Catching a glimpse of the relief washing over the young woman's face after the group left, Shiroko couldn't help but shake his head inwardly.
'She really hasn't experienced the harsh realities of society yet. She has so acting skills, but not much!'
Moreover, her behavior could only be described as childish in Shiroko's eyes.
'That's right, purely childish!'
'Did she really think that scaring off with those thugs and having that guy swoop in to play the hero would dispel Sugimoto Ichiro's thoughts of an arranged marriage? Or even make him look upon the guy favorably?'
'Give a break. A cheap trick like this wouldn't even fool a college student, let alone an old fox who has spent years clawing his way up in the business world!'
'Taking a massive step back, even if he actually bought it, he would never give up on the marriage alliance.'
'After all, this concerns the future developnt of two major families. How could it be treated as child's play?'
"Yuichi, you were amazing just now! I can't believe you fought off so many people!"
"Haha, I've just picked up a few self-defense moves in my spare ti," he chuckled. "Shoko, you must have bodyguards, right? Their skills shouldn't be any worse than mine!"
Hearing this, Sugimoto Shoko recalled a certain young man and couldn't help but compare the two in her heart.
Reading the young woman's inner thoughts and seeing that his goal had been achieved, Shiroko decided not to dwell on the topic any longer. "Let's go, Shoko. We're going boating!"
Since her plan had failed, she really didn't want to spend any more ti with him.
However, she had to swallow the bitter pill she had created for herself.
Thus, she forced a smile and nodded. "Sure!"
anwhile, the bruised and battered group of thugs surrounded a young man. "We got beaten to a pulp, and this is all you're paying us?!"
"That was our agreent," the young man replied coldly. "Besides, you didn't even manage to scare him off. Paying you the final balance is already a courtesy because of your injuries."
"Otherwise, you wouldn't even get this much!"
Facing the group's veiled threats, the young man remained entirely unafraid.
'They're just a bunch of trash. It might have been a bit difficult if they were at full strength, but now? Dealing with them is like child's play.'
The young man's arrogant attitude completely infuriated the group. "You..."
Stopping his companion, the leader of the thugs spoke in a dark tone. "We'll rember this. I hope you won't regret it in the future."
As soon as those words were spoken, the young man instantly panicked a little.
He also deeply regretted his earlier arrogance. What if they recovered from their injuries and ca back to settle the score?
Even a fierce tiger struggles against a pack of wolves. If that ti ca...
At that mont, he wanted to find an opportunity to salvage the situation, but unfortunately, the other party didn't give him the chance.
It could only be said that he perfectly demonstrated the nature of bowing and scraping to the strong while striking out heavily against the weak.
'I should go see how things are going on Shoko's end first.'
Watching the group's retreating figures, the young man forced himself to muster so courage, then walked toward the lake.
Then, from a distance, he saw a small boat in the middle of the lake. Sugimoto Shoko was crouching below Shiroko, seemingly...
Instantly, he nearly shattered his molars from gritting his teeth so hard, slamming a fist directly into the trunk of a nearby tree. "Damn it! This is impossible. Shoko would never do such a thing!"
But his eyes wouldn't lie. Staring at that scene, the young man's eyes widened in absolute fury as he turned and stord off in a rage.
On the small boat, feeling the pain radiating from the roots of her hair, the young woman couldn't help but cry out, "Onii-chan, be gentle, it hurts!"
"Bear with it a little longer, Shoko. I'll have it out in a second!"
Shiroko comforted her gently while untangling her ssy red hair.
Looking closely, her beautiful hair was actually caught in the boat's sail rigging.
This happened because a strong gust of wind had suddenly blown out of nowhere, sending her hair flying in all directions.
A few strands had unluckily tangled themselves tightly into the sail.
Unable to fix it herself, she had no choice but to ask Shiroko to help her untangle it.
After a long while and a great deal of effort from Shiroko, he finally managed to free her hair.
Still shaken by the ordeal, the young woman refused to continue boating no matter what, urging him to leave imdiately.
Arriving back at the shore and feeling the solid ground beneath her feet once more, she let out a long sigh of relief.
She declined Shiroko's request to continue their outing, using the excuse that she was feeling unwell to take her leave.
As they were about to part ways, Shiroko caught a glimpse of her bodyguard's inner thoughts, a hint of amusent flashing in his eyes.
'It seems I accidentally caused a rift between those two!'
'But it's understandable. That guy can't compare to in terms of family background or looks.'
'This led to an extre sense of inferiority in his heart. Seeing a scene like that, it would be weirder if he didn't misunderstand.'
'Understanding it is one thing, but I have absolutely no intention of explaining it to him.'
'After all, I'm under no obligation to do so, am I?'
"Goodbye, Yuichi!"
Bidding Shiroko a sweet farewell, Sugimoto Shoko imdiately opened the car door and got inside.
Looking through the rearview mirror at her sweet smile and recalling the scene he had witnessed earlier, the young man's knuckles gradually turned white as he gripped the steering wheel.
On the road, seeing that he remained completely silent, Sugimoto Shoko couldn't help but feel a bit confused. "Onii-chan, what's wrong?!"
Taking a deep breath to calm his emotions, the young man replied, his voice slightly hoarse. "N-Nothing! Miss, the plan failed this ti. What should we do next?"
"Next? I haven't thought about it yet. Let's just leave things as they are for now. We'll talk about it when I figure sothing out..."
This perfectly normal sentence sounded completely different to the young man. To his ears, it ant: 'I've already fallen for him. I want to be with him. There is no possibility between us!'
'Damn it!'
In an instant, the young man cursed viciously in his heart. 'She really is a cheap woman. She kept saying she liked before, but the mont she sees soone better, she turns around and throws herself into another man's arms.'
'Damn it! Damn it all!'
The reason the young man had such a massive reaction was largely due to his childhood experiences.
When he was young, he had personally witnessed his mother having an affair.
That scene remained deeply etched into his mind like a lingering nightmare to this day.
Aside from their difference in status, this was one of the main reasons why he hadn't accepted her feelings.
He originally thought this young woman was different, but now it seed she was no different from those cheap won on the street who would sleep with anyone for a few tens of thousands of yen.
Completely unaware of the change in his deanor, Sugimoto Shoko was currently staring blankly at the scenery outside the window.
During their ti together, Shiroko's gentle, refined, and polite image had left a deep impression on her.
The disgust she had originally felt toward him due to her family's coercion was slowly dissipating without her even realizing it.
He would normally be an excellent marriage prospect, but unfortunately, she already had soone else in her heart.
Her heart was very small; it could only hold one person!
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