Aragaki Ayase sat on the sofa.
Yuuya grabbed two cans of drinks, sat down beside her, and opened his lunchbox.
"You haven't eaten lunch yet, senpai?"
"I was about to eat with a friend, but Kirino called. So I grabbed my lunch and left," Yuuya replied casually.
"Ayase favor +30"
"You've really gone through a lot for me, senpai."
"Well, she's my girlfriend, after all."
Yuuya smiled and began eating.
Ayase glanced around the living room.
"Your parents aren't home?"
"I've never really met them."
"Eh?"
"I was taken in and raised by my master."
"Oh… I didn't know…"
"It's fine. I don't mind," Yuuya said, continuing to eat his lunch.
Ayase looked at him, surprised. She hadn't expected her senpai to have such a situation.
Yuuya finished his lunch quickly. He washed the lunchbox and returned to the sofa.
Ayase sipped her drink, occasionally glancing at Yuuya's room.
Yuuya studied her as well.
She noticed his gaze and blushed slightly.
Yuuya looked away and picked up his drink.
"Ayase, your father is a politician, right?"
"How did you know?"
"I know the Yukinoshita family, and I have my own sources."
"I remember that the second Miss Yukinoshita goes to Soubu High. Your uniform… that's Soubu High's uniform, isn't it?"
"Yes, I'm in the same club as Yukino."
"Yukino? Are you close with the second Miss Yukinoshita?"
Ayase's eyes were full of curiosity.
Yuuya finished his drink in one gulp and answered calmly:
"Yukino is my girlfriend."
"The second Miss Yukinoshita… Wait, aren't you Kirino's boyfriend?"
Ayase's face froze in shock.
Yuuya remained expressionless.
"They're both my girlfriends."
"Ayase disgust +50"
"So… you're deceiving Kirino's feelings?"
Ayase clenched her small fists in anger.
Yuuya shook his head.
"I'm not deceiving her. I'm serious about Kirino too."
"Ayase disgust +50"
"Serious? You think that's funny? How can you be serious about two girls at the same time?"
Ayase's anger flared even more.
Yuuya stared her down.
"If Kirino ever wants, I'll marry her, give her ten billion yen, and take care of her and the children."
"Ten billion yen?"
Ayase froze.
Even though her father was a politician, her family wasn't nearly as wealthy or influential as the Yukinoshita family. Ten billion yen was enough to ensure Kirino lived a life of luxury.
Yuuya shifted his tone:
"If you want, Ayase, I can give you ten billion yen too."
"You… what do you mean?"
"Become my girlfriend, and I'll give you one billion yen immediately. The remaining nine billion after we have children."
"You think money can buy everything?"
"Ayase disgust +50"
"One billion yen is enough to dig up scandals about your father… or create them."
"You…"
"Ayase disgust +50"
Yuuya got up and sat beside her. He extended his hand.
"Accept my proposal. Become my girlfriend."
"Or, I can use this one billion yen to deal with your father and stop him from being a politician."
"Ayase disgust +50"
Ayase was furious.
She wanted to stand and slap him, but if she did, it would certainly provoke Yuuya to take action against her father.
After a few seconds of hesitation, she placed her small hand in his.
Yuuya held her hand firmly. Her face was full of disgust.
"Ayase disgust +50""Ayase disgust +50""Ayase disgust +50"
"Warning: Host safety at risk"
Yuuya saw the system alert but remained unfazed.
Last time, when Eriri Sawamura's disgust reached its peak, the system had issued the same warning. Back then, he was weak. Now, he was much stronger.
Still, he couldn't push her to absolute hatred.
"I can spend one billion yen to force your father out of politics, or strengthen his ties with the Yukinoshita family," Yuuya said slowly.
Ayase opened her mouth in shock.
Yuuya gently kissed the back of her hand.
"Since you agreed to be my girlfriend, I won't mistreat you. Until you fully accept me, all I'll do is hold your hand and hug you."
"One billion yen, whenever you want it—I can give it to you anytime."
Ayase looked at him skeptically.
"I don't believe you'd actually give me one billion yen."
"Do you have a bank account?"
"Yes."
"Give me the account number."
Yuuya pulled out his phone. Ayase hesitated, then wrote down her card number.
Yuuya tapped a few times—this was actually a mental command to the system.
A few seconds later, Ayase's phone rang. She picked it up and widened her eyes.
One billion yen, really?
Yuuya put away his phone.
"Do you believe me now?"
"I…"
"You've already received the money. You can't break up with me, Ayase."
"I just…"
"Don't think about returning it. If you do, that means breaking up with me, and I'll use the refunded money against your father."
"You…"
Ayase clenched her small fists again.
Yuuya released her hand and opened his arms.
"Can we hug now?"
Ayase turned her head. Yuuya pulled her into a firm embrace.
"Ayase disgust +50"
3:00 P.M.
Kousaka Kirino woke up.
She opened her eyes, staring at an unfamiliar ceiling.
Earlier, she had been dreaming of Kyousuke.
"Feeling better?" a voice asked.
Kirino turned and saw Yuuya.
"Much better… thank you, Yuuya-senpai."
"You were calling his name just now."
"I dreamed of him. In the dream, he knew I was sick and came to take care of me immediately. But in the dream, he was still the child I remembered—probably my memory from when I was sick as a kid."
"So… you don't really like who he is now."
"Senpai… what do you mean?"
"This isn't love. It's dependence. You relied on him as a child. He changed, and you stopped depending on him. That's why you dislike who he is now," Yuuya explained.
Kirino paused, recalling carefully. He was right.
As a child, she had truly relied on him.
She might have only liked the version of him from her childhood.
Because he changed, she started to dislike him.
And slowly, their relationship deteriorated.
..
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