Restricted Fantasy Invasion

Chapter 43
"Auntie, the room is on the sixth floor. We don't have an elevator, so you'll need to walk up."

"Okay~"

After dinner, Ye Lan still wanted to go see the place where Yan Huan was living, and Yan Huan couldn't really refuse.

So he agreed and led them by bus to the building where his rental apartment was.

Don't be fooled by Ye Lan wearing high heels-both she and Ye Shiyu were in great shape, climbing six flights of stairs with ease.

They didn't even break a sweat; clearly, they exercised regularly.

If Vice President Sakuramiya came here, she'd probably be out of breath before even reaching the second floor.

Meanwhile, Ye Lan took in the surroundings, which were actually pretty decent-the facilities weren't too old or rundown, completely different from the questionable environments in other parts of the southern district.

She raised her eyebrows in mild surprise and asked Yan Huan,

"The environment here looks pretty good, Xiaohuan."

"Ah, well, it's public rental housing, after all. The rent isn't expensive, but applying for it is a bit of a hassle."

So-called public rental housing was actually government-sponsored affordable housing in Linmen, with restrictions on living standards and rent.

It was managed by the government, and you needed special qualifications to apply.

As an orphan, Yan Huan just happened to meet the application requirements.

The environment here was nice and the rent was cheap, so Yan Huan didn't have much pressure when it came to housing costs.

The real financial burden for Yan Huan was the tuition.

You might remember that Principal Hermes mentioned to Ye Lan earlier that the maximum scholarship at Yuanyue Academy could only cover two-thirds of the tuition.

At first glance, it might seem a bit unreasonable that even the student council president, who was top of the year at one of Linmen's only two top elite schools, couldn't get a full tuition waiver.

But that's not actually accurate.

In reality, the scholarship could cover all tuition, but the problem was, there were many other expenses besides tuition at Yuanyue Academy.

The school bus for commuting cost money, and that alone was several thousand a year.

Then there were two seasons' worth of custom school uniforms, all sorts of supplies, and fees for things like health insurance.

And then there were textbooks, which were a major expense worth mentioning.

Printed materials in Linmen were insanely expensive-a single math textbook Yan Huan was using now cost several hundred.

And that was just math; there were still four other main subjects, plus electives that sometimes required textbooks too.

Adding it all up, Yan Huan practically wanted to cough up blood at the cost!

These miscellaneous expenses weren't included in the scholarship, and together they made up about a third of the total tuition, all of which had to be paid in one go before the school year started.

Still, maybe these careful calculations could be set aside for now.

After all, Yan Huan had already converted to the loving faith of Ye Lan.

"This is it."

Yan Huan smiled back at Ye Lan, took out the key, and opened the door, revealing the forty-square-meter space inside.

"Auntie, Sister Shiyu, just come right in. There aren't usually guests at home, so I didn't prepare slippers or shoe covers or anything."

"Then we'll intrude~"

"......"

Yan Huan turned on the light and was the first to step inside.

Ye Lan and Ye Shiyu followed, taking a look around the tidy rental apartment, and Meow-chan also came out to greet them.

After all, during the handicrafts class earlier, Yan Huan had asked Ye Shiyu to make a little scarf for it; the shelf still had the cat food and cans they'd bought, so it was easy to see that Yan Huan kept a cat.

Cute creatures always easily caught women's attention, and after introducing Meow-chan by name, Ye Lan couldn't resist scooping it up for a good cuddle.

She'd thought it just looked fluffy, like a little black ball.

But once she picked it up, she realized this black cat was totally solid.

"What a plump cat!"

Ye Lan covered her mouth in amazement.

"Meow?!"

Meow-chan was shocked.

But it still gave itself away!

"Such a cute little cat, but Xiaohuan, why don't you have a litter box at home?"

Stroking Meow-chan, Ye Lan suddenly asked.

Hearing her mother say this, Ye Shiyu also glanced over curiously.

"Ah, about that."

Yan Huan looked at the adorably dazed Meow-chan in Ye Lan's arms and explained,

"Meow-chan often goes out to play by itself, so it usually takes care of business outside."

"So that's it-still a bit wild, huh? What a cute little cat."

Ye Lan stroked Meow-chan's chubby face, then set it down and continued to look around Yan Huan's little apartment.

But it was only forty square meters in total, and there wasn't anything particularly special at home, so after a while, Ye Lan and Ye Shiyu got ready to head back to Jinghe District.

"Well then, Xiaohuan, Auntie and Sister will head off for today. If you need anything, contact Auntie anytime, and come home for dinner often."

At the door, Ye Lan turned to say goodbye to Yan Huan.

"Of course, Auntie."

As always, Ye Shiyu's expression was calm, but in reality, her eyes had taken in every corner of Yan Huan's little apartment.

Only when they were about to leave did she finally withdraw her watchful gaze and say goodbye to Yan Huan,

"See you at school next week, Xiaohuan."

"Sure thing, Sister Shiyu."

There was no need for Yan Huan to see them out, since the car was parked right downstairs.

After Yan Huan closed the door, Ye Lan and Ye Shiyu walked toward the stairwell.

As they walked, Ye Shiyu glanced at her mother, who was humming and seemed in a great mood, and suddenly asked,

".Is it really okay, Mom?"

Ye Lan looked back in confusion,

"What's not okay?"

"Mom, you really want Xiaohuan to come back home, don't you?"

"Mm, that's true."

"Then, is it really okay to just let Xiaohuan stay in the southern district?"

Ye Lan was slightly taken aback, then smiled and said,

"That is what I want, but-"

"But?"

Ye Shiyu looked puzzled.

"Hmm, it might be a bit early for you, Shiyu, but let's just call this a little life lesson from Mom in advance~"

"."

Ye Lan reached out, stroked Ye Shiyu's black hair, and said softly,

"People are best at seeing those they care about as their own possessions, and then placing expectations on them.

"Parents see their children as their own, so they hope their kids will obey them and follow their plans for life.

"Children see their parents as their own, so they expect their parents to give selflessly and always help them.

"It's the same with lovers, with friends-most close relationships are probably like this.

"And when people do this, they usually don't even realize it, because we all see things from our own perspective."

Ye Shiyu blinked, was silent for a moment, then asked,

"Is that... wrong?"

Ye Lan shook her head, kept walking, and said,

"Of course there's nothing wrong with it. On the contrary, it's perfectly natural.

"It's precisely because you care about someone that you have expectations for them, hoping they'll do something and not let you down."

Her steps slowed as she reached the stairwell.

She turned back to look at her daughter, who was still standing in place,

"But Shiyu, you also have to realize: the person you place expectations on belongs first to themselves, and only then to you.

"You have to understand and respect that, or else you'll end up hurting each other.

"If you place too many expectations and treat others as your possessions, you'll just end up constantly disappointed when you don't get what you want."

Ye Shiyu's eyes narrowed slightly, her lips parting just a little.

"Xiaohuan-he's first himself, then Yulu's child, and the one I hope to confide my feelings in.

"Shiyu, you're the same for me~"

Standing in the shadows, Ye Shiyu looked at her smiling mother in confusion.

She couldn't understand-

She couldn't understand her mother's thoughts at all.

But in that moment, Ye Shiyu suddenly remembered the confusion she'd felt all week.

Every time she noticed someone else caring about or liking Xiaohuan at school, she'd feel a surge of displeasure inside.

That must be the disappointment her mother was talking about, right?

Because when you can't see the other person belonging only to you, and there's a chance they could be claimed by someone else, it goes against your expectations.

But, what's so wrong with that?

Wanting everything in the world to go your way, to always belong to you, never betray you, never leave you-

Is there really anything wrong with thinking that way?

As for disappointment, she wasn't afraid of facing it.

Because, she had the Hypnosis APP.

At that thought, the daze in Ye Shiyu's eyes was shattered by some terrifying presence inside her, and her face returned to its blank expression.

It was night, and the wind in the southern district shredded the unspeakable complexity in the air.

Ye Lan's gentle voice melted into the neon lights with their complicated scents like bubbles, turning into a riot of colors as if stained by paint.

The multicolored lights from the billboard across the public rental building gradually spread into the shadows where Ye Shiyu stood, making the purple screen that suddenly lit up in her hand become just another part of this neon world.

As if that screen was always part of this dazzling, debauched world.

And as if, at the same time, this dazzling, debauched world was being held in Ye Shiyu's hand.

"Alright, Shiyu, stop overthinking. I'm exhausted today, let's hurry home and rest~"

"Okay."

Ye Shiyu nodded, finally moving out of the shadows and heading toward the stairwell.

As she was about to leave, she glanced once more in the direction of Yan Huan's rental apartment, silently committing his room number to memory.

Only then did she catch up with Ye Lan, heading downstairs together.

All that can be said is, Ye Shiyu wasn't the only one feeling confused tonight.

"Why... why is it like this?"

Jinghe District, inside a certain Western-style mansion.

Sakuramiya Hitomi, dressed in a nightgown, stared wide-eyed for a moment, then silently pressed the bell on the corner of her desk.

"Ding ding~"

"Ka-da."

The next second, the door opened, revealing a seductive black-haired woman in a black suit standing outside.

When she saw the figure in a nightgown sitting motionless in front of the computer screen at the far end of the vast bedroom, her expression shifted to an "I knew it" look.

She pressed a button on her phone, and the "emergency situation" warning on the screen was silently cleared.

"My dear Miss Sakuramiya, haven't you ever heard the story of 'The Boy Who Cried Wolf'?"

Then, this mature woman gave a charming smile and asked,

"I knew this would happen, but as your bodyguard, I still have to remind you-not to press that bell unless it's really an emergency."

"It is already an emergency, Nara!!" Sakuramiya Hitomi's face flushed red as she turned to glare at the woman behind her.

"Eh~"

The woman called "Nara" responded perfunctorily, then closed the door and walked over to Sakuramiya Hitomi's side.

"So, just how urgent is this situation?"

"Look!"

Sakuramiya Hitomi turned back, clicked her mouse to enlarge one of countless surveillance feeds, and dragged the progress bar forward.

On the screen, in the hallway of a southern district public rental apartment, Yan Huan was seen smiling as he led Ye Lan and Ye Shiyu inside his home.

Nara looked at the screen, then turned to look at Sakuramiya Hitomi, who was puffing out her cheeks and crossing her arms, looking thoroughly disgruntled.

After a second of silence, she became a repeater and asked again,

"So, what's so urgent about this?"

"Can't you see it yet?! And you call yourself a 'virgin killer'?!"

Sakuramiya Hitomi clenched her fists, her eyes full of disdain as she looked at Nara, making Nara even more confused.

"Huh? What's this got to do with me?"

"Can't you see? The President's rental apartment has never invited anyone in before! But today... today that Ye Shiyu actually... went in?! The President's first time was actually... actually-"

"Can you not put it in such a weird way?"

Nara's attentive expression began to crack, but Sakuramiya Hitomi was completely oblivious.

"Besides, it's not just Ye Shiyu-there was an elder there too. How is this any kind of emergency?"

"But they're all women!"

Sakuramiya Hitomi bit her thumbnail, looking extremely anxious.

"Whether it's getting to know the President, staying by the President's side, or even just noticing the President- I was first! The President even made me pudding before, I bet she's never even tasted it! Why does she get to go to the President's house when I haven't even been there yet?!"

"So, if you want to go, why not just tell Yan Huan you'd like to visit his place?"

"How could it be that easy? Are you an idiot?"

Sakuramiya Hitomi shot Nara a glance, analyzing rationally,

"I've looked into the President's apartment layout-it's only forty square meters. If I try to find a proper excuse to go, the other student council members would definitely want to come too.

"Forty square meters-how could it fit five guests? Wouldn't that make things super awkward for the President? It's just not going to work."

Nara was already lying bored on Sakuramiya Hitomi's big bed, pulling out her phone to watch cute pet videos.

At the same time, she glanced at Sakuramiya Hitomi and asked,

"What I mean is, why not just tell Yan Huan you want to visit his place alone?"

"Wha-"

Sakuramiya Hitomi's face turned bright red. She waved her hands and quickly refused,

"That would... wouldn't that be way too obvious?"

"What's wrong with being obvious? What's wrong with being a little more proactive? You like him, don't you?"

"That's true, but..."

Sakuramiya Hitomi turned to look at the countless surveillance cameras on the computer screen in front of her, the piles of photos of Yan Huan beside her, and the stacks of notebooks recording his every move.

"That's totally out of character for me. Being that forward would make it way too easy for him to notice something's off..."

The more she thought about it, the paler her face became.

"If I did that, would the President quickly realize something's wrong with me? Even if we got together, would he end up disappointed, and eventually get scared off by me... If that happened, I'd seriously want to die!"

"...Ah, whatever. I don't want to lose my job yet anyway. Miss Sakuramiya, just wait until I quit before you die, okay?"

"What are you even talking about, Nara?!"

Nara sat up and yawned, her previously seductive expression now annoyed by all this trouble.

"So, why don't you just stop doing stuff like this? Making me set up all these cameras, monitoring him 24/7-now, when you're so close to being together, you've actually made things so much more complicated."

But Sakuramiya Hitomi blinked, looking at her like she was an idiot, and said,

"Are you stupid? If I didn't have cameras, how else would I keep track of the President's every move?"

"..."

Nara kind of wanted to die, but she felt like someone else deserved it more.

She flopped onto the bed, arms and legs spread, looking ready to be buried at any moment, and looked at Sakuramiya Hitomi, commenting,

"You win, Miss Sakuramiya."

"Did I win?"

Sakuramiya Hitomi came to the bedside, hands on her hips, looking at Nara-who was lying on the bed, probably sexting someone-and said,

"Isn't the main thing now that you help me?"

"So, how exactly am I supposed to help?"

Sakuramiya Hitomi stroked her chin, looking like she'd planned this all along.

She walked back to the computer desk and picked up a stack of pamphlets.

"Here, look at this."

"What's this stuff?"

"Some home product brochures-this one's for TV wiring, this one's for Wi-Fi, this one's for air conditioner installation, this one's for water heater replacement, this one's for the purifier-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, what exactly are you trying to do?"

Nara sat up, watching as Sakuramiya Hitomi laid out the pamphlets in front of her.

Sakuramiya Hitomi picked up one of the pamphlets and pointed it at Nara,

"Just pick any excuse-say it's free air conditioner installation, or TV, whatever. Just find a reason to get into the President's apartment, and then sneak in another camera-no, one isn't enough. One in the living room, one in the bedroom, and the restroom too-"

"Are you completely insane?"

"Thwack!"

Nara slapped the pamphlet out of Sakuramiya Hitomi's hand, then reached out and flicked her on the forehead.

"Tock~"

It was the lightest flick imaginable, but the tender-skinned Sakuramiya Hitomi still clutched her forehead and whimpered in pain.

"Oww, Nara!"

"Miss Sakuramiya, if you keep this up you're definitely going to be totally ruined. Forget about getting together with Yan Huan-if you get caught, you can kiss your reputation goodbye for life."

Sakuramiya Hitomi was just too much of a wimp; Nara's simple forehead flick nearly made her burst into tears.

Her face red and eyes brimming with tears, she looked up anxiously and said,

"Then what should I do?! That awful Ye Shiyu... actually, actually-"

"Weren't you super calm this afternoon? Saying in front of me there was nothing to worry about, and now at night you're being completely crushed by the other side?"

As her personal bodyguard, Nara had helped Sakuramiya Hitomi with all sorts of things like installing security cameras.

Over a hundred cameras, many of them positioned at tricky, professional voyeur angles, and they all needed regular maintenance.

Just think about it-there's no way someone as physically weak as Sakuramiya Hitomi could do all that herself; it was all thanks to Nara's help.

Having been involved in this for so long, even the usually bored adult Nara had started to pay attention to the progress of their relationship.

It was like watching an electronic cricket fight-there was entertainment every single day.

That afternoon after coming home from school, Sakuramiya Hitomi had just made a dismissive comment about her "potential rival in love," Ye Shiyu, and her performance at lunch.

EZ," "taking on disciples," "switching to manual labor.

But by evening, seeing the other side "sneak across the border and go straight for Shu Han," she totally lost her composure and sense.

Seriously, where does Miss Sakuramiya get so much energy every day?

Though, Miss Sakuramiya's frantic, flustered look in private was pretty cute too.

It felt like if she didn't always act so proper and rational in front of Yan Huan, and just showed this side of herself, she'd have already gotten him.

Sakuramiya Hitomi, clenching her fists in frustration, tried to punch Nara, but Nara could block her attacks with just one hand.

While fending off Sakuramiya Hitomi's flurry of pink fists with one hand, Nara propped up her cheek and yawned as she said,

"Miss Sakuramiya, instead of sneaking into someone else's house to install cameras, I think you should focus on what you're going to do at Sunday's game expo."

"Game... expo?"

Sakuramiya Hitomi was momentarily stunned, then immediately snapped back to her senses.

Oh right, the student council was going out for team-building this weekend!

At that time, the President and she would be together too!!

"Right, I also need to consider what's going to happen at Sunday's game expo. If there's a chance..."

Seeing Sakuramiya Hitomi finally calm down, Nara took her fist in one hand.

Then with a gentle push, she actually made Sakuramiya Hitomi stumble up off the bed.

"But, Miss, before you worry about the game expo, I think you should really think about how you're going to handle your feelings for President Yan."

"What do you mean?"

Nara sat up, propped her chin with her hand, and gave a charming smile,

"You want to be with President Yan, right?"

"Well, of course."

"But, you're using a persona you created to attract him, hoping he'll confess his love to you... Even if you succeed, will the person he falls for be the version of you you're performing, or the real you?"

Sakuramiya Hitomi paused, then looked at Nara like she was an idiot,

"Are you stupid?

"If I can create a persona that the President likes, and he feels satisfied being with me; and on the other hand, I get to have him, know his every move, then the real me is satisfied too.

"It's the best of both worlds, as long as I can keep it going, right? The fake persona is me, the real me is me, there's no difference."

At this point, Sakuramiya Hitomi had completely recovered her rationality from her earlier breakdown.

After a brief pause, she suddenly looked at Nara, and asked in a slightly chilling tone,

"Nara, you're the person I trust most in this world, that's why I let you know everything about me.

"And you, knowing all this, would never tell anyone my secrets, right?"

At those words, Nara raised her eyebrows.

With a charming smile, she drew her finger across her lips as if zipping them shut,

"Of course, I'll keep your secrets, Miss Sakuramiya.

"In return, you have to keep mine too. Don't let the main family know about my business, okay?"

Sakuramiya Hitomi smiled slightly, looking as if it was only natural, and held out her hand to Nara,

"Ah, I won't let my family know that you're impersonating my bodyguard~"

"Good, Miss."

Nara reached out and took Sakuramiya's small hand.

Then she stood up and asked Sakuramiya Hitomi,

"So, shall we start preparing for the weekend game expo? I brought the materials for you, and... you can think about what to do?"

"Okay, I'll think about it."

Nara nodded, turned, and got ready to leave.

But just as she was about to go, Sakuramiya Hitomi suddenly grabbed her sleeve, making her turn back in confusion.

Sakuramiya Hitomi's face was a bit red as she shyly pointed at the stack of installation forms for indoor equipment on the bed.

"."

The meaning was obvious.

She still wanted Nara to use this as an excuse to go install cameras in Yan Huan's room.

"."

Nara was silent for a moment, then smiled charmingly,

"No way~"

"Eh?! Why not?"

"It's for your own good. Be good."

"Ahhh, but I really, really want to see what the President's room looks like!! How he eats, how he sleeps, how he studies, how he bathes-"

"I'll be leaving now, Miss."

Nara quickly covered her ears-despite being an adult, she was afraid of hearing anything inappropriate-and hurriedly left Sakuramiya Hitomi's room.

Sakuramiya Hitomi, left alone in her bedroom, shouted in frustration,

"Nara! Seriously!"

(End of this chapter)