—Any major affair has its origins in something trivial and petty. As is often the case, this time it began with just that. In this case, two indolent siblings who don’t work and a girl made to do their work spilled the beans to one another.
—Steph, you’re such an idiot.
—I don’t want to be told that by someone as hopeless as yourself!
That’s all there is to it, really. This marked the beginning of the five days that brought about the “big incident.”
——……
Day Three—Midnight
The Kingdom of Elkia has developed into the Elkia Federation, a country undergoing institutional reform. A cry which was neither the melancholy of the trees nor the asleep echoed within the castle.
“Why—why can’t I winnnnnnnnn!?”
The one who lets out such a cry with tears running down her cheeks to the floor was an idiot. Or, in other words, Stephanie Dola—a poor maiden who bears the coveted title of “Prime Minister” and forced to perform troublesome tasks by two siblings who never help with internal affairs.
“I’m not sure why you’re asking…?”
“…Yeah…?”
On the other hand, looking at her with half-lidded eyes are the two siblings who had been called hopeless. Sora—a young man with black hair and black eyes wearing a shirt that says “I ♥ People”. Shiro—a little girl with long white hair and red eyes who seems to be positioned above her brother’s knees—wearing panties. Scattered on the floor are the games played in the past three days, in which Steph has challenged the two siblings, the strongest gamers of Immanity,『 』, to a game to prove that she’s not an idiot, and has lost in vain.
—Well, not exactly『 』per se. She only challenged the one who called her an idiot—Sora—and still kept losing.
“This is ridiculous! I’ve been reading and imitating Sora’s tricks, so why can’t I win!?”
—Yes. Steph is trying to win against Sora.
In order to get him to stop using the word “idiot” and help her with her work, she had been visiting Sora and Shiro’s room every night for three days straight, playing games, and leaving at sunrise to resume her work. But in the end…she lost every single game. And every time she lost, she was stripped of her clothes, a piece of which was currently on Shiro’s head.
—It’s true that I don’t think I can win against『 』at all. But if it’s against Sora alone, it should be at least a little easier. But no matter how many times I try, I never get a chance to compete, I just lose like I’m being ignored! Steph sobbed internally—her thoughts beginning to overtake her.
“…Well, maybe…I’ll teach you a few things…but the main issue is you aren’t countering too well.”
Shiro sighs as she looks up at her brother on his lap.
—Why not just say, “I’ll show you my moves, so you can do your best”—?
However, Steph turned away at Sora’s words, looked at him, and listened honestly.
“You already know the importance of a poker face in a game, right?”
When Sora confirmed it once more, Steph nodded, frowning. You’re too much of an idiot—Sora continued, interrupting Steph before she tried to answer.
“Truth of the matter is, yours in particular sucks. It’s utterly useless.”
“—Yes?”
Her poker face is useless—Sora looks at Steph with empty eyes.
“Our original world, this world’s Immanity, and somehow Jibril and Izuna—all have ‘micro expressions’ of their own.”
“‘Micro expressions’…you said?”
It’s moments like these when you make up your judgement for a word or a concept that you don’t know. Steph looked up from her prostrate sobbing state and quickly pulled out a notepad. Looking at the scene unfolding before him with a somewhat amused expression, Sora turned on his tablet PC—but didn’t pick it up,
“In the world we came from—there was a psychologist named Paul Ekman.”
He generously shares some of his “special skills” with Steph.
“He explained that regardless of your upbringing or culture, facial expressions, no matter how conscious you are of them, show your emotions for a moment without meaning to—for less than point two five seconds—and that’s called a ‘micro expression.’”
—However, Sora smiles deeply as he elaborates.
When I was a child, I had already understood this very clearly. I couldn’t help but think, “What’s the big deal now, Mr. Scholar?” But he shook his head and laughed at Steph’s enthusiastic notes, as she was unaware of what Sora was thinking.
“Well, I don’t know if it shows up in species other than Immanity, but in the world we came from, they’ve even developed a visual lie detector that makes use of it. ‘The face speaks louder than the tongue,’ they say.”
“T-That means…you can practically read my mind, don’t you think!?”
Steph exclaimed as she looked up from her notes. It was practically magic—or at least, in the realm of a Werebeasts’ super senses. Steph was terrified of the technology of Sora and Shiro’s original world, but Sora smiled and shook his head.
“It’s not that versatile…the only thing you can detect from a micro expression is emotion. For example—”
Sora then asks Steph a tricky—and quite abrupt—question.
“Steph, you actually enjoy having your panties pulled down, don’t you?”
——
“—I…whaaaaat!? Of course not!”
After but a moment, Steph’s reaction was to scream out in disbelief, but—
“…Oh, wow, really?”
Sora, the one who asked the question, was the one who was surprised and excitedly with a “well~” continued.
“The only thing we can get at is emotion…which is why we use the technique of instantaneous response to questions—”
In other words, it was a question asked to see the slight expression on Steph’s face in response to said question. But that slight expression on Steph’s face—would it be okay to tell her? Sora hesitates, but when he sees Steph’s eyes questioning his intentions, he scratches his head and explains.
“The first thing that came to Steph’s face was a small expression of anger. This alone could be taken as a response to an embarrassing question, but just before she shouted, there was no cocooning indicating anger, but rather a raised eyebrow.”
—That’s what it meant.
“Astonishment—how did they find out? Steph, that kind of hobby—”
“Ab-so-lutely not! That’s not truuuuue!!”
The coughing Steph interrupted Sora’s words and denied them, though, Sora let out a “wow”…and took a step back to say:
“Now joy and excitement…no sign of anger again…seriously, Steph?”
“…Steph…are you…a masochist?” Shiro, who was reading a book with Steph’s panties on her head, giggled.
Fighting off the urge to scream again, Steph kept her mouth clamped shut in search for more information. So—looking down and biting her lip—with a smile of shame on her face, she uttered:
“S-Suppose that’s true, hypothetically! A hundred—no, let’s assume for a second that Sora is right!”
I don’t want to take Sora’s word for it. But—if it’s true,
“Are you saying that you’d be able to see through a lie like a Werebeast with just the glimpse of a facial expression!?”
If that’s true, it’s a skill I’d like to acquire at all costs—that’s what Steph thinks.
“That’s impossible.”
The more Steph’s shoulders began to slump, the more she denied it, and Sora continued with Shiro on his lap.
“I told you already. Micro expressions only show emotion. It’s instantaneous and unconscious. Sometimes Steph doesn’t know why she feels the way she does. But not for me! For example, do you watch your reactions, like you just did?”
Just like claiming not to have repeated the eight-year game with Sora. Shiro mumbles half-eyed at Steph’s reaction, which was not as harsh as her brother’s, but way too obvious.
“…Twice emphasized, angry…Steph, that is…proof…of sloppiness…”
“That doesn’t matter! So, how do you do it, Sora!”
Steph stared intently at Sora—ignoring Shiro with her gracious words equating to “I don’t care.”
“I’d tell you, but—it’s pretty hard, okay?”
“I’ll be fine!”
He smiled at Steph, who said she would write everything down and show him. While playing a game with Shiro on his lap, Sora chats about everything he can think of.
“First of all, joy—that is, a smile—is a ‘fake smile’ if it lasts more than four seconds.”
“Eh—?”
“On the other hand, a momentary smile is ingenuine unless the eyes are closed. A sincere smile is one in which the cheeks rise, and the lower eyelids lift. But if it’s only one side of the smile, it’s a distinction—a ‘mockery.’ You can’t tell from the slightest expression who it’s a sneer at. If you also show the trait of disgust, it could be disgust with yourself. With that—”
——
————
“…What do we do? Shall we continue?”
“…T-That’s, enough…”
When Sora asks to go on, seeing that the notepad has been filled with joy, Steph responds with a blank stare. After all this time, Steph realized that she didn’t feel like she could read a point two five second facial expression. It’s really too late for that. Sora chuckled as she looked at him for help, as if she couldn’t give up.
“—Well, it takes some practice, but it’s quite easy to counteract.”
Yes, it’s that simple.
“Cover your face, that’s all.”
At one point, Steph stood up with a puffy face.
“O-Oh, I see! Then I can put it into practice right away!!”
I’ll have to keep my face covered in that case—Steph thought to herself.
“Yes, you’re right. And then—if you cover your face, they’ll focus on your voice and movements.”
“……Yes, that’s right. That’s the kind of person…Sora is.”
Steph inwardly wondered—how fun it would be to lift him up and push him down to the ground? She replied—Sora would reply “This is the most fun I’ve ever had!” and laugh it off. Steph glances at Sora with half an eye, but surprisingly, Sora continues his explanation carefully.
“However, voice and movement are not as instantaneous as micro expressions. Aside from people like Izuna, who can even read blood flow and the sounds of ones heartbeat, if you’re dealing with an Immanity, you can mislead them with your conscious mind—”
—Hoho… Steph smiled deeply. I mean, if you’re dealing with Immanity, Sora—that’s how he sees what Steph’s thinking. In fact, she used the exact same method that he said she would use, and Sora, who literally read her, laughed at the irony.
“—but, of course you can use that too. Sorry Steph, but do you honestly think that’s gonna work on me?”
“U-Uhh…”
Yes, now that her thoughts have been completely read, Steph can’t even gulp. It was Sora, of all people, who had taught her this whole process in the first place. If your trying to compete with Sora in a field where his skill level is overwhelmingly distinct, that’s exactly where he comes in. Steph was nodding her head in thought—but then she suddenly realized something.
“…Well, that and…”
With some shade covering his face, Sora smiles self-deprecatingly—and warns her:
“Don’t think that I’m going to be conscious of it on a regular basis. It’s not that good, you know.”
“……”
Shiro, who had weighed in on the truth and weight of Sora’s words, silently slumped in Sora’s lap.
—It’s too obvious. What it means is that—
“…Yeah? Why is that?”
A girl who is a perfect example of what it means to be a good girl—the image of a young man reflected in Steph’s blue eyes—that is, Sora, with his “disgust” for himself, patted Shiro on the head and smiled enviously.
“…Well, I guess we don’t have to worry about that with Steph. Okay, so—what’s next?”
—Said Sora, who raises his mouth fearlessly. The game continued until dawn, in which by then Steph had been stripped down to nothing but a bed sheet…
Day Four—Also at Midnight
Normally, Steph barges in through the door, but today, she knocks properly and leisurely—and with that, Steph appeared in Sora and Shiro’s room once again, looking confident of victory.
“Today’s the day to end your career, Sora. Are you ready to finally work?”
Steph questioned the half-eyed siblings, asking in a fearless and elegant manner.
“…Hey, it’s not for us to really say.”
“…Steph…when are you…sleeping?”
“Reaaaally. You two don’t have the right to say that? You’d better be ready to work!”
—Sora and Shiro are practically nocturnal animals, they have no problem with this. During the day, Steph is probably busy with her work as Prime Minister. And at night, she visits Sora and Shiro—playing games with them until sunrise. This has been the case for the past few days. The dark circles around her eyes, indicating fatigue, are darker than they were yesterday, and they should respect her vitality…but, unfortunately for her, it’ll never be justified.
—Yes. It never would. Because—
“This game is very simple.”
—Steph herself doesn’t even realize it. Sora and Shiro can almost predict what will happen next.
“Sora will win if he finds the thing I’ve hidden in the castle!”
To Steph, who was shouting about today’s game, Shiro was thinking about ending it rather quickly, but Sora stopped her with a glance. And then—
“—Ah~ So there’s a thing…and you expect us to find it without any hints?”
“I wrote the word ‘this’on it. I’m not going to be cowardly and say, ‘this isn’t it,’ after it’s been found.”
Hmmm, Sora thought. He kept his face down as Steph confidently explained. His face was only visible to Shiro, who is in a fixed position—that is, in Sora’s lap. Sora’s eyes were downcast, and his face prostrate. He felt like screaming.
—I want to tell her that I already know where she hid it—
However, with great mental strength, he suppresses his desire and says something more interesting than that.
“…No matter how I do it, if I find it, I win, right?”
Shiro, who has known Sora for many years, understood the meaning of his distinct expression when he asked that question.
—He was well aware of what Steph’s answer would be.
“No, it wouldn’t be a game if you could bring someone like Izuna-san or Jibril-san who can trace by scent or psychic reaction. This is a game between you and I, Sora!”
Steph’s answer was just as expected, and the smile on Sora’s face spoke volumes about its purpose. That is—he said it was nothing more than “guidance.”
“A game between only you and I…and I assume I can’t just guess where it is, right?”
“Of course! Feel free to search, but I’ll make sure you don’t rely on anyone else!”
—Of course? Oh, of course. Otherwise, if you say a place here and there, it will hit you at some point, and you’ll need to monitor it. Yes, of course. Then—we have no choice, do we? Isn’t that right? With a chuckle, Sora gently lifted Shiro up off of his lap and began walking away,
“I see, I see…oh well…It can’t be helped…I’m not sure I like it either~”
When Shiro saw him standing up with a goofy expression on his face, she understood.
“…Nii…that’s really…bad…”
“Shiro! Don’t say a damn thing! Your brother’s gonna hang himself if you do, okay!?”
Sora shouts with a melancholy face, despite the ember in his voice.
“…Sorry…I said, too much…but Nii…”
Shiro really wants to apologize, but since she knows what her brother wants, she can’t just give in— “Shiro! This is a one-on-one game with me, according to the rules Steph laid out! It’s an inescapable situation! Or is it that Shiro thinks it’s okay for her brother to lose!? Hmm~~~~~~!?”
However—Shiro has been with her brother for eight years. She seems to know how to handle him—
“…Nii, in confusion…rejected…”
That single word, she expressed “Sora’s excitement.” Sora hardens with a look of despair, as if a gong had been rung inside him. But it was only for a moment, and then he lost his temper—no, Sora, who’s mauve cells have been activated, changes his mind with frightening adaptability. This is a much less pleasant turn of events than they had originally planned, but—
“…Well, okay. Now, Steph, give me your hand.”
“Well, um, okay?”
When Sora held out his palm, Steph put her hand over his.
“Now, we’re going to play interesting game, okay?”
Sora says with a big smile on his face, squeezing her hand lightly.
“Steph—tell me where you hid it.”
“Y-Yes…?”
I’m not telling you—He ignored Steph, who was just about to say that. Sora moved Steph’s hand slowly, as if he didn’t want to be told from the start. Up and down, left and right, as if checking something—and then… Then, slowly, with a hint of hesitation—
“Wai—!?”
He led Steph’s hand up her own skirt.
“Well, Steph, it’s a shame I can’t take it off myself, as I’ve been told not to touch it.”
With a deep sigh of regret, but without a doubt in his mind, Sora declares:
“Let me see what’s in your panties.”
“——”
Stunned. There’s no other emotions or words that comes to mind, and Steph does as she’s told. She took out a slip of paper with the word “this” written on it…which she had put inside her underwear. As soon as he saw the word “this” written on the page, Sora smiled and said,
“Here we go. Are you sure this is a win for me?”
Steph, who hasn’t recovered from the tragic events that had unfolded, burst into laughter when Sora called out to her.
“—Oh no, how did you—how did you know!?”
Sora replied to Steph, who seriously doubted that she could even use magic, but Sora was blasé.
“Steph, hypothetically, what if someone asked you to show them to Steph’s underwear drawer?”
“I…I would reject——ah…”
—Sora was quite impressed with Steph’s attempt—and Steph herself seemed to have noticed that. So yes, Steph wasn’t stupid at all. Rather, she is quite intelligent. That’s why it’s easy to read her thoughts. If you were a real idiot, you wouldn’t be able to read what the other is doing.
“So, when you’re being led in a direction you don’t want to go, no matter how conscious you are of it—well, the more conscious you are of it, the more you try to go against it. In order words, if I’m asked to tell you where something is that I don’t want you to find, it’s in the direction I’m straining. It’s a cheap psychological trick that I would hesitate to even call a magic trick.”
He looked at Steph, who looked at him with admiration, but…
“…Nii, that’s…a lie.”
Shiro dismissed it as a lie. Of course, it is—because…
“…Nii, knew from the beginning…what the game, was…and where it was…”
“—Y-Yeah!?”
Steph shouted in response to the words, which were too much to handle, but Sora nodded nonchalantly.
“Of course…Steph, who usually breaks down doors without knocking, came into the room with minimal movement today… It’s natural to assume that she has something in there she doesn’t want to fall out as she moves.”
Leaving behind Steph, who could do nothing but pant and moan inaudibly, Sora also took his place. In other words, he sat down with Shiro in his lap and continued.
“In addition to that, I talked about micro expressions yesterday, and today. There is a preparation. A look of confidence that you will win. And yet, I’m not hiding my face. In other words, I’m confident that even if I were about to lose, I wouldn’t even make a micro expression—”
—If that were the case, it’d be a lot easier to talk about. No matter how much preparation you do, if it’s preparing to cheat, you can lose. If you’re certain that you can’t even get a micro expression using a trick, then the meaning is simple. Such preparation—is not meant to be used. In that case, what’s the point of preparation?
“‘A treasure hunt game where the preparation itself is the treasure’—If Steph has it, you won’t see it on her face anywhere you look.”
So, let’s say that she did hide something within the castle. Given that the day before they talked about micro expressions, Steph should have expected to have one on her face as Sora approached the location of the treasure. A place where she would be accompanied by someone to monitor her and where her face would remain stagnant no matter where she looked. There is no better place to hide such a thing than in one’s own possession—plus—
“I’ll be the first to admit, Steph, that you were on a pretty good track this time. Even though I own it, I haven’t lost it yet! And considering that I’ve been a virgin for eighteen years, and that Shiro is here, you hid it in a place where no one could find out about it even if the police tried! You did your best, but…”
Empty heartfelt praise. But—
“—still not enough.”
The moment she entered the room, she was defeated—a fact that brought Steph to her knees. But Shiro mumbled again to Sora, who told him with a stern face.
“…Nii, another lie…”
“—Huh?”
Shiro continued, abandoning Steph, who looked as if she was about to lose her mind, wondering what more there was to lie about.
“…The problem…is not, there…”
“Yeah, I changed my mind halfway through. Steph—she wanted me to find it.”
“Eh? What do you mean—”
—Yes, both Sora and Shiro saw through the charade that Steph had planted the treasure in her body. However, there’s no way to pinpoint exactly where it is. I used it as an excuse to touch things around within a healthy range—that was Sora’s initial idea. Shiro had nailed him, and whimpering—Sora had to change his plans. In other words…
“Oi, Steph, you know that psychological trick you pulled earlier where you direct it where you don’t want me to find it?”
“Y-Yes…?”
“At that time, your hand didn’t actually resist any direction.”
“————Eh?”
“So, I’ll admit, I was a little confused, but for some reason I didn’t resist directing my hand down to your lower body.”
—Now, how should I interpret it in this case?
“Two possibilities!” Sora raised two fingers to the ceiling and shouted, “One, you wanted to see how I could find the thing you hid with absolute certainty, and what method I would use if I were to lose in this game where even the mention of micro expressions was used against me. Two, if it’s in your panties, you’ll usually resist unconditionally. The fact that there was no resistance means—”
And then, on Sora’s lap, with half-lidded eyes, Shiro’s word came straight from the heart.
“…Steph is, a pervert…”
——
—————
“That’s…not true—I don’t believe iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit!”
Steph had no choice but to run out of the room, red-faced and sobbing. Meanwhile, Shiro spills out after seeing her off.
“…Nii, Steph, today…was pretty amazing, huh?”
“Yeah. I even factored in the relationship between Shiro and I—it’s getting good, isn’t it?”
Sora smiled happily, but Shiro said with a slight pout:
“…But Shiro is…stronger…”
“I know, sis. But if she’s like me, if she can get past me first—”
Without another word, Sora just smiled wryly and looked in the direction Steph had run off in—
Day Five—Evening
There was a figure walking around in Elkia Royal Castle like a hero.
“…Am I perverted, by any chance…?”
She is Stephanie Dola, the person who still hasn’t recovered from the pain Shiro’s words caused in her heart. It was the fifth day of pulling all-nighters, and she was beyond exhausted, not to mention being called a pervert by an eleven-year-old. While she had called Sora and Shiro hopeless, there was a possibility that she was the biggest pervert of all. This suspicion made her even more unsteady—
“Stuch, what are you doing with your face, desu?”
The one who approached Steph as she staggered along was the former ambassador of the Eastern Union to Elkia. She was a young Werebeast with black hair and fennec-like ears. Steph said—looking at Izuna with lightless eyes that saw angels—or maybe dummies.
“Ah~ Izuna-san. That’s right, Izuna-san, you’re perfect~”
—If, as Sora said, the conscious and unconscious are intertwined and show up in micro expressions. With the five sense of a Werebeast, you may be able to detect your lies—your unconscious. She said that what Sora was saying was bullshit and that she was not a pervert. If it’s Izuna, if it’s this honest and clever girl’s words, she can forget about Sora’s words—!
“Izuna-san, can you tell me what I’m about to say and whether it’s true or not?”
She sensed something in Steph’s drowsy eyes.
“Stuch, you’re in a lot of trouble, desu. If there’s anything I can do, leave it to me, desu.”
Izuna nodded deeply with a sense of mission. She was on the verge of Blood Break, and her nerves on edge as she tried not to give away any information about Steph. Such was the state of Izuna. With determination—Steph said:
“—I…am not a pervert.”
……
……………
—Izuna doesn’t know what the word “pervert” means. But intuitively, she wondered if she should be honest. But Steph asked her to tell her if it was true or not—so she did.
“…Smells like bullshit, desu.”
She honestly complied with her request. Instantly—the strength drained from Steph’s body.
——……Haha.
——————Ha, haha. Hahahahaha.
“…Yes, yes. I’m sure you’re right. Yeah, that’s right, I understand…thank you very much, Izuna-san♪ I feel as if a lucky charm has fallen on me~♪”
“I-Is that so, desu? Rather, I feel like something strange is possessing you, de—”
However, Izuna’s comments no longer fell on deaf ears. Steph felt light and couldn’t help but dance and thank her.
“Thank you so much~♥ I’ll treat you to as many fish dishes as you like later on as a thank you~♥”
—I don’t know why. Even Izuna herself doesn’t know why. I’ll treat you to as many fish dishes as you like—that’s what she should have said. But for some reason—maybe it’s her intuition as a Werebeast, or maybe just a hunch. It was as if—it felt—like a testament—
“…S-Stuch! No, that’s wrong, desu! Stuch isn’t a pervert, de—”
Izuna bursts into tears, feeling that she has done something irreparable. She rushes to retract her statement and even tries to tell a lie, which she hates, but Steph skips and disappears into the depths of the castle as if she could no longer hear anything…and then…
The Same Day (Day Five)—Midnight
“Hiiiiii~~~~~~~~~~~~yaaaa!!”
As usual, nocturnal animals are awake at night, and Sora and Shiro are playing a game in their room. The person who bursts through the door with a loud cry enters the room.
—In short, she was a pervert. It’s not that same as that which means transformation, it was a total pervert.
In a way that hides the area from the forehead to the bottom of the neck—to put it simply, she wore panties like a strange mask. She is wearing underwear to the point of saying that clothes are a hinderance. And what should they call the figure that hid her eyes with tinted glasses, not perverted?
“…Eh? I—I don’t think, Steph…right? Is that you?”
Both Sora and Shiro stiffened at the sight of her, and Sora barely managed to confirm it in a shaky voice. However, Steph (maybe?), who has no intention of dealing with such two individuals, announces with high voltage:
“I have finally awakened!”
“No…sorry, but I’m doing the best I can to make it sound like you’re sleepwalking—”
Sora, who barely recognized Steph from her voice, replied with a grimace. But it seems that Steph (tentative) doesn’t want to deal with it, so she points sharply at Sora and shouts!
“Sora—is a pervert!!”
“Yeah, well, there’s no reason to deny it.”
“And—Shiro!!”
She then points to Shiro, this time with a sharpness that even accompanies a buzzing sound, and Steph (allegedly) screams again!
“For this brother, there is his sister! Shiro’s—a naughty pervert too!!”
“…If, it’s the same…as Nii, then…okay…”
Shiro affirmed that there was no reason to deny it, without batting an eye. Steph (mysterious) nodded her head excitedly as her conviction grew even stronger.
“That’s right!! If you want to be good at games, you have to be a pervert!!”
I have come to the truth at last. Her face was obscured by her panties and sunglasses, but her voice had that kind of ring to it.
“…Steph, you’re tired. We’ll reflect on it. We’ve got work to do, so go get some sleep—”
“Last—gaaaaaaaaame!”
No longer hearing anything, Steph’s mind was filled with a myriad of memories. Of this man, of Sora, of this pervert! What they have done so far. After reviewing all of them, there is only one thing left to do this time—!
“My bet is on—Sora! If I win—you have to fall in love with me!”
Bsss sssshhh! The air popped sharply. It vanishes…leaving a vague reverberation. And what greets them is a silence like the deep sea. Only the rays of the sun, which is even deeper than space, warmly shine on Steph.
“…Let’s go to bed, Steph. I’m really sorry. We didn’t mean to push you this far at all.”
“…Steph…take time…to rest…and go back, to your room…okay?”
Sora was grieving, and Shiro made a teary-eyed plea to her—but she ignored them.
“And if I lose—I’ll give you both everything I have!!”
—That’s right. I finally get it, Steph inwardly decided with a clear (maybe) thought. In order to win against Sora—or rather, against “these two,” Shiro’s share was lacking. That is—“preparation”—and “resilience”—! Idiot? Not bad at all! Pervert? That’s fine! If I’m going to win against these two, sanity—is nothing but a distraction. All I need is the same amount of concentration and mental strength. Everything else—is just a distraction. As if to confirm Steph’s conviction, Sora covered his head and mumbled to himself as if he saw it coming.
“…Hey, Shiro. What do we do? This girl’s got a hell of a way of getting to the real truth.”
“…But, Steph…is broken…Shiro did bad…?”
She was feeling really guilty, so she hung on to Sora and he soothed the teary-eyed Shiro.
“No Shiro, it’s my fault. It’s not Shiro’s fault.”
Sora then turns to Steph (the pervert) who stands before him.
“Fufufu…what’s the matter with you two? Are you frightened? Today’s me is not the same as yesterday’s me! Yes, I am now—Neo Stephanie Dola! I can even fly now! Fufu, if you want my autograph, now’s the time to get it, okay?”
When Steph (seriously damaged) said this, Sora held his head in his hands and thought deeply to himself.
—She’s right, regretfully so. Steph was absolutely right. She had finally “gotten it right”—and yet…if she’s broken, there’s nothing that can be done.
“…Okay. I’ll be your opponent. I’ll take full responsibility for what we did to you, Steph.”
As Sora stood up, Shiro grabbed his shirt with a rare look of unease.
“…N-Nii, Steph is, strong now…simple math, eight times as strong…like eight Steph’s…”
“I don’t know what the math is, but that’s a pretty big deal…”
Despite this, Sora turned to the pervert in front of him, determined to do what he had to do.
—His eyes, they were not as relaxed as they usually were, they were as sharp as if he was playing against Shiro. There was only the aura of “seriousness” in the air.
“Steph. Steph~ Can you hear me~?”
“Yes, yes, yes? Is that your signature? Is this a game? Or maybe you—”
“It’s a game. No change in requirements. That’s good—so, what’s the game?”
—Well, Sora is a virgin of eighteen years old. Steph, who has swallowed many of his techniques and tricks has renewed them correctly. In other words—
—He wondered how far Shiro would be able to go against Steph, who seemed to be smarter than Shiro in that regard.
“Now—let the games begin.”
When Steph tells her with a wistful look in her eyes, Sora can assure her of one thing:
—If she were to play against him without Shiro, he would surely be her most formidable opponent ever. With that, Sora was licking his lips and sweating—but regardless, he smiled happily.
——……
“…………Th-That? I…”
“Ah, it seems you’re awake at last.”
“…Steph, welcome back…”
When Steph woke up, she was greeted by the faces of Sora and Shiro. She glanced around and saw that she was in Sora and Shiro’s bed—or futon.
“S-Sora? Shiro? Why…why am I sleeping here?”
—Sleeping?
——I was asleep!?
“—!? H-How long have I been asleep!?”
Sora, gently, restrained Steph, who was trying to get up from the blanket, and replied in a quiet voice.
“You weren’t asleep, you collapsed from overworking yourself. No worries, you were only asleep for a day.
—A day?
The blood drained from Steph’s face as she wondered what she should be relieved about. Sora and Shiro had just told her that she had missed a days’ worth of countless meetings and work.
“We took over Steph’s job…and we just finished it.”
“…Hour by hour.”
“—Eh?”
Sora and Shiro did their work—? No, they did their job—!? If these two are left in charge of politics, they could do some pretty crazy things—
“I know what you’re worried about. Don’t worry, the amount of work Steph was doing, there’s no way Shiro and I could do it alone…we even had help from Ino, Izuna, Jibril, and Miko-san.”
“…………”
She didn’t know why, but when Steph heard that—she was depressed.
“At least you don’t have anymore plans for today, tomorrow, and the day after. Get some more rest.”
“B-But—”
And now I realize, the only thing that no one can beat me at is politics—that I had the courage and will to do so. And yet, those two pulled it off with ease, and Shiro’s part was—
But as of to interrupt her thoughts, Sora told her,
“Steph is doing a great job, even if it’s just Shiro and I, or even Jibril, we can’t do it. Without you, we wouldn’t have been able to do what we do. I wouldn’t say politics is my strongest suit.”
—If I can do that. I likely wouldn’t have had a hard time in our original world, Sora said deeply, and Shiro added on:
“…But, we managed to…do it. Steph, go back, to sleep…”
Steph didn’t notice, but there was a slight anxiety in her eyes. It was a plea for her to go back to sleep, as if Steph (a total pervert) had scared her too much. Meanwhile, Sora looks away, scratches his cheek, and says:
“Well…what the hell. Sorry to make you take on something we’re not good at. But to be honest, the only person who can do it is you, Steph. In fact, if it took me, Shiro, Jibril, the old man, Izuna, and Miko to do it, I thought we could wrap up your work for a week or so and give you some time off—but three days was the limit…so yeah.”
That said, it was a whole day that Steph had slept through. Sora and Shiro say this with fatigued expressions on their faces that proved to her they worked every second to breeze through Steph’s work to give her three days off.
“—That’s great, Steph. Now rest. I don’t want you to collapse again.”
“…Steph, always…safe…”
……
Steph, who is wearing a blanket, asks fearfully:
“S-Sora…”
“Yeah?”
“I-I’m not an idiot, am I?”
“No. You’re a total idiot.”
“—Y-Yes, that’s right…”
“Oh, I mean, you’re a respectable idiot. You have to be an idiot to do a job like that.”
“…Ah…”
“Well, in any case, you should get some rest now, and when you’re done…well, make us some sweets for the first time in a while.”
“…Steph’s sweets…are delicious…”
“…Yes, sir…”
As she hid her face in the blanket, she thought she was having a bad dream, but—in spite of her thoughts, her consciousness faded quickly.
—On the other hand, check out Steph, who is beginning to relax.
“…It somehow worked, huh?”
“…Mm…that was, a bad idea…”
After successfully winning the game against Steph (a total pervert), Sora got everything he wanted. And what he ordered was simple:
—“Forget about today’s events until you understand them, not because you’re restless or broken, but because you’re ready to move on.” I order you to do so, and I give you back all your rights, so go sleep. That’s it.
That was all—
“…Nii, how…did you…win…?”
It was a horrible struggle for Sora to make Shiro say such a thing. It was the first time for even Sora to feel as if he were dealing with Shiro, a strength completely different yet on par to Shiro’s. Therefore, he admitted honestly.
“It’s a good thing Steph didn’t get enough sleep. You can’t beat that thing when it’s not in top form, unless you’re『 』of course.”
Sora seemed to be enjoying himself as he spoke, and Shiro’s cheeks were puffed up somewhat. But Shiro couldn’t deny it. Steph was—well, to put it bluntly: broken. Originally, the right to decide the game was in the hands of the challenger. But he responded with the game that Steph offered. But even with all that—it was clear to see that Steph had played “almost” against her brother.
“If she doesn’t break and reaches that level…it’s going to be fun for sure.”
But Shiro said to Sora, who seemed to be enjoying it:
“…At that time…we will play against her…as『 』…”
“I think it’s time for me to go at her alone again. If you can surpass me the same way I surpassed you—”
Then Sora says, turning a fearless smile to Shiro.
“That is, until I get back over. Then maybe I can beat Shiro this time, huh?”
Shiro also giggles at Sora as a means of provoking him. The room was about to come together nicely until suddenly, they heard Steph talking in her sleep.
“…Munyamunya…eh…are we going for a walk naked…? It’s…uh, no, I can’t help it…right…squishy, oh, everyone’s watching…”
“……”
“……”
—So this is Steph’s true nature. Such thoughts passed through the minds of Sora and Shiro. For the sake of Steph’s dignity, the two of them decided not to ask about it, for now.
—Any major affair has its origins in something trivial and petty. As is often the case, this time it began with just that. In this case, two indolent siblings who don’t work and a girl made to do their work spilled the beans to one another.
—Steph, you’re such an idiot.
—I don’t want to be told that by someone as hopeless as yourself!
That’s all there is to it, really. This marked the beginning of the five days that brought about the “big incident.”
——……
Day Three—Midnight
The Kingdom of Elkia has developed into the Elkia Federation, a country undergoing institutional reform. A cry which was neither the melancholy of the trees nor the asleep echoed within the castle.
“Why—why can’t I winnnnnnnnn!?”
The one who lets out such a cry with tears running down her cheeks to the floor was an idiot. Or, in other words, Stephanie Dola—a poor maiden who bears the coveted title of “Prime Minister” and forced to perform troublesome tasks by two siblings who never help with internal affairs.
“I’m not sure why you’re asking…?”
“…Yeah…?”
On the other hand, looking at her with half-lidded eyes are the two siblings who had been called hopeless. Sora—a young man with black hair and black eyes wearing a shirt that says “I ♥ People”. Shiro—a little girl with long white hair and red eyes who seems to be positioned above her brother’s knees—wearing panties. Scattered on the floor are the games played in the past three days, in which Steph has challenged the two siblings, the strongest gamers of Immanity,『 』, to a game to prove that she’s not an idiot, and has lost in vain.
—Well, not exactly『 』per se. She only challenged the one who called her an idiot—Sora—and still kept losing.
“This is ridiculous! I’ve been reading and imitating Sora’s tricks, so why can’t I win!?”
—Yes. Steph is trying to win against Sora.
In order to get him to stop using the word “idiot” and help her with her work, she had been visiting Sora and Shiro’s room every night for three days straight, playing games, and leaving at sunrise to resume her work. But in the end…she lost every single game. And every time she lost, she was stripped of her clothes, a piece of which was currently on Shiro’s head.
—It’s true that I don’t think I can win against『 』at all. But if it’s against Sora alone, it should be at least a little easier. But no matter how many times I try, I never get a chance to compete, I just lose like I’m being ignored! Steph sobbed internally—her thoughts beginning to overtake her.
“…Well, maybe…I’ll teach you a few things…but the main issue is you aren’t countering too well.”
Shiro sighs as she looks up at her brother on his lap.
—Why not just say, “I’ll show you my moves, so you can do your best”—?
However, Steph turned away at Sora’s words, looked at him, and listened honestly.
“You already know the importance of a poker face in a game, right?”
When Sora confirmed it once more, Steph nodded, frowning. You’re too much of an idiot—Sora continued, interrupting Steph before she tried to answer.
“Truth of the matter is, yours in particular sucks. It’s utterly useless.”
“—Yes?”
Her poker face is useless—Sora looks at Steph with empty eyes.
“Our original world, this world’s Immanity, and somehow Jibril and Izuna—all have ‘micro expressions’ of their own.”
“‘Micro expressions’…you said?”
It’s moments like these when you make up your judgement for a word or a concept that you don’t know. Steph looked up from her prostrate sobbing state and quickly pulled out a notepad. Looking at the scene unfolding before him with a somewhat amused expression, Sora turned on his tablet PC—but didn’t pick it up,
“In the world we came from—there was a psychologist named Paul Ekman.”
He generously shares some of his “special skills” with Steph.
“He explained that regardless of your upbringing or culture, facial expressions, no matter how conscious you are of them, show your emotions for a moment without meaning to—for less than point two five seconds—and that’s called a ‘micro expression.’”
—However, Sora smiles deeply as he elaborates.
When I was a child, I had already understood this very clearly. I couldn’t help but think, “What’s the big deal now, Mr. Scholar?” But he shook his head and laughed at Steph’s enthusiastic notes, as she was unaware of what Sora was thinking.
“Well, I don’t know if it shows up in species other than Immanity, but in the world we came from, they’ve even developed a visual lie detector that makes use of it. ‘The face speaks louder than the tongue,’ they say.”
“T-That means…you can practically read my mind, don’t you think!?”
Steph exclaimed as she looked up from her notes. It was practically magic—or at least, in the realm of a Werebeasts’ super senses. Steph was terrified of the technology of Sora and Shiro’s original world, but Sora smiled and shook his head.
“It’s not that versatile…the only thing you can detect from a micro expression is emotion. For example—”
Sora then asks Steph a tricky—and quite abrupt—question.
“Steph, you actually enjoy having your panties pulled down, don’t you?”
——
“—I…whaaaaat!? Of course not!”
After but a moment, Steph’s reaction was to scream out in disbelief, but—
“…Oh, wow, really?”
Sora, the one who asked the question, was the one who was surprised and excitedly with a “well~” continued.
“The only thing we can get at is emotion…which is why we use the technique of instantaneous response to questions—”
In other words, it was a question asked to see the slight expression on Steph’s face in response to said question. But that slight expression on Steph’s face—would it be okay to tell her? Sora hesitates, but when he sees Steph’s eyes questioning his intentions, he scratches his head and explains.
“The first thing that came to Steph’s face was a small expression of anger. This alone could be taken as a response to an embarrassing question, but just before she shouted, there was no cocooning indicating anger, but rather a raised eyebrow.”
—That’s what it meant.
“Astonishment—how did they find out? Steph, that kind of hobby—”
“Ab-so-lutely not! That’s not truuuuue!!”
The coughing Steph interrupted Sora’s words and denied them, though, Sora let out a “wow”…and took a step back to say:
“Now joy and excitement…no sign of anger again…seriously, Steph?”
“…Steph…are you…a masochist?” Shiro, who was reading a book with Steph’s panties on her head, giggled.
Fighting off the urge to scream again, Steph kept her mouth clamped shut in search for more information. So—looking down and biting her lip—with a smile of shame on her face, she uttered:
“S-Suppose that’s true, hypothetically! A hundred—no, let’s assume for a second that Sora is right!”
I don’t want to take Sora’s word for it. But—if it’s true,
“Are you saying that you’d be able to see through a lie like a Werebeast with just the glimpse of a facial expression!?”
If that’s true, it’s a skill I’d like to acquire at all costs—that’s what Steph thinks.
“That’s impossible.”
The more Steph’s shoulders began to slump, the more she denied it, and Sora continued with Shiro on his lap.
“I told you already. Micro expressions only show emotion. It’s instantaneous and unconscious. Sometimes Steph doesn’t know why she feels the way she does. But not for me! For example, do you watch your reactions, like you just did?”
Just like claiming not to have repeated the eight-year game with Sora. Shiro mumbles half-eyed at Steph’s reaction, which was not as harsh as her brother’s, but way too obvious.
“…Twice emphasized, angry…Steph, that is…proof…of sloppiness…”
“That doesn’t matter! So, how do you do it, Sora!”
Steph stared intently at Sora—ignoring Shiro with her gracious words equating to “I don’t care.”
“I’d tell you, but—it’s pretty hard, okay?”
“I’ll be fine!”
He smiled at Steph, who said she would write everything down and show him. While playing a game with Shiro on his lap, Sora chats about everything he can think of.
“First of all, joy—that is, a smile—is a ‘fake smile’ if it lasts more than four seconds.”
“Eh—?”
“On the other hand, a momentary smile is ingenuine unless the eyes are closed. A sincere smile is one in which the cheeks rise, and the lower eyelids lift. But if it’s only one side of the smile, it’s a distinction—a ‘mockery.’ You can’t tell from the slightest expression who it’s a sneer at. If you also show the trait of disgust, it could be disgust with yourself. With that—”
——
————
“…What do we do? Shall we continue?”
“…T-That’s, enough…”
When Sora asks to go on, seeing that the notepad has been filled with joy, Steph responds with a blank stare. After all this time, Steph realized that she didn’t feel like she could read a point two five second facial expression. It’s really too late for that. Sora chuckled as she looked at him for help, as if she couldn’t give up.
“—Well, it takes some practice, but it’s quite easy to counteract.”
Yes, it’s that simple.
“Cover your face, that’s all.”
At one point, Steph stood up with a puffy face.
“O-Oh, I see! Then I can put it into practice right away!!”
I’ll have to keep my face covered in that case—Steph thought to herself.
“Yes, you’re right. And then—if you cover your face, they’ll focus on your voice and movements.”
“……Yes, that’s right. That’s the kind of person…Sora is.”
Steph inwardly wondered—how fun it would be to lift him up and push him down to the ground? She replied—Sora would reply “This is the most fun I’ve ever had!” and laugh it off. Steph glances at Sora with half an eye, but surprisingly, Sora continues his explanation carefully.
“However, voice and movement are not as instantaneous as micro expressions. Aside from people like Izuna, who can even read blood flow and the sounds of ones heartbeat, if you’re dealing with an Immanity, you can mislead them with your conscious mind—”
—Hoho… Steph smiled deeply. I mean, if you’re dealing with Immanity, Sora—that’s how he sees what Steph’s thinking. In fact, she used the exact same method that he said she would use, and Sora, who literally read her, laughed at the irony.
“—but, of course you can use that too. Sorry Steph, but do you honestly think that’s gonna work on me?”
“U-Uhh…”
Yes, now that her thoughts have been completely read, Steph can’t even gulp. It was Sora, of all people, who had taught her this whole process in the first place. If your trying to compete with Sora in a field where his skill level is overwhelmingly distinct, that’s exactly where he comes in. Steph was nodding her head in thought—but then she suddenly realized something.
“…Well, that and…”
With some shade covering his face, Sora smiles self-deprecatingly—and warns her:
“Don’t think that I’m going to be conscious of it on a regular basis. It’s not that good, you know.”
“……”
Shiro, who had weighed in on the truth and weight of Sora’s words, silently slumped in Sora’s lap.
—It’s too obvious. What it means is that—
“…Yeah? Why is that?”
A girl who is a perfect example of what it means to be a good girl—the image of a young man reflected in Steph’s blue eyes—that is, Sora, with his “disgust” for himself, patted Shiro on the head and smiled enviously.
“…Well, I guess we don’t have to worry about that with Steph. Okay, so—what’s next?”
—Said Sora, who raises his mouth fearlessly. The game continued until dawn, in which by then Steph had been stripped down to nothing but a bed sheet…
Day Four—Also at Midnight
Normally, Steph barges in through the door, but today, she knocks properly and leisurely—and with that, Steph appeared in Sora and Shiro’s room once again, looking confident of victory.
“Today’s the day to end your career, Sora. Are you ready to finally work?”
Steph questioned the half-eyed siblings, asking in a fearless and elegant manner.
“…Hey, it’s not for us to really say.”
“…Steph…when are you…sleeping?”
“Reaaaally. You two don’t have the right to say that? You’d better be ready to work!”
—Sora and Shiro are practically nocturnal animals, they have no problem with this. During the day, Steph is probably busy with her work as Prime Minister. And at night, she visits Sora and Shiro—playing games with them until sunrise. This has been the case for the past few days. The dark circles around her eyes, indicating fatigue, are darker than they were yesterday, and they should respect her vitality…but, unfortunately for her, it’ll never be justified.
—Yes. It never would. Because—
“This game is very simple.”
—Steph herself doesn’t even realize it. Sora and Shiro can almost predict what will happen next.
“Sora will win if he finds the thing I’ve hidden in the castle!”
To Steph, who was shouting about today’s game, Shiro was thinking about ending it rather quickly, but Sora stopped her with a glance. And then—
“—Ah~ So there’s a thing…and you expect us to find it without any hints?”
“I wrote the word ‘this’on it. I’m not going to be cowardly and say, ‘this isn’t it,’ after it’s been found.”
Hmmm, Sora thought. He kept his face down as Steph confidently explained. His face was only visible to Shiro, who is in a fixed position—that is, in Sora’s lap. Sora’s eyes were downcast, and his face prostrate. He felt like screaming.
—I want to tell her that I already know where she hid it—
However, with great mental strength, he suppresses his desire and says something more interesting than that.
“…No matter how I do it, if I find it, I win, right?”
Shiro, who has known Sora for many years, understood the meaning of his distinct expression when he asked that question.
—He was well aware of what Steph’s answer would be.
“No, it wouldn’t be a game if you could bring someone like Izuna-san or Jibril-san who can trace by scent or psychic reaction. This is a game between you and I, Sora!”
Steph’s answer was just as expected, and the smile on Sora’s face spoke volumes about its purpose. That is—he said it was nothing more than “guidance.”
“A game between only you and I…and I assume I can’t just guess where it is, right?”
“Of course! Feel free to search, but I’ll make sure you don’t rely on anyone else!”
—Of course? Oh, of course. Otherwise, if you say a place here and there, it will hit you at some point, and you’ll need to monitor it. Yes, of course. Then—we have no choice, do we? Isn’t that right? With a chuckle, Sora gently lifted Shiro up off of his lap and began walking away,
“I see, I see…oh well…It can’t be helped…I’m not sure I like it either~”
When Shiro saw him standing up with a goofy expression on his face, she understood.
“…Nii…that’s really…bad…”
“Shiro! Don’t say a damn thing! Your brother’s gonna hang himself if you do, okay!?”
Sora shouts with a melancholy face, despite the ember in his voice.
“…Sorry…I said, too much…but Nii…”
Shiro really wants to apologize, but since she knows what her brother wants, she can’t just give in— “Shiro! This is a one-on-one game with me, according to the rules Steph laid out! It’s an inescapable situation! Or is it that Shiro thinks it’s okay for her brother to lose!? Hmm~~~~~~!?”
However—Shiro has been with her brother for eight years. She seems to know how to handle him—
“…Nii, in confusion…rejected…”
That single word, she expressed “Sora’s excitement.” Sora hardens with a look of despair, as if a gong had been rung inside him. But it was only for a moment, and then he lost his temper—no, Sora, who’s mauve cells have been activated, changes his mind with frightening adaptability. This is a much less pleasant turn of events than they had originally planned, but—
“…Well, okay. Now, Steph, give me your hand.”
“Well, um, okay?”
When Sora held out his palm, Steph put her hand over his.
“Now, we’re going to play interesting game, okay?”
Sora says with a big smile on his face, squeezing her hand lightly.
“Steph—tell me where you hid it.”
“Y-Yes…?”
I’m not telling you—He ignored Steph, who was just about to say that. Sora moved Steph’s hand slowly, as if he didn’t want to be told from the start. Up and down, left and right, as if checking something—and then… Then, slowly, with a hint of hesitation—
“Wai—!?”
He led Steph’s hand up her own skirt.
“Well, Steph, it’s a shame I can’t take it off myself, as I’ve been told not to touch it.”
With a deep sigh of regret, but without a doubt in his mind, Sora declares:
“Let me see what’s in your panties.”
“——”
Stunned. There’s no other emotions or words that comes to mind, and Steph does as she’s told. She took out a slip of paper with the word “this” written on it…which she had put inside her underwear. As soon as he saw the word “this” written on the page, Sora smiled and said,
“Here we go. Are you sure this is a win for me?”
Steph, who hasn’t recovered from the tragic events that had unfolded, burst into laughter when Sora called out to her.
“—Oh no, how did you—how did you know!?”
Sora replied to Steph, who seriously doubted that she could even use magic, but Sora was blasé.
“Steph, hypothetically, what if someone asked you to show them to Steph’s underwear drawer?”
“I…I would reject——ah…”
—Sora was quite impressed with Steph’s attempt—and Steph herself seemed to have noticed that. So yes, Steph wasn’t stupid at all. Rather, she is quite intelligent. That’s why it’s easy to read her thoughts. If you were a real idiot, you wouldn’t be able to read what the other is doing.
“So, when you’re being led in a direction you don’t want to go, no matter how conscious you are of it—well, the more conscious you are of it, the more you try to go against it. In order words, if I’m asked to tell you where something is that I don’t want you to find, it’s in the direction I’m straining. It’s a cheap psychological trick that I would hesitate to even call a magic trick.”
He looked at Steph, who looked at him with admiration, but…
“…Nii, that’s…a lie.”
Shiro dismissed it as a lie. Of course, it is—because…
“…Nii, knew from the beginning…what the game, was…and where it was…”
“—Y-Yeah!?”
Steph shouted in response to the words, which were too much to handle, but Sora nodded nonchalantly.
“Of course…Steph, who usually breaks down doors without knocking, came into the room with minimal movement today… It’s natural to assume that she has something in there she doesn’t want to fall out as she moves.”
Leaving behind Steph, who could do nothing but pant and moan inaudibly, Sora also took his place. In other words, he sat down with Shiro in his lap and continued.
“In addition to that, I talked about micro expressions yesterday, and today. There is a preparation. A look of confidence that you will win. And yet, I’m not hiding my face. In other words, I’m confident that even if I were about to lose, I wouldn’t even make a micro expression—”
—If that were the case, it’d be a lot easier to talk about. No matter how much preparation you do, if it’s preparing to cheat, you can lose. If you’re certain that you can’t even get a micro expression using a trick, then the meaning is simple. Such preparation—is not meant to be used. In that case, what’s the point of preparation?
“‘A treasure hunt game where the preparation itself is the treasure’—If Steph has it, you won’t see it on her face anywhere you look.”
So, let’s say that she did hide something within the castle. Given that the day before they talked about micro expressions, Steph should have expected to have one on her face as Sora approached the location of the treasure. A place where she would be accompanied by someone to monitor her and where her face would remain stagnant no matter where she looked. There is no better place to hide such a thing than in one’s own possession—plus—
“I’ll be the first to admit, Steph, that you were on a pretty good track this time. Even though I own it, I haven’t lost it yet! And considering that I’ve been a virgin for eighteen years, and that Shiro is here, you hid it in a place where no one could find out about it even if the police tried! You did your best, but…”
Empty heartfelt praise. But—
“—still not enough.”
The moment she entered the room, she was defeated—a fact that brought Steph to her knees. But Shiro mumbled again to Sora, who told him with a stern face.
“…Nii, another lie…”
“—Huh?”
Shiro continued, abandoning Steph, who looked as if she was about to lose her mind, wondering what more there was to lie about.
“…The problem…is not, there…”
“Yeah, I changed my mind halfway through. Steph—she wanted me to find it.”
“Eh? What do you mean—”
—Yes, both Sora and Shiro saw through the charade that Steph had planted the treasure in her body. However, there’s no way to pinpoint exactly where it is. I used it as an excuse to touch things around within a healthy range—that was Sora’s initial idea. Shiro had nailed him, and whimpering—Sora had to change his plans. In other words…
“Oi, Steph, you know that psychological trick you pulled earlier where you direct it where you don’t want me to find it?”
“Y-Yes…?”
“At that time, your hand didn’t actually resist any direction.”
“————Eh?”
“So, I’ll admit, I was a little confused, but for some reason I didn’t resist directing my hand down to your lower body.”
—Now, how should I interpret it in this case?
“Two possibilities!” Sora raised two fingers to the ceiling and shouted, “One, you wanted to see how I could find the thing you hid with absolute certainty, and what method I would use if I were to lose in this game where even the mention of micro expressions was used against me. Two, if it’s in your panties, you’ll usually resist unconditionally. The fact that there was no resistance means—”
And then, on Sora’s lap, with half-lidded eyes, Shiro’s word came straight from the heart.
“…Steph is, a pervert…”
——
—————
“That’s…not true—I don’t believe iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit!”
Steph had no choice but to run out of the room, red-faced and sobbing. Meanwhile, Shiro spills out after seeing her off.
“…Nii, Steph, today…was pretty amazing, huh?”
“Yeah. I even factored in the relationship between Shiro and I—it’s getting good, isn’t it?”
Sora smiled happily, but Shiro said with a slight pout:
“…But Shiro is…stronger…”
“I know, sis. But if she’s like me, if she can get past me first—”
Without another word, Sora just smiled wryly and looked in the direction Steph had run off in—
Day Five—Evening
There was a figure walking around in Elkia Royal Castle like a hero.
“…Am I perverted, by any chance…?”
She is Stephanie Dola, the person who still hasn’t recovered from the pain Shiro’s words caused in her heart. It was the fifth day of pulling all-nighters, and she was beyond exhausted, not to mention being called a pervert by an eleven-year-old. While she had called Sora and Shiro hopeless, there was a possibility that she was the biggest pervert of all. This suspicion made her even more unsteady—
“Stuch, what are you doing with your face, desu?”
The one who approached Steph as she staggered along was the former ambassador of the Eastern Union to Elkia. She was a young Werebeast with black hair and fennec-like ears. Steph said—looking at Izuna with lightless eyes that saw angels—or maybe dummies.
“Ah~ Izuna-san. That’s right, Izuna-san, you’re perfect~”
—If, as Sora said, the conscious and unconscious are intertwined and show up in micro expressions. With the five sense of a Werebeast, you may be able to detect your lies—your unconscious. She said that what Sora was saying was bullshit and that she was not a pervert. If it’s Izuna, if it’s this honest and clever girl’s words, she can forget about Sora’s words—!
“Izuna-san, can you tell me what I’m about to say and whether it’s true or not?”
She sensed something in Steph’s drowsy eyes.
“Stuch, you’re in a lot of trouble, desu. If there’s anything I can do, leave it to me, desu.”
Izuna nodded deeply with a sense of mission. She was on the verge of Blood Break, and her nerves on edge as she tried not to give away any information about Steph. Such was the state of Izuna. With determination—Steph said:
“—I…am not a pervert.”
……
……………
—Izuna doesn’t know what the word “pervert” means. But intuitively, she wondered if she should be honest. But Steph asked her to tell her if it was true or not—so she did.
“…Smells like bullshit, desu.”
She honestly complied with her request. Instantly—the strength drained from Steph’s body.
——……Haha.
——————Ha, haha. Hahahahaha.
“…Yes, yes. I’m sure you’re right. Yeah, that’s right, I understand…thank you very much, Izuna-san♪ I feel as if a lucky charm has fallen on me~♪”
“I-Is that so, desu? Rather, I feel like something strange is possessing you, de—”
However, Izuna’s comments no longer fell on deaf ears. Steph felt light and couldn’t help but dance and thank her.
“Thank you so much~♥ I’ll treat you to as many fish dishes as you like later on as a thank you~♥”
—I don’t know why. Even Izuna herself doesn’t know why. I’ll treat you to as many fish dishes as you like—that’s what she should have said. But for some reason—maybe it’s her intuition as a Werebeast, or maybe just a hunch. It was as if—it felt—like a testament—
“…S-Stuch! No, that’s wrong, desu! Stuch isn’t a pervert, de—”
Izuna bursts into tears, feeling that she has done something irreparable. She rushes to retract her statement and even tries to tell a lie, which she hates, but Steph skips and disappears into the depths of the castle as if she could no longer hear anything…and then…
The Same Day (Day Five)—Midnight
“Hiiiiii~~~~~~~~~~~~yaaaa!!”
As usual, nocturnal animals are awake at night, and Sora and Shiro are playing a game in their room. The person who bursts through the door with a loud cry enters the room.
—In short, she was a pervert. It’s not that same as that which means transformation, it was a total pervert.
In a way that hides the area from the forehead to the bottom of the neck—to put it simply, she wore panties like a strange mask. She is wearing underwear to the point of saying that clothes are a hinderance. And what should they call the figure that hid her eyes with tinted glasses, not perverted?
“…Eh? I—I don’t think, Steph…right? Is that you?”
Both Sora and Shiro stiffened at the sight of her, and Sora barely managed to confirm it in a shaky voice. However, Steph (maybe?), who has no intention of dealing with such two individuals, announces with high voltage:
“I have finally awakened!”
“No…sorry, but I’m doing the best I can to make it sound like you’re sleepwalking—”
Sora, who barely recognized Steph from her voice, replied with a grimace. But it seems that Steph (tentative) doesn’t want to deal with it, so she points sharply at Sora and shouts!
“Sora—is a pervert!!”
“Yeah, well, there’s no reason to deny it.”
“And—Shiro!!”
She then points to Shiro, this time with a sharpness that even accompanies a buzzing sound, and Steph (allegedly) screams again!
“For this brother, there is his sister! Shiro’s—a naughty pervert too!!”
“…If, it’s the same…as Nii, then…okay…”
Shiro affirmed that there was no reason to deny it, without batting an eye. Steph (mysterious) nodded her head excitedly as her conviction grew even stronger.
“That’s right!! If you want to be good at games, you have to be a pervert!!”
I have come to the truth at last. Her face was obscured by her panties and sunglasses, but her voice had that kind of ring to it.
“…Steph, you’re tired. We’ll reflect on it. We’ve got work to do, so go get some sleep—”
“Last—gaaaaaaaaame!”
No longer hearing anything, Steph’s mind was filled with a myriad of memories. Of this man, of Sora, of this pervert! What they have done so far. After reviewing all of them, there is only one thing left to do this time—!
“My bet is on—Sora! If I win—you have to fall in love with me!”
Bsss sssshhh! The air popped sharply. It vanishes…leaving a vague reverberation. And what greets them is a silence like the deep sea. Only the rays of the sun, which is even deeper than space, warmly shine on Steph.
“…Let’s go to bed, Steph. I’m really sorry. We didn’t mean to push you this far at all.”
“…Steph…take time…to rest…and go back, to your room…okay?”
Sora was grieving, and Shiro made a teary-eyed plea to her—but she ignored them.
“And if I lose—I’ll give you both everything I have!!”
—That’s right. I finally get it, Steph inwardly decided with a clear (maybe) thought. In order to win against Sora—or rather, against “these two,” Shiro’s share was lacking. That is—“preparation”—and “resilience”—! Idiot? Not bad at all! Pervert? That’s fine! If I’m going to win against these two, sanity—is nothing but a distraction. All I need is the same amount of concentration and mental strength. Everything else—is just a distraction. As if to confirm Steph’s conviction, Sora covered his head and mumbled to himself as if he saw it coming.
“…Hey, Shiro. What do we do? This girl’s got a hell of a way of getting to the real truth.”
“…But, Steph…is broken…Shiro did bad…?”
She was feeling really guilty, so she hung on to Sora and he soothed the teary-eyed Shiro.
“No Shiro, it’s my fault. It’s not Shiro’s fault.”
Sora then turns to Steph (the pervert) who stands before him.
“Fufufu…what’s the matter with you two? Are you frightened? Today’s me is not the same as yesterday’s me! Yes, I am now—Neo Stephanie Dola! I can even fly now! Fufu, if you want my autograph, now’s the time to get it, okay?”
When Steph (seriously damaged) said this, Sora held his head in his hands and thought deeply to himself.
—She’s right, regretfully so. Steph was absolutely right. She had finally “gotten it right”—and yet…if she’s broken, there’s nothing that can be done.
“…Okay. I’ll be your opponent. I’ll take full responsibility for what we did to you, Steph.”
As Sora stood up, Shiro grabbed his shirt with a rare look of unease.
“…N-Nii, Steph is, strong now…simple math, eight times as strong…like eight Steph’s…”
“I don’t know what the math is, but that’s a pretty big deal…”
Despite this, Sora turned to the pervert in front of him, determined to do what he had to do.
—His eyes, they were not as relaxed as they usually were, they were as sharp as if he was playing against Shiro. There was only the aura of “seriousness” in the air.
“Steph. Steph~ Can you hear me~?”
“Yes, yes, yes? Is that your signature? Is this a game? Or maybe you—”
“It’s a game. No change in requirements. That’s good—so, what’s the game?”
—Well, Sora is a virgin of eighteen years old. Steph, who has swallowed many of his techniques and tricks has renewed them correctly. In other words—
—He wondered how far Shiro would be able to go against Steph, who seemed to be smarter than Shiro in that regard.
“Now—let the games begin.”
When Steph tells her with a wistful look in her eyes, Sora can assure her of one thing:
—If she were to play against him without Shiro, he would surely be her most formidable opponent ever. With that, Sora was licking his lips and sweating—but regardless, he smiled happily.
——……
“…………Th-That? I…”
“Ah, it seems you’re awake at last.”
“…Steph, welcome back…”
When Steph woke up, she was greeted by the faces of Sora and Shiro. She glanced around and saw that she was in Sora and Shiro’s bed—or futon.
“S-Sora? Shiro? Why…why am I sleeping here?”
—Sleeping?
——I was asleep!?
“—!? H-How long have I been asleep!?”
Sora, gently, restrained Steph, who was trying to get up from the blanket, and replied in a quiet voice.
“You weren’t asleep, you collapsed from overworking yourself. No worries, you were only asleep for a day.
—A day?
The blood drained from Steph’s face as she wondered what she should be relieved about. Sora and Shiro had just told her that she had missed a days’ worth of countless meetings and work.
“We took over Steph’s job…and we just finished it.”
“…Hour by hour.”
“—Eh?”
Sora and Shiro did their work—? No, they did their job—!? If these two are left in charge of politics, they could do some pretty crazy things—
“I know what you’re worried about. Don’t worry, the amount of work Steph was doing, there’s no way Shiro and I could do it alone…we even had help from Ino, Izuna, Jibril, and Miko-san.”
“…………”
She didn’t know why, but when Steph heard that—she was depressed.
“At least you don’t have anymore plans for today, tomorrow, and the day after. Get some more rest.”
“B-But—”
And now I realize, the only thing that no one can beat me at is politics—that I had the courage and will to do so. And yet, those two pulled it off with ease, and Shiro’s part was—
But as of to interrupt her thoughts, Sora told her,
“Steph is doing a great job, even if it’s just Shiro and I, or even Jibril, we can’t do it. Without you, we wouldn’t have been able to do what we do. I wouldn’t say politics is my strongest suit.”
—If I can do that. I likely wouldn’t have had a hard time in our original world, Sora said deeply, and Shiro added on:
“…But, we managed to…do it. Steph, go back, to sleep…”
Steph didn’t notice, but there was a slight anxiety in her eyes. It was a plea for her to go back to sleep, as if Steph (a total pervert) had scared her too much. Meanwhile, Sora looks away, scratches his cheek, and says:
“Well…what the hell. Sorry to make you take on something we’re not good at. But to be honest, the only person who can do it is you, Steph. In fact, if it took me, Shiro, Jibril, the old man, Izuna, and Miko to do it, I thought we could wrap up your work for a week or so and give you some time off—but three days was the limit…so yeah.”
That said, it was a whole day that Steph had slept through. Sora and Shiro say this with fatigued expressions on their faces that proved to her they worked every second to breeze through Steph’s work to give her three days off.
“—That’s great, Steph. Now rest. I don’t want you to collapse again.”
“…Steph, always…safe…”
……
Steph, who is wearing a blanket, asks fearfully:
“S-Sora…”
“Yeah?”
“I-I’m not an idiot, am I?”
“No. You’re a total idiot.”
“—Y-Yes, that’s right…”
“Oh, I mean, you’re a respectable idiot. You have to be an idiot to do a job like that.”
“…Ah…”
“Well, in any case, you should get some rest now, and when you’re done…well, make us some sweets for the first time in a while.”
“…Steph’s sweets…are delicious…”
“…Yes, sir…”
As she hid her face in the blanket, she thought she was having a bad dream, but—in spite of her thoughts, her consciousness faded quickly.
—On the other hand, check out Steph, who is beginning to relax.
“…It somehow worked, huh?”
“…Mm…that was, a bad idea…”
After successfully winning the game against Steph (a total pervert), Sora got everything he wanted. And what he ordered was simple:
—“Forget about today’s events until you understand them, not because you’re restless or broken, but because you’re ready to move on.” I order you to do so, and I give you back all your rights, so go sleep. That’s it.
That was all—
“…Nii, how…did you…win…?”
It was a horrible struggle for Sora to make Shiro say such a thing. It was the first time for even Sora to feel as if he were dealing with Shiro, a strength completely different yet on par to Shiro’s. Therefore, he admitted honestly.
“It’s a good thing Steph didn’t get enough sleep. You can’t beat that thing when it’s not in top form, unless you’re『 』of course.”
Sora seemed to be enjoying himself as he spoke, and Shiro’s cheeks were puffed up somewhat. But Shiro couldn’t deny it. Steph was—well, to put it bluntly: broken. Originally, the right to decide the game was in the hands of the challenger. But he responded with the game that Steph offered. But even with all that—it was clear to see that Steph had played “almost” against her brother.
“If she doesn’t break and reaches that level…it’s going to be fun for sure.”
But Shiro said to Sora, who seemed to be enjoying it:
“…At that time…we will play against her…as『 』…”
“I think it’s time for me to go at her alone again. If you can surpass me the same way I surpassed you—”
Then Sora says, turning a fearless smile to Shiro.
“That is, until I get back over. Then maybe I can beat Shiro this time, huh?”
Shiro also giggles at Sora as a means of provoking him. The room was about to come together nicely until suddenly, they heard Steph talking in her sleep.
“…Munyamunya…eh…are we going for a walk naked…? It’s…uh, no, I can’t help it…right…squishy, oh, everyone’s watching…”
“……”
“……”
—So this is Steph’s true nature. Such thoughts passed through the minds of Sora and Shiro. For the sake of Steph’s dignity, the two of them decided not to ask about it, for now.
