The Carnivorous Maidens Living with Me - Chapter 72 & 73

Chapter 72: The Battle of Maidens and the Secrets of Maidens

“What… is this?”

On Monday morning, after Sofia’s condition improved, I’m sitting in the living room, dumbfounded.

“Here we go!

The second round… no, the second week of the ‘His Side Is Mine Cup’!

Your host, as always, is Sofia Kisaragi, Shoma’s rightful wife!”

““““Who’s the rightful wife?!””””

Everyone, including me, roars with retorts.

And Sofia…

“Because~ yesterday~ I gave my~ first~ to~”

What is this Russian girl even saying?!

“Sho-kun?”

“Shoma…”

“Senpai…”

“Naked punishment it is.”

The four of them react like this!

No, it’s not true, absolutely not!

My denials vanish into thin air, and I become prey to these carnivorous beasts… physically.

“Zee… haa… so, what’s this?”

I somehow escape and ask Sofia.

“It’s a battle to decide this week’s companion for Shoma.”

“…Can I go home?”

“Your home is right here!

And a welcome-back kiss…”

“Stop, stop!

You’ll knock me out again.”

The girls… they’ve got balloons tied to their butts and soft sticks in their hands.

“This is…”

“A battle!”

It’s a battle royale where they pop each other’s balloons, and the last one standing wins.

Apparently, last time, Sofia won after a fierce fight with Yayoi-san…

“Um… shouldn’t we head to school…”

“Be quiet, Shoma!

This is a maiden’s battle we can’t lose!”

Mutsuki is more fired up than ever.

I heard she’s desperate to close the gap with the others.

“Here we go… get set… start!!”

With Sofia’s enthusiastic call, the battle begins.

(Sofi… I’m glad you’re feeling better.)

Watching the maidens’ battle, I think to myself.

“Oh… Hazuki stripped the President!

Wait, how do you strip someone with a stick…”

“It’s just how the President is, right?”

Taking advantage of the moment, Mutsuki pops the President’s balloon.

“Whoa… Yayoi-san’s smooth spin—Hazuki’s in danger!”

“No, no… Hazuki’s karate-honed reflexes are incredible!”

The fight goes back and forth… all three are battered… and, unsurprisingly, in their underwear.

(The President’s nudist tendencies have spread this far…)

Thinking something off-topic, the final moment arrives.

Surprisingly… the ones left are…

“Haa, haa… you’re good, Hazuki…”

“Fuu… fwe… you’re pretty good too, Mutsuki-onee-chan…”

I thought Yayoi-san would win, so I didn’t expect these two to remain.

And then…

“Get ready, Hazuki!”

“Here I come!”

Pop!

“I did it~!

Shoma’s wife position is mine~”

“Who’s the wife, who… jeez.”

Mutsuki wins.

Just before, Hazuki slipped on the President’s discarded clothes, and Mutsuki’s stick popped her balloon, ending the match.

※

“Alright, we’re off!

Don’t be late, everyone~”

“You’re one to talk.”

Tap

I flick Mutsuki’s forehead, and we head out the door.

We probably won’t be late, but…

(Still… is this going to keep happening forever?)

“You look kinda dissatisfied?”

“Haa… I’m not like you, all energetic in the morning.”

“Hey… since it’s my turn, can I link arms with you as the wife?”

“That’s sudden… and you’re not my wife.

Fine, use my uninjured arm.”

“Okay!”

Was Mutsuki always like this?

I wonder as we walk to school.

It’s getting humid, and my uniform’s sticking with sweat.

Mutsuki’s uniform is slightly see-through too, but she clings to me like she doesn’t care.

“Hey… Mutsuki-san.”

“What’s up, darling?”

“Haa, whatever…

Why do you like me?

There’s no other guy as indecisive as me, you know.”

Reflecting on yesterday with Sofia, I decide to ask everyone why they chose me, starting with Mutsuki.

“No idea.”

“What?”

Mutsuki fidgets a bit before saying that.

“Can I ask that again?”

“You can ask as many times as you want, but it’ll be the same…”

“No reason… huh.”

“Right… I forgot any clear reason.

But before I knew it, you were always on my mind.

It got stronger after we moved.”

“I see…”

They say love is blind, but maybe it doesn’t need a reason.

I’m not about to say you can’t love without one.

“Hey, Shoma…”

“What’s up?”

“Do you… like me?”

I struggle to answer Mutsuki’s question.

After the incident with Sofia, I’ve been cautious about careless words.

So, I repeat something I once said.

“I’ll work on liking you, Mutsuki.

Just give me time.”

I don’t know if that’s the right answer.

Probably no one does…

It’s just my selfish desire not to make the girl in front of me sad.

To that, she says…

“Okay!

I’ll keep pushing until you like me a ton!”

“Y-Yeah…”

“And this is the maidens’ battle and the maidens’ pact.”

A new term pops up.

“…Pact?”

“Yup!

Sofia called us together early this morning.”

“From Sofi?”

Did something happen while I was sleeping?

“I heard Sofia’s honest feelings…

How she wants to monopolize you, but also loves all of us…”

I get it… that’s why she was so carefree this morning.

“And we all talked about our own feelings.”

“Can I hear the details?”

“Fufu!

It’s a maiden’s secret!”

Mutsuki laughs, skipping ahead of me.

Her expression, so innocent and refreshed, feels like a return to those old days.

Chapter 73: The Dreaming Girl Sings a Song

On Tuesday, the second day of Mutsuki Week, Mutsuki and I are walking home from school together.

Since we’re in different classes, we can’t spend time together during the day, and she has her own friends to eat lunch with.

“Hey, Mutsuki, is it okay to skip club activities?”

“…Club activities.”

My question makes Mutsuki look a bit troubled.

“…There’s been some stuff going on, so I haven’t been showing up lately.”

“I see… pro wrestling’s tough, huh!”

Seeing her look a bit sad and downcast, I try to cheer her up with a witty joke.

“Who’s a pro wrestler!”

Mutsuki’s hands clamp around my neck, locking in a perfect choke sleeper.

I frantically tap out, surrendering.

“Gah… just a light joke.”

“Ugh, that’s so rude!”

“So? What club was it again?”

“You remembered, right?

The light music club.”

“…”

I genuinely forgot.

Honestly, her technique makes pro wrestling seem more fitting.

“Huh… was that it?”

“I even sang on stage at last year’s cultural festival!”

“I was… in roll cake hell back then.”

“Ugh!”

Mutsuki stomps ahead, pouting.

Then, she suddenly turns around…

“Come with me!

I need to blow off some stress.”

“Another pushy move…”

“I’m gentler than Sofia.”

“You’re comparing yourself to the wrong person.”

“Hehe… true.”

※

And so, here I am at a karaoke place with Mutsuki…

“Yay!

‘Smofeni’s’ new song is here~”

“Uh… what’s Smofeni?”

I’m not really up on recent music trends.

The most I hear is the random music playing at Okama-mama’s café.

“You don’t know?

Unbelievable!

They’re a huge band!”

“Really?

I’m clueless, so fill me in.”

Hoping to lift Mutsuki’s mood, I steer the conversation toward something she’s excited about.

Maybe it’ll distract her a bit.

“Fine, I’ll teach you!”

She’s so excited she stands on the chair (in her socks), striking a dramatic pose.

“You’re gonna show your panties like that…”

“Ugh… pervert.”

“You’re the one who confessed to this pervert.”

“Guuh…”

Blushing at my logic, she’s lucky she’s the least intense of the five.

“Did you see?”

“…Pale blue.”

“Lech…”

“Well, yeah… no point hiding it now.”

“You’re not hiding anything.”

“More importantly, tell me about your favorite band.”

“You want to know everything about me?”

Mutsuki, lost in a grand misunderstanding, spends five minutes daydreaming.

“Ahem!

So, Smofeni is…”

“Starting so naturally, huh…”

“Be quiet!

Listen up!”

“Yes, yes.”

She clears her throat and begins again.

“Smofeni is short for ‘Small Seed Phoenix.’”

“Got it, got it…”

“It’s just two members, one for instruments and one for vocals.”

“Only two?

I thought it’d be a bigger group…”

“Hehehe… don’t be shocked yet…

The thing is, those two…”

Mutsuki pauses dramatically, grins, and declares into the mic.

“They’re… husband and wife!”

…band wife!

…and wife!

…wife!

…ife!

“…For real?”

My honest reaction slips out.

“What do you think?

Surprised?”

“Yeah, that’s rare these days… a married couple.”

“Right?

And the vocalist is this gorgeous blonde~”

“Wow… wonder how it happened?”

The band Mutsuki’s telling me about is definitely piquing my interest.

“Well… I don’t know the details…”

“High school classmates?

Old friends?

Mutual love or something?”

“You’ve got almost no info…”

Mutsuki’s explanation isn’t clear, but when she plays their song on her phone, I recognize the melody and voice—it’s been everywhere lately.

“They’re good…”

“Right!

The whole class is buzzing about them.”

“What do you love about them, Mutsuki?”

“Your kindness.”

“Not me… jeez, you’re way more direct than this morning.”

“Um, it’s like… sad but lovable?

That’s the vibe of their lyrics and melody… what those two sing.”

I think a bit about what Mutsuki finds sad and lovable.

It feels like a problem she’ll need to solve slowly, over time.

So…

“I want… to be like them.”

She mutters softly, her face shy and quiet.

This must be her… dream.

“I see…”

I just say that, looking at her.

“You’re not gonna laugh?”

“Did you want me to?”

“No… but.”

But.

“Everyone… laughed at me.”

By “everyone,” she probably means her clubmates.

Mutsuki’s always been earnest about everything.

The sadness of losing her father… the joy of a new family.

Music must have filled the gap in her heart…

“Mutsuki… do you want to sing?”

“Yeah… I want to sing.”

“Then let’s sing!”

“But… my clubmates and I are already…”

Her eyes glisten with a faint veil of tears.

Mutsuki, who’s poured her heart into music… maybe her clubmates couldn’t keep up with her passion.

“I don’t know what’s up with your clubmates…

But I can help you show them how serious you are.”

“…How?”

“You said it yourself just now.”

“…No way.”

“Exactly, the cultural festival’s coming up!”

The season of the cultural festival… a hot, passionate summer.