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"Eh, that back…" Secretary Chika widened her eyes and whispered, "Why does she look a bit like Shoko-chan?"
Before Shadow Chika could speak, secretary Chika put her right hand on her hip and asserted:
"It must be a Shadow."
"How could Shoko-chan suddenly appear here?"
Amamiya Natsuki looked at Shadow Chika and whispered:
"Is she a Shadow?"
"I don't know." Shadow Chika's voice was calm. "The distance is too far to sense. I need to get closer to know if she's a Shadow."
Amamiya Natsuki pondered for a moment, then said:
"Then you keep your distance from her for now. Don't get close."
There was a special kind of sensing between Shadow creatures. If they got too close, they would be discovered by each other. While Shadow Chika confirmed the other party's identity, her own identity would also be exposed.
"Okay."
Shadow Chika calmly agreed, quietly retreating, and soon disappeared into the darkness under the shade of the trees.
Amamiya Natsuki turned his head and silently looked at secretary Chika.
"President, why are you looking at me?"
Secretary Chika tilted her pretty face up and asked in confusion.
Amamiya Natsuki said expressionlessly:
"Fujiwara Mama, how long do you plan to lead me?"
"I told you not to use that title!" Secretary Chika puffed out her pink cheeks. "It's not like I want to lead you."
Amamiya Natsuki said:
"The rope is in your hand."
Secretary Chika refused to admit it, saying righteously:
"She just gave it to me, okay?"
Amamiya Natsuki said:
"Joint crime is also a crime."
"I'm not, I didn't… Eh?" Secretary Chika suddenly lowered her voice vigilantly. "Shoko is coming over."
Amamiya Natsuki turned his head and saw the black-haired girl who had just been standing at the park entrance. At some point, she had taken a few steps towards them, her eyes wide, looking straight at the two of them with an expression of surprise and astonishment, clearly having seen what they were doing.
"Heave-ho~"
Secretary Chika quickly dropped the leash in her hand, put her hands behind her back, and looked up at the sky, as if nothing had just happened.
"Go deal with her."
Amamiya Natsuki stretched his neck, removed the special equipment on his body, and walked with Chika towards the lonely black-haired girl.
Seeing the two of them approach, the the timid girl hastily turned around, clearly wanting to run away.
"That's right, it must be Shadow Shoko." Secretary Chika's expression became serious. "Otherwise, why would she run when she sees us?"
"Catch her."
Amamiya Natsuki and Chika quickly caught up and successfully stopped Komi.
"Shoko, good evening." Secretary Chika raised her hand in greeting, her voice clear. "Why are you here alone?"
"Th-that…"
Komi looked down at her toes, her stammered voice barely audible.
"The Shadow replica actually copied Shoko-chan's communication disorder too, how amazing! If it copied an idiot, wouldn't it be an idiot Shadow?"
Secretary Chika mused internally while quietly walking over to Komi.
Amamiya Natsuki, meanwhile, narrowed his eyes slightly, carefully observing the 'Shadow Komi' in front of him. A prompt quietly appeared.
"After your careful observation, you have discovered a lone human the the timid girl."
Hmm?
It really is Shoko?
How could she be alone outside?
Amamiya Natsuki was still thinking when he saw secretary Chika suddenly point and say:
"Don, the Outlaw, it's you!"
"Hmm…"
Amamiya Natsuki hesitated for half a second, then cooperated, raising his hand to press on Komi's shoulder, and said seriously:
"Classmate Don, you are under arrest."
Feeling her body suddenly become uncontrollable, Komi stared blankly, anxiously trying to explain: "I-I'm not…"
Before she could finish, secretary Chika suddenly whispered a reminder:
"President, someone's coming, let's go quickly."
Hearing someone approaching, Komi, who had finally gathered the courage to explain, swallowed her words again. Patients with communication disorders have it incredibly tough.
"Go."
Amamiya Natsuki agreed, grabbing Komi's shoulder, and the three of them walked towards the park.
In the 'arrest' state, the the timid girl was completely unable to resist. Only her mouth could speak, but she couldn't utter a word. She wanted to take out her notebook to write, but now her body couldn't move, so she could only be at their mercy.
"President, don't make a move yet."
Upon reaching a corner, secretary Chika whispered.
M-make a move?
Komi was startled. Unfortunately, her body was controlled, so she couldn't even tremble.
What move?
What will happen next?
"Let me take two photos first." Secretary Chika took out her phone and snapped pictures. "I actually caught a wild Shadow Shoko in the park, good luck."
(She's not a Shadow…)
Komi refuted in her heart. Unfortunately, the more nervous she got, the less she could speak, and she couldn't even shake her head to deny it. She could only look at Amamiya Natsuki with hopeful eyes, thinking that Amamiya Natsuki would surely recognize her.
And then…
Amamiya Natsuki reached out his other hand and pinched the the timid girl's cheek, saying solemnly:
"The texture is good, no different from a real person."
(W-Wahhh…)
The the timid girl let out a helpless whimper from the bottom of her heart.
(Not only did he not recognize me, he's even bullying me…)
"Finished taking pictures." Secretary Chika put away her phone, satisfied. "President, you can make your move now."
"Wait a moment." Amamiya Natsuki said seriously, "I've always wanted to do one thing to Shoko…"
"Eh?" Secretary Chika was startled. "What thing?"
Amamiya Natsuki said:
"Wearing tights in winter and spring is one thing, but it's already summer vacation, and she's still wearing tights. Every time I see Shoko's tights, I want to help her take them off. Before I make a move, I want to fulfill this wish."
"I see." Secretary Chika nodded, propping her chin with her right hand. "Shoko-chan is indeed a tights enthusiast. It seems she always wears tights when she goes out; I've almost never seen her wear stockings… Count me in, I want to take off tights too."
"President, you hold Shoko."
"I'll take off Shoko-chan's stockings."
Amamiya Natsuki agreed:
"I'll leave it to you."
"W-Wahhh—"
The the timid girl's eyes widened upon hearing this, and she tried hard to struggle. Unfortunately, in the 'arrest' state, her body was completely immobile, and only a faint sound came from her mouth:
"N-no…"
The evening breeze blew.
The girl's faint voice was directly scattered by the wind, and no one could hear it clearly except Amamiya Natsuki.
"Heave-ho~"
As soon as she said it, she did it.
Secretary Chika was always a person of action, never procrastinating. She quickly squatted in front of the the timid girl, lifted Komi's skirt, and then pulled down the slippery tights all the way.
"Eh eh?" Secretary Chika's voice was surprised. "Shoko-chan is actually wearing blue and white striped underwear."
"…"
Komi closed her eyes in despair, white steam already billowing from the top of her head.
Shameful.
Having her tights taken off by a girl in front of a boy, no matter how she thought about it, was too shameful.
"Blue and white striped underwear is actually very cute."
Amamiya Natsuki spoke while looking down, and saw under the streetlights that the the timid girl's legs were fair and long, white and straight, without a single blemish.
In short, it made him want to write the character 'just' (meaning 'correct' or 'straight', but also used as a tally mark).
"They're off!" Secretary Chika stood up, holding up the tights in her hand. "It's so hot and she's still wearing tights, they're indeed soaked with sweat… Eh eh, she's Shadow Shoko, why are her eyes watering?"
A cold voice sounded behind Chika:
"She's not a Shadow."
Shadow Chika walked out from the corner and said calmly.
Amamiya Natsuki feigned surprise and looked over: "You said she's not a Shadow?"
"She's indeed not." Shadow Chika walked closer. "In my perception, this is Human Shoko, not Shadow Shoko."
"Impossible." Secretary Chika's first reaction was disbelief. "If she wasn't a Shadow, why wouldn't she say a word after being caught by us for so long… Oh no, I forgot about Shoko's communication disorder."
Amamiya Natsuki released his grip, ending the 'capture' suppression, and feigned surprise, saying, "Is it really Shoko?"
Komi quickly covered her skirt with both hands, her eyes teary, and nodded rapidly.
"Shoko, prove your player identity," Secretary Chika said with a serious expression. "Otherwise, I won't believe you."
Komi bit her lip in an aggrieved manner and took out her dedicated notebook from her game backpack.
Seeing this, secretary Chika finally confirmed her belief.
"It really is Shoko-chan," Secretary Chika stuck out her tongue, and quickly apologized, "Shoko-chan, I'm sorry, I didn't actually mean to take off your pantyhose... Should I help you put them on?"
The the timid girl shook her head like a rattle drum, quickly took the pantyhose, "I, I'll put them on myself..."
Amamiya Natsuki asked, "How come Shoko is here alone? Where are the others?"
"That's right," Secretary Chika followed, changing the subject, "Shoko, aren't you moving with everyone? Why are you alone?"
Komi didn't speak, but instead took out a pen and wrote in her notebook to answer:
"One of the elementary school student lives nearby, and Juju wanted to go to the restroom just now, so I accompanied Juju out. We went to the fast-food restaurant at the intersection, and then we happened to see you in the park."
Amamiya Natsuki's voice was faint, saying, "So, Shoko saw everything that just happened, didn't she?"
"..."
The the timid girl quickly shook her head.
"Cough... Shoko-chan, let me explain," Secretary Chika's pretty face flushed, and she pointed to Shadow Chika next to her, "Actually, she wanted a reward."
Shadow Chika crossed her arms over her chest and said calmly, "I am you."
"It's not what you think... Huh?" Secretary Chika turned her head and said, "Wasn't that person who just passed by the park entrance Juju?"
Amamiya Natsuki looked over upon hearing this and indeed saw the figure of a petite girl, so he said, "You two chat, I'll go call Juju over."
"President, hurry up," Secretary Chika waved, "Juju must be very worried now that she hasn't seen Shoko-chan."
"..."
Walking quickly out of the park, Amamiya Natsuki soon saw the girl across the street and called out, "Juju, we're over here."
Juju, across the street, stopped upon hearing the call, turned to look over, and after two seconds of silence, finally spoke, "...Stupid Natsuki?"
Amamiya Natsuki walked to Juju's side and said, "Of course it's me."
Although Juju is a high school student, she is petite and underdeveloped. She was wearing a white shirt with a cartoon blue dolphin on the chest, and a skirt paired with white stockings on the bottom, making her look even more childish, so much so that people would believe her if you said she was an elementary school student.
Juju looked up, her small face and pink eyes calmly gazing over, "I didn't expect to meet Stupid Natsuki here."
Amamiya Natsuki was slightly startled, feeling that Juju's tone was a bit off, and couldn't help but narrow his eyes to scrutinize her.
Soon after, a prompt quietly appeared before him:
[Congratulations, you have discovered a Shadow Juju-sama that cannot be broken]
Amamiya Natsuki: "..."
What does 'cannot be broken' and 'terrible prompt' mean?
I've never 'played' Juju before!
Hmm... well, I've 'played' a few times.
Shadow Shoko was fake, but Shadow Juju-sama is real. Now it's a fake Li Kui meeting a real Li Kui.
As Amamiya Natsuki's thoughts raced, he quickly made a decision.
Shadows can distinguish between humans and shadows, so Shadow Juju-sama must be able to recognize that he is human.
But Shadow Juju-sama doesn't know that he also knows she is a shadow.
So...
"Are you looking for Shoko?" Amamiya Natsuki took Shadow Juju-sama's small hand. It felt slightly cool, soft, and elastic, exactly like a real person's. He said casually, "Chika and I just met Shoko, she's in the park. Let's go."
First, trick her into the park.
Then, he could do whatever he wanted.
"Wait a moment," Shadow Juju-sama stood still, unwilling to move, and blinked, saying, "My bracelet fell off, it should be up ahead. Stupid Natsuki, please help me look for it first."
Amamiya Natsuki: "..."
Clearly, while he was deceiving her, Shadow Juju-sama was also deceiving him.
Should he forcibly tie her up and carry Juju to the park?
Amamiya Natsuki pondered for a moment, then rejected the idea.
According to Shadow Chika, due to some special mechanism, shadow creatures must personally eliminate their original body in order to continue existing in the world. Therefore, shadow creatures have an instinctive urge to hunt their original body.
He had only managed to turn Chika's shadow clone, and he hadn't seen anyone else's Shadow Clones yet.
As the saying goes, 'a thief can steal for a thousand days, but a house cannot be guarded for a thousand days.' It's a good opportunity to infiltrate and determine the locations of the other Shadow Clones...
"Okay," Amamiya Natsuki smiled and agreed, reaching out to ruffle Juju's small head, "I'll help you look for it first."
"Don't touch my head," Shadow Juju-sama's eyes narrowed, and she slapped Amamiya Natsuki's hand away.
Amamiya Natsuki showed a surprised expression and asked in confusion, "Didn't Juju herself say that whenever we're alone, I should always pat your head?"
Shadow Juju-sama frowned slightly and said coldly, "I never said that."
"You forgot?" Amamiya Natsuki's face showed just the right amount of doubt, "You clearly said it yourself not long ago, and now you don't remember?"
"..."
Shadow Juju-sama fell silent.
Because of the game, Shadow Clones cannot obtain memories related to the game. In short, all experiences of dungeon adventures are shrouded in a mist, and they have no idea what they experienced.
There are no problems with memories of the real world; everything is crystal clear, impossible to forget. For example, a certain memory that was once modified by King Crimson, saying things like 'you wouldn't want to dirty the room, would you?' and then tricking her into helping with that kind of thing...
Recalling the humiliation she had suffered, Shadow Juju-sama couldn't help but clench her small fists, take a deep breath, suppress the impulse in her heart, secretly grit her teeth, and said coldly, "I remember now, I did say that."
Amamiya Natsuki smiled and said, "Good that you remember."
Deception successful.
Shadow Clones don't know what happened in the dungeon, so he can completely improvise.
"But I've changed my mind now," Shadow Juju-sama crossed her arms over her chest and said with a stern face, "Don't touch my head anymore. It'll prevent me from growing taller."
Amamiya Natsuki said in surprise, "You're already seventeen, and you still think you'll grow taller?"
Shadow Juju-sama's eyes narrowed, and she glared fiercely, "Do you want to die once?"
"I'm sorry, I got carried away," Amamiya Natsuki knew when to stop and apologized decisively.
"Hmph," Shadow Juju-sama snorted lightly, "Hurry up and help me find my stuff."
"Wait a moment," Amamiya Natsuki said seriously, "There's still something left to do."
Shadow Juju-sama frowned slightly, "What else?"
"Of course, it's holding you up high," Amamiya Natsuki said in surprise, "When we're alone, you said you wanted kisses, hugs, and to be held up high. You haven't forgotten what you said, have you?"
Shadow Juju-sama: "..."
Did I really say that?
Impossible.
I would never say such shameless things.
But... what if?
Once a girl falls in love, her IQ quickly drops, making her easy to deceive. For example, I was tricked by Stupid Natsuki into doing that kind of thing, and for several days afterward, drinking milk made me feel guilty.
Perhaps in that memory obscured by the mist, I really did say I wanted kisses, hugs, and to be held up high?
While she hesitated, Amamiya Natsuki had already reached out, his hands on Shadow Juju-sama's waist. With a slight push, he lifted her up high.
"That's enough," Shadow Juju-sama clenched her small fists, suppressing her anger, "Put me down."
After lifting her high several times, Amamiya Natsuki was satisfied. He put Shadow Juju-sama down and smiled, saying, "I love Juju the most."
"Heh heh."
Shadow Juju-sama straightened her disheveled skirt, and upon hearing this, she sneered, "If you say that in front of everyone, then I'll believe you. Everyone really 'misses you'."
Amamiya Natsuki: "..."
A drop of cold sweat quietly trickled down his forehead.
Amamiya Natsuki suddenly realized that Marin and Chika agreed to date him together because of their life-and-death experiences in the dungeon, but in the memories of the Shadow Clones, these experiences were all blocked.
So... he was just a super scumbag who relied on his high charm and sweet talk to deceive girls' feelings?
Shadow Marin, Shadow Senpai, and the others, they wouldn't have already sharpened their hatchets, just waiting to cut him up, would they?
At the same time.
In the park.
Komi had just finished putting on her pantyhose when she suddenly felt her phone vibrate. She took out her phone and her eyes widened in panic.
"Shoko-chan, what's wrong?"
Fujiwara Chika asked curiously.
"There's a message...!"
Komi pursed her pink lips and quickly handed her phone to Chika. It showed a message Juju had just sent:
"Shoko, I'm out! Where are you? Why aren't you at the entrance?"
"Eh eh eh?" Fujiwara Chika's eyes widened, "Then who was that Juju who just passed by the park entrance?"
join p atreon.com/KeyofStars for advance chapters | Every 100 powerstones=1 extra chapter | Report issues @discord.com/GVBdncd9Wr | 16 novels being updated, I can't read all comments