"Hmm? The eighth floor?"
The elevator doors slowly opened, and Yu stepped out.
However, looking at the corridor decoration on the eighth floor, Yu felt that something was off.
The corridor on the eighth floor was not brightly lit like the other floors; on the contrary, it was somewhat dim, and the lights had a purple-red hue, creating an ambiguous atmosphere. At first glance, the place looked more like a nightclub.
"Hmm? Are Tachibana-san and the others really going to discuss business here?"
Frowning slightly, Yu muttered.
He had a feeling that something was not right. Considering the personalities of Tachibana Gen and Nakano Maruo, they probably would not discuss business in this kind of environment, would they?
However... Yu did not decide to leave, because he could clearly sense Marika's presence.
Since I'm already here, I might as well see what kind of game that girl is playing.
Yu was just about to knock on the mahogany door of Suite 801 when he noticed that the door was not locked.
Still, so as not to disturb Marika if she was changing clothes or doing something private, Yu decided to knock just in case.
Knock, knock.
"Marika, are you inside?"
After knocking, Yu called out toward the interior of the suite.
"Right away!"
As soon as Yu finished speaking, he heard Marika's response, accompanied by the sounds of hurriedly tidying up the room, followed by the sound of running water.
A few moments later, the mahogany door in front of the young man opened.
The door opened, revealing a charming young woman wrapped in a bathrobe, her face flushed, while her hair and long eyelashes were still covered with droplets of water.
"Yu! Why are you here? I just got out of the shower!"
Upon seeing Yu, a mischievous smile flashed through Marika's eyes.
As she spoke, she stepped forward and hugged Yu, completely unconcerned that she was wrapped only in a not-so-thick bathrobe.
At that moment, Yu was pressed tightly against Marika; if he simply lowered his gaze, he would be able to see everything.
However, faced with such a seductive Marika, Yu felt that something was not right.
Although Marika was usually very affectionate, today she seemed a little... too deliberate?
He had clearly heard Marika tidying something up when he had called out to her earlier, and the sound of water had only started a moment later, which meant... Marika had intentionally lured him with her current appearance?
Thinking about that, the corners of Yu's lips slightly curled upward.
Gently tapping her nose, he asked:
"So, Marika just took a shower? Did I interrupt you?"
As he spoke, Yu's enchanting purple eyes met the girl's gaze.
For some reason, when her eyes met Yu's, Marika felt as if she had been completely seen through, and a thought appeared in her heart:
"No way... does Yu know my plan?"
Realizing that now was not the time to panic, Marika forcefully suppressed the unease in her heart, grabbed the young man's hand, and said with a sweet smile:
"Of course not, but were you looking for me for something?"
"I heard from Yotsuba that Father and Tachibana-san were looking for me, but when I came upstairs, I only found Marika."
Yu had no intention of hiding the reason he came, so he honestly told the truth.
"Oh, so it was Yotsuba.
Father and Nakano-san went downstairs. They said that most of the guests had arrived and that they needed to greet them."
Hearing that, Tachibana Marika thoughtfully nodded her head, then casually came up with an excuse, led Yu into the room, and closed the door behind them.
Earlier, she had found Nakano Maruo and borrowed his phone.
Originally, she had planned to directly send Yu a message from Nakano Maruo's phone and call him upstairs, but she accidentally opened the wrong conversation and sent the message to a contact labeled [Daughter].
In Nakano Maruo's LINE account, there were five contacts labeled [Daughter], so Marika had no idea which one had received the message.
In addition, Nakano Maruo and her father were busy, so she could not keep the phone for long and quickly returned it.
Originally, she thought Yu would not come upstairs and planned to carry out her plan later, but she did not expect Yu to suddenly appear.
When she heard Yu's voice outside the door, Marika panicked and began putting away several small items she had prepared in the room, then briefly stood under the shower before finally coming to open the door.
Later, she would have to thank Yotsuba; fortunately, Yotsuba was the one who had received the message today.
Only... how should she carry out the next part of the plan? What she needed was still sitting in the drawer and had not been taken out yet.
Thinking about that, the girl's gaze fell on the drawer of the dressing table in the room; that was where the key item for her plan to win over Yu tonight was located!
"Marika, what are you thinking about?"
After entering the suite, Yu sat down on the bed under Marika's guidance.
However, after sitting down, Marika did not say a single word. Instead, she stared ahead absentmindedly, obviously lost in thought...
"Ah! N-no, nothing..."
Hearing the young man's voice, Marika suddenly snapped out of it, her face instantly turning red as she shook her head and stammered a reply.
"Marika is definitely plotting something."
Of course, Yu did not believe her words.
Narrowing his eyes, he spoke with complete certainty.
"I-I'll get Yu something to drink.
What would you like to drink?"
Under Yu's gaze, Marika felt as though her brain was rapidly overheating.
Thinking that having her plan exposed might affect the image of a "good girl" that Yu had of her, Marika gritted her teeth, stood up from the bed, and walked toward the dressing table.
Seeing this, Yu looked confused, then pointed toward the mini-fridge beside the LCD television and said:
"Marika, the drinks are over there~"
Hearing that, Marika's body stiffened. Swallowing nervously, she replied:
"I-I'm getting something!"
After saying that, Marika quickly walked to the dressing table, opened the drawer, and looked at the bottle containing a pink liquid, excitement flashing in her eyes.
Holding the bottle in her hand, Marika took a deep breath, calming her excited heart.
Now came the crucial step: walk over to the mini-fridge and divide the contents of the bottle into two portions, dissolving them into the drinks.
Gulp.
Swallowing her saliva, the girl glanced toward Yu from the corner of her eye.
Seeing the young man lying on the bed and looking at his phone, she breathed a sigh of relief, then turned toward the fridge and asked:
"What would you like to drink, Yu? Green tea? Black tea? Or cola?"
"I don't mind."
The young man's response was relaxed, with a hint of laziness in his voice.
Hearing that, Marika decisively chose black tea; it would be harder to notice traces of the bottle's contents in it.
Opening the black tea, Marika also opened the bottle.
Just as she was about to pour its contents into the tea, Yu's voice suddenly sounded beside her like a ghost:
"Marika, what are you doing?"
"Aah!!!"
Hearing the voice, the already nervous Marika jumped in fright, and then, without thinking, poured the contents of the bottle she was holding directly into her mouth.
No matter what happens, Yu absolutely must not catch her!
Thinking that, Marika gritted her teeth and swallowed the contents in her mouth.
The very next moment, a feeling of heat appeared in her lower abdomen.
It's over, it's started working!