Anastasia's Influence
「His stiff body could not move; Rem's silhouette constantly flickered through his mind. Controlled by this devoted love, he wanted to force himself to move, to tilt his head and avoid the approaching Emilia.」
「In the next second, another incredibly familiar figure with a cute voice skipped playfully through his heart.」
「"Why don't you marry me, my Prime Minister?"」
「…Ah.」
「Hikigaya Hachiman groaned silently. A flicker of a sigh passed through his eyes as he helplessly closed them. Then, with a faint, fresh fragrance, Emilia's soft lips pressed against his.」
「This was his third—the third girl he had kissed.」
「If it were only Rem, he definitely would have dodged; he definitely wouldn't have betrayed Rem… But he, who had already accepted even Anastasia—that version of himself, that "unclean" self—if he were to avoid Emilia now, it would be the most hypocritical and despicable act of all!」
「Even so, he kept his mouth closed, maintaining his own restraint, refusing to take it any further.」
「But simply pressing lip-to-lip… just that was enough to make Emilia feel completely satisfied. She didn't seem to understand the concept of using her tongue.」
「"Even though it's ve~ry selfish to do this just for my own sake—maybe Hachiman will meet someone more worthy of having a child with in the future—but you can't cheat, okay? Puck said so!"」
「When they separated, Emilia's face was already flushed red. She was adorably shy, her left index finger stroking her lips as she relished the feeling from moments ago, her heart thumping wildly.」
「Her right hand stroked her stomach with extreme care, as if she were touching a fetus about to be born.」
「"Even though having a child during the Royal Selection will be very troublesome, this is my decision, and you agreed to it too, Hachiman. So, I will definitely have this child—"」
「"Have a child?"」
「Submerged in his own turmoil, Hikigaya Hachiman jumped in shock. Ignoring the internal cycle of apologizing to Rem and condemning Anastasia, he abruptly interrupted Emilia.」
「"Yes." Emilia nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world. She looked at the surprised Hachiman, then suddenly faltered, looking flustered. "Wa-Wait a minute… could it be, is it possible Hachiman, that you didn't know kissing makes you have a baby?"」
「"But kissing doesn't make you have a baby."」
「"…Eh? Ehhh? EHHH—!?"」
「Emilia was momentarily stunned, but she immediately regained a look of firm determination. "H-How can that be… No, Hachiman wouldn't lie to me. Does that mean Puck got it wrong? Fine, in that case, whatever it is that makes a baby, I'll do it! Tell me, Hachiman!"」
「Hikigaya Hachiman was so startled his mouth hung open. Looking at the girl who was clearly not joking, he shook his head rapidly.」
「Are you kidding me… even after marrying Anastasia, he hadn't had a child yet, let alone at a time like this.」
「"No, no, no… fine, I get it. I get it! I'll stay. I'll spend the whole day with you. Let's leave it at that, Emilia, end of story!"」
「Proactively offering a kiss, even proposing to have a child and making him the father—making such a sacrifice, paying such a price, just to give him the 'qualification' [to be relied upon]… she was willing to go that far.」
「Only now did Hikigaya Hachiman realize with a shock… whenever he thought he understood how much Emilia valued him, this girl would always use heart-wrenching actions and facts to tell him:」
「The weight that the silver-haired girl named Emilia placed on the useless knight named Hikigaya Hachiman was absolutely heavier than he could ever imagine!」
-
--
-
"Kissing leads to babies…"
At the Hoshin Trading Company, Anastasia shook her head speechlessly.
Whenever she thought she had understood the lower limits of Puck's behavior, reality would immediately slap her and tell her: Puck is far more capable of breaking through the bottom than anyone thought!
However, for her, this was something worth celebrating; otherwise, Emilia might have just taken off her clothes and pushed her Prime Minister onto the bed right then and there.
"Ugh…" Anastasia pouted aggrievedly, still very unhappy. "Since he's going to raise her to be so pure, why couldn't he be even more thorough? Why not say holding hands makes a baby? You bastard Puck!"
"My Prime Minister is mine alone. Seeing him kissed by another girl… it feels so bad."
"Pfft!"
In the manor, Priscilla tapped her fan to hide her sudden laughter. She hated it when others misappropriated her subordinates without permission, but if a single misappropriation could stage such an interesting joke, she wouldn't mind lending him out for a bit.
On the streets of the Royal Capital, the people supporting Emilia and Hachiman together were all dumbfounded. Seeing the two of them kiss had made them ecstatic, but before they could cheer for two seconds, they heard the bit about kissing causing pregnancy. It was… a complex feeling, to say the least.
Somehow, it felt like they had suddenly dropped a level below the Rem faction, the Anastasia faction, and even the Crusch faction.
"It's all your fault, Puck!" In a deserted alley, a blushing Emilia poked Puck, her shame turning into anger.
Puck scratched the back of his head and acted cute, trying to gloss it over. "Ehehe~"
In the convenience store, Yukinoshita cast a half-smile toward Hikigaya Hachiman. Hachiman, whose heart was more tangled than anyone else's, could say nothing.
Fortunately, Emilia's psychological age was actually mature enough; it was just that some of her common sense had been warped because she trusted Puck too much. It only needed correction. If her mental age hadn't even reached that point, he truly wouldn't be able to show his face in public again.
"But even if her mental age is up to par, the kissing thing…"
Isn't this failing Rem? Failing Rem and being unable to take responsibility for Emilia—has his future self become a scumbag? Wake up, you idiot! Don't let Anastasia influence you! Take that merchant, take that merchant—
"Take that merchant…"
And throw her away?
Hikigaya Hachiman gave a bitter smile.
He couldn't demand his future self to do such a thing… Forget his future self who actually lived through it; even his current self, seeing such a cute girl marry him, couldn't help but let his imagination run wild.
-
-
-
「The sun rose. He had stayed obediently in Emilia's bedroom for the entire day, watching her wipe away all her tears and accept his expectation for her to pass the trial in one go.」
「With complex thoughts in his heart, Hikigaya Hachiman was the first to leave the bedroom.」
「Not far outside the room, a figure stood in the distance, someone who saw through everything.」
「The one who had come looking for him…」
「Roswaal.」
Read ahead (60 chapters) by supporting me on buymeacoffee com/varietl or ko-fi edwriting