Chapter 5
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Chapter 5: Gothic Lolita Is Cutely Decorated With Frills III
Escorted into the mansion, I was guided by Rei-san to a room in the back of the house. The two men in black suits who had accompanied us had gone somewhere. It seemed that once I was home, I wouldn’t need any guards.
Even from here, I could see the beautiful inner courtyard, making it feel like I had arrived at a luxurious inn. Perhaps because of this, my gothic lolita outfit seemed unusually out of place, and I felt a strong desire to question how I ended up in this situation for at least an hour.
Sitting cross-legged on the brand-new tatami mats that smelled of fresh rush grass, Rei-san’s mother brought us tea once she seemed to have regained her composure.
“Please.”
“Oh, thank you.”
“I’m sorry about earlier. Please, make yourself comfortable.”
As if she hadn’t heard Rei-san’s words about me being her “girlfriend”, Rei-san’s mother placed the tea down and quickly left the room, as if fleeing.
“The outside alone is first class.”
Rei-san took a sip of her tea in amazement. Now that I think about it, I was thirsty after being surprised so many times in such a short time. I gulped down half of the high-quality green tea, which probably cost many times more than ours. I felt a bit regretful about wasting it.
“More importantly, what do you mean by ‘girlfriend’? And I still don’t quite understand the ‘doll’ thing either.”
“Both terms are literal.”
“That doesn’t explain anything.”
The snacks served with the tea were in small packets, but the packaging itself already seemed to proclaim their luxury. As I hesitated to reach for them, Rei-san took one without a care and ate it all in one bite.
It seemed like they would disappear quickly if I left them untouched. I hurriedly grabbed one and kept it close.
“Is that so? I picked the cutest girl among those there.”
That still doesn’t explain anything and isn’t very reassuring. True, among the girls in that desolate arcade, there might not have been any other girl around the right age to be called a “girlfriend” besides me and Haruka-nee. My mind couldn’t keep up with the conversation at all. I tried a moist, mildly sweet red bean monaka, but it seemed insufficient.
“That expression is nice too.”
I couldn’t understand what was amusing about my gloomy face, but Rei-san laughed cheerfully. She was just an ordinary girl showing a smile, lacking the ghostly aura I first saw, and she didn’t seem like someone who would kidnap girls.
“So, does having a girlfriend bring any benefits to Rei-san?”
Rei-san’s expression tightened immediately at my natural question.
“It’s ‘Rei-sama,’ isn’t it?”
“Huh?”
“You should show respect to your master since you are my doll. ‘Rei-sama.’ Yes.”
She extended her hand towards me, indicating that I should repeat after her. Although I had no intention of becoming a doll, I realized that refusing here would mean I might never get to leave.
“Rei-sama. Why does Rei-sama want a girlfriend?”
“Ah, no need for honorifics. I dislike relationships that fit into such molds.”
Even though she made me call her “sama,” it seemed odd to reject her own request for formalities.
“You’re so selfish.”
I couldn’t help but voice my thoughts. However, Rei-sama seemed to actually like it and smiled at me without any concern.
“I want to be disowned from this house.”
“Disowned?”
Disowning means cutting off parental ties, like saying, “You’re no longer our child.”
“Eh, why!?”
It took my brain a few moments to catch up with Rei-sama’s words. Even seeing me on my knees with my hands on the desk, Rei-sama remained calm.
“It doesn’t matter. I thought that if I said I had a girlfriend, they might want to kick me out.”
“Was it not acceptable if the partner was a man?”
“In that case, they might suggest making him an adopted son. If there’s no heir, they would need to adopt someone from elsewhere. This should be the most effective way.”
Rei-sama spoke indifferently as if talking about someone else. Meanwhile, she kept casually opening monaka packets and eating them. As I reached for another one, I hurriedly brought the last monaka to my side. I wanted to have at least one more.
“Ah! W-Well, it’s fine. That’s what’s so cute about you.”
I felt like I had just been glared at. Rei-sama retracted her outstretched hand and took a sip from her teacup, trying to cover it up.
“But wanting to be disowned…”
“This house is too cramped for me. It’s ridiculous to spend the rest of my life in such a small place.”
“Don’t you think so?” Rei-sama peered into my face. Even though she called it a small place, I understood it wasn’t about the size of the land. I know well that having something big often means being tied to something.
Rei-sama seemed to either see through my thoughts or be displeased with my lack of reaction. She threw herself carelessly onto the tatami and exhaled deeply. I felt like lying down too, but my outfit was too elaborate for rolling around comfortably.
Does she really think of me as a doll? Despite being a guest, Rei-sama rolled around on the tatami without paying me any mind. Though I often saw Haruka-nee doing this, dealing with a skirt made it awkward to find where to look.
Additionally, though I hadn’t noticed it in her loose sailor outfit, Rei-sama had a very feminine physique that didn’t match her small stature. The sailor suit clinging to her body due to gravity, highlighting her curves, and just looking at her made me feel like I was doing something very impure, and it made my heart race.
“That’s why, please do your best as my doll.”
Did Rei-sama not notice that I couldn’t look away? She said this while still in a relaxed posture.
“Y-Yes!”
Feeling guilty about staring at Rei-sama’s body, I answered clearly as if to distract myself. It seemed that Rei-sama thought I had fully accepted being treated as a doll.
“Then, what’s your phone number?”
“Huh?”
“If I don’t have your contact information, I won’t be able to call you, right? Ah, I’ll tell Nao too, but you won’t answer.”
As if it were obvious, Rei-sama reached out her hand to me. As her slender white fingers reached out, I took out my phone from my bag and handed it over without resisting. She seemed accustomed to giving orders, reinforcing the impression of being a young lady with attendants.
“Ah, okay.”
“I look forward to working with you, Nao.”
Even if I told her I wished this would be the last time, she probably wouldn’t listen. If I could firmly reject it here, I wouldn’t be in this outfit in the first place.
When Rei-sama raised her hand to say that this business was settled, the two black-suited men appeared from where ever they had been watching, and I was taken back to the arcade once again.