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

Yuan Qianye said, enunciating each word clearly.

"..."

"..."

Time seemed to freeze at that moment.

The two remained kneeling, facing each other on the soft bed.

But no one spoke again.

The air fell into absolute silence, with only the ticking of the second hand of the alarm clock on the bedside table being amplified infinitely.

Saeko's expression froze instantly.

The gentle, understanding smile that had been prepared was still frozen on the corner of her mouth, but the gentleness and understanding in her eyes were instantly replaced by an extreme sense of astonishment, confusion, and disbelief!

……Um?

What did he just say?

Yang... is he?

Not... Toka?

After a long silence of several tens of seconds, Saeko's seemingly stagnant thoughts finally began to turn again.

Just now... the name that Qianye uttered...

It seems... to be different from what I originally imagined...

"You mean... Yang Nai... sister?" She heard her own voice, which was terribly dry, as if it wasn't her own.

“Hmm.” Seeing Saeko’s sudden change in expression, Minamoto Chiyo felt even more uneasy, but still nodded firmly. To eliminate the last possible ambiguity, he even added, “Not Yukino, but Haruno, Yukino’s older sister… Yukinoshita Haruno.”

"..."

Saeko fell into a longer silence than before.

The color drained from her face little by little, and her usually steady and wise eyes reflected a huge emptiness that seemed to be caused by a violent shock to her worldview!

……

221: We're okay now (5k)

“…Saeko?” Minamoto Chiyo could no longer remain silent, as a full five minutes had already passed.

"..." Saeko heard his call and finally looked up, her gaze fixed on the ceiling with an ambiguous expression.

She maintained that position for a while before looking at Yuan Qianye and asking, "When did this happen?"

Yuan Qianye breathed a slight sigh of relief; at least she was willing to speak.

"It was in the middle of last year, in June, that I was invited to a banquet, and I attended it with Yang Nai."

“That time…” Saeko frowned, trying hard to recall: “…I remember you mentioned that Yukino’s parents seemed to have come along as well.”

“Yes, your uncle and aunt were indeed there.” Yuan Qianye nodded and explained the details to her: “But they were in another venue at the banquet, mainly discussing business with some important business partners.”

Yang Nai and I spent some time alone together on the dance floor and in the main dining room at the banquet. Our relationship progressed further after the banquet.

"Who initiated the contact between you two?"

"At the banquet, it's hard to say who took the initiative; we were probably mutually drawn together."

Yang Nai... has been managing all kinds of internal and external affairs of the Yukinoshita family, while also taking care of her university studies, and constantly trying to meet her parents' expectations, while always maintaining a flawless image in the outside world.

She has been under immense pressure since she was very young, and has never had a truly effective way to release it.

As for me... I admit, when it comes to relationships, I'm often an incurable womanizer. I'm easily attracted to beautiful things and lack sufficient self-control; there's no excuse for that.

He took a deep breath.

"In short, we both drank quite a bit at the banquet that day. The atmosphere, the environment, and that indescribable attraction between us, combined with the effects of alcohol... after that, everything just... happened naturally."

"Did you do it too, just like Hayasaka-san?"

"……Yes."

"From what you just said, Qianye, you think that Yang Nai had sex with you at the beginning because she needed to release stress, and that it was a way to vent?"

"That's exactly what she said at the time, because she had clearly told me before we started that it would only be for one night, and after dawn, we would act as if nothing had happened."

The following morning, she reiterated to me that I should forget about last night, that our relationship didn't need to be known by anyone, and that we should go back to our simple, sisterly relationship.

"Now that you've admitted it to me, it means that your relationship has crossed the line of just one night and has been officially confirmed, right?"

"Yes... some things you only understand after they actually happen, how important they are to you, and how hard it is to let go of them."

Previously, my opinion of Haruno was very superficial. I thought she was scheming, a person who liked to watch the fun, and a sister-complex with a somewhat bad personality... But after that night...

I found that I couldn't be as carefree as she said. I couldn't forget that night, and I couldn't treat her as just an ordinary older sister I needed to keep my distance from.

In fact, after getting to know her better, I also found that it wasn't just a momentary impulse or simply a way to release stress.

Her feelings for me... are perhaps deeper than she's willing to admit, and they're not much different from my feelings for her.

Having understood each other's feelings, I then officially began to take action.

At first, she kept refusing, so it wasn't very easy, but later, on Valentine's Day, which was also her birthday, I finally managed to get her to officially agree to be with me.

"Wait a minute." Saeko suddenly remembered something: "Valentine's Day? Weren't you with us that day to cheer for Kazusa's performance? You were with us the whole time, weren't you? Utaha, me, Eriri, Yukino... we were all there."

"That's certainly true on the surface... but I did leave for a little while in the middle..."

"You won't..."

"Um... I also made plans with Haruno back then, near where we met... and also... I also made plans with Hayasaka that day... also near the festival venue."

"..."

After hearing all this, Saeko silently closed her eyes and sighed softly.

Because Qianye was honest and frank about these things, there wasn't much anger or disappointment. The main feeling was surprise at the unexpected name appearing, followed by a feeling of utter helplessness.

Although it might seem a bit awkward for her to say this as a lover, Chiya truly possesses an astonishing "talent" in time management and emotional control...

Utaha, Eriri, Haruno... aren't they all outstanding among their peers, undeniably beautiful and talented girls who exude maximum attraction to the opposite sex?

She had previously realized that she was completely incapable of meeting Chiyo's emotional needs, and therefore did not mind Shiwa, or even Eriri, getting involved.

This is like an incompetent wife who is not good at cooking and cannot provide her husband with a full and good meal at home. She can't force him to endure hardship indefinitely. There are limits to a person's body. What if he damages his health by enduring hardship?

Therefore, in this situation, it seems that we can only tacitly allow him to seek some sources of supplementation and comfort outside.

However, those "fast food" or "takeout" services that are completely unsecured and of dubious origin are absolutely unacceptable due to a lack of understanding and the numerous uncontrollable risks and hidden dangers they pose.

But if... it's a well-known, legally licensed, and legitimate restaurant, and you have sufficient understanding and trust in the chef...

This concern seems to be greatly alleviated, and to some extent, one could even consider inviting those 'chefs' to one's home so that everyone could 'live together'.

If things continue at this pace, will his lover not be satisfied until he has won over all the outstanding girls in the entire Tokyo area?

Gen Chiyo looked at Saeko, who was silently processing the news, and took her hand: "I'm sorry, Saeko, I've been keeping this from you until now."

“It’s alright.” Saeko shook her head after composing herself. “I understand your difficulties. Haruno-nee definitely doesn’t want anyone else, especially Yukino, to know about this. Otherwise, her position as the ‘older sister’ would be very awkward, even embarrassing. You chose to keep it a secret to protect her, didn’t you?”

“Saeko…” Minamoto Chiya was deeply moved.

Despite hearing this news, her attitude remained gentle and tolerant, and she showed no intention of pulling her hand away from his.

In other words, there's nothing left to be anxious about; let's resolve this in one fell swoop!

"...I'm sorry, but before I continue, I have to apologize again because this sounds too unconventional from a common-sense perspective. I hope you can listen to me until the end, okay?"

"Is there anything else you want to tell me?"

"Yes... Actually, as I just told you, I've been seeing other people behind your back... and these other people aren't just Haruno."

Saeko may appear calm now, but her heart is actually in her throat.

She was far more anxious than Yuan Qianye was now.

Having practiced kendo since childhood and studied traditional arts such as tea ceremony, flower arrangement, and calligraphy, she cultivated her character and temperament. No matter how strong her tolerance is, she would not have the energy to accept other unknown and shocking news in a short period of time.

What Yuan Qianye said next made her feel a sense of relief amidst her extreme tension.

"Actually, I... lived under the same roof as Shika a long time ago. I received her thoughtful care and concern every day, and that's how I gradually fell in love with her."

The feelings were complex, a mixture of dependence, gratitude, and attraction between a man and a woman... Later, despite many ups and downs, we eventually... confirmed that kind of relationship.

Although she said more than once that our relationship should never be made public, otherwise she would just disappear from my sight and hide away in some inconspicuous little village in the world to live out the rest of her life in anonymity...

But my thought is that I will give her every bit of happiness she deserves, and I will never let her suffer any injustice for any reason…

Yuan Qianye's speech slowed down, and finally he stopped.

He carefully observed Saeko's expression. The unease in his eyes faded, replaced by confusion. Then, he asked uncertainly, "Saeko, you don't seem... surprised?"

Saeko nodded frankly and said truthfully, "Compared to what you just confessed about Haruno-nee, it's true. Just to be on the safe side, let me ask first, there shouldn't be any other girls you've been dating that you've kept from me, right?"

"Of course not, it's just them!"

The word "就" is completely inaccurate here...

But now is not the time to dwell on these things.

Saeko's behavior immediately alerted Chiya: "Saeko, did you... discover something before I even spoke?"

"Yes." Saeko nodded again, without hiding anything.

"Wh...when?"

"When I stayed at your house and slept in Toka's room before, Eriri mentioned what happened between you and her in Toka's room... So I opened Toka's bedside table a little curiously and found that it was exactly the same brand and model as the one we always use."

"..."

Yuan Qianye was speechless for a moment, and his expression became quite interesting.

Just because of this?

Is Saeko's insight really that terrifying?!

Wait a minute! If Saeko noticed something was amiss back then, but never mentioned it to me or questioned me about it... then that means...

He looked at Saeko with a complicated expression.

Saeko met his gaze, her eyes clear and honest.