Maki has walked up on the scene

The pad had told Shuichi he didn't need to worry about anyone seeing his relationship with Kaede as out of place, even during a public display of affection like this. That statement seemed to contradict the scene before his eyes. Maki stood wearing a frustrated expression, watching Kaede's kiss with a scowl and her fists clenched at her sides. It certainly didn't look like she was accepting this without question.

On the other hand, she didn't seem bothered about her own condition, namely, her state of dress. Like Kaede, she'd been swapped into what could be described as a "school uniform," although hers didn't match up to the same interpretation. Instead of a skirt and mock sailor top, her wardrobe had been replaced with incredibly tight red bloomers, more in the shape of a bikini than shorts, and her top was replaced by a white belly-shirt with her name printed across the breast in black lettering. It was a bit more conservative on the top, but left nothing to the imagination down below, running in a wedged-up thong shape on the back. Whoever was designing this couldn't have had anything but their own amusement or erotic pleasure in mind when they created this design, given the frivolous differences between her get-up and Kaede's.

Whether meaningful or not, the differences caught Shuichi's eyes in spite of his best efforts; her pale legs were exposed all the way up, from short socks to the hem of those tiny pants. The connection between the two of them just made it feel more wrong to look. The poor excuse for gym shorts covered so little, they barely counted as underwear... it made him feel ridiculous for worrying about retrieving the panties earlier. His eyes were drawn to the glimpse of a beauty mark indecently close to the gap between her thighs and his gaze held there.

"Shuichi...!" she growled, clenching her teeth with spite in her red eyes. "I can't believe you!"

Was she frustrated because he was caught in the act doing something like this when he ought to be investigating the mystery of their entrapment? "Could it be she's...?" Shuichi wondered, remembering everything the two of them had been through to this point. Especially with all the the influence this setting ought to have over her mind, wasn't it entirely possible she'd developed feelings for him, or been tricked into thinking she had?

With surprising strength, Maki pulled Shuichi away from Kaede, ignoring his girlfriend's protests and pulling him behind the nearby prison. "What do you think you're doing?!" she demanded, now looking somehow hurt rather than vindictive.

"I-I was... It isn't what it looked like-!" Shuichi babbled, unsure of how to ward off her fury without mentioning the hypnotic effects surrounding the game. He was surprised when she pushed him hard, pinning him to the wall by her forearm against his throat.

"I get it! I do... I know how you're feeling and I know how you feel about her but..." Maki murmured, then finally let him down and backed off. "You know she isn't real! Getting close to one of them like this is not okay, Shuichi! You have to realize how dangerous it is to become attached to these versions of our friends!"

Shuichi gulped; he finally understood how Maki felt. It wasn't that she was jealous of how he felt about Kaede, nor angry that he was wasting his time. "You're angry because you've wanted to get close to them too... Close to Kaito. You're upset because you've been trying so hard not to let yourself get wrapped up in this illusion, while I faltered," he spoke quietly, tilting his hat down to hide his eyes. If only she knew how far he'd actually fallen. He wasn't just caught in the killer's trap, he was aiding its progression.

"Yes... I'm sorry. It's not fair to take it out on you. But can you at least promise me that you'll keep some distance from Kaede? It isn't healthy to get involved with these... zombies, or whatever they are, so closely. You should try to stick to just those of us who you know you can trust."

The young man covered his mouth with his hand for a moment, then regarded her curiously. "Stick with you, you mean?"

"Yeah... I think that's the right move. We can look for clues together," she suggested, wearing an oddly nervous smile. "It'll be like old times." A flash of blue came across her ordinarily very red eyes. "We can go wherever you like, really..."

Shuichi's heart caught in his throat as he realized what this meant. Her feelings about Kaito were probably the true ones... but the Passive Desire Multiplier had been active for days now. If there was any part of her that had moved on from Kaito when he died and instead started to feel affection for him instead... She could now be mistaking that sense of comradery for something more.

While his mind was already racing, he heard something that terrified him all the more: Kaede was approaching. He heard her standing in the space between the jail and the next plot over. "Excuse me, Maki? I'm not accusing you of anything, but I'd like to know what you're doing back there with my boyfriend!" she called out. Despite her usual demeanor and her polite wording, she actually did sound pretty angry.

Shuichi suddenly remembered the words of the Monopad: "reeeeally jealous."

"It's an extra effect! They trapped me... It's not just Kaede that's affected! Everyone who sees me act that way with Kaede has at least a chance to become jealous of her!" he realized, breaking into a cold sweat. He'd fallen for the mastermind's tricks once again!

The tree wasn't a helpful way to isolate one person like the jail was, it was a sexual **** trap! With an effect like this applied, combined with desire multiplier, he'd be unable to do anything all day but draw the attention of others and their sexual advances! Ditching Kaede would be next to impossible and as long as she was with him, everybody would be drawn out of jealousy and growing passion! Even if he got alone with Kaede, it was too late to stop Maki from finding out, meaning he'd have at least one persistent problem.

Going with both of them couldn't possibly work out, could it?

His options seemed to all require him to choose to banish one to the prison for the rest of the day. If he banished Kaede, he could either choose to run damage control with Maki outside or spend the rest of the day with Kaede in the prison-- a deviant idea considering the kinds of missions he needed to complete and her current state. If he instead banished Maki, he could try to find a place to shelter with Kaede which would probably get pretty indecent as well, but at least it wouldn't mean abusing anyone in prison. Which would the helpless boy choose:

To send Maki to prison and spend the day with Kaede?

To banish Kaede for the day and try to repair his situation with Maki?

Or to forsake the prison and try to juggle Kaede and Maki at the same time?!

Miu Iruma- Level 1 Anytime Take That! (Off)

Tsumugi Shirogane- Level 1 Anytime Dirty Talk, Level 1 Anytime Grope Forgiveness

Kirumi Tojo- Level 1 Anytime Totally Soaked

Tenko Chabashira- Level 1 Anytime Shake it, Baby

Maki Harukawa- Total Game Ignorance

Himiko Yumeno- Total Game Ignorance, Level 1 Anytime Boner Emergency!

K1-B0- Total Game Ignorance

Available to Use/Assign:

Level 3 Daily Wardrobe Change

Level 1 Anytime Headmaster Authority

Passives:

Self Virility Vitamin XXX

Self Nudisty Colony

Global Desire Multiplier

Constructs:

Strip-Club Libido Multiplier: Angie, Kirumi, Himiko

Prison Brainwashing: Miu (lingering)

Cherry-Blossom Modifier: Kaede (Girlfriend), Maki (Jealousy)