Miss Heir wasn't very kind to me.

Chapter 160, Section 1: "Stealing a moment of leisure amidst a busy schedule... the most delicious thing is a moment of peace and quiet."

On a Thursday in mid-September, although it was already autumn, the lingering warmth of the Beginning of Autumn could still be felt during the day.

On its days off, the Starry Night Cafe held a "Spring Cleaning" event.

Besides their own rooms, the heiress assigned everyone a job, with Masumi in charge of the third-floor corridor.

Open the window to let fresh air circulate in the corridor, and Masumi stands on a chair to sweep the dust off the ceiling with a duster.

The lampshade is so dirty, it probably needs to be replaced.

As Masumi was thinking this, her hand holding the feather duster suddenly stopped.

"what sound?"

The creaking sound on the wooden corridor was quite obvious, and gradually approaching... it should be footsteps, so light they sounded like a child's, as if they were walking barefoot.

Masumi turned around and looked in the direction from which the sound came.

"What, it's Yuukawa."

The girl with long flaxen hair wrapped herself in a bulky penguin mascot costume, which was blue and white and fluffy. She spread her small wings and flapped them back and forth. What looked like her hands underneath were probably her hands.

Tiny feet peek out from under the mascot costume, taking light, clumsy steps, and indeed look very much like a penguin.

"What kind of clothes are you wearing?"

"Found it in Mami's box..."

"Wow, Mami has such weird stuff," Masumi thought, briefly imagining what she would look like in a mascot costume.

The ends of the mascot costume were not yellow penguin webbed feet, but rather the snow-white, soft soles of a human girl's feet.

"Why did you walk here barefoot?"

"Because...we're cleaning..."

"I see." Masumi was dumbfounded by her own question, then asked, "You were cleaning, so why did you come over here?"

“Rinne wants me to help Kurokawa… clean the dining area… Kurokawa thinks I’m clumsy… so she tells me I can go anywhere…” the girl explained slowly.

"If she knew you were coming here, she would definitely take back what she said," Masumi thought.

Kaizuki looked up. "Masumi...do you need my help?"

"Uh, no need, you can go to your room and rest."

"Even Masumi thinks I'm...clumsy?"

Haiyue's eyebrows drooped slightly, making her look quite regretful.

That's not true.

Seeing the girl's serious expression, Masumi couldn't refuse. She sighed and compromised, saying, "I need to clean the window glass. You can help me."

"Ah."

Haiyue nodded expressionlessly.

"I will... do my best..."

The penguin flapped its wings and said.

Masumi shook her head subconsciously. "If you're going to clean the glass, at least put your hand out first."

The girl stood still.

My gaze lingered on her outstretched wings, and I understood her feelings.

"Isn't there a way to take off this mascot costume by myself?"

"……without."

Haiyue lowered her gaze and quietly shook her head.

"Masumi... help me unzip my zipper..."

"Sure, but let's make it clear first, you're properly dressed inside, right?" Masumi confirmed.

Haiyue nodded gently and murmured an "Mmm".

"That's good."

As Masumi stepped down from the chair, he faced the penguin's round, chubby back, the silver zipper gleaming among the fluff. He grabbed the zipper and slowly pulled it down.

She was wearing a white tank top underneath, with a very eye-catching colorful jellyfish pattern in the middle of the chest, which I had never seen her wear before.

The sweat-soaked vest revealed the skin's color, and the shoulders and armpits reflected a slight sheen due to the thin layer of sweat.

Despite the low level of skin exposure, the completely unprotected clothing is clearly the type of clothing that can only be seen by family or lovers.

Noticing Masumi's gaze, Kaigetsu swayed uncomfortably, and with her movement, the jellyfish on her tank top twisted.

"So hot……"

"It's probably because it's stuffy inside the mascot costume." Masumi glanced at the inside of the mascot costume and saw that it was even stuffed with PP cotton. No wonder.

"wait for me a while."

"Masumi...where are you going?"

Haiyue stared blankly at him and asked.

"I'll get you a glass of water. You've been cooped up in the mascot costume for so long, you need to stay hydrated. You stay here and wait for me, and stay away from the window."

His tone was like that of someone giving instructions to a troublesome child. After listening to him, the jellyfish-like girl, who seemed to have been half-swallowed by a penguin, nodded obediently.

Just as Masumi reached the second floor, she was stopped by Mami, who came out of her room with a broom in her hand.

"Masumi-kun! Where are you going?"

Asami narrowed her eyes, a sharp, scrutinizing glint in them. "Trying to escape labor?"

"I just wanted to go downstairs to get a glass of water."

"Rinne and Mio are doing a thorough cleaning of the dining area and kitchen. You'll only cause trouble if you go now."

"What should I do?"

"Hmm...right!" Mami paused for a moment, then clapped her hands as if suddenly remembering something and said, "I have oranges in my room, Masumi-kun, you can take them and eat them."

"Oh, thanks."

The oranges on the tray were quite large. Masumi carried them back to the third floor and saw the penguin costume lying on the floor.

"Hanekawa?"

Haiyue was holding a dirty rag, wiping the floor with her back to him. Her buttocks, covered by dark blue fabric, came into view, their shape clearly visible.

Upon hearing Masumi's voice, Kaigetsu stopped what she was doing, picked up the soiled rag, and looked at Masumi.

"I got some oranges from Mami, let's eat them together."

Haiyue nodded, then suddenly looked puzzled, her confusion evident in the way she turned her head.

"Asami?"

"Masumi...isn't she always called by her surname?"

"Because I went to her house before, I thought it would be easier to distinguish her by calling her by her name."

"That Masumi... also calls me Kaigetsu..."

The jellyfish-like girl suddenly moved closer, her expression reminiscent of a primary school girl dreaming of a princess dress through a glass shop window.

So close, too close. Masumi could see everything clearly, from her sweat-dampened, snow-white collarbone to her slightly heaving chest and even her barely visible armpits.

With just a reach of her hand, she could touch the other person. To change her mood, Masumi slowly opened her mouth:

"Uh, it's alright."

Given their current relationship, it would be a natural step to change their address to their names.

"Then... let's call it now..."

The soft, jellyfish-like girl chased after him with weak whispers.

"... Haiyue."

"Ah."

Haiyue nodded gently in response, a faint blush spreading across her fair and translucent skin, and a quiet smile blooming on her lips.

"I want to eat an orange," she said softly, her tone flat, her ears bright red.

"Well, here you go."

Masumi picked up an orange from the plate.

Haiyue tilted her head slightly to one side, raising her slightly damp hand holding the rag. "My hands are dirty... Masumi peeled some tangerines for me..."

"I see."

That's probably the terrifying aspect of subtle influence. Feeding moonfish like this seems no different from feeding goldfish, so there's naturally no resistance.

"So this is called a mountain orange," Masumi asked as she peeled the orange.

"Hmm...only Beishan Village...has it..."

"where is that?"

“Wakayama,” Kaigetsu replied calmly, then opened her mouth without warning after seeing that Masumi had already peeled a few segments of orange.

"So, you know quite a lot."

Masumi brought a peeled orange segment to her lips.

The moment the clean, white teeth bit into the orange, the juice gushed out like water spraying out at a fire scene.

"Don't just bite into half!" Masumi said helplessly. "The juice will splatter everywhere."

"Well."

Haiyue blinked, her lips glistening with orange juice.

She sweetly licked the corner of her lips, then gently bit down on Masumi's fingers as well, sucking the orange juice that had dripped onto them. Her clear pupils reflected Masumi's dumbfounded expression.

"What are you doing?" Masumi sighed and pulled her wet fingers out.

"Do you still want to eat oranges?"

"eat."

"Then behave yourself."

Haiyue nodded like a chick pecking at rice.

Masumi picked up the orange, about to feed it to the jellyfish girl—

A slender, pale hand holding an orange segment suddenly appeared from the side.

"Woo!"

"No need for that. I'll feed you for Masumi. I'll feed you as much as you want."

Kurokawa Mio said with a forced smile, breaking off segments of orange and stuffing them into Haiyue's mouth.

The jellyfish girl's cheeks were puffed up like a hamster stuffed with food.

"I told you to find somewhere to rest, but you came all the way here to Masumi. Didn't you want someone to feed you oranges? I'll keep you company to the end today."

Perhaps it's just my imagination, but I always felt that Haiyue's beautiful blue pupils were unfocused and lacked luster.

The fingers that were gripping the rag so tightly turned white and discolored.

"Waaaaah! Masumi...save me..."

"Alright, Kurokawa, don't make things too difficult for her," Masumi said, trying to mediate.

"No! Masumi is too gentle. I must teach this jellyfish a lesson today."

Kurokawa Mio seemed determined to achieve her goal.

"Kurokawa?"

"Woo-gu! Woo-uh-uh..."

"Mio?"

Kurokawa Mio suddenly stopped moving.

Then his shoulders began to tremble violently at an unnatural frequency.

"Masumi... Masumi, she actually called me by my name!"

She gave up punishing Haiyue, and in the brief instant she turned her head, a blush crept up from the back of her neck, her ears, and all the way to her forehead. Steam naturally rose from her cheeks as she looked at Masumi with seductive eyes.

“Well, we’ve gotten to know each other quite well, so I think it’s time to start addressing each other more intimately,” Masumi explained.

Let's not bring up the fact that she was the third person to change her title.

“Yes, yes, that’s right.” Kurokawa Mio nodded vigorously, her eyes shining brightly with an eerie light.

"I've wanted to develop a closer relationship with Masumi for a long time, no! I want to restore our original boyfriend-girlfriend relationship."

She was sitting down on the wooden floor, with her hands on her lap.
"What, what's wrong?"

"I want to eat an orange too."

Kurokawa Mio looked serious.

Before Masumi could speak, she added, "Feed me the way you fed Kaigetsu just now."

"Haiyue got hurt because she was holding a rag just now—"

Kurokawa Mio snatched the rag from the jellyfish girl and casually wiped the floor a couple of times.

"now what?"

She flashed an idol-like smile that could pierce through anyone's defenses.

"……I see."

Masumi put on a defeated expression; after all, it was just feeding her, and now it was a piece of cake.

"what--"

Its soft, plump lips parted, like a fledgling bird begging for food.

Masumi swallowed hard and placed a segment of orange on her pink tongue, which reflected a glistening, alluring sheen.

Her cherry lips, which had been sucking on his fingers, closed quietly.

Chew and swallow.

"Kaizuki said these are wild oranges from Wakayama. Are they delicious?"

"...Mmm, it's delicious. Thank you for the treat."

Kurokawa Mio's voice was tinged with a seductive quality, accompanied by the sticky sound of swallowing orange juice.

She touched her lower lip, as if recalling the feel of her fingers, a sensation like waking from a blissful dream, with only a lingering warmth remaining.

Even though she was just feeding him oranges, something felt off. Masumi didn't think she'd done anything wrong, but what if another girl saw them?

"What are you doing?"

A cold, stern voice rang out from behind.

Masumi raised her gaze. The beautiful girl in front of her stood straight, her long, glossy black hair tied in a ponytail, swaying gently. She looked down at the three of them.

"Eat an orange." "Eat an orange."

Two voices, one feigning weakness and the other defiant, overlapped in the air, and Haiyue and Kurokawa answered in unison.

"..."

Rinne pressed her temples, seemingly troubled, and let out a sweet sigh from between her rosy lips.

"At least finish your work first, then do these things."

"The area I'm responsible for has already been cleaned up. Rinne, feel free to inspect and find fault." Kurokawa Mio proudly tossed her hair.

A gentle breeze blew in through the open window, causing her honey-gold hair to flutter. Rinne blinked.

"I've already inspected the parts that needed nitpicking. It's very clean. Mio is definitely not the pampered young lady type."

She tried to soften her tone so that her words wouldn't sound sarcastic.

Although Mio Kurokawa herself says she lives in Tokyo's downtown area and is not some rich girl, in any case, her family has a grand piano and can afford to provide her children with a high-quality education, or even a career path.

"of course."

Kurokawa Mio turned her face away nonchalantly, behaving like a cat unwilling to be picked up.

Seizing the opportunity, Kaigetsu raised her hand and said, "I'm here to help Masumi... clean the windows..."

"Is that so?" Rinne said with a sigh, "Haiyue is becoming more and more mature."

The tone was like that of a parent attending their child's graduation ceremony.

Just as Masumi was thinking this, the heiress suddenly narrowed her eyes imposingly, her sharp gaze landing on Masumi's face as she watched.

"Mami-nee and Mirai have both finished cleaning their respective areas. As the young master, aren't you being too lazy?"

Suddenly seeing the spearhead pointed at him, Masumi immediately tensed up and slid to her knees, saying:
"I'm sorry. My bad."

“Masumi has already tried his best. I’ll help him pack up later.” Kurokawa Mio stood up to protect him like an idol’s bodyguard.

"It's okay, calm down, here, have a segment of orange—"

Masumi peeled the orange thoroughly, even removing the white pith, and then offered a segment of orange to the heir in a fawning manner.

Rinne paused for a moment, then shook her head and said, "No need."

"Kaigetsu is a mountain orange, a variety that can only be found in Kitayama Village in Wakayama. We have all tried it, and it tastes very good."

"You really want me to eat this?"

Rinne looked extremely annoyed.

"Oh, sorry, if you don't want to—"

"It's okay to eat just one slice."

For some reason, her fair and delicate face flushed red, and her expression contained a mixture of resentment and struggle, similar to resisting delicious food.

Her hands, which had been clenched into fists at her sides, loosened slightly like melting spring snow. After hesitating for a moment, Rinne bent down and cautiously leaned forward.

Huh?
Masumi blinked, puzzled.

The girl facing him closed her eyes shyly, her lips slightly parted as she was being fed, looking like a budding flower.

Kamishiro... seems to have misunderstood.

However, since she had just fed Haiyue and Kurokawa the same way, it's understandable that she would think that way.

Masumi's heart skipped a beat, but since she had already come this far, there was no turning back.

"—Everyone, I found something great in a box full of odds and ends! You'll all be interested in it, it's about Masumi-kun's high school days..."

As Mami, who was shouting as she came up the stairs, saw the two people feeding her and stopped talking abruptly. She stared in astonishment, her eyes widening, and then a mischievous smile appeared on her lips.

"Hey, it's a CG feed from a romantic comedy."

"It's not surprising that Xiao Haiyue and Mio are both rare, but Xiao Rinne is an SSR rare card, which is worth commemorating."

She smoothly brought her phone to her eyes, pressed the shutter, confirmed the photo, gave the two people in the corridor a thumbs-up, and nodded vigorously.

Then he turned and left, his movements fluid and decisive.

"..."

Seeing this series of actions that seemed so natural, the two of them were frozen in place for several seconds. The beautiful girl with long, straight black hair stared blankly as she sucked on Masumi's finger, her soft tongue unconsciously licking it.

When Kurokawa Mio glared at her with murderous intent, Rinne blushed like a cat that had been splashed with water and jumped back.

"This guy……"

Seeing Rinne's bloodless expression, Masumi sighed, got up, and rushed down the stairs.

(End of this chapter)