As she spoke, Fujiwara Chika extended her pinky finger
Wanting to pinky swear with Yukima Azuma.
Yukima Azuma nodded and linked pinkies with Fujiwara Chika.
In any case, Fujiwara Chika definitely wouldn't be free during spring break.
As far as Yukima Azuma knew
Every holiday, Fujiwara Chika would go traveling with her parents, older sister, and younger sister.
One summer, she even went all the way to the Arctic.
He'd dodged that bullet for now.
Once spring break came around
Fujiwara Chika would definitely vanish off somewhere again.
...
At last, the pile of paperwork was signed, officially wrapping up the exchange program.
Shinomiya Kaguya gathered the documents.
She turned to look at Yukima Azuma.
"Did you enjoy your time at Shuchiin?"
Hearing that, Yukima Azuma gave a sincere nod.
At first, he had come to Shuchiin because of Suou Yuki.
But, this semester at Shuchiineven though he didn't study much or participate much in school life
It was truly a valuable period of time.
Even with a few small incidents and minor hiccups
None of it could taint the overall memory of this experience.
Seeing Yukima Azuma nod
Shinomiya Kaguya smiled softly.
"In that case, you should come back for the second semester next year."
()
Yukima Azuma gave a small cough.
"Ahem... I'll think about it when the time comes."
(_")
"What do you mean 'think about it'?!" Fujiwara Chika instantly started acting up again. "Just do the exchange again!"
;
Chapter 276: Come to the Suou Family with Suou Yuki
"Yuki-sama, you've returned... and this person is?"
( -)?
A beautiful woman with long, straight black hair, bearing the surname Kimishima, immediately bowed respectfully the moment she saw Suou Yuki step into the car
But halfway through her greeting, she noticed the boy stepping into the car with Suou Yuki
And instantly paused, asking in a puzzled tone.
Of course, she recognized Yukima Azuma.
As the head housekeeper of the Suou family, and the personal maid of the current family head,
This beautiful woman was thoroughly familiar with the profiles of individuals from the upper class.
And precisely because of that, she was surprised enough to speak up.
If the boy were just an ordinary person
She would've easily turned a blind eye.
Not a word would be said.
After all, if he were just a commoner, even if Suou Yuki truly fell in love one day with him and decided to marry
The man would only become a live-in son-in-law at best.
To the Suou family as a whole, it wouldn't really be a big deal.
But Yukima Azuma was the President of Laplace Corporation.
A person capable of exerting significant influence on the standing of the Suou family.
Moreover, rumors suggested that behind Laplace stood the Sawamura familyanother ancient, noble householdopenly backing it.
And now, their Ojou-sama was casually bringing him into the car like this.
If she was truly about to make their relationship official and bring him home to meet the family
Then, as the head housekeeper, it was her duty to immediately report to the rest of the Suou household.
After all, this was a decision that could have far-reaching consequences for the Suou family's future.
"Azuma-onii-sama wants to go sightseeing in Gifu, and it just so happened to be on the way, so I invited him to hitch a ride,"
Suou Yuki replied casually.
Hearing that, the woman let out a sigh of relief.
Though it was clear the relationship between the young lady and that boy was far from simple
As long as the young lady didn't explicitly say anything,
Then shewho wasn't a Suou by bloodneed not concern herself.
Leave it to the family head to deal with.
Shortly after, Kimishima Ayano also arrived and quietly sat in the front passenger seat.
The beautiful woman started the engine and began driving toward Gifu Prefecture.
Looking at Kimishima Ayano sitting up front
Yukima Azuma's eyelids twitched slightly.
Come to think of it, this personal maid of Yuki
Had clearly grown stronger after three years of training!
And by "stronger"
It wasn't a metaphor for some size or otherhe meant literally.
Three years ago, this personal maid's presence was so faint, she was barely noticeable.
Now, thanks to her timeskip training, she was almost on par with the natural stealth of Kato "Hassan" Megumi.
Back on campus, with all the hustle and bustle, Azuma hadn't paid much attention.
But now, with only a few people around, Azuma noticedthe scent of Kimishima Ayano was beginning to fade.
At this rate
Give it ten more years, and unless Azuma's shogi skills not level up any more
He might genuinely lose the ability to detect the presence of this Hassan maid.
A true assassin.
Sensing Yukima Azuma's gaze
Suou Yuki leaned close to his ear and whispered:
"Onii-sama, are you checking Ayano out?"
( )
Up front, both the beautiful woman and Kimishima Ayano's ears twitched slightly at the same time.
(®® )
Yukima Azuma said nothing. Instead, he lightly tapped Suou Yuki on the forehead.
"I'm merely admiring her progress."
Suou Yuki clutched her forehead, pretending to be hurt.
As for Kimishima Ayano in the front seat
She didn't react at all when the conversation was about her, but now she looked like she was about to leap straight into the back seat, and cut Azuma head out.
( _ )
But, a single glance from Suou Yuki instantly stopped Ayano in her tracks.
Then, she smiled with the charm of a mischievous little devil.
"If it's Onii-sama, even if you're interested for real, I wouldn't mind."
Yukima Azuma simply rolled his eyes in response.
He wasn't the type like some Young Master who wanted to claim every Jade Beauty as his own.
Seeing that Azuma didn't even flinch
Suou Yuki blinked a few times, looking like she was pondering something.
...
From Tokyo to Gifu
Even though Japan isn't a big country, it's not exactly a blink-of-an-eye trip either.
Along the way, Yukima Azuma pulled a box from his pocket.
With just one glance, Suou Yuki recognized itit was the very same box she had used to store a fragment of the Charlotte comet last time.
But when Azuma opened it
Inside the box, the red comet shard was no longer there
In its place was a radiant twin flower, bursting with color, two hues blending together in a stunning display.
Staring at the mysterious flower inside the box, Suou Yuki's eyes lit up softly.
( o)
Even for a mischievous, clever girl like her
At her core, she was still a maiden.
And what maiden could remain unmoved by the enchanting beauty of a flower?
Yukima Azuma gently placed the flower box into Suou Yuki's hands
Watching her enchanted expression with a faint smile.
Taking the box, Suou Yuki inspected it from every angle, carefully turning it over again and again.
In the end, she even pulled out her phone and snapped a few pictures.
But throughout it all, she never once tried to take the flower out of the box.
Only after a while, still hugging the box in her hands, did she look up at Azuma and ask:
"What is this?"
Even though she simply found the twin flower beautiful and hadn't noticed anything particularly special
Because Azuma had chosen to use that box
Suou Yuki sensed that it must be something extraordinary.
Which was why, even though he had handed it to her
She made no move to remove the flower.
"It's a very rare treasure. You can make a wish with itchances of it coming true are a bit higher."
"If you like it, I can give it to you, but you'll have to help me take care of it."
Yukima Azuma said with a smile.
The powers of Star and Lumine did, in fact, raise the chances of a wish being granted.
But according to those two chibi-brats
They could only tweak probability to a very limited degree.
Even something with a high chance of happening wouldn't be guaranteed under their influence.
And anything with an extremely low probability? Forget about it.
Recalling that tsunami from back then
All he could do was sigh: that was destiny's cruel joke.
Truthfully, even without Star and Lumine's interference, the odds of that tsunami were already quite high.
After receiving the Charlotte comet shard as a gift
Yukima Azuma had been thinking about what to give in return to Suou Yuki.
It wasn't until he got his hands on this twin flower that a clear idea came to mind.
And at this moment
Inside Azuma's head, Star was throwing a tantrum.
(`Д)
They were gods, dammit! And now they were being offered to some girl as a gift!?
Lumine, as usual, remained silent and calm.
After hearing Azuma's explanation
Suou Yuki smiled with pure, uncontainable joy.
She even looked so touched she might start crying.
She gently closed the box
And handed it back to Azuma.
"Let's talk about it once we get out of the car, "
Azuma couldn't quite figure out what Suou Yuki was thinking
But judging by her expression, she was clearly happy.
( )*
...
When the car finally arrived in Gifu Prefecture
Before the household staff could even reach the car door
Suou Yuki had already pushed it open, grabbed Yukima Azuma by the hand, and was dragging him straight into the mansion.
The sight left the maids and butlers of the Suou estate utterly dumbfounded.
After all, had their Ojou-sama ever acted like this before?
Normally, Suou Yuki was the picture of a proper noble lady within the Suou household.
Every gesture brimming with grace and poise.
She was the very embodiment of perfection.
But now
Watching the boy being pulled along by their Ojou-sama, who refused to let go
The maids exchanged glances, each one feeling the urge to let out a little hee hee of mischief.
Only to be silenced instantly by a single glare from the beautiful woman who had just exited the car
They all snapped back to attention, dispersing and returning to work as if nothing had happened.
And once she had "disciplined" the maids
That woman turned to look in the direction Suou Yuki and Yukima Azuma had just gone
Her gaze slowly growing complicated.
A wish, huh?
It's already the 21st century, and a line like that still works on girls!?
And not just any girlher Ojou-samaa brilliant, sharp-minded young lady!
Seriously now... maybe divine intervention was real.
Chapter 277: Maam, Im Dating Your Daughter
Chapter 277: Ma'am, I'm Dating Your Daughter
Gripping Yukima Azuma's hand tightly, Suou Yuki pulled him straight into her room.
As soon as they entered, she shoved Azuma inside
Then slammed the door shut in a flash.
Yukima Azuma looked around the familiar room, feeling a wave of nostalgia rise in his chest.
Suou Yuki's room hadn't changed much at all.
Especially the position of the study deskthree years had passed, and it was still exactly the same.
Only, the surface of the desk now bore faint traces of time.
Other than that, though a few new pieces of furniture had been added
The overall feeling still faintly resembled the room from back then.
Just that small amount of change was enough to make Yukima Azuma sentimental.
After all
The room he had visited in those days had been specially cleaned by the Suou family to avoid triggering Suou Yuki's asthma.
Everything had been simplified to the bare minimum to prevent an attack.
And now, although Yuki's asthma had long since been cured
The room had barely changed. It was truly hard to believe.
Even though three years had gone by, to Azuma, those memories didn't feel far away at all.
Looking at the desk, speckled with signs of age
Yukima Azuma remembered how most of the time, when he climbed through the window to see Yuki
He would sit at that desk, writing drafts while telling her stories.
That layering of past and present stirred a complex, indescribable feeling in his heart.
But before he could sink into those memories
As soon as the door closed, Suou Yuki lunged at him!
"Guhehehe~ Onii-chan-sama! Hehehehe~!"
()( )
Yukima Azuma stumbled from her pounce, nearly falling onto the bed.
Looking down at the girl lying on his chest with a blatantly "thirsty" expression
A giant question mark instantly popped up over Yukima Azuma's head.
"What's with you?"
Suou Yuki lifted her head, her eyes narrowing with a teasing glint as she looked at Yukima Azuma.
"Onii-sama does something like that and then asks me what's with me?!"
"Giving Yuki something that important just like thatwas it a proposal gift or what?"
"It's fine, you know. Even if we're siblings on paper, the Suou family clinic next door is a private orthopedic practice!"
Several veins popped up on Yukima Azuma's forehead.
This otaku head of hers was still deep in those bizarre fantasies!
He grabbed the brat and tossed her straight onto the bed.
Snatched up Suou Yuki's blanket.
With just a few swift moves, Yukima Azuma rolled Suou Yuki into a snug "Yu-shi roll."
(note: Yuki+Sushi=Yu-shi! Umu (>) )
Looking at his "handiwork," Yukima Azuma gave a satisfied nod and clapped his hands.
Dealing with this little devil of an otaku really did require this approach.
Suou Yuki, now rolled up like a Yu-shi, shot a slightly resentful glare at Yukima Azuma.
But she quickly returned to her usual self.
Although it might've looked like a confession just now
In truth, there wasn't much room for the story to progress further.
After all, this was still the Suou household.
Even though Suou Yuki hoped Yukima Azuma would lose control to his instincts and toss aside reason, doing this and that with her
The Yu-shi roll rolled around the bed a couple of times.
"Onii-sama gave me such a precious gift. Yuki's seriously happy, you know."
"But, I feel like there won't be a chance to use it, so I'll return it to Onii-sama for now."
Suou Yuki's wish had actually already come true not too long ago.
There wasn't anything else she truly desired that would require manipulating fate to achieve.
The reason Suou Yuki was so happy
Wasn't because of that twin blossom.
It was because Yukima Azuma had given her a gift with his own hands.
She couldn't express it too openly in the car.
After all, the head butler had been sitting right up front, listening in.
But just from the way she'd dragged him into her room without hesitation, and had even intended to "devour" Yukima Azuma
