Chapter 132: Noah’s Mom Competes for Mother of the Year.

Ren let out a sigh at the situation, while Noah looked at the document again.

"And Ren’s family just accepted it without a fuss?"

Ren answered this time.

"Yes, they accepted right away."

"Why?"

Ren paused before answering.

"Because the original agreement forced me to marry Aria."

"Yeah, I already know that."

"And I had already made it clear that I didn’t want to do it."

Aria put a hand over her chest.

"How cruel of you."

Ren ignored her and kept explaining.

"This removes that engagement."

Noah pointed at the document.

"But now you’re engaged to me."

Ren stayed silent while her ears started turning red.

"Yes, I know that perfectly well."

Noah blinked at that answer and Ren clenched her hands over her legs.

"My family knows that..."

She stopped and Noah waited for her to continue, so Ren lowered her voice.

"That I like you."

Noah felt the situation getting even more complicated.

"Ah."

Ren frowned at that reaction.

"Is that all you’re going to say?"

"I don’t know what else you want me to say."

"No, it’s fine, better not say anything else."

Aria smiled, since she was enjoying this situation, and commented.

"An excellent romantic conversation."

Ren shot her an annoyed look while Noah went back to the document.

"But there’s something I don’t understand."

"Only one thing?"

Aria replied.

"Don’t start."

Noah pointed at a section covered in seals.

"Is this even legal?"

Aria stayed silent for a second and then smiled.

"When someone has enough money and connections, everything is legal."

Noah opened his mouth at that answer and Ren brought a hand to her face.

"I told you not to say that."

"Why?"

"Because it sounds terrible."

"But it worked."

"That doesn’t make the comment better!"

Noah looked at the contract, then at Aria, and then at Ren.

"Did you guys really do all this without asking me?"

Aria tilted her head slightly.

"The engagement still requires your final signature when the time comes."

Noah pointed at a page.

"There’s a signature of mine here."

"Preliminary authorization."

"I didn’t sign that!"

"Your legal guardian did."

Noah froze.

"What?"

Ren also looked at Aria.

"You didn’t tell me that."

Aria remained completely calm.

"It was part of the procedure, since it wouldn’t have any validity otherwise, duh."

Noah felt a bad premonition.

"Which one of my moms signed this!?"

"Sarah."

Noah closed his eyes.

’I didn’t see that coming.’

Aria continued.

"After a pretty long conversation."

Noah opened his eyes.

"Does my mom know the whole context?"

"She knows there’s a formal marriage proposal."

"And she accepted!?"

"Not immediately."

"That’s what I expected."

"But after talking about financial stability, family security, legal protection, educational benefits, and inheritance, she strangely accepted."

Noah stared at her.

"You bought my mom!"

"No, what are you thinking?"

Aria looked slightly offended.

"I convinced her, it’s different."

Ren muttered.

"With money."

"The money was part of the arguments."

"That’s called buying."

"Depends on the terminology."

Noah dropped his head.

’Thank all the gods I didn’t bring Yume or Luna.’

Just imagining it made him tense.

Yume would probably have tried to tear up the contract, while Luna might have asked first who drafted the document and then looked for the legal way to destroy it.

Noah picked up his phone, looked at it, and there were six messages from Yume next to four from Luna.

He preferred not to open any of them.

’They’re not here.’

He put the phone away.

’Let it stay that way for a few more minutes.’

Aria watched his reaction.

"So."

Noah looked up.

"So what?"

"Welcome to the engagement."

Noah frowned.

"I haven’t accepted anything."

Aria pointed at the document.

"But legally you’re already our provisional fiancé."

Noah looked at Ren.

"Provisional?"

Ren sighed.

"It’s a legal figure."

"Does that even exist?"

Aria answered.

"It does now."

Noah looked at her.

"That doesn’t reassure me."

"That wasn’t the goal."

Ren leaned a little toward Noah.

"Listen."

Her tone shifted to a much more serious one.

"I didn’t expect it to end up like this either."

Noah listened to her.

"But this agreement lets me stop pretending."

Ren looked at her uniform.

"I don’t have to hide who I am anymore."

Then she looked back at him.

"And I’m not being forced to marry someone I don’t love either."

Aria raised an eyebrow.

"We keep coming back to that point, why so much resentment toward me?"

Ren ignored her.

"If someday this actually goes further..."

She turned red.

"...I’d rather it be with you."

Noah stayed silent, since he didn’t know what to answer, while Ren looked away and Aria smiled.

"And I have no problem with the agreement."

"I already knew that."

Noah replied.

"Excellent."

Noah looked at the document again.

Now he had two fiancées, Aria and Ren.

On top of already having three girlfriends, who were Yume, Luna, and Iris.

Not counting everything related to the magical girls, the goddess, the villains, and his family.

Noah closed the folder.

"My life is getting way too complicated."

Ren murmured.

"I’m sorry."

Aria answered.

"I’m not."

Noah looked at Aria.

"I already knew that too."

Aria stood up.

"Then it’s decided."

"That’s not how it works!"

"Legally..."

"Don’t say ’legally’ again."

Aria smiled, so Ren let out a small laugh and Noah looked at her.

"You find this funny too?"

Ren tried to regain her seriousness.

"A little."

"Betrayal."

"I’m sorry."

Noah took the folder again.

"I’m taking this."

"Of course."

Aria said.

"You’ll need to read it carefully."

"I need to show it to someone."

Aria raised an eyebrow.

"Yume?"

Noah froze, since Luna and Iris also came to mind.

He looked at the document and then at the door.

"No."

"No?"

"First I need to survive until tomorrow."

Ren understood immediately, but Aria smiled.

"I didn’t know you were scared of them."

"I’m not scared of them."

His phone vibrated with a message from Yume.

[Did you finish talking with Aria?]

Another one from Luna arrived.

[Still alive?]

Noah quickly put the phone away and Aria saw the reaction.

"Sure, you’re not scared of them."

Noah stood up.

"I’m leaving."

"See you, fiancé."

Noah stopped.

"Don’t call me that."

Aria smiled.

"Why not, fiancé?"

Noah looked at Ren, who was completely red again.

"Are you going to start calling me that too?"

Ren looked away.

"No..."

She made a small pause.

"For now."

Noah’s eyes widened.

"Ren!"

She finally smiled and Noah left the room with the folder under his arm.

While he walked down the hallway, he thought about Yume and Luna again.

Then about Iris, then about Aria, and finally about Ren.

’I definitely did the right thing coming alone.’

Now he had a different problem.

Explaining that, in less than twenty-four hours since Yume and Luna accepted Iris as their new girlfriend, he had officially become the fiancé of two other women.

Noah looked at the folder.

’No.’

He put it inside his backpack.

’Definitely not today.’

For the first time in a long while, Noah decided that some problems could wait at least a few hours.