Chapter 304: You Should Trust Your Mother
A moment later, Mrs. Hyoudou, who had been cleaning the bathroom, came over.
"Are you looking for that child, Irina?"
"Yes, Auntie." Haruto smiled. "We have some things we'd like to ask them."
Mrs. Hyoudou looked at Haruto and Yuuto Kiba, then thought of the two girls who had sat in the same spots yesterday, her eyes suddenly lighting up.
Could these two handsome young men be trying to pursue Irina and that other girl?
Well, they would make a good match, and they're about the same age.
I really wish my foolish son had even half their caliber - then I wouldn't have to worry so much about whether he'll ever get married.
"Irina didn't leave contact information, but I invited them for lunch today and they agreed."
"I see... Then we'll come back around noon."
Mrs. Hyoudou said cheerfully, "Lunch isn't far off now. I was just about to prepare it. If you don't mind, why don't you stay and join us for the meal?"
"That would be too much trouble. We came empty-handed without even bringing any gifts."
"Don't worry about it. Consider it my thanks for looking after my Issei at school."
Issei Hyoudou rolled his eyes but remained silent.
While it wasn't a big deal to visit Issei Hyoudou without gifts, staying for a meal without bringing anything would be quite rude.
This was true not only in Japan but also in the country where he had lived in his previous life.
Haruto eventually agreed to stay for the meal, but took advantage of a free moment to slip out and buy some fruits, cookies, milk, and other items to make up for the lack of gifts.
Mrs. Hyoudou said it wasn't necessary, but after receiving the gifts, her smile clearly brightened.
This wasn't because she was materialistic or liked taking advantage of small benefits - these things meant little to the Hyoudou family. It was more about the gesture and thoughtfulness.
The more Mrs. Hyoudou looked at Haruto, the more she liked him. If only she had a daughter, she would have definitely tried to matchmake him with Haruto.
Facing the enthusiasm of the beautiful middle-aged woman, Haruto remained composed - or rather, he was used to it.
It wasn't that he was deliberately trying to please her, just normal social etiquette. But his charm's special effectiveness against middle-aged women was a permanent passive ability, something he couldn't help.
Most effects of the Cuckold Protagonist Template had been restricted, but ordinary people were still easily affected.
Issei Hyoudou looked at his mother, his expression gradually changing. Remembering Haruto's outrageous reputation, he grew nervous.
Making an excuse, he pulled Haruto and Yuuto Kiba into his room.
Under his mother's reluctant gaze, Issei Hyoudou decisively closed the door.
Having prevented Haruto from continuing to interact with his mother, he inexplicably breathed a sigh of relief.
There was no helping it - in all these years, his mother had never looked at his father with that kind of expression. Combined with rumors about Haruto's indiscriminate tastes, he was genuinely worried.
Haruto saw through Issei Hyoudou's little concerns. Originally, he hadn't had any thoughts about the middle-aged beauty, but now he suddenly felt somewhat interested.
The original protagonist's mother, huh... Thinking about it, that really is quite exciting...
"Haruto, let me make this clear upfront - if you actually make a move on my mother, I won't let it slide."
Simple-minded people often have sharp intuition. The moment Haruto had that thought, Issei Hyoudou immediately looked over with suspicion.
"Ahem..."
Haruto coughed dryly twice, somewhat guiltily turning his head away. Thinking about how to get with someone's mother right in front of them did seem rather inappropriate.
But the more he acted like this, the more suspicious Issei Hyoudou became.
"Haruto, you're not actually considering it, are you? My mom's already an obasan!"
Mrs. Hyoudou wasn't young anymore, probably in her forties. As an ordinary person, no matter how well she maintained herself, it was difficult to completely conceal the marks left by time.
Yet from her still attractive face, it wasn't hard to see that she must have been quite a beauty in her youth.
Issei Hyoudou had inherited most of his good looks from her.
Calling her an obasan was entirely Issei Hyoudou's subjective judgment as her son, combined with intentional belittling, fearing that Haruto might actually be interested.
In reality, whether in figure or appearance, Mrs. Hyoudou could easily surpass many young girls.
Moreover, what time had left her with wasn't just some fine wrinkles, but also a special mature charm.
Seeing the flustered Issei Hyoudou, Haruto actually relaxed.
"Isn't it normal for me to admire someone as gentle and beautiful as Mrs. Hyoudou?"
He deliberately teased: "I wouldn't use any underhanded methods. You should have faith in your mother."
Issei Hyoudou gritted his teeth: "You bastard... you're not even calling her 'aunt' anymore!"
"Sorry, sorry, I was just joking with you. My apologies."
Haruto promptly apologized. Even though they were close friends and Issei Hyoudou had a simple, kind nature, continuously joking about someone's mother was going too far.
"You'd better be joking."
Issei Hyoudou glared at him and didn't bring up the matter again, though he couldn't help sighing inwardly.
Women in their thirties are like wolves, in their forties like tigers. If his mother continued interacting with Haruto, she might actually make the first move...
He knew in his heart that even if something did happen, Haruto would at most be the one who didn't refuse, rather than the initiator.
But what could he do? Could he really control his own mother?
As for having faith... thinking about his mother's gaze and attitude earlier, he really couldn't bring himself to believe!
The room fell into an awkward silence. After thinking for a long time, Issei Hyoudou could only reach one conclusion.
He looked seriously at Haruto. "Haruto."
"Hmm?"
"From now on, don't come to my house. If you need anything, call me and I'll come find you."
Haruto rubbed his nose. This honest kid...
He was actually starting to feel guilty about the wicked thoughts that had crossed his mind earlier.
With anyone else, they would most likely demand that Haruto take the initiative to refuse. But after thinking for so long, the simple and kind-hearted Issei Hyoudou had only come up with this one request.
He'd even added the condition that he could actively seek out Haruto if needed.
"Alright, I understand."
Haruto replied seriously: "I don't like destroying families either. I'll be careful."
...
At 2 PM, Haruto, Yuuto, Irina Shido, and Xenovia bid farewell to the Hyoudou family.
The four of them returned to the mansion in silence.
Two Holy Sword Wielder beauties arrived at the Hyoudou residence at noon. They were startled to see Haruto and Yuuto Kiba, but quickly composed themselves. The four of them worked together to deceive the ordinary Hyoudou family.
Issei Hyoudou and his parents were all carefree by nature. Though they occasionally found things strange, they didn't dwell on them too deeply.
Xenovia was too straightforward and not very articulate, while Yuuto Kiba was in a bad mood. However, with Irina Shido's lively personality and Haruto's assistance, the meal could still be considered enjoyable for both hosts and guests.
In the first-floor reception room of the large western-style mansion, Rias and Akeno came to meet the two Holy Sword Wielder beauties.
As the masters of Kuoh Town, they couldn't neglect proper etiquette when visitors came calling.
After introductions were exchanged, Rias asked, "Might I ask what brings people from the Church to Kuoh Town so suddenly?"
"We're here for the Holy Swords," Irina Shido replied. "The Church possesses seven Holy Swords. Aside from one that was lost long ago, the remaining six were stored separately in..."
The reason Irina Shido and Xenovia came to Kuoh Town was the same as Haruto remembered - to pursue the three Holy Swords stolen by the fallen angels.
The difference was that due to the peace treaty, they couldn't operate openly, at least not in a way that would cause overt conflict.
After arriving yesterday, they had visited the Hyoudou family and planned to investigate discreetly. They hadn't expected to be discovered so quickly by the local authorities.
Given the circumstances, they decided to be straightforward and hoped that Rias and the others would provide assistance.
"The fallen angels in Kuoh Town have long been cleared out. There shouldn't be anything here that you're looking for," Akeno said, presenting some documents to Irina Shido.
"If you don't believe me, I can even call the relevant parties over."
The so-called relevant parties were naturally Yuuma Amano and the other two. After Azazel's death, related matters had been handled by the trio of fallen angels.