Chapter 96:
[thirteen]
She always knows how to put unpleasant things aside and adjust her mindset.
Because he started seeing psychologists shortly after birth, he remembered their teachings very clearly. After his family learned about his hypermnesia, they paid even more attention to his emotional state.
Since learning that he even remembered things from when he was just born, his family members worriedly recalled whether they had done anything wrong in the past.
Morofushi Umeko said at the time, "Of course there is, but it's already a tie."
Upon receiving this answer, Hiromitsu breathed a sigh of relief and said, "I will never eat your pudding again, Sora'aki."
Therefore, at this time, Morofushi Umeko did not take those things too seriously.
Morofushi Akira wasn't one to discuss these kinds of things, so the two of them naturally tacitly skipped the topic. Morofushi Akira then asked, "So, what exactly is your relationship with him?"
Matsuda Jinpei: "?"
Matsuda Jinpei: "The problem is back on my shoulders again?"
[fourteen]
When confronted by [Morofushi Akira], Morofushi Umeko didn't feel there was anything to hide and pulled out her treasured phone: "It's a relationship where we can do this and that together and then do that and that."
[Morofushi Akira] fell silent, then turned his face away and clicked his tongue.
Matsuda Jinpei: "Can someone explain to me what 'this way' and 'that way' mean?"
Morofushi Umeko opened her phone and entered the password: "It means we can go shopping for women's clothes together."
Morofushi Umeko commented, "Matsuda looks great in women's clothing; he has the face I like."
Matsuda Jinpei: "...I almost thought it was Hagi talking."
The curly-haired police officer suddenly noticed the most important detail: "Wait? Women's clothing?! What women's clothing?!"
[Morofushi Akira]'s eyes lit up, and his gaze immediately fell on Morofushi Umeko's phone: "Let me see!"
Then, a photo of Morofushi Umeko, Hagiwara Kenmi, and Matsuda Jinko, which was on her phone, appeared in front of them.
Since Morofushi Umeko is now gender-swapped, it doesn't seem out of place for her to be dressed as a woman in the photos. However, looking at the droopy-eyed beauty winking in the photos, and the curly-haired woman with someone putting their arm around her shoulder and looking annoyed in the picture, Matsuda Jinpei fell into a long silence.
[Morofushi Akira] then burst into laughter: "Hahaha! You've finally met your match, Matsuda!!"
Matsuda Jinpei, biting the unlit cigarette that was almost broken in two, seemed reluctant to speak.
[fifteen]
"Speaking of which, I haven't seen Hagiwara since earlier." Morofushi Umeko said with some confusion, "Generally speaking, isn't Hagiwara always with you, Matsuda?"
Matsuda Jinpei was torn. After all, dragging someone else into the mess was really risky—the curly-haired officer hesitated for a second, then took out his phone: "Hagi, wait a minute, I'll call him over for you!"
[Morofushi Akira] clearly intends to watch the show. Although Morofushi Umeko's words might hurt him, it's a good deal no matter how you look at it.
Because Hagiwara Kenji has lost his legal status, it's unlikely he can regain it until everything is over. Even if he does regain his status, getting back to work will be quite difficult.
So he is now working hard to continue studying the latest updated textbooks for the police academy, planning to retake the police exam and enter the academy legitimately again.
So when he received the call, Hagiwara Kenji was in the library. He noticed his phone vibrating, picked it up and glanced at it. It was a text message from Matsuda Jinpei.
"...Huh? You want me to go to Poirot right now?" Hagiwara Kenji belatedly glanced at the time and realized it was the police's off-duty hours. He was also hungry, so he packed up his teaching materials, grabbed the bag, and headed to Poirot.
Because Matsuda Jinpei used the word "urgent", Hagiwara Kenji arrived at a speed that put him on the verge of being fined and penalized by his sister.
Matsuda Jinpei was always the most conspicuous person in the crowd. Hagiwara Kenji noticed him at a glance and was about to greet him when the words caught in his throat.
Because he saw [Morofushi Akira] waving at him with a smile, and the cat-eyed girl sitting next to him tilting her head and looking at him.
Hagiwara Kenji visibly stiffened for a moment, then walked over curiously and asked, "Two Akira-chan? Or is it Hiroko-san and Akira-chan?"
"It's not Hiroko, it's Umeko." Morofushi Umeko blinked, then rubbed her eyes, wondering if she had misread it for a moment.
In this world, [Morofushi Akira] created a false identity for Hagiwara Kenji in order to revive him. Therefore, not only was Hagiwara Kenji's identity changed, but even his face was replaced.
Of course, it's not plastic surgery; it's a facial alteration derived from superpowers. Everyone who sees Hagiwara Kenji doesn't see Hagiwara Kenji's face, but rather a completely different stranger.
For Hagiwara Kenji to revert to his own face is merely a matter of a thought for a psychic. There's no need to worry about that.
To a normal person, Hagiwara Kenji is a complete stranger. But first and foremost, Morofushi Umeko is no ordinary person; she doesn't even seem to belong to this world.
Brainwashing of this world never worked on her from the start. Not to mention, Morofushi Umeko also had her own cheat codes; Little Stone could also block superpowers.
Morofushi Umeko rubbed her eyes and murmured, "Did I just see things? When did Hagiwara learn to change faces?"
Hagiwara Kenji was taken aback: "Huh?"
[Morofushi Akira] explained with a smile, "It's a superpower, a blurry face. You didn't see it wrong."
Hagiwara Kenji suddenly realized what was happening. After all, he couldn't see his own face unless he looked in a mirror, and his current fake face was quite handsome, so he wasn't particularly sensitive to this matter.
Before Hagiwara Kenji could speak, Morofushi Umeko understood what [Morofushi Akira] meant. She looked earnestly at Hagiwara Kenji, who had just sat down, and said seriously, "Don't worry, in my eyes, Hagiwara has always been Hagiwara."
Hagiwara Kenji: "..."
Matsuda Jinpei's eyes sharpened as he noticed the faint blush that suddenly appeared on Hagiwara Kenji's face: "Hey, Hagi, this guy is a minor."
Hagiwara Kenji: "..."
Hagiwara Kenji was shocked and hurt: "Of course I can see that, Jinpei-chan, are you emphasizing this because you doubt me?!"
Hagiwara Kenji: "Speaking of which, isn't anyone going to explain the situation to me?!"
Morofushi Umeko exclaimed, "As expected of you guys, Jinpei-chan...Matsuda also asked this question earlier."
"Jinpei-chan?" Hagiwara Kenji, noticing the nickname, sharpened his gaze. "Jinpei, this kid's still a minor, you know?"
Matsuda Jinpei's face darkened.
I was happy to see the two of them hurting each other.
Holding her milk tea, Morofushi Umeko was completely unaware that she had started the war.
[Morofushi Akira] exclaimed, "I really like you more and more, Ume-chan."
Then Morofushi Umeko's eyes sharpened, almost exactly like Matsuda and Hagiwara's. She said, "We are related by blood, so Mother will not agree."
[Morofushi Akira]: "..."
[Morofushi Akira] noticed the look in the eyes of the childhood friends, paused for a second, then stroked his chin and said, "Wouldn't it be better if we didn't let Mom know?"
Morofushi Umeko was taken aback, then tilted her head and said, "Cheating?"
[Morofushi Akira] nodded: "That's right!"
Matsuda Jinpei and Hagiwara Kenji exclaimed in unison, "No!!"
"Don't set a bad example for minors!"
[Morofushi Akira] was unhappy and retorted, "You two are the ones who corrupted minors, aren't you? One is a (former) gigolo, and the other is a bastard who deceived my (non-existent) sister."
Hagiwara Kenji: Is it possible that I never actually worked as a male escort?
Matsuda Jinpei: Is it possible that I was the one who was tricked?
"By the way, why are the parentheses also read aloud?"
"Because I feel a stronger connection with it." [Morofushi Akira] replied.
[sixteen]
Upon hearing Morofushi Akira's words, Morofushi Umeko fell silent. After all, neither Matsuda Jinpei nor Hagiwara Kenji were her good friends, and their professions were none of her concern.
Hagiwara Kenji: "Wait? Umeko-chan, you don't actually believe that, do you?!"
Morofushi Umeko said earnestly, "It's okay, I don't discriminate against any profession."
Hagiwara Kenji: "I already said I didn't—!!"
[seventeen]
Ultimately, Morofushi Akira and Morofushi Umeko are different branches of the same person, and Morofushi Umeko couldn't stay for too long. When Little Stone was about to give up, Morofushi Umeko took her leave on her own initiative.
After all, there will be other opportunities in the future, so there's no need to rush.
[Morofushi Akira] smiled as he discovered the power of this ultimate weapon: "Come visit again sometime~ I still need someone to watch a movie with me."
Morofushi Umeko replied, "Okay, I'll go with you next time."
Watching Morofushi Umeko leave, Hagiwara Kenji looked at his childhood friend and asked, "Do you think she believed it or not?"
Matsuda Jinpei scoffed, "Ha, that's Morofushi."
Matsuda Jinpei didn't specify who from the Morofushi family, only referring to them as Morofushi. Hagiwara Kenji, however, recalled their beloved contemporaries and their world's [Morofushi 空亮], and sighed deeply: "That's true, after all, it's Morofushi."
Completely unaware of what was happening here, Morofushi Hiromitsu of this world suddenly sneezed and blinked in confusion.
[eighteen]
The impact of going to the world of [Morofushi Akira] continued until Morofushi Umeko... Morofushi Sora'aki came to the Good Friends World.
In the Good Friends World, there is no need for gender swapping. Morofushi Sora'aki, wearing his high school uniform, looks at Hagiwara Kenji, who is smiling and talking to him, with a serious expression.
Although this serious expression isn't much different from his usual expressionless face, it's still quite serious.
Sensing that his friend had something to say to him, Hagiwara Kenji asked curiously, "Sora'aki-chan?"
Matsuda Jinpei also gave him a look.
After considering his words for a moment, Morofushi Sora'aki said seriously, "Even if Hagiwara wants to become a male escort, I will support him."
Matsuda Jinpei: "...Hmm?"
Hagiwara Kenji: "?!?!?"
Hagiwara Kenji's pupils dilated in shock, nearly choking on his own saliva: "Who said I wanted to be a male escort?!"