"That really does suit your personality. Just don't sleep so soundly that you oversleep and forget school is starting."
Yukino Yukinoshita spoke calmly. Ever since she had confessed her feelings to Kotomi in the early hours of that morning, there had been far more amusement in her voice whenever she spoke to Kotomi. Compared to her former aloofness, the difference was gradually becoming more obvious.
"I won't, I won't. No matter how much I like sleeping in, I would never go that far." Kotomi Izumi waved her little hand as she defended herself.
Kotomi Izumi, Yui Yuigahama, and Yukino Yukinoshita chatted and laughed as they headed toward the station exit.
On the way, even Yui Yuigahama couldn't help asking curiously:
"Wow, Yukino, are you in an especially good mood today?"
Yui Yuigahama's question left Yukino Yukinoshita puzzled for a moment. She replied in confusion:
"Huh? I wouldn't say I'm in an especially good mood, but I suppose I'm doing fairly well. Why?"
"Hehe, it's nothing. I just suddenly noticed that you've smiled so many times today, Yukino, so I thought you must be in a good mood," Yui Yuigahama said honestly.
Would you still be happy for me if you knew I was in such a good mood because I successfully conveyed my feelings to Kotomi? You would probably want to kill me... Yukino Yukinoshita looked at Yui and instinctively thought to herself, while maintaining her calm tone aloud:
"Then I'll try to smile more often from now on."
"Exactly. You look really pretty when you smile, Yukino, so you should smile more," Yui Yuigahama said in wholehearted agreement.
A faint smile lingered at the corners of Yukino Yukinoshita's lips, while she thought, Once Kotomi officially becomes my girlfriend, I'll probably have a smile on my face every day... But when that happens, Yui, will you still think my smile is beautiful? In your eyes, my smile will probably become as loathsome as that of a demon from hell.
Kotomi Izumi looked at her phone while secretly listening to Yui and Yukino's conversation. As she listened, Kotomi couldn't help raising her eyebrows in confusion. She felt as though Yukino's words had contained a hidden meaning, but she couldn't immediately discern what Yukino had truly been trying to imply to Yui.
Hopefully, the hidden message Yukino was hinting at wasn't some kind of declaration of war against Yui. I still haven't figured out how to balance my relationships with Megumi, Yui, Kika, and Yukino. Please don't let another battlefield erupt.
These romantic battlefields have already been erupting far too frequently lately. At least give me a few days to rest!
Kotomi Izumi cried out inwardly. The more girlfriends she acquired, the more worried she became about romantic battlefields.
Kotomi wasn't afraid of romantic battlefields. From the moment she first decided to establish a harem, she had already prepared herself mentally to face them. Even after Megumi Kato had once come after her with a knife, she still hadn't abandoned the idea of creating a harem. Even so, she hoped the conflicts would erupt a little more slowly instead of occurring one after another.
It was like a boss battle. When facing a boss whose attacks were slow, even if each attack dealt tremendous damage, she would still have better than even odds of clearing the fight in a single life.
However, if the boss attacked rapidly and relentlessly, then even if she had prepared a strategy beforehand, her brain might still fail to keep up during the actual fight. She would panic, fumble around, and ultimately get killed by the boss, leaving a single line of text floating before her eyes—YOU DIED.
Still, now that I think about it carefully, Yukino probably wouldn't voluntarily tell Yui, "Kotomi is going to accept my confession." With Yukino's aloof personality, she definitely wouldn't bring it up unless Yui asked.
And Yui listens to me so obediently that she would never tell anyone we're dating. Therefore, Yukino can't possibly know that Yui and I are together.
Yukino doesn't know Yui and I are dating, while Yui doesn't know that I accepted Yukino's confession in the early hours of this morning while she was asleep.
Mm... I can't say I accepted it completely. After all, I still haven't given Yukino a formal answer, and Yukino and I are still only friends.
In any case, Yukino and Yui are both unaware of the situation. Since neither of them knows, how could people with their personalities possibly bring up romantic topics of their own accord? Even less likely would they discover that I'm dating both of them at once.
After reaching this point in her thoughts, Kotomi Izumi immediately felt much more confident. She suddenly realized that maintaining balance and peace among her girlfriends didn't seem particularly difficult after all.
The key to avoiding romantic battlefields was that unless absolutely necessary, she could never allow two queens to meet!
Once she established that core principle, the path toward solving the problem became much clearer. After returning home, she would refine a few details and formulate a complete plan in advance, just in case... Thinking this, Kotomi Izumi leisurely arrived at the station exit.
Just as Kotomi Izumi was about to leave the station, her conversation with Iroha Isshiki the previous night suddenly flashed through her mind.
That little devil told me to pay more attention to my surroundings when I walked out of the station because there might be a surprise waiting for me. Could there really be some kind of surprise? She's probably just teasing me again... As Kotomi Izumi thought this, she instinctively started to tug at the corners of her lips while stepping out through the station exit.
The moment she left the station, a gentle breeze swept past. Kotomi Izumi's beautiful eyes widened slightly at the wonderful sight that appeared before her.
Perhaps because the scenery before her was so beautiful, Kotomi Izumi didn't feel cold at all despite the breeze blowing past.
Kotomi Izumi had once said that Iroha Isshiki seemed to be composed of every beautiful thing in the world.
To Kotomi Izumi, the most beautiful sight in existence was Iroha Isshiki appearing within her field of vision.
Kotomi had always believed she wasn't a tsundere, but she actually was a little tsundere. Otherwise, after all this time, she wouldn't still have refused to acknowledge the feelings she harbored for Iroha Isshiki.
With pale orange hair draped over her shoulders and brown eyes, Iroha Isshiki wore a mocha-brown long coat. The curves of her chest had already begun to take shape, while beneath her moderately short skirt were black ankle socks and a pair of white sneakers. She stood a short distance away, smiling as she met Kotomi's gaze.
Her appearance was simple, yet she constantly drew Kotomi Izumi's attention, making it nearly impossible for Kotomi to look away.
Iroha Isshiki stood not far away. As the wind swept past, pale orange strands of hair gently brushed against her face, while her coat and skirt fluttered softly.
Graceful and enchanting.
She resembled a beautiful, vivid flower that adorned Kotomi Izumi's entire morning.
An indescribable emotion filled Kotomi Izumi's heart, surging and lingering within her!
For one instant, Kotomi Izumi truly wanted to break into a run, race over to Iroha Isshiki, and reach out to pull the little devil who constantly tugged at her heartstrings into her arms.
Iroha Isshiki gazed at Kotomi Izumi with a smile brimming in her eyes. Her eyes glittered as though they could speak, as though they were telling Kotomi, 'Surprised, Senpai? I came to pick you up!'
Kotomi Izumi wanted to stubbornly look away, but both her gaze and her heart were far too honest. Neither wanted to move.
"Kotomi, what's wrong?" Yui Yuigahama looked at Kotomi Izumi in confusion, unable to understand why she had suddenly stopped walking.
Yukino Yukinoshita also looked at Kotomi Izumi questioningly, unable to understand why Kotomi, who had been perfectly normal moments earlier, had suddenly frozen as though someone had pressed a pause button.
Before Kotomi Izumi could respond to Yukino and Yui's confusion, Yukino had already followed the direction of Kotomi's gaze and spotted Iroha Isshiki.
Yukino Yukinoshita and Yui Yuigahama had both met Iroha Isshiki during the cultural festival, so they naturally recognized her. Both of them were somewhat surprised to see her there.
"Why is Iroha waiting for us here?" Yui Yuigahama asked in confusion.
Yukino Yukinoshita turned directly toward Kotomi Izumi and asked:
"Does she live in Tokyo?"
It wasn't that Yukino Yukinoshita was overly sensitive or prone to imagining things. After the way Kotomi Izumi had reacted upon seeing Iroha Isshiki, how could Yukino possibly keep herself from overthinking the situation?
Although Yukino Yukinoshita wasn't completely certain, she couldn't shake the feeling that Iroha Isshiki's gaze toward Kotomi seemed to be expressing affection.
Having Yui Yuigahama as a romantic rival was already enough to give Yukino a headache. She certainly didn't want yet another rival to appear.
Hopefully, they're merely senpai and kouhai... Yukino Yukinoshita looked from Kotomi Izumi to Iroha Isshiki in the distance and thought somewhat gloomily.
When they met during the cultural festival, she had also learned that Iroha Isshiki intended to apply to Sobu High School after graduating from middle school.
Kotomi Izumi finally returned to her senses and said awkwardly:
"Uh, the reason Iroha is waiting here for me... Ahem, we..."
Kotomi Izumi had nearly blurted out the truth without thinking—that Iroha Isshiki had probably come to pick her up.
However, she reconsidered. Yui was her girlfriend, while she and Yukino were currently more than friends but not yet lovers. If Yukino and Yui discovered the ambiguity between her and Iroha right now, Kotomi Izumi truly wouldn't know how to explain it.
Before Kotomi Izumi could think of a suitable explanation, Iroha Isshiki walked over openly and confidently, greeting Kotomi with a smile:
"Good morning, Senpai!"
"G-Good morning."
Kotomi Izumi smiled helplessly. Only then did she understand what Iroha had meant the previous night when she said there might be a surprise waiting for her after she left the station.
At that thought, Kotomi Izumi first sighed inwardly, but then felt tremendously happy. She really liked the little surprise Iroha Isshiki had prepared for her.
The last time Kotomi returned from Kyoto, Iroha Isshiki had also ridden a small electric scooter to pick her up.
Kotomi Izumi didn't know whether it was merely an illusion produced by her feelings in that moment, but these two experiences had both given her the same sensation.
Whenever she walked out of a station and saw Iroha Isshiki waiting there to pick her up, a reassuring feeling of 'I'm home' would well up inside her.
It was almost as though Kotomi Izumi had already begun regarding Iroha Isshiki as her wife.
When Kotomi Izumi realized what she was thinking, her cheeks grew slightly warm. She hurriedly buried the thought in the deepest part of her heart, intending to let it resurface only when she was alone so she could slowly savor it.
Likewise, she had no intention of telling anyone about the idea. If Megumi Kato and the others found out, a romantic battlefield would certainly erupt. The only question was how severe it would become.
And if Iroha Isshiki found out, that little devil would definitely devise countless ways to tease her.
Perhaps it was the competitiveness in her heart that always made Kotomi Izumi instinctively wonder whether that little devil Iroha Isshiki was about to tease her again.
After greeting Kotomi Izumi, Iroha Isshiki politely turned toward Yukino Yukinoshita and Yui Yuigahama and said with a smile:
"Good morning, Yukinoshita-senpai, Yuigahama-senpai."
"H-Hello."
Yui Yuigahama hurriedly nodded as she replied. Faced with the cheerful and confident Iroha Isshiki, she felt an indescribable sense of inferiority.
That sense of inferiority made even Yui Yuigahama's speech halting and uncertain at that moment.
"Good morning. It really is cold today."
Yukino Yukinoshita spoke slowly in her usual icy tone. After exchanging a simple greeting, she began asking bluntly:
"Isshiki-san, may I ask you a question?"
!!!
For some reason, Yukino Yukinoshita's words made Kotomi Izumi involuntarily nervous.
"Of course, Yukinoshita-senpai. Please go ahead. As long as I know the answer."
Iroha Isshiki calmly faced Yukino Yukinoshita's frosty questioning.
"Does your family live in Tokyo? Why are you here?" Yukino Yukinoshita asked the question she most wanted answered at that moment.
It was also the question Yui Yuigahama most wanted answered.
Both Yukino and Yui could more or less sense that Iroha Isshiki had most likely appeared at the station entrance to wait for Kotomi Izumi.
When Kotomi Izumi had previously introduced Iroha Isshiki, she had said that Iroha was Aimi Izumi's best friend.
Had Iroha accompanied Aimi to the station to pick up Kotomi, then her presence would have been perfectly reasonable. The problem was that Aimi wasn't there. Iroha Isshiki had come alone.
That inevitably made Yukino and Yui wonder whether Kotomi and Iroha's relationship was truly as simple as Kotomi had described.
Had Kotomi Izumi failed to understand why Yukino Yukinoshita was asking that question, she wouldn't have been Kotomi Izumi. A nervous expression immediately appeared on Kotomi's little face. Yukino and Yui had begun treating Iroha as a romantic rival!
Kotomi Izumi wanted to refute them loudly:
"I'm Aimi's older sister, and she's Aimi's best friend. There is absolutely nothing improper between Iroha and me!!!"
However, she lacked the confidence to say it...
Just as Kotomi Izumi prepared to use her ultimate technique—seamlessly changing the subject and shifting the conversation elsewhere—Iroha Isshiki openly and modestly answered Yukino Yukinoshita's question:
"It seems I failed to introduce myself properly when we met last time, which left you confused, Yukinoshita-senpai. I'm very sorry. My family lives in Chiba City. The reason I came to Tokyo today is because—"
At that point, Iroha Isshiki walked over to Kotomi Izumi and gently grasped her sleeve with one small hand. She raised her head to look at Kotomi Izumi's profile, her gaze soft and smiling as she said:
"Senpai told me last night that she would arrive in Tokyo this morning. I missed her so much that I asked my mother to drive me to Tokyo's Shinkansen station to pick her up."
With the fingers of her other hand, Iroha Isshiki tucked the pale orange strands of hair the wind had blown across her cheek behind her ear. She looked at Yukino Yukinoshita with a confidence that was in no way inferior to Yukino's and said:
"Yukinoshita-senpai, does that answer your question?"
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