Eriri felt like her luck had been absolutely terrible lately. A fight between two certain people had dragged her into the mess, exposing her long-hidden identity as a doujin artist. This caused a huge uproar at school, forcing her to suspend her studies and transfer.
She could still remember the day the news spread to her class—the disdainful looks and venomous words from the friends who used to be close to her.
"I can't believe it. That princess-like Eriri secretly draws pornographic manga. You really can't judge a book by its cover."
"That's what you call a 'closet pervert,' right? So prim and proper on the surface, but who knows how messy her private life really is."
"I've already heard rumors that Eriri is actually into compensated dating."
"Whoa, seriously?"
One person's story becomes a crowd's reality. In a single day, the rumors completely destroyed everything Eriri had built at school over the past year. Like a man-eating tiger, they relentlessly pursued her, determined to swallow her whole in their gaping maw.
During this time, she didn't know how many times she'd woken up from a nightmare in the middle of the night, drenched in sweat. Even after changing into clean clothes, the coldness in her limbs kept her from falling back asleep for a long time.
Eriri had listlessly shut herself in her room for days. It wasn't until her stomach was growling with hunger this morning that she realized the fridge in her room was long empty.
Her parents had been busy dealing with the rumors about her at school and basically hadn't been home recently. She had already ordered the household butler not to enter her room, so Eriri had no choice but to go out and buy some food to fill her stomach.
The sun hung high in the sky, loudly proclaiming its already intense presence to the bipeds below. The scorching sunlight made one's skin sting.
Eriri steeled herself and, without any preparation, rushed out into the sunlight towards the nearest shopping mall. Hunger was beginning to impair her judgment; she should have gone to a convenience store.
Unexpectedly, before she could even buy anything, she was already dizzy with hunger. She was even knocked to the ground, and the glasses on her face were knocked off, falling to the floor. The lenses shattered with a crisp crack, just like her heart at that moment.
"Sorry, miss. My girlfriend was a bit careless and bumped into you. Are you okay?"
Being highly nearsighted, Eriri's world became unfamiliar without her glasses. Every object and person was covered in a thick layer of pixels.
Although she was initially worried about her situation when she heard a man's voice, she relaxed slightly after hearing him mention his "girlfriend."
"I'm fine physically, but my glasses are broken."
"I see. Sachi, call Amane and tell her to come to the supermarket. After we pay and put our things in the car, we'll accompany this young lady to the optometrist to compensate her for a new pair of glasses."
"Understood."
Jhin felt that the person before him looked exceptionally familiar, but he couldn't confirm her identity. He could only temporarily put aside his suspicions and extend a hand to the girl. "Miss, can you see my hand? Hold on to it and stand up carefully."
Eriri hesitated for a moment but felt that Jhin had been a perfect gentleman so far. She finally decided to place her hand into the large one she could only see as an outline, using it for support as she stood up. "Thank you, sir."
"Grrrowl~"
Eriri's stomach rumbled at an inopportune moment, causing her great embarrassment. Her fair little face flushed crimson.
Jhin, with his gentlemanly grace, saved her from the awkward situation. "After we get you new glasses, let us treat you to a meal as an apology."
"Um... thank you."
Although she still couldn't see Jhin's face clearly, Eriri already had a very good impression of him. He was considerate and a true gentleman.
"Jhin, over here!" Suou Amane quickly arrived outside the supermarket, driving the school's van. Sitting in the driver's seat, she waved at Jhin and Komine Sachi, who were carrying large and small bags.
After the two loaded everything into the back of the van, Suou Amane drove off. She had already learned from the phone call that the two of them were going to accompany the blonde girl beside them to an optometrist for a new pair of glasses.
Fortunately, this was a large shopping mall that also had an optometrist's shop. Jhin directly led Komine Sachi and Eriri to the shop on the third floor and had a clerk take Eriri to get her vision tested for new glasses.
Beside him, Komine Sachi was enveloped in happy, pink bubbles because Jhin had called her his girlfriend. She couldn't suppress the smile curving her lips at all. Right now, she seemed less like a maid and more like a regular girlfriend wearing a maid outfit for her boyfriend's hobby.
"Girlfriend... hehe..."
"Although I haven't officially said it, aren't all of you in the dorm my girlfriends?"
"This is different from when you say it to everyone in the dorm. You just announced my status as your girlfriend in front of a stranger."
"That's true. I'm glad you're happy. This is what I owe all of you, after all."
"Jhin, don't say that. You saved all of us. You don't owe us anything."
"But I..."
"Don't say another word."
Komine Sachi pressed her index finger to Jhin's lips to interrupt him, her blue eyes shimmering with unprecedented seriousness. "This is what we all think. Rather than having only one person win, it's better to choose a way for everyone to reach the finish line."
"So, Jhin, you can hold your head high with pride, because you are our great hero, and our shared lover."
Jhin took the finger she had pressed against his lips and placed a gentle kiss on it. "I will be proud of that, Sachi."
"Since this is a rare opportunity, how about you tell me what kind of stockings you like?"
Seeing that Komine Sachi was about to enrich her report again, Jhin could only smile helplessly. "As long as they're not that gaudy, deadly bright red, I'm fine with anything, really."
"I see. I have obtained new intelligence."
"Um... your friend's glasses are ready." The clerk interrupted the couple, who were interacting in their own peculiar way of question and answer.
"Oh, it's done already? Here, charge this." Jhin casually handed over his bank card, entered the PIN on the POS machine, and then continued answering Komine Sachi's questions.
When the clerk returned with the glasses-wearing Eriri, he respectfully handed the bank card back to Jhin, along with a black VIP card and the manager's business card.
Jhin was a bit baffled. Had their shop never had a customer before? Why give him a VIP card on his first purchase?
He didn't know that the balance on his card had jumped from over a million to over eleven million without any text notification, and the card's design had partially changed. The store manager was a man of the world and could tell at a glance that only someone with a deposit of at least ten million could have a card like this, so he immediately arranged for someone to issue Jhin a VIP card.
Putting on her new glasses, Eriri finally saw the couple's faces. To her surprise, the girlfriend... was wearing a maid outfit. Could this be the boyfriend's little quirk?
"To you both, my name is Sawamura Spencer Eriri. You can just call me Eriri."
"A pleasure to meet you, Miss Eriri. My name is Jhin, and this is my girlfriend, Komine Sachi."
Watching this strange couple—the boyfriend introducing his girlfriend so formally, while the girlfriend bowed to her like a maid—Eriri almost couldn't help but laugh. Much of the sorrow in her heart had been washed away.
Jhin stood up. "Let's go get something to eat. Is there anything you'd like to have, Miss Eriri?"
"I'll leave it up to you two."
Jhin turned to Komine Sachi. "What about you, Sachi?"
"How about we go to a Chinese restaurant? We should be able to order congee there."
"Good point. Let's go then. The fourth floor is the food court; we should be able to find a Chinese restaurant there."
They must have said that because they considered that my stomach is empty and shouldn't handle greasy or spicy food. They're such good people.
Eriri thought to herself with a sigh as she followed behind them.
___
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