"...And so Sleeping Beauty woke up because of the prince's kiss. No matter what happened in the past, everything has now become wonderfully happy."
At this point, the story of Sleeping Beauty officially came to an end.
Dio lowered his eyelids and closed the open storybook. He did not like this ending.
In his opinion, if the past had not been perfectly resolved, how could the present or even the future possibly be happy?
But looking at the side of Shinomiya Kaguya's face and the satisfied smile on it, Dio could not possibly say anything disappointing. He simply asked in a gentle voice, "Are you happy?"
"I'm very happy." Shinomiya Kaguya nodded. She stretched both hands out from under the blanket and acted spoiled as she requested, "President, I want a kiss. Just like in Sleeping Beauty, when the prince kisses the princess."
"No. In Sleeping Beauty, the prince kisses Sleeping Beauty to wake her up. But right now..." Dio tapped the watch on his left wrist and reminded her, "It's about time. You should go to sleep. Don't forget that you're still a patient."
"Nooo, I just want a kiss..."
"Mm... Then if Shinomiya is willing to go to sleep obediently, I can give you a good-morning kiss tomorrow, just like how the prince wakes Sleeping Beauty with a kiss." Dio took off his hat and placed it in Shinomiya Kaguya's hands. "Until then, let this hat stay with you in my place. If it can make you feel at ease, then that would be perfect."
Shinomiya Kaguya stared at the hat in her hands in a daze. A moment later, she used both arms to hug the hat tightly. It was unclear whether she took the opportunity to give it an epic-level sniff.
Soon after, Shinomiya Kaguya's eyelids began to droop. Sleepiness gained the upper hand over reason.
"Sleep well, Shinomiya."
Thinking this, Dio took a step toward the living room.
Tug...
Even when sick, she was still a little scheming and greedy...
Dio sighed. His left hand was tightly held by Shinomiya Kaguya, so he had no choice but to stop.
"Let's sleep together."
...
Morning light slipped in through the gaps in the curtains and landed on Shinomiya Kaguya's hair. She was awakened by the pleasant birdsong outside and comfortably sat up from the bed.
Shinomiya Kaguya rubbed her hair. One strap of her pajamas had slipped off her shoulder, but there was nothing worth seeing. She subconsciously asked, "Mm... Hayasaka, what time is it now?"
"It's 8 a.m. Did you sleep well last night?"
The expected reply from Hayasaka did not come. Instead, a steady voice reached Shinomiya's ears.
Following the voice, she looked up and saw Dio wearing loungewear with an apron tied around his waist. His golden hair was casually scattered, and he was holding a tray with a lavish breakfast.
Shinomiya Kaguya's pupils shrank.
President?! When did he get here?!
Ignoring Shinomiya Kaguya's dazed expression, Dio placed the tray on the bedside table. He leaned down, placed one hand on the back of her head, and gently pressed his lips to her forehead.
"Good morning, Shinomiya. For breakfast dessert, I made your favorite strawberry cream cake."
"Okay..."
Shinomiya Kaguya froze in place. After all, it was only a minor cold. After taking medicine and sleeping, she had already recovered and did not remember anything she had said or done while sick.
Because of that, she could no longer act spoiled as she pleased like when she had the cold. She had returned to a state where reason suppressed emotion.
Only at this moment did the serious Dio give off the air of a noble young master from the horse racing world.
Any woman who received a kiss on the forehead from a handsome man she liked first thing in the morning would be unable to stop herself from smiling.
Shinomiya Kaguya's brain CPU burned out again. Only the corners of her mouth, which had nowhere to go, remained and could not be suppressed.
After Dio left, she was so excited she could not speak and rolled around on the bed while hugging her stuffed toy.
Only when she got a little tired did Shinomiya finally shout loudly, "Hayasaka————!!!"
Thud thud thud...
"Young lady, what's wrong?" As soon as she finished speaking, Hayasaka Ai appeared beside Shinomiya Kaguya's bed and teased, "Oh my, you look so energetic. I assume you've fully recovered?"
Shinomiya Kaguya ignored her maid's teasing. Instead, she placed both hands on her hips in a proud manner and openly pressed her forehead toward Hayasaka Ai with the smile of a victor. "How about it? The President really did kiss me."
"...We already did that." Hayasaka Ai's expression remained normal as she spoke calmly.
As everyone knows, light words are a piece of equipment that can break defenses.
Looking at Shinomiya Kaguya covering her ears and refusing to accept reality, Hayasaka Ai complained again. "I really don't understand what you're thinking. Don't always forget the pain once the scar has healed."
"Let's not talk about that, Hayasaka. Actually, we both know that a mature adult doesn't need to use whether or not we've done it as the standard."
But wasn't it the young lady who brought up this topic?
In order to prevent Shinomiya Kaguya from bursting into tears right after recovering from her illness, Hayasaka Ai wisely only complained in her heart.
"Speaking of which, Hayasaka, why did the President suddenly kiss me?" After calming down, Shinomiya Kaguya began thinking about this question and, as usual, asked for Hayasaka Ai's opinion.
Hearing this, Hayasaka Ai magically produced a video recorder from beside the bed and placed it in front of Shinomiya Kaguya.
"I already predicted the young lady would have this question. After all, you don't remember anything after recovering. So, do you want to watch?"
The most terrifying thing in the world had happened!
This situation was just like getting drunk and acting out. Simply doing something out of line wasn't a big deal. What was terrifying was having someone remind you the next day.
Shinomiya Kaguya, who had never experienced something like this before, clearly did not understand this logic. She actually clenched both fists and nodded with shining eyes.
While turning on the video recorder, Shinomiya Kaguya looked at the dress Hayasaka Ai was wearing and asked curiously, "By the way, Hayasaka, why aren't you wearing your maid uniform today?"
"Because the entire Shinomiya household was forced to take a day off today." Hayasaka Ai did not look up as she inserted the tape into the player.
"Forced?"
"Dio was especially energetic today. First thing in the morning he finished all my work for me, then went and stole the servants' jobs. He cleaned the entire Shinomiya residence inside and out."
"...I see. Then let's keep watching."
So the two of them began watching the contents recorded by the video recorder.
...
Dio possessed a talent that had never existed before and would never exist again — he was deeply favored by rich women.
In the past, due to the limitations of his identity, this talent had never been unearthed. But now that the timeline had returned to the present and he had restarted his life in a new world, this dusty pearl had finally begun to shine with its own unique brilliance.
Of course, it was impossible to rely on just a face or abilities in that area. Appearance was ultimately just the entry ticket. Delivering emotional value was the true essence that allowed one to go deeper.
As the standout figure in the world of being kept, Dio could not only easily meet the above conditions but had even reached the point where he could continuously generate value for the person keeping him.
Although the Shinomiya family claimed to be one of the "four major zaibatsu" of Sakura Country, in reality it was only a group that was strong on the outside but weak on the inside.
Internally, several heirs were openly and secretly fighting over the right of inheritance. Externally, the former subsidiary, the Yotsuba Group, was watching like a tiger eyeing its prey.
It could be said that once Shinomiya Kaguya's father died, the Shinomiya Group would completely collapse. It had already reached the stage where its fate hung by a thread.
But this current situation had been broken. Dio had left a heavy mark on the Shinomiya Group's project proposal, and behind him stood the dinosaur people who looked at him with fanatical worship.
"...This way, whether it's money or status, everything will belong to this Dio!"