"Oh, I know."
So that's what she meant.
Mutsumi quietly let out a small sigh of relief in her heart.
"Then… Mutsumi, don't you have anything to say?"
Seeing Mutsumi's calm reaction, Sakiko felt something strange.
Even though there was already the precedent with Sayaka, Sakiko could tell—Mutsumi wasn't completely indifferent to other girls getting close to Kamijou Mutsuki.
And as her childhood friend, who couldn't even restrain herself, Mutsumi should have been even angrier.
In fact, from all the ways Mutsumi had asserted her "claim" before, it was obvious.
Yet now, she was acting so indifferent.
Wasn't something off?
Truth be told, Sakiko had prepared several possible responses before coming here—but she had never expected this kind of reaction.
"…Say what?"
Mutsumi paused for a moment before understanding what Sakiko meant.
Could it be… Mutsuki hadn't told her that she already knew from the start?
Though, thinking about it, that phrasing felt a bit strange.
"You mean… about you and Mutsuki, right?"
"Even though you know he's my fiancé, you still couldn't control yourself…"
"I can understand, Sakiko."
In the "little cucumber's" eyes was absolute confidence in someone.
"With Mutsuki's charm, it's only natural that if you spend time with him every day, you'd develop those kinds of feelings!"
In Mutsumi's eyes, Kamijou Mutsuki was the most outstanding boy in the world.
Of course any girl would fall for him.
So wasn't it only natural that Sakiko would be drawn to him?
Faced with Mutsumi's attitude, Sakiko felt an indescribable sense of unease.
For a moment, she seemed to see a familiar figure overlapping with her childhood friend.
Soyo… is that you?
"Anyway, you don't need to think too much about what happened today."
Snapping out of her "my fiancé is amazing" mindset, Mutsumi looked at Sakiko—who still seemed like she wanted to say something—and spoke in a slightly complicated tone.
In fact, Mutsumi had long anticipated what might happen between Sakiko and Kamijou Mutsuki—otherwise, she wouldn't have been so insistent on asserting her claim in front of her before.
But with Sakiko already like this, could she really drive her away?
Precisely because she also liked Kamijou Mutsuki, Mutsumi understood clearly what it meant to take him away from Sakiko.
It might not drive Sakiko to death, but it would more or less be the same as taking away her future happiness.
As Sakiko's other half, Mutsumi couldn't bring herself to do something that cruel.
Of course, even if she had already tacitly accepted it, it didn't mean she had no feelings about Sakiko at all.
But thinking about what she had done today…
In the changing room, she had done whatever she wanted with Kamijou Mutsuki, while Sakiko—his date—knew nothing and was waiting outside.
The girl instantly lost whatever emotions she had, and even felt a bit guilty for no reason.
Still, come to think of it, it was clearly Sakiko who made a move on her childhood fiancé—so why was she, the fiancée, the one comforting Sakiko?
At that thought, Mutsumi felt an inexplicable annoyance again.
In the end, it was all because that guy Mutsuki was just too good at attracting girls!
He had such a great time on his date with Sakiko today—it seemed he hadn't handed in enough "public rations"!
Kamijou Mutsuki, who was sitting on the sofa watching TV, suddenly felt a faint soreness in his lower back for no apparent reason.
At this point, Mutsumi had no desire to continue talking with Sakiko.
After expressing that she wouldn't oppose it, she simply left.
Leaving Sakiko behind, her thoughts in complete disarray, her face full of confusion.
Time quickly passed into the night, but Sakiko couldn't fall asleep no matter what.
Mutsumi's generosity kept making her feel that something was off.
She had clearly already prepared herself to be blamed by Mutsumi.
No, she had to make things clear with Mutsumi!
Unable to sleep, Sakiko decided to go find her and have a proper talk.
However, just as Sakiko reached Mutsumi's door, she faintly heard a strange sound.
This was… Mutsumi's voice?
But why did it sound so strange?
In Sakiko's impression, Mutsumi was like a doll-like girl.
Pure, clean, with a hint of coolness and ethereality.
As Kamijou Mutsuki would put it—expressionless.
But now, Mutsumi's voice sounded so…
Sakiko couldn't quite put it into words—she only felt her face grow hot, and her breathing unconsciously quicken.
What exactly was Mutsumi doing inside?
Originally intending to open the door directly, Sakiko, driven by instinct, subconsciously slowed her movements. She only opened the door a tiny crack, quietly peeking inside.
Then, what she saw made Sakiko's pupils shrink, her body nearly going limp as she almost collapsed to the floor.
Mutsumi and Kamijou Mutsuki… they were…
Although she was a pure young lady, in this day and age, it was impossible for Sakiko to be completely ignorant about such matters.
How could they do something like this?
All of Sakiko's previous thoughts were instantly thrown out of her mind, leaving her brain completely blank.
Even if Mutsumi was Kamijou Mutsuki's fiancée, they weren't married yet, were they?
How could they do something like this?
It was simply too shameless!
By instinct, Sakiko wanted to close the door and run back to her room, hiding under her blankets.
However, the scene inside seemed to possess some kind of magic, making it hard for her to look away.
She never expected that Mutsumi would show such an expression.
With a dazed gaze, Sakiko continued to secretly watch from outside, instinctively letting out soft hums.
That night, Maid Saki opened the door to a whole new world.
Incidentally, today was once again Kamijou Mutsuki's victory.
After that, Sakiko never again took the initiative to talk with Mutsumi about matters concerning Kamijou Mutsuki.
And after reconciling with Tomori and the others, although Sakiko hadn't completely returned to her former "White Sakiko" self, that twisted, strained feeling around her had already disappeared.
The only thing that puzzled Mutsumi was that whenever Sakiko was around her, she would inexplicably blush.
Moreover, for the past few days, she always looked like she hadn't slept well.
Could it be insomnia?
Aside from that, there wasn't really anything particularly noteworthy over the past few days.
Soon enough, it was time for the girls' voice recording session again.
However, this time, the group had gained an extra member after a long while.
"Hello everyone, it's Nyamu-chi~"
Looking at the group of girls who felt both familiar and unfamiliar, even though she already knew they truly existed, Nyamu still felt as if anime characters had stepped into reality.
However, as a working adult, Nyamu quickly adjusted her emotions.
"Starting today, Nyamu-chi will be working together with everyone, so please take care of me~"
But due to a certain livestream incident, the band girls all had somewhat complicated feelings toward Nyamu, making the atmosphere a bit awkward for a moment.
......................