After enough drinks to warm my body, I took off my jacket and hung it over the back of my chair.
My thoughts were floating a little but I was still aware enough to handle my usual actions. It was that perfect level of pleasant drunkenness.
The alluring onee-san drinking with us had a slight blush that only made her beauty deeper, while the tiger patterned catkin girl had lost all her energy and was sipping her drink with sleepy eyes.
As for Freda……
「It’s so unfair! Sorte-san, Aina-san and Renge-san talk about nothing but you! They tell me they went shopping with you today or how many times you called them cute! And if it’s fewer than yesterday they ask me what I think! That’s not advice, it’s bragging!」
She slammed her empty wooden mug onto the table and I understood exactly how much frustration she had been carrying.
「And that isn’t even the real problem! Last night Renge-san was talking about doing this and that with you, how many times, stuff like that! Who even talks like that!? Then she compares it to Wendy-san from before and says it was more or less than her! I don’t need to know any of that!!」
「Ah…… that is……」
I couldn’t believe those girls talked in that much detail just because Freda was another woman.
Even for me, it was embarrassing.
「I haven’t had a boyfriend in foreveeeeer! How am I supposed to know anything about what you do at night!? I can only smile and nod! A fake smile is all I can do!」
She poured herself another drink, gulped more than half in one go, exhaled a loud puff and then glared at me like I was to blame.
I was probably…… mostly not at fault.
The number of times depended on time, health, mood and satisfaction, so there was no such thing as what one should do.
I was always more than satisfied though……
「Fufufu. You’re jealous, aren’t you Freda」
「Yes yes, I am! Especially today! He looks way too cool! Like seriously, what is this!? Did you hide that you would look like that if you cut your hair!?」
「Hmm…… it’s not just the haircut. I feel a type of magic I don’t usually sense. Did you use some kind of special item?」
「No, I don’t think so…… maybe Riito-san did something though……」
Now that you mention it, I did notice her sprinkling something while fixing her hair, but I just thought maybe they had wax or something in this world too.
…But it’s true, even though I only got a slight trim, Freda is acting strange. It wouldn’t be surprising if something was used on me.
「It’s fine, really! Onii-san is just more ‘handsome’ than usual today! That’s all! That alone makes me think, ‘Wow, Aina-san and the others are so lucky!’」
「Well, I suppose so. It’s not like his base material is bad to begin with.」
「Exactly! He’s approachable, kind, gives off a clean vibe, rich, and has that slightly childish gap….that’s more than enough!」
Maybe it’s the alcohol, but being praised so much is…
My face is bright red, and it’s not just from the drink…
I might be blushing a bit too.
「Hmmmnn—… noisy…」
「Ara, is someone getting sleepy?」
「Yeah… gonna sleep…」
「Can you get back to the inn by yourself?」
「Hmmm—? I’m fine…」
Saying that, the tiger-cat girl picked up her chair and moved next to me.
What’s this about? I wondered with my drunken mind, but she placed her chair extremely close, took my arm, rested her head on my shoulder, and closed her eyes.
「Ara ara.」
「Ah… good night?」
「Yeah… nigh’ nigh’…」
The tiger-cat girl immediately started breathing softly in sleep.
Cat-type beastkin are usually aloof or seem wary, but when they get affectionate, they really go all out, huh? She’s rubbing her face against the arm she’s clinging to.
For now, I put my removed jacket on her backwards, hiding her defenseless body and keeping her warm.
「It’s that part right there!」
「Hm?」
「That kind of casual kindness is my weakness! The fact you can do things like that without any ulterior motives, ahhh, it’s just so great!」
Freda rocked her chair back and forth with a ‘gako gako’ sound, looking up at the sky and down at the ground alternately.
If you do that, you’ll get even more drunk.
And, while I’m flattered you’re praising me for having no ulterior motives, I really hope you don’t notice that my captured arm is currently trapped between her thighs.
This is totally beyond my control…
「Fufu. Well then, why don’t you join Aina-san and the others, Freda?」
「That won’t do! Because there’s a fatal flaw with onii-san!」
「A fatal one, huh…」
「That’s right! It’s true onii-san is very good. When he made my hair pretty, it felt really nice. Ah, but if someone you dislike touches your hair, it’s unpleasant, so please be careful.」
「O-oh.」
Well, yeah, that makes sense.
Hair, or rather, one’s head, isn’t something you should casually let just anyone touch.
「But you see! Onii-san is no good! There’s one point that makes him absolutely, definitively no good! And that is… he’s fickle!」
「Ah…」
「I want to be loved one hundred percent! Sure, polygamy is legal, but most people are in one-on-one relationships! Of course, there are economic factors too, but one-on-one is the norm!」
Well, I’ve heard theories that, looking at the animal kingdom, monogamous pairs are actually overwhelmingly rare, but by my common sense too, one-on-one seems normal.
「How many are there for you, onii-san!? How many women are you scattering your love among!? There’s Aina-san, Sorte-san, Renge-san, Wendy-san, Shiro-san, and Mizera-san! Aaaah—Six! Six people! You can’t divide 100 evenly among six!」
Freda was getting worked up.
Hearing Freda’s noisy voice, the tiger-cat girl frowned uncomfortably in her sleep and tightened her grip on my arm.
「Ah… well, you see…」
「What is it!? If you have an excuse, I’ll hear it!」
「I intend to direct one hundred percent of my affection to each and every one of them…」
「Hah! It’s easy to just say that!」
Well, I figured that’s how she’d react…
There’s no way to prove something like this.
But I truly do love each of them with all my heart.
「Ara, then why doesn’t Freda try experiencing it for herself?」
「A-han? Experiencing it?」
「That’s right. A simulated lover experience. If you try experiencing what Aina-san and the others usually receive, wouldn’t you understand just how much they’re loved?」
「Eh, but something like that…」
「Ara, it’s just a simulation, a simulation. It’s just playing pretend, not actually becoming his lover, so what’s the harm?」
「Hmm…」
Freda fell into thought, while the onee-san watched her with an amused smile.
My own will wasn’t really part of this conversation, but between the drowsy drunkenness, I didn’t feel much like objecting.
「…Incidentally, what would I have to do?」
「Why, whatever Freda would want to have done for her, of course.」
「What I would want to have done for me… I see!」
No, it’s not “I see”…
First of all, what does she hope to accomplish by finding out how much I love Aina and the others?
Wasn’t the original point that Freda ‘wouldn’t’ fall for me because of a fatal flaw?
「Then, um… first, please pat my head.」
…Oh boy, it’s starting already.
Freda moved her chair closer, sat down next to me, and presented her head.
If I refuse now, Freda will get hurt, won’t she…?
「Here goes…」
「Hmmm… w-well, I knew about this part, but it’s not bad. Rather, it’s good, I’d say.」
Can you really tell something like that while drunk?
As I was thinking that, she looked up at me and pointed at a plain, baked wheat cracker…
「Please feed it to me.」
「…Alright, alright.」
I broke the cracker in half with one hand and brought it to Freda’s lips.
「Aaahn.」
「…Aaahn.」
Freda’s lips wiggled a bit before she opened her mouth slightly to accept the cracker I held.
In the process, my fingertip brushed against her lips, causing Freda to pull her face back sharply.
「Hmmmph… Th-th-th-this is… I heard everyone else got to do this, so I tried it… W-well, it’s not bad.」
「Is that so…」
「Ufufufu. How entertaining.」
The onee-san, who wasn’t involved, laughed merrily and kept drinking the red wine she’d poured into her glass.
She was probably having the most fun here.
「Next… I’ll sit on your lap.」
「On my lap… Freda?」
「Wh-what is it? Shiro-san does this normally, doesn’t she?」
「Well, yeah, but…」
Shiro sitting on my lap and Freda sitting on my lap feel like different things…
And sitting facing me on one knee… this is definitely different from how Shiro does it…
「Ah…」
I put an arm around her to keep her from falling as she sat, and Freda let out a small sound.
Then she placed both hands on my chest and leaned her body against mine, molding herself to me.
「Haaah… This is quite…」
Freda’s slightly ragged breathing reached my ear.
The places we touched felt hot, and I was intensely aware of her body heat.
「A man’s scent… it’s different from adventurers.」
「Don’t go sniffing me…」
「What? Are you embarrassed? But we’re not done yet! Next… whisper words of love in my ear!」
「Love?」
「Yes. Can you not do it? So you won’t listen to your girlfriend’s request? I knew it, it’s not 100 percent after all!」
Muu.
Hearing that bugs me a little.
Even though I’m embarrassed, the alcohol might give me a push.
「…I like you.」
「Ooohh…」
She’s shuddering, but it’s not because it’s gross, right…?
Ah, judging by her expression, she seems fine…
In that case, I’ll go all out.
「I love your curly hair, Freda. It’s so fluffy and smells nice.」
I gently ran my fingers through her hair, giving it a light tousle as I touched it. A soft fragrance wafted up.
「Ah, seriously, the smell is…」
「Wait wait.」
She leaned her upper body back as if to pull away from my head, but there was no strength in the movement, so she didn’t get very far.
「Your slender waist, your modest yet firm chest, your small face… it’s all adorable.」
「Th-that’s too much praise… Mmmph… Ah, too close…」
When our eyes met, Freda’s face flushed red from the extreme proximity.
Soon, influenced by something other than the alcohol, her eyes began to grow hazy and moist, her gaze fixed straight on me as her slightly parted lips drew closer and—
「…You seem to be having fun.」
「Eep!」
…A very familiar voice came from directly behind me.
It’s the kind of tone that sobers you up instantly, one I heard often back when I first arrived in this world.
Now then, who do you think will be held responsible for this situation?
「…You seem to be having ‘fun’, don’t you?」
「Ah, um, Sorte? This is, well… Eek!」
She’s bright red! Her entire body is bright red!
「H-hey, Sorte, that’s not blood—」
「It’s not blood. It’s just red tree sap.」
「Ah, is that what it was? Thank goodness…」
「What part of this is ‘good’, exactly?」
Scary! The fact that she’s completely red makes it even scarier!
And the onee-san, she’s pretending to be passed out, faking sleep!
As for Freda, she’s flustered and going ‘awawawa’, but it seems her legs have given out, and she can’t get off my lap.
Incidentally, the tiger-cat girl is still firmly clinging to my arm, completely unaware of the situation, so I’m pretty much doomed.
「I see. So this is what the premonition was about.」
「Whoa~ master, you look super coolssu!」
Coming up behind Sorte were Aina and Renge, also dyed completely red.
Renge is complimenting me on my haircut, but that’s the least of my concerns right now!
「Good thing we got here before you got dirty.」
「Yeah… that was close.」
Sorte-san is glaring daggers at me.
But, wait a minute.
I don’t think I’ve actually done anything wrong.
It’s just that being glared at with those eyes makes me ‘feel’ like I’m at fault, but this was just pretend. A simulated experience.
「…Freda?」
「Ee… Y-yes!」
「Well… I guess that’s just Freda for you. Can’t be helped. Yeah.」
「Huh?」
「You were prostrating last time too, and I kind of knew, or had a feeling it might be like this, so… I might be willing to concede, say, a hundred steps, and think it can’t be helped…」
Hah! Am I saved? Wait, don’t make that face.
Don’t make a face that says you’re totally going to abandon me, Freda!
「…And my lord, it’s not like we have the right to stop you from liking whoever you want or being with whoever you want…」
W-well, that’s true.
This world allows polygamy.
Even I, who’s usually perfectly satisfied just having everyone around, should logically be fine if I just conveniently follow this world’s rules for once.
In other words… I’ll be forgiven?
「But you know…」
「「Eek!」」
There’s more!
Ah, Freda’s expression instantly turned tense too, but she’s still on my lap…
「Think about the place! The place! What are you trying to do in the middle of the Adventurer’s Guild!」
Ah… Looking around, I see the other adventurers wearing rather awkward expressions.
Some are glaring, others are muttering ‘Again… Is it that guy again…’ while drinking sadly, it seems the previously noisy atmosphere had long since vanished, replaced by something entirely different.
Incidentally, the members of the Mizera-chan Fan Club are drinking as if enjoying an elegant tea time, you really have to hand it to them.
「…Well, I don’t mind ‘too’ much, but still.」
「Guild Master…」
「That sort of thing should be done at your inn or home.」
You’re absolutely right…
Not that I don’t have any counterarguments, but being someone who can read the room, I won’t talk back here.
「So, with that, it’s on onii-san tonight, right?」
「…Yeah. Leave it to me…」
I’ll gladly cover it.
Even if some idiot in the back gets carried away and orders a whole barrel of the most expensive alcohol, an amount we could never finish, I’ll accept it gracefully…
※
The next day—―
After explaining yesterday’s events in detail, we all ended up heading to the Alchemist’s Guild.
「Um… What seems to be the matter, everyone?」
「My hair… You can fix it, right? Fix it!」
「Huh~? It wasn’t popular? But it looked so cool…」
「Hmm. I think it’s cool. But… we can’t handle any more rivals.」
Everyone generally praised my new haircut at first, but the moment they heard the explanation, their expressions turned serious. They started whispering amongst themselves, and after consulting, they begged me to change it back to the old style.
「Sigh… Well, I don’t mind, but… What a waste… Are you really sure?」
At Riito-san’s words, everyone winced, but they nodded firmly, as if enduring something.
「Understood… Then I’ll just trim it a bit, so it’s like your original hair.」
Sigh… How disappointing. My dream… I’m probably the only one who heard Riito-san’s soft mutter, since I’m the one getting my hair cut.
…In the end, I never got to see what my new hairstyle actually looked like…
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