“If it’s true, say it is. If it’s not, say it’s not. Why are you going with ‘I think’ now?”
Tsuzuki Chihiro chuckled, shaking her head.
If this were a year ago, back when she was still in peak form, she definitely could’ve swindled this fool in front of her out of everything—money, trust, and dignity included.
But now?
She wanted to be a good person.
“Of course I’m smart. And I have proof.”
Was Nagasaki Soyo a smart person?
The answer was obvious, and there were multiple ways to argue in favor of it.
First—logical reasoning.
A smart person might act foolish on occasion, but a fool almost never stumbles upon actual wisdom.
Since Soyo had managed to come up with ideas that even she, Chihiro, acknowledged as decent strategies, that meant she was the former—not the latter.
Second—her bloodline.
Who was Nagasaki Rina, her mother?
A woman who, after divorce, had awakened to reality, clawing her way to success despite being the sole provider for her daughter. She had transformed their family from an ordinary single-parent household into a wealthy one.
This proved that the Nagasaki bloodline naturally carried immense intelligence.
As her daughter, Soyo had clearly inherited that excellence.
Third—
…Wait.
Why the hell am I actually taking this seriously?!
Soyo snapped herself out of it.
This wasn’t the time for a petty debate with Chihiro.
The real issue was still sitting out in the living room—Mutsumi.
“…Hold on. You dragged Mutsumi here today—was it because you were afraid she’d run away?”
“Oh? Soyo, very sharp~ You did notice.”
Chihiro nodded with a smug smile.
“I mean, I’ve noticed something about you band kids. You all love to run away the second you face a problem.”
“But now that Mutsumi’s stuck here, she can’t run anymore.”
“Are you insane?!”
Soyo could not understand what was going through Chihiro’s head.
“I told you to get along with Mutsumi—this is what you do?!”
“Well, if you think I did it wrong—”
Chihiro tilted her head and smirked.
“Why don’t you take over?”
“…Huh?”
“You don’t like how I handled it? Then go ahead—your turn.”
“…Why should I clean up your mess?”
“You could always ask me nicely~”
“You—!”
Soyo glared daggers at her.
She must’ve been out of her mind to think that this person could ever understand her.
But after taking a deep breath and forcing herself to think, she had to admit—Chihiro’s methods were extreme, but she was forcing Soyo to confront something she had been avoiding.
Deep down, she had always known that Mutsumi—who had been so close to Sakiko—must have some idea of what had really happened.
She probably even knew why Sakiko had left in the first place.
And more than that—
Through both timelines, Soyo had realized something.
From the very beginning, Mutsumi had never supported her attempt to bring back CRYCHIC.
If there was ever a moment where she had seemed happy about it, it was probably before she knew that the “new band” included Sakiko.
“…Maybe you should just talk to Mutsumi about this directly.”
Chihiro’s voice broke through her thoughts.
“You do want to know the truth, don’t you?”
“But…”
“It’s fine.”
“Mutsumi’s just blaming herself—thinking that everyone’s lingering regrets over CRYCHIC’s breakup are, in part, her fault.”
“She’s also terrified of being hated. That’s why she stays silent most of the time.”
“All you have to do is tell her—”
“That the reason you’re defying your parents and refusing to go abroad isn’t because of anything else.”
“It’s just because… you want to see her genuinely happy for once.”
“…Where the hell did you learn this manipulative nonsense?”
“Hm?”
“Never mind.”
Soyo shook her head.
“So what about you? If I go out there, are you just going to wait in here until she leaves?”
“Of course not. I’m heading out.”
“…Right now?”
“Why are you asking so many questions? Just trust me—I won’t do anything that’ll make Mutsumi suspicious.”
Seeing how resolute Chihiro was, Soyo rolled her eyes but ultimately said nothing.
Once she confirmed that she had copied Chihiro’s disguise perfectly, she stepped out of the room and hesitantly made her way to the living room.
Mutsumi was still sitting there, her posture perfect, her expression unreadable.
For some reason, seeing her like this made Soyo feel a twinge of sadness.
So much had happened today—was this all progress, or was it making things worse?
…Though, seeing how at ease Chihiro had looked, Soyo’s nerves settled a little.
She sat across from Mutsumi, trying to figure out where to begin.
“Mutsumi… About what I asked earlier—”
Click.
Just as she finally built up the nerve to speak, the door to the bedroom swung open.
And Chihiro strolled out.
Brazenly.
Without a hint of subtlety.
And she even had the audacity to turn toward Mutsumi and greet her.
“Oh? Soyo, is this your classmate?”
“Ah… I’m Wakaba Mutsumi.”
“Nice to meet you, nice to meet you~ I’m this kid’s mom.”
Chihiro beamed, patting Soyo’s shoulder.
“I was in the bedroom handling some paperwork for Soyo’s IELTS exam—didn’t expect her to be home.”
“Well, I’ll leave you two to talk.”
“Auntie has things to do~ I won’t be able to host you properly.”
“No problem, ma’am.”
“???”
Soyo’s brain shut down.
WHAT THE HELL?!
This woman had zero shame.
Was she not worried that one day, Mutsumi might actually meet her real mother and expose everything?!
But there was no stopping it now.
So Soyo could only grit her teeth and force a smile.
“Take care, Mom. Don’t get hit by a car.”
“Aww, Soyo’s such a sweet child~”
—
Tokyo, Shibuya.
In a secluded but exquisitely decorated café, Tsuzuki Shifune sat in a corner, absentmindedly stirring her coffee as she watched the traffic outside.
Before long, a man around her age entered the shop and took a seat across from her.
His hair was beginning to show streaks of white, but his presence carried a certain authority—though the moment he sat down and looked at Shifune, that sharp edge softened considerably.
“Shifune, huh…
“You’ve been dodging my calls for ages, and now you finally want to see me?”
“I was starting to think you’d forgotten about our old friendship—from high school through college.”
Shifune chuckled, her mood lighter than it had been in years.
“Well… my granddaughter’s back.”
“…Your granddaughter?”
“Wasn’t she in Tokyo the whole time?”
“No.”
Shifune smiled, the satisfaction in her voice unmistakable.
“I’m talking about my other granddaughter.”
“The one the police officially declared dead.”
“…Then I suppose congratulations are in order.”
“But she doesn’t want to come home.”
Shifune sighed, setting down her cup.
“Just like yours.”
The man across from her arched an eyebrow, catching her implication.
“…So you’re saying—”
“You’ll help me drag Sakiko home and put an end to her ridiculous band nonsense—”
“And in exchange… I make sure your missing granddaughter gets brought back?”
“Oh, I never said that.”
Shifune’s eyes glinted with something unreadable.
“I just don’t want her doing anything… reckless.”
—
T/N: OOHOHOHO so soyo may be the sugar mommy but chihiro is the actual mommy
This is a fan translation of 素世同学，恭喜你被我优化了 by 杰克喵. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!
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