Chapter- 41

"Hey, Rie are you back home now too? And is that person next to you...?"

　"…Yeah"

　"I thought so! I'm Rie's father, Niizuma Makoto "I've heard a lot about you from my daughter. You can be a little impulsive, but you're a kind person at heart, so I hope you can continue to take good care of each other."

　"Y-Yes! I'm Sugita Mamoru. Thank you for treating me so well!"

　My first impression of Makoto was that he seemed like a kind person. I could tell from every word he spoke that he cared deeply for Rie and his family.

　"...Yeah. He seems to be just as serious as I had heard. That's reassuring... but I'm still a little disappointed."

　"...Are you disappointed?"

　…Maybe I did something to upset Makoto without realizing it? If so, I need to apologize properly! I also want Rie's parents to give us their blessings...

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

　"Yeah. As a father, I wanted to say just once, 'I won't give my daughter to you!' But I can't say something like that to Mamoru, the man who saved my daughter's life."

　"Come on, Dad! Stop saying weird things!"

　"Haha! Sorry, sorry. Come back before it gets too late."

　"...Umm, if you don't mind, would you like to join us? That's okay with you, Rie, right?"

　"...If you say so, Mamoru."

　"Oh? Isn't this your date?"

　"...Dad? He'll be angry."

　…I think 80% of the people who say they will be angry are already angry, right? I was swept up in Rie-san 's mood and tried to escape reality,

　"...I'm sorry. But you have a game tomorrow, right? Why don't you go out and have dinner together? Ah, money? 10,000 yen is fine for now."

　"... A match ?...I see. Can you just tell me where it's going to be held?"

　"...You really do nothing but pointless things, Dad. ...You talk while you walk."

　"...Huh? Did I say something unnecessary?"

　"Mamoru, shall we go?... Dad? If you don't hurry, I'll leave you behind."

　I followed Rie, dragged along by her. Makoto hurriedly joined us and the three of us headed to Rie's house.

　"…Tomorrow, we have a practice match for our club. It'll be at the Civic Gymnasium."

　"...I see. It's an important game."

　"...Yeah. I don't want to lose."

　"...I get it. Then I have to go and support them."

　It's clear that Rie is serious. She knows that this sudden change might cause trouble for her club.

　"...No, you can't. You have other plans tomorrow, right? If so, you should prioritize those."

　"...Eh? But..."

　"You can come and see me again next time. Okay?"

　"...I understand."

　I had no choice but to nod, even though I felt a bit uneasy. In my head, I understood that Rie was right, but for some reason, I couldn't accept it. It was as if I was vaguely conveying that there would be no next time . But I couldn't ask her about it.