I Started a Lover-for-Hire Service, And For Some Reason, Only Beautiful Girls Are Requesting Me - Chapter 49: Ryoma and Himeno's Email Exchange

“I’m really lucky the CEO was so kind…”

In his own room, furnished with all the essentials like a table and a bed, Ryoma let out a sigh of relief, setting his phone down on the carpet.

Even though his call had been a bit rude, the conversation had gone smoothly. He hadn’t been scolded or blamed; the response had been kind.

Now, all that was left was for Himeno to call the company and confirm the details of her request.

With that, the issue regarding company rules was resolved.

But another, far bigger problem loomed over Ryoma.

“I… I have to do this for Himeno, don’t I…”

Ryoma had said it himself:

“If I can help Devil-chan, then this much is nothing.”

Determined to meet Himeno’s request, he had thrown himself into it without hesitation. But with the company’s rule confirmation email arriving at such a tense moment, he had no mental space left to process the situation properly.

And so, he overlooked one crucial detail—

Once the company approved the request, it was up to him to follow through with it, taking full responsibility.

“Do you have any experience?”
“Can you do this while staying composed?”
“Can you truly satisfy her?”

The CEO’s voice from their call replayed over and over in his head.

“This is really bad…”

Himeno had listed five requests: kabedon, head pats, hugs, princess carry and… pushing her down.

The last one was completely out of the question. No matter how much money was involved, there were limits. He’d have to get Himeno to agree to remove that one.

But the first four… he had to do them.

Stay composed? Not a chance. He had zero experience with any of these things.

Could he really satisfy Himeno? Could he help her improve her manga?

The weight of those doubts pressed on his chest like a boulder.

“Wait… would Himeno even be happy if I did those things to her?”

“No, she’s only doing this for the sake of her manga. Of course, she wouldn’t be happy about it…”

Realizing this on his own, Ryoma felt a pang of sadness.

Even someone with a strong mental fortitude would want to run from this reality.

From a rental boyfriend’s perspective, there was a huge emotional difference between fulfilling a request for someone who genuinely enjoyed it versus someone who was forcing themselves to go through with it.

(But this is just how it is…)

Ryoma swallowed his complaints.

Even if Himeno wasn’t happy about it, fulfilling her requests would earn him a significant amount of money.

“Now I just have to contact Himeno…”

While walking home together, Himeno had reminded him multiple times:

“Make sure to message me once the call’s over.”

The most important thing to her was whether or not the company had approved the request.

She was probably waiting for his report, eager to know the result as soon as possible.

Ryoma picked up his phone from the carpet and opened the Twitter app.

Then, he began typing a direct message to Himeno, who was surely waiting for his reply.

But Ryoma was completely misunderstanding his junior, Himeno.

People didn’t pay money to someone they disliked.

That was just common sense.

Even if it was for the sake of improving her manga, no one would request a head pat from someone they found unpleasant.

That, too, was obvious.

The reason she had told him “Make sure to message me once the call’s over”—

Was because she simply wanted to exchange messages with him at night.

Pura Pura Pura.

Himeno sat in her favorite pink gaming chair, lightly swinging her legs that didn’t quite reach the floor.

She was typing a reply to the message Shiba had sent her.

『Shiba, how did it go?』

 『I got the company’s approval. When you call to officially request the service, they’ll just need to confirm a few details, so take care of that, okay?』

 『Got it. Thanks.』

This was the first time Himeno was exchanging messages with Shiba from home.

On her lap, she rested another favorite of hers—a 120cm-long plush orca.

It served as a body pillow at night and, when she was sitting, it kept her stomach and thighs warm.

She had been using it for months. Though its stuffing had flattened a bit, it was still in great condition because she had taken such good care of it.

Even if Shiba asked for it, she wouldn’t give it to him.

『Shiba, did the company say anything?』

『Oh yeah, a whole lot.』

『Did they say anything harsh?』

Himeno’s fingers hurriedly tapped out her next message.

Was Shiba okay?Did he get scolded? She was genuinely worried.

『They were like, “Who do you think you are? Know your place!” That kind of thing.』

『I’m so sorry…』

Reading his response, Himeno’s heart sank.

Shiba had been scolded because of her selfish request. He hadn’t done anything wrong.

『It’s Himeno’s fault. I’m really, really sorry.』

『…Well, I was just joking. It actually went fine.』

 『Really? Are you sure?』

Shiba was too nice.

Maybe he was just saying that to keep her from feeling bad.

So, she asked again, just to be sure.

『Really, I swear.』

『Then you have to bow down and apologize.』
 

『Huh!?』

 『Himeno was worried, and Shiba was being mean. You don’t joke about stuff like that.』

Himeno had been truly worried.

But now, knowing Shiba hadn’t been scolded, she felt relieved.

Why was it that when Shiba teased her, she found it… fun?

Why did her face start to relax all on its own?

She had never been like this before.

So why did Shiba make her feel this way?

『S-Sorry! I’ll apologize!』

 『I’m gonna kick you until you roll away.』

Himeno wanted to keep messaging Shiba.

So, she sent that on purpose.

She didn’t like using the kanji for “kill” (殺), so she wrote it in hiragana instead.

She wasn’t actually mad.

She just knew that if she sent something like this, Shiba would keep giving her attention.

『Wait, it was so bad it deserves a cheating punishment!?』

『Yeah, it was that bad.』

『U-uhm, how can I calm you down?』

『Shiba should just quietly let Himeno do whatever she wants.』

『You sound like you’re ready to kill me…』

『Himeno’s definitely turning into the ‘kill-man’ now.』

Himeno knew that she couldn’t actually hurt him with her words, but it was still a bit pleasing to see Shiba humor her.

『By the way… how do you plan on kicking me to death?』

『I’ll kick you like I said, a lot.』

『Hmm… And then?』

『I’ll step on you.』

This kind of situation happened all the time in manga. It was the most effective way to get to someone’s body, after all.

『If Himeno steps on someone, it’ll probably end up feeling like a massage.』

『Why?』

『Because Himeno’s light.』

『I’ll step on a painful spot.』

『S-shouldn’t you reconsider that? Even a little bit of pressure there could make someone writhe…』

『Himeno’s not thinking about that!』

Shiba kept saying ridiculous things. He just blurted them out without any warning.

Himeno hadn’t been thinking about the monster, but now… her face felt hot.

『E-eh, were you not thinking about that kind of thing!? I’m really sorry!』

『Shiba, you just sexually harassed Himeno.』

『No, that’s not what I meant!』

『But you did, no question.』

『Okay, I’m sorry. Really sorry.』

『Shiba’s going to be punished.』

Himeno wanted Shiba to take responsibility for what he said.

Shiba brought up the monster thing, which made her body feel hot, and it was all his fault.

『Punished…? What do you mean?』

『Himeno’s going to give Shiba an assignment the day after tomorrow.』

『The day after tomorrow!? That’s so sudden.』

『Yep, it’s a punishment.』

『Well, I don’t have any plans for Wednesday… but… where are we going to study manga? You can’t really do that in public, right?』

『At Himeno’s house.』

『Huh!? At your house!?』

『Yep.』

Himeno really wanted to experience a kabedon, and she also wanted Shiba’s big hand to pat her head…

But it was awkward if anyone saw it, so it made sense to do it at her place.

『T-that’s… well, that’s kind of a problem…』

『Why?』

『Well, what if something happens?』

『Is Shiba planning to attack Himeno?』

『No, I wouldn’t do that. But there’s the money issue too.』

『Then it’s fine.』

『No, it’s not. I’m telling you as a friend: don’t trust men that easily. You live alone.』

『I know.』

Himeno knew all that already, being a university student.

She understood that if Shiba did something, she might not be able to fight back.

That’s why…

『I’ll prepare a weapon.』

『If you really plan on calling me over, you should do that. You never know what could happen.』

『Got it.』

Shiba was still so kind. He didn’t have to warn her like this, but he was looking out for her. People like him were rare.

That’s why Himeno didn’t want to just be passive. She wanted to take action, too.

『But, Shiba…』

『Hmm?』

『Himeno doesn’t want to doubt her friends.』

Himeno sent Shiba her true feelings.

She knew her thinking was a bit naive, that she didn’t have much crisis management, but she didn’t want to doubt her friends.

『Ugh, seriously…』

Shiba sent a reply that made it seem like he couldn’t say anything back. It made Himeno feel a little happy.

As she grew closer to Shiba and they became friends, Himeno couldn’t help but think:

“Shiba’s future girlfriend… I kind of envy her.”