Chapter 27 The blonde hair and dark skin are very attractive; liking someone is...

Despite her confusion, Furuya couldn't be ignored, even though he was angry.

How should I reply to Furuya?

Deny? Ask a question? Play innocent? In the blink of an eye, countless different responses flashed through Nekono Ikuya's mind, and Nekono Ikuya chose—

"That's right, Furuya-kun, I was indeed trying to mislead you. You actually saw through it... Furuya-kun is so clever!"

Nekono Ikuya simply chose to admit it.

As he spoke, his expression was a mixture of composure, a touch of annoyance, and a hint of surprise, all of which ultimately transformed into sincere praise for Furuya Rei.

To be fair, this statement is somewhat sarcastic if you only focus on the content, but Nekono Ikuya said it in a way that made no sense of sarcasm, so Furuya Rei didn't mistake it for a provocation.

Perhaps it's because Nekono Ikuya's expression and tone were so sincere that it was impossible to misunderstand?

This remarkable ability to convey emotions is truly worthy of Ikuya Nekono.

Although Ikuya Nekono did indeed drift off into a trance for a moment, the time was too short, and she concealed it very well, making it difficult for anyone to notice.

So, to others, especially Rei Furuya, it seemed as if Nekono Ikuya had readily admitted it almost as soon as he finished speaking, without even the slightest hesitation.

So—Rei Furuya was completely bewildered.

"???"

Huh? Isn't Nekono-kun even going to struggle?

You're so straightforward, I'm completely confused.

The surroundings suddenly became very quiet.

Nekono Ikuya and Furuya Rei stared at each other in bewilderment.

Rei Furuya was prepared for Ikuya Nekono to make wild excuses, change the subject, evade the issue, and deny everything to the death. He had even imagined how he should respond, but—

Why does Nekono always do things the wrong way?

Nekono Ikuya, who is very good at disrupting other people's emotions and is proficient in interruption skills, blinked.

Furuya Zero: Rage gauge is accumulating, more than halfway through, big move in the works.

Nekono Ikuya: Appears suddenly and unleashes an interrupt skill, precisely interrupting spellcasting.

Furuya Zero: Rage has dissipated, insufficient rage accumulation, unable to unleash ultimate skill, currently accumulating rage again.

Nekono Ikuya: Uses the interrupt skill again.

cycle……

Nekono Ikuya's perception was correct; Furuya Rei's current anger was completely different from his initial anger. After all, from the beginning until now, Nekono Ikuya had repeatedly interrupted Furuya Rei's emotions with too many interruption skills, making it difficult for him to maintain a coherent emotional flow.

The combination of attacking and neutralizing had unknowingly shifted the nature of anger, and the existence of the character's fig leaf also provided an excuse for Furuya Rei to soften his attitude.

Most importantly, Nekono Yuya is very good at winning people's favor, especially those he pays attention to. In the short time they've known each other, Furuya Rei's attention has been highly drawn to him, and he's managed to raise her favorability quite a bit.

Having a high initial level of goodwill always brings preferential treatment, which is why Ikuya Nekono was able to easily disrupt Rei Furuya's emotions and distract him multiple times, making Rei Furuya change his attitude naturally.

It's hard to say whether there's any subconscious cooperation from Furuya Rei involved... Hmm, a two-way street?

Rei Furuya rubbed his forehead, his tone somewhat conflicted: "Nekono-kun, could you please stop dressing like this? It's weird."

Is that strange?

Nekono Ikuya glanced at Furuya Rei's hair, which shone brightly in the sunlight, and straightened up slightly.

"Is it strange? But I think it looks great!"

Rei Furuya looked at the sunny, energetic blonde-haired, dark-skinned version of Ikuya Nekono in front of him with a conflicted expression. He was handsome, but, to be precise, "He's just weird!"

Rei Furuya didn't want to say it, but he genuinely felt a sense of shame at being studied and imitated.

So it's really strange!

Nekono Ikuya slightly widened her eyes, glanced at Furuya Rei's skin again, and leaned forward slightly.

"I think blonde hair and dark skin are very attractive. This color combination is both dazzling and impactful, sunny and mysterious, very unique and attractive."

He said sincerely, "Just like Furuya-kun!"

Rei Furuya's eyes widened suddenly, his ears turning bright red. Why, why are you suddenly saying this?

Were he and Nekono talking about the same thing?

It seems like they're talking about the same thing, but something seems off. Perhaps their priorities are different?

Rei Furuya suddenly turned his head, his gaze fixed on the flow of people on the playground below, his voice tense as he spoke, "Please don't joke around!"

“I’m not joking!” Nekono Ikuya raised her voice and replied almost immediately.

He was somewhat puzzled and confused, his eyes filled with doubt, "I was being very serious, wasn't I?"

Why do I feel like he's joking?

Nekono Ikuya went all out, saying, "Blonde hair and dark skin are really good-looking, and it's only natural to like them."

“Golden hair that shines like the sun,” Nekono Ikuya gazed at Furuya Rei’s golden hair fluttering in the wind, then at his cheeks partially obscured by the hair, “and his healthy-looking, handsome skin. Isn’t this combination wonderful?”

He spread out his left hand and said, "The spirit of bronze."

He then spread out his right hand and said, "The luster of flowing gold."

Then, gently put his hands together, turned to Rei Furuya, and said very seriously, "This combination is super—charming!"

To emphasize, she's incredibly charming! Not just charming, she's extremely charming!

Nekono Ikuya's eyes were fixed on Furuya Rei, leaving him almost no room to retreat.

Very eloquent, I mean, the praise was excellent.

At this moment, Furuya Rei's thoughts were in complete disarray, like yarn scratched by a kitten, gradually becoming rambling and unaware of what he was thinking at all.

After a moment, he took a deep breath, turned his head again, and gently covered his cheek with his hand.

She's just too serious, it's hard to handle.

Does this guy who keeps going straight for the point even realize how his blunt praise sounds to the listener? Furuya Rei has never been praised so directly before.

I felt a little uncomfortable, and... I felt quite embarrassed.

So why is it that Nekono-san can say such compliments so naturally? The question remains: isn't Nekono-san ever embarrassed?

Perhaps this stems from the influence of Western culture? Western culture is always more subtle and straightforward than Eastern culture, and Nekono has half Western blood in her.

If it weren't for Nekono explicitly stating that his maternal lineage was from England, Furuya Rei would have definitely thought Nekono was half Italian!

Are Italian stereotypes increasing?

Rei Furuya has realized that something went wrong in his conversation with Ikuya Nekono.

He was trying to persuade Nekono not to follow his example, but Nekono thought he thought blond hair and dark skin were bad.

But at this point, Furuya Rei had no mind to correct him anymore. Whatever, whatever. He needed some time to calm down.

Why does Nekono always suddenly unleash a powerful attack out of nowhere, without giving any prior warning?

Nekono Ikuya was still stunned by Furuya Rei's sudden action of turning his head and covering his face.

He tilted his head in confusion. Wait, did he unknowingly deliver another critical hit to Furuya-kun?

But he really didn't do it on purpose.

Is it because my intuition is too strong, or because Furuya is too unguarded?

He was suddenly interrupted by Rei Furuya's question.

"So, Nekono-san has been dressing up like this lately just because she thinks the outfit looks good?"

Nekono Ikuya nodded, puzzled. "Yeah." He looked at Furuya Rei with a questioning gaze.

What else?

Could it be because you think it's ugly? If you don't like the outfit, you wouldn't dress up as it!

"Oh, that's great. I thought..." Furuya Rei murmured to himself, his voice fading away.

Why did you say that was too good? What did you think? Nekono Ikuya's eyes were even more puzzled, but unfortunately Furuya Rei showed no intention of answering his question.

Rei Furuya just thought to himself that he thought Nekono-san was deliberately dressing up like this to tease him.

If that's not the case... then that would be great.

They both dressed up as blond-haired, dark-skinned men, and even imitated his appearance.

The reason for imitating is simply to appreciate this style, while the reason for imitating is to deliberately tease him. In Furuya Rei's view, the two are different.

The former, Furuya Rei, might feel a little embarrassed but wouldn't mind too much; the latter, however, would only make him extremely unhappy and hold a deep grudge.

They might even directly oppose the instigator, adding them to their hostile blacklist. Whenever the two meet, they might clash head-on, perhaps even engaging in direct confrontation.

Therefore, Rei Furuya didn't want Ikuya Nekono to be the latter, but fortunately, Ikuya Nekono wasn't.

This is also why Rei Furuya immediately chose to listen patiently when Ikuya Nekono said he had a legitimate reason, and why Rei Furuya's attitude softened secretly when Ikuya Nekono explained his reasons for studying the character in the script.

That makes sense, Rei Furuya thought casually. Nekono-kun has been dressing up as a blond-haired, dark-skinned girl for a while now, but she hardly ever bothers him. She usually just enjoys herself, so it's obvious she doesn't intend to tease him maliciously in this way.

He had thought so before, and now that it's officially confirmed, a huge weight has been lifted off his shoulders.

However, when Rei Furuya relaxed, he inadvertently recalled his conversation with Nekono and the scene of seeing Nekono on the rooftop.

How do I feel...?

Rei Furuya frowned. Why did it seem like Nekono-kun didn't quite understand why he had suddenly asked to have a private talk with him?

He suddenly realized something.

No way... right?!

Rei Furuya suddenly looked at Ikuya Nekono.

Nekono Ikumi looked back at him blankly.

Rei Furuya looked bewildered.

Nekono Ikuya looked confused.

"!!!"

"???"

In the silent stillness, astonishment and doubt instantly filled the rooftop.

Rei Furuya was distracted. Could it be that Nekono-san hadn't realized that dressing up like him and wandering around in front of him might be misinterpreted as malicious or offensive?

No way... right?!

It's actually quite possible. Furuya Rei forced himself to calm down and think about it. Considering the conversation during their chance encounter in the park on the first weekend after transferring schools, Nekono couldn't even understand why someone would reject another person because of their appearance.

Perhaps this is a blind spot in Nekono's thinking. Does Nekono really not realize the offensiveness of imitating his appearance? He simply thinks that Furuya Rei's style is very attractive and wants to imitate it.

The king doesn't understand people's hearts.

No, actually, Rei Furuya just felt that Nekono's emotional intelligence seemed to fluctuate.

But Nekono-kun was kind of cute like that. Furuya Rei held back for a moment, but couldn't help it and suddenly burst out laughing.

Nekono Ikuya looked bewildered: "What's wrong?"

Rei Furuya smiled and waved his hand, "It's nothing, it's nothing."

I feel like I've learned a little more about Nekono-kun today!