Want to read ahead? Join my Patreon for just $7 to get early access to all upcoming chapters!
> Patreon.com/NegativeTranslations
________________________________________
Chapter 52: She Has Your Scent on Her
The entire scuffle had looked intense, yet it had lasted less than ten seconds.
The moment the two separated, Rei's mind overheated. She stepped between them, shielding Suyan and shouting at Rika, "What do you think you're doing to my Suyan?!!"
Rika's face filled with question marks.
My Suyan? Since when is he yours?
Still, she wasn't about to argue with a kid. After all, Suyan was Shizuka's man, not hers. The most she could do was help her best friend teach him a lesson.
Besides, the short fight had only been a warm-up. She wasn't satisfied yet.
Rika's gaze slid past Rei to the man behind her. She shot him a provocative look.
"Suyan, is she an enemy?"
Takagi Yuriko could tell at a glance that Suyan wasn't serious—he was just toying with Rika. Only someone who had learned Nen could truly understand the gulf between a Nen user and an ordinary person.
Even so, she decided to play along. The cute flaxen-haired girl had already stepped up, after all.
Only…
Yuriko glanced back at her useless daughter with a headache.
Saya, Saya… why can't you learn from the brave little sister in front of you? Be honest for once. Tsundere is so outdated.
Even if I said I'd help you, you still have to step up yourself.
Otherwise you really will end up a permanent loser.
Suyan shook his head at Yuriko, signaling her not to interfere.
Then he patted Rei's shoulder, gave her a reassuring look, and stepped around her.
Finally he turned to the provocatively glaring Rika. "Miss Minami, I don't remember offending you. Why attack me the second I walk in?"
He genuinely didn't understand. When they had run into each other on the road earlier, everything had been fine. Sure, she had gotten angry after learning he was Shizuka's man and seeing him bring girls "home," but she hadn't done anything then.
So why the sudden hostility now?
Had she discovered he secretly mortgaged her property deed for cash?
No way. Even in the apocalypse, banks weren't sending collectors.
And Rika didn't seem like the type to get worked up over small change.
Rika glared at him. If looks could kill, Suyan would already have been sliced into ten thousand pieces.
Didn't offend me?
You turned my Shizuka into… that, and you say you didn't offend me?
She scanned the room. If not for the others present, she would have started yelling.
But she couldn't expose Shizuka's embarrassing secret in front of everyone.
She was too embarrassed to speak.
"Yeah, if you have something to say, just say it! Why suddenly attack Suyan—especially with a cheap sneak attack?" Rei pressed, thinking she had the moral high ground.
Rika's temper flared, but she couldn't badmouth her best friend.
So she carefully chose her words, ran them through her mind twice to make sure they were safe, then asked Suyan in a roundabout way, "Do you know where Shizuka is right now?"
"Shizuka-nee?"
Suyan blinked. This involves her too?
Remembering the lazy blonde's usual behavior, he answered hesitantly, "At this hour she should be asleep, right?"
"Yeah, she's asleep. Hugging a purple-haired girl." Rika rolled her eyes, irritated.
"What's wrong with that?"
Suyan was utterly confused. So were Rei and Takagi Saya.
Two girls sleeping together? Totally normal for close friends, right? What was the problem?
Besides, everyone knew Busujima Saeko had forced herself on Suyan right in front of them. Shizuka's relationship with him was equally ambiguous. There was no way the two women were into each other.
Yuriko dropped a bomb: "Don't tell me you like this Shizuka woman, and the purple-haired girl is your body double—so she cuckolded you?"
She didn't know Rika, didn't know Shizuka, and certainly didn't know the purple-haired girl.
But from the information, Rika and Shizuka were clearly close—good friends, best friends even. The purple-haired girl was a stranger. Both had purple hair. Rika was furious they were sleeping together.
Conclusion: Rika liked Shizuka, Shizuka was now cuddling another purple-haired girl—in other words, she had been cuckolded. That explained the anger.
Yuriko had no idea what role Suyan played, but she found the drama highly entertaining.
"Stop talking nonsense. Shizuka and I are just good friends, and my orientation is perfectly normal. I'm only standing up for her because I can't stand it anymore," Rika snapped, rolling her eyes again.
Seeing the situation getting worse, she steeled herself and asked directly, "Do you know why Shizuka is sleeping with that purple-haired girl?"
"Because of me?"
Suyan pointed at his own face, stunned. Given Rika's earlier behavior, the answer could only point at him.
"Exactly. Shizuka said the girl has your scent on her!"
The casual words landed like a sledgehammer.
Silence fell over the room.
Saeko has his scent?
Yuriko hadn't personally witnessed Saeko forcing herself on Suyan, so it took her a moment. But Suyan understood instantly. So did Rei and Saya.
The two girls blushed furiously, heads lowered, yet their eyes kept drifting back to Suyan.
So it wasn't just "unclear"—he had actually "trained" her that thoroughly in secret.
No wonder Rika, as her best friend, was so furious.
He really deserved to die!
"Um…"
Rei tugged Suyan's sleeve, voice tiny. "Suyan… maybe you should just let her hit you once to vent?"
Under the weight of their stares, Suyan suddenly felt a mountain on his shoulders. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out.
I'm innocent!! I really, really didn't do anything to Shizuka!!!
________________________________________
Support this fanfict by leaving Positive Review, Comments, and Power Stones.
For Advance Chapters:
> Patreon.com/NegativeTranslations