Soyo-chan, Version 2.0—Courtesy of Me! [135]

"Soyo, what’s wrong?"

"N-nothing…"

"Did you see someone you know?"

Tsuzuki Chihiro, still fully immersed in her motherly role, smiled sweetly at the adorably flustered little widow beside her.

"If it’s a friend, why not invite them over to chat? Mom would love to get to know her daughter’s friends."

"They’re… not my friends."

After a brief hesitation, Nagasaki Soyo lowered her voice and muttered,

"I just thought I saw someone else. It’s nothing, Mom… Let’s just talk."

Of course, she hadn’t been mistaken.

Even though the café was fairly crowded, and there was some distance between their table and the two girls sitting over there…

There was no way she could mistake those faces.

Sakiko.

Mutsumi.

She had just finished talking to Mutsumi about the band.

And now—barely any time later—she ran into both of them here.

So, in the end…

Mutsumi had done what she always did.

She had promised to keep quiet—

But she had gone to Sakiko anyway.

Soyo had held onto the tiniest sliver of hope.

She had thought that in this new timeline, after spending so much time at school, sticking close to Mutsumi, and avoiding unnecessary risks…

Maybe, just maybe, Mutsumi would start to understand her.

But she had been wrong.

Because she had never been honest with Mutsumi.

She had never told her the full truth.

She had only pretended to care about Mutsumi, using the extra time Chihiro had bought her to stay close.

But in reality, their conversations had never gone deeper than surface-level topics.

It was always just meaningless small talk—

With Soyo talking, and Mutsumi listening.

But did it even matter anymore?

At least she still had Chihiro waiting for her at home.

As long as she could hold onto the one person who hadn’t abandoned her…

She hadn’t lost everything.

"Soyo, you’re acting strange today."

"You look like something’s really bothering you."

Tsuzuki Chihiro sighed dramatically, watching the little widow sulk.

She knew this wasn’t fair to Soyo.

Seeing something like this without any context would obviously be upsetting.

But…

If she wanted Soyo to truly reach for the happiness she deserved—

Then being hated for a while was a small price to pay.

Even if Soyo found out later and bit her head off for it—

That was fine.

Yes.

Tsuzuki Chihiro had deliberately chosen this café.

The moment she learned that Sakiko frequently came here, she had started planning.

And yesterday, while shopping for groceries,

She had also gathered all the materials she needed for her latest disguise.

Chihiro had a monstrous talent.

She had an extraordinary level of control over her vocal cords and breath—

Mimicking someone’s voice was practically effortless for her.

And since she had already memorized all of Nagasaki Rina’s facial features and body proportions from their previous meeting,

It was just a matter of execution.

The rest of the plan had been simple.

She had forced Soyo to confront Mutsumi.

Then, based on Soyo’s understanding of Mutsumi’s personality, she had predicted that Mutsumi would immediately go to Sakiko.

And knowing Sakiko…

Bringing Soyo here would inevitably lead to a direct encounter.

If anyone in this entire chain had misunderstood someone,

The plan would have fallen apart.

But everything was falling into place perfectly.

Soyo often doubted herself,

Thinking she could never understand Mutsumi’s thoughts.

But this time—

She had been completely right.

Of course, assuming your friend will definitely betray you…

Didn’t that feel a bit like a tragic comedy?

"I…"

"Soyo still likes Earl Grey, huh?"

Chihiro didn’t give her a chance to dwell on it.

She smoothly took control of the conversation.

"Honestly, Mom is so grateful for you."

"If it weren’t for Soyo, Mom wouldn’t have been able to keep going all this time."

"M-Mom…?"

Soyo’s eyes widened,

Temporarily forgetting about the other two girls at the café.

She turned her full attention to the woman in front of her.

"Mom wanted to give Soyo a good life."

"But work just kept getting busier…"

"Busier to the point where I’ve barely been home."

"I… I’ve never blamed you for that."

Soyo dropped her gaze,

Her shoulders trembling slightly.

Right now,

She didn’t want to say anything resentful.

She didn’t want to complain.

Chihiro, watching Soyo’s vulnerable expression,

Almost forgot that she was acting.

Because, at this moment—

She was truly delivering the words that Nagasaki Rina herself had wanted to say to Soyo.

Chihiro had stolen this.

And now,

She was returning it.

Even if it was only a fake.

There was nothing she could do about that.

But if she could help Soyo in some other way,

She would.

Because in a way…

Soyo reminded her of her past self.

Tsuzuki Chihiro had gone through countless band breakups.

She always acted like it didn’t bother her—

Like it was just a natural part of life.

But just like how she couldn’t resist picking up her guitar again,

She couldn’t stop herself from wondering—

If I hadn’t messed everything up, would my bandmates still be here?

Would they have gone to perform at rock clubs in London?

Would they have stood on grander stages?

Would their names have been written into the history of UK rock?

That story had no continuation.

But Soyo’s did.

And if Chihiro could help—

Then she would.

"Soyo, Mom has two things to tell you."

Her voice turned serious, perfectly matching Nagasaki Rina’s tone.

"First—

"It’s about your father."

"My father?"

Chihiro repeated everything she had heard from Nagasaki Rina.

She spoke in a low voice, careful not to let the nearby table overhear.

This was Soyo’s private matter—

No one else needed to know.

But out of the corner of her eye,

She did catch sight of two very anxious girls—

Clearly trying (and failing) to eavesdrop.

Chihiro smirked to herself before finally dropping the real bombshell.

And this time,

She made sure her voice was just loud enough for Sakiko to hear.

"Soyo, so after this semester ends—"

"You’ll have to come to the UK with me."

…Study abroad?!

Soyo’s mind completely blanked out.

She had never expected her mom to actually send her abroad.

Wasn’t this just some dumb cover story that Chihiro had made up for her?

And now it wasn’t after high school—

It was after this semester?!

What the hell?!

When did everything become real?!

When did it become so final?!

Wait—

Was this because of her father’s situation?

Because he had gotten tangled up in legal trouble in the UK, fled back to Japan, and was now in hiding?

Since he couldn’t go to the UK anymore,

Was that why her mom decided it was the safest place for them?

Crap.

Now that she thought about it…

That explanation actually made sense.

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This is a fan translation of 素世同学，恭喜你被我优化了 by 杰克喵. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!