I sit at the dinner table, my nose buried deep into a copy of ‘Intermediate Magic Analysis Volume I: Elements Made Elementary’. I’m currently going over some of my previous studies while trying to pick up some new info, especially on Void Gate. It’s the first Darkness elemental spell I’ve learned and I’ve been secretly training with it and another spell when nobody’s around.

  Since Darkness is the slowest and weakest element of them all, you have to find unique and unorthodox ways to use it in a combat scenario.

  “Govvy, you’re picking up Papa’s and Uncle Damian’s bad manners. No books during supper, remember?”

  “Ah, sorry, I got a little too engrossed there.”, I apologise, putting the book aside.

  “If Ms.Puppy's cooking is too bad for you to stomach, I can knock up something for you.”

  “Shut up! I don’t cook food so bad that it turns all of the men into sailors!”, Red snaps.

  “Haa? Where did you even learn that joke?”, Yoko asks.

  “I told her about it.”, I admit.

  When I came to my family’s home during the night of the incident that started this whole fiasco, I couldn’t help but feel even lonelier than I did before. I know that sounds odd coming from a supposed natural loner, but in reality, there’s nothing more I want out of life than to be with my precious loved ones, the ones who have always been there for me.

  So when I entered what once was an empty house, I couldn’t help but feel that something was right.

  ‘This isn’t what it’s supposed to be like.’, I thought.

  Funny how things can change..

  “Say ‘ahhh’, Govvy.”

  “Here you go, Aniki.”

  “E-eat up, Daisuke-nii.”

  Now that the four of us have moved in, this pce graciously feels like a home, instead of just a house. That’s a big difference, mind you.

  “Hey, Daisuke-nii, why did you bathe separately from us again? How am I going to deal with your hair if you won't let me join you?”

  “You know, that used to be my job.”, Sunni says.

  “Trust me, just let her do it, Arianne.”, Yokie admonishes. “She turns into a snapping turtle if you bring a brush within four metres of Aniki’s hair.”

  “That’s because it’s my job, right, Daisuke-nii?”

  Well, Red, I would answer that question, but the three of you just stuffed my gob full with the pork and ginger you made.

  “Well, nevermind that for now. Govvy, you’ve been avoiding us in the bath ever since we’ve moved in.”, Sunni remarks. “I know you’re not the most confident, but you should be comfortable around us by now, no?”

  Before I can somehow manage to swallow what’s the equivalent of a full pte of food in my mouth, Yokie answers her.

  “It’s because Aniki doesn’t want to get too intimate with us because of that me promise.”, she says, handing me a cup of apple juice.

  I take it from her graciously, and hastily wash the food down my oesophagus. Breathing is kind of underrated, who would’ve thought?

  “Firstly, it’s not a me promise, a good man has good self-control.”, I gasp. “And the actual reason I don’t join you lot is because that bath can barely hold two, four is outright impossible.”

  Red pouts and Yokie frowns, but thankfully they don’t have a counter-argument, probably because there isn’t one. But strangely, Sunni seems to be thinking about something.

  “Why don’t I ask Papa to do some renovations for us?”

  “Sure, I can’t wait to waste my godparents’ money.”

  “Don’t be so facetious, Govvy.”, she reprimands. “You know that he would do it for us in a fsh.”

  “I don’t doubt that, but I don’t think that it’s necessary to renovate the house when there’s enough room for us as is.”

  Red points her chopsticks at me in an accusatory manner, her expression somehow even more pouty than it was before.

  “You just don’t want to get flirty with us anymore! You don’t even want to share a bed! It’s too unfair!”

  “That’s right, Aniki. We didn’t move in with you to sleep in separate rooms, it was for our burgeoning retionship to grow even stronger.”

  The three of them are staring at me now, awaiting my response. Being the one they look to sure is an easy job..

  But sarcasm aside, I should express myself with the utmost veracity if I really want to keep their trust. I heave a sigh and say my piece.

  “You girls do have a point. And besides, I want to share a bed with you three again anyway, so I’ll let our parents know, alr-WOAH?!”

  Before I could finish, the three of them lovingly dogpile me, doing me the gracious favour of aggravating my agonising injuries.

  Seems like they’re happy about the news, aren’t they?

  As we discussed st night, we had been sleeping in separate rooms since we’ve moved in, so recently the first thing I see upon waking up is my arm clock. This morning, however, the first thing I’m seeing is Sunni’s bare bosom, which is not less than a millimetre away from my face. You might as well say that I’m nuzzled between them at this point.

  And the other soft sensations I feel on my back and on the back of my head are Red and Yokie. All three of them are sleeping peacefully, which is good, but I need to get up, prepare breakfast and get ready to head to Hisakawa Temple.

  “Wake up, everyone. It’s morning.”

  With just that, they all stir and remove themselves from my person, allowing me to at least sit upright.

  Yokie gives a big stretch, causing her even bigger tits to jiggle just a little. Unfortunately, I was caught ogling, and as punishment, she grabs my face and happily buries it into her chest. A cute, but impish giggle escapes her lips.

  “Ehehehe…What a bad big cousin you are, staring at me like that. Being two years older, you should be setting a proper example, aren’t you?”

  Swiftly, my face transferred to another bosom, this one being rger than the previous pair. Being moved around like this hurts like hell because of the injuries I’ve sustained from training.

  “Now, now, Yoko, don’t be too hard on our Govvy. He hasn’t seen our bodies in a while, so it’s only natural that he should want a good look.”

  Again, I am (painfully) shifted into another set of tits. These ones are the smallest of the three, but not by much. Yokie is 92cm, Sunni is 94cm and Red is 90cm, so using the word smallest feels nonsensical.

  “I-if that’s the case, we can help with that, Daisuke-nii..”

  Suddenly, I’m forcefully thrust back into bed and straddled by Red. The other two grab hold of my arms, leaving me with no escape route. Red then starts grinding against my crotch, which of course elicits a reaction out of me. I think I feel my member twitching a little….

  “S-so, how does it feel to have my ass rubbing against your shaft, Daisuke-nii? Do. You. Like. It?”

  “I think he does~~~”, Sunni trills. “Keep that same pace, Akane, we want Govvy to really enjoy himself..”

  This is bad! If this keeps up, I might give into my carnal urges! Hold strong, me! Just hold strong!

  Yokie rests my hand on her chest, and leans into me. She gently nibbles on my ear and devilishly whispers to me.

  “It’s okay, Aniki…We love and trust you..So, have at us to your heart’s content..”

  With that, a switch flicks on inside of me, and with strength I was unaware of, I overwhelm all three of them and pin them down, with myself looming over Sunni. She caresses my face, her expression gleeful and welcoming.

  “First come, first served. You sure know how to keep a promise, Govvy. Well, except for the one to all our parents, but that’s an okay one to welch on, no?”

  “I….I….”

  “Yes~~~?”

  “I WILL NOT YIELDDDDDD!!! I REFUSE!!!!”

  After regaining my self-control by biffing myself repeatedly, I rocket out of the bedroom before they could stop me! That was too bloody close, hot damn!

  “D-Daisuke-nii?! Come back!”

  “Oh, bloody hell! We almost had him…”

  “Maybe I should’ve used the chains after all..Govvy’s will-power is unfortunately formidable.”

  Sorry, my beloveds, but my chastity will remain intact until that day comes!

  The atmosphere before I left the house was as good as it gets, not only where the three of them openly frowning at me during the entirety of breakfast and giving me one word responses, but when I told them where I was going, the temperature in the house dropped to a brisk -273.15 C.

  I already have pns to make it up to them, but I still feel guilty. However, I can’t go back on my word, especially with something so austere.

  “Well, I’ll just put it to the back of my mind for now. It’s time to return to Hisakawa Temple. I wonder if those two missed me as well.”

  I saunter through the torii gate at the top of the staircase, make my way to the temple doors, and reach for the bell-rope. I can feel everyone’s mana, even Old Man Hisakawa’s, so the pce isn’t empty.

  “Ani-ue! You’re finally back!”

  A mass that identifies itself as Take hurtles into my abdomen, causing me a good amount of pain. Owwww..

  “Hey, Take. I’m gd to see you.”, I say with a painful smile.

  “I missed you too, Ani-ue! I’ve been practicing-”

  Take freezes upon seeing my bruised and battered face, looking mortified. Good, that’s just the reaction I wanted.

  “Ani-ue, what happened to you?!”, Take yelps.

  “Nothing much.”, I say dismissively. “Where’s your sister?”

  “Nothing much?!”, Take echoes incredulously. “Ani-ue, you look all messed up, did you get into a fight or something?!”

  Man, he’s really worried isn’t he? I feel bad lying to him, but I can’t just give up secrets of the Enigmatic Society just because of that.

  “Daisuke-san.”

  Shizuku-san stands in the doorway, gazing into my face with an expression that I just can’t figure out. She approaches me slowly and rests her hands on my face, looking over my injuries.

  I look away from her gaze, my sense of contrition growing even further knowing that she’s worried about me as well. However, I still can’t tell them.

  Suddenly, she embraces me, her face buried into my chest. Is she really concerned about me this much?

  “Shizuku-san, it’s nothing to worry abou-”

  “Who did this to you?”

  “I’m sorry?”

  “Who did this to you?”

  Uhm, it just got a wee bit nippy out here…and that cold way of speaking is very familiar to me.

  “Why do you want to know that, Shizuku-san?”, I ask tentatively.

  She looks up at me, her usual silver-grey eyes now a dark and empty bck-grey.

  “I’m going to return the pain they inflicted onto you five-fold.”, she says icily. “I won’t let them get away with hurting you so badly.”

  Good gosh, I was right. This behaviour that she’s dispying right now is eerily simir to the girls’, so that can only mean that she feels the same way they do about me, right?

  No, no, let’s not assume here, Daisuke. For now, let’s just work on calming her down.

  “It’s alright, Shizuku-san.”, I say gently. “I’m not in that much pain, you know?”

  “Ani-ue won’t tell us, Ane-ue!”, Take interrupts. “I think he’s getting bullied!”

  “I’m not getting bullied, Take. Listen, let’s just forget about this and head inside.”

  “Forget?!”, Shizuku-san shrills. “How can I forget it when I have to see your face looking that?!”

  Damn it, this is getting nowhere. But I have to find some excuse as to why I’m so beat up. Maybe I should say that I got struck by a bus or something?

  “If it’s a secret, then I’ll reveal mine! No, it’s the secret of my entire family! Will you trust us then?!”

  “Yeah, good idea, Ane-ue!”, Take cheers.

  “Eh?”

  Shizuku-san just said something I couldn’t have foreseen. What does she mean by this family secret?

  “Now, now, Shizuku, Take-chan. Don’t be too hasty.”

  It’s Mrs.Hisakawa. I guess she decided to see what was keeping us for so long, but that probably eliminates any chance of the family secret being revealed.

  “Haha-ue, I-”, the Hisakawa siblings begin.

  “I didn’t say that you can’t tell him, I actually want you to tell him, to be honest. But remember, he has to pass the test first.”

  The Hisakawa siblings nod affirmatively, leaving me solely in the dark. Great, I do enjoy being uninformed and unprepared.

  However, depending on the results, my sarcasm may be unwarranted.

  The four of us are sitting in the room where Shizuku-san and I hold our lessons. The tension in here is so palpable that I can’t even find a sarcastic remark to make in this situation.

  “Daisuke-san, are you ready for the test?”, Mrs.Hisakawa smiles.

  “Yes, I am.”

  “Good. Now, please look into my eyes.”

  Mrs.Hisakawa lifts her veil of auburn hair, revealing a pair of eyes with bck irises. But, it’s a strange, abyssal bck that seems to…

  It seems…to…

  ….Wha….? I…

  …

  “Tell me, Colen Daisuke. What is it that you desire from me? Wealth? Fame? Power? Or is it my body?”

  ….I can only hear her voice…I can only see her…nothing else…

  What is this? …I have to break free from it…

  “I…don’t want anything..”

  “You must want something.”, Mrs.Hisakawa urges, her voice dream-like, yet oddly unnerving. “Tell me and you shall receive.”

  …I want..

  “I want ten ptes of your dango and bao…”, I say uncontrolbly.

  Mrs.Hisakawa smiles happily, she seems rather content. With that, I return to reality.

  “As you wish! Shizuku, Take-chan, you chose a great person to join our family.”

  “YAYYYY!!! ANI-UE’S GOING TO BE MY REAL ANI-UE NOW!”

  Blimey, I feel a bit dazed. What was that just now?

  “Sorry, but I’m a bit befuddled at the moment.”, I say groggily. “What just happened?”

  Still donning her canty smile, Mrs.Hisakawa begins to expound.

  “Firstly, I should let you know that I’m not at all human.”

  “Hmm??”

  Auburn coloured dog ears pop out of the top of her head, and a tail of the same colour wags behind her?! Of course, such a sight jolts me back to my full sensibilities!

  “Inugami?! You’re a yokai, Mrs.Hisakawa?!”, I ask, utterly stunned.

  “You’re half correct. I’m half-inugami, half-hinnagami.”

  I had to stop myself from shouting just then. There’s no way.

  “You’re a hinnagami as well? That’s a little scary, honestly.”

  “How come?”, Shizuku-san asks, clearly affronted.

  “Don’t misunderstand me, I don’t think that you lot are completely evil or anything. But the golden PR about haunted for all eternity is too sweet to overlook.”

  For the uninformed, hinnagami are supposedly doll-like yokai who grant wishes for their owners, and there’s almost no limit to the scope of desires they can grant.

  The catch? The hinnagami never stops asking you what your desires are, leading one down a path of gluttony and unadulterated greed. Then when you die, you go straight to Hell, where the hinnagami will haunt you for eternity.

  No being reborn, no second chances. Sounds lovely, doesn’t it?

  “So that was why I was under that hypnotic effect.”, I surmise. “That’s dangerous.”

  “But you’re mistaken, Daisuke-san.”, Mrs.Hisakawa beams. “You’re not guaranteed to go to Hell. It depends on the heart of the owner, so if you have a clean soul and can control your desires, you’ll be completely fine!”

  “Really?”

  “Yes! And what’s more is that you seem to have quite the resistance to a hinnagami’s control! Even my master didn’t put up as much of a fight as you did.”

  “That’s true.”, Shizuku-san joins. “Even now Chichi-ue still sometimes falters, but thankfully his worldly desires aren’t too impure.”

  “He usually asks Haha-ue for kisses or something!”, Take interjects.

  Mrs.Hisakawa’s face flushes as her tail repeatedly thumps onto the floor. She sure does hide it well.

  “Ahhh…I can’t wait for him to come home…”, she swoons. “My genetic make-up isn’t suited towards being separated from him for so long, I can feel myself growing weaker with each passing day.”

  “Haha-ue, please control yourself…”, Shizuku-san says with narrowed eyes.

  “Mou, you’re being insensitive towards your mother’s plight? How cruel.”

  “Yeah, stop being mean to Haha-ue, Ane-ue!”

  “Both of you need to stop behaving so loosely! It’s rude!”

  I can’t help but chuckle at their family dynamic. Honestly, it makes me miss home again.

  “Don’t be like that, Shizuku-san.”, I soothe. “It actually is ingrained into her DNA.”

  Being an inugami and a hinnagami, that means that she naturally carries the immense loyalty of the former, and the unyielding obsessiveness of the tter. Such a situation is indubitably hard for her.

  Suddenly, Shizuku-san, who’s sitting next to my left, is on her feet. She ceremoniously turns to me and grabs my face like she did earlier, with the same eyes as before.

  But this time, her ears and tail, both covered in bck fur, have been revealed. But that’s not the only difference, unlike the frigid feeling from before, this feels welcoming.

  And it’s not like my free will is being taken away either. This feels like something I should be doing, like something that needs to be done.

  “Daisuke-san, rest your hand on Shizuku’s head and begin to pet her.”

  I follow Mrs.Hisakawa’s instructions, maintaining eye contact with Shizuku-san the entire time. It’s at this moment that I realise that I’m on my feet.

  Shizuku-san’s tail begins to wag feverishly, but her gaze remains affixed to me.

  “Hisakawa Shizuku, is this what you truly want?”

  Those words left my lips subconsciously, but yet I meant to ask it whole-heartedly.

  “Yes. This is exactly what I want.”, she says unhesitantly.

  “Then, please, stay with me forever.”

  “Yes, Daisuke-sama..”

  With that, her eyes revert to their usual colour. Her tail is still wagging a mile a minute, though.

  “It’s done!”, Mrs.Hisakawa says merrily. “Daisuke-san, from this point forward, you are Shizuku’s master! And you did it without needing me to expin the vows, it really is fate!”

  “Welcome to the family, Ani-ue!”

  Now that the moment has passed, I’m now fully realising the gravity of the situation.

  I basically proposed to her just then, didn’t I? That means that I have another girlfriend. Just like that.

  Bloody Nora, how am I going to expin this to the others?

  “Daisuke-sama, are you going to tell us what happened to you?”, Shizuku-san calls me.

  “Of course, it’s only-wait a tick-what did you just call me?”

  “Daisuke-sama.”

  “-Sama? You don't have to…nevermind you probably do. Well, can you refer to me in a somewhat less hierarchical manner?”

  “Dai-sama, please tell me why you’re so hurt.”, she says shyly, her face blooming. “And if I have to refer to you like that, please call me Shizu.”

  Now, I’m blushing and feeling all shy. Man, what an eventful day it’s been.

  “Alright, Shizu. I’ll tell you three about what happened from the beginning, so have a seat. This could be a while.”

  Shizu sits down, her tail wagging with newfound vigor since I’ve called her as such.

  It really is too cute, mate.

  Shizu, Take and I are sitting at the bank of a river located all the way in the back of the temple grounds. It’s not very deep, but it’s decently wide and it appears to have a surprisingly rapid flow.

  “I can’t believe you’re a part of a secret organation, Ani-ue! That’s so cool!”

  “It’s organisation, Take. But yeah, I suppose it is pretty cool.”

  I take a swig from the vial Shizu gave me. Blimey, whatever this brownish-green substance is, it sure is bitter. The pain is ebbing away, though.

  “Be sure to drink all of it, Dai-sama.”, she says. “It’ll numb the pain from your injuries.”

  “Don’t worry, I will. I didn’t know that your mother dealt with apothecaries, though. Maybe I ought to save some for the rest of my training.”

  Shizu gives a pout that bears a stark resembnce to one Red might give.

  “Does the training have to be so violent? I mean, I have no doubt that you can overcome it, but still.”

  “Huhu, yeah, it is a bit rough. But I think I’ve managed to get a little stronger since we’ve started. Say, how come you never told me about this river? It’s so peaceful.”

  “It’s easy to forget about it.”, Take pipes up. “It’s always been here, and our family is named after it.*”

  I see, so it’s the Hisakawa family’s namesake. I wonder if we Colen's have one? Probably not.

  “Dai-sama, may I join your squadron? I want to fight alongside you.”

  “Sure.”

  “How rude, Dai-sama! Did you even-wait, what did you say?”

  “No, keep going, I want you to finish first.”

  Shizu’s face flushes as she averts her eyes away from me.

  “I-I was expecting you to refuse.”, she mumbles sheepishly.

  “Well that would've been smart, wouldn’t it?”, I jest. “Refusing someone with your skillset.”

  A long-ranged, magic-wielding, healer? Who would want someone like that on their side?

  “Again with the rudeness. You should treat your servant-”

  “Girlfriend.”, I amend.

  “G-girlfriend kindly, you know. As a matter of fact, you should have asked me to join you right away.”

  I pet her head reassuringly, causing her tail to wag happily. Seems like what her face hides, her tail shows.

  “But, I still haven’t shown you all I can do yet.”

  “Really?”, I say curiously. “What else can you do?”

  Take leaps up excitedly, jumping up and down on the spot.

  “Show us your moves first, Ani-ue! I know that they’ll be cooler than Ane-ue’s!”

  “I’m going to discipline you when Dai-sama leaves, Take-chan.”

  “Ehhhhhhh?!”

  Smiling at them, I shuffle to my feet and remove my shoes and socks.

  “Dai-sama?”

  I withdraw Wooden Fang from my bag and walk into the river.

  “I’m going to show you two an original spell I’ve been working on. Hopefully, I don’t embarrass myself too much.”

  Focusing my mana into Wooden Fang, I unleash it in a swing.

  “Flying Bde!”

  A weak, crescent-shaped wave of dark-blue mana flies out of my sword. To no one’s surprise, it dissipates into thin air after traveling a mere metre or so.

  “Cool!”, Take shouts exuberantly.

  “That wasn’t bad, Dai-sama.”, Shizu beams.

  “Thanks for the kind words, but as I suspected, it still needs some tinkering.”

  “Hmph, what a disappointment.”

  The three of us have a start and turn to face the voice. It’s Old Man Hisakawa! Shizu is the first to recover.

  “Jii-chan! You shouldn’t be so far from your bed!”, she chastises. “What if you end up feeling weak?!”

  “I’m not that pathetic yet, Shizu. Boy, didn’t I tell ya to come and see me every time ya come here?”

  “Ah, sorry, sir.”, I apologise. “A lot has happened, see.”

  “Are you feeling better, Jii-chan?”, Take asks.

  “I was until I saw that atrocious performance by Daikon.”

  “It’s Daisuke, Jii-chan…”

  Atrocious, eh? Such morale boosting words.

  “How did you manage to hide your mana so proficiently, Old Man Hisakawa?”, I ask.

  “Hmm? That’s just an old fart’s parlor trick, don’t worry about that.”, he dismisses. “What ya need to focus on is that awful use of Concentration.”

  I’m using the Concentration principle incorrectly? How is that?

  “What's wrong with it, Old Man Hisakawa?”

  “Yer concentratin’ too much.”

  What helpful advice. Has he actually gone senile?

  “Could you be more precise, Jii-chan?”, Shizu presses. “Dai-sama needs some help.”

  Old Man Hisakawa heaves a hefty sigh.

  “Youth these days, they refuse to think for themselves. Tell me children, what’s two plus two?”

  Simultaneously, the three of us reply, “Four.”

  “Right.”, Old Man Hisakawa nods. “Now tell me, didja have to think about that?”

  In unison, we shake our heads. Old Man thrusts his walking stick at me accusingly.

  “Exactly. So tell me kid, would it make sense to count on yer fingers when ya already know the answer?”

  “No, sir.”

  I understand now. What I’m doing is treating every spell I use as though it’s the first time I’ve used it, rather than treating it as something I understand, and merely need to memorise!

  If I already know two plus two is four, then I just have to keep practicing until it’s second nature to me! Starting from scratch every time only leads to sloppy results.

  “Seems like ya finally get it.”, Old Man Hisakawa huffs. “Now help this old fool back to the temple, I’m too tired for this.”

  Of course, we oblige him. Shizu showed me some incredible things afterwards, and I’m not talking about it in full detail until ter. You lot will hear about it when the others do, I promise.

  Mrs.Hisakawa took my request to heart and cajoled me into staying for supper. I agreed to it, but when I messaged the girls to let them know, they left me on read. Good sign.

  I’m in a lot of trouble, aren’t I?

  Character Profile: Tsubaki Shirogane

  DOB: 12/8/98

  Hair/Eye Colour: Purple/Brown

  ZS/BT: Leo/O

  B/W/H: 85/56/94

  Likes: Onigiri, Heavy Metal and Romance manga. Hates: Pickled radish, frogs and men like Yonaguni.