An Unusually Warm Day
Whoosh! As I stepped out of Isolet's room, drenched in cold sweat, the birds circling around me suddenly swarmed in close.
"Meow..."
"Huff... huff..."
At the same time, the cat doll and puppy latched onto my pant leg, dragging me backward.
"Ow, that hurts! It hurts, I said!"
Flailing my hands in surprise at the sudden chaos, the puppy that had been straining to pull me along suddenly widened its eyes.
"W-Woof! Woof!"
Then it let out an awkward bark and bolted off somewhere.
"...What the hell?"
I stared at the fleeing puppy in confusion when someone poked my side. I flinched and turned to look.
"M-Master..."
Lulu appeared in my view, her face etched with anxiety.
"We have to get out of here. This place is weird."
"Huh? What do you—"
"Q-Quickly..."
Lulu grabbed my arm, and with the animals, they all started dragging me away. Tilting my head, I asked a question, and her Demon Eyes began to glow ruby red.
"...Q-Quickly."
Staring at Isolet's door with her Demon Eyes, Lulu's face flushed red before twisting into unease.
"We need to get out as fast as possible..."
".....?"
Was Lulu peeking inside Isolet's room with her Demon Eyes? If so, it made sense. She might think she could lose the affection I gave her...
"You might get eaten if you're not careful..."
Lulu's expression, fixed on Isolet's room, shifted to outright terror.
"Hmm..."
Being pulled along silently by her, I frowned and muttered.
"No, I think I need to stick around a bit longer..."
Unlike my last visit, my little sister was here, and the Youngest Holy Knight seemed fine too. I hadn't even seen my sister's face properly yet, and while I'd left investigating the Youngest Holy Knight to Serena, I still needed to look into it myself...
"Ahem. Frey."
Lost in thought, Irina suddenly emerged from a corner of the mansion, clearing her throat as she approached.
"Irina? Where'd you go?"
"L-Looking for my pet dog. Just tied it up outside after finding it."
Asking her why she'd vanished briefly, she averted her eyes and answered. Then...
"Hmm..."
Her expression turned icy as she headed toward Isolet's room.
—Twitch, twitch.
Stopping in front of her door, Irina closed her eyes tightly and perked up the dog ears sprouting from her head.
"It's your fault... You tempted me first... You said naughty things first... Take responsibility..."
Concentrating with eyes shut, she muttered sounds from inside the room, then blushed and trailed off.
"".......""
Moments later, Irina's gaze met Lulu's, who was peering inside. They both nodded silently.
"Frey, shall we head out?"
Irina approached cautiously and asked.
"Master, let's go home. Pet Lulu at home."
Lulu clung tightly to my side, pleading.
"........"
In the bewildering chaos, clutching my throbbing head, I summoned a system window into the air.
Lulu [Conquest Complete]
Details...
"...Hmm."
Gazing at Lulu clinging to my side, I opened her affection system and carefully activated the details.
[Potential Ability Awakening Complete: Awakened Demon Eyes]
"Oh ho."
Now I was certain. The true purpose of the affection system was to unlock the heroines' latent potentials.
'Wait, is that right? Feels like the 19+ events take up way too much space...'
Averting my eyes from the particularly sparkling 19+ events in the details, I sank back into thought.
'Anyway, fascinating. Latent potential, huh.'
I'd half-expected it since Lulu awakened her Demon Eyes, but seeing it with my own eyes felt strange.
"Then, maybe..."
Staring blankly at the floating system window, I tilted my head and pondered inwardly.
'Do the main heroines have latent potentials too?'
It seemed plausible, but I couldn't check now. Unlike the sub-heroines' details, the main heroines' were locked.
"...Hmm."
Smacking my lips in regret, I blankly watched Irina trying to pry me away from Isolet's room.
"Um..."
"Hm?"
Suddenly, a little girl clutching a large bear doll stood before me.
"Uh... eek..."
Spotting me while sleepily wandering the hall, she backed away in fear.
"...Cardia?"
It was Cardia, Kania's little sister with the power of healing. I hadn't heard from her since she left with my sister Aria, but it seemed she'd moved to Isolet's mansion with her.
"Hmm..."
The adorable girl, even cuter with her smaller, rounder frame like Kania's. Come to think of it, I hadn't spoken much to her this loop. Her newly awakened healing power was enough to restore Kania's life force anyway... and since no life force boosts worked on me, we had little overlap.
Still, long time no see—maybe chat with the cute kid?
"Um..."
"Ah, Aria said not to play with Lord Frey..."
But her firm response from her terrified state.
"G-Go away."
"........"
Aria had apparently taught her perfectly to beware men.
"Meow....."
Feeling awkward, the cat doll peeked from my coat pocket, gazing at Cardia with longing eyes.
'Right, this cat doll was made by Cardia.'
"Meow?"
Recalling that, I picked up the doll and shook it gently.
"This is cute."
"Huh?"
"You made it, right? This?"
Cardia looked baffled.
"I never made anyth—"
—Beep! Beep-beep!
A signal sounded from her pocket as she opened her mouth.
"...Sis?"
"......."
"Hm? Keep my voice down? Okay..."
She scurried to the hall's end, peeking around the corner warily at me while answering the call.
"What? Why would I... Uh, um... Got it."
Moments later.
"Y-Yes. I made that doll myself."
Sweating profusely as she replied.
"A-And... don't bully my sister!"
She squeezed her eyes shut and shrieked.
"Lord Frey bullies Sis so much, she clutches her stomach whenever she sees him!"
"What?"
"My stomach's tingling! If Sis hurts, I get sad!"
"Uh, okay..."
"And Sis says... don't let guys get on top. No skin-to-skin either. It's so hard holding back, she's dy— No, she said not to say that."
Scratching her head briefly.
"Anyway, stop bullying Sis!"
She finished hastily and scampered down the hall.
""........""
Silence fell.
"I-I didn't say anything, Frey. Anyway, skin-to-skin is fine..."
In the heavy atmosphere, Irina's low voice hardened as she spoke.
"......."
Isolet emerged from her previously shut door, face fierce, approaching him. For some reason, her clothes were haphazardly thrown on.
"Eh? Uwa?"
"Frey."
Standing before the frozen Frey, she wore a cold expression. Calming her excitement, she showed him the crumpled newspaper the carrier pigeon had left on the windowsill.
"This real?"
Isolet scanned the freshly distributed Empire-wide paper again and asked Frey.
"Y-Yeah. All my doing. Why? Disappointed? You are, right? I'm not even human, huh?"
Pale-faced and silent, Frey's eyes sparkled as he nodded quietly.
[...The Imperial Family has ordered a full investigation into Frey for slave law violations, child sexual exploitation, and possession of large numbers of illegal sex slaves.]
Reading it all, Isolet crumpled and tossed it.
"See, Frey? I was right."
She stepped closer.
"Investigators might raid your mansion soon. You could be arrested tomorrow."
Sweat-soaked as usual, her trembling hand reached out carefully to Frey.
"S-So... live with me."
Grabbing his shoulders, pressing belly-to-belly, she muttered with crazed eyes.
"I'll hide you, Frey. Basement—mansion has one. No one will find you there."
"S-Sis..."
"No one... I'll make sure no one touches you."
As Frey trembled against her, she shut her eyes, breathing raggedly.
"M-Might feel forceful... but it's to protect you. No weird stuff. R-Really. For real."
"Uh, um..."
"I'll treat you well. Take good care of you. Kinda dark, but water and meals regular... and..."
Flustered and blushing in her arms, he seized the moment.
"I-I'm leaving!!"
"...Fr-Frey?"
Irina and Lulu yanked him back as she slipped, losing her grip.
"N-No! Need to lock him... no, hide him..."
As Isolet hesitated, Frey fled to the entrance with the girls.
"......."
Heading out, he bumped into his sister Aria.
"...Die."
Her one-line verdict after reading the Empire paper.
"...I wish big bro would just drop dead."
"........"
Paused by the animals and girls, staring at her, Frey...
"...Sure."
...smiled faintly.
"Wh-What... that smile..."
Aria flinched, about to speak, but...
"...See ya, Aria."
Leaving only those words, Frey exited Isolet's mansion.
""........""
Long silence settled over the mansion.
"Coo!"
".....?"
Aria tilted her head at the pigeon flying to the window, dumbstruck. The pigeon, which had vanished instead of following Frey to his room, finally resumed its role as the Church's carrier pigeon.
"Th-This calls for... a plan. Must secure Frey somehow. Pr-Protect him..."
"Huh?"
Aria took the letter from the pigeon, ignoring Isolet muttering crouched upstairs.
".......Ah."
Her face paled.
. . . . . .
"........What?"
Roswin, sulking at the Starlight mansion entrance amid returned letters and flowers from Frey.
"Princess, no pranks lately? Good posture. Keep it up..."
"Ugh... uuu..."
"Princess?"
"Th-This isn't... I didn't mean for this..."
And Aisi, pale after contacting kingdom mages all day, among a few others.
"Te-Terminal?"
"What do we do... what..."
That day, despite early winter, was unusually warm.