Kitahara Inn
Seeing the bold letters on the sign, Inui became even more certain of her suspicions, and her face flushed red again.
But after entering, she started to feel like something was off.
Because…
"Oh my, Shiro~ Long time no see. Iori and the others are waiting for you."
This charming middle-aged woman just said "Iori"—what the hell?!
Could there be… another woman?
Wait no—that name clearly sounded like a guy's name…
Inui felt like something was fishy!
"Long time no see, Auntie. Here's a gift I brought."
Shiro handed over a gift he'd prepared. When it came to manners, he was the king of the polite act.
"Oh, you didn't have to. And this is…?"
Iori's mother looked at Inui. Since Inui had only just arrived and hadn't gone out much, Iori's family didn't recognize her.
"Uh…"
Shiro scratched his head, unsure how to explain.
A misunderstanding was fine, but he absolutely couldn't say it out loud himself!
"Girlfriend!"
Inui glared at Shiro and jumped in with the answer.
But after blurting it out, she lost her nerve again and hid behind him like an ostrich.
"Eh?!"
Iori's mom looked surprised—then her gaze toward Shiro slowly began to change…
"Shiro… if she's a middle schooler…"
"..."
Even before she could finish, Shiro already understood what his aunt was trying to say.
All he could say was that Inui's height and appearance were just too misleading.
Lolis are great and all, but… they really can get you locked up for public offenses…
To avoid having his reputation completely ruined back in his hometown, Shiro hurriedly explained, "Auntie, you've got it wrong! She's already an adult!"
Then, before Iori's mom could respond, he immediately grabbed Inui and rushed toward the inn. "Auntie, I'm going to look for Kitahara!"
"Eh?!"
By the time Iori's mom came to her senses, Shiro had already dragged Inui far away.
Staring at Shiro's back, Iori's mom suddenly grew a little concerned for her daughter, Koyuki.
After all… Koyuki's also a bit of a loli, isn't she?
…
Around the corner of the inn
Shiro took a deep breath. "Whew… That was close. I almost got my reputation wrecked…"
(???)
"You dumbass, what reputation are you even talking about?"
Inui looked at Shiro with disdain. This guy had absolutely no self-awareness.
The boys from his former high school probably all wanted to hire a hitman by now, and yet he still thinks he has a "reputation" to lose?
As for being mistaken for a middle schooler by Shiro's aunt…
Inui had already gotten used to that. Aunt Keiko once mistook her for an elementary schooler!
What could she do? She wanted a perfect figure too!
But it's not like she chose this! She was born this way, alright?!
Damn it!
She found herself envying her younger sister, Shinju's body, for the 999th time.
But now wasn't really the time to be worrying about that.
Still a bit confused about the situation, Inui asked directly, "So… what exactly is going on right now?"
"Ah, did I not tell you before?"
"Tell me what?"
"That I came back here with some friends from the club."
"..."
Inui didn't respond. She just stared at him in silence, her eyes filled with murderous intent.
(;?＿?)
Shiro awkwardly turned his head, feeling a bit embarrassed. He had been so caught up dealing with Kenjiro that he really did forget to mention this part.
Then, he explained everything about why they had come back.
"Anyway, that's pretty much it."
"So… you're attending school in Izu now?"
"…Are you sure that's the part you should be focusing on?"
The corner of Shiro's mouth twitched. He had just said a ton of stuff, and that's all she took in?
Inui's expression gradually turned dangerous. "There's no problem with that. Since you're in Izu… have you run into Kiyoko and Busujima?"
{{(°△°; "}}!
"You…"
How do you know that?!
Seeing the shock on Shiro's face, Inui knew she had hit the mark. Her little fists began pounding relentlessly on his stomach.
"I specifically started tracking those two just to look for you!"
She had originally planned to come to Izu soon anyway—but unexpectedly, she ran into the Kamishiro family on the way.
And now that she thought about Busujima and Kiyoko being in the same college as Shiro, she couldn't help but feel a little wronged.
She was very upset!
Her little fists kept hammering away at him. "You jerk, you jerk! You left without saying goodbye and just ran off to be with other shady women!"
The more she thought about it, the more wronged she felt. Tears began welling up in Inui's eyes.
Seeing the teary-eyed girl in front of him, Shiro felt a sharp pain in his chest
He gently embraced her not daring to squeeze too tightly.
"I didn't forget, I didn't forget about you, inui~"
"But… but you never contacted me…"
Inui sobbed in his arms. He had promised once to help her protect the world, hadn't he?
"I didn't want to distract you from your studies. I've kept your cosplay outfit safe all this time—how could I possibly forget about you?
Besides, the last time I went to Tokyo, it was to find you~"
Hearing that, Inui lifted her head. "Really?"
Shiro patted her head and smiled. "Really."
"No—wait a minute!"
Just when she was starting to believe him, Inui suddenly snapped out of it. "If you really came to find me, then why didn't you message me?"
"..."
Shiro's mouth twitched. Why? Obviously because he was running for his life!
"W-Well… I wanted to surprise you, you know? But then those beasts found me halfway through…"
This was only half a lie, so it didn't really count as lying!
"But…"
Before Inui could finish her sentence, her lips were once again silenced by Shiro's finger.
He looked at her gently. "I know what you're going to say, but how could I ever let my girl be put in danger?"
At that moment,
Inui believed him completely—and kissed him right on the lips!
Just as Shiro was about to go in for a full-on French kiss and seal the deal…
Inui suddenly pulled away and wrapped her arms around his waist. "One last question!"
"…Go ahead."
"In the past two months, have you had any contact with Kiyoko or Busujima?"
!!!
This was a deeply dangerous question—one that could pierce the conscience like a dagger.
And even the slightest hesitation could give him away.
Unfortunately for her…
The one she was questioning was Shiro!
He didn't flinch even a bit.
"Of course not! I've been focused on studying! I've been in the lab every single day!"
Lies. Pure lies.
Anyone familiar with Shiro would know that was complete nonsense.
But in this moment… Inui believed him!
She'd secretly recorded it, anyway—she'd play it later just to provoke Kiyoko and Busujima!
Having gotten the answer she wanted, Inui gave him another sweet kiss.
This time,
Shiro was ready to properly show off his kissing skills.
However—
"Shiro?!"
A sudden shout interrupted him…
Recognizing the voice, Shiro silently wept inside.
(*?????)
Man, even sticking your tongue out is hard these days…
In the Kitahara family's living room—
Everyone sat kneeling, their expressions full of emotion.
Iori and Kohei had looked ready to kill ever since they walked in.
Chisa looked shocked, reaching for her phone to call 110.
Aina was furiously jotting down notes in her notebook:
"XX month XX day — Shiro caught making out with a pink-haired girl who looks like an elementary schooler in Iori's family inn."
As for Inui… she was red-faced, practically wishing she could disappear.
Caught red-handed again.
Kissing again!
Damn it!
Can't she just have one proper kiss?!
And what about the other party involved, Shiro?
He was calmly sipping his tea—not a trace of awkwardness for being caught.
How laughable. He was a man who had lived through explosions.
"So, who is this?"
Chisa, the most composed of the group, finally asked. How was it that in just a few hours, Shiro had picked up a girl who looked like a grade-schooler?
"Girlfriend!"
This time, whether it was out of panic or instinct, Inui had learned to answer quickly, probably due to sensing some kind of threat from Chisa or Aina.
Bang!
As soon as the words left her mouth, Iori and Kohei pulled out bags of cement.
"Hey, Shiro-san, I recall that under Japanese law, abducting little girls is illegal."
"Guess we'll just have to serve justice ourselves!"
Iori and Kohei grinned evilly. Clearly, they were ready to clean house.
How dare he hide a grade-schooler girlfriend in his hometown?!
(???)
"Calm down, you two. She's a legal loli."
Bang~
When Shiro described her as a loli, a dangerous glint flashed in Inui's eyes. She punched him in a spot hidden from others' view.
That punch landed nearly on Shiro's little buddy, making him suck in a breath of cold air.
Meanwhile, Iori and Kohei weren't fools either — of course they picked up on the flirting between them.
They grew even angrier.
(亾?°?д°?)
"Damn it, you bastard! If you want to flirt, go somewhere else!"
"You pervy lolicon! This one's a loli, and the one before—Mafuyu-chan—was too!"
Σ(っ °Д °;)っ
Shiro had been unfazed before, but the moment he heard "Mafuyu-chan," he started to panic. Before he could explain, a small hand had already pinched the soft flesh.
Then Inui spoke, a little tsundere, "Mafuyua or whoever — that's all in the past!"
"..."
Looking at Inui who was clinging to Shiro, Chisa gave him a questioning look.
After all, even though Shiro had a body count in the hundreds, it was said that he'd never had a girlfriend.
This guy was a top-tier scumbag! Even Kiyoko and Busujima had tried so hard but never gotten the title of girlfriend.
So who was this girl?
A childhood friend?
But if she was a childhood friend, Iori would know about it.
Facing everyone's gaze, Shiro simply said three words, "From A Cerian high school."
"OK, got it!" ×4
???
Inui blinked in confusion. Got what?
Why does saying the name of her high school suddenly make everything make sense to them?!
Now she couldn't keep up with the flow!
Unlike Inui, when Iori and the others heard "A Cerain high school," they immediately understood her identity.
Just lump her in with Kiyoko and Busujima — same level.
After all, they'd become numb to Shiro's high school Casanova adventures.
They were just curious why this girl had shown up in Shiro's hometown.
Had the scumbag's final hiding place been exposed?
Noticing the questions in everyone's eyes, Shiro sighed and said, "Inui-chan is someone my mom met in China."
"China?"
"You guys met overseas?!"
Shiro nodded and then explained how his mom had "kidnapped" Inui.
"..."
Everyone's eyes flashed with disbelief. The odds of that happening were lower than winning the lottery.
"As expected of Aunt Keiko…"
Iori murmured with emotion, recalling the time when Aunt Keiko had scammed him out of a lollipop using two leaves during childhood.
"Little Iori, look what I've got~"
"Leaves!"
"Nope, these are candy made from leaves — super tasty."
"Eh? Really? I wanna try!"
"Sure, but you gotta trade your lollipop~"
"Ummm..."
"I'll trade you two of these for one lollipop!"
"Okay!"
Thinking back to that memory, tears welled up in Iori's eyes. He could still remember the taste of those leaves (*?????)
Although he was insanely jealous of Shiro, Iori still introduced himself kindly. After all, cute girls have cute friends, right? Maybe she'd introduce someone to him too.
With everyone making introductions, Inui gradually relaxed. Even if they teased her, she wasn't going to be the one flustered.
And honestly, she was quite curious about Shiro's friends.
After all…
At that high school, Shiro practically had no normal friends!
Forget friendly interaction — if they weren't drawing swords at each other on sight, that already counted as a close friendship.
"Hello everyone, I'm Inasa Shouha, Shiro's girlfriend. Just call me Inui."
Inui introduced herself, a little excited. Did this count as meeting her boyfriend's friends?
Now that she'd met his parents and friends — wasn't the next step just around the corner?
(づ︶ど)
Poor Inui didn't know — she was already behind the curve. This was probably the fourth girl Iori and the others had met. And as for calling herself his girlfriend, they'd already heard Kiyoko and Sakurako use that title before…
Bang!
As soon as Inui finished her sentence, someone lost their composure.
"Inui?!"
Kohei stared in disbelief at the pink-haired girl clinging to Shiro.
Then he leaned in closer, as if trying to confirm something.
"Eh?"
Inui was so startled she hid behind Shiro.
"Calm down — your spit's all over my face."
Shiro pushed Kohei away in disgust, completely clueless as to why the guy was freaking out. What about the name Inui?
Was it famous?
Very...
Wait!
It was kind of famous!
It suddenly clicked. Inui was a well-known cosplayer.
People in the cosplay circle might never have seen her in person, but everyone knew the name.
And Kohei…
Gulp.
Shiro swallowed hard. Kohei was a hopeless otaku!
Now realizing his mistake, Shiro understood just how badly he'd messed up.
He tried to stop it — but it was already too late...
"Excuse me, are these photos of you?"
Kohei excitedly opened Twitter, pulling up the social account Shoushou had once registered for herself.
It was full of Inui's various cosplay photos!
Seeing Kohei so worked up, Inui hesitated but nodded. Was this...a fan?
She felt a bit dazed. Although she knew many people liked her cosplay photos online, this was her first time meeting a fan in real life.
But what Inui didn't know was that this one nod sent Shiro into despair.
Once confirmed, Kohei grinned sinisterly and turned around. "Shiro～"
"..."
Shiro glanced around — yup, didn't look easy to escape.
He sighed, pulled out a blindfold from behind, and covered his eyes. Calmly sipping tea, he said:
"Just don't hit the face."
Bam! Bam! Bam!