His words made it sound as if Yuu was the root cause of everything.
...Making it impossible for her to refute at all.
"So, next, I plan to gather everyone, speak Openly and Honestly, and only then think about ways to restore the lost feelings and memories."
Clearing his throat twice, he quickly shifted the topic back to the right track. Yuu said seriously: "In the past, I thought this was an excessive action, letting you all be alone and stay away from me was the best choice for you."
"However, after experiencing many things, plus I promised... Yukino, to restore yesterday's Yukino as soon as possible, and I won't make any decisions on behalf of you amnesiacs."
Even though this was just Patching Up the Deficiencies That Occurred, even though it would make those who hadn't recovered their memories feel extremely confused, this was what Yuu wanted to do and had to do now.
Nevertheless, considering Haruno's feelings, Yuu still hesitated when saying that he was ultimately motivated by Yukino's urging to make the decision, and finally chose to Be Open and Honest.
Because this was something that ultimately had to be known, hiding and evading it now was completely meaningless.
Only Honesty was the Medicine to Resolve Everything.
The facts proved that his worries might have been excessive—after listening to his words calmly, Haruno's expression didn't change much, and there was even a kind of helplessness as if she had already expected it.
"Alright, whatever you want to do now, I won't stop you anymore... Seeing my boyfriend Being Sweet to other girls is far better than being hated and avoided because I become the villain."
Yuu couldn't say much about her feelings. He could only guarantee: "I'll accept all dissatisfaction. As long as you still love me, I'll never hate you."
Haruno waved her hand, with a casual attitude: "Forget those empty words. Don't misunderstand, I'm not saying the opposite, I just don't see the need to care about this."
"After all, where there's one, there's two. Where there's two, there's three... During the memory recovery period, I've already felt all kinds of the most painful emotions. Now, it's just adding one more girlfriend, and you want to expand the harem size in front of me. Of course, that's nothing for Haruno-chan who's Immune to All Poisons~"
"If it's really nothing, why are you speaking in that Full of Sarcasm tone now..."
"I'm dissatisfied thinking about the different treatment between me and Yukino-chan, is there a problem?"
"Of course there's no problem."
Yuu sighed, and suddenly hugged her.
Haruno didn't return the hug, just standing in place like a statue, tilting her head slightly in confusion: "What's wrong? I already said I don't need your consolation. It's enough for me to complain a little, this isn't a big deal."
"I'm not consoling you, I'm using you to console the guilt in my heart."
Speaking in a matter-of-fact tone, Yuu stroked her back, his fingers touching her soft short hair, with a gentle touch as if seeping into the skin.
Haruno narrowed her eyes with a cold expression, seeming to want to say something mocking, but her slightly parted lips slowly softened into a small helpless laugh.
"Hah... It's amazing you can spout such Trash Talk. The old Yuu-chan has really gone far away."
"What can I do, the changes I've experienced are far more than you imagine." His hand slid down, holding her slender waist. His chin rested on her shoulder, and Yuu also laughed softly.
"I won't say the word sorry to you all either. I'm not an Always Bowing Official who's insincere just with words... Instead, I'll try my best to treat you well. No matter how much dissatisfaction you have, making you like this happy is a boyfriend's responsibility."
"Sounds like atonement." Haruno quipped flatly.
Yuu smiled bitterly: "I don't think so? It's just that if I don't even dare to take responsibility for what I've done in the past, then I'm truly worse than a Scoundrel."
"...Whatever, I already said, you have your principles, and I have my ways. No need to worry I'll hold a grudge over this trivial matter, after all, I'm an adult."
Haruno closed her eyes, slowly relaxing her entire body, leaning into his embrace without resistance and without pretense, rubbing her face against Yuu's chest, the hug that could make her feel the safest in the whole world.
Her voice was soft, yet carried a much more relaxed laugh: "I pray your Scoundrel Desires can last until the end."
"Prayer, huh..." Yuu murmured, then suddenly licked her slender, white, and elegant neck.
"Mmh!"
Her sensitive spot was suddenly attacked. A Coquettish Moan and Short Breath escaped unintentionally from her mouth.
Haruno unconsciously bit her lip, looking at him with slight surprise. Her limp body clung to Yuu's chest helplessly.
"W-Why did you suddenly attack me? That's cheating!"
The shy anger of a teenage girl only appeared for less than a second, and after realizing she had lost control, it was replaced by a calm and confident captivating gaze.
"Well, if you really want to get intimate, I don't mind doing it at the entrance, you know? But I'm afraid Sora-chan would object~"
Not responding to that sentence, Yuu suddenly pecked her lips, as if still unsatisfied and wanting to lick again, then said:
"This is the Taste of a Lie."
"What?"
Haruno was slightly confused, her brain not fully processing. She just felt her body hot, and the wet mark on her neck sent a ticklish sensation.
Yuu realized first and smiled at her: "It's nothing, just that your acting won't fool me. On the surface, you pretend not to care, but actually in your heart, you can't accept it, you want to eliminate everyone to monopolize me alone, right?"
"How did you know?" Slightly stiff in place, Haruno blinked with slight panic and confusion.
"You can think of it as a kind of Stand... or special ability."
Like treating a child, Yuu rubbed the back of Haruno's head.
"Don't worry, I can't read minds, and I can't guess everything in your head... It's just that right now, I want to know if you're forcing yourself."
Thanks to the first function, the passive one, of Lie Detection, although he could hear that Haruno was full of lies earlier, he didn't know her true intentions in her heart, and what he should do to comfort her.
Fortunately, there was the second function that could be used actively—as long as he licked the target's skin while they were lying, he could know the thing they most wanted to hide.
The facts proved that the system's gift was never wrong. Yuu learned that behind Haruno's relaxed and calm expression, there was hidden an idea that had already formed into Initial Yandere Shape.
Although Yuu felt guilty for reading someone's mind without permission, he wouldn't Dismiss it. At most, he would reduce the frequency of use out of respect—as long as it was within legal bounds, he always used all available conditions.
Thanks to this, he could act in time now.
"I haven't contacted anyone yet, we should postpone it by one day."
Pulling a little distance between them, Yuu looked into her ruby-red yet deep eyes, and said Calmly and Firmly.
"Today, I don't care about anyone. Phone turned off immediately. Sharing information or restoring memories, all set aside. Nothing is more important than you right now—So Haruno, can you allow me to monopolize your time on this Christmas Day?"