Chapter 35

I felt sick to my stomach. Everything was going well. Principal Iwata just had to show up and throw a wrench in everything. But it wasn't over yet. Even if I were to mess up, earning enough for a Reload enabled me to do it again. My knees gave out. I huddled on the floor, lightheaded and nauseous. The world was spinning, and there was little I could do to stop it.

Then a reassuring hand fell upon my shoulder. When I glanced behind, my husband Tetsu regarded me worriedly.

"Marika, are you okay?" Tetsu asked.

"I don't think so… no," I said.

Tetsu helped me up and walked us over to a bench to sit down. We didn't talk. He left me to the peace and quiet while watching the others enjoy Tanabata. Children carrying balloons and sparklers raced past in laughter. I saw Keita's face in them. His youth. The times we had spent together as a family.

"What if we moved?" Tetsu suggested.

"What?" I gasped.

"Leave Togetsu behind. Buy an affordable place in the suburbs of a big city where it's cheaper. I'll pick up an office job! How hard can it be going from throwing out my back under the sweltering sun to an air-conditioned cubicle?" He laughed.

"I… We can't. If I leave, too, then Maruyama's the only one left to help the older folks."

Tetsu squinted at me.

"Maruyama and… Sis, right?" Tetsu cocked his head.

I threw a hand up to my mouth, realizing the mistake I'd made.

My husband wrung his hands together, frowning. "So, Sis is getting out of town before we do. Damn. Even people our age are leaving us behind. Offer's still on the table though. I know you're sweet on the older residents in Togetsu, but when does it end? In ten years time, the oldest ones will pass and younger ones will be in their shoes needing help. Repeat that for a few decades, and your life will have passed you by, then you're the one who's being helped. They have their lives to live, and you have yours. I don't mind living here for the rest of my life with you. I just see how much it's wearing on you."

I looked Tetsu in the eyes. If I told him now that I'd been sleeping with other men because a mobile game app coerced me to, how would he react? I haven't met a kinder and more understanding man than Tetsu. He really was too good for me.

"A lot of them raised us. They pitched in to help us when my parents and yours died. I can't just abandon them. At the very least, I want to think longer on it before deciding," I said, grabbing his hand.

"Sounds good to me. Wanna get some food?" Tetsu smiled.

"I was thinking about getting some yakisoba," I said.

"Now we're talking!"

We enjoyed a meal together, a plate for each of us. But because Tetsu was a gluttonous eater, I only ate half of mine and gave him the rest. I checked the time, and it was getting to be about the time when Shiraishi had his medical emergency. Last I remember, he had gone to the storehouse where the staff were.

"There's still plenty of time before the play. How about I help out in the storehouse?" I offered.

"Ah, there's nothing much left to do. But sure. I doubt the others would mind having an extra hand," Tetsu said.

As we made our way there, I kept a lookout for Principal Iwata. That man had to be somewhere close by, following my every step. It would explain how Tetsu came to discover me in the middle of a gangbang. The principal likely told my husband when and where. As soon as Tetsu grabbed the door knob, someone within shrieked. He shot me a worried look and pushed the door open.

A group of people surrounded someone kneeling on the floor and cradling another person lying flat on their back. Some of them glanced our way and parted.

"Shiraishi! Shiraishi!" Yuuko shook the old man.

"What happened?" Tetsu gasped.

"I-I don't know. Mr. Shiraishi just grabbed his chest and collapsed. We saved him from falling, but… he won't wake up!" she cried.

This was it. The cardiac arrest. Tetsu kneeled down next to Shiraishi, pressed an ear to the old man's chest, and grimaced. I stepped away from the group and pulled out my phone.

"Saya, use Stethoscope on Mr. Shiraishi," I whispered.

Saya saluted me and flew off-screen. She came back a second later dressed in a sexy nurse's outfit, then grabbed a small-ified digital avatar of Jiro Shiraishi into view from the opposite end. With a stethoscope equipped to her ears, she put the metal chest piece over where Shiraishi's heart was and listened in.

Everyone suddenly panicked. Shiraishi snapped to an upright sitting position, sucking in a deep breath. Tetsu fell backwards, his jaw hanging open.

"Are… Are you alive?" Tetsu asked.

"What does it look like, boy? Of course, I'm alive!" Shiraishi exclaimed.

"Well, Yuuko said you fell! I checked your pulse and everything. Everyone thought you were on your way out!" My husband gestured to the others, who nodded in agreement.

Jiro Shiraishi felt himself up, seemingly unsure of himself.

"It… seemed like I was on my way out. I'm not so sure what happened. Looks like I still got a few more years in me! Hah! All this dying made me hungry. Can anyone bring this old bastard a meal?" Shiraishi demanded half-jokingly.

"Maybe we should have Akemi drive you to a hospital just in case?" someone suggested.

"And miss the rest of Tanabata? Absolutely not. I'm not leaving town until the day I die, and that's final. Now get back to work. All of ya!" He shooed them away from him.

They listened to the unofficial mayor of Togetsu. Even my husband threw his hands in the air, unable to get through to Shiraishi, and went right back to tidying up.

"Can I speak to you for a moment about the play later?" I asked Shiraishi.

"You know I'll always make time for you." Shiraishi smiled.

We walked to one corner of the room. No one seemed particularly interested in what we had to say. For the most part, the stageplay was all boring logistics.

"It's… actually not about the play," I whispered.

"That there's a serious face if I ever saw one," Shiraishi said.

"Principal Iwata came back and threatened me earlier. He's had a bit of a change in appearance now, too," I explained.

"That bastard." The old man clicked his tongue. "We told him to never come back, and what does he do? This is serious though. Your life's in danger. Who knows what Minoru plans to do. I say, as much as I don't want to… we cancel the play."

"What? No. No! We can't do that. I've been practicing so much, and so has Guo. Everyone's been looking forward to it all year!"

Our discussion erupted a little bit louder than I'd hoped. We drew some unwanted attention this way. Cancelling the play might be the safe thing to do, but it would deprive me of another bounty of points I needed to collect on— Performing the play naked for 60,000 points. With Birthday Suit Disguise, I was able to be naked in reality but dressed in everyone's eyes.

"Okay, okay. No need to make a fuss over it. I understand not wanting to after all we've worked on. I can't imagine what Minoru would do to sabotage anything. Worst I can imagine is him doing something to you. So, just be safe. If I was fifty years younger, I'd protect you no problem!" Shiraishi lowered his voice. "Maybe sweep you off your feet and take you for myself. Hehe!"

"Oh, you." I giggled, butterflies swirling in my tummy. "But I think you're right. He did threaten me specifically…"

"Have Tetsu stick with you for the rest of the day. We can do with one less pair of hands around here," he offered.

That might make things worse. Principal Iwata sounded like he hated Tetsu just as much.

"I think I'll just lie low back at home for now and rest until the performance," I said.

"No, that won't do. What if Minoru follows you there? I got it. I'll walk you back! Stay with you until then?" Shiraishi suggested temptingly.

"I… I suppose that's alright…"

As long as we didn't have sex. Jiro Shiraishi was among the six men I trusted to obtain the rest of the points from.

"Tetsu!" Shiraishi shouted across the room. "Marika here is gonna walk me back to my house. You all are right. I should just take it easy unless I want to faint again."

"I'm planning to take a nap after going back home, too. Can you tell Guo I'll meet him back here later before the performance?" I asked.

"Sounds good, Marika! Take it easy, Shiraishi!" Tetsu smiled.

On the way back, I couldn't stop looking over my shoulder. I pictured Principal Iwata jumping out of nowhere to attack me. Or attack Shiraishi, who was too old to defend himself. Agreeing to leave with him might have been a mistake.

"Look out!" Shiraishi exclaimed, pulling me back by hand.

A large, standing cardboard sign adorned heavily in paper ornaments collapsed a step away from me. Everyone around us gasped.

"It's alright, Marika!" Shiraishi consoled me. "This thing probably got too heavy. I told the staff to keep people from sticking too many ornaments on the damn thing. It can only hold so much."

"Right…" I pressed a hand to my beating heart.

We made it to my house safe and sound. Despite my paranoia, Principal Iwata hadn't shown up at all. No one followed us either. At least not that I was able to see. Jiro Shiraishi made himself at home. He picked up a newspaper lying on the coffee table and plopped right down on the couch. I filled a glass of water for him, then excused myself to the bathroom.

Everything was going well so far. I opened up the NTL app to purchase a couple of things. One, the Birthday Suit Disguise to be used later for 10,000 points. Secondly, the Butt Plug for another 10,000 points. I slipped it into my back side. With the time currently at 11 AM, I'd earn the bounty an hour before midnight. Lastly, I purchased a Save Point for 40,000 points and registered it to my bathroom at 11:12 AM.

I returned to the living room and jumped to find Shiraishi stroking his dick.

"W-What are you doing?" I cried.

"I'm getting ready. What else? We slipped away to get some alone time, didn't we?" Shiraishi asked.

"No, I… What if we save it for much later? After the performance," I said.

"Well, now I'm all hard. How about one of your fellatios? I love how you suck my balls!" He giggled salaciously.

I swallowed hard, fighting the urge to give in.

"Would you settle on a handjob?" I asked.

"Sure!" Shiraishi smiled.

I kneeled in front of the old man. He spread his legs to let down between them. His cock throbbed intensely, smelled so masculine, and the tip glistened with precum. It was hot when I grabbed the thick member. Shiraishi leaned back on the couch as I stroked him, slowly picking up speed.

"Oh, that's it… Your hand might not be your mouth or pussy, but you're still real good at this…" Shiraishi mumbled in bliss.

The faster I pumped his cock, the more I wanted to suck him. Finally, Shiraishi blew a hot load that flew all over my face and shirt. He continued to ooze out some more as I squeezed the tip.

"Whew! Now to return the favor!"

"You really don't have to— ahh!"

Shiraishi yanked me onto the couch and scooted between my legs. He buried his face in my crotch. A lapping tongue dragged long and gentle licks across my clitoris, causing my feet to curl and voice to erupt in moans.

"God, yes… Right there… More…" I fondled my breasts as Shiraishi feasted on my pussy.

I almost kicked Shiraishi's head when my phone rang. It was Tetsu. Why was he calling now?

"Answer it, Marika. I want you to talk to your husband while I'm down here eating you out," Shiraishi said.

"Nngh…" Against my better judgment, I answered the call. "Hello, Tetsu? Did you need something?"

"Oh, nothing. You're at home right now, yeah? After walking Shiraishi home?" Tetsu asked, the commotion of the festivities roaring in the background.

"Yes, but I walked… ahh… Shiraishi to our house. He was feeling faint, so I brought him over to sit down. The heat might be getting to home… nnh… Heatstroke, I mean…" I squeaked out.

"Yeah, yeah. I believe you. Some weird guy came up to me and said you were… cheating on me," he explained.

An icy knife plunged into my heart.

Tetsu continued, "I'm pretty sure the guy was screwing with me. He ran right off into the crowds after saying that. First of all, someone like Shiraishi isn't getting his dick up anytime soon haha!"

Principal Iwata?!

I glanced down at Shiraishi, whose cock was fully erect and raring to go if I so wished.

"Th-That's silly! You know I'd nev… mmm… never. I love you and only you," I said.

"Heh. I know. Love you." Tetsu made a kissing sound, and I did the same before we hung up.

I tossed my phone aside as the pleasure built to an explosive climax. My hand flew to Shiraishi's balding crown and the other to the couch's headrest.

"I'm cumming! I'm cumming so hard!" I screamed.

Shiraishi stood up, licking his lips and clapping his hands like a job well done. I struggled to catch my breath when he pounced on me with a kiss. I tasted my own pussy on his tongue. He slapped his cock against the entrance to my pussy, every impact on my clitoris bringing me closer to another orgasm. The second he rubbed the tip against my lower lips, I pushed him back.

"No!" I exclaimed.

"Sorry! I'm sorry! I couldn't help myself with how cute you looked after climaxing." Shiraishi bowed apologetically.

"It's alright… I-I should get cleaned up," I said.

By the time I came back from freshening myself up, Shiraishi had fallen asleep in the living room. The hearty snores were a good sign of his health. I spent the rest of the day cleaning up the house and preparing for the party we were hosting after the performance.

As the evening approached for the stageplay to begin, I left Shiraishi to snooze a little longer but not before warning him of the time.

In the bathroom, I snapped a picture of myself dressed in the mostly pink gown. Birthday Suit Disguise should not project this attire to everyone even if I was naked. I undressed and felt my heart throbbing faster, so much that it might jump out of my chest. After stuffing an extra set of clothes into a bag, I set off for Himawari Shrine.

Principal Iwata's threats had fallen to the back of my mind. He likely just wanted to harm my mental state, keep me looking over my shoulders. It had worked earlier. I made my way to the steps leading to the shrine with a spring in my gait, more confident than ever.

Then out of nowhere someone grabbed me from behind. I opened my mouth to yell for help, but a rag muted my cries. My vision went black next.