After deciding to give up, I became popular

After waiting a while longer, feeling utterly bored, he began to survey the room's decorations.

The room's layout wasn't particularly noteworthy; in his eyes, they all looked pretty much the same. What mattered was observing the small decorative details. For instance, the sofa he was sitting on had a panda head-shaped cushion next to it, and there were two panda plushies in the corner of the sofa. That much was understandable, given how much the Japanese loved pandas. However, many of the little trinkets on the coffee table were cat-related, which was quite absurd. Even the teacups were adorned with cat designs…

This was too much, thought Kanade Natsukawa, clicking his tongue.

But thinking about it, it wasn't surprising that someone who could have a conversation with a cat using 'meow, meow, meow' would have so many cat-themed items at home. One could only say that the title of 'Beneath the Meow' was well-deserved.

As he looked around, Natsukawa's gaze unconsciously drifted to the balcony.

By the time he realized something was amiss and tried to look away, his brain had already recorded everything he had seen in an instant. It was too late to avert his gaze now, and the phrase 'Lace, black…' began to loop madly in his mind.

Snow Woman-san… unexpectedly bold…

"Perhaps… I saw it wrong?" Natsukawa murmured, thinking it would be better to observe a little more, just in case he had misread the situation.

Afterward, he glanced somewhat guiltily towards the bedroom, and after confirming that the door remained still, he turned back to verify his thoughts, to see if he had really been hallucinating.

"Right… just to verify my guess…"

One glance, two glances, three glances… his eyes became fixed.

As everyone knows, mere fabric is meaningless, valueless, unless it's worn—but then again, human imagination is boundless. If you can see the fabric, of course you can imagine it being worn, and you can even fantasize about the image of someone wearing only that little bit of fabric…

This was quite stimulating, especially when he realized that the subject of his fantasy was in the next room and might have just taken off all but a few pieces of clothing. Similar images began to overlap.

"Hmm… black and white… truly wonderful… And this bikini isn't bad either, but this size… was it a mistake, or is there a lot of room for expectation?" Natsukawa muttered, "It can't be the even more ridiculous 'looks thin in clothes, but is ripped when undressed' situation, right?"

"What are you saying?" A slightly questioning voice came from behind.

"I was saying…" Natsukawa turned around instinctively, but immediately saw Yukino Yukinoshita's furrowed brow.

"…"

Don't panic! It's not a big deal! It's just that the person you were commenting on about their figure caught you in the act. Just a minor fatal wound…

"No, nothing…" Natsukawa's eyes darted around, but he still tried to maintain his composure.

He had to gamble, gamble that he could bluff his way through.

"Speaking, speaking of which, why were you so slow? I thought you had fallen asleep in the bedroom…"

The attempt to change the subject was too obvious, and his tone already sounded very guilty, so Yukinoshita maintained a suspicious attitude.

"…"

Suddenly, she seemed to remember something and followed Natsukawa's gaze, immediately spotting the items fluttering gently in the breeze on the balcony.

Fluttering freely with the wind~

"…" In an instant, Snow Woman-san began to heat up, her cheeks flushing red.

Then, she ignored Natsukawa's awkward gaze and, disregarding her injured foot, strode towards the balcony.

Watching her movements, Natsukawa naturally understood that he had been exposed and that his open appraisal had been discovered. He became nervous.

The awkward atmosphere didn't last long. Yukinoshita reacted quickly, gathering the lace-trimmed black lingerie and bikini without hesitation, and even the seemingly unremarkable cat-themed panties, taking them all away in one swoop.

A complete sweep.

After Yukinoshita returned all the clothes to the bedroom, she slowly walked back to the living room, but the look in her eyes had completely changed.

"You… saw everything?"

If it could be described with a pie chart, it would be roughly three parts shyness, six parts anger—and ninety-one parts murderous intent.

"No! No, really, I didn't…" Natsukawa's voice grew weaker and more guilty, knowing that his statement was completely untenable.

"Alright, fine, actually I… saw a little bit…" Natsukawa managed to utter the words with difficulty.

But he wasn't completely lying. For example, he had only glanced at the cat-themed panties before deciding that cuteness wasn't as impactful as sexiness. So, his gaze ultimately focused on the bolder fabrics.

"Then tell me clearly, what did you see?" Snow Woman-san stared at him intently, as if she was about to kill him to silence him.

"Uh…" Natsukawa was silent, then finally opened his mouth with difficulty, "Cat… cat ears…"

Compared to the lace-trimmed black lingerie and bikini, the cat ears panties were more likely to ease the atmosphere!

Sorry to his conscience, this time it wasn't character losing to cuteness, but survival instinct overcoming the pursuit of truth!

238. Yukino's Feelings

Saying he didn't see anything would definitely not work. Yukinoshita wasn't stupid and would never believe him. So, he tried to 'downplay the important and emphasize the trivial,' thinking that this might make Yukinoshita less embarrassed and angry, and help her calm down a bit. But the result was…

The look in her eyes became even more fierce, but also mixed with a very strong sense of shame. To make an analogy, it was almost like—a normally aloof and indifferent cat suddenly being discovered by its owner, secretly kissing and licking his photos in various cringe ways.

That's what he thought, feeling that it was almost that kind of feeling. No wonder Yukinoshita would feel ashamed. Empathizing, it could be seen as the feeling brought about by being noticed that he was 'actually also very perverted.'

In the end, she still didn't believe what he said… although he himself didn't believe it either.

But even though Yukino's eyes were so fierce and sharp, she didn't say anything ruthless. She just stared at him with a murderous look, and he shrank back, sitting uneasily on the sofa, also silently lowering his head.

Time passed little by little. Natsukawa himself didn't know how long it had been, but he could feel that at some point, after taking a deep breath, Yukinoshita finally spoke slowly: "Forget it…"

"It's my own fault for not telling you to cover your eyes and not look around."

"…" Natsukawa didn't retort, even thinking that if she really did that, he would probably think even more and feel itchy, wondering if Yukino had some unspeakable little secret.

"Perhaps I shouldn't have let you in in the first place. It would have been better to wait outside…" Yukino's mental state might also be having some issues, actually starting to talk to herself in front of him, "But that would make me seem very inhospitable… I guess it would be better to 'blind' your eyes."

Natsukawa: "…"

Um… that's a criminal statement, Snow Woman-san?

After venting for a while, Yukinoshita finally became a little calmer, returning to her usual aloof and unapproachable appearance.

"What are you sitting here for? Do you want to do something else shameless?"

"Uh…" Natsukawa was stunned, then said weakly, "I'm just waiting for your orders…"

He felt like they had returned to the past, when he often deliberately made her angry to get her attention, but this time it was truly unintentional… But if he had to do it again, he would still do it.

For no other reason than—it was good to look at, the kid liked to see it.

Perhaps seeing that his attitude was still sincere, Yukinoshita's tone was obviously less irritable, but she was clearly unwilling to treat him too kindly, simply pointing to the table at the kitchen entrance and saying to him in a clearly disdainful tone: "Take that bag on the table… consider it thanks for helping me yesterday."

Natsukawa followed the direction of her finger and found that there was indeed a bag of small items on the table that had been carefully wrapped. With his eyesight, he could barely make out what they were—it seemed to be a bag of cookies, but he didn't know if they were Yukino's handmade creations.

Considering her personality, they should be handmade, right?

Hmm… this trip was pretty good. He not only feasted his eyes but also got to take away the girl's feelings, although he was also looked down upon. But thinking carefully, he still made a profit. Natsukawa's mood was a little subtle.

"Take the stuff and leave quickly. Being in the same space as you makes the air unbearable," Yukinoshita wrinkled her little nose, as if to confirm her statement.

Natsukawa subconsciously smelled his sleeves and other places, wondering if it was the grilled meat he had eaten at noon that still left some scent. When he and Iino Miko separated, he had gone home first to change clothes and wash his hair, so it shouldn't be possible for any odor to remain, right?

Yukinoshita looked at his actions and felt a little speechless. She realized that this man seemed to have changed a lot. In the past, she didn't even need to hint like this, and he could understand her thoughts just by giving him a few glances. Although that also made her feel a little subtle, at least… there were more happy emotions, feeling that it was good that someone could understand her so well. But now, seeing him looking so dumb, she suddenly felt angry.

So, she snorted softly, leaving a sentence: "Normally, even a monkey could understand the atmosphere, but I really shouldn't have such expectations of you…" Then she ignored him, sitting on the other end of the sofa by herself, maintaining a very distant social distance from him.

"…"

Natsukawa blinked, looking at her seemingly angry appearance, feeling a little puzzled. But seeing her take the TV remote and a pillow, he thought she was about to create her own personal space, and he began to feel a little redundant.

Perhaps she originally had some things she wanted to say to him, but after what happened just now, she might have lost the mood. Her current behavior was clearly 'kicking him out.'

So, he nodded, indicating that he really understood.

"Then I'll take my leave…"

After saying that, Natsukawa stood up, looking like he was really about to leave.

When he walked to the dining table, picked up the bag of cookies, and stared at it, Natsukawa suddenly seemed to understand something—he hadn't responded to Yukino yet!

Just now, he had been worried that his behavior had soured the atmosphere, so he hadn't thought about anything else. Now that he thought about it, not only had he not responded to her gift of cookies, but he also hadn't responded to Yukino's change of clothes. He hadn't even said a simple "You look very beautiful, it suits you."

No wonder Yukino seemed a little unhappy. She probably felt that all her actions had been neglected…

Natsukawa nodded again, feeling that he was getting closer to the truth. And not only that, he hadn't formally asked about Yukino's foot injury. Instead, as soon as he arrived at her house, he started all sorts of 'strange' behavior. No wonder she was unhappy. Any girl would be like that. The fact that she hadn't lost her temper was already very calm and generous…

So, he turned back, poked his head into the living room, and launched a triple greeting to Yukino, who was already sitting on the sofa with a pillow, seemingly watching TV—

"I forgot to say just now… you look very beautiful in this outfit, the dress is also very cute, it suits you very well; and thank you very much for the cookies, if you made them yourself, they must taste even better; and also… although I think you should be able to take care of yourself, please pay more attention to your foot. Judging from my observations just now, I think you haven't recovered yet. It's better to walk less except when necessary. Of course, I can also provide some help, like bringing you food or something, just tell me…"

After thinking carefully, he felt that he hadn't missed anything. But such a series of statements also made Natsukawa himself a little embarrassed, because it always felt like he was locking the barn door after the horse had bolted, and saying too much at once seemed both overly concerned and perfunctory.

Fortunately, Yukino didn't turn around and look at him with that cold and disdainful look. So, he assumed that his thoughts had been properly conveyed. After saying these things, Natsukawa prepared to leave.

"Then I'll be leaving… See you at school," he added somewhat politely.

When Natsukawa pushed the door open and left, the room fell into a long silence, with only a few slight, regular sounds coming from the TV.

Yukino Yukinoshita stared blankly for a long time, finally letting out a soft sigh. She pursed her lips, pushed away the panda抱枕 she was holding—which he had given her in the past—and murmured, "Why can't I let go… Idiot… Couldn't you have tried harder to notice…?"

Just one glance from you, and I think of you morning and night.

Having thoughts is certainly no problem, but if she doesn't properly express these feelings, I'm afraid no one will ever know.

…

After leaving Yukino's house, Xia Chuanzou went straight home without lingering outside.

Because his relationship with Mahiru had returned to its previous intimate state, he rarely ate out. He was basically being fed by the angel. Although recent events had caused Mahiru to avoid him somewhat, she still brought dinner over as usual.

According to her, "Outside food isn't very good after all. Of course, it's more hygienic and healthy to make it myself."

He really wanted to retort, but after thinking about it, he decided to go along with the angel's wishes.

After dinner, he played a few games with Ishigami, and after playing together for a while, he went to bed early because he had to continue tutoring Eriri and Katou the next day.

Nothing was much different from yesterday, so there's no need to go into detail. Time flew by, and it was Monday, a workday.

The school's original arrangements were quite thoughtful. After the forest school training camp, there would be a few days of vacation, firstly to allow the students to relax, and secondly to alleviate the after-effects of activities such as the test of courage. However, they underestimated the spring hearts of the young men and women. Although they were well-behaved in class, they still couldn't escape the enthusiastic discussions after class.

Perhaps because of the two-day break, the desire to confide in person was even greater.

Thus, inside the student council.

"May all the happy people explode!" Ishigami Yu roared in alarm.

One can imagine what kind of days he spent during the forest school period… or rather, during the test of courage.

"I thought it would be over after two days, but when I came to school, I found that everyone was still discussing this kind of thing!" Ishigami Yu grabbed his scalp and said in a low voice, "Logically speaking, shouldn't the student's job be to study? What's so good about being in love! The fact that so-and-so and so-and-so became a couple because of this… I don't want to hear it at all!"

Perhaps he felt that venting alone wasn't enough, he even brought up the topic to Xia Chuanzou.

"President, don't you think so? Shouldn't the student's job be to study hard?!"

"…" Xia Chuanzou didn't know how to respond.

Because he… actually enjoyed it quite a bit, and in a sense, he might be the kind of 'happy person who should explode' that Ishigami was talking about… so he couldn't very well curse himself, could he?

"Ahem… If you're so envious, why don't you find someone to fall in love with?" Xia Chuanzou replied while dealing with official business. There was still a lot of work left over recently. Although most of it had been filtered out by his capable assistant, Kaguya, some important matters still had to be handled by him personally.

For example, a famous school in France was planning to start a student exchange program with their school, and he needed to personally take the initiative to connect with them.

"No, let me fall in love? I'd rather spend my time playing games." Ishigami Yu suddenly became serious and earnest again.

"If you fall in love, you have to constantly spend time communicating with each other. Not to mention during class, you definitely have to go out on dates on weekends, right? And it might be a whole day at once, and maybe you have to continue the next day, and then you have no time to play games at all; and that's not all, there will always be some conflicts and disputes, right? If you want to be in love, you have to actively solve these things, which will inevitably take a lot of effort, and you may not be able to get any results; and if you see the other party avoiding or neglecting you, you will become anxious and worried, right? You might even suspect that the other party is being unfaithful, which will inevitably lead to another round of trouble…"

"In conclusion, I, Ishigami Yu, will never touch anything like being in love! Isn't it better to play games?" Ishigami Yu made his final conclusion.

"…" Xia Chuanzou's expression was a little subtle.

Although that's what he said, he always felt that someone like Ishigami, who could carefully think about the reasons behind it and even consider all aspects, would be the most serious about love, because they simply couldn't compromise. They would only start taking action after meeting "the right person," and once successful, they wouldn't break up easily unless there was an extremely difficult reason.

Just as Xia Chuanzou was considering whether to respond to him, the student council door opened, and Shinomiya Kaguya and Fujiwara Chika appeared at the door.

After two days apart, Kaguya still had the elegant and dignified demeanor of a young lady, and Fujiwara Chika, of course, maintained her usual silly appearance, opening her mouth as an old jokester: "Where, where? I just heard the topic of love! It's time for me, the love detective—Detective Fujiwara, to take action!"

When she realized that no one was paying attention to her, she started to get angry.

"Damn it, you two idiots, you're actually ignoring my great Detective Fujiwara! I curse your path to love to become unusually bumpy and difficult!"

Even Xia Chuanzou was too lazy to pay attention to her, so he simply bypassed her and greeted Kaguya: "Good morning, Kaguya."