With the appearance of demi-human races from another world in the real world, it was natural that the elf princess Iris was not the only goodwill ambassador representing the demi-human races.
The mermaid race, known for their unique singing voices and dazzling appearances, also had a goodwill ambassador.
Unlike the elves, who had a royal lineage, the mermaid representative chosen as an ambassador was the timid and adorable blue-haired girl before him, Leucosia Elliot, also known as the "Deep Azure Songstress."
"Elliot, huh?", Hachiman looked at the shy and introverted Elliot, whose ears were thin fish fins. He was not unfamiliar with her or the two mermaid girls beside her.
The blue-haired petite mermaid with the best singing voice but a timid personality, resembling a small animal, was Elliot.
The naturally cute girl with twin pink ponytails was Elsie.
The lively, tanned, blonde mermaid with the most outstanding figure among the three was Ayla, who had a bold and cheerful personality.
Hachiman was already familiar with Elliot because of Iris. He had recalled this super cute, petite mermaid long ago. Moreover, as members of the nationally famous idol group AQUA MARINA, their posters could be seen everywhere, and their enchanting songs played in many places.
In terms of popularity alone, the mermaid idol singers, who were more active in the public eye, were even more famous than the elven princess Iris.
However, despite knowing that Elliot and the others had transferred to his school, this was the first time he was facing them directly.
"Were you forced to come here by Urusla?", Hachiman glanced at the smug-looking Urusla.
From his memory, these mermaid girls were on relatively good terms with Iris. Why had Urusla dragged them here?
"W-We heard about what happened with Princess Iris and wanted to ask for your help...", Elliot looked at Hachiman timidly and spoke in a low voice.
Although the immediate reason for sneaking over was that the dragon clan leader, Urusla, had approached them, they had actually wanted to meet Hachiman for a long time.
However, since Iris and Aegis were often by Hachiman's side, the idol group members, who had transferred here temporarily, never found the right opportunity.
"You mean the mermaid race's transformation period?", Hachiman immediately understood. So it really was about that.
Mermaids were typically depicted as having a fish tail for their lower body and the upper body of a beautiful girl. But in reality, the mermaid race wasn't just limited to that.
Although all mermaids were born female, the individual with the highest magic power in their group would begin to transition into a male upon reaching adulthood. This period, during which a mermaid lost the ability to hit high notes and their reproductive system changed, was known as the transformation period.
This phase usually lasted for about six months.
Of course, he had not originally known about this. When he used to read certain materials, he never paid much attention to this aspect. However, recently, he had learned quite a bit from talking with Iris.
"You understand the mermaid race's situation? Then, could you help me...? For some reason, it seems like the humans around me are all devoid of magic power, and I think I've started entering the transformation period...", Seeing that Hachiman already understood the situation, Elliot sighed in relief. But then she became anxious again and looked at him with pleading eyes.
For mermaids, gender transformation was considered an honor, but she personally did not want that to happen.
Especially since she was still an idol. AQUA MARINA was an ultra-popular idol group. If she suddenly turned into a male on stage, the reputation of the entire mermaid race would be ruined.
"What about you two? Are you also entering the transformation period?", Hachiman did not immediately answer Elliot but instead turned to look at Elsie, the pink-haired twin-tailed mermaid, and Ayla, the tanned blonde mermaid.
"It's not as obvious yet, but we've also started losing our ability to hit high notes. So, we need to be exposed to your male aura, just like Elliot," The tanned, blonde mermaid Ayla scratched her cheek awkwardly while explaining.
"Yes! As an idol group, we naturally stick together," Elsie clenched her small pink fists and nodded firmly.
The transformation period of mermaids was not irreversible. As long as they were constantly exposed to an individual with a strong masculine presence, their feminine hormones would remain stable, and the transformation would stop.
To continue their idol careers, they had to undergo the same treatment as Elliot.
Of course, they also had their own personal reasons.
As idols, they weren't allowed to date. If they could take this opportunity to experience something new, then why not? They couldn't just let Elliot enjoy this alone.
As an idol group, they had to stick together.
"Hey, hey, hey! Why are you mermaids explaining all this? I was the one who brought you here! Are you betraying me?", Urusla was shocked. The mermaids she had dragged over were spilling everything without hesitation and weren't treating Hachiman as an enemy at all.
She had come to bully Hachiman, but now it looked like they were the ones asking him for help instead.
"Did you think bringing them here would give you an advantage? Even when I beat you before, Iris and Aegis were present," Hachiman glanced at the flustered Urusla, unimpressed.
Even if there were three mermaids, plus Urusla, and the silent demon girl Sakurase Shino behind him, that was only five opponents in total.
A five-on-one fight? He had won before. Urusla had seen his strength that day, why did she think that bringing some mermaids as reinforcements would change the outcome?
"You only exploited my weaknesses! The other night, you weren't nearly as harsh with Iris and Aegis as you were with me!", Urusla pouted. She refused to admit defeat, insisting that her loss was merely due to a momentary lapse.
This time, she would let the mermaids exhaust Hachiman first. Once he was too drained to resist, she would strike and make him beg for mercy.
"...Aren't you afraid I'll be even harsher on you this time? You keep provoking me—don't expect me to go easy on you," Hachiman stared at Urusla. He wasn't worried about her doing anything to him. If things got bad, he could just teleport away using the Love List function.
Besides, Urusla wasn't trying to harm him. Her way of thinking was just... odd. She wanted to defeat him and drag him back to the dragon clan.
But if that was the case, he definitely couldn't go with her.
At least Iris respected his freedom and even begged him to choose elf girls. Urusla, on the other hand, wanted to force him. That was a huge difference. If he had to go somewhere, he'd much rather go to the Elf Forest than Dragon Island.
"Tch, if I fail this time, I'll just try again! Next time, I'll bring even more people! You haven't really beaten me!", Urusla crossed her arms and puffed out her chest, looking smug.
"...Please, would you aid me as you did with Princess Iris?", Elliot nervously asked again.
Looking at Elliot's anxious face, as well as Elsie and Ayla's expectant gazes, Hachiman sighed and nodded.
The merfolk had always lived in the sea and had not participated much in the racial wars on land, so their population had not declined. However, their combat strength remained relatively weak.
However, her current issue could only be resolved through assistance in pregnancy. Simply being in contact with an individual with a strong masculine aura would only slow down the changes in her body.
She was unsure whether Hachiman, who was already assisting the elf princess, would be willing to assist them as well. After all, just assisting a single elf was already exhausting enough, let alone assisting the elf princess, the elven knight guards, and then also assisting several mermaids.
"This... assisting you is not a problem, but... forget it, let's wait for Iris and the others to come over. We'll discuss together how to assist so many of you at the same time."
Seeing the nervous expressions on Elliot and the expectant, slightly anxious gazes from Elsie and Ayla beside her, Hachiman pondered for a moment before slowly nodding.
He originally intended for the three mermaids, like Tsukahara Hibiki from the girls' swimming club, to go to the Service Club in the afternoon, submit a request, and then begin the work.
However, considering that this matter was not suitable for public discussion, and that assisting the mermaid idol singers could not be recorded as part of club activities, he abandoned the idea of taking advantage of the school's club funds.
The internal Service Club requests should stay with him, while the external Service Club requests could be handled by Yukinoshita Yukino.
Although there were almost no serious requests for the external Service Club now, and even the relatively serious ones were only serious on the surface.
"Iris and the others will be coming over later? Don't try to scare me. I'm not afraid of them," Ursula curled her lips. In her eyes, Hachiman was just bluffing.
While waiting for him to arrive at the Service Club, she had been watching him the entire time and knew that he had not notified Iris at all. He had only gone to Sakurase Shino's class and brought her over.
"Why would I want to scare you? I skipped class to come here. Of course, I would have informed Iris and the others. They also have a strong need for assistance," Hachiman shook his head. He hadn't called Iris just now, but in reality, he had already discussed today's plan with her in the morning when she was drinking her breakfast milk.
Iris was so understanding. Yesterday, while he was engaged in Service Club activities, she went to take care of the Rurikawa Tsubaki family's affairs for him. Naturally, he had to show her more care in return.
Although he had already compensated Iris last night, giving her a little more now wouldn't hurt.
Perhaps Iris and the others being present would also help with Sakurase Shino's education.
"Heh, perfect. This time, with Elliot and the other mermaids, plus those two shameless elven princesses, let's see how long you can last," Seeing how confident Hachiman was, Ursula did not dwell on it further and just sneered.
'Does he want Iris and the others to deal with her?'
'Iris and the other elf might not be able to handle me, but they can definitely handle Hachiman.'
She refused to believe that a mere human like Hachiman could match the collective strength of so many elves, mermaids, and dragons. Even though his life aura was quite potent, there was no way it was inexhaustible, as if it would never be depleted.
Ursula wanted to mock Hachiman further, but just as she was about to speak, Elliot, Elsie, and Ayla, three mermaid idols with distinct personalities, suddenly blushed, their white jade-like cheeks turning red as they exchanged shy and evasive glances.
In reality, if anyone was shameless, it was them.
Taking advantage of Iris's lack of attention, they had sought out her "assistant" together with the dragon chieftain Ursula, asking him to help them with their transition period.
However, they soon had no time to feel ashamed or nervous, because the main subjects of their discussion, the elf princess Iris and her guard Aegis, appeared at the entrance of the Service Club.
"Things sure are lively in the Service Club today... I didn't expect the mermaid idols to also have an interest in my club president."
Iris walked in with Aegis behind her. The two of them slowly approached Hachiman, smiling as they looked at Ursula, Elliot, and the others, these little thieves stealing from her.
She had originally come to help the club president educate Sakurase Shino, to see how long the girl could endure under their training.
But upon arriving, she immediately noticed a small, concealed soundproof barrier surrounding the Service Club.
As expected of the dragons, if she hadn't gotten closer, she wouldn't have even noticed the soundproof barrier Ursula had set up.
In the school classrooms, they were in different classes and couldn't keep track of the club president's situation all the time. By the time they noticed something amiss, it might already be too late to intervene.
Though, they never intended to forcibly stop him. As long as the club president was happy, they would do their best to fulfill his wishes.
"They actually came?", Ursula narrowed her eyes, watching warily as Hachiman and the newly arrived Iris slowly raised their hands toward her.
In terms of raw power, she was not afraid of the elven princess and her sister.
If she weren't concerned about revealing her dragon form in a public place, she could easily defeat Aegis with a single dragon-language spell and then use her physical strength to subdue Iris, a magician, with her dragon claws. Winning in a one-on-two fight.
However, she still needed to be careful.
The seemingly elegant and adorable Iris was actually quite cunning. She would take advantage of the moment when Ursula's tail-root weakness was grabbed by Hachiman to cast a specialized enhancement spell and ambush her.
"Gulp...", At this moment, even more nervous than Ursula were Elliot and the others.
They had been lured in by Ursula to "steal" someone, and now they had been caught red-handed by the real owner. How were they supposed to explain this?
"Don't worry, I won't blame you. If anyone is to blame, blame Ursula," Seeming to understand what Elliot and the other mermaid idols were worried about, Iris suddenly looked at them and smiled gently.
Compared to the dragons, who had also participated in the great war and whose population was dwindling, urgently needing a strong assistant to help with reproduction, the merfolk, who lived in the sea, had no such issues of low population or declining birth rates.
Elliot and the others had sought out the club president simply because they were living among humans without magic power, which had triggered their racial instincts to seek help. She naturally wasn't worried about them stealing the club president away to the merfolk race.
"Really? Th-Thank you, Princess Iris...", Elliot was slightly skeptical of what she had heard, but seeing the soft smile on Iris's face, she quickly expressed her gratitude.
"As expected of the elf princess, you truly have a kind heart!"
"Thank you so much! We won't take up too much of your assistance time. We'll try to find an open slot instead!"
Elsie and Ayla exchanged glances and hurriedly thanked Iris profusely.
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