Chapter 130: Yukinoshita Haruno

Yukinoshita's cooking was exceptional. It was the most delicious meal Li Mo had ever had in the ordinary world.

Perhaps it was because the seasoning of the curry was just right? Li Mo really wanted to complain about the taste of food in Japan—it was either as bland as plain water or overly salty and greasy. Couldn't they find a balance? Flavor, people! Flavor!

Of course, there might have been other factors at play. After all, no matter how you looked at it, free food always tasted better than takeout. It was like how a bowl of instant noodles snatched from a classmate or friend always seemed more delicious than the one you prepared yourself.

After lunch, Li Mo didn't overstay his welcome at Yukinoshita's place. He had already contacted a moving company, and they would be arriving in the afternoon to help him move in. High-end apartments were expensive, but the advantage was that they were move-in ready.

Everything was already provided, which was a big plus.

Come to think of it, all the places he had seen were move-in ready, weren't they?

Li Mo threw himself into the hectic process of moving. Although he didn't have many belongings, when it came time to actually pack up, he realized just how much stuff he had.

Sigh, why did he have so many things?

He hadn't planned to look at places in the morning and move in the afternoon… but now he had no choice but to push himself.

While he was busy moving, Yukinoshita, who had some free time after Li Mo left, settled onto her balcony. She loved the apartment she lived in, and one of the reasons was this small balcony. Every afternoon, sitting here, basking in the sun, and sipping tea was a delightful experience. It allowed Yukinoshita Yukino to enjoy a moment of peace.

—But peace was always fleeting.

She heard the doorbell ring.

Though she didn't know who it was, Yukinoshita Yukino, as the host, went to the entrance and looked through the peephole to see who was outside.

It was that woman she didn't particularly like.

Her older sister.

Yukinoshita Haruno.

"Ohayou, Yukino-chan. I came to see you~"

A smile as bright as the sun, leaving no room for shadows in one's heart.

The one wearing such a smile was Yukinoshita Haruno.

"The slippers are in the shoe cabinet," Yukinoshita Yukino replied indifferently.

"Ah, is this how you treat your sister after not seeing her for so long?"

"Green tea or black tea?" Yukinoshita Yukino maintained her cold tone.

She stood her ground.

From her interactions with Li Mo, she had learned this. If she couldn't hold her ground, she would start doubting herself whenever she saw that faint smile of his. Because of this, Yuigahama had complained to her a few times.

The mischievousness of her front-row desk mate was truly hard to figure out.

"Yukino-chan has started drinking green tea? Hmm? Has someone visited? There's a pair of used slippers here."

"A classmate came over."

"A classmate! How heartwarming. Yukino-chan is inviting classmates over now? Was it a female classmate? Or a male one?" Yukinoshita Haruno smiled.

Yukinoshita Yukino didn't know why her sister was smiling, and she didn't want to dwell on it. She simply repeated her earlier question coldly.

"Green tea or black tea?"

Yukinoshita Haruno changed into indoor slippers. "Yukino-chan, you've changed quite a bit. I'll have green tea, then."

In the past, her younger sister drank black tea—Yukinoshita Haruno was certain of that. Even if she had green tea, it was only occasionally. When had she started drinking green tea regularly?

Could it be related to what Shizuka had mentioned?

Yukinoshita Haruno sat on the sofa and watched as Yukinoshita Yukino poured her a cup of tea from the teapot on the coffee table.

"Yukino-chan, are you really serving me tea that was already used to entertain someone else? That doesn't seem very appropriate."

"I think it's fine. No need to waste it," Yukinoshita Yukino replied.

The conversation between the two sisters didn't seem particularly friendly.

Yukinoshita Haruno, however, didn't seem to mind.

She kept finding topics to chat about with Yukinoshita Yukino, and her younger sister continued to respond. Even though her answers were formal and businesslike, from another perspective, they were also flawless.

"Yukino-chan, you've changed a lot."

"Have I? Is that why you've been putting on this act for so long?"

Yukinoshita Yukino knew her sister wasn't what she appeared to be.

To outsiders, Yukinoshita Haruno was intelligent, beautiful, and amiable—a girl almost no one would have anything bad to say about.

Except for Yukinoshita Yukino.

She knew what lay beneath Haruno's gentle exterior.

"Yukino-chan, saying things like that will make people dislike you."

"What can I do? I've recently met someone who pretends not to understand unless you spell things out for him."

*Him*—that was a keyword.

In Japanese, the words for "she" and "he" weren't pronounced the same. From this, Yukinoshita Haruno could tell that the person her younger sister was getting close to was a boy.

A boy… that was something Yukinoshita Haruno had to be wary of.

Just then.

The doorbell rang again. It meant another guest had arrived.

This was the third time Yukinoshita Yukino had heard the sound today.

Looking out the window, the sun was still in the western sky. Her conversation with her sister had taken quite a while. On weekends, she had never had such a long exchange, especially with her sister.

Had she really managed to stay calm during their conversation?

"I'll get the door."

The thought flashed through her mind, and Yukinoshita Yukino got up and headed to the entrance again, peeking through the peephole to see who was outside.

—Li Mo.

In fact, as soon as she reached the entrance, she had a guess. The person standing outside was likely Li Mo. Now, her guess had turned into reality.

"Yukinoshita-san, I've come to deliver your housewarming gift. Do you have guests over?"

Li Mo noticed the extra pair of shoes in the entrance.

"Oh~~ So this is the boy Yukino-chan mentioned? What a handsome young man. Hello there, handsome. I'm Yukino-chan's older sister. You can call me Haruno, or even 'big sister' if you'd like~"

Yukinoshita Haruno appeared beside Yukinoshita Yukino.

The smile on her face reminded Li Mo of the one Yae Miko often wore—a smile that stayed on her face no matter what she was feeling inside.

"Yukinoshita-san's older sister? Nice to meet you. I'm Yukinoshita-san's front-row desk mate and future neighbor. Please take care of me, Haruno-san."

Since she had handed him the lever, why not climb up it?

At first glance, Li Mo and Yukinoshita Haruno seemed to have grown closer. Yukinoshita Yukino, however, couldn't help but frown. Letting these two meet might have been one of the biggest mistakes of her life.

Especially when she saw that the two of them had already started chatting.

—What's worse, the topic of their conversation was *her*.