Mahiru paused, her tone carrying a faint sense of distance as she added:
“Many people deliberately approach me because of the title ‘angel-sama’.”
Hearing this, Satoru turned to look at her.
His face showed clear confusion, his brows furrowed: “angel-sama?”
“Of course not.
Besides, I don’t like that kind of title either.
It feels too deliberate.”
Satoru shook his head, his tone straightforward and decisive, even carrying a hint of natural denial.
Whether in anime or in this very moment, this was how Satoru felt.
Being fairly good-looking himself, Satoru could understand Mahiru’s feelings all too well.
At school, Satoru was often teased by classmates because he was too handsome.
“But, if I had to say…”
Satoru paused, seeming to search for the right words.
His gaze swept over her still-damp school uniform and not-yet-dry hair.
Finally, he gave an answer that made Mahiru freeze instantly:
“You were so drenched earlier, sitting on the swing looking utterly hopeless, like a homeless, waterlogged kitten.
It was pretty pitiful.”
“Almost like you’d been through a bad breakup.”
As soon as the words left his mouth, Satoru felt he’d messed up.
This deviates from the plot!
Moreover, the topic of breakups seemed to be a sensitive point for Mahiru.
But, on second thought…
The plot had already started deviating from the very beginning.
Well, that’s fine then.
Waterlogged…
kitten?!
Pitiful?!
Mahiru abruptly stopped walking, her amber eyes wide open as she stared at Satoru in disbelief.
Angel, goddess, unattainable flower…
She had heard too many flowery compliments; even sarcasm was often wrapped in a cloak of envy.
But Satoru’s description was just too direct, wasn’t it?
Utterly hopeless, waterlogged kitten, pitiful.
Words carrying a sense of condescension, pity, even a touch of offensiveness.
He just…
said them outright?
An indescribable feeling, a mix of grievance and flustered annoyance, instantly surged in her heart.
Mahiru’s cheeks flushed uncontrollably.
This time, it was absolutely not because of a breeze brushing her face!
“I am not pitiful!
And I’m not a kitten!”
Mahiru almost reflexively retorted, her voice louder, the polite speech she’d been using completely dropped.
Her tone even carried a hint of something akin to pique.
Once the words were out, she herself was stunned.
However…
When she looked up and met Satoru’s clear, frank gaze—which even held a trace of ‘did I say something wrong?’ confusion—
that indescribable emotion felt like it had hit cotton, with nowhere to land.
It even made her seem like she was making a big deal out of nothing!
After all, she knew herself…
What Satoru said was, to some extent, indeed the truth…
In that moment, she had truly been disheveled and vulnerable…
Mahiru’s heart pounded wildly.
That unfamiliar feeling surged in her heart once more.
“Yeah, yeah, of course you’re not.
You’re a person.”
Satoru nodded, affirming.
“You!!”
Mahiru was immediately at a loss for words, all the emotions she was brewing suddenly interrupted.
“And…
I’ve never dated any guy before!”
Mahiru turned her head away, as if hiding her jumbled thoughts, her voice dropping a few notes.
She didn’t even know why she felt the need to emphasize this to Satoru.
Maybe it was because of the ‘bad breakup’ he mentioned earlier?
Maybe it was because she was afraid Satoru might misunderstand?
But the words had already left her mouth.
As if to draw a clear line.
Or…
to prove herself, that she wasn’t what some people imagined.
Satoru’s reaction once again took her by surprise.
“Huh?
What on earth are you talking about?”
“That was just a figure of speech.”
Mahiru was taken aback: “Eh?”
“You don’t look like someone who’s been in a relationship.”
Satoru instantly transformed into Detective Conan, his expression showing no surprise or doubt as he began a serious analysis.
“You seem polite to everyone, but you’re actually wrapped up tight, keeping your distance from everyone.”
“And, if you had really been in a relationship, you wouldn’t be hiding alone somewhere, crying in the rain, right?”
Satoru’s logic was simple, direct, even a bit sharp, piercing right through the surface.
Mahiru opened her mouth, only to find she couldn’t refute it.
He saw…
Too clearly.
So clearly it left her feeling unsettled.
Yet, strangely…
she felt understood.
Not the distant feeling of being deified, not the vanity of being idolized.
But a very direct, even somewhat simple…
treatment of her as an ordinary girl who could be disheveled, who could need help.
Although Mahiru was a bit angry…
This different feeling unexpectedly made her feel somewhat relaxed.
[Ding!
Frank analysis.
Mahiru Favorability +10.
Current Hijack Progress: 26%]
[luck value +200.]
Satoru didn’t pay much attention to the system’s prompts.
Seeing the complex look on Mahiru’s face, he thought he’d said something wrong again.
He scratched his cheek awkwardly, deciding to lay his own cards on the table too, for fairness.
“Uh, I haven’t dated either.
I’m not really interested in dating.
It seems like a hassle, a waste of time.”
His tone was earnest, as natural as saying “I don’t like cilantro.”
“Right now, I only have one focus.”
“That’s to get stronger as quickly as possible.”
“To survive better in this world.”
“That’s all.”
This was Satoru’s sincere thought.
Survival and strength were the top two priorities on his list.
As for the third…
That was naturally finding a way to make money to pay off his credit card and rent.
Satoru just didn’t know if saying all this…
would come across as a bit strange.
Mahiru was stunned once more.
Not interested in her?
Thinks dating is a hassle?
Just wants to get stronger and survive?
Coming from any other guy, these words might have been a tactic, playing hard to get.
But coming from Satoru’s mouth…
paired with his expression full of sincerity and pragmatism, they held astonishing persuasive power at this moment.
Even…
Mahiru felt a touch of preciousness.
He helped her really just because he wanted to help her, who was caught in the rain, not because she was angel-sama Mahiru.
This kind of pure goodwill, untainted by any ulterior desires…
was something she had almost never experienced.
The girl’s psychological defenses were battered by Satoru’s series of blunt, even somewhat infuriatingly sincere attacks.
A crack quietly opened.
A complex mix of relief, curiosity, and a faint sense of loss…
began to linger in Mahiru’s heart.
…
The rain had unknowingly stopped, the sky began to clear, and Satoru closed his umbrella.
He’d said he’d walk her part of the way.
In the end, he walked her all the way to her doorstep.
Satoru glanced at the time on his watch.
He still had time to catch the train ticket he’d bought.
Mahiru took a deep breath of the fresh post-rain air.
She suddenly felt much lighter, just like the weather after the rain had cleared.
“I’m here.
That’s the place.”
Mahiru gave a slight nod, pointing to a luxurious apartment building ahead.
Her voice regained its previous polite composure: “I was rude earlier, not using polite speech.
I’m truly very sorry.
Gomen nasai.”
She unconsciously tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
This subtle gesture revealed her current unease.
In the language culture of Japan…
polite speech is almost ubiquitous.
Only among friends is its use reduced.
To give an example…
‘Gomen nasai’ is the formal, distanced polite form, often used with strangers or in situations requiring respect.
Among friends, ‘gomen’ is typically used to express apology.
“Why use polite speech with me?”
A gentle smile touched the corner of Satoru’s lips as he shook his head slightly.
“Hmm…”
Hearing this, Mahiru was slightly taken aback, her hand pausing mid-air as she tucked her hair, momentarily at a loss for how to respond.
“I never really liked these rigid rules and formalities much anyway.”
“Maintaining that kind of posture all the time must be exhausting, right?”
“If you’d like, you can think of me as a not-very-close ordinary friend.”
“Between friends, we don’t need so many formalities, do we?”
Satoru’s tone was natural, carrying a reassuring certainty.
“Hmm…”
The corners of Mahiru’s lips unconsciously curved into a faint but genuine smile.
That deliberately maintained polite distance faded significantly.
“Understood…”
This time, no polite speech, no hesitation, just a simple acknowledgment.
Ordinary friends…
That…
doesn’t seem bad.
[Ding!
Mahiru’s sense of identification with the “friend” relationship has increased.
Mahiru Favorability +5.
Current Hijack Progress: 28%]
[luck value +100.]
The two stopped at the main entrance of the apartment building.
Mahiru turned to face Satoru, clasping her hands in front of her.
After a slight hesitation, she slowly looked up at him.
“Today…
thank you very much, Gu-kun.”
“If…
if you don’t mind, tomorrow…
you could come visit my home.”
A hint of cautious expectation shone in Mahiru’s eyes, the tips of her ears quietly turning red.
She tilted her head slightly, her voice softening a bit as she continued:
“I could…
make some of my specialty home-cooked dishes to treat you…
as thanks for today.”
As she said this, Mahiru’s cheeks flushed slightly, and she lowered her gaze, as if unable to meet Satoru’s eyes.