When Kasumigaoka mentioned Eriri, Hoshimi immediately sensed trouble.
At Sobu High, there's a delicate and fragile balance between Kotoko and Yukino. Any slight misstep could lead to problems, so lately, he's been unable to act as freely at school as he used to. He has to put some effort into maintaining the balance between Kotoko and Yukino.
And now, it seems like there's a similar situation developing on Kasumigaoka's side?
No! These two situations are completely different!
Kotoko and Yukino are mostly rational and can restrain themselves from unnecessary conflicts, but Kasumigaoka and Eriri are a different story.
From the way Kasumigaoka mentioned Eriri, anyone could tell that she doesn't have a good impression of her.
Adding to that, Kasumigaoka's strong-willed personality and Eriri's stubborn, prideful nature make it clear: even without his involvement, the two of them would likely clash fiercely if they met.
And if his involvement were thrown into the mix... the resulting scene would be too chaotic to even imagine.
He was almost certain that if Kasumigaoka ever found out about his relationship with Eriri, it would be like striking a match to a powder keg—completely out of control.
So...
He absolutely could not let Kasumigaoka find out about his relationship with Eriri! And the same goes for Eriri! She must never discover his connection with Kasumigaoka!
In a flash, Hoshimi had made up his mind.
This wasn't a time to mess around—if he wasn't careful, he would become the joke.
"Utaha, is this Eriri girl you mentioned pretty?"
Having made his decision, Hoshimi chose to go on the offensive. He propped up his chin, feigning curiosity.
"Oh? Are you interested in her?" Kasumigaoka raised an eyebrow, a subtle hint of danger flashing in her wine-red eyes.
Hoshimi smiled and said, "Just a little. After all, your tone changed a lot when you mentioned her. I'm curious—what kind of girl could make you react like that?"
Kasumigaoka waved her hand dismissively. "She once misunderstood something and spoke harshly to me, so I don't have a good impression of her."
"Really..." Hoshimi continued, showing interest, "What exactly happened? Can you tell me, Utaha?"
Kasumigaoka lifted her foot slightly, giving Hoshimi a light kick on the shin. "Hoshimi, this is our date today. Why do you keep bringing up someone else?"
"Hmm? But you're the one who brought her up first. Why are you blaming me now?" Hoshimi nonchalantly moved his hand to his knee, preparing for any potential retaliation.
"Hmph!" Kasumigaoka snorted softly. "So what if I brought her up? I can mention her, but you can't."
"Really?" Hoshimi lightly tapped the table. "Utaha, that's a double standard and totally unreasonable."
"Being unreasonable is a woman's prerogative." After saying that, Kasumigaoka added, "But I'm not that kind of woman, so I'll give you one question. You can ask one more question about Eriri, and after that, you can't bring her up again."
Hoshimi thought for a moment, then waved his hand dismissively. "Forget it, I won't ask."
"Oh?" Kasumigaoka leaned forward, placing her chest on the table. "Why not ask?"
"You don't want me to mention her, so I won't. What else can I do?" Hoshimi shrugged indifferently.
"Is that so?" Kasumigaoka lifted her foot and gently nudged Hoshimi's leg. "It seems like you're not too happy about it... Mm~"
Halfway through her sentence, Kasumigaoka suddenly stopped. She looked at Hoshimi with a mix of shame and anger. "Hoshimi! Let go of me!"
Hoshimi smirked and continued to hold Kasumigaoka's ankle, pretending not to hear her.
You teased me with your foot several times, and now I finally caught you. Let go? It's not that easy!
"Utaha, maybe we should talk about something more interesting." Hoshimi reached under the table with his other hand and removed Kasumigaoka's small round-toed leather shoe from her black stocking-clad foot.
"Hoshimi!" Kasumigaoka leaned forward, lowering her voice. "This is a public place! Don't do anything crazy!"
Hoshimi slightly raised his chin and pointed around the café. "Utaha, do you see anyone else here? It's just the two of us and the owner... Oh, and a few cats."
With that, Hoshimi began massaging Kasumigaoka's foot, wrapped in black stockings.
"Hoshimi, you... Hiss~~"
Kasumigaoka couldn't finish her sentence as a sudden pain made her gasp.
She straightened up involuntarily, grabbing the front of her seat with both hands. Her eyes filled with a mix of frustration and helplessness. "Hoshimi, you... Mm~"
Once again, Hoshimi curled his index finger and firmly pressed the ball of her foot.
"Hiss~~ Ah~~"
The sharp pain made Kasumigaoka gasp, but following the pain, a strange, indescribable sensation spread through her, causing her to let out a soft, seductive moan.
"This is the Yongquan acupoint..." Hoshimi explained with a smile. "After walking around all day, you must be tired. I'll massage your feet to relieve some of the soreness."
"Hoshimi, you... Oh~~"
Before Kasumigaoka could finish, Hoshimi pressed down hard again, cutting off her protest before it could even begin.
Seeing Kasumigaoka's flushed face, trying to resist but unable to fight back, Hoshimi clamped her foot between his knees and began applying firm pressure to her acupoints.
He had been holding in a lot of frustration lately. Now that he had the chance, how could he not release it?
"Oh~~ Hoshimi... Stop... Hoshimi... I give up... Mm~~"
"Mmm~~ Stop it... Mm~~"
Listening to Kasumigaoka's restrained moans, Hoshimi couldn't help but let out a sadistic grin.
Ah~ Just like this! This is how it should be!
This is the real me!
Recently, Yukino had softened up, clinging to him every day, making him feel bad about teasing her.
Kotoko, on the other hand, was too clever, always figuring things out before he could even try to mess with her, leaving him with no satisfaction.
Plus, with the delicate balance between Yukino and Kotoko, he couldn't do much.
All these factors had left him pent-up for days.
Now that he had the opportunity, how could he not take full advantage and let it all out?
"Mmm~~ Hoshimi... Wait... Be gentle... Mmm~~"
Watching Kasumigaoka's flushed face as she bit her lip, trying not to moan too loudly, Hoshimi's hands pressed down even harder on her foot.
The more you moan, the more excited I get!
This is the life!
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