Chapter 110: Who Came First?
“Hey, hey, what did you just call me?”
Outside the door, Mikazuki Haruna, dressed in a refined black dress, had a momentarily frozen expression on her face.
Sakamoto Ken wanted to take back the name he had just said, but words already spoken couldn’t be retracted.
He had indeed thought the person outside was Natsume Mio just now…
After all, he had just chatted with Natsume Mio on LINE that morning about her bringing him heart-shaped omelet rice for lunch.
And it was exactly lunchtime now, with no deliveries or other appointments scheduled for today.
So, when the doorbell rang, his mind didn’t even consider a second possibility.
He never imagined that the person outside would be Mikazuki Haruna…
Wait, how did you show up here again?
Sakamoto Ken’s mind raced, but his facial expression remained perfectly controlled without a hint of slack.
He had only shown a fleeting, almost imperceptible surprise, which quickly turned into the calm demeanor of seeing a familiar acquaintance.
It was just a small scene; in his previous life, he had experienced far more stimulating situations many times over.
To Mikazuki Haruna, Sakamoto Ken’s nonchalant attitude even made her doubt if the “Mio” she heard earlier was just an auditory hallucination.
No, no, it definitely wasn’t an auditory hallucination; she clearly heard him call out “Mio” with full joy!
The key point was the full joy!
That guy’s tone just now was exactly that… that… that feeling of expecting his girlfriend!
Countless thoughts flashed through Mikazuki Haruna’s mind in an instant.
Since he called her name when opening the door, it meant he hadn’t checked through the cat’s eye beforehand.
And he had subconsciously called out her name upon opening the door—what did that mean?
It meant he had not only given Natsume Mio the address of his new home but was also expecting her visit, and they might even have an appointment!
So, I’m not the only one who knows your home address!
But I was definitely the first, right?
Mikazuki Haruna narrowed her eyes slightly at Sakamoto Ken but ultimately didn’t bring up the name from earlier.
She lifted her gaze, looking past Sakamoto Ken’s shoulder into the room.
“Aren’t you going to invite me in?” Mikazuki Haruna asked.
Sakamoto Ken nodded lightly and stepped aside half a pace.
“Please come in.”
After all, since she had come to the door, he couldn’t just leave her standing outside.
Although Natsume Mio would definitely come soon…
Anyway, he’d improvise; it wasn’t like this hadn’t happened before.
Speaking of which, this was already the second time the same thing had happened, though last time both visits were unexpected.
But this time… he and Natsume Mio had an prior appointment.
“Sorry for intruding~”
Mikazuki Haruna stepped lightly into the entrance, naturally slipping off her black small leather shoes and tiptoeing to adjust their position neatly.
Her feet now rested on the wooden floor, with only a thin layer of slippery silk fabric under her soles.
Sakamoto Ken closed the door and followed behind her, casually asking, “Why did you come suddenly?”
“It’s very close to the editorial department,” Mikazuki Haruna said. “I was leaving the editorial department today and thought of you moving here on my way back, so I stopped by.”
“I really came from the editorial department!” she added emphatically, as if afraid Sakamoto Ken wouldn’t believe her.
As she spoke, she had already walked into the first-floor lobby.
The spacious space was set up as a professional studio, with a large workbench inside and four smaller ones neatly arranged outside, already equipped with desk lamps, pen holders, drawing tablets, and computers.
This setup accommodated both hand-drawn and digital drawing, the format now used by most manga artists.
Hand-drawn had its own texture, but some effects were easier to handle on the computer.
A bookshelf stood against the wall, though it was still empty, with equipment like a printer and scanner nearby.
“The studio is set up very professionally,” Mikazuki Haruna said after circling the lobby. “Are you looking for four assistants? Have you found them all?”
“Three for now, found with help from the editor. They’re all capable assistants,” Sakamoto Ken replied.
“Oh… so Chainsaw Man’s quality will improve even more in the future?”
“It’s mainly to save me time,” Sakamoto Ken said.
Mikazuki Haruna didn’t pursue the topic, instead walking to a chair and sitting down without hesitation, smiling brightly at Sakamoto Ken.
This chair was adjusted to its highest setting, so when Haruna sat, her feet couldn’t fully reach the floor.
She wore thin black pantyhose, and with several high-brightness desk lamps on in the room, everything was illuminated transparently.
Sakamoto Ken glanced once and could see the skin tone beneath the thin silk fabric, glowing with a soft, satin-like sheen that outlined her slender ankles and taut calf contours.
The girl’s legs dangled lightly in the air, her small, dainty toes occasionally reaching down to lightly tap the smooth wooden floor before retracting and continuing to swing.
At this moment, Mikazuki Haruna placed her hands on the ergonomic chair’s armrests and shifted her hips back a bit.
Now her feet couldn’t touch the ground at all; they dangled in the air, pointed toward Sakamoto Ken, her toes rubbing together intentionally or not.
This girl was definitely doing it on purpose.
Sakamoto Ken only gave a polite glance without staring, still thinking about what to do when Natsume Mio arrived later.
Would it turn into one man and two women alone in the room again?
Though this room was much larger this time…
Mikazuki Haruna looked down at her dangling feet, seemingly bored, and said to Sakamoto Ken, “Hey, hey, you probably haven’t had lunch yet, right?”
“Of course not; it’s not even noon yet,” Sakamoto Ken said.
“There’s a really good yakiniku place not far nearby,” Mikazuki Haruna said in a seemingly casual tone. “I came this way today planning to eat yakiniku, but thought it wouldn’t be great to order dishes alone, so I came to ask you.”
Yakiniku, huh—no way he could go today.
Sakamoto Ken was about to reply when the room door was knocked on again.
“Knock knock.”
Sakamoto Ken turned toward the room door, and Mikazuki Haruna stopped swinging her legs, directing her gaze there too.
The two exchanged a glance, and Sakamoto Ken sighed lightly in mild exasperation, pointing at the door. “I’ll get it.”
Seeing his expression, Mikazuki Haruna’s heart sank with a bad premonition.
She immediately stood from the chair and hurried after Sakamoto Ken, determined to see for herself who was at the door.
Sakamoto Ken didn’t mind; she was already in the house—should he hide her in the wardrobe?
That would turn a pure home visit into an affair, wouldn’t it?
Sakamoto Ken first peeked out through the door’s cat’s eye.
Sure enough, Natsume Mio stood outside.
Her hair was still the passionate Makima red, she wore an elegant light beige long dress, her face bore a very expectant smile, and she carried an insulated bento bag.
Sakamoto Ken placed his hand on the doorknob and slowly turned it.
He didn’t fully open the door at first, just cracking it slightly while keeping an eight-out-of-ten smile on his face.
“You’ve arrived~” Sakamoto Ken said in as gentle a tone as possible.
Then, he slowly pulled the room door open.
Outside, Natsume Mio’s smile bloomed instantly upon seeing Sakamoto Ken open the door.
However, the next second, her gaze landed straight on Mikazuki Haruna behind Sakamoto Ken.
Natsume Mio’s smile froze on her face.
She stared at Mikazuki Haruna for a couple of beats, her small mouth opening slightly to let out a very soft:
“Ah?”
