Can Lixi look at me alone?

No, that's not right. She likes that doll because Xiang gave it to her. So she should like the doll and put it on her bed to show her affection.

Because it was a gift from Xiang to her.

Can it be settled within a month?

Will Yuzuki... give herself to me as a gift?

Mu knew she wouldn't, because the gift couldn't be given to her in this way.

But how could she possibly ask Yuzuki to do anything?

It's all...her fault that Yuzuki turned out this way.

……

The butler led her to two girls who were playing house, and Yuzuki took the doll that the butler handed her.

Xiangzi greeted Jieyue twice on behalf of Mu.

"Hello, I'm Qianhua Jieyue. It's nice to meet you all, Xiaoxiang... and Xiaomu."

Her soft, warm smile, like sunshine, made Xiangzi accept her immediately.

And so, the three children each took a doll and began playing house.

Xiangzi received the word 'father'.

"Ahem, well, I've had a long day at work and it's time to go home now~"

Mu received 'Mom'.

"No, Dad won't come back like this. Dad will call me and tell me he's coming back."

Xiangzi helplessly reached out and rubbed her cheeks.

"It's okay, because I'm the dad now, and Mu is the mom! So it's fine for me to go home now, right?"

Mu shook his head.

"Dad, he won't suddenly come home."

Xiangzi persisted in pressing for answers.

"What if Dad wants to give Mom and their daughter a surprise?"

Mu stared blankly at the doll in her hand.

"If we don't notify them, Mom and my daughter might happen to leave home. So, we absolutely must notify them..."

Smiling as she hugged the doll that symbolized her daughter, Yuzuki remembered her parents' expectations of her.

Have fun.

So she was very happy.

She is a daughter, and daughters should listen to their parents.

Listening to her parents bickering, Yuzuki clapped her hands happily.

The debate over whether or not the father could suddenly come home to surprise the mother and daughter didn't end until it was late.

However, Mu no longer remembers whether her father or mother won.

The housekeeper invited Jieyue to have dinner at his home and also prepared toiletries for her.

"Miss, would you be willing to sleep with Miss Chika Yuzuki?"

Mu still remembers the question the housekeeper asked her.

But she forgot her answer.

People always forget things.

Everyone does.

Everyone is the same.

But Mu couldn't forget...

The image shows Yuzuki chatting with her parents.

Mutsuki loves both the young Yuzuki and the current Yuzuki. He'll help her whenever she needs him, no matter which Yuzuki it is.

But the way Yuzuki was chatting with the two dolls was really...

Mu didn't know why she would sometimes cry in front of the doll, nor did she know why she would sometimes laugh in front of the doll.

But she liked Yuzuki this way, because Yuzuki would always be by her side.

"Little Mu, can't you hear? The dolls are talking."

She couldn't hear, but she would pretend she could. And she would quietly listen as Yuzuki told her stories about 'dolls' that she had probably just made up.

Jieyue would also sneak into the kitchen, bring a stool, stand on it, and use all her strength to cook something edible in the wok.

She was in charge of keeping watch for Yuzuki, preventing the housekeeper from getting close to the area.

And Yuzuki... cooked the dishes she learned from the doll.

Looking at the slightly burnt fried egg that Jieyue handed over after the job was done, Mu took a small bite.

It tasted awful—bitter and salty—but…she liked it.

She liked this time of year; she liked the month of Jugetsu.

Because although Xiang would come to play with her every day, he would always go home.

Ke Jieyue will not go home.

She lived with me like an older sister.

When I get cold, she'll help me put on clothes; when I'm hungry, she'll cook for me.

until one day.

Xiangzi and Jieyue started arguing.

Xiang said that normal people shouldn't hear babies talking, and that Jieyue is not a normal person.

Jieyue said that normal people can hear, while Jieyue said that Xiang is not a normal person.

She...she called the housekeeper.

At that time, she didn't understand why the housekeeper's expression was so serious, nor did she understand why Yuzuki had suddenly left her home.

She didn't understand why Xiang was always crying.

But she realized that her own Yuzuki had already left her.

"I'm sorry... Mutsuki, if I hadn't argued with Yuzuki back then, would Yuzuki have been spared from being locked up?"

Is Yuzuki locked up?

Mu felt that Jieyue wouldn't be locked up.

Because only bad people get locked up, and Yuzuki isn't a bad person.

Therefore, she did not believe Xiang.

"Yuzuki won't be locked up."

She comforted Xiang time and time again.

After countless attempts to comfort her, she finally got her own wedding month back.

However, her usual beautiful dresses were replaced with a blue and white outfit.

Those are clothes that only patients wear.

Is Jieyue sick?

"Xiao Mu? What's wrong?"

……

"Xiao Mu? What's wrong?"

Yuzuki patted Mutsuki's head; Mutsuki had been rubbing against her chest for a while.

The blue-haired girl, who slowly raised her head, left her embrace and went to the side to change her clothes.

"I'm sorry... Yuzuki."

It's okay... anyway, Xiao Mu is cute too.

But it would be better if it were Riki-chan...

Oh, right, Riki-chan!

Li Xi-chan...you'll definitely come to find me tonight, right?

It definitely will, right?

Remembering that she had important things to do that evening, Yuzuki sighed softly. She wanted to call Ritsuki-chan over for dinner, but then she didn't want to hear that Ritsuki-chan would reject her confession. So, abandoning the idea, the pink-haired idiot tied an apron, smoothed her long hair, and went into the kitchen.

"Xiao Mu? What would you like to eat?"

Mu paused for a moment, as if she could see that little girl standing on a stool in the kitchen making something for herself.

"I want to eat... a fried egg."

A few minutes later, Jieyue came out with a plate, on which lay two fried eggs.

Completely different from when I was a child, the smooth, delicious eggs made Mu squint her eyes.

She also likes this fried egg.

Because it was made by the person she likes.

"Yatsuki..."

"Hmm? What's wrong, Xiao Mu? Is it not tasty?"

"delicious."

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Volume 1 Crychic!!!: Chapter 62 Please Give Me Some Time (Seeking First Subscriptions!!)

Looking at Yuzuki sitting in front of the dressing table, Mutsu's thoughts drifted back to her childhood.

She had never met Jieyue's parents and didn't know anything about her family situation.

However, her own parents... never come home. They're a lot like Yuzuki.

She felt something cold touch the corner of her mouth.

After regaining her senses, she realized that it was Yuzuki, who had just applied lip balm, who reached out and tapped her cheek with her finger.

"What are you thinking about? Help me see if this looks good."

Mu blinked her golden eyes, trying hard to see the difference between Yuzuki's current face and her previous one.

But she failed. Apart from the slight shine reflecting off Yuzuki's soft pink lips due to the lip balm, she saw no difference.

"very nice."

Hmm, Xiao Mu said it looks great... so at least it shouldn't hold me back anymore in terms of appearance, right?

But now I need to figure out how to confess my feelings...

Yuzuki wasn't good at expressing her feelings so directly. She preferred that the other person understand her meaning and take the lead. She just needed to follow along...

She likes to follow, and so does Mu.

But the difference is...

The girl Yuzuki likes accepted Akari's invitation and is preparing to go to the planetarium with Akari that night.

Meanwhile, the girl Mutsu likes is... waiting for a date that is destined to have no good outcome.

"Xiao Mu...can you temporarily play the role of Li Xi? I think...I'll try it out first, rehearse a bit...something like that."

The blue-haired girl nodded obediently.