Chapter 73
To be honest, the explanation Mineo was currently giving Utaha was closely tied to his special abilities. Between possessing a dimensional phone and owning a dimensional restaurant, stating that he had superpowers wasn't an exaggeration in the slightest.
In the future, even ascending to godhood wouldn't be out of the question. However, there was no need to burden Utaha with every complicated detail. As long as he could bring her happiness, that was enough.
After hearing Mineo's answer, Utaha's heart was thrown into a state of total upheaval. She never would have guessed that the "Mineo-sensei" who had chatted with her for three years—the man she had secretly fallen for—was actually such an extraordinary existence. Was this her very own fated encounter?
As a novelist, she certainly had a tendency to overthink things. But Utaha was a sharp girl; she knew that some questions didn't need to be pried into. As long as Mineo-sensei was appearing right there in front of her, did it really matter if he was a "human" or a "god"?
Utaha bit her lower lip gently, and a moment later, a faint smile played across her lips.
"I have to admit, Sensei's words have left me completely shaken!"
"I... I never imagined that the Mineo-sensei who chatted with me and guided my writing for the past three years would have such an incredible background!"
"But Sensei, may I ask one thing? Just out of curiosity."
"What is it?"
"That pen name, 'Successor of Harem Ideology'... did you actually use it? Does an extraordinary being like yourself really enjoy writing and reading novels?"
"..."
Hearing Utaha's words, Mineo couldn't help but roll his eyes. He had several failed novels on the Webnovel platform under that very name—there was no way he hadn't used it!
Mineo looked at Utaha and spoke with a helpless sigh in his voice.
"Just because I have superpowers, does that mean I'm not allowed to have interests and hobbies? There's no law saying a superhuman can't write or read novels."
"It's just that my books weren't published online. Why the sudden interest in that, Utaha?"
"Because I'm curious about what Mineo-sensei does in his daily life..."
"Nothing special, really. I spend most of my time in this restaurant—cooking, reading, playing games, things like that. I also chat quite a bit with a group of good friends..."
"A group of good friends???"
At those words, a strange glint flashed in Utaha's eyes. A second later, she asked in a tone that was feigned indifference:
"Does Sensei have many 'good friends'? And let me guess... are they all girls?"
"My ability gives me the right to contact all sorts of worlds. Utaha, you're a novelist, so you must be familiar with the concept of parallel worlds."
"Aside from you, I've made friends in many other worlds. Every now and then, I invite them over to eat at my restaurant."
"And they aren't all girls. I have a few male friends too!"
"A few? That means the vast majority of Sensei's good friends are women! Let me guess again... are these girls all exceptionally beautiful?"
Utaha's gaze sharpened as she pinned it on Mineo.
"Does Mineo-sensei also think that one day, he can make them all members of his harem? In that case, have I been in your sights from the very beginning too?"
"..."
Mineo felt completely overwhelmed. This Kasumigaoka Utaha really was a novelist; her imagination was way too vivid. Back then, I thought you were all just heavy chuunibyou sufferers addicted to roleplaying as canon characters! Who knew Utaha was the real Utaha!!! Who knew the 2D phone was actually a 2D phone!!!
Seeing the piercing look Utaha was giving him, Mineo gave a resigned smile.
"Utaha, why would you think that?"
"I don't have those kinds of intentions at all! I sincerely think of you all as friends!"
"Sincerely think of us as friends, yet you never once hid your identity as the 'Successor of Harem Ideology'?"
Utaha flashed a meaningful smile. Under the dining table, her legs—clad in elegant black stockings—crossed over one another. She chuckled softly.
"At first, I thought that one day I would fix Sensei's misguided ideas and show you that 'pure love' is the only correct path."
"But now, knowing that Sensei is such a special existence, I suddenly don't know how to go about 'fixing' your way of thinking."
Truthfully, Utaha felt quite helpless! It was true that she liked Mineo, but she had always assumed Mineo-kun was just an ordinary guy from China.
Regardless of his nationality, she believed that as long as she could interact with him, she could eventually use her charms to turn Mineo into a devoted, one-woman man!
But now? Mineo-sensei wasn't ordinary! He was someone beyond the norm! How was she supposed to change him? She had originally wanted to ask, "If you want to build a harem, do you even have the capacity to manage it?" But now, could she really ask such a shallow, foolish question to someone who possessed "absurd abilities"? Superhumans in novels were all-powerful, weren't they?
Amidst the turmoil of Utaha's inner helplessness, Mineo looked at her curiously and asked:
"Utaha, you've asked a lot of things and I've answered them all!"
"Now, there's one thing I'm curious about too!"
"Even though we've known each other for over three years and chatted constantly, today is the first time we've physically met."
"When I appeared in front of you, how were you so sure I was Mineo?"
"Weren't you afraid I might be some human trafficker coming to kidnap you?"
Hearing his question, Utaha gave a faint, gentle smile.
"Does Sensei know about something called 'a woman's intuition'?"
"Your way of speaking is so familiar to my heart!"
"So, the moment you spoke your first sentence, I was already certain!"
"That you were Mineo-sensei!"
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