Chapter 231: Pinky Swear with the Demon

Tick. Tock.

The hands of the Clock on the wall made a cold sound in the dead silence of early morning.

Kaoru Hoshitani painfully peeled a shred of clarity out of the heavy haze of his high fever.

His eyelids were as heavy as lead, but heavier than his body was the suffocating feeling of being deprived even of breath.

‘It’s not a dream…’

The old cotton pajamas that had been stripped away, that layer of homewear as thin as cicada wings, and the cold fingertips roaming over his skin…

All of it was real.

The pain left deep in his body and the indescribable wrongness kept tearing at his Rationality in waves as his temperature rose.

And beside him, only a breath away, came breathing so steady it was almost fake.

It was Chinatsu Ayase.

The semi-transparent homewear full of humiliating meaning from last night was gone; she had changed back into the neat outfit from the beginning, with even the collar buttoned tight.

She lay by his side in a perfect pose of “dutifully guarding the patient,” but the arm draped over him was like a soft yet indestructible iron lock barred across his waist.

“Whimper…”

Kazune bit down hard on his lower lip and swallowed back the shudder that almost escaped.

Extreme fear crawled up his spine like a maggot feeding on bone.

He realized Chika’s arm was pressing against his side waist, and he did not dare change even the rhythm of his breathing, afraid that a slightly stronger rise of his chest would wake the monster lurking beneath the skin of the perfect Senior.

He could only stiffly roll his eyes in an extremely twisted posture and look toward the half-open Bedroom Door.

Outside was dead silent.

There was no sign that Aina had come back.

But through the gap in the Door, he clearly saw an umbrella still dripping water on the Foyer floor—Aina had come back.

‘She came back, but she did not come in?’

‘Why?’

‘Was she… afraid to come in?’

‘Did she… notice something?’

‘Where is she now?’

‘Did she rush back into the storm, or is she hiding in some corner breaking down alone?’

When he thought of Aina’s despairing back as she left in the storm while he lay in the warm heated table, held in another Woman’s arms as if she owned him…

A strong sense of betrayal, guilt, and extreme fear of Chika beside him instantly wove into a pair of invisible hands that gripped his throat hard.

‘Bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad————’

In Kaoru Hoshitani’s mind, a shrill alarm was blaring madly.

In his sight was Chinatsu Ayase’s face, so close, beautiful yet horrifying.

The memories of last night stirred madly in his fevered brain like shattered glass.

Those cold touches, the pajamas forcibly stripped away, and that suffocating phrase “checking the internal temperature”—it was not a dream…

All of it was reality that had truly happened!

Freedom—it was Freedom—his Freedom had been taken away!

He instinctively tried to reach out and feel for the Mobile Phone by the Bed, wanting to contact the only person who could Rescue him.

‘Aina… come back quickly, Aina…’

However, a soft palm gently pressed down on his wrist.

“Looking for your Mobile Phone, Xun Jun? You must not play with electronics when you are sick.”

Chika’s smile was so gentle it left no opening, as if she truly were a dutiful and perfect Senior.

But deep in her eyes was a condescending desire to control, and like a truck charging at full speed, it crushed Kaoru Hoshitani’s tiny resistance to pieces.

A chasm of power!

Before Chika, the still-feverish Kaoru Hoshitani’s resistance was so weak that saying it was like crushing an ant would be giving him too much credit!

The boy spoke of his fear; he was not afraid of the torment of the fever, nor was he some cowardly type who ran from trouble.

But he was afraid Aina would discover everything, and even more afraid that the daily life he had barely managed to hold dear would collapse completely.

This was Despair, a considerable Despair.

He chose to hide last night’s humiliation in order to keep Aina Saiten, and to keep Aina from noticing anything so he could better maintain the false peace.

“So… please… leave this place…”

Kaoru Hoshitani hugged himself and, as if holding back sobs, as if using every ounce of strength in his words, revealed his fear to Chinatsu Ayase.

“Aina is so sharp. If you keep staying here, Aina will find out what you did to me… if she finds out, if she finds out… Aina and I will be finished…”

Before he begged, Kaoru Hoshitani had thought this in his heart.

He had considered many possibilities, but not once did he consider Chika’s reaction next.

She had her own thoughts.

Chinatsu Ayase had an intention not to leave the Apartment, and that intention had nothing to do with simply “taking care of her junior”; it was a more terrifying and more urgent Dream.

—Last night, Chika had led that violation, continuously oppressing and controlling the feverish Victim.

Her desire had been fulfilled, and she was happy, so she wanted this time of control to last a little longer.

It was nothing more than a twisted Dream.

“Senior Chika… will you let me go? This filthy me…”

Kaoru Hoshitani’s eyes were full of pain, far more pain than when his clothes had been stripped off.

Compared with the loss of dignity, what he feared more was being discovered by Aina; that was a punishment far beyond death.

“I won’t tell her.”

Chinatsu Ayase answered immediately.

“This is just… a tiny bit of ordinary daily life that a boy trying hard to protect his Girlfriend hopes for. If even this daily life had to be destroyed…”

“Then wouldn’t my title as the [Bad-Heart Senior] be completely confirmed?”

Chika smiled gently and showed her sweet smile.

She placed her hand on Kaoru Hoshitani’s head.

She gently soothed the boy who was still trembling.

Even when facing illness, even when facing the torment of a high fever, the boy named Kaoru Hoshitani would not show this kind of fear.

Only this—he was so afraid Aina would discover the Truth and be disgusted by him; that was a punishment far beyond death.

Kaoru Hoshitani fell silent like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered, hanging his head, and even the usually clear light in his eyes was gone.

“Wanting to protect your own daily life is correct. If someone has to be wrong…”

Chinatsu Ayase wanted to say it was the slow-witted Aina who was running away outside.

But when the words reached her lips, she did not say them.

“Give your Secret to me, Xun Jun. Give me the sin you are hiding.”

“…………”

“Please, rely on me. Even if you will not rely on that Aina who abandoned you last night, please believe in the Chinatsu Ayase standing before you now, after last night!”

Kaoru Hoshitani’s silent lips trembled slowly, and he replied in a small voice:

“Senior… you are the demon…”

“Ah, you have already said that many times.” Chinatsu Ayase agreed with a smile.

“Even though you know I do not want to hide it from her… you still force me to hide it… and with this… I have no way to refuse… Aina is a very important existence, Senior Chika…”

“Are you… crying?”

Chinatsu Ayase looked down at the boy’s face; he had his head lowered, but she could hear the sound of his sobbing.

“N-no, I’m not, I’m not… this is fear, the tears of someone with nowhere left to go…”

Chinatsu Ayase mercilessly lifted Kaoru Hoshitani’s face in her hands.

“What is this? You are already [Pear Blossoms Bathed in Rain]… stop crying. I still prefer that expression you make when you resist me.”

Kaoru Hoshitani gave a despairing “mm.”

Then he made an expression uglier than crying, with glistening tears at the corners of his eyes; as he said, these were not tears of joy but tears of humiliation.

“Senior must be a devil, why are you so skilled—”

He tried to say it with the last shred of a rebellious tone.

“I’m very sorry, but there really are not many boys I pay this much attention to. You are the first.” Chinatsu Ayase said.

“Liar. Senior clearly has the feeling of someone who just dealt with Aina and put on a disguise.”

“I am not disguised at all!”

Chinatsu Ayase denied it with a smile, and for a moment the two finally met each other’s eyes, the depths of their pupils reflecting the other’s form.

“Pfft—”

“What are you laughing at…”

“Because you are laughing too, Xun Jun.”

“Is that so? It must be because you forced me, that’s why I made this expression!”

“Xun Jun is pushing the problem onto me again!”

Chika stuck out her tongue and complained like an ordinary girl next door.

“How is this possibly anything but your problem? I would never laugh out loud in such a terrifying situation!” Kaoru Hoshitani shot back through clenched teeth; this was the last of his pride.

“It must be because [a guilty conscience blames the Senior for not reminding them].”

Chika had learned the saying from who knew where.

But against Kaoru Hoshitani, who had been driven to a dead end, it was useless.

“Heh, then Senior must also have said [the Senior forced her way in, and hiding it all depends on yourself].”

By the end, both of them fell silent without meaning to. Kaoru Hoshitani let out a dry laugh uglier than crying; this was their twisted way of getting along now.

“All right, confirm it, Xun Jun—this debt you are going to hide.”

Chinatsu Ayase felt the timing was about right and continued.

“Th-then Senior Chika absolutely must keep the Promise we just made and not tell Aina…” Kaoru Hoshitani answered in Despair.

Hearing that, Chinatsu Ayase held out her right hand and extended her little finger.

“Hm?” Kaoru Hoshitani froze for a moment, not quite understanding what it meant.

“Have you never done this with anyone? Then let me teach you. Hold out your little finger.” Chinatsu Ayase said.

Kaoru Hoshitani did not dare resist and tremblingly held out his little finger as well.

Chinatsu Ayase hooked her little finger around Kaoru Hoshitani’s little finger.

“Is this some kind of one-sided declaration, Senior…”

“Yes, it is the ceremony for setting the debt account contract. Listen carefully—”

[Pinky Swear Debt Contract]

As their thumbs finally pressed together, it meant the [Knowledge Debt] Account Book was formally established.

“A thousand debts… Senior Chika, repaying my debt is going to be pretty deadly!”

“Heh heh, heh heh, I know, of course I know.” Chinatsu Ayase gave a charming laugh at that.

“First, you are not forbidden from secretly contacting Aina.”

“Hm?”

“This is the first rule of the Knowledge Debt Account Book, the rule I set for Xun Jun, and also… the most expensive one of all the debts.”

Kaoru Hoshitani chewed over the meaning of the first rule, and suddenly, he seemed to realize something—

Every time he sought help from Aina, every time he tried to hide the traces Chika left before Aina, every time he struggled between the two women, he would come to rely on Chika more and more, until the day came when he could never return to Aina’s side!

“See, Xun Jun is showing the expression I like again. This is Xun Jun, my favorite Xun Jun with nowhere left to run.”