章 331: Kaguya's Return

Homura raised his index finger and began to explain.

"Firstly, no matter how much Ai doesn't want to meet Chika, I know it's something she can't avoid, but... why was the one Chika met a butler named Herthaka instead of a maid named Ai?"

Homura chuckled for a moment, then continued.

"You know, the pronunciation of 'Herthaka' and 'Hayasaka' is just one character different, right?"

Kaguya: "..."

"Isn't that a bit too coincidental?"

Kaguya asked again, trying to deny his explanation.

"I remember all the servants I saw were women except for your father's old butler, but I've never seen a young male butler even once." Homura explained.

"Not enough. Not enough evidence." Kaguya shook her head, still denying it.

"Not enough evidence? Does that mean you admit there are other forms of Ai?" Homura asked while raising his eyebrow.

"I don't believe you'd state your speculations without being completely certain. You must have other evidence, right?" Kaguya asked seriously.

Homura nodded in understanding, then as if remembering something, spoke again.

"Speaking of which, Ai should be attending the same school as you, right?"

"Huh? Well... that's something that must be kept hidden... Hayasaka intentionally concealed her relationship with my family, so no one would know..." Kaguya answered with a hesitant tone.

"I see, I see..." Homura nodded repeatedly. "In that case, me seeing Ai in her student form must have been an accident then? Given her meticulousness, she wouldn't intentionally reveal her student form to me, right?"

"Eh?" Kaguya paused, making a surprised expression. "Wait, did you visit our school? When?"

"Shirakawa Miyako." Homura mentioned a name.

"Shirakawa Miyako...?" Kaguya muttered, thought for a moment, then clapped her hands. "Ahh... the brown-haired girl? I remember her, we chatted for a while before... She's a nice person."

"She's your senior, you know? A second-year student at Shuchi'in Academy." Homura shrugged. "Well, I happened to see Ai when I was delivering something to Miyako. Despite the change in hairstyle and her looking like a gal, her face hadn't changed, so I instantly recognized her."

Hearing this, Kaguya nodded in understanding.

At school, Ai didn't appear as a maid, so it wasn't surprising that Homura had such thoughts after seeing her different persona.

"I understand..." Kaguya sighed helplessly. "I hope you won't tell anyone."

"Hmm? Why would I tell anyone?" Homura asked with raised eyebrows.

"You're right... I ended up saying unnecessary things..." Kaguya smiled.

"By the way, we're almost there. Get ready." Homura reminded.

"Got it."

Before long, the two arrived at the familiar spot, and, like before, after Homura listened carefully for any signs of people, he prepared to take action.

"Hmm, I don't think using the same method as when we got out will work..." Homura pondered, stroking his chin. "Looks like I'll have to take you back myself."

Kaguya nodded, not objecting.

While getting out was possible for Kaguya due to the lower position of the tree branch, going back was a different story.

Homura immediately took out a laptop, and soon the video feedback from the CCTVs around the Shinomiya residence began to loop.

Throwing his backpack into the courtyard, Homura turned to Kaguya.

"Hop on, I'll carry you."

"I can do it myself."

"You're too slow." Homura disagreed without hesitation.

"..."

Without further words, Kaguya came behind Homura, steadied herself on his shoulders, and securely mounted his back.

Soon, Homura's masculine scent enveloped Kaguya, causing her cheeks to blush involuntarily as she recalled every moment with him since they first met.

She remembered how Homura always tried to get along with her, helped smooth things over, helped her make friends, and even brought her to where she was now.

She couldn't help but think that perhaps she had developed feelings for this boy, who was just a year older than she was.

It was just annoying that he attracted so many girls, and worse, each of those girls was so unique, so charismatic, so beautiful.

Anyone would like girls like them, right?

Honestly, she didn't dislike them either.

Soon, Kaguya's hands on Homura's shoulder slowly slid down, eventually encircling his neck.

Homura looked at the delicate hands that slid from his shoulders to in front of him, feeling Kaguya's body—initially tense but now relaxed.

"Yosh, let's go!" Homura said with a chuckle.

One hand securing Kaguya's body and the other assisting his feet over the Shinomiya residence wall, Homura climbed the wall and then passed over the thorns atop it, which seemed to require careful handling.

Nevertheless, they posed no hindrance to Homura, and with Kaguya, he effortlessly crossed over.

Picking up his backpack, Homura, with Kaguya on his back, arrived at the other side of the wall.

"Hmm... It's a bit risky for me to carry you up directly..." Homura muttered thoughtfully.

"What should we do?" Kaguya asked in a low voice.

"I'll go up to the rooftop first, and once I tie the rope securely, I'll help you up." Homura replied, gently patting her back with his hand.

Kaguya nodded and descended from his back.

With that, the morning scene was repeated, but this time, the rope hung from a different spot.

"Let's go!"

After sliding down the rope, Homura started to squat, allowing Kaguya to climb onto his back once again.

In truth, with Kaguya's ability, she could easily climb using the rope on her own, and Homura also knew that, but without a word between them, she remained on his back, letting him carry her up to the rooftop.

After arriving at the rooftop, Homura saw that Kaguya's room window was opened.

Homura looked at his back, seeing Kaguya showing no intention of coming down from his back.

"We need to restore the CCTVs quickly, Kaguya..." Homura whispered. "Hey, how about I come to get you out for a hangout again next time?"

"Sure..."

Kaguya, burying her head in the nape of Homura's neck, replied with a muffled sound.

Moments later, Kaguya got down from Homura's back, silently picked up the rope, and then turned her head to him.

"Aren't you coming down?" Kaguya asked softly.

"We still have your dinner here, y'know..." Homura grinned and shook his backpack.

"Um... Let's go then."

"Who goes first, you or me?" Homura asked.

Kaguya was momentarily puzzled, then vividly recalled the morning scene when he refused to see the inside of her skirt, her face turning slightly red.

"I go first!" Kaguya said in an annoyed tone.

"Okay, but be careful. Hold onto the rope tightly." Homura chuckled.

"Don't worry." Kaguya clenched the rope tightly.

Homura nodded, watching her silently.

In the next moment, Kaguya climbed down using the rope.

"Welcome back, Kaguya-sama."

Ai, already standing near the window, helped Kaguya in.

"I'm back, Hayasaka." Kaguya responded with a smile.

Feeling that swinging was faster, Homura quickly swung into the room.

"Yo, Ai, I safely brought Kaguya back." Homura greeted with a grin.

"Yes, I trust Minamiya-sama." Ai nodded calmly.

"Well, let's restore the CCTVs for now..."

Homura connected his laptop to the Shinomiya residence's security network, checked for people in the surroundings, and temporarily restored all the CCTVs outside.

"Since it's nearing dusk, the change in the sky will easily be noticeable, so I will add a buffer a bit."

Ai nodded silently, agreeing with Homura's approach.

Needless to say, the more thorough they were, the less likely Kaguya would be exposed. For Ai, Kaguya was, after all, the most important person in the entire Shinomiya family.

"I can't help but worry about this place's security since Minamiya-sama could easily enter again..." Ai expressed concern.

"You're overthinking it." Homura chuckled, shaking his head. "Not just anyone can enter a place as secure as this."

In truth, if not for hardware limitations, he could have hacked into the security system directly.