Chapter 95: Hayasaka Ai: I Won?
Inside the luxurious black car.
Hayasaka Ai, in the form of Herthaka-kun, was looking out the window, not saying a word.
'Did that confession just now actually succeed?' She was pondering over the question.
Sakurai Saki didn't end up rejecting her, but it didn't seem like he fully agreed either.
The words "I think" he said — she heard them very clearly.
If it were an ordinary girl facing this kind of situation, she'd probably start plucking petals like "love me – not love me – love me – not love me," but not Hayasaka Ai.
She felt she had already won! If she kissed him and didn't get rejected, then maybe the whole confession thing — he only ran away because he was embarrassed!
Hayasaka Ai was very confident in herself!
Just like how Sakurai Saki was also very confident in himself.
The two of them really matched well in that aspect.
(❀❛ ֊ ❛„)ᕗ ᕙ( •̀ ᗜ •́ )
'Next step is probably a love hotel.' Hayasaka Ai's thoughts jumped boldly.
This time she had reached Second Base, so going straight for a home run next time would be normal, right? With her charming, when the time came and she pinned Sakurai down on the bed, he probably wouldn't be able to resist...
Moreover, this was the best method!
Has everyone ever heard the phrase "raw rice becomes cooked rice"?
If you like someone, confess. If confessing doesn't work, then use force! If force doesn't work, then try a few more times — the strategy shouldn't be limited too much; there'll definitely be one that suits you!
The law doesn't protect men well enough — even if they're forced, most of them won't speak out, just like victims of bullying.
[Endure a little, and it'll pass]
[Both sides take a step back, and everyone benefits]
[Is it necessary to make a big deal out of this?]
[Do men really need to be that petty?]
Fucking infuriating! When will men finally be able to stand up for themselves!
Ai-chan withdrew her gaze from the window, and at the same time, the female driver opened the car door.
"...Kaguya-san! When Pes sits down, his chinchin sticks out, you know!"
Chika: (ᗜ⩊ᗜ)
"Pfft!" Hayasaka Ai saw Shinomiya Kaguya holding back laughter so hard her face was turning red.
Kaguya: .o(≧∀≦)o
Kaguya-sama was still at the age where dirty jokes at this level could make her laugh — truly adorable.
"Ice Onee-san. What's that black box that looks like a coffin?"
A childish voice rang out.
Hayasaka Ai vaguely recognized the face.
'Is this Sakurai-chan's little brother?'
So earlier, he ran off in such a hurry to pick this kid up?
Shinomiya Kaguya bent down and stepped into the car.
"This is a car. It's a kind of transportation vehicle." She explained.
Then, she saw Hayasaka Ai dressed as a boy.
"Hayasaka, why are you wearing that outfit?"
"Kaguya-sama, the maid identity can't be revealed." Hayasaka whispered closely in her ear.
"Eh eh! Kaguya-san, who are you talking to?" Fujiwara Chika held Little Sakurai's hand and stepped into the car.
"And this person is?" Fujiwara Chika squinted her eyes and gave a once-over evaluation, then joyfully exclaimed: "Butler?!!"
"Kaguya-san's house actually has a butler? That's super cool!"
ヾ(｡✪ω✪｡)ｼ
Hayasaka softened her voice and said: "Hello, Fujiwara-san. I am Kaguya-sama's bodyguard, you can just call me Herthaka."
"And as for this little guest here, hello."
"I'm an Esper disguised as the larva form of the human species, Sakurai Zero One. My big brother is Sakurai Saki. I like cake, I like sweets. Today I came to play at Kaguya Onee-san's house!" Little Sakurai replied.
"Big bro, hi there!"
These lines had just been taught to the kid by Shinomiya Kaguya earlier, though of course, the first half had already been completely twisted beyond recognition by this little rascal.
Hayasaka Ai simply felt that Sakurai Saki's younger brother was a bit odd, but she didn't pay it much mind.
"Herthaka-kun? You look kinda familiar~" Fujiwara Chika said suspiciously.
(╭ರ_•́)
She felt like she had seen this person somewhere just recently… maybe near the sink in the restroom?
"Umu, I'm of Irish descent. If you put me together with other Irish people, I might be a little harder to distinguish. Fujiwara-san, do you happen to have any Irish friends?"
"Hayasaka-san seems like a half-blood..." Chika muttered.
"Maybe I mistook you for someone else, sorry~"
Secretary Fujiwara then asked, "But Herthaka-kun, don't you need to go to school? At your age... going to school would be a bit better, don't you think? And as a bodyguard, going to school together would definitely make Kaguya-san very happy too!"
"I lost my parents in the war, but fortunately, my academic ability wasn't bad. In the orphanage, I quickly learned various skills, and later skipped grades and graduated from Harvard University. A few years ago, when I came to Japan, the Shinomiya family took an interest in me, so..."
Before she could finish, Kaguya leaned in and whispered in her ear, "Hayasaka, what kind of weird backstory are you making up now?!"
Kaguya: ( ｡ •̀ ᴖ •́ ｡)
"Kaguya-sama, what are you saying? Herthaka is Herthaka." Hayasaka Ai played dumb.
The two were speaking in very close proximity. Fujiwara Chika covered her mouth with her hand and blinked.
'This is it!'
( ͡⎚ ω ͡⎚)
[Forbidden relationship] — this phrase suddenly popped into Fujiwara Chika's mind.
She was thrilled! Super thrilled!
She really wanted to know the relationship between these two!
Right now, Fujiwara Chika's gossip cravings had exploded to their peak, to the point that she hadn't even realized she had already been 'ambushed' by Hayasaka Ai — and what's more, she had been the one to encourage Hayasaka Ai when she had been on the verge of giving up! If she found out the truth, she'd probably regret it terribly!
But at this moment, none of that mattered to Secretary Fujiwara.
She was now a meaningless, emotionless gossip machine!
As for Little Sakurai, he had no interest in gossip whatsoever. From the moment he got into the car, he had glued his face to the window, admiring the scenery outside.
Lots of boxes — (tall buildings).
Lots of carbon-based lifeforms — (humans).
Lots of coffins — (cars).
And some long hairs four-legged creatures running — (cats and dogs).
After getting tired of watching, Little Sakurai turned his head and saw Hayasaka Ai and Shinomiya Kaguya standing very close to each other.
"Are you two lovers?"
'Nice support! Zero One-kun!'
ദ്ദി(｡✪ω✪｡)
Fujiwara Chika reached the absolute peak of gossip excitement.
"No, I'm just a humble bodyguard. How could I dare to have feelings for my Oujou-sama?" Hayasaka Ai replied.
Besides, this particular Oujou-sama was super troublesome, constantly causing a fuss.
Not to mention she liked to interfere with other people's love lives too!
Secretary Fujiwara, if you want to blame someone, blame her!
Hayasaka Ai was trying her best to soothe the guilt she felt for ambushing Fujiwara Chika.
She had already snuck ahead, but before that, it had been Fujiwara Chika herself — acting as referee — who had pulled the trigger and fired the starting shot!
Right now, Hayasaka Ai didn't even dare look at Fujiwara Chika; there was this strange sense of guilt lingering in her heart.
'I'm sorry.'
(๑-﹏-๑)
Even though you liked him first, what can I say — there's only one Sakurai Saki, right?
I'm not going to give up easily!
Even the number one spot in his heart — I'll take it for myself!
"How did it end up like this!? You two clearly have such a good relationship!" Fujiwara Chika exclaimed, completely oblivious to what was going on inside Ai-chan's head — if she had known, she might've pulled out the White Album Bible and started re-reading it on the spot.
Chika when she knew: (ﾉಥ益ಥ）ﾉ ┻━┻
"Good relationship?" Shinomiya Kaguya blinked in confusion.
Well… it was pretty good.
It's just that sometimes Hayasaka didn't listen to her advice.
Like this afternoon, for instance — she told her to confess, but Hayasaka came up with a pile of excuses!
Shinomiya Kaguya felt that Hayasaka Ai was simply a coward who didn't dare confess; all those other reasons were just excuses!
'…Did Hayasaka end up succeeding in confessing?' Kaguya suddenly remembered.
She still hadn't asked Hayasaka Ai about the outcome of her confession.
But judging from her current state, it probably went well!
That means her revenge plan could be scheduled! Wonderful!
...
A conference began to unfold inside Shinomiya Kaguya's mind.
Kaguya (Moron): Sakurai-kun is way too strong… maybe I should just give up…
(.Ó﹏Ò.)
Kaguya (Ice): Give up? Not a chance! The humiliation from last year — I'll return it all tenfold!
( ° 益 °)
Kaguya (Child): But we can't beat him in an argument! Not even in sports — he beats us every time…
૮₍ ´• ˕ •` ₎ა
Kaguya (Ice): You weaklings! Get out of this meeting room right now! Hu hu~ (sobbing voice) Get out~~ (tears streaming)
.·°՞(¯□¯)՞°·.
Kaguya (Child): Don't cry~
( •̯́ ^ •̯̀)
...
Back in reality, Shinomiya Kaguya came back to her senses.
She realized that relying on Hayasaka Ai for revenge might not work out so well.
Because even if Hayasaka Ai helped her win an argument, or even beat Sakurai Saki in sports—
That victory would still only count as one for the Shinomiya family, since Hayasaka Ai was part of it.
But as Shinomiya Kaguya herself — the stain on her pride remained unwashed!
"Kaguya-san, aren't you and Herthaka-kun close?" Chika asked.
"Pretty close, yeah. But I don't really see him as a guy. I liked him better as a girl," Kaguya replied truthfully.
"Eh?" This time, Fujiwara Chika was stunned.
Chika: Σ(°△° ꪱꪱꪱ)
See... see him as a girl?
So Kaguya-san's into Yuri?!
Hayasaka Ai noticed the misunderstanding but said nothing. Ai-chan merely smiled softly.
Which made Chika even more dizzy.
"A girl?" She pointed at Hayasaka Ai.
Then pointed at Shinomiya Kaguya: "A girl…"
Herthaka-kun… was being seen as a girl by Kaguya-san?! EHHH!?
This relationship… is way too complicated!
Chika's imagination kicked into overdrive.
･°˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°.
"Can females become life partners too?" Little Sakurai suddenly asked.
And the three girls instantly fell silent.
A few seconds later——
Chika-chan clutched her tiny nose that was on the verge of bleeding and whispered: "Too stimulating…"
(∩˃o˂∩)♡
Her imagination refused to stop.
A boy butler in a maid outfit and a cold, haughty young mistress...
"Alright, we're here." Hayasaka Ai, seeing the Shinomiya estate appear up ahead, quickly switched the topic.
"Kaguya-sama, along with Fujiwara-san and the younger Sakurai sibling — please step out." Hayasaka Ai opened the car door.