On the other side of the wall, Hikari had just finished showering and walked out of the bathroom wrapped in a bathrobe.
He had no idea about the thoughts weighing on the young married couple next door.
However, he did know that lending money to Hisato would only treat the symptoms, not the root cause.
But Hisato had already been embarrassed enough just now, so he hadn't said anything, and Hikari hadn't exposed it either.
As for dealing with Kamezo Gozou, that blond troublemaker, Hikari already had plans.
After repaying the debt for now, Hisato wouldn't have to worry about him for the short term.
So Hikari had something more urgent to do.
That was helping the noble family's young lady, Rurikawa Tsubaki, relieve her mental and physical stress.
After getting dressed, Hikari left Asou Apartments.
He took a taxi and soon arrived at the location Sumeragi Rikka had sent him.
It was a star-rated hotel.
It wasn't small, but compared to the Richter Hotel owned by Louisa's family, it was still far behind.
Hikari didn't care about that. He was mainly here to help a student relieve stress.
As long as there was a suitable place for the session, that was enough.
Whether the hotel was luxurious or not didn't matter much.
Before setting out, Hikari had contacted Sumeragi Rikka and confirmed that the girl receiving counseling had already arrived.
He went straight into the elevator and headed to the designated floor. After confirming the room number was correct, he raised his hand and knocked on the door.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
Footsteps came from inside, drawing closer.
The sound was very faint. Only someone with hearing as good as Hikari's could have noticed it.
Judging by the footsteps, he guessed it was a girl with a very light build.
As expected, the door opened, and a small, lovely figure appeared before him.
She was an extremely delicate and beautiful girl. Her frame was petite. She wore an elegant white dress. Her black hair reached her shoulders. Her face was tiny, her nose straight, her lips pink, and her features were finely shaped, making her look like a doll.
The only thing was that her pupils sat slightly higher, giving her large eyes a slight three-white appearance. They naturally carried a cold look, creating a faint sense of distance.
But that only added to her cool beauty and gave her a unique charm.
"Hello. Are you Hikari-sensei?", the cool beauty asked. Her small, perfect face was expressionless, and her tone was calm.
"That's me. Are you Rurikawa-san?", Hikari nodded, his gaze lingering on her fair, delicate face.
"Yes. Please come in."
After confirming his identity, Rurikawa Tsubaki said nothing more and opened the door wider to let him enter.
After entering the hotel room and closing the door, Hikari and Rurikawa Tsubaki stood some distance apart and looked each other over.
When she realized Hikari looked even younger than she had imagined and was also quite handsome, Rurikawa Tsubaki secretly relaxed and even felt pleasantly surprised.
Hikari was also surprised as he looked at her.
Because he discovered that the girl before him was indeed extremely similar to the girl from his previous life's memories.
Although the petite figure wasn't wearing a maid outfit but an elegant white dress, that beautiful face was almost identical to the maid named Rurikawa Tsubaki in his memory.
Her figure was the same as well. A slender waist, a modest chest, legs that were long and straight, and a graceful posture.
But although their appearances were nearly identical, Hikari found her temperament somewhat different from what he had imagined.
In his imagination, Rurikawa Tsubaki should have been a silent, emotionless girl who rarely spoke and never revealed what she was thinking.
But after meeting her this time, he discovered that while she didn't talk much and her doll-like face remained cold, she wasn't completely expressionless.
After he entered the room, her fair cheeks had turned slightly red. She also showed signs of nervousness, and there were plenty of small movements that only appeared when someone was tense.
Overall, she felt more like a cool and shy beauty than an emotionless girl who had given up on life.
The two continued looking at each other without speaking.
The atmosphere gradually became awkward.
Feeling the mood in the room changing and sensing that Rurikawa Tsubaki wasn't likely to start a conversation, Hikari introduced himself first.
"Hello. I'm the specially hired teacher responsible for psychological counseling. You can just call me Hikari-kun."
Rurikawa Tsubaki remained silent for a few seconds before politely responding, "My name is Rurikawa Tsubaki. I'm a student at Seika Girls' Academy..."
Just as Hikari had expected, although Rurikawa Tsubaki hadn't yet become the indifferent person from his previous life's memories, her personality was still introverted, shy, and cold.
———
Rurikawa Tsubaki's response to Hikari was not only quiet and brief, but she also showed no intention of correcting how he addressed her.
So Hikari continued calling her Rurikawa-san.
"Rurikawa-san, have you been under a lot of stress lately? I'd like to ask you a few questions first..."
Based on her reserved behavior, Hikari knew he had to take the initiative. While speaking and testing what kind of stress-relief method she preferred, he walked toward her, intending to start with some close-range interaction.
But when she saw him about to sit beside her, Rurikawa Tsubaki immediately moved back from the edge of the bed.
She shifted herself a considerable distance away and sat dozens of centimeters from him.
At the same time, she frowned and stared at him.
"Hm?", Hikari looked at the frowning Rurikawa Tsubaki in confusion.
"Hikari-kun, please go take a shower first," Rurikawa Tsubaki said in her cool voice.
"Hm? I already showered before I came."
Hikari looked at her in confusion.
Compared to this cold beauty who seemed to carry a natural fragrance, he admittedly wasn't as pleasant-smelling.
But he wasn't some filthy man either. It wasn't like he should be told to shower the moment they met.
In response to his confusion, Rurikawa Tsubaki said directly,
"You smell like smoke. I don't like it."
Hikari lowered his head and sniffed himself. He immediately understood.
He had come by taxi. Whether the previous passenger had been smoking or the driver himself was a smoker, there was indeed a faint smell left inside the car. Some of it had stuck to him.
But the smell wasn't strong.
If Rurikawa Tsubaki hadn't pointed it out, he wouldn't even have noticed it.
Hikari looked up at her delicate face. Judging from her expression, she genuinely disliked strange smells and wasn't deliberately making things difficult.
This cold beauty seemed especially sensitive to scents.
'As expected of a young lady from an old noble family. An ordinary household couldn't raise someone with this kind of temperament.'
"Alright. Then I'll take a shower first."
Since it was the client's request, Hikari stood up, removed his jacket, and headed for the bathroom.
Seeing him agree, Rurikawa Tsubaki let out a small sigh of relief.
"Thank you."
Although she said thank you, she didn't look embarrassed at all. Clearly, she felt this was simply something Hikari should do.
Hikari noticed that, but he didn't comment.
After all, he was very professional.
Still, having to take another shower so soon was troublesome and would waste quite a bit of water.
Hikari thought to himself that later, he would have to make Rurikawa Tsubaki pay a heavy price as well.
At the very least, she'd have to release a large amount of water resources to make up for it.
Although he understood her cleanliness issues and sensitivity, he still held a small grudge over it.
After the bathroom door closed and the sound of running water began, Rurikawa Tsubaki finally relaxed now that she was alone in the room.
The face she had kept tense finally loosened.
The toes she had secretly curled and pressed against the floor slowly stretched out.
Rurikawa Tsubaki had been born into an old noble family.
As a result, the education she received growing up had always been strict and proper.
Combined with her personality, forget dating boys, she had never even spent time alone with a boy.
It could be said that she had almost no contact with men whatsoever.
But now she was about to receive mental and physical counseling from a strange man.
It would be a lie to say she wasn't nervous.
When she had been alone in the room with Hikari earlier, she had been so tense that her toes dug into the floor.
"Sigh... How did I end up doing something like this..."
After impulsively asking for counseling, Rurikawa Tsubaki was now beginning to regret it.
In the past, she never would have done something like hiring a counselor to help relieve her mental and physical stress.
But recently, the Rurikawa family had suffered a major crisis and was on the verge of collapse.
The pressure weighing on her had become enormous.
One day, she happened to hear a classmate say that the academy's specially hired counselor was very effective at relieving psychological stress.
So, as if possessed, she went to Academy Director Sumeragi Rikka and requested counseling.
At the time, Sumeragi Rikka had looked at her in surprise. After all, she seemed like a traditional noble young lady.
Sumeragi Rikka had even personally explained the entire counseling process to her.
After hearing it, Rurikawa Tsubaki's face had turned red, and she immediately left.
But a few days later, the situation within the Rurikawa family worsened further.
Even some of her closest family members had run into trouble.
The pressure on Rurikawa Tsubaki became overwhelming.
She had even considered suicide.
Although she ultimately didn't go through with it, the burden pressing on her was so heavy that she could barely breathe.
That invisible pressure was making her sick.
If she had no way to release it, she would probably keep bottling everything up, silently tormenting herself.
As for what she would eventually become, she didn't know.
But after learning that Seika Girls' Academy had a dedicated counselor and a special way to release stress, Rurikawa Tsubaki, who felt like she was being crushed by the pressure, could no longer endure it.
So she went to Sumeragi Rikka again and requested counseling.
Sumeragi Rikka did not refuse.
She quickly arranged this session.
"Nobody cares about me anymore anyway. What's wrong with indulging myself once?"
Rurikawa Tsubaki spread her arms and lay on the soft bed, staring blankly at the chandelier overhead as she murmured.
Since birth, she had either drifted along with circumstances or been controlled by others.
She also wanted to control someone for once.
———
Meanwhile, Hikari was showering in the hotel's bathroom.
As he showered, he was thinking.
As someone with professional ethics, Hikari always took each counseling session seriously.
After all, if someone paid him, he would do the job.
When someone entrusted him with something, he would see it through.
Many times, he didn't just help clients relieve physical stress.
He also soothed their minds.