In crossover anime, who isn't a childhood friend?

Even though Yukino had already envisioned a similar scenario the moment she saw the movie tickets.

However, when the moment actually arrived when Yuan Qianye took the initiative to explain, her heartbeat suddenly slowed down a few beats.

Then she gradually entered a state of intense activity, her heart seemed to have a self-awareness, as if it wanted to leave her body, and began to beat overloaded with a "thump thump thump".

A dazzling rainbow gradually appeared in her eyes as she looked down at her phone screen.

I didn't ask why.

Even the most clueless person has their limits.

Moreover, Yukino isn't the kind of person who's simple-minded or slow-witted.

Yukino: Hmm.

[Yuan Qianye: Get some rest, goodnight.]

This sentence was sent via voice message.

Yukino clicked on it cautiously.

Her childhood sweetheart's voice reached her ears through the communication network.

It carried a smile, a hint of deeper meaning, yet was completely unpretentious, appearing quite natural, and accompanied by a subtle, gentle doting affection...

Her face turned bright red in an instant.

In the following moments, Yuan Qianye witnessed her language function suddenly malfunction, like a machine that had stuck.

Ms. Yukino Shino stood up and sat down intermittently, tucking her hair behind her ears, pinching her throat as if she were about to sing, and then hurriedly took small steps to the kitchen to pour herself a glass of water to soothe her throat.

Finally, after practicing several times in her room, she stood by the window, blushing, and whispered something to her phone.

A few seconds later, Chiyo also received Yukino's reply.

It was also spoken, but all that buildup—so much noise and a huge reaction—only resulted in a few words.

[Yukino: Yeah, you too. Goodnight.]

Since they had known each other since childhood, this was probably the first time that Yuan Qianye had heard her speak to him in such a gentle tone, as if she were coaxing a baby to sleep.

In any case, the goal has been achieved.

Thank you for your hospitality...

Chat ended.

Yuan Qianye withdrew his perspective.

Unbeknownst to him, Yukino on the other side was doing the same thing as him.

She hugged the pillow tightly, buried her face in it, and rolled around on the bed.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

December 27th.

After two days of final exams.

in the afternoon.

After repeatedly checking and confirming that there were no flaws in the original text of his novel, Yuan Qianye personally took a car and delivered it to the designated address for submissions to the Edogawa Rampo Award.

Seeing the staff accept the prize solemnly, without any surprise at his school uniform, he realized that perhaps his peers had always participated in this award, but had never won.

But in any case, all the things that took a lot of effort this month have finally been completed.

All that's left is to patiently wait for the judges to review the manuscript.

According to the instructions for the Rampo Award process.

The results should be available sometime between the end of next month and the end of the month.

In addition, Kasumigaoka Utaha and Sawamura Eriri are also going home today.

Although the Yuan family is very hospitable, the novel and final exams are now over.

With their excuses gone, they naturally felt embarrassed to continue staying.

In the afternoon, they each packed their things and went home.

In the evening, Gen Chiyo specially invited only the two of them out for dinner, without bringing Rikka, to express his gratitude for their help during this time.

During this period, the two of them lived under the same roof for a while.

Instead of easing tensions, the relationship became even more strained.

"what?!"

"hold head high?!"

The two had barely met when their fierce and displeased gazes locked, and they started arguing.

…………

P.S.: I'll be posting 10,000 words tomorrow, which translates to about five chapters. Please vote with your monthly tickets, swords of encouragement, and recommendation votes!

Volume 1: Chapter 131: I Will Always Be By Your Side (10000) (48/51)

"Oh, good evening, Ms. Kasumi Shiko. Your outfit is as unchanging as ever."

After meeting, Eriri noticed the undisguised look of disgust in Kasumigaoka's eyes as he looked at her.

Not to be outdone, he immediately spoke first, making a cute, contemptuous snort at the conspicuous black stockings under her cashmere coat. The hidden meaning in his words was self-evident, directly implying that she was a lewd woman who only knew how to flaunt her charm all day long!

Kasumigaoka raised an eyebrow, not annoyed at all, but instead joined in with an unfriendly, fake smile.

"No, I can't compare to you, Ms. Kashiwagi Eri. The works you create in private are all more R-rated than the last, but you pretend to be so pure and cute in public. You're the kind of person who's two-faced."

She said this in a gentle tone, but it immediately ignited a strong sense of hostility.

Neither side made any concessions, which led to a further escalation of the conflict.

"That's still better than someone sneaking into someone else's room at night. The novel is written with such youthful innocence, but the author herself is an absolute pervert!"

"A person with a dirty mind sees everything as dirty. Someone has become so obsessed with drawing that they can't distinguish between fantasy and reality. They actually project their delusions onto their serious work. It's ridiculous."

"Ha, they just take off their clothes and sleep in someone else's bed. Is that what you call a proper job?"

"Oh dear, I think I understand something now."

"?"

"The reason someone is so angry is that she is incredibly envious of what I have done. Because she cannot do it herself but desperately desires it, she has developed a considerable degree of jealousy, which has spread and swelled in her heart. It is truly quite ugly."

"Huh?!"

Did I say something wrong?

"That's utterly absurd. Me, envious of a stinky woman like you?"

"Oh dear, I didn't say it was you, but you took it personally, so it really is true, isn't it?"

"Gurgle—!"

Eriri glared fiercely at Kasumigaoka, her momentum momentarily weakening before she rallied, displaying her sharp edge once more, a direct confrontation.

"Stop talking nonsense. You think you'd envy something like that? I'm not that shameless! Speaking of which, I'm inviting everyone to a hot spring inn after the New Year. Guess who wasn't invited?"

Faced with British-style "bullying," Kasumigaoka once again smiled contemptuously.

"You really are quite childish, Eriri, to bring up such a childish, playful arrangement in such a serious way."

Eriri crossed her arms and snorted dismissively.

"You can only say that now. When you're all alone at home, we might bring you some local specialties if we're in a good mood."

"No need, I'll buy it myself."

"Heh...hmm?"

Eriri suddenly realized something was wrong.

“I am neither a criminal nor have I been issued a restraining order by the court. I have my own feet, and I can decide where I want to go.”

Kasumigaoka said lightly,

"Thank you for reminding me that you had this plan. It's been a while since I've been to a hot spring..."

"Hey you you you you...!"

The previous bickering was alright, since it was just a verbal exchange and nothing serious.

But now that her well-laid plan had been broken so easily, Eriri couldn't accept that she couldn't deliver a heavy blow to that bitch Kasumigaoka and make her taste the feeling of being abandoned.

Kasumigaoka let out a cold laugh, her right hand gently covering her pale cherry-colored lips as she spoke softly.

"Eri, you really are quite cute."

puff!

Something pierced my heart without me even realizing it.

That was the final blow.

Eriri's body suddenly slumped, her face turning ashen and desolate, her lips moving in vain without uttering a sound.

It's clear that these two people have been living with the Yuan family during this period.

While Eriri has improved in some areas and her offensive skills have been developed, there are still many gaps in some subtle operations, and she needs to work on them.

Suddenly, Eriri snapped back to reality by the sensation on her skin.

Yuan Qianye, who had been silent until now, gently flicked her nose, then smiled and lightly pinched her cheek, his expression affectionate.

"Alright, now that you've greeted each other, can we set off?"

He didn't show much displeasure on his face, but after he said that, Kasumigaoka reluctantly turned his head and whispered, "I'm sorry."

Eriri was so captivated by her childhood friend's overly doting smile that she was a beat slow to react, but she quickly followed suit and apologized as well.

Yuan Qianye chuckled: "Wait, why are you suddenly apologizing for nothing?"

Neither of them answered, belatedly realizing what had happened, but they both looked away guiltily, much like children who had done something wrong and were waiting to be punished.

“I’m not angry. On the contrary, I think the fact that you two interacted so warmly as soon as you met is proof that you have a good relationship.”