A devilish-looking girl with twin tails, Momo, approached me.
By the way, Micron, who had been protecting me since I arrived, isn’t around now.
Before the fireworks started, the phantoms had all gathered around the summoner.
At first, some of them were wary of the phantoms, but once they realized they were harmless, they all competed to pet them.
Now that they’re tired, the three of them are huddled together sleeping.
That’s when Momo took the opportunity to talk to me.
Well, since this girl has the ability to create clones, she could probably slip past even if Black Dragon Mikurow were guarding the place. “Ah, Momo.”
“Kousuke-kun being alone is pretty rare.” “Maybe.”
“Yeah. You’re usually surrounded by cute girls.” “Haha…”
If we’re talking about since we got to this desert island, that’s true.
I don’t think there’s ever been a time when no one was nearby.
“That’s why, don’t you feel drawn to Momo?”
Momo deliberately hooked her fingers on the buttons of her uniform, showing off her cleavage.
I almost let my gaze drop, but I held it back.
Seeing my reaction, Momo made a bored face.
It wasn’t boredom, but rather the kind of pout a child makes when things don’t go their way.
“Hey, Soh, what were you talking about with Ryouka just now?” “What…?”
I didn’t know how much of the group Jyouka shared information with, so I hesitated.
That only made Momo even more upset.
“It’s probably just about staying here, right? I don’t get it. What’s so good about a place that’s full of danger?”
Momo had a more general sense of things.
If I didn’t have a “Craft Ability,” I would probably think the same way.
But even with her “Clone Ability,” Momo still longed for the original world.
“Momo seems to want to go back home soon.”
「Of course! There’s no fun in staying here!」
In terms of expressing emotions, she’s close to Shouko and Junme, but there’s a certain childishness to her.
Still, even if her expressions are childish, her feelings are very much those of a real student.
It’s a bit odd for someone to adapt to this situation so easily.
Since I’m aware of that, I don’t bother arguing.
「Well, everyone feels differently, right?」
「I bet you’d have been tough without any girls around, right?」
I think about Mom’s words for a bit.
「Hmm, since the ‘Crafting Ability’ itself is fun, I probably didn’t get bored. But I was worried about Chiyu, so I focused on her.」
I’m really glad we all got transferred together.
Thanks to Chiyu, I was able to try out the ‘Crafting Ability’ from the start with a lot of enthusiasm.
「I can’t do that. Before, I lived just because I was cute, but here, I have to work to have value. And I can’t deal with being attacked by a man who turned into a beast.」
If Shion is the type to receive countless declarations of love without doing anything, Momo was the type to make guys confess to her by acting in a way that would provoke misunderstandings.
From a guy’s perspective, it’s hard not to feel sympathy for those who had their innocence toyed with, but personally, I don’t hold any grudges against her.
From her point of view, her ‘cuteness’ seems to have been called into question, so she probably doesn’t like this desert island.
It’s like a rich person losing their fortune and being transferred to another world.
Some people can look forward and try to earn more, while others regret losing their wealth.
“Did you want to be pampered?”
I heard that before I came to this base.
“Of course! It’s nice to be told you’re cute, and it’s fun to think that someone’s crazy about you.”
I see, her goal is simply to be acknowledged, and she doesn’t have any feelings for the person who acknowledges her.
That’s why she doesn’t accept anyone’s confession.
She probably doesn’t even realize she’s playing with them. She wants to be loved, but she doesn’t know what love is.
That’s how Momo is.
「Yeah, it feels good to be praised and thanked, doesn’t it?」 「Right?」
「I get why a peaceful life would be better for fulfilling Momos’ wishes.」
「Right, right! I thought that if there were lots of Momos, I could hog all the attention, but it’s not like that at all! The girls are stressed out, the guys are beasts, and I’m being made to work really hard by Ryouka-chan!」
She wants to be thought of as cute, not to be attacked.
If the guys lose their reason, she won’t be able to get the kind of enjoyment she got at school.
「…So, if I had ‘Return Rights’ this time, would you have gone back?」
Momos puffs out her cheeks in response to my question. 「…I wouldn’t have gone back.」 That wasn’t unexpected.
She’s free-spirited, but not heartless.
She had been using the ‘Cloning Ability,’ which could easily be abused, in a way that benefited the party.
「Yeah, if Momos went back now, the Seikou party would lose a lot of power.」
「I don’t really… care about that.」
She says that, but her voice doesn’t sound like she doesn’t care. 「I see.」
I smiled, and she blushed, thinking I was teasing her.
“U-um! Momo thought of something!”
With slightly teary eyes, she looked up at me with a coy expression. “Uh, yeah.”
“If Seika’s plan gets approved by the others, we’ll be staying on this island for a while, right?”
”…I can’t say for sure, but there’s definitely a possibility.”
“Seika’s ‘charisma’ has been strengthened this time, and she’s calmed down the kids who were worried about the healing magic. I think all the girls will agree.”
I don’t know if Seika had anticipated this, but it’s definitely a possibility.
With Chiyo calming down the anxiety that arose, Seika, the leader, has become even more reliable.
If we try to persuade them, even those who thought it would be difficult to adapt might choose to stay.
Survival on an desert island has the benefit of extending one’s lifespan.
If they calmly understand that there’s an infinite amount of training time available, many of them would likely consider it positively.
The fact that Momo realized this means that, while her attitude can sometimes be childish, her mind is sharp.
「If that happens, what are we going to do?」
「Well, I guess I’ll stay too. But it’s really true that I’m at my limit.」
I understand and sympathize with those who long for their former lives.
In a way, we can endure it.
But it’s because we have the hope of someday returning that we can act and think to return in an ideal situation.
However, not everyone can do that.
Momo hugged herself and looked up at me.
“So, will you help me?” “Help with what…?”
“I’ve given up on SNS already, but it’s really not fun right now. So, I want you to help me have fun on the island.” Her gaze and voice were pleading.
If you weren’t used to the delicate charm of your childhood friend Chiyo, it would be enough to make you fall in love.
“Help… you want me to, um, pamper you?”
“That’s right! You can make all sorts of things, right? If our lives get easier, I think everyone will have more time to spare. Then, if you make cosmetics and clothes for us, what do you think will happen? I think everyone will start caring about their appearance again, and the value of cute girls will rise.”
My friends would also be happy with cosmetics, but indeed, it feels like the priority is on ‘care’ and ‘fashion’ comes a step below that.
I see, indeed, the priority of fashion might not rise unless there’s some extra room in life.
“I actually wanted to send a doppelganger to the guys to replenish the pampering ingredients, but Ryouka-chan said ‘it would create unnecessary problems, so no’, isn’t that harsh?”
No, I think Seiha is right.
If it were just about pampering, that would be fine, but the guys’ hearts, which had finally settled down, might get upset again.
Even though it’s a doppelganger that doesn’t inherit damage, memories can be shared, so it would be terrible if something bad happened.
Thinking I was in the middle of worrying, Momo continued.
“Of course, I’m not saying I’ll do it for free?” And she leaned in closer.
The scent of fruit tickled my nostrils.
It seemed to be coming from the beautiful girl in front of me.
It was like the scent of honey dripping from a fruit, sweet enough to make you feel it in the aroma alone.
“If you can make this desert island fun, Momo will try her best to make you happy too.”
Momo entwined her left arm around my arm and gently stroked my chest with her right hand.
“Are you okay? It’s not like I’m saying no, no. I don’t know about love, but I was curious. I mean, you’re a boy who’s liked by so many girls. I wondered what would happen if you, like, fell for me.”
Momo’s face was filled with a joyful anticipation, as if she were looking forward to an unknown emotion.
I imagined tiny wings and a tail on her.
She really was the kind of girl who fit the description of a little devil.
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