My love index is at its maximum.

Kana Shimamoto nodded slightly and read a passage from the original text.

My self-righteous humility, caution, and obedience are all fabricated pretenses. In reality, I am a pathetic woman who lives like a blind person, experiencing joy and sorrow solely through intuition and feeling. No matter how keen my senses and feelings may be, they are still animal instincts, having nothing to do with wisdom. I clearly understand that I am truly a foolish idiot.

"Doesn't this resonate with you?" Tsukasa Tazaki stuffed a piece of beef covered in sauce into his mouth.

Kana Shimamoto picked up her juice and took a sip. "A little, I guess. Anyway, when it comes to relationships, I'm pretty much a confused and clueless girl."

"Although Osamu Dazai was not a very good person, his writing is still very praiseworthy."

"I won't look at these anymore." Shimamoto Kana gracefully used her pointed chopsticks to remove the bones from the fish meat and then put it into Tazaki Tsukasa's bowl.

While eating fish, Tsukasa Tazaki said, "How about we change our phone ringtone too?"

"Change it to what?"

"How about the theme song of Chibi Maruko-chan? It's catchy with its blah blah blah sound."

"..."

"Or how about charging ahead like a pig? I laugh every time I hear that."

Shimamoto Kana rolled her eyes at him, who was spouting all sorts of bad ideas, picked up the duck soup and took a small sip, only to burn herself.

Its little pink tongue peeked out slightly, sucking in cool air like a puppy.

This was so cute that Tsukasa Tazaki couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Kana Shimamoto glared at him angrily, stretched her leg out under the table to stomp on his foot, but was accidentally caught. For the next ten minutes or so, she could only endure the shame of having her feet played with, silently eating her meal.

After dinner, Tsukasa Tazaki leaned against the wall and sat on the floor watching today's news—Yuichi Higashino's press conference. He watched the footage of him being taken away directly by the Metropolitan Police Department at the press conference several times.

Kana Shimamoto lay on his lap with her eyes closed and asked, "How exactly did you get Yuichi Higashino to do this?"

Against the backdrop of thunder, Tsukasa Tazaki gave a brief account of everything that had happened since returning to Tokyo from Fukuoka.

Like a sailor listening to a ghostly song at sea, Kana Shimamoto listened to him with half-closed eyes, her expression languid. Just as she was about to ask a question after Tazaki Tsukasa finished speaking, a deafening clap of thunder boomed outside the window.

Then a torrential downpour swept in, relentlessly pounding against the windows, and the room quickly became sticky and filled with moisture.

Shimamoto Kana was terrified by the thunder and curled up, burying her trembling body in Tazaki Tsukasa's arms.

"She's afraid of thunder like a young girl." Tsukasa Tazaki gently and carefully combed her loose hair behind her ears with his fingers.

My fingertips touched those rounded earlobes; they were so soft and warm, I couldn't help but gently knead them.

Kana Shimamoto gently held his hand: "When I'm alone, I can only get myself drunk and then sleep with a big plush toy in my arms."

"I don't have any alcohol here, nor any large toys."

"Then I'll head back to the port area first," Kana Shimamoto said.

"No, please don't joke about this. No matter what happens in the future, I will take care of Shimamoto-neechan..."

The words stopped abruptly, and Tsukasa Tazaki noticed the gentle smile that appeared on her lips.

The meaning of that smile was quite clear, and there was a kind of light in those deep and charming eyes, a light full of longing.

Tsukasa Tazaki, stop rambling.

He pulled Shimamoto Kana directly into his arms, tightly hugged her waist, and kissed her soft, sexy lips as their bodies pressed together.

Kana Shimamoto closed her eyes, wrapped her arms around his neck, and responded to him passionately.

After their passionate kiss ended, the two breathed heavily and whispered in each other's ears.

"It all tastes like the leftover fish from dinner."

"tasty?"

"good to eat."

"Does the fish taste better?" Shimamoto Kana's voice was husky and hot, full of alluring magic. "Or does your older sister taste better?"

"Your sister is the most beautiful." Tsukasa Tazaki untied the obi (sash) of her kimono.

Kana Shimamoto clung to him with her arms and legs like an octopus. Under the pale light, her smooth, delicate white skin turned red in an instant, as if paint had been spilled on a canvas.

"Tazaki..."

"what's up?"

Kana Shimamoto closed her eyes, holding him tightly in her arms, her fingertips digging into his back—fingers that had grasped happiness. His slightly flushed, snow-white skin gradually emitted a beautiful fragrance, like the rich scent of a night-blooming cereus in the darkness of a summer night.

Tazaki Tsukasa saw her lips moving slightly, like ripples on a lake.

It seemed like it wanted to say something, but it just kept repeating "Tazaki..." over and over again.

The night rain pattered against the window, and someone called her name from within her arms. She longed to clearly convey her feelings.

Tazaki Tsukasa slowly leaned down, inhaling the pleasant scent emanating from her, and pressed his lips to hers.

“Tasaki…” Shimamoto Kana responded to him, as if two young snakes had just awakened from hibernation and met and intertwined on the spring grassland by their scent.

When I came to my senses, the thunder had stopped, and outside the window, there was only a torrential downpour and an apocalyptic gale.

Shimamoto Kana lay comfortably in Tazaki Tsukasa's arms, her face filled with a satisfied and alluring expression.

Her kimono had long since been removed, and her body, bathed in the light, was incredibly beautiful, like a beautiful oil painting on a church wall by an Italian Renaissance painter.

“Go to sleep,” Tsukasa Tazaki said. “Sleep deeply.”

"I don't want to..."

"The typhoon will blow all day tomorrow, it won't just stop overnight."

"Hold me while you sleep," Kana Shimamoto said. "Don't let go at night."

"no problem."

Kana Shimamoto turned over, found the most comfortable position on the small bed, rested her head on Tsukasa Tazaki's shoulder, and closed her eyes happily.

The room was still filled with moisture, but it was no longer the sticky, unpleasant dampness. Tazaki Tsukasa yawned contentedly, and the two fell asleep in each other's arms.

Chapter 226 Meeting me, Suzuki Keita, is bad luck for you, Tazaki Tsukasa!

【Kuriyama:＠Tazaki, are you free today? 】

[Tazaki: What is it?]

[Kuriyama: During the typhoon, I went to your house to take shelter.]

[Tazaki:? 】

[Kuriyama: Any questions?]

[Tazaki: Whenever I type a "?", it's not that I have a problem, it's that I think you have a problem.]

[Kuriyama: ATF Club's summer ad-hoc research project, 'On the Possibility of a Normal Male High School Student Running a Marathon Against a Super Typhoon,' please have Tazaki submit the research report before the start of the new semester.]

[Tazaki: ...Minister, you're too kind. You can come anytime without asking me.]

[Kuriyama: Have you made breakfast? Do you want me to buy some?]

[Tazaki: They're all still asleep. Let's buy extra breakfast; Shimamoto-sensei is here too.]

[Kuriyama:? 】

[Kuriyama: Where is she?]

[Tazaki: It's right in my bed.]

[Ninomiya: ?]

[Qichuan:? 】

[Tazaki:? 】

[Tazaki: Is this a group chat?]

[Tazaki: @Kuriyama, you bastard, remember to message me next time you have something personal to discuss!!!]

[Kuriyama:? 】

[Kuriyama: You haven't added me on social media, how can I message you privately?]

[Tazaki: ...It's my fault, I'll go do a seppuku right now.]

[Ninomiya: @Kuriyama, if he's not dead, give him the final blow.]

[Qichuan: +1]

Tazaki Tsukasa pulled up the chat interface, casually added the department head as a friend, and then sent her an angry emoji.

The minister has read the message but is not replying.

A faint fragrance lingered around my nose, and I felt Kana Shimamoto's warm and soft touch against my body.

Tazaki Tsukasa was immersed in this sense of satisfaction, and the chaotic thoughts of the early morning gradually settled down.

I glanced at the window, which was covered by curtains. It was dark outside, the wind was blowing hard, and there was heavy rain. The blue potato flowers that had just bloomed inside the security bars on the windowsill were being blown about.

He picked up his phone again and sent a message to the minister.

[Tazaki: The weather's so bad, please don't go out!]

[Kuriyama: It’s about to go out. 】

[Tazaki: You're like a rebellious teenager who won't listen to her father's advice and insists on dyeing her hair blonde!]

[Kuriyama: It's okay for me to be a little rebellious at my age.]

[Tazaki: Well... how about you call me Dad?]

[Kuriyama: Was his brain sent into Shimamoto-sensei's body along with his DNA?]

[Tazaki: You actually made a dirty joke?! My image of you, Minister, has instantly collapsed. Goodbye, I have no feelings for you anymore.]

[Kuriyama: That's great news! Now my leg won't be a source of constant worry.]

[Tazaki: Even if I don't look, your legs are always being eyed!]

[Kuriyama: You admit you've been thinking about my legs all day long?]

[Tazaki: ...Bring two books, I have no more books to read.]

[Kuriyama: What book?]