The next day, when Kamijo Mutsumi woke up, he found a breakfast prepared by Mutsumi Wakaba, along with a small note she had left behind.
She's so pure, my heart breaks for her!
Kamijo Mutsumi felt like he was the one being romanced here.
On the other side of town, Miss Soyo, who carried the aura of a divorced, resentful woman, was not in a good mood.
Although her initial impression of the scumbag who had hit her with his ultimate move at point-blank range was not particularly good, the man held the key to her obsession—news and the whereabouts of Sakiko.
So, no matter how upset she was, she could only feign civility for the time being.
It was only after she got home that she was struck by the sudden realization that she had forgotten to exchange contact information with him.
...Which was pretty awkward.
For Soyo, finding Kamijo Mutsumi was even harder than finding Sakiko—at least she had Sakiko's LINE, even if she never replied and was suspected of having blocked her.
Of course, Soyo would never admit that last part.
The only saving grace was that Kamijo Mutsumi knew where to find her and, if he wasn't lying, would surely come looking for her... right?
Could what happened yesterday have just been a dream?
Soyo had an inherently insecure personality, and this lack of control amplified her anxiety to the extreme.
Yesterday, he had only managed to persuade her by using Sakiko as leverage.
This careless mistake caused doubt to sprout in the girl's heart.
If Kamijo Mutsumi was lying... what would she do?
More painful than simple despair is having hope, only to have it snatched away!
Her mind in turmoil, the girl's muscle memory led her to the gardening club at Tsukinomori.
In this place, at a fixed time every day, a cute "cucumber sprite" would spawn.
Seeing the "Cucumber Hero" standing there watering the small cucumbers she had planted, Soyo finally snapped back to reality.
Besides Kamijo Mutsumi, Mutsumi Wakaba could also help her contact Sakiko.
Don't put all your eggs in one basket. Kamijo Mutsumi's reliability was now questionable.
Although, on Mutsumi's end, she had always deflected her requests...
The girl, who appeared to have a gentle and even motherly smile, had a sudden darkness flicker in her eyes.
If Mutsumi hadn't been so unreliable, why would I have pinned my hopes on someone like Kamijo Mutsumi, who looked sketchy from the start?
It was the same when Sakiko quit the band. It was all...
Her fault!
But Soyo quickly suppressed these negative emotions. The moment Mutsumi Wakaba looked over, she instantly managed her expression, putting on her mask of gentleness.
"Mutsumi-chan, about Sakiko..."
Just as she was about to start her daily psychological manipulation routine, Mutsumi Wakaba made a preemptive strike.
"After school today... you're coming with me to RiNG."
"To RiNG?"
Soyo was momentarily stunned by her words, then quickly became excited.
Before this, Mutsumi had never actively invited her anywhere.
Did this mean she was finally going to help her?
"Mutsumi-chan, are you perhaps going to tell me about Sakiko's..."
"...It has nothing to do with Sakiko."
Soyo's mood plummeted back to rock bottom with the girl's words.
"Mutsumi... asked me to go with you."
"Eh?"
Soyo never expected to hear that name from Mutsumi Wakaba's lips.
That guy...
When on earth did he get his claws into her?
With Soyo's situation handed off to Mutsumi Wakaba, Kamijo Mutsumi naturally chose to go lie in wait for Ano-chan and Tomori.
He didn't have to wait long for the two of them. However, looking at Anon standing next to Tomori, forcing a smile and struggling to make small talk, and then at the little penguin with her head down and a gloomy expression, his own expression turned a bit strange.
Ano-chan, how have you been possessed by Soyo after just one day?
He realized that the two jokers from his deck of cards now had their designated owners.
"Ano-chan!"
However, he quickly composed himself and waved at Anon.
"Don't use such a familiar name. Are we that close?"
Seeing Kamijo Mutsumi, Anon's eyes couldn't help but light up.
After listening to his story yesterday, she'd had a rush of blood to the head today and couldn't resist launching a second attempt to recruit Tomori at school. The result was obvious.
The awkward conversation just now had made her cringe so hard her toes could have carved out a live house. His appearance was a life raft saving her from a sea of suffering.
But even though she was happy inside, the girl's words were the very definition of tsundere.
"Then... Miss Ann?"
Anon's face darkened.
You're deliberately trying to start trouble, aren't you?
But the girl was already used to this scumbag's style. She turned to introduce him to Tomori.
"Hello there, Tomori-chan."
Before Anon could even speak, Kamijo Mutsumi bypassed her and greeted the empress directly.
"H-hello."
While Tomori was introverted, she wasn't a complete social phobic like Bocchi. She could handle normal conversations just fine.
"My name is Kamijo Mutsumi. I'm sixteen years old. I'm not currently in school, and I'm the president of an animation company."
Looking at the empress, who was as cute as a small animal, Kamijo Mutsumi, Tomori's number one fan, began his self-introduction.
"Additionally, my family has various other businesses, several houses, and cars. I don't smoke or drink, I have a positive outlook on life, and my doctor says I'm very healthy."
"Unmarried."
(He had a fiancée, but they weren't married yet, right?)
"My ideal partner would be a first-year student at Haneoka, preferably 155cm tall. A Scorpio would be best."
"Stop!"
Listening to his self-introduction, Tomori hadn't even reacted yet, but Anon couldn't take it anymore.
Are you on a blind date here?
I know you're interested in Tomori, but aren't you being a little too hasty?
"...I like gray hair and amber eyes, with the cute aura of a small animal."
However, Kamijo Mutsumi did not stop talking just because of Anon.
"...It would be best if she's been in a band before, and I support my wife playing in a band after marriage..."
"I said stop!"
Seeing him not only ignore her but also start reciting Tomori's personal details, Anon completely lost it.
Kamijo Mutsumi saw that he had pushed the girl to her limit and, to avoid getting hit, chose to shut up.
"Um... I'm Takamatsu Tomori."
However, the single-threaded Tomori didn't see anything wrong and was still introducing herself to him.
"...It's nice to meet you."
"It's nice to meet you too... Tomori-chan, could you do me a favor?"
Seeing that Tomori didn't dislike him, Kamijo Mutsumi immediately pressed his advantage.
"I'll treat you to a parfait later..."
"What...?"
Tomori had never met someone who asked for a favor right after meeting them, so she was a bit bewildered.
"It's nothing troublesome. Just sign your name here for me."
Kamijo Mutsumi smiled as he handed a document and a pen to her.
"Sign... on here?"
Tomori opened the white document, looking for a place to write.
"Just write Tomori-chan's name right here..."
He very helpfully pointed out the spot for her.
"What are you trying to make her sign?! Stop right there!"
Seeing the three large, red characters for 「Marriage Registration」 inside the white paper, Anon was completely stunned. She lunged forward and snatched the marriage application from Tomori's hands.