Tokyo: Idol Girls have absolutely no bad intentions!

She was completely focused on waging a "pancake defense battle" against Asada.

The forks in their hands were like knights' lances clashing in close combat, precisely and swiftly cutting and forking the fluffy and tempting giant muffin on the plate.

Asada swiftly forked a large piece of maple syrup-covered flesh and stuffed it into her mouth, her cheeks puffing out like a hamster's as she let out a satisfied whimper.

Xiaochun quickly protected the "high ground" she had her eye on, which was decorated with fresh berries. Her little face was full of seriousness, as if she would fight anyone who dared to touch her pancakes. Her mouth was stuffed full.

"I don't know!" Xiaochun finally swallowed a big mouthful, her voice still muffled by food stuck in her throat.

Her fork remained firmly planted on that "strategic spot," vigilantly guarding against any possible next "surprise attack" from Asada.

While Koharu was "speaking," Asada cunningly reached out his fork to try and steal another piece of food from Koharu's plate that looked particularly crispy.

These two guys...

Ito rubbed his temples in exasperation. It wasn't like a robber was going to suddenly appear and steal the pancakes, so why was he in such a hurry to eat them?

He picked up the ice water on the table, took a sip, and his gaze swept across the battlefield, finally spotting a small, "surviving" pancake on the edge of the fighting.

Just as he extended his fork to rescue the innocent refugee, an accident occurred.

"Grandma Matsusaka's pancakes are always delicious, no matter how many times you eat them." Suddenly, a hand appeared and cruelly executed the sole survivor.

Ito looked up and saw the middle-aged police officer, who should have been maintaining order on the film set, now happily putting a pancake into his mouth.

He silently memorized the police badge number on the other person's chest.

“I can report you for dereliction of duty right now,” Ito said calmly.

“I’m just doing my job right now,” he said, pointing to a worker carrying a styrofoam box by the door, “and I happened to stop by to see this guy.”

"Xiaochun, didn't you say you were going to your classmate's house to play today?" The middle-aged police officer stared sternly at Xiaochun, who was shrinking her head like a quail.

"Who...who is Xiaochun?" Chun covered her face tightly with her hands, her voice muffled, deliberately lowering her tone, "I...I don't understand what you're saying!"

“Yes, yes! She’s not Koharu!” Asada nodded vigorously, her cheeks bulging, earnestly chiming in.

"......"

The middle-aged police officer and Ito exchanged a glance, both seeing the helplessness in each other's eyes.

“Please keep an eye on her order,” the middle-aged police officer sighed, patting Ito on the shoulder, “Although you yourself seem… a bit unreliable.”

"You don't have to say that last sentence," Ito replied expressionlessly.

The officer ignored her, took out a tissue, and clumsily but gently wiped away the crumbs from Xiaochun's mouth. "Go home early."

He gave me a word of advice, waved to Ito, and then left with the staff waiting at the door.

"So long-winded..." Xiaochun muttered softly after the police officer had walked away, glancing guiltily at the doorway. "I already told you I don't know Xiaochun."

"Koharu," Ito called out the other person's name.

"What's wrong?" Xiaochun asked reflexively, looking up as if on cue.

So isn't she Xiaochun?

"Who is that guy?" Ito pointed at the middle-aged police officer's back.

"I don't know him." Xiaochun shook her head, her face innocent and naive. "He seems to be the father of someone named Xiaochun."

That's your father.

Ito felt a dull ache in his temples again.

This police officer must have a lot of nerve to entrust his child to a complete stranger (who might even be mistaken for a suspicious person).

Asada's seemingly harmless and naive appearance unexpectedly provided a strong guarantee that "this person is harmless".

"Ito, eat!" Asada shoved a pancake into his fork. "Delicious pancake."

Ito obediently opened his mouth to take it. His gaze unconsciously drifted back to the distant lawn.

Over there, the pancakes that the staff brought over seemed to give the crew a short break.

He clearly saw that the middle-aged police officer deliberately walked up to Takikawa and pointed towards the pancake shop.

Out of politeness, Ito raised his hand and waved from a distance.

Takikawa merely glanced at them indifferently, then turned away without hesitation and walked straight away.

As a debtor who has defaulted on his debts, he certainly has a lot of confidence. Ito silently withdrew his hand.

However, he keenly sensed that something was off about the atmosphere on set.

Even during breaks, the staff mostly huddled together in silence, with no one talking or laughing loudly, and no one moving around freely.

The entire lawn was filled with a low-pressure, almost stagnant sense of oppression. Everyone just huddled in their own little circles, eating quietly, and even their movements were cautious.

Takikawa, you'd better work hard in this environment.

The two men quickly finished off the pancakes on the table and got up to head to the next stamp station.

Asada and Koharu stood at the entrance of the pancake shop, chatting and laughing as if they were peers with endless topics to discuss.

Ito, on the other hand, settled the bill with Grandma Matsusaka and retrieved his stamp collection.

How do the pancakes taste?

“It’s delicious.” Ito stuffed the stamp collection into his purse and took out the money as well.

"No need for this." Grandma Matsusaka maintained her kind smile. "Hearing that you like my pancakes is enough."

"Besides..." she waved to Koharu at the door, "coming all the way from Tokyo for a date, and she's actually willing to spend time with Koharu. That's really rare."

It's rare...

Ito turned around and looked at Koharu, whose expression had immediately changed. It really wasn't easy taking care of this brat.

"That rumor..." Just as Ito was about to thank her and leave, he remembered the old woman's hesitant words and couldn't help but ask, "What exactly was the rumor you mentioned this evening?"

"You'll find out when you and that little girl go there near dusk." Grandma Matsusaka didn't answer directly, but just looked at Ito with her kind eyes. "Believe me, what you see with your own eyes is the most unforgettable."

She seemed to remember something and added, "Don't worry, Xiaochun can stay with me. You two can go without worry."

Ito wanted to ask more, but Koharu's impatient urging came from the doorway: "Ito—! So slow! Hurry up! Next stop!"

Her voice was clear and bright, completely unlike the timid person she had been in front of the police officer.

Ito had no choice but to suppress his doubts for the time being, nodded slightly to the old woman in thanks, and turned to walk towards the door.

Koharu immediately pounced on him, grabbing the hem of his trench coat like a little koala, while her other hand firmly gripped Asada's wrist.

“Let’s go to the Natural History Museum,” Ito said, looking at the map in the stamp collection.

"Eh~ why?" Asada immediately protested, her voice trailing off, "I was already ready to sample the next dish!"

“Asada,” Ito sighed, his gaze sweeping over her slightly bulging belly hidden under her clothes, “you’ve eaten a lot today, haven’t you?”

"W-Why did you suddenly say that?" Asada turned her face away guiltily, not daring to meet his gaze.

“Although I don’t want to spoil your fun, but…” Ito put the stamps together, “You’ve clearly exceeded your calorie intake today.”

"If we continue eating this, we'll only be able to eat bean sprouts for the next month."

Ito's expression was serious. "Just like last week."

Last week, because Asada's class's PE teacher was on leave, the two classes had a physical fitness test together.

That class happened to be used to record everyone's basic physical fitness, and Ito took a special look at Asada's weight.

Unsurprisingly, the other person's weight had clearly exceeded the standard that Ito had set for her.

Although I don't have a belly yet, it won't be long before that happens if things continue like this.

"C-Can we skip the bean sprouts?" Asada immediately put on a pitiful expression and pleaded, grabbing Ito's arm. "Can't I have boiled chicken breast with vinaigrette?"

This person is completely unaware of the root of the problem.

"Besides, Ito, I'm going to tell you a little scientific fact!" Asada showed Ito her phone.

"Look! Look! Studies have shown that eating more meals throughout the day can actually help control weight."

Ito didn't see any posts about this on his phone, only photos of Asada in a maid outfit.

Since Asada accidentally opened the photo album in the beginning, now swiping her finger on the screen is just revealing a side of Ito that is not known to others.

It was like opening Pandora's box, with "evidence" from the photo album pouring out one after another.

Besides the cat-themed selfies she took in front of the mirror, there were also photos of her eating spaghetti with Takikawa and small cakes with Yoshida Nai.

Ito also saw the heart-shaped bento box that appeared during the rooftop incident, and...

He looked at Asada with a puzzled expression. Why would the other person have photos of Morigami in casual clothes?

And why was this photo of the dinner party taken three days ago? Wasn't the other person being asked to go on a diet at that time?

"See? I was right." Asada saw Ito staring intently at the screen and assumed he was convinced by the theory.

"So I'm not binge eating! I'm losing weight in a controlled and scientific way."

“Those unorthodox principles aren’t important right now.” Ito turned his phone over and pointed it at Asada. “You explain what’s going on with this dinner party first.”

At the time, he admired Asada for actually being able to persevere, not realizing that she was secretly rewarding herself.

"Y-it's Nai." Asada panicked instantly, snatched the phone, and then unhesitatingly revealed her accomplice.

"She...she said that women need to be a little plump to be more attractive." She spoke softly, a suspicious blush creeping onto her cheeks.

Chapter 179 If you can't develop, then choose to improve your intelligence.

After much persuasion, Asada finally managed to understand the vast difference between "plumpness" and "simply accumulating fat."

Asada, now an adult, could not possibly experience a so-called "secondary development" no matter what kind of "specific supplements" she received.

Even if her face instantly crumbles, filled with immense disappointment and the realization that "it's not like that after all," the cruel reality remains unchanged.

As for the other person's whispered remark, "I thought getting bigger meant they were developing," Ito sighed and rubbed his forehead.

Simply accumulating fat will not create a true god.

The atmosphere became exceptionally "peaceful" during the rest of the stamp collecting journey.

Asada followed behind Ito like a lost soul, glancing down at her chest every now and then, then sighing dejectedly, as if she were performing some kind of silent mourning.

This strange behavior piqued Koharu's curiosity and also made Ito temporarily put aside his questioning of Asada for "cheating on a snack during her diet".