Scarlet's Proof
"Really?" "Really." "Really..?" "Really. That's what my ability is like, at least for now."
This was already the second time today. I found myself thinking she was cute as she blankly repeated the question.
"Ah, aah... Ugh, what am I saying in my head right now?"
This... bastard... He's really ugly, filthy, and petty...
"You're... cursing me out a lot."
"Ah..."
Once she finished confirming it, she collapsed right where she stood.
"..."
"Scarlet...?"
She had her head bowed low, her still-damp red hair hanging down so I couldn't see her expression. A strange unease crept over me.
"I'm so embarrassed right now..."
"..."
"I want to burn you to death. Right this second."
And then came the terrifying threat. But despite the chilling words, her voice carried no real edge. If anything, it trembled slightly—not from anger, but from embarrassment.
"But if I really killed you... I wouldn't be able to feel that warmth anymore, would I?"
"..."
After that half-mumbled soliloquy, she lifted her face again. As expected, it was bright red.
How could anyone calmly say things like I wanted to be held by you so badly I couldn't hide it, and we promised that after a week you'd do anything... without dying of shame? Looking back, I realized I'd been too cruel.
"You could've just pretended not to notice... Did you really hate holding me that much, you... you bastard?"
"No, no! Scarlet, that's not it at all...!"
"...Then prove it."
"Huh?"
...I'd walked right into her trap. The moment I frantically denied it while watching her start to tear up, her voice dropped into a low, seductive tone and she began pressing me.
Prove it? Prove how much I wanted to hold her? How? The options were far too limited.
"R-right. If it's just proof, I can connect with you right now and show you my true feelings...!"
"Don't use your ability. If you do... I'll use mine too."
Whoosh...
"...Gulp."
A single flame flickered above her outstretched palm before vanishing. Even that brief moment of heat brushing my face was enough to feel like a threat.
I'd really been caught. Just moments ago I'd thought I had her figured out, so why had the tables turned so suddenly...?
"Come to think of it... we still have to play that thief-catching game, don't we?"
"Cut it out. I really will burn you."
"..."
There was nowhere left to run. But the week I'd won from her still hadn't ended.
"...Like I said before, if you don't even like me, then holding me or—"
"Hey!!"
"...Yes."
I shut my mouth immediately. My mouth really was the problem.
"You're so noisy with all that muttering... You! You say you don't like me, but you still kissed me and everything?!"
"...No."
"I was actually expecting you to pounce on me that very night, you idiot!"
Even after seeing her reaction that day, I'd only taken it as repayment for healing the scar on her arm and refused to think any deeper. Had I unconsciously decided that getting any closer to her would be dangerous?
"I've been showing you my whole body every single day and even letting you touch me... How is it that we still haven't made any progress? Are you impotent or something?"
"No... I'm perfectly functional."
To be accused of not even trying... I couldn't help but wonder why I'd gone through all that desperate effort to suppress my erection while helping her bathe.
"Then what are you doing..."
"?"
"...Go turn off the lights."
...Ah.
My steps felt heavy, yet strangely light. It didn't make sense, but it was true.
Click.
The lights went out, but thanks to the soft moonlight-like glow filtering in from outside, I could still make out the room clearly. In the sudden quiet, she called to me.
"Are you going to make me say everything...? Stop standing there and come here."
"..."
"At this rate it looks like I'm the only one desperate to be held..."
"I'm coming now."
Before I knew it, she was sitting on the bed. I stepped onto the soft blanket and climbed up. The way I'd been spun around and pulled onto the bed left me more breathless with awkwardness than excitement. She seemed to feel the same—once I sat facing her on the blanket, neither of us spoke.
"Maybe we should talk a little after all...?"
"...No."
"I won't run away."
"Then... go ahead and try."
Haa...
"Then, if I may ask... why do you want me to hold you, Scarlet?"
"...Are you seriously asking a woman that question right now?"
Ah. That probably sounded strange.
"Ah... I guess the question was weird. Is it okay that it's me? I mean... as your partner."
I knew this was an incredibly fortunate situation I couldn't escape without asking, but I really wanted to hear the answer.
"...Well, you've got a decent face, but you talk too much and you're weaker than me..."
"..."
"So what the hell do I even like about a guy like you...?"
Even if she suddenly said that, it still stung a little.
"...Because you told me you wouldn't hate me... and that you'd believe in me?"
...Huh?
"Or maybe because you kept saying you'd stay by my side... and that made me feel safe..."
"..."
"You could be a little more honest about your desires... but you're so unnecessarily upright that it's frustrating... even if it's annoying, I thought it was kind of cool..."
"...."
If I listened to any more of this, it was going to get dangerous. Watching her speak so shyly for the first time, I felt like I might push her down at any moment.
"...And also... whenever you scold me or praise me, it feels really good..."
"Hm?"
"Ah, no, forget that last one. Pretend you didn't hear it!"
Even if she said to forget it, I couldn't un-hear what I'd already heard.
"You forgot, right?"
"...I don't know."
Whoosh...!
"...You forgot, right?"
"What am I supposed to forget? What did you say...?"
"...Good."
In the middle of the dark room, the flickering flame reflected in her red eyes was... quite chilling. She needed to make it absolutely clear that she'd erased it from my mind, even if it meant acting out this childish scene.
I'd forgotten... but I couldn't stop the corners of my mouth from twitching upward.
"Then... your turn."
"Ah... My turn?"
So I had to speak too.
"Were you planning to make only me talk?"
"...Ah, no. I'll talk."
She was right. I'd told her it wasn't okay to hold someone you didn't like, so for me to be sitting on this blanket right now without liking her would be impossible.
"It's true we haven't had much time to get to know each other, but I think your honest and energetic personality is really charming, Scarlet."
"..."
"You have a strong competitive spirit and you're stubborn, but you're not cowardly, so I admire that. And... you have this undeniably cute side to you... I like it."
Was that too embarrassing to say out loud? Still, I looked at her face with a small hope that she'd react positively. But...
"...?"
She looked completely unimpressed. Even in the dark, her displeased expression was obvious.
"Haa, I'm an idiot for asking. More importantly... how do I look to you?"
"Huh?"
Swish...Thud...
"Ah..."
Thud...
She pulled the knot at her waist and undid it in one motion. The yukata that had barely been clinging to her shoulders slipped down like rose petals being peeled away.
"You've been stealing glances at my chest a lot..."
"That's..."
"...You didn't actually think I wouldn't notice, did you? Women are really sensitive to that kind of gaze."
"..."
Just one undone sash and two simple tugs, and the fabric that had wrapped her body so tightly vanished in an instant. Following the curve of her full thighs and hips up to her slender waist... her arms were barely managing to hold her ample breasts, the soft flesh spilling around her fingers in a way that practically accused me of how unbearably soft and elastic they were.
"They're... really beautiful."
"I'd like a little more detail, if you don't mind."
More detail... A generic compliment like "beautiful" probably wasn't enough, but how exactly was I supposed to compliment a woman's breasts in detail?
"...They're really big, but they have this nice, perky shape... And because you move around so much during training... they bounce so much every time... I've been staring at that nonstop..."
"Hehe... Pervert."
"...You told me to say it, Scarlet."
At least her expression looked much better than before, so she probably wasn't upset... but this was still incredibly embarrassing. No matter how I looked at it, this was straight-up sexual harassment.
"Then... naturally, you've thought about wanting to touch them, or lick them... or even bite them, right?"
"That's... well... I mean, I am a man, after all."
...Of course I wanted to touch them. More than just touch—I wanted to lick and bite them until they were glistening with my saliva.
"What if I said it was okay for you to do that right now... what would you do?"
"...!!"
I knew she was teasing me, but I couldn't resist.
"Of course... I'd do it."
"And yet you've been ignoring that obvious fact for days?"
"..."
I'd really messed up. This... was definitely my fault.
"Counselor, how do I look to you? Am I your type? Face, body... personality, even..."
When she mentioned personality, her voice grew noticeably smaller and less confident. It seemed she wasn't completely unaware of her own sharp personality.
So that was why she'd looked so unimpressed when I complimented her personality earlier... It hadn't been a lie or empty flattery.
"You're very much my type. Scarlet, you're exactly the kind of woman I like."
"...Good. I got it."
"...?"
What did she get...? Thud.
"...Ah?"
In an instant, she grabbed my wrist and pulled me down with her, falling backward onto the blanket. I naturally ended up on top of her.
"...Counselor."
"...Yes."
She lay there completely defenseless, her naked body spread across the blanket. Beneath her sharp gaze, her eyes burned with thick desire as she looked up at me. Those red lips I'd been unable to stop staring at parted slightly, and she whispered a provocation.
"Do whatever you want... with the woman who's exactly your type."