Chapter 175

"Although most of my family members have mental issues, they don't easily give up when faced with difficulties. Even if they can't solve a problem on their own, they can always find a solution by relying on others." (Relatives: We just don't want to hear you say that!)

"As for those who would change their minds because they care about what others think, not a single one of them would do that! Whether they are fools or geniuses, it's all the same!"

Eriri flinched under his intense gaze, her expression softening, and she involuntarily took a step back.

"Don't back down! Keep your eyes on me!" He said sternly, his voice like a thunderclap in her ears.

Her delicate body froze, her body, which had originally intended to turn and flee, remained rooted to the spot, her gaze fixed on him, unable to look away.

Sakurakoji Talent just relaxed his arms and leaned against the wall, walked to within half a meter of her, cupped her delicate and lovely face in his Hands, met her gaze, and softly said:

"Think about what you truly like and want, make your own choices, and look around you—do other people's opinions matter?"

He turned her body so that she was facing the crowd outside the school gate, just like him.

The countless curious, doubtful, and suspicious gazes made her lean back in fear, bumping into his arms.

Behind him stood a sturdy, unassuming chest, not particularly imposing or broad, even somewhat thin, yet it remained unmoved by her impact or the surrounding gazes, like a wall or a mountain.

"If you're afraid, I can lend you my strength and my chest temporarily, but I hope that you can ultimately face these things on your own."

The voice from above acted like a reassuring pill, temporarily calming her bewildered mind.

Eriri looked around again and felt that the previously oppressive scrutinizing gazes now seemed insignificant.

At the very least, you can't let yourself and the wall behind you move back even one more step.

The gaze of a crowd has weight, but this weight only affects a specific person. Beyond that limit, it is as light as a feather and can no longer have any effect on her.

Upon realizing this, she felt as if she had been instantly thrown into the air, feeling both relaxed and free, yet also weightless and powerless.

Having taken in her reaction, Sakurakoji Talent caught her just in time, supporting her weak and collapsing body and embracing her slender, supple waist as she leaned against him.

"That's enough for today," he said, turning her back around. "What you do next is up to you."

"If you need my help, I'm always happy to oblige. After all, we're friends now."

While theoretically she wouldn't need help from others given her family background, her emotional choices are another matter entirely. Or perhaps she's afraid of others' opinions affecting her parents?

There's really a lot of malice towards homebodies in this world.

The wall behind her had transformed into a reliable and comforting embrace, and the storms she had to face all around her had instantly become a greenhouse nest. Eriri, unable to break free of her soft body, went from leaning against something to lying down.

The warmth in front of her made her eyes burn. She wanted to get up and stand firm to prevent the situation from escalating further, but she was also reluctant to leave.

No, this won't do! If this continues, rumors will spread throughout the school tomorrow that I'm dating someone else. I have to stand up and stop it!

But... this feeling is so comfortable, like a heater in winter.

This extremely conflicted state of mind was shattered by a voice so cold it could freeze the air.

That was the voice of the woman she hated most. "Sawamura-kun~ What are you doing right now?"

Upon hearing the sound, she reacted like Hakimi when he was startled, instantly pushing the once rock-solid wall back a step.

Chapter 222 Perfect timing, let's go together.

"Kasumi, Kasumi, Kasumi, Kasumigaoka Utaha!!" Her cheeks flushed red, she brandished her claws at the person behind her.

The person who appeared there was none other than Kasumigaoka Utaha, who had somehow walked up to her side.

Sakurakoji Talent had noticed her talent long ago, but given the indescribable atmosphere, he couldn't just push her away rashly, and could only wait foolishly for the storm to break.

"What a perfect reaction to being caught cheating, Sawamura-kun. You have a real talent for playing the role of Little Third." Kasumigaoka Utaha stared at her coldly with a forced smile and a gloomy expression.

"Who, who got caught cheating! You shameless woman, how dare you talk about others like that!" Eriri felt a pang of guilt.

Was that scene really how it appeared to others?

"Hmph, no matter how promiscuous I am, I would never be all lovey-dovey with a man in broad daylight at the school gate, in front of everyone." She sneered, lifting her soft breasts, which were every man's dream.

"Or how should I put it—have you become this thirsty for writing new material lately because you haven't been creating any?"

"Why are you bringing up the notebook? It has absolutely nothing to do with this!"

"Keep your voice down, or do you want everyone to know you're creating fan fiction?" She closed one eye, covered the ear closest to her in annoyance, then let the easily-seen girl go and looked at the other main character.

"Talent-kun, can you explain what's going on here?"

"Why did I see you hugging this shameless woman the moment I stepped out of the school gate?"

"Even if teenage boys do have strong desires, I don't think your taste is so low as to hang out with a woman who has nothing to offer."

"Who are you calling flat-chested!" Eriri blushed furiously. "Besides, we weren't even hugging!"

"Oh my, I meant you're not very cultured. What are you thinking, Sawamura-kun?" Kasumigaoka Utaha exclaimed, covering her mouth in surprise.

"Kasumigaoka! Uta-ha!"

"Don't do that. If we really fight at the school gate, I'll never be able to stay at school again."

Seeing that she seemed to be losing control, Kasumigaoka Utaha reminded her of the location and poured cold water on her feelings.

"Hmph!!" Eriri glanced at the crowd and awkwardly turned her head to the side.

Once the atmosphere cooled down a bit, Sakurakoji Talent finally answered Kasumigaoka Utaha's question, "It's not what you think, Senpai Utaha. I was just answering Sawamura-kun's question."

"Hmph~ Do you need to lend your chest to a woman to answer a question?" Kasumigaoka Utaha scoffed in disbelief.

"This is... letting nature take its course?"

"Then don't look away, Talent-kun. This isn't the kind of mistake you would make." She exhaled two puffs of hot air from her nose, observed the two of them again, and after sensing that there really wasn't much pink in their eyes, she changed the subject.

"So, what kind of problem is it?"

"What should you do if you are bullied?"

"Wow~ Was Sawamura-kun bullied before? When? It shouldn't be now, since you're quite popular now... So it must have been before?" She began to analyze based on this sentence.

Just like Sakurakoji Talent, she immediately saw through why Eriri had asked that question.

"Who, who said I was being bullied! I was just asking casually!" Eriri couldn't hold back any longer and yelled at her in a low voice.

"Is that so? Well, let's assume that's how it is then," Kasumigaoka Utaha ignored her and turned her attention to the girl in question, "So, Talent-kun took advantage of this silly girl's misfortune with his answer, didn't he?"

"Taking advantage of someone's vulnerability... While it's a good strategy, if I had to do it, I'd prefer the target to be... no, nothing."

She cleared her throat, her pretty face slightly flushed, and stopped her analysis.

Sakurakoji Talent looked at her speechlessly. What's with you talking to yourself and then suddenly becoming shy?

"Senpai Utaha, your Mandarin score is truly remarkable! You can actually comprehend a single sentence to this extent," he remarked.

"After all, I'm first in the grade." She puffed out her chest with a hint of pride.

She certainly has every reason to be proud of herself for being able to achieve this by sleeping in class every day and not doing homework.

He thought of another woman of equal renown, Miss Yukinoshita. Could she have done the same in her situation?

Hey... what's the point of discussing this? Even if we could do it, we'd already be at a disadvantage in some respects.

While lost in thought, he replied, "I don't think that's what I meant, and you know that's not what I meant."

"Hehe~ Sorry." She touched her sexy cherry lips and chuckled. "Getting back to the point, why did Talent-kun come here today?"

"Since I happened to be free today, I planned to come over and play games with you guys at the apartment."

"I see. Let's go then." She nodded, unsurprised; she had guessed this before she left.

She frowned, noticing the gazes fixed on the three of them. She could already imagine what rumors would circulate after tomorrow.

In a better scenario, the two most beautiful girls in Toyonosaki might leave hand in hand with handsome guys (or beauties) from outside the school; in a worse scenario, the two most beautiful girls in Toyonosaki might fight each other over some troublesome man.

That's really a headache—if it were the woman next to her.

She glanced at Eriri; if she wanted to maintain her current life, it probably wouldn't be so easy.

"Yes, that's true."

"Um..." Just as the three were about to set off, ending the spectacle they had been watching for so long, a weak voice interrupted them again.

"Hmm?" X 2

"They've arrived? "Sakurakoji Talent revealed its full crimson pupils as she looked at the person who had suddenly appeared beside the three of them.

The newcomer was none other than the Crowned Assassin — Kato Megumi.

Actually, if his only purpose was to call Kasumigaoka Utaha and Eriri, there was no need for him to stand here for so long and be fully exposed to the students. He could have simply gone to the family restaurant next door, sat down, and sent them both a message.

But the reason he did it anyway was to attract everyone's attention, or rather, to attract the attention of Kato Megumi, who was hiding in the crowd.

He had only briefly interacted with her last time, and they had gotten to know each other, but to avoid offending her or arousing suspicion, he didn't even ask for her contact information.

He believed that if Kato Megumi saw him today, there was still a chance she would come over and talk to him—if not, he would give up for now and try again another time.

"You're Sakurakoji-san... right?" Kato Megumi asked tentatively in a flat, gentle voice.

"You are... Kato-san?" He blinked, feigning surprise, and tapped his hands together. "Ah! So you did say you were a student of Toyonosaki!"

"Long time no see, Kato-san. How have you been?"

"No, even if Sakurakoji-san says it's been a long time, it's only been a little over a week..." Kato Megumi gave a faint, almost imperceptible bitter smile, so subtle that her emotions could only be discerned from her lines.

"Yes, thank you so much. Thank you so much for last time." She placed her Hands in front of her and bowed deeply to express her gratitude.

"I didn't do anything..." The muscles at the corner of his mouth twitched awkwardly.

If possible, please don't bring that up again; it will hurt his conscience.

"Talent-kun, who is this classmate?" Kasumigaoka Utaha was taken aback by the sudden appearance of Kato Megumi.

When did this girl appear next to me? I didn't notice her at all.

"Ah, you must be Kasumigaoka-senpai? I'm Kato Megumi from Class 2-B. Nice to meet you." She bowed slightly to her again.

"Oh, hello."

I didn't ask you silly questions like "Why do you know my name?" In fact, there are relatively few people in this school who don't know her.

However, Class 2-B? It seems like that person is in the same class? Although I only glanced at it casually at the beginning of the semester.

She and Eriri exchanged a glance; it seemed she had thought of this as well.

"I didn't expect that Kasumigaoka-senpai and Sawamura-kun actually knew each other in private. I've never seen you two talk to each other at school." Kato Megumi looked at the two of them strangely, and then glanced at Sakurakoji Talent.

"And it turns out that the acquaintance Sakurakoji-san was talking about is actually one of the two beautiful girls from Toyonosaki. That really surprised me."

Is it an accident, or something that was inevitable?

She tilted her head, puzzled, and fell into deep thought.

"But you didn't seem scared at all..." Kasumigaoka Utaha was speechless. Did their school even have students with this kind of personality?

Upon closer inspection, although her presence is subtle, her face is that of a standard pretty girl. Wait, why did she say "again"?

So, how exactly did you two meet?

"Ah, that..." Kato Megumi snapped out of her reverie and explained briefly, "It was by chance that I was harassed by some unpleasant people while shopping last time, and Sakurakoji-san helped me."

"Wow~ that's Hero Saves the Damsel." She stared emotionlessly into Sakurakoji Talent's clear, bright eyes. "That's wonderful, Talent-kun. Your life story has gained another brilliant chapter."

"..."

Whether it was because he was already feeling guilty or because her words were inherently barbed, he felt like he was being mocked and looked down upon, and his heart skipped a beat.

"Um, although this isn't something I should be asking..." Kato Megumi looked around at the group, "Where are you all headed now? Am I disturbing you?"

"I originally just wanted to say hello to Sakurakoji-san, but it's about time I left."

"No, you've come at just the right time," he replied instinctively.

"Hmm?" X3

Faced with the three men's questioning and surprised gazes, he pursed his lips and swallowed. "What I mean is, we're just about to move the battlefield to my apartment. If it's convenient for you, Kato-san, would you like to come with us?"

Chapter 223 The Great Aunt Who Intimidated the Three Women

"It's a rare opportunity to meet you, it wouldn't be right to just leave you like this, why don't you come and visit me?"

"No, thank you." Kato Megumi looked at the road to the side, her eyes somewhat lifeless.

"Talent-kun, what you said is too easily misunderstood, although it's true." Kasumigaoka Utaha glanced at him subtly, then explained to Kato Megumi: