Undoubtedly, this was the truth. This was fact.
"I understand. Thank you for your answer." Yukino brushed her long hair from her shoulder, turned, and walked toward Class J. "I'll head to class first. See you after school."
"I'm not sure I'll go to the clubroom."
"Oh, that's wonderful."
"Can your happiness be slightly less obvious, Madam President?"
"Sorry, it can't."
Yukino showed a faint smile, a hint of mischief behind her calmness.
Maybe that was what made Yukino cute?
Yuu shook his head and walked toward Class B, pondering the earlier topic.
"There's a new situation with Haruno again..."
Was it like what Father Pucci said—that the gravity of human encounters is like gravity itself? Even if the world lines were reset, the intertwined destinies wouldn't vanish?
"...No, this has nothing to do with fate. The system's just messed up in handling things. Anyway, it's the system's fault."
System: "?"
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
After school, Yuu was called by Hiratsuka.
Seeing Yuu's completely unsurprised expression, Hiratsuka sighed while holding her head.
"I really want to shove your head up your own ass..."
"Please don't say such horrifying things to a student during your first meeting with them?"
Hiratsuka didn't just say it—she clenched her fist, looking like she wanted to act immediately.
"It seems you don't understand."
"Understand what?"
"Don't you understand the pain of watching a video of your own student kissing a girl, shown alongside other teachers at a faculty meeting?"
Yuu's expression shifted slightly. He fell silent, then sincerely apologized: "...How should I put it—I'm sorry for troubling you."
Hiratsuka burst into laughter.
The laughter had no emotion—only described as cruel.
"The accumulated murder intent back then was nearly enough to use Shinra Tensei and make all the teachers and students feel my pain."
"Or at the very least, enough to use Ensa Kokuryuha on you—Hey, wanna try it now?"
Anyone who could say such a thing must have a broken brain or be insane. Yuu decided to pretend he didn't hear it and resolve all conflicts with love and peace.
"Next time, I'll treat you to ramen until you're full."
"How did you know I like ramen... Never mind, it's not important."
Sighing deeply, Hiratsuka dropped her terrifying expression and poked his chest in annoyance. "Anyway, lately you need to restrain yourself more!"
"Making out with your little girlfriend is your own business, but you should watch out for the eyes around you. And, quickly resolve that girl's family issues..."
After saying that, Hiratsuka couldn't help but click her tongue. "Honestly, this is the first time I've met a parent who tattles to school with CCTV footage—and coincidentally, the other party has connections with the board chairman. If it weren't for your achievements at the fair, the school wouldn't have let this go so easily, leaving our homeroom teacher to handle it alone."
"I understand, I understand. I'll follow all superior instructions." Yuu obediently nodded repeatedly.
Hiratsuka clicked her lips in disgust. "You sly kid... Anyway, I don't have the ability to deal with you anymore. Handle yourself. If it's not a big issue, I'll protect you—on the condition that your midterm exam scores don't drop, okay?"
Yuu, of course, had no objection. He then asked, "What if I get first place school-wide? Is there a reward?"
Surprised, Hiratsuka blurted without thinking: "First place? You want to beat that Yukinoshita?"
An image of Yukino's long, slender legs suddenly flashed in his mind. Yuu quickly shook his head to dispel the perverted thought, staring at the middle-aged female teacher speechlessly.
"Sensei, watch your words. If Yukinoshita hears that, she'll get angry."
"Ahem ahem... Slip of the tongue, slip of the tongue." Coughing twice with a red face, Hiratsuka quickly moved past the topic, returning to seriousness. "For the first-place reward, the school will give it to you. Of course, I don't have one. I can't treat you to ramen, can I? But giving you a few ramen discount coupons is fine."
"Then no need. I was just joking." Yuu said. "I'll try my best to get the highest possible score. You don't need to worry about that—I'm a genius, after all."
"Oh, very confident." Hiratsuka raised an eyebrow with a smile, crossing her long-pants-clad legs. She observed his expression from head to toe. "After being in the Service Club for almost a month, you've changed quite a bit because of Yukinoshita."
"Do you mean my thick skin?" Yuu opened his eyes wide, as if finally discovering the source of an urban legend. He realized, "No wonder I've felt my skin getting thicker lately—it was all because of her?"
Hiratsuka burst into uncontrollable laughter, laughing until she bent over.
"At first, I thought you two would be sworn enemies. I never expected you'd get along too!"
"We both have emotional intelligence, so of course we won't deliberately pick fights. At most, we might argue once or twice when we're bored."
"And for someone with such a strange personality..." A smile tugged at Yuu's lips. "I've been used to dealing with her since before summer break."
"Used to?" Hiratsuka stared at him, as if pondering something, but didn't intend to ask. She leaned back in her chair, smirking.
"After all, letting you join the Service Club was one of my smartest decisions."
Yuu gave her good advice: "Sensei, your face is almost as thick as Yukinoshita's."
"Don't talk nonsense. This is called confidence. Look at Yukinoshita—she says she's cute every day. That's already narcissism, something we can't compare to..."
Before Hiratsuka could finish, a very familiar, melodious voice came from the side.
"Sensei, were you looking for me?"
"Yes!" Hiratsuka froze, slowly turning her head like a robot.
Only when she saw Yukino's slightly tilted head and pure, confused expression did she finally feel relieved, as if she'd just survived a disaster.
Before Hiratsuka could respond, Yuu on the other side raised his hand like a good student and loudly declared:
"Reporting, President—we were talking bad things about you!"
Hiratsuka: "???"
Yukino: "..."
As if helpless against him, the girl gave him a sharp glare, then walked past them both, carrying several documents, and left the teacher's office.
Before leaving, her annoyed sigh could still be heard:
"Poor me... Am I the only intelligent person left in the Service Club..."
Hiratsuka and Yuu looked at each other. After a moment, they suddenly spoke in unison:
"You heard that, right? She said you're stupid!"
They quickly remembered there was a fourth person in the Service Club. They nodded in unison again, smiling with mutual understanding.
"I get it. Turns out she was talking about Yuigahama!"
The two intelligent people high-fived, and the teacher's office was filled with a joyful atmosphere.
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
A few days later, on a weekend before the midterm exams.
To help his friend study, Yuu came to a family restaurant in town—Wagnaria.
Rumor had it the main store was in Hokkaido. Now it had opened a branch in Tokyo and gained some fame. The most-liked Google review read, "The taste of danger is addictive," and many people visited on both weekdays and weekends.
Masuzu didn't come.
When she heard a guy was involved, she immediately gave up on going. She was probably relaxing at home watching JOJO—this made Yuu feel grateful.
Because the people he invited weren't just Totsuka, but also Yuigahama...
If Masuzu came, Yuigahama probably couldn't focus on studying, turning it into a chaotic waste of study time.
How could love matters compare to the greatness of studying?
Readers, souls who read, all who read are the best!
We must study in silence and surprise everyone!
"Yuu, sorry—there's an unexpected family matter today. I probably can't study with you all..."
"It's fine. Family comes first... If you need it, my notes are always available for you."
Study session hadn't even started, yet one person was already absent.
After briefly chatting warmly with Totsuka, Yuu put down his phone. He looked at the dango-haired girl in front of him, who looked slightly nervous yet excited, and fell silent for a moment.
Alright, choose.
Should he honestly call his girlfriend to dispel suspicion, risking chaos?
Or should he firmly refuse and spend the entire day studying alone with Yuigahama at the family restaurant?