Seeing that Tanaka's parents didn't try to strike up too much conversation with her, Yukinoshita Yukino quietly let out a sigh of relief.
She truly wasn't good at dealing with situations like this. Being able to eat quietly and peacefully like this was the most comfortable thing for her.
As for the others present—
Jahy didn't care at all and was completely focused on eating.
Tanaka Masao usually had lunch with Yukinoshita Yukino every day, while breakfast and dinner were with his parents.
This situation was just a combination of the two, so it didn't really affect him.
The only ones who felt somewhat stiff were Mr. and Mrs. Tanaka.
They were very curious about Yukinoshita Yukino—curious about how she and Tanaka Masao had met, and what kind of relationship they had.
But seeing Yukinoshita Yukino's quiet and elegant demeanor, they forcibly suppressed their urge to speak and simply ate in silence.
Still, their gazes would occasionally drift toward Yukinoshita Yukino as they sighed inwardly.
[She really is a perfect young lady.]
...
After dinner ended, it was already quite late.
Yukinoshita Yukino stood up to take her leave. The Tanaka couple walked her to the door and asked Tanaka Masao to make sure to escort her home safely.
It was already past seven in the evening, and the sky had completely darkened.
Although the streetlights illuminated the road, some corners were still pitch-black.
Tanaka Masao and Yukinoshita Yukino walked side by side along the quiet street.
Having walked with Yukinoshita Yukino many times before, Tanaka Masao didn't know if it was just his imagination, but he felt that she was standing noticeably closer to him than usual.
[Is she afraid of the dark?]
Recalling the original canon, Yukinoshita Yukino did seem to be a little afraid of the dark.
[She usually looks so strong—like she can handle anything—but she has her own weaknesses too. When you think about it that way, Yukinoshita Yukino actually has a lot of moe points.]
Tanaka Masao took the initiative to start a conversation.
"Yukinoshita-san feels especially quiet today."
"Quiet? What do you mean by quiet?"
Yukinoshita Yukino asked with some curiosity.
"Well, you see—you didn't roast me even once this afternoon. Especially when my parents were around, you barely said anything."
"Could it be that Yukinoshita-san is actually shy around people?"
Yukinoshita Yukino looked him up and down, seeming to think it over.
"So me not being sharp-tongued makes Tanaka-kun feel physically unwell? If that's the case, I suppose I could reward you a little."
"You perverted masochist, Tanaka-kun."
"Or is something this mild no longer enough for you? Would you prefer that I let your parents know exactly what kind of person you are—right in front of them?"
Tanaka Masao: Oh, the familiar feeling. The familiar formula. It's back. Everything's back.
Ah, this feels so much better.
After a brief pause, Yukinoshita Yukino continued,
"As for what you said about being shy… I'm just not very good at social interaction."
[Isn't that basically being shy?]
Tanaka Masao complained inwardly.
"Ahem—just to clarify, I'm not a masochist."
"Your parents didn't make things awkward for you, did they?"
Yukinoshita Yukino selectively ignored Tanaka Masao's first statement. When it came to lies, she never believed them.
"Your parents are very nice."
Thinking back on Tanaka Masao's parents, Yukinoshita Yukino held them in high regard.
Gentle, and knowing where to draw the line—that was her favorite way of interacting with people.
In fact, she felt a bit envious of the atmosphere in Tanaka Masao's household.
Ordinary, yet warm.
When she thought about her own family—
She liked her gentle father very much, but because of his work, he was rarely home.
Her mother was strict and domineering. Yukinoshita Yukino desperately wanted her mother's approval.
But compared to her, her mother preferred her older sister—who excelled in every aspect and carried everyone's expectations.
On top of that, Yukinoshita Yukino had gone abroad for elementary school.
All of this led to her relationship with her family becoming somewhat distant.
Not only was she isolated at school—at home, she was also in a state of being ignored and emotionally isolated.
As a result, she wasn't very happy at home either, living under the shadow of her mother and sister.
That was why Yukinoshita Yukino chose to move out and live alone.
Even someone as strong as Yukinoshita Yukino chose to run away when it came to her own family.
Hearing Yukinoshita Yukino praise his parents, Tanaka Masao couldn't help but smile.
"I think they're great too. I really like them."
He felt fortunate—whether in his past life or this one, he had met wonderful parents.
...
The two chatted idly as they walked.
Before long, they arrived at Yukinoshita Yukino's apartment.
Looking at the tall, luxurious building in front of him, Tanaka Masao subconsciously glanced in the direction of his own home.
He walked home with Yukinoshita Yukino every day, usually parting ways at an intersection not far from his house, so he knew their homes weren't very far apart.
Now that he knew exactly where she lived, he realized that this building was actually visible from his house.
Noticing that Tanaka Masao seemed to be looking at something, Yukinoshita Yukino followed his gaze.
But she didn't see anything in particular, so she asked,
"What are you looking at?"
Hearing this, Tanaka Masao pointed in the direction of his home.
"That's the direction of my house. You can see this apartment building from there."
Following where he pointed, Yukinoshita Yukino simply replied,
"Oh, is that so?"
She had a bit of a poor sense of direction and hadn't noticed it before.
After glancing that way a couple more times, she withdrew her gaze.
"I'll head upstairs now."
"Alright. It's late, so I'll head home too. See you tomorrow."
"See you tomorrow."
Tanaka Masao waved at Yukinoshita Yukino and headed home.
Watching Tanaka Masao's retreating figure, Yukinoshita Yukino turned and went upstairs.
After opening the door to her apartment, despite knowing no one else was there, she still unconsciously said,
"I'm home."
There was no response.
Looking at the dark, quiet room—perhaps because she had just come back from the lively atmosphere of the Tanaka household—
Yukinoshita Yukino, who normally felt nothing about this, suddenly felt lonely and desolate.
This silence felt a little frightening. She didn't like it, and for a moment, she didn't even want to step inside.
She shook her head, trying to force those thoughts and emotions out of her mind.
Turning on the lights, the room brightened, and the gloom in her heart eased considerably.
After tidying up a bit, Yukinoshita Yukino took a change of clothes and went into the bathroom.
As her body sank into the bathtub and was wrapped in warm water, she closed her eyes in comfort.
There were two moments in her day that she enjoyed the most—this was one of them.
As for the other—
It was after bathing, with a cup of warm milk in hand, sitting on the sofa while watching her favorite TV program.
Watching the panda daily-life show on TV, Yukinoshita Yukino couldn't help but feel healed by the adorable creatures, her whole body warming up.
"It's been quite a while since I last went to the zoo…"
The thought crossed her mind, but the moment she realized she would be going alone, she lost interest in such a lively place.
Her gaze drifted toward the night outside the window, and she suddenly recalled what Tanaka Masao had said earlier—
That from his house, he could see the apartment where she lived.
As if possessed, Yukinoshita Yukino walked over to the balcony and looked in that direction from memory.
"It should be that house, right?"
In her field of view, many houses were lit up.
Yukinoshita Yukino focused on one of them. Her intuition told her—that must be Tanaka Masao's home.
...
Meanwhile, Tanaka Masao, who had already returned home, suddenly heard the system's notification sound in his head.
[Corruption Value +10]
He had no idea that this was because Yukinoshita Yukino, after experiencing the warmth of a family, had become somewhat enamored with that feeling—and had provided him with points.
At this moment, Tanaka Masao had no time to care about the system notification at all.
Because right now, he was facing a crisis.