The Stand User Of The Daily World

Chapter 170: Shunsuke, Rita... What Are You Doing?

"My hands and feet still feel a little cold."

Tossing her handbag onto the bed, Rita made herself at home and headed straight for the bathroom to take a shower.

Shunsuke glanced around the messy room and shook his head. Well, since she's a beautiful girl, I guess I'll help tidy up a bit.

Before he could finish changing the pillowcases and bedding, Rita returned from her shower.

"So fast?"

Shunsuke turned around in surprise, only to see Rita wrapped in nothing but a short towel. Her delicate pink shoulders were exposed, with droplets of water still sliding down her smooth skin. It was obvious that she wasn't wearing anything underneath.

"I'm not Mashiro. It was just a quick rinse—how slow could I be?"

Noticing Shunsuke's gaze, Rita shifted slightly, crossing her arms over her chest with a hint of discomfort.

"Alright… but why aren't you wearing any clothes?"

His eyes fell on the towel, which barely reached her knees, revealing her slender legs and delicate feet. After a brief pause, he asked.

"I already told you—I didn't bring anything with me, so I don't have any fresh clothes to change into." Rita awkwardly brushed her hair aside. "And Mashiro's clothes don't really fit me, so…"

"Are all Western women this bold?"

Shunsuke finished setting up the bed, then suddenly turned toward her and walked forward.

"Hey, don't lump America and Europe together like that!"

Rita, who had been acting nonchalant, suddenly panicked. Her right hand instinctively tightened around her towel.

"C-Can you not look at me with such intense eyes? I'm still a girl, you know—I get embarrassed too."

"What do you mean? Wearing something like that… isn't it meant to be seen?" Shunsuke smirked as he stood in front of her. "Besides, isn't Europe full of nude beaches?"

"W-What?! I would never go to a place like that!" Rita clutched her towel tighter, but despite her efforts, the soft, snow-white "slimes" on her chest still remained in full view.

"Shunsuke, Rita... what are you two doing?"

A soft, ghostly voice suddenly came from the doorway. At some point, Mashiro had silently arrived at the door, her beautiful eyes wide with shock as she took in the scene before her.

—Alright, let's rewind a little.

Inside a room where only the two of them were present, a man—Shunsuke—was squinting his eyes, stepping closer and closer to a woman clad in nothing but a towel, while uttering some rather inappropriate remarks.

The woman, meanwhile, was clutching her towel against her chest, looking flustered and panicked.

—Yep. That's a death sentence.

As expected, Judge Mashiro's eyes rippled with emotion. "Shunsuke… so you really are on Rita's side after all..."

"Shunsuke, you idiot!"

With a slightly crestfallen expression, Mashiro didn't wait for either of them to explain. She quickly turned around and left the room.

Shunsuke glanced at Rita, who was still frozen at the doorway, then silently stepped past her and chased after Mashiro.

However, Mashiro, who usually moved at a leisurely pace, was surprisingly fast this time. Just as Shunsuke stepped out of the room, he heard a loud bang from his own door slamming shut—followed by the unmistakable sound of the lock clicking into place.

He reached for the doorknob and twisted it, but it wouldn't budge. Mashiro, who had never locked a door before, had now done so for the first time—for the sole purpose of keeping him out.

Shunsuke wasn't sure whether to feel proud of her growth or troubled by the situation.

Sure, he could use his Stand to unlock the door from the inside, but this time—and he emphasized, this time—he hadn't actually done anything wrong.

Back when Mashiro would throw a little tantrum over Marin or Eriri, Shunsuke wouldn't complain. He could understand her being a little petty about that. But this time? He hadn't even done anything yet.

The only reason Mashiro was reacting so strongly was because she had already been in a bad mood after what Rita said earlier. She was just taking it out on him. On any other day, something like this wouldn't even count as a minor issue.

—Better to just let her cool off.

Call it old-fashioned, call it domineering if you want, but there was no way Shunsuke was going to grovel for forgiveness over something he didn't do. A simp's fate was a miserable one, and he had never been one.

If a Stand user ever did become a simp, there wouldn't even be a need for others to take him down—he'd eliminate himself out of sheer shame.

With that thought, Shunsuke knocked on the door a couple of times, but when there was no response, he simply turned around and headed for Mashiro's old room.

Before leaving, he spared a glance at Rita, who was now sprawled across the bed, lazily kicking her feet as she scrolled through her phone.

For modern people, forgetting their clothes or wallet was no big deal, but their phone and laptop? Those were practically part of their soul.

Even though Rita claimed she hadn't prepared anything before coming to Japan, electronic devices didn't even count as something that needed "preparing"—they were simply an extension of oneself.

For a moment, Shunsuke had the strange feeling that Rita had been steering the situation in this direction all along… But that wasn't supposed to be her role, was it?

"Mashiro is just sulking. She'll be fine in a bit."

Sensing Shunsuke's return, Rita didn't bother turning around. Instead, she casually waved her foot in greeting while offering a few words of comfort.

"Yeah, I know."

Shunsuke's gaze lingered for a moment on Rita's pale feet, the gentle arch of her soles, and the mysterious golden hue peeking from beneath her towel.

"Miss Rita, you're exposing yourself."

"…!"

With a startled yelp, Rita flipped over like a startled bird, landing on her back. Her movements were so abrupt that her phone went flying.

Shunsuke effortlessly caught it, intending to hand it back, but his eyes happened to catch a glimpse of the screen.

Displayed on it were details—about him.

"Miss Rita, snooping on someone's personal information behind their back isn't exactly a good habit, you know."

Rita's face turned bright red. Looking things up in secret was one thing, but getting caught by the very person she was researching? That was just plain embarrassing.

"Forget it. I get where you're coming from, Miss Rita. After all, I am a man burdened with countless sins."

With a teasing smirk, Shunsuke brushed past the topic and opened the wardrobe. From inside, he pulled out a set of undergarments that were… clearly the wrong size.

"These… aren't Mashiro's, are they?"

Rita hesitated before asking. She had been meaning to bring this up earlier—why were there three toothbrushes in the bathroom?

And that extra one, the cute-looking one… Whose was it?

"Oh, these belong to a friend of mine. She accidentally left them behind. I just asked her about it—if you don't mind, you can wear this set for now."

Shunsuke casually handed her the underwear that Kitagawa Marin had left behind last time.

—What kind of friend forgets their own underwear at someone else's place?!

Rita wanted to say something—anything—but when she saw the perfectly natural expression on Shunsuke's face, she swallowed her words.

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