Miss Heir wasn't very kind to me.

Chapter 220, Section 22: "Treasure mimic, a battleground, karaoke... is it some kind of maze?"

For the next few days, Masumi and the girls at the coffee shop would go to karaoke after closing time each day.

The important thing is to let Haiyue get used to the feeling of singing.

The staff working at the karaoke bar probably already remember the faces of the six people who come every night; after all, Rinne and the others are memorable just by their looks.

Without needing to confirm the details, the staff led Masumi and her group directly into the private room.

"Let me see what we're having for dinner today."

Asami put her right ankle on her thigh and sat cross-legged on the sofa, immediately flipping through the menu.

"The honey mustard fried chicken looks pretty good."

After happily selecting her meal, she quickly made a phone call.

"Asami-nee really treats karaoke like an izakaya!" Chiai was dumbfounded.

“After all, I’ve been coming every day lately.” Asami relaxed her body and shifted to a more comfortable position.

Holding her ample thighs with both hands, resting her pointed chin on her knees, and sinking her delicate buttocks deep into the sofa, she let out a contented moan: "Ah~ this place has become my home now."

"certainly not."

Chiai said speechlessly, "Please, Asami-neechan, be serious! The appointed time is getting closer and closer."

Tomorrow is the day to go to the recording studio, followed by post-production of the song and production of the video submission. The things that need to be done are like the trams passing by the tunnel entrance, one after another.

That's why, seeing Mami's lazy appearance, Chiai felt like a college student who was the only one taking her group project seriously.

Seeing the pouty expression on the childhood friend's face, Mami couldn't help but burst out laughing, and she laughed heartily.

"Chia should relax a bit. Being so tense will only make Haiyue worry."

She seemed unconcerned, swinging her legs like a child throwing a tantrum.

"Eh, really?" Qianai froze, her gaze shifting blankly to the expressionless jellyfish girl.

"sorry, I……"

Haiyue gently curled her fingers, the emptiness traced in her palm swallowed by shadow, making her look very lonely.

“Chiai is worried about Kaigetsu too,” Masumi said, trying to comfort her.

"Cunning! So cunning!" Mami exclaimed unhappily, "If Masumi-kun says that, then I'll be the one playing all the villains."

"I didn't say you did anything wrong."

Masumi couldn't help but sigh. How could she possibly satisfy every girl?
He suddenly stood up, enveloped by Masumi's tall shadow. Asami, who was eating fried chicken, shoved her fingers into her mouth with her sudden movement.

"Shin Shin Shin Cheng-kun, what are you doing?"

For some reason, she covered her buttocks with her other hand, blatantly revealing her wariness:
"I only said a few bad things about you, you're a grown man, you shouldn't hold it against me."

"Do I appear to be that kind of villain in your eyes?" Masumi sighed helplessly. "Didn't you realize you were sitting on the microphone?"

"Eh."

As soon as Masumi entered the private room, she spent a long time looking for another microphone, but from the very beginning, it was overshadowed by Mami's peach pie overflowing with fruit pulp.

"No wonder there seemed to be ASMR-like sounds coming from the speakers just now."

Asami said, stunned.

◇

"The meeting is making no progress; the meeting is dancing."

Two hundred years ago, a European diplomat used this phrase to satirize the Vienna Conference, which frequently held balls but made slow progress and failed to achieve any substantial results.

Although Haiyue comes to karaoke to practice singing every day, she is becoming more and more relaxed in front of the people in the coffee shop, but this is ultimately not like the quantifiable data of sports performance.

Masumi doesn't know how far Kaigetsu is from the point where she can sing freely.

She may be very close, but she is still a little short of the finish line. Masumi is still clueless about how to make up for the last stretch.

Haiyue put down the microphone and slowly stood up.

"Where did Haiyue go?" Rinne asked.

"bathroom."

"Oh."

The noise from next door flooded into the private room the moment the door opened.

After Haiyue closed the door, the spacious rectangular private room became an enclosed space again, with accompaniment playing from the speakers, sung by no one.

"She's been doing very well lately, and I think she's almost done with her practice."

Kurokawa Mio put down her empty glass, chewing on the ice cube in her mouth. Masumi, sitting on another sofa, frowned in thought.

"Really? I still can't quite feel at ease."

His gaze followed the water droplets flowing down the glass, seemingly flowing slowly, yet then sliding down in one breath, repeating this process over and over again.

Masumi's mind also wavered.

“Thinking about this won’t help.” Rinne turned down the volume of the accompaniment with the remote control. “You’ve already done everything you could.”

"What happens next depends on whether she can make the decision herself," the heiress said quietly.

—One's own awareness.

There were two barriers that once confined Rinne: one that needed to be broken down from the outside, and the other that needed to be opened from the inside through her own resolve.

Masumi's current approach to Kaigetsu is no different from her approach to Rinne back then.

But does Haiyue possess the inner drive to move forward on its own? This is the question that Masumi is struggling with.

"That's right, just let nature take its course."

Kurokawa Mio squeezed into the gap between the two and said.

"Moreover, the worst-case scenario is to use my previous method."

She took a deep breath and said resolutely, "If Masumi doesn't want to be the bad guy, then I will, as Kaigetsu's friend 'Kurokawa Mio'."

"..."

Masumi was bothered by the disturbance and deeply moved, so she sighed.

"Thank you, Mio."

"But I'm not so bad that I need Mio to share the burden with me. It's a responsibility that I should bear myself."

A blush rose on Mio's cheeks. She swallowed hard and said in a slightly hoarse voice, "No, it's not a burden for me at all."

“Sharing responsibilities with Masumi is just like being a couple, isn’t it? It should be called a reward…”

"Hey, a friend?"

A voice interrupted her.

“…I thought Mio disliked Kaigetsu, because she doesn’t usually get along with that kid.” Rinne said with her usual indifferent expression.

Then she narrowed her amethyst-like eyes, the beauty mark at the corner of her eye twitching, and slightly curled her lips, looking at Kurokawa Mio, who had squeezed next to Masumi, with an unspoken look in her eyes.

"I didn't expect that Mio also considered Kaizuki a friend?"

"Long-winded."

Kurokawa Mio's retort was equally forceful, and she then spoke in a dismissive tone:
“I still hate the fact that she always casually intrudes into my intimate relationship with Masumi.”

"only……"

A complex emotion suddenly welled up on her lips, and she said softly, with a hint of a sigh in her voice:

"But when I think about how she also likes Masumi, I don't dislike her so much anymore."

"Huh? If two girls are rivals for love, shouldn't they be even more annoying?" Qian Ai tilted her head in confusion.

"That's right, so I still hate her."

"Mio-neechan is so complicated," Chiai said, dumbfounded.

Kurokawa Mio shrugged. "...Just think of this as the privilege of being the legal wife."

"The leisure of the legal wife... what does that mean?"

Rinne turned her head and asked expressionlessly.

"Well, I think it's necessary to explain this as a reminder."

Mio Kurokawa generously replied, "Although I'm practicing singing for Kaigetsu right now, please don't forget that Masumi created this anonymous singer account for me."

"In other words, I am the undisputed center."

As she spoke, she proudly puffed out her rather small chest.

"so."

Rinne nodded indifferently, saying, "Anyway, Masumi's identity as a barista won't change. It's good to let Mio enjoy a brief, illusory relationship during the few hours she spends at karaoke."

After saying that, the heiress leisurely sipped her lemonade.

This is the leeway of a legal wife.

Kurokawa Mio's expression turned cold: "Trying to use your status as heir to bully others? Be careful, or I'll sue you for exploiting your employees under the Comprehensive Labor Policy Promotion Act."

"I think there is someone else who is exploiting Masumi."

"What nonsense are you talking about! I'm not the kind of woman who, after getting a taste of something, will cling to Masumi and never let go." Kurokawa Mio tied a knot between her eyebrows unhappily.

"..." Rinne was stunned, then sighed speechlessly.

"Mio is what people call 'love-obsessed' and 'sex-obsessed,' right?"

"I can't pretend I didn't hear that sarcastic remark." "As expected, it's too dangerous to have Masumi by Mio's side." Rinne muttered to herself.

"Hmph, so you've finally shown your true colors as a philanderer." Kurokawa Mio crossed her arms, looking completely unsurprised.

This is undoubtedly a battlefield worthy of bloodshed.

Masumi, listening nearby, felt a little uneasy. She nervously picked up the glass of orange juice, put the straw in her mouth, and sipped.

A drop of water slid down from the clear glass and landed on his phone. He reached out his thumb to wipe it, and the screen suddenly lit up, displaying the time.

20: 12.

Haiyue has been gone for a long time.

Realizing this, she became extremely concerned and, as if to take control of the atmosphere, stood up and spoke, interrupting the two girls' argument.

"Ladies, please take a rest."

"I'll go get the drinks. What would everyone like to drink?"

"Just like Masumi."

Without hesitation, Kurokawa Mio handed over the cup, but suddenly her eyelashes fluttered, and she asked warily, "Is Masumi going to find Kaigetsu?"

"That's the idea," Masumi readily admitted. "After all, she hasn't come back yet."

Upon hearing this, Rinne glanced at the time displayed on her phone and frowned slightly: "It's been so long already."

Qian'ai suddenly thought of a bad possibility, covered her mouth and said, "Could it be because of what I just said... that the pressure was too much and she ran away?"

"will not."

As if to reassure her, Masumi gently patted Aome's head and said, "Chiai, don't think too much."

"Oh."

Chiai responded softly, a little embarrassed by Masumi's touch, "Masumi-nii~ don't touch my head like a child."

Although she said that, she didn't intend to avoid the warm, broad hand above her head.

The girl squinted her eyes comfortably, like a clingy puppy enjoying its owner's petting.

"—That means, Masumi, Chia is already a girl who can be independent without her childhood friend."

The larger golden retriever put its arm around Qian'ai's shoulder, separating the two.

"My younger sister stopped liking being patted on the head when she started junior high school."

"Oh, sorry, Chiai."

"No, that's not how it is, Masumi-nii."

Qian Ai blushed, "Actually, I don't dislike being patted on the head..."

"Oh, I see."

A meaningful smile appeared on Kurokawa Mio's lips. "In that case, there's no need to trouble Masumi. I, Mio-neechan, will take care of you."

After saying that, she mischievously stroked Qian Ai's hair repeatedly.

"Masumi-san..."

The girl's emerald eyes lost their sparkle.

Masumi said helplessly, "Mio, don't bully Chiai."

"It's just sisters playing around," Kurokawa Mio said with a sly smile.

"This is proof that I have a good relationship with Chiai, right? Chiai."

"No, that's not true... Waaaaah!"

The childhood sweetheart girl made a sound like the wailing of a small animal in pain.

Although Masumi had never witnessed a small animal crying out in pain before, this was the first time.

Rinne sighed, rubbing her forehead, "If Mio treats her love rivals in this elementary school girl way, then there seems to be nothing to worry about."

The girls' seemingly harmless "battleground" made Masumi laugh.

"What are you laughing at, Masumi-nii?"

Having finally managed to break free from Kurokawa Mio's arms, Chiai frowned slightly.

"Sorry, sorry, I just felt that your relationship had improved."

"What's gotten better?" "What's gotten better?"

The sounds overlapped, and the light from the amethyst and obsidian collided in the air.

Qian Ai tilted her head slightly, puzzled. "Why would I be happy about this?"

“I would be very happy if you could get along well,” Masumi said frankly.

Masumi would be very happy if the people she likes could get along well with each other.

“Masumi (brother) is really…” The girls looked at each other, then turned their faces away to avoid the main point.

"If no one wants the drink, then I'm leaving."

"Wait! I'm sobbing~"

Mami, who had been eating heartily without a care in the world, covered her mouth with her hand and mumbled a call to Masumi, her mouth seemingly stuffed with food.

"Swallow it first and then we'll talk."

"..."

Her slender, pale throat rolled unguardedly, her hoarse voice carrying the sticky sound of swallowing.

"I mean, I want a Coke." Mami said, holding up her empty cup.

"Oh, give me the cup."

◇

After filling the self-service beverage bar with drinks for three people, Masumi was about to pick up the plastic tray when she suddenly felt a tremor in her pocket.

He put down the tray temporarily and took out his phone.

Kurage: "Come to the toilet."

Eh?
She only sent this one message, and then stopped replying to anything Ren Zhencheng sent.

Hopefully it won't be like the last time at the Kobe International Exhibition Center.

With a slightly apprehensive feeling, Masumi walked to the public area of ​​the restroom.

"Haiyue? Where are you?"

He called softly inside.

The phone in my palm vibrated again.

Kurage: "Move forward a little."

Kurage: "Just a little is enough."

a little?
Completely bewildered, Masumi tentatively took two steps forward and suddenly heard a faint sound of the door hinges moving.

Suddenly, a crack opened in the accessible toilet on his left, and like a mimicry of a treasure chest in a maze, a fair and delicate arm emerged from it.

Masumi was caught off guard and pulled inside.

Like an unlucky, lowly adventurer in a maze.

Boom!
He slammed the back of his head against the door, making a crisp sound.

Before Masumi could rub the affected area, a soft body leaned against him, and he quickly pressed himself against the door, trying to flatten himself out.

"Haiyue!?"

Suddenly, a predatory glint appeared in the jellyfish girl's beautiful blue eyes.

She strained to stand on tiptoe, her delicate face almost touching hers. It was like a "wall slam" scene from a shoujo manga, but the roles were completely reversed.

"Masumi...do you feel lonely?"

The naturally beautiful jellyfish girl suddenly asked a very strange question.

Loneliness? What does that mean?
Was she trying to test her fragile moral bottom line with this question?
Although this situation inevitably raises various concerns, Masumi still inexplicably thinks about the problem seriously.

"Hmm...it's alright, I guess. Things have gotten much better since I met you guys."

"Does 'you' include me too?"

"Of course, that includes Haiyue too—hmm!"

Haiyue continued to close the distance, leaving Masumi with nowhere to retreat, and she even shamefully moved forward a little.

Oops.

Masumi desperately fought against the instinct that was baring its fangs in the corner of her mind.

Haiyue was wearing a short skirt with pretty ribbons and ruffles today, which he had slightly wrinkled and was clinging to her skin.

But the jellyfish girl seemed completely unconcerned, her small feet tensed, she stood on tiptoe to the limit, almost pressing her weight onto Masumi.

Masumi, covered in sweat, said, "Listen to me, Kaigetsu."

"Accessible toilets should be for people who need them. We are causing trouble for others by being here, and it would be even more troublesome if we were discovered."

Masumi tried to persuade her earnestly, but both her tone and the content of her advice were incredibly weak.

(End of this chapter)