Restricted Fantasy I Chapter 310: Where Are You

"Creak..."

The door to the Jiejiè opened, and Perfect Sakuramiya walked in wearing her signature elegant smile.

"President, I am back."

However, in the very next second, the elegant smile on her face stiffened slightly.

Because, at this mont, the room was completely empty.

Despite this, the bedding on the bed was folded neatly. So young man's deft hands had even smoothed out the wrinkles on the bedsheets.

"..."

'But, how exactly did the president get out?'

Perfect Sakuramiya hurriedly walked into the room and sized up her surroundings. There was absolutely nowhere to hide here, so she quickly determined that the president was not around.

By the ti Perfect Sakuramiya withdrew her gaze from under the bed and straightened back up, her expression had beco exceedingly ugly.

'Damn it.'

'If Hitomi had not yielded the Jiejiè permissions to that mouse, making a total ss of the Jiejiè, I would normally be able to observe the situation inside at all tis.'

'But the truth is, that portion of the permissions was transferred to that mouse by Hitomi.'

'This left

with only the ability to set up a unilateral restriction, completely unable to even lock the Jiejiè doors from both sides.'

'So...'

'Could it be that the mouse sneaked in while I was away, and then she and the president...'

'Yes, that must be it. Otherwise, there is absolutely no way she and the president could have gotten out of here.'

'That damned mouse!'

'She was the one who did the Flower Presentation Dance Invitation, and she was even the one who did that kind of thing with him...'

'President, do you really like her that much, yet hate ?'

Thinking this, a trace of sorrow inevitably appeared on Perfect Sakuramiya's face.

But soon enough, she raised her head again, restoring her usual expression.

'It does not matter. The president giving himself to that mouse is equivalent to giving himself to .'

'This was already set in stone the mont Hitomi handed the permission to replace her over to that mouse.'

'No matter who ultimately wins...'

'The one who ends up with the president will be .'

With these thoughts, Perfect Sakuramiya sat down on the edge of the bed. She gently reached out to touch the still-warm bedding beside her, then brought it to the tip of her nose and gave it a sniff.

But a second later, a strange expression crossed her face.

"Why does this sll so much like Armani's Thé Yulong fragrance? Who gave the president this perfu? Did he let that mouse use it?"

"Ugh..."

Self-Doubting Sakuramiya's eyelids fluttered groggily as she seed to be waking up.

However, the pain coming from all four of her limbs caused her to subconsciously scrunch up her small face and gasp for breath several tis.

Only after several rapid breaths did she adapt sowhat to the pain, allowing her to split her focus enough to open her eyes.

Everything in front of her looked as if it were covered by a layer of gauze, blurring her vision along with her mories from right before she lost consciousness.

'I think I rember my Flower Presentation Dance Invitation to the president being a success, and then...'

'Ah, I rember now. Perfect Sakuramiya used a knife to...'

"Pre—President!"

Out of worry for Yan Huan, Self-Doubting Sakuramiya completely disregarded the pain in her body and hurriedly sat up.

"Ah, she is awake!"

"Self-Doubting Sakuramiya, are you alright?"

Hearing the voices of others, before Self-Doubting Sakuramiya could even react, a tiny Sakuramiya flew right up to her face with a tearful expression.

Unable to brake in ti, she crashed directly into her face.

"Smack!"

"Wuwuwu, Mouse Sakuramiya, I am so glad you are alright! I thought... I thought you had already been killed by Perfect Sakuramiya..."

'Eh, this sensation...'

'It is Petite Hitomi!'

"Petite Hitomi, are you okay?"

Self-Doubting Sakuramiya's breathing quickened for a mont. She hurriedly reached out to cup Petite Hitomi in her hands, speaking with worry.

"Yeah, and everyone is doing just fine right now. You are the one we should be worried about! Falling from such a high place... if I had not found you, who knows where you would have dropped?"

Having said that, the relieved Petite Hitomi habitually sat down on her head. But she suddenly noticed sothing, reaching out to tug at the ears on her head with curiosity.

"Speaking of which, Self-Doubting Sakuramiya, did your ears get a little smaller?"

"Eh, it seems... they really did."

Mouse Sakuramiya also touched her own ears, slow to catch on as she finally realized this.

In passing, Self-Doubting Sakuramiya also sized up her surrounding environnt. Only then did she discover that she was currently in a shattered room floating within the void.

This room was spacious, but more than half of its walls had been shattered, revealing a terrifying background outside that looked like thousands of centipedes devouring the very fabric of space.

And within the room stood about a dozen or so Sakuramiyas.

Most of them were the ones she had previously seen in Mama Sakuramiya's Jiejiè, along with a few new faces.

"You successfully made it out to reality, so why are you suddenly back?"

To the side, Cool Sakuramiya, wearing her peaked cap, crossed her arms and frowned as she asked Self-Doubting Sakuramiya this question.

The mont she saw Cool Sakuramiya, Self-Doubting Sakuramiya could not help but shrink her eyes in shock, pointing a finger at her.

"Cool Sakuramiya?! You... you are not dead?!"

"..."

Cool Sakuramiya's expression stiffened slightly, and then blue veins slowly bulged on her forehead.

"Why do I get the feeling that after your trip to reality, you have beco even more annoying than before?"

"No... it is because Mama Sakuramiya said..."

Self-Doubting Sakuramiya looked over at the gentle Mama Sakuramiya standing nearby and recounted the previous events.

Since they could compare notes face-to-face, it quickly beca apparent that all of this was Perfect Sakuramiya's plot.

"...So, she never actually intended to kill the president at all. She still wanted to kill ..."

Yet for so unknown reason, after hearing all this, Self-Doubting Sakuramiya actually let out a foolishly relieved sigh.

But very soon, her expression turned panicked again.

"Wait, where... where is the president?! Have you guys seen him?"

"The president?"

All the Sakuramiyas exchanged glances and shook their heads in unison.

"No, we have not. Should the president not be in reality?"

"No! Perfect Sakuramiya originally wanted to kill , but at the critical mont, the president used his hand to block the knife for ... He bled so, so much..."

Self-Doubting Sakuramiya fumbled in a flustered haste, trying to explain the situation at the ti clearly. But she was truly too panicked, and especially when thinking of Yan Huan's wound, she inevitably stumbled over her words.

The surrounding Sakuramiyas burst into an uproar, staring at Self-Doubting Sakuramiya in utter disbelief.

"The president took a knife for you?! Where is the president, where is he now?"

"Yeah, and that Perfect Sakuramiya is nowhere to be found! Moreover, does the president knowing about the Jiejiè not an it has been fully exposed right in front of her?!"

"Could that be the very reason why the Jiejiè collapsed like this?"

The group of Sakuramiyas chattered endlessly, arguing fiercely.

At the crucial mont, it was Mama Sakuramiya who reached out her hand, stopping their noisy bickering, before looking at Self-Doubting Sakuramiya to ask.

"Can you speak more specifically? What exactly happened earlier?"

"It is... well, I originally wanted to go save the president, but halfway there I t Yurianna. She encouraged

to invite the president to dance at the High Table Dinner..."

Self-Doubting Sakuramiya was incredibly anxious, pacing back and forth in front of all the Sakuramiyas as she spoke.

And the eyes of all the Sakuramiyas moved in complete synchronization, following her figure back and forth.

"I had no way to stop Perfect Sakuramiya at the ti, so I just thought about fighting her to the bitter end, even if I died... Therefore, when Yurianna brought it up, I figured that since I was about to die anyway, I might as well risk it all before my death and at least tell the president my good intentions..."

All the Sakuramiyas to the side opened their mouths and widened their eyes. Even Petite Hitomi on her head listened in a trance, tightly gripping her ears.

"And then?"

"And then... I actually did it!"

"Hiss!!"

At the scene, the sounds of all the Sakuramiyas gasping for cold air rose and fell in waves. Even Cool Sakuramiya blinked, losing her composure a little.

"Th-Then... what about the president? What was his reaction?"

Petite Hitomi was still asking questions in an adorkable daze, but Cool Sakuramiya glared at her and spoke through gritted teeth.

"Hmph, this girl could not even hold back her own smile as she spoke. And since the president was willing to take a knife for her, he definitely accepted. Truly, congratulations to you, Self-Doubting Sakuramiya."

As she spoke the latter half of the sentence, her jaw was tightly clenched, her voice practically squeezed out from her throat.

Hearing this, all the other Sakuramiyas looked over at Cool Sakuramiya, causing her face to flush slightly red. She crossed her arms and snorted fiercely,

"What are you looking at

for? It is not like I like Yan Huan! Hmph!"

"..."

The other Sakuramiyas were speechless, but their eyes all glead brightly as they turned back to Self-Doubting Sakuramiya.

"In other words, the president... accepted your Flower Presentation Dance Invitation!?"

"That is equivalent to accepting your confession!"

"You... you actually pulled it off..."

anwhile, Mama Sakuramiya pinched her chin, looking at Mouse Sakuramiya as she spoke softly.

"Perhaps even the changes in this Jiejiè are because of you..."

"Because of... ?"

"Yes... I can sense an increasingly heavy level of authority within you, extrely similar to Perfect Sakuramiya's. Perhaps Hitomi is bestowing upon you the possibility of replacing her."

The mont they heard this, all the Sakuramiyas widened their eyes, staring at the Mouse Sakuramiya before them, and began murmuring among themselves.

"Right... She managed to do sothing that even Hitomi and Perfect Sakuramiya could not!"

"And she will not kill us!"

"What if... we help you get rid of Perfect Sakuramiya and let you truly replace Hitomi... what would happen then?"

Among the several Sakuramiyas, it was unknown which one uttered this sentence first. Following that, all the Sakuramiyas seed to beco infected by this sentint.

It was as if they saw true hope in Self-Doubting Sakuramiya's actions.

A Sakuramiya who could capture the president's heart, gain his acceptance, and importantly, would not kill them...

They looked with eager gazes at Mouse Sakuramiya, a feeling so intense that even Petite Hitomi on her head felt it.

Petite Hitomi pursed her lips and quickly let go of Mouse Sakuramiya's ears, telling them,

"No, no, no! Nobody can replace Hitomi. It has to be Hitomi herself!"

"Yeah, I... I cannot do it."

Hearing this, Mouse Sakuramiya snapped out of her shock, hurriedly waving her hands in refusal.

But a Cat-Ear Sakuramiya frowned, pointing at Petite Hitomi as she argued,

"What is so bad about it? That Hitomi is just a piece of trash! She spent so much ti with the president before and accomplished nothing, but the mont Mouse Sakuramiya stepped up, she succeeded in no ti!"

"That is right, that is right! Compared to Hitomi, having Self-Doubting Sakuramiya replace her will definitely yield much better results!"

Hearing this, Petite Hitomi was so angry that her small face flushed red as she simply retorted,

"How is this any different from what Perfect Sakuramiya is doing?!"

Cat-Ear Sakuramiya snorted, while Maid Sakuramiya beside her also covered her chest, looking at Mouse Sakuramiya.

"It is completely different. Mouse Sakuramiya is not nearly as terrifying, and she will not kill us. Right, Mouse Sakuramiya?"

"Eh, th-that is right..."

Mouse Sakuramiya froze slightly, subconsciously giving a sound of agreent.

Hearing her agree, the rest of the Sakuramiyas grew even more excited.

One of the Sakuramiyas pointed straight at her and said loudly,

"You are the one who should beco Sakuramiya Hitomi!" "Yeah, you are Sakuramiya Hitomi!"

"..."

Facing the rising and falling voices of the surrounding Sakuramiyas, Self-Doubting Sakuramiya widened her eyes, her heart trembling slightly.

She parted her lips, originally wanting to refuse.

But for so reason, the feeling of sharing a bed with the president last night suddenly floated to the surface of her mind.

She still rembered how, taking advantage of the president being asleep, she had firmly committed the lines of his brow and eyes to her heart.

She simply knew that such an opportunity was incredibly precious, and there would probably never be another one like it.

Perhaps one day she would be killed by Perfect Sakuramiya. Or perhaps, even if she and the president ultimately succeeded and rescued Hitomi...

Then, would not those days still be for Hitomi to enjoy?

'If I beco Hitomi, would I not be the one dancing with the president? In the future, would I not be the one sharing a bed with him?'

'Am I...'

'Am I truly willing to just peep at the president through a cara, rather than actually looking at him face-to-face and touching him?'

'I...'

'I want to be Sakuramiya Hitomi!'

"..."

Thinking like this, Self-Doubting Sakuramiya's expression suddenly shifted.

That tint of refusal gradually withdrew until it completely vanished.

"You guys!"

Petite Hitomi floated up, pointing at them with a face full of indignation.

But the other Sakuramiyas had already noticed the change on Self-Doubting Sakuramiya's face. They hurriedly crowded closer, swatting Petite Hitomi away with a slap in the process.

"Ouch!"

anwhile, beside Self-Doubting Sakuramiya, the other Sakuramiyas had already begun discussing strategies to deal with Perfect Sakuramiya, as well as what they would do once they succeeded...

First, there was the request from Cat Sakuramiya,

"After we defeat Perfect Sakuramiya, can you let

et the president occasionally? I want to act coy in the president's embrace!"

'Act coy?'

'Would that not make the president feel like I am being too botherso?'

'After all, last night, when that cat was acting coy in the president's arms, the president even scolded it...'

'The president probably does not like that sort of thing very much, right?'

Hearing this, Mouse Sakuramiya subconsciously thought to herself.

Following that was Studious Sakuramiya's request,

"Yeah, yeah! Oh, right! After this, you have to study hard and surpass the president! Really now, he is always in first place. Let

get first place for once!"

'But, if the president sees that I have surpassed him, will it rouse his competitive spirit or sothing?'

'In that case, he would spend more ti studying and focus entirely on defeating ...'

'Having him view

as a rival instead of a romantic interest... that is no good at all.'

"..."

Self-Doubting Sakuramiya thought this in her heart, but did not reveal it on her face.

She simply pursed her lips, smiling as she looked at the other Sakuramiyas and patiently listened to their requests.

'Even if just for the president, I cannot continue being self-doubting anymore...'

'If I am going to beco Sakuramiya Hitomi, I have to beco a Sakuramiya Hitomi who is better and more well-liked by the president than the real Hitomi or Perfect Sakuramiya!'

The smile on Self-Doubting Sakuramiya's face and her increasingly tight grip caught the eye of Cool Sakuramiya behind her. Already irritated, Cool Sakuramiya was exceptionally clear-headed at this mont.

She frowned, glancing at Self-Doubting Sakuramiya who was surrounded by the others, and felt a growing sense of displeasure at the bottom of her heart.

"Seriously, you hateful traitors!!"

Right then, the frustrated voice of Petite Hitomi, who had been swatted away earlier, ca from the side, drawing her attention.

After thinking for a second, she quickly walked over to Petite Hitomi and grabbed her into the palm of her hand.

"Wu!"

Being grabbed, Petite Hitomi initially struggled indignantly.

But when she raised her eyes and saw the solemnity and calmness on Cool Sakuramiya's face, she slowly began to relax.

Cool Sakuramiya did not let her go; she rely swept a glance over the group of Sakuramiyas in front of her, then turned around with her and silently left the area.

It was not until they pushed open the door of the shattered room and walked toward another room within the void that Cool Sakuramiya lowered her head to look at Petite Hitomi in her hand, stating with a cold face,

"Those girls are absolutely crazy... Let's go find the president! If it is the president, he will definitely choose to save Hitomi, rather than letting so random Sakuramiya replace her!"

"Yeah!"

Petite Hitomi pouted, crawling out of her palm and flying up to sit on her shoulder.

But after sitting there for a mont, she suddenly realized sothing and turned her head to look at Cool Sakuramiya.

"Cool Sakuramiya, you just called him 'the president' instead of 'Yan Huan'..."

"..."

Hearing this, Cool Sakuramiya's originally callous expression gradually flushed entirely red.

She looked at Petite Hitomi on her shoulder in exasperation, clenching her fists as she spoke, puffing her cheeks.

"You heard wrong! I... I did not say that at all!"

"...Alright."

Petite Hitomi blinked and replied dryly.

What greeted her was Cool Sakuramiya's usual cold snort. Only this ti, her small face remained completely red, making her look incredibly nervous.

"Hmph!"

Petite Hitomi did not dig any deeper. She glanced back at the Sakuramiyas in the room behind them, where the atmosphere was growing increasingly fervent.

She pursed her lips but said nothing more, silently following Cool Sakuramiya further and further away until they completely disappeared into the darkness.

At this mont, in front of a certain door within the Jiejiè.

Yan Huan and Tong Yingying were walking down a long road, their destination seemingly a particular door at the very end of the path ahead.

After coming out of that room, they did not use the door Perfect Sakuramiya had exited through, fearing they might run right into her. Instead, they planned to find another door.

Yan Huan summoned Love's Compass and silently recited in his heart, 'Another Jiejiè exit that can reach Linn.' Its needle began to spin, guiding Yan Huan forward.

After walking for a long ti, they were finally nearing the end.

"Sister Tong, as long as we cross the gap in the road ahead, we will be able to get out."

They needed to jump across. Yan Huan took a deep breath, and just as he was about to jump, a hand from behind pinned him in place like iron tongs.

"..."

Yan Huan struggled a few tis but failed to break free from her grip. He could only turn his head helplessly to look behind him.

"What are you doing, Sister Tong?"

Behind him, upon hearing his words, Tong Yingying moved closer to his side with a rather unnatural expression.

Then, she scoffed and spoke softly,

"It looks so high down there. I am a little scared, so hold my hand when we jump."

Yan Huan blinked, then glanced at her right hand, which was gripping his shoulder with the strength of an iron clamp.

"No, wait, Sister Tong, you..."

Just as he was about to speak, Tong Yingying narrowed her eyes, and with a ruthless finger pressed to his lips like a Great Desolate Imprisoning Heavenly Finger, she shoved Yan Huan's words right back down his throat.

"Hm!?"

"..."

"Hurry up and take

across."

"Yes, yes, yes..."

Yan Huan was thoroughly amused by her, but he honestly reached out and held her hand tightly before leaping lightly over to the opposite side.

"Clack."

As soon as they landed, that door grew a bit closer.

Yan Huan glanced back at Tong Yingying, whose face was slightly red and who seed to be enjoying this in so strange way. He could not help but take a step back and say to her,

"After you. I will bring up the rear."

"...That's more like it."

The corners of Tong Yingying's mouth curled up, and she gently reached out to grab the door handle.

"Click..."

The mont the door was pushed open, a massive bustling noise flooded in from outside.

"Parents, please tour the school in an orderly manner! The schedule for this Culture Festival is posted at the entrance!!"

'Hm?'

'This voice...'

Hearing this, Yan Huan blinked and hurriedly squeezed outside.

Only when he stepped out did he realize that they had actually arrived at the Equipnt Room where Frail Sakuramiya had previously appeared.

The Jiejiè's exit had precisely replaced the door leading from the outside in.

'But the voices outside...'

'The Culture Festival is starting already?!'

'Wasn't the Culture Festival supposed to be tomorrow?!'

"..."

Yan Huan subconsciously took out his mobile phone to check the date. As a result, right after he picked up the phone, a bizarre thing occurred.

The ti on it flew forward as if affected by "Made in Heaven," rapidly crossing past midnight of the previous day and landing at 9:21 AM of the next day.

Exactly the opening ti of the Culture Festival!

'Is the flow of ti relative to the outside world different for each area within the Jiejiè?'

'Was it just because the Jiejiè was shattered, so we unwittingly traversed countless different areas without noticing?'

"Ding ding ding ding ding ding ding ding ding!!"

Right at that mont, Yan Huan's phone violently rang with a continuous string of ssage notification chis.

The noise blasted Yan Huan's ears to the point of pain. He hastily pressed the Lock Screen Button to mute the notification sounds.

But the very instant he woke the screen, dense crowds of ssage notifications on Plane ca pouring in.

They were all sent by a single person.

Sister Shiyu: "Xiao Huan, Mouri and I have finished making the brocade. Do you want to co take a look?"

"Are you busy? I bought you so milk tea over at the Comrcial Street. Do you want to co pick it up, or should I bring it to you?"

"Why haven't you replied, Xiao Huan?"

"Mama is coming to visit the school tomorrow morning too. She said she misses you very much and wants to see you. How about you co stay at the house in Kyogo Ward tonight? Mama can co to the school with us tomorrow morning."

"I ca to the Student Council Office looking for you. The secretary in your office said you were with that Vice President Sakuramiya?"

"I went to ask Vice President Sakuramiya, but she would not tell

either."

"[Incoming call, missed]"

"Xiao Huan, where are you?"

"Xiao Huan, where are you?"

"Where are you?"

"Where are you?"

"Where are you?"

"..."

After that, there were densely packed hundreds of lines, all of them ssages sent by Ye Shiyu.

Every single one of them contained only three words...

"Where are you?"

Looking at those densely packed ssages, Yan Huan swallowed a mouthful of saliva, an inevitable drop of cold sweat sliding down his forehead.

It's over!!