Russ (2)
Russ (2)
"Chis-yia, wake up. Eat breakfast."
A voice heard even through sleepiness.
I opened my eyes after taking a rest that felt like a mere catnap.
It didn't feel like I had slept for long.
But the outside world was definitely brighter than before.
"... Rus?"
"Wake up quickly. Now we need to spend some fun time together."
Rus was squatting beside the bed, looking at me.
Just how long had she been waiting for me while I was resting?
I felt quite guilty for making plans with a friend and just sleeping alone.
Judging by the situation, it seemed she even prepared breakfast.
I raised my body.
One of my arms was numb for no apparent reason.
As I sat up, she also stood up and went to get the food.
"... Rus, why'd you even go this far? Makes me feel sorry."
"No way. Our leader-nim looks tired, so I gotta do at least this much."
She said playfully.
... I couldn't help but be slightly touched.
In the meantime, she brought over the food.
"It's nothing special, but... eat up a lot and snap out of it."
It was soup.
She even brought a spoon right to the bed, as if she were nursing me.
"Thanks."
Accepting it just like that, I glanced at her once and scooped a spoonful into my mouth.
Since I fell asleep without even eating dinner, it tasted all the more delicious.
I smiled slightly and told her.
"Delicious."
"Really?"
Rus smiled brightly.
After briefly enjoying my reaction, she stood up again and brought her own portion.
She also put a spoonful into her mouth and nodded.
"It did turn out tasty, huh."
I kept spooning down the soup and nodded along.
As I ate like that for a long while, filling my hungry stomach, she suddenly asked.
"Uhm... Lily-ssi made you breakfast the other day, right...?"
"Huh?"
"... Compared to what Lily-ssi made, which one is better?"
She glanced at me back and forth while burying her head in her bowl.
Vien seemed to have asked me this too.
After making sandwiches, asking whose food was better, hers or eonni Lily's.
Is this a trait among women?
Does her own food have to taste better than someone else's?
But back then, I told Vien her sandwiches were just as delicious as eonni Lily's food.
There's no reason to treat Rus any less.
Of course eonni Lily's food is tastier, but Rus waited for me while I slept and even prepared food.
".... I think this one's tastier. Keep it a secret from eonni Lily."
The eyes visible over the rim of the bowl curved wide.
Looking delighted, she buried her head back in her bowl and kept spooning up the soup.
-dalgeurak dalgeurak
In an instant, my bowl of soup hit the bottom.
"Want some more?"
"Uh.. could you?"
I was still hungry.
She got up from her seat and brought me more.
Quickly scooping up more soup, she handed me the bowl and asked again.
"Ah, by the way, what did you do when you met Lily-ssi a few days ago?"
"Ah, back then...?"
I did a lot of things all day, but only one or two things stood out in my memory.
"Uh... we went shopping."
"What kind of shopping?"
I accepted the soup she gave me and put a bite in my mouth.
Rus also sat back down in her seat and finished eating her soup.
"Eonni bought me clothes. She said she wanted to see my boyfriend-look style, but since I didn't have any clothes, eonni got them custom-made for me."
Clack.
Rus's movements paused for a moment.
Then she naturally went back to spooning her soup.
"Why did she suddenly want to see that? Does she like you?"
At Rus's words, the argument I had with eonni Lily came to mind.
Eonni Lily had resolutely said she didn't like me.
"Ahaha... What kind of nonsense is that? It's not like that. She just said I should do well when I get a lover."
Rus nodded.
"Really? Can you show me right now too?"
"Ah. Those clothes are a bit pricey, so she said it takes quite a while to make them. I don't have them yet."
"Are they custom-made clothes?"
"Yeah. I should be able to receive them in a few days?"
"Then Lily-ssi hasn't seen them yet either."
Hmm.... I did try on a shabby sample outfit, but eonni Lily naturally hadn't seen the exclusive clothes made to my exact measurements yet either.
"Right?"
Then, continuing to spoon her soup, she made an offhand request.
"When you get the clothes, can you show me first?"
"What, those clothes?"
Why is she like this? Setting an order for things like this is just annoying.
"I mean, it doesn't really matter. But why bother? If eonni Lily asks, I might have to show her first."
"I got curious too. How you'll dress when you get a lover. Also, shouldn't you get it checked by me once, tidy things up a bit, and then show it to eonni Lily?"
Ah, show Rus first, fix any issues, and then show eonni Lily?
That's a good idea. Eonni Lily, who bought the clothes, would probably be even more satisfied.
"True. That sounds good. Alright then, when the clothes arrive, I'll show you first."
"Hehe. Yeah."
Smiling broadly and about to eat more soup, she called out to me again.
"Ah, Chis-yia. Let's go shopping today too, then."
Whew. Another day begins today.
Task number one: Shopping.
"Shopping? What are you gonna buy?"
"There is something. Since Lily-ssi bought you something, I should buy you something too."
I waved my hands dismissively.
"Hey, what's that about. Forget it."
"No. It's a gift for you who must have suffered all this time. You're the leader."
At the words 'who must have suffered', I paused.
Yeah. Lately, it had been tough.
Receiving a little reward felt like it would be nice.
"... I'm really not going to refuse three times, you know?"
She smiled.
"I'll buy it for you. Let's go shopping."
The place she dragged me to had everything sparkling.
Gems and ornaments sparkling in various colors.
It was a jewelry store.
I hadn't expected this kind of thing.
"Uh... Rus? This seems a bit excessive."
"Huh?" Rus turned back to me with a puzzled look.
Then she burst out laughing, "Ahaha."
"Ah, I can't buy you expensive stuff either. Don't worry."
"... Really?"
My mental burden lifted a little.
Well, it's not like jewelry stores only have expensive things.
... Is that right? I'd have to have visited one before to know.
"Ah... but I'm a bit worried. I don't usually wear accessories or things like that."
"Still, since I bought it for you, you gotta wear it well even if it's a hassle."
"No, that's fine. I'm not worried about it being a hassle, but since I'm not used to it, I'm afraid I might lose it."
The atmosphere suddenly changed drastically as Rus said coldly.
"... If you lose it anyway, I'm gonna get mad, you know?"
Goosebumps broke out all over my skin.
"I-I see. I'll try."
A hassle was added to my daily life.
Rus smiled brightly again, eased the atmosphere, and approached the store owner.
The store owner asked.
"What brings you here?"
"We're looking to buy a friendship ring. Could you show us some things that aren't too expensive?"
"A friendship ring?"
Ah. So we came to buy a friendship ring.
I thought she was going to buy me a necklace or something.
Rus and I have known each other for a long time, after all.
I didn't have any aversion to wearing a friendship ring.
The store owner looked back and forth between the two of us.
"There's no specific thing designated as a friendship ring... Rings are all the same anyway. It just differs depending on what meaning you assign to it."
"Yes. Hehe. I know."
At Rus's reply, the store owner nodded.
"The cheap silver rings are over there, so take a look around."
And he pointed to one side with his finger.
Having received permission, Rus pulled me in that direction.
There were rings of various shapes.
From thick ones to thin ones. From ones made into slightly esoteric shapes to simple ones.
Rus's eyes sparkled.
"Whoa... They're all pretty."
Rus looked excited.
"Chis-yia, hurry up and pick one."
"So this is how you buy these things, huh."
Since it was my first time at a jewelry store, everything was unfamiliar.
I had just stood frozen while Rus was talking to the store owner.
"Couldn't we just come and look? We definitely have to ask first, right?"
"Yeah. It's better to get permission. Look, aren't all the pieces of jewelry out in the open?"
Just as she said, all the jewelry was placed where you could touch it just by reaching out a hand.
"Of course, all the jewelry has magic cast on it so you'd be in big trouble if you tried to steal it, but still, it's uncomfortable for the store owner, so we tell them what we want like this."
"I see."
"Never mind that, pick one now."
"I get to pick?"
"Of course~. It's a gift, so the person receiving it should pick."
I glanced sideways at her.
"But you said it's a friendship ring. You're gonna wear one too, right?"
"Naturally!"
"Is it really okay for me to pick, though?"
"I like whatever you like."
At her words, I nodded and scanned through the rings.
And after looking around several times, I picked up a ring my eyes kept wandering to.
It was a thin ring. Just a plain circular ring with no engraved designs.
Its luster was dull, so it didn't even look like silver.
It looked like the cheapest, rather tacky sort of ring.
".. Uh.. that one?"
Contrary to what she said earlier, Rus looked disappointed at my choice.
Was she disappointed because I'd have to wear it from now on?
Still, I didn't want to put a burden on her.
Besides, just as the store owner said earlier, I thought what mattered was what meaning you assigned to such a ring.
"Yeah."
"It doesn't even look like a silver ring...? You can buy a more expensive one."
"I like this one. Let's go with this."
Reading my expression, she reluctantly nodded.
"... Alright."
Time passed and night fell.
A new ring was fitted on my left thumb and Rus's left index finger.
After buying the rings, we spent a somewhat tight schedule.
While eating lunch, Rus asked what I had done with Vien this time,
and I told her everything from going to the orphanage to staying up all night.
Perhaps inspired by that, Rus pestered me to go for a walk,
and we wandered around various pretty places until night fell.
Walking without a break all day made my exhausted body feel like it was coming back to life.
Remembering how Rus had been considerate enough to let me rest in the morning,
just in case, I asked if we could pull an all-nighter next time instead.
But I couldn't possibly handle her reaction to that, so I backed down once more.
I changed my mind.
Strike while the iron is hot; I'd just get rid of both Wish Tickets right now and from now on,
I decided I would never hand out Wish Tickets again, or only give them when absolutely unavoidable.
Rus, who had rejected my plea, said there was something she really wanted to do tonight while pulling an all-nighter.
Furthermore, she said she had already finished preparations, so we had to do it today.
"Rus. It's about time you told me."
There is a huge difference between telling someone what you're going to do and keeping it a secret.
It felt like being told to keep walking forward without knowing the destination,
which tended to drain my energy a bit faster.
That's why I kept badgering her to know what the goal was,
but she still wouldn't tell me.
"I told you I'd tell you once we get to your place, right? Actually, I prepared everything while you were sleeping."
Whatever it was, she seemed excited. She was grinning from ear to ear.
Yeah. Well, we've arrived anyway.
We had already arrived in front of my lodging.
I greeted the innkeeper and went up to my room.
Just what on earth did she prepare while I was asleep?
-creak
-click
I opened and entered the room, turning on the magic lamp.
My messy room was just as it had always been.
"Rus, tell me now."
Turning back to her, I saw her scamper right over to the magic food box with that beaming grin.
Opening the box, she pulled out a large bottle.
.... Alcohol?
"Chis-yia. Let's have a drink for the first time in a while. Today, we're pulling an all-nighter."
She smacked her lips.
Today is the day. Today, I have to take a step forward.
I thought to myself.
Stachys looks exhausted, so I can put an end to all this.
I'll get ahead of the other bitches and make it a fait accompli.
An opportunity to satisfy my constantly rising desires and become his lover.
I'm going to create that right now.
Judging by Stachys's expression, it will be hard to extract any more Wish Tickets in the future.
That means I don't know when another opportunity to stay up all night together will come.
So it has to be now.
If I succeed, I can tell Vien and Lily-ssi not to approach him anymore, and thus I can grant Stachys some peace of mind.
Because if I become his lover, I will never make things hard for him.
Of course, if you asked whether the Stachys Treaty bothers me, the answer is no.
Article 1: Do not become Stachys's lover.
And Article 4: Do not secretly covet his lips or genitals, gets in the way.
But Article 1 is merely a superficial rule.
Since everyone who signed the treaty would break that clause given the chance, I decided not to worry about it.
Article 4 is a promise not to covet his intimate parts, but what if the one doing the coveting isn't me?
There is no rule saying they must not be coveted.
If he takes the initiative and desires contact with my intimate parts, rather than me initiating it, would either of the other two be able to refuse?
Absolutely not.
So if I let them know, 'Stachys wanted me first,' they won't have anything to say.
They'll probably tremble with frustration.
I was already looking forward to it.
The important thing in this plan is that I must not pounce on him first.
If I get him dead drunk and devour him, and if Stachys starts avoiding me because of the stress from that, it's all over.
I'll drift apart from Stachi, and suffer a joint attack from the other two as punishment for breaking the treaty.
But if he eats me first... whether he was drunk or whatever, the initiative passes to me.
Stachys, with his strong sense of responsibility, will have no choice but to become my lover.
So to summarize, when we have relations, the one moving their hips must be him, not me.
Perfect.
I rehearsed the plan in my head and looked at him with slightly dizzy eyes.
I had already made him drink a lot, so his eyes were glazed over too.
It had also been a long time since the drinking session started.
I had drunk a lot myself to make him drink, but I was holding onto my sanity tightly because I couldn't miss the opportunity of a lifetime.
Besides, he was getting drunk more easily than expected.
To think that him being tired would turn out to be helpful.
In my heart, I offered my thanks for the first time to Vien and Lily-ssi, who had worn him out.
Well, consider it punishment for making him suffer.
Stachys mumbled.
"Umm... Rus...? Are you... gonna drink more...? I'm tire-"
"-Cheers...!"
Instead of answering, with my tongue loosened, I handed him a glass.
He looked at me for a moment, then drank the glass straight down.
"Khah..."
It was strong liquor.
Because when I bought the alcohol, I had asked for the strongest liquor available.
It was just as requested.
"Rus...? I can't drink any mor-"
"-Cheers, cheers, cheers!"
He took the glass thrust right in front of his lips and drank it just like that.
He was now smacking his lips with his eyes closed.
He looked thirsty.
It was obvious that he wasn't in his right mind.
Now's the time.
"Chis-yam... I'll go get some water...."
Taking advantage of the situation where he looked thirsty, naturally.
Staggering as if I were just as drunk, I got up.
-tabaktabak
And when I walked past him to get water, I fell onto him as if by mistake.
"Ah..!"
A posture successfully landing right inside his arms was created.
"Whoa... Rus...? Are you okay? You must be really drunk..."
His slurred voice was so cute that I barely managed to hold back a laugh.
"... Should we stop drinking and go to sleep now...? You used up your Wish Ticket, okay...?"
He asked, but instead of answering, I looked up at him with eyes as relaxed as possible.
"...."
"...."
And while meeting his eyes, I didn't say a word.
Even though it was things I had planned, my heart was pounding furiously.
My face turning red would be hidden by my face already flushed from the alcohol.
As long as I didn't show embarrassment with my expression.
As long as I didn't avoid his gaze.
For the sake of my goal, I tried to ignore the signals my whole body was sending.
When I looked up at him like that, a reaction came.
As we stared at each other in silence for a while, to the point of awkwardness,
he grew shy and avoided my gaze.
Thud, thud, thud.
He's embarrassed because of me.
For a second, I almost pounced on him, but I barely held even that back.
I let out a heavy sigh.
So that my breath could reach his face.
As my breath touched him, he flinched.
Still, he didn't move anymore.
Growing impatient, I added a word.
"Chis-yia...?"
And to look cute, I raised my fist and covered my mouth slightly.
And it didn't take long for me to realize that was a mistake.
Chis's eyes had seen the ring fitted on my hand.
Then he spoke to me like a person who had suddenly snapped back to reality.
"Ah. Oh dear... Sorry. I was drunk so my reaction was a bit slow."
Saying that, he lifted my body and pushed me away from his embrace.
As the goal I thought I had firmly grasped slipped out of my hands, it felt like my heart dropped with a thud.
Why did I make such a mistake... I resented myself for raising my left hand.
However, I couldn't back down here. This was only the first opportunity.
If I feed him more, an opportunity will come.
So to him,
I fed him,
and fed him,
and fed him.
I kept drinking along with him too.
At this rate, it felt like I was going to lose my consciousness.
Just as I thought it was time to make another dash, Stachys dropped his glass.
-clatter!!
And his body gradually pitched forward, banged his head against the table, and fell from the chair.
Bang. Thud.
The sound was so loud that, forgetting I was even acting, I stood up and approached him.
"Chis-yia?yia??" -> "Chis-yia??"
He was fast asleep with a lump on his head, snoring away.