Chapter 338: The King's Game
After dinner, the girls rested together in the living room, and a few girls skilled in tea art brewed a cup of green tea for everyone.
Their slender, delicate fingers moved gracefully in the air, tracing beautiful patterns as they prepared the tea. The delicate aroma filled the room, creating a serene atmosphere.
Taking the cup of green tea handed to him by Saeko, Hachiman took a sip. The tea slid down his throat smoothly, leaving a lingering fragrance and relaxing his body involuntarily.
As they sipped their tea, the girls relaxed and reminisced about the delicious meal they had just enjoyed.
Taking a sip of her tea, Komachi asked, "Onii-chan, what should we do tonight?"
"What do you girls want to do?" Hachiman calmly threw the question back at them.
Hearing his question, the girls quickly voiced their ideas.
"Play Ouija."
"Song lyric relay."
"Tell stories."
"I just want to quietly play games."
...
Watching the girls express their preferences, Hachiman remained silent, simply sipping his tea.
At that moment, Raphiel raised a finger and suggested an idea.
"How about we play the King's Game?"
"Huh? The King's Game..."
Upon hearing this suggestion, many of the girls' eyes lit up.
The King's Game, as they called it, had simple rules and could accommodate up to 14 players.
Each player drew a card with a number from A to K and a Joker. A represented 1, and the number on the card represented the player's identity. The player who drew the Joker became the "King" for that round.
The "King" could give commands to two or three players of their choice, such as having Player 2 carry Player 5 and spin three times, or having Player 1 give Player 7 a piggyback ride, and everyone had to obey the King's orders.
Because all players' identity cards were face down, no one knew who was who, eliminating any targeted actions.
The idea was quickly met with unanimous approval from everyone.
However, due to the participant limit, a few people couldn't join, such as Komachi, Kokoro, and the lazy angel Gabriel. Additionally, Vignette, who was shy and feared embarrassing tasks, opted out too.
Excluding these four, there were exactly fourteen participants.
Hachiman also considered opting out, but Raphiel stopped him. She argued that since he was the only guy, his participation was crucial for the game's dynamics.
Hearing this, Hachiman smirked inwardly.
It's because of this mischievous angel stirring up trouble, isn't it?
With that thought, he couldn't help but glance at Raphiel, who always wore a smile.
Sensing Hachiman's gaze, Raphiel winked at him, flashing a playful smile.
It's undeniable, in the end, appearances matter.
Even though he knew this mischievous one wanted to stir up trouble, seeing her smile, Hachiman couldn't bring himself to dislike her.
With the participants finalized, Raphiel smiled and announced, "Since everyone seems okay with it, let's get started."
The group gathered in a circle as Raphiel shuffled the cards, placing them in the center.
"Okay, everyone, let's draw a card."
Since it was the same deck, there wasn't much difference in the backs, so everyone randomly drew one.
Hachiman glanced at his card, a red eight of hearts, unsure who the King was.
Then, Raphiel revealed her card, declaring, "Looks like luck is on my side. I'm the King for the first round."
Now that the King was determined, everyone waited for her commands.
Raphiel scanned the faces, contemplating her command.
After a moment, she smiled faintly. "Then, Number 8, please give Number 11 a piggyback ride."
Seeing himself chosen by the mischievous angel, Hachiman couldn't help but be surprised.
Could it be that I have bad luck?
Thinking to himself and muttering quietly, he flipped over his number card.
"I'm Number 8. Who's Number 11?"
Upon hearing Hachiman's question, the girls looked at each other, clearly none of them was Number 11.
Just then, Mafuyu's body trembled slightly.
Seated next to her, Shizuka naturally noticed this and couldn't help but ask, "Kirisu-sensei, are you okay?"
"I... I'm Number 11." Mafuyu revealed her number card.
To be lifted in a princess carry by a student.
I'm a teacher, after all.
Thinking this, Mafuyu weakly spoke up, "Can we change it?"
Unfortunately, Raphiel, who had intended to stir up trouble from the start, wouldn't let this opportunity slip away.
"Nope, sorry. It's the rules of the game, and everyone agreed earlier. As a teacher, Kirisu-sensei wouldn't want to go back on her word, right?"
This mischievous angel was adept at reading people, so she had long since grasped Mafuyu's weakness.
Sure enough, upon hearing Raphiel's words, Mafuyu immediately retorted.
"How could I? As a teacher, I would never go back on my word."
"Then, Kirisu-sensei, please follow the command." Raphiel smiled faintly.
After saying this, she winked at Hachiman.
Feeling somewhat helpless, Hachiman didn't say anything, and walked directly toward Mafuyu.
Seeing him approach, Mafuyu took a small step back, her face filled with caution.
"What do you intend to do?"
"Of course, I'm just following the command." Hachiman shrugged.
Upon hearing his words, Mafuyu's face flushed slightly.
Was he really going to lift her in a princess carry?
From childhood to now, she had never had intimate contact with the opposite sex.
From elementary to high school, all her time was devoted to figure skating. After transferring to the education industry in college, she had to start over from scratch, so her experience with opposite-sex interactions was almost zero, let alone intimate contact.
Seeing Hachiman standing in front of her, Mafuyu whispered softly, "I'm your teacher!"
A teacher? What about it?
Do you know that there's a saying: "With courage, even teachers can take maternity leave."
And it's just a princess carry, nothing serious. In France, they even have a kissing greeting.
Thinking this, without waiting for Mafuyu to say anything else, Hachiman bent down and lifted her legs, picking her up in a princess carry.