Futaba led the way at the front, still drinking the juice she had just bought, her steps light and brisk.
You followed behind, with Chihaya and Mai on either side.
The group turned into a slightly narrower alley lined with restaurants on both sides.
The red glow of lanterns warmed the stone pavement.
Two figures appeared ahead.
They were in their early twenties, dyed blond hair, shirt collars unbuttoned two buttons down—the type who loitered on the street specifically to hit on girls.
They leaned against the railing by the roadside, cigarettes dangling from their lips, their eyes scanning over the girls.
Their expressions showed they had spotted prey.
The two stubbed out their cigarettes and approached with grins.
“Hey there, beauties, how about a drink tonight? We know a great place nearby—your friends won’t mind, right?”
Futaba’s eyes suddenly lit up.
She slowed her pace slightly, her gaze not even looking at the two smug pickup artists across from her, but landing squarely on You.
She took a leisurely sip of her juice.
‘Come on,’ she thought.
‘Divine Child, let me see what you’ll do. If you back down, the girls will be disappointed, won’t they? Will you say we’re your cousins? Or do you have a more surprising answer?’
Chihaya frowned and moved half a step closer to You.
Mai instinctively hid half her body behind You.
You’s first reaction was to wonder if he’d misheard.
Was this? Street harassment? Such a classic scenario actually happened to me?
His second reaction was eager anticipation.
‘Ha ha, I finally get to run into that cliché isekai scene. Showing off and slapping faces—this is standard plot material.’
‘So at a time like this, I should…’
He stepped forward, blocking the three girls.
A bold grin spread across his face.
“Ah, you two, sorry about that.”
His tone was light, as if greeting old friends.
“They can’t go have fun with you. Because they’re not single women.”
He paused, raising a hand to point behind him.
“We’re not just friends, either. Actually—”
“All three of these women are my girlfriends.”
Silence.
The entire alley fell silent.
The old man selling grilled rice cakes next to them froze, the skewered rice cakes nearly falling off his hands.
The tourists queuing in front of the ramen shop across the way all turned their heads in unison.
Even the flames of the lanterns seemed to flicker.
The three girls reacted differently.
Futaba choked on her juice.
She had been planning to watch the drama, but she was the one caught off guard by You’s explosive declaration.
To keep her composure, she quickly covered her mouth and coughed several times before recovering.
Though she choked on her juice, her eyes grew brighter and brighter.
‘This Divine Child is way too interesting. Saying something like that outright—is he shameless, or is he brave?’
The meter for “interest level” in her heart jumped up several notches in an instant.
‘So fascinating. This Divine Child is absolutely fascinating.’
She lowered her hand, revealing a brilliant smile.
“That’s right. That’s exactly it. I’m his girlfriend.”
Her voice was crisp, her tone confident, as if she had been waiting for those words.
As for the Mochizuki sisters—
Chihaya shot You a sharp glare.
The meaning in that glare was clear: ‘What are you saying?!’
But she didn’t object.
After all, his words weren’t wrong.
They were already future Divine Wives.
But saying it out loud in such a public place still made her…
She felt her face burning.
Mai also glared at him, but with much less intensity than Chihaya.
She was too shy to deal with it.
Her face had turned red all the way to the roots of her neck, her lips pressed tightly together, both hands twisting the hem of her skirt.
But she didn’t object either.
Both of them then shot a fierce glare at Futaba.
That whole incident earlier hadn’t even passed yet, and she was already casually agreeing.
Who said she was You-kun’s girlfriend?
But they didn’t call her out at this critical moment.
None of the three girls opened their mouths to deny it.
The entire street was in awe.
“Oh my god…”
“Did I just hear that? That young man said he has three girlfriends?”
The rice cake vendor finally steadied his hands and didn’t drop his goods, but his mouth was still hanging open.
The people queuing at the ramen shop began whispering among themselves.
The female owner of the kimono shop across the way poked her head out from behind the curtain, her eyes wide as saucers.
Especially the two pickup artists opposite.
Their expressions could only be described as “spectacular.”
From their initial smirks to shock, to disbelief, and finally to a dazed confusion as if they’d time-traveled.
They had never imagined that in modern Japan, someone would openly declare they had multiple girlfriends.
“You… you…”
Blond #1 pointed at You, his hand trembling.
You said calmly, “What about me? Dating isn’t marriage. It’s not illegal to date several people at once.”
This statement undoubtedly gave the onlookers a small shock.
They deeply realized what it meant that “as long as I’m not embarrassed, it’s the other person who gets embarrassed.”
As for the girls behind You, Futaba’s expression remained smiling, no different from before.
But if anyone looked closely, they’d see the corner of her mouth twitching slightly.
Chihaya was dumbfounded—‘The Divine Child actually… such frivolous words.’
And Mai already wished she could shrink entirely behind You.
Blond #1 and Blond #2 were petrified.
They opened their mouths but nothing came out.
The two stiffly turned their necks and exchanged a glance.
“S… sorry.”
They muttered, then turned and fled, their backs looking utterly defeated.
The incident was over.
You turned around, the bold grin still not fully faded from his face.
“Ah, saying that just now felt really good.”
He scratched his head, his tone carrying a sense of fulfillment, as if a dream had come true.
“Ever since I watched anime as a kid, I wanted a chance to say that. The male leads in those shows have multiple heroines, but they’re always so wishy-washy, not even daring to admit it—”
He made a gesture.
“Too pathetic.”
The three girls were stunned for a second.
Then they all burst out laughing at the same time.
Chihaya laughed behind her hand, her eyes curving into crescents.
Mai laughed so hard her shoulders shook, the blush from before receding only to be replaced by new color.
Futaba laughed the hardest, leaning against a nearby pillar, holding her stomach.
“Divine Child… you…”
Futaba said between gasps, unable to form a complete sentence from laughter.
“You’re way too interesting…”
You felt a bit embarrassed by her laughter, but quickly composed his expression.
He turned to Futaba, his tone a bit more serious.
“Sorry about rushing things earlier.”
Futaba straightened up, wiping the tears of laughter from the corners of her eyes.
Her eyes curved into crescents, her smile even deeper than before.
“No problem, no problem.”
Her voice was as light as humming a tune.
“This is so much fun.”
The Mochizuki sisters also cooled down.
Chihaya glanced at You—he had only apologized to Futaba, which meant that in his heart, she and Mai were different from Futaba.
They were his girlfriends, future family.
He had drawn a line between insider and outsider.
That was good.
The group continued walking toward the izakaya.
Their footsteps clicked against the stone pavement, the lanterns in the alley passing overhead one by one.
Futaba started talking to You more frequently and began to move closer to him.
Chihaya frowned.
She was the one among them who knew Futaba best.
She sensed something was off—
After the harassment incident, Futaba’s interest in You seemed to have grown significantly.
It was completely different from when they were shopping on the street earlier.
Back then, even though Futaba was smiling, it was more of an observer’s calm.
Now it was different.
There was something extra in the way she looked at You—bright, with a certain eager light.
Chihaya’s guard went up again.
Futaba noticed.
Chihaya was on guard against her.
That made her even more excited.
‘Interesting. Too interesting.’
She subtly moved half a step closer to You again.
First she closed the distance, then naturally linked her arm through his.
The movement was as smooth as if she’d done it dozens of times.
Softness transmitted through the fabric.
You’s body stiffened.
The corner of Futaba’s mouth lifted slightly.
She even seriously considered, just for a moment—the matter of marrying this Divine Child.
‘It would definitely be interesting. This Divine Child himself is interesting. Watching Chihaya constantly on guard against me is even more interesting.’
But.
Only for a moment.
It was still too early to decide.
She needed to see more, observe more.
There was plenty of time; no rush.
This move clearly struck a nerve with Chihaya.
She walked to You’s other side and also linked her arm through his.
Her grip was even tighter than Futaba’s.
Futaba’s eyes curved.
‘Good. Just like that.’
‘Chihaya, let me see more of your defenses crumbling.’
Mai walked behind, watching the scene ahead, and let out a big sigh.
Of course she could tell—those two next family heads were starting their rivalry again.
It had been like this since they were kids.
And every time, she was just a bystander.
And now, You-kun was monopolized by these two.
Who could blame her for being the younger sister?
She pursed her lips.
‘No matter what, even if it’s sister and Futaba-nee, they can’t completely monopolize You-kun! I am also You-kun’s fiancée!’
But…
For now, the situation didn’t allow her to intervene.
The two of them had You sandwiched tightly between them; there was no room for her.
She’d have to find another chance.
Yes.
Even the innocent Mai was starting to develop a sense of competition.
It wasn’t strong yet.
But it was there.
As for You—
He still hadn’t figured out the situation.
‘How did Futaba suddenly link arms with me? Why did her interest in me suddenly spike? And why did Chihaya link arms too?’
‘Both of them are smiling, but why does the atmosphere feel off?’
His scalp tingled.
He tried to pull his arms free from their grasp.
He failed.
Both of them held on tightly.
“Divine Child—”
Futaba looked up, smiling at him.
“Don’t you like me holding your arm?”
Chihaya also looked up, her voice gentle in a way that felt a little off.
“You-kun, I am your fiancée. Is it not okay for me to hold your arm?”
You felt the atmosphere was getting bad.
Very bad.
He gave up struggling.
‘Forget it, I’ll just go with it.’
‘Anyway, having Chihaya and Futaba holding my arms is pretty nice. Softness on the left, softness on the right. Both smell good, but the scents are different.’
‘Since I can’t fight it—’
‘I might as well enjoy it.’
The three of them walked side by side in front.
A step behind, Mai’s big eyes stared at the backs of the one boy and two girls ahead, and she started grinding her teeth again.
Her gaze roamed over You’s back, then looked at the spot she had been squeezed out of by her two sisters.
She needed to think of a way to turn this around sometime.