Who am I, where am I, and what the hell am I doing?
Everything—everything—had been her own misunderstanding. Her own wishful thinking.
The two moms had come here to get Tatsuki's power. The two pairs of stockings had been used by Yukino and Haruno. Tatsuki had called Yumiko over to see if he could grant her power too.
And what Yumiko did? Pure heat-of-the-moment, brain-melting, hopelessly horny stupidity.
Her mind turned to mush and all she could do was go blank—except Tatsuki didn't give her any room to run.
"Yumiko… what do you think we should do now?"
He meant right now.
He was already fully hard, pressed hot against her—there was no pretending she didn't understand what that meant.
Clenching her teeth, tears shining at the corners of her eyes, Yumiko stared straight into his golden gaze and asked the one question she needed answered more than anything.
"Tatsuki-kun… do you actually like me? I want the real answer." She swallowed, voice trembling but stubborn. "Either way, I'll go along with what you want—just don't bullshit me. Answer honestly."
That was her last shred of pride.
Tatsuki didn't dodge it. He didn't sugarcoat it, either.
"Yumiko, I like you—but it might not be the kind of 'like' you're imagining." His tone stayed steady, almost gentle. "I like you because you're gorgeous. Because you're a beautiful woman and I want to be your man."
"…"
Yumiko kept looking into his eyes, searching. And in that clear, unflinching stare, she saw it—no games, no lies.
Tatsuki continued, matter-of-fact and shameless in the way only he could pull off. "Inviting you into the research club was me taking advantage of proximity, too. Closer is easier. Honestly… I probably had my eye on you from the start."
"—Pfft!"
She broke into laughter through tears, wiping the corner of her eye with the back of her hand. "You… you asshole. You horny bastard, you scumbag—why couldn't you just lie to me for once?!"
A faint smile curved on his lips. "I don't like lying to people I've chosen. And you're one of them, Yumiko."
Her breathing steadied. Her voice softened. "Can I call you Tatsu-kun?"
"Of course."
The moment he said it, Yumiko moved—hands on him, pushing him back onto the bed. This time, Tatsuki let her have it her way.
…
Before long, the next day's Roundtable Decision began.
Everyone gathered around the round table again.
No one noticed anything strange.
The walls and doors here were made of some high-tech material. If you didn't lock the door, the soundproofing was only so-so. But once you did lock it, it was practically perfect—like some kind of powered system that blanketed the whole room the moment the lock engaged.
Yumiko had locked the door yesterday.
No one heard a thing.
Only one person picked up on the shift.
Megumi—sharp-eyed as always—quietly sensed the change in the room's atmosphere. And that change centered on the two moms… and on Yumiko.
Mrs. Yukinoshita looked composed, but Megumi caught the faintest, fleeting glances she kept sending Tatsuki.
Mrs. Yuigahama was even more obvious—every so often she'd casually turn her head and steal a look at him, like she thought no one would notice, but the biggest change was Yumiko.
She kept looking at Tatsuki, and there was that unmistakable softness in her eyes—that lingering, post-sex warmth Megumi knew all too well. Even her vibe felt different… calmer, fuller, like she'd stepped into herself.
Megumi's lips lifted slightly.
She'd already guessed it: Yumiko and Tatsuki had crossed the final line.
In Megumi's eyes, it had always been a matter of time.
As for the two moms… she couldn't read them yet.
She'd need to keep watching.
…
[Decision Start!]
[…]
[Decision Complete!]
[Defenders: Tatsuki, Marin Kitagawa]
[Combat Team: …]
[All combat personnel have 15 minutes to gear up. Defenders cannot leave the survival base.]
Chika slapped the table. "There it is! Tatsuki-kun got benched!"
Everyone had expected it, but they didn't think it would happen this fast.
Tatsuki stayed calm, scanning the group. "You all have angel or apostle bodies now, plus the Temporal Clan's power. Surviving won't be an issue."
"I'll also give each of you two Senzu Beans as insurance."
"Still," he added, voice sharpening just a bit, "I want you to be brave. Kill as many bugs as you can, rack up points, and keep getting stronger."
"Yeah!"
The women all nodded, determination settling in.
And anyone paying attention caught the implication in his words.
Angel or apostle bodies.
Which meant the two moms—and Yumiko—had been converted too.
Haruno narrowed her eyes, a glint flashing through. Yesterday's development was… more interesting than she'd expected.
Marin's gaze drifted to Yumiko, and something sour pooled in her chest. She could guess plenty, too.
"Yukino—take this." Tatsuki handed Yukino a blade. His Zanpakuto.
"Kanae's inside it," he said. "Try to bring it with you. If you can, your safety net gets a lot thicker."
"Okay." Yukino gripped the Zanpakuto tightly. She'd protect it.
With preparations complete and everyone geared up, the combat team activated the transfer.
Not long after, Tatsuki tapped into Kanae's shared senses and saw what was happening over there.
A new planet. A new swarm.
Most of them were the raptor-like zerg types—Yukino and the others were handling it easily enough. And with Kanae as a backup, Tatsuki finally relaxed.
Now the base only had him and Marin left.
Marin's eyes darted around, bright with mischief. She clapped her hands and popped up from her chair. "Tatsuki-kun—want to cosplay with me?"
"Now?"
"Yeah!" She leaned in, sparkling with excitement. "You can conjure clothes, right? Like, any kind."
Tatsuki didn't really care either way—he had nothing else to do. "Sure. What do you want?"
"Hehe—obviously Shizuku's outfits, in a bunch of different scenes!"
Since Tatsuki had played the game too, recreating the costumes was easy.
As he searched his memory, outfit after outfit appeared on the round table—long dresses, skirts, short skirts, and even the bolder sets. Every detail was perfectly replicated.
"Waaah!!!"
Marin's eyes practically lit up. She couldn't contain herself.
It was all Shizuku's wardrobe—down to the little bandage accessories.
"Tatsuki-kun, wait for me!"
She grabbed the first outfit and sprinted back to her room.
A full day was more than enough time for a one-woman runway show—one costume at a time.
Tatsuki kept an eye on Kanae's side of things… and, with leisurely amusement, listened to and watched his personal dress-up doll show, offering the occasional critique.