Ephemeral Ability Reflects the Heart

「Real, training...?」

After a few seconds of silence, Maria repeated what Chihiro had said.

Then she finally understood the meaning and muttered in shock.

「...It's not over yet, then?」

「Yes」

This nightmarish time is not over yet.

On the contrary... the real nightmare hasn't even begun.

It will continue.

For a long, long time, with no apparent end.

「......」

There was no response.

It's not like she didn't feel anything.

But it's that she is trying to pass the time by emptying her mind, because she can't bear it unless she dulls her mind.

Then, looking into Maria's eyes, Chihiro moved his feet up on the bed and carried her body.

The emotional response came after a while. Perhaps it was because she couldn't focus properly that she couldn't "see eye to eye".

...But she must be in pain.

That was what she was feeling.

「Maria, let me ask you something. Is there anything you want to tell me?」

A complaint. A whine. Or something.

Anything. Something from her heart.

But Maria gives a little shake of her head.

「...There's nothing」

「...I see」

Chihiro nodded.

Then he had no choice.

There is nothing that he can do except to continue the training.

「Let's start with the preparations」

He crawled over to the bed and extended his hand.

With the freedom of her hands, Maria could have run away, but Chihiro could grab Maria's hand without any resistance.

He unlocked the shackles and removed the enamel gloves.

The thick tights also removed from her legs, leaving only the black collar.

「I'll lift you up」

He puts his hand on Maria's still motionless back and lifts her up.

Then, while holding her in front of him, he left the bedroom and went to the bathroom.

「Chihiro, are you going to wash it?」

Riko, noticing his movement, asked him without saying who will be cleaned.

「Yes」

「Well, why don't I do it? Isn't it hard to clean it?」

Perhaps she said "it".

...Riko's voice is more direct than Chihiro's.

Maybe it's the cruelty of being the same sex, or maybe it's because Chihiro's feelings for Maria are too strong.

Either way, her stance is gratifying.

「Hmm... sure, I think I'll ask you」

Riko nodded and walked up to them.

After waiting for her to approach, Chihiro set Maria down on the bathroom floor.

「Can you stand?」

「...Yes」

Riko took over Maria's care.

But before showering, she took off her collar.

Click!

When the key goes through and the lock comes off, Maria lets out an "Ah...". And then, as the collar releases from her skin, she weakly lifts her right hand and tries to get it back.

「Maria... if you keep it on until you shower, it's going to hurt」

「...」

At Riko's voice, her hand finally stopped moving.

Seeing this, tears almost appeared in her eyes, but then she hurriedly made a wry smile instead.

「Riko, please」

「Yes. I'll take care of everything」

Riko smiles brightly and Maria has blank eyes.

Seeing the two of them, Chihiro left the bathroom and went to the living room.

...After arrived, he doesn't find anyone in the living room and it's quite rare.

Anyway, looking at the empty room, Chihiro exhaled, and while waiting for Riko, he finished his homework and other things that needed to be done.

――On the way, the lead of his mechanical pencil broke several times due to excessive force. And each time, he took a deep breath to calm himself down.

All in all, thirty minutes and a little more had passed.

「Here you go」

Riko led Chihiro to the living room, where Maria had been cleaned, her hair and body washed.

Except for her facial expression, Maria looked exactly the same as usual.

「So, what are you going to do now?」

「Well, I'm going to turn "it" into an object in the living room」

He said as if Maria was an inorganic object.

Immediately, it was Maria, not Riko, who opened her eyes.

Her reaction was as if she couldn't believe it, but Chihiro and Riko accepted it.

「...」

And noticing their gaze, Maria's expression darkened again.

...Still, there is room for that kind of thinking, huh?

But then, as soon as the decision is made, Maria collapses to the floor. Riko looked down at her with somewhat cold eyes.

「...Hmm. Then, let's do it」

「Yeah」

The two of them then "carried it" to the living room.

They sat her in her usual position, in the chair she was using, and added restraints. However, using the shackles again would be a waste of time, so they decided to use a long rope to tie her up.

It is said that to tie up a person's body, it is necessary to use a rope several times the length of the person's height, or more than ten meters long, depending on how it is tied. Normally, such a rope would not be available, but fortunately, this apartment had more than enough length of rope.

This was because it was one of the goods Maria had been regularly buying in the local market or by mail order since the three of them had gone to the adult store together. 

『I wanted to try it once』

It was probably during the summer vacations that she was happily preparing the rope for use on the human body, by boiling and softening it.

Chihiro knew, as a matter of course, where to find the rope that had been so carefully cared for.

And when he took it out and caressed it, he found that the coarseness and roughness of the rope had been removed, and the texture had been improved.

But then he wondered what Maria had been thinking when she had done this.

「I'm glad, Maria, that all your hard work didn't go to waste」

Riko said, carelessly patting Maria's head.

「...Really?」

「Hmm?」

「...No」

It would take some time to tie her up, so they temporarily tied her up with shackles.

After putting an eye mask on Maria, the collar was put on and the rope was used to restrain her.

Maria's legs, which are slightly open, are tied to the front legs of a four-legged chair. Then, her hands are placed behind the back of the chair and tied to the back legs of the chair.

...Well, the binding of the torso was quite a pain.

After all, it was the first time for them to use rope for bondage, and they were even trying to add the idea of binding her to a chair. There was no way that it could be managed with not only a novice preparation but also a hazy knowledge, but somehow, they managed to finish the bondage with desperation while bringing a notebook PC and studying.

The method they tried was called "tortoise shell bondage (亀甲縛り)".

However, the balance between the left and right sides was not quite right, and the knots and tightness were loose. Her arms and legs are all in a mess, and even to the untrained eye, it's not beautiful. Except for the crotch rope running through her clit, it's not much different from a mere wrapping, but Maria must not have the energy to complain.

Still, thanks to the painstaking effort, Maria's body was successfully tied to the chair.

「...I guess that's it」

「Well, isn't it good? It's just an object anyway, right?」

「Well, yeah」

Chihiro laughed at Riko's straightforward statement.

She was right, it just an object. Maria, bound by the rope, could not move. If she shakes her body, the chair can fall down, but once it does, she can't even get up by herself.

She is just there.

And the only thing she can rely on is her hearing, because her sight is blocked.

Her mouth is not sealed, so she can speak, but...