Keina smiled happily, but her tone was still angry.
“Does that mean you intend to keep looking at me naked? Oh cowardly and dusty one?”
Keina and Akuto laughed at each other.
(Aah! Hey you two, this is supposed to be a story!)
“I am just a passing maid, but I think, as the eldest here, it’s your job to let them have their fun. Now, on to Act 3!”
Act 3
(Um, the two of them continue to have a small infatuation for one another, but Akuto begins sexual relationships with girls he has no love for. Hey, wait! This thing’s full of sex scenes!) Fujiko yelled.
“I’m just a passing maid, but I’m attacked from behind while replacing the flowers in this vase,” Korone said, putting her both her hands on the vase and sticking out her hips. “Now come!”
“Not happening...” This time, at least, Akuto was hesitant.
“But if you don’t make me yours, the story won’t progress.” Korone shook her hips enticingly.
“Please stop doing that when you’ve got no expression on your face...”
“The book doesn’t describe the maid’s expression.”
“Well, probably not, but... Hey, Fujiko! What exactly does it say, specifically?” Akuto got a look on his face that indicated he’d come up with a good idea.
(Details... A-Are you going to make me read it? Ahem... “He jumped her from behind like a beast, and fulfilled his lusts violently.”)
“If that’s what it says, then... Akuto jumped her forcefully from behind, and...
“Aah! Stop, please stop!”
“This is what you get! This is what you get!”
“Oh, please stop! Stop spanking... stop spanking me...” Korone said, sounding quite bored.
Akuto was spanking her with a feather duster.
“Is that fulfilling your lusts violently?” Korone asked. Akuto nodded.
“Well, sure. Sometimes I get mad when you try to make my life difficult.”
“...Oh, it hurts. Master, please stop. It’s my first time.”
(Oh I see, you found a loophole. Let’s see... The next scene involves his little sister...)
“I-I have a very bad feeling. What’s wrong?”
(“They both go to bed naked and rub each other’s bodies. Akuto sticks a finger in her peach-colored blossom and finds it dripping with dew, and then it welcomes him inside. Junko moans forcefully...” W-Wait, what are you making me say?!)
“We’re sure this is literature, right?”
“It started off as a cheap romance novel!”
“W-Wait! This is my next scene?!”
Junko was bright red and ready to punch Akuto.
(I-If it were me I would’ve taken him to bed long ago! You’re just too shy! Hahaha!) Fujiko sounded very calm, considering she’d been blushing when she was reading herself.
“No, we’ll think of a way around it.” Akuto began to think.
“Y-You don’t need to think about it too hard. Except for that part about ‘welcoming you in,’ I’m willing to... go pretty far. If you just want to touch it...” Junko was mumbling to herself and looking at the floor, but Akuto wasn’t listening.
“I know. Maybe this will work.”
“W-We have to get in the same bed naked... don’t we?”
They went to an empty room, and Junko got into bed, pulled the covers over her and took off her clothes. Her heavy negligee slipped to the floor by the bedside.
Akuto turned around and answered her.
“That’s right. We can’t help that part, but I’ll make sure not to touch you... I’m getting in too.”
Once he saw that she was ready, Akuto got in on the opposite side of the bed.
“Y-Your foot touched me a little. And you didn’t see me when you lifted up the covers, right?”
“I-It’s okay. But you were turning away from me, so all I saw was your back. I think I’ve seen that quite a lot already...”
“You dummy! Keep your mouth shut!” Junko yelled.
“I-I’m sorry.” Akuto apologized and took off his clothes under the covers.
The bed was big, but not so big that he could avoid touching her back when he stripped. His hand ended up lightly going straight down her back.
“Pyah!” Junko gasped and jerked away. And then she bent over and began to shake.
“Oh, sorry. Did that tickle?” Akuto reached out his hand to apologize, without thinking about what he was doing. His hand ended up lightly rubbing her waist.
“Hyaaah!” She began to twist back and forth.
“I-I’m sorry. That tickles, doesn’t it?”
“N-No, that’s not it... Just don’t move...” Junko said as she gasped for breath.
“Oh, um... S-Sorry.” Akuto apologized, not sure what was going on.
A moment later, Junko spoke in a trembling voice.
“O-Okay, let’s do this...”
“R-Right...”
The two of them gulped.
Akuto reached out towards Junko. She closed her eyes tightly and turned her face towards him.
And...
“Aah... This is so pathetic... This is all we’re doing, but... actually, because this is all we’re doing, I feel like I’ve lost something important as a woman...”
“Yeah, I’m feeling weirdly pathetic too...”
Both of them popped their heads out of the covers and put their hands into each other’s hair, where they played with the rose blossoms and petals they’d placed there.
“We were lucky there was a flower metaphor there...”
“Did you get the petals nice and wet?”
“I guess...” Akuto pinched the rose blossom with his finger and stuck a finger in between the petals.
“It still feels kind of indecent somehow...” Junko sighed as she watched Akuto’s fingers at work.
“Let’s finish this up quickly. I’m going to stick my finger in your ear, so moan. Moan.” Akuto stuck his pinky finger in Junko’s ear.
“Hyaah...! S-Stop that... It’s actually more humiliating than actually doing it... aaaah...” It was a moan of shame more than pleasure, but it was still a moan.
The door to the bedroom opened.
“Akuto, as promised, I... Wh-What are you doing...! Bwahahaha! Ahahahahah!” Keina barged into the room, and then burst out laughing.
“Oh, you’re not supposed to laugh here...” Akuto said, and Keina stopped herself from laughing.
“Y-You’re right... H-How could you, Akuto! That’s so dirty...!”
“W-Wait, Keina! She’s...”
“No, you know how I felt about you and you went and did this anyway! I’m going to tell my father!” Keina ran off.
“Wait...” Akuto leaned up and stretched a hand towards the door. When he did, he took the covers with him, exposing Junko’s body to the outside air.
“Y-You dummy! The covers...!”
“Oh! Um, sorry...” As he put the covers back over her, his hand touched her waist.
“Pyaaaah!”
(Gah! I’m so jealous! If Akuto’s willing to touch your body so freely, then next time he’ll definitely be willing to do the same to me...)
“And thus was born a machine that will endlessly fondle the erogenous zones on your back,” Korone said, interrupting.
“Now, put this towel over you and get dressed. It’s time for the next scene.”
(After this, there’s a scene where Akuto isn’t sure which woman to pick.)
“Um... between the little sister, the maid, and the countess’s daughter?” Akuto asked as he put on his clothes.
(That’s right. But he quickly gives up on the maid, and as he talks to her, he learns that he’s not actually related to his sister. That’s how the story goes.)
“Alright, anyone who isn’t a noble, get out of the room. It’s time for Act 4!”
Once again, Korone pointed to empty air.
Act 4
“The two of you aren’t actually related. Your sister was
adopted from a house of bankrupt nobles when she was very young,” Korone said, very awkwardly.
“That’s why we were drawn to each other, then? Then that means I have to choose between the two of them!” Akuto said, a little too dramatically.
Akuto wasn’t an actor by any means, but this line felt especially heavy to him. Because...
“Do I have to choose someone here?” he whispered to Korone.
“What does that mean? Do you want to keep all of them for your harem? We can redo the scenes again, if you like. Or do you not want to choose anyone? If not, the story won’t advance.”
“That’s what I mean. I don’t want the story to go any further,” Akuto said.
Korone shook her head.
“You have to choose, Master. That’s what it means to take responsibility when dealing with a woman.”
That line was clearly from the book, but Akuto shook his head.
“I know I need to be responsible. But even if I choose my sister, won’t the story still end?”
“That means changing the story and giving it a different ending, right?”
“That’s right. But the virtual phase space will still close, won’t it?”
Korone shook her head.
“That will likely mean that Keina Doronz will remain unsatisfied.”
“But if she’s satisfied, she’ll disappear, right?”
“Correct. She is a warp, so that’s what is natural for her,” Korone said coldly.
“She’s human,” Akuto said, a little upset. But Korone’s response was instant.
“If she was a Liradan, it wouldn’t be a problem if she disappeared...”
“Don’t say that. I would be upset if you disappeared, too.”
“If you really think so, then you should have made love to me instead of giving me a spanking...” Normally Korone’s jokes were effective, but not today.
“That’s not what I meant. I think it’s okay if the space closes without her being satisfied.”
“Even if that were possible, if you think that’s what’s best for her, you’re wrong.”
“What...?”
“Even without entering the phase space, she would have disappeared shortly after this. And in that case, the one thing she wishes for wouldn’t happen.”
“But...”
“When it comes down to it, this is all you can do. Tell you love her, even if it’s just part of a story. The others will, just this once, permit you.”
“Why do I need their permission... But I guess that’s my only choice, huh? Fine. I choose her. I choose Keina Doronz,” Akuto declared with a nod.
○
And then came the last scene, filled with battle and romance.
Keina was imprisoned in a tower while her father, the count, went on to do further evil deeds. But Akuto cornered the count with beautiful swordplay, and defeated him.
Akuto did what was right, but he was pained by the fact that he had to kill the count. To make matters worse, the count’s men hid the evidence of his crimes, and tried to kill Akuto so that they could take over his lands.
Just when it seemed like Akuto was about to be killed... Keina realized her love for him and saved the day.
“Akuto! Shove your blade into that crack in the rock! It will bring down the tower!”
“But Keina, if I do that, you’ll...!”
“I don’t mind, as long as you survive!” Keina said. She had made her choice.
Akuto jammed his sword into the rock.
With a rumble, the tower fell — and Keina was caught inside.
But Akuto ran up the crumbling tower to grab her, and then leapt into the air.
“Akuto!”
“Keina!”
Her face shone with happiness in the morning sun. The two of them were standing alone on the cliff where the tower had fallen. They gazed into each other’s eyes, and there was nobody to stop them now.
“Ahahaha! Ahahaha...! That was fun. It was so much fun,” Keina laughed.
“I had fun, too. I didn’t used to like cliché stories like this, but I think maybe I should change my mind,” Akuto said, panting from exhaustion.
“I... I only cared about you,” Keina said in a serious voice.
—Yeah, that’s right. Every story has an ending.
He didn’t know if Keina’s words were from the story or what she was feeling herself.
“Me too... inside this story... Maybe it’s rude to say it that way, but...” Before he could say another word, Keina put a finger to his lips to quiet him.
“I know you’re rude already,” she said.
“Yeah... I guess so. I...” He tried to say something else, but she shook her head.
“It’s okay. I was only born to help you, and I’m going to disappear in your arms. That’s my fate. Right?”
“That’s not...”
“No. I know what’s going on here. I’m the only person here who’s part of a story. I was different from all of you from the beginning. We were only together for a short time, but you gave me everything I wanted.”
“No, I didn’t do anything! I barely spent any time with you at all! We didn’t get any time to know each other...”
“No, you gave me everything. You finished the story. That’s all that matters.”
“But why do you have to disappear?”
“A real person can’t exist within a story. But I was allowed to do that. That’s the difference. I’m not going to disappear, I’m going to live happily ever after, for eternity. Because you gave me that happiness.”
“But I don’t want that. It’s my fault. I wished that the Law of Identity would give me freedom...”
“A story is a short dream. You’re not allowed to live inside a novel.”
“But I’m also... I know...”
“Don’t be sad. Once the story reaches the last line, we live happily ever after.” Keina wrapped her arms around Akuto’s neck.
Their lips drew closer. But Akuto couldn’t bring himself to feel her soft lips upon his. Instead, hot tears touched his cheek. He didn’t know if they were his or hers.
And then there was no one in his arms.
—Ah... aaah...
Akuto turned around and saw Korone and Junko.
“She’s gone,” he said.
○
The next thing he knew, he was on the floor of the old library.
—Hmm? ...Huh? What just happened?
Akuto sat up. Junko was on his right, and Korone was on his left. Fujiko was behind him. All of them were unconscious.
—Oh, right. We were assigned to clean this place up, when the books fell over...
And Keena was in his arms. She was on top of him, looking down at him with sleepy, innocent eyes.
“Morning, Ackie.”
“Good morning... wait, what happened?” Akuto patted Keena on the head, as he tried to remember what was bothering him so much.
“Nothing at all,” Keena said. She was staring at Akuto with round eyes.
“Hmm... If you say so. Hey, I was wondering... why is it you sometimes look so cruel to me?” Akuto said.
Keena blinked as if to reply that she had no idea.
“Cruel? That’s not true. But Ackie, you can only cheat on me once, okay?” she said, and then grabbed him and held him tight.
“Cheat on you? What are you talking about? I didn’t cheat on you. We’re not even dating...”
He fell backwards when she grabbed him, and the noise woke the others up.
“Ugh... I feel like I was having a horrible nightmare. Wait, what are you two doing?!”
“Aah! I came to check on you because I was worried, and you’re with that girl again, Akuto!”
“What sort of person could be capable of causing a Liradan to go unconscious?”
“Oh, everybody’s awake! Hey, look everybody! The books all fell down! Crash!”
Keena, oblivious as ever, spread out her arms wide.
○
For a while after
that, Akuto had a strange nagging feeling that something was wrong, a thought he couldn’t get out of his brain.
Eventually it went away, but he found he’d developed a new habit. He’d started to take an interest in physical books, and read a few stories. And each time he flipped the pages of a book, for some reason he felt a tightness in his chest.
It was worst of all with books that had happy endings.
“What am I trying to read?” he whispered to no one in particular, and the wind blew the pages as if answering his question.
4 - An Afternoon With Dolls
The girl was in a room surrounded by non-functioning Liradans; in other words, dolls.
She was still only around 10 years old, but there was something in the room that was very strange for a girl of her age to have: dozens of mana screens. They were the only thing in the room besides the dolls. There was nothing else there at all.
“The only thing I feel after I finish a work of literature is empty,” she said, speaking into the mana screen.
There was a doll on the screen. From the shape of the room and the other men visible on the screen, she seemed to be participating in a meeting.
And the mana screen next to it was clearly showing what the doll saw.
This was the true identity of the person codenamed 2V. She’d belonged to the cabinet’s magical intelligence office, the organization that worked for Boichiro, and now she was controlling it. She was an expert spy and strategist capable of controlling dozens of dolls at a time. Even CMID-8, the office’s most high-ranking experts, had never seen her real face.
“This isn’t a book club. What does that have to do with this meeting?” one of the meeting participants said.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Don’t get so upset. It has plenty to do with it. I just witnessed a revolutionary use of virtual phase space.”
2V brought another screen close to her. It showed footage of the old library on the grounds of Constant Magical Academy. Several of the students there were dolls.
“Virtual phase space? That’s a defensive mechanism built into the gods’ devices. It’s the space we pass through when we’re teleporting...”
“Virtual phase space is essentially empty, though you’re free to bring whatever you like from the outside. So unless you’re trying to use it as part of a defense system, it’s an inefficient way to kill people, or lure them in to start a war.” 2V spoke with far more complex words than a girl her age should have been able to use. No, maybe she wasn’t that age at all.
Demon King Daimaou: Volume 6 Page 10