[Nightmare]

"Don't say sorry, dummy! He had a crush on you!" Charlotte cried.

"This is where you say; I love you, take me how I am, and then take~me—ow!"

"Charlotte, how do you know he had a crush on Marie?" Riley asked.

"Hmmm? Weren't you listening?" Charlotte asked in bewilderment.

"I was always watching Hellie.

He was interesting, and I was… how do I put this… a consensual~stalker?"

"Consensual stocker? Normally that's called an obsessive [fan girl], Charlotte.

Know your PC language; get it right." Atlas chuckled in a baffled tone.

Helix burst into laughter at the strange conversation unfolding.

"Charlotte… you make it sound creepy…." Marie remarked in a strange tone.

"Creepy? Hellie's sharp af. He saw me analyzing him like a psychiatrist having sex with a cat scan every day, and he always narrowed his eyes when he caught me.

He likes the game. I see through his strategy, and he'd mock me with his invincible poker face.

It was ex~citing." Charlotte smacked.

Helix chuckled with an evil grin.

It was always like that, from day one.

"Hoh? Let's hear an example." Marie demanded sarcastically.

"Oh~kay. Let's see if you remember this~one." Charlotte said with an evil voice.

Marie and Riley reflexively gasped when they heard it would be a group story.

"You remember when Hellie asked you to help design the pins for Himma Day?" Charlotte asked with a grinning voice.

"Hmmm? Yeah. Didn't we all end up helping?" Marie asked in confusion.

"Yep~" Charlotte chimed.

Helix shut his eyes.

He didn't know how he felt about this conversation.

"I guess it doesn't matter anymore." Helix chuckled with a wry smile.

"I wish it didn't feel like I was lying to my partners."

"Didn't you find it strange that he gave out the pins the two days [before] Himma Day?" Charlotte asked with an evil tone.

"Or why he was making such a flashy show of his relationship with women out of the blue?

Or [why did he not hand them out to his death threat liabilities]?"

"I…. I thought that was strange, but I didn't think too far into it." Marie confessed.

"I saw everyone's smiling faces and assumed he did it to make people happy."

"That's Hellie's special~touch that he adds to everything he does. It's flair.

If he does something, he makes people happy simultaneously because [might as well], as he puts it." Charlotte declared with an evil grin.

Riley giggled, and Marie chuckled in confusion.

Atlas was silent, probably disinterested.

Helix sent the ceiling a wry smile.

He was happy that Charlotte loved him for the things others didn't see.

However, he wasn't proud of those things either.

So he was divided between pleased for Charlotte's happiness and his mortification.

"Ummm. So is someone gonna explain what happened?" Atlas asked in exasperation.

He was acting disinterested, but he broke.

Whatever the story, it was juicy, and he wanted to know.

"Oh~nothing. Hellie just found a random holiday, had us make clothing pins for everyone to wear on their chests, and then…."

Charlotte paused for dramatic effect.

"Wire~tapped our enemies." She announced with an evil voice.

Shocked gasps filled the area.

Helix chuckled at her shocking inducing flair.

"Wait… what?" Marie gasped in disbelief.

"I'm confused, Charlotte." Riley confessed.

"I'm about it. What the hell did he do?" Atlas asked with an [I'm interested] voice.

Helix sighed when he saw Elsa glaring at him.

"Hellie placed Circles of Rememberances in the jelly faction pins." Charlotte explained with a devious voice.

"He had us hand them out two days before after training stealthfully.

Then when all of the women showed up the next day wearing them, Lina~bee got suuuuuuper jelly~"

"And demanded one as rudely as possible." Marie interjected in disbelief.

"Ex~actly. He triggered the jelly faction to demand a wire~tap and wear them proudly!"

Shocked stutters came out over the Circle of Remembrance.

However, Atlas chuckled.

Then Charlotte chuckled.

Marie chuckled.

Riley chuckled.

Helix chuckled.

Elsa chuckled.

And the entire group of speakers and listeners burst into laughter.

"Riiiiight!? Then he got every~one to line up and start activating the pins to [test] them." Charlotte continued.

"No way…." Marie whispered.

Everything was piecing itself together now.

"That's~right. He activated super special magic circles in those pins." Charlotte continued.

"The following day, pissed off jelly faction members that had to demand those pins got in line for Hellie to act~ivate them for Himma Day."

"And used the Duplication Circle to transfer it…." Marie whispered.

"That's badass." Atlas laughed.

Soon they all burst into laughter.

"And remember what Hellie told Lina when she demanded one of those super special magic pins?"

"That it had a special magic to make her appearance glow to others, making them look charming…." Marie whispered.

"Yeeeeeep. That's why she con~tinued wearing it." Charlotte laughed.

"She kept wearing that pin and demanded he reactivated it every few days…." Marie chuckled in bewilderment.

"Yep~" Charlotte chuckled.

Helix chuckled in minor happiness when he learned that no one felt they were lied to.

But—

"Wait! How did [you] know about this?" Marie cried indignantly.

"How? Girl, did you even listen to the story? We've gone over this twice." Charlotte asked in bewilderment.

Marie fell silent, and Helix sighed.

"I was his consensual stalker, remember? I watched him constantly.

I discovered his~game generally as it unfolded." Charlotte explained with an evil voice.

"I called him out on it, and he promised me the deets if I didn't tell.

Everyone else would want to use the info to expose her.

But I~knew he had some form of game because I~watched and played the game with him.

But now, I can tell you because we're in a harem together, Helix isn't here, and you made Lina's legs go BOOOOOOM!

So there's no reason to worry anymore."

"Charlotte! Don't tell him that right now!" Marie cried.

"Whoa, calm your tits. If Heliie saw how badass you were when you executed his strategy and knew you got revenge, he'd be grinning." Charlotte replied dismissively.

"I don't know about you, but I want my per~sonal circle to be spice~say!

So unless you wanted to break him the news he wants, we might as well be like…."

Helix closed his eyes and scoff-laughed.

Charlotte told him things he wanted to avoid, but her personality cut through the bitterness like a hot blade.

"Hey, Hellie. We want you to know that we followed your instructions, and this place is much better because of it." Charlotte said with a genuine smile.

"Marie is a total badass and has this place running.

She had a flair for manipulation, but it's pushing all the right buttons.

People are smiling, and they're excited about magic now.

We skull fucked your bitch ass ex-friend as you wanted us to.

So the super-otakies can live without fear and jealousy.

The kind people are being supported with growth.

Riley's helping people with emotional support.

Macron has supported us hands-on, and the monster hunts are going spectacularly as~expected.

I'm bored without your strategies roaming around like wildfire.

But I'm going to see you soon.

We're excited about our harem, and guess~what, Hellie?

I'm a full~time member now.

If you don't like that, deal with it. I'm a consensual stalker and don't you dare say you don't love my crazy.

If you do—irony."

Helix burst into laughter, and full tears streamed down his eyes.

"See, Marie. That! Is how you get things done."

"I-I see… Helix. I love you so much.

I was so happy when you asked me out.

It felt like a dream come true.

Now, I'm sad that you're not here… but everyone misses you and talks about you often.

The things they say remind me of the reasons I love you.

So it's like you're here.

We have our trip lined out to meet you.

The moment the month is up, we're leaving regardless of whether there's a monster attack.

We have agreed to fight all the monsters to the north." Marie giggled.

Helix burst into laughter, and more tears streamed down his eyes.

"So… it's strange. Knowing that you love me makes me look forward to seeing you.

Because when I do, I can confess all of my feelings to you and tell you how much you mean to me.

I know you'll accept them now, which makes me happy." Marie confessed.

"I can't wait… Marie." Helix whispered mid sob.

"And I'm excited too. I find it strange that you wanted to be my girlfriend, but I love it." Riley added.

"It feels surreal, but I'll stay around as long as you have me.

I've always enjoyed being around you.

You make me feel content and happy.

I'm happy in general, but it feels like… I don't want anything out of life.

The world just seems lukewarm in my eyes.

But… with you, I feel… desire?

I've always looked forward to spending time with you.

Now, I'm grateful knowing I'm one of the special few who gets to see you and hopefully spend my life with you.

That gives me something wonderful to look forward to.

So thank you, and I can't wait to hug you selfishly like I always wanted to."

Helix smiled between tears and shallowed between sobs.

Elsa looked at him with a gentle gaze.

"And…. Yo. I'm coming the following month to give you four sexy~time." Atlas laughed.

"That's all."

The women burst into bewildered giggles but weren't hitting or pinching him from embarrassment.

Helix laughed at the scenario.

"Wellllll, this is getting long. So bye~bye, lover boy~" Charlotte sang.

"I like ya, lots. Muah!"

"I love you, Helix. I'll see you soon!"

"I love you if that's okay."

Helix didn't know whether to laugh or cry at Riley's statement, but he was doing both anyway, so it was irrelevant.

"You're aight, I guess. More fun than the people here." Atlas said in a disinterested tone.

"I love you all, too. Even you Atlas, in a heterosexual life-mate type of way." Helix laughed.

"I can't wait to see you, all."

"I'll stop this before we start ranting again. Peace." Atlas laughed.

The transmission was cut after that.

Helix burst into tears, and Elsa made her way over to him.

She lifted his head, put it onto her lap, and ran her fingers through his hair.

Helix was grateful and didn't try to move.

They sat in quiet for a half-hour before Helix finally fell asleep again.

"I'm happy to see you smile genuinely, kid." Elsa whispered while laying him back down.

"I'll see you in the morning."

After he was down, she fell asleep with a warm smile.

—

Power stones and grammatical errors = more content. :)