After school in the afternoon, club activities officially began.
"I can't believe only you, Fujiwara, appreciate my dancing. Why don't you come to the dance club? It's a big space, and I can dance to my heart's content. I can perform a few more times for you; don't be shy!" Hanyu Mochizuki said to Chika Fujiwara with an air of gallantry.
"...No thanks! What you do is a ritual of painful struggle to a beat. If I watch it any more times, I'll feel like I've been cursed," Chika Fujiwara quickly replied in a sweet voice, a hint of fear in her expression.
"It's because I felt the strong emotions you put into your dance, Hanyu-kun, that it moved me..."
"Huh? Fujiwara, why are you so blunt? You'll easily lose friends if you do that!" Hanyu Mochizuki said with an incredulous look. "Shouldn't you be giving me a little praise right now?"
Chika Fujiwara tilted her head, thought for a moment, and smiled brightly. "I don't think we need to be too formal with each other, Hanyu-kun."
"Perfect explanation!" Hanyu Mochizuki gave a thumbs-up. "My favorability toward you has increased by 0.1. Keep up the good work!"
With that, he walked out swaying. It seemed that the dance he had performed earlier had taken a lot of his energy, making it difficult for him to walk now.
"Hanyu-kun is so interesting~" Chika Fujiwara's sky-blue eyes twinkled, bright and charming.
She then turned to look at Kaguya Shinomiya, who was still packing her bag, and said with a smile, "Don't you agree, Kaguya-san?"
"I only hope he is as he appears."
"Ehehe, I believe in Hanyu-kun~ Just like I believe in you, Kaguya-san~"
Kaguya Shinomiya's packing motion paused slightly, but she quickly returned to normal. "...I hope so."
The next day.
Makoto Isshiki arrived at the classroom at a regular time. About half of the students were already there, but he immediately noticed Hanyu Mochizuki, who was lying motionless on his desk.
"What's wrong, Hanyu-kun?" Makoto Isshiki walked up to Hanyu Mochizuki and asked worriedly in a whisper. He knew that Hanyu-kun would never come back until the last minute, so was he sick?
"Mmm..."
"Huh?!"
Makoto Isshiki was confused and leaned in closer, finally hearing a bit more clearly.
"Huu..."
"You didn't eat breakfast, did you?"
Hanyu Mochizuki finally lifted his head, revealing a gaunt and pale face that startled Makoto Isshiki.
He didn't mind; he just smiled, seeming to have no strength when he spoke. "There's a home economics class today. It seems we're making curry, so I wanted to save some room in my stomach for it."
Makoto Isshiki's mouth twitched at the news. He stammered, "...A-are you having financial difficulties?"
Hanyu Mochizuki waved his hand, knowing what he wanted to ask. He sighed to himself that this was an interesting guy, and then said, "I won a lottery ticket at a convenience store less than two days after arriving in Tokyo, around two million yen. I'm not short on cash for now."
"Ah, aren't you a minor?"
"It's nothing. That kind of thing is easy to solve. Don't worry about the details." Hanyu Mochizuki smiled mysteriously, but unfortunately, the smile on his pale face looked a little spooky.
"I brought a small bread. How about you eat this first? The ingredients the home economics teacher provides aren't a lot, so..." Makoto Isshiki said, quickly pulling a plastic-wrapped red bean bread from his bag.
"Why would it be a small amount?" Hanyu Mochizuki gently pushed it back. "The home economics class is with Class G, right? There will definitely be plenty."
Makoto Isshiki was speechless and a little confused. What did Class G have to do with it? Did he make some friends in Class G, too? Hanyu-kun's communication skills are truly impressive...
However, he had a subtle bad feeling.
Just as Makoto Isshiki was about to ask more, Hanyu Mochizuki had already fallen into a deep sleep. Fortunately, there was no Japanese language class in the morning—Shizuka Hiratsuka's class—and home economics was the last class of the morning, so he could keep this up.
The teachers of other classes didn't bother Hanyu Mochizuki, as he could quickly answer questions when called upon. After this happened a few times, no one was bored enough to deal with him, especially since his test scores were always perfect, his homework was always on time, and his entrance exam scores were said to be quite good.
Excellent students always have special privileges no matter where they are~
Time passed slowly until the last class of the day.
A group of people walked in a grand procession toward the home economics classroom.
Chika Fujiwara looked at the pale-faced, swaying Hanyu Mochizuki with a strange expression. "Hanyu-kun, are you really okay?"
"I'm fine~" Hanyu Mochizuki looked up, smiled, and gave a thumbs-up.
"The way you say some phrases is always weird. Is that a unique accent from your hometown?"
"You could say that."
Then, Hanyu Mochizuki turned to look at the concerned Makoto Isshiki beside him and said nonchalantly, "By the way, are the results of that 'Cutest Girl' contest out yet? I'd like to see them."
"Huh?!" Makoto Isshiki's face instantly panicked, and his eyes darted around. He didn't dare to look at him anymore. "What are you talking about? Is there such a thing? I have no idea at all!"
What's going on? I kept it a secret from Hanyu-kun, so how did he find out?!
Makoto Isshiki hadn't deliberately targeted Hanyu Mochizuki; it was because Hanyu Mochizuki had shown an incredibly shameless character since he entered the school, which made him worry that things would get out of hand.
"Oh, maybe I heard it wrong when I was eavesdropping. Never mind, there's no need for girls to compete anyway. Each has her own cuteness, so that kind of mysterious contest really isn't necessary."
As Hanyu Mochizuki spoke, his body swayed from side to side, showing a hint of the dancing from yesterday. Chika Fujiwara, who had just wanted to ask what was going on, quickly took several steps back and then slipped close to the calmly walking Kaguya Shinomiya.
Kaguya Shinomiya remained expressionless, walking side by side with Chika Fujiwara as if nothing had happened.
"You're the best, Kaguya-san~ I like you the most~"
"...That's not true."
"I can't believe Hanyu-kun is a terrifying gentleman, too. It's a little scary."
"A gentleman?"
"Oh oh, Kaguya-san's knowledge in this area is a little lacking. Let me tell you—"
"He's a hypocritical pervert! But I feel like you don't know me well enough, Fujiwara. I am a pervert with the name of a gentleman, which is different from those sleazy, greasy guys!"
The students around them looked at each other.
And the protagonist of the conversation, Chika Fujiwara, looked with a stiff face at the now-energetic Hanyu Mochizuki, who had suddenly appeared next to her. She felt a bit awkward.
I spoke so softly, so how did he still hear me? And why are you so full of energy now?!
Kaguya Shinomiya frowned as she observed this man who was both righteous and full of vigor in the blink of an eye. For some reason, she held back the reprimand she was about to utter, but her expression was still exceptionally displeased.
"...I feel like we're not on the same wavelength."
"Heh heh, pretending you don't know anything and deliberately ignoring the fact that you just talked bad about me behind my back. As expected of a great politician's daughter!"
"Boo hoo... That's so mean~ A man who only grabs onto a girl's pigtails is the most annoying! Kaguya-san, let's go—"
Hanyu Mochizuki stroked his chin, watching Chika Fujiwara, who was pulling Kaguya Shinomiya and running away quickly. He couldn't help but sigh, "Is it the 'angry escape' again? Pretending to be angry is just an excuse to get away from the barrel of a gun. She's really skilled at that."
"...Hanyu-kun, Fujiwara-san didn't mean it." Makoto Isshiki said.
"A real man stands tall. He doesn't sweat the small stuff. Do you think I'd care about something like that?" Hanyu Mochizuki waved his hand grandly, looking very masculine.
He then added, "But I can't tolerate others calling me a gentleman. I'm a pervert who's even better than a gentleman! Fujiwara underestimated me, so you can't blame me for being so mad."
Makoto Isshiki's mind was in chaos. So you're upset because she didn't call you a big enough pervert...
Lesson learned!