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

Taking a bath now? What's the point of taking a bath!

Rikka threw the clothes she was holding onto the bed, squatted down, and moved closer to Eriri's face, which was buried even deeper in her hands.

"Well, you've already made a pact that we best friends would never have any secrets from each other, but now you're trying to betray that friendship! I'll judge you in the name of the moon!"

"W-wh-what secret?! Rikka, you're really weird, stop fooling around!"

"You're so nervous you're starting to ramble on! You little brat Eriri, now that things have come to this, you might as well surrender! Based on your confession, I might consider giving you a proper burial!"

"You idiot Rikka, you're addicted to role-playing, aren't you! I-I'm not going to mess around with you anymore, I need to go to the bathroom!"

"Still trying to run?"

Rikka slammed the door shut without hesitation, her back pressed against the wall, a strange smile playing on her lips, as if tonight even the King of Heaven couldn't save her.

In the living room, Yuan Qianye suddenly chuckled.

He shook his head helplessly.

Honestly, even though Eriri stammered and repeatedly assured me not to reveal what happened between them tonight...

But as expected, everything went smoothly on my side, while her side revealed a very obvious flaw not long after Rikka returned. She was caught and locked in a room with no way to escape. From the moment they met until she was exposed, she didn't even last two minutes...

But that's not surprising, since Eriri is indeed someone who can't hide her feelings.

Even Rikka couldn't hide it, so it's hard to imagine how she'll manage to keep it from others later.

It didn't matter for Shihua, who lived under the same roof, because her situation was somewhat special compared to the others from the beginning.

She acknowledged her feelings and accepted his advances, but the fact that they were sworn siblings made her feel much more awkward than others.

Therefore, from the beginning, she never expected to get anything from Yuan Qianye, not even a title that was perfectly natural for her. She just wanted to be able to stay by his side quietly.

Therefore, even if she later discovered the progress in the relationship between Minamoto Chiya and Eriri, she would at most lightly criticize his womanizing and advise him to take better care of his health.

Other issues, such as awkwardness or contradictions, simply do not exist.

Her situation is somewhat similar to Saeko's, whose heart is completely devoted to him. In short, she would put aside her own position and consider his needs first.

But for other people, things are a bit more complicated.

The first to be affected are, of course, Utaha, and, Yukino...

She had already sensed the threat during the journey and began to carefully set up defenses, trying to nip it in the bud.

However, feelings are something you can't prevent; just like how they overflowed the moment there was an opportunity.

But the fact that it happened so quickly, especially when she was at her most alert, makes things a bit tricky.

When Yuan Qianye thought about confessing to Shiyu about the progress of her relationship with Eriri, he could easily picture her expression turning as cold as ice.

Should I fly into a rage? Or simply turn around and leave, starting a cold war? Either seems possible...

I have a bit of a headache.

As for the latter, although Minamoto no Chiya doesn't need to take any responsibility towards Yukino at this stage, he, Eriri, and Yukino have been playing together since childhood.

They were truly childhood sweethearts, knowing each other inside and out, and were very familiar with each other. They used to hold hands and promise to stay together for life when they grew up.

The innocent words spoken by children back then did not change with the passage of time. Yuan Qianye made more friends and formed more relationships, but he still valued them. They were irreplaceable in his heart.

It would be impossible for Yukino and Eriri not to feel anything after learning that he had officially started dating someone else.

Even so, they still tried to force themselves to accept it, wanting to extend their childhood relationship not just to the present but into the future.

But now, the situation that is enough to change their relationship is not unfolding from the outside, but from within.

Upon learning of the usual trio, she discovered that the other two members had secretly reached an agreement, bringing their relationship even closer.

So, what would Yukino, who was undoubtedly left behind, think about this?

How will she react?

How will the three of them continue to get along in the future?

Or rather... can they continue to get along as naturally as before?

Yuan Qianye felt her head hurt even more.

This is the path he chose himself. No matter how difficult or painful it is, he has to persevere and crawl through it, even if he has to!

take it easy.

At least now I have one less problem than when I was traveling before.

I had a good talk with Eriri, and we were able to communicate more frankly. We've taken the most difficult step, and things will be much easier from here on out.

While he was pondering silently, Yuan Qianye's phone received a message.

It was the maid who hadn't replied before.

[Hayasaka Ai: Sorry, I just finished work and only just saw this.]

[Hayasaka Ai: The trip is over, you must be tired. Now that you're home, please take a bath and get some rest.]

[Hayasaka Ai: If you haven't rested yet... if you don't mind, I've been rereading your novel these past few days. There are some passages I don't quite understand, and I'd like to hear the original author's analysis. Of course, if it's convenient.]

Ah, they're starting that again.

Because of his trip, the maid must have accumulated a lot of pressure over the past week. She probably wants to use the excuse of making a phone call to hear his voice, and also to use the camera placed on his side to "secretly" spy on his actual situation, and enjoy the pleasure of self-gratification.

This situation sounds complicated, and it is indeed quite complicated.

The development of the relationship between the protagonist and the maid is always unconventional.

But how to put it, Yuan Qianye was not resistant; in fact, he harbored a secret anticipation for this kind of gameplay.

The idea of ​​spying on each other... is so exciting.

Gen Chiya turned off the living room lights and the TV, knocked on the very noisy Rikka's door, but didn't intend to go in. He just said goodnight from outside the door.

There was a moment of silence inside the room, then the two said goodnight together.

As soon as Yuan Qianye turned to leave, the two girls in the room started making a ruckus again.

Yuan Qianye closed the door, locked it, lay on the bed, dimmed the lights in the room, and leaned against the headboard. After everything was ready, he used his laptop to connect to the maid's video feed, and then made a phone call.

When the call started, the two chatted casually about everyday things. Yuan Qianye talked about interesting things that happened on her trip, while Hayasaka Ai talked about the silly things her young lady had done recently. The two were very relaxed.

Later, when Gen Chiyo, with an academic and serious attitude and a magnetic and charming baritone voice, began to explain the parts of the novel that the maid did not understand,...

The maid stared blankly at the surveillance footage that couldn't be captured by the camera on Yuan Qianye's side. She slowly began to inhale deeply, her slender fingers moving downwards to the next stage.

Judging from the maid's five intermittent relaxations during the more than one-hour call that followed, the pressure she had been under was indeed immense.

Of course, this also puts more pressure on Yuan Qianye's side.

It was past midnight, and it was indeed quite late, so the two said goodnight to each other.

After the call ended, the maid went to tidy up, take a bath, and rest, feeling quite satisfied.

Yuan Qianye stayed on the bed, staring at the ceiling to calm himself down, before tiptoeing out of the room.

The sound of running water came from the bathroom.

Yuan Qianye walked over, and there were clothes that Toka had taken off on the clothes rack outside.

The black, semi-circular armor is not only form-fitting but also aesthetically pleasing, sparking the imagination.

Out of concern, he picked it up to check, and judging from the obvious dampness on her fingertips, Shihua was indeed very busy today.

I feel a little sorry for her.

His initial intention in helping Shihua realize her dream of opening a restaurant was to make her happy and to demonstrate his unwavering support for her, no matter what.

But now, he feels that Shihua is working too hard for the restaurant, having to leave early and return late even during the hot summer holidays.

As Chiya put down his clothes and was about to knock on the door to say something to Toka, Rikka came out of the room.

Rikka ran into Chiya as he came out of the bathroom. She was stunned for a moment, but she didn’t suspect why he was there at this time. She was just satisfied with the information she had finally managed to extract from Eriri after going through so much trouble!

She smiled silently, her crescent-shaped eyes and slightly upturned lips giving off an air of knowing everything, a hint of cunning, and a touch of smugness.

But unlike Eriri, Yuan Qianye wasn't so easily manipulated. She slapped Eriri on the head with a chop to the head and pointed at the clothes Eriri was holding: "What are you laughing about? You haven't even showered or gone to bed yet. Are you trying to cultivate immortality?"

Rikka covered her head with one hand and took a step back: "Brother, I know everything, please don't..."

"What do you know?" Yuan Qianye followed up and gently tapped her head again; he was getting quite angry.

Previously, Saeko and Utaha hadn't come to find him for some reason during the latter half of the Pure Land Beach trip, and now he was stuck in an awkward situation because of the maid.

He was really holding on, and just when he thought that Rikka had finally returned and it was late enough for him to do something, he was surprised to find that Rikka was still awake!

"After your sister finishes washing, you should hurry up and wash too. If you stay up this late again, I'll send you home and let Mom take care of you!"

"So fierce... what's so great about that... I helped you so much..."

Rikka held her head and muttered as she watched Minamoto Chiya return to her room.

Then, her eyes lit up, as if she had figured something out.

Yes, just like Eriri, Chiya was just shy!

It was obvious that she was shy, which is why she said those bullying things to me, trying to change the subject, and then she ran away in a panic!

Rikka, who had been grumbling and dissatisfied, suddenly realized something at that moment.

A smirk returned to his lips, a dismissive smile playing on his lips as he looked in the direction his brother had gone.

In the bathroom, Shihua came out dressed.

"Oh, sister, you're done washing up."

Shihua frowned as she looked at her and the clothes she was holding: "Why aren't you asleep yet?"

The eldest sister still had the air of authority. Seeing that she was a little dissatisfied, Rikka was a little nervous and immediately started thinking: "Ah, um... didn't we just come back from the trip? Eriri and I were packing clothes and stuff, and we just finished."

"You've been cleaning up all this time?"

"After I got back, I went out again to deliver something to Saeko-nee, which made me late."

"Fine, I'll let you off the hook. Go take a shower and go to bed. Even on vacation, you shouldn't stay up this late."

"Good~"

"Oh right, were you talking to Qianye just now?"

"Yes, he just went back to his room."