At first, when he was led out of the exhibition hall by the group of girls, Chihaya Tetsuya simply thought they were taking him straight home.
However, when he was helped into a taxi that had been booked at some unknown time and it began to drive in a direction completely different from his home, he finally realized that things were not quite so simple.
"...Sakiko, where are we going?"
"To a place where you can get a proper rest, of course."
As Togawa Sakiko spoke, she gently put an arm around his shoulders, as if encouraging him to rest his head on her.
"You don't have to worry about a thing from now on, Tetsuya-kun. Just relax and fall asleep."
"But, the exhibition..."
"The Chief and Head Maid Yamabuki are overseeing the exhibition, and that resourceful manager is there to coordinate everything else. It's absolutely fine for you to leave a little early, Tetsuya-kun!"
An abnormal and unnatural drowsiness shrouded his thoughts in a thin fog. After hearing her reply, he took a full ten seconds to process it before finally squeezing a muffled response from his lips.
"I'm so glad... I became a designer..." he murmured as if in a dream. "Not only did I meet all of you... but I also got to know so many trustworthy adults..."
"That's because you worked hard enough, Tetsuya-kun, which is why everyone was drawn to your side."
Sakiko gently stroked his hair, whispering in his ear, "Not just now, but from this day forward, we will all always be by your side."
"..."
At the same time, Chihaya Anon, sitting on his other side, also took his hand, demonstrating her own feelings through her actions.
"I see..."
Though his consciousness was already fading, he could still feel the sincerity and trust he craved most from their words.
And just like that, amidst Sakiko's gentle caress and the reassuring warmth from his hand, Chihaya Tetsuya lost consciousness.
...
The girls present were all very familiar with his sleep quality.
Even on a normal day, it took considerable effort to wake him from his slumber. Needless to say, after nearly two months of high-intensity work combined with a sleeping aid, the difficulty of waking him had reached an unimaginable level.
"Tetsuya really has no guard up against us at all, does he..."
Nagasaki Soyo, sitting in the front passenger seat and quietly watching the back, frowned with a conflicted expression.
This drowsiness had come on so unnaturally, and he was being forcibly taken to a place he didn't know, yet he showed not a single shred of caution or resistance, merely following them obediently and compliantly.
"Oh no, I'm starting to feel an uncontrollable sense of guilt."
"But think about it from another angle, Soyo. If we can trick him this easily, then there's no guarantee he won't fall for some other girl's trap in the future! Especially a mature, experienced woman who's been around the block!" Chihaya Anon said with a straight face. "Boys like him are destined to be eaten anyway. Since that's the case, it's better if he's eaten by us, the people who care about him most! Right, Ai?"
"..."
Hoshino Ai, who was trying to avoid being recognized, frowned slightly at Anon, as if to tell her not to speak to her so casually in public.
However, in contrast to her caution, Sakiko spoke up.
"Don't worry, Hoshino-san. This driver... is one of our own, in a sense."
"???"
Ai shot a confused glance at the unfamiliar middle-aged driver in the front.
Hearing Sakiko's words, the driver finally let out a sigh.
"If the Madam knew that the first time you've contacted your butler in ages was to help you 'kidnap' your sweetheart, she would certainly be furious."
"In that case, you were free to refuse my request and report me to my mother right now," Sakiko replied with an unyielding tone. "I've already decided not to return to the main family anyway. Even if I'm completely disowned by my mother, I must ensure that my plan today proceeds without a hitch."
"Please don't try to scare me, Young Lady. The very fact that you contacted me proves that you have no real intention of severing ties with the Madam," the Togawa family's... or rather, Sakiko's family's butler said. "And she wouldn't truly oppose your relationship with Chihaya-san. At most, she would, from a mother's perspective, advise you to use more... 'legal' methods to advance your relationship with him."
"Don't worry, this will be the one and only time I do something like this," Sakiko said. "As long as this incident makes him properly aware of his position, I won't need to take such risks anymore."
"...If you insist, Young Lady."
Seeing that her mind was made up, the butler said no more.
Meanwhile, Anon, who had been listening to their conversation, asked with great interest, "Sakiko... don't tell me... you told this butler everything we're planning to do?"
"Not everything, but even if I didn't, anyone with eyes could figure it out, right?" Sakiko shook her head. "Four girls dragging an unconscious man into a car... what happens next... is self-evident."
"W-well, that's true, but..." Anon stole a glance at the dignified-looking man in the front. "Can your family elders really accept a five-person relationship like ours?"
"About that... if it were an ordinary family, it would be absolutely unacceptable," the butler answered before Sakiko could. "However, among the upper-class circles I've been exposed to, such relationships are not exactly rare. On that premise, as long as the other party has the ability to bear the responsibility, then I would naturally have no objection. And this Chihaya-san, based on our multifaceted evaluation, undoubtedly possesses the potential to shoulder all of that responsibility."
Although Tetsuya always saw himself as a "rookie designer" and the "founder of a new brand," the power and connections tied to him were far more profound than he imagined. The Nagasaki Talent Agency, the Sakurakouji family, world-class designer Jean-Pierre Stanley, and in the future, certain factions of the Togawa family with whom he would become connected... all these factors combined were enough to elevate his value to a level he couldn't possibly imagine.
"Furthermore, we have been following the situation at this joint exhibition very closely. After this event and the operations at the [TGC] in a month, the rise of [Starry Sky] is a foregone conclusion. And after becoming Jean's student, Chihaya-san will enter the circle of top-tier fashion... According to Ms. Minami, Young Lady Sakiko has found herself a very promising golden catch—"
"Let me be clear, I did not fall for him for reasons like that! Don't you dare measure our relationship with your set of values!" Sakiko was deeply displeased with this profit-driven calculation. "And why should Tetsuya-kun be the one to bear the responsibility? We're the ones initiating this, so we should be the ones to bear it!"
"What you say... is not entirely wrong."
The butler glanced at the girls in the rearview mirror.
Aside from the stepsister who had a close familial bond with him, the other three were, each in their own right, heavyweights.
A nationally famous idol, the daughter of a renowned business consulting firm, and Togawa Sakiko, a young lady from a prestigious family...
Considering the planner and the executors... perhaps, just as she had said, the ones who should be bearing the responsibility were indeed these audacious young women.
"Alright, we are approaching your destination, Young Lady Sakiko."
Looking at the ornate and romantic hotel in the distance, the butler couldn't help but cast a pitying gaze at the young man who was now fast asleep.
"I wish you all the best in what is to come."
...
The hotel Sakiko had booked was a love hotel she had researched beforehand, one that was reliable in both its privacy and its "amenities." Although the sight of four girls carrying an adult man into an elevator together was a bit strange, thankfully neither the front desk staff nor the bellhops meddled.
It was only after they entered the pre-booked room and laid Tetsuya on the bed that they could finally relax.
"Hah... that was absolutely terrifying!" Anon couldn't help but pat her chest. "That lady at the front desk definitely did a double-take when she saw big brother's unconscious state. If it wasn't for me vouching for him as his sister, she might have actually called the police..."
"Alright, we've successfully brought him here. Let's not dwell on that anymore," Soyo said as she adjusted Tetsuya's posture to the flat-on-his-back position he was usually accustomed to. Next, under everyone's watchful eyes, she very naturally reached for the buttons of his formal suit. And because Soyo often helped him with his tie and buttons, her movements were so practiced that no one could react in time.
"Hey, wait, there's no need to be in such a hurry!?"
Chihaya Anon quickly grabbed Soyo, who had unfastened all the jacket buttons in an instant and was about to move on to his shirt.
"Didn't we agree before we came? We're supposed to let him sleep for a while first before we..."
"...What are you thinking? I'm just trying to take off his outer clothes so he can sleep more comfortably," Soyo gave her an annoyed look. "Or would you rather he sleep in his formal suit all night?"
"Eh? Ah, oh... so that's what it was..."
Anon, feeling a bit embarrassed for jumping to conclusions, gave a sheepish laugh and scratched her head.
"You have a point, sleeping in a suit isn't really proper... Hey, Ai, what are you doing now?!"
"Helping Tetsu with his belt, of course," Hoshino Ai said with a straight face, her hands on Tetsuya's waist. "Sleeping with a belt and suit trousers on is also very uncomfortable, isn't it? Is there a problem?"
"W-well, no, I guess there's no problem with that..."
But the problem was, considering what they were planning to do tonight, the act of unbuckling his belt carried an overwhelmingly dangerous implication. If Ai wanted to, the moment those trousers were off, she could immediately make her move and seize the initiative.
However, Ai clearly had no intention of doing so. After gently removing his belt and trousers, she coordinated with Soyo to pull the covers over Tetsuya, who was now stripped of his outerwear.
"You're too restless, Anon. To ensure everything goes perfectly tonight, I advise you to calm down," Togawa Sakiko said. "If Tetsuya-kun senses your anxiety or restlessness, he'll definitely use it to his advantage and stop you with a mountain of irrefutable logic. You've seen it before, haven't you? That man never lies, but he is very good at shutting us down with all sorts of reasonable arguments..."
At this, a flash of determination crossed her eyes.
"So tonight, no matter how much he resists, no matter how many logical arguments he makes, we absolutely cannot back down. Even if he gets angry or lectures us afterward, that can wait until after we've finished our business!"
"...I don't think Tetsu would be that unromantic," Hoshino Ai said, shaking her head and offering a completely different perspective. "His resistance will only manifest before anything has actually started, as a way to protect us and for the sake of our happiness. Once we actually take action, he will accept reality in an instant and immediately switch his mindset to 'how to please us.'"
"Ah, that's true..."
Nagasaki Soyo, who had been gently accepted by him in this way before, nodded in deep agreement.
"Tetsuya's spirit of devotion is very strong. When it really comes down to it, no matter how our relationship develops afterward, he will definitely prioritize our feelings for tonight at least..."
"So you're saying, the one being forced is going to be the one taking care of us?"
Anon's expression became even more conflicted.
"Oh no, now I'm starting to feel an uncontrollable sense of guilt too..."
"In that case, to avoid being the ones who end up being taken care of, we must also make the necessary preparations while Tetsuya-kun is resting."
And so, under everyone's gaze, Sakiko opened her bag with a serious expression, took out her phone, and on the screen, displayed a series of questionable scenes that could not be described in words.
"To ensure that Tetsuya-kun can... also have a good and comfortable time, before we officially begin... let's... review our homework a little!"