This magical girl awakening template could also make up for Kaede and Tsubaki's shortcomings. Leaving everything else aside, as long as they could transform into magical girls, their strength would definitely increase a lot, and they would no longer suffer silent losses due to insufficient power when facing Ailis and the others.
However, he had to awaken at least one magical girl first to unlock the magical girl transformation function. How exactly was he supposed to develop them so they could awaken their magical girl talent?
Also, this magical girl actually had to undergo physical training.
Hachiman scanned through the descriptions in the magical girl awakening template, quietly thinking to himself.
Hmm, it didn't really seem wrong. Unlike the image most people had of magical girls as mobile artillery platforms who just cast spells, most magical girls in series like Pretty Cure, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, and Symphogear were actually very strong in close combat.
When encountering enemies, they would first engage in hand-to-hand combat. Once things were about settled, they would unleash a finishing move to end the fight.
Able to fight up close and at range, able to attack and tank hits. Only magical girls who developed comprehensively like that could be considered excellent magical girls.
"Um! Hachiman? Can I help wipe you down?"
Nestling beside Hachiman, Tohsaka Touka's fair and delicate face was flushed red. Her snow-white skin was dyed an intense crimson by the rising steam. Her gaze kept wandering between Elio, Elusi, and Ayla, who had transformed into mermaid forms and dived into the water in front of Hachiman, and Leticia, Leona, and the other elves who occupied his other side and back.
Seeing Elusi and the other mermaids blinking at her underwater and blowing bubbles at her, while Hachiman closed his eyes enjoying the service of the demi-humans, seemingly with no intention of making a move on her at all, Tohsaka Touka could not help but ask cautiously.
Hachiman had caused the Takanashi family to face attacks from the Rurikawa family and the Ichinose family, leaving him with no time to attend to the marriage engagement with the Tohsaka family. She felt she should properly repay Hachiman.
But who would have thought that Hachiman would already be surrounded by demi-humans, enjoying the ultimate level of service without even needing to move.
These elves were all blonde, long-legged, slim-waisted, extremely beautiful and elegant older sisters… and these mermaids were even more diverse in style, an ultra-popular idol diva group with world-class fan counts.
Tohsaka Touka even suspected that if Sakura had not acknowledged Hachiman as her father, she would not even have the qualification to bathe together with him.
After all, the Service Club sounded like just a club, but in reality, many of the members who appeared in it were incredibly formidable. Elves, mermaids, magical girls, evil organizations, and now even so-called demon race princesses and future demon kings were about to join the Service Club.
Compared to these members with extraordinary identities and strength, she and Haruno really felt like backdoor connections.
"Touka-san, you don't need to doubt your own charm. The reason I didn't make a move on you right away is because I was thinking whether doing so would be taking advantage of you, whether it would be no different from the marriage engagement with the Takanashi family."
Hearing the unease in Tohsaka Touka's tone, Hachiman slowly opened his eyes, rubbed the soft cheek of Elio submerged in the water, and turned his head to smile at Tohsaka Touka, who could not even help wipe him down without first asking his permission.
Perhaps because of his steadily improving condition, he rarely felt weak anymore, remaining energetic all day long.
He not only liked to empty his mind while enjoying himself, he also liked to think things through at times like this.
Logically speaking, one's mind should be calmer in sage mode, yet he seemed to be even more active and clear-headed at such moments.
"How could it be taking advantage of me! I'm doing this voluntarily to repay you!"
Hearing Hachiman's obvious teasing, Tohsaka Touka grew a little flustered and hurriedly shook her head.
"If you hadn't helped me, Hachiman, our family's assets would probably have been swallowed up by the Takanashi family by now. My mother, my sister, and I would have ended up on the streets."
"Compared to the Takanashi family's third son, I'd rather—Mm!"
Although Tohsaka Touka had not carried out the marriage engagement with the Takanashi family, she had met her fiance, the third son Takanashi Yuuma, a few times. His meek, submissive manner in front of his father was truly hard to trust.
But before she could finish her sentence, she suddenly felt that making such a comparison was not very appropriate and swallowed the rest of her words.
She did not have any feelings for her former fiance. Carrying out the engagement had only been to free her mother from family affairs so she herself could shoulder the responsibility of the Tohsaka family. If not for the engagement with the Takanashi family, she would not have had any dealings with them. And that man had not really done anything wrong either, marrying her would only have been obedience to his father.
"Touka-san, are you saying you like me more?"
Hachiman looked at the outwardly pure and cool, but actually innocent and adorable Tohsaka Touka. He withdrew his hand from Leona and the others' embrace and wrapped it around Touka's slender waist, pulling her soft yet resilient body tightly against his own.
There were already quite a few black-haired, long-straight-haired beauties around him. If ranked by size, it would probably be Yukinoshita Yukino < Hayasaka Yuuko < Shion < Tohsaka Touka, roughly in that order.
Despite her young age, Shion had already developed impressively, her figure even better proportioned than that of college student Hayasaka Yuuko.
But among all these black-haired beauties, the one with the most poise and maturity was still Tohsaka Touka. When she was quiet and not showing a shy expression, her demeanor was practically that of an advanced university-student version of Yukinoshita Yukino.
If he did not know the actual circumstances so well, he would probably think, like Yukinoshita Haruno and the others, that Tohsaka Touka was actually Yukinoshita Yukino's older sister.
"Mmm! Yeah… Sakura and the others also like you a lot, Hachiman."
Hearing Hachiman's straightforward question, Tohsaka Touka's pure and delicate face, already flushed by the steam, grew even redder. At this point she could not really refute anything. She simply rested her smooth, pale chin on Hachiman's shoulder, gazing at his profile up close and murmuring softly.
Compared to the Takanashi family, who claimed to be helping the Tohsaka family while secretly and openly swallowing up their assets, Hachiman, who had never mentioned any compensation and had simply extended a hand because Sakura was Komachi's classmate, was undoubtedly far better.
And Sakura liked Hachiman so much, wanting to cling to him the moment they met. If she married Hachiman, Sakura would probably be especially happy.
It was just a pity that, not to mention compared to the many demi-humans of noble status and great strength, even Rurikawa Tsubaki, the young lady of the Rurikawa family, was only Hachiman's lover. Ichinose Ayano, Ichinose Honami, and the others had not even become lovers.
What could their increasingly declining Tohsaka family possibly offer that Hachiman would value? She had no qualification to become Hachiman's wife. She could only use the one thing she had to repay him.
"Then what did you mean earlier by saying you and Haruno would thank me properly? Does Haruno like me too? Does she want to properly repay me together with you?"
Hachiman leisurely toyed with Tohsaka Touka, watching the older-sister version of Yukinoshita Yukino grow redder and redder in his hands. He could not help smiling as he leaned close to her ear and continued teasing.
Compared to Yukinoshita Haruno, who weighed pros and cons and acted with more purpose, he preferred teasing Tohsaka Touka, whose feelings were purer and who blushed more easily.
If it were about getting things done, he would definitely feel more at ease with Yukinoshita Haruno. But for everyday interaction, Tohsaka Touka, whom he could knead and toy with at will, drawing out all kinds of shy reactions, was far more interesting.
"Haruno doesn't have the same intention to repay you as I do, but she should come here to bathe later."
Hearing Hachiman mention her good friend Yukinoshita Haruno, Tohsaka Touka's heart stirred. Forgetting her own embarrassing state as she was held and teased in his arms, she hurriedly hugged him tightly and pleaded.
"Hachiman, do you like Haruno?"
"If possible, Hachiman, you could also help Haruno."
"Help Haruno-san? What kind of help are you talking about? The Yukinoshita family isn't facing any problems, right?"
Hachiman was taken aback. He lightly bit into a piece of fruit held up by the blonde elf Meliose, played with the tri-colored hair floating in the water, and hugged Tohsaka Touka closer, not quite understanding whether Touka was trying to pull Yukinoshita Haruno into this as well.
"The Yukinoshita family isn't facing any problems. What I mean is that Haruno is under pressure from Mrs. Yukinoshita."
Tohsaka Touka shook her head. While shy beyond measure, she imitated the movements of Shierfa and Leona behind Hachiman, gently rubbing against his arm, and explained in a soft voice.
"Haruno doesn't have a marriage engagement with another family like I do, but she isn't much freer than I am. She also has to sacrifice her own marriage for the sake of her sister and her family."
"If you like Haruno, Hachiman, I can help persuade her. That way, with Haruno helping you manage the Service Club, you'd feel more at ease too, right?"
Unlike her own fallen yet harmonious family, the atmosphere in Haruno's family was relatively more serious.
Although Mrs. Yukinoshita was not someone who valued family interests above her children's happiness, she clearly wanted Haruno to shoulder the family's responsibilities and devote herself fully to developing the Yukinoshita family.
The fastest way to develop a family was through alliances between strong families. Relying purely on effort, slowly managing the family step by step to surpass others, was simply too difficult.
Having watched her own mother worry endlessly over family affairs only for the family to decline, Tohsaka Touka understood this all too well.
And like her own family, the Yukinoshita family had only daughters. If Haruno did not want her younger sister Yukino to be married off for an alliance, then only Haruno herself could do it.
Mrs. Yukinoshita might not force Haruno to marry someone she hated, but selecting a husband would certainly involve many considerations. Ending up with someone she did not like would be a disaster.
"So, Touka-san, are you suggesting Haruno-san should be with me? Isn't that still sacrificing her own marriage? I might not even be able to give Haruno a proper status."
Hachiman looked at Tohsaka Touka with some amusement as she proactively pushed her good friend toward him.
She had not even obtained his promise or assurance yet, and she was already pulling her good friend into it?
Did Yukinoshita Haruno know that her best friend was selling her out like this?
"It's different. Haruno has feelings for you, Hachiman. Rather than letting her marry someone she doesn't like, it's better for you to take Haruno. That way, Haruno and I won't drift apart because of marriage in the future."
Meeting Hachiman's gaze, Tohsaka Touka explained softly, her face burning with shame.
Just thinking about serving Hachiman together with her close friend Haruno in the future made her blush uncontrollably. But Haruno was her only friend of the same age. If Haruno married someone else and got busy with family affairs, she might lose her only friend.
This was not an idea she had come up with on a whim. When Haruno had been urging her not to fulfill the engagement with the Takanashi family, saying that if she was going to sell herself anyway she should at least sell herself to a good family, Touka had also been thinking about Haruno.
She had seriously thought it through and felt that this idea could really work.
If Haruno served Hachiman together with her, nothing would change in their relationship. Their interactions might even become closer. Sakura, Rin, and Yukino would still not need to worry about family affairs.
They would not even need to worry about having their family assets swallowed up by the overly powerful Hachiman. As long as Hachiman gave them a child, it would be fine even if they did not marry him.
However, precisely because this idea was too ideal, essentially the Tohsaka and Yukinoshita families, seven people in total, all clinging to Hachiman and sucking his blood while he gained very little in return, she had not brought it up on her own.
It was only because Hachiman had just seemed to show some interest in Haruno that she could not help but give Haruno a push.
"You haven't even obtained my promise or assurance yet, and you're already thinking about Haruno."
Hachiman lifted Tohsaka Touka's wet, jet-black long hair and looked at her cool yet increasingly alluring face under the rising steam, sighing with emotion.
Truly worthy of being an 2D-world heroine. Even without falling to darkness, Tohsaka Touka's way of thinking was still remarkably unconventional.
"I don't mind. As long as my mother and sisters are happy, that's enough. It would be even better if Haruno could also find happiness."
Hearing Hachiman's concern for her, warmth filled Tohsaka Touka's heart. She tightly wrapped her arms around his waist, but still gently shook her head.
"As for Haruno… we can talk about that later. Right now, I want to know whether you want to become a magical girl, Touka-san."
Looking at Tohsaka Touka, who only thought of those around her and not herself at all, Hachiman pondered for a moment and lifted her into his arms.
At this time, Elio, Elusi, and Ayla surfaced from the water as well, joining Leticia and the others to surround Hachiman and Tohsaka Touka, all looking satisfied.
"A magical girl? Hachiman, do you mean like Komachi's classmate? Are you saying I can become a magical girl like Hanabishi Haruka and the others?"
Tohsaka Touka hesitated, looking at Hachiman uncertainly.
She had seen magical girls transform and fight evil forces tonight, and of course she had felt a sense of longing. But now she was already a college student. Could she really become a magical girl?
"Yeah. I can develop magical girl talent and awaken magical girl abilities. Do you want to try, Touka-san?"
Hachiman smiled and nodded. Right now, Tohsaka Touka was the only human in the large bath. He would let her try becoming a magical girl first.
"If it's possible, then I want to try too!"
Seeing that Hachiman did not seem to be joking, Tohsaka Touka nodded firmly.
When she was younger, she had also had the childish dream of becoming a magical girl to save the world. But after growing up, the pressures of life had crushed those fantasies.
Who would have thought that she would actually have a chance to become a magical girl now? And that Hachiman could even develop magical girl talent and awaken her into one.
'Wait, is that what "develop" means?'
Looking at Hachiman slowly embracing her, then at the mermaids and elves beside her who leaned in to her ear to instruct and teach her, Tohsaka Touka suddenly began to wonder if something was wrong with her.
'Aren't magical girls supposed to be for kids?'
———
[Service Club, Kitchen]
Yukinoshita Haruno was watching the maids bustle about.
Although these maids all belonged to the Rurikawa family, the fact that the Rurikawa family's head maid Shion dared let them cook here proved their ability. Haruno had tasted their cooking tonight, and by her standards, their culinary skills were not bad, she could even say they were quite good.
But looking at these maids in black-and-white uniforms, all with decent looks and figures, she felt she should recruit some maids herself.
Otherwise, with all the manpower in the Service Club belonging to the Rurikawa family, her position as vice-president of the Service Club was practically in name only, with no real authority at all.
Unfortunately, her family consisted entirely of women and did not have the habit of keeping pretty maids, only some ordinary servants. Otherwise, she could have sent her family's maids over to help already.
The Rurikawa family had been so destitute before, yet now they had a whole bunch of pretty maids. Even the maids working as cooks had impressive looks and figures, not to mention those purely kept as decorative vases.
Rurikawa Tsubaki, the young lady and head of the Rurikawa family, was still attending school every day, yet people were lining up to throw money and resources at the Rurikawa family.
Compared to their diligently managed Yukinoshita family, the gap had been instantly widened. Now even if the Ichinose family and the Yukinoshita family banded together, they would still not be as strong as the Rurikawa family.
This really made her sigh. No wonder so many families wanted to cling to the elf princess's thigh.
"Sis? It's so late, why aren't you going back?"
Just as Yukinoshita Haruno was feeling emotional, a cool voice suddenly came from behind her.
"I'm the vice-president of the Service Club now, of course I need to be here often."
Turning around to look at Yukinoshita Yukino, who was wearing pajamas with a coat draped over them, her smooth black hair falling over her shoulders, Yukinoshita Haruno shook her head slightly and did not explain much.
But looking at her younger sister, who seemed unwilling for her to have too much contact with Hikigaya, she pondered for a moment and added.
"Yukino, Hikigaya-kun's connections in the underground are beyond your imagination. It's fine if you don't want to curry favor with Hikigaya-kun in the Service Club, but now that I'm the vice-president of the Service Club, I can't be as cold toward him as you are."
There were many extraordinary forces in this world, but most of them remained hidden. Even now that the existence of other worlds was known to the public, with elf princesses and mermaid divas active before the public eye, very few extraordinary forces were exposed to ordinary people.
They called the extraordinary world hidden within ordinary society the inner world.
Unlike ordinary people like them who only possessed some money and assets, even setting aside the peace-loving, human-friendly elves and mermaids, she knew that magical girls, goddess angels, demon races, and other extraordinary forces all had particularly close relationships with Hikigaya. Not to mention that Hikigaya himself seemed quite powerful, just not usually showing it.
As far as she knew, many families and conglomerates stronger than the Yukinoshita family had long wanted to get closer to the elf princess. This was because the elf princess was the only peaceful racial force most factions could contact without worry. They had strength, influence, and a systematic extraordinary evolution path.
They all wanted to send their children to Sobu High, either to become extraordinary beings or to befriend the elf princess and pledge allegiance to her. However, their transfer applications were still being held up at the student council without being processed.
Under these circumstances, if the Yukinoshita family, with two sisters serving as vice-presidents in the Service Club and the Service Club, did not seize the opportunity and secure the future of the Yukinoshita family, then the Yukinoshita family truly deserved to be swallowed up by other families.
"Got it."
Seeing that Yukinoshita Haruno had already been drawn in by Hachiman using the position of vice-president of the Service Club and was now speaking on his behalf, Yukinoshita Yukino felt extremely frustrated. But there was nothing she could say. She could only respond before teleporting back to the high-end studio apartment she rented.
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