After Haruno left, the room returned to just Roland and Yukio.
They remained leaning against the headboard side by side, their bodies pressed tightly together.
The soft sensation of her body against his arm filled Roland with a sense of comfort, but also an overwhelming urge to stay like this forever.
He had been physically close to Aunt Yukio many tis before, but now that she was his target, his feelings toward her had begun to shift. He could no longer maintain his usual composure around her.
Now, he desperately wanted to lean further into her embrace, to wrap his arms around her mature, voluptuous figure, and greedily caress and savor the softness and warmth of her ripe body.
Roland had to admit, he might truly be growing lustful toward Yukio.
The proof was simple: when their eyes t, his gaze darted away guiltily, unable to hold her gaze.
Whether it was his imagination or not, Roland couldn’t shake the feeling that Yukio had also nervously averted her gaze when he looked at her.
Their eyes t briefly before both awkwardly looked away.
It seed neither of them could dismiss their earlier intimate hand-holding as re casual contact.
The thought made their faces flush again. Even Yukio’s mature complexion took on a faint blush. Her heart still hadn’t cald; Roland’s actions had shaken her deeply.
She was almost frightened. She realized she hadn’t disliked the contact at all, and even found her gaze toward Roland growing more tender.
Goodness... how much do I adore this child to indulge his transgressions so completely?
Yukio’s emotions were a tangled ss.
"Aunt Yukio, I should head over to Big sister Haruno’s now..." Roland leaned closer to Yukio, savoring her warmth for a mont longer, before reluctantly suggesting his departure.
After all, his stated purpose for being here was to et Haruno for a matchmaking arrangent. Lingering too long with Yukio might arouse suspicion and displeasure.
Though, considering Haruno had already witnessed them holding hands, he was likely under suspicion already...
"Alright, hurry along. Aunt is waiting for good news," Yukio said reluctantly, seemingly wanting to continue spending ti with Roland.
Even though their interactions were starting to make her feel a little embarrassed, her heart couldn’t lie. After that blatant confession—their intertwined fingers—her heart had been soaring, whether she admitted it or not.
She couldn’t resist reaching out to caress Roland’s cheek, her eyes brimming with affection. She wondered how much of that affection was familial and how much stemd from... other feelings.
Still, she was an elder, and Roland was about to beco her son-in-law. Surely those "other feelings" couldn’t possibly outweigh the familial ones...
...right?
Roland bid farewell to Yukio, reluctantly leaving her room. After composing himself, he hurried toward Haruno’s room.
Don’t ask him how he knew the layout so well; he’d been coming here to play since childhood.
Yukio’s room was the most familiar, followed by Haruno’s, and lastly Yuki’s.
Despite Yuki being closest to his age, he was most familiar with the eldest.
It seed his preference for older won wasn’t a recent developnt; he’d been this way since he was a kid!
Could it be that I’m the pervert all along?
"Big sister Haruno, I’m coming in," Roland announced, knocking on her door.
"Co in," Haruno’s voice replied from inside.
With permission granted, Roland pushed the door open without hesitation.
But before he could take two steps, he froze.
Haruno stood in the room, having removed her clothes and now clad only in lingerie. Over 90% of her skin was exposed, and she appeared to be in the middle of changing.
Upon closer reflection, Roland realized Haruno had changed out of the office outfit she’d worn during their last encounter. The tight blazer, pencil skirt, and that professional coolness were gone — replaced by sothing far more intimate, far more provocative.
She was standing in the room wearing black lingerie that looked custom-made to show off her figure — or maybe to tornt him. A sheer lace bra lifted her ample chest which loooks to closer to D-cups, the dark fabric barely concealing anything. Matching panties hugged her hips with scandalous precision, frad by thin garter straps that clipped to her black stockings.
Her long, jet-black hair spilled freely over her shoulders, its silky shine catching the light with every move she made. She had the poise of a model and the grace of soone who knew just how beautiful she was — that tiless, porcelain-skinned allure of a Japanese beauty.
Everything about her felt sharpened — the slight curve of her mouth, the glint in her dark eyes, the confidence in her posture.
It was the first ti Roland had seen her like this, truly stripped of the pretense of work or duty. And if her office attire had suited her...
This was sothing else entirely.
Roland silently gave her a ntal thumbs-up. Then another one, slower this ti — and with significantly more appreciation.
But none of that mattered. The real question was: why had Haruno let him barge in while she was changing?
"Um... isn’t this a bit awkward?" Roland froze in place, his eyes betraying him as he stole glances at Haruno’s alluring figure.
"What’s awkward about it? Didn’t you co here for a matchmaking eting? Can’t even look at your future wife’s body?" Haruno didn’t bother changing into casual clothes. She stood before him in her underwear, arms crossed over her chest, eager to see his reaction.
To Haruno, teasing her annoying little brother like Roland was all that mattered. Being seen in her underwear was a trivial matter, and she didn’t mind Roland admiring her figure at all.
Haruno was thoroughly enjoying Roland’s stunned expression, especially his eyes, which desperately wanted to look but didn’t dare to openly steal glances. It was truly delightful.
"But... we haven’t even agreed to this yet," Roland stamred, breaking into a cold sweat. "What if it doesn’t work out? Shouldn’t we wait until the match is confird before you make watch?"
"You have a point," Haruno replied, her eyes narrowing slightly, a hint of a cold smile in her voice. "After all, soone seems to have their heart set on my mother. How could they possibly focus on this matchmaking with ? Wouldn’t you agree?"
Roland’s concern was valid. Failure was indeed possible. Anyone could see that he was far more enthusiastic about flirting with her mother than about this matchmaking with her.
Are you here to court my mother, or to court ?
You dragged all the way back here just to watch you hit on my mom?
"Uh..." Roland was speechless, caught off guard by Haruno’s question. It seed his earlier suspicions had been correct—that incident had indeed aroused her suspicions.
It was only natural. Aunt Yukio was Haruno’s own mother. It would be strange if she didn’t react at all to seeing her mother being intimate with her matchmaking partner.
"Um, about this... If I said it was an accident, would you believe , big sister Haruno?" Roland asked, his face as innocent as he could muster.
After all, he hadn’t exactly wanted things to turn out this way... Well, okay, he had wanted it.
But if the System hadn’t forced his hand, he wouldn’t have dared commit such an outrageous act, no matter how much he desired it.
So it wasn’t entirely his fault. It was all the System’s fault.
No, it was his damn mother’s fault!
"Don’t give that crap. What kind of ’accident’ leads to your fingers being intertwined?" Haruno’s icy gaze remained unwavering, refusing to believe his nonsense.
"Alright... There’s a deeper reason, but you probably wouldn’t believe even if I told you," Roland reluctantly surrendered.
"Tell ."
"If I said all of this was orchestrated by my mother, and I was forced to comply with her will, would you believe ?"
"So you’re saying even the matchmaking arrangent was your mother’s doing?"
"Yes."
"And you ca here against your will?"
"Yes."
"So you had no interest in this matchmaking at all?"
"Yes."
"Hmm?"
"Ahem... no, no, of course I’d be happy to be set up with big sister Haruno," Roland quickly explained, clearly afraid of upsetting her. "It’s just that, well, I’m only eighteen. Isn’t it a bit too early for to be arranged for a marriage? If my mother hadn’t forced , I definitely wouldn’t be here at this age. It has nothing to do with you, big sister Haruno—it’s purely a matter of age."
From their brief interaction, you’ve probably noticed how unpredictable this woman’s mood could be when she was around him.
When dealing with outsiders, Haruno would always put on a polite smile. Why was she so domineering with him?
Roland racked his brain. He couldn’t recall ever offending her. In fact, he rembered patting her head when they were children.
For a little girl, wouldn’t a head pat usually be a gesture that increased affection?
So why was Haruno so assertive specifically towards him?
Roland simply couldn’t figure it out.
"Fine, I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt this ti and assu your mother arranged all this," Haruno finally said, choosing to believe Roland’s flimsy excuse. "So, are you going through with this matchmaking or not?"
After all, Haruno couldn’t prove or disprove Roland’s claims. But given his long-standing reputation as an honest person, he likely wouldn’t have dared to act without a compelling reason.
So she decided to trust him this once, as she was currently more concerned about the arranged marriage.
Since this arranged marriage wasn’t Roland’s choice, should they even continue with it?
"Well, personally, I don’t want to get married so early, but I have to fulfill my mother’s request..." Roland said, clearly conflicted. It wasn’t that he disliked the idea of marrying Haruno.
To be fair, Haruno’s looks were undoubtedly top-tier among her peers. Roland had no reason to find her unattractive.
His concern stemd from her dominant personality. If they actually got married, he was certain he’d have no peace of mind.
At the very least, pets would be absolutely forbidden in their household. Otherwise, his position in the family hierarchy would surely fall below that of the pets.
In short, Roland was completely unprepared to live with Haruno.
Wait, what?
You’re asking why, if he was so afraid of Haruno, he didn’t choose Yuki as the official arranged marriage partner from the start?
Well... there were two reasons. First, his personal preference leaned more toward older won.
Second, he didn’t want to drag Yuki into this ss!
"I see. So you don’t want to go on blind dates, but you have to, right?" Haruno said after a mont’s thought.
"That’s about right," Roland nodded.
"Alright, I really don’t know what to do with you. In that case, I’ll pretend to be your girlfriend and put on a show for your mother. That should solve the problem, right?"
"Uh... yeah, that would be perfect. But why are you suddenly being so kind to help ? What’s in it for you?" Roland asked, clearly suspicious.
He was more than willing to accept Haruno’s proposal, but he never expected her to offer help, let alone take the initiative.
Could you believe that a proud and assertive woman like her would agree to fake a relationship?
It made no sense at all. Had Haruno rushed out so quickly that she got kicked in the head by a donkey dressed as a rabbit?
"What kind of talk is that? You’re practically my half-brother. Does my concern for you always have to be for personal gain?" Haruno glared at him irritably, then drawled, "Besides~, my mother also wants you to stay. If the blind date fails, I’ll have a hard ti explaining it."
Roland: "..."
I almost believed your nonsense. Clearly, the second half of that sentence was the real reason!
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