[MashUp] Ch 16: Another Perfect Night

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Click

The key turned in the lock.

Takuma pushed the door open.

"Hmm..."

The air carried a lingering warmth and fragrance—fresh from a shower, the kind only a mature woman could leave behind.

On the living room sofa sat the usually cold and untouchable beauty of a teacher. Tonight, however, she wore a red tracksuit, feigning the seriousness of work.

The coffee table in front of her was stacked high with lesson plans and reference books, like a fortress wall.

At the sound of the door, her shoulders trembled, but she stubbornly kept her back to him.

Takuma slipped into his slippers, a knowing smile tugging at his lips, and walked closer.

He said nothing.

He only stood behind her, gaze lingering.

With his free hand, he lazily twirled a lock of her soft pink hair around his finger.

Mafuyu Kirisu went rigid, heat racing from her ears down her neck.

Three seconds.

That was all it took for her carefully constructed defenses to crumble.

Still not daring to raise her head, she forced out a cold, businesslike tone to mask her nerves. "I spilled something on my clothes while grading today."

"…So I showered before I called you."

Takuma's smile deepened.

His eyes lingered on her flushed cheeks, then on the mountain of lesson plans.

Meanwhile, his cold hand slowly trailed down the path of her hair, slipping beneath her tracksuit until his fingers found the grasp on her warm bottom.

Her face nearly burst into flames.

She hurriedly added, stiff as ever, "The dean gave me a new assignment. I have to work late tonight."

The subtext was clear. Only idiots and singles wouldn't get it.

"Oh, really?"

Takuma let out a low, thoughtful sigh. "That sounds rough, Mafuyu."

"Lucky for you, I'm hungry too. I'll make dinner."

He withdrew his mischievous hand, picked up the bag carrying the so-called Phantom Matsutake, and strolled into the kitchen.

The kitchen was Takuma's domain.

As soon as he revealed the snow-white mushroom with its faint star-flecked cap, the very air seemed to sharpen and come alive.

[Housekeeping Template Lv. 2 — Activated.]

His movements were elegant, almost artistic.

Top-tier ingredients didn't need complicated recipes.

Paper-thin slices of matsutake joined marbled wagyu beef and the freshest vegetables in a simmering pot.

Zzz—

A domineering fragrance burst forth, spilling past the kitchen door and invading the entire apartment.

On the sofa, Mafuyu—still pretending to be buried in work—twitched as her nose caught the scent.

The red pen in her hand froze.

Ten seconds of resistance. That was all she managed before she closed the lesson plan with a sigh, rose to her feet, and quietly sat down at the dining table, posture perfect, hands folded in her lap, back straight as a rod.

When Takuma emerged with two bowls of wagyu and matsutake rice, that's what he saw: a woman so obedient it was almost comical.

One brow lifted. Amusement curled at his lips.

"Well, well."

"Look at you, Mafuyu. Sitting so nicely before dinner's even served?"

Her cheeks went scarlet.

She turned her head, feigning calm, and tried to steer the conversation elsewhere. "Where… did you go today? You're back so late."

"Nowhere special. Just the back mountain."

He set the steaming bowl in front of her with a casual shrug.

"Found something interesting, thought I'd bring it back."

Mafuyu's gaze fell on the shimmering mushroom in her bowl, its translucent flesh glowing faintly like a jewel. She remembered a news report mentioning the legendary, priceless Phantom Matsutake.

He found this… casually? On a walk?

Her heart gave a violent squeeze.

She looked up at the boy across from her. The calm expression, the unfathomable air—this mysterious neighbor was wrapped in a fog far deeper than she had imagined.

She forced her voice to steady, mumbling under her breath, "That's… really some luck."

"Mm. Today was lucky indeed."

Takuma's smile held layers of meaning. Faces flashed through his mind one after another—

The silver-haired girl's shy, angry pout.

The green dragon's pitiful wail.

The humiliated tears of a royal guard.

The clumsy kiss of a blonde princess.

The blood-hungry gleam in the swordswoman's violet eyes.

He brushed the memories aside and focused on the "main dish" sitting before him, about to be undone by food.

"Go on. Eat. Flavor like this fades by the minute."

Mafuyu picked up her chopsticks and slipped a thin slice of mushroom onto her tongue.

Her eyes widened instantly.

The taste was transcendent, overwhelming.

Her mind screamed that it was improper, but her body betrayed her, desperate for another bite… and another…

Her willpower shattered like glass.

When she finally came to, her bowl was empty—every grain of rice gone.

A deep, unfamiliar satisfaction washed through her, leaving her unwilling to even move a finger.

Takuma didn't touch his own food. He only watched her, savoring the sight.

Her cheeks were flushed, eyes dewy, all her carefully maintained ice and pride melted away.

This was the real Mafuyu Kirisu. The most delicious version.

Second only to the bed version.

"Seems top-shelf ingredients work better than alcohol."

He moved.

Strong arms wrapped around her from behind, effortlessly lifting her off the chair.

"Ah!"

She let out a startled cry before he carried her to the sofa.

Holding her from behind, his chin rested lightly on her shoulder, warm breath brushing her ear.

"Now that you're full, time to get down to business."

His voice was low, teasing. "Let me help you with those lesson plans."

He picked up her red pen, guided her trembling hand, and circled a mistake.

"See? The logic here doesn't work. Students won't understand."

Mafuyu sat frozen in his arms, feeling his warmth, his heartbeat, listening to his voice rumble at her ear.

She couldn't process a word. She only felt herself melting—completely overtaken by a force more intoxicating than even the Phantom Matsutake.

Night seeped through the floor-to-ceiling windows. The lights in the living room dimmed.

Papers scattered across the coffee table, the red pen abandoned on the carpet.

No one knew how much time passed.

Takuma gazed at the exhausted ice queen beside him. "Alright, time for bed, Mafuyu."

The only reply was a faint, kitten-like murmur.

---

Next Morning

Mafuyu awoke.

She washed, dressed, and painted her face into perfection. The mirror showed the flawless, untouchable Ice Queen once more.

After finishing the breakfast Takuma left for her, she grabbed her briefcase, slipped into her heels, and headed to the door.

Today had to be perfect too.

Her hand turned the knob. The door to Apartment 501 creaked open.

But at the exact same moment—

Click.

The door to 502 opened.

Mafuyu froze, head turning stiffly.

A girl stepped out.

Silver hair flowing like moonlight. Skin pale as snow. Eyes clear and blue as sapphires.

Her beauty was so ethereal it dimmed the entire hallway.

But what froze Mafuyu's blood wasn't just her looks.

It was the uniform.

The unmistakable uniform of Ichinose Academy.

No. Nonononono...

Her brain went blank. Her heart clenched in terror.

A neighbor? A student from Ichinose? When had she moved in? Yesterday?!

Then… last night… the noise…

Mafuyu couldn't let her mind go further. Dizzy, her hands and feet turned cold.

At the same time—

The girl from 502, Alisa Mikhailovna Kujou, also stopped dead.

Her eyes locked on the woman across from her.

That flawless face. The dignified, icy aura. The tailored suit hugging a mature figure, sheer black stockings tracing endless legs—an image of adult perfection.

An unbelievably stunning woman.

But—

She came out of 501.

His apartment.

Alisa's mind went blank with a deafening buzz.

Her breath caught.

And from her parted lips slipped a single phrase, barely a whisper, in Russian, raw with disbelief:

"Bózhe moy..." (Oh my god)

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Trivia:

- Bózhe moy → Боже мой