were also groups like Nijiiro Stardust and B-Komachi, unfamiliar to her, but equally beautiful.
Of course, Miko knew that among the club members, aside from ordinary people like her who got involved by chance, the true core consisted of wealthy young ladies from major conglomerates.
Idols weren't much stronger than them. At most, they had fame, which didn't mean much here.
Still, from Miko's perspective as a normal high school girl, idols were more familiar than those distant heiresses.
As for those rich girls… in front of Hachiman, they probably weren't much different from her.
Setting aside her desire to grow stronger as a magical girl, she might actually be more at ease than them, because she didn't need as many rewards.
The evil spirits that once troubled her had already been eliminated after she gained her powers. She no longer needed charms hanging all over her body.
If she encountered something too strong, she could just return here and ask for help.
From a social standpoint, though, she did need his rewards.
She couldn't always accept help without giving anything back. But what could she offer? Snacks and drinks were already abundant here.
Money? That would be crude, and she didn't have much anyway.
The best reward was the one she didn't need but others desperately wanted, Hikigaya's reward.
But could rewards from this game be transferred?
Compared to money, that kind of reward was far more embarrassing. If it became the standard currency, his "life essence" might literally turn into money.
Would he get angry if he knew she thought that way?
Would he punish her the same way he did others?
"Miko? What's wrong? Are you okay?"
Across from her, Hana stared at Miko's flushed face and rapid breathing, quickly swallowing her cream puff and whispering with concern.
'I-I'm fine… I can hold on…'
Miko tried to respond but found she had no strength, and didn't dare open her mouth. She used her last bit of strength to keep it shut.
'Why is Hana fine?'
'Is it because she has less experience? Or weaker constitution?'
Struggling to open her eyes, Miko looked at Hana's flushed but relatively calm expression… then at her chest.
Her gaze flickered.
'Wait… the others are like this too…'
Iris and the others didn't even need to turn off their shared sensation bracelets for newcomers. They treated it like a massage, chatting casually unless things got intense.
Miko didn't know about the halo system. The sensations that overwhelmed her were trivial to those already used to stronger stimuli.
The more someone liked Hachiman, the more vulnerable they were in front of him.
But shared sensation was different. It transmitted someone else's experience.
Even if the pleasure was just as vivid, those accustomed to stronger stimulation could remain composed.
On the other hand, those who felt little or resisted him were more easily overwhelmed by secondhand sensations.
Because they only received without release.
Those wearing the bracelets experienced bliss, while those receiving remotely felt intense deprivation. The contrast made them crave him even more.
Even powerful demi-humans struggled.
Miko, newly awakened, stood no chance.
"Hmm?"
Hana stared as Miko suddenly crawled out from under the table, slowly standing up, her legs trembling as she moved toward the bookshelf.
'What? Isn't Miko super shy? Why is she going over there? Shouldn't she be hiding longer for more rewards?'
Hesitating only a moment, Hana quickly followed, finishing her snacks and drinks before helping Miko walk forward.
She could feel the same sensations through her collar, but she had grown somewhat used to it.
She liked Hachiman. He solved their problems, looked good, and the club was fun.
More importantly, since they joined together, he would be both their first and only.
Unlike Miko, who was still shy, Hana had already accepted everything and enjoyed the benefits.
———
Meanwhile, near the bookshelf—
"Mr. Hikigaya, that's so unfair… you marked me twice…"
"I already helped you find four demi-humans…"
"Weren't you the one clinging to me and refusing to let go? And now you're blaming me?"
Hachiman held the petite, disheveled vampire Eto Yoshimura, smiling as he looked at the panting Chisato.
After two marks, through his blindfold, he could already see what was beneath her clothes.
Chisato was surprisingly cute inside.
"Was I the one not letting go? Uh… I'm going to find Takina! Don't follow me!"
Chisato froze, recalled what happened, and realized it really had been her clinging to him. Her face flushed as she hurried away, turning back to warn him.
Still, she felt it was his fault.
If he hadn't held her earlier, she wouldn't have gotten used to it…
But arguing was pointless. The more she cared, the more embarrassing it became.
"Go find Takina. I'm busy."
Hachiman didn't even turn around.
Letting the two partners get caught together would be more interesting.
"Fujino, continue reading."
As Chisato's footsteps faded, Hachiman instructed Fujino Kirie to resume.
Blindfolded, he couldn't see, but he could hear.
Playing with the others while listening to her narration wasn't bad at all.
"Yes… Master…"
Fujino, dressed in a simple, elegant kimono, sat on the bookshelf, her slender legs swaying gently beneath the hem.
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