"There are only two fulcrums left."
Aoko sat there with a tense expression, her eyes lowered and calm like a meditating monk, exuding a solemn aura.
"Weren't you guarding them?"
"We patrol every night."
Which meant, even with them guarding, one fulcrum was still destroyed by the fruit lady.
Ding-dong!
The sound of the doorbell came from the direction of the front gate.
"I'll step out for a bit."
Aoko suddenly remembered something and got up to leave the room.
Eiji looked down through the window and happened to see someone in a hotel uniform holding a takeout bag.
With only two fulcrums left, the chances of running into the fruit lady had increased greatly.
Eiji pondered for a moment.
"By the way, Aoko actually plays an instrument?"
Eiji casually scanned the not-so-spacious room.
Even though there were larger rooms to choose from, she insisted on staying in this small one—probably because of laziness.
From the overgrown weeds in the courtyard, it was clear that neither of the two girls liked doing chores, and since Alice didn't want outsiders entering her home, they just let it be.
From this, it was easy to deduce that Aoko chose the small room for ease of cleaning.
In the corner of the room sat a metallic electric guitar.
He imagined Aoko holding the electric guitar and rocking back and forth—it actually suited her unexpectedly well.
Eiji stepped forward and picked up the guitar.
Come to think of it, he had never touched one of these before. Although with his talent he surely couldn't play a song, he could at least produce some notes, right?
Zheng zheng—
The tone was quite intense. Kind of fun.
Snap!
Getting interested, Eiji placed his fingers on the strings again.
Then one of the strings broke with a crack.
The smile on his face slowly faded.
"Hey, Eiji, Alice is calling you back…"
Aoko's footsteps approached the door.
Then the door opened, and she walked in mid-sentence.
Their eyes met.
Aoko's gaze fell on the electric guitar in Eiji's hands.
Her face quickly darkened.
"I—!"
"Hold on! I know what you're going to say!"
Eiji suddenly raised his hand, stopping the incoming barrage of curses.
"At this point, I won't make excuses, but at least give me a chance to compensate you!"
"Oh? And how do you plan to compensate me?"
Aoko glared at Eiji with a threatening look.
"Don't tell me you're thinking of paying with your body!"
Hmm.
Wouldn't that actually be kind of nice?
Such a thought suddenly popped into Aoko's mind. She secretly glanced at Eiji's school uniform collar.
Even though nothing was exposed, why did she suddenly find him a bit… alluring?
Her lips suddenly felt dry.
"Not okay?"
Eiji shook his head a little regretfully. That was, in fact, what he had been thinking.
Then he pulled out a credit card from his pocket.
"Then I'll pay by card."
"…That works too."
Aoko also shook her head a bit regretfully, her eyes naturally landing on the credit card.
Then her breathing suddenly halted.
The visual impact was so strong it almost stopped her heart.
"T-This card is…?"
Aoko's voice trembled. Her breath turned rapid, and her eyes sparkled as if she had just seen Eiji naked.
"A credit card Nero gave me. I don't even know what the limit is."
Eiji glanced at Aoko.
Her reaction was strange, like she'd never seen money in her life.
"…A hundred thousand!"
Aoko suddenly named a price with a serious face.
"Do you have no shame?"
Eiji's eye twitched.
Even though he'd never played an instrument before, he knew a hundred thousand was ridiculous. No way a guitar string was worth that much.
"Was that too much?"
Aoko looked regretful.
She should've asked for a bit less, like ninety-nine thousand or so.
What? Shame? Who needs shame when scamming Eiji for money?
"You're not rich?"
Eiji asked in confusion.
From this Western-style mansion, it was obvious the Kuonji family wasn't short on money. Otherwise, how could they afford to build such a large estate in the mountains just for Alice to live in alone?
"Of course not!"
Aoko rolled her eyes.
"The Aozaki family is average, and while the Kuonji family is richer, Alice didn't inherit the family business. Plus, being a magus is super expensive, so both of us are really broke!"
"Man, being good-looking is so nice. Just easily catches the eye of the heiress of Japan's top conglomerate, and bam—a black card. Unlike me, copying reports for people till my hands go numb, working several days for just ten thousand. Alice even haggles when buying antiques, and when we're short on cash, we have to find ways to mooch…"
Aoko's tone was sour.
Her face full of envy, as if she wished to trade places.
I wonder if President Nero likes girls?
Would it be too late to start dressing more androgynously now?
"So you two are that broke?"
Eiji looked like he'd discovered a whole new world.
Then his expression turned unreadable.
***
Living room.
Alice opened the packaging and placed the food on the table.
"You bought three portions?"
Eiji's voice came from the living room doorway, making Alice put down her chopsticks.
"Please don't misunderstand. It's only because the restaurant refuses to deliver unless we order three portions."
Alice explained calmly.
The Kuonji estate was located on a hillside. Delivery was a hassle, and if fewer than two meals were ordered, the shop wouldn't bother delivering.
From the opposite couch came the soft sound of someone sitting down like a king.
"It's been over half an hour. You should leav—"
Slap!
A credit card was suddenly slapped down onto the table.
"Sigh, I really don't feel like leaving today."
Eiji rubbed his legs, wincing as if in pain.
"..."
Alice paused.
Her gaze froze on the credit card.
Coming from a wealthy family herself, even though she lived in seclusion, she still recognized a black card.
Eiji reached out and took the card back.
Alice's gaze followed his hand to his face, and she suddenly snapped back to reality.
A light blush appeared on her cheeks.
To have stared at a credit card in a daze—so unlike her.
"Can I eat this portion of takeout?"
Eiji pointed at the third portion on the table, his smile warm and sunny.
Aoko entered the living room shortly after. Seeing Eiji's seemingly modest but actually smug smile, she rolled her eyes again.
"It's not even your own skill that got you that. What are you so smug about?"
"I'm living off a woman by skill—how does that not count as earned?"
Eiji glared at her, clearly dissatisfied.
***
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