My love index is at its maximum.

Kana Shimamoto slowly opened her eyes, turned around, and snuggled into his arms: "What time is it?"

"It's almost six o'clock," Tsukasa Tazaki said, looking at her exhausted face. "The sun will be up in a little while."

"It's still so early..." Shimamoto Kana glanced out the window. The faint light on the distant horizon grew brighter and brighter, turning red in the center, and a tiny outline of the sun could be seen.

"Shall we go back to the hotel together?"

"No...we might run into someone we know."

Kana Shimamoto yawned and then went back to sleep.

Putting summer aside, during the colder months from late autumn to early spring, she always liked to sleep in late, sometimes not waking up until almost eight o'clock.

The school required teachers to be back by 8:45 a.m., so she often left home without even eating breakfast. Her makeup hadn't had time to set, her hair was just curled outwards with a comb, her face was lightly dusted with toner and powder, and her lipstick choice depended on her mood, usually pink.

She told Tazaki Tsukasa about this lazy habit herself.

Therefore, Tsukasa Tazaki decided to correct his wife's bad habit of sleeping in late and manually wake her up every day.

"Don't do this..."

"Don't worry, I'll understand."

"But……"

"It's alright."

Tsukasa Tazaki grabbed Kana Shimamoto's shoulder from behind and pulled her to his side.

"You have to go back first..." Shimamoto Kana was still muttering.

"There's plenty of time."

"You're so persistent..."

The light streaming in through the window illuminated the scene inside the room with increasing clarity.

Kana Shimamoto sat up straight, adjusted her breathing slightly, and her long, straight black hair swayed gently like a whip, as if drawing some intricate pattern.

The sky gradually brightened.

When the view outside the window turned completely red, the two of them fell silent.

Outside, a new busy day begins, but inside the room, all is silent. Shimamoto Kana snuggles into Tazaki Tsukasa's arms like a kitten, then closes her eyes to rest: "Even if you carried me back now, I'm too lazy to move."

"Sleep a little longer," Tsukasa Tazaki gently patted her back.

When she opened her eyes again, it was already broad daylight, and the clock beside her bed showed nine o'clock.

“You’ll have to go back to the hotel by yourself.” Tsukasa Tazaki straightened his clothes. “I’ll take a taxi directly to Arashiyama. Hanami-nee has already taken Kuriyama-kun there. I have to hurry.”

"Running around like this must be exhausting," Shimamoto Kana said with a slightly malicious smile, her voice becoming coquettish. "Would you like your wife to accompany you back and lend a hand?"

"I don't want to die young."

Tazaki Tsukasa gathered up the clothes scattered under the bed and placed them on the bedside table for her before leaving the guest room.

Without wasting any more time, we took a taxi directly to the foot of Arashiyama.

This is one of Kyoto's premier scenic spots, famous for its cherry blossoms in spring and maple leaves in autumn.

Meanwhile, another scenic spot, Sagano, is adjacent to Arashiyama. The two places are separated by the Hozu River and connected by the Togetsukyo Bridge that spans the Hozu River. Therefore, people refer to these two places together as Arashiyama-Sagano.

The Hoshino family's ancestral home is located at the foot of Arashiyama. This morning's itinerary consisted of a few young people accompanying the elderly to climb the mountain and enjoy the scenery.

The clear waters of the Hozu River flow gently around the foot of Arashiyama, and the bright autumn sunlight spills like puddles over the red leaves covering the mountains.

Tsukasa Tazaki hummed a song and walked forward with light steps.

At the foot of the mountain, I met the two sisters, as well as Kuriyama, who had to come because Grandma Hoshino had personally asked him to.

Bathed in the morning light, the minister looked even more beautiful than usual. Tazaki Tsukasa walked over happily, admiring her attire.

A light blue long-sleeved dress, draped with a white cardigan. The light, flowing ruffled skirt was short, and the design at the chest accentuated her bust, highlighting her beautiful, flowing curves—Tazaki would bet his entire fortune that she'd definitely padded again this time.

Below that are black over-the-knee socks that must feel really good, and on her feet are a pair of cute little leather shoes.

The girl next to her, Hoshino Hanami, is even prettier.

My older sister was wearing a sleeveless, light green summer dress. The form-fitting material accentuated her figure, making her even more alluring than a model—full, rounded breasts, and the white fabric revealing her fair, smooth skin. Her collarbone was trimmed with delicate lace. Below, her waist was cinched, and her long legs were encased in tall leather boots.

Looking at it makes you want to say, "Sister, love me again."

And then there's Hoshino Shikami, wearing a navy blue open-necked long-sleeved shirt, a thin, unadorned silver hair clip in her hair, and white skinny jeans.

With her beautiful little face and sparkling eyes, my sister-in-law is absolutely adorable.

Judging by her appearance alone, everyone would think she is a beautiful girl with both talent and looks, and would never guess that she is a little fool.

Tsukasa Tazaki approached the three women, whistling lightly, "Greetings, my three beauties..."

“Be serious.” Hoshino Hanami took a step forward, extended her finger with light pink nail polish, and poked Tazaki Tsukasa’s throat, saying, “Grandma hates frivolous people the most, so don’t ruin your image.”

“It’s okay,” Hoshino Shikami said, pulling on her sister’s arm and tilting her head to glare at Tazaki Tsukasa. “Grandma loves this rascal the most. She loves him so much that she almost treats him like her own grandson. Compared to him, Shikami is like someone she picked up off the street.”

Hoshino Hanami patted her younger sister's head: "It's all because you're too naughty and refuse to study properly."

"Shikami's strength is limited..." Hoshino Shikami muttered.

It depends on the situation.

My sister-in-law seems to have realized what the problem is...

"There's still a chance to save her." Tazaki Tsukasa patted his chest confidently. "Leave Shikami to me. I guarantee that with my special training, her grades will stay in the top 100 of the grade."

Hoshino Shikami shook her head vigorously: "No, no!"

My sister-in-law doesn't want to work hard anymore; she just wants to lie down.

She realized her own limitations and didn't want to work too hard, so her sister-in-law chose to give up.

But my brother-in-law wouldn't allow it.

"Sister, I'm going to do this..." Tsukasa Tazaki leaned close to Hanami Hoshino and loudly explained his basic methods for training the little idiot.

Using the same grueling, cramming-style test-taking tactics he employed in his previous life to prepare for the college entrance exam, he made full use of his sister-in-law's free time and ruthlessly eradicated her playful habits.

"Oops!"

Hoshino Shika saw that his mouth was wide open.

On this clear autumn morning, she saw her sister and brother-in-law loudly plotting in front of her. On the surface, they were discussing a crucial matter, but in reality, they were devising a terrible plan to assassinate Hoshino Shikami.

“Sakura…” She turned her head blankly to look at Kuriyama Sakura, who was standing silently to the side, and pouted: “Neither of them loves Shikami anymore. Why don’t you let Shikami stay at your house from now on?”

Kuriyama Sakura smiled and said, "No problem."

That healing and kind smile is simply angelic!

Hoshino Shika clenched her little fists and jumped up: "Yay~!"

"I will train you according to Tsukasa Tazaki's method."

"...?"

Tsukasa Tazaki and Hanami Hoshino looked at her simultaneously: "It's settled then."

"..." Hoshino Shikami silently opened her backpack, took out a French baguette for lunch, and pointed it at Tazaki Tsukasa with both hands: "Let's duel, you bastard Tazaki!"

Ignorant and reckless words kept pouring out of that idiot's mouth.

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

Hoshino Hanami quietly turned her face away, leaning against Kuriyama Sakura and chuckling to herself. Kuriyama Sakura, on the other hand, rubbed her temples with a headache. She regarded Hoshino Shikami as a younger sister, and the thought of her slow-wittedness filled the club president with the anxiety of an older sister.

Tsukasa Tazaki...

He watched his sister-in-law, who was gesturing wildly in front of him like a female swordsman, holding a breadstick pen. A lewd smile crept across his face.

Being a little silly is cute, right?

Anyway, with me, the smartest person, looking after her, her future is definitely bright, so there's no need to worry.

"Come on, Tazaki!"

"Let's have a fair sword duel with Shikami!"

Hoshino Shika, growing increasingly excited, kept poking him with a breadstick: "Kill! Kill! Kill! I'll stab you to death, you bad guy! Ouch!"

Suddenly, someone hit me hard on the head.

"Damn it, who dared to ambush me?!" She shouted angrily as she turned around, breadstick in hand, "You little thief, your life is over... Hey, Grandma?"

In that extremely brief yet seemingly endless moment.

A cool autumn breeze blew up at the foot of the mountain, making people feel chilly.

Grandma Hoshino stared at her granddaughter with a stern face and a serious expression: "Who do you want to kill?"

"Shikami... no, there's a misunderstanding here, Grandma, please let Shikami explain..." Hoshino Shikami opened her mouth, her face turning red in an instant, then turning pale. She tried to explain but her words were incoherent, and she looked extremely embarrassed.

"Ugh, no, I can't hold back anymore..."

Hoshino Hanami clutched her stomach, buried her face in Kuriyama Sakura's shoulder, and burst into laughter: "Hahaha..."

"Hmm?" Grandma Hoshino turned her head and glared at her eldest granddaughter: "Hanami, watch your image."

The fearless older sister instantly stopped laughing and obediently straightened up: "Grandma is right to teach me a lesson, I will pay attention."

interesting.

Tazaki Tsukasa's little thoughts instantly came to life.

It seems that in the Hoshino family, Grandma is the true ruler at the top of the food chain, and I should try to get close to her.

Hoshino Shikami stood on tiptoe.

Quietly, quietly, we prepare to run away.

"return!"

The little granddaughter, who had only taken a few steps, walked back dejectedly.

"How many times have I told you?" Grandma Hoshino, her voice strong and stern, reprimanded her granddaughter. "As a girl, you need to behave more gracefully. Don't act like a crazy boy all the time. Don't speak so loudly, and don't show your teeth when you laugh..."

Judging from her words, you can tell she's a conservative old-fashioned type.

I wonder if my mother-in-law, who beat the president to a pulp back then, was ever scolded like that.