Substitute Toyokawa Shoko, you can become stronger by breathing

There is no point in continuing a conversation with someone who may be jealous and has illogical logic.

It is more important to go back early and think about how to use the limited clues at hand to test Chihaya Aine's abilities.

As for Toyokawa Shoko's sudden and imperceptible unhappiness...let her digest it slowly.

..

PS: I’ll post this chapter of 4,000 words first to catch up on my attendance.

I fell asleep in the middle of the update, so I didn't finish it. There are still about 8,000 words left.

Chapter 92: Missing You, Lian Si

When I pushed open the door of the new apartment, the sensor light in the entrance hall lit up and cast soft light.

Kujo Renji's action of changing shoes paused slightly because of the scene in front of him.

In the small corner of the entrance hall, a slender figure was curled up with her knees hugged, like a kitten waiting for her owner to come home.

Her long light green hair fell beside her cheeks, obscuring her expression.

As if hearing the sound of the door opening, the figure suddenly raised his head, revealing Ruoye Mu's expressionless but extremely delicate little face.

When she saw that it was Kujo Renji who came back, Mu's eyes seemed to light up. Although she still had no expression, she stood up immediately.

Then she opened her arms, held in a hugging position, and looked at him motionlessly.

"..." Kujo Renji raised his eyebrows in confusion.

What does it mean?

He stood there, not responding immediately.

Seeing that he didn't respond, Mu seemed a little anxious?

She maintained the posture of opening her arms, even slightly tiptoed, and stretched her arms forward. Her clear eyes, which showed no emotion at all, now held an obvious and stubborn expectation.

Looking at her like this, Kujo Renji finally reacted.

He laughed a little, but opened his arms as he was told.

Almost the moment he opened his arms, Mu threw himself into his arms without hesitation and hugged him tightly.

Her little head was buried in the crook of his neck, her warm breath gently spraying on his skin.

"Lian Si."

She spoke softly but clearly in a whisper-like voice:

"Miss you."

Two simple words, yet they carry a pure and dependent attachment.

"...asshole."

In my mind, Toyokawa Shoko's voice sounded softly, with an extremely complicated and awkward emotion, as if she was jealous but was forcibly enduring it.

Jiujo Renji didn't bother to pay attention to the eldest lady who was starting to act up again in his mind. He just reached out his hand, gently patted the back of his beloved Mu and asked:

"Why are you back so early?"

Although he himself skipped classes today, he remembered that the school closing time of Tsukinomori Girls' Academy should be much later than that of Yuqiu.

Hearing his question, Mu raised his head from his arms, blinked his clear eyes, and did not answer directly.

She loosened her arms around him and instead grabbed his sleeve, motioning him to follow her.

Kujo Renji was a little confused, but still followed her obediently to the balcony.

When he saw the scene on the balcony, he was stunned.

The balcony, which originally only had a few empty flower pots and a few precious flowers left by the previous owner, is now... occupied by lush green.

More than a dozen flower pots of different sizes are all planted with vibrant cucumber vines, with emerald green leaves stretched out and slender vines climbing on simple supports. Some vines even have small cucumbers with tender yellow flowers.

The sunlight shines through the gaps between the leaves, making the entire balcony green and full of life.

It's only been... a few days since I noticed?

Kujo Renji was a little confused.

He remembered very clearly that there were only a few empty pots on the balcony two days ago, how come in the blink of an eye, they were...full of cucumbers?

Isn’t this growth rate too unscientific?

As if she saw his confusion, Mu pointed at the cucumber vines that were growing well, and explained in her concise style:

“It’s planted on the school balcony.”

"I took it back."

“Take” it back?

Only then did Kujo Renji understand.

It turns out that these cucumbers were not planted in the past few days, but were planted on the school balcony before. Now... they were transplanted back?

He looked at the cucumber vines that had obviously been carefully cared for for a long time and were growing very well, and then looked at Mu who was standing next to him with a calm face, as if he had just done something insignificant. He couldn't help but feel a little funny and helpless.

Mutou... What do you usually do in the Moon Forest?

Instead of attending classes, he secretly planted cucumbers on the school balcony?!

If the school leaders found out, would I be considered a weird student?

However...looking at Mu's eyes that seemed to sparkle because of the "display of results", Kujo Renji finally didn't have the heart to complain. He just reached out and ruffled her soft light green hair:

"Hmm, it's growing well. Looks like... it's almost ready to eat?"

Mu seemed a little reluctant when he heard this.

But he pointed to one of the cucumbers that had grown larger, indicating that it was "ready to eat."

Of course, Kujo Renji had no intention of eating the cucumber.

After a simple dinner, the two sat on the carpet in the living room. Mu watched the program on TV quietly, while Kujo Renji leaned on the sofa and looked through the messages on his mobile phone.

At this moment, Mu, who had been silent all the time, suddenly spoke softly.

"School today."

"Hmm?" Kujo Renji put down his phone and looked at her.

"Su Shi..." Mu said slowly, "Looking for me."

Jiujo Renji's eyes narrowed slightly: "What does she want you to do?"

"I'm asking Xiangzi."

Mu paused, as if trying to organize his words:

"How are you doing lately? Have you run into any trouble?"

really...

Kujo Renji understood. It seemed that Nagasaki Suyo had already started to take action.

Moreover, the first person to be suspected or tested was Mu, who had the closest relationship with Xiangzi.

"Then you..." Jiujo Renji looked into Mu's clear eyes and asked, "How did you answer?"

Mu blinked and shook his head.

"I didn't say it."

These two simple words made Jiujo Liansi feel relieved.

He reached out and rubbed Mu's head again. This time, his tone was filled with genuine appreciation:

"My little Mu is so smart."

He knew that Mu's "no words" were not because she chose him and gave up Toyokawa Shoko.

It is more likely that it is simply because... she doesn't know how to say it, or she feels that it is "Xiangzi's" business and it is not her responsibility to answer.

But no matter what, this result is the best for him.

"Who is your Xiao Mu? Shame on you!"

Hearing this, Miss Toyokawa sighed again.

..

the other side.

As the night deepens and the city's noise gradually fades away.

Chihaya Aine lay in bed, tossing and turning. The more she thought about it, the hotter her cheeks became, and the corners of her mouth couldn't help but rise slightly.

No, no! Calm down! Now's not the time to think about this! Business matters first!

She suddenly sat up from the bed, grabbed the phone on the pillow, and opened the LINE chat interface with Nagasaki Suyo.

Although I was unable to directly ask Senior Xiangzi about the matter of "Kujo Renji" during my contact with him today, I still gained a lot.

She must share this "important information" with Soyorin as soon as possible.

She began typing away, telling Su Shi everything that had happened that afternoon, in every detail. Of course, she omitted the detail about how she almost fainted when she saw the label, and the absurd speculation about "soul swapping."

【Anon】：Soyorin! Soyorin! I met Xiaoxiang today!!! (≧?≦)/

[Anon]: We had plans to go to that internet-famous ramen place, but it's closed! I'm so pissed!

[Anon]: But! Later, I took Xiaoxiang to the old shop my dad used to go to! It had a bit of a, uh, uncle style.

Anon: Guess what? Xiaoxiang really liked the ramen there and even ordered triple spicy with lots of oil and garlic.

【Anon】：Later we went to fly kites together. Although the kite string broke and flew away, we had a lot of fun!

Aiyin sent all her experiences of the day in one breath, and the words were filled with an excitement and a little pride that was difficult to conceal.

Soon, Su Shi replied with a calm and concerned tone:

Soyo: Really? Looks like you and Xiangzi had a great time today.

Soyo: How does she look? Is she mentally okay? Has she shown any abnormalities? Or mentioned that name?

Su Shi is obviously more concerned about "real business".

【Anon】：Hmm... she seems to be in good spirits? It's just... I feel like she knows that I can see the 'tag'! Σ(っ°Д°;)っ

[Anon]: She asked me directly what the label looked like! I was so scared! I didn't dare to tell her... I just played dumb and got away with it... (;'Д`)

[Anon]: However, Xiaoxiang is very gentle. She later comforted me, saying, "Don't be too concerned about those labels!" She said that other people's perspectives can't define a person! She also said... and...

Having said that, Aine’s typing speed slowed down, and her face began to heat up again.

She hesitated for a moment, but ultimately couldn't resist the urge to show off, and typed out the words that had moved her heart, word for word:

[Anon]: She also said... 'You're Chihaya Aine, my friend I like, Chihaya Aine'... woooo... Xiaoxiang is so kind! She must have been worried that I'd start to overthink things after seeing those scary labels, so she comforted me like that. She was clearly in danger herself, yet she still cared about me! I really...

After Aine finished sending this message, she was fully expecting Soyorin to respond and resonate with her in the same way.

However...

On the other side of the screen, there was a long... silence.

After a long time, Su Shi's news finally arrived.

The tone seems a little bit bland?

Even, indifferent...?

Soyo: ...Is that so.

Soyo: I see. Xiaoxiang is really caring.

Soyo: So...besides that, is there any other...more valuable...information? For example, about that 'Kujo Renji', or the specific troubles she's encountered?

Eh?

Aiyin was stunned for a moment when she saw Su Shi's reply which was obviously perfunctory and off-point.

Soyorin's reaction...why...seems...not right?

Aine belatedly realized...wasn't her "bragging" speech just now...a little too proud of herself?