After Xiangzi died, I inherited her harem.

Page 52

With her worries finally put to rest, Chihaya Aine looked at the boy sitting opposite her and felt a little emotional.

"Oh? What do you mean?"

Hearing Chihaya Aine's seemingly random remark, Toyokawa Yuu was slightly taken aback, not understanding how she had come to that conclusion.

"Because when we first met, you didn't refuse the ice water I handed to Youyu, even though you looked really sleepy."

Chihaya Aine still remembers that Toyokawa Yuu told her that he had a psychological trauma and wouldn't eat food from strangers indiscriminately.

She had no reason to doubt this explanation; after all, there was no need to lie about such a matter.

However, there was something about this that she couldn't quite understand.

But when he heard that Yuu Toyokawa and Shoko Toyokawa were having breakfast together, his doubts were answered.

"That time before, did Youyu mistake me for Xiangzi?"

"Um...this..."

Without any malice, only a somewhat sentimental and smug conjecture, Toyokawa Yuu stood there stunned, unsure of how to respond.

He couldn't very well tell Chihaya Aine that he didn't have this psychological trauma back then.

Even if you have a good relationship, this isn't a secret that can be shared.

Chihaya Aine didn't take Toyokawa Yuu's silence to heart, but thought he might be a little embarrassed after she brought up the topic.

However, there are some things that can be done during this opportunity.

After all, we reached a strategic alliance last night, so we should be considered pretty good friends, right?

Chihaya Aine, with a smile, placed the slightly misty glass of water in front of Toyokawa Yuu, who seemed still lost in thought. She asked the waiter for another glass of iced water.

"Aine, what's wrong with you...?"

Looking at the ice water that Chihaya Aine had brought to her, Toyokawa Yuu was slightly taken aback, not understanding what this pink sun was planning to do.

"I don't know much about psychological trauma, but it's definitely not good to live your whole life with something like that. I should try to overcome it."

He took a sip of the water, leaving a little extra space in the glass, and held it in his other hand.

The newly served glass of ice water was tilted slightly, and a few drops of liquid were poured into the glass that was originally meant for me before being handed to Toyokawa Yuu.

"Since Yuyu can accept Xiangzi and even mistook me for her before, let's start by trying with me... It should be much easier if we've done something by accident before."

"Speak," Chihaya Aine said, bringing the slightly elevated glass of ice water in her hand to her lips and taking a big gulp.

【ha......】

A relaxed yawn escaped the girl's lips as Chihaya Aine cast an encouraging glance at Toyokawa Yuu, a smile on her face that seemed to dim the sun.

"See? Nothing will happen. Yuyu, why don't you try it now?"

Looking at the smile on Chihaya Aine's face, and then looking down at the icy water in front of her that was a bit lower, Toyokawa Yuu fell silent for a moment.

He never expected that Chihaya Aine would do such a thing.

Originally, he only wanted to express his gratitude for her tipping him off last night, so he paid the bill for the girl and didn't get up and leave immediately after Toyokawa Shoko left the coffee shop.

But now it seems like they've gotten themselves into quite a bit of trouble.

Bathed in the girl's encouraging gaze, warmer than the sun, Toyokawa Yuu opened her mouth, but the words she habitually wanted to say in response stuck in her throat.

She had indeed just drunk some alcohol, and they had just formed a strategic alliance. She still needed Chihaya Aine's help to monitor MyGO, especially Nagasaki Sase's situation...

With this thought in mind, Toyokawa Yuu hesitated for a long time before reaching for the water glass that Chihaya Aine had placed in front of her.

I got sick from staying up late, so I'm taking a day off.

I've been staying up all night lately, I think I'm sick. I'll take a day off to rest, and I'll update tomorrow noon or afternoon.

I'm sorry, I really can't take it anymore, I have a splitting headache.

Word count padding

Chapter 68 The Sun Is Setting (8k)

The morning of the day after Toyokawa Shoko's death.

.................................................. ...........................

Holding the ice water she had only taken a small sip of, a familiar dizzying sensation returned to Toyokawa Yuu's mind, a feeling she hadn't experienced in a long time.

The pink-haired girl's figure gradually became blurry, as if it were just a series of afterimages randomly piled up. Even the sounds that entered his ears turned into the indistinct sound of the wind.

“Great… Yuyu… Cheng… overcame…”

This feeling was similar to the one I had when I was poisoned by Nagasaki Saseyo, a successful man from a prestigious family, ten years later, in the reception room of the Toyokawa family mansion.

The sudden change made Yuu Toyokawa instinctively clench her water glass, her heart clenching as if it were being squeezed. Her expression became complicated, even confused, for a moment.

Looking at the pink-haired girl in front of him, whose image had been reduced to a blur and outline, Toyokawa Yuu couldn't understand why Chihaya Aine would do such a thing.

They were perfectly fine just a moment ago, even saying they'd help themselves overcome their psychological trauma, but why...?

However, Toyokawa Yuu quickly realized that this situation had nothing to do with the other party.

The excruciating pain of having my intestines ripped open did not come; apart from my vision and hearing becoming somewhat blurred, I felt no discomfort.

Chihaya Aine did nothing; she was simply releasing her pure goodwill. However, Toyokawa Yuu never expected that she would return to ten years in the future at this time.

For some reason, after confirming this, Toyokawa Yuu even felt somewhat relieved.

The dizziness came and went quickly; the distorted vision soon became clear, and the shrill screams and tinnitus echoing in my ears gradually disappeared.

When everything returned to normal, the elegantly decorated coffee shop had disappeared, replaced by a more elaborate and luxurious meeting room.

The ice water in the ordinary glass in my hand has been replaced by black tea served in an exquisite porcelain vessel.

The not-so-clear liquid reflected Toyokawa Yuu's face, which had matured considerably compared to the boy in the suit ten years ago.

Sitting across the table from him was no longer the pink sun, but a woman with long brown hair.

Nagasaki Sase...

Yuu Toyokawa looked at the woman sitting across the table from her. Her deep blue eyes seemed to be veiled by a layer of mist, making it impossible to discern her true thoughts.

But if you asked Toyokawa Yuu to guess, having already died once at the hands of the other party, he would never believe that the look in those eyes was goodwill toward a friend.

With a slight tightening of her grip on the cup, Toyokawa Yuu did not speak immediately, nor did she intend to bring the ceramic cup to her lips.

Although he did a lot of things this time he returned to ten years ago, Toyokawa Yuu was not sure how much he could change the woman in front of him who exuded a bland temperament just by sitting in her seat.

Providing concert tickets might be considered doing someone a favor, but at the time, my intentions weren't pure, and Toyokawa Yuu wasn't sure if she would still care about such a small favor ten years later.

Moreover, after that concert, in order to shut up, he agreed to all of Nagasaki Sose's accusations against Toyokawa Shoko.

Although one could easily understand that it was just an excuse if one thought about it carefully, after being poisoned once, Toyokawa Yuu no longer dared to trust the rationality of the woman in front of her.

Who knows, the seasoning I put in this cup might be even stronger than last time.

Not to mention, he had no idea what had happened in the past ten years.

Has Toyokawa Kiyoko successfully returned to the Toyokawa family?

Has there been any change in the cause of Toyokawa Shoko's death?

Did he "murder" Wakaba Mutsumi for the same reason Nagasaki Sase killed him last time?

With too many questions to answer, Toyokawa Yuu didn't even have much energy left to deal with the woman sitting across the table from her.

Even if, in theory, it was oneself who invited the other party here.

Don't you want to drink it...?

Seeing Toyokawa Yuu's hesitant gesture as he raised his glass, Nagasaki Sase, sitting across the table from him, pursed his lips slightly, his expression somewhat somber.

Although this is the Toyokawa family's residence, and theoretically I am the guest, I brewed this cup of tea myself.

"Yuu-kun, thank you for coming to see me today... This is Saki's favorite black tea, wouldn't you like to try some...?"

Nagasaki Sase tried to put on a smile, attempting to ease the somewhat stiff atmosphere in the reception room.

Logically speaking, the task of starting a conversation should have been the responsibility of Yuu Toyokawa, who invited her here. However, at this moment, Sosei Nagasaki could understand Yuu Toyokawa's silent and stiff demeanor.

After all, ever since he took the initiative to find out what was going on after that concert, but things went wrong and he made a mess of things, the two of them hadn't spoken to each other for the past ten years.

It seems that the other party is still holding a grudge against what they did to Xiao Mu.

"I'm sorry, Miss Nagasaki, I'm not in the mood for tea right now."

Setting the cup on the table, Toyokawa Yuu carefully examined Nagasaki Sase's face.

Her deep blue eyes obscured her thoughts, but her melancholic and indifferent face seemed to reveal a hint of guilt.

Guilt towards me?

The result of observing the expressions and demeanor flashed into Toyokawa Yuu's mind, but she rejected it in an instant.

This time, I didn't have much contact with Nagasaki Sase this time, so it shouldn't have caused such a big change in the other party's attitude towards me.

From harboring murderous intent to feeling guilty... Toyokawa Yuu found it hard to imagine what exactly happened during that time.

He preferred to believe that this was just Nagasaki Sosei's acting, just like the time before he poisoned him, when he remained impassive and showed no sign of murderous intent.

"Miss Nagasaki..."

Upon hearing this address, Nagasaki Sase's fingers, which were gripping the teacup, trembled, and the guilt on his face deepened.

"I'm sorry, I know you still blame me for what happened ten years ago. If I hadn't taken it upon myself to confront Xiao Mu, she probably wouldn't be like this now."

Nagasaki Sase turned his gaze toward the doorway, his azure eyes growing increasingly misty.

Following Nagasaki Sase's gaze, Toyokawa Yuu then realized that besides herself and the widowed noblewoman sitting across the table, there was another person in the reception room.

The woman with green hair and golden eyes stood by the door frame, her head slightly lowered and silent. Her golden eyes were indifferent as water, revealing no emotional fluctuations, like a golden doll.

He didn't show the same intense emotional fluctuations as Metis did when he was mourning in the funeral hall, as Yuu Toyokawa remembered. In fact, he seemed even more withdrawn than the Mutsuki Wakaba she knew ten years ago.

This is not Metis...

Yuu Toyokawa immediately made a judgment in his mind: he wouldn't fail to recognize someone who had killed him once.

Her brows furrowed unconsciously; Toyokawa Yuu sensed that something was wrong.

Ten years ago, I shouldn't have done anything that would have harmed Metis.

On the contrary, he had been subtly pressuring Ruo Ye Mu, trying to unleash Metis.

Toyokawa Yuu felt his mind was in a mess. He was certain that something had happened to Ruoye Mu that he was unaware of, and that it definitely involved more than just Metis.

If it were just Metis disappearing, and Ruoye Mutsu reverted to her former taciturn cucumber-like self, it would simply mean that Nagasaki Sōse would return to the familiar version of herself, and she would never put on such a regretful and sorrowful act.

Furthermore... he took it upon himself to confront Xiao Mu...

Yuu Toyokawa remembered that not long ago, when she met Chihaya Aine at the coffee shop, she had said something to her.

Soyorin is still a bit upset about what happened last night and said he'll find an opportunity to talk to Xiaomu about it...

Could something have happened that time...?

What exactly did Nagasaki Sasuke do to get rid of Metis, who had just made her debut at a concert and was clearly on the verge of disappearing?

Immediately, Yuu Toyokawa took out her phone and began searching for the name "Wakaba Mutsumi" online. However, the first thing that caught her eye was "Wakaba Takafumi," a comedy legend, who only mentioned in a small line that Wakaba Mutsumi was his daughter.

When she returned to ten years later, the newly crowned superstar she could still find had disappeared, replaced by a doll-like girl standing by the door frame.

The situation is getting more and more complicated...

He had anticipated that the time he spent in the past ten years this time would be longer than all his previous years combined, and that the resulting changes would be greater than ever before.

However, Toyokawa Yuu never imagined that things would change to this extent.

Metis, who could at least be considered to be in a neutral position, disappeared without a trace, replaced by Wakaba Mutsu, who was like a puppet, whose thoughts and stance were impossible to fathom.

Yuu Toyokawa frowned deeply, a complex emotion flashing in her eyes.

However, this complexity was interpreted in a different way by Nagasaki Sase.

Xiao Mu is not only Xiao Xiang's other half, but also an important guitarist for Ave Mujica.

It was my own overreaching that made Xiao Mu unable to withstand the pressure of the spotlight, unable to continue playing guitar on stage, leading to Ave Mujica's breakdown...

It wasn't until after Ave Mujica disbanded that Sase Nagasaki realized that the band wasn't some whimsical, emotional product, but rather the starting point for Shoko Toyokawa and Yuu Toyokawa to prove themselves and break free from family constraints.

Then, he was ruined by his own arrogance.

I bear an inescapable responsibility for this matter.