Stealing Spree

Having been caught babbling by her manager, Yue immediately tried to hide behind me as she threw in an excuse.

"That... I don't mean to tattle, Kaoru-nee. You see, Ruki is curious..."

So, she's going to push the blame on me, huh? But it's partly true though. She caught me deep in thought. She's just telling the secret for my sake.

It can't be helped then.

I straightened my back, secured my girl behind me, and bravely faced Kaoru-san's fierce gaze.

"I apologize, Kaoru-san. For breaching your privacy just because of my curiosity..."

I started.

Akane and the others would probably back me up here if I asked for their help. But it's unnecessary.

If Kaoru-san truly found it offensive, it's enough that I shoulder the responsibility.

Before the woman could reply, Yue whispered from behind me, "Ruki. She may look mad now but she's always wondering if there will ever be a solution to her problem. Kaoru-nee thinks that it's the reason she's always dumped by her past boyfriends."

This girl... Do I need to hear that tidbit? In the first place, I was only curious why she looked like she was escaping from my invitation earlier rather than just refusing me.

Is Yue hinting at me to help Kaoru-san out?

But I'm not a problem solver. Or at least, I know I'm not someone who will take the initiative to solve someone else's problem, it just so happened that to get closer to my targets before, I had always fallen into the method of understanding them deeply.

And recently, the girls getting involved with me just so happened to have some kind of problem whether it be personal or not...

But thinking about... I was actively helping them out...

Not counting my girls who sometimes would consult me with their issues...

There's Anzu-nee to whom I offered myself to take the place of someone that will appreciate her.

There's also Kaede who I befriended in order to bring back her enthusiasm.

And there's also Ohori-senpai. I helped her out initially through Aoi's request but I just recently declared that I'm now helping her out of my own volition.

Uh... Who else?

There's actually a lot more to list like Shiina and Sara. Heck, even Setsuna-nee and Hayashi-sensei.

... Alright.

I really am a problem solver, huh?

"Haa. It's fine. I'm not going to be mad at you. You're curious. But Asahi. Let's have a talk later, okay?"

Kaoru-san eventually replied to me but she simply waved off my apology and went straight back to the girl hiding behind me.

Yue's grip on my shirt tightened and she acted a little frightened.

I guess even though she's already used to Kaoru-san's strictness, she's still afraid of truly angering her capable manager.

"I see. But is that true, Kaoru-san? You have this issue where you can't stop criticizing yourself."

Still protecting my girl, I pushed back the topic to what Yue revealed to us.

Almost instantly, her forehead creased as she focused on me again.

I know what's going on in her head.

To her, hearing me say that meant my apology was superficial.

It's like rather than be firm and stop there, I doubled down to ask her about her issue directly.

Her father behind once again gave me a thumbs up...

Yeah. He must be waiting for someone to push his daughter to talk and look into this issue deeply.

Following that, he stepped forward, faked a cough to get Kaoru-san out of the way, and continued to our table bringing us dessert.

He specifically went to my side and furtively whispered without letting Kaoru-san notice it.

"Young man. I'm putting my hopes on you. Get her to talk."

Without waiting for me to reply, he acted oblivious and just served the bowls of special shaved ice in front of us and returned to the kitchen with the tray.

Akane and the other girls' eyes instantly lit up as they dug into the sweet escape that the dessert offered.

Well, it's not like they're letting me fend off Kaoru-san on my own. They'll probably jump up to my assistance if I ever get cornered. But in this way, they created a situation where this topic became strictly between the two of us.

Shortly after, even Yue went back to her seat to taste the dessert.

At this point, Kaoru-san let out a sigh again before signaling for me to come and follow her somewhere to continue this conversation.

Akane and the others nodded at me, giving me the go-ahead.

And with that, I stood up and followed Kaoru-san who walked past our table and into the stairs up to the second floor of the shop.

Like most restaurants, they surprisingly have a private room as well.

However, it's just a small room with tatami mats and a low table. Most likely, it was probably considered a VIP room.

She entered it, sat down on the floor on the low table, and then urged me to come in and join her.

Not gonna lie. I expected her to treat this issue seriously but I never expected that it warranted this kind of privacy.

Is there more to the story?

I followed her gesture and sat down in front of her.

Then, a few moments later, her aged mother showed up with a tray with a tea set.

Yeah. They must've been watching us carefully. And despite her condition, Kaoru-san's mother was simply just as concerned for her.

"Enjoy and take your time." That's all her mother said after serving us a cup of tea. She then turned to me and a kind smile flashed on her lips before silently mouthing, "We'll leave her in your care."

Uh... I really put myself into something serious, huh? It's kinda weird that they're encouraging me like this. Don't they see that I'm still too young to come up with a solution? Besides, shouldn't it be better to rely on an expert? Like a therapist or something...

Haa... I don't know...

"It must be bewildering to you that we're treating this seriously, Onoda-kun."

Saving me from falling into another cliff of overthinking, Kaoru-san took a sip of the tea and calmly opened up the conversation.

"I won't lie. Yes, it is. Yue and the others are probably baffled as well."

"Don't worry about that part. Asahi will inform them. That girl... This is possibly something she intentionally hatched."

Is that really the case? Didn't I start all of this? If I hadn't fallen into contemplation right there, Yue wouldn't have brought up Kaoru-san's issue.

Wait.

My girls know me better than myself. Can it be that they're already this clever to set this up?

Ah. I'll just ask the girl later.

"Uhm. Please enlighten me, Kaoru-san. And once again, I apologize for prying too much."

"It's fine. We're already here. There's no point mulling over spilled milk. Since you're curious I may as well tell you everything."

As Kaoru-san stated, continuing to apologize was really useless on this occasion.

And so, I shut my mouth and prepared to listen intently while occasionally sipping the refreshing green tea made by her mother.

"It's true. I criticize myself all of the time. I never stopped at it even with my job as Asahi's manager."

"In fact, when I failed to notice you at the station before you approached me, I also criticized myself for that failure."

"I already went to an expert and consulted about this condition of mine. Unfortunately, it's not really treatable through modern medicine or practical therapy. They said it’s an issue of my own mentality and I have to come to terms with it myself. But after all these years, I cannot find a solution."

Kaoru-san paused there before staring straight at me.

Her eyes trembled a bit before continuing, "In truth, Onoda-

kun, I've heard a lot of stories about you from Asahi. And she said... You might be able to help me out. My parents must've heard about it since we had that conversation in this very room.

"Now that I think about it, accepting Asahi's suggestion to bring you here today was poor me playing into her hand. She knew my passion for cooking so she expected me to take over the kitchen and personally prepare your meals..."

I waited for her to continue but it seems like she's gauging my interest to hear more. So, I opened my mouth and spoke out my earnest thoughts.

"I see. I don't know about me being able to help you solve that problem. I'm not an expert as you can see. Yue simply has this firm belief and trust in me when it comes to problem-

solving... And also, she's that concerned for you, Kaoru-san. She must've done this in good faith."

"Indeed... That's why, Onoda-kun. I won't ask you to help brainstorm a solution. Hearing me out should be enough to satisfy them."

"Alright. I'm all ears, Kaoru-san.

I decisively nodded, which brought the serious expression on Kaoru-san's face to ease up.

I don't know if I can even help her but there's no hurt to try, I guess? Since this was plaguing her all her life, she'd definitely feel better if we found a solution for it.