"Why is this still the same plan as Shinomiya-san's!?" After a momentary shock, Chika's cheeks were flushed. She wasn't like Kaguya before, who thought having a baby was simply a matter of a KISS and then handing it over to the man. Chika knew much more than Kaguya. If it involved venting "beastly urges," that meant she would have to... with him. No way! I can't do that. Chika had expected Kaede to have some great idea, but... This is it?
Kaede glanced at Rin Ito. Although Rin Ito was dating Ai Hayasaka all afternoon, the two had already communicated via phone on how to convince Chika. It was convince, not sexually persuade. Although he was in the Underworld, Rin Ito wasn't the type to say, "Ma'am, you wouldn't want your husband to find out about this, would you?"
"Kaguya's father entrusted her to me. Now Kaguya is like my daughter..." Kaede looked like she wanted to say more, but stopped herself. Does Kaguya know she has you as a father?
"Fujiwara-san, you know Kaguya's personality... she's very stubborn. Since childhood, she has been educated to be selfish and self-serving. She believes that people only interact through transactional benefits, not genuine emotion. She can even see herself as a tool for transactional gain; there's no such thing as giving without expecting anything in return."
"Mhm mhm mhm!!!" Chika nodded vigorously. "I've known her since middle school, and she's always been like that... that's so pitiful." As she spoke, Chika sniffled, clearly moved.
Ito-kun, besides wanting to reconcile her with Ai Hayasaka, also wants to correct her personality, to show her that there are truly beautiful emotions in this world, not just benefits... And for this goal, Kaede-san even pretended to be the "losing dog" and sacrificed her boyfriend to them. Rin Ito and Kaede had sacrificed so much to fulfill Kaguya's father's instructions and reconcile Ai Hayasaka and Kaguya! When Kaguya finally learned the truth, she would surely be amazed by the depth of Kaede-san and Rin Ito's relationship and realize that human connection is more than just transactional benefits!
A flash of insight struck Chika. If she helped now, and then later told Kaguya about her sacrifice, it would deeply shock Kaguya and make her realize the preciousness of their friendship! She was hesitant to agree to Kaguya's request earlier, but now Chika was full of motivation!
"I'll help, but..." Chika crossed her arms in a big 'X' in front of her. "Helping is helping, but no SEX!!!! Kaede-san, you wouldn't want your boyfriend to actually do something with Ai Hayasaka and Shinomiya-san, would you?"
Nanami, who was putting away the board game, looked back and forth between the three. Nanami thought... it's hard to say about that.
"No, no, no... it's not about doing anything sexual." Rin Ito kept a straight face, looking earnestly at Chika. "At most, it will involve Fujiwara-san doing something embarrassing, but nothing will actually be done to Fujiwara-san. At most, we'll rub, but we won't go in!"
Pfft... Nanami covered her mouth, trying not to laugh out loud. Rubbing but not going in? Who would believe that lie! He's penetrated me and Mashiro countless times already!
"You... you promise?" Chika looked at Rin Ito with suspicion. "You won't say you're just rubbing and then accidentally go in, will you?"
"I can't promise that." Rin Ito shook his head solemnly. "After all, we can't control what Kaguya wants to do. I can only try my best to ensure it won't be too offensive." Although Rin Ito didn't actually intend to take advantage of this to sleep with Chika, crossing the boundary of friendship physically was fine.
"Ugh..." Chika looked troubled. She glanced at Kaede. She, as the girlfriend, has made such a huge sacrifice, so how can I, Kaguya's only friend, abandon Kaguya!? Chika carefully looked at Kaede, and though her gaze was slightly hesitant, she nodded.
"Okay... At most, just rubbing!" His girlfriend is watching, so he shouldn't do anything too excessive, right? Rubbing probably just means letting me hug his arm and rub against his chest. But if it's Kaguya... it's hard to say. Kaguya was raised on a self-serving education. She could utilize anyone, let alone a friend. If Kaguya wants to do something excessive... Kaede-san should stop her!
Seeing Chika agree, Rin Ito tried his best to keep his face straight and nodded. "Then I'll call Kaguya and pretend I don't know anything, and ask her out."
With that, Rin Ito pulled out his phone and dialed Kaguya's number, turning on the speakerphone. Chika and Kaede instinctively held their breath, and Nanami and Suzu, who had finished clearing the board game, also crowded closer. Suzu and Rin Ito had been on the island, and Nanami had been at her training classes, so they weren't too familiar with what Kaede was up to. They were both curious.
"Hello, Kaguya? It's me."
"Hmm~ What is it?" Hearing Kaguya's voice, Chika and Kaede were stunned. During the day, they were too far away to hear exactly what Kaguya said to them, only seeing her cry and run away after saying a couple of sentences. Now they heard it. Kaguya's voice was not her usual cold one but sounded overjoyed, like a young woman in love talking to her sweetheart... Forget Kaede, even Chika, who used to visit Kaguya, force sleepovers, and sleep in the same bed, had never heard Kaguya speak like this. Amazing!
Rin Ito glanced at them, then asked, pretending to be oblivious. "You seemed a little strange today."
"Ugh... I'm sorry. Did I interrupt you? I'm sorry, I didn't know you and Ai Hayasaka had that kind of relationship." Kaguya's aggrieved voice made the image of her shedding small tears automatically appear in Rin Ito's mind, weeping as if heartbroken.
"You didn't interrupt us, it's just that... what's wrong with you? Why the sudden big change after I left? You weren't like this before. Is it because you saw Ai Hayasaka?"
Listening to Rin Ito's voice full of concern, Chika looked at him... Is he acting with Kaguya right now!? If she hadn't seen him struggling to suppress his laughter right next to her, and only heard his voice, Chika would have thought Rin Ito was genuinely worried about Kaguya. His acting was on par with Kaguya's.
"No, it's not because of Ai Hayasaka, it's because... Tomorrow, do you have time tomorrow? If you have time tomorrow, call Ai Hayasaka, and let's arrange a time to meet."
"Okay, you set a time, and I'll tell Ai Hayasaka." Rin Ito quickly hung up the phone without talking much more to Kaguya. But immediately after he hung up, Kaede's and Chika's phones vibrated with a message in their small group chat with Kaguya. The three exchanged glances... Kaguya is really eager to cheat on Ai Hayasaka.