Kaguya-sama Wants My Surrender!

(For more chapters, visit my patreon.com/Fanfic69)

---

"Did you really find Hanamori-chan?"

Kaguya and the others were still eating when Chika quietly approached and whispered, "Could it be the same mistake as last time?"

After all the trouble they'd gone through to enter the Neighbour House, the person they ended up finding was Komi instead of Kaguya. This left them questioning the reliability of the information.

Miss Sakurako's gaze flicked to Chika. She slowly stuck out her tongue, licked her lips, and smiled.

"I smell fear."

"How could something like that possibly have a taste?" Chika muttered, but her body instinctively moved behind Amamiya, hiding herself.

The pink haired girl was still unnerved by the terrifying woman in front of her, her face hidden beneath her hair. Had Amamiya not been there, she would never have dared to approach.

"Thank you for the information, Miss Sakurako," Amamiya said calmly. "I'll go over and take a look later."

Miss Sakurako covered her mouth with a round fan and smiled sweetly. "Young man, why aren't you afraid of me?"

Amamiya replied with a serious expression.

"Miss Sakurako has a nice figure and a pleasant voice. There's no reason to be afraid of her. If I weren't a Lolicon, I might have already fallen in love with you, Miss Sakurako."

Chika: "…"

Fraud!

He'd clearly seen the face behind her head, and yet he still claimed to like her. How brave of him!

To be honest, Amamiya wasn't lying. He genuinely wasn't afraid of Miss Sakurako.

What type of ghost story is the scariest?

The answer was simple.

A story where communication was impossible.

A situation where breaking the rules meant certain death, and everyone only had the instinct to kill—this was the kind of scenario Amamiya dreaded most.

Miss Sakurako, on the other hand, was different.

With her well-proportioned figure, fair skin, and pleasant voice, Amamiya could imagine that men would be willing to be played by her as long as she put a paper bag over her head!

As long as something was cute, horror and weird tales were tolerable.

Ghost stories that could think and communicate represented the possibility of "dealing" with the other party. This was exactly the kind of story Amamiya preferred.

"Well~ I like you more and more," Miss Sakurako smiled, her invitation clear. "Young man, why don't you come back with me? I promise not to hurt you."

"I'm sorry." Amamiya said seriously, "I'm a Legal Lolicon."

"What a pity~"

Miss Sakurako waved her round fan, gracefully turning and walking out of the cooking pavilion. "Young man, see you tomorrow."

Chika couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief as she watched Miss Sakurako leave.

"She finally left," Chika muttered, patting her chest before looking worried again. "...But he always says he's a lolita complex. Could that be true?"

Amamiya turned his gaze to Chika. "Don't you know if I'm a lolicon?"

"How should I know?" Chika replied with a shrug. "I've heard that some boys have that kind of bad habit."

"…" 

Amamiya didn't respond. His gaze drifted downward to the pink haired girl's soft, pink lips.

"What are you looking at me for?"

Chika raised her hand to cover her mouth, her cheeks flushing.

Amamiya said with a straight face:

"I'll go to the school rooftop tomorrow at noon. I want to prove my innocence."

"Tomorrow is the weekend, and there are no classes... How are you going to prove it?"

"Eating pocky, of course."

"You, you, you, I-I don't know what you're talking about!!"

Chika's face turned bright red, and the red bow on her head trembled slightly. It was clear she understood the hidden meaning behind Amamiya's words. She glanced up at him, her clear blue eyes sparkling. "No pocky."

"Ice cream is fine too."

"How can two people eat that?"

"…"

Amamiya lowered his voice and said, "In the hotel cafeteria earlier, I distinctly remember someone saying they would do anything for me."

"That was a dream. Things that happen in dreams don't count." The pink haired girl turned her pretty face away, pretending nothing had happened. Unfortunately, her cheeks flushed, and she couldn't hold it in for long. She gently nudged Amamiya's waist with both hands. "Hurry up and eat. We still have to go find Hanamori-chan later."

"…"

There was no need to dwell on the meal. As a "super chef," Amamiya earned a high commission, and with a small fortune in hand, he wasn't stingy when it came to food.

After dinner, the store manager wiped the dishes and spoke slowly, "That's all for today. The restaurant is about to close."

Amamiya took a sip of miso soup, which, being a staple of Japanese culture, was not lacking even in the dungeon world. "Manager, would you consider staying open until dawn?"

"Not considering it."

"…"

It seemed the closure was inevitable.

That meant everyone would have to leave the food stall.

After cleaning up, the store manager opened a drawer and pulled out a stack of banknotes. "This is your pay for today."

"Thank you, manager."

Amamiya didn't hesitate and took the money. It was money earned through hard work—not by stealing, robbing, or charity. He felt at ease accepting it.

"Manager, what time does the restaurant open tomorrow?" Amamiya asked.

"Ten o'clock in the morning."

"Then I'll come to work at ten tomorrow?"

"That's fine."

"…"

After getting the information he needed, Amamiya stood up and said his goodbyes to the store manager.

"Um, um…" A voice suddenly called out from behind him. It was the passerby player from before. The girl's face was pale, and she hesitated before asking, "Can you lend me some money?"

When she entered the copy, she had real money on her, but unfortunately, it couldn't be used in the small town. Now, with the restaurant closing, they had to pay their bills and leave as quickly as possible. No one knew what would happen if they didn't, and no one was eager to find out.

As for the consequences of running away without paying... the unlucky soul who had tried to do so was now part of the fish tank, serving as food.

"I can give you the money," Amamiya said, looking at the girl with an enigmatic expression. "But do you know the rules?"

"Eh?" The passerby player froze, looking confused, before her face suddenly flushed. "I… I know... Can we do it after we get out?"

Hey, hey, I'm just asking you to exchange items for money. Why are you blushing?

"You misunderstood. Amamiya-kun is not that kind of person…"

At that moment, Umi stepped in, clarifying the nature of the transaction.

"I see," the passerby girl breathed a sigh of relief and nodded quickly. "Thank you so much!"

In a place like this—a horror game—unconditional sympathy or pity is the last thing you want to offer. The best approach is to talk about business, not emotions, from the start.

After watching the girl exchange her strange items for money and successfully pay the cooking fee, another hesitant player stepped up and did the same.

Both parties got what they wanted, and everyone was satisfied.

Not only would the other party not feel resentful, but they would also be extremely grateful.

"Amamiya-kun," Chika reminded softly, "There's also the player in the fish tank."

"If you hadn't mentioned it, I almost forgot."

Amamiya walked over, scooped up the unfortunate player with a fishing net, paid for the "ingredients," and then walked out of the restaurant.