"Don't talk. Eat!"

Hearing the sudden female voice through the phone, Aoyama Nanami froze for a moment but didn't think too much of it.

She figured it must be just like in TV dramas—

The manager was probably sitting in some luxurious private room, listening to elegant violin music, eating some extravagant meal while discussing business.

'Is the manager eating Boston lobster and deep-sea abalone right now?'

Aoyama Nanami was just an ordinary girl at an ordinary high school.

Ordinary people couldn't imagine even a glimpse of life in the heavenly palaces above, so she could only imagine as far as luxury food like lobster and abalone.

"You… slurp slurp… want to forgive her?"

Hearing Takashi's strange, muffled voice accompanied by more slurping, Aoyama Nanami still found it odd, but said:

"I think she's already been punished enough."

Takashi let out a very faint chuckle.

Aoyama Nanami's answer didn't surprise him at all.

Although she had learned to be independent early and had more real-world experience than most high schoolers, in the end, she was still just a girl.

A naive, kind girl who hadn't been beaten down by society yet—someone who still believed in the future and that hard work could overcome anything.

Kind people were always softhearted.

Even if they'd been wronged or bullied, as long as the other party showed sincere regret, they'd forgive them.

Takashi liked this about Aoyama Nanami.

It was also why, despite knowing her part-time job was technically illegal, he still let her stay.

Kindness was a virtue—something he lacked.

Takashi was not a kind man, but he didn't mind having kind people around him.

"Put her on. I'll talk to her," Takashi said.

"Oh, okay." Just before handing the phone over, Aoyama Nanami couldn't resist asking, "Manager, can I ask you something?"

"Mm. Go ahead."

"Why are you always drinking water and never eating anything? Is the food not good?"

Takashi: "..."

"Pfft-haha!"

Takashi had it on speakerphone, so Hitomi heard everything.

She couldn't hold back her laughter.

Her delicate, fair body trembled from giggling.

"If you don't want me to curse your mom, hand the phone over. Now," Takashi growled as he got up and pounced on Hitomi.

"O-okay!"

Hearing that, Aoyama Nanami panicked.

She'd been cursed out by Takashi enough times to know—when he started insulting people, he didn't hold back.

And he always brought up people's moms.

Afraid her mother would be the next victim, she hurriedly passed the phone to Ueguchi Megumi.

"Whew…"

Knowing that what came next would decide her fate, Ueguchi took the phone, did a quick bit of mental prep, then spoke.

"Hello."

Takashi didn't respond immediately.

He was too focused on the woman in front of him, who was laughing uncontrollably in bed like a blooming white rose—pure and seductive all at once.

He couldn't resist leaning down to kiss her.

"Nope."

Hitomi blocked his lips with one hand.

Takashi: "?"

She just smiled at him and said nothing, clearly wanting him to guess.

Takashi figured it out quickly. He looked amused and annoyed. "Seriously? You're the one dripping, and you're still picky?"

"You turned your head away the last time I helped you. Remember?" Hitomi replied, still smiling sweetly.

She didn't mind talking about this sort of thing in bed with Takashi. Content originally comes from novel⁂fire.net

They were the closest people in the world now.

"That was different," Takashi argued.

Even the coldest, most ruthless man wouldn't hurt the one closest to his heart.

"You're such a hypocrite."

Hitomi rolled her eyes at him.

They'd known each other too long—she could read him like a book.

"However you treat me, I'll treat you the same. Seems fair, right?"

Hitomi had a strong personality and never bothered reasoning with others.

To her, everyone else was garbage—just like how Guan Yu looked at people after Lü Bu's death.

Reason with you? Who do you think you are? I am the truth.

But with Takashi, she was willing to reason.

Takashi was fuming, gritting his teeth as he tried to find her version of "reasoning" between the sheets.

'I'll give you reasoning. I'll reason with you good.'

Before long, Hitomi's face was flushed.

Ueguchi Megumi: "..."

Um, did you forget about me?

I'm still here!

Are you treating me like seasoning in your love story?

Damn Celestial Dragons!

Listening to the moaning sounds through the phone, Ueguchi felt like she was being forced to watch a porn scene.

She was no Aoyama Nanami.

Of course she knew exactly what was happening on the other end of that call.

'Is the manager being really harsh with her? Why isn't Miss Ueguchi saying a word?' Aoyama Nanami, relieved that she had passed the phone quickly, still felt bad for Ueguchi.

The manager was probably cursing out her entire family by now.

Fifteen minutes passed…

Ueguchi's knees were completely numb when Takashi's voice finally came through the phone.

"Still there?"

Ueguchi perked up and responded quickly, "Yes, I'm here!"

Aoyama Nanami: "?"

Wait… what were you two doing all this time?

"Ueguchi Megumi, that's your name, right?"

Takashi sat on the bed, grabbed a lollipop from the nightstand, and popped it into his mouth.

In his arms, someone was recovering their strength, preparing for round two.

As long as no unexpected guests showed up, they never stopped at fewer than three times a night.

The bare minimum was three. The max? Five or six, maybe—Hitomi had lost count.

Because that one time, she actually passed out.

"Yes, that's me. May I ask how I should address you, sir?"

"I'm Kitahara Takashi."

Takashi didn't hide anything.

Given how Aoyama Nanami was, even if he didn't tell her now, Ueguchi Megumi would probably wheedle the information out of her sooner or later.

So it was better to just reveal his identity.

Kitahara Takashi?

Ueguchi Megumi's heart tightened.

There was no way she hadn't heard that name.

Takashi's popularity was at its peak right now. Before him, no one ever imagined baseball could be run like an idol fandom.

When other schools won the Koshien summer championship, they might get a short burst of fame.

But nearly a month had passed since Takashi's victory, and even though the buzz had cooled somewhat, any news about him still made the trending topics without fail.

Right now, Takashi's influence on baseball was comparable to the infamous "Imperial Fierce Tiger" in the world of table tennis.

Now that she knew it was Takashi, Ueguchi Megumi suddenly understood why the directors and producers had replaced her so quickly.

That was Takashi.

Even if she counted all her fans, they wouldn't be able to outmatch his fandom for a single charge.

"You should be grateful you didn't do anything. Otherwise, what happened to Dōmoku Kai might've happened to you too."

If Dōmoku Kai had just scolded Aoyama Nanami, Takashi wouldn't have done anything to him.

That kind of thing is part of life.

Who hasn't been chewed out by a senior or boss?

But what Dōmoku Kai should never have done—was hitting Aoyama Nanami.

That was why Takashi got involved.

Of course, if something like this had happened directly to Takashi himself, with his personality, he wouldn't have spared either Ueguchi or Dōmoku Kai.

Still, since Aoyama Nanami chose to forgive Ueguchi, there was no need for him to hold a grudge.

After all, the victim here was Aoyama Nanami.

"You're smart. You apologized quickly."

Ueguchi Megumi felt a wave of relief at those words.

If she hadn't immediately come and performed a full-on dogeza apology, she had no doubt Takashi wouldn't have let her off.

"I'll let this matter go. But about Dōmoku Kai—"

"Don't worry, I'll handle him for you," Ueguchi replied quickly.

Even if Takashi didn't say anything, she had no intention of letting him go.

He knew too many of her secrets. If he stayed in good condition, her life would be ruined.

"Then I'll leave it to you."

With that, Takashi hung up the call.

He lowered his head to look at Hitomi in his arms.

"Wait... let's rest a little longer. I really can't… mmm..."

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