"You… How did you find this place?"
Yukino's voice was calm, but the storm inside her was anything but.
Dozens of questions clawed at her thoughts — all the words she'd planned to say — but in the end, she asked something entirely unrelated.
"Your sister sent me the location," Yukima Azuma replied. His expression subtly shifted, the kind of look someone wore when carrying complicated feelings.
Haruno had informed him. She had sent him the restaurant details — the name, the room number, even a note attached.
Azuma knew why she did it. Maybe part guilt, maybe mischief, maybe something deeper. But the reason didn't matter anymore. All he saw was a debt being repaid — not to Haruno, but to Yukino.
They stepped out of the restaurant hand in hand. Summer night air greeted them with a surprising chill, and Yukino instinctively shivered. Azuma pulled her closer without a word, their bodies leaning into each other as though to share warmth — though neither could admit it was already there, burning between them.
Inside Yukino's car, they sat quietly. The engine remained off.
She looked at him.
Her heart swelled, eyes brimming with emotions too deep to name.
"So… Azuma-kun has actually known me since back then?"
Azuma nodded faintly.
The moment had returned to her — the boy in the Yukinoshita garden all those years ago. A golden feather fluttering into her hand, a fleeting encounter that became something sacred.
That moment — it wasn't a coincidence.
He was the boy.
The same one who'd given her courage to dream beyond her family's suffocating grip.
The one who reached out again when she was on the brink, rescuing her from poverty and despair.
The one who looked her dead in the eye and chose her.
"Only Yukino."
It wasn't just words. It was a promise written in flame — an indelible mark burned into his chest, etched onto her soul.
She smiled softly, tears threatening the corners of her eyes.
"Hehe… that's right," Azuma said with a grin. "How could I forget? After all, Yukino is too beautiful — anyone would remember after just one look."
Then, he leaned forward teasingly.
"Should I have called you 'Yukino-onee-chan~' instead?"
That word. Onee-chan.
It shattered her composure.
Her ears flushed red like the horizon at dusk. She wanted to bury her face, scream, hide under the seat — and yet, part of her wanted to hear him call her that forever.
Maybe a hundred hours straight. She'd listen.
But the emotional damage…
Yukino took a deep breath, trying to calm the fluttering inside her chest.
"…You said you'd marry me. Did you mean it?"
Azuma blinked. He hadn't expected her to bring it up now, but he didn't avoid the question.
"I want to. I mean it. But I can't guarantee whether things will work out that way in this world."
He glanced at her, his expression turning serious.
"I'm going to marry many people… or at least try to. But even if that law doesn't change, Yukino-onee-chan — no one will ever take you away from me."
"By next spring, Laplace Corporation's value will be enough to buy the Yukinoshita family out completely. When the time comes, maybe you'll say something like: 'It's cold tonight, looks like my family's going bankrupt again.'"
Yukino gave him a side glance, half-annoyed, half-amused.
He was ridiculous.
But also sincere.
And that sincerity… it melted her like sun on fresh snow.
It didn't matter whether the marriage happened. What mattered was that he wanted it. That he loved her.
And that was enough.
She gave a silly smile, one only a girl in love could wear.
Then Azuma leaned closer, their noses almost touching.
Yukino's breath hitched.
"Wh-What's going on?" she whispered.
"Eh? Is it not okay?" Azuma tilted his head, puzzled.
Yukino stared into his eyes.
Then she nodded, shyly.
"…Okay, then."
Her eyes closed. She waited.
And waited…
Then — click.
She opened one eye.
He was buckling her seatbelt.
"…AHHH! You jerk! Aho! Bakaaa!!"
Azuma blinked innocently. "Eh? What did I do?"
"You asked if it was okay!"
"Yes, to fasten your seatbelt."
"That's NOT what I thought you meant!"
"So… you thought I was asking about a kiss?"
Yukino pouted, face burning.
"Of course I did!"
"…So you really would've said yes?"
"…Mmm."
A small, embarrassed nod.
This time, he didn't fake her out.
He leaned in, and their lips met.
The world slowed down. Time melted into warmth.
Their breaths tangled together in the quiet car.
By the time he pulled away, Yukino was panting softly, cheeks flushed deeper than ever.
She avoided his eyes.
"…We should go home," she whispered.
"Yeah," Azuma said with a smile. "You probably haven't eaten yet. I'll cook something when we get back."
She nodded.
And under the calm summer sky, the car rolled quietly down the road — two hearts finally in sync.
Back at home, Yukima Azuma stood by the stove.
He watched as Yukino slurped noodles, contentment lighting up her face like the moonlight outside.
His mind, however, drifted.
Laplace Corporation was expanding fast. Next year's projected value… more than enough to buy out the Yukinoshita family.
And with Microsoft's operating system launching on New Year's Day, the stock valuation would skyrocket.
Capital was no longer a concern.
Only vision.
As for smart appliances — he was skeptical about explosive success. The market was slow to shift in that sector. Sayuri could support development, but they needed a flagship client. A demonstration site.
A hotel.
Hinatsuru Hotel.
Yes… once the Ryuou tournament ended, he would formally take Hinatsuru Ai as his disciple. Then approach her family.
It all lined up.
He took out his phone.
The Ryuou Tournament began in mid-July. It would stretch until the end of August. Meijin wasn't participating this time.
With his system's 9th-dan shogi ability, Azuma could easily take the title.
Still, he wished Meijin would compete.
He wanted the challenge.
He wanted to know — was the legendary Meijin stronger than his system-powered skill?
Facing him might be the push he needed to break the ceiling.
But that was for later.
Right now, he had another matter to track.
The second volume of the "Youth" light novel series — The Young of a Lonely Boy Won't Dream of a Bunny Girl Senpai — had just launched.
The internet was already buzzing with criticism.
No Mai Sakurajima? An unknown heroine?
Rumors of rushed writing and low effort circled like vultures.
Azuma sipped tea by the window, watching Yukino eat peacefully.
Let them talk, he thought.
He had plans.
And this was only the beginning.