Invite to Exercise

Clicking on the newcomer section, her avatar was prominently displayed in the first row, with a glowing No.1 badge, as if she had a VIP membership.

After a quick glance, Yuu skipped to the last page, spotting the "Rent-a-Girlfriend" at the very bottom.

Sakurazawa Sumi, 18 years old, first-year college student.

Since she registered yesterday and hadn't been booked yet, her data and reviews were all zero, so it was no surprise she was last.

Though she looked cute with a shy smile, her appearance didn't lag behind other "Rent-a-Girlfriends", but her booking fee was worlds apart from Mizuhara Chizuru, who topped the list…

The competition in this industry was indeed fierce.

His index finger lightly tapped the mouse, pondering for a moment. Yuu noted down both names and bookmarked the webpage.

Just in case.

He was someone who took work seriously, always pushing himself to the fullest. So, even if forced by the system, once he decided to go through with it, he wouldn't be hypocritical or half-hearted just because he was reluctant.

Beyond the system's rewards, since Haruno was his nominal "employer" having accepted the job, he naturally had to take responsibility.

After all, his grandmother once said a man's greatness lies in how much responsibility he can bear.

This was Tenkuji Yuu's work ethic.

"Renting two types of 'rent-a-girlfriends' with different styles and ranks should yield good experimental data."

Exactly—standard experimental and control groups.

For a newcomer, the task was simple: learn from the best and discard the worst from seniors and peers, turning it into a guidebook for rapid self-improvement. As long as you could do this, there was hardly any job you couldn't adapt to.

It was a matter of wanting to do it or not.

This was the wisdom of a part-time worker. Without this ability, before the system came, Yuu wouldn't have had the confidence to support his sister, who needed monthly hospital visits for life.

Even with health insurance, Sora's medical expenses were dizzyingly high.

"Well, from today's observations, Haruno-san isn't the type you can handle with general theories…"

"Being a normal rent-a-boyfriend might even backfire."

He had to adapt to the situation. If he couldn't milk the system, he might as well go haul bricks at a construction site.

After organizing his thoughts, Yuu shut down the computer and started exercising.

Push-ups, sit-ups, squats—he used to do a few sets on a whim, but now he planned to make it a habit, gradually increasing the reps daily to boost his physical fitness.

The system was his motivation, a perfect excuse to push himself.

◆━⊰✧⊱━◆

After sweating buckets, Yuu went downstairs to shower, letting warm water soothe his sore, limp body.

This time, no one tried to peek through the bathroom door, and he felt greatly relieved, enjoying a comfortable hot shower.

Changing into pajamas and returning to his upstairs room, just as he was about to read before bed, his phone screen lit up with a message notification.

—It was Haruno.

{Yuu-chan~ Free the day after tomorrow?}

Clicking his tongue, Yuu replied expressionlessly:

"Yes. By the way, why'd you switch from 'Yuu-kun' to that?"

{I'll call you whatever I want~}

"…"

{Good that you're free. 9:30 a.m., I'll pick you up by car.}

Yuu suddenly frowned, his expression darkening slightly.

"By car? Haruno-san, you know where I live?"

{How would I know? Give me an address, we'll meet there.}

"Huuu…"

Yuu sighed in relief—thankfully, she didn't know. He didn't want trouble coming to his house.

His fingers were still on the keyboard, not yet replying, when Haruno sent another message:

{Or do you want to invite me to see your house? Aww, that's a bit too soon~ Don't rush, kid, let's build some feelings first!}

As usual, Yuu replied with a flat expression:

"Let's meet at Sobu High's gate. Where are you taking me?"

{Hehehe (evil grin sticker) Onee-san's taking you to a fun place for some fun exercise!}

"To a gym?"

{Tch, too smart, it's no fun.}

After that message, Haruno seemed to lose interest in teasing him, her replies turning short and cold.

{Just remember to wear comfy workout clothes and don't be late.}

"Got it."

{That's all.}

"See you then."

Message read.

Yuu set his phone down. Two or three seconds later, he suddenly remembered something and reopened the chat history.

"Good night, sweet dreams."

This might be the first time he'd sent such a message to anyone besides his sister.

For some reason, he felt a bit awkward and hesitated while sending it, but thinking of his "work ethic." he went through with it.

So, how did Haruno react?

Under Yuu's slightly complicated gaze, the message was quickly read.

Then, a goodnight sticker appeared below, like a casual reply, nothing more.

[Ding!]

[Congratulations, host has received a reward: 50 yen.]

"…Tch, so stingy."

His lips curled into a smirk. Yuu tossed his phone back onto the desk, pushing Haruno out of his mind until tomorrow.

Today's work was done.

Without the rental relationship, she was nobody to him.

◆━⊰✧⊱━◆

Lying on her bed in a posture that would definitely get her scolded by her brother if he saw, Sora stared at her laptop screen.

Her slender white fingers gently scrolled the mouse wheel, her other hand grabbing potato chips and popping them into her mouth. The silver-haired girl frowned slightly, muttering faintly:

"I forgot to ask what kind of job Yuu's doing to suddenly get so rich…"

Since it involved her brother, she was very curious.

Not selling kidneys or involved in dangerous industries, so how did Yuu land this new job that "pays generously and daily"?

"Ugh…"

Nibbling on a chip, Sora racked her brain, her hand scrolling through 2CH forums, when she suddenly spotted a post.

[Any experts tried a rent-a-boyfriend? Please share experiences!]

"Rent-a… boyfriend?"

Sora was stunned. She knew it was a new industry where people pretended to date others. She'd heard many students took such part-time jobs, and the pay was pretty good.

Though she knew about it, she couldn't understand what girls who went on dates, held hands with strangers, and possibly faced harassment or danger were thinking.

Even if short on cash, there had to be better jobs, right?

Renting out emotions and body to strangers—weren't they scared?

Sora wouldn't dare, nor could she imagine a guy other than Yuu getting close to her.

Yuu wouldn't approve of her being someone else's girlfriend, even if just a "rental"… He's a super siscon; he'd definitely think that!

Nodding to herself, Sora prepared to skip the post and keep scrolling.

But suddenly, a few words flashed in her mind, forming a chain of clues, as if hinting at something.

"Pays generously." "daily." "smell of a woman's perfume on him"…

"N-no way…"

A chip fell from her slightly open, pink mouth.

Unable to believe the suspicion that arose, Sora froze for a moment, then quickly covered her mouth. Her mouse swiftly clicked the search bar, ready to look up "rent-a-boyfriend."

But before her hand touched the keyboard, she saw another post below, with a preview image.

[Shibuya Station Piano God, even pro pianists want to learn from him!! (Image: Side profile of a young man at a piano)]

"…Yuu?"

She muttered the name unconsciously.

Sora never mistook her brother, even with part of his face masked.

Unless Yuu wore a robber-style mask, she could tell it was him from his side profile, hairstyle, aura, and ear shape, even in the lowest-resolution photo.

But that's exactly why Sora felt something was off:

"Yuu went to Shibuya today? And what's this about playing the piano?"

Automatically dismissing the rent-a-boyfriend issue, Sora furrowed her small face, clicked the post to save Yuu's photo, and continued reading its contents.

Her expression slowly turned confused, beginning to doubt her own eyes and ears.

"…Is this really Yuu?"