Chapter 1: Crossing the boundary

“Speak. Which little minx was it that seduced you so much you actually dared to mention breaking up with me?”

The stern voice of interrogation rang in Suzuki Yu’s ears. At that moment, he had just woken up, his mind still clouded with confusion.

The instant he opened his eyes, he found himself inside a dim, cramped space. The place looked like some kind of laboratory—various colorful chemical reagents covered in labels lined the surroundings.

But when he discovered that his entire body couldn’t move, and saw the face of the girl before him—delicate as a porcelain doll, yet wearing an expression like she wanted to kill him—he immediately understood what had happened.

He had played with fire and gotten burned!

As a reborn person, this was the first time Suzuki Yu had faced such a life-and-death situation in this world.

Just today, Suzuki Yu had officially brought up breaking up with the girl in front of him, Shiina Chisa.

Of course, calling it a breakup, in his eyes, it was merely terminating the agreement. Half a year ago, he and Shiina Chisa had signed a Rent-a-Boyfriend Agreement.

The terms were simple: Suzuki Yu would receive a set payment, and in return, he would help Shiina Chisa deal with various matchmaking and marriage meetings arranged by her family.

Originally, the agreement was only supposed to last three months, but since neither side had brought up ending it, it had, rather carelessly, dragged on for a whole six months.

It was exactly this carelessness that landed Suzuki Yu in his current predicament.

But this was understandable, since keeping up the agreement had only benefits for him and no drawbacks.

The reason was not just the considerable payment. He had an even bigger gain—the chance to acquire the skills these girls excelled at.

This was all thanks to something that had happened one afternoon back in middle school, when a “ding” suddenly sounded in his mind. Afterward, a thing called the Love Breakup Assistant System appeared.

But calling it a System was a stretch—it didn’t have any complex functions or missions. All it did was grant Suzuki Yu a BUFF: he could rapidly learn the outstanding skills of his romantic partners.

However, there was a catch. If Suzuki Yu chose only one girl to see things through to the end, the amount he could learn was very limited.

But if he dumped one midway and immediately moved on to another, he risked getting labeled a playboy, damaging his reputation and causing other girls to avoid him.

So, he found a loophole in the System: he always interacted with girls under the guise of being a “Rent-a-Boyfriend.” Since these were all short-term arrangements, he didn’t build up much emotional connection with them and just quietly learned their skills.

That was why, even as a new high schooler, he dared to take on Shiina Chisa’s case.

Now, he was truly formidable.

Aside from being naturally good-looking and charming, his body was already covered with the imprints of skills granted by the System.

His fingertips would instinctively avoid splinters when brushing the bed’s edge—a skill he’d mastered in just three days from a girl from a carpentry family when they signed an agreement in his first year.

His gaze swept the drawings in the corner of the desk, and he could quickly analyze the painting techniques used—something he learned from the President of the Art Club in his second year.

Even now, while bound, his body was reacting on instinct: the angle of the hemp rope was off, a rookie’s binding, but it deliberately left an inconspicuous loosened spot—knowledge he picked up while dating the daughter of an Instructor at the Police Academy, who had taught him self-defense techniques.

Yet right now, he dared not move at all, because he was truly afraid of the young lady before him.

The power wielded by Shiina Chisa’s family could be summed up in one sentence: if he got thrown into Tokyo Bay today as shark food, not a single person would discover it the next day. And even if someone did, it would only look like he’d taken his own life.

He could still remember during Chisa’s grandfather’s birthday banquet, when he followed them to Ginza Hotel and saw a high-ranking Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department official bending down to serve tea to the old man with his own eyes.

And then, there was the time when some fool left a love letter in Shiina Chisa’s locker. The very next day, that student and their entire family moved far away from Tokyo on “business,” to a place where the air was extremely thin. Everyone knew what that really meant…

So, given how much power she held, Suzuki Yu’s choice to become her “Rent-a-Boyfriend” could only be described as pure gambling.

Of course, there was another, deeper reason: Shiina Chisa always carried herself with an icy, intimidating aura at school, so aloof it was impossible to imagine her developing feelings for anyone.

Yet it was this sense of luck that led Suzuki Yu to take a great fall.

He didn’t know why, but recently, Chisa had been getting closer and closer to him. She’d even started dressing to match his preferences.

Like now, she wasn’t wearing her usual million-yen custom-tailored suit, but instead a simple white knit sweater and plaid miniskirt—just because, on a previous afternoon, he’d casually said such an outfit looked cute after seeing another girl wear it.

These subtle changes told him all he needed to know. Suzuki Yu responded quickly, choosing to invite her out today and terminate the agreement.

Just as he thought he’d wrapped up the matter, ready to leave, a pair of white arms reached out from behind him, along with a white handkerchief.

Then, without realizing it, he lost consciousness. When he woke up, he found himself in this miserable situation.

“Why aren’t you saying anything? Are you trying to come up with excuses to beg for mercy?” Shiina Chisa’s voice sounded again, waking Suzuki Yu up a little more.

This was the first time in his life someone had ever said the words “beg for mercy” to him in real life.

But she was right. At that moment, Suzuki Yu was indeed frantically searching for words in his mind.

“N-no… I wasn’t seduced by anyone.”

“So, what you mean is, you don’t find me appealing?”

“Weren’t we just in an agreement relationship before…”

“So in your eyes? I can’t even compare to my own money?”

Without a doubt, Suzuki Yu’s words only made her angrier.

Maybe trying to save his own skin, he quickly added,

“That’s not it! I just never thought you’d like me. I don’t think I’m good enough for you!”

He spoke at lightning speed, hoping that saying something like that would ease her mood a little. But all it earned him was a cold chuckle:

“Heh, whether you’re good enough or not, I’ll be the judge of that.”

In the next instant, Suzuki Yu fell backward, looking up to see Shiina Chisa gazing down at him, her eyes locking onto his like a hungry wolf eyeing a sheep.

“Wait, what are you trying to do? Calm down!”

“Nothing much. I’m just going to keep you by my side forever. After all, Yu-kun is such an excellent person. I don’t want to let you run away.”

“Hold on! I’ve been tied up for so long, my whole body’s sore. I really can’t do that kind of thing right now, it wouldn’t be fun at all!”

“No problem. With some exercises, the first time is always a little painful. Just be a good boy and surrender.”