I, the mastermind behind the scenes at Soubu High, refuse to be caught in a bloodbath.

Chapter 298 Oh dear, [Ogiso Setsuna] is so blushing!

Faced with the dazzling array of goods in the mall, Himekoji seemed somewhat bewildered, not even noticing when Setsuna had taken his arm. Setsuna seemed to have noticed his unusual behavior, or perhaps she hadn't, or maybe she had noticed but was pretending not to, as she kept talking to him at a rapid pace. Himekoji's responses were sometimes somewhat coherent, and sometimes completely incoherent, but Setsuna didn't question him at all. Instead, she went along with what he was saying and sometimes even helped him to smooth things over.

He wandered down several floors and visited some of the shops that Setsuna wanted to go to, but Himekoji remained in a daze. Even though Setsuna was with him, he wanted to leave immediately, get in his car, and head straight to Mihama Ward.

"Ooh—, let me rest for a bit."

Yukina pulled Himekoji to sit on the empty massage chair. Himekoji was already carrying several bags, and Yukina was also carrying a bag. The bags contained small things that she used herself, as well as small things that she gave to Himekoji, such as pens and lapel pins.

"Next..." Himekoji had barely begun to speak when Setsuna immediately chimed in, "Which store are we going to next? I've been working for quite a while so I can have a proper shopping trip today."

"Is that so...? Actually, it wouldn't be a problem if I bought it for you." Himekoji murmured, while Setsuna quickly shook her head, saying, "No, no, how can I keep accepting your kindness for free? The last time we went to the hot spring inn, the expenses were beyond what an ordinary high school student like me could afford, and my mom scolded me several times afterward..."

"Giving in return is what businessmen do. I sometimes do that, and sometimes I do the opposite. Of course, some people think that giving without expecting anything in return is stupid. It's just something I do on a whim sometimes, so you don't need to worry about it. Kazusa has told you this a few times, right?"

Himekoji leaned back, letting the massage chair relax his muscles and improve his blood circulation. Beside him, Yukina made a "meow" sound of enjoyment from the vibrations of the massage chair. Coupled with her delicate face with her eyes squinted, she was simply too cute to resist.

Although many men had their eyes on Setsuna's face along the way, they silently gave up their impossible NTR plans after seeing Himekoji next to her.

“But…it’s because of your behavior, Haruto-kun, that so many girls…” Yukina pouted at Himekoji, then propped her chin on the edge of the massage chair and said, “I don’t even know what’s going on myself…it seems like I’ve been taken care of by you from the very beginning, and I’ve never been of any help and always just caused trouble. When I go to your house, I don’t know any manners at all, I’m just a country bumpkin…seeing how casual Kazusa is, I’m really envious of her.”

"Ah... I've also had people I envied, but envy alone is useless. Envy is nothing but an illusion. You can never become the person you want to be; you can only be yourself."

Turning my head to look at the ceiling emitting a dim yellow light, I noticed that the overhead lighting near the massage chair had been changed to be very comfortable; otherwise, it would have been very glaring if I looked up like that.

Sometimes, the more you look up to others, the more you see the brilliance they radiate, which can damage your own eyes and your own heart.

"Eh, even Haruto-kun has someone he envies? You're kidding, Haruto-kun's life is already perfect!"

"It's precisely because it's perfect that it lacks freedom, hehehe... But this kind of thing probably sounds like pointless whining to you, well—, longing for freedom is one thing, but the other person I envy is my dad. He must have saved the world in his past life."

Ji Xiaolu rolled his eyes, rubbed his temples, and muttered a few words. Enjoying the massage chair under the dim light made him a little sleepy.

"I've never met Haruto's father... What a shame."

“You must have seen him on TV.” Himekoji shrugged. The massage chair time was up, and he stood up and subconsciously reached out to Setsuna, saying, “Let’s go, to the next shop you want to go to.”

After the massage chair experience, he became more lucid and was able to make sense of what was going on when he was talking to Setsuna.

However, to Himekoji's surprise, the store that Setsuna was going to this time was a girly lingerie store that had recently received a lot of praise in fashion magazines.

These kinds of shops are always very unfriendly to male customers. Whenever a single male customer loiters at the door, the staff will give him a suspicious look as if he is a pervert. If he stays for too long, he will be questioned by the staff. But Himekoji and Setsuna entering here together is of course no problem. Not only is it no problem, but they will also be given admiring looks as if they are a perfect couple.

"Buying underwear... I'm having a bit of a headache."

Himekoji scratched his white hair. He had never paid attention to Setsuna's bra size. Although he could easily find out the number himself, he was honestly not interested.

He was still more interested in Ju Ye's bra size.

"It's okay, I just wanted to see what men consider attractive underwear." Yukina lowered her head, twisted her body, and blushed as she whispered, "Of course, I can't stand anything too revealing."

"Well...it's too revealing. Girls who are completely naked have a certain beauty, but I still prefer them when they're only wearing underwear."

Himekoji's bold statement left Setsuna somewhat confused, and a lot of strange thoughts flashed through her mind.

"Haruto-kun already saw me naked, didn't he, in the hot spring..."

"So I prefer the way you and Kazusa were half-naked when you were playing around on the tatami."

Himekoji winked at her with a mischievous grin, and Setsuna blushed again, muttering softly, "H."

Himekoji was chatting with Setsuna, and the female customers in the store blushed when they heard Himekoji say that. The shop assistants who were introducing lingerie to Setsuna also left their positions and went to serve other customers.

"Then, what if Haruto-kun helps me choose an outfit?"

Yukina tugged at his sleeve, secretly raising her head to look at him. Her face was slightly flushed, and her eyes revealed a hint of expectation. This look made Himekoji easily have the illusion that he wanted to deliberately embarrass her.

Chapter 299 In the cold wind, [Ogiso Setsuna] chooses to give chase

However, this illusion only lasted for a moment before Himekoji forgot about it.

Even though Setsuna had resorted to her ultimate weapon—going lingerie shopping together and having Himekoji choose lingerie for her, and then wearing it for Himekoji to see—Himekoji's distraction continued to steadily increase. He felt he shouldn't be there, and even less should he be with her. After Himekoji gave another somewhat perfunctory answer regarding Setsuna's opinion on a set of seductive lingerie, Setsuna drew the dressing room curtains, lowered her head to face the mirror, bit her lower lip tightly, and remained silent, her face showing utter disappointment.

She changed her clothes, selected a set of lingerie, put it in her handbag, paid, and anxiously pulled Ji Xiaolu out the door. However, this time she didn't take him to any other store, but walked directly to the elevator and pressed the "down" button.

"What's wrong? Don't you want to keep shopping? Speaking of which, I haven't even decided on a gift for you yet."

"It's alright...it's no longer necessary."

Yukina shook her head sadly. The elevator arrived, opened, and the two went inside. Coincidentally, this time there was no one else in the elevator except for them.

Both of them were carrying some bags. Yukina and Himekoji stood side by side at the back, near the edge. The elevator doors began to close slowly, and Yukina finally spoke again: "Hey, Haruto-kun."

"what happened?"

"Am I... being very cunning, and also going too far?"

"If you insist on thinking that way, why do you insist on hearing my answer?"

“Because… Haruto-kun is different to me,” Setsuna shook her head, turned to look at Himekoji, and said with anticipation in her eyes, “Haruto-kun is special, that’s why I want to hear you say it.”

"Is that so...? Maybe I'm just too obsessive in some ways. I should really like a lively and cute girl like you."

Himekoji's mind conjured up images of Setsuna, Kazusa, and Yukinoshita. After circling around, Setsuna's appearance gradually faded and disappeared.

"should?"

Yukina grasped the key point in Himekoji's words, and her heart skipped a beat.

"So the problem lies with me, not with you; you've done a great job."

Looking at Setsuna with a hint of sympathy, Himekoji reached out and gently touched her cheek. Setsuna immediately grabbed Himekoji's hand, her bright eyes becoming moist, as if tears would spill over at the slightest shake of her head. She sobbed softly, her lips moving several times before finally speaking with determination: "Haruto-kun...actually, I've always...always liked you. I liked the way you played the piano, I liked how meticulously you guided me through the singing, I liked the refined and elegant way you adjusted your glasses, I liked the way you called me Setsuna, and I liked the tenderness in your eyes when you occasionally looked at me...I've always liked you so much, so incredibly, so—so—"

"I see..."

Himeko looked up at the straight staircase ceiling that emitted a milky white light and murmured calmly.

In the end, it still turned out like this.

"So, I know this request is cunning, but I still want to say, can you date me? From this day forward, and every single day..."

Yukina approached, and the elevator gradually slowed down and landed on the ground, but Himekoji's expression remained unchanged.

"We've reached the first floor."

An alarm sounded from the elevator, and the tightly closed doors slowly opened. Himekoji's reply was drowned out by the mechanical elevator alarm, and Setsuna dropped the bag from her hands, making a clattering sound as it hit the elevator floor.

"..."

Himekoji pulled away from Setsuna's hand that was gripping his shoulder and, under the watchful eyes of the crowd waiting to enter the elevator, stepped out of the elevator.

Following the direction I remembered, I turned a few steps out and walked through the short corridor to the entrance of the shopping center. The wind and snow were still so heavy that they almost drowned out the footsteps chasing after me.

Amidst the sobs, the people behind stopped in their tracks. Ji Xiaolu straightened up again, took out her phone, sent a message to Ms. Lingzi, and then said, "See you at school after winter break."

The car arrived quickly, and under the desperate gaze of those behind her, Ji Xiaolu got into the car and waved to her, who was crying her eyes out.

I'm so sorry I chased after you without even picking up what I bought, causing you so much trouble.

Adjusting her seat, Himeko leaned back a bit. After the car had driven quite a distance through the snowstorm, Reiko finally spoke, asking, "Refuse?"

"reject."

"What a pitiful child... but there's nothing that can be done; some unrequited loves are destined to have no happy ending..."

When Reiko finally saw Setsuna crying with her head down in the rearview mirror, she honestly felt a little soft-hearted.

What are your plans for today?

"Hmm... Should I change my clothes for the birthday party of the only daughter of the Nikaido family?"

"That's settled then. How old is that Nikaido guy again?"

"He's twelve years old this year, just turned one cycle."

"Let's go then. I doubt there's anything romantic to talk about, and we don't need to change our clothes."

"The gift is ready and is right behind you. Would you like to check it again or change it?"

"no need."

Himekoji closed her eyes and peacefully dozed off for a while.

He attended the banquet and even had the chance to tease the little girl. He addressed the seemingly well-behaved but actually incredibly proud girl as "Princess" a few times, which made her blush and hide behind her father.

When he got home, his mother was playing the piano while waiting for him. His father had gone back to Tokyo after the New Year holiday, and his mother would be alone in the house again.

"I heard from Reiko that you're not happy today."

"Ah... a lot has happened."

"You almost never joke around with girls at birthday parties, but you deliberately teased her today. Something must have happened with that girl, that... Kogiso?"

She confessed her feelings to me.

"Oh my, how romantic! So you rejected her, right?"

"Yes."

"The Nikaido family just called. After discussing business for a while, they suddenly joked that they wanted to marry their daughter to you."

"Pfft... It's best not to make jokes like that," Himekoji said, rubbing his forehead in exasperation. His mother, seeing his troubled expression, chuckled behind the piano and waved her hand, saying, "Waiting until that Nikaido family's daughter grows up is too late, so of course it won't work."

Chapter 300 However, [Touma Kazusa] expressed great regret.

Teasing the little girl was just a small diversion in life. Himekoji's daily routine had to return to attending classes at home and visiting Yoko and Kazusa, who basically stayed in the hospital, every day. At first, it was fine, but later Yoko stopped letting Himekoji visit her.

Because of severe hair loss, she felt she couldn't face anyone in her current state, so she asked Kazusa to block Himekoji from entering. There was no other way; sufficient preliminary treatment was necessary before the transplant. Yoko had been undergoing conservative treatment to prevent hair loss and maintain her appearance.

Sure enough, she valued beauty more than life itself.

“Something very unpleasant happened a while ago, I heard about it from Setsuna.”

On this day, when Himekoji approached Kazusa, she leaned against the corridor railing, gently pinching her chin, glancing at Himekoji out of the corner of her eye as she observed his expression.

"I thought she wouldn't tell you."

"...I just didn't expect her to do something like this at a time like this. It's really troubling and makes me so embarrassed. On one side is Haruto, and on the other side is Setsuna. She cried so hard on the phone that day. To be honest, I even thought about advising you not to accept it—but of course, it was just a thought."

Kazusa beckoned to Himekoji, who turned and walked towards her. Kazusa grabbed Himekoji's collar, just as she had done four or five months ago when she suspected he had slept with Yoko and pulled his tie. Her eyes were fixed on Himekoji's, her lips moved, and though she didn't utter a sound, Himekoji understood her lip movements—"Don't leave me."

"But Kazusa, you're leaving me. You're going to Vienna."

"That's true, but you can't leave me... Oh, right, Haruto, I have something extremely important to tell you, so you have to listen carefully."