Chapter 122: A friend or an enemy.

In the middle of the workshop's conference room—which was rarely used—Kai was sitting at the center of the table with Momo on his right, while facing them were Nemuri, Shino, and Ryuko, all still wearing their hero suits and sporting serious expressions on their faces, with cups of tea served beside them.

"Kai, are you being serious?"

Seated between Shino and Ryuko, who both had impassive, unreadable expressions, Nemuri asked in a grave, almost solemn tone as she stared fixedly at the two young people in front of them. In response, the blue-eyed boy nodded firmly and explained in a serious voice.

"Yes, I know this isn't fair to you, and I'm a complete idiot, but I'm determined that Momo become part of our relationship."

"…"

Kai's answer brought a deathly silence over the heroines, who could only look at each other with complex, emotion-filled expressions. At that moment, Momo couldn't help looking at Kai with some disapproval. After all, he was purposely painting himself as the bad guy, and she didn't like that. So, after taking a deep breath, she spoke in a clear, resolute tone.

"Kai is only playing the villain to take the entire blame on himself. The truth is that I was the one who confessed my feelings to him, and even though he explained that he was already with you, I kind of forced him to let me be part of the relationship you share. I can understand why you decided to share him, and I'm willing to do everything in my power for you to accept me."

Somehow, Momo's words were like a soothing balm for the hearts of the three beautiful heroines. After all, Kai's announcement that he wanted Momo to be his girlfriend was like a bucket of cold water for them—too sudden and completely unexpected—inevitably instilling a feeling of fear in their hearts.

Especially because Momo was young and beautiful, and compared to thirty-somethings like them, she was obviously in another league. But the moment they listened to Momo, they could easily imagine how everything had happened. After all, Kai was very soft and overly indulgent when it came to family, spoiling them too much. Although it annoyed them a bit, they also couldn't blame him, since that was an important part of why they had fallen hopelessly in love with him.

This was true even for Nemuri, who—though she inevitably felt aroused by a situation that aligned with one of her darkest fantasies—still found her love for Kai and her desire to grow old by his side far stronger than her twisted sexual urges. Hence, she had truly been terrified at the idea of Kai casting her aside, to the point where she couldn't help cursing her perverted body for "getting excited".

"Momo, I'm truly grateful for your explanation, and although this is also our fault for not clarifying things from the start, I honestly think you're too young to involve yourself in something like this, so I can't agree."

Visibly calmer and more self-assured, Nemuri spoke while looking directly into Momo's eyes, though she didn't forget to shoot a glance at Kai, who could only chuckle wryly. At that point, Shino nodded and added seriously.

"I completely agree with Nemuri. I don't think you're ready for the complexities of a relationship as 'unconventional' as ours. Besides, love is something too new for you; you still need more experience before making a decision you could regret for the rest of your life."

"It's worth mentioning that I share the same opinion. Additionally, I'd like to add that getting involved in a relationship could be fatal for your career as a hero. The public doesn't look kindly on that, and it could significantly affect you." Ryuko added in a serious and almost formal tone, also looking at Momo, who replied with a slightly defiant smile on her face.

"You know, it's rather hypocritical of you to reject me for being 'too young' when Kai is a couple of days younger than I am—did you forget that? Also, as far as I know, none of you 'experienced' love before, so I'm not sure what makes you more qualified than me in that aspect."

Momo's words hit the trio of heroines like a truck, resulting in ironic and somewhat guilty smiles on their lovely faces. But the beautiful black-haired girl was far from finished, so she promptly added, her tone firm and defiant.

"But I don't want to dwell on that discussion right now. Instead, I'll lay out my reasons for believing this could work. First of all, I truly love Kai with all my heart. He's the only man I've ever loved, and he's the only man I ever will love. I'm as sure of that as I am of my desire to become a hero and leave my mark on the world. So, no matter what happens, I'll remain by his side. In other words, I can be a friend or an enemy—it's your choice."

Momo spent a moment observing the serious expressions her words brought to her older sisters' faces. She loved them like her real family, but now she had to present her case firmly because Kai would be her husband and the father of her children, come what may, and nothing and no one could stop that. So she continued swiftly:

"Second, things have gone well between you up to now, possibly because, in a way, we've all been sharing Kai over the years—obviously including me—and we've always been very happy. So, the difference won't be that big if I join your relationship, not to mention that its success so far serves as a precedent.

"On the other hand, Ryuko mentioned that my career might be affected by such a relationship, but what if your own relationship were exposed? Would your careers survive something like that? It'd be a massive scandal. In the best-case scenario, you'd lose a lot of reputation and popularity; in the worst, you might have to retire."

Seeing her sisters' older faces darken with bitterness, Momo smiled confidently and delivered her final blow.

"Moreover, how many women in the world do you think would throw themselves at Kai if he remains 'single' forever? He's good-looking, brilliant, rich, strong, and family-oriented—a dream for a huge number of women. Would you enjoy dealing with that? Because you don't have many ways to stop it, either. All of you are public figures, and the media would eat you alive for the age gap if you went public with this. And then there's the issue of children: how do you plan to explain that? Because everyone will ask who the father is.

"That's where I come in. I can legally marry Kai without too much trouble. We're the same age, and we've been together our whole lives, so it wouldn't seem strange. And while I'm sure there'll be problems and my career will be impacted, I don't want to be a hero for fame or money—I want to leave my mark on the world, so my romantic situation is irrelevant to that. But more importantly, as his wife, I'd be willing to share my husband with you and keep it all in the dark."

After speaking, Momo picked up the teacup beside her—which she hadn't even touched before—while observing the shifting expressions on her older sisters' faces as they exchanged uncertain glances. That was when Kai decided to speak. He looked at his lovely girlfriends—whom he had truly come to cherish as his women and part of his life—and, with a small smile, said.

"Well, even though Momo basically took over the conversation, I just want to repeat something I once heard: 'If we're already doing things wrong, why not go all the way, so everyone can be happy?' I wasn't entirely on board when we started this, but we've done relatively well so far. So why not give it a shot? We can go step by step without rushing and see if things work out, and if not, then we'll decide what to do at that point."

"…Momo, would you mind letting us talk to Kai alone for a moment?"

"Of course."

After a moment, Nemuri spoke in a serious tone while looking at Momo, who nodded and rose from her chair, teacup in hand, then made her way to the conference room door. Upon reaching it, she paused, gripping the doorframe and looking back over her shoulder before speaking in a soft, calm tone.

"By the way, I was completely serious when I said that no matter what happens, I'll stay by Kai's side. So it doesn't matter what you decide—I'm not leaving the love of my life for anything in the world."

Having delivered that parting shot, Momo left the conference room and shut the door behind her, leaving the trio of heroines wearing bitter smiles. But they quickly composed themselves and turned their attention back to Kai, prompting Shino to ask with some nervousness and sadness in her voice.

"Kai… are we enough for you?"

Upon hearing Shino's question, Kai suddenly vanished from his chair and reappeared in front of her, dropping to one knee and gently cupping the face of his beautiful girlfriend, initiating a warm, love-filled kiss. Afterward, he spoke in a solemn tone, brimming with sincerity.

"You're more than enough for me. If you really don't feel comfortable with this arrangement, we can discuss it with Momo—though you'll have to help me convince her because she's already beaten me once in the argument battle."

Hearing these words from the love of her life, Shino felt the heavy weight on her heart shatter in an instant. She hugged Kai tightly, her body suddenly filled with a warm sensation and a pleasant tingling, feeling herself fall in love all over again with the man right before her eyes.

Before long, Nemuri and Ryuko joined in, hugging Kai from both sides and pulling him forcefully to the floor. The blue-eyed boy let himself be dragged down, taking Shino with him. In no time, they were all piled together on the floor—Shino on top of him, Nemuri to his right, and Ryuko to his left. It was then that Nemuri, while stroking Kai's hair, asked in a gentle and understanding tone.

"Kai… are you sure you want Momo to be part of our relationship? As you know, the idea of 'sharing you' with someone else doesn't really bother me, but I'm worried that we might end up affecting Momo's life in a way that can't be undone, not to mention your own feelings."

"Yes, honey." Ryuko added, sounding somewhat concerned as she looked at Kai. 

"I wouldn't mind trying it, either, but I worry that we might destroy what we have and tear the family apart. Now we're forced to explain all of this, and I don't think Keiko's going to be thrilled."

After thinking for a moment, Kai answered seriously.

"… About being sure whether Momo should join the relationship… to be honest, I'm not entirely certain if it'll work or if it's even a good idea. Don't get me wrong—I do care a lot for Momo, but her youth and my possessiveness concern me. Things could go off the rails quickly, not to mention Keiko, so it's going to get really complicated…

"But at the same time—and maybe it's my possessiveness talking—I'm truly moved by how far Momo is willing to go for me. I feel like I can't just push her away; I'd like to give this at least a chance. I mean, we're already in this odd polygamous relationship, so it wouldn't be much different. And I really do love Momo—maybe not romantically at the moment, but feelings can change. I mean, that's already happened once.

"That said, I won't ever trample on your feelings. I truly love you all, and I'll do whatever is necessary to make you happy. So if you're not sure about this, we can talk it over with Momo and explain the situation. It'll hurt, but sometimes a painful ending is better than pain without end."

Hearing Kai's words, the trio of heroines couldn't help smiling beautifully as they clung to him even more tightly. Before long, this turned into each of them receiving a warm kiss that eased their emotions. Then Shino spoke with a slight smile.

"It really makes me happy to hear you say that, Kai, but I want to make it clear that I'm not flat-out rejecting the idea of Momo joining us—I just had a little outburst because of how sudden it all was. Besides, Momo raised some valid points: it would truly be a problem for Kai to remain 'single', and we all know Momo—once she sets her mind on something, she won't change it easily. As she said, she could be our friend or our 'enemy'."

"That line also caught me by surprise. It shows how determined she is." Ryuko noted with a serious look, which led Nemuri to add thoughtfully.

"And we really are being hypocritical if we reject her because of her age or inexperience. Kai is the same age, and none of us had prior experiences either. Still, I'm not entirely sure how I feel about the whole 'sex' aspect…"

"That's definitely the trickiest part. I'm worried about it too, and that's why I suggested we take things slowly. Maybe start with some dates and so on—go out together every once in a while and see how things develop…" Kai said in an uncertain tone, causing a brief moment of contemplative silence before Ryuko spoke again, sounding worried.

"… We can't forget how Keiko might react, and I doubt Yumiko will be on board. With everything so tense right now because of the company, things could spiral out of control."

"You know." Shino added in a serious tone.

"If we think about it from another angle, that's not exactly a 'Momo' problem. It's very likely that Keiko and Yumiko aren't going to approve of our relationship anyway, so we'll have to face it whether Momo's involved or not."

Everyone nodded in agreement, at which point Nemuri, with a serious expression, spoke again.

"Well, we've all said what we think, and as we agreed before, there needs to be unanimous approval for someone to join our relationship. Let's vote." After everyone nodded, Nemuri added gravely.

"As for me, even though I'm not sure how things will turn out, I agree to try it—but no sex for now. We'll see how it goes later."

"With those conditions, I agree, too." Shino said seriously. 

"I care about Momo, and I don't want her to suffer while we're the only ones happy, so let's take it one step at a time and see what happens." The others nodded, then they all looked at Ryuko, who answered with a smile.

"In that case, count me in as well. It's obvious she really loves our Kai, but I think we should give her some time to think carefully before anything happens. From what we've heard, she only confessed to him today, so she should have some time to cool off and really think it through. It's a huge decision."

"That's an excellent suggestion." Kai remarked in a serious tone. 

"It's good for all of us to have time to process this carefully. It's all still really fresh, and our judgment might be clouded. So let's call this a tentative approval, and once we've all thought it over, we'll discuss it again. Sound good?"

"Yes, that sounds perfect. Let's call Momo in so we can talk with her again." Nemuri commented with a smile, to which the girls agreed seriously.

***

You can support me on patreon.com/lordanl and get up to 10 advanced chapters.