How to Untangle Shimaura Hitomi's Heart Knot

The desire for beauty seems to be an innate trait in girls, and even more so for girls in this island nation.

A refined makeup and appearance serve as a necessary pass in social interactions. Girls who are too plain might even face bullying. In this regard, Kiyoharu felt that his former home, China, was much freer. Regardless of gender, whether or not to wear makeup, or what style of clothes to wear, as long as it didn't offend public decency, people generally didn't pay much attention.

Perhaps Shimaura Hitomi's ostracization at school was also related to this.

However, when faced with Kiyoharu's suggestion, Shimaura Hitomi flatly refused. The underlying fear that subtly emanated made Kiyoharu keenly aware of hidden circumstances.

Before, he had purely regarded her as a friend, so Kiyoharu hadn't paid attention to Shimaura Hitomi's casualness regarding her appearance. Only now did he realize that Shimaura Hitomi was definitely not just too lazy to bother with it.

"You don't need to dress up elaborately. Just changing a few details will make you appear more mature and less easy to bully," Kiyoharu encouraged. "Those teachers always underestimate you, don't they? It's time to make them see you in a new light. My junior mentioned wanting to lose weight before; I suspect she had similar considerations."

"Mhm, yes," Shimaura Hitomi nodded repeatedly, clasping her hands in front of her like a primary school student. Her senior was truly perceptive, seeing through her thoughts without making a fuss.

For her, losing weight was psychologically easier to accept than fashion choices. Of course, due to her serious commitment to her work, the option of losing weight had been rejected by Shimaura Hitomi.

So, should she try her senior's suggestion?

If the extent of the makeover wasn't too drastic, it might be feasible.

Seeing Shimaura Hitomi waver, Kiyoharu suggested that Ayano could help with advice.

Thus, the two returned with milk tea, and Kiyoharu told them about the matter.

"Image makeover... indeed, little Hitomi is too childish right now. She might not be able to control mischievous students," Airi said with deep feeling. Because she started working at the Chihaya Conglomerate at a very young age, she had always strived to cultivate a mature, sophisticated image to avoid being looked down upon by her subordinates.

"Good idea! Then today's shopping theme will be helping little Hitomi!" Kitahara Ayano said with a smile, glancing at Kiyoharu, wondering what mischief she was plotting.

Having thrown out the hook, Kiyoharu achieved his goal and immediately entered ghost mode, letting the three women discuss animatedly.

However, Airi clearly wouldn't allow him to go ghost.

While Ayano was introducing brands to Shimaura Hitomi, Airi slowed her pace, falling into step with Kiyoharu, who was trailing behind.

She suddenly reached out and firmly pinched the soft flesh on Kiyoharu's waist.

"Hiss—" Kiyoharu's expression contorted for a moment, then he said helplessly in a low voice, "What are you unhappy about now, Young Lady?"

"You've gotten addicted to being a stylist, haven't you? It's not your place to be concerned about little Hitomi's image," Airi glared at him with a meaningful fake smile. "Kiyoharu-kun wants to transform Shimaura Hitomi into a cute girl so you can make a move on her as her office senior..."

"Quite the opposite. I care about her image purely because she's your best friend. Didn't you ask me to look after her? You, as a working woman, know better than I do how much image management is emphasized nowadays. I'm just helping her improve her social interactions."

"Oh~"

Airi hummed noncommittally, staring into Kiyoharu's eyes, trying to find any trace of a lie, but found none.

After pondering for a moment, Airi said somewhat dejectedly, "Little Hitomi... not dressing up has its reasons."

"Family reasons?"

"Mhm. You know, her parents' situation is special, and it left her with some childhood psychological trauma."

Airi didn't elaborate further, perhaps feeling Kiyoharu didn't need to know, or perhaps the shopping venue wasn't suitable for such a discussion.

But in any case, Kiyoharu had a clear direction for his investigation. He might as well ask Shimaura Hitomi about it when the opportunity arose. If it was a problem he could help with, Kiyoharu wouldn't mind finding a way to help her resolve her inner turmoil.

In this world, Shimaura Hitomi was one of the few friends he could trust.

After Kitahara Ayano's initial assessment, she stated that the most pressing matter for Shimaura Hitomi was to change her hairstyle.

Her hair was thick and dense, and while the color was healthy, it looked rather messy.

When it came to this topic, Airi perked up and enthusiastically recommended her regular hair salon to her best friend, which happened to be within this high-end shopping district.

The group headed to the salon, and a dedicated staff member led the four to the VIP area, arranging for a senior stylist to wash and massage their hair.

Airi also took the opportunity to get a trim, though from Kiyoharu's perspective, he couldn't see what needed trimming. Perhaps this was the pursuit of perfection for a Young Lady!

The two went to a private room for their hair wash, leaving only Ayano and Kiyoharu to wait outside.

Airi didn't suspect anything about this, but Kiyoharu knew it was an opportunity for Ayano to cause trouble.

Kiyoharu had a sudden idea and asked Airi if he could also get a treatment, which would greatly reduce Ayano's chances.

He received a disdainful eye roll from Airi.

"Kiyoharu-kun doesn't need one. Just wait obediently outside."

Thus, Kiyoharu found himself making eye contact with Kitahara Ayano in the lounge area, offering an awkward yet polite smile.

"Kiyoharu-kun, dealing with a woman with such a bad temper every day, just thinking about it sounds exhausting. I'm really curious, what exactly is it for?"

"Curiosity killed the cat. I advise Miss Kitahara to inquire less."

"Is that a threat?"

"Not exactly, but if Airi finds out what you're doing to me, she won't let you off the hook... As you just said, her temper is quite bad."

There was an instance where Airi discovered a subordinate's corruption and directly threw the person out of the conference room window on the third floor.

Kiyoharu didn't think Airi would show special tolerance towards Ayano. They were best friends, after all; she would break ties!

"Kiyoharu-kun wouldn't want Airi to know the truth."

"Are you so sure?"

"Hmm, how should I put it... Constantly being with a tyrant and suppressing your male needs, anyone would have desires for romance. In other words, I'm not coercing Kiyoharu-kun, but helping Kiyoharu-kun escape from a sea of suffering."

"Heh, specious reasoning," Kiyoharu scoffed. "I will always be loyal to Chihaya Airi. You might be able to coerce me, but you can never tempt me."

I've turned over a new leaf and become pure and abstinent in this life.

Looking at Kiyoharu's righteous and awe-inspiring face, Kitahara Ayano wanted more and more to see what that ascetic, handsome face would look like if it were ruined.

"Please, don't be bound by worldly frameworks anymore. Now, I will help Kiyoharu-kun recognize his true inner self."

Suddenly, Ayano stood up and turned off the lights in the lounge, pulling the curtains shut. The room immediately plunged into darkness, with only a dim, yellowish light filtering in from the corridor leading to the hair-washing and massage room.

Kiyoharu immediately became wary. "What do you want to do?"

"I want to help Kiyoharu-kun recognize reality. Right now, in this slightly ambiguous environment, even with Airi next door, Kiyoharu-kun will inevitably feel desire for me."

"Haha, you're kidding me..."

Before Kiyoharu could finish speaking, everything around him suddenly froze.

Today's Time Stop has arrived.