6 Main Heroines Who Absolutely Want to Monopolize Me - Volume 1 Chapter 5.3

Sauna, School Swimsuits, and Mysterious Letters 3

“What are you talking about? Shinichi-kun, Rii is mad at you! You never actually made a move on Rii, yet you’re acting like this… Ouch!”

“Are you okay!?”

Ria, caught up in her anger, had neglected her footing and stumbled and fell while approaching us.

“Ouch…It hurts!”

“What are you doing, be careful, Ria…”

With teary eyes and her towel slipping in all the commotion, Ria is frantically rubbing her ankles.

Instinctively, I close my eyes. Nevertheless…

“…I’m saved.”

It feels like both Kanda and I said that simultaneously as if we were both momentarily dazzled by the situation.

For the time being, I lead Ria out to the changing area.

I changed my clothes in one of the restroom cubicles; Kanda and Ria were changing in the changing area.

It’s slightly hard to accept that, even though this is the men’s section, I’m the one being isolated.

When I return to the changing area, I see Ria in pajamas, and she’s sitting in a chair, holding her reddened ankle.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah… Shinichi-kun, can you give me a piggyback ride… I can’t walk…”

“Well… I’ll lend you my shoulder, but a piggyback is a bit much…”

“Puu… Rii is the same age as Maion, yet Shinichi-kun only spoils Maion all the time… ! Even Rii wants an Onīchan…!”

“It’s not like I’ve ever spoiled Maion…”

Or rather, it might be more accurate to say, ‘She has never been indulged.’

“Hey, Kanda…”

“I don’t know, can’t you figure it out yourself?”

When I looked up at Kanda seeking help, for some reason, a curt attitude was returned.

“Why are you suddenly getting angry?”

“That…”

Kanda pointed at my clothes.

“That sweatshirt, you got it from Shibuya, right?”

“Oh… yes, why?”

So? When I looked puzzled, Kanda puffed out her cheeks a bit.

“Wearing a present you got from another girl in front of me, how does that sit with you?”

“No, I didn’t know Kanda was here. Besides, it’s mine to begin with.”

As I answered, she clears her throat. ‘Mmm.’

“Hirakawa, you’re lacking delicacy…”

Huh?

Her expression inadvertently seemed as if she was truly jealous, and I reminded myself once again that she was one of the top actresses.

This is acting, this is only acting.

“Hey, don’t leave Rii alone! ”

Eventually, I gave Ria a piggyback ride to her room and returned to the living room.

“Hirakawa-kun…”

“Onīchan…!”

“Getting involved with another woman again…”

Osaki, Maion, and Sakiho reacted one after another.

Sakiho is glaring at me intensely.

Ever since we returned from Nasu, she seems to be in a bad mood…

Even though there are sofas around the living room coffee table, everyone is standing for some reason. Osaki and Maion had somewhat frightened and troubled expressions.

Amidst this, Yuu was filming the tabletop with one hand and beckoning me with the other.

“Shin, look at this for a moment! By the way, that sweatshirt, isn’t that the one I gave you? Do you like it?”

“I see, Shibuya is pleased.”

Ignoring Kanda’s jealous acting that never seems to stop, I look at the tabletop.

There, on a sheet of copy paper, are pasted newspaper cut-out letters, forming a so-called cryptic message.

The words pasted there say:

『There is a cheater among you.』

“What’s this…?”

“Seems like an accusation letter.”

Kanda, wearing a detective-like expression, peers at it thoughtfully.

Though the intention is to prevent handwriting analysis, actually seeing such a cryptic message that you’d only expect from crime drama confession notes sends shivers down my spine.

“Kanda, aren’t you scared by this sort of thing?”

“Huh? Not at all. I’ve seen things like this during drama shoots.”

Yes, well, that Haunted Palace was all just acting. That was scarier.

“So, who found it?”

“Maion did. It was there when she came to the living room about 20 minutes ago.”

When I asked, Maion raised her hand right away.

Normally, the first person to discover something like this is the first to be suspected, but whether she knows that or not——

“It wasn’t there when I came for a drink before going to the sauna, so it must have been left after I went to the sauna.”

“Could someone among us have placed it?”

“It could be Juujo-san too, right?”

“If we include the staff who replenish drinks, the possibilities increase, but… I can’t understand the motive behind doing something like this.”

Yuu, Kanda, and Osaki tilt their heads one after another.

“Can I borrow this for a moment?”

For now, I decided to take the cryptic message and return to my room.

In addition to having to consider my 1-on-1 date partner, now there were two more things on my mind.

One is the ‘author of the cryptic message.’ Who created it and left it in the living room?

The other is, who exactly is the ‘person who is cheating’ indicated by this cryptic message?

In the normal course of thought, the most likely candidates for the ‘person who is cheating’ would be Yuu and Osaki, considering they both already obtained additional dates.

If that’s the case, it could be deduced that the ‘author of the cryptic message’ is one of the remaining four.

It wouldn’t make sense for the ‘person who is cheating’ to falsely accuse themselves through such a note, especially since Kanda and Ria have alibis.

Specifically, Ria doesn’t have an alibi for the few minutes between meeting on the 64th-floor corridor and entering the men’s sauna.

However, the time window seems too tight for her to go to the living room, leave the note, and return.

So, the suspicious candidates for the ‘author of the cryptic message’ are Sakiho, Maion, and someone from the management side, including Juujo-san.

But considering the timing of sliding this cryptic message in and reflecting on everyone’s actions so far——

***

The next morning.

I knock on Juujo-san’s door.

“Shinichi-sama… Is there something you need to discuss directly?”

“The partner for my first 1-on-1 date has been decided.”

“I see. Please, do tell me.”

“Yes, the first date will be with——”