(Chastity Reversed) The Legitimate Wife War: How I, a Harem-Hater, Ended Up Creating an Ultra-Eccentric Harem with a Villainess, a Sadistic Beauty Teacher, a Scheming Classmate... etc.

While I was having those wild delusions, Rio-san spoke up from the driver’s seat.

Our previous date—of course I hadn’t forgotten it.

In fact, it would be bad if I had.

“The private lesson where you taught me in the preparation room, right? In that classroom with all the different books.”

She had taught me properly.

At that time, Rio-san was supposed to have hated me, but she still taught me well.

Starting around then, I began to feel even more strongly that although her tone was harsh, she wasn’t a bad person.

“‘Private lesson’ sounds nice, but it really was just an extension of class. …Looking back, even I acted quite immaturely. It’s a memory I’d rather not recall, at least regarding that date. Even though Master hadn’t done anything wrong, I let my own feelings take it out on you. I’m very sorry.”

Rio-san spoke with a slightly self-deprecating tone.

“Well, that’s fine now, isn’t it?”

“As expected of Master, you are so kind.”

Wait, what is this “fireman and arsonist” feeling?

“I… well, I wouldn’t say I like studying enough to call it fun, but it definitely helped me. And I got to eat a delicious meal afterward.”

“Ayaka was the one who made it, though.”

Rio-san gave me a bit of a deadpan look.

“But you were the one who took me there as a reward, right? It was very delicious.”

“Yes, the food Ayaka makes is the best… though I do wonder about praising another fiancée in front of your current one.”

Now that she mentioned it, she had a point.

Though, rather than being fiancées, those two were… how should I put it?

“It’s just that while Ayaka-san is indeed my fiancée, her being Rio-san’s lover came first, right?”

“…That said, well, neither I nor Ayaka mind if you talk about the other. In fact, in my case, even if you talk about other fiancées, I’ll just get jealous, and that becomes a ‘spice’ that makes me feel good, so it’s fine.”

…Is that really okay?

No, I’ll stop digging deeper. I might stir up a hornets’ nest.

“However, you should be careful with the others. No matter how much they don’t show it, they’ll likely be disappointed. You generally consider women’s feelings, Master, so I think you’ll be fine, but still.”

“Everyone is kind, so I try not to do it. But I’ll be careful, just as you say, Rio-san.”

“I’m sure you’ll be fine. Basically, everyone gets along. Please rest assured that there isn’t any discord that you need to worry about.”

“That’s good to hear.”

“Back to the topic, shall we? During our last date, although it was due to force majeure, I told Master about the things I like.”

Force majeure?

“…Ah, you mean how you like various foreign books and things like that, right?”

“Yes, exactly. Since that incident, I’ve come to not dislike the classics either. Love letters using waka poems may seem like a roundabout way of speaking to us now, but I’ve come to think that the modesty of hiding those inner feelings is rather lovely. Just as our slave-fiancée contract was.”

The term “slave-fiancée contract” is still far too alarming. I get what she’s trying to say, though.

She’s talking about when we became fiancées.

As Rio-san said, foreign languages often use more direct expressions.

To give an example, a representative difference is how “I love you” is handled.

Overseas, it’s the direct expression [“I LOVE YOU”]. In Japan, it’s a metaphor like [“The moon is beautiful, isn’t it”].

[“The moon is beautiful, isn’t it”] were the words I had said to Rio-san.

“The reason I love stories is that by reading a book, I can learn about the feelings the author put into it and the era they lived in. Without fear of being misunderstood, I love them because I can ‘know’ the person themselves.”

To know the person themselves, huh.

“During our last date, I believe we talked about how romance is about getting to know each other.”

I had told her there on the beach that I wanted to know more about Rio-san, too.

“I always convey my feelings for Master. My favorite things, my daily self, my work self. I’m showing you many sides of me, and I hope you’ll get to know even more from now on.”

The difference between her teacher persona and her self at home is practically at a “different person” level.

But that’s also part of Rio-san’s charm.

“So I thought a little… I don’t know that much about Master, and I want to know more.”

“About me?”

“Yes. As your slave, Kyo-sama, I want to know more about you. Where you grew up, what kind of things you like, and what kind of things you hate. I want to know everything, including all of that. Please tell me.”

Everything…

It’s a bit “yandere-ish,” but Rio-san had a very serious look on her face.

“I haven’t lived a life interesting enough to talk about like that, though…”

I was born into this world, lived in the middle of nowhere, and just desperately lived together with my grandpa and my sister.

…Come to think of it, speaking of Grandpa, it’s almost that time.

“That’s not true at all. I simply wanted to know, so—if I may say so—I had Rin Hanasaki tell me.”

“…She told you?”

“Yes.”

The meaning of those words became clear as the car drove on.

The car kept heading deeper into the mountains.

By this point, I finally realized; I recognized the road.

“Lately, Master, haven’t you been involved in various incidents? There’s likely fatigue from that, and you have a personality that allows you to be considerate of those around you. Being tossed about in the unaccustomed hustle and bustle of the city, surrounded mostly by women—even at school—must be a great burden. I thought you might be quite tired. …So, I thought that returning to your hometown might heal that fatigue a little. It’s just a day trip, but please, take this time to refresh yourself.”

A peaceful landscape stretched out before my eyes.

The scenery that the three of us in my family used to look at.

A view I had seen so much I grew tired of it, yet it remains unchanged even now.

I should have lived here until just a year ago, but the memories of that time feel like they belong to the distant past.

“…Besides, it’s this month, isn’t it? The anniversary of your grandfather’s passing.”

“You know about that too.”

I was a bit surprised.

“I’m sorry, I asked about it.”

“It’s perfectly fine.”

“If you’d like, I was hoping I could visit his grave with you. To tell him that his grandson is doing a splendid job. If he hears it from the mouth of a teacher, I’m sure your grandfather in heaven will be at ease, don’t you think?”

“If I have your permission, that is,” Rio said, looking a little nervous.

I see. It seemed Rio-san had put a lot of thought into choosing a place that considered my feelings.

That sentiment made me happy and warmed my heart.

“I’d like to be the one to ask you.”

“Then please, show me the way. To the place where Master grew up.”

“There’s not much to show, though~”

I couldn’t help but give a wry smile at Rio-san’s expectant expression.

But for now, I guess I’ll show her around.

“It feels strange for me to say this when you’re the one who brought me here… but welcome to my hometown!”

…Also, Rio-san.

I’m sorry for doubting you and thinking there’d be abnormal stuff in the mountains.

I won’t say it out loud, though.