*Henceforth, Yukigami Nahiro will be referred to as Yukikami Nahiro!
Back at the apartment, Hirose Yoru opened the door and immediately retreated to her room, locking it
Hirose Kaguya found this strange.
Why was her daughter home so early today?
Lying on her bed, Yoru's mind was flooded with images of Hayanui Riku.
She gritted her teeth.
"Scumbag! Scumbag! Scumbag!"
Knock, knock, knock!
A soft knock came at the door.
"Sweetheart, your package arrived—a vintage gramophone."
The mention of the vintage gramophone only made Yoru's chest tighten even more.
It was such an obvious mockery, a deliberate provocation.
"Mom…"
She wanted to say throw it away .
But then she remembered Riku's threat.
"You wouldn't want what happened today to get out, would you?"
Those words kept echoing in her ears, coiling around her thoughts.
"Just leave it somewhere, Mom. I'm not feeling well… I need to rest."
Hirose Kaguya sighed softly but let it go. Her daughter had always been strong-willed and fiercely independent, after all.
Ding, ding, ding…
Yoru's phone buzzed relentlessly with messages from Shirō Satō.
She picked it up, staring at the screen.
She didn't know how to respond anymore. She didn't even know how to face him.
An invisible rift between them was widening by the second, faster than she could process.
Outside Yoru's apartment building, Shirō Satō stood with his fingers flying across his phone screen.
The sky had darkened. The pale green glow of his screen cast an eerie light across his face.
Passersby shook their heads as they walked past.
Did his stocks just tank?
No—that was Shirō's ten-thousand-word apology essay, painstakingly typed out.
He had no idea what he'd done wrong, but in his mind, as long as he apologized hard enough, Yoru would surely forgive him.
......
Meanwhile.
On his way home, Hayanui Riku received a message from Nahiro Yukikami.
Nahiro Yukikami: "Riku-kun… can we meet? I'm at 76 Sakura Street."
Sakura Street was less than three minutes from where Riku was walking.
He followed the location she'd sent him.
It led to a park.
The evening sky had deepened, the last light of sunset painting the horizon in shades of crimson and amber.
The park's streetlights flickered on one by one.
As if spotting his figure from a distance, Nahiro Yukikami—sitting on a bench—blinked her big eyes, then hopped up and trotted over to him.
"Riku-kun."
Standing before him, she wore a standard seifuku uniform. When she'd jogged over—
Well.
Let's just say there was a noticeable boing boing beneath her blouse.
There was no denying it—Nahiro Yukikami had a figure that was nothing short of exceptional.
If he was being honest, just from a visual standpoint… her proportions were even more striking than the school idol, Hirose Yoru. There was a certain fullness to her presence that left a stronger impression.
The moment she reached him, Nahiro slipped her arm through his without hesitation.
Riku felt the soft pressure pressing against his arm.
"Nahiro, are you feeling better?"
She felt completely different from the girl he'd taken to the hospital.
There was something uneasy about her. Her gaze kept darting away
The Nahiro he remembered had always carried herself with a kind of detached coldness, as if nothing really touched her.
Now, something felt off.
Following the direction of her fleeting glances, Riku noticed a peculiar pair of eyes fixed on them from a distance.
He tilted his head slightly and spotted a man standing near the far end of the bench.
The man had a gaunt, rat-like face, pockmarked all over.
Just then, a voice echoed in Riku's mind—the signature narration of his system.
[You notice a man who seems intensely concerned with Nahiro Yukikami. He's been watching her covertly. It's also clear that Nahiro called you here with a specific purpose in mind. Not that it matters to you. You decide to do something a little daring where prying eyes can't see—and slip your hand beneath her blouse…]
Someone was watching Nahiro?
Interesting.
Riku leaned in close, bringing his lips to her ear.
Under the dappled shadows of the trees and the soft glow of the streetlights, he gently caught her earlobe between his teeth.
At that moment, the last traces of sunset faded from the sky. Darkness swallowed the horizon, and the moon rose high above. Beneath the pale light of the lamppost, Nahiro's face flushed a deep, vivid red—redder than any apple.
"If something's wrong," he murmured, "you can tell me anytime. I'm always here."
In the quiet stillness, something electric stirred in the air.
The [Shameless Pervert] title's ability activated.
Nahiro's heart began to pound—loud, fast, uncontrollable.
...
Behind a nearby tree, the man crushed a leaf in his fist, his face twisting with rage as he watched Riku lean so close to Nahiro's head.
She's his! Before marriage, no one was allowed to touch her!!
He hadn't even so much as held her hand himself.
When Riku lifted his gaze, his eyes swept briefly toward the man.
[You notice the man seems moderately agitated. You decide to take things a little further with Nahiro Yukikami.]
Riku smiled at Nahiro.
"Nahiro, do you know what interest is?"
"Interest…?"
"Mmph—~"
Before she could process the question, Riku closed the distance and pressed his lips to hers.
He parted her lips with ease, his tongue slipping inside, moving deliberately.
Nahiro's body went soft in his arms, her strength dissolving like morning frost under sunlight.
Then, just as quickly, he pulled back.
"That's the interest," he said casually. "For taking you to the hospital."
He watched the notification flicker across his vision.
Nahiro Yukikami, Affection: 80. (Note: You could probably go a little further with her.)
"YOU BASTARD! SHE'S MINE!!"
A furious roar shattered the moment.
The man who'd been hiding behind the tree finally snapped. He burst out from cover and charged at Riku with reckless speed, swinging a fist toward his face.
The punch was weak—pathetic, really.
Riku simply stepped back, dodging it with ease.
Then he drove his foot into the man's stomach.
The force sent the man flying a solid two meters through the air.
He hit the ground clutching his gut, his eyes bloodshot with fury.
"Nahiro Yukikami!" he spat. "Your duty is to marry me! Don't think for a second that some random—"
He didn't finish.
Riku's foot connected with his face—size 43 shoe meeting size 42 face in a brutal collision.
The man went flying backward again.
"Riku-kun!" Nahiro grabbed his arm.
The man tumbled across the ground a few times before glaring up at Riku with cold, venomous eyes.
"Nahiro Yukikami! You just wait! You'll pay for—"
"Wait for what?" Riku gently pried Nahiro's hand off his arm. "No need to wait. Let's settle this now."
He closed the distance in an instant, driving his fist into the man's stomach, then followed up with a relentless barrage of blows.
With the [Blonde Antagonist] system's enhancements to his stats, Riku's strength was just shy of a professional all-around athlete.
Against a weakling like this, it was barely even a fight.
After a thorough beating, the man curled into a ball, clutching his head and begging for mercy.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"
All his earlier bravado had evaporated. His body trembled uncontrollably.
Riku grabbed him by the collar and hauled him up.
"Start talking. What's going on here?"
The man's eyes darted away, his voice stammering as he spoke. He'd been thoroughly crushed under Riku's heel.
"I… I'm Yamashita Tōya. Nahiro Yukikami's Step-mother… she already sold their daughter to me."
"Sold her to you?"
"That's right…"
At the word sold , Nahiro's face went pale—first white as a sheet, then her eyes turned hollow, empty, like a doll's.
"Why?"
Yamashita Tōya hesitated, mumbling evasively.
Riku raised his fist again.
The man immediately started talking, words tumbling out in a panicked rush.
"Her stepmother's business failed! She came to me, and the price was her—I wanted Nahiro Yukikami. I paid one hundred million yen as the marriage payment. I gave it to her stepmother and father already."
He added quickly, almost whimpering, "Her father agreed to it too! Please, just stop hitting me! I haven't laid a hand on her. Not once."
A new notification appeared in Riku's mind.
[Poor Nahiro Yukikami. Sold off by her own mother. A fallen girl at the edge of despair—it's hard to imagine what would become of her without you stepping in. You decide to give her a proper life. Take her to live at your place. Pull her away from her cruel stepmother and the father who couldn't care less.]