Chapter 17: Ryuko, Shotacon

"Why are you crying?"

Seeing the Pussycats with tears in their eyes, Kai asked, a little confused. Shino immediately made up an excuse to avoid affecting his mood, as the idea was for him to have as much fun as possible today, since he would have to say goodbye to his parents tonight.

"Don't worry, Kai-kun, it's just that we're so proud of you for knowing how to do the right thing and apologize properly that we couldn't hold back the tears."

"Is it that important?"

"Yes, Kai-kun, it really is."

"But don't mind us. Now tell us what you'd like to do," said Chatora, trying to divert Kai's attention while wiping away her tears.

"Hmmm, I really don't know. I'd like to buy a few things, but my savings card is at home, so we can go wherever you want."

"Don't worry, Kai-kun, buy whatever you want. It'll be our treat," Ryuko said on behalf of the team, as their wallets were quite full, and it was better for Kai to stay distracted before nightfall.

"You don't have to trouble yourselves. You've already bought me a lot of clothes. Besides, what I want to buy is quite expensive, so it's better to wait until I get my savings card back."

"Oh, then what does little Kai-kun want to buy?" Tomoko asked comically, trying to make the little one smile. But Kai simply replied calmly while counting on his small fingers.

"Nothing too surprising, just some interesting alloys, a couple of forging hammers, a few power hammers, some dark Wenge planks, a good pair of anvils, a couple of melting and forging furnaces, plus some miscellaneous items."

"Wow, what do you want to do with all that, Kai-kun?" Shino asked, her face showing surprise.

"I want to start blacksmithing. I've never tried it since I was only focused on engineering, but now I think it's important for my future to master it, so I need all these tools."

"And are you sure you have enough in your savings card to buy all that?" Ryuko asked casually, to which Kai nodded.

"Well, yes, the budget for what I need shouldn't exceed two million dollars, so there's more than enough."

"Wow, we have a little tycoon among us, fufufufu," Tomoko commented playfully, making Kai shake his head with an ironic expression on his face.

"Nothing compared to you all, but my auntie helped me sell a control system I made for civilian security systems, like the one in my mom's office, so my card has good funds."

"Hahaha, so our little Kai-kun can already make money on his own. You're a genius," Chatora commented cheerfully, though it was evident she was surprised.

"Not a genius, I just had good resources. Besides, the system I made isn't that impressive. It's just a small improvement over the previous one. I only changed the AI data model with one I trained myself, improved the interface, integration, and overall system efficiency, and designed some analog chips specifically optimized for the task. If you ask someone who knows about it, they'll say it was pure luck that no one thought of it before."

"Yes, I definitely don't understand anything. I only understand that you're a genius, Kai-kun. So it's decided, I call dibs on him. No one else can fight me for him, fufufu. I can't wait for the future," Ryuko said, running towards Kai, lifting him up, and kissing him all over his face with a huge smile.

"Ryuko, Shotacon," Shino, Chatora, and Tomoko commented with disdainful expressions, making Ryuko jump like a cat whose tail had been stepped on as she nervously defended herself.

"Hey! That's Shino. I just see the future potential and make a reservation."

"Yeah, whatever helps you sleep at night." x3

"Hahahahahaha!!!" x4

...

As the Pussycats joked among themselves, Shino suddenly looked at her wrist elegantly, where a small watch was located, and quickly exclaimed.

"Oh, look at the time! We haven't had lunch yet. Let's find a place to eat."

"You're right. Now that you mention it, I'm starting to get hungry," Chatora commented, placing a hand on her stomach, which, as if waiting for its moment to shine, released a powerful sound that made the other girls laugh.

"Hahahahaha!"

"LET'S GO!!!"

After all the Pussycats laughed heartily, Tomoko, full of energy, commented, and they quickly started walking towards the food court. Kai then spoke up, a little uncomfortable.

"Um... Pixie-Bob-san, could you put me down, please?"

"It's Ryoko Onee-Chan, Kai-kun," Ryuko commented warmly with a beautiful smile on her face, to which Kai simply responded with a question while smiling softly.

"Could you put me down, please?..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

After a staring contest between Ryuko and Kai, the latter wisely chose to give in and asked with a complicated tone.

"Ryuko Onee-chan... could you put me down, please?"

"Of course, anything for my little Kai-kun," Ryuko said. Despite her words, she didn't put Kai down and just gave him a kiss on the cheek as they continued walking, leaving the blue-eyed boy speechless.

"Ryuko, stop teasing him. Kai-kun, is there any place you'd like to eat or maybe something you don't like or are allergic to?"

Shino asked warmly, reprimanding Ryuko with a playful smile. Kai, who could finally sigh in relief at being back on the ground, responded casually.

"Not really, any place is fine, and I don't have any allergies or strong dislikes, so any place is okay."

"Then it's settled, let's go for Yakiniku!"

"YES!!!"

With Tomoko leading the way, the group entered a beautiful Yakiniku restaurant, where they ate until their stomachs were full. After resting for a while, they brainstormed to decide their next activity, and the winner was to watch a movie at the cinema.

"So, Kai-kun, what type of movie would you like to see? Maybe something animated?"

Shino asked as they headed towards the cinema on the top floor, to which Tomoko immediately added, followed closely by Chatora and Ryuko, who gave their own opinions.

"How about an adventure? We could watch the latest superhero movie! It must have a lot of action!"

"What if we look for something a bit calmer? We could watch that animated movie everyone's talking about. It has adventure but also some quiet moments."

"Or maybe a comedy. Something light and fun."

"Anything is fine with me. I don't even know what's playing," Kai responded without much concern as they got off the elevator, to which Tomoko exclaimed with great excitement.

"Well then, we'll choose one at random!!!"

"YES!!!!!"

(These people have too much energy...) Kai could only let out a tired sigh at the overly energetic group that was looking after him.

The movie they ended up choosing was an animated one that was about to leave theaters after several extensions due to its excellent box office performance. As a result, the line was short, and they easily got into a nearly empty theater, allowing them to choose any seats they wanted while carrying buckets of popcorn, nachos, hot dogs, hamburgers, and several cups of soda.

The group decided to sit in the middle seats of the theater, with Kai in the center, Shino on his right, and Ryuko on his left, while Chatora was next to Shino and Tomoko next to Ryuko. Shortly after, the movie began.

…

(Although I don't know this story, it's definitely the classic Disney formula, one they seemed to have forgotten long ago. There are many musical numbers, the princess, the prince charming, the pair of sidekicks, it's all there. Maybe a bit more dramatic.

Thinking about it, I should look into the entertainment industry. If stories from my past life are missing, I could create an interesting entertainment company... though it sounds like a lot of work, and I was never really an artsy person...)

While Kai was thinking about new projects without being affected by the movie, the same couldn't be said for the Pussycats, who were swimming in tears due to the dramatic story, cursing the world's cruelty against the poor protagonist.

After the movie ended with its expected happy ending, everyone left the cinema satisfied. At that moment, Shino's phone started ringing, and she quickly answered after checking the caller ID.

"Of course, we'll wait for you in the parking lot."

After just a couple of sentences, Shino hung up the phone and looked at Kai with a smile as she commented.

"Well, Kai-kun, it looks like Nemuri-san will arrive in a bit, so let's go wait for her in the parking lot."

"Okay."

About 20 minutes later, an attractive woman appeared in the shopping center's parking lot, getting out of a taxi. She wore a black, form-fitting dress with long sleeves and knee-length that highlighted her sexy and voluptuous figure. She raised a hand toward them before approaching and hugging Kai, holding him in her arms.

"I'm back, Kai. Did you miss Onee-chan? Because Onee-chan missed you a lot."

"Yes, Onee-chan, I missed you a lot."

(Survival tactic number one with women: never tell a woman you didn't miss her when she says she missed you, even if it's been less than 12 hours since you last saw each other. Otherwise, you'll know hell. *Tired sigh* Women are almost as complicated as life itself.)

Nemuri looked at Kai with a big smile and covered him with kisses while spinning with him in her arms, exclaiming happily, feeling like she hadn't seen the little bundle of love in her arms for years.

"I love you, Kai."

"I love you too, Onee-chan."

(Survival tactic number two with women, just like number one: if they say they love you, you must respond immediately that you feel the same. If you hesitate, you'll undoubtedly put your life at risk.)

"So, what did my Kai do? Did you have fun?"

"Well, they dragged me to buy a lot of clothes, then I argued with an old man, we had Yakiniku for lunch, and then we watched a movie. But yes, it was fun."

"Hahaha, I'm glad you had fun. But we still have time to play a bit more, so why don't we go back in?"