"Sit here?"
Takashi glanced toward the audience seats of Shuchiin.
Maki ignored him outright. Nagisa smiled with harmless innocence.
Kaguya's gaze was icy. Tsubame kept sneaking glances at him.
Kei looked indifferent. Chika wore a friendly smile, while Miko looked at him thoughtfully.
As for the boys led by Shirogane Miyuki—well, no need to even mention them.
After scanning the crowd, Takashi had only one thought: "I absolutely cannot stay here."
If there were tiers to love triangles, then Shuchiin would be at least SS-rank.
It was a danger zone Takashi absolutely did not want to enter.
"This doesn't seem appropriate… Aoba and Shuchiin are rivals after all. And my schoolmates are all watching."
He gave an awkward laugh and pointed toward the Aoba audience section.
At some point, the Aoba cheer squad had stopped performing.
Led by Furumaki Ayami, the Aoba students were glaring daggers at him. Their eyes were far from friendly—more like burning with fury.
Their silent stares pierced through the air, almost screaming: "We are ready to fight to the death—why has our king surrendered before the battle even begins?!"
"So what?" said Ryuju Momo indifferently, then smiled sweetly.
"Besides, weren't you the one giving me those pitiful eyes just now? Weren't you trying to sit next to me?"
Takashi: "?"
He had to admit, he had winked at Ryuju Momo just now.
But… Did that really mean he wanted to sit next to her?
That's one hell of a misunderstanding.
"Shameless. He was clearly winking at me."
Nagisa scoffed in her heart.
"Senpai was obviously saying hi to me."
Thanks to some nonsense from Moeha, Kei was now convinced Takashi had come for her.
"What a narcissist. That wink was clearly meant for me."
Kaguya was suddenly annoyed by Momo.
"Huh? So it wasn't meant for me?"
Tsubame felt a wave of relief—and an unexpected pang of disappointment.
"Um… The guys from your school don't look too happy with me. If I sit here, I'm probably getting beat up."
Takashi wasn't sure what others thought of him.
But Shirogane Miyuki definitely wanted to beat him up.
Well, can you blame the guy? After all, his sweet little sister whom he raised with care had been snatched away by Takashi.
If Takashi had a cute little sister like Kei, he wouldn't let a single blonde within a hundred meters of her. He'd shark them all on sight.
"Don't be afraid. I'll protect you."
Momo cast a casual glance toward the boys—instantly, all of them except Shirogane Miyuki averted their gazes.
On the list of "People You Absolutely Must Not Mess With" at Shuchiin, Momo was near the very top—probably top three.
Because her dad was basically a gangster, and he even owned a summoning device for his great-grandma.
You try reasoning with her, she just whips out the truth—right against your temple—and asks, "What did you say?"
"Um…" Takashi tried to say something, but Momo's expression turned cold in an instant.
"My leg's been up this whole time. It's getting tiring. How much longer do you expect me to hold it?"
Ignoring the furious glares from his fellow Aoba students, Takashi immediately sat down next to Momo.
Seeing him sit down, she gave a smug smile, like, "See? You're no match for me."
She lowered her long, shapely leg clad in black thigh-high socks, rested her elbow on her thigh, leaned her face on her palm, and smiled at the visibly uncomfortable Takashi without saying a word.
Takashi sat up straight, hands properly placed on his knees, the picture of a well-behaved elementary schooler, textbook posture and all.
He looked totally obedient on the outside, but in reality, his mind was racing: What the hell happened to Momo?
Last time they met, she hadn't acted anything like this.
"Wondering why I decided to keep you around?"
It was like Momo could read his mind, asking him with a smile.
"Uh, yeah."
"After we talked on the phone last time, I had someone look into you."
Takashi's face contorted with all sorts of expressions.
Seriously? Do all rich girls like snooping into people's backgrounds?
First Nagisa, and now you?
Figures—a school only produces one kind of person.
Can't people just trust each other a little more?
Did he look like some trashy guy?
He was just trying to make some quick cash while giving every lovely girl a warm and cozy home!
Takashi believed that a real man's duty was to let more girls feel love and warmth.
Every girl deserves to be loved.
And if no one else would love them, he could be the placeholder—until they found their true prince. Then, he'd quietly fade away.
What was wrong with that?
Shouldn't the ones at fault be guys like Aki Tomoya and Ito Makoto?
If they weren't so indecisive and greedy, trying to have it all, would he even have a chance to step in?
"I was originally thinking maybe you'd offended one of them. I thought I could mediate, help smooth things over."
Momo could clearly read every expression on Takashi's face.
She usually wasn't the type to explain herself.
She did whatever she pleased, never caring what others thought of her.
But with Takashi… it was different.
She didn't know why, but she cared what he thought.
Just like how she didn't understand why she agreed to let Takashi tour the school with her that day—when he shyly and nervously asked her—it was the same now.
Was Momo a warm-hearted person?
Answer: No.
Her father was an internationally wanted criminal, her mother the head of a domestic violent gang—growing up in that kind of family, how could Momo possibly be some saint?
If she really were that kind of person, she wouldn't have lived this long.
Momo had seen blood, had seen people die in front of her, had seen someone thrown into a steel barrel at a construction site, cement poured in, and the body sunk to the bottom of Tokyo Bay.
Someone like her should've told Takashi to get lost the moment he got close.
But she didn't. She even gave him a tour of the school.
The second time they met, she even lent him money.
Some friends know each other for years—ten, maybe more—and still wouldn't lend you money if you asked.
But she met Takashi twice, and she lent him money.
Even Momo herself found it hard to believe afterward.
She felt like she'd been hexed. She even went to consult a spiritual master to check if Takashi had done something to her.
Of course, that was something she would absolutely never tell Takashi.
That secret—she planned to take it to the grave.
"And guess what I found out in the end?"
The warmth in Momo's smile vanished instantly, and her gaze turned terrifying.
Takashi shuddered.
He definitely knew what Momo had found out.
Takashi sat ramrod straight, his back drenched in sweat.
His spine was like a ruler right now!
"I found out you were the one who made the first move on them."
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