Even My Best Friend Thought This Love Was Dangerous

After changing clothes and putting away the bedding in the corner of the living room, I went to open the curtains.

The sky was already dusk.

Yi Yi walked toward the kitchen counter and said to me,

“Well then, I’ll start making dinner, Darling. Is there anything you’d like? Or anything you can’t eat?”

“No restrictions. Surprise me.”

Judging by the breakfast I had, Yi Yi could probably make anything taste good.

Actually, if she made it, maybe even food I didn’t particularly like would taste great.

Her cooking skills are professional-level.

Yi Yi nodded and smiled.

“Okay. Got it.”

While Yi Yi prepared dinner, I took out my phone to check the time.

I woke up early today. It was only 5 PM. I’d already guessed the time from the sky.

Normally, around now, I’d start my stream. But… hmm…

A major problem occurred to me.

Would I stream drawing lewd pictures in front of my adorable girlfriend?

Well, streaming might be okay. If the picture is too lewd, the moderator will warn me.

But outside of streaming, I also occasionally draw lewd pictures. Not just for the sake of my fellow group members, but also because I sometimes get freelance work.

It’s an important source of income for me.

But drawing lewd pictures in front of Yi Yi… I didn’t know what she’d think.

Common sense said it would definitely lower her opinion of me.

Hmm…

But personally, I didn’t want to give it up. At some point, drawing lewd pictures became as essential to me as spiritual sustenance.

Speaking of which, when did I start drawing anyway?

I don’t remember being particularly interested in drawing before. I picked it up again during my homeless days.

I just suddenly remembered that I could draw, and naturally used that skill to survive.

If I trace back to the original trigger, it might have been my cousin…

Knock, knock, knock—

I already guessed who it was.

I opened the door, and sure enough, it was that familiar, sunny, smiling face.

“Yo, good evening, bro!”

“Tch.”

“Hey, tsking at me the moment you see me? That’s cold.”

“What are you here for?”

“Classic case of ‘out of sight, out of mind’ once you have a girl. I used to come at this time all the time, didn’t I?”

“Didn’t you say you weren’t coming over anymore?”

“I meant once you two started living together. You just got together. You’re not living together yet…”

He trailed off as he noticed the change in my expression. Yes, I narrowed my eyes.

And he understood everything.

He walked in and peeked into the living room. Just then, Yi Yi came out from the kitchen.

“Darling, is that a friend?”

The idiot blinked, looked at Yi Yi in her apron, then at me. His expression went through a rapid series of changes. The words “unbelievable” were written all over his face.

Then he put his hand up in front of his face.

“Ahem. It’s fine, uh, sis… no…”

Yi Yi gave an understanding smile and nodded.

“Just call me Kaori.”

“Uh, ahem. Kaori, then. Yeah. You go ahead. I need to borrow my bro for a minute. Guy talk.”

“Okay. Um, I’ll make dinner for three. Please stay and eat with us.”

“Ah, okay. Sure thing!”

It was rare to see the idiot flustered. It was strange.

At times like this, the nickname “idiot” suited him better.

Then the idiot grabbed me by the back of the neck and pulled me out of the apartment.

We went to the balcony in the hallway. He glanced back at the slightly ajar door.

“…This is huge, bro.”

“What?”

“I mean, you’re already living together? Isn’t this moving a bit fast?”

“She came to the convenience store where I work last night.”

“Oh, the one at the intersection?”

“Yeah. I showed up and she had applied for the same shift.”

“…That was quick. So you brought her home?”

“What else? You already settled everything yesterday, didn’t you? She cut ties with the Shen family and came to find me.”

“I always handle negotiations quickly. But even if everything was settled, coming straight to you…”

That’s what I thought too.

I never expected Yi Yi to come straight to me, already prepared to live together.

“She seems introverted, but is she actually the outgoing type? No… She seems more like the conservative type.”

The idiot looked up at the sky, thought for a moment, then shook his head.

“I guess women in love have incredible drive.”

Same.

“But it’s not a bad thing that she’s so proactive. It means she’s not using you or me, and she’s not just saying yes to repay a debt. She genuinely likes you, bro.”

“Yeah, I know. And she proved it with actions.”

“With actions? Wait…”

He turned his head sharply to look at me. I looked away.

“Wait, bro, don’t tell me you lost your…”

I denied it immediately.

“No. Not yet.”

“Damn. You scared me. If even you, an innocent virgin, lost it overnight, this woman would be insane.”

“But…”

Thinking about last night—well, this morning—the things Yi Yi and I did under the covers.

We were literally one step away.

If I hadn’t seen her in pain, I really might have said goodbye to my mage title.

The idiot didn’t ask what “but” meant. He just rolled his eyes, looking like he understood everything.

“Alright, I get it. Even if you haven’t lost the title, it’s close. I can tell by your smug expression. You definitely got a taste, didn’t you?”

He nudged me with his elbow and grinned.

“How was it? What’s a woman like?”

“Sweet. Really sweet.”

“Such a virgin response.”

“None of your business. I’m not as experienced as you.”

“Hah…”

“Why are you sighing?”

“I’m sighing because my pure little bro is gone.”

I smacked his arm off my shoulder and gave him a one-fingered salute.

“Get lost. Want me to kick you off this balcony?”

“Don’t. It’s the fifth floor.”

He shrugged and leaned back against the balcony railing.

“But this really surprised me. I did consider that Shen Kaori might like you. When she said she wanted to be your girlfriend, it didn’t look like acting.”

“You’re that confident in reading people?”

“Of course. Reading people is my specialty. Only one person has ever fooled me with acting.”

“Tch. So there is one.”

“A special case. It wasn’t that I’m bad. That woman was too strange.”

“Tsk, tsk. Another woman.”

But a woman who could fool the idiot was truly skilled.

It’s hard for me to fool him. I only succeeded once. And after that, he started calling me bro.

But that time was special. The timing, place, and mood were all right. If I tried to fool him now, he’d see through me immediately.

I’d actually like to meet the woman who could fool him.

But judging by the pained look on his face, maybe not.

“No way. I can’t handle that woman. Probably like you with your Sister Ling. That woman’s not someone I can deal with.”

“Oh? Even you gave up?”

“I only encountered her once. I didn’t know there were women like that. You can know a person’s face but not their heart.”

He looked at me and smirked.

“But seeing you, bro, I feel better. If someone like you exists, it’s not surprising there are other weird people. Hehe.”

“Are you just here to insult me? You’re a weirdo yourself, you know.”

“Hehe, yeah. If we weren’t kindred spirits, we wouldn’t be bros, right?”

“Heh. Birds of a feather.”

“Flock together.”

We bumped fists.

Still in sync.

“Speaking of, when you brought Shen Kaori home, did your ghost landlady say anything? Or hasn’t she seen her yet?”

“We ran into her as soon as I brought Yi Yi home. She’s letting her stay.”

“No way. She didn’t say anything? Didn’t you say she only takes in homeless people? Even if Shen Kaori just cut ties, your Sister Ling shouldn’t know that. Is she really a ghost? How does she know these things?”

“How is that possible? There are no ghosts in the real world. And keep your voice down. Sister Ling lives next door.”

“Cough, cough…”

He covered his mouth, glanced at room 503 next to mine, and lowered his voice.

“Did she say anything else?”

“Yes. Something intriguing.”

“To who? You? Or Shen Kaori?”

“To Yi Yi. Sister Ling said, ‘You’re the same.’ And then she said being my girlfriend would be hard.”

“That sounds like she’s trying to break you two up. But she let Shen Kaori stay, didn’t she?”

“Yeah. It’s weird. What do you think, idiot?”

“Sherlock, I find this affair most peculiar. There must be a great secret behind it all.”

“Damn it. I’m being serious.”

“So am I. To be fair, your Sister Ling is super mysterious. I did some digging yesterday. I found no information about Ayane Hane anywhere. It’s like she appeared out of nowhere and got the deed to this building.”

I raised an eyebrow.

“Even you couldn’t find anything? Seriously?”

He scratched his cheek.

“I wasn’t that thorough. I just casually looked up the property owner and history. Surface traces are easy to erase.”

“Then don’t talk like that.”

“I’m curious. But I wasn’t planning on digging deeper. It’s just, you live here with such a mysterious landlady. It makes me uneasy.”

“It’s fine. Sister Ling is actually very nice.”

“She’s nice to you, obviously. To me… she just ignores me.”

True. The idiot comes over a lot. Sister Ling must have noticed him.

But until yesterday, when she came to deliver food, she had never seen him. That means she never paid him any attention.

But this morning, when I brought Yi Yi home, Sister Ling had a lot to say to her.

Calling her “homeless”… that’s just my guess.

What is Sister Ling’s criteria for distinguishing “people she interacts with”?

“I used to think I had good judgment. But after meeting you, bro, I keep meeting people I can’t figure out. I was way too arrogant before.”

“I don’t think the problem is with you. I think it’s the people you can’t figure out.”

“Yeah, I’ve come to understand you, bro, after all this time. But others… Shen Kaori, for one, falling for you so quickly.”

“You’re acting strange today. Just say what’s on your mind.”

He kept making that constipated face. It’s annoying.

“No, I just didn’t expect things to move this fast. Her feelings for you are way stronger than I anticipated.”

“Is that bad?”

“Well, no. But there’s something indescribably strange about it.”

“What, men have intuition too?”

“Call it a hunch…”

He folded his arms and thought for a moment. Then he gave up.

“Ah, whatever. No point thinking about it.”

Maybe he realized that being so worried didn’t suit him. He immediately relaxed his brow, patted my shoulder, and gave me a thumbs-up.

“It’s fine. I believe in you, bro! You must be a reincarnated Casanova.”

I didn’t even have the energy to retort.

“How many times do I have to tell you? You, the playboy rich kid, are the reincarnated Casanova. No, you’re definitely a reincarnated master philanderer.”

“We’re different~”

I give up. He’s even singing now. This idiot…

“Hey, you two, dinner’s almost ready.”

Yi Yi pushed open the door and called us in.

The idiot raised his hand eagerly.

“Great! Thanks! Coming!”

Watching him hum a tune as he walked away, I shook my head and followed.

I don’t know what got into him today, worrying about me. Now he’s back to his old self.

But the idiot’s instincts are usually sharp. He wouldn’t be worried for no reason.

I’ll keep an eye out.