Being stared at like this by her, Fujiwara Reya instinctively straightened his back, sitting up like a child being scolded, while in his heart, he lanted that Asuka was really pitiable to be oppressed by such a sister every day at ho.
"By the way, how old are you?" After a while, Kasahara Fumi asked softly, "Seventeen?"
"Eight months shy of eighteen." Fujiwara Reya replied.
"Why did you co to Tokyo?"
"To rebuild Asakusa Shrine."
"And then?"
For a mont, Fujiwara Reya fell silent.
How should he put it?
He wasn’t sure either.
Kasahara Fumi picked up her cup and drank the pine nut wine inside while waiting for the answer.
"Probably, find soone to take my place," Fujiwara Reya answered, "or like my dad, have a son to inherit the shrine,"
"Your father?" Kasahara Fumi squinted her eyes and said.
"Yes," Fujiwara Reya replied, "a person who is gentle to the extre."
"That’s quite an extraordinary evaluation," Kasahara Fumi nodded, "I’d like to et him."
"You can’t see him for now," Fujiwara Reya shrugged, "none of my family is around, maybe my mom will co over next year, but other tis you won’t find them."
Kasahara Fumi pondered over the implications of his words, her eyebrows knitting in a neat knot.
Lightning flashed, and thunder rumbled in the distance.
After thinking for a while, she probably reached a conclusion and no longer dwelled on this matter, instead asking, "What are your intentions with getting close to Asuka?"
"That’s misleading," Fujiwara Reya solemnly corrected her, "it’s Asuka who got close to , not proactively, don’t push the responsibility onto , and don’t think about using this as a reason to ask for a refund."
"...You’re really sothing..."
Even soone as composed as Kasahara Fumi felt a bit of a headache at this mont.
"Why not clearly push her away?" she asked, resisting the urge to smash her cup.
Yeah.
Why indeed?
Fujiwara Reya asked himself in his heart.
A cheeky schoolgirl, framing with pantyhose, full of lively smiles, quirky personality, and naturally pampered lady’s arrogance, unaware of ordinary people’s circumstances... Thinking about these things, Fujiwara Reya ran his hand through his wet hair and remarked, "Japan is a feudal country masquerading as modern, a doctor’s son becos a doctor, a lawyer’s son a lawyer, a banker’s daughter..."
"Ahem!"
Kasahara Fumi lightly coughed.
The indifferent expression as if to say, "No need to state what all kids know."
"A president’s daughter, naturally, has to be a president too." Fujiwara Reya insisted on finishing his statent and picked up a piece of lon from the table, munching as he said, "As for Asuka’s character, not exactly bad, she won’t be a major villain even if she becos a president. But she has a significant problem..."
The lon was crisp, and upon biting, the mouth was filled with sweet juice.
"What problem?" Talking about her sister, the cold expression on the elder sister’s face softened a bit.
"She doesn’t consider the feelings of ordinary people." Fujiwara Reya tossed the lon rind into the trash bin, wiping his mouth with a towel while saying, "When we first t, she could fra with two pairs of pantyhose, bluntly saying that if I didn’t do as she said, she’d publicly accuse of stealing socks. Later, when we were exorcising, we t a victim with a rather tragic background, and she always looked at the victim’s tragic but by no ans lowly life from her naturally superior position with indifference."
"Hmm."
Kasahara Fumi nodded lightly, signaling agreent.
"So, you have intentions towards Asuka," she said, "Don’t deny it, I can tell. Otherwise, with your character, you wouldn’t have been frad and still maintain such a friendly deanor towards her."
"Haha, of course, I have intentions." Fujiwara Reya picked up the pine nut wine, poured a bit into a cup, "She’s just a pampered lady, no matter how unruly she is now, it only affects those around. But if she grows up and takes over her mother’s position, her every move will affect the fate of many."
"Uh-huh."
Kasahara Fumi’s response was consistently succinct.
"Therefore, while she’s still young, still within a moldable age, she has to be corrected." Fujiwara Reya handed her the poured pine nut wine.
She shook her head, indicating she wouldn’t drink.
"Once corrected, she’ll consider more perspectives when making decisions," Fujiwara Reya drank from the cup he had brought to his lips, "especially those she thinks are unimportant, can be ignored, but in fact, are ordinary people who deserve more protection."
Kasahara Fumi fixedly looked at his face, as if observing clouds drifting across the sky, and then her gaze slightly lowered, checking if the lip prints on the glass she used matched the angle of Fujiwara Reya’s lips as he drank, finally turning her face away, gently saying, "Thank you."
Sohow, Fujiwara Reya found this unexpected warmth in her thanks.
"There’s no need for thanks," he said, feeling flattered, "now that it’s all clarified, you can’t bring up the refund again."
"..." For a mont, Kasahara Fumi really wanted to stand up and give a flying kick to plant her foot solidly on his face, kicking this money-grubbing brat into another world.
Forget it.
She decided not to bother with him.
The elder sister forcibly persuaded herself in her heart, thinking of the 50 million yen as tuition for helping her sister.
After explaining the underclassman problem, Fujiwara Reya lay back down on the chair, leisurely humming a song.
♪ Either live straightforwardly without crossing boundaries
♪ Or live correctly without making mistakes
♪ Is living truthfully justice?
♪ Is living by deceit justice?
♪ What form should my existence take?
The tune was cheerful, with a strong rhythm and powerful lyrics; as he sang, Fujiwara Reya couldn’t help but jiggle his leg.
Kasahara Fumi said nothing.
Her brows furrowed slightly, lips tightly sealed, she waited until Fujiwara Reya finished singing before saying, "What do you want to express?"
"Do you know what this song is called?" Fujiwara Reya counter-asked.
Kasahara Fumi shook her head.
"It’s called ’Monster’!" Fujiwara Reya leaned over, pressing onto her lounge chair, baring his teeth while saying, "A very scary monster, like this, awoo~"
As he spoke, he made a comically fierce face, mimicking claws in front of her.
"Pfft~" Kasahara Fumi couldn’t help but laugh, and then quickly bit her lower lip, waiting for the laughter to pass before coldly saying, "Got it. I’ll keep your secret until you do sothing illegal."
"Thank you very much!"
Fujiwara Reya pressed his hands in prayer and bowed slightly to her.
Then, he looked up, a pure smile spreading across his face, "May I ask Miss Kasahara for a favor?"
"Go ahead." Kasahara Fumi put down her long-bent leg, extending it lightly to stretch.
"Please spread the word that I’m a monster."
"Bang—"
Kasahara Fumi fell off the lounge chair, staring dumbly at the ceiling.
"What did you say?" She wondered if she might have misheard.
"I said, please spread the word that I’m a monster." Fujiwara Reya repeated, then added, "And then, have the Onmyo-ryo people hold a eting to capture and criticize . The more people there are, the bigger the commotion, the better; it should be known widely."
"..."
Kasahara Fumi straightened up a bit, only her eyes peeking over the chair, studying his face for a while, "Are you crazy?"
"No, no, on the contrary, I’m unprecedentedly clear-headed." Fujiwara Reya tapped his temple with his finger, "Everything is hidden within this small brain. The opportunity to make a na for myself is right in front of ; if I miss it, I’ll regret it terribly."
Kasahara Fumi shook her head.
Taking deep breaths a few tis, she tried to scrape up words in her mind but couldn’t find any.
"No cri!" Fujiwara Reya promised, "Absolutely no cri; I won’t commit one, nor will I let you commit one."
Kasahara Fumi was still thinking.
At this mont, Kawashima Miki, dressed, called from the hallway: "Lunch is ready; you two hurry up."
"Co, let’s talk while eating." Fujiwara Reya extended his hand to her.
After a little hesitation, Kasahara Fumi put her hand forward, gently holding his hand.
They held it for quite a long ti.
Contrary to her cold deanor, her little hand was exquisite and warm, the unexpectedly soft touch revealing a bit of her softer side hidden beneath.
Then, Kawashima Miki, with a dangerously housewife-like hairstyle, slowly walked out from the passage.
Noticing their held hands, she slightly furrowed her brow, looking both appealing and endearing, yet exuding the resentnt of a young wife toward an unfaithful husband.
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