CH 33

“…Hmm?”

“What’s wrong?”

“Well… I just felt like something incredibly pleasant happened, but at the same time, it didn’t.”

“Are you okay? Come, Touma-kun, I’ll hug you, so come here.”

No, no, I don’t want you to worry about me like I’m seriously ill!

I told Shirayuki that I’m okay, but she still seems to want to offer comfort and keeps waiting with her arms open.

“… Alright.”

Since Shirayuki would never back down in a situation like this, I didn’t hug her back…instead, I surprised her by pulling her close to me.

Shirayuki seemed surprised at first, but soon relaxed and we remained huddled together for some time.

“So, what’s the pleasant thing you felt?”

“Um… it’s a kind of sensory issue. That’s why I don’t really understand it.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

I chuckled along with Shirayuki.

Honestly, I didn’t even know why I was thinking such a thing… It felt like something satisfying was happening, not as Touma, but as Arashi, in the present moment.

“Well, maybe it’s more likely that there’s nothing to worry about, Shirayuki.”

“Hmm… but somehow, I think I understand what you mean.”

“Huh?”

After a moment’s thought, Shirayuki moved away from me and spoke.

“It’s like Mom is enjoying something… I sense it. Just like Touma-kun, I don’t know what it is either.”

“Really? Well, let’s ask her about it when she gets home today.”

If something did happen, I’ll have her tell me too.

We spent the rest of our lunch break like that, but there was something I wanted to ask Shirayuki.

“Shirayuki.”

“What is it?”

“We’re not really dating, are we?”

“That’s…true.”

It’s true that Shirayuki and Hisui and I all had feelings for each other and went as far as having physical intimacy, but we don’t have a clear boyfriend-girlfriend type of relationship.

Well, we do think about each other a lot, but it’s definitely an ambiguous relationship.

“Isn’t it unnecessary to worry about that? At the point where you’re involved with both me and my mother, it’s already a different kind of relationship… Besides, we already have a deep enough relationship that goes beyond being lovers― My mother and I won’t let go of Touma-kun, and Touma-kun won’t leave us either, right?”

“Well, that’s true.”

“Then we’re already past the point of being just lovers. We’ve promised to be by each other’s side until we die.”

I felt the weight of her words, but I also felt my cheeks loosen. I realized that I truly loved the yandere side of her.

“Hold on a sec…”

As we leisurely gazed into each other’s eyes, Shirayuki’s phone rang. I thought it might be Yosuke again, but it turned out to be Hisui.

“Hello… yes… huh? Oh, I see… Yes… yes.”

I was curious about the conversation since Shirayuki kept glancing at me, but I didn’t want to interrupt, so I just watched and waited for her to finish the call.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Touma-kun.”

“Yeah?”

“Are you planning to move out?”

“…Huh?”

It was a sudden suggestion.

Moving out meant moving out of that apartment, but why would she bring that up all of a sudden?

“Well, let me explain first,”

Shirayuki said, and she proceeded to tell me what the call with Hisui was about. It was a surprising revelation, but it also answered the feeling of relief I had earlier.

“Wow… I didn’t expect that,”

I said, realizing that Hisui had met with her father today for work.

I knew from Arashi’s memory that his father worked for a major corporation, but I never thought that Hisui and him would meet through work connections.

“Regarding Touma-kun… in this case, let’s call him Arashi-kun. It seems that Arashi-kun’s father and the president of his company visited for an unmissable contract. As far as Mom was concerned, the contents didn’t matter, but she apparently took advantage of the situation.”

It seemed that my existence was what she took advantage of.

Despite it being a contract between companies, from Hisui’s perspective, a company that mistreats its employees, especially its children, cannot be trusted… not just that, but it seemed that she hit a sore spot that even the president, who could be considered untouchable, was unaware of.

Given her position, Hisui was overwhelmingly in control, so the president couldn’t even interject.

“As for Touma-kun, it was an after-the-fact report, but we knew for a long time that you didn’t have any particular feelings towards your current family. In exchange for signing the contract, Mom personally warned your father not to cause any trouble.”

“Wow…”

I was surprised to learn that Hisui had been working behind the scenes.

However, it seemed that this was not the only thing she had done.

Shirayuki had more to say.

“Should I tell you more? Mom has connections that are too extensive, so there is no information that we cannot gather. Apparently, she found some irregularities that cannot be made public… and, well, she used tremendous threats to resolve the situation.”

Shirayuki said this with a smile, which reminded me of Hisui’s terrifying side that I occasionally sensed.

Even though it was not something that should be conveyed so lightly, her smile conveyed a sense of calmness.

“Regarding your father, he must be in a state of confusion and distress, but for now, the parent-child relationship will continue. However, when the time comes, Mom has also made a request to take you in as an adopted child.”

“Is it really necessary to go that far?”

“Yes. We’ve come this far without telling Touma-kun, but… judging from your expression, you don’t seem to care much about your current family, do you?”

I was quite surprised, to be honest.

As for my family, I didn’t really care, so I was just staring with my mouth open, but I nodded at her words.

“There are still various preparations to be made, but it has been decided that you will come here in the future.”

“…I see.”

“So now, you can’t run away, okay?”

She leaned in closer and said that, and even though I was overwhelmed, I was still happy to be thought of in that way.

Hisui had told me beforehand that adults have their own ways of doing things.

Hisui, as a mother, of course had compassion, but it was because of her position and status that she could do so many things, and even things that were easily talked about in the game showed just how amazing she really was.

In a good way, she was a truly fearsome woman.

“So, does that mean I’m moving?”

“Well… yes…”

“I don’t mind.”

“…I see. Arashi’s father was in a panic, but he didn’t complain about letting you go— in other words, he really thinks you’re a hindrance to him, even if he’s cornered like that.”

“I see… yeah, I’m not sad at all.”

I wasn’t sad at all.

At this point, there would be no family coming closer to me, including my father… so maybe it was okay to just agree to this proposal.

“…Is it okay?”

“Of course. Please come with me right now—to our own world.”

Her words were so strong and resolute that I nodded.