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Chapter 20: Let me work Shiori-san! "Shiori-san, I started livestreaming yesterday." "Livestream? The one where you speak to a live audience while playing?" "Uh, yes." Shiori-san approached my gaming setup and inspected it closely, her expression a mix of curiosity and mild disapproval. "So the gaming stuff here is for livestreaming. Why did you start, though?" I can’t possibly say that I need money to buy her a Christmas gift. "Uh... I felt like I needed to earn my own money." "So you’re going to work, huh? Does anything bother you? You sound like you have some concerns." She’s in her teacher mode now. She patted the spot on my bed beside her, inviting me to sit down. Her tone was soft, yet firm, the kind of voice that made me feel like I was confessing to a school counselor. "You can talk to me about your problems, Haru-kun. I’m still your teacher, you know~" "Uh, I’m not concerned about anything, really. To be honest, I’m kinda worried about your opinion about my livestreaming." "Hmm? What are you worried about?" "Because... I need to play with others during my livestream." And most of them are girls. "Wha—Do you really need to do that?" I knew it. She would be against it. "Of course, I need to earn money." She let out a heavy sigh, her arms crossed in frustration. "Your aunt is rich. Why don’t you ask for money from her? If you’re too shy to ask your aunt, you can always ask me." "At least I want to earn money myself!" She became quiet after I said that, her lips pressed into a thin line. The silence stretched on, and then she shifted, leaning closer to me with a look that made my heart race. "Haru-kun, you want to earn money?" Before I could react, she grabbed my shirt and pushed me down onto the bed, her face hovering dangerously close to mine. Her eyes glinted with a mix of playfulness and something darker, more intense. My mind went blank. My hands froze at my sides. "Why don’t you do something good with me, and I’ll pay you~" she whispered. Her voice was low, teasing, yet it sent an electric jolt through me. My face burned, my heart pounded, and my brain short-circuited. "What are you saying, Shiori-san?!" "Come on, don’t overthink it. We’re just playing games~" "For God’s sake, please stop teasing me." "Stop teasing you? Of course I’m not! Unless... you’re thinking something." "I’m not! Just let me go, please." She finally sat back, laughing softly, but the heat in my face didn’t dissipate. I took a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves, but my heart was still racing like crazy. This woman would be the death of me. We sat together again, and I decided to try convincing her to let me do the livestreaming. "Shiori-san, just let me do my livestream. I promise I won’t get cozy with other players. Especially girls." Her playful demeanor shifted. She hugged me, her arms wrapping around me tightly, and held my hands. This wasn’t teasing—this was real. Her warmth surrounded me, but instead of comfort, it filled me with nervousness. "Haru-kun, I’m sorry if I’m such a failure as an adult." Her voice cracked, and I froze. "What do you mean?" "I should be happy about you wanting to earn money for yourself, but instead, I’m sitting here getting jealous." I sighed, patting her head gently. "Well, I’m already used to your jealousy. Don’t mind it." She looked up at me, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears. "Will you leave me again? Are you already tired of me?" Her voice was barely above a whisper, but it hit me like a punch to the gut. She was still holding onto the pain from before we met in person, the pain I caused when I drifted away. "Don’t worry, Shiori-san. I won’t leave you again," I said softly. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢 I pulled her into a hug, and for a moment, the world around us fell silent. Her trembling stopped, and I felt her relax in my arms. But now I was stuck—who was going to release the hug first? She sniffled, breaking the silence. "Sigh... Haru-kun, fine. Do your livestream." "Eh? Do you really mean it?" "Yes. I’ll trust your words, Haru, that you won’t leave me again." --- **Someone’s POV** It was already 7 PM. According to Harucchi’s announcement on one of his social media accounts, he would start his livestream around this time. I finished dinner quickly and bolted to my room so I wouldn’t miss it. After all, he said he’d be playing with newbies today. Maybe I’ll get lucky and he’ll pick me. I opened my PC to start up SFO while pulling out my phone to watch the stream. As soon as the stream notification popped up, I clicked it eagerly. "Hello, guys! I’m going to pick the first batch to fit the maximum 20 party members." Harucchi’s voice filled my headphones, and my heart skipped a beat. "Including me in the 20, I’ll pick 19 players." Please, let it be me. Choose me, Harucchi-sama! I spammed the chat with messages, desperate to catch his attention. "Yuki, Minatozaki, Midori, Ria..." Come on! Mention me! "Sumire, Misaki... and Neko-chan." Yes! He picked me! (A/N: Her in-game name is Neko-chan.) I accepted the exploration party invitation immediately. My heart raced as I joined the group. Most of the other players were strangers to me, but that didn’t matter. I was here with Harucchi! Someday, I hoped it would just be the two of us playing together. --- **Haru’s POV** Sigh... This Neko-chan. She’s so pushy. I didn’t have a choice but to include her in my exploration party—she was pestering me nonstop in the chat. "Harucchi! Please pick me! I’m a newbie!" "Okay, okay. But there are so many players ahead of you. I think I’ll be able to play with you tomorrow." "Eh, but... I really want to play with you now! I’m your number one fan! I always watch your streams and gift you!" Look, how could I refuse her, right? If Shiori-san saw my chat history with her, I’d be screwed. Real hard. After all the trouble I went through to convince her to let me livestream... "Haru-kun, hasn’t the stream ended yet? I really want to play with you now!" She was sprawled on my bed, her laptop open as she worked. Her presence was both comforting and nerve-wracking. "Just wait for an hour, Shiori-san! This will finish soon!" "Fine. But let me see your screen and your party members too! You might be getting too friendly with girls there." Oh no. My chat with Neko-chan! "Wait, Shiori-san!" "What? Are you hiding something from me?" "No, no, but wait!" She didn’t wait. She forced her way to my screen, grabbing the mouse. "Who’s this Neko-chan? Why is she being so friendly with you? And what’s this? She sent you a gift?!" "No, Shiori-san! Please let me explain!" "Explain? Are you seriously chatting with other girls while I’m here?" "Shiori-san, it’s not what it looks like! She’s just a fan!" Her grip on my shirt tightened, her eyes blazing with an intensity that sent shivers down my spine. "A fan? And you’re being this close to her? I trusted you, Haru-kun!" "Shiori-san, calm down!" "Don’t tell me to calm down! If you’re going to spend your time with other girls, then maybe I should leave!" She turned as if to walk away, but I grabbed her hand. "Wait! Shiori-san, please listen to me." Her shoulders trembled as she turned back to me, tears welling up in her eyes. "Do you even care about how I feel?" I took a deep breath. "Of course I do. I didn’t mean to hurt you. Neko-chan is just a viewer, nothing more. You’re the only one I care about." Her gaze softened slightly, but she still looked uncertain. "Then prove it. Show me you mean it." I took her hands gently, looking straight into her eyes. "Shiori-san, you’re the most important person to me. I’ll make sure you never have to doubt that." She hesitated, then finally sighed. "Fine. But I’ll be watching you closely." This woman... I really had to tread carefully. I have a feeling that her misunderstanding with Neko-chan still isn’t solved. --- **Shiori’s POV** Hmph. A fan, he says? I don’t trust that Neko-chan. She’s far too enthusiastic. And gifting him? Clearly, she’s after more than just gameplay. I’ll let this slide for now, Haru-kun. But don’t think for a second I’m letting my guard down. My crying acting a while ago really has a sense. I didn’t expected to hear those words from Haru-kun. It really made my heart raced. I hope he means it, and that damn Neko-chan is just a fan After all, it’s a teacher’s duty to protect her student from bad influences... or maybe I just want to keep him all to myself. Either way, I’ll make sure this Neko-chan knows her place soon enough.