One girl after another approaching them made Kazusa, for the first time in a long while, feel a sense of vigilance.
It also reminded her of something she had thought about when she first started dating Chisato—whether someone as handsome and kind as him had ever been in a relationship before.
Back then, she had followed the emotional advice of her heart, believing that what mattered was the present, and that dwelling on the past was pointless.
She had indeed acted accordingly, suppressing her curiosity and burying any questions about his past relationships deep in her heart, never once asking him about it.
As time passed, the weight of such thoughts gradually faded from her mind, to the point where she barely cared about them anymore.
But today, during their date, a chance encounter suddenly brought three extremely cute girls into her view, reigniting the alarm bells of caution in her heart.
Some things don't just cease to exist simply because you choose to ignore them. The situation in front of her was proof of that.
Whether it was the short-haired girl cheerfully calling him "senpai" in such a familiar tone.
The long-haired girl who, like herself, had black hair and an indifferent expression as she slowly approached after they had stepped away from the crowd.
Both of them made Kazusa feel uneasy for the first time since she had started dating Chisato.
This unease stemmed from a deep-seated vigilance, an instinctive fear that these people might disrupt the stable and happy relationship she shared with him.
Or perhaps… even destroy it.
As for the last girl—the pink-haired one who had her hair tied up in little buns with braided cords—she, for some reason, didn't elicit the same level of hostility Kazusa felt toward the first two.
She wasn't sure why. Maybe it was just a woman's intuition, a simple feeling that this girl was harmless in some way, incapable of posing any real threat to her.
This feeling was irrational, yet strangely real.
Sweeping her wary gaze over the three girls, Kazusa felt conflicted.
Chisato was also in a difficult position.
This kind of unexpected encounter was something he had already experienced once not long ago, but this time, it was far more intense than that brief meeting at the supermarket.
Kazusa was the one he had planned to reveal everything to last—unlike Eriri or Utaha, she still didn't know anything.
And right now, she absolutely couldn't find out about anything outside of his original plan.
So the most important thing now was to quickly bring this completely unplanned and unprepared-for coincidence to an end.
And he had to do it naturally, without making any mistakes, while also ensuring that Iroha and the others didn't say anything they shouldn't.
But dealing with this crisis alone put immense pressure on him.
He thought about his trusty companion, Dark Wings. Yesterday, before heading out for the date, he had given it the day off, letting it fly around freely.
If it were here now, it could at least help—maybe by swooping in and snatching a keepsake from one of the girls to cause a distraction.
It can even drop something on his head so he could use it as an excuse to grab Kazusa's hand and head to the restroom.
But the crow wasn't here.
He was on his own.
Since he wasn't very familiar with Yukino and Yui, he focused all his attention on Iroha instead.
She was the key to breaking this deadlock.
As long as she didn't say anything unnecessary, everything would turn out fine.
"Are these your friends?"
Chisato glanced at Yukino and Yui before shifting his questioning gaze back to Iroha.
He already knew their relationship, but he still asked. This wasn't just making small talk—he wanted Iroha to confirm the truth herself so that Kazusa would feel reassured.
Hearing it from someone else now would be far more convincing than explaining it himself later.
"Yeah, you've seen them before. They're my friends and also my seniors at school. This is Yukinoshita Yukino, and this is Yuigahama Yui."
Iroha nodded, using her naturally lively personality to position herself in the middle, playing the role of the bridge between the two groups.
"Senpai, this is Suzumiya Chisato. You've met him before. And this is his girlfriend, Touma Kazusa."
"Ah, hello!"
Yui gave an awkward smile, cautiously raising her hand in greeting.
In contrast, Yukino's reaction was much colder. She merely nodded slightly, her gaze unreadable.
Kazusa reacted similarly. She had never been good at warming up to people she wasn't familiar with.
To avoid any awkwardness, Chisato mimicked Yui's gesture, raising his hand and greeting them, deliberately emphasizing his unfamiliarity with the two girls to put Kazusa at ease.
And it worked, at least to some extent.
Kazusa's wariness toward Yukino faded, and now all of her attention was focused on Iroha.
After finishing the introductions, Iroha once again directed that bright, admiring gaze toward him.
Kazusa found it extremely uncomfortable.
Even though Chisato had already introduced her as nothing more than his junior, she couldn't ignore the way Iroha was looking at him.
Her dislike for the girl was growing rapidly.
Still, Kazusa restrained herself. No matter how annoying the other person seemed, she reminded herself that this was one of Chisato's friends.
She told herself she couldn't be rude.
Chisato had been secretly observing his girlfriend's expression the entire time.
Seeing that she didn't look too pleased, he knew he had to quickly steer the conversation toward something harmless and then wrap up this encounter as soon as possible.
But Iroha's behavior was baffling.
She clearly knew his girlfriend was right beside him, yet she was boldly gazing at him with eyes that could easily be misinterpreted.
What was she trying to do?
"Senpai, I never knew you could play the piano."
Iroha asked with a cheerful smile.
"I only started learning recently, and my rapid progress is all thanks to her."
Chisato answered with a smile, looking proudly at his girlfriend beside him.
"She's a professional."
"Ah~ I'm really envious of you, Suzumiya-senpai, having someone as amazing as Touma-senpai as your girlfriend."
Iroha raised her bright eyes and openly gave Kazusa an appraising look. Then, she turned her gaze back to meet Chisato's eyes.
Suddenly, without warning, she broke into a dazzling smile and stepped closer to Kazusa.
Placing her left hand near her mouth as if whispering a secret, she spoke carefully,
"Um, Touma-senpai, I actually want to tell you a secret about Suzumiya-senpai. Are you interested?"
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50 advanced chapters on p@t re on (.) com/SenatusTheta
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