Fushimi Roku rested his head on his hands and stared at the ceiling, saying, "It was Kujo Mutsumi who told me, and I think he might be lying. Tamako isn't that kind of person. If she wanted to break up, she would definitely tell me face to face... No matter how upset she might be, she would face me and explain."

"Then what are you worried about?" Taira Sakurako asked.

"What if," Fushimi Roku said.

"You can just call her and ask," Taira Sakurako thought he was worrying needlessly.

"I did, couldn't get through," Fushimi Roku said.

"Could it be her phone is out of battery and shut off?" Taira Sakurako guessed logically.

"She always carries a spare battery when she goes out, plus the Kujo family likely has phone chargers, right?" Fushimi Roku dismissed her guess.

"What if Kujo Mutsumi took her phone?" Taira Sakurako continued Fushimi Roku's flaw, liking to speculate maliciously about others.

"That's possible, but it doesn't feel right. Kujo Mutsumi didn't stop me from meeting her," Fushimi Roku said.

"Maybe he guessed you wouldn't dare to meet Tamako," Taira Sakurako said.

This statement hit Fushimi Roku's sore spot precisely, and he raised his eyebrows, saying, "Are you kidding? How could I not dare to meet her? If there's a breakup, she should cry! What am I afraid of? It's just a relationship, right? Do you really think I care? Ridiculous."

"If you didn't care, you wouldn't be telling me all this," Taira Sakurako didn't spare him any face.

Fushimi Roku was quite unhappy, and he glared at Taira Sakurako: "What do you know about adult matters!"

"You know better than me, what are you planning to do?" Taira Sakurako asked.

"What to do? It's not a big deal," Fushimi Roku looked indifferent, saying, "Tamako said she's coming back tomorrow, so I'll wait and see tomorrow."

"What if she doesn't come back tomorrow?" Taira Sakurako pursued.

"Then it's a breakup, so be it," Fushimi Roku said.

Taira Sakurako thought for a moment, then malevolently speculated, asking, "Isn't it possible she's being confined by her grandfather?"

"If she's confined, it's her own fault for insisting on going home. Just causing trouble for no reason, plus Kujo Mutsumi wouldn't do anything to her..." Fushimi Roku paused, then said, "Tamako isn't foolish. If she senses something wrong, she'll find a way to contact me. It's not too late to go find her then."

"Oh." Taira Sakurako had nothing to say.

It's already half-past two in the night, technically Taira Sakurako should have gone back to her room to sleep, but with Tamako not around, no one was watching her. Taira Sakurako took out the game console again, played for a bit, and suddenly felt it wasn't as fun as before.

Fushimi Roku arranged the bedding and lay down wanting to sleep early, but despite tossing and turning, remained awake, watching the window as darkness turned to light.

Suddenly, his phone buzzed, and someone sent a message.

Fushimi Roku immediately sat up, flipping open the phone with a snap, the screen showed "You have an unread message," the sender was Minamoto Tamako. He hesitated for five seconds before opening it.

The screen had only a few words, making Fushimi Roku stare in disbelief.

"Sorry"

Fushimi Roku understood what those words meant, and he could imagine Minamoto Tamako's feelings after hesitating all night to send this message—but he found it hard to accept, hard to accept that this message came from Minamoto Tamako.

Seriously?

Fushimi Roku typed with both hands, replying with the inquiry: "What does Blood Handprint lacking a pinky finger mean?"

This was a code agreed between Nagono Kawai and Minamoto Tamako in the past; if the Blood Handprint lacks a pinky, it means a familiar person is involved. If the sender can't answer, it means the sender isn't Minamoto Tamako herself; if it is her, she can use this code to indicate whether she's under threat from someone familiar.

But Minamoto Tamako didn't reply.

Fushimi Roku waited for over ten minutes, nearly enraged, almost smashing the phone. Fortunately, his last bit of rationality stopped him, raising his arm high, not throwing it down but putting it back in his pocket.

Sunlight slanted in, and it was another new day.

...

Elsewhere, Minamoto Tamako was still asleep.

Yesterday she had awkward chats with her cousin for half a day, but luckily the housekeeper came to her rescue, taking her back to the room, mentioning that staying overnight at the Kujo Family required giving up electronic devices to avoid surveillance or any micro-bombs and such.

Minamoto Tamako understood, being a wealthy family, they must have strong safety awareness, so she cooperatively handed over her phone.

She wasn't bored alone in the room; the housekeeper prepared many mystery novels according to her preferences. There's also a TV in the room to watch shows, and if tired of TV, there are tapes for watching classic mystery movies anytime.

Yesterday Minamoto Tamako indulged in being a couch potato, nestled on the sofa eating little cakes and watching suspense dramas, experiencing firsthand why Fushimi Roku always refused to move from the sofa.

She watched until late at night, with no one to scold her about 'staying up late harms the brain' or 'lack of sleep leads to developmental issues' and such.

Going back home was quite comfortable.

Minamoto Tamako slept until four or five in the morning and woke at one or two in the afternoon, coinciding with mealtime, not needing to go out, just a press of a bell and the attendant rolled in the food cart.

Minamoto Tamako enjoyed a wonderful meal, putting the unpleasantness with Fushimi Roku from yesterday out of her mind.

She's not angry with Fushimi Roku anymore, after all, everyone's meeting process is different! Even though Fushimi's confession lacked ceremony at the time, it doesn't mean his affection for her is weaker than others; such things shouldn't be compared with others but treasured quietly in the heart.

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