Out of caution, she only pressed the networking function to check the members of the Service Club, to see just how far Hachiman had developed it.
From the peculiar perception transmitted by the pink exclusive wristband, she could locate where each member was.
The members were scattered in different places. Some were clustered together, some were alone, some very far away, some very close.
And the closest, without a doubt, was her mother, Yukinoshita Kiyuki.
This was normal. If her mother didn't wear the wristband herself, she wouldn't be able to persuade her friends' daughters to join the Service Club.
As long as she didn't press that problematic special remote mode button, it would be fine.
But her sister… Yukinoshita Yukino turned her head and stared at her sister Yukinoshita Haruno's equally silent room, only to suddenly realize that Haruno, who should have been asleep, wasn't inside.
At this hour, if her sister wasn't sleeping in her room, what was she doing?
'Could it be…'
After giving a deep look at both her mother Yukinoshita Kiyuki's and her sister Yukinoshita Haruno's rooms, Yukinoshita Yukino returned to her own room with a tense expression.
She had just gone out for a quick look and done nothing else. She picked up a glass of water and drank it all in one go, then took a deep breath and slowly closed her eyes, "touching" a certain "key" in her mind.
When Hachiman had added her name to the Service Club's member list, she had already known she could use this "key" to enter the Service Club.
She had only gone there once or twice after school, and never again afterward.
There were too many people in the Service Club. Its members weren't just students from Sobu High, there were even people from outside the school. Compared to that, the Service Department was much quieter.
Although members of the Service Department, like Hayase Saki and Sakurase Shino, often went to the Service Club to eat.
At present, whether during lunch break or club time in the afternoon, the only ones regularly staying in the Service Department waiting for requests were her, and… well, also Yuigahama Yui.
Right now, there were only her and Yuigahama Yui in the Service Department, but compared to when she was together with Hayase Saki, Sakurase Shino, and Narahashi Miki, it actually felt much livelier.
Mm… although most of the time it was Yuigahama Yui talking alone. She also seemed a bit afraid of her, and the way she looked at her was a little strange.
["Even though the days we pass by each other keep increasing~]"
["Our feelings are always right by each other's side~"]
["Even if we can't meet, we say it's fine~"]
As Yukinoshita Yukino let her thoughts wander, thinking about Yuigahama Yui, who seemed unaware of the Service Club, to ease her nervousness, she transmitted herself into the Service Club.
Although she didn't go there often, she had been there before and had already set a teleportation point, so she didn't end up drenched like many first-timers entering the Service Club.
However, when she stepped out of the room that belonged to her in the Service Club, her gaze was immediately drawn to the stage in the center of the main hall.
At the center of the stage, a beautiful brown-haired girl with a white headband and a vivid red performance outfit held a microphone, singing the lyrical song "WHITE ALBUM" under the spotlight with deep emotion.
Just like the pop song "Sound of Destiny" that Nijika Ijichi and the others had performed during their first show, both songs were works from the same agency but by different singers.
The singers seemed to be Morikawa Yuki and Ogata Rina. She didn't know much about them, she just occasionally listened when she had free time because the songs were good.
But that wasn't the point. The point was, why would a private club specifically invite idol singers to hold a concert?
And where was her sister? Not just her sister, were none of the others in the club?
Although, with the influence of so many members in the Service Club, inviting people from the entertainment industry to sing wasn't difficult at all, but who exactly was this concert for?
Yukinoshita Yukino looked at the idol singer Morikawa Yuki singing earnestly on stage, then at the other idol singers still lining up backstage waiting to perform. She scanned the surroundings, staring at the pitch-dark area below the stage where the many sofas sat completely empty, not a single figure in sight, and remained silent for a long time.
"Miss Yukinoshita, good evening."
The maid Shion suddenly appeared beside Yukinoshita Yukino and gave her a slight bow.
Looking at the vice president Yukinoshita Yukino, who was participating in the Service Club's late-night activities for the first time and had fallen into confusion, Shion's gaze paused briefly on the pink wristband on Yukino's wrist, and a golden bell collar appeared in her hand.
"Would you like to participate in tonight's game of hide-and-seek?"
———
["Ding~"]
["Character Task—Yukinoshita Family Affairs."]
["As a young lady of a prestigious family, the Yukinoshita household is wealthy and does not need to worry about survival, yet she has a strong mother and a perfect older sister."]
["Although Yukinoshita Yukino's relationship with her mother and sister is not bad, under the Yukinoshita family's special internal education policy, her childhood was still far from ideal."]
["In the eyes of outsiders, she is a righteous, upright, and stubborn ice beauty, but in reality she also has a fragile and vulnerable side, powerless when facing family matters."]
["Now, Yukinoshita Yukino has realized the opportunities and challenges facing the Yukinoshita family. She no longer wishes to continue accepting the protection of her mother and sister, and wants to help them in her own way."]
["Please help Yukinoshita Kiyuki, Yukinoshita Haruno, and Yukinoshita Yukino, the three mother and daughters, face each other honestly."]
At the entrance of the family restaurant, Hachiman, holding Tohsaka Sakura and Tohsaka Touka, slowly moved toward the family restaurant, planning to have a full meal there before going back to the large bath to play with the bubble bath. Hearing the system's sudden task notification, he couldn't help but pause in surprise.
He hadn't even completed the Tohsaka family's task yet, so why had the Yukinoshita family's task already appeared?
Come to think of it, Yukinoshita Yukino still had a task called "I Am the Real Head of the Service Department," which required her to acknowledge his position as president to complete.
But he had no interest in making others acknowledge him, nor did he need Yukinoshita Yukino's recognition.
Unexpectedly, by leaving Yukinoshita Yukino alone in the Service Department without paying attention to her, it had now triggered another Yukinoshita family task.
One club, one family. One person, two character tasks. As expected of a Yukinoshita.
But at this hour, why would Yukinoshita Yukino's task suddenly be triggered?
And it didn't just involve Yukinoshita Yukino, but also her mother Yukinoshita Kiyuki and her sister Yukinoshita Haruno…
Hachiman's thoughts shifted as he checked the relationship list.
[Yukinoshita Kiyuki, Service Club member, current location: Yukinoshita residence]
[Yukinoshita Haruno, Service Club vice president, current location: Service Club]
[Yukinoshita Yukino, Service Department vice president, current location: Service Club]
There was no issue with the mother and sister. Haruno, as vice president of the Service Club, couldn't just go to sleep even if she didn't join the game. Otherwise, what kind of vice president would she be?
But Yukinoshita Yukino was actually at the Service Club?
So she couldn't sleep in the middle of the night, teleported there, and found that everyone had been leaving her out?
Mm… then helping the three Yukinoshita women face each other honestly meant letting Yukinoshita Yukino see Yukinoshita Haruno's most real side in the Service Club?
It couldn't be something as simple as letting the three of them soak together in the large bath and calling that "facing each other honestly," right? It wouldn't be that simple.
Still, he hadn't dealt with Yukinoshita Haruno yet. Haruno had pushed her good friend Tohsaka Touka into his arms, but she herself had hesitated and hadn't accompanied her friend in sharing the burden.
"Father, what's wrong? Do you want to keep marking Sakura and completely eliminate me from this game?"
Sensing Hachiman's brief distraction, Tohsaka Sakura slowly loosened her slender arms from around his neck, tilted her head against his shoulder, and blinked. Looking at him, so close she could kiss him with just a slight movement, she lightly licked her moist pink lips, greedily breathing in his scent.
"Sakura… since Father doesn't want to play anymore, then get down. You still have class tomorrow, we should go back to sleep."
Tohsaka Touka, who was also being kissed tightly like Sakura, turned her head to look at Hachiman, who was wearing a black blindfold. Seeing her younger sister still clinging to him, she couldn't help but softly advise.
Although she and Sakura calling Hachiman "Father" could be considered role-playing, doing it together with her younger sister still felt unbearably embarrassing.
After all, she had long passed the age of playing house. Being older than Hachiman and still calling him "Father".
Even though she and Sakura were using the title of "Father" for this kind of play, she should feel extremely ashamed toward their mother.
Yet, a strange feeling was rising within her.
This feeling seemed like something she had only experienced in childhood. Why would she feel this way toward Hachiman.
Could it be that, like Sakura, she had really started to see him as "Father"?
"No! I'm sleeping with Father tonight!"
Tohsaka Sakura looked down at Tohsaka Touka, whose collar was jingling as it trembled, and immediately rejected her foolish sister's suggestion.
Last time at Hikigaya's house, she and Rin had only slept in Komachi's room. Since Father hadn't gone for a night visit to Komachi, she didn't need to sleep with her.
After all, she didn't have any real bond with Komachi. Who would want to sleep together with them?
"Father, Rin is already tied up on your bed. After this game ends, let's go punish her together. She's been saying a lot of bad things about you behind your back, saying you're not worthy of being our father."
As she spoke, Sakura lifted her flawless little face as if asking for praise, looking at Hachiman with anticipation, while also stepping on Tohsaka Rin, who had been tightly bound on the bed.
"Um… Father, Haruno is the vice president. She hasn't undergone magical girl talent development training yet. How about we go find Haruno first after the game?"
Hearing Sakura disregard sisterly affection and even drag Rin into this, Touka felt her heart tighten. Not daring to dwell on the increasingly strong strange feeling inside her, she quickly lowered her voice and recommended her good friend Yukinoshita Haruno to Hachiman.
Although it would be embarrassing if Haruno found out she was role-playing with Hachiman, for her younger sister's sake, she felt it was worth it.
She wanted to protect the Tohsaka family. At the beginning, she had planned to sacrifice herself, no matter what. Now that Sakura was also involved, sacrificing two to protect two was something she could barely accept.
But if only their mother was protected while both her younger sisters and herself were sacrificed.
Of course, their relationship with Hachiman wasn't like that of the Takamine family's barely-met fiancé. Her sisters seemed to like Hachiman a lot. Sakura was even the one who approached him on her own.
Rather than Sakura making a sacrifice, it felt more like Hachiman was helping fulfill her wishes.
But thinking that if this continued, all three Tohsaka sisters would end up kneeling before Hachiman, her feelings became complicated.
What exactly had she protected… This was completely different from what she had imagined.
"Touka, are you trying to monopolize Father with Haruno? I was the first one to recognize Father!"
Seeing Touka repeatedly obstruct her, Sakura's tone turned unpleasant.
She had already grown up. She was no longer the little sister who could only watch as Touka monopolized Father's embrace.
Even if it was Touka, if she dared to interfere with her closeness to Father, she wouldn't hold back.
"Sakura, I'm not trying to monopolize Father. I just don't want you to force Rin. Rather than forcing Rin, it's better to let Father favor a willing Haruno."
Touka immediately shook her head in denial. She didn't want Sakura to keep dragging Rin into this, but she wasn't sacrificing Haruno to protect Rin either.
She had already thought about letting Haruno serve Hachiman together with her.
If they both had to dedicate themselves for their families, then doing it together for Hachiman would be better.
Besides, as vice president of the Service Club, Haruno was surrounded by people who all had close relationships with Hachiman, yet she herself wasn't even a magical girl. She urgently needed Hachiman's favor.
That's right, Hachiman never forced anything. Playing this absurd game with everyone was just for fun. From morning to night, even all through the night, he helped them without ever asking for anything in return.
She herself had nothing to repay him with, and even had a bit of selfishness when she chose to dedicate herself, so she could understand everyone's feelings toward him.
Although things had developed far beyond her expectations, even though Hachiman had resolved her family's problems, the situation had instead become a bit worse. He hadn't even interacted much with Sakura, yet Sakura had become extremely proactive toward him.
Thankfully, she still had her good friend Haruno. Otherwise, she wouldn't even know who to call to replace Rin right now.
However, although Touka's idea was good, her younger sister had an even better one.
"Why choose between Rin and Haruno? Why not take them all?"
As she spoke, Sakura pecked Hachiman's lips twice, then leaned close to his ear, sticking out her little tongue and licking lightly as she whispered enticingly.
"The Yukinoshita family doesn't just have Haruno. There's also Yukino."
"Even if Yukino doesn't have as good a figure as Touka, Father will definitely like her, right?"
"When the time comes, the five of us, along with Haruno and Yukino, can serve Father together~"
Although Sakura didn't take part in any small groups and didn't fully understand the complex factions within the Service Club, just seeing so many girls there told her there had to be many groups.
She might be withdrawn and not like talking, but she wasn't stupid. Even in her class there were many small cliques among the girls, let alone in the Service Club.
The Tohsaka family seemed decent on the surface. The three sisters had no conflicts and could stand together, but in reality their strength was still too weak. The family had no power or connections, and individually they had little strength.
Her older sister was in college, and she and Rin were in the same class as Komachi. Among the three sisters, not one of them was with Father at Sobu High.
They had to link up with the Yukinoshita sisters.
As the youngest, she could let the older sisters bear the pressure, and that way she alone could enjoy Father's doting.
"You two… this is still game time. Instead of talking about serving me, you'd better think about who you'll catch later to replace you."
Hachiman had still been thinking about the Yukinoshita family task just now. Seeing the Tohsaka sisters suddenly arguing, he felt a bit helpless.
Although he had already dealt with Sakura, the Tohsaka family task still hadn't shown any progress. He guessed that he probably needed to deal with Sakura and complete the "three Tohsaka sisters" condition before truly finishing it.
But Sakura's behavior was honestly a bit frightening. She was actually dragging her own sisters into this without hesitation.
[🎉 Shoutout to Vey, Felix and Erik for joining p@treon. Thank you very much.🤗]
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