Miss Heir wasn't very kind to me.

Chapter 281, Section 16: "The Time Has Come to Make a Decision"

The quilt, like a shark with its mouth wide open, bit into half of Masumi's body, wrapping him in the warm blankets.

A muffled sound came from under the covers.

"They ate Masumi......"

A faint smile appeared on Haiyue's lips.

Feeling that warmth, Masumi felt as if their heartbeats were merging into one.

"Haiyue."

Masumi called out the other's name as if to confirm her presence, and Kaigetsu slowly raised her head to look at him.

Under the gaze of those blue-green eyes, Masumi couldn't help but hold her breath, while the girl frowned slightly as if she was somewhat dissatisfied.

"Masumi...aren't you going to keep patting my head?"

"Jellyfish Girl asked softly, her face flushed, her skin looking as if she were lacking oxygen."

"Uh, um... Haiyue, you're so good, so good, so good..."

Masumi placed her hand on Kaigetsu's head and gently stroked it.

"Come to think of it, someone who sneaks into my room at night can hardly be considered a good kid."

Haiyue tilted her head and made a very endearing sound.

"...Am I...a bad kid...?"

"It doesn't matter anymore."

Masumi sighed. What kind of discussion could she have about good or bad children with a baby who was drinking milk?

Haiyue kept shaking her head to adjust the angle, and her flaxen hair swept back and forth across Masumi's skin with each movement, making it feel strangely itchy.

After that, the jellyfish girl still lazily hugged Masumi tightly with her whole body, revealing a blank smile.

She seemed to have truly regressed to her early childhood, and looked to be thoroughly enjoying herself.

How long should we stay like this?

Masumi couldn't help but speak up. Although Haigetsu had cleaned her up very thoroughly, she still wanted to take a bath.

"Until...I have the same courage as Masumi..."

Masumi's eyelashes trembled slightly, and for a moment she showed a stunned expression.

"Courage..."

◇

"Good morning, Masumi-kun. I thought you were going to hibernate under the covers all day."

When she ran into Mami in the hallway, she couldn't help but smile and say something with a hint of teasing.

"...I'm not some hopeless person who stays indoors all winter."

"Masumi-kun's words are so unpleasant to hear! Here's a 'fragrant kick' for you!"

Miss Mami kicked him mercilessly. Masumi carefully examined his entire body and found no place that had turned to stone or harden.

"Good morning, Masumi. Today is the day to celebrate our love."

Mio greeted Masumi with a radiant smile.

"Oh, good morning, Mio, you're so energetic so early in the morning."

In contrast, Masumi was a little listless, after all, she had been woken up in that way.

"Yes, yes, after all, I've been looking forward to this day for a long time, probably since I was born."

Mio clasped her hands together in front of her chest, a gentle smile appearing on her lips.

"That's way too exaggerated."

"It's no exaggeration at all~ Let's go to Suwayama Park to enjoy the night view after closing time tonight. I have something important to give to Masumi~"

She looked directly at Masumi with affectionate eyes.

"Uh, just say chocolate."

Masumi instinctively took a step back.

"I'm also really looking forward to Mio's chocolate."

"Chocolate is certainly important, but..."

Mio took a step forward with dissatisfaction, staring at Masumi from extremely close range.

"I have something even sweeter than raspberry truffle chocolates to give to Masumi. That's my sentiment, and also my..."

"--Suwayama Park, huh? That sounds really nice. I was a junior high student when I last went there."

Suddenly, a cold voice rang out from behind.

Upon hearing the sound, Mio instantly showed an annoyed expression, her face full of displeasure at being disturbed.

"Please, Rinne, don't come any closer suddenly. There wasn't even a sound of footsteps. Are you really a cat?"

"Really? If I were a cat, Mio wouldn't mind if I was there at night too, would she?"

Rinne spoke with her usual indifferent expression.

"I do mind."

"That's what Mio said firmly."

"I...I want to go too..."

Haiyue, standing beside him, squinted her eyes and gripped his fingers tightly like a baby.

Masumi sighed, "No, I haven't agreed to Mio's request yet..."

"—I want to go too!"

Asami raised her hand high.

"To wash away the stain of being labeled as 'someone who's spent the entire winter holed up in their room and is beyond redemption,' I've decided to make a change starting today!"

Mio said expressionlessly, "The timing of this change is too coincidental. Masumi clearly made an appointment with me first."

"Um, please don't start the conversation on the premise that 'I've already accepted the invitation.'"

"Ah! Chia contacted me on Line saying she wants to come too!"

"Absolutely not! That would just turn into a regular gathering of five women and one man!" Mio frowned deeply and rejected the idea.

No, actually, if you think about it carefully, it's not ordinary at all.

But this may be the best outcome we can achieve.

Then Masumi spoke up:

"Okay, let's do it this way."

"Eh? Masumi."

Mio turned to look at him, pouting with dissatisfaction.

"I just want to spend Valentine's Day with Masumi."

"After all, everyone seems to be looking forward to it..."

"I understand."

Mio suddenly nodded.

"Huh?" Masumi exclaimed in surprise, "Mio, does this mean... you accept it?"

"No, it's that I finally understand Masumi's inner suffering."

She closed her eyes and sighed softly.

"The reason?"

"You clearly love me, but you have to suppress your feelings for the time being because of other girls who have a crush on you. Is that a correct understanding?"

"It's full of problems!"

Masumi closed her eyes helplessly.

"Does Mio have anything else to say?"

"I love you the most, Masumi. I love you so much!"

"...That's not the sentence either..."

Mio's face was flushed, and she cupped her cheeks in her hands, exhaling warm, moist breath from her lips.

Asami: "Oh, Mio-san has turned into this again."

Haiyue: "This is... a perverted woman...?"

Rinne nodded in agreement: "She's a pervert."

"You three have no right to talk about me—you're the ecchi artist who likes to draw adult doujinshi, the jellyfish who lives only by her nature, and the fish-stealing cat!"

◇

Then it was evening.

To be honest, Masumi has almost no recollection of the daytime business hours.

All my attention was focused on what was going to happen that night.

After closing time, the five of them took the tram to Sannomiya, where Chiai was waiting to meet them.

"Good evening, Masumi-nii! Rinne, Asami-nee, Mio-nee, and Umizuki."

The childhood sweetheart, who had clearly dressed up carefully, waved and jogged toward them.

If Chiai had a tail, she would definitely be wagging it excitedly from side to side right now.

After passing through the checkpoint and the bustling crowd, Chiai finally arrived in front of Masumi and the others.

She pressed her hands to her chest, trying to calm her rapid breathing.

Her light-colored hair swayed, obscuring her flushed face.

"Qian'ai ran too fast, let her rest for a bit."

Masumi placed her hand on Omega's shoulder, the movement unusually natural.

"Because..."

Chiai brushed aside the hair that was covering her face, adjusted her breathing, raised her head, and stared straight at Masumi, as if she had something to say.

"Well."

Masumi hesitated slightly, then smiled gently.

"Chiai looks very charming today."

Just from those words, Chiai's face turned even redder, and the joy in her eyes was like the starlight and lights of countless homes in Kobe at that night.

Mio clenched her hands, her lips parted slightly as if she wanted to say something, but in the end, she said nothing.

Just then, Rinne's voice rang out from the side— "Mio's emotions are really heavy."

"You're a big talker."

Mio complained, then muttered under her breath.

"It's only this much; there's no need to rush up and stop them."

"Yes, that's right. After all, Miss Mio's survey results were more generous than you can imagine!"

Mami's thoughtless words earned her a sharp glance from Mio.

"Uh! I was just saying it casually, please forgive me!"

Asami immediately raised the white flag and surrendered. Presumably, the ancestors of the Seno family were so flexible and adaptable that they were able to continue their family lineage in the war-torn Kinki region to this day.

After the six people successfully reunited, the group headed towards their destination, Suwayama Park.

To be precise, it's the observation deck and Venus Bridge in the park, from which you can see the multi-million dollar night view of Kobe.

On the way to Suwayama Park, you will pass through the Kitano Ijinkan neighborhood. In the 19th century, when Kobe opened as a port, this area, located halfway up the mountain, was designated as a foreign settlement, and the Western-style buildings still stand today.

From here on, it's all uphill.

"Hmm...shouldn't we...take a break...?"

"It's breathless," Mami said.

"Sister Mami, we've only gone less than halfway." Chiai sighed, rubbing her forehead.

"Going uphill takes a completely different amount of energy than going flat! There are just too many hills in Kobe, which is why I don't like to go out."

"You're probably a shut-in in Kusatsu, which is located in a plain area, too."

Masumi bluntly criticized him.

"And it is said that she often abused her authority as an older sister in high school, making her younger brother, who was seven years younger than her and still in elementary school, run errands to buy her comics."

"I knew Masumi-kun's words were really unpleasant to hear!"

Mami's fingers almost poked through Masumi's cheek.

"If he were the male protagonist of a light novel, wouldn't he gently defend the female protagonist in a situation like this?"

"Because if I say that you'll definitely get carried away, that's why I won't do it."

"Ugh! That makes me even angrier. And how did you know I had Yuuki run errands for me? He's already in third grade and he still bought the wrong manga. How awful."

“Your mother told me this when I went to Kusatsu last time.”

You're the one who's terrible, and you even called your brother "that guy," which makes your personality even worse.

“Oh dear! How could Mom tell you something like this?”

Seemingly drawn in by the conversation, Mami seemed to temporarily forget her fatigue and headed up the slope.

"The light has dimmed."

The further you walk, the closer you get to darkness. There are fewer and fewer streetlights, and the light disappears through the gaps in the leaves. Everything in front of you is dim, and the road becomes narrower.

The white light emitted by the phone illuminated the path ahead.

Masumi led the girls along the mountain path through the dense forest, and their destination finally came into view.

A green, circular metal bridge meanders through the landscape, connecting the Suwayama Observatory and the Venus Observatory in the Observatory Plaza in a figure-eight spiral.

"What a nice view."

Qian'ai held onto the railing, standing in the center of the circular bridge, overlooking the night view below the mountain.

The lights in the houses, the light shining through the high-rise buildings, the light from the streetlights, the headlights of the vehicles... everything is like a man-made constellation of stars, with a clear night sky overhead.

He and they stood between two seas of stars, as if floating in the air.

"Wow, it's so beautiful!"

Mami couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

"It was worth all the hard work climbing that hill for so long. When I came down, I just wanted to roll down the hill."

"It's so high... even Mami... would get hurt..."

Haiyue murmured.

"Hmm, although I'm really touched that Xiaohaiyue even joked with me, could she be subtly implying that I'm fat?"

Asami frowned slightly.

"There's no need to be so subtle about this," Qian Ai retorted. "Mami-nee's figure is so voluptuous it's overflowing."

"Don't say things that ruin the atmosphere when we're enjoying the night view!" Mami protested.

"It was Mami who brought it up first."

The girls' noisy chatter gradually faded into the distance.

Masumi stared blankly at the night view; the twinkling lights resembled the reflections of musical instruments. Below, countless lights twinkled in the sky.

Suddenly someone patted him on the shoulder from behind.

"Well?"

Masumi turned her head and saw five pairs of fair and slender arms, one, two, three, four, five... and the boxes they held in their hands, beautifully wrapped with ribbons.

"This is... Valentine's Day chocolate?"

Asking such a question was completely unnecessary, so Masumi was merely using it to calm herself down.

"It's my special chocolate."

Mio emphasized this point, and the other girls nodded in agreement.

It's rare for several girls with such different personalities and big disagreements to be able to reach a consensus. There aren't many things that can make them have a tacit understanding, and it's almost all because of me.

Yes, the disagreements were almost entirely due to myself.

Masumi thought to herself with great self-awareness.

"Try mine first, Masumi-kun!"

After taking the initiative, Mami immediately ran her fingers through the ends of her hair, curling it into an arc, and said shyly:

"Because I'm not very confident, it would be terrible if you ate what Rinne made first, so please try me first!"

“It’s ‘mine’,” Mio immediately corrected.

Masumi lifted the lid of the box, inside were round chocolate cookies. After all, baking cookies was Mami's only real skill.

He casually picked up a cookie and put it in his mouth. It was crispy with a hint of chocolate flavor.

"how?"

Mami asked nervously.

"Mmm, the cookies are crunchy and delicious."

After Masumi showered her with praise, Asami excitedly pumped her fist.

"Yay! I got a three-star rating for completing the game!"

"Please don't treat me like the final boss."

"Now it's time to taste me!" Mio said impatiently.

“It’s ‘mine’.” This time, it was Rinne’s turn to correct her.

She rubbed her forehead and said, "Mio is just like Asami-nee just now."

The raspberry truffle chocolate had a strong flavor of cocoa powder and icing sugar, which reminded Masumi of the nightmare she had ten days ago.

But since this is outdoors, Mio probably didn't add anything random.

After receiving a three-star rating from Masumi, the next girl is Chiai. As the most normal girl around Masumi, her favorite chocolate is also very traditional, or perhaps it should be described as the "royal" chocolate.

"And then...it's mine..."

Haiyue, who is usually not very vocal, also offered the box.

It seems the girls have always believed that Rinne's authority in the culinary world cannot be challenged.

Throughout the process, the heiress remained composed, and when it was Haiyue's turn, she encouraged her with the same look a mother gives her daughter when she makes chocolate for the first time.

The jellyfish-shaped chocolate, made with molds bought at Don Quijote, contains milk and sugar, has a silky smooth texture and a sweet taste, and definitely includes Rinne's unreserved teaching.

After Masumi tasted each girl's signature chocolate.

"Alright! Masumi-kun, now comes the main event!"

It was Mami who spoke on behalf of everyone.

She bounced around, radiating a strong sense of female self-awareness, and looked at Masumi with a broad smile.

The next moment, Mio suddenly hugged his arm and confessed in a coquettish tone.

"Masumi! I like you! I want to date you, or rather, rekindle our relationship. Please tell me how you feel!"

"Wait, wait! Mio-neechan! That's too much of a trick!"

"Valentine's Day is for confessions," Mio said matter-of-factly. "Masumi! I love you the most! Please let me stay by your side forever, as your lover!"

"Eek! Then I'll do it too..."

Although Qian Ai's face was flushed, she was not about to back down.

"Masumi-nii, I like you! I want to be Masumi-nii's girlfriend!"

"Ugh, I feel kind of embarrassed to suddenly have to make a serious confession."

Mami looked troubled, scratching her fingertips shyly.

"Um, I like Masumi-kun too!"

She cleared her throat, her gaze darting left and right, and awkwardly squeezed out these few words.

"I want to stay by Masumi-kun's side forever! And then... have Masumi-kun treat me like a queen... or something like that."

"I like... Masumi...I want to do... H things with Masumi..."

The last two confessions were a bit of a mood killer.

"So, who will be Masumi's girlfriend? I'm not going to give up my place! I was already dating Masumi!"

"I'm not backing down either! Masumi-nii's girlfriend is me!"

"No way! The one who should bully Masumi-kun for the rest of her life is Mami-sama!"

"Everyone...it can't be...it's me."

"So—what does Masumi (Masumi-nii) (Masumi-kun) plan to choose?"

Four strong, powerful gazes stared directly at him, their expressions telling Masumi to "say it quickly."

“We’re all serious. We’d be grateful if Masumi (Masumi-nii) (Masumi-kun) made a choice soon.”

(End of this chapter)