Chapter 94 - 94: Kato Megumi comes to visit

The last day of vacation before the new semester. That afternoon, Haru received a call from Furukawa and the others. "Got time? Wanna hit the internet café and game for a bit?" At first, Haru was a little surprised by the invitation. They had talked about gaming together back at school, but he hadn't expected them to suggest meeting at an internet café. Despite living in this area for over a decade, Haru had only been to an internet café twice. The ones here were well-equipped—not just gaming stations, but also manga magazines, hot water showers, and even laundry services. Some people who didn't want to rent an apartment would just live in these cafés. Of course, the prices weren't exactly cheap. "I've got time right now. Who else is coming?" "Just me and Yoshino." "Alright. Pick a place, and I'll meet you there." After a moment's thought, Haru decided not to turn them down. After all, these two were among the few classmates he could really talk to. They all loved tokusatsu 1shows and had a passion for weird and obscure games. Their expertise in H-games was particularly... commendable. That was rare. For example, Haru had once sent Furukawa an image with the following text: Choose your route:If you cannot connect or load images, please try switching routes. Route 1 → Smooth. Route 2 → Smooth. Route 3 → Smooth. Route 4 → Smooth.1 Furukawa instantly got the reference and immediately shared his latest "good finds." What followed was an intense and highly intellectual debate. Not even Yukino knew that, aside from the photography club's group chat, Haru had another, smaller group with Furukawa and Yoshino. The group name, chosen by Haru, was: "Racers Who Never Crash." As he made his way to the internet café, an unexpected message popped up on his phone. Megumi Kato: Are you free right now? I'd like to meet up about something. Haru: I was just heading to an internet café to game with Furukawa and the others. Megumi Kato: I don't think I've ever been to an internet café before. Haru instantly understood. She wants to come along too. That made him curious. Megumi rarely reached out to him. And even when they did talk, it was usually about work. Is this about the script? He quickly typed back: If you want to join us, I'll check with Furukawa and Yoshino first. Megumi Kato: Sorry for the trouble. Haru dropped a message in their group chat. The two must have been on their phones because they replied immediately. Furukawa: No problem! Then, out of nowhere, they started gossiping. Yoshino: Wait—is your girlfriend Yukino coming? If so, we should book a private booth. Her aura is too strong. I can't even talk to her. Haru: Not Yukino. It's Megumi Kato. Furukawa & Yoshino (simultaneously): Who's Megumi Kato? Haru couldn't help but laugh. Haru: You guys were there when we filmed the short film, right? She was one of the leads. Were you even paying attention? Furukawa: Oh, I think I remember… barely. Haru sighed. During group scenes, Yukino had taken charge, giving out directions. Utaha, on the other hand, didn't need to say a word—just standing there was enough to command attention. In comparison, Megumi had seemed… unremarkable. Haru thought back. From what he could recall, there had only been one girl who had talked to Megumi during those scenes. Oh well. Not a big deal. He sent Megumi a message confirming everything, and she replied with a polite "thank you. Haru met up with Furukawa and Yoshino first, while Kato Megumi was still on her way. "So, where's this Kato girl you mentioned?" "She'll be here soon." "Good. I want to see which extraordinary beauty managed to lure Yukinoshita's boyfriend away." "Weren't you the ones who invited me out?" "Haru, you're missing the point. Guys inviting guys out is normal. But when a girl does it, it's different." The three of them joked around until a soft, clear voice interrupted, "Sorry for making you wait." All three turned their heads immediately. Furukawa and Yoshino visibly froze when they saw Kato Megumi. Haru could easily read the confusion on their faces. With top-tier beauties like Yukinoshita and Kasumigaoka in the photography club, the moment they heard a girl was joining them, they naturally assumed it would be another stunning girl of that caliber. But standing before them was a girl with an unremarkable presence. Decent looks, decent figure—nothing that stood out. Haru had expected this reaction. To ease the tension, he quickly introduced them to each other, smoothing over any awkwardness. Perhaps because Kato Megumi was so unassuming, Furukawa and Yoshino soon relaxed, chatting casually along the way. They picked an internet café with a nice atmosphere. Since there was no open hall, only private rooms of varying sizes, they had to decide how to split up. "How about we take two double rooms? We guys take one, and you share with Kato." "Are you sure we don't want a four-person room?" "Haru, you really don't get it, do you?" Furukawa sighed dramatically. Yoshino chimed in, "Kato came all this way to spend her holiday with you, which is already a big deal… By the way, where is she?" "I've been right behind Amamiya-kun the whole time," Megumi said slowly. Furukawa and Yoshino nearly jumped in shock. Their reaction was almost identical to Haru's when he first experienced this phenomenon. Megumi simply pressed her lips together without saying more. She no longer felt too disappointed when people overlooked her. After all, there was one person who always noticed her. In the end, they went with the two double rooms, and Haru quickly paid for everyone before the others could protest. When Furukawa and Yoshino tried to refuse, he grinned and said, "You guys worked hard during the film shoot. Consider this a thank-you." In reality, he still felt a bit guilty for using them as test subjects for his hypnosis experiment back then. Even though the incident was in the past, he now fully understood how absurdly powerful hypnosis was. It still made him a little uneasy. Seeing that they couldn't argue their way out of it, Furukawa and Yoshino simply bought two bottles of cola and handed him one in return. As friends, they understood that friendships were about mutual support—not one-sided generosity. The private room was comfortable, with soft cushions for sitting or lying down, as well as a designated space for hanging up clothes. Once Haru and Megumi were settled, he booted up both their computers and asked, "So, what was it that you needed to meet up to talk about?" He noticed the concern in Megumi's eyes as soon as he spoke. "Have you been doing okay lately?" she asked softly. Haru blinked in mild surprise. "Which part are you referring to?" Megumi hesitated for a moment before saying, "The news about the Hooded Hero has been appearing less and less online. I kept an eye on it, and it looks like someone is deliberately suppressing it. So, I started wondering if something had happened to you." Her concern was genuine and heartfelt. Haru waved a hand dismissively. "Don't worry. Something did happen, but it's already been taken care of." Megumi nodded. Since he didn't want to elaborate, she chose not to press further. "So, was that the reason you wanted to meet up?" he asked, logging into his social account and launching League of Legends. Megumi didn't touch her computer. Instead, she continued gazing at him. "There's actually something else I wanted to ask, but I'm not sure if I should." Haru smirked. "Well, since you brought it up, it means you want to ask." "Good point." After what seemed like a moment of internal debate, Megumi folded her hands neatly over her lap and looked up at him. "Kasumigaoka-senpai seems to be doing much better these days. Did you encourage her again?" No, she encouraged me. With her mouth.1 The moment Megumi mentioned Utaha, Haru's mind flashed back to the events of the previous night. He could tell that if the timing had been right, she truly would have given him everything—rather than simply using her mouth to make him happy. That was also the first time he had personally measured just how incredible Utaha's body was. No doubt about it—she was spectacular. Completely different from Yukino. If Yukino was a proud and elegant bloom, then Utaha was fire melting into passion. Snapping out of his thoughts, Haru casually responded, "Not really. She's always been talented. Once she adjusted her mindset, her state naturally improved." Just as he finished speaking, his phone suddenly rang. Glancing at the caller ID, he saw Utaha's name flashing on the screen. Speak of the devil. (kamen Rider) (T/N: I have no idea wtf this is. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)