"Did I get more handsome?"
Arthur touched his face, pretending to look clueless.
"Playing dumb, are you?"
Hiratsuka Shizuka shot him a sideways glance. She didn't believe for a second that Arthur hadn't looked in the mirror.
"What do you mean 'playing dumb'? I've always been handsome. Maybe I just never paid much attention to it."
"But…"
The corners of Arthur's lips curved upward, a mischievous glint flashing in his eyes.
"There's that saying—'Beauty is in the eye of the lover.' Shizuka, if you think I've gotten more handsome, then could it be that you…"
He trailed off deliberately.
His gaze turned suggestive, ambiguous. He even leaned closer on purpose, locking eyes with her without blinking.
Their eyes met.
Shizuka's heart skipped a beat. A faint blush bloomed across her cheeks.
Coupled with Arthur's words, her chest thumped wildly like a startled deer.
To cover up her nervousness, she clenched her fists tighter, glaring at him with feigned irritation.
"You brat, what nonsense are you spouting? No respect at all. You dare flirt with me—do you want my fist in your face?"
As she spoke, she raised her right hand into a fist, shaking it threateningly.
She had a nickname—"Iron Fist Sensei."
Because once, she'd taught a pair of delinquents a "lesson" outside of school, and a few students had witnessed it. The story spread like wildfire.
From then on, she earned that nickname.
And because of it, most students feared her "fist of justice."
But to Arthur, it had zero intimidation effect.
He knew Shizuka wasn't someone who resorted to violence casually.
Of course, if someone was close enough to her… or annoyed her enough, she would throw a punch.
"Oh no, it's a fist as big as a sandbag! I'm so scared!"
Arthur covered his face with both hands, pretending to be terrified.
But as he said that, he peeked at Shizuka through his fingers, his lips curling into a smirk so wide it looked like even an AK couldn't suppress it.
"[○?｀Д?○]"
Shizuka's face instantly darkened at his cheeky act.
Her fists hardened. Really hardened.
Just as she was about to explode—
"I'm going to grab something."
Arthur suddenly tossed out that line with a grin, then turned and bounded upstairs toward the master bedroom.
"You brat…"
Shizuka couldn't help but laugh and curse under her breath when she saw him run off.
She didn't go inside; instead, she simply stood in the entryway, waiting.
As she waited, her mind replayed what had just happened.
That nervous flutter returned, her heartbeat speeding up again.
Her moments with Arthur since they'd met played like a reel in her head.
"Could it be…?"
Noticing the strange stirring in her heart, Shizuka was shaken.
She clearly saw Arthur as a little brother.
How could she possibly feel that way about him?
Impossible. Absolutely impossible!
It had to be his teasing words just now messing with her head, making her overthink.
She lightly patted her flushed cheeks with both hands.
Muttering under her breath:
"It's all that brat Arthur's fault. No sense of boundaries. Acting all grown-up when he's just a kid… even daring to tease his teacher."
"Next time he tries that, I'll have to teach him a real lesson."
"He needs to learn why my nickname isn't just for show."
After grumbling to herself, Shizuka took a few deep breaths, exhaling long and steady until she pushed down all those distracting thoughts.
Meanwhile, inside the house—
Arthur returned to his room, grabbed his phone, keys, and wallet.
He hesitated for a second, then slipped his Bluetooth earphones into his pocket as well.
Back at the entryway, he put on his shoes. Smiling at Shizuka, who was glaring at him lightly, he said:
"Let's go."
Shizuka shot him a glance.
She didn't respond, just strode straight outside.
"???"
Arthur blinked, puzzled.
Why did it suddenly feel like Shizuka was acting like his grumpy aunt or something?
Was she still upset about it earlier?
But knowing her, that didn't seem likely.
Still, he didn't bother to overthink it. With a faint smile, he followed after her.
A while later, Arthur sat in the passenger seat of Shizuka's Aston Martin, buckled in.
She started the car.
They pulled out of the residential area, heading for their lunch destination.
Arthur took out his phone.
Several people had messaged him—like Akashiya Moka and Satania.
He replied to them one by one.
Shizuka glanced at him out of the corner of her eye but said nothing, focusing on driving.
Half an hour later, they reached Shinjuku.
Shizuka parked in the lot beside an upscale restaurant, and the two of them headed in.
A staff member guided them to a private room on the second floor—it had already been reserved.
Shizuka opened the door.
"You're here."
A girl already seated at the dining table looked up at them with a warm smile.
Then she froze for a moment.
Her eyes widened, staring straight at Arthur.
"Am I imagining things?!"
That thought flashed through her mind.
For some reason, Arthur seemed much more attractive than before.
Closing the door behind him, Arthur smiled at the girl and greeted her:
"Long time no see, Sister Haruno. You've gotten even prettier."
Her full name was Yukinoshita Haruno.
She was the eldest daughter of the Yukinoshita family in Chiba, Japan.
She also had a younger sister—Yukinoshita Yukino.
Walking toward the table, Shizuka frowned slightly when she heard Arthur's words.
This brat.
Haruno blinked, her gaze shimmering with surprise and curiosity as she looked at him. A hint of amazement flickered in her eyes before she let out a soft laugh.
"Little Arty, don't tell me you've been going to a beauty salon lately?"
The last time they met had been half a month ago.
"See, I told you."
Shizuka pulled out a chair and sat down, grumbling, "This brat's definitely changed a lot."
"Not at all. I'm just naturally this good-looking."
Arthur sat down beside Haruno—on her left. Shizuka sat on her right.
No sooner had Arthur taken his seat than Haruno leaned closer, reaching out with her left hand to pinch his cheek.
Her expression shifted into astonishment.
"Just as I thought—your skin is ridiculously good."
"How do you even take care of it?"
Smooth, delicate, soft and fair.
Honestly, better than even her own carefully maintained skin.
Shizuka glanced at Arthur too.
She clearly wanted to know as well.
Despite her carefree personality, she was still a woman. Of course she cared about her looks.
Arthur chuckled. "But I don't do any skincare at all."
"For real?"
Haruno and Shizuka both looked doubtful.
They clearly didn't buy it.
"Why would I lie?"
"…Fine."
Sharing a glance, Haruno and Shizuka looked back at Arthur's earnest face and chose, for now, to believe him.
Then Haruno extended her right hand as well.
With both hands, she began to knead and pinch his face non-stop, sighing in admiration.
"So unfair. I'm so jealous."
Arthur narrowed his eyes on her. "Sister Haruno, are you just taking advantage of me on purpose?"
"Oh dear, I've been caught."
Haruno feigned a startled look, then broke into a playful smile.
Her soft hands continued kneading his cheeks.
Shizuka's eyes narrowed slightly at the scene, a flicker flashing in her gaze.
But she stayed silent. Just watching.
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