Kaguya and Yuzuru were both members of the Spirit Team. From their point of view, they were quite lucky to be able to strike such a good position shortly after joining the NWET, and they had full intentions of making the most of this opportunity.

Of course, that meant that they knew they had to get Shido to use his ability on them and get their Spirit CR-Unit. It's not as if they had made zero attempts so far, but they have not been successful yet.

But they knew Origami and Tohka had gotten their Spirit CR-Units, and even Kurumi had recently cleared the hurdle. On the night Shido had gone to the Neighboring World with Ryouko's team, the twins had a talk before going to sleep.

"Hey, Yuzuru, how about if we try to ask Tohka and Origami for some advice? Think they'll help us?"

"That might not be a bad idea. We've been getting closer from going to school together, so Yuzuru thinks there's a good chance."

Incidentally, when they're alone like this, both Kaguya and Yuzuru just talk normally. Their "special" way of talking was just something they came up with to stand out a bit.

"So how should we do it?"

"... It might be a bit embarrassing if we both ask. How about we each ask one of them? That way, we'll save time and are more likely to get more honest answers."

"Good idea. Then, Yuzuru will ask Origami."

"In that case, I'll ask Tohka."

And just like that, the twins adopted a divide and conquer strategy and decided to put it in practice the following day.

"Therefore, brave black knight, please grant your wisdom upon me."

"Huh?"

During one of their breaks from training, Kaguya asked to talk with Tohka, where she asked for her advice.

Or at least, she tried to. It seemed Tohka didn't quite understand Kaguya's language, so she decided to try asking normally.

"Um, basically, could you give me some advice on how to get closer to Shido and how to get him to use his ability on me and Yuzuru?"

"Ah, so it's that. Umu, I don't mind."

Kaguya almost did a fistbump, but held herself back. She would have been embarrassed to let other people see her like this.

It took longer than it should have, but Kaguya got Tohka to agree to give her some advice. She didn't feel like wasting any more time, so she got right down to it.

"So, tell me everything."

"Everything? Even if you say that, what do you want to know?"

"Err, like I said, something to help Shido use his ability on me and Yuzuru. Maybe there's something you can whisper in his ear that'll make him go crazy? Or maybe if you give him some sort of sign he'll push you to the wall and do as he pleases? Something like that."

"Hm? I don't think there's anything like that."

As if time had been stopped, Kaguya's face froze mid expression. Although it was hard to describe, it could be easily summarized as a funny face.

Still, Kaguya wouldn't let herself be defeated with just this. After recovering from the shock, she decided to continue asking Tohka questions.

"Then, can you tell me about how you got your Spirit CR-Unit?"

"T-that's…"

Tohka seemed hesitant to speak. It wasn't that she didn't want to say it, it was just that she was embarrassed.

Maybe mistaking Tohka's hesitation, Kaguya tried to make a stronger appeal.

"Please! Knowing how someone successfully got their Spirit CR-Unit might help me and Yuzuru get ours."

"... U-umu. J-just give me a second."

Tohka took a few deep breaths to try and calm herself down. She understood why Kaguya was asking her this, and as a friend and teammate, she wanted to do her best to help.

After about a minute or so, Tohka's cheeks were no longer flustered. She looked at Kaguya and began to speak.

"I think what's most important is to build up your relationship with Shido. Before the fight, when we… anyway, I felt Shido was being too mindful of my feelings, he was holding himself back, so I told him how I felt… that I like him, and I told him to do as he pleased. So I just followed his lead from there."

"Wow…"

Kaguya was looking at Tohka with an expression full of admiration. It wasn't her intention, but it made Tohka a little embarrassed.

"I see. Even though Shido's power is based on his sexual excitement, we can't just forget about his feelings. Having an actual connection is better than just throwing ourselves at him."

"U-umu, that's what I meant…"

Tohka wasn't sure if Kaguya really understood what she said, or if she even understood what Kaguya wanted to ask for that matter, but she didn't feel like correcting anything.

"... This is more difficult than I expected. But there's no challenge the Children of Hurricane can't overcome! Thanks, Tohka, no, brave black knight, your advice is greatly appreciated. May I ask for your aid again in the future should the battle prove too hard?"

"U-umu. We're friends after all. I don't mind."

Without noticing, Kaguya slipped back into her character. Tohka replied how she thought was appropriate, even though she had trouble understanding what Kaguya was trying to say.

Having gotten Tohka's advice, and with the break about to end, Kaguya suggested they return to their training. In her head, she was already making a few plans for the future.

"So you want advice to get closer to Shido and get your Spirit CR-Unit?"

"Afirmation. Yes, it's for Yuzuru and Kaguya."

Having the lowest natural compatibility of the Spirit Team, Origami had been with Karen, taking some tests to see how the Spirits CR-Units react when Shido's ability wears off.

During a break from those tests, Yuzuru went up to her and asked her for advice, just as Kaguya was doing with Tohka.

Origami agreed to give advice to Yuzuru, so they walked out of the room and went to a more private place.

"As you know, Shido's ability is based on sexual excitement. He tries to hide it, but he's just a normal boy, he gets excited easily. You've probably noticed him often looking at our plugsuits. The biggest hurdle you'll have to overcome isn't getting Shido excited, you and Kaguya can probably do it easily if you make use of your advantage as twins. The biggest hurdle is getting Shido to accept your advances. For that, it's probably best to go on the offensive."

Origami spoke, as if she was making an analysis about a movie. Yuzuru couldn't help but be impressed with the clarity and simpleness of her analysis.

"Admiration. Amazing. Please let Yuzuru call you master Origami from now on."

"... Do whatever you want."

"Doubt. But, master Origami, how should we go on the offensive? Do you have any suggestions?"

Origami put her hand on her chin for a moment and began to think. After a few seconds, she had an answer for Yuzuru.

"It depends on how you want to do it. If it's at school, for example, you could try something at lunch time, maybe something like a kiss with a pocky stick. At headquarters, you could try something while changing. There's also the option of meeting him outside, which would give you two as much freedom as possible."

"Question. Master Origami, do you think Shido might show some resistance if Yuzuru and Kaguya go on the offensive together? Would it be better for us to act separately?"

"No. Like I said, as much as he tries to resist it, Shido is a normal boy, and currently you two can provide a unique stimulation as twins. Use that to your advantage."

The way Origami said it seemed to imply that Kaguya and Yuzuru would lose their unique advantage with time. Maybe she was considering that, once rescued, Tenka might also join their ranks? Or maybe she was simply referring to the fact that the two of them together could provide more stimulation to Shido?

Regardless, both Kaguya and Yuzuru already knew that they shouldn't beat around the bush for too long, so this wasn't really a problem. Yuzuru nodded in understanding to Origami's words.

"I believe that should be enough for you to get your Spirit CR-Unit. But now I have to ask, have you two thought about the future?"

Yuzuru didn't quite understand what Origami meant, so she tilted her head.

"Doubt. Master Origami, what do you mean by that?"

"It's exactly what I said. Getting your Spirit CR-Units shouldn't be hard, but, depending on what you want from the future, it might be best to get an early investment in. For example, have you two considered seriously going out with Shido, not just for the NWET?"

Yuzuru now understood Origami's question, but she still didn't really have an answer.

She and Kaguya had only known Shido since they joined the NWET. While they could say they liked him and thought of him as a friend, it would be a bit much to say that there are romantic feelings between them. That's not to say that there will never be, but it's still too early for that.

At the same time though, considering the nature of the Spirit Team, it would be hard for them to go out with anyone else, even if they found a boy they liked. People do say that love is more often learned than felt, in other words, by giving someone a chance, someone might learn that they like the other person more than they initially believed. In that case, going out with Shido wouldn't be bad.

Yuzuru was about to reply to Origami, but Origami was faster and continued talking.

"For example, Tohka and I have both agreed to become Shido's girlfriends. She's still just basking in the afterglow without really doing anything, but I've already been looking at fruits like bananas and eggplants for various sorts of practices."

"... Surprise. Is that so? We haven't given it much thought yet, but we'll discuss it later. Thank you for your advice, master Origami."

"No problem. Feel free to talk to me if you need."

Yuzuru thought she learned more than she originally meant to, but a win is a win. She would think about things according to Origami's advice, and then make up plans to discuss with Kaguya.

Later at night, Kaguya and Yuzuru were once again in their room. Just like the previous night, they had a little talk before going to sleep.

They told each other about the advice they got from both Tohka and Origami, and then their own thoughts from what they had learned. After a brief discussion, they decided to review the plan they had ultimately come up with.

"So we have to try and figure out a time to go on the attack. I think it would be embarrassing to do it at school, and while headquarters might be good, it's also the place Shido is most likely to be aimed at by the others, so it's probably best to give up on it."

"In other words, we have to invite Shido to go out with us. Yuzuru isn't against that idea, but how should we do that?"

"Hmm… maybe we could ask him to show us around the city? No, that would be nice but we wouldn't really have a chance to do… um, stuff."

"Yuzuru agrees. Then, should we invite him to come see our room? It would give us the chance to do anything we want."

"E-eh? H-here? I mean, I guess it would work… but what if he expects more than we were planning to give?"

Kaguya asked with blushing cheeks. She could already imagine the scene, they somehow invite Shido to their room. They have a good time playing games or something, Yuzuru takes charge of getting Shido excited with her erotic body. After a while, the two of them kiss Shido.

But Shido was led on by their invite and Yuzuru's erotic figure. He begins to touch them and undress himself. Then he-

"What's wrong? Ah, maybe Kaguya is having some lewd thoughts?"

"I-I wasn't!"

"Liar."

Yuzuru enjoyed teasing Kaguya for a bit. Out of the two, Kaguya was the one with the more vivid imagination, so this wasn't really a rare occurrence, though it was the first time with this kind of thoughts.

"Anyway, Yuzuru agrees that it might be a bit risky to bring Shido over. But we have time, so we can try to think of something."

Indeed, it would be a while before Shido was back, and they would probably go on another mission not longer after he had rested, so anything they would do would probably be left for after their return.

In that case, there was no need to come up with a full plan tonight. What they have done was already more than enough.

It was time to turn in for the day. They turned off the lights and laid down on their beds.

"Still, I thought Tohka was a bit of a naive girl, but she gave some surprisingly good advice. I think it was probably the best of the two."

"Yuzuru can't let this pass. Master Origami's advice was more to the point of our current problem, it was clearly the superior one."

"What are you saying? Did you not listen to me?"

"It seems that Kaguya was the one who didn't listen."

The twins were good friends, but also great rivals. They were always competing with each other, trying to see who would be better at any given task.

On that night, a new kind of rivalry was born between them.