“Alright! I'll go down and drive you over. Mr. Su Rui and I will go together, you two can come down in a bit.”
Shizuka Hiratsuka, having received Su Rui's agreement, immediately brightened up, reached out and grabbed Mr. Su Rui's hand, then walked downstairs.
The two girls in the room, Shirai Kuroko and Yotsuya Miko, looked at each other. Just as they were about to wait a moment and follow Mr. Su Rui and Shizuka Hiratsuka, the box containing the talismans, which had been in the living room, floated up by itself and drifted in Mr. Su Rui's direction.
At the same time, Mr. Su Rui's voice, though from a distance, sounded as if he were standing in the room speaking to them:
“Alright, you can follow now. Little Shizuka was just a bit delirious with happiness.”
Yotsuya Miko and Shirai Kuroko immediately breathed a sigh of relief. They had thought the two of them were planning to do something in the car first, and then they would have to pretend not to know when they came down.
“Seriously, couples are such a hassle,” Shirai Kuroko grumbled, tidied her clothes, and was the first to walk out the door.
Yotsuya Miko, following her, retorted with a hint of disagreement, “Miss Kuroko, I believe that being a couple is a very normal male-female relationship.”
“But Mr. Su Rui looks like a very promiscuous guy, doesn't he?”
As Shirai Kuroko said this, she looked at Yotsuya Miko beside her, her gaze sharp, even causing the girl to retreat a few steps warily: “Miss Kuroko? What do you want to do?”
“Nothing, just wanted to ask you, do you know that Mr. Su Rui and Shizuka Hiratsuka are dating?”
“I know,” Yotsuya Miko nodded, relaxing after seeing that Shirai Kuroko didn't intend to do anything to her. The two girls chatted as they walked downstairs.
“So, don't you feel awkward?”
“Huh? Why would I feel awkward?” Yotsuya Miko's heart skipped a beat, and she looked nervously at Shirai Kuroko.
“Do I even need to say it?” Shirai Kuroko rolled her eyes, looking at Yotsuya Miko, who was pretending to be ignorant despite knowing full well: “Anyone can see your feelings for Mr. Su Rui, can't they? Shizuka Hiratsuka should be able to see it too. Honestly, I can't even understand why you two can coexist peacefully.”
“Because Mr. Su Rui is really kind and cares about us a lot.”
As she said this, Yotsuya Miko, whose inner thoughts had been exposed, shyly covered her reddening cheeks, swaying her body bashfully.
“But I'm not asking you about that…”
Seeing that Yotsuya Miko was still trying to play dumb, Shirai Kuroko asked directly and forcefully: “Don't you feel unwilling to share Mr. Su Rui with other women?”
“Miss Kuroko?” Yotsuya Miko was startled by Shirai Kuroko's blunt question. She first stood frozen, staring at her, then took a deep breath and continued walking: “Let's go down first. Mr. Su Rui and Little Shizuka are waiting for us.”
'Avoiding the topic?' Shirai Kuroko gave a helpless glance at the girl who had sidestepped the subject, not pressing further. It would be impolite to do so in this situation.
However, she was still very curious; it seemed Yotsuya Miko did feel a bit unwilling.
When the two arrived at the parking lot downstairs, Yotsuya Miko suddenly spoke up, “Of course, I'm unwilling.”
“Hmm?”
Shirai Kuroko stopped, looking at the girl whose expression was somewhat vacant, feeling that Yotsuya Miko at this moment seemed a little scary.
“I also really want to have Mr. Su Rui all to myself, but that's impossible, isn't it? Mr. Su Rui is so powerful, and he has so many excellent women around him. I alone can't compare to the others.”
Yotsuya Miko smiled at Shirai Kuroko as if she had come to a realization: “Thank you, Miss Kuroko. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have figured this out. I can't let go of Mr. Su Rui, so even so, I still want to stay by his side.”
As she said this, Yotsuya Miko even gave Shirai Kuroko a playful, friendly smile:
“Speaking of which, there hasn't been a single woman around Mr. Su Rui who hasn't fallen for him yet. Miss Kuroko, perhaps in a while, you'll also become my companion?”
“I would never!”
Shirai Kuroko retorted indignantly, but didn't say anything further, instead urging, “Alright, we should go. Mr. Su Rui and the others should have been waiting for a while now.”
Once in the car, Yotsuya Miko and Shirai Kuroko sat in the back seat, Mr. Su Rui was in the front passenger seat, and Shizuka Hiratsuka began driving according to the location Mr. Su Rui gave her.
“Kuroko, do you want to continue going to school? It looks like you won't be able to go back for a while.”
Mr. Su Rui took out his phone and asked Shirai Kuroko in the back seat, pulling her back from her complex thoughts about Mr. Su Rui's relationships.
“Huh? School? Of course, I have to continue classes, but the Academy City curriculum is much more advanced than that of the same grade outside. I don't think I need to go to university.”
Shirai Kuroko first puffed out her chest proudly, an air of triumph on her face, but then she nodded: “However, the experience of schooling is still very important. Besides training, I always need something to do. Can you arrange it?”
“Of course. Tell me some of your basic information, and I'll arrange it for you.”
Mr. Su Rui took out his phone and called the person from the Si Gong family responsible for liaising with him.
A soft female voice came from the other end of the line, and Mr. Su Rui directly asked, “I need you to help me arrange an identity for someone, a female, to enroll her in Shuchiin Academy... How old are you?”
Mr. Su Rui looked at Shirai Kuroko in the back seat, hesitated for a moment, and then handed her the phone directly: “You tell her yourself. Give her your basic information.”
Shirai Kuroko took the phone, glanced at Mr. Su Rui in front, then focused on the call: “I'm Shirai Kuroko, 19 years old, a university student, my hobbies are… why do I have to say my measurements too?!”
At the mention of measurements, Shirai Kuroko immediately shyly covered the phone and looked warily at Mr. Su Rui, who was sitting in the passenger seat.
And Mr. Su Rui, without a hint of concealment, met her gaze through the rearview mirror:
“This is normal data collection, isn't it? What's the problem with me knowing? It's just a string of numbers anyway.”
“Easy for you to say,” Shirai Kuroko mumbled softly, but in the end, she put on an indifferent expression and, blushing, spoke her measurements in a normal voice.
Shirai Kuroko, who exercised regularly, had a very good figure; aside from her bust development not being as prominent, she was well-toned in other aspects.
As for Yotsuya Miko, besides feeling a bit envious of the girl's figure beside her, she also looked at Mr. Su Rui in the passenger seat:
“If Mr. Su Rui wants to know my measurements…”