WebNovels

Chapter 233 - A Professional Accomplice

Yuu walked Iroha back to the main road. Only after she suddenly turned at the corner and waved at him did he finally leave.

Before the golden ball of light was swallowed by the darkening sky, he had already arrived home. He went upstairs, placed his school bag in his room, and changed clothes.

When he opened the door to his locked room, Yuu couldn't help but frown.

"This feeling…"

Someone had been inside?

He stood at the threshold, scanning the room, even sniffing the air.

...No different from when he'd left the house.

Even so, though his memory was far better than before, Yuu couldn't recall the exact layout of his room in great detail. He'd never slipped hair or paper into the door gap to check if anyone had entered or left.

There was no evidence—only a vague sense that someone had been in his room. Like a warehouse long untouched suddenly catching a brief draft, the difference was so slight it was almost illusory. Yuu even suspected he was being overly sensitive.

"Sora, did you come into my room?"

He set down his bag. After changing, as he passed Sora's room, he asked casually.

"Isn't your room locked? Besides, why would I go into your room?"

A cold, melodious voice came from inside. Sora answered his question with another question.

"Then it's nothing." Since nothing was missing, Yuu dismissed the thought for now and headed downstairs. "Don't forget to come out for dinner."

"Okay~"

For some reason, his sister's voice sounded like she was relieved.

After dinner, Yuu returned to his room. The first thing he did was turn on his computer and check the rental boyfriend website.

Though the data hadn't been deleted, his personal profile page now showed a 404 error. His profile picture was gone too—no trace remained of him ever being a rental boyfriend.

Regarding this, Yuu nodded in satisfaction. He took the brand-new first volume of the JOJO manga from the bookshelf, flipping through its pages as he said:

"System, you're actually useful after all. Keep it up. Maybe I won't turn you into a human later, sparing you from experiencing the suffering and joy of human women."

System: "..."

The system, now possessing basic intelligence, chose to skillfully remain silent in response to his rude remark.

After confirming the system had finally cleaned up the mess he'd made, and Kouichirou had informed him that Asuna was doing well—now not only playing games but even planning to join the kendo club—Yuu finally felt truly relieved.

Aside from Haruno's wooden comb, the previous two missions should have ended perfectly, leaving no lingering issues.

As for Masuzu, Yuu could only take things step by step. Only after gradually getting to know her could he begin to understand what "filling the emptiness in her heart" truly meant, and then achieve the desired goal.

"Too bad. The essence of a fake boyfriend is completely different from a rental one..."

Thinking about this, Yuu couldn't help but sigh.

Unlike Haruno, Masuzu, who hated love, might despise everything related to dating. She didn't need Yuu to genuinely act like a boyfriend—she only needed him to convincingly perform the role in front of others. So even something like allowing his "girlfriend" to go on a blind date with other girls would be fine, since she'd find it amusing and might even hide nearby to watch.

A rental boyfriend offered warmth; a fake boyfriend concealed coldness. His past experiences might not be usable here, and even the approach to getting close to her was somewhat difficult.

"But... experience isn't that important, right?"

After all, Yuu had once interacted with those girls instinctively. Falling in love had been natural. He'd never used dating methods or secrets, yet he was already highly skilled at improvisation and adaptation.

Even for the troublesome Masuzu, as long as Yuu continued interacting with her, he'd surely discover her weak, vulnerable side—then strike and conquer her heart—

Even if he didn't truly want to date her, he could make her fall for him, unable to ever let go again.

...Haha, this dating-game-like way of thinking—if applied in real life, he'd definitely become a scumbag. That was completely unacceptable.

Yuu shook his head with a small laugh, stretched his body to relax, cleared his mind, and stopped thinking about such things.

Looking at the first volume of the JOJO manga—Phantom Blood—he suddenly felt curious and said to himself:

"If, before Araki-sensei finishes drawing part eight, I've already received all the JOJO manga volumes as rewards from the system and sent the final volume to him, would that alter the world's timeline?"

And again, before the ending is revealed, I could tell all the JOJO fans what happens, confidently announce who dies, and watch their disbelieving expressions and suspicious reactions...

That must be it—just thinking about it already gets me excited!

Yuu didn't want to be a scumbag, but occasionally playing the devil? He'd quite enjoy that.

If the chance truly came, his first target would be a high school girl JOJO fan—Natsukawa Masuzu.

"For some reason, I really want to see her devastated expression..."

In the quiet room, a small, slightly wicked laugh echoed.

◆━⊰✧⊱━◆

Far away, in a luxurious apartment.

Masuzu couldn't suppress a shiver, rubbing the goosebumps on her pale arms.

"Bad premonition... Could it be my fake boyfriend is planning something terrible using this identity?"

Thinking this, she pulled out her phone and sent a message.

Masuzu a.k.a. Go-to-love-hell: "Right now, in your mind, what position am I in?"

Yuu replied quickly, not making her wait by her phone.

Tenkuji: "One hand on your hip, one hand through your head, laughing like a madman."

"Good." Masuzu nodded in satisfaction and set down her phone.

Aside from her status as a fake girlfriend—and setting aside all factors related to love—she actually quite liked Yuu.

The reason was simple.

JOJO.

Anyone who had read and loved JOJO, and wasn't just a fan who liked making jokes, was someone Masuzu didn't dislike.

"Seems nice. Maybe we could be friends after this fake relationship ends." She couldn't help but smile happily.

But she also knew—it was just a passing lie, not to be taken seriously.

"Alright, time to prepare for tomorrow's blind date~"

She stood up. In the quiet apartment, Masuzu hummed a tune and began rummaging through her closet.

As for how she'd act as a couple tomorrow, or whether others would suspect anything, she never worried.

—Because her accomplice was a professional-grade fake.

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