Harem Streamer System: Every Crime I Broadcast Wins Me a Superheroine - Chapter 74

Chapter 74: Communication
Brigid stretched her arms high above her head and let out a very long, satisfied yawn. Her bare toes curled against the pavement as she blinked at the towering mansion before her.

“Woooow~”

There was such amazement in her green eyes.

“This place is amazing!”

She turned to Scott with an eager grin as she practically bounced on her toes.

“Wait… is this your house?”

Scott chuckled as he ran a hand through his hair.

He shifted slightly to the side and pointed toward Emma, who stood frozen near the entrance of the mansion, flanked by Nadia and Jenna.

“Actually…”

His smile turned warm.

“… it belongs to my girlfriend. Emma.”

Brigid’s eyes followed his finger and landed on Emma.

Her curious smile widened.

“Ohhh, she’s so pretty!”

However, Emma looked anything but flattered.

She forced a tight, uncomfortable smile that didn’t reach her yellow eyes. Her arms folded under her breasts before she rubbed one awkwardly as her eyes flickered everywhere but at Brigid or Scott.

Scott walked forward a few steps, spreading his arms wide with his signature grin.

“What’s this? No hug for your boyfriend? Come on, Em. I’ve missed you!”

He waved his arms invitingly.

But Emma didn’t move.

Instead, her eyes were locked on Brigid

More specifically, the black T-shirt draped over her.

『Scott’s shirt…』

The more she tried to brush it off as a misunderstanding or convince herself there was some logical explanation, the harder it got.

Maybe there was a good explanation, but a part of her didn’t even want to hear it.

Every time she looked at the shirt—the one she was supposed to be wearing as his girlfriend—it felt like a slap in the face. She couldn’t shake the feeling of betrayal.

『I know he probably has an explanation, but…』

Her forced smile wavered.

Sadness showed in her eyes, and before anyone could say a word, she wiped at a tear forming in the corner of her eye, spun on her heel, and disappeared back into the mansion.

Scott blinked in confusion and lowered his arms as his brows pressed together.

“Huh? What just happened?”

Brigid covered her mouth and giggled softly.

“Looks like your girlfriend’s not so friendly…”

Scott’s eyes narrowed as he turned toward her.

He scanned her outfit again.

The oversized T-shirt, his T-shirt…

He finally realized.

“Ahhh, crap.”

He slapped a hand over his face and let out a deep sigh.

“I see what’s going on here…”

…

A little later…

The atmosphere inside the mansion was awkward at best.

Despite her concern for Emma, Nadia still helped Brigid settle into one of the many guest rooms. She tried to make polite conversation, but her words were strained and her smile was clearly forced.

“Thanks for the help!”

Brigid said cheerfully as she unpacked her small bag.

“This house is insane, haha~! Like, how do you guys not get lost in here?”

Nadia chuckled weakly.

『I really hope Emma’s alright…』

Her eyes dully shifted to the side.

Meanwhile, Jenna had made the deliberate decision to ignore both Brigid and Scott entirely. Her simmering disappointment was plain as she sat on the kitchen counter, flipping through her phone with a scowl.

『I can’t believe that guy! He actually brought another girl to his girlfriend’s house. And not only that—she’s wearing his fucking shirt! How does he not realize that his girlfriend should be the only one wearing his shirts? The only way it’d be okay for someone else to wear it is if his girlfriend gave her permission!』

Jenna sighed and turned off her phone as she tiredly rested her head against the kitchen counter.

Brigid was still very much aware of it all.

She just happily hummed a small song to herself while unpacking her things.

Meanwhile, Scott stood there, trying to piece together the mess he’d accidentally caused.

In the living room, Marcus stayed glued to his game, grinding away at Burgnite, totally oblivious to the drama brewing just a few steps away.

━ ━ ━ ━

Presently, Scott stood in front of Emma’s bedroom door and knocked repeatedly. His brows were knit with worry, and the usual lightness in his tone was gone.

“Emma?”

There was a cautious tenderness in his voice.

“Come on, Em. At least let me explain properly, alright? It’s… it’s really not what you think.”

He knocked again, then leaned his forehead against the door with a sigh.

“Could you at least have a little faith in me? I mean, I told you about Gwen, didn’t I? So why would I try to hide this? Just… please, babe. Open the door.”

On the other side of the door, Emma sat with her back pressed against it and her body curled up on the floor. Her chin rested on her knees, and her arms wrapped tightly around her legs.

Her expression was distant and her yellow eyes were both dull and unfocused. She felt both anger, sadness, and frustration all churning inside her, but more than anything, she felt… tired.

She closed her eyes in pain as Scott’s voice filtered through the door.

“Emma…”

But she didn’t respond.

She couldn’t bring herself to.

Not yet.

Scott let out a heavy sigh as his hand lingered on Emma’s door as if hoping she’d magically open it. When she didn’t, he placed his forehead against the wooden surface and tried again.

“Emma…”

His voice was even softer now.

“If you’ve got any faith in me at all, you’d know I wouldn’t do what you’re thinking. Brigid’s just… she’s a student from Skyfort Academy. She’s a little, uh, unorthodox—maybe a bit crazy—but I’m supposed to help her become a proper hero. That’s it. There’s nothing else going on here.”

He paused and rubbed the back of his neck as he tried to sort through the knot of emotions in his chest.

“She’s kind of weird, sure, but… I guess that’s what made me agree to help her. She reminded me of you in a way.”

A small, rueful smile tugged at his lips despite the tension.

He leaned against the door.

“Look, I know you’re mad. I don’t blame you. But I also know you’re not the type to stay mad forever. That’s not who you are.”

He stepped back and knocked one last time.

“I have to take Brigid to the Hero Agency and get her registered. It’s important. I’ll ask Nadia to come with us so you don’t have to worry, okay? But…”

His voice dropped, quieter, gentler.

“If you’re really not fine with any of this, I’ll figure something out. I’ll get her a hotel room or something. You just… think about it, alright? We’ll talk when I get back.”

Still, there was no response.

Scott exhaled slowly, but he was still smiling.

“I hope we can fix this.”

With that, he turned and walked down the hallway.

…

As Scott approached Brigid’s guest room, he spotted Nadia leaning casually against the doorframe with her arms folded and an unreadable expression on her pretty face.

“Oh, Nadia.”

Nadia tilted her head toward him and arched an eyebrow.

“Ooof, you really messed up, huh?”

Scott groaned and stretched his arms as he stopped in front of her.

“Big time. Emma’s usually calmer than this, so I didn’t think it’d be this hard to explain things.”

Nadia gave him a pointed look.

Her strawberry lips quirked into a dry smile.

“You showed up at her house with another girl wearing only your shirt and panties. How exactly was Emma supposed to feel? Grateful?”

Scott scratched the back of his head as his face twisted into a tired grimace.

“Yeah, yeah, I get it. It looks bad, but it’s really not what you guys think.”

Nadia snorted softly.

“I know. As much as I’d love to call you a cheating asshole to make Emma feel better, you’re not exactly giving off ‘player’ vibes… if you get what I mean.”

Scott raised an eyebrow.

“If you know that, then why haven’t you gone to talk to Emma yet?”

Nadia reached up and patted his cheek lightly.

She had an oddly playful smile on her face, one that seemed to draw you in without trying.

Maybe that smile was her most beautiful feature, aside from her natural beauty, which always paired perfectly with her soft, traditional makeup.

Everything about her just fit… the light coffee-brown tone of her skin, her delicate features, and her gentle, almost angelic personality.

“Because Emma’s a grown woman. There are times she has to figure things out for herself. If I jump in every time something goes wrong, she’s never going to get the experience she needs to handle it on her own.”

Scott blinked, then tilted his head thoughtfully.

“… Fair point.”

Nadia scooped a few strands of hair behind her ear.

That soft smile of hers appeared again.

“Anyway, you eaten yet? You drove all the way from Meteor City, so I’m guessing you didn’t stop for anything.”

“Uh, yeah, no. The road was pretty dead…”

Scott tiredly stretched his arms again.

“But more importantly, I need to take Brigid to the Hero Agency to get her registered. She needs her starting rank issued.”

Nadia placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Then I’m coming with you. You really want to risk Emma getting even angrier because you left with the same girl again without clearing things up first?”

Scott blinked in mild surprise.

“Wait, how’d you know? I was just thinking of asking you—or Jenna—to come along.”

Nadia smirked, folding her arms as she closed her eyes.

“Hehe, I’ve had a lot of people call me psychic. Baba’s even said it for years. But honestly?”

She opened her eyes and gave him a wry look.

“Jenna’s probably the worst choice. She’s cool and all, but she’s got the temper of a volcano.”

Scott chuckled weakly. “Yeah, I’ve noticed. So who’s got the best temper, then?”

Nadia straightened up, started walking down the hall, and tossed a glance back at him with a sly grin.

“Please. Don’t act like you don’t know.”

“Hm?” Scott looked genuinely oblivious.

She winked. “It’s obviously me.”

━ ━ ━ ━

Scott rubbed his forehead as he walked down the staircase when a low groan escaped his lips. l

The past few minutes were just terrible.

“I can’t believe I’m this stupid…”

He muttered under his breath.

“I should’ve just bought that damn suitcase of clothes before we left for Metro City. Then maybe… maybe Brigid wouldn’t have had to wear my shirt, and I wouldn’t be in this mess.”

He glanced over his shoulder at Brigid, who was walking behind him in a simple outfit she’d put together from the box of clothes he’d given her via the System Mark. It wasn’t much—a plain blouse and jeans—but it was miles better than the chaos her earlier outfit had caused.

Brigid didn’t seem to notice his self-directed frustration.

Instead, her eyes wandered as they reached the foot of the stairs, where Marcus was spread out on the couch like a lazy slice of cheese while his attention remained glued to the flashing screen of his video game.

The sound of rapid button clicks, and the occasional explosion from the television was all that could be heard.

Brigid paused for a moment as her green eyes narrowed slightly as she stared at the screen.

She tilted her head, as if trying to make sense of the game playing out on the television.

Then, without a word, she turned and walked out of the mansion with deliberately light footsteps.

Scott watched her leave, then turned to Marcus with an exasperated sigh.

“You’ve been playing that since we got here. Do you ever stop? It’s really not healthy.”

Scott said, crossing his arms.

Marcus didn’t even look up.

“Do you ever stop messing up with your girlfriend?”

Scott’s face soured. “Yeah, okay. Fair point.”

Before he could respond further, he heard a tender voice behind him.

“Hey! Sorry I took so long.”

Scott turned to see Nadia coming down the stairs in her white T-shirt and denim overalls paired with chunky white sneakers that gave her a casual, effortless look. Her brown curls bounced slightly as she waved at him with a cheerful smile.

“Pssssh──had to change into something real quick, but I’m ready now!”

Scott shook his head with a small smile.

“It’s fine. The Hero Agency’s open 24/7 anyway. We’re not in a rush.”

As he spoke, his eyes shifted to the kitchen archway, where he caught sight of Jenna standing there, her arms folded and her eyes practically boring a hole into him with how sharp her glare was.

If a glare could kill, he’d be dead by now.

“Sigh~ and here we go again.”

Ignoring her, Scott headed toward the door and stepped outside to join Brigid in the car.

“Wait for me!”

Nadia called out, rushing down the stairs.

She was halfway to the door when Jenna grabbed her wrist to stop her in her tracks.

“Where the hell do you think you’re going?”

Jenna sounded like a demanding parent.

Nadia stopped and turned back to her with an easy smile.

Even now, she still looked quite calm.

“Relax, Jen. I know you’ve got issues with Scott right now, but I don’t. That doesn’t mean I have to join the ‘cold shoulder’ brigade over a little lovers’ spat. It’s immature.”

“Immature?”

Jenna scoffed as her voice rose slightly.

“Immature doesn’t matter when we’re talking about a guy who brought another girl into his girlfriend’s house wearing his shirt! How is that not a big deal?”

Nadia sighed, her patience clearly being tested.

“Okay, and? What else has this ‘horrible’ guy done?”

“Oh, I don’t know…”

Jenna rolled her eyes dramatically.

“Maybe kissed another woman while dating Emma? And let’s not forget how Emma barely feels free to tell him how she feels—like the whole Irina Golovin thing.”

Nadia’s expression softened slightly, but her voice remained firm.

“Jen, what Emma and Scott need is communication. That’s it. You don’t have to blow this out of proportion. Don’t forget—Scott’s the same guy who defended Emma when she was getting dragged all over his livestream. One or two mistakes don’t make him a bad person. They make him human. And honestly, they make him a pretty great boyfriend who’s willing to learn.”

Jenna hissed in frustration and threw up her hands.

“Whatever.”

She stormed over to the couch and tiredly plopped down next to Marcus.

“Fuck it. Let’s play something. I need to get my mind off someone… annoying.”

Nadia shook her head.

There was a small, smug smile tugging at her lips.

“So immature…” she said under her breath.

She turned and headed for the door and stepped outside to join Scott and Brigid in the car.