Macho Man Doesn't want a Slice-of-Life

"In any case… I should call back first."

Without hesitation, Rinji prioritized calling Ryuju Momo.

No choice—she had called the most times.

Within seconds, the call connected.

"Hello…"

"Rinji! What do you mean you already have a girlfriend!?"

Before Rinji could say anything, Momo was already yelling at him.

"Oh, so you saw my post too?" Rinji chuckled. "Yeah~ I was lucky. I went out to sea for a business event yesterday, and just happened to get confessed to. I said yes."

"…Did you two know each other before?"

Momo's voice suddenly went cold.

"Nope."

"And you agreed right after she confessed?"

"Well, come on, she confessed—why wouldn't I say yes?"

"…Unbelievable."

Her voice was tinged with helplessness and frustration, though Rinji didn't pick up on it.

"Let me ask you something," Momo said from the other end. "If a girl had confessed to you before this, would you have said yes?"

"Of course."

Rinji answered without hesitation.

And that very decisiveness nearly made Momo crush her phone in Tokyo.

"If… I'm just saying if," Momo said, barely holding back the urge to throw her phone. "If I had confessed to you before this, would you have been my boyfriend?"

"Haha, Momo-senpai, you're joking…"

"Shut up! Just answer the question!"

"Oh."

After a brief pause, Rinji replied.

"Absolutely."

"…"

"Well, anyway, I've got a girlfriend now. If you're going to give me your blessing—"

"Oh, then… I'll wish you the best, I guess."

Beep—

Momo ended the call right after saying that.

She glanced at the screen and tossed the phone aside.

Give her blessing? As if!

She was going to find a way to steal him back.

---

"I'm serious, Ai…"

Kaguya Shinomiya looked worriedly at Ai Hayasaka, who had been swaying and unsteady all morning.

From early on, her usually composed and efficient maid had been off—getting clothes mixed up while cleaning, even bumping into walls. Things Ai would never normally do.

"Are you feeling unwell, Ai? Maybe we should go to the hospital today?"

"I'm fine… Kaguya-sama, there's nothing wrong."

"No, no, you really don't look fine at all."

Kaguya stepped forward, touching Ai's forehead with concern.

"No fever…"

"Please don't worry, Kaguya-sama… it's a personal matter," Ai said, gently brushing Kaguya's hand away and stumbling as she tried to leave.

She had seen Rinji's post that morning. She had called him a few times but got no answer. That's why she was so unsettled now.

"Wait…"

Buzz~~

Just as Kaguya reached out to stop her, her own phone buzzed in her pocket.

It was a call from Fujiwara Chika.

"Really, why is Fujiwara calling right now…"

A bit exasperated, Kaguya answered, "Sorry, Fujiwara-san, I'm in the middle of something—"

"It's an emergency, Kaguya-san!"

Chika's voice was frantic.

"Takamine-kun got scammed!"

"…Huh?"

Kaguya froze for a second.

Who in their right mind would try to scam someone that dangerous? Are they suicidal?

"What happened?"

"Takamine-kun found a girlfriend!"

"What!?"

"But judging from how he described it, it's probably a scam," Fujiwara said anxiously. "A girl he just met told him she wanted to have a baby with him, and… and he just agreed right then and there!"

"This…"

Kaguya felt overwhelmed. Too much info too fast—Rinji getting a girlfriend, someone wanting a baby, maybe a scam? It was a lot to take in.

At that moment, Ai Hayasaka pressed her ear close to Kaguya's phone and gestured for her to let Chika keep talking.

Though unsure why, Kaguya complied.

"Could you explain everything clearly, Fujiwara-san?"

"So, I was going to invite Takamine-kun to the music room for ensemble practice today, but he said he wasn't around and also told me he had a girlfriend. Then after I pushed a bit, he said they met and started dating within five minutes—right after they fought."

"Then why did they start dating?" Kaguya asked while glancing at Ai beside her.

She was beginning to see why Ai had been acting weird this morning.

"Because the girl said she wanted to have his baby. Doesn't that sound like a scam to you?" Chika sounded very worried. "He's part of the student council too, right? We can't just let him get tricked."

"Yeah… that's not good."

Something definitely felt off, but Kaguya still said that.

After assuring Chika she'd look into it and telling her not to worry, Kaguya ended the call.

"So that's what happened. Rinji got scammed."

"...Why do you sound suddenly full of energy now?"

"If he got tricked, then I need to rescue him from that woman," Ai said, eyes sparkling.

"Wait, do you seriously believe Takamine-kun's the kind of guy who gets tricked easily… Actually, yeah, he kinda is."

That gullible, easily convinced personality of his made him an easy mark.

"Just because someone confessed, he agrees," Ai muttered, now back to her normal sharp self. "I need to figure out a way to win him back."

"…"

Seeing Ai recover made Kaguya feel relieved.

But thinking of Rinji's quick acceptance of a confession, and remembering Ai's strange behavior this morning, Kaguya couldn't help but reflect.

If she kept hesitating, and someone confessed to Miyuki and he accepted like Rinji…

A sense of crisis began to grow in Kaguya's heart.

This whole incident wasn't just affecting Ai Hayasaka—it was starting to change Kaguya's mindset as well.