When Sayuri Sawamura left, she left Eriri behind.
She smiled and gave her daughter a look, silently encouraging her to get along with Haru and the others.
But when that look landed in Haru's eyes, he felt like it ant sothing else: I've marked so supplies—go collect them, daughter.
Eiri, whose face was already burning, had no idea how to respond to this.
After hesitating for a long mont, she awkwardly said, "My mom is always like this… acting like a child. You don't have to take her words seriously."
"I know she was joking," Haru nodded.
Eriri let out a quiet sigh of relief.
But then, his next words made her tense up again.
"But I can also tell that she really does want us to be friends."
"R-Really?" Eriri stamred. "I didn't even realize that's what my mom was thinking…"
Haru thought to himself, Classic loser heroine energy—always a step behind.
"So, this is what you're really like, Sawamura-san."
A voice chid in.
Yukino, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up.
Eriri turned to the famous school beauty with a slightly wary look. "What do you an by that?"
Yukino simply shook her head, playing the mysterious role.
Eriri, completely lost, could only stare at her with question marks floating over her head.
With her personality, there was no way she and Yukino could have a peaceful conversation.
So, less than five minutes later, she awkwardly excused herself and went to the next table to drink juice alone.
Watching her leave, Yukino withdrew her gaze and nodded to herself. "I see. I understand everything now."
Haru gave her a bewildered look.
Noticing his reaction, Yukino assud he didn't understand and lowered her voice to explain.
"I never really interacted with Sawamura-san before, but people always say she's refined and elegant—your typical high-class young lady. So, I assud she really was like that."
"Which is why you were staring at her earlier," Haru realized.
Yukino gave a small nod.
It had been mildly interesting to see soone whose private personality was completely different from their public image.
But after observing Eriri's obvious reactions and straightforward personality, Yukino had already lost most of her curiosity.
At that mont, a server carrying a tray of drinks arrived, changing out the food on the table.
Haru casually picked up a piece of waterlon, then held it up to Yukino's lips. "Want a bite?"
She blinked in surprise, giving him a suspicious look. "Alright, what do you want?"
"I just felt like feeding you."
"Be honest."
"Fine. I wanted to ask if we could leave soon. This party is pretty boring."
Hearing that, Yukino took the waterlon into her mouth, savoring the sweet taste as she replied softly, "I'd like to leave too, but we haven't been here that long. We can't leave yet."
"Yeah… figured as much."
Haru sighed and picked up another piece of waterlon, holding it out again.
Yukino stared at him. "Are you addicted to feeding ?"
"It's fun. Feels like I'm feeding a cat—hey, don't glare at like that. You told to be honest."
Seeing him shalessly defend himself, Yukino sighed, then accepted the second piece of waterlon. She looked amused.
"You still haven't forgotten about that, have you?"
Haru pretended not to understand.
But Yukino wasn't letting him off the hook. She cut straight to the point. "Are you still hoping to see in a catgirl outfit?"
"…Can I?"
"Of course."
Surprisingly, she agreed.
But instead of being happy, Haru imdiately beca suspicious. "What's the catch?"
Yukino smirked. "You have to wear a catboy outfit too."
"This conversation is over."
Haru shut it down without hesitation.
No way. He was the kind of guy who always made muscle-bound warriors in character creation screens—there was no way he was putting on cat ears and a tail.
Yukino sighed, as if genuinely disappointed. "You were so close this ti. Are you sure you want to give up?"
She even pushed one of her favorite desserts toward him, as if offering a final temptation.
"Thanks," Haru said, taking the dessert—but he made sure not to ntion the cat costu again.
Yukino chuckled softly. She was clearly enjoying this mont.
A short while later, Haru's gaze drifted toward the crowd again. He had looked in the sa direction several tis now, so Yukino followed his line of sight and saw a familiar figure—Sawamura Sayuri.
"What's on your mind?" she asked.
Haru shook his head. "I was just thinking about the way she talked to us earlier. I never expected her to be so… hmm, how should I put it?"
"Calculating," Yukino supplied.
Haru blinked, then laughed. "Yeah. Calculating."
Yukino had been observing quietly the whole ti, so she had a clear grasp of the situation.
"She probably does genuinely want you to look after Sawamura-san. As a mother, her concern for her daughter is real."
"But at the sa ti," Yukino continued, "she likely also wants to strengthen ties between your families. Since she's not close to you yet, the easiest way to start is by encouraging the younger generation to befriend each other. Sawamura-san's personality is actually perfect for this—she's shy and flustered easily, which helps break the ice and lighten the atmosphere."
"Most importantly, Spencer-san hasn't shown up at all. I'd guess he's fine with this arrangent too."
Her analysis was spot on.
Haru found it oddly fascinating.
Before he reincarnated, the only thing he knew about Sayuri was that : The Sawamura family only owns one stock.
But now that she was a real person in front of him, that one-dinsional image was starting to fade.
At the end of the day, the Spencer family wasn't an ordinary household. Their kind of social maneuvering was simply normal at their level.
Haru thought for a mont before saying, "If I actually beco friends with Sawamura-san, my parents will definitely start socializing with her family more. That ans… they kind of owe a favor, right?"
"Technically, yes. Why?" Yukino asked, curious.
"Favors are annoying."
"I agree."
Haru didn't push the topic further. The word "favor" was just one letter away from "lover" in Chinese—sothing that needed to be cultivated slowly, over ti. If they kept discussing it, the conversation would get weird.
Instead, Yukino's gaze shifted to his pocket.
"I've been aning to ask… what's in your pocket?"
Since won's dresses at these events weren't designed with pockets, Yukino had to carry a small handbag. That made Haru's slightly bulging right pocket all the more noticeable.
"Oh, this?"
Haru pulled out a small pair of binoculars. He had brought them along, figuring he'd need sothing to pass the ti.
Yukino stared blankly. "Why…?"
"Because I was bored."
He shot her a look that said, You get it, right?
And surprisingly, she did get it.
She was bored too.
Though she hadn't expected him to bring binoculars instead of, say, a handheld console.
Seeing that no one was looking for them, she asked a server for the location of the lounge and pulled Haru along.
The lounge was bright and spacious, with comfortable seating and a neatly drawn curtain. Two small table lamps cast a warm glow in the corners.
Yukino saw Haru glancing around and casually remarked, "At most banquets, they set aside a room like this as a lounge, so guests can rest or take care of things like fixing their shoes or clothes without any hassle."
Haru, holding the binoculars, moved toward the window and pulled back the curtains. "Let's just sit here for a while, then head back together later."
[You are aiming at a distant point (Auto-aim), Experience 27.]
[You are aiming at a distant point (Auto-aim), Experience 21.]
He noticed the experience was increasing. Was it because the view was better here, or because of the magnification on the binoculars?
As he pondered, Haru suddenly realized Yukino had been silent for a while.
Turning to her, he found her staring blankly at the table lamp in the corner.
"What's wrong?" Haru asked, putting the binoculars down and addressing her.
Yukino didn't shift her gaze and said, "Do you rember what you taught after Yuigahama joined the photography club?"
"Of course I rember."
"Because there weren't enough types of light sources, the shots didn't et your standards, nor did they et mine."
As she spoke, Yukino's eyes glead as she turned her gaze toward his face. "I've been thinking these days, since we have the capability and the conditions, why not shoot a better, more complete shot?"
Haru understood what she ant—the warm light from the table lamp was perfect for what she was suggesting.
But he still had so questions. "The photography club has shot plenty of instructional footage recently. Why did you choose this particular setup?"
Because you said I looked beautiful that day.
Yukino only smiled without answering.
She felt that there should be sothing beautiful preserved between them, sothing to hold onto.
She pulled out her phone from her handbag and avoided Haru's questioning eyes. "I found an app online for colored lights. Though it's not professional, it's more than enough for instructional use."
Haru didn't press her for details, but he was surprised by how prepared she was.
Then he glanced around the empty lounge. "Should we start now?"
Yukino shook her head. "I want to make a more complete shot, so we need a helper."
"Where are we going to find a helper right now..."
Haru didn't finish his sentence when the door to the lounge suddenly opened. A familiar twin-tailed girl entered, pouting and grumbling to herself.
"Mom is the worst. Why does she always tease like that? I'm never forgiving her for this... huh? What are you two doing here?"
Eriri's eyes went wide with surprise as she t their gaze.
Yukino gave Haru a faint smile. "Our helper has arrived."
Haru looked at her in disbelief. Eriri, a helper?
Yukino seed to have made up her mind. She turned to Eriri and spoke seriously. "Sawamura-san, we need your help with sothing."
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