"Um... um!... Mom! Why are you touching me all of a sudden?"
Kazusa, who was originally lost in thought staring at her boyfriend on the TV screen, but she didn't expect her mother to directly touch her body.
Youko continued her own behavior, accompanied by some ambiguous words,
"Look at my daughter's breasts, legs, perky little buttocks, slender waist and delicate features. There is no reason for there to be a problem... Yeah! That's right!"
"Mom!"
Kazusa stood up in shame and got out of Yoko's reach, which made the other party stop.
"Alright, alright, I'll stop teasing you. Let's get back to the main topic—what do you plan to do about Chisato, Kazusa?"
Kazusa slowly lowered her arms, which had been crossed over her chest.
"What do you mean, what am I going to do?"
"I mean, how do you intend to face him from now on? And how do you plan to interact with him?"
"Facing him and interacting with him, huh…? There's no difference. I'll just treat him the same as before, and besides…"
Kazusa pressed her lips together, a look of overwhelming happiness appearing on her face.
"…I want to properly thank him."
Youko teased with a playful smirk,
"For example, by using your body?"
Perhaps due to the emotional high from her mother's recovery, Kazusa, though still blushing, didn't react as impatiently as she normally would to such a blunt remark.
Instead, she even had the presence of mind to retort,
"Yeah, yeah. I'll make you a grandma by tonight!"
Youko clicked her tongue and wagged her index finger, pointing out her daughter's mistake.
"Kazusa, you still haven't fully grasped your biology lessons. Normally, after intercourse, it takes about seven to fifteen days for a fertilized egg to develop into a new life."
"So even if you pounce on Chisato tonight and one of his little lucky swimmers makes it through all the obstacles, the earliest I could become a grandma would be next week."
"…!"
Kazusa's face turned crimson as she spun around to cover it with her hands.
Had she gone insane? How could she end up discussing something like this with her mother?
Had she completely forgotten how shameless she was?
Youko continued to muse aloud,
"But really, that kind of thing does feel amazing… I can't even remember the last time I—"
"Enough!"
That was the end of the jokes.
Youko suddenly turned serious.
"What I want to say is, Suzumiya Chisato is my benefactor—my lifesaver."
"I will never forget this debt for as long as I live. I know that no amount of money could ever fully repay such kindness, but I will do everything I can to support him in any way possible from now on."
Her tone shifted slightly.
"However, you are different. You can be grateful to Chisato for saving your mother's life, but you must never feel indebted to him because of it."
"I don't understand…"
"It's fine if you don't. Just remember what I've told you."
Youko stood up and gently patted her daughter's head.
At the same time, she secretly wished that Kazusa would never understand the deeper meaning behind her words.
As the mother and daughter shared this rare moment of open-hearted peace, relieved that the crisis had passed, the hospital room door swung open.
With a faint smile on his face, completely oblivious to what had transpired, Chisato strode in.
"Sorry, Youko-san. The fruit shop didn't have grapes, so I bought some red seedless ones instead. The owner said they were really sweet, so they should be just to your—"
It was as if something invisible had lodged itself in Chisato's throat, blocking the rest of his sentence.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of something utterly unbelievable.
His neck stiffly turned, like a rusted mechanical gear grinding into motion.
When his gaze fell on the television screen, he froze.
The pudding and fruit in his hands slipped through his lifeless fingers and hit the floor.
Wait.
Why was there a surveillance camera in the hospital room!?
Wasn't this an invasion of privacy!?
Chisato was genuinely shocked—this was something he hadn't anticipated at all before taking action.
And his reaction made Youko raise an eyebrow in amusement.
She had thought she'd need to put in some effort to get him to admit it, but with a reaction like this, there was no need to beat around the bush anymore.
She could just lay it all out in the open.
"Mm!"
Before Youko could speak, Kazusa had already rushed forward, throwing herself into Chisato's arms.
The impact made him grunt involuntarily, snapping him back to reality.
Crap.
His secret mission to silence his future mother-in-law had been exposed.
On reflex, Chisato's hands caught Kazusa as she threw herself at him, but his eyes were still locked onto Youko.
She, in contrast, wore a triumphant smirk, her expression practically dripping with mischief.
"Let's have a good talk about this, Chisato. Or rather… our heroic savior, who single-handedly changed the fate of this mother and daughter!"
I'm too old for this chuunibyou nonsense! Stop calling me that in such a cringeworthy way!!!
…
Silently, Chisato picked up the fallen pudding and fruit, placing them neatly on the table. But at this point, no one had the mind to eat.
Ever since stepping into the hospital room and seeing the massive TV screen displaying undeniable evidence, Chisato knew there was no point in trying to struggle.
He was already exposed—there was no use resisting.
To calm himself, he had excused himself to the restroom before the mother and daughter could start questioning him.
But the moment he stepped inside, before he could even close the door, Kazusa squeezed in after him.
Her face was flushed red with shyness, and as soon as the door shut, she threw herself at him again.
This time, instead of wrapping her arms around his waist like before, she hooked them around his neck.
Gulp…
Chisato's Adam's apple bobbed.
"Kazusa—"
"Don't talk."
Kazusa pulled him down forcefully and pressed her lips against his with unwavering determination.
Her technique was clumsy, but her emotions were raw and intense.
Chisato was caught off guard, forced backward until his back hit the wall.
Somewhere along the way, Kazusa's right hand had slipped under his shirt, her fingers tracing the bare skin beneath.
What kind of man could withstand this!?
Chisato had no choice but to turn his head, breaking the kiss—even though he had been thoroughly enjoying it.
After all, Kazusa's mother was right outside.
And he had no intention of making the restroom smell like squid.
Holding Kazusa by the shoulders, he was just about to say something when—
Tears began to spill from her eyes, rolling down her cheeks despite the bright smile on her face.
"Chisato…"
She murmured his name softly, unable to get out anything else. But her reaction alone spoke volumes.
Chisato looked at her, then let out a sigh and smiled.
Ah, whatever.
If she knew, then she knew.
After all, what he did wasn't a bad thing, right?
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50 advanced chapters on p@t re on (.) com/SenatusTheta
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