Hi all. Sorry for the delay in posting this chapter. I blinked and somehow half the year had passed and I have no clue what happened.

Actually, that's a lie - actually it's been pretty busy with work, getting a boyfriend, moving halfway across the world, losing said boyfriend, moving back to where I was, and basically being at the same place I started. I guess this is the nature of life T.T

At least I have more Toaru in my life

Anyhoo, I've taken this time to get a paltry backlog for this story and get some more ideas for this story. I do hope to post more often, but I don't have enough chapters as a backlog to do the same posting I was doing last year. I guess this will just be pending how writing goes over the next couple weeks.

So the summary so far (almost forgot about this) Yui and Keima finally leave the room after their session, and Kanon, panicked by Tenri finding out that Apollo had come out, claims that she has a boyfriend to explain that away, which probably wasn't necessary, as Tenri and Chihiro have their thoughts occupied from their last discussion about Keima... but hey, the gay panic is real.

Do enjoy the chapter and I'll see you down at the bottom :)


Keima left the room with his feet dragging and his face in his hands. Somehow, having to talk and answer questions about his time as a girl actually left him more tired and embarrassed than the debacle itself.

A few people close enough to the room looked up as both clothed individuals left the room. Keima made sure not to catch anyone's eyes. Yui was ignoring the smirks as well, as her eyes scanned the room for the white figure which should have stuck out like a sore thumb in all the red uniforms.

"I gotta go find Mars," Yui said after a quick glance around yielded no such figure, "do you want to take a break, or..."

"Maybe just for two minutes," Keima responded. Yui agreed, leaning up to give him a kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks for everything," she said, a sincere smile coming to her face, "I'll let Mio know to give you a few minutes too."

Keima's dull brain piqued at the mention of that name, and he looked up at the board. Seems that Yui was right, and the blonde was next. He wasn't sure why that surprised him.

"See ya," Yui gave a nod as she walked off, and Keima paused for a moment, before walking up to the blackboard. It was definitely more busy looking than when he'd last seen it.

Tally marks took over a section on the right, and on the left was the list of girls which he had written… someone had been updating it as plans changed, but amusingly, Haqua's name seemed to be written and erased and written and scratched out, followed by multiple love-love umbrellas with his and Haqua's name, also scratched and rubbed out. He could only imagine the scene which must have taken place around that time.

That Haqua… no one would tease her if she didn't give them a reaction… she'd never learn, though.

He sighed, as his eyes drifted to those three rules he'd written at the start of the lesson. That really felt like that happened forever ago.

"Everything is consensual for both parties," he mumbled as he read the first rule… His heart got a guilty twinge as he thought of her.

She hadn't consented to him taking her panties, had she?

"Hi," Keima jumped as the source of his thoughts appeared next to him.

"C-Chihiro," he turned to her, and she gave a friendly wave and got closer to the board, grabbing a piece of chalk.

"Admiring our handiwork?" Chihiro asked as she started drawing a flower with the rest of the graffiti.

"I was just… looking at the rules..." he mumbled back. The normal girl laughed.

"I knew it! Yui did something there and now you have to update the rules… Called it!" Chihiro gave him a grin.

"It's not that," Keima murmured, "I was actually thinking about you..." Chihiro paused, the smile leaving her face.

Keima was a little antsy himself. It was Yui's fault for bringing her up… just, why had he thought about her before… why did he feel jealous of the thought of Yui stealing her?

"A-about what?" she asked, feeling her stomach clench. She wasn't sure if she wanted to hear the answer.

"In the bathroom..." he said softly, and Chihiro instantly felt her face heat up, "I never did get your permission to take your underwear… that was wrong of me to do…"

"Ahh..." Chihiro turned away, scratching her chin. Inside, she could feel herself becoming more nervous. She shouldn't have asked… heck, she shouldn't have approached him now. After that discussion with Tenri, she really didn't want to discuss that or think of the implications.

"I can't take my words back, but I can apologise and return your garments back," Keima remarked. Chihiro raised an eyebrow… they were concerned about very different things.

In a way, that was a relief. She could just give him some assurance that the panties weren't a big deal and then be on her way, so she wouldn't have to deal with the more troublesome topic Tenri had been insisting about.

"Y-you don't have to worry about that," Chihiro leant her head back against the board, "I don't need them back."

"I know you have others, but that isn't really the point," Keima turned to her, "I took it without asking."

Chihiro raised an eyebrow… did he… think that she minded him doing that? or minded that he didn't specifically ask if it was okay to do that?

"But that wasn't wrong of you," Chihiro turned to look at him, "Sometimes it doesn't need to be put in words to ask… just seeing if they react positively is enough."

Chihiro's eyes widened as their brown eyes met, and she quickly looked away. Keima was taken aback as well.

"Why is that?" he asked.

"I don't know," Chihiro still had her head away, "people are awkward… and sex is too… it's uncomfortable vocalising what you want, which is why you gotta take non-verbal cues as permission as well."

Come to think of it, had she actually given him a non-verbal cue that she was okay with him stealing her panties? She… wasn't mad at him.

Except that wasn't a positive reaction, dammit!

Keima paused as he processed that… even though Chihiro seemed reluctant to look him in the face, she was still trying to give him advice… he did appreciate that, considering the many missteps he'd been making throughout the lesson.

"L-look," Chihiro turned to him properly, although her cheeks were still pink, "I'm only going to say this once… I'm happy you took them and I don't want them back…"

Keima paused, feeling his face get hot, and Chihiro started to get redder too, nervously wringing her fingers.

"I-I don't really know why you decided to do it, and you don't have to tell me either… I'm just… sorry that I didn't make it more clear with my actions that I... kinda, maybe sorta... liked it."

As Keima watched her red face, it was clear that she normally wouldn't say something like this. Their eyes met again.

"Stop looking at me," her voice rose, "I'm telling you this so you get it in your stupid brain."

She knew… she knew that he missed things like this… she knew that he sometimes had to hear it straight when those vague messages weren't reaching him. He wasn't even mad that she called him stupid when that was what she was always like.

She'd done it before during that one night when he tried to bring out Mercury, and she was doing it again.

It hurt… his heart must be beating against his lungs, because he felt like he couldn't breathe. He didn't get it…

When Yui had asked him about the panties, he really didn't have a clue why he took them… maybe he thought the design was cute, and the situation was amusing… maybe he wanted a reminder for that precious moment…

But why? All the girls were precious and irreplaceable… why her? Why that moment?

He was frozen as Chihiro started moving away… just as she'd done after the rooftop date… just as she'd done on Miyako's stairs… just as she'd done after their date in the cafe… just as she'd done every time after that…

He didn't want that.

"Wait," he grabbed her upper arm and she stopped in her tracks.

"W-what is it, Katsuragi?"

There was something in her tone that pierced through him… maybe it was how she'd been popping up in his thoughts even before Yui bought her up… maybe it was that she knew the answer to the question he hadn't even asked…

It was like she understood him in a way that even he couldn't. He stepped closer, very much in her personal space.

"Do you love me… even when I need help with the most stupidly obvious things?"

Chihiro's face turned an even brighter pink. Did he even realise how close he was?

"W-w-what are you even going on abo-" her voice died as she caught the look in his eyes, "w-well, you might be an idiot but you always get it in time, so..."

His head moved closer to hers, and Chihiro pulled back, feeling her head suddenly spin.

His lips were so close.

Keima didn't need prompting this time, as he noticed her eyes glance at his lips. His right hand slid up her neck into her hair as he softly kissed her.

Even though this wasn't their first, second, or even third kiss, an entirely new sensation heated his body from the lips downwards. Her hair was smooth between his fingers and her shoulders were warm. Her lips were soft but incessant as they moved against his, and only one thought went through his head as he kissed her.

Welcome home…

It was at this moment that each of his worries fell into place… beyond all the noise and false flags… beyond the words which had psyched him out of understanding his feelings… This was the love that he was looking for.

They both opened their eyes as they pulled away, but Chihiro let out a little gasp as she picked up that this wasn't just a kiss.

In the nervous clenching of her stomach, she was happy… she loved him, and maybe he loved her too… but they weren't alone… they were in class…

A certain brunette with looped pigtails came to mind, and all traces of happiness disintegrated.

Oh no…


Kanon and Ayumi were sitting on opposite sides of a desk, although the former was occupying most of the table space with her face in her hands and her arms on the desk.

She'd really done it now… coming up with the stupidest lie of all time.

"Why did I say this?" Kanon said in a strangled voice.

"Because she guessed too close to the truth and you panicked?" Ayumi answered drily. That was exactly it, but that didn't make Kanon feel any better. She sat up aggressively.

"I'm telling you, she was this close from saying Nanaka's name," Kanon pressed her fingers together, "although it's definitely my fault for being suspicious."

Ordinarily, Kanon was pretty good at keeping a secret… it was necessary with how much she was in the public eye and with all the insider information that she knew… but somehow the first sign of pressure about her crush and her lost virginity and she just buckled. It seems like the stress of this day was getting to her, and well... this wasn't her best work, conversation-wise.

"There's no point getting mad at yourself," Ayumi sighed, "let's get your story straight," Kanon gave her a look, "pun unintended…"

"Yeah," Kanon looked a little sad… the misgivings Nanaka had warned her about was now happening.

She didn't want to be dishonest and say that she was heterosexual… but any mention of having a girlfriend would likely lead an observant person to the one person she wanted to protect.

"Okay, so firstly, do you have any guys around you who could reasonably fit in the mold of 'boyfriend'?"

"Classmates… people on my team..."

"That's a good start," Ayumi nodded approvingly, "so from either of those groups, are you close with anyone?"

Kanon thought about it for a moment.

"Just Keima-kun," Kanon sighed tiredly, "I can't think of any males who I'd even consider friends."

"How about acquaintances?" Ayumi pressed on, "you just need to know a name, really. All other details can be fabricated."

Kanon struggled to recall a single name, even though she probably saw more faces than this class combined.

"Can I just make up a name too?" Kanon asked, laughing awkwardly.

"At the moment, it seems like you might have to," Ayumi raised an eyebrow, "unless..."

She paused, before holding a hand out.

"Pass your phone," Kanon hesitated, "I'm gonna check your contacts."

"Oh, alright," she handed it over, "no clue if that will help..."

Ayumi thumbed through them, though as she expected, it was a lot of roles… her manager, stage assistants, the president of her agency… she just needed one name…

Then she stopped.

"Nishihara Daisuke," Ayumi read out loud, "why does that sound familiar?"

Kanon facepalmed at that mention. She'd forgotten about that.

"Waaah!" Eri, who must have been in earshot, entered the conversation, "I remember him! I worked with him for a few days."

"You did?" both Kanon and Ayumi looked confused for different reasons.

"You know, when I was y-" Eri started to explain, before she slapped her mouth shut. She probably wasn't supposed to say that.

Eri's eyes fell on Kanon, and she frowned behind her hands.

She had spoken without thinking, but what Kanon remembered now was different from what had gone down in the past. She didn't know about the stabbing or the week Eri had taken over her idol image and role.

When it came to rewriting the universe, erasing this was one of the easiest choices to make. She'd just been careless by referencing a thing that shouldn't have happened.

Eri took a quick breath and backtracked, a sheepish smile on her face.

"Waah, I said that wrong," Eri bonked her head with the side of her fist cutely, "there was a two-page spread about him and I got way into my imagination…"

"Oh, he's a celebrity," recognition hit Ayumi, and Kanon nodded.

"We worked together as leads in a drama… he insisted that I take his contact details," Kanon shrugged.

"Lucky," Eri gushed, "he's so good-looking… and he's only eighteen."

A crafty look came to Ayumi's eyes.

"Say, do you have any pictures of him?" the runner asked innocently. Eri nodded excitedly, running off to get it.

"I really hope you aren't thinking of having this guy be my boyfriend," Kanon asked in a hushed voice.

"Why not? He's perfect!" Ayumi passed the phone back to Kanon, "he's close to our age and no one here has personally met him… it would be so easy to make up things about him!"

"But… he was so insufferable… he wouldn't stop hitting on me when the camera was off."

"No one else has to know about that," Ayumi shrugged, "and he's a celebrity… you can just not give details because it's supposed to be a secret or whatever…"

"But Eri-chan seems to like him," Kanon argued weakly. Ayumi seemed pretty much convinced with this plan.

"So what… crushing on a famous person is pretty normal… but you both are famous enough that you'd have a wikipedia page… you can realistically go out with him."

Kanon desperately wanted to argue against this, but Ayumi was right… she needed a beard, and this was an easy option…

"Fine," Kanon groaned as she leant her head back. Just in time, as Eri skipped back, grabbing a chair and plopping herself next to Ayumi. She slapped a magazine onto the table.

"This is him," she beamed, "and on the next page too."

The two girls craned over the magazine while Kanon made sure to look anywhere else.

"Oh wow, he really is good-looking," Ayumi grinned pointedly. She could see why Kanon might not get along with him, considering the arrogant smirk and dramatic poses he had in each picture, which contrasted to Kanon's more genuine photos. Still, he was objectively handsome with his jet black hair and hazel eyes, "oh, and Kanon-chan is in this picture too."

"What, really?" Kanon quickly joined them over their shoulder to get a proper look. Sure enough, the shot was from one of the more charged romance scenes from Ara no Kinou Made, the drama in question.

"I loved this scene," Eri gushed, "Kanon-chan and Daisuke-kun have such good chemistry in this series."

"Hoo, really?" Ayumi smirked.

"W-well, I'm a professional," Kanon looked a little pink, "but rather, is this picture supposed to be in this magazine… I don't recall getting royalties from-"

"Don't change the subject," Ayumi pushed, and Kanon hesitated, "I think the two of you look really cute here."

It was silent for a moment longer.

"T-they were looking for two newcomers, so I guess they liked how we looked together…" Kanon obfuscated. She could tell that Ayumi was giving her an opening to bring up her "relationship" naturally, but she didn't really want to.

She really just would have preferred leaving the topic alone... I mean it was just Tenri who she'd lied to... was there really a need to tell Eri about this?

"We know it's more than that though…" Ayumi said pointedly, elbowing Kanon.

"Oh, I assure you, it's nothing that anyone needs to know," Kanon squeezed Ayumi's shoulder with her nails. The runner's eyes narrowed.

"What is going on with you two?" Eri looked confused between them.

"Nothing," Kanon flattened her hands from their claw grip.

"Kanon-chan has got a boyfriend," Ayumi responded, her eyes were sharp when she turned to Kanon, "it's this guy," she indicated to the polished picture spread in front of her.

"W-what, really!?" Eri stood up in surprise, knocking the chair behind her legs, "Kanon-chan has a b-b-b-boyfriend!?"

Kanon looked around, very aware that the whole class had stopped what they were doing and were now looking at her. So it wasn't just Eri who was involved now... the whole class would now think that she had a boyfriend.

Ayumi stood up.

"You brought this on yourself," she whispered loud enough that only Kanon would hear her as she brushed past, "best you get your story straight now before Ayukawa hears it."

With that, Ayumi coolly extracted herself from the situation, leaving a wide-eyed Kanon to deal with the rest.


Chihiro's eyes widened as her brain processed what was happening… they were in the classroom… in front of everyone… and he kissed her without prompting… and this kiss…

Oh fuck, this kiss!

How could something which was supposed to be a simple touching of lips convey so much passion and warmth and gentleness? Why was her heart skipping and butterflies fluttering in her stomach?

How could she be so happy, yet so utterly terrified at the same time?

Actually, she did know that answer… she wanted that special kiss and connection with him, but not at the cost of everyone else's feelings… and especially Tenri's.

She staggered off as quickly as she could, willing her body to go back to normal - for her legs to un-jellify, her heart to return to its normal beat and her lips to stop tingling. Still, she had a feeling that she wouldn't quite be able to go back to herself from just a minute ago.

She glanced at Keima, who also had a shy look on his face as he absentmindedly touched his lips. Their eyes met again, and Chihiro felt a shiver travel down her spine.

"C-Chihiro…" just her name in his voice was enough to send her brain into chaos again.

"I have to go," she mumbled as she walked away. She didn't want to hear anything more.

She made a beeline to the door, but as she touched the handle, she heard a very different voice.

"Kanon-chan has a b-b-b-boyfriend!?" Eri yelled. Chihiro paused.

It was weird how that single line completely sidetracked her brain. She loved rumours, and that sentence pretty much had every making of a juicy story. This was exactly what she needed to distract her from… whatever the fuck that was with Keima.

She quickly turned around, a crafty smile on her face.

"Now what is this about?" Chihiro asked teasingly, strolling over to them. Her voice sounded so normal that it weirded her out.

"I was just telling Eri that Kanon-chan had a boyfriend," Ayumi said in a fake innocent voice as she grabbed the magazine to show Chihiro.

"Lessee lessee…" Chihiro moved her head to view it, "wait, is that Lover Boy?" she quickly snatched it from her hands to get a closer look.

"Lover Boy?"

"Nishihara Daisuke… his given name sounds like daisuki, so girls latched onto that…" Chihiro's mouth formed a circle, "it really is him."

"Wait, you guys are talking about Lover Boy?" Sumire appeared out of nowhere, "I love his music, but Otoo-san won't let me play his songs at the shop."

"Yep, same guy, I think… and he's Kanon's lover boy too," Sumire made an impressed sound and Ayumi laughed, "now give that back."

"Why, this is my magazine, isn't it? It was on that table before."

"He's quite handsome," Chihiro and Ayumi jumped as Nikaidou yanked the magazine out of their grasp, "I can definitely see him being a lead in a TV drama," She passed the magazine to Akari, who was too short to see over anyone's shoulder.

"This is interesting," Akari tapped her jaw, "I thought you did a background check to see everyone was single here, Nikaidou-sensei?"

"I did," the teacher shrugged her shoulders, "I guess I can't account when something is supposed to be a secret, however."

"Or if someone is lying," Akari responded, and Kanon shivered. While she'd gained a pretty large audience, her eyes fell on Tenri, who was watching the group from the side… then her eyes fell on Keima, and her stomach knotted.

There were too many moving parts here… Ayumi, who knew the whole truth but likely wouldn't blab on her… Tenri, who knew that she'd lost her virginity and needed an explanation of who… Akari, who was insanely perceptive and who could easily figure out the truth with some context clues… then Keima…

What the hell was she going to do with Keima if he thought that she had a boyfriend? Was she going to be able to convince him to sleep with a girl who had a boyfriend!?

For a moment, Nanaka's face came to mind, reminding her why she was doing this. Their time was something special which no one needed to know… lying about this boyfriend would lead eyes away from the truth, and give her time to talk to Nanaka and discuss if they wanted to make this something official, or just be each others' little secret.

Kanon wasn't a bad liar. All she had to do was put her foot down and stick to a story. For better or for worst, she had her story now,

"Stop, stop, everyone," Keima held up a hand, "instead of everyone drawing their own conclusions based on hearsay, can we just listen to Kanon?"

The murmuring around them died and Kanon looked around, now with most of the classes' gaze on her.

She had the stage now to shape the story... she could go all in, creating a whole narrative to suit her - proverbially have her cake and eat it by ensuring that Keima would have her, and she'd still have her privacy with Nanaka so they could decide what they wanted to be...

Or she could take it back and throw it into confusion. Without a compelling reason, Tenri would probably join the dots with Nanaka, and maybe tell the whole classroom.

And honestly, after seeing Tsukiyo get outed by mistake, there was no telling where this route would go.

So she chose the safer one.

"I-I'm going out with N-Nishihara-kun" Kanon said, only slightly faltering, "Ayumi-san is telling the truth."

"W-w-when did this happen!?" Eri cried.

"Q-quite recently," Kanon responded, "we were encouraged to not go out publicly with this, considering what happened last time."

That last part wasn't a lie… her whole confession to Keima had been a PR nightmare, including her having to announce via press conference that she was single and not to harass people that she knew if they were suspected of being involved with her.

"I see," Keima smiled, "congratulations. I'm proud that you found the one person that you'd want to sing for."

"T-thank you," Kanon scratched her head, feeling a little guilty. Eri was looking at the desk, a bit distressed… How was it possible for Kanon-chan to have a boyfriend? And Daisuke Nishihara, of all people!

As Eri was not supposed to admit, she'd actually met the actor on set during the first two days of shooting Ara no Kinou Made. He was certainly a sight for sore eyes, but his personality was all wrong for Kanon. He was too conscious of his looks and bossed the camera staff around, even though he was really nice to Eri in Kanon's body and kept complimenting her songs in the most basic way possible.

Kanon would be so much happier with someone like Keima. He might be obsessed with games and only have heard her songs once or twice, but he always purchased her albums… and then she'd get to spend more time with Kanon too.

"I know you probably won't want to do anything with me, but feel free to ask me anything," Keima said warmly, "I'll try to help and support you in any way I can."

Kanon felt her face get hotter with embarrassment and guilt. It didn't feel right lying to everyone either… and as she'd suspected, Keima was certainly not going to touch her now that she was "taken".

The idol didn't want that… she'd promised Nanaka that she'd give Keima a fair chance…

"U-umm…" Kanon said loudly, "N-Nishihara-kun said it's okay… that I can do whatever I feel comfortable with."

Chihiro paused… so this was really possible? That was different than she would have imagined.

"Oh, so you will… you know?" all the girls around cracked into broad smiles and Kanon paused. It probably wouldn't be a good idea to admit to wanting to screw some other guy after announcing her boyfriend.

Although she'd kissed Chihiro in front of everyone… maybe one more wouldn't hurt.

"I… I guess I don't know how much I'd be willing to do…" Kanon stepped closer to Keima, whose eyes widened, "but I do want to do this."

Before Keima could say any more, Kanon got onto her tiptoes and gently kissed him. Despite this being in front of everyone, it was only the two of them who would know how this was like their first kiss.

The situation might be quite different now, but at the same time, Keima was the same supportive and understanding boy that he was before.

"And this time, I won't have to say bye," she whispered.

"I don't want you to say bye either," those simple words had Kanon's heart racing as she turned away.

"Boo, I want my turn," Ayumi grumbled.

"Hoo, that's perfect!" Chihiro grinned, "everyone should kiss Katsuragi now."

There was a pause as everyone processed those words.

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeh!?


Somehow, it's 4 days after I wrote the first note, and only now I'm getting to it. I guess travelling and having to move houses again does that to you :P

Thank you all for reading, and I hope that this chapter was worth the wait. A lot actually happened, considering... Kanon's lie snowballing, the girls reacting to that and a possible start for the next arc... and... I think I'm forgetting something...

Oh yeah! Keima realised that Chihiro is the girl he loves... so not important character development at all :P

Definitely not setting up to an endgame pairing now :P

I guess it's also important how Chihiro reacts to this, though currently it isn't great. Considering that she was a bit worried about this for some time and the fact that Tenri pretty much suspects the same, she has no clue what to make of it. Luckily, there's a distraction.

So there you have it. I'd comment for everyone who enjoyed this to send a like or review, but someone took that too seriously the last time and left me nearly 20 reviews since the last time I posted.

In any case, thank you to Zelgadis and the rest who reviewed between the last chapter and now. I am a little terrified on how hefty the next part of he author's notes is going to be, but I am truly grateful for you guys popping a message. Ya'll are the MVP.

As responding to the reviews may take a while, I'll end off here. Thank you all for reading and I appreciate all of you fans who have stuck around with this story and series for so long.

Stay well and I'll see you whenever I decide to post next :)

XoxoxoxoxoxoxoX

Argovesta: Thank you so much for reviewing. Sorry for making you wait another half a year for an update - I swear it wasn't out of spite, but rather I'm useless at focussing on more than on personal task at a time :'(

Though I was very excited with the Mio part... from the start, I wanted her feelings to be considered seriously, so when this idea came to me, I knew I had to give Mio an honest chance with Keima... also, I really wanted to avoid turning Mio and Sumire into those two girls, so I made sure they have their separate storylines...

I guess this is actually the exact opposite to what I had originally planned for Keima and Yui, which was supposed to be chaos incarnate, including Yui doing so many things to make Keima uncomfortable that he would have to make a rule specifically for her(I did have Chihiro joke about that), but it actually turned out to be quite sweet.

I hope you enjoyed this part and you'll send another review.

xellos540: Ah, here we go again :P

Should Keima be scared... I think you already know the answer to that, after all that alpha and beta reading you do ;)

Lol, the short and bland report is indeed unhelpful for any sensitive person, and I felt bad for Sumire too, especially when you see her mood deflate as she connects the dots.

Gomi means trash here... just like me, who always gets asked by my mum to eat the last serving of food so it doesn't need to throw it away :P

As for Mio's reason for wanting to know, I think she wants to learn the reason why she fell in love, while Sumire was just curious what had happened. I kinda like contrasting their thoughts about their parents and Keima and how they learnt about everything. It makes me feel more like a legit author :P

Lol, I think Yui would be happy with a two girl, or even a harem ending, but Keima seems less convinced about that. If anything, talking to all those girls kinda seem to solidify that he should figure out his feelings... which he finally ends up doing in this chapter!

Thanks as always for so carefully reading and reviewing the chapter. Hope you enjoyed this one :P

Mint-Car92: Lol, inspiration works in strange ways. I really liked your description about the puzzle pieces and I exactly agree. She just got a handful of pieces thrown in her face which she needs to fit in, not to mention, there are still pieces she needs to figure out herself about her own feelings. It's definitely a frustrating feeling.

Actually, even their discussion about Sumire's dad is frustrating as well... it's actually verbatim the conversation I'd have in my head when there was something I wanted to do... then I'd chicken out and just go home, like how I was supposed to. I think I missed a lot of experiences in my life from always being at home and listening to my overprotective parents.

But yeah, if I can't do anything myself, I can vicariously live through my characters and be safe in the knowledge that my parents will never know that this story exists xD

Lol, Mio's amazing deepthroating skills will have absolutely no weight in a story like this... we don't even have sandwiches here, just pizza :D

Thanks for appreciating my tall joke. I also checked out that video, and that lemon ball face is amazing.

Lol, I'd say that vulnerable Keima talking to girls is a bit of staple in recent chapters. As Nikaidou would say, it's all according to plan... basically forcing him into a situation where he can't avoid any of the girls.

I guess all that was culminating to... well... him realising who he loves.

Lol, this chapter had a lot of talking as well, so hopefully you don't mind that. Thanks for reading and the kind review.

ZelgadisGW: K xD

Okie, that's the end of the responses...

...

...

...

I'm receiving correspondence that it's not okay to not say anything when Zel reviewed from chapter 19 to 39 since the start of this year...

So I have to say something... and be nice... Gross! Who dares expect anything from me!?

Fiine... I'll redo that!

19 - It's definitely a blast from the past revisiting these chapters, and I really enjoyed writing for Minami. For most of the story before this, she has been underestimated, especially by herself, so I wanted her to get a great moment where she does something that no one else has done, and I think diving in to save someone definitely counts. Hearing her senpai's words and realising that she is good as she is are important words.

Lol, tasteful girl on girl action... you might know about that ;)

That's intriguing how you compared porn to wrestling, and I think I agree... it does teach you about sex, but it's also manufactured and overblown, so it's not informative or honest. I guess it's all in moderation :P

20 - Oh yeah, this was a painful thing to inflict on Jun, and even with knowing the direction I was taking this, it was painful to write, considering what trash people can exist. Hopefully we'll see justice in the end.

Tsukiyo still has a ways to go considering all she wants is to hide it and not feel anything, though she isn't alone, as you said. We're all gay here!

Lol, I take Sumire to be sassy to all teachers, be it hers or other students :D

21 - Yay, Keima and Kusunoki time! Considering the overthinking and stuff that Keima does, this was a pretty fun and simple scene for them both to learn, and the ending was... explosive.

Also, yes, the ice cream reference is there for my Polish peeps :P

I can imagine Haqua in that meme as everyone teases her. At least they all accept her wholeheartedly and want her to go for it when she has the chance :P

22 - Me... ship Chihiro and Keima? No way! I definitely don't prove your point in the first part of this chapter :D

Lol, though Chihiro definitely throws Nanaka in a loop by mentioning the whole Kanon confession... get over it already, it happened 3 months ago :P

Good on Minami-chan that she got her first reward... wait till she gets her next ;)

23 - Lol, wholesome Eri and Haqua... plus enough exposition to put a Toaru LN to shame :D

Though I think the next scene was where it's at... what started as a final hoorah for them now that Nanaka was in a better place took a real dip when Kanon decided to tell the truth, and honestly, I don't blame either of them... Kanon is perfectly okay for feeling what she's feeling, and Nanaka is perfectly correct for calling her out for not thinking about the consequences and not acknowledging that they have only spent a couple hours together...

Well too bad, Nanaka, that's how lesbians roll... one date and boom, they're renting an apartment together!

Okay, I kid. I think I've seen memes about it.

Still, this was nice chapter to write. As I've said a couple times before, Nanaka and Kanon is a couple I didn't really expect to start shipping, but I so do. Just be happy, my lovelies T.T

24 - Lol, I actually really enjoyed the interactions from this part... the friendship moments are sweet, Shiori and Tsukiyo seem to be doing fine despite the awkwardness, and Ayumi and Yui are killing in the wingmen game. There's a lot of yuri though... this story easily passes the bechdel test, but it would fail so hard if there was a gender-inverted version of it :P

25 - Minami! Minami! I was super excited about this and I still am happy how it came out. Also, thanks for summarising the whole goddess extraction process... porking = goddess strong! At least for now

26 - Oh yes, I reread the whole chapter, and I was getting into that too, mentally... such a good time, though Minami was playing a dangerous game there. This is why you draw the line for yourself before you get horny :P

Though Gangnam Style... that is a choice xD

27 - Ah... Nanaka may have won that last battle, but she lost the war, and honestly, they're more better for it. I actually think there's a line in the chapter that I want to highlight from when Nanaka asks Kanon why she decided to become an idol.

"I don't actually think it was anything in particular," Kanon admitted, "I was a bit of a gloomy introvert, but I wanted to change… I saw a contest poster one day and just… decided. I never looked back from there."

It isn't a bad thing that Kanon can do things on a whim... sometimes, great things come in a blink of an eye and you don't end up looking back in the end. I thought that this might be the moment where Nanaka realised that it might not be hopeless.

Oh, and what connections does that guy have... you'll need to wait a couple chapters for me to elaborate that :P

28 - Down to earth, huh? Despite the nature of this story, I kinda get what you mean, coz my writing just seems to go towards tapered down endings, and I'm kinda happy with that. I know this story is glorified porn, but it's still a reflection of how I write.

29 - Lol, I appreciate Haqua being in this story too, though this time she's grilling Sumire and Mio now that Jun is gone. It's a pretty sweet gesture what she wants to do for Jun, and I'm excited for that.

Also, of course the yuri energy is high. It's pride month, baby! Mark my words, by the end of the story, I'm only guessing that there will be 1 or 2 girls who haven't kissed another girl xD

I'm basically at the half-way point of Zel's reviews, so I think I will address the rest in the next chapter. Thanks for reaching the end and see you next time