"Wow, that was delicious!!"
"How much are you eating? As an idol, you need to watch your weight."
"Huh? Aqua, you should be more considerate of girls!"
After finishing their meal at the hotel, Aqua and Ruby were having a playful argument, and Miyako, who had slowly followed behind, watched them with a pleased expression.
Unlike when they had come to the hotel, on the way back, they rode in the vehicle driven by Miyako herself, and upon safely returning home,
"Yume! This sofa is incredibly soft! It's at least twice as soft as the one at our house!"
"Sofas are all pretty much the same, what's the big deal..."
As he said that, Yume sat down on the sofa where Ruby was sitting.
"......It really is."
Aqua admitted that it was much softer than the sofa in the family home where Ai and Yume lived.
"I thought the youngest wouldn't have paid much attention to interior design. He's the type to focus on efficiency. Of course, I designed the rooms in your house myself."
"Really!? No wonder it felt so sophisticated!"
"Certainly..."
Considering Yume's personality, he would never have decorated a room like that.
Aqua, who knew Yume's personality to some extent, expressed a small thanks to Miyako in his heart for decorating his and Ruby's rooms.
"Well, since we've finished lunch, is there anything else you'd like to do? If you have any requests, just say the word."
"Hmm... Auntie, are you okay?"
"What do you mean?"
"I'm worried if we're causing any inconvenience to your work..."
"Oh my..."
Miyako showed a touched expression at Ruby's words and stroked Ruby's head, but
"A... Auntie, it's starting to hurt a bit...?"
"Just a little more, is that okay, Ruby-chan?"
"Auntie!?"
Aqua sighed quietly.
Miyako, as if she found Ruby too adorable, hugged her tightly and stroked her for nearly thirty minutes, and Ruby's carefully styled hair quickly became disheveled. Aqua, who had watched the entire scene from beginning to end, could only let out another quiet sigh.
After the stroking was over, Miyako released Ruby from her embrace and then said,
"Ruby-chan, there's no need to worry. With my level of experience, taking time off work is no problem at all. Besides, I didn't have any special work to do, so I was free anyway."
"I see~"
"Well, our father... is also free, so it's fine."
Aqua's words were spot on. After all, both Yume and Miyako were only doing entertainment work at Director Kuma's request, and their main jobs hadn't disappeared. In fact, after about ten years, they thought they had done enough.
"Then, Ruby-chan, Aqua-kun, aren't you curious about where the youngest works?"
"Papa's workplace!?"
"Can we go?"
Even though he had taken them to other places, he had never taken them to where he worked...
Seeing Aqua's thoughtful expression, Miyako slowly stroked his head and said,
"Well, I know that the youngest usually doesn't want to show you his original work. But it's natural for children to be curious about what their parents do. Oh, of course, I've gotten permission, so if you're okay with it, I'd like to show you around our company. What do you think?"
Miyako's offer was nothing short of groundbreaking. The place that everyone in the Japanese entertainment industry and beyond was most curious about was exactly where Yume and Miyako worked. Being able to see such a place without any restrictions was a tempting proposal for Aqua, who needed revenge, so just as he was about to accept the offer,
"I want to go!!!!!"
"Ruby?"
Ruby, with both hands raised high and an excited expression as she looked at Miyako, seemed like a child who couldn't contain her curiosity.
Aqua was quite surprised by this sight, and Miyako also seemed surprised by Ruby's behavior, but eventually nodded and said,
"Then it's decided. Since it'll probably take all day to see the important parts of our company, shall we leave now?"
"Yes, yes!!!!"
"Okay."
Thus began the Hoshino children's interesting company tour.
On the way to the company, they again rode in the vehicle driven by Miyako, and upon safely arriving at the company, instead of entering through the main gate,
"Aren't we going in through the main gate?"
"Fufu, Ruby-chan, this auntie is a high-ranking executive in this company, just like your father. There's no way we'd enter through the ordinary main gate, right?"
"I... I see!!"
"No, no, that can't be right."
Aqua tried to make a small objection, but it meant nothing to Ruby at the moment.
The vehicle carrying Ruby and Aqua slowly entered through the back gate, and Ruby had expected something special at the back gate, but her expectations
"It's... just an ordinary back door..."
were completely shattered.
"Ahahaha! Ruby-chan, you're so cute. Did you think there would be some special mechanism at the back door?"
"Ugh... Aqua, you knew, didn't you!?"
"No, I thought it was obvious that there wouldn't be..."
In the end, with Ruby's expectations in pieces, they entered the inside of the company. Upon entering, an incredibly vast space caught their eye, and
"Wow... it's huge..."
"I knew the company itself was big, but I didn't expect it to be this large."
"Fufu, that's why I told you, right? It'll probably take all day to see just the important things."
There was no lie in Miyako's words. Even if they only saw the important parts under her guidance, the company's branches were so enormous that it would take quite some time.
"Now, shall we start by going to where this auntie works?"
"Yes!!"
"S-sure..."
For a moment, Aqua recalled an old memory, which was from after Yume had been stabbed, during the hospital incident.
'Surely not... torture... right?'
Aqua erased that thought from his mind.
Noticing Aqua's contemplative expression, Miyako said,
"Ah, Aqua-kun, it seems you think the work I do is torture?"
"Eh... ah... yes..."
For a moment, he tried to say no, but Aqua, knowing that Miyako had eyes similar to Yume's, decided to speak his mind honestly.
Upon hearing Aqua's words, Miyako smiled wryly and said,
"I remember that was quite a while ago. You have a good memory."
"I have a bit of confidence in my memory."
"Fufu, that's right, Aqua-kun has a mature side that doesn't match his age. Yes... it feels like talking to an 'adult' similar to the youngest. But surely, there isn't another person inside Aqua-kun, right?"
"...T-that can't be."
For a moment, Aqua couldn't control his expression, but he barely managed to hide it as he replied. Of course, even that brief moment felt like slow motion to Miyako, but she decided to change the topic, thinking she might have scared him too much.
"Well, as Aqua-kun said, we do handle 'that kind' of work occasionally, but usually, security work is our main business. After all, the youngest and I are the type to be directly on the field. There are other executives too, and each has their own suitable work."
Aqua listened intently to Miyako's explanation as she walked ahead, following closely.
Ruby, with an expression of wonder at all the sights, followed behind Miyako and Aqua.