Chapter Thirty-Six: The Familiar and Entertaining Battlefield of Jealousy?

Just like yesterday afternoon, only now the sun was setting. Beneath the brilliant red of the evening sky, a slender, smooth leg stepped out from around the corner, followed by a rounded thigh, a blue pleated skirt, a slightly greenish jacket, flowing black hair, and an exquisitely adorable face—all appearing one by one. A fashionable purse hung from her shoulder, her youthful aura unrestrained.

This was Ayase—Ayase Niigaki. Just as Ki slipped his phone back into his pocket, his body grew tense. Ayase’s phone was also still in her hand, swaying as though she’d just put it down. At her side, another petite figure emerged.

It wasn’t Kirino—rather, it seemed to be one of her classmates, the red-haired girl with twin ponytails whom they’d seen at her school before, even smaller than the Black Cat, with a build barely bigger than Hinata—a child in elementary school.

Ayase, too, was taken aback by the scene before her as she turned the corner. A boy and four girls together—and wasn’t that boy the one who had just hung up the phone?

“Ayase, why have you stopped? Don’t tell me that supposed boyfriend of yours has another woman?” the red-haired twin-tailed girl teased devilishly.

“Ayase? Eh—” The Black Cat fixed her gaze on Ki, as if trying to read his expression.

“Boyfriend, eh—” Hinata looked at Ki with the same expression, though her eyes were filled with playful curiosity and encouragement. She glanced at the bewildered shrine maiden standing nearby.

“I don’t have a sister,” thought the shrine maiden to herself.

At this moment, the red-haired twin-tailed girl also noticed Ayase’s odd reaction and the strange group of five nearby. She glanced at Ayase, then at the boy’s expression, narrowing her eyes into a fox-like cunning smile. Her gaze finally locked with the peculiar shrine maiden in red and white and the gloomy girl dressed in black.

The air grew tense, sparks of electricity seemed to flash between them. “A fateful encounter at the crossroads of destiny,” the red-haired girl grinned even wider.

In a corner of the park, fate’s gears turned. The sunset seemed to gossip with excitement, casting its final rays, eager to witness the outcome of this impending battlefield.

“The legendary love triangle,” Hinata whispered excitedly. Yet things did not unfold as she’d expected, and the outcome surprised Ki and the red-haired twin-tailed girl as well.

Ayase, with gentle decorum, bowed slightly and said, “Hello, I’m Ayase Niigaki. This is my friend Kanako. We just finished work and came here to relax, and then Kanako decided to prank call the new number I added yesterday—Mr. Ki. Who would have thought we’d run into Mr. Ki right after hanging up? What a coincidence!” Her voice was calm and courteous.

“Oh, I’m the Black Cat, nice to meet you. This is my younger sister Hinata, and this is Tamaki. Ki mentioned you before, Miss Niigaki, and thanked you for looking after him when he first arrived. He was just praising you as a gentle and kind lady,” the Black Cat replied coolly.

“Hello, I’m Reimu Hakurei. I just heard Rich Boy Ki praising you as well. He’s a really good person! When I was lost this morning, starving and unable to find my way back to the shrine, Rich Boy Ki came to my aid—he gave me money, bought me food and drinks, and even found me a place to stay. I feel so lucky.” Reimu beamed with happiness, only realizing the odd atmosphere afterward.

The mood grew strange. “Beep… beep—hello, police station? I’m at the park…” Ayase and Kanako, moving almost in unison, pulled out their phones to call the police without a hint of hesitation. With two crisp sounds, both phones were sent flying through the air.

“It’s not what you think! Let me explain!” Ki roared in despair.

“No need to explain. Isn’t it obvious? Pursuing a mistress right in front of your own girlfriend—how wrong I was about you! Beast! Pervert! Go to hell!” Ayase snapped, her face dark with fury.

“So it’s a battlefield after all! Anivi, your girlfriend is really angry. If you don’t explain yourself, you might break up!” Hinata snickered. She knew the misunderstanding was harmless and joined in the commotion just for fun.

“Wh-what nonsense! Isn’t your sister, the Black Cat, his girlfriend?” Ayase shouted, her cheeks burning. Beside her, Kanako hurried to retrieve her phone, letting out a sigh of relief when she found it undamaged.

“Eh—” Hinata cried out in astonishment. “Anivi is dating Sister Ruri? That’s so indecent! How can real siblings date—especially twins!”

“Eh—” Ayase’s mouth fell open in shock. “Real siblings? Twins? Ki, you’d better explain yourself!”

“Hello, police? The situation here—smack!” Kanako’s phone went flying again, landing in the branches of a tree. “What’s going on? Why do phones keep flying?”

In the waning light of the park, chaos reigned—except for Reimu, who looked on, utterly lost, and the peacefully sleeping Tamaki on Ki’s back.

“Quiet, all of you!” Ki thundered, and silence fell. Sensing Tamaki beginning to stir, he quickly soothed her. “Ayase, come here. I have something to say to you.” There was a trace of authority in his expression that brooked no defiance.

“W-what do you want, you perverted siscon freak? To think you lied to me—I hate being deceived by friends the most! Liar! Big liar! From now on, we’re through—I never want to see you again!” Overwhelmed by Ki’s presence, Ayase followed him aside without realizing it. When she regained her composure, her expression was broken, her eyes dull and filled with aversion for the world.

“I didn’t lie to you. Here’s what happened…” Ki explained the situation, including Reimu’s story. “It’s all the god’s mischief—he’s too malicious. For example, the first time I appeared was when you were in the bath; when you hit me, I couldn’t move. That day you and Kirino were changing, and my body was frozen by him again, and so on… cough…”

“Don’t bring up those things again. I won’t easily trust you now—men are all liars. Hmph.” Ayase turned away, cheeks flushed, ignoring the now-distant Ki.

“Ki! Anivi!” The Black Cat and Hinata rushed over as Ki was sent flying by a vicious kick. “Ki, are you okay? You’re my steed—you can’t lose to mere humans!”

“Anivi, it’s all my fault! Wake up, please, I know I was wrong!” Hinata’s eyes brimmed with tears.

“Don’t cry, little Hinata. Cough, cough… In the future, listen to your sister Ruri, okay? Anivi will watch over you from above. If I can be your brother again in the next life, that would be wonderful… urgh…” His hand, reaching for the sky, lost strength and fell limply to the ground with a splash. Hinata broke into loud sobs.

“That’s enough, you big liar! If you don’t get up, your little sister will be woken by all this crying.” Ayase couldn’t take it anymore and shouted at Ki.

Ki patted Tamaki’s head and then Hinata’s, whose tears flowed freely. “Don’t be so naughty next time, or maybe Anivi really will have to wait until the next life to be your brother,” he said fiercely.

Hinata pouted and punched his arm with her little fists. “Anivi, you big meanie!”

“Hmph, you let a pretty girl beat you up and just stood there? If you die, you can revive in the Pool of Rebirth. My sister hasn’t awakened her Dark Clan blood yet—what if she gets hurt?” The Black Cat gave Ki a light kick in the leg, annoyed.

“Ahem, Ayase, that was quite a kick. Did he say something perverted to you?” Kanako asked, her expression odd.

“That’s right, just now my big brother said something perverted to me,” Ayase replied, her eyes full of resistance as she looked at Ki.

“A misunderstanding—definitely a misunderstanding! Anyway, let’s deal with the red-and-white shrine maiden’s situation first; the sun is about to set. Black Cat, you take Hinata and Tamaki home. Ayase, you should also take your friend back—your parents are strict, and they’ll worry if you stay out late.”

“No,” said the Black Cat, Tamaki, and Ayase in unison.

“Why not?”

“Idiot Anivi, if we leave, it’ll be too dangerous for you to be alone with that clueless shrine maiden. That’s why Hinata and Tamaki insisted on staying with you and Sister Ruri last night,” Hinata said, tears still in her eyes, but clearly enjoying the mischief.

“Why were you sleeping in the same room as your sister? Explain yourself, big brother,” Ayase demanded, her brow twitching as she fought the urge to hit him.

“Wow, so that’s the kind of person you are, Mr. Ki—three sisters, so depraved!” Kanako snickered, fanning the flames.

“Hmph, what’s so surprising about siblings living together? Is it more normal to live with unrelated women?” The Black Cat retorted coolly.

“Black Cat, if our parents come home and don’t see us, they’ll be worried. Take Hinata and Tamaki back and tell them I’m out gathering materials to build a room. We can’t stay in your room forever, right? Be good,” Ki said gently, ruffling her hair.

“Then come home early. Should we wait for you for dinner?” The Black Cat’s expression softened as she tidied his rumpled clothes and took the sleeping Tamaki from him.

“I probably won’t be back.”

“Anivi, if you’re not back soon, I’ll tell Mom and Dad you’re dating Sister Ruri!” Hinata said, making a face.

“That’s a misunderstanding!”

Watching the Black Cat’s retreating figure, Ki sighed.

“Eh? Why did all your sisters leave?” Reimu asked, confused. She’d been watching the commotion, unable to make sense of it, so she hadn’t joined in.

“Ayase, are you really not leaving?”

“I’m keeping an eye on you—to make sure you don’t commit any crimes against this shrine maiden,” Ayase huffed.

“Crimes? Are we hosting a banquet now?” Reimu looked baffled.

“Oh, my phone’s still up in that tree!” Kanako exclaimed.

...

“Mr. Ki, are you really rich? You even put that shrine maiden in a top-class hotel,” Kanako asked, eyeing Ki’s casual clothes with curiosity.

“It’s nothing—just a few days’ stay, not much. If you’d notice my kindness instead, I’d be even happier.” Ki replied, eyes still on his computer. “It’s already dark. Should I walk you both home?”

“No need, we can manage ourselves,” Ayase shook her head. “But before we go, I want to ask you something, big brother.”

“What?”

(What follows is the two of them in their little love nest—a very amusing conversation. We’ve hit twenty favorites now, so let’s keep it up! But there’s only one lonely click from members. Surely there are more? Oh, right, it’s probably because of my update schedule. Tomorrow, we should reach… five?)