48 The Fiancé.

(Ya'll, it's hard to stockpile chapters when I enjoy posting, lol. Especially since I am looking forward to reaching chapter 50. Consider this tomorrow's chapter lol.)

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The next day, Ren gave them a general explanation of Futaba without diving into personal details. He mainly told them that she was the daughter of Sojiro and was formerly known as Medjed, one of the biggest hackers to ever strike the digital world, but after some other people started using her name to steal her fame, she stepped out of the world of hacking.

He explained that it would take some time for her to get access to the billboards so the phantom thieves could spend this one week as preparation and rest. With his free time now open, he decided to go up to the roof to help his fluffy-haired friend with her garden. 

"Ah, Ren, it's nice to see you again," Haru greeted him, with a smile as warm as the sun. Her fingers were still covered in some traces of dirt, indicating that she had just spent some time tending to the garden.

"Haru, I wanted to thank you for the tea you gave me last time," Ren began, extracting a small bag of coffee beans from his bag. "It was actually quite calming, and since I remembered that you liked coffee, I brought you some of our specialty beans for you to try out. Just don't tell Sojiro," he added with a wink, sparking a joyful laugh from Haru.

"Oh, Ren! Thank you!" Haru exclaimed, her hands treasuring the bag of beans as if it were a rare gem. "Actually, I was just about to head over to the Rafflesia to pick up some seeds I needed. Would you like to come with me?"

Ren, charmed by her enthusiastic invitation, nodded in agreement. 

"Anything for Milady." he replied in a joking tone, eliciting a charming giggle from Haru.

Following behind Haru, the two of them took the train into Shibuya, eventually arriving at the flower shop she had talked about. It was a small store named Rafflesia, packed to the brim with flowers. And though they mainly sold bundles of flowers, they also specialized in some seeds and fertilizers.

As Haru began talking to the store owner, Ren's attention was caught by a bundle of crimson flowers on display near the front of the store. The crimson flowers were vibrant, with delicate, papery petals surrounding a dark center that created a contrast against the vivid red. 

Ren wasn't quite sure as to why since he had never really been interested in flowers before, but they drew his attention unlike any other in the store.

"Hm?" Haru noted Ren's interest and made a request to the shop owner. "Could I also get that bundle of flowers, please? And some seeds for it too?"

"A bundle of poppy flowers and seeds, coming right up," the owner responded cheerfully, pleased with the sale.

As Haru took possession of the poppies, she inhaled their scent deeply, a smile playing on her lips. 

"I never would have taken you for a flower kind of guy, but I do like your choice," she said, adorning her hair with one of the blossoms and sharing a light-hearted giggle.

Holding onto the new bundle of flowers, Ren wasn't quite sure how to react, so he just gave Haru a thankful smile. Since Ren didn't have a flower pot in Leblanc, the two of them walked around the small underground mall getting some more supplies for Ren to grow the poppy flowers back at home.

It was a surprisingly calm and enjoyable time, and as time slipped by the two of them were interrupted by the sound of an angry man.

"Haru?" The sharp call made Haru's movements halt, her body tensing visibly as she faced the source. A well-dressed man with an unmistakably irate expression, his gaze flickering between Ren and Haru in clear disapproval.

"What the hell are you doing?" The man's voice, laden with anger, cut through the calm atmosphere..

Haru, visibly unnerved but attempting to mediate the tension, stepped forward. 

"Sugimura, it's not what it seems. He's just a friend from school, helping me with my garden," she explained her voice a mixture of discomfort and defensiveness.

Ren's eyes narrowed as he looked at the well-dressed man. The anger in his face and Haru's sudden nervousness made it clear that the two of them didn't have a good relationship.

"Oh, so you have time to spend with some boy from your school, but not your fiancé?" he retorted, his annoyance palpable as he stepped closer.

"No, it's just…" Haru attempted to clarify but was cut off by Sugimura's escalating accusations.

"It's just nothing. I saw you walking together. You'll accept flowers from him but reject mine? I suppose your innocent act is also just a facade." he snapped, reaching out to grab Haru.

Ren quickly intercepted Sugimura's arm, his grip firm, eliciting a wince from the man.

"Who the hell are you? Do you even know who I am?" Sugimura challenged, a mix of anger and fear flickering in his eyes.

A slight smile crossed Ren's lips as he replied. 

"No, I actually do not. What's your full name again?" His tone was calm but laced with annoyance as he shielded Haru from Sugimura.

"Yoshihiro Sugimura. My father is Jin Sugimura." he stated, attempting to pull away from Ren's hold.

"I see…" Ren remarked, releasing his grip and watching Sugimura stumble backward.

Almost as if emboldened by his sudden release, a slight smile appeared on Sugimura as he took a step forward. Yet he froze under Ren's stare.

"Scram." Ren commanded, causing Sugimura to become hesitant.

"Haru, your father will hear about this." he threatened, though the quick retreat that followed undermined his attempt to maintain dignity.

Once Sugimura had disappeared up the stairs, leaving behind a palpable tension, Ren turned to Haru. The vibrancy that usually illuminated her presence seemed dimmed by the confrontation. 

"You shouldn't have…" she started, her voice tinged with sadness, only to be interrupted by Ren's comforting gesture as he ruffled her hair.

"Come on, let's get out of here. There are too many people staring," Ren suggested, guiding Haru away from the uncomfortable scrutiny, his attempt at lifting her spirits being met with a faint smile.

After a short trip to Leblanc, Ren prepared a cup of coffee for Haru and joined her in one of the booths. Their silence was filled with unspoken questions and concerns until Ren spoke.

"Fiance, eh? I would congratulate you, but he didn't seem like the nicest of guys," he commented, opening the door to a deeper conversation.

As Haru took a few sips of her coffee to calm her mind, she admitted.

"It was an arranged marriage. His dad is a rich politician, so my father arranged a marriage with his son to establish their friendship," she shared, the heaviness of the arrangement evident in her voice.

As Ren glimpsed at her, looking at her cup as if lost in thought, he asked.

"And your dad is ok with him? Has he met him?" 

"Yeah… But don't worry about it. It's fine. We aren't even going to get married until after I have graduated, so I still have a year to get used to it." Haru explained, her focus on her coffee betraying her true feelings about the matter.

Ren, observing Haru's wistful expression, offered a hopeful thought.

"Who knows, maybe a miracle will happen, and Sugimura and your dad will change their minds." he said, trying to inject a bit of optimism into the situation.

 Haru's response was a soft chuckle, appreciative of his effort to lighten the mood.

"Don't do that, Ren. It's not nice to give a young lady like me hope." She said, somewhat joking as she finished her coffee and stood up. 

"It's about time I start heading home. I am probably going to get home to a lecture, so the sooner I get there, the less trouble I will have," Haru mentioned as she began her walk to the exit, turning back for a final smile that lingered with Ren as she departed.

With some time left before it turned dark, Ren quickly used the MetaNav. The idea hadn't really crossed his mind since he had been focusing on people with Palaces this whole time. And, the one time he encountered a shadow in Mementos, he used the scalpel. But it should be easy to change the hearts of people in Mementos. 

There would be no need to prepare an infiltration route. If someone didn't have a strong enough distortion, it should be simple enough to confront them and change their hearts. All they would need would be their location. With Jose, even if they were hidden behind walls, the young boy would be able to find them through his connection with Mementos.

Once he returned from observing Kaneshiro, he would need to ask Mona more about it. But for now, he looked up the names of Haru's fiance and father. The short amount of time he had spent with the little ball of sunshine was enough to convince him to help her with this, especially after seeing her sad expression after the confrontation.

Just as he had expected, Sugimura didn't have a palace, since he was just a spoiled brat. However, as he wrote in the name of Haru's father, he was greeted by the MetaNav's voice.

[Match found]

"Fuck me, why does everything have to be so complicated." Ren cursed out loud as he looked down at the MetaNav.

~Confidants~

Haru Okumura (The Empress) Rank 2

(Also, as we approach chapter 50, with nearly 100k words written, I have to ask: How's the story so far? What do we need to improve? Is the pacing good? Is there a good split between Metaverse and real life?

As always, I am always looking to improve, and the last time I asked, I got some good feedback. So, I thought I might as well ask again so that I can make plans and adjustments during my vacation.)