Before returning to school, Ryunosuke still had important business to settle. He met with Chizuru and handed over his house keys to her.
"While I'm away, I'm entrusting the care of my house to you."
Chizuru gazed at the house—the place containing the furniture crafted by her grandfather—and without hesitation, she agreed. After all, this place held the memories and the scent of her grandfather.
Ryunosuke then pulled out two keychains and dangled them before Chizuru's eyes.
Initially, Chizuru didn't pay them much mind, but the longer she looked, the more familiar those keys became.
Ryunosuke didn't want to play riddles any longer; he smiled and said:
"I've bought back your family's sold inn, your private home, and that small hotel."
"Even though it cost a fortune and nearly drained my entire savings, I think it was worth it."
Ryunosuke placed the keys to the homes Chizuru once sold to pay for her grandparents' medical bills into her palm.
Chizuru clutched the keys with both hands, stunned, unable to utter a single word.
Ryunosuke continued his message. "I'm going to the Advanced Nurturing High School. It's a closed boarding school. If everything goes well, I might not be able to come out for over a year and a half, so you..."
Before Ryunosuke could finish, Chizuru's voice cut him off. She gripped the keys tightly.
"I will wait for you to come back."
Before Ryunosuke could react, Chizuru stood on her tiptoes and landed a kiss on his lips.
◆━⊰✿✧✿⊱━◆
The next morning, the remaining sunlight filtered through the window and into the house. Ryunosuke began to change his clothes and made a promise to Chizuru, who was still lying in bed.
"I will marry you. Can you be patient and wait for me for a year and a half?"
Ryunosuke intended to give status to each of his women. As for how he would manage that, he would figure it out later; one thing was certain, he wasn't the type of man to dodge responsibility.
Chizuru slowly wrapped a silk-thin blanket around her body to cover herself. The red stain on the bed was proof that it was her first experience. Regardless, she had given everything willingly without regret. This man deserved everything from her.
She answered Ryunosuke with a smile. "I will wait for you. No matter how long it takes, I will still wait for you."
Ryunosuke said no more; he kissed her forehead gently while apologizing because he might not be able to accompany her for the next year and a half. Chizuru stated that it wasn't a problem.
Ryunosuke then remembered one more thing to entrust.
"Oh right, about Yuuki, I'm entrusting her to you as well. She's still being treated in the hospital; if you have free time, please keep her company."
Chizuru's expression instantly turned cold.
"Discussing another woman in a situation like this... do you think that's appropriate?"
Ryunosuke scratched his head awkwardly. "Erh... it seems it really isn't..."
◆━⊰✿✧✿⊱━◆
Shortly after, Ryunosuke bid farewell to Chizuru. He intended to see his mother before truly departing. He converted all his wealth into cash and arrived at a vast field of flowers.
This was where his mother lived. She had remarried long ago, and Ryunosuke didn't want to disturb her new family. He only dared to watch from a distance to ensure she was living well.
In a small, pristine white yard, a beautiful woman stepped out of the house. Her white hair flowed elegantly, tied into a large ponytail at the back of her head. She wore a straw hat to ward off the sun's heat. The white dress she wore made her look like a fairy descended from the heavens. Her large, watery blue eyes sparkled like jewels.
She was holding a watering can to water the flowers in the yard. As if sensing something, she turned toward the distance—right toward the spot where Ryunosuke was hiding.
Ryunosuke hurried to conceal himself. It turned out he still didn't have the courage to meet his biological mother... He eventually asked Shino for help, using her as an intermediary to deliver his entire fortune to his mother. He also promised Shino—who was a bit money-minded—a ten percent cut as a fee.
Shino scoffed.
"Why does it have to go through my hands? Can't you just give it to her yourself?"
"Besides, isn't this a waste of money? Why are you doing something so convoluted?"
Ryunosuke felt a bit uneasy. Perhaps he truly didn't want to disrupt his mother's new family; if her new husband knew she had a son this old, it could cause family disharmony. He tried his best to avoid that.
Ryunosuke clasped his hands above his head, pleading with Shino-chan.
Shino sighed and agreed to deliver it. As for the ten percent fee, she refused it. Though she loved money, she knew her place; money sent to a mother was not something she would profit from.
Shino carried all of Ryunosuke's assets toward the sea of flowers where Ryunosuke's mother was located. She paused, stunned, because there was nothing there—it was completely empty. Aside from the stretch of flowers, there wasn't even a single building.
Shino suspected she had the wrong address. She contacted Ryunosuke via phone and sent the location coordinates, asking, "Is this the place?"
Ryunosuke replied that Shino wasn't in the wrong place; that was indeed the location.
Shino grew more confused because there was clearly nothing there... She felt a chill run down her neck and intended to leave immediately.
Just then, a pristine white hand tapped Shino's shoulder, instantly scaring her half to death. She hurried to turn around and saw a white-haired woman. Beautiful, incredibly beautiful...
Shino didn't know what adjectives to use anymore. The woman looked too ethereal to be called human; that was her first impression.
The white-haired girl smiled gently. "Did Ryunosuke-chan ask you to come? I am his mother."
Shino snapped back to her senses and bowed hurriedly.
"Forgive the intrusion. This is the money your son entrusted to be given to you. He also wanted to convey that he is doing well, so you don't need to worry."
Ryunosuke's mother accepted the bag of money with both hands and nodded understandingly. Having completed her task, Shino immediately turned around and ran away as fast as she could.
A gentle breeze caressed the white-haired woman's face. At that moment, a man appeared behind her. If one looked closely, the man's face was very similar to Ryunosuke's; the only difference was that he looked slightly more mature and had several strands of white hair, proving he was a middle-aged man.
He wrapped his arms around the white-haired woman's waist and asked softly.
"Did he... come?"
The white-haired woman showed a worried expression. "He came..."
"Is that so?..." The man said no more. "Don't worry about him, he'll be fine. If not, how could I still be standing before you now, right?"
The man took the white-haired woman's hand. "Let's go, Mio..."
The two walked hand in hand, slowly disappearing into the middle of the sea of flowers.
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