Speak of the Catgirl, and She Appears
She noticed a puddle of water where her foot had just slipped.
A very small puddle of water.
Yukino remembered that her sister had accidentally spilled water while drinking.
In less than half a second, she dismissed the conjecture.
If you had accidentally spilled water, the mark wouldn't be like this now.
Yukino's eyes suddenly sharpened.
Did I set a trap while someone was home?
No, it should be called a prank.
She did not suspect Fushimi Makoto.
On the one hand, the other party had been hugging him the whole time, so he didn't have the opportunity to commit the crime.
On the other hand, although she often Fushimi Makoto as "stupid," there was absolutely no way he would play such childish and boring pranks.
Therefore, there is only one truth.
Yukino looked at the guest room with some dissatisfaction.
Pouring water at my doorstep in the middle of the night instead of sleeping? How could you do something so pointless?
"How did you slip just now? Are you sure you didn't hurt your ankle?" At that moment Fushimi Makoto came over, dressed.
Yukino shook her head. "I'm fine, and I've already found the reason."
"So fast?"
"Hmm, it must be my sister's prank. She's done similar things to me before."
Yukino spoke, she pointed to the water stains at her feet.
Fushimi Makoto only glanced at it.
His mood then became strange.
His heightened senses had previously reminded him that Haruno had been waiting at the door for quite some time.
You're saying this is a prank?
Without saying a word, Fushimi Makoto went to get a mop and started mopping the floor.
Yukino didn't take it to heart and went to the restroom, thinking that she would have a proper talk with her sister tomorrow.
To Yukino's surprise, when she woke up at five o'clock the next morning, she learned from Fushimi Makoto had woken up even earlier, that "Haruno has already left."
"It's only five o'clock, how could she possibly get up so early?" Yukino instinctively didn't believe it.
She then glanced at the tightly closed guest room door. "You've already gone to check?"
"No, but I saw this." Fushimi Makoto pointed to a note on the coffee table.
Yukino paused, then leaned closer to look. Sure enough, it was her sister's handwriting. The person on the other end said that they had received an urgent phone call that morning and had to go back early.
After putting down the note, Yukino crossed her arms and fell into deep thought.
She was 80% certain that the message was fake.
At least the reason the older sister gave for leaving was false.
Yukino subconsciously turned around and looked at the spot where she had slipped in the early morning.
"So, she was worried that her prank would be discovered and that she was fleeing to avoid punishment?"
Yukino thought this speculation was even more absurd than the idea that her sister had an emergency and went home before dawn.
"Why do you think she went back so early?" Yukino decided to discuss this with Fushimi Makoto.
"I can't reach it!"
Fushimi Makoto shook his head like a rattle-drum.
Chapter 271 Talking about catgirls, catgirls arrive
Because Haruno's departure was so sudden, Yukino was often distracted while eating breakfast, appearing completely absent-minded.
Fushimi Makoto pretended not to notice.
After all, the fact that my sister was eavesdropping at the door is incredibly embarrassing to talk about.
Moreover, Fushimi Makoto didn't expect that even though Haruno had already replied to Yukino, she would still linger at the door and refuse to leave.
You can't just collapse and lose all your strength before you can walk, can you?
If that's the case, Fushimi Makoto would have to say one thing about Haruno: "Worse!"
Even after Yukino regained consciousness at the swimming pool, she gritted her teeth and helped Fushimi Makoto leave together.
As for Haruno, judging from her current performance, she really fits the description: if you're bad, practice more.
After breakfast, Yukino changed into her pajamas and came out of the house, casually mentioning to Fushimi Makoto, "I just called my sister."
"What did she say?" Fushimi Makoto asked cooperatively.
She didn't answer my call.
"It seems she really has something urgent to attend to."
Yukino didn't respond to Fushimi Makoto's topic.
She still believes that her previous line of reasoning was correct.
My sister couldn't have left so early in the morning because of an emergency; there must be another reason.
And was that puddle of water by the door just a prank by my sister?
A scene flashed through Yukino's mind: her older sister, staying up late at night, grinning mischievously, sneaking up to her bedroom door with a water glass, and then pouring water on the floor.
This is absurd!
No matter how many times she thought about it, Yukino still found it absurd.
She has taken this to heart and plans to investigate it thoroughly in the near future.
"If he helps, I might get to the truth sooner."
Yukino glanced at Fushimi Makoto, who was looking at his phone on the sofa, her eyes subtly flickering.
At 9:30 a. m., Fushimi Makoto and Yukino went out together.
They were going to meet the female student who sold Nakano Ichika's phone number.
The agreed meeting place was a cold drink shop. When Fushimi Makoto and Yukino arrived, the seats at the back of the shop were already occupied.
"Fushimi? Yukinoshita?" The short-haired girl sitting inside was incredibly surprised, even her bangs swayed.
"That's right, it was us who arranged to meet you today." Fushimi Makoto and Yukino took their seats.
The short-haired girl was immediately visibly embarrassed. She lowered her head awkwardly and asked, "So, the person I've been chatting with online these past few days, was it also one of you?"
"Only him." Yukino picked up the conversation and asked bluntly, "Why did you sell Ichika's phone number?"
"I..." the short-haired girl stammered.
Yukino refused the waiter's inquiry, her tone growing increasingly cold. "If Ichika -san really wants to pursue this, you'll definitely end up in the police station."
The short-haired girl's face was deathly pale.
Yukino's expression remained unchanged.
She was genuinely angry.
In her eyes, selling one's classmates' contact information online is a despicable and disgusting practice.
In other words, Fushimi Makoto told her that the other party must have done it on a whim, because the other party had only sold it that one time.
If it weren't for this, Yukino wouldn't have said so much; she would have directly contacted Nakano Ichika to call the police.
"You can actually explain everything now, and this is your best chance," Fushimi Makoto said.
He and Yukino seemed to have rehearsed their moves, one focusing on warnings and the other on persuasion.
The short-haired girl across from him broke down. This time, she didn't remain silent, but instead, too afraid to look up, said, "I... I was so angry at the time that I lost my mind and wanted to cause trouble for Ichika."
"Specifically?" Fushimi Makoto showed no sympathy whatsoever.
"It's just that I had an argument with Ichika's fans online..." the short-haired girl stammered.
"Wait, you're Ichika?" Fushimi Makoto leaned back strategically.
Yukino also looked surprised.
The other person nodded. "Yes, because I'm a fan of your and Yukinoshita's pairing."
Fushimi Makoto and Yukino: "..."
The short-haired girl said with a bitter expression, "Ever since you finished that short film, I've been a die-hard fan of your pairing."
"That's enough, you don't need to say anymore." Yukino covered her forehead, her feelings were too complicated to describe.
After all that, it turns out the whole thing started with him arguing with Nakano Ichika's fans?
And is she a CP (couple) fan?
This was the first time Yukino had experienced something like this in her life.
She was caught off guard.
I also have a bit of a headache.
Fushimi Makoto was left speechless, both amused and exasperated.
He could sense that what the other person was saying was true.
That's why he was speechless and didn't know what to say.
You might as well lie to me and let me beat you up!
Finally, Fushimi Makoto said seriously, "Don't do this kind of thing again. Also, you must apologize to Ichika in person."
"I... I understand," the other person stammered, trembling.
After leaving the ice cream shop, Fushimi Makoto and Yukino were still in a strange state of mind.
"I really didn't expect it to be for this reason, and I can't understand it at all." Yukino sighed; this was completely outside her area of knowledge.
"I don't understand fan culture either, but I've heard that this circle is very abnormal," Fushimi Makoto chimed in.
Yukino didn't say anything more.
She couldn't understand this aspect of things, nor did she intend to.
"It seems I made the right decision not to appear on camera," she suddenly said.
Fushimi Makoto shook his head. "Someone as outstanding as you will eventually be recognized, even if you stay behind the scenes, just like this time."
"At least, I can reduce the risk a bit." Yukino's expression clearly hardened.
She had even considered that if she were interested someday, she might be able to make a cameo appearance.
But now she has completely abandoned that idea.
Because Yukino was busy with post-production, the two of them didn't go back home for lunch and instead ate nearby.
During the meal, Yukino suddenly said, "I hadn't noticed before, but just now, I went up and down the stairs with you, and even in this hot weather, I didn't feel tired at all."
That's because I've enhanced you.
Fushimi Makoto: "This is the reward for hard work."
"Although I thought so too, this realization is a little too... clear." Yukino paused briefly, finding a fitting adjective.
Fushimi Makoto was prepared. "Then let me ask you, have you done any systematic training like this before? I mean, like the schedule I gave you, with a detailed plan covering everything from diet to exercise."
"No." Yukino shook her head.
She does pay attention to her figure, but not as strictly as Fushimi Makoto sets.
"Isn't that correct?" Fushimi Makoto asked.
Yukino looked thoughtful, seemingly not fully accepting the statement.