Stepping out of the villa, the cool night air rushed against his face, diluting the muggy, turbid heat indoors that had been a mixture of perfume and the smell of liquor.
Amamiya Rin drew a deep breath, feeling the oppression in his chest dissipate considerably.
Tomie followed at his side, naturally hooking her arm through his, humming the tune of the dance from earlier, looking very much in good spirits.
Turning his head to glance at Tomie, Amamiya Rin wore a complicated expression.
He suddenly had a feeling that he was the one being conquered by Tomie's route—that ballroom dance just now... could it be that he'd just had a special CG unlocked by Tomie?
"What are you thinking about?"
Tomie sensed Amamiya Rin's inner voice and asked with a giggle.
Amamiya Rin kept his face expressionless and didn't so much as spare Tomie a glance.
Asking what she already knew—that was such a nuisance.
What's more, even though she'd never played any galge, and even though his affection meter wasn't anywhere near maxed out, she could still seize the moment and chain a whole combo to draw out his special CG... hmph, it was only in matters like these that she was sharper than anyone.
"Miss Tomie!"
Suddenly, from behind them came hurried footsteps and a call tinged with breathlessness.
"Why are you leaving so early? Was my hospitality lacking, did I leave the two of you displeased? My apologies, the party has only just begun, there are even more wonderful performances to come, and I haven't even introduced you to Mr. Tokugawa yet..."
It was Toshiyuki Eide who had come chasing after them. In a few quick strides he positioned himself in front of Tomie and asked urgently.
"Get lost."
Tomie knit her brows, her tone full of impatience—she didn't even bother to explain.
Toshiyuki Eide's face paled. His gaze lingered on Tomie's face for a moment, then shifted to Amamiya Rin, as though hoping to find some opening from him.
Amamiya Rin merely looked at him calmly, and that gaze made Toshiyuki Eide feel an inexplicable chill inside.
He gritted his teeth, then suddenly switched topics and said earnestly.
"The day after tomorrow! The day after tomorrow is the wedding of my young master, Toshiyuki Hisayuki, held at a hotel in Akasaka. Everyone of standing in Tokyo will be there. Miss Tomie, please do grace us with your presence then—would that be alright?"
"Toshiyuki Hisayuki? Not interested."
Tomie scoffed.
She did have a faint impression of Toshiyuki Hisayuki, because she had once wanted to destroy Toshiyuki Hisayuki's happiness, only to be stopped by Amamiya Rin.
As things stood now, all the Tomies were devoting themselves to the task of conquering Amamiya Rin's route—where would she find the mood to bother with that Toshiyuki Hisayuki or whatever?
Just as Toshiyuki Eide was at a loss for what to do, Amamiya Rin, who had said nothing all this while, finally spoke up.
"The exact time and address of the wedding—would you mind telling me?"
Unexpectedly, Amamiya Rin accepted the invitation.
The reason was simple, too.
Today had been a sudden occurrence; he hadn't had adequate preparation, nor had he learned advanced Hypnosis. Trying to wipe out those inhuman monsters was absolutely impossible, and rounding them all up in one net even more so.
That wedding the day after tomorrow was a superb opportunity.
Once he had learned advanced Hypnosis, he could naturally extract the inner details of that party straight from Toshiyuki Eide's mouth. By then he could call on them one by one and eliminate every last one of those inhuman monsters.
Toshiyuki Eide, however, knew nothing of Amamiya Rin's thoughts. Seeing Amamiya Rin relent, he was puzzled as to why Amamiya Rin would agree.
But if Amamiya Rin went, Tomie would go as well.
For him, that was enough.
"Of course! Of course it's no trouble! The time and place are both written here! Amamiya-kun, please come together with Miss Tomie then."
As though grasping at a lifeline, Toshiyuki Eide hurriedly produced his card case, drew out a gilt-edged invitation from within, and handed it over, saying excitedly.
"I will. I'll be there on time."
Amamiya Rin took the invitation, his words laden with deeper meaning.
Tomie, for her part, gave a yawn, an air of noncommittal indifference about her.
By the time Amamiya Rin returned to the apartment, the silence of night had already swallowed the greater part of the city.
And the Tomie who had stayed behind at home had long since grown impatient with waiting.
The moment the apartment door closed, that low-pressure atmosphere within came rushing at him.
The living room's main light wasn't on—only a floor lamp beside the sofa glowed. Tomie, dressed in loungewear, sat cross-legged on the sofa, hugging a cushion to her chest, her face so dark it could drip water.
Seeing the other Tomie walk in arm in arm with Amamiya Rin, she fished out a handful of beans from who-knows-where and hurled them at the other Tomie.
"Get out! This house doesn't welcome counterfeits!"
Although she had to maintain a tacit, accepting attitude toward the other Tomie's conquering behavior, since it benefited raising Amamiya Rin's affection toward [Kawakami Tomie]—
still, watching with her own eyes as the counterfeit carried Amamiya Rin off, while through the [Tomie Network] she synced to the counterfeit's joy, that heartache made her temper surge straight upward.
"What's gotten into you, exorcising demons?"
Pelted all over with beans by the other Tomie, Kawakami Tomie—who had reaped all the advantages—wasn't even angry, and quipped without the slightest concern.
The Tomie on the sofa let out a snort and said sullenly, "That's right, the demon I'm exorcising is you, the one who came uninvited. Have some self-awareness and clear off."
"Oh my, you want me to leave right now?"
Kawakami Tomie smiled an ambiguous smile—far from letting go, she instead hooked her arm even more tightly around Amamiya Rin's, her whole body practically pressed against his side.
"But Rin's already so tired today, isn't he? If I went out to find a place now, Rin would surely have to force himself to stay alert and keep going, unable to rest until I'd gotten settled, wouldn't he?"
She tilted her head, her gaze falling on the faint shadows beneath Amamiya Rin's eyes, wearing an expression of concern, her voice so gentle it could drip water.
"Normally it's fine if you want to drive me off, and I don't intend to share a room with you either, but as for today—please, I want to let Rin rest a little earlier."
What's with that honeyed, two-faced talk?
The Tomie on the sofa froze stiff, glaring wide-eyed, a single breath jammed in her throat.
This counterfeit! Pulling this kind of act right in front of her?
Damn it, she couldn't even fire back!
Tomie shot a vicious glare at the two by the door, and at last, grudgingly, lowered her legs from the sofa, unable to keep from grumbling under her breath.
"...So annoying! Hurry up and come in, stop standing in the doorway being an eyesore."
"That's more like it."
The Tomie at the door chuckled softly to herself, and, arm hooked through Amamiya Rin's, walked right in, her movements natural, as though she were the master of the place.
Amamiya Rin found it somewhat amusing inside, but just as Kawakami Tomie had said, he truly was quite exhausted.
"Alright, alright, stop bickering. The two of you go take a bath first; I'll record my notes in the meantime."
Rubbing his brow, Amamiya Rin withdrew his arm from Kawakami Tomie's embrace.
He walked straight to the bookshelf, took down his notebook, and began recording today's experiences, lest he forget them on account of the overly long dream-time.
Having made a detailed record, just as Amamiya Rin closed the notebook, the bathroom door opened a crack.
Warm steam mingled with the sweet fragrance of body wash came surging out, and a damp, fair, tender arm reached out from the gap in the door, crooking a finger toward him.
"Rin, to save time and turn in early, let's bathe together."
A languid voice drifted out, the slightly lilting end of her words betraying a hint of sweetness.
"Looking to collect special CGs again? Allow me to remind you—before the affection meter reaches its maximum, you can't get past my White Skeleton Visualization, and you won't be unlocking the CG you want."
Amamiya Rin quipped calmly, and walked toward the bathroom without the slightest ripple of emotion.
____
👻🔥+40 ch on Pátreon: Walnut-chan🔥👻
🔥 New history: Zenless Zone Zero: Rewriting Fate in New Eridu — read it on The_Mikudayo
📚 Forty chapters of advanced reading at Walnut-chan, and it goes straight into keeping the translations on schedule
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