Aunt Xiangzi, how did you manage to live?

Oh dear, is Lixi shy or not? It's so hard to guess.

Kazama smiled and didn't intend to expose Riki's clumsy lie, after all, it was a sign that she cared about her own affairs.

Mu's eyes crinkled at the corners, and her smile, strong enough to melt even the hardest heart, made Lixi feel as if she were bathed in a spring breeze.

"It's alright. Thank you, Lixi, for keeping Xiao's matter in mind."

"........."

Shiina Riki fell silent.

The overwhelming parental praise, like "Thank you for taking care of my child," made her look up at the smiling boy.

"...How exactly did you manage to make Xiao Mu willingly transform into your mother's shape?"

Chapter Thirty-Seven: The Deterioration of Family Ties

Perhaps because the overwhelming scent of maternal love emanating from Wakaba Mutsu made it hard to open her eyes, Ritsuki turned to look at Kazama with a subtle expression.

"...How exactly did you manage to make Xiao Mu willingly transform into your mother's shape?"

"What you're saying, 'becoming the shape of your mother,' is such an awful way of putting it, Lixi."

Of course, this was met with a lightning-fast rebuttal from Xiao, who has an extreme fetish for harmony.

"Yes, I volunteered to be Xiao's mother."

Mu, who was also quick to start a group buy for her "son," also expressed her opposition.

"Alright, I don't have time to watch you two sing in unison. Do you expect me to say something like, 'You two are so in sync'? Ha, dream on."

Shiina Tatsuki crossed her arms, and even though her face only showed a cold expression, her sour tone still revealed her true feelings at this moment.

"why?"

Shiina Tatsuki is a straightforward and outspoken guy who doesn't mince words, so Mutsuya asked questions in the spirit of asking if he didn't understand.

"What else could it be? It's just... so weird! Even if I could accept that what Kazama said about his experiences was true, I absolutely could not accept that someone about our age would be my mother... or rather, call me 'Auntie'!"

Lixi's tone was filled with barely concealed excitement, and Mu nodded as if he understood.

"This was actually a bit hard for Lixi to accept."

"Yeah, shouldn't normal people follow this logic? Or have you really been subtly influenced by this guy to become the kind of person who'd be willing to be a mother to a male high school student? You're not the kind of person who loves playing FPS e-sports games, are you?"

"I still feel like you're indirectly criticizing me, Lixi."

"Anyway—Kazama, you've already said it, haven't you? The family you remember is family, and we are us. We should keep to ourselves."

Li Xi slowly stepped forward, extended his index finger with a blatantly threatening expression, and then poked the boy below his collarbone.

"So don't take advantage of this opportunity to benefit from Mu."

She deliberately lowered her voice so that only the two of them could hear the last sentence.

"If I really treat Mu as a substitute for my mother, then Lixi, you shouldn't have to worry about me doing anything inappropriate to her, right?"

Kazama simply found Riki's logic a bit funny.

"Or is it that in your heart, Lixi, I am actually the kind of person who would do something outrageous to his family?"

"Ugh... No, no ruesei...!"

Seeing that even the blatant threat couldn't suppress the guy's momentum and even backfired, Li Xi's face flushed with frustration, and her voice became rapid and embarrassed, almost as if she were gritting her teeth.

"Lust can cloud judgment; who knows what you're capable of?"

"Supposes like this are just slander against me. Besides, I'm the child you and everyone else raised. Even if Lixi doesn't believe in my character, at least believe in the character of Lixi yourself and everyone else decades from now."

Shiina Tatsuki raised an eyebrow thoughtfully. She did trust herself and Akari's character, but when she thought about the other band members...

Nagasaki Motoyo, who likes to put on airs and is extremely controlling; Mitsuka Triangle, who often puts on a smiling tiger demeanor but is actually cold on the inside; Chihaya Aine, who is vain, unreliable, and only knows how to make empty promises; Kaname Rakuna, who is always nowhere to be seen; Hachiman Kairin, who might lead children astray and overspend; and Yutenji Wakamu, who is always posing in front of the camera.

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"...I think it's quite remarkable that you've survived under our watchful eyes until now, and whether it's normal or not is hard to say."

"After thinking for so long, you actually came to such an extremely pessimistic conclusion?"

It's pretty self-evident what kind of attitude Miss Lixi has towards her companions.

"Hmph... Anyway, I'm just giving you a warning. It's best if you understand what I'm doing."

No longer letting his fingertip linger above the boy's chest, Riki seemingly decisively withdrew his index finger, but with a hint of reluctance, and took two steps back to keep a distance from Kazama.

"Alright, we should discuss other things now. As for Su Shi... do you think we should inform her as well?"

Mu glanced around at the expressions of the two men. Although she hadn't heard Li Xi's initial threatening remarks clearly, she could still guess some clues from their subsequent conversation.

Moreover, she also vaguely sensed that the trust between the two was far greater than she had imagined.

"........."

Mu turned her head away and said nothing more. She wasn't as oblivious to the loud, secret conversation between the two as she appeared, but she also had no interest in joining the conversation.

Even though Xiao had already prejudicially defined their relationship as a duality of kinship and friendship, Mu could discern a different meaning from the tone of his former teammate Li Xi.

[Hehe... Lixi is such a cunning person. She clearly doesn't want her relationship with Xiao to be bound by the word "family," but actually, she craves a closer relationship, doesn't she?]

The voice of the little devil in her heart rang out again, and Metis made his grand entrance once more while Mu was in a daze.

[Xiao Mu, you noticed too, right? As soon as Xiao sent a message, Li Xi dropped everything and rushed over without a second thought! She even gave Xiao Xiang a hard time because of Xiao~ Would she have treated anyone like that before? I don't remember her doing that!]

The devil's seduction was so close, like a powerful whisper that Mu could hardly resist.

[As for her claim of keeping to ourselves, that's utter nonsense! She clearly wants to use this method to reduce Mu's advantage, gain the upper hand over us, and then take over Xiao!]

"Don't do this, Metis. Lishi isn't that kind of person..."

In order to prevent Lixi and Xiao from noticing his current abnormality, Mu had no choice but to barely maintain his rationality and try his best to deal with the little devil's temptation in his mind.

【You're not that kind of person? Li Xi already made it quite obvious! You've just been pretending to be clueless, Mu!】

But Metis showed no sign of giving up.

[Mingming, Xiaomu, you noticed it too, but the way Lixi looked at Xiao wasn't the way a friend or family member should look! The reason she said those things was just to use a high-sounding excuse to satisfy her own selfish desires! Otherwise, she wouldn't have any reason to object to us being close to Xiao, right?]

"Well……"

Mu shook his head vigorously, as if trying to shake Metis's highly infectious and inflammatory words out of his mind.

⑥一器意IIb〣a思师玐可Following the line of sight, Li Xi's drooping fingers came into Mu's view again.

Just now, Shiina Riki gently placed the index finger of this hand on the boy's chest.

"…Metis."

Mu didn't pay attention to what the two were talking about next. He just felt a tightness in his chest and responded in his mind to the voice that had been bewitching him.

"What if I also became a little cunning?"

Chapter Thirty-Eight: Not Satisfied, Just Family

"Now that Mu and Xiangzi know, I'll find a chance to inform Su Shi and check on the situation. There's no other way; that guy is our ally both in name and in fact."

Lixi was completely unaware of Mu's unusual behavior. She was discussing with Xiao how to explain today's events to the remaining people, and a hint of worry appeared on their faces.

"Ha... Two more people know the secret. Hopefully, we can cover for you, Kazama, for a little longer..."

Why should we provide a safety net?

Before Lixi could react, Xiao said those words with a helpless smile.

"Wait, wait! Didn't you ask us to keep this a secret and not tell anyone?"

"That's true... but if you include Mutsu and Shoko, who just found out about this, there are already more people in the know than those who are still kept in the dark."

Xiao shrugged, feeling a bit both amused and exasperated.

"So, Lixi no longer needs to hide it from me. It's time for me to find the perfect opportunity to tell the rest of us everything—at this rate, I can't keep it from everyone for much longer anyway. Maybe in a few days, Deng or Hailing will find out about it through other channels?"

Rather than passively accepting the girls' doubts and concerns, and showing a negative attitude of being unable to defend oneself, it is better to take the initiative and catch them off guard.

"Is that what you think...? Fine, then."

Li Xi pursed her lips, hiding the barely perceptible disappointment in her eyes. Her hand, which had been about to take out her phone to send a message to Su Shi, stiffened and put back into her jeans pocket.

"So... do you really want to have an open and honest talk with everyone about this?"

"Well, you can't hide the truth forever. This is probably the only way for now."

"Then, our complicity is also..."

Shiina Riki's voice grew softer and softer. She didn't have the courage to say "That's enough," and she turned her head away, unable to meet the boy's calm gaze.

"Hmm? If this makes you, Lixi, feel free to end it now."

"I never said that... Never mind. Anyway, it's your secret."

This idiot not only misunderstood, but even seemed particularly magnanimous in this situation... However, this magnanimity made Li Xi frown, and a hint of displeasure welled up in his eyes.

This kind of open-mindedness is exactly what she doesn't want.

If possible, she would like her relationship with Xiao to continue forever, a relationship that is both secret and tightly intertwined.

No one else will know his secret, and he will only regard her as a capable assistant to whom he can entrust his heart. Lixi can also enjoy this unique relationship with a clear conscience.

The accomplice relationship of keeping each other's secrets was far more appealing to her than the relationship between an aunt and nephew.

"Even if we're no longer accomplices, can't we still be close partners? Please, I can't do anything without Riki, I can only rely on you"—this is the kind of response Shiina Riki really wanted to hear.

Damn it... I seem to have become a woman as difficult as Su Shi without even realizing it.

She silently mocked herself in her heart, after all, secretly grieving over such things was never the style of Shiina Tatsuki.

"If you want to be honest with Akari, I can help you two arrange a time to meet. As for Chihaya, that's none of my business. She's probably closer to you, so there's no need for me to arrange it for her."

Nevertheless, Lixi still dutifully offered Xiao some advice.

It is indeed difficult to completely put aside personal emotions and act solely on reason, but she could only convince herself not to care that more people would know the truth.

After all, if you had to choose between your own willfulness and Kazama's needs...

She will always choose the latter.

"As for Ave Mujica, I'm too far away to handle it, so you'll have to step in. But first and foremost, you and Xiangzi need to calm Sankaku down."

Li Xi analyzed the situation with feigned indifference, then walked to the entrance and took off his indoor slippers.

"Oh, Lixi, are you going back first too?"

"My life doesn't just revolve around you, Kazama."

This is a lie. In reality, a girl with long black hair left a table full of food just before lunchtime and traveled a long distance by taxi to Ruoye's house without any delay.

"Now that things have been settled, I need to get back to my own business. I don't have time to watch you two pretend to be a loving family here... um."

Li Xi's cold words did not affect Xiao Hemu, after all, a gurgling sound suddenly came from her stomach the next second.

"........."

Lixi fell silent, somewhat embarrassed, but her face was already flushed red from the stomach upset.