Next Bonus, 400!
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"Girlfriend?"
The moment Kai hung up the phone, Shizuka Hiratsuka's teasing voice drifted over from the driver's seat.
Turning his head, he met her amused, mocking gaze.
She already knew he was a relentless playboy, so the fact that he was chatting up one of his girlfriends right next to her didn't bother her in the slightest. On the contrary, she was actually quite looking forward to the eventual fallout when all those girlfriends finally found out about each other.
"One of them!"
Kai tossed his phone aside and answered in a relaxed tone, showing no sign of shame or embarrassment.
"Tsk,"
His thick skin made Shizuka click her tongue.
"You'd better rein it in a little. I covered for you today at noon, but aren't you afraid of ending up with a knife in your back one of these days?"
If she hadn't stepped in earlier, a huge love triangle fight would have broken out on the spot.
Come to think of it, what on earth possessed her to cover for him anyway? She definitely would have preferred watching him suffer the consequences of his own actions.
"Relax. That's never going to happen."
He waved off her concern dismissively.
"Instead of worrying about my love life, you should be figuring out how you're going to beg and call me 'Daddy' tonight."
"Pfft!"
Hearing that, a furious blush crept up Shizuka's neck. Keeping one hand on the steering wheel, she used the other to slap away his wandering hand.
"I'M DRIVING! CAN'T YOU BEHAVE FOR FIVE MINUTES?"
This supercar was moving fast. Wasn't he afraid of causing a fatal accident?
"Whatever you say." Kai shrugged. He wasn't afraid of any physical accidents, but he figured he should at least accommodate her current mood. Retracting his hand, he settled back into his seat with a casual shrug.
"I don't care either way. I won't be the one crying and begging for mercy later anyway. Oh, by the way, did you let Sonoko know about tonight?"
"I told her!! Stop worrying about it!"
Her voice pitched up slightly as she guiltily averted her eyes, refusing to look at him.
It was obvious she was lying. She hadn't told Sonoko Machida anything...
After all, even knowing he was a shameless player, Shizuka wanted to be selfish sometimes. If she could have him all to herself, why invite someone else? Even if she couldn't handle it, she still wanted to keep him to herself.
"I see!" Kai nodded, seeing right through her.
He realized Shizuka probably didn't even know how bad she was at lying. Still, he didn't mind. If she wouldn't invite Sonoko, he would just text her himself.
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While Kai was relaxed and enjoying the ride, things were entirely different elsewhere.
Not long after leaving Sakiko Togawa, Soyo Nagasaki's face turned dark and serious. The gentle, caring smile she'd shown Sakiko was gone.
"I know it. Sakiko has definitely been brainwashed! That man must have used some twisted method to mind-control her! My Sakiko... my pure and innocent Sakiko. Just wait for me! I will definitely save you!"
The more she talked to herself, the more intense and unstable her expression grew.
If she wasn't being mind-controlled, how could Sakiko say those things?
Truthfully, Soyo viewed Sakiko through a ridiculously thick filter. In her mind, everything was always someone else's fault. Her Sakiko was flawless and untainted.
"That despicable man... Hmph!"
Suddenly struck by an idea, Soyo let out a cold scoff. She had already formulated a master plan to deal with Kai.
"He likes pretty girls, does he? Just wait. I'll make him fall to his knees and worship me, and I'll make Sakiko watch it happen! Then, she'll finally see his true colors!"
Clearly, her grand scheme was to use herself as bait to lure him in.
As for whether she would succeed or if there was any chance of failure? Soyo was supremely confident in her own looks. If this guy really was a hopeless womanizer, there was no reason he wouldn't fall for her.
Perhaps, she could turn the tables. She would make this man hopelessly, madly obsessed with her, and when that happened, the spell would break, and Sakiko would finally snap back to reality!
The more she mapped it out, the more exhilarated she became.
'This is perfect. I've finally figured out how to save Sakiko.'
'Phew.' She took a deep breath, trying desperately to suppress her bubbling emotions so she wouldn't start laughing maniacally in the middle of the street.
The next step was simple: find an opportunity to 'Accidentally' cross paths with this Kai.
If Kai had been privy to Soyo's inner monologue, he likely would have given her a standing ovation.
Was she actually a comedic genius? As expected of Soyo Nagasaki and her peerless, galaxy-brain intellect!
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Meanwhile, back at the Sawamura residence.
Upon returning home, Eriri couldn't even be bothered to go up to her room. She face-planted directly onto the living room sofa, exuding the distinct, lazy aura of a terminal otaku.
Now that she was home, there was zero need to maintain her refined heiress persona.
"Eriri?"
Sayuri Sawamura had already woken up and was busy washing the bedsheets. Seeing Eriri slouched on the couch, she looked over curiously.
"Is something wrong?"
"No. It's just that Kai was busy tonight and didn't invite me over!" Eriri grumbled, her tone laced with a heavy dose of resentment.
However, since he was doing "important business," she couldn't really complain too much.
Instead, she curiously eyed her mother—or rather, the laundry basket in her mother's hands.
"Didn't we just change those bedsheets recently? Why are you washing them already?"
"Ahem!" Sayuri coughed awkwardly.
She could hardly admit that last night's 'activities' had been so intensely messy that the sheets were unrecoverable without a deep wash.
"Well, Mom didn't have anything else to do around the house, so I figured I might as well wash them!"
"Oh, okay!" Eriri nodded, accepting the excuse.
Terrified that Eriri might ask more questions, Sayuri immediately pivoted the conversation.
"Kai-kun isn't an ordinary person. As a Jujutsu Sorcerer, I'm sure there are many places in this world that desperately need his power!"
"I know that!"
Eriri pouted, annoyed that her mother was speaking to her like a clueless child. Of course she understood the weight of his responsibilities.
Evidently, in both Eriri and Sayuri's eyes, Kai was a selfless, kind-hearted soul. To them, he was like a superhero straight out of a comic book, venturing out every night into the shadows to save the world from evil.
Thinking about it that way, a proud smile actually blossomed on Eriri's face.
"Oh, right!" But then, she suddenly remembered something. "Where's Dad? Didn't he say he was coming back today?"
Although her father, Mr. Spencer, was frequently away due to his work as a diplomat, there were a few fixed days every month when he would return home. After all, he still cared deeply for Eriri.
Usually, by this time of the month, her father would already be sitting in the living room waiting for her.
"..." As soon as Eriri mentioned it, Sayuri's face went pale and her eyes darkened.
Previously, she had actually harbored a sliver of guilt toward her husband because of what she did with Kai last night. But looking at the situation now, they were cut from the exact same cloth.
Back in the day, Sayuri had been the girl who swooped in out of nowhere and aggressively stole Spencer away from his childhood friend. But even after all these years of marriage, that childhood friend remained his ultimate 'white moonlight'. He was probably so caught up keeping his precious childhood friend company that he completely forgot to come home.
However, Sayuri obviously couldn't dump that kind of trauma onto Eriri. Some things were better kept from her daughter for now.
"Your father has some urgent business to attend to. He might be back a bit later."
"Oh, I see."
Hearing it was work-related, Eriri couldn't really argue.
Noticing her daughter's deflated mood, Sayuri smiled and teased, "What's the matter? Is Eriri tired of her mom now? Are you unhappy spending time with me?"
"No!" Even knowing it was a joke, Eriri couldn't help but defend herself. "Anyway, I'm going upstairs!"
But asking a textbook tsundere like Eriri to say something genuinely warm and affectionate was practically an impossible task. Muttering under her breath, she grabbed her bag and bolted up the stairs.
"Slow down!"
Watching her flee, Sayuri couldn't help but smile and call out after her.
It wasn't until Eriri safely vanished into her room that the smile slowly melted off Sayuri's face.
She calmly pulled out her phone. The screen was still displaying the last text message she had received from Spencer:
[I won't be coming home this month.]
Sayuri hadn't replied.
Looking at the short, cold message, Sayuri let out a bitter laugh. Suddenly, all her years of stubbornness felt ridiculous.
A childhood friend is always special, huh? If the Sawamura family's network hadn't told her that his old friend was pregnant, she might not have suspected anything...
Whatever. Too tired to care, Sayuri deleted the message.
Instead, she opened a new chat and sent a message to Kai:
[When will you have some free time to come over? I've recently learned a few new recipes!]
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