Although Shuchiin Academy's tuition was very high, an ordinary family could still grit their teeth and manage. At worst, they could borrow money.
But Kira Yoshikage had no one to borrow from. He could only rely on himself.
Because no matter how hard he worked, he could save at most 360,000 yen a year—less than half of what he needed.
Of course.
He could also give up on enrolling. That way, he would not have to pay the exorbitant tuition.
But that would also mean he would have to spend his entire life doing part-time jobs that paid only the minimum wage, forever unable to find stable employment. That did not fit Kira Yoshikage's definition of a peaceful life.
By contrast, although Shuchiin Academy's tuition was expensive, graduating from there almost guaranteed that he could get into university, perhaps even a prestigious one.
And only after graduating from university would he have a chance of earning a higher salary.
Ding-dong~!
The sudden doorbell interrupted Kira Yoshikage's thoughts. He walked to the entrance and opened the door.
Standing before him was a blonde girl wearing a yellow shirt with light-blue stripes and buttons, dark-blue ripped denim shorts, and a black baseball cap.
Kitagawa Marin had both hands behind her back. She tilted her head and flashed a brilliant smile.
"Yo, Kira-kun~ I'm here!"
"Good morning, Kitagawa-san."
Kira Yoshikage reluctantly shifted his gaze away from the hands hidden behind the girl's back and toward the hands of the two girls standing behind her. Only then did he speak gently.
"Good morning, Miura-san. Yuibihama-san."
That was right.
Kitagawa Marin had not come alone.
She had also brought two friends: Miura Yumiko, who likewise had long blonde hair and wore a purple short-sleeved shirt with a black short skirt, and Yuibihama Yui, who had pink hair, wore a matching baseball cap, and was dressed in a green short-sleeved shirt.
But that had nothing to do with Kira Yoshikage. As long as they paid him, it did not matter how many people she brought.
Besides, three pairs of hands meant three times the happiness—pleasing to the eye and a feast for the senses.
"Good morning, Kira-kun." Miura Yumiko replied somewhat nervously.
"Good morning, Kira-san."
Yuibihama Yui greeted him energetically, her curious gaze slipping past Kira Yoshikage as she tried to see what his room looked like.
Kira Yoshikage withdrew his gaze from Miura Yumiko's hands and looked at Kitagawa Marin.
"Are we leaving right away?"
"There's no need to hurry that much."
Kitagawa Marin blinked. "At the very least, we should have breakfast first, right?"
"Oh."
Kira Yoshikage nodded lightly to show that he understood, then asked:
"Are you paying?"
"Eh~!"
Kitagawa Marin looked incredulous. "Don't the boys usually take the initiative to pay?"
"I'm poor."
Because his tone was too calm, he somehow sounded perfectly justified.
Kitagawa Marin sighed helplessly.
"Will it be all right if I pay, then?"
Kira Yoshikage thought for a moment.
"There's an Udon shop nearby that I think is quite good."
"Udon? No problem."
Kitagawa Marin nodded in agreement, but just as Kira Yoshikage was about to leave, she stopped him.
"STOP!"
"Hm?"
Kira Yoshikage looked puzzled.
Kitagawa Marin pointed at Kira Yoshikage's clothes.
"You're going out dressed like that?"
Kira Yoshikage lowered his head and looked at his spotless white short-sleeved shirt.
"Is there a problem?"
"It's a huge problem!"
Kitagawa Marin sighed helplessly.
"Why are you wearing your school uniform on the weekend, too?"
"Most people wouldn't recognize it as the Shuchiin Academy uniform. They would just think I was an ordinary corporate drone."
"No!"
Kitagawa Marin muttered under her breath. "Don't you have any other clothes?"
After a pause, Kitagawa Marin seemed worried that Kira Yoshikage would refuse, so she added:
"I'm paying to hire you, you know~ Wearing your school uniform is a little too shabby, don't you think?"
Kira Yoshikage gave it some thought. From the employer's perspective, it was indeed a reasonable request.
"Then wait a moment. I'll change."
Kira Yoshikage replied and turned back into the room.
Kitagawa Marin did not press him. She walked to the entrance with a cheerful smile and glanced at the entrance, which did not even have a shoe cabinet, before calling out loudly:
"Kira-kun~ Can we come in?"
Kira Yoshikage looked at the only white suit in his wardrobe. Hearing the voice from the entrance, he replied:
"Come on in. There's no need to change your shoes. Sit wherever you like."
Not Wanting It Yourself and Not Letting Anyone Else Have It Either?
"It's really clean~"
Kitagawa Marin sat on the edge of the bed and looked around curiously for a while, seeming somewhat surprised.
She had thought a boy's room would be very messy.
"Marin, you never told me we were coming to Kira-kun's house!"
Although Miura Yumiko deliberately lowered her voice, the annoyance in it was still obvious.
"Isn't this great?"
Kitagawa Marin blinked and asked with a bright smile, "Weren't you looking forward to it?"
Miura Yumiko's face flushed red. Rather than argue with Kitagawa Marin, she reached out and started tickling her waist.
"Ah! Yumiko, no, don't touch there! Not there... Ahahaha..."
"...I... I can't take it anymore... I'm fighting back..."
"Yaaah~ Don't... don't touch there, you idiot..."
By the time Kira Yoshikage came out of the bathroom, he saw only the two blonde girls clinging to each other's waists and laughing helplessly on the bed, looking as if they had been thoroughly played with...
When Yuibihama Yui saw Kira Yoshikage come out, she stood awkwardly to the side and waved her little hands in a panic.
"I'm very sorry, Kira-kun. They didn't mean to."
Kira Yoshikage glanced at the girl's fair little hands, then at the two girls on the bed. He looked at the tender, glistening skin revealed beneath their shirts, which had been pulled up by their vigorous tickling, as well as their slender jade-like hands still gripping each other's waists.
As if noticing Kira Yoshikage's gaze, Yuibihama Yui blushed and stepped forward to pull their shirts back down.
"Sorry, Kira-kun. We messed up your bed..."
Kitagawa Marin, who had somehow ended up pinning Miura Yumiko beneath her despite being the one on the receiving end, finally recovered. Her pretty little face was faintly flushed.
It was her first time visiting someone else's home, yet she had treated the place as if no one else were around and messed up his bed. That was far too rude...
Miura Yumiko also climbed down from the bed right afterward. Like a child who had done something wrong, she lowered her head uneasily.
"I'm sorry, Kira-kun..."
"It's fine."
Kira Yoshikage walked over and smoothed out the somewhat wrinkled bedsheet.
Kitagawa Marin and Miura Yumiko stood to the side, their eyes lighting up as they watched Kira Yoshikage in his white suit.
"So handsome!"
Kitagawa Marin and Miura Yumiko exchanged glances, understanding each other's thoughts almost instantly.
After all, they thought the same thing themselves.
"Can we leave now?"
Kira Yoshikage finished straightening the bedsheet and asked.
Kitagawa Marin flashed a V sign and said with a grin:
"All right, let's go!"
The four of them left together. After finishing breakfast at the Udon shop Kira Yoshikage had recommended, they headed straight for the subway station.
A group consisting of one man and three women would undoubtedly make passersby turn their heads repeatedly.
But Kira Yoshikage deliberately slowed his pace, falling behind Kitagawa Marin and the other two.
To outsiders, they would then look like complete strangers with nothing to do with one another.
"What a great opportunity!"
When Kitagawa Marin saw Kira Yoshikage slow down, her eyes lit up. She poked Miura Yumiko's arm with a finger tipped with a decorative nail. But Miura Yumiko acted as if she had not noticed and continued chatting casually with Yuibihama Yui.
"How can you not take advantage of such a great opportunity?!"
Kitagawa Marin was exasperated, practically furious at her for failing to live up to expectations.
"Since you're hopeless, I'll have to do it myself and force you to get your act together!"
Kitagawa Marin thought silently. She suddenly turned around, walked over to Kira Yoshikage, and asked with a bright smile:
"Hey, Kira-kun~"
"Are you cosplaying a character from some anime in that outfit?"
"No."
Kira Yoshikage's speech remained even.
"Eh~"
Kitagawa Marin drew out the sound. "But the style of this suit doesn't seem very common."
In truth, she did not know much about the different styles of men's suits. She had simply brought up a random topic to keep the conversation going.
After all, Kira Yoshikage looked determined to kill the conversation, while Miura Yumiko had completely changed from her usual self and turned into a timid little quail. She had no choice but to come up with topics herself.
Kitagawa Marin felt like Miura Yumiko's mother, worrying herself to death over her.
Kira Yoshikage glanced at her.
"Because I designed it myself."
Before you continue