The time was 7:15 AM. The location was a top-tier suite in a luxury hotel in Nagazora City.
Lin pulled open the curtains with a shink, squinting into the warm morning sun. Overlooking the entire city from this vantage point, standing exposed to the sunlight without a stitch of clothing, he felt cleansed inside and out.
A seven-day vacation feels great.
A vacation without Mobius, Prometheus, or Sakura feels great.
He shielded his eyes from the brilliant sun and looked at the floor-to-ceiling window. On the glass were faint palm prints, body outlines, and two circular marks. On the carpet below, there were still traces of dampness.
"Phew... hehe... phew... Big Brother Lin... I really can't drink anymore..."
Lin turned his head and saw the petite, brown-haired girl lying sprawled on the messy bed, snoring cutely.
...Being able to take a beautiful girl in a top-tier suite and "do" her against the window in front of the whole city all night—the feeling of "doing" until satisfied was truly fantastic!
At this thought, he was moved to tears, squatting in the corner drawing circles. How did I become such a scumbag who does it with women all day long...
However, these contradictory feelings vanished when Pardo woke up. He leaned against the window, watching her. She looked at him dizzily, remembered the embarrassing things they did last night, and finally, only the aftertaste remained.
"Big Brother Lin, why are you looking at me like that..." Pardo covered half her face with the duvet, showing only her magnificent heterochromatic eyes. "Do you... do you want more 'breakfast milk'?"
"Eat your head. What are you thinking about all day, you lewd cat? Wasn't last night enough?" Lin tapped her head, making her close her eyes and stay still. Then he said softly, "Get dressed. I'm taking you to see a friend today."
"A friend..."
"I can't let you keep stealing to survive. You're at the age for school. Your roommates are all studying; you can't just learn nothing at such a young age." Lin stroked her head compassionately. "I know two people who could help. One I don't want to see right now... and she's not here anyway. So I'll take you to the other one."
"Big Brother Lin... you're so good to me!" Pardo hugged Lin neck and kissed his cheek, giggling. "Next time, I promise I won't use my fangs to bite your [Redacted]!"
"...If you dare bite again, I'll spank you." Lin covered a certain area that had been injured before.
"Her personality is a bit weird, but she's a good person overall. Remember, keep your hands to yourself. Don't touch her things, especially the ones that look strange," Lin warned Pardo on the way. "Otherwise, you might really become 'Pardo'."
"Hmm? What do you mean?"
Lin made a throat-slitting gesture: "As in Pardofelis."
Pardo shuddered.
Lin was truly, truly, truly at ease with the person they were about to see. If others had a 1% chance, she was a perpetual 0%. It was just that Lin had always been reluctant to see her. After all, in terms of mental instability, she was absolute Number 1 among everyone he knew.
"We're here."
Pardo wanted to see what Lin friend's house looked like. But before them was only an inconspicuous, abandoned telephone booth in a corner of the city. Aside from not being filled with trash, it seemed entirely out of touch with the modern era.
"We're... here?"
Lin didn't answer. He stepped into the booth and beckoned her. Pardo squeezed into the cramped booth with him. Because the space was so small, she had to compress her body, blushing as she hugged Lin waist and rested her head on his chest.
"Why are you still shy? You said I smelled good last time and licked me from head to toe. Is there any part of each other we haven't seen?" Lin was a bit speechless at her innocent act.
Pardo puffed out her chest righteously: "Wh-What! Big Brother Lin, didn't you lick me back! And you made me wear stockings to... to do that for you! A different color and style every time! I don't even know how many pairs I've gone through!"
"...You looked pretty happy wearing them, didn't you?"
"And licking my armpits!"
Suddenly, a female voice came from the supposedly broken phone: "I am not interested in the richness of your romantic life. Can you stop broadcasting your private fetishes?"
Immediately, the two felt a sensation of weightlessness beneath their feet.
"There's actually such a huge space down here..."
Pardo was shocked by the massive space that suddenly appeared. This wasn't just an "illegal structure" anymore; this was hollowing out the underground for miles, all while remaining undetected and stable.
Clap... clap... clap...
The sound of applause rang out. From the shadows, a woman wearing a steampunk-style top hat with two-toned hair walked out expressionlessly.
"Welcome, new guests, to my Spiral Workshop."
"...'The Specialist'? That's rare. I thought it would be 'The Magician' or 'The Conductor'." Lin observed her expression with surprise. "It happened to be your turn to be awake?"
"Yes. A rotation occurred three minutes and seventeen seconds before you arrived. Before was 'The Conductor'."
The woman didn't engage much with Lin. She looked at Pardo with a serious, sharp gaze that made Pardo shrink back in fear.
"Is this your girlfriend? Unique taste."
"Strictly speaking, one of three." Lin awkwardly looked away.
Even "The Specialist" was taken aback. She fell silent for a few seconds before saying, "I see. Did you use the hypnosis software I made?"
"...What hypnosis software?"
"The hypnosis software The Magician sent you." The woman crossed her arms, looking at him coldly. "Otherwise, I cannot imagine how any female could be blind enough to take an interest in you given your conditions—and three at once. Statistically, that should be less probable than the origin of life on Earth."
"...What am I in your eyes? An uncivilized monkey?"