This weekend was Valentine's Day.
Kaoru had prepared chocolates early since he had many people to give them to.
Thinking carefully, today might be the busiest day.
"So this is why you woke me up so early?"
Kamuro Masumi looked at him with extreme displeasure.
It was only 7 AM, and since it was the weekend, many students were sleeping in - Kamuro Masumi naturally being no exception.
She had been sleeping soundly when Kaoru Tōru's phone call woke her up.
"No one's around in the morning. Someone might see us being affectionate if it were noon or evening."
Kaoru glanced at her thighs, surprised that she had answered the door in her pajamas, her smooth, delicate legs completely exposed to view.
Kamuro Masumi knew what he was looking at but couldn't be bothered to gouge his eyes out anymore.
"You're not planning to give Sakayanagi chocolates later too, are you?"
"Already did."
"Oh."
Kaoru glanced into her room and was about to enter when Kamuro Masumi looked at him with full alertness.
"No."
"I haven't said anything yet."
"Just no."
"Reason?"
"I wouldn't be able to stop myself from agreeing."
As she spoke, Kamuro Masumi quietly turned her face away.
She wasn't an idiot - she knew what would happen if she let a pervert inside, and she also knew she wouldn't be able to refuse this pervert.
Last time she could blame the alcohol, but this time they might go all the way. How could she pretend nothing happened around him afterwards?
Kaoruseemed to understand her meaning and fell into brief silence.
For some reason, Kamuro Masumi found this atmosphere unbearable.
"The day before yesterday was Sakayanagi's birthday, you didn't forget, did you?"
Kamuro Masumi was both diverting attention and expressing curiosity, "Didn't you get her a gift?"
"Of course I did, she was quite satisfied with it."
Kaoru didn't wish to discuss this topic further.
Kamuro Masumi was momentarily at a loss for words.
After holding back for a while, she said dryly, "The exam subjects will be announced tomorrow."
Kaoru suddenly smiled, a smile that made Kamuro Masumi somewhat uneasy.
"Don't worry, she won't get the chance."
...
Besides Kamuro Masumi, Kaoru then gave chocolates to Hasebe Haruka, Yamamura Miki, and Sakura Airi, who had secretly left chocolates at his doorstep last month.
"Would you like to come in?"
Hasebe Haruka accepted the chocolate but didn't rush to thank him.
Instead, she invited Kaoru in.
"No, staying too late might get me noticed."
Kaoru didn't take the bait.
Although both were pretending to be friends now, they were well aware of the true nature of their relationship.
Hasebe Haruka fell silent for a moment. "Do you have feelings for Airi?"
"In every sense, yes." Kaoru replied.
Hasebe Haruka corrected herself, "I meant as an idol. Although I'm not optimistic about it, you've had similar situations before, like with Osaki Tenka."
A shy, gloomy-type idol—it wasn't as if he hadn't encountered one before.
"No, I've never had such thoughts."
Kaoru denied it. "Airi is Airi, and Tenka is Tenka. Besides, I'm not a producer anymore."
Hasebe Haruka eyed him suspiciously.
This guy was known for persistently bothering others until they agreed to become idols.
"I don't mind. Airi is an idol to begin with, unlike an ordinary person like me who doesn't even get audition opportunities."
The girl sighed softly. "Now, when I try to be a good friend to him, he thinks I'm some kind of creepy stalker."
Kaoru's face darkened. "I've never stalked you. That time we met in the park was purely coincidental."
"I understand. After all, I'm quite cute. Boys have always had lewd thoughts about me."
Hasebe Haruka poked her cheek with her index finger.
Though it was a somewhat teasing gesture, it carried a natural charm.
"Here's a fun fact: first-year middle school students are still elementary school students until April of that year."
Yes, Hasebe Haruka was just a newly developed middle schooler back then.
Kaoru thought this would shut her up, but she blinked and brought up his embarrassing past.
"Ara ara, how come I remember someone recruiting an elementary schooler into their agency?"
Hasebe Haruka wore an expression of sudden realization.
"Aha, I get it now. You really are a pervert, aren't you? The so-called genius composer is actually a perverted foot fetishist who frequently harasses girls. How could such a person exist?"
It was over.
Kaoru felt like this had turned into a mutual roasting session!
"Let me think... After one particular performance, this genius accidentally dropped a pair of black stockings from his pocket. How strange—whose stockings were they? To think this perverted foot fetishist would carry them around with him."
As the saying goes, the most devoted fans are also the biggest haters, fully aware of all his embarrassing secrets.
"How do you remember all this so clearly?"
Kaoru had given up defending himself.
To a twisted fan like her, his explanations were nothing but pointless excuses.
"Ehehe, thanks for the compliment."
Hasebe Haruka smiled. "But I think it's someone's fault for playing around with so many idols and then just walking away without a care."
"If you're going to scold me, you could be more aggressive about it."
Seeing his expression, Hasebe Haruka suddenly felt somewhat disinterested.
The matters between him and them were actually not something she had any right to comment on.
The girl twirled her hair around her finger and smiled faintly at him.
"How do I compare now to before?"
"To be honest, you're like a completely different person."
Kaoru recalled his previous impression, "I remember you used to have such small breasts, yet your attitude was quite arrogant."
"Is that all you ever notice about girls? Their chests?"
Hasebe Haruka gritted her teeth.
Though she felt somewhat proud, couldn't he pay attention to other things?
Kaoru chuckled: "Your personality has improved too. The old you would probably have kicked me by now."
Hasebe Haruka felt slightly annoyed, though the corners of her mouth lifted slightly as she corrected him.
"I'm not some violent maniac. The problem was with you - who knew you were following me around and frequently harassing girls?"
Kaoru couldn't be bothered to argue with her about this.
The two of them hadn't seen each other often back then anyway, which was why he hadn't recognized her earlier.
"Here's your chocolate. I'm leaving."
Seeing this, Hasebe Haruka bit her lip lightly, but before she could speak, Kaoru had already turned and walked away.
How could their relationship progress further?
She keenly sensed that something had changed about Kaoru too.
This lecher who wouldn't even spare elementary schoolgirls was actually ignoring her.
Thinking carefully, he had only ever toyed with the idols from his own agency before.
Hasebe Haruka had never heard of him playing around with women outside.
Anyone else would probably think that having a harem of agency idols was enough, so it was understandable that he didn't mess around outside.
Hasebe Haruka had studied everything about him and discovered that whenever he approached any girl, he did so with a strong sense of purpose.
Especially during the early days of the agency's development, she'd heard he once caused a cold war between an idol and her producer.
By the time she came into contact with him, that crisis had already been resolved for several months.
Hasebe Haruka had no way to learn about it, and could only search for clues from past traces.
Additionally, Hasebe Haruka had taken the opportunity to collect a full set of merchandise.
The producer rarely appeared on camera, only in a few variety shows that had invited this legendary producer.
Hasebe Haruka had specifically saved these episodes separately and could practically recite the producer's lines from memory.
His expressions, his reactions, his movements, his voice, his gaze, his body, his thoughts, his experiences, every song he composed, every shot of him, every photo of him - and etched deep in her memory, his face.
Unconsciously, Hasebe Haruka had already opened his chocolate.
She gently bit off a piece, the bitter taste melting on her tongue, followed by a honey-like sweetness that felt somewhat addictive.
Friendship chocolate.
So this was friendship chocolate.
Come to think of it, he had said something similar to her before.
In a park near dusk, when she had a small conflict with her friend at the time and was hiding alone in the park sulking, she happened to run into him.
Her first thought was, this middle-aged man looked so familiar—probably the same one she'd encountered at the concert last time.
She recalled that Kazeno-senpai had referred to him as the Producer.
Since Kazeno had graduated from their middle school, once she became an idol, the entire school knew they had a moderately famous idol who was once their classmate or senpai.
Driven by intense curiosity, some classmates decided to attend Kazeno-senpai's concert and invited her along.
She must have lost her mind to agree to their invitation.
And so, at that day's concert, she accidentally ran into the Producer.
As Hasebe Haruka ate his chocolate, she wondered if he had ever tasted the chocolate she made. If he had, would he notice a different flavor?
If the brief glimpse at the concert was an accident, her chance encounter with the Producer in the park felt like fate.
The scene in the park was something Hasebe Haruka could never forget—after all, anyone would be deeply impressed after running into a pervert in the park.
The funny thing was, she must have been broken at the time, because instead of running away, she ended up arguing with this pervert, calling him a "trashy old man" one moment and a "perverted foot fetishist" the next.
Of course, Hasebe Haruka was also a bit angry.
When she mentioned her dream of becoming an idol someday, this perverted middle-aged man outright rejected her.
Later, she realized that if he hadn't rejected her, she probably wouldn't have paid so much attention to his agency.
Whenever any scandal broke out, she would rush to the scene to mock him.
But as she laughed, she ended up getting herself entangled in it all.
Perhaps only those who wanted the Producer to fail quickly would realize that he was constantly creating miracles.
Each time, Hasebe Haruka would witness it from the closest possible distance, watching as the Producer led the entire agency to grander stages.
The moment fireworks lit up the sky above Tokyo Dome, Hasebe Haruka realized she was jealous.
Every time she saw them happily enjoying themselves, a twisted monster would emerge in her heart.
How could they be so happy? How could they smile like that? It made Hasebe Haruka deeply envious.
In contrast, she felt herself drifting further and further apart from her own friends.
At one point, she even thought that friendship was nothing special—just passing companions in life.
Even if she had no friends now, she would make new ones later, so there was no need to care about such things.
Seeing their smiles, Hasebe Haruka once darkly assumed it was all just part of their professional performance—an act for the audience, devoid of genuine emotion.
But people can't deceive their own hearts.
Hasebe Haruka thought the Producer was amazing for being able to handle the emotions of so many girls and guide them so well.
Like most people, she believed the Producer was the soul of 283 Agency.
Originally, the idols were scattered across the country.
Some might have lived perfectly fine lives without the Producer, while others were content with their own small worlds.
It was the Producer who gathered these sparks and ignited a new generation's flame, unleashing a brilliance far beyond what they could achieve on their own.
Thus, after the Producer left, the once-thriving 283 Agency fell into a state of stagnation.
Hasebe Haruka thought she would gleefully clap her hands in dark satisfaction—after all, they didn't know how to cherish their Producer.
Instead, she found herself feeling utterly miserable.She had not yet possessed it, but had already lost it forever.
Even before losing it, her relationship with the producer had been nothing more than a fleeting encounter between strangers. She could only mourn the perverted uncle she had argued with from afar.
"If only I could start over"—Hasebe Haruka had this thought countless times.
If she could do it all again, she would definitely start as friends with him.
That's why, when she first saw Kaoru, she dared to swear she had no strange thoughts—she was simply overwhelmed by the shock of surprise.
After testing him, she confirmed it was really him!
Even so, Hasebe Haruka swore her intentions were pure.
She didn't know why he appeared here, nor how he had returned from the dead.
She just felt they should at least become friends, and then she began dropping hints and flirtations.
No one understood Kaoru's preferences better than her.
Just by seeing his gaze, she could immediately grasp his thoughts.
Rather than taking the initiative, Hasebe Haruka actually wanted to be a bit more reserved—she couldn't just throw herself at him upon meeting.
Her plan was progressing slowly, but it seemed she was a step behind others.
Though slightly annoyed, Hasebe Haruka wasn't discouraged.
She had long known this guy was the Harem Overlord.
However, her thinking underwent a slight change.
Since he was going to have a harem anyway, would adding one more person—herself—be too much?
By any measure, it shouldn't be excessive. It seemed she was the only one in the whole school who knew Kaoru's identity.
She was a living witness, holding all his dark secrets—wouldn't he have to silence her?
Since she was going to be silenced anyway, wouldn't it be better if he just pinned her to the bed?
Hasebe Haruka hinted this to Kaoru several times.
"You wouldn't want them to know you're here, would you, Producer-san?"
But Kaoru didn't seem to catch her meaning.
"Though I'd love to call you 'perverted uncle' again, you're probably not the same producer from back then."
Hasebe Haruka had finished her chocolate and muttered softly, "How strange. Did Ichinose drug you?"
The girl felt the current Kaoru lacked the strong sense of purpose he once had.
In the past, she suspected that if she just extended her jade feet, he would immediately kneel on the ground.
"He seems to care about the other person's feelings now... No, it's more like he consciously shoulders his responsibilities and deliberately restrains his desires, not acting rashly."
Hasebe Haruka fell into deep thought, especially since she recently noticed something odd about Sakura Airi.
Through careful probing, she deduced something must have happened between them.
But it didn't seem like they had "cooked"—more like they'd done something strange.
"He actually held back?"
Hasebe Haruka found it unbelievable.
This guy used to unapologetically condition idols, making them wear strange clothes and dance for him—sheer twisted taste.
If the idols were here, they'd probably share similar sentiments, as if they were dating a high school student.
Wait—dating?
Hasebe Haruka felt she had stumbled upon a blind spot.
She looked at the friendship chocolate in her hand, and a bold idea gradually formed in her mind.
"You... couldn't possibly be serious..."
She couldn't finish her words because she realized what had changed about Kaoru.
This time, he would take responsibility.
Hasebe Haruka only felt her heart beating rapidly—he might not leave again.
In that instant, the girl could hardly contain her emotions and quickly checked her calendar. Gradually, a smile surfaced as she made a special note on the date.
'Dangerous day.'