Chapter 157: We Should Be Considered Lovers, Right?

Chapter 157: We Should Be Considered Lovers, Right?

"What is the relationship between Kato-san and Yukima-san?"

In the end, curiosity could not be suppressed.

On the way home, Miyamizu Mitsuha curiously asked.

Kato Megumi, the one being asked, placed a finger on her cheek and thought for a moment.

"Probably lovers, I guess." After some thought, Kato Megumi gave that answer.

This response was not surprising.

On the contrary, Miyamizu Mitsuha found Kato Megumi's way of phrasing it confusing.

Why say "probably"?

"That's strange. Aren't you two dating?"

Miyamizu Mitsuha felt that if someone as deeply affectionate as Kato Megumi were ignored and not given enough sense of security—

That would be nothing short of a crime against heaven and earth.

Moreover, Kato Megumi was so gentle and adorable.

Kato Megumi saw through Miyamizu Mitsuha's thoughts.

Although explaining was a bit troublesome, Kato Megumi did not want others to misunderstand Yukima Azuma.

"Dating? The relationship between me and Azuma-san probably can't be defined that simply."

Kato Megumi gently tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

At the beginning of the school year, Kato Megumi had a cute bob haircut.

Now, her hair had grown a bit longer.

"Ne, Miyamizu-san, you got scared by me this morning, didn't you?" Kato Megumi said while tucking her hair, her finger pointing at herself.

Miyamizu Mitsuha nodded slightly.

She had indeed been frightened this morning.

A girl as grown as Kato Megumi—

Silently appearing right beside her without making a single sound.

If the other party hadn't spoken first,

Miyamizu Mitsuha felt that she would not have noticed Kato Megumi's presence at all.

Seeing Miyamizu Mitsuha nod, Kato Megumi slightly lowered her eyes:

"Because I have very little presence."

Hearing this, Miyamizu Mitsuha opened her mouth—

Wanting to refute.

After all, how could a girl as cute and gentle as Kato Megumi have a low presence?

But thinking it over carefully—

Today, while walking around Toyogasaki with Kato Megumi,

There were indeed a few times when she spaced out and forgot about Kato Megumi's existence.

Her mouth, which was about to speak, suddenly didn't know what to say.

She even took a cold breath, finding it a little unbelievable.

"I've been like this since I was very young. In class group activities, I was almost always alone."

"Sometimes, even the teacher forgot to call my name during roll call, and my elementary school classmates completely failed to recognize me after moving up to middle school."

Kato Megumi lowered her eyes as she recounted her past.

The things that happened to Kato Megumi—

Hearing them made Miyamizu Mitsuha feel sorrowful.

She herself felt a little down just from being teased by classmates a few times a day.

She couldn't even imagine—if she had been ignored by others since childhood, how devastating that would be.

"But Azuma-san was able to notice me."

Kato Megumi's words made Miyamizu Mitsuha, who had been about to offer words of comfort, momentarily freeze.

"Azuma-san transferred into my class in middle school."

"Everyone had been with me for over two years, yet almost no one knew my name."

"But on the very first day he transferred in, Azuma-san came up to me and said: 'You're Kato Megumi, right?'"

"At that time, I found it unbelievable, but that was only the beginning."

"From the day he knew me, he never once forgot me. He always paid attention to me."

"He always said I had some kind of magic, but to me, the real magician was Azuma-san."

Kato Megumi's tone was very gentle.

A girl who was always light and subtle, never revealing her emotions—

Yet now, she exuded a sweetness filled with happiness.

Because she was lowering her head—

Miyamizu Mitsuha could not see Kato Megumi's expression.

At this moment, Kato Megumi's eyes were overflowing with emotions.

This morning, she had truly been startled.

The moment Miyamizu Mitsuha was scared by her—

Kato Megumi felt a sense of emptiness inside.

Her Azuma, who could always notice her existence.

Her Azuma, who would gently smile at her and say that she had the pleasant scent of tuberoses.

Her Azuma, who had only her in his heart and in his eyes—whenever she tilted her head, he looked as if he had been struck by Cupid's arrow.

So, even if the person in front of her had the same appearance as Azuma, the same voice as Azuma, everything was the same—

Kato Megumi could still immediately recognize that this was not her Azuma.

Up until now, Kato Megumi's heart was still empty.

She could feel that Yukima Azuma, the one who always noticed her, was not here.

But Kato Megumi still calmly conversed with Miyamizu Mitsuha.

She simply didn't want to cause any more trouble for her Azuma.

"What happened next? What happened next?"

Miyamizu Mitsuha had been completely drawn into Megumi and Azuma's story.

Kato Megumi withdrew her emotions, lifted her head, and blinked.

"I'll continue the story later. We're almost at the station."

...

The bullet train arrived at Shibuya Station.

The two got off and walked toward Yukima's house.

Seeing the silhouette of the apartment building from afar—

Miyamizu Mitsuha suddenly remembered something important.

Inside that apartment, there was also another girl with long, straight black hair.

"Ah, how should I act to resemble Yukima-san the most?"

Miyamizu Mitsuha asked.

"The senpai in the apartment probably doesn't know about my situation yet."

"To avoid causing more trouble for Yukima-san, I want to try pretending a little."

Hearing this, Kato Megumi could only shake her head helplessly.

"I don't think you'll be able to fool her. Kasumigaoka-senpai is very smart."

Hearing this, Miyamizu Mitsuha looked unconvinced.

Yukima Azuma had stayed at her house, facing Yotsuha and her grandmother for seven whole days without exposing a single flaw.

And yet, for her, everyone could immediately tell something was off?

The reason she got exposed by Kato Megumi was simply because this gentle girl cared too much!

There was no way that everyone could see through her that easily!

Seeing Miyamizu Mitsuha's unconvinced expression,

Even though she knew it was probably futile, Kato Megumi still explained a little.

"Normally, Azuma-san calls Kasumigaoka-senpai 'Utaha-senpai' or simply 'senpai.'"

"Azuma-san and Kasumigaoka-senpai are very close—holding hands, head pats, that kind of thing is normal."

"And Kasumigaoka-senpai usually calls Azuma-san 'Lonely-kun.' If she refers to him as 'you' or 'him,' or if she keeps tapping or shaking her leg, it means she's angry."

After hearing this, Miyamizu Mitsuha's jaw dropped.

She really wanted to ask Kato Megumi if she ever got jealous when other girls were this close to Yukima Azuma.

But before she could ask—

The two had already arrived at Yukima's doorstep.

Before they could even open the door, it was pushed open from the inside.

Kasumigaoka Utaha stood with her arms crossed,

Her wine-colored eyes staring at the two of them.

Miyamizu Mitsuha suddenly felt a chill down her spine.

It was clearly the middle of a sweltering summer, yet it felt as if a cold breeze from the Arctic was creeping through her collar.

Cautiously stepping into the apartment—

She hadn't even had a chance to breathe a sigh of relief—

When she heard Kasumigaoka Utaha speak:

"You, go stand over there. I have something to say to you."

Hearing this form of address, Miyamizu Mitsuha shuddered.

Tsk tsk tsk...

She looked down.

A pair of white slippers was tapping rhythmically against the wooden floor.

Judging by the speed of that leg shaking, she could already tell how irritated the owner was.

Why!?

Miyamizu Mitsuha obediently walked to the spot Kasumigaoka Utaha had pointed at.

But Kasumigaoka Utaha didn't look at her.

Instead, her gaze settled on Kato Megumi.

In those eyes, there was a hint of questioning.

Kato Megumi turned away and softly whistled.

Receiving no information, Kasumigaoka Utaha turned back to Miyamizu Mitsuha.

"Aren't you going to explain?"

"Senpai, um... explain what?"

"Yukima Azuma?"

"Senpai, could you give me a hint?"

"Stop calling me 'senpai' over and over. I don't know you. Who are you?"

"Eh? That is..."

"You. Are. Who!? Where is Yukima Azuma right now?"

Miyamizu Mitsuha froze, startled as she looked up.

Had she really been seen through after just a few sentences?

But the moment she lifted her head—

Kasumigaoka Utaha had already walked into the kitchen at some point.

At this moment, she was holding a kitchen knife, gripping it tightly in her hand.

Even though she was holding it upside down, with the blade pointing toward the floor,

Miyamizu Mitsuha had absolutely no doubt that the long-haired girl in front of her would dare to stab her.

Kato Megumi hurriedly ran over and wrapped her arms around Kasumigaoka Utaha's waist.

Kasumigaoka Utaha's breathing was slightly ragged.

But perhaps because Kato Megumi was here, she was still holding onto a sliver of rationality.

Knowing the story behind the 600-page Love Letter—

Kasumigaoka Utaha understood clearly that if something had really happened to Yukima Azuma, Kato Megumi would not be standing here so calmly.

But reason was one thing.

At this moment, the fact that she was gripping the knife wasn't just for show.

Miyamizu Mitsuha's face turned slightly pale.

She hurriedly, as quickly as she could, recounted the entire story of the identity swap.

Kasumigaoka Utaha listened halfway before putting the knife back in its place.

However, her gaze toward Miyamizu Mitsuha remained far from friendly.

Since the day before yesterday, she had already felt that something was off.

Today, after just two sentences, she was absolutely certain—the person in front of her was definitely not Yukima Azuma.

The personalities were too different.

Thinking of Hogyokumaru,

Kasumigaoka Utaha immediately linked the situation to supernatural phenomena.

After a brief silence, she turned away and left.

Even though she understood that the swap wasn't Miyamizu Mitsuha's fault,

Kasumigaoka Utaha still didn't want to talk to her.

Watching her retreating figure ascend the stairs and disappear onto the second floor,

Miyamizu Mitsuha let out a sigh.

"Kasumigaoka-senpai doesn't actually have anything against you. She's just taking out her anger elsewhere."

Kato Megumi spoke up to explain.

Miyamizu Mitsuha nodded.

"I get it. Honestly, that kind of reaction is normal. Kato-san, you're a little too gentle."

Hearing this, Kato Megumi simply smiled quietly without responding.

She was being this kind to Miyamizu Mitsuha because of Yukima Azuma.

In reality, her feelings weren't all that different from Kasumigaoka Utaha's—it was just that she expressed them differently.

"I… I'll go to sleep first. Hopefully, I'll switch back soon."

Miyamizu Mitsuha slumped and walked toward her room.

"At least eat dinner first."

Kato Megumi pulled her back.

Then, she stepped into the kitchen, opened the fridge, took out the ingredients, and started preparing dinner.

—

Nighttime.

Miyamizu Mitsuha lay on the bed, eyes closed, trying to fall asleep.

Kato Megumi sat at the edge of the bed.

To avoid putting pressure on Miyamizu Mitsuha,

She didn't look at her,

But instead picked up the Bunny Girl Senpai book on the table and buried herself in reading.

Even though Miyamizu Mitsuha was tense,

She had been exhausted from the entire day.

About half an hour later, she finally drifted into sleep.

Once Kato Megumi confirmed that Miyamizu Mitsuha was fast asleep,

She finally lifted her head,

Fixing her gaze on the girl lying on the bed, her eyes never wavering for even a second.

Before long, the door to the room was pushed open.

Kasumigaoka Utaha also stepped inside, pulled up a chair, and sat down beside Kato Megumi.