Chapter 427: How to Deepen the Relationship

"Rinji, these are the past year's weather data for Tokyo. Everything you said was right. There were weird clearings in the clouds. But since they didn't last long, Japan's officials didn't pay attention."

"Thanks, Uncle Sousuke."

Inside a high-end apartment in Minato Ward, Rinji sat at his desk browsing satellite cloud images on his computer. He sipped coffee while talking on the phone.

"Tokyo's weather's been weird since last year. It's been raining nonstop. First it was just in Hirakawa, Shibuya, Meguro, and Shinjuku. But now it's the whole city."

A few isolated cases could be ignored—but the recent continuous rain was abnormal.

"And then there are the sky holes. They started tiny—just 0.1 km wide. But they've been growing. The biggest one was 20 km in diameter. That's not natural."

Rinji frowned at the screen.

He remembered what he had learned: the US used weather weapons in Vietnam—seeding clouds to trigger rain and cause floods. Later, they had weather-proof satellite bombs.

But all of that followed the law of conservation. Inducing rain in one area caused droughts in others.

Yet here, those gaps in the clouds didn't lead to rain anywhere else. So where did the water go?

Rinji massaged his forehead. He had no answers for Hina's bizarre power.

"Why are you so focused on the weather now?" asked Sousuke.

"No real damage here in Minato, just a bit of rain. It's just... related to someone really important to me."

"If it's someone you want to protect, we can bring them to HQ. It's safe here."

"I'd rather not disrupt her normal life."

Rinji closed the satellite image and began browsing forums.

There were many posts about a "sunshine girl"—rumors of a girl who could make puddles rise and clear the skies.

There were no photos, so most people treated it like a joke. Only a few posted serious theories—one wrote over 10,000 words.

"Do netizens have too much time now...?"

"Rinji, anything else?"

"No. Thanks again, Uncle Sousuke."

"Call if you need anything—me or Mr. Shechik."

"Got it."

After hanging up, Rinji kept browsing.

Apparently, the urban legend had even made it into a magazine.

"Japan really is a small country. No real news, so they pad pages with ghost stories."

Still, he clicked on the magazine's website.

It was MU, a lesser-known Japanese magazine focused on urban legends and speculative fiction. The latest cover featured Tokyo's mysterious weather.

"...Could this be connected?"

Bzzz~

His phone vibrated.

It was Hayasaka.

"Hello, Ai?"

"Rinji, sorry, I'll be late tonight. Kaguya-sama's acting weird—I stayed to check on her."

"No problem. I was out too."

"I'm on my way now."

"Okay."

Rinji suddenly remembered something.

"Hey, can you do me a favor?"

"Hm?"

"Could you pick up the latest MU from the convenience store? This month's issue."

"MU? You're into that now?" she said, chuckling. "Sure, give me a few minutes."

"It's raining—want me to come pick you up?"

"No need, I'm already on the way."

—

About twenty minutes later, Hayasaka knocked on Rinji's door.

She entered with her umbrella and handed him the plastic bag containing the magazine.

"Thanks."

"No need to thank me. With our relationship, that's unnecessary," she said with a playful smile.

Rinji blushed slightly.

Remembering what happened yesterday and what he said, he couldn't help feeling a little flustered.

Not just him—Hayasaka had been in a daze the whole day yesterday and even this morning.

Rinji's sudden kiss had completely shaken her.

Her long-standing wish had come true.

She was grateful to Atenbo for the tip and glad she hadn't run away.

By noon, she had recovered her composure—unlike Kaguya, who had apparently lost it completely.

Now, Hayasaka was thinking about how to move their relationship to the next stage.

"By the way," she looked around, "where am I sleeping tonight?"

"Huh? I thought I already prepared a room for you..."

"We're dating now, right?"

"Ah... that's true."

"Then shouldn't we be sleeping together tonight?"

"...."