Chapter 7: Sorry, but I... Already Know That About Her.

The Hanazono family’s grand bathhouse was a sprawling space with a massive tub and washing area, more like a public sentō than a home bathroom.

["As expected of Hakari-san’s house… A bathtub vast as the ocean"]

"Rich people’s baths…!"

"The tub’s huge, but… damn, Mama’s tits are even bigger!!"

"Oh my~❤"

To the right observer (mainly Rentarou), this scene might’ve been enough to make them faint—but as a "Rentarou Family" bath scene, something felt off. Rentarou’s absence was one thing, but there was another missing: the sixth member of the family (by joining order), Seibetsu Kawaru.

"...Too bad, though. I really wanted Kawaru-chan to join us."

"She allowed us to use her given name and calls everyone else by theirs too, but… she absolutely refused to bathe together."

"Is Kawaru insecure about being flat?"

"...—!?"

["A stray bullet of truth ricocheted through the room."]

"All sizes have their own worth."

Unable to withstand the atmosphere, Karane made an emergency exit. Can’t blame her. Shizuku might call this place the "Goddess Descendant Festival," but to Karane, it was a "Demon Banquet Hall."

---

"Those fat sacks are just dead weight in close combat… On the battlefield, they’d get you killed…"

Muttering excuses, Karane headed toward Rentarou’s room. Her analogies were violent, but understandable—words had wounded her first.

As she hurried, an unmistakable voice reached her ears:

"No… I said no…! If you keep going…! If you unleash that much pent-up stuff on me… I’ll lose my mind…!"

"This is the finish line… No escaping now, Kawaru!"

"Wait… damn it! Why… are you so strong?! You’re not even budging…!"

What in the world? This clearly wasn’t innocent play. Sensing danger, Karane broke into a sprint.

Normally, eavesdropping might’ve been fine—but this was the Hanazono house, where lewd energy lingered. Even Rentarou’s honesty or Kawaru’s insistence on being "just friends" couldn’t negate the risk. Kawaru had kissed Rentarou earlier, after all.

Now they were alone: boy and girl, a locked room, 30 minutes. Nothing happening? Unthinkable. Karane’s mind, already infected by the house’s lustful air, spiraled further.

"You were never that strong to begin with, Kawaru… Why not give up?"

"I… I won’t! Not like this…!"

"Here it comes, Kawaru! I’m unleashing it all!"

Karane’s brain (corrupted by the "lewd virus") synthesized the dialogue into one conclusion: "No doubt, they’re doing it…!" (Spoiler: They weren’t.)

At the door, Karane hesitated—until another moan sealed her resolve:

"Ah… damn it…! You didn’t… need to go this hard…!""Wow, it really came out! Didn’t expect that much. But you’d wanna finish feeling good too, right?""I get it, but… alright! Round two!"

Guilty. Verdict: guilty. It had to be that. Bursting in, Karane screamed—

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TWO DOING?!"

—Only to find them hunched over smartphones.

"Jirai○a and Cele○i combo is cheating! 15 flips out of 20?! That’s overkill!"

"Says the one going for a first-turn KO with Ka○ine and Free○a?!"

They were playing Poké○on, the hit mobile game (released early in this timeline—don’t overthink it).

(Note: Kawaru owned a backup phone with transferred data. Why? She’s got money.)

"C’mon! It’s fun watching Rentarou squirm helplessly!"

"And it’s cute seeing Kawaru panic and physically block me when her energy’s maxed out."

"Of course I’d block that! A full-energy shot’s an instant KO! Why flip 15 when 4 guarantees a win?!"

"...YOU TWO ARE THE WORST!!"

"Alright, I'm gonna hit the bathroom real quick..."

"For ME to misunderstand like that...! It's all this damn house's pervy atmosphere's fault...!"

"You okay, Karane?"

"I-I'm fine! Totally fine!"

"K-Karane...? Your stomach's growling...!"

---

"Ahhh, much better... Still, you're brutal, Rentarou! I finally pulled off the Kasmi-Froslass combo, and you tanked it with Celesteela in one hit?! And that max-speed Charizard build too...!"

But why did Karane make that face earlier? What was her problem? All I did was try to stop Rentarou's stacked energy gauge, got overpowered, and lost after he flipped a ton of heads...

...Whatever! Time to head back. I'm wrecked today—even the trip from the room to the toilet took forever. Finally reaching the door, I opened it to find the family in pajamas. Whoa... They all look amazing—

"KYAAAAAAAAHHH‼︎‼︎❤︎❤︎❤︎"

Rentarou and Hakari-san collapsed, screaming. Probably because Kusuri-senpai and Shizuku were too cute—like tiny animals. Rentarou got cheek-kissed and straight-up ascended. …Come back soon, okay? Hakari-san, meanwhile, was begging for kisses so hard she got a nosebleed. Classic.

"I just need to get Kawaru-chan into pajamas too… Let her wear them, at least…!"

"Mother, STOP! Your nosebleed’s worse now!"

"Hakari-san, are you okay?!"

Rentarou rushed to her side. Wait… is that nosebleed now gushing from both nostrils ever since they started talking about me?

"Because… A girl who used to be a boy?! Two flavors in one! Kawaru-chan’s already adorable, but after wearing boys’ clothes for so long, seeing her shyly try girls’ outfits would be… hnngh…!"

Now that she mentions it… I am still in men’s clothes and underwear. Haven’t bought anything else yet. Should go shopping soon…

Rentarou had escorted Hakari-san to the kitchen minutes ago. When they didn’t return, suspicious moans echoed from the next room. Seriously? That fast?! Though it wasn’t as loud as I’d expect… Whatever. Hakari-san’s "sneak attacks" aside, I should check. Rentarou wouldn’t… right? Peeking through the door, I saw—

"E-Everyone?!?!"

"Aahhh~❤ You’re the cutest in the world, Rentarou-chaaan~❤"

—There stood Rentarou. In full crossdress.

"I’m glad you’re my daughter…!"

"Let me call you onee-sama…!"

"I’ll follow you forever…!"

"A legend for the history books…!"

"[You are my liege.]"

"????????????"

……………!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

"E-Everyone’s seeing me… l-like this…!"

THUD!

"Did he die of embarrassment?!"

"Well, Kawaru-chan?! As his lover and best friend, what’s your professional opinion on Rentarou’s outfit?!"

"…………"

What… just happened? I see nothing. Feel nothing…

No—wrong! I see everything! Feel everything! The data packet labeled "Rentarou Crossdressing" won’t finish loading! That’s why… I can’t… move………………⁉︎

"…Huh? No reaction?"

"Odd. Seibetsu Kawaru always reacts."

"What’s wrong with you? It’s your boyfriend in a dress! At least—?!"

"………………"

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

"[System Overload.]"

"Kawaru-san’s completely frozen! Not even blinking!"

"Near-total brain activity shutdown… Energy-efficient, at least."

"Forget her brain—her pulse and heart stopped?!"

"See…? It was too much for Kawaru-chan…"

"Stop yapping and help! Rentarou’s also—wait, he’s dead too?!"

"……………RENTAROU’S DEAD?!?!?"

"KAWARU IS BACK!"

"[Self-resurrection achieved, yo.]"

Hah. What just happened? I definitely saw Rentarou… then he was crossdressing… Ohhh, that’s it! The moment I saw him in that outfit, it overwrote my brain! Result? I couldn’t think about anything except "Rentarou’s Crossdressing"! In other words… his outfit was a Domain Expansion: Unlimited Void‼︎ (Not really.)

But one thing’s unforgivable. Rentarou’s dead?! No way that’s possible.

"Bullshit… There’s no world where that guy dies before us…!"

"True, but also not the point!"

A glance confirmed it: Rentarou lay there, still in the dress, lifeless. No shot. So then… this situation. Cause of death? Death by embarrassment. His face was flushed, faint steam rising from his overheated brain. Case closed.

But hey… this is still salvageable. We’ve got a shot. How? Well… his soul’s still in there, y’know? Like… retreated inward. When he ascends from purity, it floats up—but this time, it’s hiding. I can feel it.

"Rentarou-chaaan…! Hah! Nano-chan, help me out here!"

The revival method? Yank his soul back out with a strong stimulus. Ideally, not electricity or impact—love. Because he’s Aijou Rentarou. The man who’ll do anything for love.

Hakari-san proposed Nano crossdressing as a prince to "kiss awake" the sleeping "princess" Rentarou. Damn, though—Nano in a suit is ridiculously handsome… Is she a model?! I gasped aloud. Is this the "white knight" from fairy tales?

Nano leaned in, lips meeting Rentarou’s. Whoa… It’s like a scene from a painting or classic film! Hallucination? Flowers bloomed behind them…?!

And hell, Rentarou rocks the "princess" role too…! Wait—why am I drooling?! Shit. I was gonna scold everyone else for it!

Revived, Rentarou stormed off to the bath. Adorable. Guess I’ll get ready too.

---

"[Knock it off! Y’all really wanna disappoint your lord and master?! Huhhh~?]"

Sigh. Saw this coming. Everyone except Shizuku and me was dead set on peeping on Rentarou’s bath. Even Karane—usually the voice of reason—was joining in. Checkmate.

"Kawaru, don’tcha wanna see Rentarou’s di—?!"

"Kawaru-chan! You’re not curious?!"

"Nah… I’ve already seen it."

…Silence.

"""""""……Huhhhh⁉︎‼︎"""""""

"Right! Kawaru was male before…!"

"How was it?! Was Rentarou big?!"

"Details, now! What’d it look like?!"

"Even hearsay data is valuable for analysis."

"Ehh… Privacy’s a thing, y’know? Plus, he’d die of shame… But if I had to say…" [Dramatic pause.]

"I’ve seen it all. Flaccid. Hard. Battle-ready. Every damn state. That’s all."

"""""Wha—‼︎"""""

"Then we’re definitely going!!"

"Seeing Rentarou-kun naked is now our sacred duty!"

"Intelligence disparity among partners is illogical. Immediate investigation required."

Yikes. This escalated. Hang in there, Rentarou.

"If it’s a secret… why aren’t you stopping them?"

"[Helloo?! Backup, Aniki!]"

"Nah… I’m too banged up to fight ‘em off. Plus, I’ll struggle just washing myself in the bath later. So… pass."

"[Traitor!]"

I left the room. Phew. Peeping’s low. Rentarou’s definitely wrapping a towel around his waist anyway. But hey—I will back him up. Sorta. No promises against that horde.

Now then, time to head to the bath. I may have patched myself up for now, but without getting properly cleaned up, the bruises from earlier aren't gonna heal properly. I need to soak a little. Plus, if I'm gonna support Rentarou, being right there on-site is best. Hang tight, Rentarou!