Prologue - This is the kind of story it is.
The young lady has everything.
“Whoa, check this out! Tendou-san got a perfect score in every subject again and took first place.”
Exceptional grades.
“Wasn’t she being recruited by the tennis club recently? I heard she beat a national tournament player in a practice match or something.”
Athletically gifted.
“They say a talent agency scouted her. She even got a commercial offer, apparently. It’s no surprise, given her model-like figure and stunning looks.”
Dazzling beauty.
“Plus, isn’t her family the world-famous Tendou Group? She doesn’t seem like just another high schooler at all.”
Indeed, one could say she is a perfect human being, someone who truly has it all.
That’s the young lady—Tendou Hoshine-sama.
“Good morning, Young Lady.”
“Good morning, Kagehito.”
Her long, golden hair sparkled like jewels in the sunlight streaming through the window, and her clear, ocean-blue eyes were just as breathtaking as ever.
Her well-defined features, her ample chest, her slender waist—everything about her physique seemed perfectly calculated to balance harmoniously. Her mother, Madam Tendou, is also a beauty with youthful charm and an impeccable figure, so it’s clear she inherited those genes.
“It’s such a nice day today. I’m sure it’ll be an easy day to get through.”
“The forecast said it would rain in the afternoon, though…”
“Really? I don’t think so.”
The young lady has an uncanny sense of intuition. I’ve seen countless times when her offhand remarks turned out to be spot-on, and I’ve never seen her get it wrong. This applies to the weather as well. Even if the forecast predicts rain, if she says it will be sunny, it almost always is. Her accuracy rate is a perfect one hundred percent. So, chances are, it won’t rain this afternoon either.
“Your intuition is remarkably accurate, Milady.”
“Indeed. But you know, being too accurate can be a bit dull. If nothing unexpected happens, life can become rather boring.”
“That’s quite the luxurious problem to have. …Would you like more tea?”
“Yes, please.”
I poured warm tea into her empty cup. Seeing this, the young lady smiled with satisfaction.
“As expected of you, Kagehito. No one is as attentive to my needs as you are.”
“It’s been over ten years since you took me in, Young Lady. This much is only natural.”
“Fufu. That’s right. It’s been that long already.”
She sipped her tea, carefully savoring its aroma and taste, all the while chuckling softly.
“We’re both high schoolers now… So much has changed, hasn’t it? In so many ways.”
“Yes, I’ve especially felt that recently.”
“Oh? In what way?”
“Well, actually… someone from another class confessed their feelings to me.”
Crash.
I turned toward the sound and saw that the teacup had slipped from the young lady’s hand. The cup, still half-filled with tea, shattered loudly as it hit the floor.
And yet, she remained frozen in the position of holding an imaginary cup, her body stiff as though time itself had stopped.
“Young lady!? Are you all right? Did you get burned…?!”
“So?”
“Huh?”
“I’m asking—what did you do after being confessed to?”
Wait. What’s this? The young lady’s face… She’s smiling, but it doesn’t feel like a smile…
“I refused, of course…”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes…”
“You’re not lying, are you?”
“Of course not.”
“……”
“……”
“…I see.”
The young lady finally let out a small sigh, her shoulders relaxing. …Ah, thank goodness. She’s back to her usual self.
“Young Lady, are you sure you’re not burned?”
“I’m fine. But sorry to trouble you—could you brew me a fresh cup?”
“As you wish.”
For now, I asked one of my fellow maids to clean up the shattered cup, then brought a new one filled with tea to place before the young lady.
“And? How does being confessed to connect to the feeling that things have changed?”
“Well, let’s see… I’ve never had people confess to me so frequently in succession before, so…”
Crash.
“Hold on a second.”
“Young Lady!? Are you burned…?!”
“That doesn’t matter.”
“Of course, it matters! And what about cleaning up the broken pieces…?”
“Just kick it aside with your foot or something.”
“Please don’t do that; it’s dangerous. Besides, even if it’s broken, that cup is worth several million yen—it’s not something you can treat like that…”
“Listen. There are things in this world more important than money. For instance, the story of how you were confessed to multiple times in a row.”
“I’m sorry, but that story doesn’t have a value of several million yen.”
“That’s ridiculous! If it could be bought for a few million yen, I’d have already bought it! No, you must let me buy it! I’d throw down tens of millions, hundreds of millions, whatever it takes—cash in hand!”
“P-Please calm down, Young Lady. Your sense of money seems to be… malfunctioning.”
After somehow managing to calm her down, I once again asked a fellow maid to clean up the broken cup.
“…So, about this being confessed to repeatedly. What exactly happened?”
“Huh? It’s just as I said… There was a period where I received a string of confessions over several days. I guess now that we’re in high school, I’m starting to have experiences I hadn’t had before…”
“When exactly was this?”
“It was during the trip when you went away with your family, Young Lady—just the Master and Madam for a bit of family time.”
“Tch…! That time… I let my guard down because I thought two nights and three days wouldn’t be a big deal…!”
Amazing. It’s rare to see the young lady this frustrated.
“…By the way, why didn’t you come along on that trip in the first place?”
“The Master specifically tasked me with looking after the house in your absence.”
“……I’ll send Father a message later saying, ‘I hate you.’”
“Please don’t. Are you trying to bring down the Tendou Group?”
The Master loves the young lady deeply. A message like that could leave him utterly devastated, perhaps even beyond recovery.
“…You turned down all those confessions?”
“Yes, I did. It pained me, but…”
“…Why?”
“Because I’ve sworn to dedicate my life to you, Young Lady. I explained that I didn’t have the capacity to make any other woman happy, and I declined.”
“You always say things like that so casually, and that’s why those thieving cats keep wandering around you. It makes me happy, though.”
“Why are you angry…?”
Also, what’s this about thieving cats?
“By the way, just so you know…”
“…Yes?”
“…If I weren’t in the picture, would you have accepted one of those confessions?”
“I’m not sure… It’s hard to imagine a world where you’re not around, Young Lady.”
“Fufu. Is that so?”
“However… they were all incredibly charming women, far too good for someone like me. So, perhaps there’s a version of my future where that happened.”
“I’ll never disappear.”
“…I-I see.”
What is this? Young Lady is smiling, but I can feel an incredible pressure emanating from her…
“Honestly… I can’t let my guard down for even a moment.”
“…It’s rare to see you look so desperate, Young Lady.”
“Of course. When someone truly desires something, they’ll do whatever it takes to get it, won’t they?”
“For someone like you, who already has everything, what could you possibly want so badly? What kind of treasure is it?”
“What kind, you ask… Maybe you should go take a look in a mirror.”
“…You want a mirror?”
“Good grief… That’s one thing about you that hasn’t changed even now that you’re in high school.”
Young Lady's expression was a mixture of pouting and exasperation.
“…I don’t have everything. Because the one thing I want most is the one thing I can’t have.”
•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•
My Kagehito is an exceptionally skilled servant.
“Thanks to you helping me study, Kagehito-kun, my test scores went up! Thank you so much!”
“Not at all. The credit goes to your hard work. I merely lent a small hand.”
Despite balancing work and studies, he consistently maintains top-level grades. On top of that, he’s great at teaching others.
“Kagehito-kun! Your soccer game during the sports tournament was amazing! You played so well, even against the soccer team!”
“My teammates supported me. And the opponents were strong—it was a very close game.”
He’s athletic, too. Thanks to the rigorous training from my father, he’s said to possess strength that could rival even professional soldiers or mercenaries. Apparently, no ordinary group could hope to take him on.
“Kagehito-kun, would you consider joining the drama club? You’d be a guaranteed star! You already have a huge fanbase… Oh, was that a slip of the tongue? Anyway, what do you think?”
“It’s a great honor to be asked, but I must decline. I believe the drama club already has plenty of suitable stars far better than me.”
He has what you’d call strikingly handsome features. His face is well-proportioned, his night-colored eyes are beautiful, and he’s tall. His demeanor is gentlemanly, too. It’s no wonder so many girls are smitten with him.
In fact, I know for a fact that Kagehito has a large fanbase at school.
Everyone is just waiting for a chance to target Kagehito. Right now, since they’re serving me, their movements are minimal, but the moment I step away, you can see what happens.
To make matters worse, even young ladies I know take every opportunity to try and scout him.
Honestly... these shameless thieving cats are such a nuisance.
I’ve loved Kagehito far, far, faaaaaaar longer than any of them, but these newcomers have the nerve to just waltz up to him like that.
...That’s right. I’ve loved Kagehito for a very long time.
Ever since I was young, I could do almost anything. Everything went smoothly for me, and I could do things exactly as I wanted.
I could obtain anything I desired, and there was nothing beyond my grasp.
Talent, status, fame, beauty—without even asking, all of it was in my hands.
It was during such a time that I met Kagehito.
He had been abandoned by his family. His parents had apparently disappeared, leaving only Kagehito behind.
I found him by sheer coincidence. What caught my attention and led me to take him in was the haunting look in his eyes, as if he had lost everything.
He even has the nerve to lecture me.
“Young Lady, if you’re feeling lonely, it’s better to say so. …Do you think your father and mother dislike you? That’s not true. It’s just that they were caught up with work and couldn’t come today. …But they both love you dearly. …It’s a shame they couldn’t make it today, but if it’s alright with you, may I celebrate your birthday with you?”
He notices when I’m lonely and stays by my side.
“So this is where you were hiding… How did I find you? Because I know you, Young Lady. Come on, let’s go back. Everyone is looking for you.”
Even when I hide away to cry, he finds me.
“Young Lady, it’s true that you can do anything, but that doesn’t mean you haven’t been trying. You’ve worked so hard and put in so much effort, haven’t you? It’s okay. That person may have said something cruel without realizing it, but I know. I know how hardworking you truly are.”
He sees me for who I am.
…And there are so many more reasons beyond these. More than I could ever count.
I’ve been able to obtain so many things in my life.
But the heart of Kagehito is the one thing I haven’t been able to claim.
The thing I want most in the world. The one thing I’d stake my life on to possess.
If I had just that, I wouldn’t need anything else.
Yes. That’s why I won’t let those shameless thieving cats have him.
…Though, no matter how many approaches I’ve tried so far, Kagehito doesn’t seem to notice my feelings at all.
My father, it seemed, had his own reasons for taking interest in Kagehito’s circumstances. Laughing as he said it reminded him of his own experiences, he indulged my “selfish whim” and allowed me to take him in.
Taking him in was a spur-of-the-moment decision, as if I’d simply acquired something I wanted at the time.
...But Kagehito was not someone who would bend to my every whim.
“Young Lady, you need to eat your green peppers too. …Should I eat them for you? No, I won’t. This is for your own good.”
He wouldn’t always indulge my selfishness.
“Young Lady, you should try to be more considerate of others. If you keep being so selfish, everyone will start to dislike you.”
The other day, I even went so far as to mobilize the household staff just to create the perfect scenario… Could it be that being too close is the problem? Maybe I should move forward with my plan to enclose him completely. I need to settle this before those pesky newcomers have a chance to interfere, but it’s proving to be quite the challenge.
…But I won’t give up.
I don’t need everything. I don’t have to have it all.
Even so.
“The one thing I want most—I won’t let anyone else have it.”
“Hm? Is something the matter, Young Lady?”
“Oh, just a little pep talk to myself.”
Now then, what strategy should I use today to make my move?
•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•
...This is troubling. The Young Lady is plotting something again.
The other day, on a rainy day, she went around breaking every umbrella in the house, punctured the tires of all the chauffeured cars, and finally, for some reason, presented me with a slightly smaller umbrella that had somehow escaped destruction. Then she said, “Let’s share an umbrella on the way to school today.” She’s wearing the same expression as she did back then.
That mischievous (if it can even be called that at this level) side of hers is one of the countless charms that make her so captivating. But when she gets into one of her schemes, it usually means I’ll be the one dragged into it. Not that I mind. Being at her beck and call is an honor. In fact, it wouldn’t be wrong to call it a privilege.
However, I’m also a boy in the prime of his youth—a perfectly healthy high school student.
Sharing an umbrella is one thing, but when she occasionally sneaks into my bed seeking warmth or keeps closing the distance in other ways, it’s... a bit problematic.
…Though, perhaps I should count myself lucky.
I fully understand my position and status.
I’m nothing more than a filthy child abandoned by his parents. A boy who was lucky enough to be taken in by the Tendou family and meet the young mistress. Just a child blessed by pure chance. That’s all I am.
The Young Lady treats even someone like me with kindness, but that’s simply because she’s the most compassionate person on this planet, in this galaxy, in this universe.
No matter how close she gets, I can’t afford to misunderstand.
Something like that is impossible.
I constantly remind myself of this. Moreover, as someone who serves to protect the Tendou family, I’ve disciplined my mind and spirit. That’s why, even though I’m a perfectly healthy high school boy, I won’t let myself misunderstand.
If it were anyone else, they’d have fallen for her in an instant.
(I’ll have to remind the Young Lady about this later.)
You should refrain from actions that might lead men to misunderstand your intentions.
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