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It took longer than yesterday. Almost twenty minutes passed before Hitori Gotoh sprinted down from the rooftop, her face flushed with absolute panic.
At the same time, she hastily adjusted her slightly disheveled top.
Kai, on the other hand, leaned back with an entirely relaxed expression.
"System, claim my reward."
Without even realizing it, he had completed yet another quest involving Hitori Gotoh. Her bottom line had dropped just a fraction lower.
He just wondered how much longer she'd be able to hold that line the next time around.
[Congratulations, Host]
[Reward Acquired: High School Physics Knowledge]
Last time it was math, and now it was physics?
Not bad at all.
Kai wasn't disappointed in the slightest. After lying there and resting for a bit, he headed down from the roof with a brisk, light step.
When school let out that afternoon.
Kai made sure to turn to Yui Yuigahama and say, "Don't forget about our date tomorrow, Yui-chan."
Tomorrow was Saturday, the exact day scheduled for his date with Yui.
"I-I know!"
Hearing him explicitly call it a "date" made Yui drop her head in sheer embarrassment as she replied in a tiny whisper.
Beside her, Yumiko Miura smiled, wrapping an arm around Yui's shoulders as she leveled a look at Kai.
"If I find out you bullied Yui, I absolutely won't let you off the hook."
"If you're that worried about it, Yumiko, you can always tag along tomorrow."
Kai laughed casually, completely unfazed by her threat.
"I'll pass. I have zero interest in being a third wheel."
It was only because it was Kai. If it had been literally any other guy, Yumiko definitely would have shadowed them just to make sure.
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The next day.
His designated meeting time with Yui Yuigahama was 9:00 AM, but Kai didn't leisurely wake up until 8:30.
"Yawn~"
Stretching and yawning, he slowly dragged himself out of bed.
In stark contrast, over on the other side of town, Yui Yuigahama had been up since six or seven in the morning getting ready.
First came washing up, then makeup.
Girls here in Japan usually started learning how to apply makeup back in elementary school.
After that came the endless cycle of trying on different outfits.
"This one?"
"No, no, that's way too plain."
"Maybe this one."
"Actually, that set looks pretty good too..."
"..."
It was her very first time going on a solo date with a guy, so she was naturally a bundle of nerves. Completely engrossed in the process, Yui completely failed to notice...
...that at some point, her mother had leaned against the bedroom doorframe, quietly watching her daughter cycle through her entire wardrobe.
"Yui, didn't you tell me you were just going out shopping with Yumiko and the girls?"
The sudden, ghostly comment made Yui nearly jump out of her skin.
"Mom!"
Meeting her daughter's complaining glare, Mama Yuigahama was a bit speechless. She had been standing there for quite a while.
Yui just hadn't noticed her at all.
"First, tell your mother the truth: are you absolutely sure you're going out with the girls?"
"W-What do you mean?"
Yui tried to defend herself, but she completely lacked any real conviction. That incredibly guilty expression made it blindingly obvious that something was up.
Her daughter really was terrible at lying.
"If you were just going shopping with your girlfriends, there's no way you'd spend this much time agonizing over what to wear. So, you're actually going out with a boy today, aren't you, Yui?"
"N-No I'm not!"
Having her inner thoughts completely exposed, Yui frantically tried to deny it.
Seeing that her mother was about to press the issue, Yui quickly interrupted.
"Ugh, Mom, stop asking! I'm running out of time!"
Tsk, tsk.
It really was a boyfriend, wasn't it?
'Thank goodness. Someone is actually willing to take my idiot daughter off my hands.'
Given her daughter's track record—she was terrible at chores, her cooking was a biohazard, and she wasn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed—if it hadn't been for a sudden stroke of sheer luck, she wouldn't have even tested into Sobu High. Her chances of getting into a decent university were practically zero.
Her future as a stay-at-home housewife was basically set in stone.
"Ahem! Yui, even though Mommy is thrilled that you managed to find a partner, you can't just go out with some shady character. You absolutely must stay away from anyone involved with the Yakuza."
"Kai isn't a shady person!"
Her mother's warning made Yui instinctively fire back a defense.
"Oh, so his name is Kai!"
Mama Yuigahama flashed a highly meaningful, teasing smile.
Realizing she had just completely outed herself, Yui's face burned bright red as she practically shoved her mother out of the bedroom.
"You're so annoying! Get out, Mom, I'm going to be late!"
"Alright, alright! Stop pushing, Mommy won't ask anymore!"
Knowing full well how thin her daughter's skin was, Mama Yuigahama allowed herself to be pushed out into the hall.
But she made sure to get one last word in.
"Make sure you bring him home so Mommy can meet him sometime!"
Slam!
Yui's only response was violently shutting the door in her face.
"That girl!"
Staring at the closed door, Mama Yuigahama couldn't help but shake her head.
Deep down, she was genuinely curious about exactly what kind of guy her daughter had managed to land.
————————————————————
The clock quickly ticked toward 9:00 AM.
Kai was already waiting inside a café over in Ginza.
"Over here!"
Seeing Yui lightly jogging through the entrance, he raised a hand to flag her down.
"I'm s-so sorry I'm late!"
By the time she reached Kai's table, Yui was already panting heavily. She had spent way too much time agonizing over her outfit that morning, and before she knew it, the time had completely slipped away.
"It's fine."
Kai offered a warm smile.
He smoothly picked up a napkin from the table and gently dabbed the beads of sweat from her forehead.
"Have a seat and catch your breath first. You look incredibly cute today, Yui. You definitely put a lot of effort into getting dressed up, didn't you?"
"M-Mhm!"
Feeling his gentle touch, a bright blush crept across Yui's small face.
Especially with the way Kai was looking at her right now—his gaze was so intensely focused, as if he were admiring a priceless piece of art. It made her heart flutter with genuine happiness.
He guided Yui to sit down in the seat right next to him.
Even though there was a perfectly good empty seat across the table, this was a date, there was absolutely no reason to keep their distance.
"Take a look and see what you want to eat. The desserts here are really good. Judging by how much of a rush you were in, you definitely didn't eat breakfast, did you?"
She hadn't noticed it before, but now that Kai mentioned it, Yui suddenly realized she was actually pretty hungry.
"Mhm!"
Kai's attentive care made Yui feel incredibly cherished.
Even though the only reason she had initially agreed to go out with him was because the pressure of the group dynamic had made it impossible for her to say no...
...after interacting with him these past few days, Yui genuinely felt that giving things a shot with Kai might actually be a really good idea.
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