How to raise a random guy's wife

"Meow~" Hearing the sound, Nian Gao was already waiting at the door. She meowed and was about to pounce when she saw the stranger. She stopped in her tracks, staring blankly and curiously looking at Leonard.

"You have a cat!" Leonard exclaimed, squatting down. "Mimi~ Mimi~"

All cats are named Mimi...

"Wait on the sofa for a moment," Kobayashi Sora said as she walked toward the storage room. "I'll go get it for you."

"Thank you for your hard work." Leonard picked up the rice cake and sat down on the sofa. "Speaking of which, what's its name?"

Hearing the question, Kobayashi Sora, who was in the storage room, raised her voice and answered, "Mochi."

“What a nice name…wait a minute!” Leonard was praising it when he heard Kobayashi Sora call out to Mochi, who had already jumped out of his arms and rushed towards the storage room.

As a seasoned homebody, Leonard knew all too well the destructive power of pets against figurines, and instinctively chased after them.

Rice Cake was very fast; before Leonard could catch up, it had already disappeared into the storage room.

"Oh no!" Leonard followed closely behind and saw Kobayashi Sora holding a game high in one hand and catching the rice cake that was rushing towards her with the other.

Leonard relaxed, his gaze sweeping over the items naturally, then he gasped. "The collector's edition of 'The Promise Under the Blue Sky,' the classic edition of 'Pure White Symphony,' the special edition of 'Otome wa Boku ni Koi ga Shitai!', the character art and music collection of 'Yoake Mae ni Ruriiro na', the first edition of 'SHUFFLE!', 'Love, Election, Chocolate,' 'TOHEART 2,' 'Little Love Rhapsody,' the novel, manga, and drama CD of 'Seriously, Love Me!', and the sequel to the sequel, 'Shinken de Watashi ni Koishinasai! S'?! Wait, you have all five drama CDs?"

He rattled off a long list of names like he was reciting a menu, his blue eyes constantly scanning the room.

"Yes, a friend gave them to me." Kobayashi Sora nodded. "Each one came with a game, but since I'm not an adult yet, I haven't had a chance to play them."

"What a pity!" Leonard lamented. "The first CD included a demo of the original work, the fully voiced kind. Yamato, who had no voice in the original, now had a voice, and there was also a story with Momoyo. The second CD included a character introduction game, where clicking on different parts of the character would trigger different voice lines. The third CD... I only have two drama CDs."

"Don't tempt me," Kobayashi Sora said helplessly. "I can't play right now."

"Ah... what a pity. It's definitely worth playing, no, it's a game that you need to play through at least three times to fully enjoy."

"Hmm..." Kobayashi Sora reached out and took down the game and drama CDs. "They're just sitting here anyway. If you like, take them and play them together."

“Ah…no!” Leonard shook his head vigorously. “If you’re playing one game while also thinking about another, you can’t fully immerse yourself in it. That’s cheating!”

“It’s not that bad.” Kobayashi Sora put away the radio drama CD and handed Leonard the PS3 bonus edition of “Amber Concerto.” “Here you go.”

"Thank you so much!" Leonard exclaimed, overjoyed. "Jin..."

"Xiao Lin Kong Qing."

"Kong Qingjun," Leonard said seriously, "do you know what a friendship that transcends age is?"

"Eh?"

"I've decided to be your friend!"

Xiao Lin Kong Qing: "..."

Your intentions are too obvious.

Chapter 23 An Ominous Premonition

Another drawing is finished...

Eriri slumped helplessly in the chair.

On the drawing paper before her, a blonde nun wore a black, austere nun's habit. The nun's cap, which should have completely covered her hair, revealed strands of blonde hair that looked like works of art. Her hands, clasped in front of her chest, grasped the hem of her nun's habit, revealing the white undergarments and restrained lace. Beneath the naturally flowing folds, her lower body, encased in thin white stockings, was presented on the canvas. The delicate skin and the texture of the white stockings blended together to create an alluring image. The simple white clothes were adorned with small pink bows, forming a striking contrast with the taboo nun's habit.

What was most striking was the undisguised disgust in the nun's emerald eyes.

The nun, who should have been gentle and approachable, now wore this expression, as if a helpless rebuke was piercing through the image.

I drew another picture based on Kobayashi Sora's idea...

Eriri clenched her paintbrush tightly in her small hands, as if she had an urge to break it.

But I'm too weak.

It can't be squeezed.

In short... the anger was real.

Although I am too weak.

The last illustration was very well received, and countless people urged her to update. Before Eriri could even notice, she had already drawn another one.

It's like an actor performing in a play being moved to tears by a toy that suddenly starts up, only to be hailed by the audience as a display of exceptional acting skill, hailed as a classic moment, and strongly requested to be performed again.

Once it happens, it'll happen again!

This is how countless characters in Eriri's works have fallen for her charm.

What goes around comes around, and now it's her turn.

This feeling...this feeling...

"Why do you look like you've been coerced and taken advantage of, unwilling yet enjoying it, with an expression that's both expectant and resistant, helpless yet exhilarated?" A gentle voice suddenly rang out with a playful tone, startling Eriri.

The girl turned around and saw a woman in a kimono.

Her dark purple twin tails swayed, her purple eyes blinked, and her face, which bore a striking resemblance to Eriri's, wore a half-smile.

"Mom~" Eriri protested softly.

Sayuri Sawamura, Eriri's mother.

She's a fujoshi (a female fan of male-male romance).

As a diplomat's wife, she usually supports her diplomat husband and displays an elegant sitting posture befitting her family environment.

On holidays, she dons a gorgeous kimono and revels in events or concerts, known as a mysterious older sister whose age is unknown.

Having been involved in doujinshi activities since the 90s, even though she's older than Eriri, she's not only into BL but also into loli and mature women. This open-mindedness, which allows her to adapt to anything, has greatly influenced her daughter's interests and hobbies.

"You drew another one." Sayuri Sawamura admired her daughter's imperfect masterpiece. "I feel like this could be turned into a series and published as a book—is this Eriri's own idea?"

"Ah... um... yes." Eriri lied with difficulty.

What else could I do? Should I tell my mother that I was coerced into drawing this based on my own image?

"Oh~~~?" Sawamura Sayuri drawled, her gaze lingering on her daughter's face. "I see."

Her gaze shifted and she saw the CD and the bonus sketchbook next to her.

"Speaking of which, Eriri, I remember this first-edition limited edition sold out instantly as soon as pre-orders opened, causing a huge number of refugees. Now the average auction price online has reached 50,000 yen, making it an extremely rare item, right?"

Oops.

Eriri froze. This was the very gift Kobayashi Sora had given her, which she had forgotten to put away.

"Um, yes... that's it." The blonde with twin tails stammered.

"Eri is such a good girl who wouldn't touch Yahoo Auctions... how did she manage to get it?"

"It was...it was lent to me by a friend."

I almost called him a scumbag.

Eriri reluctantly changed her address to "friend".

"A friend?!" Sayuri Sawamura paused for a moment, then leaned forward to close the distance. "Eriri has finally made a friend to enjoy galgames with! What kind of person is she? A classmate? A friend from the club? Or a senior or junior?"

Eriri entered high school... no, to be precise, since entering junior high school.

Sawamura Sayuri and her companion had never met Eriri's friends.

Even when Eriri occasionally talks about school or club matters, she never reacts this way when she mentions her friends.

That hesitant, unspoken look...

"Oh, how about we invite some friends over?" Sawamura Sayuri asked, intrigued. "Or how about we visit them tomorrow?"

"Wait, wait!" Eriri shouted, "How did you suddenly run off to that place?!"

"Well... isn't this normal?"

"What's normal about this?!" Eriri turned her head away. "Enough, enough of this... I'm going to keep drawing."

"Hmm~~?" Sawamura Sayuri observed her daughter's trembling hands, her gradually lowering head, and her face turning red to her ears—was she shy?!

No.

The thought of Kobayashi Sora aroused anger within her.

"Could it be... Tomoya-kun?"

"No," Eriri replied in a muffled voice.

That's definitely not the case.

If so, Eriri's reaction would be, "No...no, that's not it."

"A new classmate?"

Yinglili: "..."

It seems so.

"Is he handsome?"

"It's so ugly!"

He looks quite handsome.

"What about personality?"

"bad!"

She seems to have a good personality.

"And what about talent?"

Eriri was about to make a fuss when her gaze involuntarily fell on the printed manuscript of "One-Punch Man"—oh no!

The next moment, Sayuri Sawamura picked up the original manuscript. "Did he draw this?"

Eriri's rosy cheeks puffed out slightly. "Who knows..."

It seems so.

Sawamura Sayuri flipped through the rough-looking manga; the childlike, doodle-like art style left her speechless for a moment, but after turning a few pages...

"Huh?!" She looked at her daughter. "What happens next?"

"I don't know..." Eriri also wanted to know what happened next, but Kobayashi Sora hadn't sent any new messages. "Okay, let's not mention him anymore!"