Mother and Daughter Reunited: Love in the Elemental Family (5.5K) (Continued)

"But Mother, don't worry. Brother Mahiro has already helped Miyuki and avenged you! That woman who coveted the Yotsuba Family's wealth has been sent to prison, and Father has also received his due punishment!"

She seemed to be trying to comfort Yoruichi Shihōin.

Yotsuba Miya naturally understood, so he smiled and reached out to pat her head.

"Alright, Miyuki, I know all that. You still have a match coming up, right? Go and get ready."

"Yes, Miyuki went... Mother will continue to watch my matches, right?"

"Yes, I will watch it."

Miyuki went back to preparing for the competition.

Meanwhile, Mahiro and Yotsuba Miya remained in the players' tunnel.

"You really are a wicked person," Yotsuba Miya murmured.

"What do you mean? No, right?"

Seeing his innocent expression, Yotsuba Miya immediately rolled her eyes at him, then looked at the girl working hard on the field and said softly:

"You know, right? Miyuki actually likes you a lot."

"Of course I know."

"Then you're not allowed to bully her like you did today again, using guilt to bind and crush her emotions or anything like that. That kind of tactic is despicable."

"Hehe."

Mahiro couldn't help but laugh out loud.

He naturally understood what was being said Yotsuba Miya.

It was simply because she brought Miyuki to see her that Miyuki felt touched, but also guilty and inferior because of this debt of gratitude that she could not repay.

If this continues for a long time, even if Miyuki is molded into a slave of guilt, he can do whatever he wants without any problem.

After all, Miyuki occasionally displays not only queen-like qualities like Maya, but also a touch of sadistic tendencies.

If it were him, Miyuki probably wouldn't refuse; she might even obediently let him do as he pleased.

But the problem is--

"You've misunderstood me. I just wanted to see the touching reunion of mother and daughter, nothing as sordid as you think."

"Hmph, that's for the best."

He let out a slightly arrogant snort Yotsuba Miya.

"But speaking of which, Aunt Yotsuba Miya, how do you plan to explain our relationship to Miyuki?"

"What's the relationship between us? It's just a simple uncle-nephew relationship."

"Really?"

Mahiro still smiled at her, but there was now a hint of teasing in his smile.

Actually, it wouldn't be so bad if he and Miyuki each had their own opinions.

For example, Miyuki calls him "Father," and he treats Miyuki like a younger sister.

It sounds pretty exciting.

"Don't let your mind wander!"

She saw through his scheming nature at Yoruichi Shihōin and said sternly, "According to our agreement, I can Mahiro you anything you want, but under no circumstances are you allowed to tell Miyuki about these things, understand?!"

"For example, unlocking more positions... Okay, okay, I won't say anything more."

Under the deathly gaze of the Yotsuba Miya, Mahiro finally chose to obediently shut his mouth.

Ultimately, those were just ideas; he hadn't even put them into practice yet. That would be harmful not only to Yotsuba Miya but also to Miyuki.

"By the way, Yotsuba Miya, are you planning to stay at the Nine Schools Competition arena and watch the rest of the matches?"

"... What are you planning to do now?"

"Sigh, how indifferent. I was just asking."

Mahiro innocently shrugged, but then changed the subject.

"However, if I really want to say what I want to do, there is something I'm thinking about: when should I take you to meet that woman, Maya?"

"What are you up to?"

I became instinctively alert Yotsuba Miya.

Whenever Maya is mentioned, it's never a good thing; that's the experience she's gained from Mahiro these past few days.

It could be said that every time she tried to ease the tension between herself and Maya, Mahiro would vent his frustrations on her.

It was as if that emotion had been transferred onto her.

But what good could come from bringing this up now?

"Don't worry, I won't do anything. I just want to take you to see her. Now that Miyuki knows about your resurrection, Maya will probably find out soon too. It won't be possible to hide you anymore."

Besides, don't you want to see your sister Maya?

Yotsuba Clan Yotsuba Miya: "..."

Her beautiful red eyes narrowed slightly, and after gazing at him for a long time, Yotsuba Miya sighed as if in resignation.

"When?"

"Let's do it after the Nine Schools Competition is over. After all, I don't want to be the culprit who ruins your reunion with Miyuki."

The Nine Schools Competition continued in the days that followed.

And indeed, he stayed at the competition venue Yotsuba Miya instead of going back, sitting in the stands admiring Miyuki's heroic performance during the competition.

After it was over, she spent breakfast and lunch with Miyuki, leaving dinner time for her and her friends.

Even so, Miyuki's strange behavior was eventually discovered by others.

They noticed that Miyuki was always spending time with a woman in private, so they inquired about the woman's identity.

Miyuki remained silent about it, but Tatsuya had already figured out who it was.

Although he was indeed quite moved, he was even more curious about how Mahiro had managed to do it.

When the final round of "Monolith Code" comes around...

This year's results were almost a perfect replica of last year's "Monolith Code" competition, with the final being a battle between Miyuki and Shizuku.

But this year's winner is different.

Perhaps because she was watching from the audience Yotsuba Miya, or perhaps because the enhancement potion given to her by Mahiro had a stronger effect on her, Miyuki went all out from the start and decisively defeated Shizuku.

They won the championship.

Therefore, Shizuku specifically sought him out for comfort.

The two spent a tender night together in the room, and Shizuku secretly left at dawn.

It's said that when she returned to her room, Honoka stared at her with a resentful look on her face all day.

This is what led to today's events.

"... Mahiro -kun, do you hate me?"

On the second day of the rookie competition, a rare moment of leisure with no players competing, he originally planned to get a good night's sleep in his room before watching the competition.

As a result, Honoka cornered him in the room and immediately asked him this question.

I just confused him on the spot.

"Why do you ask that? When have I ever disliked Honoka? You're so cute, I like you more than anything."

"Cute..."

His praise made Honoka's face turn red, like a ripe tomato.

Normally, given Honoka's shy personality, she shouldn't be able to say a word right now.

But this time was different. With a shy, flushed face, she looked up and met his gaze, staring at him with a rather sharp and serious look.

"Then why won't you accept me, Mahiro?"

"???"

Yotsuba Mahiro slowly typed out a few question marks, "No... Honoka, are you still half asleep? When did I ever not accept you?"

He instinctively tried to check the temperature of Honoka's forehead, but was slapped away!

"Don't try to bluff your way out of this! You clearly... you clearly did that kind of thing with Shizuku, so why don't you do it with me? I clearly like you a lot too Mahiro -kun!"

Suppressing her shyness and the urge to escape, Honoka closed her eyes and uttered those words as if in a scream.

She had actually discovered the relationship between Shizuku and Kazuya a long time ago.

Or rather, she knew the day she returned from the United States.

She noticed that Shizuku had suddenly matured a lot, and she felt that Shizuku had the same maturity as Sayaka- senpai.

Not only that, she also noticed the exquisite brooch on Shizuku's chest.

Judging from the craftsmanship, it was exactly the same as her hair tie. At that moment, she realized that it was Mahiro to Shizuku.

Moreover, Shizuku's eyes would wander slightly whenever Mahiro was mentioned.

It was only then that she realized that Shizuku and Mahiro definitely had a special relationship.

It wasn't until a few days ago that she learned that Shizuku and Mahiro had already slept together.

So today she mustered up her courage and came to his door, as if she had used up all her courage to say those words.

But Honoka regretted it as soon as she said it.

I don't know what to do next, and I even regret my impulsive decision.

What if Mahiro dislikes me? What if Mahiro thinks I'm the kind of woman who likes to cause trouble?...

For a moment, Honoka's heart began to race.

"Honoka..."

"Yes!"

She seemed startled and loudly replied to Mahiro, but her shoulders trembled uncontrollably.

I felt incredibly fearful and uneasy.

Until a pair of large hands pressed on her shoulders, until she raised her head, and felt the warm touch on her cherry lips, Honoka gradually opened her beautiful, jewel-like brown eyes.

A faint light flickered in his pupils.

Mahiro kissed me?

It took her a long time to recover from the shock. She wanted to respond, but the two had already parted ways.

"I'm sorry, it's not that I dislike Honoka, I just don't know how to get along with you."

Yes, that's right.

He really didn't know how to get along with Honoka.

This girl is sometimes bold and sometimes timid. She seems shy but is surprisingly strong at heart, and sometimes she makes impulsive, silly mistakes.

It's simple, yet extremely complex...

"It's... it's okay. Actually... I... I know I have a problem..."

"No, actually it's all my fault. As a man, I was a bit indecisive. But I still want to ask, Honoka, don't you regret it? Once you take this step, there's no turning back."

Even if you regret it later, I will never let you go.

"..."

Honoka remained silent for a moment, then pursed her lips, raised her head, and looked at him again, her pupils filled with tears of determination.

"I won't regret it, Mahiro!"

After saying that, Honoka suddenly pounced on her.