The soft warmth transmitted from the palm of his hand. It is like the warmth of a gentle family.

Everone, let’s go together, come one, let’s go. Let’s call out in unison, One, two!

「「「Mucchi!!!」」」

『Yes! Uwah, Your shirt is so messy around the neck!』

You should also come and see Mucchi. Your friends are waiting for you with their heads lined up!

『Ramen again? You sure love ramen!』

This is Tokorozawa Mucchiland, Japan’s world-class fantasy land!

Samecchi was enthralled by the sharp dance of Skold, the bully family cat with bad eyes.

「Amazing, ssu! Samecchi is starting to see Skold in a new light now, ssu.」

『Hahaha, I can also do this, nyaan!』

Rintaro watched from a bench a short distance away as Skold performed a spectacular backflip and Samecchi was overjoyed.

「How’s it going? Have you calmed down a bit?」

「Haah…… Haah…… My head is still dizzy……」

Rintaro was sitting on a colorful bench typical of amusement parks, with Minato on his lap.

Minato looked pained as she opened her costume to catch her breath. As a person who has been holed up in the infirmary for most of her life, she lacks exercise, and if she tries to run as fast as she can in her stuffed animal suit, she will inevitably run out of oxygen.

 Her shirt, with holes in places, was soaked with sweat and stuck snugly to the lines of her voluptuous body.

While waiting for Minato to recover, Rintaro is at a loss as to where to look. Since he still had a clear “feel” left in his hands, it was quite difficult to maintain his rationality to put a sensational beauty on top of his knees.

「I see. So it was supposed to be a surprise.」

「…… It seemed like you’ve been tired lately… We didn’t mean any harm…」

When questioned by Rintaro, Minato quickly falsified their purpose. She was not lying about the surprise or about him working hard.

Fortunately, Rintaro was satisfied by the explanation of it being a form of compensation.

「If that’s the case, then I’m going to have fun. I haven’t had any time off for a while.」

「Oh, by all means. Just don’t tell the Samecchi about us, okay?」

「What are you saying, shouldn’t Minato stay with us? Samecchi will be more happy with that」

「…………Heh?」

A few minutes later, Rintaro came towards Samechi, who was having a great time with Skold. He was accompanied by a tall, beautiful woman in a plain coat with a frightened look on her face.

「Ah, Minato!　Did Minato come to see Mucchi, too?」

「Un…… Th-th-that’s right, Aha, Ahahaha.」

「Then let’s take a picture together. Mucchi is dead over there」

「He’s dead!?」

Just as Rintaro said, Samecchi seemed genuinely happy to be joined by Minato. They were holding hands and waving their legs around as if they were a family. From the outside, they really looked like a happy family.

「Alright, Samecchi, work is canceled! We’re going to have a lot of fun today!」

「Yay, ssu! Then, Samecchi wanna go on a jet coaster, ssu!」

「Don’t pull that on me, you know what will happen if you put me on that thing!」

As Rintaro and Samechi set off on their fourth roller coaster challenge, Minato gave up and slumped on the bench.

However, even though the surprise was blown, Minato was relieved that she had almost accomplished her goal of having the two enjoy the party. As Minato smiles bitterly at the screaming couple, Kirika, aka Skold, the house cat, came up to her.

『Hey hey, what is the meaning of this! Why are you on that side!?』

「Wait Kiri…… Skold, there are a lot of circumstances to this. I was forced into it, and I had no choice…….」

『Kuh… I made a big mistake… I should have been Ho-san instead of Skold…!』

Rintaro, who had enjoyed the roller coaster ride, approached the frustrated Skold. Naturally, Rintaro did not realize that the person inside was Kirika.

「I don’t know who you are, but thank you for being with the Samecchi earlier. I look forward to working with you today.」

『I- I look forward to working with you, nyan…… I will do my best to liven things up, nyan……』

「Somehow, you seem pretty tired? Don’t push yourself too hard.」

『There is no such thing, nyan! I want senpa- Rintaro-kun to enjoy Mucchiland, nyan!』

With that said, Skold danced a lively dance to the background music playing in the park, as if to say she was full of energy. Rintaro’s eyes, as well as Samecchi’s, lit up at the sight of the sharp dance moves.

「Oooh! Amazing, ssu! It looks like a CG, ssu!」

「Ha, I thought it was a childish trick, but it’s amazing」

「Uuu…… Sorry, Skold……」

Samecchi borrowed Rintaro’s smartphone and took a video of Skold’s majestic figure dancing single-mindedly.

「Skold, look over here! That’s good, That’s a good expression, ssuyo!」

「Sa-Sa-Samecchi… What are you going to do with that recording…?」

「I’ll show it to Kirika when I get home and brag about it!」

「Ugh……!」

Minato’s stomach churned at the thought of what was to follow.　

It is impossible to guess from the top of the costume, but what kind of face is Kirika dancing with right now? Is she crying, angry, or both?

「I see, if it wasn’t for work, I would have brought Mayuzumi with us.」

「But aniki has been avoiding Kirika lately, ssuyo.」

「That’s…… Well……」

It was clear that even Rintaro found it difficult to face Kirika after what had happened. He was reluctant to look Kirika in the eye because he was reminded of what had happened that night.

As a result, Rintaro had been avoiding Kirika for the past few days. Kirika herself, perhaps reflecting on her actions, seemed to be keeping a bit of distance from Rintaro.

Rintaro and Kirika maintain such a delicate distance from each other, and Samechi has always been concerned about them.

「Do you dislike Kirika by any chance, aniki?」

「……Of course not. I love all of you.」

『……Nyan……』

A little light came back into Skold’s dying eyes. Minato held her mouth with an “Awawawawa” at her bad premonition.

「Listen, Samecchi, the condition for being a good man is to be generous with your love.」

「Dokiii, ssu! aniki, today you seem 30% more hard-boiled, ssu.」

「That’s right, that’s right, hahahaha.」

It is Rintaro’s nature to be light-spoken and to want to put on airs when he is dealing with Samecchi. Even normally, Kuriyama Rintaro is already a man that is born out of his mouth.

「Samecchi was actually worried, ssu. Samecchi thought aniki and Kirika had a bad relationship or something, ssuyo.」

How pure and innocent, it made Rintaro’s eyes burn. Rintaro couldn’t help but stroke Samechi’s head.

「What a good girl you are, Samecchi!　I mean, what a bad girl you are, Samecchi!」

「Aniki, it’s embarrassing, ssu! Skold is watching, ssu!」

「There’s nothing to worry about, Samecchi! It’s true that many things happened, but please don’t worry about it. As you can see, I really love Mayuzumi!」

『……Nyan……』

I repeat, Rintaro does not believe for a minute that Skold is actually Kirika. If there had been even the slightest possibility of that in the back of his mind, he would have chosen his words carefully.

However, Rintaro’s attention was focused on reassuring Samechi. Little did he know that right next to them, the active volcano of love was on the verge of exploding.

「That’s good, ssu! As expected, aniki has a big heart, ssu!」

「Yeah, that’s right!　I wouldn’t go to the South Pole for a woman I don’t love!　I wouldn’t mind cuddling with her every night!　I’d even go right now if I had to!」

『Nyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaannnn!!!!!』

A black aura overflowed from Skold, the mischievous kitten’s body towards the sky. Her eyes, which are so sharp that it is hard to believe that they are based on the Scottish Fold breed, have a suspicious light shining in them.

Standing with both feet on the ground, she looked like a majestic wild beast awakened by her hunting instincts.

All the pigeons in the park took off at once, and every single fish in the pond disappeared. At first glance, it was easy for Rintaro to understand that this was no ordinary event.

And that at the center of it all is Skold, the family cat.

Rintarō turned his eyes towards Skold, who was making a ‘Gigigigi’ sound like a twisting wood.

「Umm, I just want to be sure. Who might you be……?」

『Apparently, Senpai is good at hitting my buttons!』

「Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahh!!!

As soon as Rintaro realized who was inside Skold, he ran away like a rabbit.

Rintaro has excellent athleticism, but his opponent is Kirika, a magical beast that has been awakened by the power of love, even though she is clad in a costume.

In a matter of seconds, Rintarō was caught, his hands were put around his waist from behind and he was pinned down.

『Now, think!　I am all set to physically receive your love, Senpai!』

「Ueeeeen! Please forgive meeeeeee!!」

Skold unbuckled Rintaro’s belt when he gave up resisting, and forced her hand into the belt. If her opponent was Rintaro, there was a good chance that he had a weapon hidden in his belt. This was one of the know-how she had acquired at the hero school.

Gyumonyun! gyuh! Gyugyuh! Gyuuuuuuuuuh!!!

Through Skold’s paw, She could feel the amazing sensation of the weapon. Kirika rhythmically applied pressure in the manner of open chest cardiac massage, as if to confirm the sensation over and over again.

『……Perhaps sempai…… is weak here?』

「Wh-Wh-Wh-Wh-Where are you trying to start！(どどどどど、どこでおっぱじめようとしてるんだよぉーーーッ！)」

The other guests watched in amazement as a man was preyed upon by Skold, while the place was deserted, but there were a good number of families and others. Samecchi continued to take video of the whole thing.

　……Ten minutes later.

A haggard Rintaro, accompanied by three girls, was allowed to enjoy Tokorozawa Mucchiland to the fullest. There was no smile on his face, and his heart and manly pride were left under the winter sky.

---

<88: Tokorozawa Mucchiland
90: Northern Wind and Thighs>