Chapter 506: Chapter 498: Don’t Let Me Be a Jerk to You for Too Long
"Probably not...but I’ll try my best."
"Try for what?"
"Try to be better than any other guy in the world, so you’d have no choice."
"Even if I had no choice, I wouldn’t agree to something so outrageous. Shirakawa, you’ve really turned into a scumbag... How could you say something like that?"
"I’ve never really been a good person."
"True... Shirakawa, you’ve always had this vague jerk vibe... I was just too naive, letting myself get swayed by a villain like you..." Tsukimi Sakurazawa sighed, "I still wasn’t careful enough~"
"But I feel it was you who were flirting with me."
"I wasn’t!"
"You were." Shirakawa Sawahei chuckled, "I just had a strong resistance before, so I never got swayed by you."
Tsukimi Sakurazawa let out a small amused sound, giggling, "Shirakawa, you still say you’re not a perv... Back when we were in the Calligraphy Club, it wasn’t wrong to call you a hypocritical old scumbag... and still a perv... When you were looking at my skirt before, you were actually sneaking peeks at my thighs, weren’t you!"
"Occasionally."
"Liar, you obviously wanted to see me and found excuses about my hem getting messed up..."
"Hmm, saying it like that isn’t wrong."
"So you’re admitting it?"
Shirakawa Sawahei nodded, "Admitting I like my girlfriend doesn’t seem disgraceful, so I admit it."
"..."
The girl fell silent again, she touched Shirakawa Sawahei’s cheek, paused for a moment, and said softly, "It would be nice if I really were your girlfriend..."
"Tsukimi..."
Tsukimi Sakurazawa hugged Shirakawa Sawahei’s waist actively, her face pressed against his chest, sighing, "This isn’t right, Shirakawa, I can’t help wanting to have you all to myself... Whether it’s Koorikin or me, we both like you, and it’s precisely because of that, wanting to be with both of us becomes extremely difficult."
"I know you like Koorikin, and I don’t blame you for liking her. Who made me miss out... but... Shirakawa."
"Thinking you can have two girlfriends at once leaves you unable to have even one." Tsukimi Sakurazawa said seriously, "Even I can’t agree to that."
Shirakawa Sawahei smiled bitterly at this. The idea does sound absurd; no girl would agree to such a demand, but without this kind of idea, he’d regret choosing either.
It’s better to fight with all you’ve got rather than to let white moonlight forever linger in your heart when you’re old; even if you lose everything, at least you won’t regret it.
After all, with the system on my side, I’d rather be at odds with the world.
"Shirakawa, were you listening to me carefully?" Tsukimi poked his cheek, displeased, "Spacing out when talking with me, and you still confess to me... hey~"
"Sorry."
"What were you thinking?"
"I was thinking about how to achieve my goal."
"That’s beyond a goal, it’s a dream, no, a delusion!"
"Even if it’s a delusion, I’ll treat it as a goal and work until the day it becomes a reality." Shirakawa Sawahei held the girl’s hand seriously, "I won’t abandon you, if you want to run, then I’ll chase after you. As long as there’s a sliver of chance to turn the tables, I won’t quit this game early."
"Because I like you."
"Shirakawa..."
"Hmm."
"You’re such a scumbag..." Tsukimi Sakurazawa sighed deeply, "Why do you have to be such a charming scumbag... makes it hard to find a reason to hate you..."
Shirakawa Sawahei gazed at the girl’s face, testing, "Actually, there’s something else..."
"You don’t mean to say... there’s more than just Koorikin, right?"
"My girlfriend is so smart." Shirakawa Sawahei sighed, "I’m glad I didn’t plan to deceive you."
"..."
"Who is she?"
"Hayakawa Kashi."
Tsukimi Sakurazawa immediately withdrew her small hand, annoyed, "I found a reason to hate you! Shirakawa! You rotten scumbag! I hate you the most!"
"I like you."
"Liking won’t help!"
"I’ll still like you even if it doesn’t help."
"I still hate you!"
"Then what should I do to make you like me again?"
"I don’t know, figure it out yourself."
"How about giving you a Christmas gift? You said before, no matter how angry you are, a gift would cheer you up."
"That was before!" Tsukimi Sakurazawa glared at him, "If you still want to brush me off like this, don’t even think about seeing me again!"
"The threat works, then I won’t give it."
"You dare!"
"I don’t dare." Shirakawa Sawahei chuckled, "No matter if it’s a Christmas gift, New Year gift, or birthday gift, I’ll make sure to give them to you. I won’t forget any year from now on."
"Tsk... Sounds so considerate, but still aiming to be a scumbag."
"I’ll be the scumbag you like the most."
"No, my principles won’t waver." Tsukimi Sakurazawa shook her head firmly, "With Hayakawa Kashi added, there’s even less chance! That girl was secretly trying to join the Calligraphy Club and flirt with you... hmph, impossible!"
Shirakawa Sawahei helplessly patted the girl’s little face; it seems being a scumbag is a challenge, even Tsukimi Sakurazawa, who was once his closest buddy, couldn’t accept such an absurd thing.
It’s because it’s hard to switch jobs that there are so few scumbags in the world... Of course, the existence of rivals with blades certainly limits the number of scumbags, but Shirakawa thought it unlikely that his little darlings would hurt him.
My ultimate cosmic wisdom creature strategy system lies here; who dares not to acknowledge I’m the Child of the Plane?
A Child of the Plane getting slashed? How ridiculous!
Low-tier system? Sorry, never heard of it. I only know my precious system, heaven’s gift, enough to rival Long Aotian!
The girl’s eyes dimmed slightly as she hugged Shirakawa Sawahei, letting out a soft sigh, "Shirakawa~"
"What is it?"
"Can you stop being a scumbag?"
"If I stop being a scumbag, will you be my girlfriend?"
"..."
"I could be your girlfriend."
Tsukimi Sakurazawa’s gaze turned distant, "If you really stop being a scumbag."
Shirakawa Sawahei chuckled, pinching the girl’s cheeks, "I’ve said the same to Hayakawa Kashi and Ise Yu Yuzhijin."
"I like you all equally, I won’t give up on any of you."
"Shirakawa, the scumbag..." Tsukimi Sakurazawa turned her head, "I’m going back!"
"I’ll walk you."
"Scumbags walk people? Oh right, gentleness is a scumbag’s weapon."
The girl started walking slowly, and Shirakawa Sawahei followed suit, gently brushing off the snow from her shoulders and head as they walked side by side.
"If I’m going to be a scumbag, I must master the skill of coaxing my girlfriend. Plus, I usually do this anyway."
"That means you had the potential to be a scumbag early on." Tsukimi Sakurazawa pouted, tilting her body slightly to brush off the snow for Shirakawa Sawahei.
"Plus, I’m not your girlfriend."
"Doesn’t matter, I can keep trying." Shirakawa Sawahei said without discouragement, "You only win by taking risks; you’ll never know how much potential you have unless you try."
"Future you will surely thank the current you for working so hard."
"..."
"Mr. Shirakawa Sawahei, if you continue shamelessly, I’ll have to take my revenge."
"Please do."
The two continued walking, passing under the orange-yellow streetlights, through the end of all seasons. Snow fell heavier and heavier, making them look almost gray-haired from a distance. Tsukimi Sakurazawa suddenly grabbed Shirakawa Sawahei’s hand, placing her soft little hand in his palm.
"If you scum me, I’ll scum you back. I won’t agree to be your girlfriend, but I will keep you on tenterhooks, making you obsess over me, never letting you succeed, and watch you heartbroken."
"Want to be a bad girl?" Shirakawa Sawahei chuckled, "Bad girls usually offer benefits, how do you plan to do that?"
"Isn’t hand-holding a benefit?" Tsukimi Sakurazawa said as she attempted to withdraw her hand, but Shirakawa Sawahei quickly held on, helplessly saying, "It counts... but is there anything else?"
"Not for now, let’s see your performance later."
"No cap on rewards?"
"You wish! You’re not succeeding before we graduate high school!"
"After high school graduation is okay then, Miss Tsukimi, is that how much leniency you’re affording me?"
"I’m not... you’re just thinking it wrong."
"So... want to sleep over at my place tonight?"
"No."
"Why not? It used to be fine. Just like a Calligraphy Club retreat."
"Before, I didn’t plan to scum you." Tsukimi Sakurazawa paused, her tone softening, as if talking to herself, or addressing Shirakawa Sawahei.
"But Shirakawa..."
"Don’t let me scum you for too long."