I Thought This Was a Slice of Life

To be honest, Inoue Shuya didn't really want to do this, but he was broke.

Even though the Earth Federation made the exchange of goods between regions easy, the cakes in the Japan Administrative District were genuinely expensive!

Shuya didn't have much pocket money; it was all being "held" by his parents, who were notorious for scamming their own son.

And as for the result of that arrangement... well, everyone already knows.

It was actually quite a struggle for Shuya to buy a cake. Now that he could get a premium version just by acting cute, why wouldn't he?

After thanking her, Shuya took the cake and returned to the car. Saori continued driving, and they arrived home shortly after.

His home wasn't some luxury mansion, just an ordinary apartment. It wasn't big or small, just right for three people.

Both Inoue Hikoo and Hanazawa Sakura had inherited failing companies, so Shuya didn't count on being a rich second-generation heir.

Not going bankrupt was the best they could do, which was exactly why Shuya had to put his heart and soul into acting cute.

After saying goodbye to Saori, Shuya entered the security code, greeted the guard, took the elevator to the fifth floor, and opened his front door.

He needed to tidy himself up before going to see someone.

At the very least, he had to use the bathroom; a child's body couldn't hold it for long.

After using the restroom, he went to his room to change. Inoue Hikoo had made him wear formal clothes when he took him to the company earlier, so he changed back into something more casual and comfortable.

There weren't many things in Shuya's room because he had no money.

Most of it consisted of various certificates and medals.

Seeing these, he couldn't help but sigh at how hard he had worked.

Unlike other transmigrators, Shuya didn't have a pathological obsession with keeping a low profile.

Having read countless web novels, anime, and manga, he understood one truth.

If a moment is meant for the protagonist to show off, no amount of low-profile behavior will stop it.

The more novels he read, the more he found the hypocritical posturing of those protagonists disgusting.

Because no matter how much they claimed they didn't want to show off and wanted to stay low-key, they were always the first to jump in when the time came, only to act forced and reluctant at the very end.

Shuya knew a term that fit them perfectly.

Attention-seeking sluts.

Since Shuya looked down on that type of protagonist, he naturally wouldn't act that way.

He had become famous very early.

He made his debut in the center position at six months old. It wasn't his intention, but he was miserable; if he didn't do it, the family would have gone bankrupt.

But after that, seeking the spotlight was entirely his own choice.

It was all for money; there was nothing else to say.

Actually, if you traced the origin of his six-month debut, it was also caused by Shuya.

From the moment he left his mother's womb, he never hid his own abnormality.

Most other protagonists would act with extreme caution, but Shuya didn't feel the need.

He never underestimated the human capacity for acceptance.

Prodigies and geniuses had existed since ancient times; it wasn't anything new.

As long as you kept it within reasonable limits, no one would truly suspect that a smart child was a reincarnator.

Facts proved that Shuya was right.

No one suspected he was a transmigrator. Society simply praised his genius and used him as the "neighbor's kid" to lecture their own children.

One month after birth, Shuya gradually began to show extreme intelligence. By two months, his airheaded parents had already accepted the premise that their son was a super genius.

Then, at six months old, Inoue Hikoo, realizing his son could understand human speech, shamelessly cried and threatened to cut off his milk.

Shuya didn't care. With the mindset that fame should be pursued early, he began his life as a child star... Hmm? He seemed to hear someone grumbling, "Isn't that a bit too early?"

...Don't worry about such trivial matters.

At the time, Inoue Hikoo, who was rolling wildly on the edge of bankruptcy, bragged about Shuya's genius purely out of a devious desire to hype up sales for one more VHS.

He succeeded.

Inoue Shuya had been a darling of the media since his debut.

Who wouldn't love a child who was well-behaved, sensible, cute, good at acting adorable, and had a sweet mouth?

Aside from landing endless commercials, he also appeared in quite a few TV dramas and programs.

To prove his genius, he even shamelessly bullied other children to sweep up various awards.

He even went to take an IQ test, which confirmed his intelligence was above average. After a few years of development, the world had accepted that his speech and behavior were like those of an adult.

No one took this seriously at all. On the contrary, those unscrupulous media outlets, chasing ratings, cooperated quite well with Inoue Hikoo's hype.

Shuya had been busy for a few years, and recently, feeling he had earned enough pocket money, he took a few months off to be a couch potato. Who would have guessed that in a moment of carelessness, those two spendthrifts would dump all the money he had earned into the bottomless pit of their company, leaving him facing the crisis of bankruptcy once again.

He felt like he had truly broken his heart and soul for his parents.

Shuya finished his recollection, sat at home for a while to compose his mood, and then went to the house next door to find the quintuplets in his best state.

Shuya's gaze was resolute; he didn't feel the slightest bit of hardship.

Because everything... was for love!

Today, Shu-chan-senpai was still throwing caution to the wind!

Even knowing his family was on the verge of bankruptcy, he insisted on not returning the goods and bought a large cake to bring over.

He had to make sure the quintuplets were well-cared for... no, he meant coaxed!

Shuya checked his appearance in the mirror one last time, confirmed that he was still as adorable as ever, then put on his professional smile, picked up the cake box, went out, and rang the doorbell next door.

"Who is it?"

Five voices rang out simultaneously.

Shuya smiled and said, "It's me, I brought a cake over."

"Cake!"

Shuya heard five gasps from inside, and after a series of thumping footsteps, the door was flung open.

A young girl with pink hair wiped her drool and shouted, "Shu-chan, come in quickly!"

"Haha, Itsuki, calm down."

Shuya followed her inside, took off his shoes in the entryway, and put on his own pair of slippers.

When he walked into the small living room, the five young girls had already assembled, waiting with forks and plates in hand.

Ichika, Nino, Miku, Yotsuba, Itsuki.

The quintuplets living next door to Shuya.

They were super cute.

The same pink hair, the same dresses, the same faces; it was just like a Clone Technique.

"Good afternoon, have you all been good today?"

"Yes!"

Ichika raised her hand energetically, and the other four also shouted while raising their hands, with Yotsuba even jumping up and down.

Shuya gave a warm, perfect smile: "Alright, quiet down, don't disturb others. Those who don't listen won't get any cake."

He transformed into a sweet little boy.

"Oh!"

Yotsuba shouted, then immediately covered her mouth in nervousness, her bright eyes looking at Shuya in a panic, afraid she wouldn't get any cake.

"Hehe."

Shuya patted her head and said, "You won't be left out."

"Ehehe..."

Yotsuba laughed softly.

"Hmm, that's not fair."

Miku puffed out her cheeks, lowered her head toward Shuya, and said, "I want one too!"

"Alright, alright."

Shuya maintained his perfect big brother persona and patted her hair as well.

As soon as he let go, he saw the other three had already lined up consciously, just waiting for his head-patting move.

"Ahem."

Shuya gave a wry smile and completed the task of equal head-patting.

Afterward, he was finally able to divide the cake.

When Shuya opened the box, the quintuplets gasped in unison, staring fixedly at the cake.

This cake was an upgraded version Shuya had traded his dignity for, and its appearance was absolutely perfect, making their eyes glow.

Itsuki's drool finally flowed out.

Shuya chuckled, and Itsuki wiped her mouth in embarrassment.

Knowing they couldn't wait any longer, he used the included plastic knife to cut the cake, and amidst their anticipation, he served five portions to them before finally taking a slice for himself.

"You guys eat first, I'll put the rest of the cake in the fridge."

"I'll do it, Shu-chan."

"Then let's do it together."

Nino helped carry the box, Shuya opened the fridge door, and Nino placed the box inside.

"Heehee."

Nino laughed happily, as if she had just accomplished some grand feat.

"Great job."

Shuya did not hold back his praise, causing Nino's little face to turn bright red.

Fortunately, the other sisters did not notice this scene, otherwise Shuya would have had to praise them one by one in turn.

These quintuplets were very insistent on equal "five-part" treatment.

Heh, he wondered if they would fall in love with the same person in the future and then "five-part" him.

Thinking this, Shuya suddenly felt an inexplicable shiver.

He shook his head, walked over to eat cake with them, and shared the interesting things that happened today.

Especially with the Japanese girls who could only say "cute."

He earnestly advised them: "You girls shouldn't become the kind of uncultured girls in the future, or I'll be very sad."

"Don't worry, I definitely won't!"

Yotsuba shouted.

"That's good."

Shuya smiled.

As they chatted, he began to glance at the clock unconsciously; it was already nearly 6:30 PM.

Ichika said: "Ah, it's almost time for Mom to come back."

"That's right."

Shuya maintained his smile and coaxed them: "Then shall we clean up? Let's not let Rena see this mess."