550: Want to Come Over for Dinner?

In the dark, Chisato tilted his head, listening carefully. Only after confirming that the two outside had truly walked away did he finally exhale in relief.

Never again—he didn't want to go through something like that ever again. Too many of these could really cause a heart attack.

Now that the outside threat was gone, and since he was no longer pretending to sleep, it was time to deal with the current situation.

Chisato turned his head.

Hitori, who he had suddenly embraced moments ago and deliberately entangled with in a sticky, suggestive way to get her to make noises that would scare off the girls outside, still lay there, breathing heavily and clearly not fully processing what had just happened.

He decided to give her a bit of time to recover and turned to look at the other side.

Ryo was now slowly poking her head out from under his blanket.

"Are they gone?"

"..."

Chisato stared at her with a deeply unimpressed expression, saying nothing.

Sensing the bad vibes, Ryo gave an awkward cough and, acting as if nothing had happened, quietly let go of the arm she had been holding and began to lift the blanket to slip out.

But after everything she'd done to him, Chisato wasn't about to just let her go.

Including the night she'd hidden in the closet, this was her second "offense" in a short period. Totally unacceptable!

"Hey, Ryo—just what exactly are you trying to pull?"

Chisato's fingers closed in, pinching both of Ryo's cheeks. Her lips puckered into an adorable goldfish mouth under the pressure.

The slightly rough treatment made Ryo's heart skip a beat.

She turned her face slightly and mumbled through puffed cheeks, "I just wanted to help Pochi-chan..."

"Help? This is how you help? 

You two messing around in the middle of the night? 

It's one thing for Hitori—what if someone saw you too? 

You think we could talk our way out of that?"

"Well, it's your fault too, Prez."

"How is this my fault?"

"You know exactly why."

What do I know!?

Chisato was just about to dig into that argument when Hitori, having recovered a little, sat up and gently tugged at the hem of his shirt.

"Sorry, Chisato... it's not Ryo's fault. I was the one who asked for her help."

Chisato's gaze left Hitori and returned to Ryo—who now stood with her hands on her hips, looking righteous and entirely unrepentant.

He rubbed his temples.

For some reason, his head really hurt.

"I'm heading back. You two go on. Everyone already thinks something's going on between you, so not doing anything tonight would just be a waste."

Ryo left that line behind, bent down to put on her shoes, and stood up.

She unzipped the tent just a little and peeked outside. After confirming no one else was around, she quickly slipped out.

With the third wheel who had complicated things now gone, the atmosphere in the tent began to shift.

Hitori, finally realizing that she'd probably caused trouble for Chisato, was about to apologize again—but Chisato didn't give her the chance.

He leaned in and pressed down toward her.

Ryo might be unreliable, but what she said before leaving was right.

Since everyone already thinks that's what's happening, then not doing anything would just seem suspicious.

Besides, he had been thinking for a long time about what kind of opportunity would allow him to take a step further with Hitori.

He was more traditional in personality, and believed that a tent at a campsite wasn't exactly the ideal place for a girl to have her first experience.

But that didn't mean other things couldn't happen.

For instance, Hitori's breathing—it was getting far too fast.

"Hitori…"

"Chisato…"

In the dim light, they softly whispered each other's names.

Hitori's mind and thoughts were all overwhelmed by Chisato's embrace and touch.

Her head felt fuzzy, and she didn't even know when they had switched positions.

Her small head simply followed his guidance, expressing complete submission.

At that moment, all the emotions Chisato had been trying so hard to hold back finally found a place to be released.

A romantic and dreamy atmosphere quietly filled the tent.

Meanwhile, when Eriri and Utaha returned to their tent, they found Ryo lying sideways on her bedding, playing on her phone.

"Yo."

She greeted them lightly as they entered.

"Ryo, where were you just now? Did you go visit Nijika and the others?"

Eriri asked casually while taking off her jacket.

Ryo was just about to go along with her assumption, but as the words reached her lips, something felt off. She hesitated for a moment, then replied,

"I couldn't really sleep, so I went to the vending machine by the camp gate and got a cup of hot milk. Thought it might help, but looks like it didn't really work for me."

"I see…"

Eriri pulled up her blanket and lay down.

Utaha lay down beside her as well.

"Sorry, Eriri sleeps like that—sometimes she grinds her teeth or snores a bit."

"You're the one who does that!"

Eriri snapped back with a huff, then calmed herself and turned to Ryo with a practical suggestion.

"Actually, Ryo, you could try listening to some soft music. It works for me when I can't sleep."

"Mm, thanks. I'll give it a try."

"Need earphones?"

"No, I have my own. Good night."

"Mm, good night."

…

Chisato woke up naturally the next morning. It was just past six, and the sky outside the tent was still dark.

Next to him was Hitori, sound asleep. Her small body was curled up against his, clinging to him like an octopus, having spent the whole night in his arms.

Looking at her adorably silly and peaceful sleeping face, Chisato really wanted to wake her with a kiss.

But considering how Hitori hadn't listened to him last night and refused to rinse her mouth after everything, saying it "tasted good" or something… he gave up on that idea.

It wasn't that he disliked Hitori—it was that he disliked himself.

In the end, Chisato reached into the blanket with one hand and gently patted Hitori's butt to wake her up. 

After telling her the time, Hitori started getting dressed in a fluster.

Chisato didn't just stand there watching. He helped brush Hitori's long hair and fastened the clasp on her bra.

Before she left, Hitori looked visibly reluctant to go.

She looked like a sulking, underfed cat.

"Don't worry. There'll be plenty of chances from now on."

With that promise from Chisato, Hitori finally relaxed. Though embarrassed by how openly her feelings showed, she still gave him a serious nod.

As she exited the tent, her face was visibly flushed. 

With her hands covering her face and only her lips visible, she couldn't stop giggling all the way back to her own tent.

"Eh—"

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50 advanced chapters on p@t re on (.) com/SenatusTheta

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