Anime Collector: Starting With the Malevolent Shrine

"Itsuki, stop it! There are only three rice balls left."

Ichika lost her patience at the sight of her sister's stuffed cheeks and busy hands — left hand clutching a rice ball, right hand reaching into the lunchbox. Such greedy and shameless behavior was too much!

"Let go! Show some respect for your big sister!"

"Keep it down." Itsuki hissed, "Don't let Miku and the others hear us. How would you explain?"

The two of them were making a ruckus in the dark living room.

Pinned down, Itsuki's reminder gradually quieted them. Just as she was about to speak again, the rice ball in her hand vanished.

This unexpected turn startled the two little sneaks, absorbed in their scuffle.

"What on earth are you two doing up so late?" Nino scolded, arms crossed and frowning. In her right hand was Itsuki's "lost" rice ball, "Aren't you afraid of waking up with rough skin and a face full of pimples tomorrow?"

Itsuki and Ichika instinctively glanced towards Miku's room. Fortunately, their commotion hadn't disturbed her.

… Unfortunately, it seemed Nino had discovered their secret snacking.

"Come on, tell me what's going on here." Her foot tapped the floor as she looked down at the two on the ground.

Nino casually popped the rice ball into her mouth, a familiar sensation washing over her.

'Is this... food made by Daiki-kun? Why do Itsuki and Ichika have food made by him?' Chaotic thoughts flashed through her mind like lightning. Her gaze focused entirely on her sisters.

"Hehe, Nino, the rice ball tastes good, right?" Ichika's eyes shifted slightly as she subtly changed the subject, "We were saving it for a late-night snack yesterday, but when we saw you hadn't come back, we didn't feel like eating. Now that you're back safe, we thought we'd have our snack."

"Come on, this was made by Daiki-kun, wasn't it? Why do you have his bento?" Using her phone's light, Nino spotted a lunchbox at the edge of the sink.

Her piercing gaze made Itsuki and Ichika realize they couldn't hide it anymore. They had no choice but to explain everything from start to finish.

"So Miku has no idea about this, right?" Nino's contemplative expression made the two of them pale.

Secretly eating a bento prepared by someone else's boyfriend behind their back was outrageous and unethical. If they couldn't explain it clearly, it could easily damage their sisterly relationship.

Nino's silence made the two even more anxious. Ichika, mistakenly thinking she was considering how to tell Miku, quickly said, "Nino, I'll go confess everything to Miku right now!"

"Wait!" Nino interrupted.

She savored the ume plum fragrance in the rice ball. It was identical to what she had eaten at Daiki's house before.

But... What was this thrilling sensation from eating in secret?

Her legs rubbed together, a tingling sensation spreading through her body. Guilt and excitement entwined in her mind, painful yet incredibly pleasurable.

"Well... it does taste good... There's no need to explain to Miku..."

Itsuki and Ichika's eyes lit up with hope at these words.

"After all, once she's with Daiki-kun, she can eat whenever she wants. Besides, we're quintuplets — there's no need to be so particular about sharing." Nino's words were like heavenly dew, instantly relieving the two, "Let's keep doing this in the future. I'll help you cover it up. As for Miku... we'll find a way to make it up to her."

The dark, uncertain look in her eyes went unnoticed by the two other girls. They thought Nino was doing this out of reluctance to hurt their relationship.

Little did they know that Nino was caught in a whirlpool of guilt and excitement. The quintuplets had sworn to be together forever, agreeing that everything should be shared — or at least allow for fair competition.

Miku and Daiki's relationship wasn't set in stone yet. Would it be okay if she competed fairly too?

Despite these thoughts, Nino felt guilty and lacked confidence. She couldn't even look her sisters in the eye. Yet the desire in her heart was boiling, impossible to conceal.

If she could truly suppress this desire, she wouldn't have gotten up in the middle of the night.

"Waaah... Nino... I knew I wasn't wrong about you." Ichika hugged her warmly, but Nino gently pushed her away.

Tucking her hair behind her ear, she turned and said, "Carry on, but don't forget to clean up for Daiki-kun. After all, cooking is quite tiring."

"No problem!" Itsuki promised solemnly.

Though it was unfair to Miku, they reasoned that once she and Daiki got together, she'd be able to eat as much as she wanted.

However, the usually gluttonous Ichika watched her retreating figure with a thoughtful expression. Was it just her imagination, or had Nino and Daiki's relationship become closer? Perhaps it was because he had found her last night.

She shook her head, not delving deeper into the reasons.

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Friday arrived swiftly.

As the final bell rang, the cloud of resentment that had hung over Sōbu High School lifted considerably.

Daiki and Miku took their usual stroll through the shopping district before saying goodbye at the apartment entrance.

Hidden from view, Itsuki and the others blushed as they watched the couple's farewell kiss. Nino, however, felt an inexplicable tightness in her chest witnessing this seemingly ordinary scene.

"I'm getting my nails done with a classmate, so don't wait for me for dinner." Nino said casually, pretending to scroll on her phone.

"Don't be out too late like last time." Ichika reminded her, recalling the previous incident.

"I know." Nino replied impatiently, waving her hand in irritation.

With that, she departed.

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Daiki, having parted with Miku, stood at the street intersection.

"Cook? No ingredients in the fridge... I guess I'll go beat up that Soma kid instead..."

He had initially planned to cook, but after some consideration, decided to eat out at Yukihira Restaurant.

Buying ingredients, washing vegetables, cooking, cleaning dishes, tidying the kitchen — just thinking about it felt too troublesome.

As he was about to set off, a familiar voice caught his attention.

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