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"Today's meeting is concluded. I hope we can all gather like this again soon."
The moment Kagaya finished speaking, Kaidō quietly sidled toward the door and bolted.
Everyone burst out laughing again. Even the Master and his wife couldn't suppress their smiles.
As Tengen prepared to leave, Kanae called out to him. Shinobu stood right behind her.
"Tengen-san, wait a moment!"
"Kanae? What is it?"
"Tell me everything about Lady Chiko." Kanae's smile was sweet. Her intentions were anything but.
"Uh... that's... I can't! I promised Kaidō I wouldn't—wait, I mean... look, can you keep a secret?"
Behind Kanae, Shinobu slowly drew her Nichirin blade. Purple liquid dripped from its edge.
Tengen was well aware of Shinobu's poison expertise. If he refused, he could easily imagine waking up to find her standing beside his bed with a syringe. The mental image alone gave him chills.
"Don't worry, Tengen-san. My sister and I will keep it completely confidential. I just happened to develop a new poison recently and wanted to examine it. No need to be nervous!" Shinobu's smile was the definition of ominous.
"This is SO not flamboyant..." Left with no choice, Tengen spilled everything about Lady Chiko.
Meanwhile, Kaidō—who was walking down the hallway—suddenly sneezed.
"Achoo! Weird. Who's talking about me? Why does my spine feel cold? Ugh, I hope Tengen keeps his mouth shut. This is too humiliating!"
———————
Tengen's Estate—Hot Springs.
"Blub blub blub..." Kaidō floated in the hot spring with only half his face above water, blowing bubbles.
'Why did I agree to come here? I'm being force-fed dog food by Tengen and his wives! This is self-inflicted torture!'
He glanced toward Tengen, who was surrounded by his three wives, all of them looking blissfully happy. It felt like someone was shoving a mountain of saccharine romance down his throat—couldn't spit it out, couldn't swallow it down.
The hot spring itself was genuinely impressive though. Just... awkward.
"Kaidō-oniichan, are you okay?" Retsuki, wrapped in a bath towel, paddled over to his side.
"Nothing. Just overly full."
"But we didn't eat anything..."
Kaidō silently pointed at Tengen and his wives.
"Oh..." Understanding dawned. Retsuki went quiet, her face flushing slightly.
"How's the hot spring, Kaidō? Pretty great, right?"
"It's excellent. I'm just stuffed to the gills."
"Oh? Hahahaha!" Tengen burst out laughing. Even his three wives couldn't help but giggle.
"Pfft!" Retsuki joined in.
"Oh, so you're laughing at me too, Retsuki? Alright, that's it—time for punishment!" Kaidō dove underwater and started tickling her feet.
"No! Kaidō-oniichan, I'm sorry! Hahahaha! That tickles! Ahahaha!"
Watching the scene unfold, Tengen and his wives exchanged knowing looks. "Ah, youth~"
———————
After finishing their soak, Kaidō was the first to emerge, wearing a bathrobe. Remembering something, he opened the System Lifestyle Shop and purchased six bottles of coconut milk.
He cracked one open and chugged it.
"Glug glug—ahh! Nothing beats coconut milk after a hot spring! Glug glug~"
Moments later, Tengen emerged in his own bathrobe, followed by his three wives.
Hinatsuru carried Retsuki, who was wrapped in a towel.
Seeing Kaidō drinking something white, Tengen's curiosity sparked. "Kaidō, what's that?"
"Coconut milk. Here, try some!" He distributed the remaining bottles.
They popped the caps and drank. Sweet, refreshing flavor flooded their taste buds and slid down their throats.
"Wow! This is delicious! Tengen-sama, taste my milk!" Suma held her bottle toward Tengen's mouth.
PFFT.
Kaidō did a spit-take, nearly falling over. 'What the hell did she just say?? "Taste my milk"?? That sounds SO wrong!'
"Suma, you idiot! There's a child present!" Makio smacked Suma's rear.
"Ow! Tengen-sama, Makio's bullying me again!"
"Alright, alright, Suma. Be more careful with your wording—you're going to give people the wrong idea." Hinatsuru quickly defused the situation.
"Hahaha! Flamboyant! Truly flamboyant! This tastes great!"
Retsuki looked slightly confused by the adult conversation but found it entertaining.
"Kaidō-oniichan, this doesn't taste like what you gave us during that reunion!"
"That's because there are many different kinds!"
"Really? I want more!"
"Okay, okay. But not too much—it's not good for you if you drink too many." Kaidō affectionately booped her nose.
"Mm-hmm!"
———————
Butterfly Mansion.
"Sister, why are you gathering all those clothes?"
Shinobu watched as Kanae rummaged through her wardrobe, pulling out dress after dress—both long gowns and various kimono styles.
Every piece was beautiful. Kanae examined each one carefully before her gaze settled on a red cherry blossom kimono.
She held it up in front of Shinobu.
"My dear little Shinobu, wouldn't you like to see Chiko-chan wearing this?"
The way Kanae emphasized "Chiko-chan" while smiling was absolutely devious.
"Sister, you're not planning to..."
"Mm-hmm~ Little Shinobu is so clever!" Kanae patted her sister's head affectionately.
"Sister, I'm not a child. Stop patting my head..."
"But little Shinobu is so adorable! I can't help myself!"
Back at his estate, Kaidō—who was washing Retsuki's clothes—suddenly sneezed multiple times.
"Achoo! What's going on? I've been sneezing constantly these past two days! Why does my back feel cold?"
"Kaidō-oniichan, are you okay? Did you catch a cold?"
"I'm fine. Someone's probably talking about me behind my back."
Suddenly, Retsuki spotted something in the wash basin and immediately covered Kaidō's eyes.
"Kaidō-oniichan, don't look!"
"What's wrong?"
"Just—close your eyes! Don't peek!"
"Okay, okay. I'm not looking. What's this about?"
She quickly grabbed several items from the basin, hid them behind her back, and dashed into the house.
"What was that about? So random."
Upstairs in her bedroom, Retsuki peeked out the window at Kaidō, who'd resumed washing clothes in the courtyard. Thinking about what just happened made her face burn scarlet.
"Geez! Kaidō-oniichan, you big dummy! If you'd seen these, I'd have died of embarrassment!"
She looked at the items hidden behind her—her pink undergarments.
"Wait, last time when we bathed, I also accidentally... Ahhh, what am I thinking?? This is mortifying!"
———————
"I believe your name is Kuroha, correct? Could you tell Kaidō to visit me? Just say I need his help with something." Kanae addressed Kaidō's Kasugai Crow with a sweet smile.
"CAW! Understood, Flower Hashira-sama!" Kuroha flapped away to deliver the message.
Receiving the summons, Kaidō felt a vague sense of unease. Something was off about this request, but he couldn't pinpoint what.
An ominous feeling crawled up his spine—like something terrible was about to happen, and it involved him personally.
After overthinking for several minutes without reaching any conclusions, he gave up and headed to the Butterfly Mansion.
"Kanae-nee, you wanted to see me?"
"Oh my~ Kaidō-kun, you're here! Perfect timing—I need your help with something!"
"What is it? If I can help, I will!"
"That's what you said—no takebacks. Otherwise..." Kanae leaned close, whispering directly into his ear. "You wouldn't want Retsuki-chan to find out about this, would you? Lady Chiko~"
BOOM.
Lightning struck. Kaidō froze solid, his expression morphing into existential despair. A ghostly apparition of his soul appeared to float from his mouth.
'I'm dead. Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing? I messed up so badly!'
Then Kanae dropped the killing blow.
"Akiko, Yuko, Koyo, Koyuki—those four little girls were so adorable! Hugging them must feel wonderful! Just thinking about it makes me happy!"
"And Sumiko, Zenko, Inoko—they all looked so beautiful! Lady Chiko was so dignified and reliable!"
That final straw crushed Kaidō completely.
'Dear god, what happened to the Kanae-nee I knew?? Please, somebody give me back the gentle, caring, healing presence I remember! ...Wait, the System Lifestyle Shop!'
A spark of hope ignited. He frantically opened the shop, searching for memory-erasing items.
[System Lifestyle Shop: Currently Unavailable]
Kaidō nearly exploded from sheer frustration.
'(#`Д′) SYSTEM, YOU TRAITOR!'
[Ding~ (¬_¬) System is tired. Entering sleep mode.]
'SLEEP?? You bastard, this is deliberate! You—[CENSORED]—[CENSORED]—[CENSORED]!'
"Now then, Chiko-chan, as I was saying—"
Before Kanae could finish, Kaidō clamped a hand over her mouth. "Kanae-nee, please! I'll do whatever you want! Just don't tell anyone else about this!"
"Oh my! Alright, alright. I promise—aside from Shinobu and myself, absolutely no one else will know!"
"Wait, Shinobu-nee knows too?? Hold on—'no one else'? Who's the third person??"
"Tengen-san, of course..." Kanae immediately covered her mouth. 'Oops. Said too much.'
Understanding dawned instantly. 'Tengen. You'd better watch your wives carefully. I'm about to kidnap all three and make them my sister's attendants.'
...
Elsewhere, mid-mission, Tengen suddenly sneezed. He had the strangest feeling something precious was about to be stolen from him. "Achoo! How strange! The flamboyant me doesn't catch colds! That's SO not flamboyant!"
...
"Now then, Kaidō-kun—no wait, Chiko-chan~ Come with me! I have some lovely outfits for you to try!" Kanae grabbed his hand.
'Why do I feel like I'm about to lose something irreplaceable??'
And so, Kaidō was dragged toward the inner courtyard residence, hand firmly in Kanae's grip.
What neither of them realized was that Shinobu was tailing them stealthily.
Ruka Rengoku had come to the Butterfly Mansion intending to discuss the upcoming Cherry Blossom Festival with Kanae (March 15 to April 15). Instead, she spotted Shinobu creeping around suspiciously. Curiosity piqued, she approached.
"Shinobu-san, what are you doing?"
Shinobu immediately grabbed Ruka and pulled her aside. After confirming her sister hadn't noticed, she exhaled in relief. "Ruka-san, come with me—you'll see!"
Ruka's curiosity was now fully ignited. Together, they followed to investigate.
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