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"...Tomorrow, I guess."
Yukinoshita Yukino hesitated briefly, then quickly made her choice and said softly:
"Everyone is already very tired today, let's rest first. Tomorrow, we'll go to the Zoo to scout it out, and then act tomorrow night."
If she could, she naturally wanted to rescue Haruno as soon as possible, not wanting to delay for even a minute or a second.
But the situation did not allow it.
After experiencing the deep-sea challenge and high-altitude walking, both her mind and body were already very tired. Forcing herself to go to the Zoo in her current state would undoubtedly be very unsafe.
At such a time, rationality must overcome emotion; impulsiveness would be useless.
Fujiwara Chika extended a slender finger, her voice clear as she said:
"Then let's rest first. Tomorrow, we'll go scout the location. The Zoo definitely has a lot of surveillance cameras. Before we act, we need to take out all the cameras one by one."
"No need to take them out," Amamiya Natsuki suggested. "Let Shimizu-nee block the cameras; it's simple and convenient."
"How mean..." Mrs. Shimizu's tone was resentful. "You only remember me at times like this. I'm going on strike like my fellow workers in France; employee benefits must be improved."
"Strike?" Amamiya Natsuki turned to look, lowering his voice, "Mrs. Shimizu, you don't want your daughter to be in danger, do you?"
"..."
Discussion concluded.
After deciding to complete the challenge tomorrow night, Amamiya Natsuki still wanted to stay and bathe together, but then he was driven out by the girls.
After bathing and returning to his room, it was already eleven o'clock at night without him realizing it.
Amamiya Natsuki yawned, indeed feeling a bit tired. He charged his phone and checked messages and news.
Fujiwara Moeha: "Senpai, are you free tomorrow? Let's go out and have fun together?"
Amamiya Natsuki: "Thanks for the invite, but I'm out of town and just lay down. I'm not free tomorrow."
He decisively refused when he needed to.
Chika's Junior high school sister... he wouldn't touch her with a single finger.
Mizuhara Chizuru: "Today the doctor examined Grandma again, and the cancerous area has shrunk even further… No matter how much I thank you, it cannot express the gratitude in my heart. Natsuki-kun, when you return from Chiba, please allow me to treat you to a meal."
Chizuru-san now relies on her grandmother for everything. Seeing her grandmother's spirit improve day by day, she expresses her gratitude almost every few days—it's genuine gratitude, a life-saving kindness that would not be an exaggeration to repay with her very being.
Amamiya Natsuki was certain that if he just asked, Chizuru-san would agree to even have his child for her grandmother's sake.
However, such an act would truly be taking advantage of kindness and exploiting someone in a vulnerable position, which Amamiya Natsuki disdained.
After a polite reply, simply saying he would eat with her when he had time, Amamiya Natsuki then opened Miko's message.
Miko: "All the ingredients are used up. When are you coming back?"
Amamiya Natsuki: "…You haven't left the house all day today?"
Miko: "Of course not! I went to the supermarket for groceries at noon, and I even walked the dog in the Park in the evening."
Amamiya Natsuki: "Alright, I'll probably be back in another day or two. Don't make anything for now since you're out of ingredients. You should rest well tomorrow."
Miko sent a resentful emoji: "I can't rest at all. There's a guy standing by my bed, staring at me, I can't sleep at all."
Amamiya Natsuki: "Then enjoy the joy of staying up late again today."
"…"
After chatting with Miko for a while, Amamiya Natsuki felt sleepy. He put down his phone and prepared to sleep.
But just as he fell asleep, his phone suddenly vibrated, the sound of which was exceptionally clear in the dark night.
He picked it up and saw it was a message from Fujiwara Chika.
"Natsuki-kun, come quickly! An Evil Spirit has broken into the room!"
Amamiya Natsuki reluctantly put on his clothes and got up to go next door.
This inn was traditional in style, with tatami mats upon entering the rooms. Kaguya and the others were already in their pajamas, with futons laid out, sleeping in a camp-like manner for the night, so there was no need to worry about not having enough blankets.
"Natsuki, it's him." Kitagawa Marin pointed.
Amamiya Natsuki turned to look. Standing at the bathroom door was an Evil Spirit shrouded in black mist, almost losing its human form, covered in eyes and mouths, with its arms transformed into tentacle-like appendages. It was indeed disgusting.
Seeing Kitagawa Marin point at it, the Evil Spirit immediately reacted, walking over and speaking in a hollow voice:
"You… can see me?"
Amamiya Natsuki said expressionlessly:
"I can."
Upon hearing the answer, the Evil Spirit seemed to have its berserk switch flipped. Its eyes suddenly turned red, black mist surged around it, and it lunged fiercely at Amamiya Natsuki.
"Evil Spirit Banishing—"
Amamiya Natsuki calmly activated his aura, and invisible transparent flames immediately ignited, banishing and purifying the Evil Spirit.
"I'm going back."
Amamiya Natsuki waved his hand and turned to return to his room to rest.
But just as he fell asleep, his phone vibrated again.
Amamiya Natsuki reluctantly picked up his phone. This time it was a message from Natsuki-kun: "Natsuki-kun, another Evil Spirit has appeared in the room…"
"…"
Amamiya Natsuki silently got up, went next door, banished the Evil Spirit, and then returned to his room.
This time he slept a few minutes longer, but was woken up again.
Hayasaka Ai: "Senpai, come quickly, another Evil Spirit has appeared."
Three strikes and you're out! You guys are going too far!
Amamiya Natsuki checked the time. After all this back and forth, it was already past midnight. He simply rolled up his futon, hugged it and his pillow, and left the room.
"Eh, Natsuki-kun, what are you doing?" Fujiwara Chika asked curiously.
"Sleeping together tonight." Amamiya Natsuki spread his futon in the corner, used his aura to banish the Evil Spirit, and couldn't help but complain, "If you guys keep tormenting me like this, my nerves will break down."
"Hmm…"
"It's good that Natsuki-kun is staying. It seems like there are more and more Evil Spirits recently."
"With everyone here, Natsuki-kun can't take advantage of anyone."
"Then stay."
"…"
Regarding Amamiya Natsuki staying, the girls all voted in favor, and even Yukinoshita Yukino didn't object.
With so many people in the room, any slight movement would wake up the others, so there was no need to worry about her chastity being in danger.
Besides… her chastity was already gone.
"Good night, everyone."
Amamiya Natsuki closed his eyes, preparing to sleep.
He was really tired today, so he didn't go to the Theater area. Mrs. Shimizu, on the other hand, took her phone and returned to her room to enjoy herself alone.
"Hmm… Kaguya-chan is already asleep."
"She must be too tired."
"Sleep, sleep."
The room quickly fell silent.
Amamiya Natsuki was finally able to sleep peacefully this time.
The night passed without a word… Not really.
After an unknown amount of sleep, Amamiya Natsuki opened his eyes and found that it was still dark, the room dimly lit.
He turned over to check the time, then got up and went to the bathroom to take care of personal hygiene.
Thump thump thump…
Light footsteps approached the bathroom door.
Amamiya Natsuki initially thought they would stop, but to his surprise, the person directly pushed the door open and walked in. It was a groggy Juju.
"Eh… Eh eh eh?!"
Seeing Amamiya Natsuki standing in front of the toilet, Juju's groggy little face first showed a hint of confusion, then her eyes widened, and she was about to exclaim.
Amamiya Natsuki quickly reached out, covered Juju's mouth, and whispered:
"Wake up. I stayed last night. I didn't sneak into your room."
"…"
Juju blinked, quickly sobered up, and bared her little fangs, biting Amamiya Natsuki's hand in embarrassment.
"Ptooey ptooey ptooey!"
Juju lightly spat, lowering her voice, "You didn't even wash your hands, and you dare to touch me!"
Amamiya Natsuki retorted:
"You knew I didn't wash my hands, and you still bit me?"
"Shine!"
Juju was full of murderous intent, waving her little fists and hitting him: "You went to the bathroom, why didn't you lock the door?"
"Because this inn's bathrooms don't have locks," Amamiya Natsuki said exasperatedly. "The bathroom light was clearly on, why did you come in?"
"B-because…" Juju glared at him in embarrassment, starting to be unreasonable, "It's clearly all your fault, don't ask me, hurry up and put on your clothes and get out!"
"Hai hai."
Amamiya Natsuki put on his clothes, preparing to leave the bathroom.
Just as he came out, he suddenly heard footsteps outside again, which quickly approached the bathroom door and began to push it open.
"S-someone's coming!"
Juju also heard the footsteps and immediately tensed up.
She wasn't the only one who was too groggy to notice the light… The problem was that the situation was even worse.
In the middle of the night, a boy and a girl hiding in the bathroom would definitely be suspected, right?
What if the other person got scared and screamed, waking everyone up…
Juju didn't dare to imagine further.
Social death.
Super terrifying social death.
It would be hard to wash clean even if she jumped into the Yellow River.
"W-what should we do?"
Juju looked up in a panic, instinctively choosing to rely on Amamiya Natsuki when in danger.
"Don't worry."
Amamiya Natsuki raised his right hand and lightly snapped his fingers.
Snap.
Time suddenly froze.
Three seconds was not enough to leave the bathroom, but it was more than enough to hide in the shower.
Juju only felt the scene in front of her suddenly twist. One second she was at the bathroom door, the next she was in the shower—the bathroom was a three-part separation, with glass and a curtain separating the middle, so for now, there was no need to worry about being discovered.
"Phew…"
After understanding the situation, Juju couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
At least she didn't have to worry about social death in front of everyone.
It was just that the shower area was very small, and Amamiya Natsuki had to hold Juju in his arms.
"So hot, don't hold me." Juju distorted her body, protesting softly.
Amamiya Natsuki's voice was low: "…Don't move."
"Huh?"
Juju looked up with her little face, her small eyebrows furrowed.
If I don't move just because you tell me not to, won't I lose face?
I won't obediently listen to you.
One minute later.
Juju's face was crimson, and she sat obediently in Amamiya Natsuki's arms, no longer daring to move.
Only when the footsteps outside sounded and left did Juju sigh in relief, getting up shyly: "Hurry back to sleep."
"Wait a moment." Amamiya Natsuki pulled Juju, whispering, "Help me."
"Help you, my foot!" Juju naturally understood what "help" meant, and couldn't help but bare her little fangs, "Have you forgotten about King Crimson last time?"
Amamiya Natsuki pretended not to hear and continued:
"When I jumped from the tower crane earlier, all I could think about was Juju."
"Ptooey, I won't believe you. At that time, your mind must have only been on Kaguya."
"I like Juju."
"Tsk…"
"I like Juju the most."
"N-Nonsense!" Juju's little face turned even redder. She usually seemed aloof, but in fact, she wasn't good at talking to people, with low attack and low defense. A few words of coaxing would make her dizzy. "You say you like me, then turn around and ask me to do such a terrible thing. Doesn't your conscience hurt?"
Amamiya Natsuki whispered: "What's so terrible about it?"
Juju bit her lip in embarrassment: "It's clearly terrible, super terrible! Last time when you left my house, you weren't even willing to kiss me!"
"In that case…" Amamiya Natsuki's expression became serious, "I need to prove that I have no prejudice."
"Eh, eh, eh, what are you doing?"
Juju instantly panicked.
Amamiya Natsuki said sternly, "Last time Juju helped me, this time it's my turn to help."
"You, you go away, I didn't want your help…Wahhh…"
"…"
A night without words… see the interlude.
(Ah, I'm starting to worry again, will I be reported and sealed? If sealed, please private message me in time to remind me.)
A truly uneventful night.
The next day.
No one knew what happened last night, only the interlude knew.
Everyone got up, washed, had breakfast, and set off together for the Zoo.
Last night was stormy, but after a night, today's weather was exceptionally good.
The sky was azure.
The sun was bright.
The Zoo opened at eight in the morning in the summer. When Amamiya Natsuki and his group arrived, it was already open, and because it was the weekend, the Zoo was bustling with people.
"Shall we buy tickets and go in now?" Marin asked.
"No rush." Amamiya Natsuki whispered, "Let's walk around outside first and pay attention to the location of the cameras."
Fujiwara Chika nodded in agreement, "That's right, we need to scout first before acting."
Shinomiya Kaguya said softly:
"Let's split up. One group goes left and one goes right from the Zoo entrance. Pay attention to the cameras and easily accessible spots… No need to go all the way around, we'll regroup in ten minutes."
Amamiya Natsuki raised his hand in a salute, "Understood."
"…"
The group split into two, centered on the Zoo entrance, each choosing a direction and beginning their reconnaissance.
Ten minutes later.
Everyone met at the Zoo entrance. The locations of cameras on both sides, vulnerable blind spots for surveillance, and so on, were all clearly understood.
"Let's go, buy tickets." Amamiya Natsuki put away his phone and walked towards the ticket counter.
While buying tickets and entering the Zoo, everyone's expressions were normal, but Komi was so self-conscious about scouting inside that she felt extremely guilty.
Yet this shy girl was beautiful and tall, so the security guards at the entrance couldn't help but glance at her twice. Komi became even more flustered, almost burying her face in her chest.
"Hiyah~"
Kitagawa Marin stepped forward two steps, hugged the shy girl's arm, and successfully escorted Komi through the entrance security.
"Steady, don't panic." Kitagawa Marin whispered, "Just like when I don't wear panties, I need to hold my head high and puff out my chest even more, so people don't suspect anything."
"Eh?"
Komi's eyes widened, looking over in shock.
"I left home in too much of a hurry this morning." Kitagawa Marin proudly lifted her chin, gave a thumbs-up, and smiled brightly, "I forgot to wear them."
Komi: "…"
How could she smile so happily about something so embarrassing!
"You don't believe me?" Kitagawa Marin grabbed the edge of her skirt with both hands and slowly lifted it up, "I'll prove it to you right now."
"Ugh—!"
Komi quickly shook her head, pressed down on Kitagawa Marin's hands, and then nervously glanced left and right before sighing in relief.
Thankfully.
There was no one else nearby.
"People always need to challenge themselves." Kitagawa Marin lowered her voice, imparting life wisdom to Komi, "When you go out without panties one day, you'll know the joy of going commando."
The shy girl's pretty face flushed red, and she shook her head rapidly.
Sorry, I've already experienced that kind of commando situation under a skirt in the instance dungeon.
It wasn't joyful.
Not joyful at all.
It just felt chilly and super embarrassing.
"What are you talking about?" Amamiya Natsuki turned his head and called out, "Walk faster."
"Coming."
Kitagawa Marin raised her right hand, completely unconcerned about her skirt, and happily ran over.
Seeing Marin's skirt flutter, Komi's heart instantly leaped to her throat, and she quickly scurried to follow.
It was unclear if Marin was telling the truth about not wearing panties, perhaps it was a joke, but it was also possible she really wasn't… As a friend, she absolutely had to protect Kitagawa Marin!
Komi clenched her tiny fists, then followed closely behind Marin like a little tail, constantly vigilant, ready to provide protection at any moment.
Amamiya Natsuki and the others didn't think so much. Besides Yukinoshita Yukino, who was constantly thinking about her sister, everyone else treated it as a normal outing, after all, it would definitely be impossible to pluck fur in broad daylight with so many eyes watching.
"We've arrived at the Wolf Park!"
Fujiwara Chika pointed.
The girls walked over one after another and began to observe.
"One, two, three, four, five… There are seven wolves in total."
"They look like dogs."
"Their tails are big, but they're not standing up."
"I saw news before that a husky had snuck into a wolf pack at a Zoo somewhere, and that husky even became the leader of the wolf pack."
"…"
Amamiya Natsuki glanced at the information board next to the wolf enclosure, which stated the species was the Asian Grey Wolf. To be honest, these wolves, apart from their tails hanging down instead of curling up, didn't look much different from ordinary dogs. Most people visiting the Zoo would just glance at them and leave, many not even bothering to take photos.
If animals at the Zoo were ranked, the panda would certainly be the most popular, and the grey wolf could probably compete for the least popular animal.
"Seven wolves, huh…"
Yukinoshita Yukino crossed her arms, her delicate brows slightly furrowed.
These wolves were clearly a pack, and they were nocturnal animals. She couldn't ask others for help, and a slight mistake could lead to being surrounded by six wolves.
Amamiya Natsuki's gaze sharpened, and he raised an eyebrow to remind her:
"More than seven… Two are lying in the grass."
During breakfast, everyone had already discussed the action plan. The challenge rules only prohibited the use of firearms and tranquilizers, but didn't specify other items. Plucking fur with bare hands seemed illogical. Amamiya Natsuki even guessed that cold weapons might be allowed.
So Chika suggested using the momotaro rice ball for recruitment. Since kaitai could increase their favorability by eating it, animals could surely eat it too.
There was also Hayasaka Ai's magic gun. Humans have a sage mode, and animals also have a sage mode.
And then there was the magic rope. When thrown, it could automatically bind moving targets within its attack range. Animals should be no exception, but unfortunately, it was prone to friendly fire.
It was still unclear which tools could be used and which could not, but they could try and error. There was only one mechanism for complete challenge failure: exceeding the time limit.
"There's also a little wolf there…" Amamiya Natsuki turned his head to look at Yukinoshita, "Congratulations, you'll be fighting ten tonight."
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