I refuse to be a plagiarist

He patted his suit jacket and secretly admired the foresight of this move.

I went to the clothing store to look for this outfit when the editor, Akane Benisaka, invited me to the editorial department to discuss the contract with the bosses. I wanted to appear more mature.

I didn't expect that it would have such a special effect when used in this kind of occasion.

“Hasegawa…?!”

"Ah, it's me."

He put one hand on his waist and raised his head proudly.

But compared to Hasegawa Hide's self-satisfaction, Hayasaka Ai couldn't help but cover her mouth when faced with his outfit, and the expression on her face looked a little strange.

Can't bear to watch?

But judging from the way the girl looked at him secretly from time to time, it seemed that this was not entirely the case.

"you......."

"Oh, you mean my clothes?

Hmm~ How about it? I prepared this specially for meeting you this time."

Faced with the girl's strange behavior at this time, Hasegawa did not feel anything wrong at all. Instead, the pride on his face became more and more prominent.

He is the type of person who is good at planning and doing things. Now the preparations before going out have led to things turning out well, which is naturally something to be happy about.

But perhaps because he was too happy, Hasegawa Hide was even a little self-forgetful at this moment, and his excitement led to his expression which could easily cause misunderstanding.

For example, Miss Hayasaka Ai who came to greet him at this time.

"Huh, I haven't seen you for a few days. You've become quite talkative."

"Hmm? Why are you praising me all of a sudden?

If you mean what I said just now, I was just stating the facts, you don’t have to do that.”

The sudden evaluation caught someone who was still immersed in his own happiness off guard.

But before he could react, the maid in front of him had already grabbed his hand and hurriedly pulled him towards the depths of the mansion:

"Forget it, I can't care about this anymore.

The young lady has placed all her hopes on you, but this problem is quite troublesome to deal with.

If I ask you about this later, you must not act stubbornly at that time."

"..."

Hasegawa sensed a sense of admonition from Hayasaka's brief and hurried words.

It seems that for some unknown reason, the eldest daughter of the Shinomiya family seems to have become a little impulsive recently.

[Is it because of the fireworks festival that you and Shirogane attended together? ]

[A girl's love thoughts are really frustrating. 】

[No, no, speaking of this, it seems that I have the same problem, and it seems that there are more than one. ]

When he thought of this, a hint of subtle embarrassment appeared on Hasegawa's face.

He let Hayasaka hold his hand and run forward. He could vaguely smell the faint scent of perfume coming from her.

"Beauty is a girl's greatest weapon." Hayasaka, who often says this, has obviously put it into practice.

Even during the holidays, I did not forget to dress up.

【Wait! Holiday?】

I almost forgot that for Hayasaka, working as a maid seems to be the most important thing.

For the girl, compared to her main job, going to school is just a side job for the convenience of being with the eldest lady.

"By the way, the place you live in is really big."

I don't know how long I walked in there.

After witnessing the interior of the Shinomiya residence, Hasegawa, who originally thought that his new home was spacious enough, finally understood the gap between people.

According to Hayasaka, Shinomiya's main family is located in Kyoto, and the famous mansion in Minato Ward is just a residence prepared exclusively for Miss Kaguya. It is only occasionally used as a meeting point for discussing important matters with partners.

“Actually, there’s nothing to be envious of.

No matter how big the house is, it will be of no use if the distance between people's hearts becomes greater and greater."

Said with a hint of meaning.

Hasegawa knew that what Hayasaka was talking about at this time was probably some unknown people and things in the Shinomiya family.

Perhaps it was due to the expansion of the industry or the complication of interest relations. In short, in a large community of interests like the Shinomiya family, something as common as family affection has gradually become a luxury in the hearts of the younger generation.

Just like today's incident.

In the final analysis, Miss Kaguya's troubles are just a manifestation of this phenomenon.

The excessively long distance gradually created unnecessary estrangement and suspicion between family members who should have been extremely close.

Even... a slight fear.

Chapter 15: Impression of the Shigong Patriarch

After many twists and turns, under the guidance of the early shift, Hasegawa finally arrived at the young lady's boudoir.

To be honest, Hasegawa felt that this meeting place was somewhat inappropriate.

I am a man and I am not very familiar with the other party.

It seems inappropriate to go straight to the boudoir when you come to my house for the first time.

However, when Hasegawa saw the group of security personnel in black suits outside the other party's room, always observing the surroundings, the lingering sense of incongruity in his heart was instantly forgotten.

[No wonder they chose to meet in a place like this. ]

So I thought in my heart.

As expected, when Hasegawa appeared, the security team that was patrolling around instantly turned their eyes over.

“Who is…?”

"She's the eldest lady's friend."

It was Hayasaka who spoke.

Facing the person who came forward to ask questions, the girl helped explain Hasegawa's identity and purpose.

There was a hint of coldness in his calm expression. Facing this group of guys who almost treated Kaguya as "house arrest", Hayasaka would not be kind to them.

"Why, Miss, you don't even have the right to meet with your friends now?"

There was suddenly a hint of color in the cold voice.

Seeing that the person in front of him seemed to still have some hesitation, Hayasaka, who had been suppressing her anger, was now on the verge of exploding.

However, perhaps it was precisely because of the oppressive feeling brought about by the impending anger, coupled with the sound of Kaguya Shinomiya's footsteps coming from far away in the room, that the security personnel blocking the door changed their faces instantly and no longer had any intention of refusing.

"Of course that's not what I meant, please."

"..."

[Is this really the attitude that workers should show to their employers? ]

[If I hadn't known their identities in advance, based on what I saw just now, I would have thought they were imperial envoys sent to the local areas to investigate local conditions.]

When he was about to enter Miss Kaguya's room, Hasegawa did not forget to take a look at the security personnel who were doing their duty.

Only after he walked into the room and closed the door completely did he finally stop being silent and said in a joking tone:

"You two...does this count as being under house arrest by your own people?"

The lighthearted words did little to dispel the heavy atmosphere in the room.

Faced with the boy's attitude, Princess Kaguya, who was sealed on the "moon", closed her eyes and told them about the predicament they were facing at the moment.

“…So, this time, we are really in trouble.

You just saw that the guys guarding the door are just stupid fools who only care about their own principles and don’t care about anything else.”

There was a hint of weakness in his eyes.

Similarly, compared to a certain young lady's stubbornness and persistence, Hayasaka is actually much more open-minded.

——We can’t play together this time, at worst we can wait until next time.

[Anyway, this guy in front of me won't go to the summer festival alone. ]

I complained like this in my mind.

Of course, if the girl knew that many people had made reservations in advance on the day of a certain summer festival, she might not be as relaxed as she is now.

"Have you told Baiyin and the others, the student council members, about what happened here?"

"As for Guild President Baiyin and the others, we have not done so yet."

Shake your head to express denial.

Although the Shuchiin Student Council is a group, facing the current predicament, neither Kaguya nor Hayasaka can imagine what everyone in the student council can do.

Of course, there was one thing Kaguya didn't say.

That is, she believed that her fellow students would do their best to help her, but she was unwilling to let everyone face the risk from their own family because of this matter.

"If it's really troublesome, Hasegawa-kun, you don't have to worry about it.

Let’s just treat today’s events as nothing happened.”

At this point, she actually regretted calling Hayasaka's friend over.

After all, if the other party really encounters an accident because of his persistence in helping himself and others, then Hayasaka...

"Well, Miss Kaguya, you are being too polite.

To be honest, in my opinion, the trouble you are facing now is not a problem at all."

"what?!"

Hasegawa's answer suddenly perked up Kaguya, who had been planning to make the appointment.

Even Hayasaka, who had already let it go, couldn't help but be stunned by the answer given by Hasegawa.

"really?

You, don't try to be tough for your friends."

"Haha, don't you know who I am, Hayasaka?

I would never do anything like pretending to be rich.

What's more, this time we are helping our friends, so how can we tolerate such jokes?"

It indicates that the girl is somewhat confident in herself.

Although the two people looked at each other with mixed expectations and suspicion, the young man smiled slightly and expressed the idea he had thought about on the way.

“…That’s probably the situation.

No matter what you think, in my opinion, this so-called enhanced supervision is just a common situation in ordinary families."

At this point, Hasegawa raised his eyebrows slightly, with a funny look on his face:

"Haven't you ever thought about it, Miss Kaguya?

The reason your father asked someone to watch over you was actually to prevent you from accidentally encountering any danger in a place like a festival where there are many people and eyes."

"......Really?"

Faced with Hasegawa's statement, Shinomiya Kaguya had a complicated expression, revealing a hint of doubt.

This suspicion was not directed at the boy in front of him, but came from his own father.

The relationship between this father and daughter is no longer simply one of less time together and more time apart.

To give the simplest example, a few days ago, Kaguya received an order from her father to return to her family, and she happily took Hayasaka with her to Kyoto, ready to enjoy the simple and beautiful family life with her father.

Unfortunately, all this going back and forth resulted in just a distant glance from Old Man Sigong and a greeting that couldn't be any briefer.

During the whole process, Kaguya didn't even have the time to say a word to her father before she was sent back the same way.