”I brought the Ticket from that table earlier too, so ya can use it anytime, nya!”
When Sou remembered the Ticket existed after being told that, the rules of this shop that Eruna had taught him flashed through his head.
It was a show of love from Mio, but
the question was: is it okay to kiss without using the Ticket?
”Ah, yeah..,” Souta gave a half-hearted reply.
He gave a half-hearted reply to Mio’s question, but Souta had one thought in mind.
”Or is it cheatin’, nya?” Mio asked.
Souta was caught red-handed.
Truth was, he had one cast member he was really curious about.
He looked around the shop a few times trying to find her, but
he couldn’t find her anywhere.
While he was at it, his eyes got stolen by the full breasts and cleavage spilling out of many cast members’ swimsuits, and by the butts that the swimsuits were biting into.
”To begin with..,” Souta started to say.
He started to say, but his voice trailed off.
He wanted to say he didn’t have any special feelings for Mio, and she wasn’t someone he’d call a girlfriend, but he realized before speaking that
making her an enemy or pushing her away would only be a loss for him.
Mio was waiting for him to continue and had a puzzled look on her face, but as if cutting in, a cast member he’d never seen before appeared in front of him.
”If you’re gonna move, I wish you’d say so, wan! Super important, wan!”
”Ah… dog..,” Souta mumbled.
Well said, or rather, Mio’s words hit the mark.
If Mio was like a cat, then the newcomer in front of him gave off something close to a dog option from every part of her body-her way of talking was one example.
”Fana, I brought the beer, wan! Super fresh, wan!”
The dog-like girl said that as she put beer on the table in front of Souta.
Matsuri had ordered it earlier, but since they’d moved before it arrived, she seemed to have had trouble finding them.
”Get outta the way, nya! Go over there, nya! Shoo, shoo!”
Still clinging to Souta, Mio waved her hand to send the newcomer away.
Her dog-like ears drooped as she, who hadn’t even been introduced yet, slumped her shoulders.
”You’re so mean, wan! I super haven’t even said hi yet, wan!”
”Um?” Souta asked.
Souta felt bad for her and threw a lifeline to the dog-like girl.
Red-brown spotted dog-like ears with brown hair, and a tail that was clearly different from Mio’s – it reminded him of a big dog.
Encouraged by Souta’s words, it wagged left and right for a moment.
”I’m Ichiko, wan! Super nice to meet you, wan!”
Avoiding Mio who was sitting on Souta’s left, Ichiko went around to the right side of the sofa and hugged Souta.
As usual, she pressed her cheek against his while hugging, and as a bonus, Ichiko licked Souta’s cheek over and over.
Seeing that, Mio showed her displeasure and smacked Ichiko on the head.
”Don’t lick, nya!”
Mio bared her fangs with a hiss and showed claws, acting like she’d scratch.
For Souta, who couldn’t experience this in daily life, the current situation of two women fighting over him felt good.
A very tall woman with a great figure
stopped when she passed by that booth.
In height, she was taller than Souta, and since he was sitting on the sofa now, her tallness gave him a lot of pressure.
If Ichiko was based on red-brown, then that woman was decorated with purple-based swimsuit and accessories.
She wore a black choker on her neck, and Ichiko wore the same thing.
”At it again, huh. You never get tired of this every day.”
From behind purple-framed glasses that gave an intellectual impression, her narrow eyes
shook as if mocking, and the woman spat out with a sigh.
”There she is, nya. Dog number two.”
Still in fighting stance, Mio glared at the one she called dog number 2.
A woman several steps more mature than Ichiko.
Her body lines were thin, and from the curve of her waist and the grace of her movements, she gave off a different vibe from Ichiko-she even had a neutral impression.
It looked like a competition swimsuit, but there was no cloth around the belly button, so you could guess it wasn’t very useful for actual swimming.
Her slightly modest breasts seemed to bring out her neutral quality even more.
”Don’t pick a fight. Fana’s bothered, you know?”
The slender woman threw out a warning with a tired face.
At those words, Mio’s fangs and claws went away, and she looked into Souta’s face with round eyes.
”Eh? I’m a bother, nya?”
Mio’s spoiled look and voice were so lovely
that he felt like forgiving everything and just wanting to protect her.
She embodied what happens when a cat really makes a cat-cute voice.
”Ah, ahaha,” Souta gave a dry laugh.
Unable to take either side, Souta
just gave a dry laugh and tried to calm things down.
The slender woman shrugged at the two of them, took one step toward Souta, looked at Mio, and threw out words.
”Go easy on him, okay? I’m Ruriha. Want me to say hi?”
The cat act from before was gone in an instant, and Mio threatened the outside enemy.
Ruriha reacted quickly too and stepped back, touching the frame of her glasses and letting out a sigh.
So it’s not a dog-and-monkey thing but a dog-and-cat thing –
it was proven they don’t mix, like water and oil.
”I guess it’s on hold until Mio isn’t around.”
Ruriha shrugged again and put up her hands in surrender once more, saying goodbye loud enough for Souta to hear.
Looking at Ruriha’s back, he saw a purple tail like Ichiko’s, reminding him of a big dog, swaying.
And on her head, unlike Ichiko, triangle ears stood straight up.
With one threat gone, Mio changed targets
to Ichiko sitting on the opposite side of Souta.
”Look, quit campin’ in the booth, nya! Dogs ain’t invited, nya!”
”That’s super mean, wan! Be nice sometimes, wan!”
Hands went back and forth between Souta’s left and right, front and back.
It was far from a peaceful time.
Trivia:
- Souta’s hesitation about kissing without a Ticket shows he is still learning the club’s rules and is unsure about the boundaries of Mio’s affection.
- Mio and Ichiko wear matching chokers, hinting that they may belong to the same group or be paired in some way within the club.
- Ruriha calling Ichiko “dog number 2” implies there is a numbered hierarchy among the animal-themed cast members.