My Wives Of Simulation

Chapter 69: I Went To His House Last Night

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Utaha first met Elric in the second grade of elementary school. At that time, Elric's parents were still alive. They had just moved to the neighborhood and had a good relationship with Utaha's parents.

Elric's father, Rune Takahashi, was a very talkative man, while his mother was gentle and beautiful.

Utaha grew up alongside Elric, witnessing his life unfold—the death of his mother, his attempts to build a family, the eventual breakup of that family, and the arrival of Kasugano Sora.

She saw it all.

In Utaha's eyes, she was the first person to truly know Elric.

Though Elric mentioned a few friends he had in the first grade before moving away and losing contact, Utaha dismissed it as nothing more than the fleeting past of a six-year-old child.

Who could remember such things so clearly after growing up?

She had played with Elric since childhood. Even when Sora later appeared in his life, Utaha was confident she still had a place in Elric's heart.

While she had only regarded Elric as a good friend during their early years, things changed later when Elric discovered one of her little secrets. It caused a rift in their childhood relationship, but it was just a passing memory from when they were young.

Now, Utaha could proudly declare…

She! Only had Elric as a friend!

However, this understanding was shattered by an outsider during junior high school.

"Elric, my parents are calling you and Sora over for dinner tonight. You..."

Following her usual habit, she stopped by Elric's house after school. Despite attending different junior high schools, their homes were close enough that Utaha could see him every day.

Her parents, feeling sorry for Elric and his sister, often invited them over, and Utaha took it upon herself to care for her childhood friend during that time.

But upon arriving at Elric's house that day, she discovered someone else was already there.

It was Yuki Suou!

"Hey, you are..."

Holding a bag of unknown contents, Yuki appeared flustered when she saw Utaha. Her obvious panic made Utaha curious about the bag—was it something shameful?

"Kasumigaoka, this is Yuki. She came by to leave something here."

"Suou, this is my old friend, Kasumigaoka Utaha. Please hand me the bag."

Taking the package from Yuki, Elric introduced the two to each other with a casual tone.

"Hello, Suou."

"Hello, Kasumigaoka."

Their initial meeting was unremarkable, and at the time, Utaha still thought of Elric as nothing more than a good friend, so she felt no jealousy.

But later...

"Elric, Sora, you… Suou, you're here again."

"Elric, I... Oh, it's you again, Kasumigaoka."

"Kasumigaoka-san, you seem to have lost some weight recently."

As time went on, Utaha realized she encountered Yuki every time she visited Elric's house. Gradually, she began to suspect the two were in a relationship.

"In love? No, Suou just asked me to help her with... um, right?"

To Utaha's guess, Yuki replied.

"Yes, I think so..."

As if she had something to hide, Suou nodded slightly.

Of course, as time went on and they all entered high school, Utaha saw Suou less and less. The last time they had met seemed to have been half a year ago.

Now, having officially confirmed her feelings for Elric and knowing their relationship had finally shifted, Utaha could tell the moment she saw Suou that this girl had probably started to realize her own feelings for Elric—just as Kasumigaoka herself once had.

After all, the instincts between women are often accurate.

She suspected Suou might have initially regarded Elric as just a friend but was gradually drawn to him.

With this thought in mind, Utaha took the initiative to greet Yuki. Unlike how she might treat Kaguya, whom she viewed as a rival to be dismissed, Kasumigaoka could not look at Suou in the same way. Suou was different. This girl genuinely knew Elric from early on, and, more importantly, they shared a common secret!

...

Utaha couldn't help recalling a morning in junior high school when she visited Elric's house to call him to school, only to find Yuki there. She even suspected, in hindsight, that Suou had spent the night at Elric's house.

The mere thought of it now made Kasumigaoka feel that Suou might be more formidable than she had initially realized.

"Long time no see, Kasumigaoka-san. Do you still like curry?"

The casual remark from Yuki held a subtle yet sharp edge.

Do you remember the first chapter when Utaha asked Elric to have dinner with her? The ingredients she brought for him when he simulated returning home?

It was curry.

From childhood, Utaha had loved the taste of curry, and Suou clearly remembered it. Moreover, Suou had also shared meals at Elric's house.

With just a simple sentence, Suou demonstrated her closeness to Elric and subtly implied her standing was no less significant than Kasumigaoka's as his childhood friend.

"Curry?" Utaha replied with a calm smile, immediately grasping Suou's intent. "I like it—especially the delicious curry Elric made for me last night."

The counterattack was swift and direct.

"Last night? Oh... I guess Kasumigaoka-san went to trouble Elric-san again. That's not something good friends should do."

The moment Suou heard Kasumigaoka's response, her expression faltered slightly, but she didn't back down.

Sure enough, the mention of Kasumigaoka having dinner at Elric's house the previous night drew varied reactions from those around them.

Haruno glanced at Elric with a mischievous smile, while Yukino bit her lip lightly, a flicker of regret passing through her usually composed expression.

Kaguya's face remained calm, but her trusted maid, Hayasaka Ai, could tell that her mistress was quietly fuming.

Suzune subtly adjusted her posture, her long legs tightening as a hint of envy flashed in her eyes. She couldn't help but wonder why she, too, didn't have an excuse to visit Elric's house for dinner.

Meanwhile, Chika looked utterly confused. How could she have missed the fact that her best friend, Suou, already knew Utaha? Judging by their tones, the two clearly didn't get along very well.

As for Sena...

The innocent, beautiful girl was still busy trying to remember why Elric seemed so familiar to her.

Dinner? That was a trivial matter.

She could invite everyone to her house for dinner if they wanted! After all, it was common knowledge that Sena... had no friends!