"Shiratori-sensei! Shiratori-sensei!"
On the school rooftop, Hakuto was alone… well, not quite. If you didn't count the one sitting on his shoulders, he would've been considered alone.
"Huh? Why do you look unhappy, Shiratori-sensei?"
"Because you're heavy, Yotsuba..."
"Nonsense! I'm not heavy at all! Besides, Shiratori-sensei, you can lift things over a hundred kilograms..."
Hakuto felt a bit helpless. He really shouldn't have flaunted his enhanced physical abilities.
Forget a hundred kilograms—Hakuto could now throw Yotsuba, who was sitting on him, from the first floor to the tenth with one hand!
"Yotsuba, I heard you were kidnapped last time? Are you alright?"
"Huh? Kidnapped? Oh, do you mean when my phone got snatched?"
Hakuto was speechless.
He honestly didn't expect someone would go so far as to steal a phone… but since she was safe, he didn't pursue the topic further.
"By the way, how did you know I was up here?" Hakuto asked. Originally, he just wanted to find a quiet place to think about how to resolve his harem situation.
But before he could even enjoy the peace, the ever-energetic Yotsuba bounced her way over.
"I just came up here to eat, and ran into you by chance." Saying that, Yotsuba took a bite of the bread in her hand.
"You still haven't told me why you look so down, Sensei."
Yotsuba jumped down from Hakuto's shoulders and sat beside him.
"Why I'm upset..." Hakuto furrowed his brows.
"I'm not upset, just thinking about some things."
He looked at Yotsuba beside him. She was chewing her bread, the rabbit-shaped headband bouncing as she moved—radiating an air of cheerful cuteness.
"Even you have things that trouble you, Shiratori-sensei?"
In Yotsuba's eyes, Hakuto was someone capable of anything. It was hard to imagine anything could trouble him.
At least, she hadn't seen anything yet that could.
"I'm human too..." Everyone has troubles. No one lives worry-free unless they die the moment they're born.
"Yotsuba, can I ask you something?"
"Go ahead, Sensei!"
"What kind of person do you think I am?"
Hakuto actually wanted to know how the five Nakano sisters saw him. Aside from Nao and Ginko, he had the most involvement with them.
And it was obvious—even painfully obvious—that Nino and Miku had feelings for him.
He wasn't the same person he used to be. He couldn't just pretend not to notice their affection.
And truthfully, for various reasons, Hakuto had actively provoked those feelings… so he couldn't act like nothing ever happened either.
But since he hadn't resolved things with Nao yet, he didn't have the mental bandwidth to deal with the quintuplet situation.
Still, with the opportunity today, he decided to subtly probe Yotsuba for some insight!
"Huh? What kind of person you are?" Yotsuba paused at the question, thinking for a long time before answering slowly.
"In Yotsuba's eyes, you're someone who can do anything!"
Can do anything… Hakuto had thought he'd only hear that kind of phrase from his future children.
He didn't expect to hear it from Yotsuba first.
She continued,
"You always know everything, even what we like. Whether it's Miku's Three Kingdoms figurines or Ichika's audition for a lead role, you always know exactly what we want and need..."
She was talking about the gifts Hakuto had prepared for the five sisters—the ones he had Nino go pick up from his house.
"Oh~ Wait… Ichika told you all she wanted to be an actress?"
"Yeah! I even went to see her movie! But you were busy at the time and couldn't come, Sensei."
Hakuto raised an eyebrow. The gift he'd prepared for Ichika was an audition opportunity for a movie lead role.
And he had gotten that opportunity by writing a screenplay with the help of his quantum supercomputer and offering it to the director in exchange.
It wasn't entirely Hakuto's achievement though—he also leaned on the political influence of Shunsuke's organization, Hoshino-kai.
Back then, he thought someone like Ichika would value nothing more than a chance to pursue her dream.
Hakuto had no idea how good her acting was, but in a country like Japan, idols weren't exactly rare or valuable.
Underground idols were everywhere—underpaid, overworked, and not worth much!
And since Ichika didn't want those around her to know, she couldn't rely on Nakano Maruo's connections either.
Without any background, a girl in the entertainment industry was in a terrifying position, so Hakuto created an opportunity for her.
Since she had taken that opportunity, it showed she had some real talent.
Now that Nakano Maruo also knew, her acting career might not skyrocket, but it would at least go smoothly.
Nakano Maruo might not match up to Shunsuke, but his power was still immense. Being the director of a major hospital was no small background.
Anyone wanting to mess with his daughter in the entertainment world better think twice about whether they had enough clout.
"Why are you suddenly asking these kinds of things, Sensei?"
"Yotsuba… Nino really likes me, doesn't she?"
"Huh?"
Yotsuba was caught off guard by Hakuto's sudden question. Her face flushed slightly before she retorted.
"It's not just Nino! We all really like you, Sensei!"
That's right. Otherwise, the five of them wouldn't have united in their studies, giving Hakuto several months' worth of salary as a result.
But that wasn't the kind of "like" Hakuto was asking about...
"Never mind, why am I even asking you..."
"What the heck… You're making it sound like I'm some kind of idiot, Sensei."
The so-called idiot Yotsuba had zero awareness of being one.
Hakuto looked at Yotsuba in front of him and guessed that what she felt for him was more admiration than love.
But whatever it was, eventually it would have to be brought to the table and made clear. There was no need to rush.
"When are you going to start working again, Sensei?"
"Hm?"
"I mean, helping us with our studies!"
"Probably… this weekend?"
"Then I'll get the test papers ready and wait for you, Sensei!"
Yotsuba was still bursting with energy, but what she didn't know was that the Shiratori-sensei she was talking to was filled with worry inside.
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