Mrs. Summer stood at the entrance to Alex's house, her heart racing.
She had never expected her daughter, Elara, to suddenly call her, asking her to come to Alex's place... Honestly, when she heard Elara speak, Mrs. Summer almost thought she was hallucinating.
Regarding the matter of mother and daughter both serving Alex, even though she knew Alex would never give up and she couldn't resist him, Mrs. Summer could barely bring herself to actively agree. She had been burying her head in the sand like an ostrich.
Yet, Elara, who had been avoiding Alex for the past two days, suddenly accepted the situation. Listening to her tone over the phone, it was as if she had become completely comfortable with Alex's actions.
This made her nervous. Had Elara been hypnotized by Alex again?
So, standing at his front door now, she felt extremely apprehensive. Mrs. Summer knew she couldn't run anymore. No matter what, tonight she would be with her daughter, taken by Alex... Sighing ruefully, she reached out to press the doorbell.
A sudden sound of footsteps behind her made her pause, and she quickly turned around.
"Oh, excuse me," standing at the gate was a beautiful woman. Her grayish-brown ponytail draped over her shoulder, and her mature, sexy figure was no less impressive than Mrs. Summer's own. She wore a ring on her hand, clearly a married woman.
She looked about the same age as Mrs. Summer, but the older wife knew this woman must be physically younger, as she herself had only had the marks of time partially erased due to Alex's ability granting her extended youth.
Who is she? Is she someone Alex knows?
"I'm the new neighbor who just moved in next door," the woman, misunderstanding Mrs. Summer as a resident, quickly explained. "I'm Yori Tou. Hello. Since we just moved, I thought I'd come over and say hi to the neighbors."
"Oh, a neighbor. Hello," Mrs. Summer nodded. She was about to explain that she didn't live here, but after a moment's hesitation, she swallowed her words.
"These are some pastries I made. Please take them."
The woman, Mrs. Tou, offered the box in her hand.
"Thank you... I didn't prepare any gift, I apologize."
"Oh, it's fine, the thought is what counts. I was worried that the neighbors might be difficult, but I didn't expect to meet such a beautiful woman about my age."
Mrs. Tou smiled, looking enviously at Mrs. Summer's vibrant, beautiful red hair. The smooth strands fell to her waist, giving her the classic beauty of a Yamato Nadeshiko.
About my age... Actually, I'm older than you.
"My name is Natsumi Obata. Mrs. Tou, you're very beautiful too. How can an obasan like me compare to you?"
"I'm already married." Mrs. Tou said demurely.
"Don't say that. I'm married too, you know."
As Mrs. Summer said this, she thought of Alex, and her cheeks flushed.
She was enjoying the conversation with Mrs. Tou. The two wives seemed to have many topics in common. As for age, Mrs. Summer felt no complex about being compared to this younger woman.
After all, everyone gets old, but thanks to Alex, she had the future of eternal youth. Thinking of it that way made her quite happy.
Ugh, I feel like a bad woman.
The two chatted warmly when another set of footsteps appeared. This time it was a man. A burly, middle-aged man with a protruding belly emerged from the house next door and called out.
"Mrs. Tou, why haven't you come back yet? Norihito asked me to come look for you." The man's sudden appearance startled Mrs. Tou, who quickly turned back. Both she and Mrs. Summer were confronted by his ugly and sleazy face.
"I was just chatting with the neighbor, I'm sorry..."
"Neighbor," the ugly man, who had been greedily inspecting Mrs. Tou, shifted his gaze to Mrs. Summer. His eyes lit up. Although he tried hard to conceal it, the lust and desire in his expression and eyes did not escape Mrs. Summer's notice.
The red-haired wife's heart skipped a beat.
"Mrs. Tou, is this... your husband?" The man gave her a bad feeling. Mrs. Summer frowned, feeling repulsed.
"Mrs. Obata, you've misunderstood. This is Mr. Gozo Kamezo. He is a friend of my husband's from his company and is just visiting us."
Hearing the neighbor's misunderstanding, she quickly clarified.
However, the naive Mrs. Tou was not as sharp as Mrs. Summer and didn't seem to notice that this Mr. Kamezo had targeted her, introducing him in a perfectly proper manner.
"Haha, Madam, you misunderstood. Mrs. Tou's husband and I work at the same company. If you don't mind me saying, I'm actually the owner of a company myself."
The ugly man boasted about himself, his eyes fixed firmly on Mrs. Summer the whole time, scanning her exquisite, mature face. What a stunning woman. I didn't expect such a gem to live next door.
Gozo Kamezo's gaze made Mrs. Summer deeply uncomfortable. She frowned. "Then I won't disturb your gathering. I should go home now. Goodbye."
"Wait, since we're neighbors, why don't you join us?" The man shamelessly extended the invitation, despite being a guest himself. "It'll help us strengthen neighborly relations, and I'd really like us all to be friends."
"...There's no need."
That disgusting look and smile made Mrs. Summer increasingly nauseous, and she resolutely refused. Yet, Gozo Kamezo didn't give up, continuing to ramble.
"Don't be shy, Madam. With Mrs. Tou here, you should have common topics, and having more friends opens more doors. As a company owner, I might even be able to help you."
What is wrong with this person? Facing the middle-aged man's overwhelming presence, Mrs. Summer suddenly felt panicked.
He wouldn't try anything with me, would he?
Mrs. Tou on the side was also confused. What is Mr. Kamezo doing?
"I already told you—"
"Who the hell is shouting at my door for so long?" The suddenly opening door cut off Mrs. Summer's words. Alex frowned, looking first at Mrs. Summer standing by the door, and then at the two strangers.
Gozo Kamezo and Yori Tou also looked at Alex.
Alex's eyebrows furrowed even deeper. He glanced at Mrs. Summer, who was looking down, unsure what to say, and then at the fat pig of a man. He 'tched' and stepped forward, wrapping his arm around the red-haired woman's slender waist.
"What are you standing around for? Dinner is almost ready, I'm just waiting for you."
"Well... the neighbor came to visit, so I..."
"A neighbor? Alright, I understand," under the astonished eyes of Gozo Kamezo and Yori Tou, Alex pinched her cheek and gave Mrs. Summer a very intimate kiss on the corner of her lips. "Let's go back inside."
"Wait, what... what is your relationship?" Gozo Kamezo stared wide-eyed, asking in disbelief.
Even Yori Tou was intensely curious.
"She is my woman, can't you tell?" Alex sneered.
But, the age gap between you... This boy looks like a kid, definitely not an adult. He's Mrs. Obata's husband? Yori Tou was stunned.
As for the fat pig of a man, his displeasure was obvious.
"And you, can you stay away from my house? You fat pig. You're disgusting."
"P-P-Pig?!"
Gozo Kamezo was enraged by the insult and was about to explode, but when he met the young man's cold gaze, his heart inexplicably trembled. Intimidated by the sheer intensity, he stammered, his face turning red.
As a company owner, when had he ever encountered someone like this?
This little brat...
However, the fear emanating from the depths of his soul forced him to shut his mouth and say no more. He took one last, lingering look at Mrs. Summer before turning and leaving.
Mrs. Summer, recovering, realized Alex still had his arm wrapped around her waist, but she felt no rejection or disgust. Instead, she felt an overwhelming sense of security. She looked deeply into Alex's eyes, suddenly remembering the scene she and her daughter had witnessed earlier: Alex beating up a perverted man and saving the girl named Chi.
She suddenly understood why that girl, Chi, loved him so much...