The beast tamer exiled from the hero’s party and the cat eared girl from the strongest race meet
“Well then, if I may be so bold, let me lead the toast—as everyone's idol, the pretty, cutie, beauty me…”
“Cheers!”
“““Cheers!!!”””
“Ahhh!? That was supposed to be my moment!?”
“Luna, your greetings are unnecessarily long, unnecessarily filled with nonsense, and unnecessarily pointless.”
“Don’t keep saying ‘unnecessary’!?”
Evening at our house.
We were holding a welcome party for the new members, and the table was packed with food, sweets, and alcohol.
Everyone reached out with smiles, chatting happily as they enjoyed themselves.
“Here ya go, lemme pour ya a drink.”
“Oh my, thank you very much.”
“Th-thank you very mush!”
“I’ll serve you some food too. You don’t hate anything, right?”
“Nothing in particular for me.”
“Um, well… I’m not really fond of mushrooms…”
“They’re super nutritious, ya know? But hey, that’s fine for now—you’ll get used to 'em eventually.”
“Y-yes ma’am!”
Tina, true to her maid spirit, looked after Iris and Finia attentively.
Still...
While I could understand Finia, when did Iris get so close with Tina?
Tina might be a ghost, but she's still basically human, so I was worried they might not get along. But clearly, I was overthinking it.
They already look like old friends.
“Woof!”
“Ah!? Hey, I was going for that meat!”
“Nyahaha, getting mad at a dog? That just makes you look petty, you know?”
“Oh yeah? Like you wouldn’t complain if someone stole your food, Kanade?”
“Of course not. I'm a classy lady. I wouldn’t… Ahhh! My fish!? HSSSSHHHH!!!”
“You’re totally mad!”
“Fish is different!”
“Oof...”
“Sakura says sorry.”
“Ugh, now I feel so guilty...”
Are they... getting along?
It’s a little concerning, but I guess it's fine.
They’re just being themselves, naturally...
Which probably means they feel at ease here.
“Nina, this is tasty.”
“Mm... so soft.”
“Melts in the mouth.”
“Fluffy, fluffy.”
“Yummy.”
“Let’s get seconds.”
“Yeah, let’s.”
The younger girls were sharing the same dish.
Even Rifa, usually expressionless, seemed to be smiling just a little.
“By the way…”
As the party carried on and the mood relaxed, Iris tilted her head thoughtfully and asked a question.
“Does everyone here like Rain-sama?”
“Like...? Well, yeah.”
“No, Nina-san. I mean in the romantic sense.”
“Eh?”
“Hmm, maybe this is a bit advanced for Nina. Simply put, do you want to do naughty things with him or not?”
“Cough!”
I choked.
““““!!?””””
Kanade, Tania, Sora, and Luna all turned beet red.
Tina, what the hell are you saying!?
“N-naughty?”
“Hyaaahh!”
“Hmm?”
“Woof! Woof!”
The younger girls looked confused or panicked. Sakura tugged them away gently.
Maybe she was trying to be considerate?
Though honestly, I’d rather she stopped Iris and Tina instead...
“So, what’s the answer?”
“I-I haven’t done anything like that yet!?”
“Yet implies that you do like Rain-sama, doesn’t it?”
“Ugh.”
Kanade, digging her own grave, blushed even harder.
Iris smirked, clearly enjoying herself.
She looked like she was having a great time.
“What about you, Tania-san?”
“I-I mean… well? It’s not like I hate him.”
“So you do like him?”
“It’s not that I... I mean… I said I don’t hate him!”
“In other words, you do like him?”
“I… ugh… I said I don’t—”
“The opposite of hate is like. So you like Rain-sama too. It’s love, isn’t it?”
“Guh.”
Even the usually fiery, assertive Tania was left speechless under Iris’s barrage.
Maybe Iris isn’t a celestial being, but a little devil instead…?
“Sora-san and Luna-san?”
“Indeed. I like Rain.”
“Yes, I do too.”
“Oh? That was unexpectedly straightforward.”
“Why lie? If you hide your feelings, they’ll never reach the person they’re meant for.”
“Especially since we’re talking about Rain. If you act weird, he might take it completely the wrong way.”
“That’s… true, actually.”
They accepted that with strange conviction.
I want to argue, but… I am kind of dense, so…
Damn, I can’t say anything.
“Hey, Iris. Why’d you suddenly bring this up?”
“Oh, no particular reason. I just love Rain-sama too, and I was curious how far along my rivals are.”
“How far…”
“...along…?”
Whatever they were imagining, Kanade and Tania both turned their gazes awkwardly far off into the distance, blushing.
…Or rather…
Please, I beg you—don’t have this kind of conversation in front of me.
I wanted to escape right then and there, but somehow that felt like it would be too dishonest…
So I couldn’t stop them, and could only stand there, helplessly watching everything unfold.
“Heh heh!”
“Oh my. I’m not quite sure why, but Luna-san seems very confident.”
“Of course I am! After all, I’ve already… shown my skin to Rain!”
“Wha!?”
Luna dropped a bomb, leaving Iris in utter shock.
“Wait wait wait!? When did that happen!?”
“Have you forgotten? On our way to the mines for that request from Gantz, Sora and the others went for a swim…”
“At that time, we were all seen by Rain in our birthday suits!”
“…Oh yeah, that did happen.”
“Which means—”
“Sora and the others are leading in the Rain conquest battle.”
“I see… I see. I can’t let my guard down then. You’re quite the formidable opponents. I’ll have to adjust my approach.”
Then, Iris muttered, “However…”, and flashed a wicked grin—one that reminded me of when we first met.
It was… a very dangerous smile.
“I may not have shown him my skin yet, but…”
“Heh! Then it’s my win!”
“However, I have kissed him.”
““““WHAT!?!?””””
Kanade and the others’ eyes widened.
They were clearly hit with a massive shock. Their hands—and their entire bodies—trembled visibly.
“Oh my. You all seem very surprised. Hehe, does this mean I win?”
“…Rain?”
Kanade’s head turned toward me with a rusty creak, like an old door hinge.
Everyone else turned to face me the same way.
Then… they closed in.
““““What’s the meaning of this!!!?””””
“N-no, it’s not like that, I mean…”
“Rain, Rain! Is it true!? Did you really… k-k-k… kiss Iris!?”
“Did she force herself on you or something!?”
“It was so sudden… but maybe not forced…? Though, did he really agree…?”
“S-so it is true…”
“W-what were the circumstances!? Tell us the exact circumstances!”
“Hehe. Under the moonlight in the night sky, with its gentle blessing, I offered Rain-sama a quiet kiss of vow~♪”
““““AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!?!?!?””””
Everyone clutched their heads, writhing and shrieking.
“What the heck is that!? That’s so unfair! What a beautiful setting!!!”
“I wanna do that too! I want a kiss in that kind of setting!!”
“Sora’s imagination is going wild! Ahhh, my head’s about to overheat!”
“Unfair! That kind of setting is basically unbeatable! U-N-F-A-I-R!!!”
“Um, guys…”
““““Rain!!!!””””
“Y-yes!?”
““““Kiss us!!!!””””
“W-wait, that’s going a bit too far…”
““““Just do it already!!!!””””
Everyone was losing it…
“Well then… I’ll go enjoy the food with Nina-san and the others. Toodle-oo.”
“Hey, wait—! Iris!?”
“Hehe.”
After completely stirring things up, Iris disappeared into the back room.
Leaving me behind…
And Kanade and the others, all with slightly unhinged looks in their eyes.
…What happened after that?
I think it’s best not to go into detail.
If I had to say one thing, though—
Let’s just say it turned into an unbelievably lively welcome party.
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