"Aah, Miku, stop pushing me!"
"Wait, wait, wait! I can't see Nino anymore!"
Inside a narrow alley, the four sisters squeezed against each other, all trying to find the best spot to watch the interaction between Nino and Hakuto.
"I had a feeling it was Shiratori, but I didn't expect it to be true."
"They only added each other's contacts a few days ago, right? Isn't this moving way too fast...?"
"Can you guys hear what they're saying?"
"It's too far. I can't hear a thing."
Meanwhile, Nino and Hakuto were completely unaware of the four figures hiding in the distance.
"So? You're here to talk to me as my tutor?"
"If that's really the case, I'd advise you to quit now. I don't need a tutor."
"Maybe you don't, but that doesn't mean the others don't."
"The others are the same. None of us need a tutor."
Nino's stance was firm. Even though she had a good impression of Hakuto, when it came to this tutoring matter, she refused to budge.
"Hold on... Let me check something..."
Instead of continuing the argument, Hakuto pulled out his phone and brought up a photo from his gallery.
"This is your entrance exam score, Nino."
"Huh? How do you even have that?!"
Startled, Nino instinctively reached out to snatch the phone from Hakuto's hand.
But of course, he wasn't about to let her get what she wanted so easily. Her attempt ended in complete failure.
"I won't read out the scores since you know them better than I do."
Saying that, Hakuto put his phone away.
"You still haven't told me how you got that!"
"As the top student in our grade, I have a few small privileges..." Hakuto held his thumb and index finger close together, indicating just how tiny his "privileges" were.
A true master of deception—anyone watching would instantly call him out for abusing his position.
"I know my grades are bad, but I'll handle it myself. I don't need a tutor."
Even after Hakuto pulled out the so-called exam results, Nino remained unwavering in her stance.
But the moment she said that, Hakuto suddenly burst into laughter.
"Hahaha!"
"...What are you laughing at?"
"Nothing, I just didn't expect you to trust me so much, Nino."
"W-What do you mean?"
"I literally just took out my phone and told you I had your exam results, and you just blindly believed me."
As he spoke, Hakuto pulled out his phone again and showed it to Nino.
That's when she finally realized—he hadn't been looking at any exam results at all. His phone had been on the home screen the entire time.
"You...!"
Being tricked twice in a row, Nino was now genuinely frustrated. Her resistance to having Hakuto as a tutor only grew stronger.
"Don't be mad, don't be mad. I didn't ask you out just to talk about tutoring."
Looking at Hakuto's annoyingly handsome face, Nino really wanted to punch him right now.
"Want to grab something to eat? I know a pretty good dessert shop."
"What is this supposed to be? You mess with me and then invite me out for dessert?"
"That's why I said from the start, I didn't ask you out to talk about tutoring."
Liar. That was Hakuto's exact reason for coming here!
"So? Want to go?"
Hakuto naturally extended his hand toward Nino.
Seeing his invitation and the hand stretched out before her, Nino hesitated for a moment before subconsciously placing her hand in his.
This small action completely shocked the four sisters watching from afar.
"Ohhh—she held his hand! She held his hand!"
"Wait... why do I feel like I just heard the word 'tutor'?"
"Yotsuba, you must be hearing things. We're so far away, I can't even see Nino's face clearly."
"Really…?"
"Wait, they're leaving! Quick, follow them!"
"Why do I feel like Shiratori just glanced in our direction...?"
Hakuto wasn't an idiot.
Growing up constantly fighting in groups, he hadn't noticed Miku and the others at first, but if he still hadn't realized it by now, he probably would've been beaten countless times already.
Even though Miku and the others were being extremely cautious, keeping a considerable distance and even staying too far to hear their conversation, Hakuto had picked up on their presence.
However, he didn't say anything. Instead, he continued walking beside Nino as if nothing had happened.
After all, the other four sisters following Nino worked in his favor. His original plan was to get Nino to bring everyone along anyway.
About ten minutes later, Hakuto led Nino to a cozy little café.
"Didn't you say we were going to a dessert shop?"
"That's just what I call it. It's a café, but the desserts here are really good."
Hakuto wasn't lying, nor did he just randomly pick a place.
As someone who could make desserts himself, he genuinely thought this café had great sweets.
As they walked inside, Hakuto casually glanced behind him.
To be honest, he really wanted to criticize the sisters' tracking skills. Throughout the ten-minute walk, he had to stop several times just to make sure they wouldn't lose him.
But in the end, they still managed to follow him all the way here.
Inside the café, Hakuto led Nino to a window-side corner seat.
The reason for choosing this spot, aside from having a nice view outside, was to make it easier for the other four to sneak in without being noticed by Nino.
"What do you want to order? The egg tarts here are pretty good."
"Hmm, I'll just go with whatever you pick."
While ordering, Hakuto subtly shifted his gaze toward the café entrance.
Only after seeing four identical pink-haired figures sneak inside with hunched postures did he finally relax.
He felt like a modern-day strategist, having calculated everything down to the smallest detail!
However, just as Hakuto was feeling like an absolute genius, a familiar voice suddenly called out behind him.
"Huh? Shiratori, what are you doing here?"
The moment he heard that voice, Hakuto's face stiffened.
Alright… He thought he had everything figured out, but apparently, he wasn't a mastermind after all—just two and a half clueless fools combined.
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Read 20 Advanced Chapters on p@ tr eon (.) com/HalflingFics
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Check out the other translations too: [Mash-Up: I'm Not A Substitute]
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