I really don't want to have a girlfriend.

Speechless, Yuu Tenkuji twitched his lips, completely baffled. Where did this guy get such a temper?

Even if he was caught secretly admiring her for a few seconds, would he really speak to someone who was trying to talk to her with good intentions in this tone?

Is it androphobia or pick-up artist PTSD? Did I owe you something in my past life?

Normally, when encountering someone like this, Yuu Tenkuji would show absolutely no mercy. He would immediately unleash his sharp tongue until she covered her face and fled before he would even leave the elevator.

But for some reason, looking at the girl's icy face and her merciless, sharp gaze, after a brief moment of stunned silence, his displeasure gradually turned into a feeling of amusement, and even a strange sense of nostalgia rose from the bottom of his heart.

'It's been a long time since I've heard such aggressive sarcasm...'

Completely different from Kasumigaoka Utaha's, after listening to her, I not only didn't want to fight back, but I also wanted to tease her a few more times to see her get angry.

It's not masochism, it's just like teasing a cat.

Yuu Tenkuji shook her head, temporarily noting down these jumbled thoughts. After clearing her mind, she continued as if nothing had happened, just as the conversation had continued smoothly:

"By the way, did you know that there are often cats around here? They are beautiful black cats with lovely fur. I really want to take one home and raise it."

"..."

Unexpectedly, the black-haired girl's eyes widened slightly in surprise. She then frowned impatiently, turned her head, sighed, and said somewhat reluctantly:

"...It's that black cat with red eyes, isn't it? Don't even think about it, it almost scratched me yesterday, it's not friendly at all."

Red eyes?

Tenkuji Yu raised an eyebrow, not showing any surprise.

Originally, I intended to probe for information about "Skinny Cat," but I didn't expect to hear about "Fat Cat" from her... So they've met before?

To add further explanation, the two black cats look similar, except for their eyes and body size. For convenience, Yuu Tenkuji referred to the two cats as fat and thin.

—Wait, on another note.

Suddenly, Yuu Tenkuji realized something, and a thoughtful look flashed in his eyes.

Just as the skinny cat's eyes reflected the girl in front of him, the fat cat's eyes also looked very similar to those of the school nurse. He wouldn't believe there was no connection between them.

Not only are they connected, but they may also uncover one of the world's hidden secrets.

He noted down his discovery and casually echoed the girl's words:

"No way? Last night it rubbed against my hand so affectionately and even followed me into the apartment, but it ran away later."

"...Tch." The girl clicked her tongue very discreetly, her small face showing an expression of envy and resentment, but she quickly regained her nonchalant demeanor before he looked over.

"Perhaps it's just not my thing. And I remember this apartment building doesn't allow pets, not even bringing them in. How did you get the guard to give you permission?"

She looked at him suspiciously, and Tenkuji Yu shrugged.

"The guard just didn't see it. Speaking of which, do you know another cat? It looks a lot like that cat, but its body shape and eye color are different..."

Before they could finish speaking, the elevator, which hadn't stopped operating because of their conversation, dinged and opened its doors on the tenth floor.

Yuu Tenkuji sighed with some regret, but didn't linger too long, and stepped into the corridor outside the elevator.

"Well, I'll tell you about that cat next time we meet."

Turning back, he smiled kindly at the girl, but his eyes were fixed on her facial muscles, not missing any subtle changes in her expression.

"...I didn't expect you to be such a frivolous person, Tenkuji-kun."

Contrary to what Yuu Tenkuji had expected, the girl only gave him a few strange looks, and her initial coldness softened a bit, making her less aggressive.

"I know I'm popular with men, but I never expected that even you would go to the trouble of finding topics I like just to chat with me."

She casually tossed her long hair over her shoulder, closed her eyes slightly as if she couldn't be bothered, and spoke with just the right amount of aloofness in her polite tone: "But I'm sorry, all your efforts are in vain - I have no intention of getting along with any men, and please don't have any thoughts of taking advantage of your proximity, unless you want to be kicked out of this apartment."

Whether you listen with your left or right ear, all you can hear is the word "narcissism".

"hehe."

Outside the elevator, Tenkuji Yuu returned with an awkward yet polite smile.

Although I wasn't angry, I inexplicably missed her overly narcissistic behavior. A vein on my forehead throbbed involuntarily, and some unspoken impulses welled up in my heart.

Taking a deep breath to calm his agitated emotions, he casually asked, "By the way, I've been wanting to ask you this since earlier: how did you recognize me at a glance?"

“I’ve memorized the names of all the students in the school,” she replied calmly and confidently.

"And what is your name?"

"Yukino Yukinoshita... wait, you don't know me?" Suddenly realizing what she meant, Yukino Yukinoshita seemed genuinely surprised, even somewhat incredulous. "Even if we don't usually interact, you should be able to remember each other's names and faces when you go on stage to receive the honors award, right? Does your memory only last seven seconds?"

“I won’t waste my memory remembering people I’m not interested in,” Yuu Tenkuji said frankly.

She immediately retorted, "Even if you were just staring at me for five hours with those predatory eyes?"

"Don't worry about such a small thing."

Although I now know she lives upstairs, I will have many opportunities to get to know her in the future.

As the elevator doors closed, Yuu Tenkuji didn't use the remaining time to say goodbye. Instead, she put on a serious expression and asked with utmost earnestness:

Have you ever heard of the name Yukinoshita Haruno?

"Yunoshita Yangno..."

He murmured.

As his field of vision narrowed, the black-haired girl's furrowed brows and puzzled expression were deeply reflected in his eyes.

"Who?"

This is her answer.

The words fell like a feather, the elevator doors closed quietly, and the number for the tenth floor quickly jumped to the eleventh floor.

In the completely silent hallway, Yuu Tenkuji stood alone, her fingers pressed against her brow, exhaling a heavy, slow breath.

"I can't believe something like this actually happened..."

△

Let's organize the clues we've gathered so far.

It is known that "Skinny Cat" is very likely a transformation of a family member of Yukinoshita Haruno, the school nurse in Toyonosaki, and she is completely unaware of this.

It is also known that "Fat Cat" once met with one of his students, Yukino Yukinoshita, but he was not friendly to her at all and even acted aggressively towards her.

In addition, the characteristics of the skinny and fat cats are similar to those of Yukino and Haruno, especially the color of their eyes.

So for now, we can assume that the skinny cat is Yukino in disguise and the fat cat is Haruno in disguise. Even if they are not biological sisters, they are still relatives. There is no substantial evidence to support this, but given the current situation, this is the most likely guess.

At the same time, he did not know the person "Yukino Yukinoshita".

He still remembered the student roster he had seen before. Apart from Iroha Isshiki, there was no name Yukino Yukinoshita on it... In the entire school, apart from Haruno Yukinoshita, there was no other teacher or student with the surname Yukinoshita.

However, while Yukino Yukinoshita knew him, she did not know Yukino Yukinoshita Haruno, the school nurse.

Surely she doesn't remember the names of all the students in the school but not the teachers' names?

If Yukino Yukinoshita were as popular as him because of her outstanding appearance and academic performance, then as the school nurse, Haruno Yukinoshita should also recognize her.

But this afternoon, I said these things to him—

"I don't have a younger sister who's afraid of being called by the wrong name."

Neither of them seemed to be lying, which is why things are so confusing.

There are still a few key points that cannot be clarified, so Yuu Tenkuji can only make this inference for now:

"If the skinny cat is Yukino Yukinoshita in disguise, and she disappeared after school yesterday, is it because she turned from a cat into a human and then forgot about me?"

"If the fat cat is Yukino Yukinoshita in disguise, and she disappeared after school today because she turned into a cat and couldn't reply to my messages?"

"If they had different and uncommunicable memories during their human existence, could it be argued that they existed on different timelines, which is why they believed they had no sisters despite being related by blood?"

"The fat cat and the skinny cat have indeed never appeared in the same place."

"The dividing line should be the bell ringing after school. At that time, I might travel from world line A to world line B?"

Then the cat turns into a human, and the human turns into a cat. The memories and realities of others are rewritten, but he remains unmoved, enjoying the growing anxieties of the mystery.

"This is really... as expected, you can't include supernatural or paranormal elements in detective novels."

After summarizing all this information, Tenkuji Yu rubbed his shoulders wearily.

Asking just one person is no longer useful; they may not even know as much as you do. To get closer to the truth, you need to get the skinny cat and Yukino Yukinoshita in contact with each other, or the fat cat and Yukino Yukinoshita in contact with each other, in order to uncover deeper clues.

As she calculated what she needed to do tomorrow, Yuu Tenkuji took out her key, opened the door to her residence, and looked at the android girl kneeling in the entryway as if she had expected it, without any surprise on her face.

She curtsied like the proprietress of a hot spring inn, her long, smooth, white hair obediently draped down her back. Then, she tilted her expressionless face up and recited her lines in a monotonous, almost theatrical way:

"Welcome back, brother. Would you like to eat first, take a bath first, or eat first...?"

"Let's eat first."

Tenkuji Yu loosened his tie, didn't even look at her, took off his shoes in the entryway, and went upstairs on his own.

The girl neatly put his shoes away in the shoe cabinet without any complaint. She simply stood up unsteadily, her inorganic eyes calmly watching his retreating figure as he went upstairs, her emotionless voice softly falling to the ground.

"Understood, elder brother."

……

Meanwhile, at the Kasumigaoka family.

The girl named Kasumigaoka Utaha, who was diligently writing a sequel in her bedroom and rolled around on the bed clutching her head because a certain plot point got stuck, was completely unaware of the strange scenery outside the window.

A silver fox with sky-blue eyes was crouching on a treetop not far away, quietly watching her with narrowed eyes.

Chapter Ninety-Seven: The Existence That Disappeared Again

After finishing dinner, Yuu Tenkuji put away her own dishes and washed them herself.

As for the android maid, although she also ate at the table, her appetite was as small as a sparrow's. Basically, Tenkuji Yu finished all the dishes, while she was responsible for cleaning up the rest.

If he didn't hate wasting food, he would have only eaten until he was full and had no intention of finishing all of the other person's food—it was like that evil system suddenly pretending to be kind and feeding him. The awkwardness in his heart hadn't disappeared even after a day.

I don’t know how much longer I can endure this before I finally decide to move out… I guess I’ll have to wait until I’ve completely squeezed out all the usefulness of this android maid.

Yuuki Tenkuji has no ulterior motives towards enemies or spies they send.

"Did you enjoy dinner tonight?"