I really don't want to have a girlfriend.

……

Seemingly designed specifically for the nearby residents, an unassuming little supermarket sits in the center of the upscale residential area. Although the variety of goods inside is limited, almost all of them are of excellent quality and reasonably priced. There are no nuclear-contaminated ingredients, and you can also find some high-end dried goods that you won't find in chain supermarkets.

Yukino Yukinoshita usually buys ingredients here and cooks them at home, so she is very familiar with the place. Because she has never met any other classmates in this supermarket, she unconsciously relaxes and the distance she deliberately maintains outside is gradually melted away by unintentional physical contact.

"Since we can finish it on the same day, let's go check out the near-expiry and special offer sections first. You should be more knowledgeable than me when it comes to choosing ingredients, so I won't say much more... Also, I know you're rich, but don't spend money recklessly. Just buy some everyday ingredients for hot pot."

As she pulled out a shopping cart and headed deeper into the supermarket without hesitation, Yukino Yukinoshita nagged Yu Tenkuji like a little wife, as if she was afraid he would go straight to the freezer and take out lobsters, crabs, abalone and other such things to put in the cart basket.

Although he had no objection, he couldn't help but complain:

"You haven't even married into the family yet, so why are you already taking care of the household finances for me?"

"I just don't like extravagance."

Yukino Yukinoshita, already used to his teasing, replied calmly while picking out ingredients, "Given your personality, you'd probably just throw whatever looks good into the cart without caring about the price or whether you can finish it. You'd only realize after you've finished shopping at the supermarket and are at the checkout that you've accidentally bought tens of thousands of yen worth of stuff. So, after we get married, I'll have to manage the finances. Don't worry, I won't be so stingy as to let you eat instant noodles every day."

As if she held a very firm belief in this, she naturally expressed her expectations for marriage, giving Tenkuji Yu no room for rebuttal.

Tucking her loose black hair behind her ear, Yukino Yukinoshita suddenly turned her head and asked, "Which do you prefer, beef or pork?"

"...Eat them all."

"Okay, one for each of us then."

She picked up two boxes of meat from the discount section and put them in the basket of her bicycle, continuing on her way without stopping.

Trailing behind, Tenkuji Yu looked at her graceful and pert waist and hip curves with a subtle expression, and then gradually, he laughed as if he couldn't do anything about her.

He quickened his pace and approached her like a child, his tone inexplicably excited.

"One box of each isn't enough; I can't even get enough to eat by myself."

“I know, but one box is enough at this price point. I don’t like eating cheap ingredients.”

"That's good~ By the way, honey, can I buy some nice stuff to take home? It's our first Christmas together, it can't be too shabby, can it?"

Yukino Yukinoshita glanced at him indifferently, frowned slightly as if she wanted to say something, but only sighed helplessly.

"...Not too many, go ahead."

Tenkuji Yu immediately bowed and thanked her, saying, "Thank you for your great kindness, my wife!"

She gave him a look of disdain: "Pretentious."

"What does it matter? You didn't object, did you?"

Taking advantage of the fact that they were the only two people nearby, Tenkuji Yu raised his eyebrows lightly, then swiftly kissed her rosy cheek before walking towards the seafood counter with a smile.

If it weren't for the inappropriate occasion, Yukino Yukinoshita would definitely have scolded this guy until he did a dogeza (a traditional Chinese kowtow).

"That idiot really loves flirting with girls..."

She watched his figure disappear around the corner with a cold gaze, snorted softly, wiped the spot on the back of her hand where she had been kissed, and pushed the shopping cart toward the next meat counter with a cool expression.

She hadn't walked more than a few steps when Yukino Yukinoshita suddenly took out the scarf she had put away in her bag when she came inside and wrapped it tightly around her face.

Then he lowered his head and covered his face, squeezing his hands together as if he were trying to suffocate himself.

"Ughhhhh... It's still so embarrassing! How can he be so shameless?!"

He stomped his heels on the ground in frustration, his face under the scarf burning as if he had a fever. Waves of shame kept assaulting his nerves, leaving him at a loss for what to do.

So she hid in a corner of the supermarket where no one could see her, and let out a faint, dying cry. After a long time, she took off her scarf, tilted her face up, and took deep breaths into the air, fanning herself with her hand in an attempt to cool down her flushed and burning face.

—Even such shameful and twisted feelings, from the bottom of her heart, exuded an unprecedented sweetness.

Her gaze softened unconsciously, and the girl smoothed the corners of her mouth, letting the cart continue forward.

"But, as for my wife..."

You'll get used to this nickname sooner or later.

Chapter 178 Losers, Unite! (Not really)

The afternoon light and shadow filtered through the bare branches, the shadows so fine they were almost invisible, sweeping across the girl's translucent, crystalline silver hair.

Natsukawa Masaki stopped in front of the supermarket. Through the window, she could see two people inside, looking like a newlywed couple, picking and choosing items from the shelves.

Occasionally, when they turn to look at each other, their faces naturally reveal warmth and affection.

To avoid being discovered, she stood still for a few seconds, then slowly moved to hide under the eaves of the parking lot, leaned against the wall, and let out a long breath.

"It's so wonderful... No matter how many times I watch it, I feel so envious of being able to have that kind of happiness."

Xia Chuanzhen took out a bottle of mineral water from his schoolbag, gulped down a few mouthfuls, and swallowed the sour taste in his throat. He then wiped his mouth as if nothing had happened.

Then, a glint of malice appeared in his eyes, and a malicious smile appeared on his lips.

"Hmph... In that case, it's time for the villainous heiress to make her appearance and give this pair of protagonists, who are about to enter the final chapter, one last test!"

That's right, I'm doing this for your own good!

Broken pieces of happiness will only become stronger when they are put back together, won't they?

The shadow of the eaves concealed an evil mask on her face, her bright blue eyes narrowed fiercely, and her body automatically struck a flamboyant pose reminiscent of Diablo.

"That's right, the villain is me, Natsukawa Masaki!"

Ignoring the strange looks from passersby, she shouted to herself, her enthusiasm for causing trouble for the two people high, and turned to take firm steps toward the supermarket entrance.

One step, two steps.

Stepping back into the afternoon sunlight, she slowly stopped, looking down at the ground without moving.

After an unknown amount of time, Natsukawa Masaki suddenly tilted her head back and let out a deep sigh.

"Thinking back on it, I was such an idiot before... If I keep doing this, won't I be no different from that person?"

His own father, Ryoji Natsukawa, can be described as a complete scumbag.

He used so-called feelings as bargaining chips, never considering anything other than his own selfish desires; in order to rise to prominence, he did not hesitate to abandon his original wife for a political marriage and forcibly separated her and her daughter, which directly led to his intense hatred of anything related to love from that time onward.

Even now, the broken happiness remains unhealed, and the emptiness still exists in her life, never waiting to be filled with warmth.

It is said that people always become the kind of person they hate the most.

People who resent their parents for forcing them to study hard will eventually enroll their children in countless tutoring classes; people who were forced to give up their dreams and inherit the family business will eventually inflict the same pain on their children so that their childhood suffering will not be in vain, thus perpetuating this chain of suffering from generation to generation.

Even if you say, "I will never become that kind of person!", as the years go by, you unknowingly commit the same crimes.

Resentment, unwillingness to accept defeat; jealousy, a desire for revenge; self-abandonment, schadenfreude...

Natsukawa Masuzu knew that her mind was full of such negative thoughts, and she didn't mind becoming a bad woman who did all sorts of evil things.

Even so, there are still bottom lines that she cannot cross.

"The radiant glow of happiness~ Having witnessed such a beautiful thing with our own eyes, only a scumbag would want to extinguish it, right?"

She brushed aside the strands of hair stuck to the corners of her mouth and gazed at the two people in the supermarket. The mask on her face seemed to dissolve like paint in water, gradually revealing a bitter yet relieved smile.

Of course I can't do that, it's the same thing as that kind of lewd and dishonest father.

—Compared to those love-obsessed people, Natsukawa Masuzu definitely hates those who arbitrarily destroy other people's happiness even more.

Because perhaps true love really does exist in this world.

It's not just about liking each other; it's about being willing to give everything for each other's lives and make changes for each other's happiness, even if the process is painful and long.

As long as the other person appears in the future, there is nothing to fear.

She doesn't hate it; on the contrary, she longs for that kind of love... That's why she wants to protect it, and that's why she doesn't want to destroy it anymore.

"Then, it's time for the villains to step down."

After taking one last lingering look at his retreating figure, Natsukawa Masaki lowered his gaze, a self-proclaimed handsome and dashing smile playing on his lips, and calmly turned around.

Then, wiping away her tears of resentment, she took a deep breath and looked up at the gray sky heavy with dark clouds.

"I don't know what you're planning to do... but you absolutely have to succeed!"

Is your goal to clear this sky?

—Or rather, it is the goal of everyone who likes him.

'I can't do it, none of us can do it... I'm leaving it all to you, Yukinoshita.'

With a self-deprecating laugh, Natsukawa Masaki immediately started walking, deliberately choosing a secluded alley where no one would see her, towards the apartment.

……

Did I, in the past, ever embrace such happiness and glory?

Was she, in the past, once his one and only true love?

Did you, in the past, ever cross the abyss of hatred and see an incredibly beautiful view under a clear sky?

Haha, if I can't remember, then forget it.

Anyway, even if I turn my back on happiness that doesn't belong to me, my heart can still feel warm because of their presence.

That's fine.

This ending is perfect for someone like me who can't do anything but cause trouble.

Just next time...

Or every minute and every second from now on...

If the happiness between you disappears...

I will do as I said before, making him completely mine, both physically and mentally!

The dream has not faded, and the cool summer river still stands tall on the earth!

……

"Xiao Liang!"

Suddenly, someone called out to me as I was about to disappear into the alley.

Startled, Natsukawa Masuzu turned around in surprise. Yuigahama Yui was standing in the shadows of the supermarket not far away, walking towards her with light steps.

"Tuan-Tuan-chan? What are you doing here..."

She smiled brightly and said, "Of course I came with you. Great, we weren't discovered!"