Tokyo landlord: why is the panties of the lady next door in my house?!

In moments of excessive tension, people's palms tend to sweat.

So, it should be normal for Haruka Yuzan's fingers to be damp...

Yeah, I can understand that.

Anyway, Haruka Yuzan felt that it was something understandable.

He wiped his fingers on the hem of the girl's skirt, ignoring her resentful little eyes puffed up with grievance, and leisurely rubbed the little head resting on his shoulder:

"Yumeko, when did you wake up?"

If Miss Otome hadn't suddenly appeared, Haruka Yuzan even thought he could have gone a step further today.

Even if he couldn't get inside the house, wiping his shoes at the doorstep should be fine...

Unfortunately, there are no what-ifs.

But this was also something to be thankful for, thankfully Miss Otome was in a drunken state now. If she had found out while sober...

He would probably have had to use a "resurrection coin" today.

"Umm, I just woke up!"

Otome Mizuko muttered groggily.

The commotion just now seemed like a fleeting flash, just a moment, and then she was groggy again.

Clearly, Miss Otome had quite a bit to drink today.

"Haruka, I want a kiss too; you can't only kiss her!"

"Okay, okay, I'll kiss you too," Haruka Yuzan laughed and pecked twice at the corner of the mistress's mouth.

"No! You didn't kiss her like that just now!"

But who knew that Otome Mizuko, still unsatisfied, kept humming with desire.

"I want you to kiss me like you did her just now!"

It sounded very capricious, but... in reality, she was simply requesting a favor.

"Yumeko, don't make trouble, you need to be good and obedient."

Haruka Yuzan spoke to soothe the mistress.

If it were any other day, the mistress might have obediently listened to him, but today, having had a bit to drink, Otome Mizuko was clearly a lot more willful.

She was very much like a spoiled little girl.

"No, no! I want you to kiss me like that!!"

Chiba Shimizu wiped the saliva at the corners of her mouth and sat up with remarkable composure.

She straightened out her skirt hem and quietly leaned to one side.

The girl's face was classic in its beauty, as she embraced her knees and gazed up at the crescent moon that had just emerged.

The pure moonlight shone upon her, and within her serene eyes, there wasn't the slightest ripple.

A touch of cold, lonely air spread around her, making everyone's mood feel somewhat stifled.

It was an indescribable feeling.

At times, even Haruka Yuzan doubted whether Chiba-san had really had too much to drink tonight.

After calming down the mistress in his arms, Haruka Yuzan sat next to the girl.

"It's a bit cold tonight, be careful not to catch a chill," he said, and then covered her with a blanket he had grabbed without thinking.

Chiba Shimizu lifted her gaze, glanced at Otome Mizuko leaning against Haruka Yuzan who had fallen back into sleep, and after sharing a portion of the blanket with her, she slowly began to speak:

"Have you ever thought that Yumeko might not have been drunk just now?"

The girl's voice was very cool and devoid of warmth, causing Haruka Yuzan to shiver uncontrollably.

However, he glanced at the mistress on him.

Her fair face slightly sunken, and that little red mouth muttering in her sleep.

From time to time letting out a cute murmur—undoubtedly, the mistress was truly beautiful when quiet.

Haruka Yuzan chuckled:

"How could that be possible? If Yumeko hadn't been drunk, wouldn't that have been a disaster just now?"

Chiba Shimizu gave him a look but said nothing.

Leaning against the wall, Haruka Yuzan followed the girl's example and looked up at the night sky, as the dark clouds gradually dispersed to reveal the bright crescent moon:

"Time flies so fast; before you know it, it will be autumn."

"Mm." Chiba Shimizu nodded in agreement.

"I remember when you first ran away from home, and it turned out that the landlord for the online rental was me."

Haruka Yuzan let out a light laugh as though reminiscing about that lovely afternoon.

"When I got home from school, I really thought you were stalking me!"

"I think you're overthinking it."

Chiba Shimizu gave him an unamused look in response to his male vanity, but to her, that journey was indeed spectacular.

With that thought, a tender smile crept onto the girl's lips:

"But, it was indeed fate."

"More than just fate! It was a journey worthy of being written into a light novel!!" Haruka Yuzan exclaimed with a laugh.

"I remember our first collaboration was to help Sister Reiko fulfill her wish. Back then, it seemed like it was the first time Chiba-san, you lied!"

"That was a white lie."

Chiba Shimizu spoke calmly.

"Yes, and then we planned the café together, rented a house together, together..."

Misty memories from the past swirled up in his mind, every little bit as vivid as if they had happened just yesterday.

Mid-sentence, Haruka Yuzan turned his head to look at the girl beside him.

Just at that moment, Chiba Shimizu also turned to face him.

And in that instant, they looked into each other's eyes.

"Chiba-san, you're so beautiful..."

Under the moonlight.

The silhouette of the three of them grew increasingly hazy, and one could vaguely make out that Otome Mizuko was curled up in Haruka Yuzan's embrace.

Meanwhile, the boy and the girl next to him began to kiss.

The romantic scene made one's heart skip a beat.

......

Two days later.

The easygoing country life was inevitably drawing to a close.

The group packed up all their belongings, ready to head back to Tokyo.