Chapter: 141. Hotel Practices Unfold
In the hotel bathroom.
Splash, splash.
The sound of running water couldn’t drown out Nagi’s heartbeat at this moment.
— It was clearly a choice she made herself; why was she so nervous now!?
Nagi couldn’t help but mentally scold herself for pretending to be calm, but her flushed cheeks betrayed her current anxiety.
She and Kanade had been dropped off in this city by Koharu, but the truth was that she had secretly asked Amane for help.
This city was called “Sōgetsushi.” Although from a geographical point of view it’s neither too large nor too small, an unremarkable little city, it boasts the famous “Sōgetsu Shrine,” which is a place for handling certain special corpses in the original world of “Hoshiyuki.”
For instance, those corpses that carry certain kinds of pollution or obstacles even after death require players to spend a certain amount of time transporting them to Sōgetsu Shrine for proper placement, ensuring that these special corpses won’t affect their subsequent plot progression. Otherwise, during later events, scenarios like “corpse transformation” or “resurrection” often occur, wasting considerable time to deal with.
The simple reason for Nagi’s visit to this city was her desire to place Natsuki’s immortal body at Sōgetsu Shrine.
However, one major problem she had to face in completing this task was—how to go to Sōgetsu Shrine alone without Kanade noticing.
It was well-known that they were on the run, and Kanade would certainly pay attention to her every move. A plan to sneak out after he fell asleep would not be easy to pull off.
Therefore, Nagi needed to make Kanade as tired as possible, ideally tired enough to drop into a deep sleep without noticing anything.
That was how she noticed the surrounding buildings while they were at a street food stall filling their stomachs, and eventually picked a place that would set Kanade in a state of unease while also fulfilling her plan—a “love hotel where a solitary man and woman would inadvertently pass by and seek shelter from an unexpected downpour.”
Garuda coordinated perfectly in this regard.
Just as Nagi and Kanade were discussing where to spend the night, with only a little over a hundred meters left to reach the love hotel, the sky began to drizzle.
Then Nagi pretended to catch a chill.
Concerned about her health, Kanade had no choice but to choose to take a break at this hotel.
From the result, everything should have been under control.
Next, Nagi simply had to figure out ways to tire Kanade out in this incredibly ambiguous atmosphere of the room—
—Is it this time!? Is it really now!?
After briefly contemplating her next actions, Nagi’s face turned even hotter.
— In TS-type works, the female protagonist is usually the passive one. Why am I the only one always taking the active position!?
Her heart already trying to escape reality, Nagi turned off the shower and, while picking up a large towel to dry off, walked to the bathroom sink.
Through the mirror, she saw the half-naked appearance of a beautiful girl whose skin glowed with a peachy hue after a shower.
Though Nagi’s body still bore the influence of Hydra’s power, it was only a little bit away from returning to its original state.
So externally, she had already reverted to that shapely figure. At least during intimate moments, she wouldn’t invoke the instinct to call the police like before.
Countless stars flickered in Nagi’s eyes.
To ensure the upcoming plan proceeded smoothly, Nagi had to borrow the power of the stars once more to resonate with Nagi’s soul—this way, she could obtain a pure and naive mental state, making her forthcoming actions easier.
Even so, Nagi felt extremely tense and shy inside.
Especially when her peripheral vision caught sight of a uniquely-shaped chair in the spacious bathroom, one that seemed intentionally made for someone to straddle, her cheeks inevitably turned a tempting shade of crimson.
Noticing that the time was almost right, Nagi refocused on her reflection in the mirror and began adjusting her appearance.
The best look would be one that appeared both innocent yet radiated a deadly allure, enough to pique Kanade’s desires, leading to, “Oh? Is this how Kanade looks at me…? I can’t help it; let me assist you, Kanade, but this is my first time, so if I do anything wrong, please let me know!”
Then, she could pull off the innocent act and guide Kanade repeatedly until he fell into a deep sleep—perfect.
Nagi couldn’t help but silently clench her fists.
Then she noticed that her current appearance was sexy enough, needing no deliberate adjustment—
Her smooth, jet-black hair was styled high, revealing her elegantly curved and fair neckline. She was wrapped only in a white towel around her chest, her ample bosom causing the towel to pucker, exposing her alluring shoulders and deep cleavage, subtly allowing the impression of softness through the tightened fabric.
The towel barely covered the tops of her thighs, and with just a slight movement, its edges would reveal glimpses of what lay beneath.
Not to mention her skin, dazzling with a faint steam after her shower, was now tinged with an enticing blush, matched with her clearly aroused innocent face.
Everything seemed to be ready—Wait a minute, why is everything ready? And what about this obviously excited face!? Could it be that due to her discipline as a genius actress, her state has been automatically adjusted?
Nagi blinked her misty eyes, feeling as if a pink heart could emerge at the center of her pupils at any moment—at least in the comics she had read, whenever the female protagonist showed this expression, the following plot generally unfolded with heart-eyed moments…
“I didn’t expect that after using star power after so long, combined with my outstanding acting skills, I’ve unconsciously reached this level? Truly, I am a genius in this regard,” Nagi mused, one arm crossed over her chest while the other gently rested on her chin.
Her already impressive chest appeared even fuller in this pose, making it seem as if the towel might slip away entirely.
“Ah, so this degree of pressure makes the towel seem like it could drop at any moment?” Nagi silently noted the current pressure for the upcoming “unintentional exposure”.
Then she tested out how far apart she’d need to spread her legs to reveal what lay beneath.
If it were another woman, she might have to consider issues of hair exposure and think about how to prevent her partner from feeling put off or losing interest. However, Nagi’s physique was a bit special, allowing her to disregard those concerns—this was fantastic!
“It should be fine… after all, Kanade has seen me there before, and he even said he liked this about me…”
With Nagi’s final internal monologue, her preparations were completed within just two minutes.
To perfectly embody her innocent childhood friend, Nagi might typically need more time and rehearsals, but under the circumstances, this was the best she could do for now.
With everything ready, Nagi slowly pushed open the bathroom door.
Simply the act of this small gesture made her sharply aware of Kanade’s nervous fidgeting as he turned his back to her.
Even so, holding onto the thought that “he might sneak a peek,” Nagi followed her plan and first extended her long legs out from beneath the towel as she emerged from the bathroom.
At this moment, exposed legs often led the other party to think, “She can’t be so innocent as to not be wearing anything at all, right?” The subsequently revealed towel would bring a slight disappointment, only to then be reignited by the tantalizing sight of the nearly naked towel-clad figure, making for maximum desire in him through this psychological rollercoaster—
Since Nagi used to be a boy, she could easily analyze what made her feel excited before and derive the correct method.
However.
Though she had just meticulously planned everything in the bathroom, the instant it came time to execute, Nagi felt her heart racing fiercely, and even the star power couldn’t fully suppress her genuine feelings at this moment.
A whirlwind of complex and shaky thoughts wrapped around her mind—
“Will Kanade really like this?”
“What if he misunderstands and thinks I’m a shameless pervert and ends up hating me?”
“Is it too forward to make him meet me in a love hotel like this, and now I appear in front of him like this, as if I’m deliberately trying to seduce him!?”
“N-No, but if Kanade agreed, it means he must also have some expectations in this regard, right? So, I can’t be entirely at fault here, can I?”
…
Nagi’s head was in utter disarray at this moment.
Yet, thanks to having pre-planned every action, even though she couldn’t think about the current situation, she still managed to execute the series of actions leading her out of the bathroom and to Kanade’s side based on the established flow.
And throughout, Kanade had remained turned away from Nagi, with his slightly raised shoulders and tense legs indicating that he was very nervous.
Normally, Kanade’s reaction would have made it easier for Nagi to prepare for her next moves.
Unfortunately, as soon as Nagi reached Kanade’s side, her brain went blank.
“It’s… really quiet. Should we turn on the TV to watch something?” Nagi squeezed out a naive tone, reciting the lines she had initially prepared as she reached for the remote on the bedside.
She knew that by pressing this button, she’d be able to see interactions between the opposite sexes and let Kanade deeply understand the kind of situation they were currently in.
Then she could naturally say, “So, you also look at me with that kind of gaze, Kanade?” in her famous line.
But for some reason, Nagi’s finger froze on the power button, unable to press down.
It seemed that Nagi’s hesitation gave Kanade the chance to escape—
“Have you finished washing, Nagi? It’s my turn to shower now.” Kanade spoke at an unexpected speed, swiftly getting up and heading to the bathroom without once looking in Nagi’s direction.
From Kanade’s walking posture, Nagi realized he was completely unaware.
After all, she had mustered such great courage and bore her shyness…
For some reason, Nagi felt a hint of dissatisfaction from Kanade’s reaction.
Once Kanade shut the bathroom door and the sound of the lock clicked into place, Nagi was finally freed from her petrification. She couldn’t help but let out a deep breath and mentally critique —
“Darn it! I tried so hard! That blockhead showing his gentlemanly side at a time like this…”
Nagi plopped down onto the only large bed in the room, rolling side to side, causing her towel to completely fall off.
Since Kanade had cautiously locked the door, her plan to sneak into the bathroom took a nosedive.
“Looks like I’ll have to pull out the big guns…”
With that thought, Nagi slowly lifted her head and looked at an eye-catching clothing rack in the corner of the room.
It was an outfit specially prepared by the hotel for guests, one that could come in handy in certain situations.
“‘I saw some clothes in the room unexpectedly and was curious, so I put them on. How do I look? Do you think it suits me, Kanade?’ That kind of thing could also use my innocent persona to guide Kanade in the original direction…” Nagi’s eyes reflected a costume complete with bunny ears.
