In the countryside, dinners are typically early, but even so, it was completely dark outside after dinner, as the natural rhythm of short days and long nights in winter is vividly manifested in these rural areas without widespread street lighting. Tsukimi Sakurazawa wanted to help Higashino Rin with the dishes but was shooed away by her, who claimed it was highly inappropriate for a guest to do such things. Along the way, Shirakawa Sawahei was also sent off to keep Tsukimi Sakurazawa company. Higashino Kei had some drinks, and coupled with his exhaustion from the day, he soon went to his room to sleep. Little Higashino Seira thoughtfully took care of her father and, once everything was settled, started fiddling with the drawing board she got during the day, clearly very fond of this souvenir. Though the countryside house wasn’t particularly luxurious or cozy, there was no shortage of sleeping spaces. Higashino Rin laid out a big bed for them and sorted out the heating, then left them to their own devices—after all, this was also a home where Shirakawa Sawahei had stayed, and with Tsukimi Sakurazawa being her nephew’s girlfriend, it made no sense to insist they sleep in separate beds. Even if they hadn’t reached the stage of sharing a room, that wasn’t a big deal. Someone has to lend a helping hand. Why not me? Shirakawa Sawahei: "..." Tsukimi Sakurazawa: "..." Sorry, Aunt, I misunderstood before, thinking you wanted to make me work hard; I didn’t expect you to be the one who cared most for your nephew! The old rascal laughed to himself, pinching his bewildered girlfriend’s cheek on purpose, "Are you scared?" "What, what should I be scared of... It’s just sleeping together... We’ve shared a room before... If anything, I’d just let you eat me up..." "You say that, but you look really nervous." "Not being nervous would be weird... This is your house, after all. I can’t even run!" "Alright, so my lovely girlfriend can sleep well, I won’t scare you." Shirakawa Sawahei squatted down and lifted the quilt, explaining, "Although it looks like a big bed, it’s actually two beds joined together underneath and can be separated." "I’ll get you another quilt, and we’ll sleep separately tonight." Tsukimi Sakurazawa breathed a sigh of relief, pulling a wooden grate close at hand, "You still scared me... You don’t do anything that a boyfriend should do." Shirakawa Sawahei raised an eyebrow, "If I really did what a boyfriend should do, you’d already be in my arms." "All talk and no action, you rascal, go ahead and hug me... I... Ah... Shirakawa, you’re gonna kill me." "I hugged you. What’s the matter?" The long-legged, cute girl, being carried like a princess, glanced up at the face of the old rascal without blinking, with smiling eyes and lightly pursed lips, "Humph... In any case, you just bully me. Tomorrow I’ll complain to Aunt Higashino that you’re bullying me." "To be fair, Aunt might actually wish for me to be a beast than a gentleman." "It means she might want me to be a bit bolder." "No way, Aunt Higashino told me that if you bully me, just tell her and she’d find a way to help me get even." "Wouldn’t that be unfair?" Shirakawa Sawahei feigned discontent, "In a few days, I’ll go chat with your aunt at the Tsukimi Family to see if she could give me some pointers on how to discipline my girlfriend." "Pshaw, rascal." Tsukimi Sakurazawa teased, "I won’t talk to you. Tonight, don’t even think about getting into my quilt." Shirakawa Sawahei felt like he vaguely missed out on some perk. Winter nights in the countryside are especially long. In bigger families, if there are enough people, they might gather to play mahjong or cards for fun, as the TV signal here clearly isn’t enjoyable. With no other choice, Shirakawa Sawahei, after washing up, obediently crawled into his quilt and lay there, staring at his girlfriend’s pretty profile, daydreaming. His biological clock wasn’t set for this time; he couldn’t fall asleep, so he might as well watch Tsukimi and think about how to get rich. Gaining the right to converse with the Tsukimi Family and the Hayakawa family was undoubtedly difficult. Money alone might not suffice; the Hayakawa family had seen plenty of it... Even the Black Hearted Lolita could casually buy some properties to turn into toilets with her pocket money. As for Miss Kaori, there’s no need to mention. It’s so hard... The life of a rascal... If only life’s dimension suddenly lowered its intelligence, like letting me acquire supreme medical skills, then randomly encountering an old man on the road, saving him, and finding out he’s the Neon tycoon, the wealthiest magnate, who out of gratitude gives me all his assets... Shirakawa Sawahei thought for a moment and suddenly laughed, feeling he must have been brainwashed to be dreaming such unrealistic dreams... His always quiet, pretending-to-sleep girlfriend, Miss Tsukimi, couldn’t hold it anymore and said angrily, "Shirakawa, what are you laughing at!" "You clearly laughed just now! I heard it!" "Weren’t you asleep?" "You woke me up!" The girl turned over to look at him, snorting, "What were you doing just now?" "Just now? Watching you." "Watching me do what?" "Is it illegal to look at my girlfriend?" "Pshaw, who’s your girlfriend." Tsukimi Sakurazawa emphasized, "You’re a rascal now, don’t try to blur the lines easily." "Hmm? You found out, next time I’ll be more careful." "Being careful won’t help." The girl said proudly, "I’m more cautious than you." Shirakawa Sawahei chuckled, reaching out to touch the girl’s cheek, only to have her gently slap it away from under the quilt, giving him a sideways glance. "Why pinch my face, it’ll get round." "It’d still look good round." "Liar, you boys love to deceive... Always saying you like cute and slightly chubby ones, but the truth is, you just like the good-looking ones." Official source is novᴇlfire.net "Are you good-looking?" "Isn’t that it?" Shirakawa Sawahei shrugged, "You’re neither fat nor ugly, plus you’re exactly the type I like." "And what about in the future? What if I become unattractive then?" "You won’t." Shirakawa Sawahei said softly, "I will always remember how you look now, even in old age, I won’t forget." Tsukimi Sakurazawa stared at Shirakawa Sawahei, momentarily lost, and replied, "Then forget it... You remember me as young and pretty now, but when I’m in my thirties or forties, you’ll despise me for being old..." "I won’t." Shirakawa Sawahei patiently explained, "You’ll have different charms in different times, and I won’t emphasize the supposed difference between inner beauty and outer beauty, because to me, those are all you." "There’s no such thing as inner beauty being nobler than outer beauty, nor is outer beauty more popular than inner beauty. You are you, the girl I love." "No matter what you become, I will love you with the greatest passion of my life."