Chapter 127
"Ever since I officially met you, Erina, I've realized that you hold a completely different status in my heart!"
At first, upon hearing Mineo say she had the temperament of a "Great Young Lady," Erina had been all set to kick him in a fit of rage.
But now, hearing him claim she held a special place in his heart, her mind suddenly went taut with tension. Her hands balled into tight fists, and her entire body stiffened.
"What... what is the meaning of this!?"
"After meeting me... I have a different status in your heart?"
"I... I don't really understand..."
Seeing Erina's incredibly strained expression, Mineo couldn't help but roll his eyes.
"I say, My Lady, why are you so easily flustered tonight? Aren't the words I said pretty easy to grasp?"
"Initially, I just thought of you as a good friend, Erina... but then, the moment we met in person, I suddenly felt that if a girl as beautiful as you were kept as just a friend, I'd surely be struck by lightning, wouldn't I?"
"Look, I was just thinking of trying a little harder to make you my girlfriend..."
"If I could actually win the heart of a Young Lady like you, just imagine how many people would be dying of envy when we walked out together!"
Having said his piece, Mineo took another look at Erina, scanning her from head to toe.
"Even though you can be quite the tsundere sometimes... you're still a very kind-hearted person!"
"Most importantly, you're beautiful, you've got a great figure, and you have such an aura! You're exactly my type!"
"Therefore... right now, in my heart, I really want to make you my girlfriend..."
After listening to Mineo's long-winded explanation, Erina finally understood what he was actually trying to say.
It turned out this bastard, from the very first moment he laid eyes on her, had been conquered by her face and her aura? He had been planning to get his hands on her since the very beginning!
This meant she had been his target all along, hadn't she?
At that moment, an indescribable sense of shame welled up inside Erina. She abruptly stood up from her chair.
"Mineo, you absolute bastard..."
"So you've been aiming for me since the start, haven't you!?"
"To think I always thought of you as a dear friend... but you actually wanted to..."
"Back in my home in China, there's an ancient saying: A graceful and beautiful lady is the ideal mate for a gentleman!"
"Even though you're quite far from the word 'graceful,' Erina, I still have very strong feelings for you."
"Look, I've already bared my heart to you. Won't you officially consider dating me?"
"Even though the gap between us is still quite large, don't worry, I definitely won't look down on you..."
Seeing Mineo speak so seriously about such infuriating things, Erina instantly exploded in anger!
"You bastard, just go die already!"
Overwhelmed by shame and fury, Erina could no longer contain herself. She swung her leg out and stomped hard on the top of Mineo's foot.
"Who... who would ever want to date you!?"
"And who exactly is the one with the 'large gap' between us!?"
"Let me tell you, a monthly annoying man like you—this... this Young Lady won't ever have special feelings for you!"
"Even if you chase me, I definitely... I definitely won't... mmpf..."
Erina's words were cut short, unable to continue.
Because this bastard Mineo had just taken an incredibly bold action that she never could have anticipated!
Mineo reached out his arms and pulled Erina's light frame directly into his embrace. Before the tsundere Young Lady could even think of rebelling or fighting back, he moved straight in and kissed her on the mouth.
In that split second, Erina's brain suffered a total short circuit. Her mind went completely blank. Logic, thoughts—everything vanished in an instant.
Meanwhile, Mineo's arms around her slender waist grew even firmer. With their lips pressed together, Erina's eyes were mere inches away from his. Their gazes met, staring at one another in a quiet, heavy silence.
It took a full ten seconds before Erina finally snapped back to reality and realized exactly what was happening to her!
She was... being forcibly taken advantage of by this bastard Mineo? She was being bullied by this guy!? Her first kiss—something that as a girl should have been the most beautiful thing—was just gone?
In an instant, she went nuclear.
She struggled with all her might within his arms.
"Mmpf... you bastard... you... let me go this instant..."
"Get... get your hands off me!"
"Mineo... you..."
Only after Erina had been struggling for a good while did Mineo finally release his hold. Seeing the Young Lady looking like she was about to launch a full-scale assault on him, Mineo immediately threw his hands up in a gesture of surrender.
"Um, if I were to say that everything that just happened was a misunderstanding..."
"Erina, would you happen to forgive me...?"
At that moment, Erina's beautiful eyes looked as if they were about to spit fire. Her entire body trembled with rage.
"How... how could you possibly..."
"Mineo, you total bastard..."
"You..."
Truthfully, the moment Mineo had moved to actively hug her, Erina's mind had gone empty. Then, upon coming to her senses, a hard-to-describe sense of shame and tension had flooded her heart.
But now, this man had taken advantage of her—had even... even kissed her! And yet his mouth dared to claim it was all a 'misunderstanding'?
Erina truly felt like grabbing a knife and stabbing Mineo a few times. How could there be a man so infuriatingly shameless in this world!
In all honesty, Mineo could now be considered an experienced veteran on the battlefield of love. He was a firm believer in the principle that if you take the initiative, a story will follow! He could already feel from Erina's attitude and behavior that she had developed a strong sense of liking and trust toward him.
Since that was the case, he didn't need to hide his feelings anymore! Ever since he learned that Erina was real, hadn't he already decided to protect her properly?
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