I became the emperor in the comic book series.

It's best to dilute glucose with warm water and take it in small amounts frequently, along with thin porridge or similar foods, to give your body some time to adjust and recover slowly.

Seeing this, Mai Sakurajima had no choice but to suppress the hunger and emptiness in her stomach, close her eyes, and gradually fall asleep as the vehicle traveled at a steady speed.

Upon arriving in Tokyo, they stopped in front of their house. Higashino Akira didn't wake her up. Instead, he carried her out of the car and into the house, letting her lie down on the sofa while he went to the kitchen to get busy.

This house is also located within the Tokyo metropolitan area, and is geographically adjacent to Kanagawa Prefecture.

The reason we didn't bring Mai Sakurajima back to Miko's place or to Shimokitazawa is simply because this place is the closest. Also, if we were to bring her to see Miko right away, neither of them might be able to accept it immediately. And if we went to Shimokitazawa, there wouldn't be enough rooms.

Thinking about it, Higashino Akira also planned to look for a nice big house in a while. It wasn't for the sake of being grand and showing off his status. The main reason was that he had many girlfriends. Separate small houses were fine as love nests for private rendezvous, but if everyone had to live together, and each person had to have at least one room, the living conditions of a regular detached house would be a bit cramped.

Chapter 108 Beautiful Girl's Original Flavor

A pot of not-too-thick white rice porridge was cooked. I ladled out a bowl, chilled it with cold water, and brought it to the living room once it was warm.

Akira Higashino gently patted the sleeping Mai Sakurajima. She seemed very uneasy and on guard. After being patted twice, she quickly opened her eyes and woke up.

"Dinner is ready. Get up and eat something first."

Mai Sakurajima obediently sat up, looking at the bowl of rice porridge on the coffee table in front of the sofa, and the aroma of rice that filled the entire living room. Her eyes softened involuntarily.

"Thank you."

She thanked him softly, picked up her bowl and chopsticks, and took small sips of her drink.

The girl felt a warm feeling in her heart, especially when she tasted the sweetness of the rice porridge and its temperature, which was just right for eating.

This was done with care.

Even if he's after my body, at least to him, I'm not just a tool for his lust. Even though there's no need for it, he's still willing to go to such lengths for me.

From this perspective, although this person is a womanizer, he is not the kind of cold-hearted person who only cares about himself.

Following him doesn't guarantee exclusive love, but at least you won't be treated coldly.

Higashino Akira quietly watched the girl eat in small bites, trying to maintain her composure despite being hungry. If he knew that this action had greatly increased his popularity with the girl and earned him a good reputation, he would definitely be amused.

Then, he explained to her that he was a person who only thought about himself, and that he was willing to take care of her and care about her entirely because she would belong to him in the future. Higashino Akira would naturally not be as indifferent to things that were entirely his own as he was to outsiders, and that cultivating a certain degree of good relationship would help the two of them have a good experience in their interactions.

You can't be lying in bed together and the girl next to you is always giving you the cold shoulder, right?

Once or twice can be fun, and it can be interesting to be looked at with a disgusted look by a girl while she shows him her panties. But for someone you're going to spend your life with, it would be too disappointing and pointless to be looked at with disgust, indifference, or even loathing by the person next to you for the rest of your life.

As for why he needed to explain, it was because he disdained to deceive a girl.

Lies always carry the risk of breaking down. For a girl who is completely her own, he doesn't need to put in the effort to maintain the lie or bear the risk of it breaking down.

Tan just needs to find Ji C; he doesn't dislike the beauty of feelings, provided it's based on clear and rational understanding.

Otherwise, wouldn't that constitute a romantic relationship?

After finishing a bowl of porridge, although she wasn't full, she was satisfied and felt warm in her stomach. Sakurajima Mai wiped her mouth with a tissue, looked at the man sitting opposite her, and asked with a gentle tone and some curiosity, "Have you already eaten dinner?"

Upon hearing this, Higashino Akira waved his hand and said, "No."

"Aren't you going to eat?"

"Ah, don't worry about me. I'll wait for you to finish eating first, and then I'll just eat whatever I want."

After saying that, Akira Higashino smiled and took out a large KFC takeout bag from behind the sofa. He first took out a whole chicken, and then laid out the fried chicken, hamburgers and fries one by one. In an instant, the entire living room was filled with the aroma of oil, making people's mouths water.

This was a takeout order placed by Akira Higashino when Mai Sakurajima was still asleep while he was cooking porridge.

Since his physical abilities broke through the limits of humanity and entered the realm of the extraordinary, gaining the characteristics of abundant energy, recovery, and stamina, his appetite has increased considerably. It is indeed a bit of a stretch to feed him with just the energy provided by porridge.

Across from her, Mai Sakurajima's expression gradually faded, her eyes lost their sparkle, and she adopted a sullen, cat-like face, all the emotion she had felt earlier vanishing.

“I don’t stay here often, and I don’t have any ingredients at home. I can cook some rice, porridge, and noodles, but I don’t have the means to prepare other dishes right now.”

"Given your current condition, it's not suitable for you to eat anything too oily. I'm afraid you won't be able to drink the plain rice porridge if I take it out in advance."

"I can enjoy the aroma while drinking my porridge," the girl said softly.

Upon hearing this, Mr. Higashino firmly shook his head, "That won't do. That would make me feel like I'm abusing you. I'd feel uncomfortable and wouldn't be able to eat properly. I won't accept that."

Mai Sakurajima wanted to curse, but she didn't say it.

She could only curse this womanizer in her heart, and then stare at him quietly with a resentful look in her eyes.

Even after Higashino Akira finished eating and started cleaning up the mess, he didn't show the slightest bit of embarrassment.

"We've had a good meal and it's time for bed!"

I stuffed the dishes into the bathtub. There's only one bowl anyway, so I plan to wash them together after breakfast tomorrow.

Akira Higashino walked out of the kitchen, stretched, and looked satisfied.

On the contrary, in the living room, as the man drew closer, Mai Sakurajima's expression suddenly became awkward.

Even though she had mentally prepared herself and accepted it, she still lacked experience and inevitably felt nervous.

As Higashino Akira passed by her, he paused, took two steps back, bent down to look at her, and fell into deep thought upon seeing her tense expression, remaining silent for a moment.

What are you still sitting there for?

"I...I..." The girl's face turned bright red, and she was so embarrassed that she stammered and couldn't utter a complete sentence for a long time.

Akira Higashino isn't some clueless newbie or a light novel protagonist who's pretending to be stupid and doesn't understand. He'll naturally understand why she blushed after seeing this.

That's why, after his gaze swept over the girl's body, especially at her legs that were wrapped in black stockings and had a beautiful, rounded shape, he couldn't help but laugh.

"Sorry, I don't eat 'Pretty Girl Original Flavor Aged Food'."

After saying that, he couldn't suppress the smile on his face and walked straight towards the bathroom.

Behind her, the girl, who was stunned and didn't understand at first, belatedly realized what was happening after a while. She glanced at the clothes on her body that she hadn't washed or changed for almost a week because she had lost her identity and couldn't go home. Her eyes widened, her teeth gritted, and her whole body suddenly turned red with shame and trembled.

The moment that guy came out of the bathroom, she darted inside.

The sound of running water, which had just stopped, started again in the bathroom.

At night, Mai Sakurajima, wrapped in a bathrobe, stood at the bedroom door, hesitant to take a step inside. Akira Higashino, who was lying on the bed playing on his phone and using social media to amuse little Pochi, saw this and lifted a corner of the blanket, patting the spot next to him.

"What are you still standing there for?"

"Don't worry, I'm still willing to be understanding of my own people. In your current physical condition, if something were to happen between us, I'm afraid you'd just pass out halfway through."

Is this considered a consolation?

The girl's lips twitched slightly, and suddenly she was no longer afraid. She walked into the bedroom without a word, closed the door, and lay down under the covers.

That was very comforting. Please don't do that next time, thank you.

Chapter 109 I love Onii-chan the most!

That night, Mai Sakurajima slept soundly and soon fell into a deep sleep.

She didn't wake up until the next morning.

You are lying on a soft bed, not a cold, hard bench, with an unfamiliar ceiling above your head, instead of an endless sky.

Mai Sakurajima lay quietly for a while before her mind came back to life. She sat up in bed, took a deep breath, and felt refreshed. The weakness and discomfort in her body had completely subsided, but she was a little hungry.

Moreover, I drank a lot of thin porridge last night, and I just woke up, so I couldn't help myself.

The girl glanced at the empty spot beside her, pursed her lips, lifted the covers, got out of bed, slipped on her slippers, opened the door, and walked out of the bedroom.

Hearing the noise, Akira Higashino, who was in the kitchen, turned around and looked over there, meeting the girl's gaze.

"Go wash up and get ready to eat once you wake up."

"Ah."

After a brief exchange, Mai Sakurajima went into the restroom.

Breakfast was unremarkable, consisting of leftover white rice porridge from last night and some oily scrambled eggs as a side dish.

After quietly finishing breakfast, Mai Sakurajima took the initiative to get up and wash the dishes. After glancing at her complexion, he knew that she had recovered, and Akira Higashino didn't stand on ceremony with her.

After Mai Sakurajima finished everything and returned to the living room, sat opposite him, and adopted a reserved posture, he slowly began to speak.

Have you thought about what you want to do in the future?

Across from her, Mai Sakurajima paused for a moment upon hearing this, then asked, "Do I still have that opportunity and that choice?"

"As I said, I have a way to save you, although it's not a cure, just a short-term treatment with limited effectiveness."

Faced with her negative attitude, Akira Higashino didn't particularly like it. If he could, he preferred a more vibrant and individualistic young woman. So he explained, "Aside from making demands on you in matters of the heart, you are free to do whatever you want as long as you don't cross the line."

Upon hearing this, a spark of liveliness shone in Mai Sakurajima's quiet eyes, but she didn't rush to say anything more.

Akira Higashino pulled out an artist management contract and handed it to her.

"If you can't think of anything for the time being, and you don't mind your current job, you can take a look at this."

“My business recently has some business needs, and there happens to be a department that is missing a key person. If you join, you will be the head of the department. Aren’t you happy?”

Sakurajima Mai rolled her eyes at the guy, speechless. He had nothing to offer, yet he made it sound so nice.

I took another look at the details of the contract. The terms were quite lenient and flexible, and the profit-sharing was also very good. However, the premise was that there would be income to share if there was work. I had never even heard of this company in the industry. Under such circumstances, resources must be very limited. Apart from the extremely attractive base salary, I didn't see any other advantages.

It wasn't that Mai Sakurajima wanted to refuse; having already escaped death, her life was in someone else's hands, so she had no room to refuse.

Moreover, this guy seems to be possessive. If you work at his company, you probably won't encounter that kind of experience of being coaxed into taking swimsuit photos against your will.

However, "I already have a management company."

After she finished speaking, she paused for a moment, "I signed a very long contract before, and the penalty for breach of contract is very expensive."

Upon hearing this, Higashino Akira smiled and said, "I'm not short of money, and... given your current state, it's uncertain whether your agency even remembers that Sakurajima Mai ever existed. After you sign, I'll send someone with the termination agreement to get their signatures."

Mai Sakurajima paused slightly, then looked at the man with a slightly ambiguous expression. "You're so mean."

"I was never good to begin with."

The girl began to feel sorry for her mother.

If what he said is true, his mother will definitely regret it terribly afterwards.

Finally, with the signed contract in hand, Higashino Akira tossed the keys to the house to Sakurajima Mai, telling her to come back to pick her up in a couple of days when the preparations were complete. He said that someone would deliver various groceries to the door, and if she needed anything, she could tell them her requirements. Then he left alone.

On the way back, I estimated the time. It was late March, and high school students should have finished a semester and be on vacation.

Thinking of his younger sister, whom he usually let roam freely and didn't manage much, he took out his phone and sent her a message.

Higashino: 'I'm going back to my hometown in a couple of days, for about a month. Want to come along?'

It took quite a while for the other party to reply.

Miko: "Great! I love Onii-chan the most! Can I bring Hana along?"

What does it mean?

Higashino: 'Okay, also, give the phone back to Miko. You're even more mushy than her.'

Higashino: 'And, I remember someone saying they'd never like me.'

On the other end of the call, the two girls blushed instantly.

Yotsuya Miko puffed out her cheeks. What do you mean by being even more mushy than her?

If it weren't for wanting to build a good relationship with her lukewarm 'brother,' she wouldn't have called him that!

As for Yurikawa Hana, who was replying to messages on Miko's phone, she was even more embarrassed. She let out a pitiful cry of shame and rolled around on the bed with her face flushed.

No, it was just a short sentence, how did it get exposed!

And Jianzi, you're usually so useless!

Isn't this the tone of voice a typical younger sister would use when she's being affectionate with her older brother?

Yurikawa Hana, who has a cheerful personality even without an older brother, naturally thought so and didn't find her answer strange. After all, aren't all siblings in anime like that?

Fortunately, I helped Jianzi agree, otherwise she would never take the initiative to act cute and build a good relationship with Higashino-san to create more shared memories. That won't do. Siblings can't be so distant, or they'll drift apart!

Thinking about it, the girl looked at her best friend with a touch of pride, "Jianzi, I've really done so much for you!"

"Hi hi..."

Hearing this, although she didn't understand, Yotsuya Miko still gently pinched Xiaohua's cheek and responded affectionately.

Yurikawa Hana was already used to Miko's personality. Seeing this, she chuckled happily, then felt a little worried. "Now that I'm helping Miko, what will happen if I'm not by her side in the future?"

Are you my mother?

Yotsuya Miko smiled, amused by her sweet and adorable best friend.

"Instead of thinking about things that are so far away, Xiaohua should first think about how to explain to her aunt that you are going on a long trip and put her mind at ease."