Chapter 31: Haruno's Suspicion [1300 Points]

The next morning, Haruno's room.

Haruno slowly stirred from a deep sleep. Having a man in my life is truly wonderful...

She could drift off to sleep peacefully after vigorous activity at night, and wake up to a warm embrace in the morning. How did I never realize how delightful having a man could be?

Wait a minute... a man?

Where's my man?!

My big, strong man who was holding me so tightly last night—how could he have vanished by morning?

Haruno lazily reached out to the empty space beside her, but her hand met only the cold bedsheets.

She abruptly rolled over, trying to claim the entire right side of the bed, but found only empty space.

This time, Haruno jolted awake. She stared at the empty half of the bed, finally realizing her man had flown the coop!

ROLAND!?

Why wasn't he snuggled beside her, waiting for her to wake up? Where had he run off to so early?

Did he go to make breakfast?

After all, Roland had taken over the household cooking since his arrival. It wouldn't be surprising if he'd gotten up early to prepare breakfast.

But... why was the spot where Roland had been lying so cold, with no lingering warmth? If he had been there recently, there should have been some residual body heat.

Had he gotten up too early and cooled down? Or...

A sudden sense of dread washed over Haruno. She realized she didn't even know when Roland had disappeared. Had he really only vanished this morning?

Or had he been gone since last night?

If he had disappeared last night, where could he have gone?

There was only one place that made sense, wasn't there?

Could that guy have spent the entire night in her mother's room?

An entire night!

What could possibly happen when a man and a woman in an ambiguous relationship spend the night in the same room in same bed? Did she even need to spell it out?

They might have even....!

Haruno felt a growing sense of panic. She scrambled out of bed, threw on some clothes to cover her bare skin, and rushed toward her mother's room like a bolt of lightning.

Before heading there, though, Haruno checked the kitchen.

She wondered if Roland was just making breakfast? Wouldn't she feel foolish if she had misunderstood? So she dashed towards the kitchen.

A chill sent down Haruno's spine there was complete absence of any cooking traces in the kitchen, confirming that Roland hadn't been there that morning.

The conclusion was obvious, wasn't it?

Haruno immediately turned to her mother's door, gripped the handle, and slammed it down, determined to burst in and catch them in the act.

But to her shock, as she pressed the handle, a distinct click echoed through the hallway. The resistance told her the door was locked from the inside.

Furious, Haruno repeatedly slammed the handle down, the mechanism rattling uselessly. The door remained stubbornly shut.

This was deeply unsettling.

Her mother's door was never locked. Why was it now? What guilty secret were they hiding inside?

If they had nothing to hide, why lock the door?

Haruno's face turned ashen as a dreadful realization dawned upon her. Please don't tell me the man I just got last night has become my step-father.

"Mom! Is Roland with you?" Haruno pounded on the door.

"Haruno? Little Roland's here," Yukio's voice called back, sounding flustered.

"Why is he here with you?" Haruno asked, her face darkening.

"Oh, it's nothing. I just asked him to come over for a chat."

"A chat? Enough chatting! Let him out now! He should be off making breakfast!"

Haruno scoffed inwardly. This mother can't even bother with a decent excuse anymore, can she?

A chat?

You were hugging and cuddling right in the living room, but now you're locked in a room, too afraid to even talk properly? I can already imagine what maybe going on.

Do you think your daughter is stupid enough to fall for that?

Well, technically, her mother didn't need to deceive her. Even if Haruno knew they were definitely up to no good, what could she do?

Unless she wanted to sever ties with her mother, would she dare confront the mother?

Clearly, she couldn't afford to cut ties. So, she'd just apply a little pressure to make her release Roland quickly.

Immediately, rustling sounds came from the room, like someone getting out of bed, followed by her mother and Roland's not-so-quiet conversation.

"Little Roland, isn't it time to get up~?" Yukio said indulgently with a pampering look on her face, looking at the boy who had been clinging to her since waking up in the morning.

"Alright, alright, I'll go open the door then?" Roland reluctantly lifted his face from Yukio's neck, his cheeks now damp with her fragrant sweat.

"Don't rush. Go wash up first."

"You're right..."

Haruno: ???

What the hell is going on?

What does "wash up" even mean?

Come out here and explain yourselves! Why would you need to "wash up"?

What exactly did you two do in there that requires washing up?!

Haruno was dumbfounded, her imagination running wild with possibilities. Judging by their conversation, anything could have happened—even the absolutely unforgivable.

She desperately wanted to kick the door open and find out, even if it meant confronting her own mother. I'm still your own flesh and blood! How could you bear to cuckold your own daughter?

But just then, Roland, who had only been gone for less than half a minute, suddenly opened the door, revealing a figure that appeared perfectly normal.

Haruno froze. How did he wash up so quickly? And his expression seemed so natural...

If that had happened, there's no way they could have erased all traces so quickly. At the very least, they'd need a shower with body wash to get rid of the smell, right?

So, does that mean nothing actually happened? Was she just overthinking things?

"Good morning, big sister Haruno. I'm going to make breakfast now." Roland bumped into Haruno, her face dark with displeasure, as soon as he stepped out of his room. Startled, he immediately tried to escape.

After spending the night cuddling with Aunt Yukio and getting caught by Haruno at the door, he felt incredibly guilty.

"Stop right there! Who said you could leave?" Haruno demanded, her voice cold.

"Uh... is there something else?"

"You tell me! Explain where you spent last night!" Haruno's voice was like ice.

"Ah, well... you were the one resting your head on my shoulder last night! Look, the marks on my shoulder haven't even completely faded yet!" Roland's panic grew. If Haruno found out he'd slept with Aunt Yukio, the consequences would be unimaginable.

I'm sorry, big sister Haruno, but I have no choice but to lie!

"Hmph, how can i be sure that I left those marks?" Haruno did see the hickey marks on Roland's shoulder, but anyone could have made them. How could she prove they were from her?

"Fine... I can't prove it," Roland said in despair, giving up the struggle and resigning himself to fate.

"Don't worry, you don't need to prove anything. I have eyes of my own," Haruno said, shoving him aside. Ignoring whether her actions might offend her mother, she strode to the bed under her mother's disapproving gaze and abruptly yanked back the covers.

Haruno knew that after Roland had helped her "take care of things" the previous night, there would be stains on the bed. If he had truly done something with her mother, there would inevitably be traces left behind. Even the slightest hint would be enough...

Unfortunately, the bed was spotless. After all, Roland hadn't done anything at all the previous night.

Even the headboard held only one pillow, with a single, distinct indentation right in the center. It was clear that only one person had slept there.

This was Haruno's proof that Roland hadn't spent the night. If he had, even if they had shared the same pillow, there should have been two head indentations marks on the bed at least.

Wait... could her mother have slept with her head on Roland's shoulder? That would explain the lack of a second indentation.

Tch, the more I think about it, the more suspicious it seems.

The main problem was that Roland was simply too unreliable. She couldn't help but overthink things.

"You little brat, you're becoming more and more unruly," Yukio said, glaring at her daughter as she watched her freshly made bed get messed up again.

Of course, Yukio knew why Haruno was checking the bed. But the girl should have realized that if there had been anything amiss, she would have taken care of it immediately. Why would she have left it for later?

This whole exercise was utterly pointless.

"Aren't you losing your sense of dignity too?" Haruno retorted, her voice laced with dissatisfaction and sarcasm. 

"How dare you speak to your mother like that?"

"Never mind. I finally understand—people can't be given too much freedom!"

"What are you implying?"

"I'm saying we need to buy a dog collar and leash to keep that guy in check!"

Haruno's eyes turned cold as she pulled out her phone and ordered a collar and leash from an online store.

Rather than letting Roland keep doing suspicious things every time he left her sight, she'd nip this problem in the bud.

Once she got that leash, she'd keep Roland tethered to her side. Let's see how he'd cause trouble then!

Roland: "..."

Damn it, big sister Haruno seems to be straying further and further down the path of being a sadist.

We're not even married yet! Sure, I took your first kiss, but you were the one who forced it on me! I'm the victim here!

Right now, we're still just pretending to be in love. I'm still a free citizen to go wherever I want. You have no right to put me on a leash!