In crossover anime, who isn't a childhood friend?

Thanks to him, the second young lady will no longer have to squeeze in with other tourists if she wants to see pandas in the future.

She could have gone directly through the backstage staff entrance and gotten closer to those chubby little guys, but of course, that's a story for another time.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Wait for me here, I'll be out soon."

"Yes, boss."

It was late at night.

Minamoto Chiya appeared near the Shinomiya Villa.

From a bird's-eye view, the movements of the security personnel in the villa's courtyard are clearly visible.

He silently infiltrated through the camera that Hayasaka Ai had previously hacked, appearing quite dangerous but actually handling the situation with ease, successfully approaching the villa wall right under the noses of numerous security personnel.

He bent down, raised his hand and gently pushed open the window, then nimbly flipped into the room like a cat.

But this time is different from the past.

This time, he entered not Hayasaka Ai's room, but Shinomiya Kaguya's boudoir.

"Qianye...?" came an uncertain voice from the other side of the bed.

Yuan Qianye replied softly, "It's me, don't be afraid."

He was turning to close the window when he heard hurried footsteps approaching. Then he felt a warmth on his back and a tight embrace around his waist as Kaguya embraced him.

The current situation... is actually quite helpless.

During this time, his meticulous care and companionship for this young lady, his complete support for her, his efforts to help her devise strategies and offer advice to help her out of her predicament, and the goodwill he had accumulated with her in the past all contributed to his success.

Now, this young lady has naturally fallen for it.

Without him even confessing his feelings, she seemed to have unilaterally recognized and established their relationship.

What can we do?

On one side is Hayasaka Aiichi's repeated pleas, and on the other side is the vulnerable and helpless young lady who has fallen into her darkest hour.

It's impossible to make things clear, so I can only let her be for now and wait until everything settles down before finding a suitable time to tell her the truth.

…………

273: The most delicious little strawberry on the cake (6k)

Seeing that Kaguya showed no sign of letting go once she hugged him, Minamoto Chiya subtly enjoyed the moment.

After all, this young lady has a supple figure and a faint fragrance emanating from her hair, making her truly irresistible.

But thinking of the important matter at hand, he coughed lightly as a reminder.

But the young lady completely ignored him and continued to maintain her current posture.

He tightened his arms around him, as if he would disappear if he let go.

Then, from the other side of the room, came Hayasaka Ai's voice: "Young lady, we don't have much time left."

Upon hearing her voice, Kaguya Shinomiya seemed to snap out of a daze and released her grip, blushing as she lowered her head and took two steps back.

Gen Chiya finally managed to turn around, her gaze falling on "Hayasaka Ai" who had stepped forward.

To match their plans for the evening, she wore a jet-black wig, custom-made contact lenses that were almost identical in color to Kaguya's eyes, and makeup.

At this moment, she and Kaguya stood side by side, and if one did not look closely, they truly looked like twin sisters.

"Time is of the essence, Miss. You should set off quickly. It will take time to travel back and forth. Try to return before dawn."

After hesitating for a moment, she added,

"But if there's really no time, there's no need to rush. I'm dressed up as you right now to prepare for any unexpected situations."

In the second half of her sentence, she used a voice almost identical to Kaguya's.

Kaguya nodded seriously, her eyes showing both determination and a hint of unease that she could not hide.

Hayasaka turned to Chiya again and bowed deeply: "I'm entrusting the young lady to you."

"Don't worry."

Delay could lead to unforeseen changes, so Gen Chiya and Kaguya decided to make no further contact. After confirming all the details of the original plan, they agreed to stay in touch.

Gen Chiya climbed out of the window again and reached over to pick Kaguya up.

Under the cover of night, the two quietly slipped out of the villa.

It was a little troublesome to climb over the wall, but only slightly.

Kaguya was not the kind of pampered, sickly young lady who couldn't even kill a chicken.

She has practiced archery since childhood and has outstanding athletic talent; her skills are far more agile than she appears.

Yuan Qianye supported her feet from below so that she could step forward first, and the process was quite smooth.

Kaguya Shinomiya finally breathed a sigh of relief the moment she got into the car.

But this is only the first step in tonight's plan.

"Don't worry, everything will go smoothly." Seeing her taking deep breaths, Yuan Qianye couldn't help but comfort her.

Kaguya tilted her head to look at him, nodded, and her eyes were full of trust.

She reached out her small hand and gently took his hand, then intertwined her fingers with his.

Yuan Qianye did not break free, knowing the confusion and unease in her heart at that moment.

There was both fear of the unknown fate and complex emotions about meeting that person.

He gripped her hand tightly, his palm conveying silent support through its warmth.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

An hour later, the vehicle drove to the outskirts of Tokyo, where a cluster of old Western-style houses, stacked together, came into view.

This place is called Tokyo Suginami Hospital, a high-end comprehensive private hospital that does not offer general outpatient services. It operates entirely on an appointment and internal referral system, and its core focus is on emergency and critical care, complex surgeries, chronic disease management, and advanced postoperative inpatient care.

Those who are admitted are not ordinary patients.

Shinomiya Gan'an received treatment here when she fell ill, and has been hospitalized here ever since to recuperate.

Of course, all of this is no longer of much significance now.

No matter how rich a person is, they cannot escape the natural laws of birth, aging, sickness, and death.

A few days ago, Kaguya Shinomiya learned from the Hayasaka couple that her nominal father, Kan'an Shinomiya, was in a very bad situation and had entered the final countdown of his life.

The attending physician has already given the final notice; at most, there's only one month left.

Upon learning this news, Kaguya Shinomiya realized that this might be the last time she would see him.

Even though her father had given her almost no love after she was born, he was still her father.

In addition, for her own future, and to get some definite answers from that dying old man, she had to go see him.

"Alright, let's go, let's proceed according to the original plan."

"Ah."

Kaguya Shinomiya put on a mask and got out of the car with Chiya Minamoto.

What followed unfolded like a classic scene from many spy movies—

They sneaked into the hospital under the guise of visitors, where Yuan Qianye used his good looks to distract an unsuspecting nurse, leading her to a corner between floors. He then pretended to be a playboy, flirting with her in a cynical manner.

Taking advantage of this break, Kaguya Shinomiya changed into the appropriate medical uniform and calmly passed through the checkpoints of the bodyguards at the ward entrance.

Pushing open the door, she finally entered Shinomiya Yan'an's ward.

Although Yuan Qianye was still dealing with the nurse around the corner of the corridor, his omniscient perspective had already quietly unfolded, taking in everything in the ward.

Kaguya looked at Shinomiya Karen, who was fast asleep with sunken cheeks, prominent cheekbones, and extremely thin body. She remained silent for a long time, and sadness gradually welled up in her eyes, mixed with a complex mix of pity, resentment, unwillingness, and reluctance.

After standing still for a while, she took a deep breath and completely suppressed her surging emotions.

She then gently woke up Shinomiya Yan'an.

The old man slowly awoke, his cloudy eyes gradually focusing. After recognizing who it was, his eyes widened slightly, and he slowly raised his withered hand, reaching out towards her.

But the hand didn't make any further moves. It paused in mid-air for a moment, and seeing that Kaguya didn't seem to want to hold it, it slowly lowered itself.

Yuan Qianye can see the detailed scene of the two meeting, but he has no way of accurately knowing the specific content of their conversation.

I should have learned lip reading years ago.

Before this operation began, Chiya Minamoto and Ai Hayasaka privately considered several possible developments.

Based on Shinomiya Gan'an's attitude, there are only two possible outcomes—

Firstly, if he still harbored fatherly feelings for Kaguya, he might have left her a portion of the Shinomiya family's assets before his death.

Given the size of the Shinomiya family, even a small portion of their resources would be enough to ensure her a comfortable and worry-free life.

Secondly, if he has absolutely no feelings for Kaguya and is extremely cold-hearted, then there's nothing more to say.

Taking this opportunity to completely separate Kaguya from the Shinomiya family is the best option.

For many years, Hayasaka Ai and Kaguya have lived together day and night, nominally mistress and servant but in reality sisters.

She had already planned out an escape route for Kaguya and also intended to continue taking care of her afterward.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Kaguya didn't stay in the ward for long; she came out about ten minutes later.

Yuan Qianye timely shook off the nurse who had been so charmed by him that she was practically ready to offer herself to him on the spot, and after meeting up with her, they left the hospital without stopping.

As for the potential disturbance that might occur if nurses went to the ward shortly after they left, that was no longer a concern given that their objective had already been achieved.

The vehicle smoothly reversed course along the route it had come from, and the streetlights outside the window receded one by one.

In the back seat, Chiyo looked at Kaguya Shinomiya several times, but seeing her stern eyes and tightly pursed lips as she pondered, he refrained from speaking each time.

A few minutes later, as if she had finally sorted out the tangled thoughts in her mind, Kaguya took the initiative to tell Minamoto Chiyo about the conversation that had just taken place in the ward.

That once-powerful business tycoon, now in his old age and nearing the end of his life, finally revealed a touch of tenderness.

He knew about his sons' private actions as early as last year when he was ill.