Chapter 252: Spread Among Too Many

That day, Marcus deliberately stretched out the outing with Mitsuri and Kanao until well into the afternoon before heading back.

The so-called prior date had been nothing more than an excuse of his, but the outing was fun for everyone.

Mitsuri chattered nonstop at his side, bouncing with joy, and every so often there’d be some ambiguous brushes of contact. Kanao, on the other hand, stayed close beside him, docile, attentive at every moment to what he liked and eager to take care of him.

Mitsuri would pop tasty morsels into his mouth; Kanao would tenderly wipe the corners of his lips with a handkerchief.

You could say Marcus enjoyed pampering as much as being pampered. And if you added the envious stares of the men around them... well, this was no longer simple enjoyment.

The three of them were left wanting more even before they parted ways at the main house.

"Marcus-kun. When... when will we do this again...?"

Under the moonlight, Mitsuri bit her lip, and her shyness made it impossible for Marcus not to pull her into an embrace against his chest.

Through the clothes they both wore, they could feel each other’s skin.

A few locks of sweetly fragrant hair brushed against his face, and Marcus couldn’t resist burying it in Mitsuri’s hair.

"Tomorrow we’ll do it again."

After letting go of a red-cheeked, dazed-looking Mitsuri, Marcus drew Kanao into his arms as well.

As he embraced her, his lips came to rest right on the crown of her head. He inhaled the faint floral fragrance and gave her hair a tender kiss.

"Get some rest soon, and don’t forget to go call Shinobu for me."

Kanao, too, froze in place. And Marcus, faithful to his "hit and run" principle, headed back into the house.

Ivy, who had already sensed it coming, was waiting for him at the entrance to change his shoes and take off his outer clothing. Then she accompanied him to the hot springs.

Marcus leaned against the edge of the bath with his eyes half-closed, enjoying the gentle rubbing of Ivy’s delicate hands.

His body reacted involuntarily.

On an ordinary day, Ivy would already have settled into his lap, but not today, because she knew someone would arrive at any moment.

And so it was.

As soon as she finished carefully drying his hair, put his robe on him, and stepped out of the bath, she came face-to-face with Shinobu, who was holding her Butterfly Blade.

Smiling, Ivy bowed and withdrew.

Shinobu, for her part, went a little dazed at the sight of Marcus’s half-bared chest, and her cheeks flushed red.

"Hypnotized?"

Marcus’s voice pulled her back to reality.

"Hmph! Shameless~!"

Then she spun around and headed for Marcus’s bedroom.

Marcus smiled at the sight of her back.

The more time they spent together, the more Shinobu got used to showing him this slightly childish side.

It was a very good thing!

At the end of the day, even though he’d already conquered her body, he felt he still hadn’t fully made his way into her heart. And today was an excellent opportunity!

Chuckling under his breath, he followed her. Upon entering the room, the first thing he did was close the door... and throw the latch!

Then, noticing that Shinobu’s ears were turning redder and redder, he stepped over and gently embraced her from behind, at the same time placing his hands over the hilt of the Blade.

"Haa..."

A melancholy sigh echoed in Marcus’s mind.

"You always manage to tease her, Marcus-kun..."

Marcus closed his eyes, and the image of Kanae appeared before him.

Beautiful, gentle, and generous, she was like the girl next door that every boy remembers from his teenage years.

"This doesn’t count as teasing."

Marcus chuckled under his breath. "Kanae... Onee-san~"

"I thought you’d never use an honorific with me." Kanae shook her head helplessly.

"The situation’s different."

Marcus looked at her seriously. "Right now you’re Shinobu’s older sister, and at least for today you’re my elder, not my spirit blade."

Kanae smiled.

"Your... spirit blade?"

Marcus arched an eyebrow. "Isn’t that so?"

Kanae smoothed her hair gently. "How is it that I recall Marcus-kun saying that, even after entering this sword, I’d still be free~?"

"Of course. I’ve never wanted to restrict your freedom. I’m just certain you won’t leave."

Marcus said with emphasis. "You’ve been here a while now, so there are certain things you ought to know by now."

Kanae blinked. "What do you mean, Marcus-kun?"

"Playing dumb?" Marcus flashed a smile. "Fine, then I’ll be blunt."

"Right now you’re free, sure—you can leave whenever you want. But the moment you fall into the deep sleep and officially begin to fuse with the sword... no matter how much you want to leave, you no longer will be able to."

"..."

At her silence, Marcus shook his head.

"I see you understand it perfectly well."

Kanae looked at him seriously. "And how do you know I won’t just stay like this forever, avoiding that deep sleep?"

"It’s obvious—don’t you want to hold your two little sisters again?"

"..."

"Don’t you want to have a physical body and be with them always?"

"..."

"And after reappearing in their lives, after seeing those joyful smiles... would you have the heart to let them lose you again, in tears?"

"..."

Faced with that triple thrust, Kanae fell silent for a long while. A long while.

Until, with a sigh, she murmured:

"Marcus-kun... the truth is, you’re not a good person..."

Marcus smiled crookedly. "I’ve never presented myself under the banner of ’good person.’ In fact, I don’t much fit that definition either. But that only applies to outsiders."

"I can’t deny it," Kanae said softly. "At least with Shinobu you are a good person... That’s probably why she likes you."

"Heh—"

Marcus was about to smirk smugly when Kanae’s melancholy voice cut him off.

"The thing is, that good-person side of yours... is spread among too many."

Marcus’s face fell.

Here it comes!

What had to happen had finally arrived.

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Throw your stones, drop them ALL! 💎

And don’t forget to comment, I wanna know if you liked the Chapter 👀

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And if PS aren’t your thing but you still want more Chapters...

P-a-t-r-e-o-n → Athome790