Chapter 143: Night (Part 2)

The five of them relaxed on the beach, enjoying the evening breeze, watching the sun slowly set into the sea, and eating delicious barbecue.

After another round of grilling, Ishikawa Hayato handed a grilled sausage from the grill to Kita.

Kita looked at him, puzzled.

"Ishikawa-kun?"

Ishikawa Hayato didn't answer, his expression mysterious as he flipped the grilled sausage over.

Suddenly, Kita saw that a cute little face was carved on the grilled sausage.

Under Ishikawa Hayato's carving, the parts of the grilled sausage that had puffed up from cooking perfectly supported the little person's cheeks, making it look chubby. It even had a small ponytail on the side of its head, making it look quite lively.

Looking at Hayato Ishikawa’s carving, the puffed-up part of the boiled sausage perfectly filled out the little figure’s cheeks, making it look pouty, and a small ponytail was left on the side of its head, giving it a rather lively appearance.

The outer ring of the grilled sausage had been carved into a shape by Ishikawa Hayato with a flower-patterned knife, and after being seared and curled, it looked quite magnificent.

Kita took it, surprised.

She looked at the rare and specially grilled sausage, then at Ishikawa Hayato, and immediately understood why he had done it.

"It’s kind of cute, so I forgive you."

She said with a tsundere tone, then happily took the grilled sausage, held it next to her face, took a photo, and quickly uploaded it to Instagram.

Seeing her happy, Nijika didn't disturb her.

While eating barbecue, she took out her phone and curiously checked Kita's recent Instagram post.

She scrutinized the photo, her gaze quickly moving from Kita's face, which occupied half the frame, to the grilled sausage Ishikawa Hayato had made for Kita.

A moment later, she cast a disdainful glance at Ishikawa Hayato.

Ishikawa Hayato quickly smiled and clasped his hands together, begging her not to speak.

Nijika did not accept Ishikawa Hayato's plea.

Instead, she spoke directly to Kita.

"Kita-chan, you've been fooled by this person again. Isn't the carving on the grilled sausage exactly how you looked when you were angry just now?"

Kita turned off her phone, put it in her pocket, and let out a sigh, not at all surprised.

“I’ve known for a long time what kind of person Ishikawa-kun is. As long as he doesn't have any lewd thoughts, it’s fine—You don't, do you, Ishikawa-kun?"

She asked Ishikawa Hayato in the end.

"Of course, no matter what, I wouldn't waste food as a chef to do something bad."

Ishikawa Hayato replied.

Kita smiled and ate the grilled sausage she had just photographed.

Afterward, the five of them watched the sunset while filling their bellies, and after the sun had fully set, they raised their glasses and clinked them together.

Under the night sky, they finished the food they had brought, and with flashlights, began to clean up the trash they had left behind and organize their belongings.

Soon, on the dark road, the chirping of insects accompanied the footsteps of the five as they walked further and further away from the beach. 

...

Back at the villa, except for Ishikawa Hayato, the other four were already exhausted and had showered early before returning to their rooms.

Ishikawa Hayato didn't bother the four tired individuals and headed to his room.

However, he wasn't thinking of bothering others, but someone came to bother him.

As he reached the door, he suddenly felt someone's presence in the room. After hesitating for a moment, he opened the door.

"Oh, Hayato-kun."

Ryos mother leaned against the desk, facing him as she greeted him.

Ishikawa Hayato's expression changed.

He glanced at the sky outside the window, then closed the door behind him, preparing to leave.

"Good evening, Auntie. I'm going to rest now, good night."

He said in a hurry, planning to use the excuse of being afraid of ghosts to sleep in the girls' room.

He believed that if he was persistent enough and cried pitifully enough, they wouldn't resolutely chase him away.

His reaction seemed to annoy Ryo's mother.

She didn't have her usual charming, cutesy smile, but instead asked in an unfriendly tone:

"Hayato-kun, aren't you already a bit too close with the other girls? Why are you so nervous?"

She hadn't come for anything else.

She had turned back because of something Ryo had said that morning.

Ryo had said at the time, "If things stay as they are, it's fine."

She thought Ryo meant that if Ishikawa Hayato just maintained the current relationship with the others, it would be fine.

But she knew very well that men who frequently spend time with women are already more likely to cheat, let alone someone like Ishikawa Hayato, who seemed to have no sense of distance with women.

She wanted to warn him to prevent Ryo from getting hurt.

Ishikawa Hayato heard that Ryo's Mother had stayed for this reason and felt a slight sense of relief.

He closed the door and leaned against it.

"Oh, it's about that."

Seeing that Ryos Mother seemed serious about talking to him, he stopped hiding and laid his cards on the table.

"Since Auntie has already noticed, I'll be direct: I like all the girls in the band."

Ryos mother was startled.

She had never imagined such a bold person, who would dare to directly tell an elder, 'I want your daughter and everyone else's daughters.'

She was a bit confused and paused before asking:

"Does Ryo know?"

"Yes, I told her when I first thought about dating everyone."

Ryo's mother's brows furrowed slightly.

She found it hard to imagine Ryo dating Ishikawa Hayato knowing he was seeing multiple people.

But he didn't seem to be lying, nor did he have any reason to tell such an easily exposed lie.

She was still quite unwilling to accept it.

"Can't you just like Ryo alone?"

She could support Ryo and let her live freely, but she wouldn't let an outsider do whatever he pleased.

Ishikawa Hayato shook his head.

Ryo's mother stared into his eyes, putting pressure on him, and said emphatically:

"Then how will you maintain the feelings of so many people? How can you take care of so many girls? How will a family be formed in the future? How will you face society's views? Have you thought about these problems?"

Ishikawa Hayato was quite surprised that Ryos mother wasn't communicating with an attitude of absolute rejection.

Should he say that wealthy people had seen this situation many times and weren't surprised at all, or that she knew Ryo wasn't being deceived and just went along with Ryo's wishes?

He wasn't pressured by her sharp gaze. He said unhurriedly:

"Regarding the future, I will do my best to take care of those who are willing to be with me. I want to be happy with everyone, and I declared this to them from the beginning. This is also my plan for the future."

"Moreover, I have already started preparing the funds needed for future living."

Ishikawa Hayato's meaning was clear: he was essentially telling Ryo's mother that he hoped to focus on the family and the relationships between them, and that he believed he had the ability to support a large family.

"Let me see."

Ryo's mother was noncommittal about Ishikawa Hayato's idea of focusing on the family.

If he could do it, she would certainly hope for a son-in-law who satisfied Ryo and could often accompany her.

She knew Ryo's personality very well: she’s willful, has a strong sense of self, is extremely playful, and—worst of all—prefers to be alone.

The fact that she only had Nijika as a friend after all these years shows just how selective she is when it comes to social interactions.

Ryo's mother had started worrying about her marriage a long time ago.

She worried that Ryo might be too lazy to get married, then directly lie to them about coming out as gay and then cling to Nijika, or listen to them and dutifully marry someone else, but after marriage, her husband would barely see her once or twice a year, and he would divorce her after he couldn't stand it anymore.

Therefore, she was very cautious in handling matters between Ishikawa Hayato and Ryo.

It would be great if she could find a reason to legitimately overwhelm this young man.

Ishikawa Hayato walked over, took out a bankbook from his bag, and handed it to Ryo's mother.

Ryo's mother took it, looked at it, and sighed with a smile.

This childish amount of money.

She glanced at Ishikawa Hayato, seeing him smile and gesture for her to flip to the next page.

She turned a page, but froze when she saw the constantly increasing amount on it.

She re-confirmed Ishikawa Hayato's savings.

She wasn't surprised by how much money Ishikawa Hayato had.

She was surprised by the young man's ability and initiative.

The constantly increasing savings starting two months ago gave her the impression that he was serious.

Seeing Ryo's mother close the bankbook, Ishikawa Hayato reached out, took it, and put it back in his bag.

"I'm the kind of person who only speaks when I have the ability to do so," he said, then added playfully, "Even my parents haven't seen my savings yet. Auntie, you're the first one to see them."

Does this mean the money didn't come from his parents?

Ryo's mother re-evaluated Ishikawa Hayato in her mind.

He had goals, took action, was capable, and cared for his family.

He is also handsome. 

Of course, there must be more to him than that.

Ryo's reasons for liking him certainly weren't limited to these.

No wonder those girls didn't want to leave him.

"Oh, how delightful! To let me be the first to see it, do you perhaps have feelings for Auntie?"

She teased.

Ishikawa Hayato immediately grabbed his luggage and flashed to the door, saying with a tremble, "Aun... Auntie, I'll sleep in the next room. I wish you a pleasant night."

When he understood the boundaries, he was also a bit amusing.

Ryo's mother smiled and said, "The conversation isn't over yet."

"Oh." Ishikawa Hayato obediently placed his luggage at his feet and leaned against the door.

In the other room where the four were, the lights had been out for a while.

Unlike the three who were sound asleep, Ryo was completely listless.

She hadn't eaten such delicious food in a long time and had accidentally overeaten, causing her stomach to feel uncomfortable.

Now, she was sleepy but couldn't sleep due to the discomfort, so she decided to get up and take some medicine.

Rubbing her eyes, she got out of bed.

As soon as she left the room, she noticed that the light in a room on the other side of the hallway was still on, and the door was ajar.

Just as the thought, 'Why isn't Ishikawa Hayato sleeping yet?' arose in her mind, she suddenly heard what sounded like a woman's voice from that direction.

Instantly, her mind cleared. After confirming that the other three were still sound asleep, she tiptoed towards Ishikawa Hayato's room.

At this moment, she even forgot that her stomach was still hurting.

Reaching the door, she didn't peek inside, but instead leaned against the door to listen.

It was Ishikawa Hayato speaking now.

"If they are willing to accept me as I am, then no matter if their families object or not, I will not let go. Of course, I will also try my best to get their families to agree, no matter what methods I have to use."

"Absolutely not."

Ryo was surprised. It was her mother's voice, and it seemed like she was criticizing Ishikawa Hayato for seeing multiple people.

However, since it didn't seem to be about her, she wasn't worried at all.

She leaned against the wall with her arms crossed, enjoying it like a grand play.

It would be good if this philandering guy got a good scolding.

"Then I can only rely on a man's willpower to endure. No matter what, I hope they can be happy with me."

"Hayato-kun, your ideas are a bit naive."

"There are many naive ideas. To exaggerate, wasn't Columbus's voyage naive? This world has always been realistic. It only matters whether you succeed or not, not what others think."

He really could talk, Ryo smiled faintly.

"Is that so? Well, in that case, I don't agree..."

Hearing her mother's words about to come out, Ryo quickly stepped into the room.

"Didn't I tell you to go back first? When did you come back...?"

Her resentful voice drowned out her mother's words.

Ryo's mother, who was about to test Ishikawa Hayato's response, saw Ryo suddenly appear in her pajamas and blinked several times in surprise.

Hadn't Ryo gone to sleep?

She looked at Ishikawa Hayato and suddenly remembered how eager he had been to escape earlier.

Instantly, she understood.

After understanding, a drop of cold sweat ran down her forehead.

It was over.

Ryo was going to resent her.

She acted cute and said to Ryo.

"I... I came back to see how Ryo and everyone were getting along..."

Ishikawa Hayato wasn't surprised by Ryo's appearance.

He had sensed Ryo coming over a long time ago, and they had basically been back-to-back with only a wall between them.

He sized Ryo up and asked.

"Ryo, why aren't you asleep yet?"

"My stomach hurts," Ryo said, rubbing her stomach.

"You probably ate too much last night. Is there any digestive medicine here?"

He naturally changed the subject, smiled as he asked Ryo's mother, then walked behind Ryo and pushed her outside.

Ryo looked back at Ishikawa Hayato, and seeing his slightly smiling expression, she realized that he could handle it himself and didn't need her to interfere.

Her heart settled a little.

She yawned and pointed the way, saying.

"Storage room."

After getting Ryo her medicine and some warm water to drink, the two walked back.

Along the way, neither of them spoke until Ryo was escorted to the door of the room she shared with the other three.

Ryo glanced at Ishikawa Hayato's room and saw that the light was still on.

She asked.

"Is it troublesome?"

"This is my own doing, I guess."

Ishikawa Hayato spread his hands with a smile.

Ryo let out a snicker, then turned and put her hand on the doorknob.

She suddenly asked.

"You wouldn't do anything stupid, would you?"

"Hmm... that depends on whether Ryo-neechan likes me."

Ishikawa Hayato said in a half-coquettish tone.

"You clearly know."

Ryo pushed the door open and walked into the room, quickly closing the door behind her.

Outside the door, Ishikawa Hayato sighed.

Ryo had blocked the view so perfectly that he hadn’t even seen the scenery inside.