After we finished buying clothes, we headed into the city to grab lunch. Our destination was a place listed in Kuro’s guidebook as "Recommended for Women."
"I feel like I'm always on the receiving end with you, Kaito-san."
"Don't worry about it. I bought them because I wanted to."
"Thank you... There!"
"Wait—what!?"
I tried to reassure Sieg, who was still dwelling on the shopping spree. In response, she gave a happy smile and, with a cute little exclamation, clung to my left arm.
"S-Sieg!? What are you doing...?"
"Lili, don't you see? Kaito-san and we are lovers. Walking arm-in-arm like this is perfectly natural."
"I... well, that feels like a bit of an exaggeration..."
"I see. So that's how it is... Like... this?"
"Lilia-san, not you too!?"
Lilia, who had accepted Sieg's slightly exaggerated claim without hesitation, steeled herself and hugged my right arm, her face turning bright red.
I was trapped in a terrifying pincer attack, both arms firmly embraced. My body temperature spiked instantly, and I felt my face flush.
Softness pressed against me from both sides. Perhaps out of embarrassment, Lilia was clinging quite tightly. Her terrifyingly soft breasts were sandwiching my arm, creating a truly precarious situation.
Sieg seemed to have a bit more composure than Lilia. While clinging to me, she interlaced her fingers with mine and leaned her weight against me as we walked.
This was bad... I wasn't sure why things had suddenly turned out like this, but the sensation was incredibly dangerous.
Lilia and Sieg... both of them felt so soft and warm, and they smelled wonderful.
Sieg was tall and slender, and her body pressed against my arm so snugly that there wasn't a single gap between us. She was practically nuzzling my shoulder, bringing her face incredibly close to mine.
While Lilia wasn't as tall as Sieg, her chest was armed with a truly formidable weapon. As she pressed against me, I could feel its shape yielding against my arm.
The way she tried to hide her face against my arm out of sheer embarrassment was adorable, and my willpower was being steadily chipped away.
Having both arms taken by beautiful women, each with her own unique charms, was the definition of having a flower in each hand. I was definitely a normie right now.
However, I didn't have the composure to enjoy the situation. Wrapped in the warmth and fragrance coming from both sides, I focused entirely on trying to keep my dizzy head calm.
Nursing the heavy damage to my reason, I navigated the stares of passersby and headed for the restaurant.
Once we arrived, Sieg and Lilia finally released my arms. That was a close call... in more ways than one. I hadn't realized that a cliché "lovers" scenario could be so taxing on one's sanity.
The restaurant was tucked away slightly off the main street. While the interior wasn't large, the tables and chairs were elegant and tastefully arranged, giving the place a stylish atmosphere.
It struck me as odd that there weren't many customers for lunchtime, but...
We sat down and looked over the menu brought by the staff. It made sense why it was recommended for women; the menu featured plenty of dishes with eggs and vegetables, along with a wide variety of salads.
It might just be my own bias, but it felt like the perfect lineup for a ladies' lunch. It certainly matched my image of Sieg.
Though, when it came to Lilia... I tended to imagine her eating more meat.
"Kaito-san? Are you thinking about something rude right now?"
"N-No, of course not!"
That was close. I almost earned myself a lecture.
I finished my order with a bit of a fluster. As we waited and chatted, the food arrived quickly—likely because there weren't many other patrons.
I had ordered the Recommended Set. It was a simple but delicious-looking spread of an omelet, bread, salad, and soup.
While it felt a little light for a man, I could always order more if I was still hungry. I decided to tuck in.
I put my hands together in a brief prayer of thanks and reached for the salad with my fork—then immediately retracted it.
I saw a vegetable that should not exist.
There was a green object shining with a brilliant, aggressive presence. Cut into thin strips and tossed into the salad, it radiated a sense of ineffable terror.
A green pepper. It was a green pepper.
I couldn't do it. Unfortunately, I would have to give up on this salad. Green peppers were a hard no. Green peppers were terrifying. I wished they would just go extinct.
Just as I was about to abandon the salad, a hand reached out from the side and gripped the edge of my plate.
"...Pardon me, Kaito-san. Actually, I realized that I 'really wanted to eat this salad,' but I must have made a mistake when I ordered. It's selfish of me, but would you mind if we swapped? It would be a huge help."
"Eh? Oh... sure."
"Thank you very much."
With a gentle smile, Sieg swapped my salad for hers. Unlike me, she hadn't ordered the set; she had ordered a salad a la carte. The dish she placed in front of me was a perfectly normal Caesar salad.
After the trade was complete, I looked at Sieg. She gave me a quick wink and then began eating the green pepper salad as if nothing had happened.
Lilia didn't mention the peppers either. She simply kept the conversation going with pleasant, lighthearted chatter as we ate.
Neither of them mocked my childish tastes; instead, they had treated me with nothing but kindness and consideration. Once again, it hit me just how wonderful these two were.
I fell for them all over again. Both Sieg and Lilia were truly incredible women, and it made me feel incredibly proud to call them my lovers.
Strangely enough, that day, the salad tasted better than ever before.
Dear Mother, Father—
Being cared for, and caring for others... Giving affection and receiving it in return... It made me realize all over again how wonderful it is to have lovers. I suppose you'd call it warmth. The kind of feeling where just being together puts your heart at ease.
It was a truly delightful meal.
Sieg is such a kind big sister.