Ephemeral Ability Reflects the Heart

Clink! the sound on the dining table is the clattering of dishes.

There is a chili prawn, fruit salad with shrimp and yogurt sauce, and an oversized omelet filled with bacon and potatoes. The rice is cooked in a large rice cooker, and the miso soup with tofu is made with a light flavor.

In response to Chihiro's request for a larger portion, Riko, Aika, and Hana prepared a menu that tasted great.

However, the reason why no one talked is because of what Chihiro had announced earlier.

After that, everyone showed their agitation at the sudden talk.

『Chihiro, are you serious?』

『Of course, I'm serious』

Riko, who first asked him, seemed to sense something in Chihiro's answer. So, she just said, "Okay", and left everything to him.

Aika appeared to be rather worried. 

『...Chihiro-kun, are you okay?』

『Yeah, I'm fine. It's not like I'm desperate or anything』

『Well, okay...』

She still made a show of thinking about something, but proceeded to prepare the meal.

And Hana was the one who showed the most antipathy.

『I'd welcome Izumi-kun to leave, though』

After making her typical preamble, she throws some sharp words at Chihiro.

『If you're planning to do something terrible to Maria-chan, I won't approve』

『Even if you say so... I can't help it if she's suffering from full-blown training』

After all, it's the same training Hana had before.

Since the body and mind are tortured at the same time, the person being trained will inevitably experience a certain amount of suffering and pain.

Pain, shame, and, of course, pleasure - rituals that expose and release the mind of the person being trained through pressure that they are not usually exposed to.

That's what Chihiro thinks "training" is.

The experience he had when he scribbled on Maria has made him think so.

『Are you going to do that to Maria-chan?』

『No... Maybe worse』

He could have lied, but he answered honestly.

And Hana gave him a hard stare.

『Please tell me what you're planning to do』

Depending on the situation, she would do everything in her power to stop it.

But Chihiro shook his head.

『Sorry, I can't do that. Because I don't want Maria to be unprepared』

The jet-black girl remained seated in her chair in silence.

It's not as if she hadn't heard Chihiro's declaration. Her eyes, which not long ago had seemed to have some sort of power of will, now were blank and reflected nothing.

"Depending on the results, I'll release Maria".

It seems the words are working, that she's feeling something.

『What if I say, "I won't let you"?』

『Well... maybe I should train Hana first. Until you are willing to listen to me』

That's what he said.

He didn't make fun of it this time like Riko's time. If necessary, he would do whatever it took, and the "him" that he used to be when he was prepared to do that kind of thing came out of the depths of his heart.

Although Hana's training had once ended half-heartedly.

But now, he was confident that he could corrupt this girl to a deeper level now. Hana's body had developed differently since then, and Chihiro had the ability to read her desires.

Fortunately, Hana agreed to the standoff this time.

『I understand. But be sure to tell me what you're going to do after dinner. As long as Maria-chan doesn't ask, right?』

『Okay』

After the conversation, Maria went back to her room to rest.

『Chihiro-kun, is training really that hard?』

She must have been listening to what Chihiro and Hana were saying.

But Aika, who had stopped preparing the meal, quietly asked it. In front of her, he had only trained her as a part of play, so she probably couldn't imagine what he meant by "training" Maria.

When he was wondering how to explain it, Riko helped him out.

『It's hard. When you're trained, your mind and body get messed up. I don't know what's going on, and sometimes I feel like crying』

Riko, who had actually experienced and witnessed the training, had a real sense of reality in her voice.

『Is it that hard?』

『It's hard. But something changes afterwards. I can't really describe it, though...』

『I see...』

『And by the way, it must be hard for Chihiro too. It takes a lot of energy to train someone』

After saying that, Riko went back to the kitchen.

『Chihiro-kun says things like that and trains Maria-chan because you care about her, right?』

『Yes, that's right』

Maria is important to Chihiro.

He never thought of her as an object of love, but she is certainly a necessary part of his life.

What he said to Maria before hasn't changed.

『I might be a little jealous』

Aika muttered quietly at the end. 

In the end, Maria did not say a word during the meal.

He told her that she should eat as much as possible, so she ate to some extent, which is a relief.

「Maria, I'm going to ask Riko and the others to clean up, so can you go clean yourself up? I don't mind if it takes a while」

「...Okay」

Purification before the training.

He won't tell it what he's going to do, but he needs time to calm down. He needs to be prepared to accept whatever is done to him.

While Maria was purifying herself in the bathroom, Chihiro explained to Aika, Riko and Hana the details of the training.

As expected, the girls protested.

However, Chihiro has no intention of giving in.

「...Are you really going to do that?」

「It's too much. Is it really necessary to go that far?」

「Yes. I want to know how Maria really feels. I want to hear how she really feels」

Though, he's not sure if they're convinced about the details.

Still, one girl nodded silently, another asked all the questions they could think of, and a third stared at Chihiro and questioned him about his true intentions.

Each of them must have had different feelings inside.

There are times when they almost shouted at each other.

However, the girls finally swallowed the idea of the training, and they all went to work cleaning up after dinner and preparing for the training.

A few tens of minutes passed, and the preparations were all done.

「...Sorry to keep you waiting」

Maria appeared in front of everyone, wearing a black collar, without clothes and wearing only a towel.

Her hair was dry and carefully combed. It was a wise decision, considering what was about to happen.

Her expression is much better than before she ate. Her stomach was full of food and the hot water had calmed her down.

「Maria, are you ready?」

「Y...」

Maria choked up as she checked to make sure.

There was no turning back now.

She must have realized that once this training was over, the relationship between Chihiro and Maria might be over.

But still...

「Yes」

The girl nodded stoutly.

「...Good. Then let's go to the bedroom」

Maria and him moved to the usual bedroom. Riko and Aika followed behind.

Hana was already waiting for them inside.

Maria opened the door and walked in, stopping near the entrance.