Tale of Discovery

With nothing left to do, I exited the Fraxinus with Kotori in my arms as I began flying in the direction of our home.

Unlike earlier when we flew from the house to the ship, Kotori's body is covered by a black coat in order to prevent her from feeling cold, or at least, not as much as before.

As for her face, she simply resorted to burying it into my chest instead as a solution.

Shortly, I arrive right on top of the house and proceed to land in front of the front door.

Frankly, I would've preferred to phase through the roof and directly arrive in my room, but since I have already reached the limited number of times I can use the ability in one day, that's not possible.

As such, I set Kotori down on the ground before reaching my arm out to the door handle and lowering it, only for the door to not budge at all as I push it.

"They locked the door," I say in a slightly exasperated tone.

Well, whatever. Something like this not that troubling.

To deal with our little issue, I use my senses to carefully check the door's locking mechanism out for a few seconds before telekinetically unlocking it.

"Let's go inside," I say as I push the door open.

---

How did it end up like this?

Currently, I am sitting with my back against a sofa in the living room, and to my sides are the twin sisters, who, for some reason, are pressing their bodies against my shoulder.

Now, it's not like I dislike the sensation or anything, but the other girls are giving me some rather cold looks.

Why? Well, it probably has something to do with Kaguya's exclamation from a minute ago, regarding how it's about time that she and Yuzuru began putting a serious attempt into seducing me.

Claiming that due to me being busy quite a bit, they never had their chance, and now since we're at home and I have nothing to do until it's time to go to bed, they're launching an all-out attack without a care for how the rest feel about all this.

"How is it," Kaguya says as she brings her face closer to mine and tightens her grip on my hand, "Do you feel aroused by Kaguya's divine body yet?"

I probably would have if we didn't have spectators. Nevertheless, I remain unperturbed on the outside as I casually glance at her and say, "This much is nothing."

Upon hearing my words, Kaguya's eyes widen for a moment before she pouts and presses her body against my arm even harder.

"Hey, you know that letting me feel your ribs isn't going to help you…"

"Kaguya knows that!" she exclaims, seemingly offended by my words, "What else is Kaguya supposed to do!"

A lot of other things, but I can't exactly tell her seduction methods with the cold gazes from behind me.

Speaking of which, why are they sitting at the dining table anyway?

I understand Tohka since she is munching down on a plate of food in front of her – not that it stops her from glaring at me alongside the other two.

However, I don't get the reason that Kotori and Natsuki are sitting at the table with her.

Everyone else is in their rooms, yet these two are sitting at the table despite having no intentions to eat.

Well, whatever. I suppose I can tease the twins a little since they are willing to go through with this seduction plan of theirs.

All of sudden, Kaguya lets out a cute yelp, which is most likely a response to me sliding my hand underneath her and squeezing her pert butt.

"Inquiry: Is something wrong?"

"No! It's nothing!" Kaguya hurriedly responds to Yuzuru's question as a blush creeps up her face.

Yuzuru only looks at her for a few more seconds before shifting her sight over to me and saying, "Complaint: Yuzuru should get exceptional treatment as well."

She noticed, huh? Not like I was expecting her not to, as I already am aware of how high her intelligence is.

As such, to make it fair, as per her request, I shake my arm off from her grip and proceed to wrap it around her body. In this position, I take the liberty of feeling her modest breasts by giving her left mound a gentle squeeze.

"Response: Kyaa!" Yuzuru says in a monotonous tone as if mocking me, but I know that this is probably her actual response more than anything.

Expectedly, the cold gazes on my back seem to grow in strength, but I heed it no attention as I continue to play around with the twins' soft bodies.

---

"Sorry, but I won't be able to sleep with you two tonight," I say while facing Yoshino and Tohka who are both in their pajamas while sitting on my bed.

As expected, Yoshino's expression turns to that of disappointment, while Tohka directly exclaims, "Why?!"

Having already foreseen such a reaction, a wry smile forms on my lips as I reach my arm out to pat both of their heads before saying, "Don't think much of it. I just need to have a little 'talk' with my dear sister. Once I'm done, I will come back here."

"But still-"

"Tohka," I say in a calm, interrupting her, "Go to sleep just this once, alright? Or is Yoshino not enough to make you feel calm enough to sleep."

As despicable of a method this is to use in order to convince her, it's bode to work.

"Not at all!" she hurriedly says while anxiously casting a glance at Yoshino to her right, "It's just that it would be better if Shido is here…"

"Alright, I get you," I say as I move my hand over from the top of her head to her right cheek, "I will try to be done as soon possible."

Hearing this, the two girls' expression lights up, but knowing what the two would do, I adopt a stern expression and say, "But nevertheless, if I am late, you should go to sleep. Do you understand?"

To my query, the two of them simply nod their heads as confirmation.

Seeing this, I release a small sigh before turning around to face Jeanne who is sitting atop her futon and tending to her banner.

From a glance, I am able to tell that the banner has been repaired, or, more likely, repaired itself.

Regardless, Jeanne sure is fond of her banner. I have a strong feeling that she is capable of much more, but she limits herself to this banner.

Naturally, I am aware that the banner is no ordinary one, but still, I am curious about how she would fare with other weaponry.

Shaking my head, I walk forth while using Illusion to distort the vision of the two girls sitting atop my bed and crouch beside Jeanne before pressing my hand against the silvery rod part of the banner.

Cold and firm. Well, that's to be expected from something metallic. However, I feel a calm surge of energy inside it; a type of energy that I find all too familiar.

"Holy Essence," I mutter, "It feels a little weak, but it's undoubtedly Holy Essence."

"Of course," Jeanne suddenly utters, which surprises me a little, since she usually remains silent unless I directly order her to perform an action or ask her something, "My Lord's blessing is not limited to this body, but to my most precious symbol as well."

Knowing that she is expressing her devoutness for me, I smile a little before moving my head closer to hers and giving her a gentle peck on her cheek.

Following this, I move back a little and say, "You're really precious, you know?"

I neither explain what I meant by my statement nor wait for her response as I get back on my feet and dispel the Illusion.

Tohka and Yoshino have noticed that something is wrong, but seem to be unsure of what it is exactly.

And so, since I have settled things here, I stretch my arms as I walk toward the door leading out of the room and open it telekinetically before stepping out and closing it.

Not willing to waste any time, I make my way to Kotori's room and directly open the door before stepping inside.

To my pleasant surprise, Kotori was right in the middle of changing into her night-wear. Currently, she is standing with her hands on her skirt and a shocked look on her face. Her top is almost completely bare if not for her bra while she seemingly was just about to take off her skirt.

"Great. You were already preparing yourself," I say with a teasing smile.

Breaking out of her stupor, Kotori's face gets completely flushed as she turns around to block my view and exclaims, "Why are you here?!"

"Huh? Of course, to deliver your punishment!" I respond while keenly observing her petite body.