When I Helped Out At My Classy Classmate's Family Home, They Started Going All Out To Close In On Me From Every Angle. - Chapter 6: The Story of How I Ended Up Working Part-Time at Japan's Top-Notch Traditional Japanese Restaurant――6

The Story of How I Ended Up Working Part-Time at Japan’s Top-Notch Traditional Japanese Restaurant――6

Waving his hand lightly, Gen-san retreated, leaving me standing there, frozen in place.

Takamine-san, still wearing her gentle expression, urged me forward.

“Well, please come inside.”
“Huh? Come in?”
“Yes. No need to hold back.”
“Th-then… excuse me?”

Her invitation was so natural that I found myself nodding without hesitation.

Stepping over the threshold, I removed my shoes and entered from the entryway.

“This way, please,” she said, walking ahead.
“Oh, okay.”

She seemed to have somewhere in mind to take me. Lacking the opportunity to ask any questions, I followed her silently, my confusion still unresolved.

We walked down a hallway and climbed a staircase.

“Good work today. How was it?”
“I didn’t make any mistakes, and I think I can manage moving forward.”
“Fufu~, that’s wonderful to hear.”

Chatting casually, we continued until Takamine-san stopped in front of a door.

She opened it.

Inside was a spacious Western-style room. Strangely, it was filled with countless cardboard boxes.

“What’s with all these boxes?” I asked, gesturing toward them.

“They were brought in by the movers,” she replied with a warm smile.

Movers? Did she order something online? But this amount… it’s way too much for that.

Feeling something off, I touched my chin, pondering the situation.

As I hummed a thoughtful “Hmm…” Takamine-san suddenly turned toward me.

“So, what do you think? About this room?”

The abruptness of her question, coupled with its unclear intent, left me at a loss for words.

Not knowing what else to say, I gave a safe and neutral answer.
“It’s… a nice room, I guess?”

“I’m glad to hear that you like it,” she said, smiling contentedly.

Relieved that I hadn’t said anything out of place, I let out a quiet sigh of relief.

Then, Takamine-san continued.

“The room where Kanda-kun, you will be staying from now on, of course,” Takamine-san said, her words so matter-of-fact that they shook my world.

“…What?”

It wasn’t something I could just let slide. Panicking, I pressed her for clarification.

“W-wait, Takamine-san. What do you mean by ‘staying in this room from now on’? Why would that happen?”
“Because, starting today, Kanda-kun, you will be living with us.”
“Wh-what the hell!?”

Takamine-san casually dropped the bombshell, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

“I’m going to be… living with you!? With you and the others!?”
“Yes. After all, working at HanaMori includes living on-site.”
“No one told me that!”
“Eh? B-but… didn’t you agree, Kanda-kun? That’s why you came here, isn’t it?”

When I leaned closer, her face flushed as she flustered, waving her hands nervously.

Something wasn’t adding up. Not only was I bewildered, but Takamine-san seemed confused as well.

Knitting my brows, I wracked my brain.

What’s going on here? Takamine-san doesn’t seem to fully grasp the situation either. It’s as if there’s a gap in the information being shared between us—

Wait a second.

A possibility struck me like a lightning bolt.

It was my mom who relayed HanaMori’s request to me.

It was also my mom who told HanaMori that I had accepted the job.

My mom had been acting as the sole intermediary between me and HanaMori from the start.

If that’s the case—

Mom, YOU’RE THE CULPRIT, AREN’T YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!?