I Was Reincarnated as a Mob, and After I Kept Listening to the Losing Childhood-Friend Heroine’s Complaints, I Somehow Maxed Out Her Affection Rating - 59

Chapter 59: A Late-Night Discussion with Kaede’s Mother

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(Yuuta’s POV)

Late at night, I suddenly woke up. Beside me, Kaede was sleeping peacefully, her soft breathing steady. While the innocence of it warmed my chest, for some reason there was also a restless itch deep inside me, and I couldn’t fall back asleep.

Maybe I should go get some air…

Thinking that, I quietly slipped out from under the futon and headed for the living room, careful to silence my footsteps, but…

“…Oh? You’re up, Yuuta-kun.”

“Ah!”

In the dim living room, my eyes met Kaede’s mother, who was wearing a bathrobe and tilting a glass in her hand. This was completely the opening scene of a horror movie.

I mean, that bathrobe—no matter how you looked at it, it made it hard to know where to put your eyes. No, I was a gentleman. I was just troubled because I was a gentleman. Seriously.

“S-sorry for intruding…”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. No need to worry about that. Here, sit?”

“No, um, I’m good—”

“You think I’m letting you escape?”

She smiled. I was completely doomed. Before I knew it, a glass with ice and juice had been placed in front of me. It was radiating a powerful “Drink it,” aura.

“…Thank you.”

“Hehe, you don’t need to be that tense. Just drink while we talk. Care to keep me company for a bit?”

This was bad. If I didn’t go along with it, I felt like something else would happen and that scared me. At this point, it seemed safer to just comply. Then Kaede’s mother casually spun her wineglass with her fingertips and began speaking.

“By the way…”

“Yes?”

“You’re the one who saved Kaede after she got dumped by Shouma, right?”

“Bwah!! Cough, cough!”

I nearly assassinated my own throat with carbonated water.

“W-wait—what did you just say…?”

“You don’t have to hide it, you know? That girl was really down after Shouma-kun dumped her.”

“You knew about it?”

“Of course I did.”

She answered instantly. She wore an expression like that fact was more obvious than eating rice for breakfast.

“After all, you see… Around the time that girl named Mio started showing up at Shouma-kun’s place all the time, Kaede visibly lost her energy. Even when she came home from school, she’d just space out, and she barely ate.”

Her tone was gentle, but her words pierced straight into my chest.

“That’s when I knew—‘something definitely happened.’ …She puts on a brave face, but she’s clumsy that way. Everything shows on her face.”

“I didn’t realize…”

“That’s why it was easy to tell she’d been dumped. I’m her parent, after all.”

Because I’m her parent.

Those words carried weight, and I fell silent without meaning to.

“But you know? At some point, she suddenly perked up.”

“…Huh?”

“She started making bento lunches, dressing up and going out on her own, and from a certain point on, she just looked incredibly happy.”

“You even noticed that much…?”

“Don’t underestimate a mother.”

“Yes, ma’am…”

I couldn’t argue.

“And you know… How do I put it? You can tell when a girl’s in love by her skin. It’s obvious. Really obvious.”

“By her skin? Just from that?”

“And when I thought something was suspicious—”

Kaede’s mother looked straight at me and smiled brightly.

“The cause was you.”

“T-that’s a bit too direct…!”

“It was obvious. Her tone of voice when she talked, how she checked her phone the moment she got home, the way she smiled to herself during meals.”

“You noticed all that…?”

“Everything.”

As expected of a mother.

“…But you know? I was honestly relieved that it was you, Yuuta-kun.”

“Huh?”

“Because you’re kind, serious, and you listen to her. I was so glad it wasn’t some weird playboy.”

“I-I’m not that great…”

“Don’t be modest. You’re the one who saved her. That’s a fact.”

Saying that, Kaede’s mother set her glass down with a soft clink. There wasn’t a hint of joking in her voice, and I felt a warm sensation slowly spread through my chest.

“Shouma, honestly… That boy has terrible taste in girls!”

She lightly swirled her wineglass as her rant resumed.

“Choosing that girl over his childhood friend Kaede, just what was he thinking? I’m never letting Kaede go to a guy like that!”

“…I agree.”

The words slipped out before I realized it. Before I could think “Oh, crap-”

“Well! Yuuta-kun!!”

Kaede’s mother’s mood skyrocketed.

“I think we’re going to get along great!!”

Wait, was that really worth getting this excited over?

“Seriously, not realizing how amazing Kaede is… He must be blind! Blind, I say! That’s why I’m so glad you came along~”

With her energy surging, Kaede’s mother pulled out her chair and moved right next to me. She grabbed my arm → pulled me in → the distance dropped to zero.

“Come on, no need to hold back. You know, Yuuta-kun, you can call me ‘Mom’ now if you want…?”

“Eh? Eh? EH??”

No. There was too much information coming in and the distance… And something soft… Her very large chest too… Her chest was touching me!

“W-wait, you’re too close…!”

“Family doesn’t hold back, right~?”

“Family!? Now!? At this timing!?”

That was when it happened.

Click.

Suddenly, the lights in the room turned on.

“…What are you doing, Mom.”

A low, sharp voice echoed. I turned around to see Kaede standing there, cheeks puffed out, hands on her hips.

“H-Hiiragi-san, this is… Uum…”

“Well~ A grown-up talk, I suppose~?”

Still grinning, Kaede’s mother pulled my arm in even closer.

“—Stop it!!”

With enough force that it almost made a snapping sound, Kaede yanked my arm free from her mother.

“Yuuta-kun, this way!”

“Hey—wait—don’t pull, don’t pull!”

“Come on, over here!!”

I was half-dragged away against my will. Behind us, Kaede’s mother waved her wineglass and watched us go with a smug “Oh my~♡” grin. She was clearly enjoying this.

It seemed the real enemy in this house was Kaede’s mother.

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