Haru took out his phone, planning to record the girls' reactions as they played a VR horror game. It was a spur-of-the-moment idea, really.
Conveniently, the place was empty—no other customers in sight. Since they had the whole venue to themselves, he didn't need to worry about bothering anyone.
So naturally, he was very much looking forward to their reactions.
But there was one thing he failed to consider.
Yukino and Utaha were playing together.
Both girls were proud and composed, with strong competitive streaks—not to mention, they were love rivals.
In that kind of setting, the moment they calmly put on their headsets, their entire demeanor turned tense.
They were clever enough to realize right away—at first glance of the shadowy visuals and ominous atmosphere—that Haru had definitely set them up.
"You're dead! Just wait until I take this thing off—I'm coming straight for you!"Yukino clenched her small fists.
"Did Haru specifically choose a horror game? If I give up before Yukinoshita, won't that just prove I'm way behind her again?" Utaha steeled herself, determined not to lose.
Her resolve was as unshakable as when she went all out in online flame wars—dead set on silencing the opposition with a flawless argument.
So under the watchful eyes of Haru and the staff, both girls kept playing—each one trying to outlast the other. They toughed it out for a full ten minutes without taking off the headset.
From their body language, Haru could tell they'd each been startled at least five times.
VR horror games were notorious for their cheap scares—opening-door jumpscares, turn-the-corner spooks, over-the-shoulder ghosts. And VR only amplified that fear.
But these two? They kept a cool facade the entire time.
Even the staff nearby were impressed.
"Wow, you weren't kidding, sir. They really are brave. I thought you were just pulling a prank on your friends."
He gave a sheepish smile and tucked his phone away.
"You don't see this kind of thing often?"
"Almost never. Even guys who claim they're fearless end up flailing and yelling in there."
"Good to know."
They chatted for a bit while Yukino and Utaha continued their silent contest of wills. Eventually, Haru decided to step in and end their suffering.
He walked over and gently removed their headsets.
Whoosh.
The moment the gear came off, both girls exhaled—at the exact same time, like it had been rehearsed.
Then they fixed him with a death glare.
"S-So… what did you think? Was it fun?" he put on his best smile, desperate for mercy.
Both girls silently wiped the sweat from their foreheads with handkerchiefs, their eyes radiating murder.
Sensing danger, Haru spoke quickly.
"Got it. My turn to play now."
"Heh." Yukino finally broke her silence with a crisp, cold laugh.
Utaha, still dabbing her face, asked:
"How long did we last?"
"Eleven minutes," he replied. He'd been timing it.
"Perfect. You get twenty-two minutes, then. We'll be watching."Utaha declared it like a sentence.
Yukino nodded in agreement.
The two stepped back to give him room, while the staff helped set up the equipment.
Utaha turned to Yukino.
"You're pretty good at horror games?"
Yukino dodged the question.
"That's not what you really want to ask, is it?"
"True. I just didn't expect you to last that long."
"Didn't you tough it out too?"
They both knew exactly what the other was thinking. The conversation ended as tensely as it began.
But then, their mood lightened.
Because Haru also got scared.
He was an experienced gamer, and had played his fair share of horror and mystery titles.
But VR was a whole different beast.
Even with his [Auto-Aim] skill subtly helping him—letting him pick up on cues like background changes or eerie music to anticipate jump scares—it still wasn't enough.
When a grotesque ghost face lunged straight at him, he instinctively flinched.
"He looks like he's having so much fun. Should we let him play a bit longer?"Utaha smirked, thoroughly amused.
"That's actually not a bad idea. But I doubt he'd agree," Yukino added, grinning.
"True. He always finds some excuse to weasel out of things."
They watched with wicked smiles as the staff called out, "Time's up!"
Haru wasted no time tearing off the headset.
Sweat dripped from his bangs.
"Oh? I thought someone had nerves of steel. Scared of a silly little game?"Utaha was the first to pounce.
Yukino said nothing but handed him a handkerchief, still smirking.
"Turns out watching and playing are two completely different things," he tried to play it off with a laugh.
The girls responded with a dry, unamused chuckle, letting him squirm.
They left the VR arcade and continued shopping—only to run into Haruno on the third floor of the mall.
She wasn't alone, either. A group of younger people surrounded her—likely her classmates.
"Well, well. What a surprise. The three of you, shopping together?"
Haruno strolled over and greeted the trio casually, then immediately pulled her younger sister aside for a private chat.
Yukino, knowing full well what her sister's teasing smile implied, kept her composure and said calmly, "It's perfectly normal for classmates to go shopping together."
Haruno just smiled sweetly without answering, the look on her face practically screaming, Sure, sure, if you say so~.
Meanwhile, Utaha leaned toward Haru and asked quietly, "Yukinoshita's expression looks... off. Any guesses what she and her sister are talking about?"
"Probably Haruno-san teasing her again," he said knowingly—he was well-acquainted with Haruno's antics.
"Teasing?" Utaha raised an eyebrow. That wasn't quite what she was expecting.
She glanced over, tried reading their lips for a moment, then gave up with a sigh.
"I just remembered something."
She tugged at his sleeve and led him a few steps away.
"What is it?" he noticed her expression had turned oddly serious.
Utaha's eyes glinted as she lowered her voice. "Did you really study professional massage? I talked to Yukinoshita once, and she told me you're really good at it—like, clearly trained-level good."
"I know a little," he said modestly.
Utaha's voice took on a more suspicious tone. "Just a little? Because when she mentioned it, she sounded perfectly proper… but based on my experience, I'm pretty sure she was imagining something not proper."
Haru clamped his mouth shut. Yeah, this was not a topic he should entertain.
But Utaha clearly hadn't just thought of this on a whim—she'd been stewing over it. Her words came faster now. "Don't tell me... you used that massage to, you know… do something to Yukinoshita?"
She paused right before saying that word, the implication hanging heavily in the air.
Haru was honestly shocked. He didn't think she'd get this close to the truth.
Still, it wasn't a conversation he was going to engage in. Not with her. Not now.
Especially not when Utaha wasn't the type to be easily fooled.
So instead, he threw out a completely wild line: "Actually, that massage technique has a proper name."
Utaha blinked. "What name?"
"Tidecaller," he said, lowering his voice dramatically.
Utaha muttered the name under her breath a few times, trying to make sense of it. At first, it didn't register. But then—she remembered the time she had, after showing off her "positions" to Haru at school, gone home and tried using her fingers...
And suddenly, it clicked.
Her face turned bright red.
"You pervert!!" she snapped, shooting him a furious glare.