Chapter 175: The So-Called Affection +3!
"Hahahahahahaha!"
Compared with the scorching world outside, the air-conditioned bedroom was wonderfully cool and comfortable. The atmosphere inside, however, was anything but peaceful.
Mikasa sat firmly on Annie's back, using her strength and weight to keep the struggling girl pinned down.
Annie was already at a disadvantage one-on-one given her petite one-and-a-half-meter frame, and now she had to deal with both Luke and the extremely obedient Mikasa working together.
Luke spread Annie's small, delicate feet apart and clamped them at his waist, one hand easily pinning her two squirming feet in place.
"Well? Are you surrendering or not?"
His fingernails had grown out just enough and hadn't been trimmed yet, so he used them to scratch and scrape at the soft flesh on Annie's soles like tickling.
Her desperately flailing hands and straining legs could not cause any disturbance.
The thought of punishing her from the Cat and Dog Exhibition earlier today was still fresh in his mind — so now came the tickle torture!
"Mmmph! No!"
Annie buried her face in the pillow and struggled desperately.
"If you surrender, I'll generously forget everything. You know me. I've always been the kind of man who welcomes criticism with joy."
Mikasa glanced at his back. Even she didn't quite believe that excuse. Heh.
"Then I suppose there's no choice. Continue."
Following tradition, Luke brought out some colored markers, adjusted Annie's position and re-secured her body, then he and Mikasa began drawing and writing on the soles of her feet to play tic-tac-toe!
Tic-tac-toe was simple: nine squares, two players alternating between X and O, with the first person to complete a horizontal, vertical, or diagonal line winning.
There were so few possible variations that it was mostly something to play when there was absolutely nothing better to do.
Annie seemed exhausted now. The pen tip moving across her ticklish feet still made her twitch occasionally, but aside from the odd sudden jerk or desperate twist, she had more or less given up resisting.
"Tic-tac-toe has too few possibilities. It gets boring fast."
"Mm. Annie's feet are too small to draw a board for anything more complicated." Looking at yet another tied game on the sole, Mikasa said in agreement.
"I don't think anyone has feet large enough for a proper Gomoku board." Luke wiped the markings away with a wet tissue.
"We could use a finer pen. It would probably tickle more too."
"Could you two stop discussing strange things while using someone else's feet as your game board?"
Annie complained weakly.
"Then stop being so stubborn and wave the white flag."
"That's because you got another girl into bed without saying a word first."
Luke paused. So that was what Annie actually cared about — she was upset about Yumiko. He could tell what she meant.
Someone as expressionless as her rarely voiced such things on her own, so if she hadn't said it herself, Luke probably wouldn't have noticed.
So...
He turned toward her.
Annie had her cheek pressed against the bed, the exposed half of her face showing rapid breathing and a deep red flush, but her eyes were full of resentful longing.
In a completely different way, Luke had actually achieved his earlier goal of making those dead-fish eyes overflow with grievance.
'So she really is jealous.'
What was he supposed to do about that?
"Are you jealous?"
Having her feet tickled until her head went fuzzy had loosened her usual guard, leading to a rare moment of genuine honesty.
"…I'm still a normal girl. Of course I get jealous when I see the person I love hugging another girl." She let out a long breath and pouted in obvious dissatisfaction.
It was rare to see her openly jealous. And unexpectedly cute.
Luke sighed.
"Then that part is my fault. How should I make it up to you?"
"I don't know."
"How about the beach?"
"The beach?"
"We could spend the day by the ocean, walk along the shore at sunset, relax at an open-air hot spring under the stars, then wake up the next morning and say good morning to each other. How does that sound?"
After suffering through so many brutally hot summer days, the heat-intolerant Luke had unconsciously developed the notion of going to the beach.
Annie was wearing his clothes again too. No wonder whenever he told her to buy clothes for him, she somehow came home with things that were never quite his style.
Luke straightened the oversized T-shirt hanging loosely from Annie's small frame.
Still exhausted from the tickle torture on her soles, Annie's normally icy expression had completely melted. Perhaps the ice in her head had melted too, because she was now being a bit airheaded.
"If Master wishes it… as long as that's what you want, I'm fine with anything…"
Annie's voice was mixed with her breathing.
Her tone, rapid breathing, flushed cheeks, and moist eyes made her appear charming and alluring.
Luke blinked. 'That easy?' Maybe he had overdone the tickling.
"Don't overwhelm her with something that sweet all at once," Mikasa said helplessly.
"What do you mean?"
"It's like putting ice cream on a cream bun and then pouring maple syrup over everything. Too sweet."
'Her tolerance for sweetness is way too low.'
"I see." Luke finally released Annie's feet, then looked toward Mikasa. "What about you?"
Mikasa understood what he meant and glanced at him. "I'm fine. I expected something like this eventually."
'What exactly does "expected it" mean?'
"If compensation is being offered, though, I wouldn't refuse."
Mikasa leaned closer, tucked her long hair behind one ear, and tilted her head to leave space for him to kiss her neck.
"Then what compensation do you want?"
He hooked his hand behind Mikasa's head.
Her body twisted restlessly when warm breath and skin touched.
Her face gently lowered, tinged with a hint of embarrassment.
Mikasa wetted her lips gently, then slowly spoke. "As for compensation… didn't you say we should find our own lives? How about having a baby? I think I'd quite like being a housewife."
"What?!"
Mikasa normally spoke so little that when she finally found a subject she cared about, she had a habit of dropping statements powerful enough to stop someone's heart.
Luke nearly jumped off the bed.
Her shy expression did not match the seriousness of what she had just said at all.
…This kind of contrast wasn't exactly the pleasant kind.
"That's way too early!"
"Then forget it."
Mikasa did not push the matter. She simply pressed against the bedsheet and slowly shifted her body closer. "How about an afternoon nap?"
"Mm~"
The T-shirt she wore had a cat printed on it and, unsurprisingly, seemed to belong to Luke too. The space created by her nice figure occasionally caught drafts of air — was it because wearing clothes one size too large was cooler in hot weather?
Before his eyes was a girl with her eyes closed, red lips carrying a vibrant rosy sheen, just waiting for the boy to muster that bit of courage.
He happened to not lack that bit of courage.
Whether wearing clothes one size larger was cooler or not, he didn't know, but they were his own clothes after all, and they were indeed convenient — yes, convenient on anyone…
Immediately after, he reached out to explore at the same time…
His hand slipped from the empty space below into the gap between her clothes and skin, then moved upward. This clothing was very convenient indeed…
The rustling sounds of his searching, and the body-softening breaths that occasionally escaped from Mikasa's mouth…
As their lips and teeth parted, a glistening silver thread hung between them.
Eager to take things further…
"Hey. Can you two not do this kind of thing on top of someone else's body?"
"…"
"…"
They had gotten so absorbed that they had completely forgotten there was still a small fry underneath them.
Even Mikasa, normally famous for her composure and dark demeanor, immediately flushed and moved away in panic.
"Haaah. Seriously…"
Annie slowly pushed herself upright, her familiar dead-fish eyes finally returning as she sighed.
"You really know how to ruin the mood. How are you going to compensate me?"
Luke grabbed Annie's tiny body and pulled her closer.
"How about stockings?" Annie lifted her face to ask him, while simultaneously slipping her hand under the pillow and casually pulling out a pair of white stockings that appeared as if from thin air.
Hmm? White tights? But… uh, when did she hide those there?
His eyes darting around, he curiously searched around his pillow, bedsheets, and bedside area.
Whoa, he actually found quite a lot of stuff.
"Could you put the things you buy in your own room?"
Luke looked at the dazzling array of supplies spread across the bed, utterly speechless.
"Why? Don't you like them?"
Annie asked, while slowly pulling on the tights one leg at a time, rubbing her knees together and pointing her toes toward him…
"It's not like they're anything particularly bothersome, so there's nothing to like or dislike. But can't you just put them away openly? Why must you stuff them in these dark corners?" he said with a hint of helplessness.
They were perfectly normal items, so why be so cautious about storing them?
"Fair point."
Annie said, gradually moving her body closer…
Honestly, the combination of a T-shirt plus tights was somewhat incongruous.
But when the T-shirt draped over his palm, the feel was actually quite nice…
Annie's small body nestled against him, and certain parts of that tiny frame were not so tiny at all — rather well-endowed, in fact.
"Wait, Annie. I believe I was here first. At least wait until I'm finished before it's your turn."
Mikasa pressed her hand on Annie's shoulder, staring at her with an icy expression.
Exchanging cold stares with Mikasa, Annie, knowing she couldn't beat her, could only shift her body aside.
"Fine. Wait until you're done."
So… these two, acting like the world was upside down — what did they take him for?
Luke pouted.
"Then let's start with this."
Mikasa gradually opened her mouth. Her right thumb and index finger gently formed a circle, the other three fingers curving casually… her hand slowly approaching her mouth…
"Huh?!" Annie's eyes widened. "That's way too underhanded! Doing that, when are you ever going to finish?"
"Whether it's underhanded isn't for you to decide, Annie… Besides, you were the one who started provoking today. A mere maid should naturally expect some punishment after provoking her master."
Mikasa paid her no mind, keeping the gesture by her mouth and continuing to open it wider.
'Well said, Mikasa, affection +3 toward you!' Luke nodded emotionally.
Mm… That gesture didn't mean what it looked like. Rather, it meant — affection +3.
Her waist bent gently into a slight curve.
"Mm!"
Mm, his affection +3 toward Mikasa.
…
(Don't forget to vote, review, and leave a comment below! :D The more you vote, the more chapters I upload.)
...
Read more chapters(25+):
patréon.com/U22
(Note: Replace "é" with "e" on your web browser.)