Start with Hayasaka Ai

Kaguya Shinomiya poured three cups of tea. Even though the maid Hayasaka Ai was present, she still liked to serve the black tea to Shirogane herself.

Of course, Koga Tomoe was also given along with it.

Koga Tomoe, who had just come from the countryside, was flattered and didn't know what to do when faced with the steaming black tea.

Is there any special etiquette for drinking this? Will I get laughed at if I just drink it straight from my mouth?

"Don't be too nervous, Tomoe-chan, just relax a little. Uncle Koga is an old man of Shinomiya Betsuin. He has been helping with driving here for a long time. He is completely considered a part of this place, so I fully welcome your arrival. It will also help to reduce Hayasaka's workload."

Hearing Shinomiya Kaguya say this, the maid Hayasaka Ai spoke up: "Miss Kaguya, I'm actually totally fine. The workload for one day isn't that much."

"But it's always a good thing to have someone to help. I've actually been thinking about a lot of things lately, and I feel like I've been putting too much pressure on you. It's time to give you some personal time and rest."

"Miss Kaguya..." Maid Hayasaka Ai was a little tearful. After so long, almost eleven years, had he finally learned to cherish her?

And Shinomiya Kaguya quickly continued, "Well, now Hayasaka, take Tomoe-chan to visit Shinomiya Villa first, so that you won't get lost at home later."

Lost at home, what a simple yet arrogant word. Koga Tomoe, whose values ​​were somewhat shattered, began to feel dizzy.

He didn't even have time to drink his tea before he left in a daze following the maid Hayasaka Ai.

Only Kaguya Shinomiya and Shirogane were left in the room, and the atmosphere suddenly became tense.

"Be reserved, be reserved. Suppress and control your instincts. Don't go straight into the president's arms. Otherwise, my image will be lowered in his eyes and I'll become a love-brained idiot."

Kaguya Shinomiya is well versed in the art of love. When the atmosphere is good, the woman can take the initiative appropriately, but there must also be a sense of balance.

If you keep rubbing against men, you will definitely be regarded as a cheap woman who can be easily obtained, and will often not be cherished by them.

Now is the time to show off your real kite-flying skills.

ps: The bounty has been paid off again. Are you guys capable of this? Did you give all the money and blades to other small fry?

Chapter 98 Hayasaka Ai: Who am I Really?

As the saying goes, a girl's blush is better than anything else. Shyness and shame will always be like a magic weapon for girls of her age.

A must-have for beating men.

Then the question arises again. People need to be subjected to certain stimulation before they can act shy. Now that I am alone with Baiyin at home, if I were my old self, I would definitely be looking forward to blushing.

However, after the Sports Warehouse incident, the threshold of shyness has been raised, and this alone is no longer enough to meet the prerequisites for activating the shy skill.

So imagination is needed.

Through imagination, false signals are used to stimulate the brain nerves, causing the body to react.

This was very simple for her, who was already good at fantasizing.

(A mosaic image appeared in my mind)

However, before entering the most critical stage, Baiyin's eyes fell on the necklace dangling around Shinomiya Kaguya's neck. It was a gift from him, and at this moment, it made the girl's skin whiter than snow, making her even more charming.

He spoke first: "Kaguya, you look very beautiful in this outfit today. It suits you very well."

"Eh?!"

Although she was very confident about her appearance and others often praised her, this was the first time that Baiyin praised her in this regard.

The rarer something is, the more precious it is, especially since he calls me by my name so intimately.

In an instant, the delusional mosaic images in the brain disappeared, but the original goal was indeed achieved more naturally.

"Thanks……"

Kaguya Shinomiya picked up the teacup and took a sip. The fragrance of tea spread on the tip of her tongue, but it couldn't suppress the blush that appeared on the tips of her ears.

She secretly raised her eyes, her gaze swept across Baiyin's handsome eyebrows, then quickly lowered them, pretending to concentrate on admiring the teacup in her hand.

"President, why did you decide to come to me today?" she said softly, her voice a little more gentle than usual.

His gaze shifted to Baiyin again, wanting to see how he would answer.

After all, the student union's business had already been handled, so he must have come here for personal matters.

In other words, she came for me. Could it be that she was planning to invite me out on a date? Really, if that was the case, she should have told me earlier so that she could be fully prepared.

"Of course you're here for something important."

Shirogane also spoke truthfully: "I mainly came to see how Hayasaka was doing."

"Oh, so you want to see...see Hayasaka??!"

Kaguya Shinomiya widened her eyes, and the hand holding the teacup began to tremble as if she had Parkinson's disease.

What's going on? What's going on!

Does this mean we should just start the showdown and choose Hayasaka Ai instead of her?

Wow, don't do this kind of thing——

The girl was very sad.

Seeing that she seemed to be lost in thought again, Shirogane immediately added, "Something strange is happening to Hayasaka. You should be able to sense that."

"Oh, Hayasaka, it's really strange." Shinomiya Kaguya responded with a dull look.

Baiyin continued, "For unknown reasons, she has become two people now. It's a supernatural phenomenon."

"Oh, two Hayasakas... two Hayasakas?!"

Shinomiya Kaguya regained some of her spirits after hearing this outrageous news. "Could it be that someone is impersonating her——"

"No, both are real, but their personalities and attitudes towards people have changed." Baiyin shook his head.

"One of them continues to work as a maid here, let's call her Maid Hayasaka for now, and the other one came to my house. Because she wears framed glasses, let's call her Glasses Hayasaka."

In order to make his words more convincing, Baiyin also made a video call directly to Hayasaka, who wore glasses at home.

When she left the Shinomiya family, she also took a spare cell phone, but she also bought an extra phone card.

"Moshimoshi, Darling~ What do you want from me?"

Shinomiya Kaguya can clearly see a girl on the screen who looks exactly like Hayasaka Ai, but has significant differences in the details of her dress.

And what's with the name "Darling"?!

What about Xiaogui who is not far behind you?

On the other side, Hayasaka Ai, who was wearing glasses, also noticed Shinomiya Kaguya next to Shirogane, and her originally bright and smiling expression instantly fell.

Just like the changeable weather, it changes without any warning.

"Ah, it's Kaguya, hello."

Although he was saying hello, there was no friendliness in his eyes, expression, or tone of voice.

And if we look at it from the perspective of a master-servant relationship, it is the greatest disrespect.

Shinomiya Kaguya grabbed the phone and started to talk: "Hayasaka! Why did you go to the president's house——"

She could be broad-minded and not mind the name and attitude, but living in the Shirogane family made it difficult for Kaguya Shinomiya to accept it.

"It's very simple, because there is an imposter who has replaced my identity and my positions in Shinomiya Betsuin and Shuchiin." The bespectacled Hayasaka Ai on the screen explained with a slight disdain.

"But it was a blessing in disguise. Thanks to this, I was able to get rid of those tedious jobs and live a free and easy life. Life is pretty good in the president's house. Everyone is very friendly. Xiaogui's attitude towards me is surprisingly good. And with only a wall between us...guess what will happen between me and Shirogane tonight?"

"Wow!" Mosquito coil circles began to appear in Kaguya Shinomiya's eyes.

No, this kind of thing is not allowed!

"Work... I've considered it's very tiring, so I recently hired a new maid to be your assistant..."

"It's too late, Kaguya. Don't you think it's funny that you're saying you're considerate of me now? The way you're being so condescending and giving alms is disgusting."

Hayasaka Ai's expression and tone grew even colder. "I hate you. Whether it's your troublesome work style, your disrespect for my orders, or your falling for the same man, I've had enough of you!"

she continued.

"Isn't it good now? I still have a tool on your side who's always there for me, and I can do what I like, love who I like, and I don't have to stay with you who I hate. Although I don't know why I became two people, isn't this the best of both worlds?"

This sentence directly caused Shinomiya Kaguya to feel deeply hurt, even more so than when Shirogane said he was coming to find Hayasaka Ai at the beginning! !

Fighting back the sadness and uneasiness that kept gushing out from her heart, Shinomiya Kaguya said tremblingly: "Hayasaka, in the past ten years of living with me, have you not..."

"No."

Hayasaka Ai, who was a little emotional, interrupted her and said firmly, "I have never felt happy as your maid, Kaguya, not even for a single day. It was all just a casual act. I have even been -"

"enough."

Shirogane took the phone back from Kaguya Shinomiya's hand, then hugged the girl who had lost her strength and was on the verge of collapse, letting her lean against him.

It's just for verification, there's no need to let Kaguya Shinomiya continue to suffer.

"No need to continue."

When Hayasaka Ai, who was wearing glasses, saw Shirogane appear in the video call screen, she was immediately panicked.

I also realized how excessive what I just said was.

"I'm sorry, Shirogane, I suddenly couldn't control myself. I don't know why I hate Kaguya so much... I... I'll hang up if you're fine!"

Hayasaka Ai, who wore glasses, seemed to be trying to escape, and she hung up the call without even waiting for Shirogane to answer.

And Kaguya Shinomiya, who was leaning in his arms, was already shedding little pearls.

"Wow, am I really that bad...for Hayasaka to hate me like that?"

"That's not the case." Shirogane reached out and gently stroked the girl's head, comforting her. "For those close to you, in most cases, it's impossible to have pure love or pure hatred. The girl with glasses, Hayasaka, probably only inherited some of her dislike for you, not her complete attitude. Just like the maid Hayasaka Ai here hates me too."

“But…but…wuaaaaaaaa!!”

Feeling that she had lost something very important, her heart was broken, and the girl could no longer care about her image and burst into tears.

It just so happened that the maid Hayasaka Ai took Koga Tomoe to other maids for basic training. She was a little worried about Shinomiya Kaguya, so she hurried back to the reception room.

As soon as he entered the door, he saw Kaguya Shinomiya crying. Suddenly, his pretty face was filled with a bit of murderous intent. He pulled Kaguya Shinomiya out of Baiyin's arms and protected her tightly behind him like a hen protecting her chicks.

"What did you do to Miss Kaguya!?" The maid Hayasaka Ai glared at Shirogane and questioned.

However, before hearing Shirogane's reply, Kaguya Shinomiya hugged the maid Hayasaka Ai tightly.

The force was quite strong, making her feel as if she was clamped by some huge pair of pliers and could not break free at all.

"Wow! Hayasaka—I really can't lose you!! Whether it's the workload, the work content, the salary, or even my personal habits, if there's anything I haven't done well, I will change it. I will definitely change it!!!"

Maid Hayasaka Ai was a little amused and said, "What nonsense are you talking about, Kaguya-san? How can a master change herself because of a maid?"

It must be that source of all evil, Shirogane, who instilled some strange ideas into Kaguya, leading to this situation.

"Don't cry, Miss Kaguya, you didn't do anything wrong."

"But, but...what if you hate me and just leave—"

When causes and conditions come together, things are born; when causes and conditions separate, things die. All things are born from causes and conditions and are empty in nature. All things are simply the result of the gathering of various "causes". Once those causes and conditions are gone, they will disappear and return to "emptiness".

This is a Buddhist theory that has been known for a long time, but at this moment, Kaguya Shinomiya truly understood its profound meaning.

She and Hayasaka Ai have known each other since childhood, and Hayasaka Ai has been by her side as a maid for the next ten years.

In Kaguya Shinomiya's subconscious, she naturally felt that this situation would continue forever.

But now the girl with glasses named Hayasaka Ai from Shirogane's house told her... that's not the case.

The relationship between the two of them is not indestructible and will last forever. When their fate is over, they will separate and even hate each other so much that they will no longer interact with each other.

Return to emptiness.

Dependent origination and emptiness of nature.

Noticing Kaguya Shinomiya's trepidation and fear, the maid Hayasaka Ai patted her on the back and said softly, "Don't worry, Miss Kaguya. I have never hated you and will always be with you."

"really?"

Shinomiya Kaguya wiped her tears slightly and looked at the maid Hayasaka Ai with her bloodshot eyes.

"Of course. After all, in my eyes, apart from the master-servant relationship, you are more like a troublesome but lovely sister. You are already an irreplaceable member of the family."

"You really don't find me annoying?"

"I'm not annoyed. I'm the perfect maid superman, how could I be annoyed... Miss Kaguya, please go back to your room and rest for a while. It's not a good look to have tears and snot on your face like this."