Miss Heir wasn't very kind to me.

Chapter 143, Section 18: "We are creatures with similar scales."

"Wait, Seno."

"We can't wait. Miss Mio is too perceptive. The most urgent thing is to find a safe house that won't be discovered."

"I mean my arms, they were holding on too tightly."

"Hmm?" Mami stopped and turned around, a mischievous smile curving her lips. "Oh, what's wrong with that? Isn't this how dates are supposed to be?"

She even went further, getting even closer.

The shadow under the fluorescent light overlapped with Masumi's shadow, and a full silhouette was embedded in the crook of his arm, smoothing out the wrinkles in his clothes.

"I haven't officially considered this a date yet."

"Is that so? After all, she slipped away in front of all three of them, so shouldn't that be considered stealing someone's love? Eloping?"

"They don't listen to anyone at all."

Seeing Masumi's helpless expression, Mami laughed, her luscious lips emitting soft giggles.

After Masumi waited until she finished laughing, she calmly asked, "Is there something you want to tell me?"

"Hmm, why are you suddenly asking that?"

"Intuition," Masumi replied mysteriously.

“Eh—a boy’s intuition?” Mami put her finger to her lips and pondered, frowning slightly. “That doesn’t seem very reliable, after all, those with divination abilities are all witches, and witches are all girls.”

"It would be strange if the witch were a boy."

"Why are you suddenly taking this so seriously, Masumi-kun?" Asami smiled. "I was just kidding."

"I wasn't serious."

"So you think boys can be witches too?" she asked, tilting her head.

Masumi gave a look of resignation: "...Let's talk as we walk."

"Okay, this way." Mami led the way.

"Oh."

When Mami is with Masumi, she always has a carefree and unconventional image, and it is often difficult to tell which of her words are jokes and which are the truth.

Her eyes, always brimming with laughter, and her slightly upturned lips moved with every smile and frown, as if reflecting her inner self: a casual tone and a mischievous nature.

From the end of April until now, Masumi has always seen Mami the same way.

Take the elevator up, and you'll find a small reptile exhibition being held on the second floor of Hall 1 at Kobe International Exhibition Center.

"Masumi-kun, look, there are so many turtles."

Asami linked arms with him, her other arm outstretched, pointing to rows of turtles in glass tanks. Her excited shouting was no different from a girl in the throes of new love strolling through an exhibition with her boyfriend.

"Hmm, is this a tortoise?"

“I see, no wonder it wasn’t in the water.” Mami nodded. “Masumi-kun actually knows so much about turtles.”

"No, there's an explanation written right next to the glass tank."

Masumi gently tapped the label on the tank wall with her fingertip. Inside, the bright yellow tortoise remained motionless, lying peacefully on the substrate.

They even posted photos of each turtle's species, birthday, age, carapace size, and even its parent turtles.

The price is, of course, also a factor.

"Wow, this little Florida mud turtle, it's only 15 yen!" Mami exclaimed in surprise, her brow furrowing slightly. "Does this turtle have some kind of royal blood?"

"I thought turtles were all a few hundred yen, I didn't expect there to be so many precious varieties."

"The turtle you mentioned that costs several hundred yen, it must be this kind, right?" Masumi moved to another turtle display area and read out the name on it, "...Red-eared Slider."

"Ah~ that's right, it seems like this is what all the stalls at festivals are like."

"Should I buy one to keep Zhentan company?" She seemed to be seriously considering this.

"I still have some reservations about the name 'Makotan'."

Masumi tried to pull her arm away little by little, but the movement seemed a bit too big, and Mami, who had been staring at the turtle in a daze, looked over.

She adjusted her thin metal glasses with her fingers, her beautiful brown eyes blinking nervously, as if hesitating about what to say next.

Turtles cannot make sounds because they lack vocal cords, unlike humans.

Masumi couldn't stand the turtle-like silence, so she deliberately asked in a cheerful voice, "What's wrong? Is there something you want to say?"

"Hmm..." Mami scratched her hair nervously. "Speaking of which, Masumi-kun, have you heard the story of the tortoise and the hare?"

"Eh?"

Upon hearing this question, Masumi paused slightly, her expression turning strange as she said, "You hesitated for so long only to say this?"

"What are you doing? I'm racking my brains for topics to talk about." Mami glared at him with dissatisfaction. "If Masumi weren't running out of humor topics, I wouldn't even need to say anything."

“Okay.” Masumi nodded with a wry smile, then replied, “Of course I’ve heard of it, in fact, I’d say everyone on Earth has heard of it.”

"And what are Masumi-kun's thoughts?"

"Thoughts? Humility leads to progress, pride leads to downfall, and one should never give up halfway through a task..."

He was halfway through reciting the standard answer from the textbook when Mami stopped him with a look. Her beautiful eyes burned with anger, and the furrowed brows were clearly etched between them.

"Masumi-kun is so perfunctory."

There was a hint of disappointment in her sigh.

"The question came so suddenly, I don't know what to say."

Asami shook her head as if giving up, and her arm naturally loosened. "Fine, just pretend I didn't say anything."

The heels of her sandals clicked unpleasantly on the floor. Her shapely back, without any effort, radiated beauty that captivated Masumi's eyes.

He hurriedly followed Mami, his eyelids trembling slightly as he looked at her retreating figure, carefully selecting words in his mind.

"I think the tortoise and the hare race is a very stupid thing."

Masumi's voice suddenly rang out, and Mami paused, turned around, her long hair flowing gently.

"What's going on?" she asked, looking over in surprise.

"Racing is the rabbit's forte. Even if the tortoise is competitive, it should at least find a field where the two are not too different, rather than competing in a race."

Masumi explained slowly and deliberately, "If members of the Kendo Club mock members of the Literature Club for being weak, does that mean the Literature Club members have to compete with them in Kendo?"

Mami was taken aback for a moment, then smiled slightly.

"Masumi-kun, that's off-topic. Even if you're eager to answer me, you don't have to come up with such a strange angle."

"Did you not answer well?" Masumi asked in a nonchalant tone.

"Yes, the solution approach and process both deserve 0 points."

After delivering her cruel verdict, Mami immediately adopted a gentle expression, and a soft laugh escaped from her lips.

"However, considering the effort involved, I'll let Masumi-kun pass."

As she said this, the lenses of her glasses happened to reflect the light from the fluorescent lamp, and Masumi was momentarily blinded by the light, making it difficult to read her expression.

As Mami felt the weight and warmth wrap around her left arm again. With a malicious smile, her full figure, visible even through the fabric, pressed heavily against Masumi's arm.

"What are you doing?"

Like a rugby player dribbling and charging at someone—Masumi didn't say the latter part, which was considered harassing.

"A reward for passing the exam."

Asami joked, "This pose makes us look like a real couple, doesn't it? Doesn't Masumi-kun feel his heart flutter?"

"There is a little bit, but we're not really a couple."

"Oh, so that's what Masumi-kun cares about."

A mischievous smile crept across her face. "If Masumi-kun were to confess to me now, I might just say yes."

"This must be a joke."

Asami let out a soft hum, her expression one of great pleasure. She placed her slender fingers on her rosy lips and said with a hint of teasing:

"Half of it was a joke."

"..."

Which half?
Seeing her ambiguous smile, Masumi gave up the urge to pry.

"The tortoise is working very hard."

Mami's voice wafted over along with the fragrance.

“Yes.” Masumi nodded in agreement. “By persisting and never giving up in areas where one’s talents are not strong, one can eventually achieve their goals and obtain results.”

"What a good story." Mami sighed as if she had a lot to say, but then she changed the subject.

"—But that's because the tortoise can see the finish line, right?" Her retort was unusually calm. Although she still wore the same smile as usual, it was not hard to see through her glasses that there was no emotion in Mami's eyes.

"That's why it has the motivation to keep going. Even if it's moving slowly, it can see itself getting closer and closer to the finish line."

"But humans are different. They can't see where their efforts are going. If they persist blindly, they might start off in the wrong direction and end up getting further and further away from the goal."

"..."

Asami shrugged, and after saying all that in one breath, her soft lips opened and closed several times, as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.

Masumi waited quietly for her to speak, but in the end she said nothing, only smiled.

The two walked to the pet snake exhibit, where the soft, winding creatures were brightly colored and twisted and crawled in glass tanks.

"Masumi-kun, what's your zodiac sign?" Mami suddenly asked.

"snake."

"Yes, I was born in the Year of the Dragon. Since you're a year younger than me, you were born in the Year of the Snake."

Mami's monologue left Masumi momentarily speechless.

"That's probably why our scales are so similar."

She murmured softly, lowered her eyelashes, and stared at her toes, but then looked away because she couldn't see them.

Asuna's coffee-colored pupils stared straight at her.

"Masumi-kun."

"Ok?"

"Actually, we've met before."

"What nonsense are you talking about..." Her tone was so sincere that Masumi stopped halfway through her sentence and tentatively asked:

"I've never been to Shiga, so where did I see you before? Kobe? Or Tokyo?"

I've only lived in these two cities for a short period of time. If I only count the cities I've visited, the range is much larger. Besides Nishinomiya City (where Koshien Stadium is held), Kyoto and Osaka, there's also Yamanashi Prefecture, which I visited on a high school school trip.

"Never mind if you can't remember."

Seeing the troubled look on his face, Mami smiled again, "It was just a chance encounter, it's not that important anyway."

"Since you've said that, how could it not be important?" Masumi said dejectedly.

No matter how hard he racked his brains, he still couldn't remember.

"I told you not to think about it." Mami rubbed against Masumi's arm like a cat, forcibly pulling Masumi's thoughts back to reality.

"...Just now, you asked me if there was something you wanted to tell me, right?"

"Hmm, have you figured out how to say it?"

"..."

After a long silence, Mami intended to casually loosen her arms, but as she hesitated, she unconsciously hugged them even tighter.

"I'm planning to go back to my hometown of Kusatsu."

"..."

"When?"

"tomorrow."

"So urgent?"

"Because I need to move out before the rent expires," Mami joked, but even she couldn't laugh.

"Why so sudden?"

Masumi frowned. Signs she hadn't paid much attention to before now slithered out from the depths of her memory like snakes.

He cautiously observed Mami's expression and tentatively asked, "Is it because of... the manga?"

"As expected, Masumi-kun is very perceptive." Mami nodded slightly, seemingly unconcerned.

"I've always felt that my fate is the same as Masumi's."

"Whether it's a band or a comic book, they all enter the field with a certain aspiration, a belief in perseverance and hard work, and then give up in disappointment when they realize their mediocrity."

After saying this with a smile, Mami looked up at Masumi, a stunned expression on her face.

"I'm sorry, Masumi-kun, it sounds like I'm mocking you."

"No such thing."

He gently shook his head. "If I were someone who cared about those kinds of words, the Yamanote Line on April 17th would probably have been delayed by ten minutes due to a personal accident."

Masumi's tone was full of comfort. If it were the usual Mami, she would have subconsciously retorted to the joke and then chased after him in a frivolous tone.

At this moment, however, she simply lowered her head and looked at the ground with her eyelids blinking up and down as if brushing away the dust that covered her past memories.

“That’s right, Masumi-kun is very strong. Compared to him, I’ve always been a rather useless person.”

A self-deprecating smile appeared on Asami's lips.

"I'm a terrible student, with average grades and no athletic ability. I often cause trouble for others because I'm slow. I'm not good at interacting with people, so I don't have many friends and don't like going to school."

“People like me are not uncommon in school, but instead of sticking together for warmth, we all seek our own spiritual sustenance.”

"Even if real life is not satisfactory, as long as there are things that can make me feel satisfied, that's enough."

After saying this, she remained silent for a long time before slowly raising her face. Her expression was suddenly enlightened, but she also seemed somewhat lonely.

"Therefore, for me, comics are something like that; they are proof that there is a boundary between me and mediocrity."

"With it, I can confidently say that I have not wasted my youth until I was 23. I have something I love and will stick to to the end."

"Back in high school, I wrote a declaration on the corner of the club building: 'Ryujinin will definitely become an excellent manga artist!'"

"When I checked again the next day, I was surprised to find a message that read, 'Keep going, and don't forget your original aspirations.' This kindness and encouragement from a stranger gave me immense courage."

"So I later went to a vocational school and submitted my work to magazines. After being rejected, I would revise it or start over. I kept drawing and kept getting rejected."

"Because I can't find anything else meaningful to do besides this, and whenever I want to give up, that message from the stranger resurfaces."

"I don't want to let this kindness down, nor am I willing to betray my long-held dream."

Asami pursed her lips and lowered her eyes, saying, "I never thought that the comments I used to use as a source of motivation would now become a curse that binds me."

"But it's almost reached its limit. No matter how hard the lost tortoise persists, it can't beat the rabbit."

"Especially recently, seeing Rinne, as the heir, steadily progressing along the path she has planned, and Mirai overcoming obstacles and bravely taking a step forward, while I alone remain hesitant..."

As she said this, her beautiful face contorted slightly, and she let out a long breath.

"I can't hold on any longer."

Mami's expression was one of deep pain. It was the first time Masumi had ever seen her with such an expression, and her heart trembled as she forced out a stiff voice:

"It's not time to give up completely yet, maybe we just need to try one more time..."

Are you implying that I haven't been trying?

Her voice lowered, and she released her emotions through gritted teeth. It was clear that she was in a bad mood, and she forcefully shook off Masumi's arm.

Perhaps realizing her words had been too aggressive, Mami spoke softly in an incredibly gentle voice, yet with a hint of rejection:
"I'm sorry, I know. I'm sure Masumi-kun will understand how I feel, since we're creatures with similar scales."

"But don't worry, I won't give up drawing comics."

Asami's lips curved into a smile that hinted at loneliness. "But if it's just for my own amusement, it doesn't matter where I draw comics, so it's the same whether I go back to Kusatsu."

"What about doujinshi?" Masumi asked, unwilling to give up. "Kusatsu certainly doesn't have the resources to hold such a large-scale impromptu sale, does she?"

"That's true, but doujinshi can also be consigned or sold through general channels," Mami replied with a smile.
"Besides, rent and prices in Kobe are quite expensive. It's really tough living in a big city."

"As for the house, you can live in Starry Sky forever, that's fine."

As the young master, Masumi had the confidence to say that.

"Then please spare me, I can't stand that love nest atmosphere."

She nodded jokingly, revealing a smile that seemed no different from usual, but for some reason, that mature smile looked more like she was crying.

A warm breath welled up in Masumi's throat, choking him with turbulent emotions. He struggled to breathe, trying to speak—

Mami's casual remark silenced all his hesitation.

"Let's stop here, Masumi-kun. Boys who keep pestering you aren't popular."

After speaking, she turned away as if to escape, her voice returning to its usual languid tone.

"Ah, it's almost time."

"If we don't go back soon, who knows what Miss Mio might do in her anger."

The sound of her sandals stomping on the ground vibrated in her ears. Mami ignored Masumi and walked ahead without looking back even once.

(End of this chapter)