Aunt Xiangzi, how did you manage to live?

There is another type of person who, even if they are not at the center of public opinion, still precisely controls everyone's actions behind the scenes, strategizing from afar.

For example, there's Misaka Hatsuka, who actually knew what was going to happen today, but instead of accompanying Shoko to visit Mutsu and Kazama, she stayed hidden in the shadows.

There is another type of person who thinks he is the center of the storm and the decisive factor in whether the battleground can exist. He believes that his words and actions are likely to determine the direction of the story and lead to different future developments. But in reality, this type of person is not as important as he imagines. In fact, he may even inadvertently become someone's tool to test another person.

Unfortunately, Toyokawa Shoko was one of those people.

She was completely unaware that she was the stepping stone that Hatsuka had thrown out to observe Kazama and Mutsumi's state. She even felt quite self-satisfied, believing that she could expose the secret relationship between Akatsuki and Mutsumi—and even between Akatsuki and Hatsuka—with her own efforts.

This is it or it... I'm sure I can uncover these guys' hidden secrets!

Even after entering Wakaba's house and sitting next to Kazama, Toyokawa Shoko still held this confident belief.

Discover the secrets these guys are hiding in time, and then persuade Xiao Mu and Chu Hua to turn back from their misguided ways, so they stop blindly following this guy who suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

This was Toyokawa Shoko's plan.

"What evil ideas are you planning again?"

Before she could put her lofty ambitions into action, the young man beside her extinguished the budding flame with a cold tone.

Wait, does this guy have mind-reading abilities?

"Although Mu said that we two shouldn't quarrel, and I will obediently listen to her, don't expect me to tell you everything I know, Xiangzi."

Kazama shrugged, his tone still gentle but distant enough, it seemed that getting the information he wanted from him wouldn't be so easy.

However, Toyokawa Shoko is not one to give up easily, and she certainly wouldn't just stand by and watch her plan fall apart halfway through.

"When did I ever say that I wanted you to be completely open and honest with me, Kazama-kun? Please don't be so presumptuous."

"Oh? Is that so? Then I won't respond to anything you say from now on, Xiangzi. It's just as you wish for us to minimize our communication."

Oh no, did I go too far with this provocation?

"Hmph, hmph... What did Mumi say that you just blindly follow her decisions like a headless fly? It seems I underestimated your tendency to blindly follow others, Kazama-kun."

Seeing that he was about to kill the conversation with his own words, Xiangzi awkwardly tried to find a topic that would allow Kazama to continue his scathing remarks.

The boy remained silent, simply looking down at his phone, seemingly oblivious to Xiangzi's presence.

Seriously? Is this guy serious?

"Or perhaps, is this submissive and obedient attitude your way of trying to make a good impression on Mu?"

Xiangzi gave a weak laugh, her words lacking substance. In truth, her provocative arrogance didn't come from her heart; she was merely trying to fill the void of guilt and panic at being ignored. This also conveniently allowed Kazama to retaliate with even more scathing and cutting remarks.

The boy beside her remained silent and did not comment, only staring intently at his phone screen.

When people are in the same room with someone they dislike, even if they maintain a false peace on the surface, they are still trying to avoid any physical or verbal contact with that person because they are completely resisting any physical or verbal contact with them. They will pretend to be very busy to avoid any involvement with that person.

This is Kazama's current state.

It seems he is truly putting into practice his promise that he would no longer pay attention to her.

Damn it... I should have known better than to be so blunt.

Xiangzi cursed herself inwardly; her unfounded pride and arrogance always tripped her up at crucial moments.

Although it was common knowledge that she and Kazama Akatsuki had a long-standing feud, she still wanted to find out the truth if she could—

What kind of magic does this guy possess that allows him to keep his childhood friends, former teammates, and current teammates firmly by his side?

"Xiangzi, how old are you? Are you still playing this kind of game that's like a primary school boy pulling a girl's hair just to get her attention?"

Seeing that Xiangzi still seemed to want to say something but hesitated, and was about to say something to continue provoking the war, Kazama sneered and stopped speaking again.

"Or are you just driven by a sense of crisis... afraid that I'll take Mu away from you?"

Ugh... Kazama is such an annoying guy. Normally, Shoko would probably have lost her temper and started arguing with him for ten or twenty minutes.

But there was nothing they could do; Mu had just explicitly forbidden them from continuing their argument, and his demeanor was far from joking.

Even though he was seething with hatred inside, Xiangzi, who still intended to maintain a semblance of dignity for both of them, could only twitch his lips and temporarily back down.

She snorted without directly answering Xiao's question, and then angrily picked up her phone, pretending to be busy and ignoring him.

"........."

Kazama glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, finding Xiangzi's attempt to imitate him and pretend she was busy quite amusing.

Of course, it was also clumsy in a way that was somewhat amusing.

"Xiao, Xiang. Sorry to keep you waiting."

Not long after their chatter ended, Mu carried a bunch of puffed snacks into the living room and placed them all on the table, which was covered with a tablecloth.

"Mu...when did you start liking these snacks?"

Xiangzi stared in disbelief as the large and small bags of potato chips and biscuits fell onto the table.

As Mutsuka's childhood friend who has been by her side for over a decade, she knows that Mutsuka has never been interested in these unhealthy junk foods.

And speaking of which, it was only then that she noticed everything unusual in the house.

The living room, which was kept in perfect order, was filled with what seemed to be trash that someone had painstakingly tidied up and piled up in a smart trash can. There was also a light green-haired girl who seemed out of place but was still diligently fulfilling her role as the head of the household.

With a quick glance, the clever Xiangzi locked her surprised gaze onto Kazama.

...It's all because of this guy that Mutsu has started acting strange!

Chapter Twenty-Six: Fated Love, Fated Sin

Watching her childhood sweetheart gradually become more and more distant in order to please others is actually quite difficult for Toyokawa Shoko to accept.

From childhood to adulthood, Mu relied on him the most. Even when she encountered difficulties, she would run to him first and timidly hide behind him. Xiangzi was also willing to help Mu solve the problems that troubled her. The two maintained a comrade-in-arms relationship of sharing life and death.

When did Mu's life stop revolving around herself?

By the time Toyokawa Shoko realized what was happening, it was already too late.

"I think the guitar fingering in the background accompaniment here could be changed to this, dropping that unnecessary chord..."

"I see………"

In the Wakaba family home, Toyokawa Shoko was still sitting in her original spot, separated from her husband, Shaoyue, who was sitting on the same sofa next to her. They were worlds apart, though they were very close.

She glanced at the other figure beside the boy with a discreet look—Mu hadn't come to sit on her side; instead, he had naturally plopped down next to Kazama, and the two of them were even discussing the areas where the new song needed improvement, their faces almost touching.

Mu wasn't like this before.

She doesn't eat junk food like processed snacks, doesn't invite guests over, and doesn't meticulously clean her house beforehand like a hospitable host.

He would never intentionally shorten the distance between himself and another person in the presence of Xiangzi.

"...What are you guys discussing? The new song? The one with lyrics written by Chu Hua?"

Feeling somewhat lost, she ultimately couldn't overcome her stubbornness and took the initiative to soften her stance, moving closer to the two of them and trying to join their discussion.

Kazama merely glanced at her briefly before refocusing his attention on the lyrics displayed on his phone screen.

"Yes, these are lyrics that Chu Hua sent to Xiao after she finished writing them. Xiao then wrote a demo based on these lyrics."

Mu explained the ins and outs in an orderly manner. Even though she was not good with words, she could now perfectly play the role of mediator in maintaining relationships, which was truly impressive.

This change was precisely the source of Xiangzi's discomfort.

"Let me see too..."

"Here."

Kazama didn't intend to take off his headphones and hand them to Shoko; he simply shifted the phone screen slightly toward Shoko while giving a concise explanation.

"what………"

As Chu Hua's powerfully evocative lyrics came into view, Xiangzi's expression became quite interesting once again.

"These...are all lyrics written by Chu Hua...? Eh..."

Regardless of who these lyrics were actually intended as a gift, Xiangzi couldn't help but feel worried for the man. But judging from the current situation—

She subtly shifted her gaze to Kazama's profile.

Although Xiangzi didn't want to admit it, no matter how you look at it, Chuhua could only write to this guy, right?

If that's the case, if that's the case...

She then glanced at Mu's face out of the corner of her eye.

Mutsu... How exactly does she view Kazama, and the incredibly close relationship between him and Hatsuka?

"As for the music, I don't think there are any major problems. Xiao did a great job."

The girl with light green long hair took off her headphones, which Kazama had handed to her the moment she sat down.

Mu listened to the melody composed by Xiao while pondering the words written by Chu Hua, listening to it over and over again five or six times.

"What about the lyrics? Mu, do you think there's anything that could be improved?"

Kazama pressed for details, but Mutsumi merely glanced at the lyrics briefly before looking away seemingly nonchalantly.

"……No."

As if she had just finished a troublesome task, she got up from the sofa and rubbed her eyes.

"I only offered my opinion on the melody; the rest should be handled by Xiao and Chuhua themselves."

After saying that, Mu waved his hand lazily.

"I'm a little tired and want to take a nap."

She waved her hand, announcing that her work was over and that it was time for a break—a time when she didn't want to be disturbed—and also indicating that the two guests could stay as long as they wanted.

But now Xiao and Xiangzi were getting restless.

It wasn't just because they couldn't stand each other and felt extremely uncomfortable being with each other; it was also because they both noticed something unusual about Mu.

When the mood strikes, he tries his best to play the role of a courteous head of the household; when the mood fades, he abandons his guests and goes back to his room to rest—this is not the usual behavior of Toyokawa Shoko towards Wakaba Mutsumi.

Mu's behavior was unusual all day, but what surprised Xiangzi the most was the look in her eyes as she listened to the melody and carefully studied the lyrics.

Having been childhood sweethearts for over ten years, Toyokawa Shoko had never seen Muku show that kind of look in his eyes.

We need to ask Mu what happened.

Just as she made up her mind to take the initiative, a figure sprang up from the sofa in her peripheral vision—

After a long silence, Kazama got up from the sofa before her and headed straight for the corner of the corridor where Mutsu had disappeared.

"what……"

Xiangzi was about to speak up to persuade him to stay, but then he noticed another crucial issue and reluctantly withdrew the words that were about to come out.

How did Kazama notice Mutsumi's emotional changes at the same time as him... and even take action before him?

It was as if he had only just slipped away to see Mutsu, and was someone who had been by her side for a longer time and knew her habits intimately. Even the right to step forward and show concern was snatched away by Kazama without a second thought.

...Perhaps I really don't have the ability to compete with this guy?

However, the fact that this guy so easily replaced him in Mu's position in such a short time still made Xiangzi unable to let go of it.

Already feeling exhausted, she rubbed her temples, but then, as if suddenly remembering something, a flash of inspiration struck her—

Chu Hua seemed to have said that if things got out of control... we could ask her for help?

Toyokawa Shoko picked up her phone and unlocked the screen after a brief moment of thought.

And the other side.

Completely unaware of all this, Mu collapsed onto the soft bed, closed her eyes, and woke up on the large bed in her consciousness space.

[Admit it, Xiaomu, you really do care, you care a lot.]

As soon as she opened her eyes in the consciousness space, she was met with Metis's malicious gaze.

Why would Chu Hua write something like this for Xiao? What exactly is their relationship? And what am I to Xiao? How exactly am I categorized in Xiao's life? — I know, Mu must be thinking about all these questions right now, right?

Metis chuckled, his eyes shining as if he were mocking someone or a mischievous child who had finally found an interesting toy.

【I know, I know everything! Including that you're actually so confused right now that you don't know what to do and can only keep running away!】

"........."

Faced with Metis's powerful attack aimed right at his face, Mu frowned slightly in displeasure, but did not take the opportunity to refute it.