All Beautiful Girls Want to Stick with Me

On the other side, in downtown Tokyo.

After a long day of work, Yukinoshita Haruno finally finished her overtime and managed to leave the office. She initially thought about grabbing a late-night snack, but now she just wanted to get home quickly, lie down on her bed, and have a good night's sleep—after all, she had to be back at work by 9:30 AM tomorrow.

"Ugh... working overtime until 10 PM is already hard enough. How do those corporate slaves manage to work until two or three in the morning?" Yukinoshita Haruno muttered in complaint.

As the eldest daughter of the Yukinoshita family, she didn't fully understand that sometimes overtime isn't a choice—some people work late simply because they have no other option.

It's one thing if overtime comes with extra pay, but many companies don't offer that. They frame it as "voluntary" overtime for their employees.

Many so-called "voluntary" activities are often just disguised obligations.

When she got home, she originally planned to go straight to bed, but as soon as she lay down, she realized her stomach was empty. The hunger instantly killed any chance of sleepiness.

"Mom, I'm hungry!"

Yukinoshita Haruno instinctively called out, only to realize that she wasn't at her family's home—she was in her rented apartment.

The apartment she rented wasn't very large, but it was just the right size for one person. It had a private bathroom, a shower, and a small kitchen for cooking. Although it was small, it was convenient for living alone and easy to clean.

Even renting such a small space in the city wasn't cheap.

After all, this was central Tokyo.

Renting a place was expensive, and buying a property was even more so.

When she wasn't earning her own money and was living off her family's wealth, Yukinoshita Haruno might not have felt the pinch of paying rent every month. But now that she was on her own, earning her own money, she began to understand the difficulty and effort involved in making a living.

With no parents around to cook for her, Yukinoshita Haruno had no choice but to get up and make herself a cup of instant noodles.

"Tsk... my favorite rich pork soy sauce flavor is already gone. Tonight, I'll have to settle for cheese pizza potato tomato flavor."

Once she had decided on her flavor, it only took a few minutes for the noodles to be ready.

She had originally planned to add a sausage and a boiled egg, but she realized she had run out of both. She hadn't thought to pick up more when she passed by the convenience store on her way home.

"Sigh... I'll have to restock at the convenience store tomorrow after work."

Yukinoshita Haruno sighed in resignation. In her opinion, instant noodles without sausage and egg just weren't complete. But her hunger left her with no energy to make another trip to the store.

Besides, the convenience store was a bit of a walk from her apartment, and by the time she got back, the noodles would be cold.

"Itadakimasu."

With that, Yukinoshita Haruno began eating her noodles.

Although her favorite flavor was the rich pork soy sauce, perhaps because she was so hungry, the cheese pizza potato tomato flavor tasted ten times better than usual.

The small cheese-flavored cubes were especially tasty, with the rich, cheesy flavor satisfying both her empty stomach and her taste buds.

While eating, Yukinoshita Haruno also checked Dengeki Bunko's website to see the current popularity of Sword Art Online.

3.37 million views.

"Oh my... The popularity is growing so fast. I remember it was just 3.1 million this afternoon."

In less than six hours, the view count had increased by 270,000.

And by the looks of it, the growth wasn't slowing down at all.

"It seems I really struck gold with this one," Yukinoshita Haruno chuckled, feeling quite pleased.

Being Izumi-sensei's editor could mean promotions and pay raises weren't just dreams!

After finishing her noodles, she tossed the empty cup and disposable chopsticks into the kitchen trash can, planning to take out the garbage to the recycling point near her apartment in the morning.

With her hunger sated, she turned off the lights, leaving only a small nightlight by her bed. Crawling back under the covers, she finally felt comfortable and knew she'd have a good night's sleep.

"Indeed, the happiest time after work is when you're lounging around at home..." Yukinoshita Haruno sighed contentedly as she lay under her blanket, with the air conditioner on.

She closed her eyes, ready to drift off into dreamland. But to her surprise, as soon as she closed her eyes, Izumi Kotomi's delicate and cute face appeared in her mind.

Izumi Kotomi's still slightly youthful face was irresistibly refined and beautiful. Her crescent moon-like slender eyebrows, clear and shimmering eyes resembling pink gems, porcelain-white skin, and those alluring, kissable lips.

And that large, white, soft...

Yukinoshita Haruno suddenly opened her eyes wide and sat up in bed.

When she had thought of Izumi Kotomi just now, she had actually...!!

A blush spread across Yukinoshita Haruno's snow-white face as she turned the lights back on, grabbed a set of clean black lace lingerie from her wardrobe, and walked towards the bathroom.

"I guess I'll take a shower tonight... and maybe wash my 'clothes' as well."

Blushing, Yukinoshita Haruno went into the bathroom to take a shower and wash her undergarments.

Meanwhile, back in her room, Izumi Kotomi, still playing Azur Lane, suddenly sneezed and rubbed her cute little nose.

"Why did I sneeze all of a sudden? Could it be that someone was thinking about me?"

[In a way, yes. Someone was indeed thinking about you.]

The God-Level Heroine System, ever so wise, responded leisurely.

"Who?"

[A girl.]

"Do I know her?"

[Yes, you do.]

"Is she pretty?"

[Very pretty!]

"Oh, then I'm relieved."

Izumi Kotomi shifted her focus back to her phone.

[What?! You're only concerned whether it's a guy or a girl and if they're attractive? This isn't relief—this is you being infatuated with her!]

Blushing as the God-Level Heroine System exposed her thoughts, Izumi Kotomi pretended she hadn't heard anything and continued with her daily joy and sorrow—the time to build.

Let's draw a single pull first, to test her luck.

Whoa, it's Formidable!!!

After so long of eyeing her, the build pool had finally granted her wish, and Formidable had arrived!

So happy! Time to buy Formidable's outfit [Royal Lady by the Seaside].

Let's try another draw!

Whoa, it's Le Malin!!!

Le Malin's white silk stockings...

Today's build time was a happy one.