"Hey? What's the meaning of following me?"
"You don't want me to pay you back for a bird, do you?"
"Don't you have your own home? Are you really a stray cat?"
Alex had noticed the little creature stealthily trailing him. The corner of his eye caught it slowly following behind, its large eyes seemingly glued to him.
Yet, when he turned around, it would quickly dart behind a tree, carefully peeking out its small head, looking startled and timid. The adorable scene made it hard to believe it was just a cat; its behavior was so human-like.
Alex turned back just in time to see its cautious, hiding act. The moment their eyes met, it instantly drew back. It was quite cute. When he tried to approach, the clever little cat would quickly scamper away, only stopping once it had put a safe distance between them.
The more he watched, the more intelligent this cat seemed.
"Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if a cat spirit showed up. After all, this isn't an ordinary world without supernatural power. Since superpowers exist, it's normal for demons and monsters to exist too."
Thinking this, a strange light flickered in his eyes. He deployed the long-unused [Absolute Control] ability. The highly vigilant little white cat suddenly stopped, frozen on the spot.
"Heh, I got you now, didn't I?"
"Meow—"
The little creature's eyeballs swiveled. Realizing it couldn't move, it cried out in terror, as if seeing a ghost. What is this? This is too terrifying, meow? It watched the human walk closer, a large hand reaching out.
It was so scared it squeezed its eyes shut.
Soon, the hand landed on its body. There was no great terror as it had imagined, just a simple stroke of its fur. After one petting, the hand released it. By the time the kitten regained its freedom, Alex had already walked away.
"Meow?"
It shook its body, hesitated for a while, but finally decided to follow and see. That human wasn't as terrifying as it had thought. On the contrary... he was quite interesting. At least, that strange ability he just used was something it had never encountered before.
Alex didn't pay any more attention to the cat trailing him this time. At the entrance to the Tsubakihara house, two identical twin girls stood waiting, seemingly having come out specifically for Alex.
Seeing him appear, one girl immediately raised her hand and waved. The other's eyes were shifty, showing no particular reaction.
Seeing the twins, Alex was reminded of Kaede and Suzu. Kaede and Suzu were easy to distinguish due to their distinct personalities, but Yuna Tsubakihara and Nina Tsubakihara... were a little harder to tell apart.
"Alex, good morning," the one who greeted him was Yuna Tsubakihara. Over the past period, her attitude toward Alex had softened considerably, and their relationship had visibly improved. As for the other, Nina Tsubakihara, she was the same as ever.
At least in front of Alex, she still looked indifferent and dismissive.
"Mom just told us... have you eaten?"
"Sister," before Alex could reply, her younger sister, Nina Tsubakihara, interrupted. "Did you forget about all the women around him? They must have prepared everything perfectly. How could he not have eaten breakfast?"
There was a hint of sarcasm in her words, aimed directly at him.
Alex suddenly stopped, turned around, and walked straight towards Nina Tsubakihara. The bespectacled girl's heart skipped a beat. She involuntarily retreated half a step, showing a mix of fear and some other emotion that was hard to read.
"You're right. Chi and the others already made me breakfast," Alex grinned. "I ate. Does that displease you, Nina-san?"
"I... What does that have to do with me?" Nina Tsubakihara avoided his sharp gaze and stammered. "I don't care about you. I'm just feeling bad for Sis. She woke up so early just to—"
"Nina, what are you saying?" Yuna quickly stopped her sister, embarrassed and annoyed. "I just got up early to make breakfast. I don't have any other intentions."
"You really have no other intentions?"
"I..."
Alex looked curiously at the two girls before him, remaining silent.
"Besides, isn't he also intimately involved with the Student Council twins? The women around this guy just keep coming..."
"Oh? You even know about that?" Alex was surprised. "It seems you pay me a lot of attention. You're right, my relationship with those twins is quite special."
Yuna Tsubakihara and Nina Tsubakihara looked up at him.
"Strictly speaking, it's Suzu. She not only joined my club but is also one of my women now."
"..."
"..."
The expressions on the faces of the twin sisters suddenly became complicated. Yuna Tsubakihara bit her lip. "Is it because... of that transfer student incident? That's why those two girls are like that with you..."
"Yuna-san, are you concerned?" Alex asked with a half-smile.
"I... well..."
Yuna Tsubakihara lowered her head, speechless. The next second, his finger hooked her smooth chin, forcing her to look up and meet his gaze. A blush spread across her fair, delicate face.
The intimate atmosphere didn't last long. The clueless Nina Tsubakihara smacked his hand away. Smack! In that instant, Yuna felt a moment of emptiness and loss.
"Don't touch my sister."
"Nina Tsubakihara-san, you seem to have gotten bolder since we last met, daring to talk to me like that," Alex wasn't angry at all; instead, he smiled playfully, turning to the glasses girl. "Since I can't touch the sister, then... can I touch the sister?"
He reached out and stroked her cheek.
Nina Tsubakihara's muscles tensed. She widened her eyes, feeling the odd sensation on her face. Her cheek was being pinched, a blatant flirtation, but... she couldn't refuse.
Was my body controlled, or did I...
"Alex, don't be like that. Nina didn't mean it," Yuna, the older sister, grabbed his arm with her soft, delicate hand. Her face was all smiles. "Come in quickly. Don't just stand outside."
Yuna Tsubakihara pulled Alex's arm, leading the way into the house. The moment she turned, her smile was replaced by a complicated, conflicted expression. What's wrong with me? Seeing Alex treat Nina like that... I actually feel a little uncomfortable.
It's like I'm jealous.
And Nina—she doesn't like Alex, does she? Why did she stand there motionless and let Alex do that... He must have controlled her, it must be that way.
Yuna Tsubakihara, whose expression kept shifting as she led the way holding Alex's wrist, showed her lovely smile again once they entered the house, as if all those complicated emotions were just a mistake.
"Come in quickly."
"Where's Mira? Is she not home?"
"Alex, you really care about Mom. She just went out to the supermarket to buy something. She might be back later. It's okay, we'll take good care of you too."
When she mentioned her mother, Yuna Tsubakihara felt a faint, subtle resentment.
Alex noticed it. Nina Tsubakihara, who followed them into the house, also noticed it. She watched her sister and Alex's backs silently, her gaze deep.