"Hoshimi, why aren't you saying anything? Are you so surprised that you're speechless?" Kasumigaoka leaned forward, looking up at Hoshimi's face.
Hoshimi exhaled a breath and asked while holding Kasumigaoka's delicate shoulders, "Utaha, why are you here?"
"Heh~" Kasumigaoka took a step forward, meeting Hoshimi's gaze with a smug look.
"Hoshimi, are you wondering how I found your school?"
"It's definitely a bit curious..." He was still puzzled about where Kasumigaoka got the information.
"Hmm~" Kasumigaoka raised her head and closed her eyes, her meaning obvious.
"..." Hoshimi's lips twitched, and he discreetly checked his surroundings.
Seeing that there was no one around and no cameras, he lowered his head and kissed Kasumigaoka's soft, tender lips.
Today, Kasumigaoka's lips were very moist, almost sparkling under the sunlight, like the reflective surface of water. Clearly, she had applied lipstick today.
As he kissed her, Hoshimi confirmed it—today's Kasumigaoka tasted like chocolate. A little bitter, a little sharp, but mostly sweet.
After a long while, they parted. Hoshimi covered his lips with one hand and held Kasumigaoka's shoulder with the other. "Utaha, now will you tell me?"
Kasumigaoka's flushed face tilted upward as she smirked. "Tell you what? I didn't agree that if you kissed me, I'd spill everything."
"Oh?" Hoshimi narrowed his eyes, carefully studying Kasumigaoka, who was brimming with pride. Today's Utaha was bold, daring enough to tease him.
But that was fine. Karma comes quickly, and by tonight, Kasumigaoka would understand what true cruelty meant.
"Heh~" Hoshimi chuckled meaningfully, then asked nonchalantly, "Utaha, now that you've found me, what do you want to do next?"
"What to do next?" Kasumigaoka fell into deep thought.
She had planned a lot last night, but upon actually seeing Hoshimi, she realized she felt a bit confused.
What should she do next?
According to her plan, the next step should be...
Kasumigaoka raised her head, her eyes swirling with emotion as she looked at Hoshimi. "Hoshimi, I want to visit your house. Is that okay?"
"It's fine..." Hoshimi leaned down, a mysterious smile on his face, "But Utaha, are you ready for that?"
"..." Kasumigaoka hesitated, then opened her handbag to reveal three boxes of Okamoto 003 condoms at the top.
"..." Seeing Kasumigaoka's preparation, Hoshimi fell silent.
After a moment of hesitation, he lowered his voice and asked, "How many are in each box?"
"Twelve. I bought three boxes..." Kasumigaoka's head hung low as she whispered softly, "I've prepared, but if we start, I won't go back until we've used them all... Hoshimi... if you're ready, anytime is fine... I won't resist... and I won't regret it..."
"..." Hoshimi's breath hitched.
Utaha, Utaha, did you really come to Chiba this time to take my life?
After struggling for a moment, Hoshimi silently closed Kasumigaoka's handbag.
"Utaha, let's just visit my house first." Hoshimi placed a hand on Kasumigaoka's shoulder, speaking seriously.
"..." A flushed Kasumigaoka nodded gently. In truth, she wasn't completely ready. The three boxes of Okamoto condoms were just to scare Hoshimi. If he really took things seriously, she wouldn't know what to do either.
After all, she only took three days off. Time was already tight. If things dragged on too long, it would be hard to explain to her mother when she got back. No matter what, she hadn't graduated yet and still had to consider her parents' opinions...
"Utaha, let's go." Hoshimi took her hand and prepared to leave the school.
Just as they took a step, Hoshimi suddenly remembered they couldn't take the road ahead. Walking down that path would lead them straight to the school gate, and the chances of being spotted by classmates sitting near the windows were too high.
They needed to take a slight detour and leave through the back gate of Sobu High. After some thought, Hoshimi held Kasumigaoka's soft hand and led her along a secluded path, heading toward the back gate of Sobu High.
Just as they stepped out of the back gate, the school bell rang.
A few steps later, his phone rang. He didn't need to think to know who was calling.
"Utaha, I need to take this." Hoshimi took out his phone and walked away from Kasumigaoka.
Kasumigaoka opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but seeing Hoshimi walk off, she decided not to speak.
She thought for a moment and chose to stay where she was rather than follow him.
Meanwhile, Hoshimi, now a distance away, answered the call from Yukino.
"Hoshimi?"
"It's me."
Hearing Hoshimi's calm, steady voice, which didn't sound sick at all, Yukino asked, "You're not unwell?"
"I'm physically fine, but there's something going on." Hoshimi began thinking about what excuse he could use to placate Yukino.
"Something going on? Can you tell me?" Yukino pressed on.
"Yukino, I sent my report card to Aunt yesterday, and she just messaged me asking to meet. I had no choice but to come up with this plan. Yukino, could you help me ask Hiratsuka-sensei for a leave of absence? Just say I... went home to rest."
"I see... alright, I understand. Hoshimi, will you be back tonight?"
Hoshimi glanced back at Kasumigaoka and said calmly, "There's a good chance I'll be back. If not, I'll send you an email in advance."
"Okay, then go ahead."
"Yukino, I'm hanging up now. I'll try to come back soon." With that, Hoshimi ended the call.
He put his phone away and rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on. To be honest, he didn't like lying. One lie leads to countless others, and even he couldn't guarantee that there wouldn't be any slip-ups.
Moreover, Yukino, Kotoko, and Utaha were all incredibly sharp. Trying to fabricate lies they wouldn't see through was exceedingly difficult. Better start thinking about what to do when everything gets exposed.
"Sigh~" Hoshimi sighed softly before putting on a faint smile again and heading back toward Kasumigaoka.
...
At the same time, in the 'real' world that Hoshimi couldn't see, a small pink monster, no bigger than a fist, was sitting on a branch, tilting its head and watching Hoshimi and Kasumigaoka hold hands.
Ah~ The priestess has been cheated on again.
Huh? Why did I say "again"?
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[30 Bonus Chapters: https://www.patreon.com/cherryblooming]