Translator: Reflet
Editor: ryunakama
Everyone"s gazes focused on Akiha, who had just come back.
"What"s up, what"s up? Something happen?"
"We seek to ask ye something."
"Mhm."
"Why do ye not accept the ring from Dannsama?"
"Oh, that"s all you"re worried about?"
Utterly composed, Akiha sat between Taiyou and Aoba, worming her way into the tight s.p.a.ce.
She rubbed against both Taiyou and Aoba as she moved, as if fawning on them.
"We need to hear yer true feelings. Depending on the reason, it may not end well, ja."
"Not end well? Whatcha got planned?"
"We"ll lock ye in that white room and pump ye full o"that aphrodisiac stuff."
"No, please, anything but that!"
"That might be fantastic!"
"Fantastic? You think that"s fantastic?"
Taiyou retorted in a loud voice.
"Well yeah, wouldn"t it be fantastic right now? Hey, actually, let"s go through with it!"
"Sure, why don"t we do it for the lad and la.s.s? Prepare for them a computer that can only see this living room and homemade food and letters from mom."
"Wow, I think anyone would crack halfway through."
"I be looking forward to see whether the madness or the climax happens first."
"Just so you know, I"m not going through with this."
"But Akiha, why didn"t you take it?"
Her best friend Aoba asked her again.
"Cause it isn"t fantastic."
"Isn"t fantastic?"
"Yep. But everything was fine up till that point, okay? Oh, and by that I mean up until he brought out the ring. He really did all the right things to create an atmosphere that captures a girl"s heart."
When Akiha said that, the triplets, Kohaku, and Youran all displayed agreement. They seemed to have the exact same opinion, having already received the rings.
"Then why don"t you just take the ring?"
"Umm…could it be that…"
"Aoba has to be with you or something?"
"Is that really what this is about?"
"No, none of that. Although I don"t deny that would be even more fantastic."
Akiha said frankly. This was also very characteristic of her.
"Then why, ja?"
"Like. I. Saaaid. It isn"t fantastic."
"I don"t understand. Ye got it from Dannsama, ja?"
"Aoba, you get what I"m saying, right?"
"…Sorry. I honestly don"t really…"
Aoba frowned at her friend"s question. Her complicated expression showed that she was convinced that Akiha had no malice in what she did.
All the females here were sharp in observation to the point where they might as well have a sixth sense.
"Definitely on the feeling side of things, ja."
"Yeah, we got that already."
"She be the same as ye."
"I-I"m not THAT emotional!"
"Taiyou-chan Taiyou-chan, did you do something to this ring? Something that stopped it from being fantastic?"
"Something that stopped it from being fantastic…hm…"
He grasped his chin, thinking.
"If there be one thing that Dannsama might have done…"
"Maybe he squirted something unseemly onto it?"
"h.e.l.l no!"
"Indeed, he may have done something outrageous to it."
"And not that either!"
"M-Maybe he tried to slip it through his special area or something?"
"Aoba…if your face gets red from something like that, you don"t have to say it."
"Well if that was the case then I might"ve actually accepted it."
"You"d ACCEPT that!?"
"Well yeah, it"s fantastic!"
"…I really don"t know what standard you use to deem something as "fantastic"."
"Ahahahaha."
"Alright then, Dannsama, take yer pants off. We shall put it around there and then hand it to her, ja."
"I"m not doing that! And could you please switch topics!"
"But if there were no dirty jokes then this world wouldn"t be fun, ja."
"No choice but to put the pants over the head, I suppose?"
"Like I said, could you have a bit more self-respect…?"
Despite making so many objections, Taiyou wasn"t getting tired.
Actually, this was getting really fun.
Right now, everyone was gathered here. All the members of the Natsuno household. It began like some sort of student meeting after school, except everyone had eased into a chit-chatty mood. Not a single person was being unsociable, and that made him really happy. Even if not a single problem had been resolved.
"Let us organize this a bit more clearly. What about that did ye not think was fantastic, ja?"
"Hmm, okay. I think it"s because I didn"t feel like it was coming from the heart."
"Yer contradicting yerself."
"…Oh wait, is it what I think it is?"
Youran understood the most out of anyone what Akiha had said.
"What do ye mean?"
"Can I say it? Master."
Youran said as she looked at Taiyou.
"Ooo, what"s that? Master? Who came up with such a fantastic nickname?"
"Pry into that some other time."
Taiyou grimaced, looking back at Youran.
"What do you mean by asking that?"
"It"s regarding where it originated from."
"…Oh."
Taiyou clapped his hands together.
"I think that"s probably it. That"s probably what made it feel non-fantastic and mechanical to Akiha, don"tcha think?"
"I get it. Yeah. I can see that."
"Right?"
"How about ye youngsters actually explain to those of us who don"t understand?"
"Okay. As I"ve been saying to everyone, these are essentially engagement rings and everyone will eventually get actual wedding rings that I buy."
"""Yes, you did say that."""
"And as to why I said it in that way…It"s because these aren"t things that I myself got. Sakura did."
When Taiyou said that, everyone other than Youran and Akiha made surprised expressions.