Chapter 63 62: Yurikawa Hana’s Confession
Lunch break.
Normally, the girls would head to the Spirit Exorcism Clubroom to relax, but after everything that had happened on Christmas Eve, none of them wanted to go today.
Kasumigaoka Utaha and Miura Yumiko were deliberately avoiding each other. Both were proud, and after witnessing each other's most embarrassing moments, they'd rather let some time pass before facing one another.
Meanwhile, Yotsuya Miko was still reeling from Yurikawa Hana's unexpected confession, making it difficult for her to explain things to Utaha and Yumiko.
Then, a message appeared in the group chat.
"I'm announcing a new member in the family group!"
Despite the tension, this message successfully lured everyone back to the clubroom.
By the time Yurikawa Hana and Yotsuya Miko arrived, they had bought a huge pile of snacks, clearly tempted by their usual habit of indulging in sweets.
"Everyone, I brought lots of snacks to share!" Hana announced energetically, placing the bags on the table.
However, as soon as she looked around, she sensed something was off.
"Eh? Why is everyone so quiet?" she asked, tilting her head.
Miko, sitting beside her, covered her face and gently pulled Hana down.
"Hana… just sit first," she whispered.
On the other side of the room, Utaha and Yumiko turned their heads in opposite directions, deliberately avoiding eye contact so they wouldn't be reminded of last night's… incident.
Of course, they hadn't come because of what Ryuu had said in the group chat.
"So," Utaha finally spoke, resting her chin on her palm. "Who's the lucky girl that got added this time, Ryuu-kun? Looks like she agreed to your harem application."
Miko, thinking the topic had shifted to what happened last night, hesitated for a moment before raising her hand.
"Uh… Sorry, Utaha-senpai. Hana told me last night that she does like Ryuu and… doesn't mind."
A heavy silence fell over the room.
Utaha and Yumiko exchanged glances.
Hana, on the other hand, turned completely red.
"Miko! Why would you just blurt it out like that?!" she stammered, flustered.
She had planned to find the right moment to confess properly, but now the surprise was completely ruined!
Miko looked at her friend in confusion.
Hana hadn't joined the family group yet, so Miko assumed Ryuu's announcement referred to her. Combining what she'd learned last night with Ryuu's message, she had thought Hana had confessed already.
But judging from Hana's reaction… had she misunderstood?
Ryuu smirked, deciding to sit back and enjoy the show for now.
"Yurikawa Hana?" Utaha's eyes narrowed slightly.
Yumiko folded her arms. "Honestly, I saw this coming when she joined the Spirit Exorcism Club."
"Same here," Utaha added. "But I didn't expect you to wait this long, Ryuu. More than a month before making a move?"
Ryuu chuckled but didn't reply.
Meanwhile, Hana, feeling a surge of emotions, turned toward him.
Although she was normally shy and adorable, she spoke up boldly this time.
"I've never really had feelings for anyone before, so I don't know much about love… But when I'm with you, I feel happy. Eating snacks you give me makes me happy. And… I want to keep being with you, Ryuu. And with everyone here."
"Oh! Hana!"
Miko, touched by her friend's courage, clapped her hands together.
Compared to herself, who had only been able to confess in private, Hana was bold enough to do it in front of everyone.
Then, a realization hit her.
Wait… why does this feel like Hana's confessing to Ryuu right now?!
Had she… misunderstood everything from the start?!
Ryuu, still amused, hadn't expected Hana to reach this stage so quickly.
He had only been teasing her, giving her snacks, and subtly guiding her feelings. But apparently, he had underestimated his own charm.
A moment later, he smiled and responded.
"Of course, I won't turn down a beautiful and talented girl like you, Hana."
Hana beamed.
As a healer with exceptional spiritual energy, she was special in ways even she didn't realize yet. Ryuu was already looking forward to what the future with her would be like.
"But anyway," he continued, shifting back to the topic. "Since we have a new family member, today's a day worth celebrating."
With everyone already accustomed to Ryuu's ever-growing harem, they accepted Hana into the group with little resistance.
Especially since Hana was naturally lovable.
Utaha smirked. "Alright, then. Welcome, Hana. From now on, I'll call you by your first name."
Hana nodded happily. "Of course, Utaha-senpai!"
There was nothing wrong with those words alone.
But the way Utaha said it—like she was an elder welcoming a new family member—made Yumiko roll her eyes.
"Ugh. How boring."
"Oh? Then how would you welcome her, Yumiko?" Utaha countered. "Would you cry and beg for mercy like last night?"
Yumiko's face turned bright red.
"Wha—! Why don't you talk about yourself?! You were just as bad, if not worse!"
The moment those words left her mouth, she realized her mistake.
The entire clubroom had gone silent.
With everyone staring at her.
Yumiko cleared her throat and quickly tried to cover it up.
"Ahem. I-I was talking about a game. Yeah, the plot of that game was… uh, really emotional."
Utaha played along. "Yes. That game. Very touching story."
Ryuu chuckled but let them have this small victory.
Then, he casually dropped another bombshell.
"Oh, by the way—Mai is joining the family too."
"Mai?" Utaha and Yumiko said in unison. "There's another one?!"
"I never said there was only one," Ryuu shrugged. "I was actually talking about Mai earlier, but I didn't expect Hana to have such deep feelings for me."
Miko, still recovering from her realization, covered her face.
She had misunderstood everything from the start.
Yumiko, on the other hand, connected the dots. "Wait. You mean Mai Sakurajima? The actress? The missing girl from school?"
"That's right."
Utaha squinted at him. "Ryuu-kun, that's not what you said when you were, ahem, receiving my reward last night."
"Then as an apology," Ryuu replied smoothly, "I'll make it up to you tenfold in the future."
Utaha's face darkened.
What kind of nonsense was this?!
Ignoring her frustration, Ryuu turned his attention to Mai Sakurajima, who had been present in the clubroom the entire time.
Of course, no one could see her but him.
As the girls listened to her story, sympathy filled the room.
Hana even teared up. "That's so sad… Being forgotten by the whole world? If that happened to me, I wouldn't know what to do…"
Miko remained silent.
She had thought she was the unluckiest girl in the club. But compared to Mai, her own experiences seemed trivial.
After the girls officially welcomed Mai, Ryuu made an announcement.
"She'll be staying at my house for now."
The girls didn't object.
And so, after school, Ryuu helped Mai pack her things.
It took less than ten minutes.
"This is all?" he asked.
"I don't really have anything else to bring," she admitted.
"In that case…"
A vortex appeared beneath his right eye, swallowing her luggage into Kamui's pocket dimension.
Mai's eyes widened. "You—"
Before she could react further, Ryuu warped them both directly to his house.
Standing at the doorstep, Mai looked dazed.
"I can't… process this…"
"You'll get used to it," Ryuu smirked.
Just then, his eyes caught something in the mailbox.
A golden invitation.
Scanning it quickly, he grinned.
"An invitation from the Shinomiya family?"
He chuckled to himself.
"Oh? They actually made the first move. This might be interesting."
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