Finally, as the door closed, blocking off Utaha's tormenting gaze, the pressure on Haizaki eased considerably.
But…
His eyes fell on the intimate clothing in his hands, as well as the black stockings Utaha had forcibly stuffed into his arms before he left. These highly personal items felt almost scalding to hold.
He couldn't throw them away. If he did, the New Year's morning incident would definitely continue.
"Don't think about it. Don't overthink it."
The more he thought about it, the easier it would be for things to go wrong. Right now, all he needed to do was return to his room and place them on the bed.
After quickly putting the items down, Haizaki went downstairs.
Dinner was already prepared.
He went upstairs to look for Utaha. He had only intended to inform her that dinner was ready, yet something helpless ended up happening again.
He had been forced to accept intimate clothing shoved into his hands by the girl.
In all his remembered years of life, this was truly the first time such a thing had happened. It was… hard to put into words.
…
"Mmm, this tastes really good…"
While eating, Utaha occasionally voiced her praise for Haizaki's cooking. Delicious no matter how many times she ate it. If she could ever reach Haizaki's level, she felt that would be enough.
She still needed to keep practicing. Cooking was, after all, an essential skill for girls.
"The steak is good too, but it's cold, so the texture isn't as good."
Whose fault is it that the steak went cold—wasn't it yours?!
But at this moment, Haizaki kept his head down and ate silently, saying very little.
"Don't just eat—let's talk about something!"
When the meal was about two-thirds finished, Utaha saw that Haizaki was only responding passively, so she turned the question back on him, asking him to find a topic to break the dull atmosphere.
"What does Utaha want to talk about?"
"You're the gentleman, so you should pick the topic."
"How about talking about Kasumi Utako-sensei's next work?"
He asked, somewhat uncertainly.
"I haven't even thought of anything yet—how would we talk about it? But one thing is certain: the next work will definitely be a youth romance novel."
Haizaki nodded.
Her writing was delicate, her characters vivid, and she fully conveyed the complex emotional bonds between the male and female leads. For someone like her not to write youth romance and instead switch to another genre would be a waste.
More importantly, it would flop—and that kind of blow would be unprecedented for her.
"Or does Haizaki-kun have any ideas for the new work?"
"I'm simply looking forward to it. As long as it's a story that earns praise, leaves a strong impression, and lingers in the mind, I think that's enough."
He didn't have any particular preference when it came to novel genres.
As long as it was well written and enjoyable to read—whether tragedy or comedy, power fantasy or something else—he felt it was all fine.
"Hehe, is that so? I thought Haizaki-kun might want me to write a novel with you as the male lead! One where you dominate the school, embrace left and right, build a harem, and fulfill your ambition of becoming a life winner."
The conversation had been opened.
Utaha smiled as she waited for Haizaki's answer.
But in Haizaki's eyes, the beautiful smiling girl now looked like a bloodthirsty demon hiding a sharp blade.
One wrong word, and Utaha would definitely let out a feral roar.
"I don't have that kind of dream."
He really didn't.
"Really?"
Utaha asked in a strange tone.
"Of course it's true."
"You're lying."
"How am I lying?"
"You're lying everytime, Haizaki-kun. Don't you really have even the slightest thought like that? For example, when watching a harem anime, don't you ever think how great it would be if you were the male lead? Why devote yourself to just one heroine? 'You're all my wings'—wouldn't that be even better?"
Utaha leaned forward, her wine-red eyes shifting as she released a meaningful gaze.
She was gently guiding Haizaki into her trap.
"No…"
"I want the truth. Not even a little?"
"That's just delusion."
Good!
A smile rose in Utaha's heart. She knew the first step had already succeeded.
"Isn't anime meant to entertain the masses and fulfill ambitions that viewers can't achieve in reality, giving them spiritual satisfaction? And aren't harem anime meant to satisfy men's unattainable harem fantasies? So…"
Utaha set down her bowl and chopsticks, bracing both hands on the table as she leaned forward dramatically. Her small face was now less than ten centimeters away from Haizaki.
Haizaki could clearly see every eyelash on her tightly focused eyes, trembling ever so slightly.
"You've had thoughts like that, right? Even if it was just a fleeting moment—it still counts!"
At this point, what else could he say? It was obvious she didn't want his real answer—she wanted the answer she wanted.
"Fine. I've had them. Are you satisfied now, Utaha?"
Haizaki could only answer helplessly in the end.
So next would be Utaha revealing her true purpose, right?
It couldn't possibly be about the computer, could it? Was she really looking at some inappropriate pictures or videos?
"Seriously… you really have?! And you're asking if I'm satisfied?"
Utaha was instantly stunned. She covered her mouth with her left hand, her widened wine-red eyes filled with disbelief.
This woman's acting… was flawless.
"I said I didn't, but you wouldn't believe me."
"But you admitted to having harem ambitions."
"That's because you just—"
"But you admitted to having harem ambitions."
"…"
Haizaki understood. If he kept talking, Utaha would just keep repeating herself to shut him down.
Did she really think he was that easy to bully?
"Fine. Yes, I do. I've thought about building a harem. Is that enough? Now, Miss Utaha, what's your issue?"
"Of course there's an issue. As Inspector Utaha, I've decided to arrest you and send you to prison."
"I remember I was already sentenced to life imprisonment."
It couldn't possibly be the death penalty, right?
"Not enough. That's only life imprisonment for this lifetime. Next life, the one after that—all sentenced as well. Duration: life. Content: having a wife. You will be under my eternal 'custodial supervision.'"
An alternative declaration of love and ownership.
On the surface calm, but with her heart pounding wildly, Utaha herself didn't know why she had gone along with it and made such a declaration.
"That really is a 'terrible' ending."
Hiss—
Under the table, Haizaki's left knee was kicked mercilessly by the girl, pain surging through him.
His answer just now had made Utaha extremely dissatisfied.
But what Haizaki wanted to say was—couldn't she even tell he was being sarcastic?
"That really is a happy ending. Being with Utaha for eternity—there's nothing happier than that."
"Good that you understand."
In any case, Utaha took his words as genuine. And she had already recorded them.
This was important evidence—proof of Haizaki's sincerity.
If one day Haizaki tried to deny it, what would she do?
With evidence, she could make him unable to refute it and force him to fulfill his promise.
"Back to the main topic—the harem issue we were talking about earlier…"
Utaha sat back down, changing her posture. She now looked more relaxed and natural, yet carried even greater authority.
"???"
Why was this coming up again?
Wasn't that just a joke? Shouldn't it be over by now?
"You think this can just pass?"
With a slightly interrogative tone, Utaha let out a humph and smiled, radiating authority. Toward men who dared harbor harem ambitions, she had to administer the strictest punishment.
"Wasn't that just a joke between us?"
Anyone could hear it was a joke—and one forced out of him under her pressure as a compromise.
"A joke? How could it be a joke? My man is actually thinking about building a harem, and you think I'd treat that as a joke?"
Right now, I don't seem to be your man yet.
But Haizaki knew that if he said that out loud, Utaha would punch him to death.
He didn't think he was sturdier than an ox.
Getting punched to death would be bad.
…