Aunt Xiangzi, how did you manage to live?

I feel like ever since we had that chat in the recording studio, Ms. Shiina Tatsuki's attitude towards him has become... a lot more enthusiastic?

"Really? Just you alone? Going to discuss the new band with Mutsu, who's been avoiding everyone lately? Well... I don't mean to doubt your abilities, I'm just wondering if you might need someone with you, in case something unexpected happens...!"

Although she tried to find a proper reason for her concern on the other end of the phone, Kazama had already seen through her clumsy words and understood her deep care.

"Oh my, Lixi cares about me this much?"

So he temporarily abandoned his plan to immediately ring the doorbell and enter Ruoye's house. Instead, he lingered at the entrance of the duplex villa, smiling and focusing his attention on the phone receiver in his ear.

Would anyone really be able to resist the urge to flirt with Li Xi at this moment? Probably not.

"Huh—? You, you bastard…!"

The woman's voice on the other end of the phone suddenly became flustered, embarrassed, and angry. Upon hearing this, Kazama let out a particularly comfortable "whoosh".

He could already picture Aunt Lixi—no, now just Lixi as his companion—on the other end of the phone, blushing and scratching her head, her face flushed with embarrassment and frustration at his teasing, holding her phone but with nowhere to vent her anger.

"Can't I just show you some concern? Or are you just so ungrateful? I don't care what happens between you and Mu. I just think if you fail to form a band, you'll definitely come back obediently, right? Hmph... Of course, I don't mean to curse you to fail."

That's right, that's the kind of reaction Lixi would have. Speaking of which, how can tsundere be outdated? Shouldn't this always be a top-tier (T0) character?

"Since I already told Lixi about my plans beforehand, I must have been mentally prepared before coming to find Mu, so you can rest assured about that."

Kazama turned and leaned against the wall of the Wakaba house. He used a gentle voice to soothe the restless Riki, just like a patient owner gently stroking a cat's fur with a groomer.

After Lixi mustered the courage to cross the seemingly invisible chasm between them that day, and blushed as she confessed her true feelings to him, their relationship became even closer than before...

Have they gotten a little closer?

Now that Lixi has treated him as a complete comrade, he naturally won't hide anything from Lixi anymore—so Xiao revealed his plan to Lixi, which included gathering Hailing Miaomeng and Chuhua, and his next goal was to uncover Mu's secrets.

Lixi looked surprised; clearly, she hadn't expected Kazama's plan at all.

She actually had a lot of questions she wanted to ask—like, Kazama, why did you think of bringing Hailin and that beauty blogger into the group? You already have such a good relationship with Hatsuka, why do you want to go even further? Are you actually still dissatisfied with Shoko?

But she didn't ask anything, and finally just asked, "Do you need my help? After all, we were teammates for a while before."

How could anyone bear to hide anything from her?

Kazama was actually a little unsure about his relationship with Riki. In any case, if he only saw himself as a bandmate, Riki would never have bothered to ask so many questions about his private life and schedule.

This feeling of being cared for by Shiina Tatsuki is very familiar to H-doctor Qi Yierba o④Shi-doctor, so familiar that it is enough to make Kazama take it lightly.

When he was a child, he often caused his aunt Su Shi to worry about all sorts of things. However, his aunt Su Shi would always give him a stern lecture in front of him, but behind his back she would silently resolve all his troubles.

From minor conflicts with classmates to major incidents like being ostracized or even bullied by ill-intentioned classmates because she was adopted, Aunt Lixi would always notice immediately and then resolve everything for young Xiao with swift and decisive action.

But this feeling of being cared for by Shiina Ritsuki... is also very strange.

Although it was the same care and concern, he always felt that it was different from the impression "Aunt Lixi" had given him back then.

...Is the distance between a mature woman and a naive young girl really greater than the distance between a human and a pig?

"Okay, all in all, I can handle this by myself."

Having put his thoughts to rest for now, Kazama felt it was best not to involve Riki, who was now a member of MYGO, in this matter.

"And I feel that Mu's recent condition is not suitable for frequent contact with people... well, rather, Metis is not suitable for frequent contact with people."

"Metis...is the other personality of Mu that you told me about before?"

Li Xi's voice on the other end of the phone suddenly became somewhat indescribable.

Since they were already comrades whom he truly recognized from the bottom of his heart, Kazama naturally told Riki about Metis's existence in great detail.

Of course, Li Xi's first reaction upon hearing this news was to fall into a long silence before lowering her voice to ask, "Should you go back to the hospital to get checked out, or should Mu go to the hospital to get checked out?"

Kazama disagreed. Compared to Su Shi and Chu Hua, who readily accepted Metis's existence, Li Xi's reaction was undoubtedly more in line with normal people.

"Well, of course I'm not doubting that you're just bragging and talking nonsense again, Kazama... but whether this Metis you're talking about exists or not, it will cause a lot of problems, right?"

Clearly, Riki has been trying very hard to make Kazama feel her unconditional trust.

"Oh? How can I say this?"

So Kazama patiently listened on.

"If this Metis really exists, then Mu's condition is not optimistic and he needs to go to the hospital for a checkup. If this Metis does not exist, then your condition is not optimistic and you need to go back to the hospital for a checkup."

What a sharp and insightful critique!

"If the hospital is my home, I can consider going home to visit more often."

Kazama chuckled and teased himself as he looked up and surveyed Wakaba's residence.

Li Xi would never know that this is the home he should visit more often.

After a brief farewell, Kazama put down his phone and rang the doorbell.

"...?"

This time, however, he waited for a long time but received no response.

Metis is still... what happened?

Chapter Sixty-Four: Metis, Great Crisis!

No one answered the first doorbell.

"...?"

Despite his doubts, Kazama calmly pressed the button a second time.

ding dong -- ding dong --

The pleasant electronic bell must have been ringing throughout the house, but still no one came to open the door for him.

Speaking of which, shouldn't Metis still be in control of Mu's body right now...?

A bad premonition gradually welled up in my heart.

Kazama no longer hesitated and tentatively entered the password for the Wakaba family that he remembered into the electronic door lock—

Thump thump thump.

Accompanied by a clear and melodious tune, the gates of the Wakaba residence opened for him.

It seems that "this home" is almost identical to the old home in my memory; even the password hasn't been changed.

Kazama tiptoed into the Wakaba family mansion and easily made his way to the entrance.

"Mu...Metis?"

He tried calling out to both of them...or rather, to one of them by name, but still no one answered.

From the moment he entered the entrance hall, the Wakaba residence, which he remembered as being quite orderly but lacking in human warmth, underwent a complete transformation.

Girls' clothes were carelessly tossed on the sofa or even the coffee and dining tables, while food wrappers and empty beverage boxes, which could be considered kitchen waste, were scattered haphazardly on the table without anyone cleaning them up.

You can tell who did it at a glance.

Kazama rubbed his forehead, looking somewhat helpless.

Although Mom Mu is not very good at taking care of herself, at least she is not as childish as Metis, nor as willful as her.

"...Give me some time! I'll...believe me!!"

Just as Kazama was in the center of the living room, surveying everything in the house, a girl's hazy, indistinct voice came from the direction of the bedroom.

"But... well, if... you put it that way."

He had a feeling that he had heard a similar version of this dialogue somewhere before.

Kazama's heart suddenly raced, and he rushed to Mutsumi's bedroom door, pushing it open—

"Hehe, Xiao Mu, you're the best... uh?"

Before him stood a green-haired girl, kneeling on the bed with her knees bent, clutching a plush toy that was almost crumpled to a deformity, and displaying a fawning and ingratiating posture.

Of course, that docile, puppy-like expression froze completely the next second.

"Xiao—Xiao?!"

The air seemed to be sucked out in an instant.

The girl's eyes widened, her lips trembling slightly and stiffly, as if she was trying to put together an expression.

Unfortunately, she misspelled it completely this time. Her sweet smile, which had just been so saccharine it gave people goosebumps, had now turned into the typical expression of a female lead in a horror movie.

"Uh……"

It took Kazama about a second or two to confirm what he had seen.

"Is it Metis?"

That's right, this action, this expression, this overly dependent and slightly coquettish way of trying to please... it doesn't seem like Mu's style at all.

"Who were you just talking to? Was it Mu?"

Kazama looked around to confirm that the girl was indeed alone in the messy bedroom.

"Xiao Er {⑴ Shaanxi! ({Five) Fin Research ⑹ Scattered You... how did you get in?!"

Metis's voice rose eight octaves, her throat hoarse with panic. As she spoke, she frantically shoved the doll she was holding under the covers, like a child trying to hide evidence of a misdeed.

"Of course, it's because I know the password to the Mu family."

Kazama crossed his arms and shrugged; he wasn't exactly lying.

"So the conversation I heard while I was in a coma during my hospitalization was you, He Mu."

Of course, he also deduced from Metis's reaction what exactly had happened that he had just accidentally stumbled upon.

"What! This guy, Mu, did he even tell you the house password...?"

"Are you still trying to change the subject, Miss Metis?"

"Cough, cough... What are you talking about? I have no idea! Hehehehe..."

"Humph……"

Seeing Metis's guilty and self-confessing expression, Kazama immediately sensed something.

"If you were having a peaceful conversation just now... is it because she wants to regain control of her body, but you're unwilling to let go?"

Sharp sword, sharp eyes.

Like a detective who has pinpointed the key point, Kazama squinted and gradually approached Metis, who was making weak excuses with the words "I can't believe my eyes."

"Huh? How did you know... cough, no, no, no!"

Of course, Teacher Da Mo was forced to retreat repeatedly.

"Why won't you let go? Why won't you hand over control of this body to Mu?"

"I already said I didn't—and Xiao, you're too close!"

"I understand now. Is it because as long as you keep occupying Mu's body, you can slowly take her place and truly dominate her body, driving her out of her mind?"

"No—that's not true!!"

Finally, under Kazama's serious and persistent questioning, the completely defeated Teacher Da Mo, with red eyes and sobbing uncontrollably, revealed the truth.

"I just... I just wanted to live!! Waaah—!"

"...Didn't I just say it properly?"

Seeing the girl in front of him crying her eyes out as if she were being bullied by delinquents, Kazama finally put away the fierce look he had just pretended to use to scare the child.

"What did you say? What did you mean by surviving...?"

Of course, he also accurately caught the truth that Metis inadvertently revealed.

"...!"

Teacher Da Mo was startled when he realized that he had inadvertently revealed a secret, and he secretly thought to himself that something was wrong.

Oh no, this... Yue-Yi Lu (One) Flag ① Two Ba Si 4.8 is finished.

She had just been pleading with the teacher for a few more days to catch up on her homework, finally managing to persuade Mu to give her a few more days of free time—only to have Xiao trick her into revealing her true purpose.

"What do you mean by surviving... Does that mean your personality will cease to exist just because Muichi comes back?"

Moreover, he actually guessed the real reason why she did all this in such a short time.