Tokyo landlord: why is the panties of the lady next door in my house?!

"Sister, you're so pretty!"

The girl's cool temperament didn't affect Rika Onodera at all; unexpectedly, this little one turned out to be a fan of good looks.

"Mm." Chiba Shimizu nodded, her face still expressionless.

This was a situation that Miss Chiba couldn't handle—you couldn't expect someone who found it hard to smile even once in a decade to amuse a child.

"Rika, you should hurry and thank your sister, and remember, you must behave and listen to her."

Reiko Onodera knew about the girl's cool nature and quickly stepped in with a smile.

"Okay! Thank you, sister!" Rika Onodera nodded obediently.

The cute little girl captivated Misaki Saki; she couldn't take her eyes off her,

"So cute! She must be fun to play with!"

These two playing together?

Haruka Yuzan pictured that scene in her mind,

What would two people who looked about the same age play? Probably Misaki Saki lying on the bed being lazy while Rika Onodera kneels beside her playing with building blocks and puzzles?

What do kids this age usually play with?

Shaking her head to clear the clutter of thoughts, Haruka Yuzan also moved closer and said with a smile,

"Little Rika, have you missed your brother?"

"I have!" Rika Onodera saw the boy and sweetly called out, "Brother Haruka!"

"Me too, me too!"

Misaki Saki, seeing this, hurried over as well.

The phone screen was only so big, and the girl pressed herself against Haruka, bringing her face close.

Seeing the new person on the screen, Rika Onodera didn't know if she should call her sister or little sister for a moment.

She should probably be 'sister,' but she didn't seem much older than herself...

"Little Rika, call me 'sister' and when you come to Tokyo, I will buy you candy!"

Misaki Saki said with a giggling smile.

Even though the words felt familiar, like someone had said them to her before, Rika Onodera still sweetly called out "sister."

"Such a good girl! When you come to Tokyo, I'll take you out for fun!"

These words felt familiar as well, and Haruka Yuzan couldn't help but glance at Misaki Saki, wondering why this person always imitated what I said.

Doesn't she have any originality in her brain? Makes my previous promise seem insincere!

"Rika, quickly thank Misaki sister."

Reiko Onodera, holding the phone, smiled and said that all four of them appeared on the phone screen, which required them to squeeze close together and the phone to be held farther away.

"Thank you, Misaki sister!" The little girl's smile hadn't ceased all evening, and suddenly, Rika Onodera felt it was a bit more tiring than doing homework.

"Such a good girl!"

Misaki Saki revealed a very satisfied expression.

Chiba Shimizu just watched silently from the side, unsure of what to say in this situation.

Gradually, Miss Chiba left the phone screen. She had tried her best to fit into such a lively scene but still couldn't get used to it.

At that moment,

a very gentle voice came through the phone,

"Rika, it's time to take a bath now; you can chat with your mom again tomorrow."

The voice seemed to come from the living room, getting louder as it approached, and the owner of the voice walked toward Rika Onodera.

It was Reiko Onodera's mother.

"Okay!"

Rika Onodera turned her head and said to the side, then refocused on the phone and sweetly said,

"Mom, I'm going to take a bath now; I'll video call you again tomorrow."

"Mm, okay," Reiko Onodera replied warmly, her eyes filled with reluctance.

"Bye." The little girl waved cutely at the screen.

"Bye! We'll see each other next time!" Misaki Saki was very enthusiastic in responding to the little girl.

"Mm-hmm!"

Rika Onodera nodded vigorously.

Afterward, the phone's view spun wildly, as if being passed to someone else.

"Reiko."

The gentle voice came again, and a mature woman who bore a resemblance to Reiko Onodera appeared on the screen.

Upon seeing the three people on the other side, her beautiful eyes showed a hint of astonishment.

"Mm, Mom,"

Reiko Onodera responded softly.

The words were the same, only this time, spoken by the madam.

This was Haruka Yuzan's first encounter with Mariko Akiyama; she had only heard about her during chats with Reiko Onodera and had not formally met her before.

However, even just at first sight, Haruka Yuzan felt the power of genetics.

She finally understood why Mrs. Onodera's daughters carried the alphabet distinction, which could be counted on one hand.

ABCDE!

Genetics were indeed powerful, and moreover, Rika Onodera certainly had a lot of potential for the future.

And Misaki Saki, beside her, had her mouth gaping open, taking a long time to recover from the surprise; the little girl with the skills to switch styles so freely was impressive indeed.

The scene fittingly switched to black and white, and this time, a stone-cracking effect was added.

"This is..."

Mariko Akiyama was also seeing the two Harukas for the first time.

"This is my landlord, Haruka Yuzan, and this is my roommate, Misaki Saki,"

Reiko Onodera introduced.

Upon hearing this, a touch of surprise flashed in Mariko Akiyama's heart. Although she had heard from Reiko before that her landlord was young and still in school,

seeing him in person still made her involuntarily surprised.

So young? Must be a high schooler!

"Hello, Auntie," Haruka Yuzan smiled and greeted.

As for Misaki Saki, her mouth moved several times, but the shock kept her from speaking,

finally she muttered hesitantly,

"Hello... Auntie."

"Hello to you too," Mariko Akiyama replied warmly.

Although the two looked very similar, there was a significant difference in their temperament.

Mariko Akiyama tended more towards dignified, elegant, and confident.

While Reiko Onodera retained more of her inner innocence; she always appeared particularly honest, giving off a slightly clumsy impression, even at 28.

She was simply too kind.

"Mr. Haruka really is young and promising!" Mariko Akiyama said with a smile.

"Oh no, not at all," Haruka Yuzan responded modestly.

"Please take good care of our Reiko from now on."

"It's Sister Reiko who has been taking care of us,"

"She's a bit stubborn, quite difficult to handle at times," Mariko Akiyama said softly.

"Mom!" Reiko Onodera, in front of her own mother, also showed a hint of a girl's expression for once.

"..."

After chatting with Mariko Akiyama for a while, they left time for the mother and daughter to catch up. Haruka Yuzan took the opportunity to make eye signals to Chiba Shimizu sitting at the other end of the couch.

An unannounced hint, but, even though the two of them had never discussed it before, Chiba Shimizu still understood what the boy meant.

A hint of hesitance crossed her delicate features, but, in the end, she slowly opened her mouth to say,

"Sister Reiko, may I disturb you for a moment?"

"Hmm? What's the matter?" Reiko Onodera asked curiously, turning her head.

"Um... I have something to talk to you about, can you spare three minutes?" Chiba Shimizu said seriously.

Surprised, the girl had something to tell her?

"What is it, Shimizu?"

"Well, it's a little thing, very quick. You can leave your phone here, it's a good chance for Haruka Yuzan to talk to Auntie about Rika's academic performance," Chiba Shimizu added, "Would you come up to the second floor with me?"

"Sister Reiko, you go with Shimizu first, I will talk with Auntie for a while, and then I want to do my part in tutoring Rika!" Haruka Yuzan quickly interjected.

"Of course!"

Without hesitation, Reiko Onodera nodded decisively, handed her phone to Haruka, and then followed Chiba Shimizu up to the second floor.

Although puzzled, Mrs. Onodera didn't say much; instead, she felt a hint of joy in being able to help the girl—a happy occasion for Reiko.

Unexpectantly, Miss Chiba had understood her intention. Looking at that delicate back, she silently gave her approval.

Suddenly, there was a sense of being accomplices in mischief.

Watching the two figures enter the second floor, Haruka Yuzan then returned his gaze to the phone screen.

"Hello, Auntie," the boy revealed a very sunny smile, an absolute charmer of a rich woman.

"Hello," Mariko Akiyama greeted courteously, having been quiet until then.

She guessed the boy must have something important to discuss with her.

Haruka Yuzan didn't waste time and got straight to the point,

"Auntie, Sister Reiko's birthday is on May 17th. I was thinking of bringing you and Rika to Tokyo to celebrate together."

Upon hearing this, Mariko Akiyama was visibly taken aback; she was quite unprepared for the boy to discuss such matters,

a flicker of hesitation showed in her eyes, and she didn't speak immediately.

Haruka Yuzan continued,

"As you've seen, Sister Reiko really misses you and Rika. So, for her birthday this time, I was thinking of bringing the two of you to Tokyo to celebrate together."

The boy spoke with calm confidence, and Misaki Saki also came back to herself, silently listening with perked ears.

After hesitating for a bit, Mariko Akiyama finally asked,

"Um... may I know the reason for your doing this, Mr. Haruka?"

The lady's face held the same gentleness as Mrs. Onodera when she added,

"I heard from Reiko that the rent you charge her is very cheap."

Hearing the question, Haruka Yuzan smiled and said sincerely,

"There's no special reason. Sister Reiko always takes great care of us, cooking and cleaning without ever complaining. I'm very grateful to her."

He paused and then continued, "Moreover, as you've realized, Sister Reiko misses Rika a lot. It's a small effort on my part to repay Sister Reiko, and to help her have a joyful and complete birthday celebration."

"Is that the only reason?"

Mariko Akiyama was still hesitant, "Please allow me one or two days to consider it."

"Okay, no rush," Haruka Yuzan replied with a smile. Indeed, his earlier topic might have seemed abrupt, but as long as there was no direct rejection, it was fine.