Chương 97: Chapter 28 Oh? (Part 1)

(Part 1) Leaving Tachibana behind at the pool, I returned to our room with my wife and Mochida. It seemed my wife had already booked her flight home. Judging from the voice on the phone, she would be leaving tomorrow evening. It was a shame to see her go, but considering the children, there was no helping it. At the pool, several people had asked me for handshakes and photos. Having learned my lesson, I had intended to allow only photos, but my wife and Mochida stopped me.

In the end, I let only the first person take a picture and then stopped. Since the person who had asked was a woman with a child, I hadn't really thought much of it, but... Anyway, putting that aside, the changing room had been quite a hurdle. They say the way there is easy, but the way back is difficult, and that was certainly true. On the way in, I had simply tossed my belongings into a locker without looking around, so there had been no problem. On the way back, however, I had to change clothes.

I had no intention of staring at anyone, but as I changed, I somehow felt guilty about it. Ironically, that awkwardness only attracted more attention, so my wife and Mochida acted as shields for me. Normally, it would be the other way around, and since I was in a woman's body, there shouldn't have been any problem in the first place... But somehow, I was starting to lose track of what was right and what was wrong. My legal records said I was female. My appearance was female. As for who I was... Yeah.

I was Rina's husband.

"Swimming for the first time in a while really wore me out. Tsukasa, what were you and Tachibana-san talking about for so long?"

"Hm? He said he wanted to work under a beautiful woman like you. When I turned him down, he invited me to enter a Gate with him instead. If we go as soon as possible, it'll probably be just the two of us tomorrow. I think I'm going to get busy soon, too."

"Tsukasa... isn't that a date?"

"... Huh?"

"No, think about it. When you make an unreasonable request and get turned down, immediately following it up with an easier request is a standard tactic when asking someone for a favor, isn't it?" I exchanged a look with Mochida. A date? Between whom? From the outside, I was a woman and Tachibana was a man. The two of us entering a Gate together while holding hands. The chances of encountering someone else inside were low, making it an ideal place for a secret meeting. There were even safe spaces inside.

As for the amount of time, if we said we had gone deeper into the Gate, we could explain away however many hours we spent there. And even if we weren't dating, being in danger of death—the ultimate suspension bridge effect—would make it easy for two people to become close. Tachibana's way of asking really was a standard tactic. Psychology had proven that much. But Tachibana knew that I had originally been a man... Wait. Tachibana was always complimenting my appearance.

When I went to visit him in the hospital, he even told me to call him Big Brother. And today, he had touched my butt. But he knew I had a wife. If anything, I had introduced her to him today. I had also publicly stated on my stream that I had a wife. There was no doubt about that. And the law recognizing same-sex marriage had quietly been passed and put into effect. If so, the possibility was that someone who didn't know these facts might spread unnecessary rumors. And, more than anything...

"Tsukasa, are you having an affair? An affair? Are you leaving me for another man?"

"Wait, don't jump to conclusions!"

"I don't need an excuse like the prime minister in the May 15 Incident! Mochida-san~! My husband has been stolen by another man!" Rina reached out as though to cling to Mochida, who was sitting there with slightly teary eyes. It was my fault for not realizing it until she pointed it out. Once again, I had made my wife anxious... I had made the woman who had already told me she didn't have a good impression of Tachibana sad.

"Tsukasa, I can only say that you really aren't self-aware enough here..." Damn it, was this a trap? A booby trap for a fool? Had I really fallen for it this easily? No, no. We were both supposed to see this as work. If we entered the Gate, he might be able to reach the Intermediate rank, and I wanted information about what it was like after reaching Intermediate. Even without a result, if all we did was go as far as the fifth floor, it shouldn't take that long. We could even use the escape item.

I didn't know whether it was disposable or not, but we wouldn't know unless we tried it. Besides, the fact that using this item apparently changed nothing only deepened the mystery... Damn it, Tachibana again! If he was an Appraiser, he could probably appraise this, too. Since leaving the Gate, I had only had opportunities to see him when visiting him in the hospital, and he had been recovering at the time. I had been reluctant to make him use his power....

Tachibana probably didn't have any ulterior motives, and I trusted him to some extent. Itsuki had told me that he was handsome and popular, so putting it badly, he wasn't lacking female companionship... Ah, knowing too much really can be unpleasant. From a man's perspective... Men want to chase women. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. The reason heroines in movies remain tsundere until the very end is because that is more appealing to men.

If a story starts with a perfectly fine married couple who have no problems at all, then unless there is some truly moving development, it won't be well received... Thinking about it that way, there was no way I would fall for Tachibana... Ah, my thoughts were starting to spin in circles. Cigarettes... no, a kiseru. I took out my kiseru and puffed on it. I hadn't overthought something like this in a while. There was a solution.

I had originally been thinking about it, but if I was turned down, I could look for another option.

"Kaori, would you like to come too? In the first place, this isn't a date. It's a test to see whether he might reach the Intermediate rank. As an SP, I think it would also be good for you to see the abilities of people who will likely reach that rank from here on." If the premise was kept straight, the result was obvious. My wife's outburst had sent my thoughts flying all over the place, but originally, this was a test. My thoughts had spun in circles for the first time in a while, but this was dangerous.

I hadn't started smoking until I became an adult, but before that, whenever I thought too deeply about something, I would mobilize all my knowledge and become lost in my own thoughts until I grew sick of it. My thoughts were instantaneous, but they were troublesome.

"Sure. I've wanted to become a Sweeper myself. Rina-san, I'll protect Tsukasa, okay?"

"Please do, Mochida-san. Since you're my ally in this alliance, I can accept it..."

"I don't know what kind of alliance this is, but I have no intention of falling for Tachibana. Rina, I love you. I know I worry you, but you're the only one I have. Don't make strange assumptions..." Mochida was there, but that didn't matter. I placed a hand against my wife's cheek and brought our lips together. Lightly, and then deeply. Her closed lips gradually parted, our tongues intertwining as a soft wet sound escaped. How long did we stay like that?

When we finally separated, a thread of saliva stretched between us, neither of us able to tell whose it was. My wife's cheeks were slightly flushed, and her eyes seemed colored with sensual expectation.

"Well then, Kaori. I'll reassure my wife from here on, so I'd like you to come back tomorrow morning."

"Um... yes. Understood." Mochida's face had turned red, but that was fine. Given the situation, an adult woman like her would understand what was going to happen afterward. It wasn't as though this alone was proof of anything, but if you didn't show affection, the other person couldn't know how you felt. Everything else was irrelevant. I just wanted my wife to understand. After Mochida left the room, my wife and I showered together and got into bed, even though it was still early to sleep.

She had left her marks on me earlier, but now it was my turn. Because everything would roll back, there would be pain, but I probably wouldn't sleep tonight... The next morning, we both got out of bed while still naked and took a shower. A sweet, languid fatigue lingered, but that had been the same when I was a man. The sun rose, and morning came. Perhaps my wife was reassured now. Her subdued, gentle appearance was adorable.

We exchanged several kisses even while showering, but letting our mood heat up any further would be problematic, so we flirted lightly before getting out of the shower. The news on television was mostly about yesterday's memorial service, matters concerning my position, or the Gates. There was hardly anything new. Apparently, the people involved who had prostrated themselves at the intersection had resigned as they were.

"Tsukasa~♪" Still in my underwear, I sat in a chair and puffed on my kiseru when my wife hugged me from behind. Her mood had recovered, and she seemed reassured. It wasn't as though I would ever fall for Tachibana in the first place.

"You'll catch a cold. Hurry up and put some clothes on."

"That goes for you too, doesn't it? We're warm together, so let's stay like this a little longer..."

"... Suit yourself." We spent the morning together, sharing each other's warmth. When we finally separated reluctantly, we began getting dressed. My wife must have been anxious, too... My appearance had changed, I had inexplicable abilities, and lately, I had hardly been coming home at all. All right. I'd get my work done quickly. With that thought, I put on my underwear and changed into a thin black sleeveless turtleneck and jeans.

Since the turtleneck had no sleeves, it kept me cool even in this increasingly warm season.

"Good morning..." Mochida, her face slightly red, looked back and forth between me and my wife, who seemed to be in a good mood. Perhaps she was more knowledgeable about such matters than she appeared. Well, whether someone was early or late didn't matter. What mattered was whether you accepted that person, and whether you loved them or not. So there was no problem with that.

"Good morning. I don't know what you're imagining, but I have a favor to ask. I want all of my streaming revenue distributed among those who died in Akihabara. Also, tell Chiyoda-san that this time, a token of sincerity will be enough for my reward. And of that reward, I'd like two-thirds distributed among those who died as well. As a country, they're probably in a position where they can't pay this time while claiming it's the victims' own responsibility. And one more thing: I'd like business cards. Chloe=First.

Use that title we discussed."

"Understood. I'll prepare a hundred business cards for now. It's not like having them will hurt. As for the money... it would be difficult for me to bring up the reward myself with Chiyoda-san, but I think I can arrange the streaming revenue right away."

"Understood. I'll discuss the reward directly with Chiyoda-san. Please handle the rest."

"Got it. I'll go outside and make a call." After Mochida left the room, I was puffing on my kiseru when my smartphone rang. I checked it and saw that it was Tachibana. Given what had happened yesterday, I felt somewhat conflicted, but... well, taking it out on him would be misguided. What happened this time was, literally, a matter between husband and wife.

"Hello, Tachibana-san? Are we going now?"

"Ah, Chloe. No, let's do it this afternoon. I have something to take care of in the morning. Let's meet at the Setagaya Gate."

"That's fine. I'll have one companion with me. Mochida-san will be coming along."

"Understood. Is she a Sweeper?"

"No, this is her first time entering. She's also an SP, so I'd like her to be able to handle the Sweeper role if possible. Also, I have one item I'd like you to appraise."

"... That's fine, but it isn't something dangerous, right? I was pretty surprised when you gave me that medicine before..."

"... It's probably fine. I'll explain the details inside the Gate." I ended the call. Perhaps appraising the Gate had left him wary of appraisals, and he seemed somewhat reluctant. Still, surely this wasn't an item more dangerous than that. Its function was limited to escape, after all. If this really was such a dangerous item, it might be something that only appeared deep inside the Gate, or perhaps degraded versions would begin appearing here and there in the upper layers.

All I could do was pray that the Sorts' design philosophy flowed from the highest quality down toward the lowest...

"The call is finished," Mochida said as she returned.

"They said the business cards can be prepared by tomorrow, so I'll bring them if I have a chance to come by. For the streaming revenue, please give me your account number. We'll handle it from there. I did mention your wishes regarding the reward, but it looks like they'll still discuss it with you in person."

"Understood. I'll leave my card with you. It's not an emergency, but I'd appreciate it if you could handle it as soon as possible." From what Mochida had said after returning, it seemed our wishes would be accepted to some extent. A reward that was merely a token of sincerity. That had a nice ring to it. Now, how much would they value me? The amount would tell me, to some extent, how important they considered me. Well, most of that money would go to the bereaved families anyway...

Money was useful to have, but too much of it could ruin a person. A moderate amount—or simply an appropriate amount—would be fine. All I needed was enough money for my family to live happily.