Chapter 21
Chapter 21
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 21
Chapter Title: Three Shades
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Suppressing the bizarre sensation, I tidied up the surroundings with Undine.
And the fact that I could do that was probably because I'm a red-blooded man whose rationality triumphs over mere sensations.
Right? It wasn't like that elongated thing had been replaced by something else and violated me or anything. All that happened was getting my nape bitten, my chest gnawed a bit, and having it 'slightly' flipped over me.
Maybe it was the price for a guy like me wedging myself between two women.
If so, that made sense.
I mean, I should've died for it, but letting it end like this is incredibly merciful, isn't it?
As I finished cleaning up, the uncontrollable heat in my body seemed to have cooled down.
Feeling my body calm, I quickly slipped out of the bathroom.
…Before anyone came in.
I'd perfectly erased all other traces, but there was nothing I could do right now about the lingering body scents from those two. All I could do was hope no one else noticed.
It'd be great if no one came in at all for a while, but the fact that no one had shown up until now was already a miracle, so wishing for more felt like greed.
So… I had to get out of here before anyone realized I'd been inside.
With heaven on my side, I made it back to my seat without running into anyone.
As I sat down in front of the two with their heads bowed in guilt, a voice came from behind.
"Huh? What's… this smell?"
…Cold sweat trickled down my back. And they were the same, because as the voice toward the bathroom rang out, both of them flinched hard.
I felt a complicated mix of emotions.
Even in this moment, seeing them slump their shoulders in identical postures—it somehow suited them perfectly.
Anyway, sticking around here wouldn't lead to anything good, so I cautiously whispered to the two.
"I took care of the aftermath as best I could, but the smell is unavoidable… Let's head out for now."
They nodded, and we got up from our seats and left the café, following my lead.
We wandered aimlessly looking for a place to talk, and before I knew it, we'd arrived at the academy's main gate.
The two stayed silent the whole way there.
Looking around, I saw quite a few cadets, so it didn't seem like the right spot for a quiet chat.
Then a good place came to mind, and I led them there.
…Nothing special about it.
Just a place that now felt like my own home.
The infirmary.
As I opened the door and stepped in, the smell of alcohol wafted over us.
That refreshing sensation made me chuckle faintly as I seated the two in chairs.
I sat in my own spot and stared at them quietly.
Confused expressions.
And still so dark.
I was the one who'd been subjected to the weird stuff—why did their faces look even gloomier?
At Iris's words, Michelle and Charlotte hurried out of the bathroom and hung their heads in self-loathing.
It sounded like a lame excuse, but no matter how much they racked their brains, nothing came up, just a nagging sense that something was missing.
And then, the one who fulfilled it… was Iris.
They couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was they needed.
Was it the sweetly intoxicating body scent? Or her soft, slender nape? Or those large, plush breasts that looked like they'd been suckled plenty by children?
…Or maybe it was Iris herself that filled the void.
They couldn't tell.
If they'd had the wits to even think about such things, they wouldn't have clung to Iris there, sucking on her breasts, gnawing her nape, and grinding their hips.
When they came back to their senses, a pleasurable sensation washed over them, along with Iris's voice that sounded a bit subdued.
Recalling that voice now, Michelle and Charlotte stiffened.
'…She must be disillusioned.'
'…She must be really pissed.'
It was different from what happened in the infirmary.
Even if they chalked that up to the nurse's duties, they weren't in the infirmary now, and it was a holiday to boot.
No matter how forgiving Iris was… this was probably too much to overlook.
Visions of their relationship crumbling haunted their minds.
Michelle thought she might get kicked out of the dorm today, while Charlotte figured she could no longer treat the infirmary like her own home.
'…If I beg for forgiveness.'
'Forgiveness…'
Could they get it?
The two swallowed heavy sighs, their faces dark, until their eyes met.
Seeing each other's gloomy expressions stirred an odd sense of camaraderie.
But it wasn't exactly pleasant.
What would happen from here?
Just as negative thoughts filled their heads,
they saw Iris striding toward them from the bathroom.
Michelle and Charlotte rolled their eyes to look at her.
But Iris's face, which they'd expected to be crumpled in anger, oddly bore a faint smile.
Were they seeing things? They blinked, and then a woman's voice came from the bathroom.
"Huh? What's… this smell?"
Their firm and petite bodies trembled.
Iris reacted the same way, her expression finally matching what Michelle and Charlotte had imagined.
The two sinners (in their own minds) silently followed Iris as she got up and led the way.
As they walked staring at the floor, they suddenly realized they were sitting in the infirmary.
When did we get here?
As they felt dazed, Iris's voice reached their ears.
"Why do you two look so down?"
…Huh?
Confusion colored their faces.
Even so, Iris continued calmly.
"It seems like it's because of 'that,' but I have no intention of holding it against you. More than that, I'm curious why it happened all of a sudden. Can you tell me?"
…Is it really okay? For real?
"I said I'm not bothered. What I want to hear is what happened when 'that' popped up."
It's… okay.
Iris's face showed she truly didn't mind.
Even to the two, who weren't great at reading faces, it was clear.
They glanced at each other, still dazed, and spilled the story.
Their memories after it emerged were hazy, so they didn't have the info Iris wanted.
The most plausible bit was seeing Iris in her underwear at the lingerie shop.
But Iris denied it.
For some unknowable reason, she insisted there was no way.
'….'
'….'
But they suspected that was it.
Iris in unfamiliar underwear, looking embarrassed… she felt different from usual.
Which meant, after all,
'Plumeria Teacher… because of her?'
'Because of Iris…?'
An odd feeling stirred.
They didn't know exactly why, but they wanted to ask Iris.
But she denied it, and pressing further felt… off.
Especially after the weird incident.
Then Michelle's eyes caught Iris's pristine white nape.
Her gym clothes were pulled down slightly, fully exposing that pale nape.
There were red marks there, like footprints left in fresh snow from that morning. Michelle pondered for a moment, then realized they were her marks.
"Gulp."
She swallowed unconsciously.
It felt similar to the sensation when they left the lingerie shop.
And Charlotte beside her felt the same.
The gym zipper pulled down.
The thin tee slightly stretched from recent events.
Through that small gap, her breast was visible.
…And there was a vivid red mark that seemed to be Charlotte's doing.
"…."
Charlotte fidgeted with her fingers, feeling embarrassed yet strangely aroused.
Watching them, Iris thought they were just embarrassed.
Well, it wasn't a pleasant thing, so naturally.
She sighed inwardly and handed them snacks from the drawer, speaking softly.
"Here, eat these and head back. I'll… stay here a bit longer before going."
Unable to resist Iris's gentle touch, the two vaguely clutched the snacks and stepped out of the infirmary.
As the door closed, Charlotte and Michelle sighed in unison.
"Hoo…."
"Agh…."
Their eyes met, and they stared at each other oddly.
Michelle turned away first.
She wasn't one to be looked after, but squabbling with a cadet didn't look good.
"…Cadet—"
Michelle started to offer Charlotte the snack Iris had given her, then paused.
Changing her mind, she pocketed it and continued.
"Let's head back, Cadet."
"…Yes."
Charlotte replied listlessly and shuffled along. But her gaze lingered on the infirmary with reluctance.
Michelle, heading to the training grounds to train, felt the same pull.
In the corridor after the two left, a small sound echoed.
The source was Iris, who had opened the door to confirm they were gone.
Peeking through the crack and seeing no one, she flushed and locked the door.
Letting out a hot sigh, she flipped open the accursed book and grumbled.
"…Why the hell did this damn stat go up again?"
The massager sitting on the desk caught her eye for no reason.
Iris picked it up and pressed the switch.
Bzzz.
She turned it off again.
Thinking she must not be in her right mind, she buried her face in her hands.
'No results, but this weird stat keeps rising.'
Even that thought I just had is probably because of this stat.
Definitely not because I'm that kind of person deep down.
She desperately convinced herself of that and closed the book.
The impact made the massager vibrate, stealing her gaze.