Nero's Alluring Request
“.. Master.”
“...”
What could Undine’s smile have truly meant?
“Hey, Master. What are you thinking so hard about?”
“...?” Nero?
“Uh.. huh? No, nothing really?”
“Even without hearing it, I know you were thinking about some other woman besides me.”
I flinched.
“You just flinched, didn’t you?”
“.. No, I didn’t. It’s not like that at all.”
.. Her intuition is terrifying. Undine’s enigmatic smile simply refused to leave my thoughts.
“We’re on a date right now, remember? So stop thinking about other things.”
“Mmm..”
She was right. I had left early on a precious weekend morning to go on a date with Nero. I never imagined I would end up going on something like a date with the cat I had been raising.. but once Mother brought up her promise, I had no choice.
“In the first place, the whole ‘girlfriend’ thing was a lie, and Mother deliberately gave in to you back then.”
“Still.. I won in the end, didn’t I?”
When she put it that way, I really had nothing left to say. That dangerous game—whether it was a compliment relay or a private-life exposé—finally ended after a barrage of dizzying revelations from all sides. The hardest part had been adding explanations to Yerin’s nonsense..
.. I’ll remember this for later.
Anyway, the final blow that ended the game was Nero’s last remark.
‘When Geonung-ssi is lying in bed, I climb onto his chest.. and fall asleep listening to his heartbeat.. It feels so reassuring.. and comfortable that it makes me happy. I’m sure I’m the only one who gets to do that.’
She had been talking about the days when she used to curl up on my stomach as a cat and fall asleep, but Mother, unaware of the truth, must have pictured something far too sweet in her mind. She gave a thumbs-up and admitted defeat. As a result, Nero had not forgotten to claim the date rights she had won.
“So.. how far is she planning to follow us?”
What Nero was referring to was, of course, Founder. She was now tagging along as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“.. Who knows.”
Even though it was supposed to be a date with Nero, Founder showed no intention of staying more than a certain distance away from me. Right now she had suddenly tugged on my sleeve while we were walking and asked for ice cream.. so there she was, holding a cone in each hand and tasting them.
Her reactions were oddly adorable.
“Cold.. but sweet...”
Lick.
“Sweet.. but cold...”
Lick..
“It’s cold, but.. still sweet..”
I had asked if it was really okay since the weather wasn’t even hot, but she insisted she wanted it, so I bought it for her. Even inside the relatively warm store, she kept shivering as though she were freezing.
“Big brother, come here and hug me.”
“Can’t you see I’m on a date with Master right now?”
.. I knew this would happen.
“Did you hear that just now? She called you Master, right?”
‘That couple must be into that sort of thing.. How nice. Maybe I should try it with my boyfriend too.’
“.. No way.”
‘If he tries that after seeing this, I’ll have to kick him in the shin.’
It seemed I no longer needed any extra warmth. The surge of embarrassment had already set my face on fire.
“...”
I desperately ignored the meaningful glances coming from another couple inside the store and lightly wrapped my arms around Founder from behind—
“Eek..? Founder! Wait, just a second.. we’re outside!”
.. or at least I tried to. In the end, I had to properly and tightly hug Founder, who was attempting to slip straight under my shirt, before I could finally turn my attention to the sulking Nero.
It was fortunate that Founder looked like a much younger little sister at first glance. If she had been as grown as Nero, I would have had to worry about the stares from everyone around us while hugging her.
“Why is another woman in your arms when you’re supposed to be on a date with me?”
“Haha..”
Honestly, I still thought of this as a date in name only. Come to think of it, I had never even gone on something as simple as a walk with Nero before, so this might actually be our first time.
“You’re not even making excuses anymore?”
“Ugh, the President assigned her as my bodyguard, so there’s nothing I can do.”
Nero still didn’t know about the attack I had suffered during my overseas business trip, so it was understandable that she couldn’t grasp why a sudden bodyguard had appeared at the house. What surprised me was that she didn’t seem particularly bothered by the fact that Founder was my bodyguard.
“Since when does a bodyguard cling to the person she’s supposed to protect?”
“.. I’ve got no comeback for that. I’ll hug you later too, so can’t you let it slide this time?”
“Wh-what are you saying! Who would like something like that..? That’s just your ego talking, you know?”
‘.. I want to be hugged right now, though..’
That didn’t seem to be the case at all. I tried my best to hide it, but a small laugh escaped me anyway. Embarrassed that her inner thoughts had been completely exposed, she quickly turned her head away.
“.. Whatever. So where are we going next?”
Her sulky tone was strangely cute, like a cat from someone’s house.
“I was thinking of buying you some clothes.. How about it? Don’t you need underwear and other things?”
“.. Huh?”
‘I can make underwear if I need to, but right now I only have one set of top and bottom at most..’
As I had confirmed last time.. she really wasn’t wearing a bra again. I had wanted to ask about it because it kept bothering me. Wait—if she only had one set of top and bottom.. then right now she was wearing a blouse and skirt. Did that mean she wasn’t wearing anything underneath either..?
...!
“Heh, hehe.. But why did you suddenly think of buying me underwear?”
“Uh..? No, that’s..”
She lived in the same house and even had her own room, yet she had arrived with absolutely no belongings. Basic daily necessities, comfortable clothes to wear at home.. and underwear would obviously be necessary too. That was the only reason I wanted to buy them for her. I also had my own situation to consider—I had to look at that sexy black dress she always wore at home without losing my composure—and I figured Nero might feel uncomfortable as well.
“.. You want to see me in my underwear that badly?”
“...”
Of course I did, but—no, that wasn’t it. If I admitted it, it would look like I was lusting after the cat I had raised.
“No, that’s not what I meant!”
“Well.. I guess I did need some anyway..”
‘There’s apparently such a thing as “victory underwear” too..’
“??”
.. Why would she need that?
“Anyway, got it. Today I’ll let you look all you want, so prepare yourself.”
“What.. do you mean?”
“Hehe.. You can be surprisingly proactive sometimes..”
...?
Seeing Nero’s cheeks flush slightly made my thoughts come to a complete halt. At the time, I didn’t realize it. Or perhaps I was pretending not to. The true meaning behind her words—“I’ll let you look all you want.”
“Ehehe.. I finished it all! You said it was ice cream, right? It would be perfect to eat after going into the hot spring.. Hehe.”
Hot spring?
“.. You didn’t forget the promise you made to help me, did you? It’s about time you backed off.”
“Alright, alright, you jealous little cat.. I’ll stay inside, so do whatever you want.”
I had no idea what promise Founder had made to Nero, but surprisingly, after rubbing herself against me a couple more times, she obediently let go. Just as I was about to ask where exactly she planned to “stay inside,” she vanished in the blink of an eye.
No matter how hard I looked around, there was no sign of Founder. It was as if she had evaporated.
“...”
Still, for some reason.. I could feel her gaze right nearby. It was an odd sensation.
“.. Finally, the nuisance is gone.”
Founder had followed us around since morning, walked the streets with us, eaten lunch together, and only disappeared after finishing dessert just now.. Thanks to her, though, I had been able to relax a little. If it had been just the two of us from the start, I probably would have been incredibly nervous.
Even though I had spent a long time with Nero in her cat form, her face and figure—exactly my type—still made my heart race from time to time.
“Let’s go.”
Her smiling face as she pulled me along was so charming that my heart skipped a beat again. Ever since the day Nero first appeared in human form, Founder, mini Undine, and all sorts of chaos had kept interrupting us. Only now did I finally feel like I could properly look at her.
No, what was I even saying? Nero was a cat..? The very cat I had picked up and raised until now..
“...”
That seductive voice was lovely, that cat-like face was beautiful, and that bold, alluring figure was so overwhelming that I had been struggling every night we slept together.. She was far more charming than I deserved, and no matter what, she liked me the most.. Compared to that seemingly perfect image, her clumsy sides were exactly the Nero I knew. Even the way she got sulky was cute..
“I’ll call you once I’m changed.”
“Huh..?”
Changed into what? Where was this place, really? Now that I looked around, it seemed like we had entered a department store. Seeing nothing but women’s underwear everywhere.. was this a lingerie store? I had planned to buy other things together first and then wait outside while Nero picked out underwear on her own, but.. why had it come to this? Was it even okay for a man to come in here? At least there were no other customers besides the staff, so that was a relief.
“.. I’m done changing, come in.”
“Huh?”
Already? And she wanted me to come in?
“Stop spacing out out there and get in here..!”
A hand shot out from between the fitting room curtains, grabbed my wrist, and pulled me inside. Before I knew it, I found myself standing in the narrow dressing room together with Nero.
“...”
“...”
For a moment, only the sound of our breathing filled the quiet fitting room. It couldn’t be helped. Nero, who had dragged me in, had fallen silent, and I felt like I shouldn’t make any noise either.
“... What are you doing..”
“What am I doing..? That’s what I want to ask you.”
“You have to tell me what you think.. don’t you?”
Hearing Nero’s slightly embarrassed voice, my head—which had reflexively snapped upright when I entered—slowly lowered. Nero had taken another step back and was now leaning against the wall, giving me a full view of.. her in nothing but lingerie.
I must have been dazed for a moment. What on earth had happened in that short time for me to end up in this cramped fitting room, staring at Nero in sexy underwear?
“So? How is it..?”
“...”
“.. Why.. aren’t you saying anything..”
Nero’s voice grew smaller and smaller until she seemed to decide she couldn’t let things stay this way.
‘If it’s come to this..’
If it’s come to this? Thud.
“?!”
One of Nero’s hands firmly grabbed my shoulder so I couldn’t escape. With her other hand, she placed the back of it against her side and struck a pose that emphasized her already irresistible figure even more. And as the finishing touch.. she used the secret technique she had always relied on whenever she made unreasonable requests back in her cat days—the one with an absurdly high success rate—right here, in this outfit, in this state, in this form.
“Tell me how my underwear looks.. nya.”