Chapter 142 - Look, it's a delicious high school girl. Don't be shy, eat up.
Now then.
After a fishy meal, the thing to do is oral care.
I carried the empty dishes back to the kitchen and headed straight for the washroom.
I picked up my toothbrush and applied a generous amount of toothpaste.
"Alright."
Nodding to myself, I began brushing with ferocious intensity.
It was a murderous brushing, as if I were polishing the very enemy of my parents.
A normal person would be bleeding profusely from their gums, but my body's mucous membranes were as hard as stone.
My defense was so high that even the strange parts of me were hardened.
The only exceptions would be my hair, nails, and beard. These parts can be cut without issue even with commercially available blades.
I wonder if parts that grow and replace themselves are treated as waste products rather than part of the body.
Is that why high defense doesn't apply to them?
The statuses and magic of another world process everything mechanically.
Because of that, flaws appear here and there.
The incident with Ayako-chan is exactly such an example.
The other Ayako-chan who appeared last night was able to clearly perceive both me—who should have been under Concealment—and the Ayako-chan who is here.
And yet, when we visited her house during the split incident, she couldn't see us at all.
I wonder what this means?
"Hmm..."
I thought while scrubbing my teeth.
Perhaps, it's that.
Is distance a factor?
The Concealment Magic specification allows Party Members to recognize each other's presence without issue.
And even for someone who has joined a party, if they become extremely far away, they are considered to have left the party.
During the split incident, I cast Concealment Magic at a location far from the Otsuki household before entering.
Because of this, the Ayako-chan at home might have been counted as someone who had left the party, which is why she couldn't see us.
However, last night, I must have used Concealment Magic while Ayako-chan was already approaching the park.
Because of that, she was treated as a Party Member, allowing her to find us.
I suppose that's it.
"...That's a problem."
If that's the case, Concealment won't work in the future as long as the other Ayako-chan is in close proximity.
Since I can't just hide and wait it out, I'll eventually need to have a proper talk with her.
Of course, the ideal is reconciliation.
If I can gain the understanding of that Ayako-chan, that would be best.
If I can get to the point where I can borrow things like her insurance card, I can use it if this Ayako-chan gets sick.
Above all, it can't be called healthy for two people who were originally one person to be at odds with each other.
"Alright."
Once decided, there is no hesitation. Maybe I'll stop by the Otsuki household today after work.
...Now that I think about it, even though I'm keeping three women in my house, I'm trying to drop by another woman's house.
Just how far am I going to fall before I'm satisfied?
It's strange. It wasn't supposed to be like this. Elsa is still in my heart.
No further atrocities will be permitted.
I must avoid doing anything that would make even more girls flock to me... With that resolve, I moved to get ready.
＊ ＊ ＊
"Actually, you see, we want Nakamoto-san to host a program themed around high school girls. You'll be talking with the girls we invite to the studio, so will that be okay? It'll be fine, right? I've already made the arrangements."
No, I honestly told him that it was not fine at all.
It was a proposal that made me feel dizzy.
As soon as I arrived at the studio, I was called out by Producer Kurosawa, and when I wondered what was going on, it was this.
The sight of him repeatedly shouting "high school girls, high school girls" in a conference room full of middle-aged men looked almost criminal.
"Um... could you tell me the details of what this entails?"
"That's something even I don't quite understand."
"Eh?"
"It was an order from the higher-ups. It seems the executives want to pair Nakamoto-san with young girls. I wonder if they have some sort of aim."
Sugitani-san's face crossed my mind. That person was constantly trying to set me up with women; perhaps they applied pressure to the station.
I couldn't help but think, "What on earth are you doing?"
If the arrangements have already started, it's not a situation where I can refuse.
Don't mess with me; am I going to be in a state like a high school teacher every single day from now on?
"...Can you tell me the specific content of the program?"
"Ah, wonderful, you're interested. Well, I suppose that's normal for a man. After all, it's a crowd of amateur high school girls and idols filling up the studio."
"..."
Imagining a scene that surely smelled of cloying sweetness, I felt a chill.
"Well, it'll be an information program. As for the genre, maybe an educational variety show? It's an easy job where you just chat with young girls while watching VTRs. You won't have to put your body on the line like you have before. I'm thinking it'll mainly cover things like student life, romance, and sexual concerns."
High school girls' sexual concerns. I have nothing but a bad feeling about this.
"...Couldn't someone else do that?"
"No, no, it has to be Nakamoto-san, doesn't it? Look, it's hard to say, but... you have quite a unique background, don't you, Nakamoto-san?"
"Unique? Ah... you mean, being a former shut-in?"
"Yes, yes, that's the one. To the public, Nakamoto-san is a hardworking person who recovered from a long period of being a NEET and reintegrated into society. To parents with children who are truant or shut-ins, there's a demand to hear stories like that. For those reasons, isn't that why you were chosen? To be blunt, the only need for putting someone who isn't even that good at talking on an educational program would be that. Ah, please don't get angry."
I see... I nodded seriously, but internally, I was just thinking, "This is bad."
Because I wasn't a shut-in or a truant. I was out and about fighting vigorously in another world.
If they seriously ask me for the secrets to escaping being a shut-in, I probably won't be able to answer anything.
"...For now, I just need to watch the VTRs and speak according to the script, right?"
"That's how it'll be. ...Come to think of it, for some reason, it seems your dressing room will be shared with the girls, so please don't think anything strange. Well, I'm sure it'll be fine with you, Nakamoto-san. After all, you're quite the fan of Married Women, aren't you? Hahaha!"
"Excuse me, what did you just say?"
"Eh? You like them, Married Women. You said so on a program before, didn't you?"
"Not that part, but the part about the dressing room being shared with the girls."
"What of it? If you have no interest in minors, there shouldn't be a problem."
"That's true, but..."
I re-evaluated my position in the entertainment industry.
I'm not particularly handsome. I'm a talent who's more like a comedian, utilizing silly magic tricks and a muscular body.
My fan base consists mainly of housewives and children. Perhaps due to my past as a former shut-in, sympathy votes from men are also increasing.
In other words, I am seen as a somewhat well-liked, athletic older brother type.
If a person like that were to lay hands on the high school girls co-starring in the program...
Combined with the sheer gap in character, my image would blow away in an instant.
It would be the end.
I must avoid that at all costs.
I think I'll be fine, but...
I've been going a bit crazy lately from being trained by Angelica and the others, but originally, I like women in their late twenties. Unless an accident occurs, such as my preferred type of high school girl appearing on the program, I shouldn't make a mistake.
And so, just as I finished the meeting while underestimating the situation, the smartphone in my pocket began to vibrate.
I wondered who it could be at this hour as I tapped the screen.
"Oh."
The sender of the message was Rio.
Unusually, she had sent a long message with no emojis at all.
I read through it, feeling a bit anxious that she might have been confronted by the Yakuza again.
『What should I do, I got scouted on my way to school. They asked if I wanted to appear on a high school girl variety show. It seems like it'll be a good way to earn pocket money, so I'm thinking of doing it... By the way, is it true that the host is Nakamoto-san?』
I thought about throwing my smartphone away.