Kyousuke glanced sideways at Eriri.
She stood with her arms crossed, staring up at the night sky in silence, her delicate face forcing an expressionless mask—doing her best to look like some kind of deadpan anime character.
He pretended not to notice, smiled a little to himself, and lifted his phone as if he were about to make a call.
That was enough to fluster the self-styled princess who'd been waiting for a spare moment to speak.
She'd finally found a break in Kyousuke's schedule.
How could she possibly have stayed in the living room when Sakura and the others were right there, all so pleasant to chat with?
"Ahem—Kyousuke, did you see the paper today?" Her bright blue eyes flicked to the boy, then darted back up at the sky.
Kyousuke watched Eriri's modest little act and felt absurdly pleased.
He sighed, theatrically: "I did. Ugh—Matsumoto Motohiro at the Sankei really tore me apart."
Hearing that again making Eriri exploded.
The scheming little moment she'd been enjoying vanished in an instant.
She snapped, "That old fossil's just trying to hitch a ride on your fame. Don't pay him any mind!"
Seeing how worked up she got, a guilty mischievous smile creased Kyousuke's face.
He played it up and answered, "He called me a pest of the literary world, and that I'd ruin Japanese literature."
"He's talking nonsense—what an idiot full of trash! Kyousuke, you're obviously the hope of Japanese literature!" Eriri's fine, golden brows shot up.
She stopped staring at the sky and looked him square in the eye.
"But…what Matsumoto said has some truth to it…" Kyousuke sighed again.
"Huh?" Eriri widened her eyes and scolded him, disappointed: "Where's the truth in that? Kyousuke, you're just too kind—don't let his words get to you!"
"But this whole thing blew up because of the poster you drew, Eriri. Didn't you see? Even Momotaro likes it." Kyousuke said.
That calmed Eriri's angry brows at once.
Her big eyes studied him suspiciously—was this clumsy assistant being coyly flattering, or genuinely upset?
After a long look, the only thing she could read on Kyousuke's face was sadness.
Hm.
He's perfect in every way… except sometimes he's too indirect.
A little tsundere, maybe.
After a brief hesitation she mumbled, lips trembling, "Well, I did draw it well, but if it weren't for your original story, Kyousuke—" She babbled a string of comforting words, and Kyousuke's furrowed expression finally smoothed out.
"Really?" the little mischief-maker asked, fishing for confirmation.
"Of course!"
"Thanks, Eriri. I feel a lot better now." Kyousuke thanked her earnestly, and Eriri lifted her chin in proud satisfaction.
What a nuisance.
Seeing him cheer up put her in a good mood, too—until she suddenly froze, eyes wide.
'Wait—why did I come out here? Who am I? What am I doing? Weren't I supposed to be showing off?'
She looked at Kyousuke, searching his face for the smugness that comes after teasing someone—but all she saw was the grateful, touched expression from having been consoled.
Her neat brows knitted.
'Kyousuke isn't the kind to bully me—he's not like Sakura!'
Thinking that, she gathered her nerve and tried again. "Kyousuke, did you read the paper today?"
You comforted me earlier—now you owe me praise!
"I did. Ugh—Matsumoto at the Sankei really tore me apart," Kyousuke sighed.
That familiar line made Eriri realize she'd been had.
Her golden hair whipped as she spun, twin tails flying, and she launched a flurry of attacks at the scoundrel beside her.
"You idiot! I mean the Asahi — that review by Nimi Jirai!" she snapped.
"Okay, okay! I know, I know—I read it three times, I can recite it!" Kyousuke laughed and begged for mercy, but Eriri kept spinning that honed little head of hers.
She could whirl another twenty times before she got dizzy.
The commotion in the courtyard drew everyone's attention.
Sakura and the others watched Eriri's one-woman routine and laughed harder than anyone.
Only little Kasuko sprang up in righteous fury, scooped up the hellhound Momotaro, and barreled forward as if to protect her brother.
Hmph—how dare they pick on Kasuko's brother!
Kasuko was furious that her brother had been bully, and angry that she'd even considered sharing something her brother made with Eriri.
Kasuko was so clueless; she should've known that anyone who'd fight a two-year-old for food couldn't be a good person.
Her tiny eyes practically shot flames.
She stomped her short legs and was about to rush to rescue her brother—only to find her feet already off the ground.
Her little legs flailed; the dizzy pup nearly fainted in panic, terrified of falling.
After a couple of steps she realized something was off—the distance to the "enemy" hadn't changed.
She turned and saw Sakura had scooped her up in one clean movement.
Her big, round eyes showed confusion, but she rapidly pieced it together and asked seriously, "Sakura-nee, are you going to throw Kasuko like a bomb?"
Kasuko trusted Sakura absolutely—if her brother was hurt, Sakura would protect him—and the only reasonable explanation for being lifted like that was that Sakura planned to toss her as a "bomb," because Kasuko had intended to throw Momotaro at Eriri.
"Woof!" Momotaro nearly fainted at the thought but didn't dare struggle for fear of falling; he only wailed for mercy.
"Hahaha!" everyone laughed at little Kasuko's line.
Mischievous Sakura grinned and asked, "But bombs explode—what good would throwing Kasuko do?"
Everyone turned to the little girl, waiting for her answer.
"I'll grab Eriri's face, yank her braids, and bite her nose!" Kasuko declared, fierce as could be.
"Hahahaha!" The sight of the twin-bun toddler putting on a ferocious act was too cute for words.
Kasumigaoka Utaha whose ambition to become the perfect wife and the greatest mother was especially moved.
She reached toward Sakura eagerly and said, "Let me do it. I'll make sure Kasuko lands right on Sawamura's face."
Her tone was full of anticipation.
"Whoa! Then please, Utaha-nee!" Kasuko agreed without hesitation.
Sakura-nee was fine, but Utaha-nee's big muscles and even bigger backside clearly suggested she had the strength.
There was something irresistibly funny about how serious little kids could get.
Utaha couldn't help but smile as she took Kasuko into her arms, but of course, she didn't actually take the little girl outside to cause trouble.
Eriri was so happy today; Utaha had even played along earlier, complimenting her twice.
It didn't feel right to ruin her moment.
Eriri had worked hard these past few days.
She deserved to enjoy it a little.
So when she hold the small girl, Utaha began to explain gently, "Your Eriri-nee—"
"She's not my 'nee'!" Kasuko interrupted decisively. "Anyone who bullies my big brother is a bad person!"
"Hehehe~" Utaha chuckled, clearly pleased by that answer.
She hugged Kasuko tighter, while carelessly tossing the fluffy pup in her arms off to the side.
Momotaro didn't get angry, though.
Birth may come before loyalty, but gratitude is deeper than resentment.
Even though he was just a dog, he understood that much.
Foolish Kasumigaoka Utaha might have brought him from the pet shop to meet his master, but his loyalty would forever belong to one person alone!
"Arf! Arf!" Barking furiously, Momotaro dashed toward the courtyard.
'The time has come to show my devotion! I, Momotaro, will not hesitate to lay down my life!'
Utaha didn't even notice the pup's dramatic exit.
Still cradling Kasuko, she whispered, "Eriri's just… giving Kyousuke a massage with her hair."
"Massage? Really?" Kasuko's skeptical little face scrunched up—Eriri's expression didn't look anything like someone enjoying a massage.
"Mhm! And later, Kasuko can give Eriri a massage too—to thank her for massaging your brother," Utaha said, smiling sweetly.
"Okay! Kasuko understands!" the girl nodded earnestly.
Her braids might still be short, but she could still give Eriri a good braid-braid-braid!
Meanwhile, in the courtyard, Momotaro's gallant charge came to an abrupt halt.
Before he could prove his loyalty, he realized Eriri had already stopped her attack.
[Hmph. My presence alone was enough to scare her off,] he thought proudly, tail wagging as he strutted back.
"Idiot! Let go!" Eriri hissed, her face pink.
"Mmph—mmpf—!" came the muffled reply.
Kyousuke couldn't speak—because he currently had Eriri's ponytail in his mouth.
People change with time.
Once upon a time, when faced with Eriri's twin-tail assault, Kyousuke's best defense had been to shut his mouth and endure it.
But now? Now he went on the offensive—capturing the twin tails between his teeth.
They say twin tails are like reins—but which feels better, gripping the hair or holding the girl herself?
As one of the sharpest minds in the world, Kyousuke often pondered such deep philosophical questions.
And after much reflection, he realized something troubling: he didn't want to give up either.
Greed drives human progress, and today was no exception.
After another bout of "serious thought," he found a brilliant solution—kneeling behind Eriri, he could bite her golden twin tails and wrap his arms around her.
Riding a horse takes more than just reins, after all—you need stirrups too.
Double security!
One glance at Eriri's flushed face was proof of how "effective" his theory was.
She couldn't believe he'd actually do something so embarrassing—so bold! Especially when there were still people nearby!
Auntie Mikiko, Utaha, Sakura—they were definitely all watching!
Ahhh, I'm going to die, I'm going to die!
Eriri's sapphire eyes shimmered with mortified tears.
Yet no matter how long she glared, the idiotic assistant refused to let go, until she finally muttered in a low voice:
"My hair's dirty. Let go."
"It's not! Even if it was before, it's clean now—'cause I washed it!" Kyousuke retorted proudly.
Still, he finally released her—he knew Eriri's pride couldn't take much more.
"Ugh…" Eriri grimaced, staring at her now slightly damp hair in disgust.
Out of habit, she grabbed Kyousuke's T-shirt to wipe it—but quickly froze, sneaking a glance behind her.
Kyousuke mother wasn't paying attention, thank goodness.
But… why was Kasuko looking at her like that?
Reluctantly releasing Kyousuke's shirt, Eriri took out her handkerchief, ready to wipe the saliva off—then paused.
'Wait… saliva's good for hair, right?'
Convincing herself of that, she casually flicked her ponytail back like nothing happened.
'I'll wash it before bed. Maybe.'
"Anyway," she said, forcing the conversation back on track, "did you read it? The article by Nimi Jirai?"
"I did. He said your artwork was amazing," Kyousuke replied with a grin.
"Hmph, obviously. But I meant the other part," Eriri said, proudly wrinkling her nose.
"The other part? Oh—about him saying my writing's great?" Kyousuke raised a brow, smirking.
"Hmph! Isn't that obvious?" she shot back.
"You're so full of yourself," she huffed, glaring at him.
Then she picked up the newspaper, pointed at the page, and announced triumphantly:
"I meant this! He said we're a perfect match!"
That's right from today on, the whole country knows it she and Kyousuke are a perfect match!
Kyousuke blinked, confused. "That's obvious too, isn't it?"
The golden-haired princess froze for a beat—then burst out laughing with an unrestrained, duck-like "Kahaha~!"
Yes.
More than being called a once-in-a-generation art genius or a visionary who fuses East and West, that single phrase—"a perfect match"—made her the happiest of all.
After a long laugh, Eriri stuffed the newspaper into Kyousuke's arms and instructed, "Put it up on the 'Tansan' wall."
"Want me to reformat it? Make the 'Perfect Match' part bold and bigger?" Kyousuke offered eagerly.
"Hmph~ no need. We should keep it subtle, can't make it look too deliberate," she said with mock seriousness, before breaking into a proud smile. "You did well today."
"Isn't that obvious?" Kyousuke grinned, standing up and ruffling her smooth golden hair until it turned into a messy halo.
"Get some rest tonight," he said softly.
She'd really been pushing herself these past few days.
"Massage me first!" the golden-haired princess demanded instantly.
Kyousuke of course agreed without hesitation, and the two of them headed back to the living room—where a new round of over-the-top praise awaited.
Later, when Eriri returned to her room and slipped away under the excuse of a bath, she quickly called her parents.
"Mom! Dad! Did you see it? The newspaper said Kyousuke and I are a perfect match!~"
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