The following events take place after chapter 164 or the middle of the final episode of season 3.

Chapter 1: The Start

It was late in the afternoon as Kazuya sprinkled several flakes of food into his fish's aquarium. The only thing on his mind, Chizuru.

He couldn't forget the look she had during the night he took her out to cheer her up. Every attempt he had to make her genuinely smile or display real emotion proved difficult as the iron armor she wore made it difficult for him to pierce through. That was, until he revealed what his 'ideal girlfriend' would be.

"Why?" Kazuya wondered as he watched his fish consume their meal. "Why would I go and say something like that? I was supposed to be cheering her up but instead I went and said something selfish like that!" He groaned, collapsing on top of his mattress and checked his phone.

The thought of Chizuru crying into his chest began to run through his mind. The way she seemed helpless, almost human, was nearly too much for him to handle. But, he stayed there and comforted her, even placing both his hands on her arms as the best way to console her at that time. Since then, it had been five days since he heard or seen her.

"I wonder how she's doing?" He questioned, looking at the shared wall between them. "Has she been lying in bed, all alone?"

Kazuya rolled over to face the wall he and Chizuru shared. The thought of what Chizuru is dealing with right now was saddening. For all he knew, she could still be crying all this time, she could be depressed, she could have run away. The ideas were endless and each one felt worse than the last.

Suddenly, there was a knock at his door, surprising him and swatting the depressing thoughts away.

Standing up, Kazuya approached and answered the door finding his neighbor, Mini Yaemori, standing outside it. The young woman, wearing a white t-shirt with a QR code printed on the front, black shorts, and a wide grin on her face that stretched from one end of the apartment complex to the other.

"Yaemori-san?" Kazuya questioned as the college freshman burst straight into his apartment.

"Master! I'm so glad you're home! I have incredible news! I have obtained a key item in your grand quest of Mizuhara-san's love!" she proudly proclaimed, holding up her phone like the holy grail of items.

Kazuya struggled to say a single word. His eyes were wide with disbelief, while ignoring the fact Yaemori just entered his apartment without consent, he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

Before he could even try to force a sentence, the overly zealous girl wasted no time in unlocking her phone and pressing it firmly against his face. Luckily, Kazuya was able to get a glance at the screen before feeling the glass pressed against his eyes.

In the photo, the image of a familiar woman with black hair was approaching their apartment complex. That woman was Chizuru.

"Mizuhara?" He questioned, knowing it was her as Yaemori pulled the phone away from his face.

The photo showed Chizuru walking toward the apartment wearing her usual casual attire of red hoodie, black shorts, and black tights. Her hair was tied back into a ponytail, and she was wearing her glasses. Examining closely, Kazuya took note that she was on the phone, talking to someone while holding a plastic bag that probably had groceries in it.

"Why are you showing me this?" he asked, turning his face away to cover his blush. Of course, he also wanted to ask why she was taking photos through her window like a stalker but knew that she tends to take photos even when the subject of the picture wasn't aware.

It had been days since Kazuya had last seen Chizuru. The day after the date, he spoke with Yaemori and updated her on what happened that night. Of course, this invigorated her even more as she declared, once again, that she would see him and Chizuru together as a real couple.

Yaemori grinned mischievously as she put her phone away.

"Because I overhead her say something while on the phone that may benefit you."

Kazuya's expression didn't change as he took a step back.

"You what?"

Yaemori soon placed both of her hands on her hips and took a heroic stance.

"Just like the hero of every Shonen manga, I've come with important info to help win the war!" she proclaimed looking out into the distance.

"What war is she talking about?" Kazuya wondered.

Yaemori soon faced him. "I overheard Mizuhara-san talking with someone on the phone and you just happened to be the subject of the conversation."

Kazuya couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"About me?" He managed to say as his breathing became heavy.

Yaemori nodded before ushering him to come closer to her so as not to reveal the secrets she heard out loud, the same mischievous grin she gave him earlier returning to her face.

"So… wanna hear?"

Kazuya gulped as he quickly closed the door behind him and stepped closer to Yaemori.

"Wait, should I even be hearing this?" He wondered while Yaemori patiently stood there awaiting his answer.

"I mean, of course I shouldn't be listening to what Yaemori heard! That would be a violation of Mizuhara's privacy! And not to mention the tongue lashing I would get if she ever found out what I heard her say." He thought to himself, just imagining an angry Chizuru calling him scum and telling him to never speak to her again.

"So, master," Yaemori spoke, "What'll it be?"

Kazuya looked at his self-proclaimed apprentice. Of course, she doesn't mean any harm in what she is doing; after all, she is trying to help him win Chizuru in the end. If there were banners with 'Team Kazuya' and 'Team Chizuru' she would be supporting his face on a flag and trying to recruit everyone she finds for his cause.

"But, if I do say yes, then maybe I can figure out what Mizuhara thought of the date and how she's feeling. It's really my one chance!" He began to reassure himself. "After all, she's like a prison of emotions, and who knows when I'll see her next?"

Taking a deep breath Kazuya clenched his fists and looked straight at Yaemori. He knew, no matter what answer he gave her, it would be a small step in either direction for him to get closer to Chizuru.

"Alright," He finally responded, his voice trembling a little. "I'll hear it."

Yaemori's grin grew.

"Hehe, I expected no less from master." She smirked.

Before explaining what she overheard, Yaemori checked both the front and back doors to ensure they were closed. She then motioned for Kazuya to take a seat.

"Okay," She began the moment Kazuya sat down. "So, during her phone call, I couldn't figure out who she was talking to, but I did overhear your name..." She began.

Kazuya found himself sitting on the edge of his seat, his nerves consuming his entire body as Yaemori talked. He knew this was wrong but at the same time, he couldn't help but feel hopeful about what he was going to hear.

"And the last thing I heard her say, before she entered her apartment, was 'He's always there for me.'" Yaemori finished explaining.

Looking up to her master, Yaemori could see that Kazuya seemed to be frozen in time. His body, his face, unmoving from the details of her recent accounts of Chizuru.

"Master?"

Kazuya didn't respond. Every part of his body was placed on a temporary pause; the only thing working were his thoughts.

"I'm… always there for her?" He repeated the sentence several times in his mind.

He couldn't believe it. That's what Chizuru really thinks of him? He's always there for her? But, depending on her tone, was it a good thing? A bad thing?

"Unfortunately, it was difficult for me to tell what emotion she was showing when she said it." Yaemori sighed, disappointed as she referenced not having a higher stealth skill level like her character in Skyrim.

Kazuya soon came back to reality as he looked down at his hands. Both his hands trembling from the news, but deep down, he was happy that it wasn't anything directly negative.

"Oh! But that means you this could be your chance, Master!" Yaemori shouted, surprising Kazuya.

"Wha-…. What do you mean?" he asked.

Yaemori began crawling towards him, causing the young man to fret for himself as he began backing away until bumping his bookshelf.

"Master," She spoke, crawling closer and closer to the point of hovering just over him. "This is your chance to ask her out!"

"What?"

"Think about it! The heroine down in the dumps is revived by the main hero of the episode. It's there that he asks her out and reveals his true love to her which causes her to realize that she's been in love with him all this time. It's perfect!" She stated, proud of her thought process. "That means this is your chance to ask her out!"

Kazuya looked at Yaemori in disbelief as the young woman hovered above him. The sparkle in her eyes shined bright from her newest, albeit, rushed idea.

"I can't just do that!" Kazuya finally answered, louder than he intended to respond. "It would just be awkward for the two of us if I just asked her out."

"Eh? But don't you love her?" Yaemori asked with a confused look.

"Well…" Kazuya held his tongue for a moment to process his thoughts. "I do…but for starters, we don't necessarily know if what she said could be interpreted as good or bad." Kazuya explained, as Yaemori backed away to give him space. "Plus, if I did ask her, she may assume I'd be taking advantage of her since she's probably still in a vulnerable state. It would just be a bad move on my part, and I could seriously jeopardize our relationship. Not to mention, she sees me nothing more as a client. I can't imagine the trouble I would cause her if I asked her out."

Kazuya had a distant look on his face as he said that. He knew, probably more than anyone, that if he were to ask Chizuru out now, it would only end horribly. She would remind him that they were nothing more than girlfriend and client, a business relationship, and possibly tell him to no longer contact her.

Kazuya soon faced Yaemori again, the girl seemingly displeased with his response but worried about him at the same time. But, to ease her worries, the young man gave a reassuring smile; something he had seen Chizuru do all too often with him.

"Master?" Yaemori asked as Kazuya smiled.

"Yes?" He continued his forced smile.

"What's wrong with your face?"

"What do you mean?"

"You look like you need to use the bathroom." Yaemori explained.

Kazuya's face went into shock at Yaemori's hurtful words. He's been trying so hard to mimic how Chizuru puts on a strong face that he thought he had it.

"I guess I have to keep working on it." He thought to himself.

Chizuru quietly sat in her apartment, in front of the altar she had set up with a picture of both her grandpa and grandma with both pictures having an incense lit and an accompanying bowl of rice. Set neatly between the two frames was a small, blue box, with a rose imprinted on the top.

As Chizuru silently prayed, the image of Kazuya admitting to her his ideal girlfriend popped into her mind, turning her cheeks slightly red.

"Why would he tell me that?" She questioned.

As she placed her hands down, Chizuru picked up her plate of food she had cooked herself before talking to the photos of her grandparents.

"I was talking with a friend yesterday and somehow he became the topic of conversation." Chizuru began. "I'm not sure what or how he did, but it happened. The next thing I knew, I had mentioned that he was always there for me." A soft smile formed on her face. "And he always is. Even after you passed grandma, he was there the entire time. He's always going above and beyond for me. He never takes his own feelings or safety into consideration. Like a few days ago, he took me on a date, just to cheer me up. I didn't know how much he spent but I could tell he would be working overtime for the next few months!" She chuckled. "Oh, and get this, at the end of the date, we went to launch fireworks and he nearly set his hair on fire, trying to get the sparklers lit. Of course, later on, he had to go and say something cringy, but it was that cringe that…. I don't know…I guess everything came at me, all at once. I cried and cried, and you know who was there for me? Him! He's always there for me and….and…." She soon stopped herself.

Placing a hand to her heart, she could feel the beat increase faster and faster. It felt like it could explode at any moment, but the feeling was nice, it was warm. Even just thinking of him caused her stomach to feel lighter, almost as if there physically were butterflies in her stomach.

"And what?" She asked. "Why do I feel like this when it comes to him? Why does he insist on doing all of this for me?"

As she processed her thoughts, Chizuru stared intently at the picture of her grandma, recalling the words about falling in love.

"It's not that…" She said to the photo, slightly annoyed with cheeks red. "It's…not…that…." She repeated slowly. "Could it?"

A/N: Hey all, thank you for reading the first chapter of this story. I hope you all enjoyed it and cannot wait for future chapters to come. It may be a few weeks until I can post chapter two but just know I am working diligently on getting it done.