Shinichi’s New Home

The next morning, after breakfast and free time activities, the official autumn excursion ended, and all second-year students boarded the bus home.

Shinichi still sat in the same seat with Itsuki, but Fumino no longer treated him indifferently or struggled to talk to him like yesterday; instead, she leaned over and handed him some snacks, chocolates, and others.

As Itsuki was focused on eating, Shinichi and Fumino could chat about small things all the way, never stopping except to drink water.

Unlike the changes in their relationship yesterday, this couldn't escape the notice of those concerned.

"Kashima-san, those two..."

"Um, we don't need to worry anymore."

With the scenery flowing through her eyes, Kashima held her chin with one hand and leaned against the window, looking puzzled.

"Although there hasn't been an official announcement yet, let's just assume they're in a relationship. All we need to do in the Thorn Club is silently bless them."

After a moment of silence, some sighs with complex emotions were heard from the other end of the earphones.

"What about Ogata-san?"

Kashima paused for a moment, then repeated emotionlessly.

"Let's just assume they're already in a relationship."

The atmosphere on the bus felt bleak.

After a few seconds, someone spoke hesitantly.

"But, leader..."

Kashima frowned slightly. Did they still want to do things like their past selves thought were right but would trouble Princess Furuhashi?

"Anyway, we're just an ordinary fan support group... No need to transfer."

Kashima didn't say anything; her ears felt somewhat warm.

She took off the earphones, put the Bluetooth earphones in an inconspicuous box, and put them in her bag before looking at the scenery outside the window.

The view on the highway wasn't beautiful; she sighed sadly.

"Clearly, Furuhashi-san has regained her strength..."

Then what was it? The uncomfortable feeling of just buying a Coke but there are no bubbles in it...

She tilted her head and looked at Fumino, who was leaning half of her body on the back seat and happily discussing funny topics like "Which is better, curry-flavored chocolate or chocolate-flavored curry?"

After staring for a few seconds, Kashima looked away again, looking at Shinichi through the reflection of the car window, saying something silly like "Curry is better because it can be paired with rice."

Taking a sandwich from Itsuki's hand with a very natural movement.

To calm her inner frustration, she took a deep breath and looked back expressionlessly.

Kashima fully understood this feeling.

"Maybe there's clearly a vegetable garden that can be planted, but that pig insists on planting his own cabbage, and the cabbage itself is willing to let him move. I can only silently watch from the side as the pig returns the cabbage to its vegetable garden. I feel reluctant to give them blessings..."

Kashima sighed helplessly, took out the regular wired earphones from her bag, and prepared to rest with music. She really didn't want to be influenced by the occasional intimate scenes next to her.

Just before she put on her earphones, she happened to catch a glimpse of a bright pink four-leaf clover charm in Fumino's bag, neatly wrapped inside a zippered bag.

Kashima was slightly surprised and suddenly remembered something.

At the hot spring hotel, there was a legend...

"...Huhu."

After a while, she chuckled softly, turned on the music on her phone, and closed her eyes with joy.

Before falling asleep, that thought was clearly imprinted in her mind; even if she woke up, she wouldn't forget her current feelings.

"The definition of happiness is not the same. Perhaps for them, it's precisely because others can't understand that this kind of happiness is so precious."

△

The bus stopped in front of the school gate, and many parents were already waiting in the waiting area to pick up their children.

It was understandable that the Nakano quintuplets were picked up by a special car from their veteran driver, Ebata, while Fumino and Rizu planned to head to the city center while it was still early.

There were skilled artisans there, and they wanted to make the four-leaf clover bookmark given by Shinichi and keep it for a long time.

In the end, Shinichi was left alone, carrying his belongings and taking a completely different path from the past.

Considering his budget, despite many luxury residences near the school, he chose the Meguro District, which was a bit far from the port area, right on the lower floor of the Shirogane house.

Moreover, when Shinichi was looking for a house, the first thing he asked for was Shirogane Miyuki's opinion. Of course, he didn't explain the reason for his move; he just used the excuse to be independent first.

The other party was not stingy either; besides recommending his place of residence, they also shared a lot of information.

Including discount periods at the nearest supermarket, which store had the most affordable items, the shortest route to school by bike from here, etc... It was very helpful.

There was no other choice; to be able to save the first pot of gold as soon as possible and have the capital to start his own business, Shinichi not only wanted to increase his income but also planned to reduce his expenses. He wasn't soft on women's spending, and he could only eat a little more frugally.

If he didn't gradually become more comfortable with finances, meet many seniors in the company where he worked, learn some investment tips, and witness continuous income growth, he would truly worry whether he would have money for future dates.

Moreover, he had grown accustomed to the feeling of being the soft rice for them.

Rizu didn't want to explain in detail. Except for Ichika, the Nakano family all used their father's allowance. They didn't spend it recklessly. They must have saved a lot of savings in the past few years.

As for Fumino, despite her poor relationship with her father, she was still very wealthy in material life and basically never bothered by money.

The most frightening was Hayasaka; according to her, she had been working for the Shinomiya family for more than ten years, with a monthly salary of 500,000 yen, her private assets already exceeded 10 million, and that was more than enough to support himself.

If someday Shinichi went bankrupt and couldn't support his wife anymore, Hayasaka might even secretly give him pocket money to support his family. The price was to please her as much as possible...

As Shinichi thought of that scene, he took a few deep breaths of cold air, feeling wary and fearful in his heart.

Indeed, money is everything. Without money, you might have no choice but to sell your body...

Shinichi finally returned to his new home; in front of him was an old apartment with two floors.

The Shirogane house was on the second floor, but its location wasn't directly above his house, so there wouldn't be a scenario where the ceiling suddenly broke and Kei fell onto his bed.

Shinichi walked to Room 104 with his belongings, took out the key, and was about to open the door.

"Hm?"

Why wasn't the door locked? It's impossible for him to be out all day without locking the door...

Shinichi placed his belongings in front of him and prepared to confront. He took out his phone and activated the video recording function. Slowly opening the door, he also pressed the record button.

If he reported it to the police, the case would likely be resolved when the police arrived, so it's better to keep the evidence first.

Being able to live peacefully until now, Shinichi certainly believed in the public safety of Japan, but he didn't hesitate to consider the worst possibility... So, even though he might look foolish, he cautiously opened his door.

He stretched his head out from the door crack and glanced towards the entrance at first sight.

"This!?"

As a pair of shoes came into view, he was astonished, while the tip of his nose twitched slightly.

He caught a faint smell of food.