"Shirakawa! This is not fair! Orikin is still the mastermind! How can you forgive her so easily with just a little self-harm!" 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

"Stick to your word, Shirakawa! You’re known for being trustworthy! It’s that reliability that made me want to share a place with you~"

"Ahhhh... Shirakawa! Give me back my leg... My thigh is still numb, come help me massage it..."

The slacker girl, afraid that Shirakawa Sawahei might go back on his word, frowned and immediately began pinching her neck. Despite the slight pain, it was far easier than facing Demon King Shirakawa head-on...

"Okay... Shirakawa, you see, this mark was left because of you... let’s just pretend nothing happened..."

Shirakawa Sawahei nodded lightly.

"Fine, nothing happened."

"Shirakawa..."

Tsukimi Sakurazawa murmured: "Why don’t you punish me like that when I make you angry... you old jerk... you obviously care about Orikin!"

He didn’t answer the whiny girl’s words, just went over to help her stand up.

"Alright, stop complaining... let’s go, I’ll take you home."

"You’re such a softie... hmph~"

The girl gently handed her hand over and grabbed her bag from the sofa in passing.

"I’ll take her back, you go start dinner, you can eat first."

"Okay okay... I’ll get it done..." The slacker girl nodded like a pecking chicken. It seemed she didn’t dare act up after provoking Demon King Shirakawa just now.

The soft sound of the door closing signaled the departure of Shirakawa Sawahei and Tsukimi as they chatted. Once the cute little Ise Yu confirmed they had gone far, she finally sighed in relief.

Phew... that was close, I almost thought I was done for... Thankfully, I managed to get Sakurazawa-san to probe Shirakawa’s limits this time... Otherwise, I’d be the one trapped in Shirakawa’s room... doing horse stance exercises!

So strange... I clearly saw him drink it all... why did he suddenly wake up?

Could it be... Shirakawa somehow knew I was going to make a move on him? Impossible... I didn’t leave any clues!

It must be the teammates’ fault. Next time... I’ll find someone more perfect...

How about Tachibana? With Shirakawa’s special treatment towards Tachibana, he’s bound not to act against her...

But... convincing Tachibana to join... that’s a challenge...

The cute little Ise Yu gently touched the hickey on her neck, her face thoughtful...

Meanwhile, the whiny girl being helped home couldn’t help but ask this question.

"Shirakawa... Orikin said you’d stay asleep for a while after getting drunk... how did you manage to catch both of us red-handed?"

Shirakawa Sawahei looked at her with disdain: "Why should I tell you, so you can be prepared next time?"

"I wouldn’t do anything ’ecchi’! I just got overwhelmed by curiosity for a moment! That’s why I teamed up with Orikin!"

"It’s all the fault of that damn desire, which devoured my sanity... and besides, Shirakawa, you’re at fault too!"

"What did I do wrong?"

"Your abs are too adorable! They’re soft and feel nice to touch! I couldn’t help but get curious..."

Shirakawa Sawahei: "..."

First time hearing someone describe abs as adorable... but it’s like how Neon people describe girls as cute when they’re pretty...

What’s the saying? Cute is the highest form of compliment.

"You were enjoying the feel, do you know how hard it was for me to suppress the urge to punch you?"

"Eh? So you were suppressing yourself too, Shirakawa? It must have been tough... remember to let it out."

"..."

"Ow ow ow... Shirakawa, let go... I said I’m not being reckless anymore... no more..."

"You can walk on your own now, stand up straight, don’t lean on me."

"Tch... oh oh, Shirakawa, I want to eat that..."

Upon hearing that, Shirakawa Sawahei glanced at the crepe shop and said considerately, "Then think about it while you’re walking."

"??? "

The two chatted idly all the way to the train station, where the whiny girl finally let go of Shirakawa Sawahei’s hand and bid him farewell.

"I’m going~ See you tomorrow, Shirakawa."

This time, unlike previous times, Shirakawa Sawahei stayed where he was for a moment, watching the whiny girl get on the train before turning to leave.

He quietly memorized the direction of Tsukimi Sakurazawa’s train, then pulled out his phone map, silently staring at several previously marked spots.

This weekend... should I take action...

When it came to matters concerning himself, Shirakawa Sawahei’s hesitation didn’t last long, and he quickly made a decision while dialing the number Tsukimi Yamadori had given him.

"Hello, is this the Tsukimi Family?"

...

The next day, the Calligraphy Club’s activities began as usual. The Black Hearted Lolita and Shirakawa were the first to arrive, but unfortunately, the club room was empty, with the president Tsukimi Sakurazawa appearing to be a little late, and Miss Tachibana was busy with her duty...

With no one else around, the Black Hearted Lolita let her true nature show.

"Pretty boy... did you get in touch with my teacher successfully?"

"Somewhat successful..."

"Hmph~ with me on the job, how could it fail? What did you ask him for help with?"

Shirakawa Sawahei looked at her with contempt: "Stop pretending, will you? With your small mind, you surely already asked Master Slatter and merely came to test me."

"You! Pretty boy! I just wanted to see if you were honest or not!"

After being exposed, the Black Hearted Lolita’s face flushed red with embarrassment, ready to pounce on him for a fierce battle, when footsteps suddenly sounded outside, halting her berserk transformation.

The slacker girl sneaked in from outside stealthily, covering her neck with her hands, shut the door warily, and asked, "Is anyone else in here..."

"No... Orikin... why are you covering your neck..."

Upon the mention of this, the cute little Ise Yu’s anger flared and she charged forward, grabbing Shirakawa Sawahei by the collar and lamented tearfully, "Shirakawa! You planned this, didn’t you! You planned it, didn’t you!"

"What are you talking about? I don’t know anything."

"Lies! You definitely planned it!"

"Orikin... please calm down... what do you mean ’planned’..."

The slacker girl’s eyes glistened with tears: "It’s all a trap... all a trap... Shirakawa punished me last night, making me give myself a hickey on my neck... I thought it was nothing, just cover it up and it’d be fine... but then..."

"On a video call at night, my mom saw the hickey... asked how it happened... I said I did it myself... Mom refused to believe me and demanded I do it again to show her..."

"At school the next day, classmates saw it... asked if I had a boyfriend... I said I did it myself! Even they didn’t believe me! They laughed, saying I was too shy!"

"So... what then..."

"So I had to demonstrate again on the spot..."

The cute little Ise Yu wiped away her tears and sighed: "When meeting friends from the Light Music Club... I was forced to perform it again... I don’t dare to attend club activities now..."

The slacker girl said, lowering her hands. Her fair neck bore several fresh hickeys, and Shirakawa Sawahei almost couldn’t hold back his laughter upon seeing them.

"???"

"You’re laughing!??"

Ise Yu Orikin, with tears in her eyes, held onto Shirakawa Sawahei’s hand and wouldn’t let go.

"I was wrong... Shirakawa, can I not have this punishment..."