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Chapter 51
"Spit it out already—what the hell are you beating around the bush for?"
Ye Yu's tone was already extremely impatient. What was there to chat about with some old geezer like you?
"Y-Yes, President. The thing is… Sli Group doesn't have a very good reputation. They've previously used some very underhanded methods to force small companies into selling. This time they've targeted us, but they're still willing to offer a pretty good price. If we keep refusing their 'kindness,' I'm genuinely worried they'll take action against us."
Ye Yu froze for a moment. I'm actually being threatened?
"When you say 'take action against us,' what exactly do you mean?"
Kimura gave a bitter smile.
"President Ye Yu, their methods are really dirty. Before, when they wanted to enter the clothing industry, they targeted a company owned by an old boss. The business had been passed down for three generations and was doing very well—there was no way he would sell.
Sli Group started by throwing money at him. After several rejections, they switched to dirty tricks.
First, they kidnapped the boss's 5-year-old twins and locked them in a small cabin on a mountain. They tortured the kids for three days before finally telling the boss where they were.
The boss was furious. He called the police and used every connection he had to fight Sli Group to the death. But they were too ruthless. After that, the boss's parents, siblings, relatives, friends—even the boss himself— were all brutally taught a lesson. Some were even crippled. In the end, the boss finally gave in out of fear."
Ye Yu nodded, finally understanding why Kimura was urging him to sell the company.
"Fine. Tell Sli Group's boss that I'm willing to sell—but he has to come talk to me in person. Also, send me all the information on Sli Group: who the leaders and executives are."
Ye Yu left one sentence unspoken: If he doesn't come, I'll go find him.
The purpose was simple: to see who the other party was.
If someone appeared who he couldn't beat, then he'd sell the company. He wasn't going to put his life on the line over material possessions.
Money, power, status—even beautiful women— nothing was more important than his own life.
But if the other side's strength was below his… then don't blame him for striking hard.
"Understood, President. I won't disturb you anymore. I'll contact Sli Group right away! As for the information you wanted, I'll organize it and send it to you."
After hanging up, Ye Yu tidied himself up.
He was preparing to head to the Yatogami Club.
While he was at it, he'd see what other surprises his university still had in store.
After sending a message to Kurumi, Ye Yu arrived at the club.
Then he saw a beautiful girl wearing practice attire, swinging her sword with fierce determination.
Her jet-black hair was tied up, her stance valiant, her gaze resolute— it was none other than Yatogami Tohka!
Judging from her sword speed and the aura she gave off, she was clearly much stronger than Kotori.
Hearing footsteps, Tohka stopped her movements.
She turned her head toward Ye Yu.
"It's you! Hello!"
Tohka and Ye Yu had met once before.
She also knew he was the club's newest member, so she greeted him with a smile.
Ye Yu smiled back and nodded, then spoke in a praising tone.
"Such fast swordsmanship. Kurumi told me you were a kendo genius, Tohka. Seeing it with my own eyes today—really impressive!"
Tohka's face flushed at the praise. This was the first time a boy had complimented her so directly.
"N-No, it's nothing. My grandfather taught me all of this."
Seeing Tohka's positive reaction, Ye Yu slowly walked closer to her.
"You came to the club so early to practice. Looks like you really love swordsmanship!"
Tohka was momentarily stunned, then nodded.
Ye Yu observed her expression, then probed again.
"Kurumi will be here soon. Want to try some of the snacks I prepared?"
Tohka's eyes showed a flash of temptation, but she quickly shook her head.
"Nah… I don't eat random junk food."
But Ye Yu—who had been carefully watching her—easily caught the look in her eyes.
When they ate barbecue before, Kurumi had mentioned: Tohka doesn't eat these kinds of things because her family discipline is very strict.
That one sentence revealed a lot.
So Ye Yu guessed Tohka might be living under a high-pressure family environment.
And these anime heroines—though from different worlds—still retained some core traits.
Tohka was originally a huge glutton. If she was simply being forcibly suppressed by her family… then this was the perfect opportunity for Ye Yu to get closer to her.
"Then help Kurumi taste-test them. See which ones she might not like? Kurumi is your best friend—you wouldn't refuse to help her, right?"
Ye Yu smiled gently—moral blackmail; you can't refuse that.
Sure enough, hearing it was to help Kurumi, Tohka nodded without hesitation.
"Kurumi is my best friend—of course I'll help her!"
"Great! I'll wait for you in Kurumi's room!"
With that, Ye Yu turned and walked toward Kurumi's rest room.
After taking out an empty table, Ye Yu began pulling food out of his space nonstop.
Of course, the must-have item was the soybean flour bread.
Even though this world seemingly had no Itsuka Shidou, it was still worth a try.
Then came all kinds of candies, expensive custom-made cheeses, and various cakes.
He added some fried foods, snacks, and little treats.
"Ye Yu… are all these for Kurumi??"
Tohka stared with her mouth wide open, dumbfounded at the table piled high with food.
The tempting aromas made her drool uncontrollably.
Even though the Yatogami family was extremely wealthy, Tohka had been strictly controlled since childhood when it came to diet.
Unhealthy foods—she wasn't allowed even one bite.
After she began serious sword training, her traditional, strict grandfather watched over her even more.
Most of her time was occupied by training.
"That's right. Hurry and help Kurumi taste them—see which ones she might not like!"
Tohka swallowed hard and slowly shook her head.
"No… my mom doesn't allow me to eat these things. And I don't know what Kurumi likes anyway."
Ye Yu immediately gave her a considerate suggestion.
"It's simple—just take one bite and spit it out. That way you're not really eating it. Then based on your taste, I'll remove everything that's bad. You and Kurumi are best friends—what you like, she'll definitely like too!"
Tohka actually felt Ye Yu's reasoning made perfect sense.
And indeed—if she just spits it out, it doesn't count as eating!
"Okay… I'll give it a try!"
Then Tohka began looking over the food. Finally her gaze locked onto a particularly attractive-looking candy.
She put it in her mouth. The delicate texture and gentle fragrance instantly spread across her tongue.
It was… so delicious!
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