Chat Group : Another Fate From Honkai

After casually tossing Aether to the side, Nagami and Lumine, now acting like a pair of siblings, completed their "transaction."

Well, according to Lumine, it wasn't a trade—it was a magical bonding ritual to strengthen their sibling relationship!

Even though Lumine had told him to take as much as he wanted, Nagami didn't go overboard.

He simply took three drops of the spring water.

In return, Lumine had a small request: have Nia to draw yuri doujins featuring Ayaka, Kokomi, Raiden Shogun… basically the entire lineup of girls.

She even provided several well-crafted plotlines.

As a traveler who had journeyed through countless worlds, Lumine had lost many memories due to her overly long life.

But the experience that remained?

More than enough to come up with scenarios that would absolutely obliterate any shut-in otaku's self-control.

Just as she was about to fall into an irreversible pit of degeneracy, Nagami stopped her in time.

Nope. No. This was bad—very bad!

At this moment, Nagami sincerely hoped he wouldn't end up in one of those "my little sister is actually me" situations.

If that ever happened, his pure heart would be thoroughly corrupted by Lumine.

"Here, Nagami. For you."

That ethereal, calming voice—like an orchid blooming in a secluded valley—was something he could never get tired of hearing.

Kurumi had returned.

In her hands were ice cream, sakura mochi, and a variety of other snacks.

Oh, right. Forgot to mention—when it came to money, Kurumi was practically a rich lady.

Though… the sources of her wealth were definitely not what you'd call "legal."

Inori picked a vanilla ice cream.

After she unwrapped it, she offered it to him first.

Only after he took a smiling bite did she start eating herself.

She stuck out her soft pink tongue, gently licking the cream on the cone.

Cold mist rose with each breath from her sakura-colored lips, and a faint smile bloomed at the corners of her mouth.

"Those two haven't returned yet?"

Nagami then picked a sakura-flavored ice cream.

After unwrapping it, he also offered it to Inori first.

But just as he was about to take a bite himself, he noticed Kurumi staring at him, wide-eyed.

He hesitated for a second, then took a small bite and held it out toward her.

"Want some?"

"They're on their way back," Kurumi said, reaching for the ice cream.

Her exposed crimson eye shimmered alluringly.

She deliberately bit the same spot Nagami had just bitten, making sure he saw it.

"Mmm~ This flavor is delicious~"

If this were the Honkai world, the girls would already be blushing and stammering.

But Kurumi? Not even the slightest blush—she was the one doing the teasing!

Her shame level was just too high.

Nagami had already lost all interest in trying to flirt back.

After a couple bites of ice cream, Nagami turned and looked toward the door with a smile.

"I'm back…" 2x

Two voices overlapping in unison—soft, weak, and utterly drained.

"Welcome back~"

Nagami's eyes immediately caught the lipstick still smeared on Itsuka Shido's lips.

He rushed over, feigning concern, and discreetly signaled to Kotori with a wave of his hand behind his back.

"So? Was it easy to handle?"

"It went well at first," Kotori replied, glancing at Shido, who had gone to the mirror to wipe off the remaining makeup.

"But that idiot got careless. His identity as a guy got exposed and made Miku Yukishiro absolutely furious…"

She pulled a stack of photos from beneath her skirt and handed them to Nagami, making sure Shido couldn't see.

"What could I do?! I'm a guy! How would I know anything about girl stuff?" Shido said, clearly frustrated. "This was my first time cross-dressing, I can't be expected to get every detail right!"

"Tsk. We're doing intensive training on Ratatoskr next time! I've summoned every single woman on the ship. You're going to practice until you're indistinguishable from the real thing!"

Kotori crossed her arms like a commander issuing orders.

Her crimson eyes burned with a strange and terrifying fire.

"Please have mercy…"

Shido collapsed onto the sofa, completely drained.

He looked at Nagami, who was staring at him in a state of utter shock.

"Nagami? What's with that look?"

Nagami was frozen in place, his wide-eyed expression practically a living question mark meme.

He didn't even bother hiding the stack of photos anymore.

His eyes bounced back and forth between the images in his hands and the real-life Shido on the couch.

What the actual hell?!

"You're telling me… this is Itsuka Shido?!"

The photo showed a delicate figure, long blue hair fluttering in the breeze like a waterfall.

A pleated school skirt just barely covered her thighs, creating that sacred "absolute territory" between her skirt and her smooth, slender legs.

Her amber eyes sparkled with life.

"This is a dude?!"

This was nothing like the trap characters he remembered from his past life.

This wasn't just cross-dressing—this was next-level sorcery!

With just the subtlest makeup, he looked like he had a maxed-out beauty filter on.

Utterly terrifying.

No wonder so many people were hopelessly in love with "Shiori"…

"Hmm? Nagami… Don't tell me those photos are—"

"Nothing! Nothing at all!"

Before Shido could finish, Kotori snatched the photos from Nagami's hands and stomped down on his foot with her black silk-covered heel.

"Ko…tori…"

Itsuka Shido might not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but he wasn't an idiot.

It didn't take him long to figure out what had happened.

The gentle smile on his face gradually twisted into something far more sinister, as dark flames began to flare ominously behind him.

"S-Shido… listen, I can explain… This is just… uh… ehe~…"

"'Ehe' your damn self! Get back here!!"

'SLAM!'

The sound of a door being slammed shut echoed through the house, followed by the solid clunk of the lock being thrown into place.

"You traitor! After everything I did for you—taking those photos and everything—and this is how you repay me?!"

Kotori had tricked Yatogami Tohka into being a meat shield with a simple excuse about "playing a fun game," then shoved her straight into Shido's path and dragged Nagami by the arm all the way to her room.

Damn it! She knew she never should've trusted a single word out of Nagami's mouth!

With teammates like this, surrendering at 15 minutes would be merciful.

"Ahem. Well, you see... the situation was just so shocking that I reacted on instinct," Nagami said with a perfectly straight face, draping his arm around her shoulder like an old friend—way too close for comfort, but acting as if it was totally normal.

"Come on, relax. When have I ever let you down?"

"Always. No—wait—you've never even given me a reason to hope in the first place!"

Kotori's porcelain-white cheeks flushed with the faintest pink.

Whether it was from the running or something else, she didn't say.

"Sigh… Do you even know what I've done to help you guys while you were out there trying to 'win over' those Spirits?"

Nagami let out a dramatic sigh, looking as tragic as a heroic martyr getting wrongly banned from a group chat after helping a stranger.

"I went through hell to trade for a crucial item from Lumine—something that'll help you conquer even the toughest Spirits! You think that was easy?!"

He pushed Kotori aside and flopped onto her bed, sinking into the faint scent of girl shampoo and soft fabric.

"The world is falling apart… no trust between friends anymore… we're supposed to be besties, and yet you doubt me like this? Truly heartbreaking."

Kotori raised a delicate brow, watching his theatrical performance with something between amusement and suspicion.

"Seriously? Since when have you been that selfless?"

"You still don't believe in your big brother Nagami?" he asked, shooting her a playful glance.

To prove his sincerity, Nagami sent her a red envelope in the chat group—containing a single drop of spring water.

"Check the group."

"This… turns the drinker into a beautiful girl…"

Kotori read through the item description, her lips slowly curling into a sly smile.

Her crimson eyes gleamed with a strange, mischievous light.

'The real Itsuka Shiori is about to take the stage. Miku won't know what hit her.'

"Think about it. With Lumine's personality, do you think she'd hand over something this rare just for fun?

I paid a heavy price to get it, and what do I get? Not even a thank-you! Instead, you're mad at me for one tiny slip-up—unbelievable."

"Well…"

Kotori looked away, clearly feeling a little guilty as Nagami turned his back on her, dramatically ignoring her from the bed.

A blush colored her delicate face.

After a brief pause, she softened.

Smiling gently, she walked around to the other side of the bed and placed her small hands on his shoulders, beginning to massage him with light, practiced pressure.

"I was wrong~ Please forgive me, okay? Pretty pleaaase, Onii-chan~?"

"Mmm, a little harder… yeah, and move up just a bit."

Heh heh~ Just as planned.

Nagami didn't mind that Kotori would eventually find out the truth from Lumine—that the whole exchange had really been for some yuri doujin material.

There was no way Lumine would ever admit to bartering the precious item for something that… shameless.

She only ever let her true, utterly unfiltered self show around Nagami.

The rest of the time, she at least pretended to act like a normal person.

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