"Mio, are you free tomorrow?"
Yuigahama Yui was attempting to make plans—it had been days since she'd last seen Mio properly, and she wanted more time together.
"Tomorrow... probably not. I've got something on." Mio gave an apologetic smile. Comiket opened tomorrow, and things were going to get hectic. More importantly, she couldn't let Yui find out she was a doujinshi artist. If that got out, her social life was finished.
"Aww~"
Yui couldn't fully conceal her disappointment.
But she didn't overthink it. If tomorrow didn't work, there was the day after. If not then, the day after that. Something would come up eventually. Reassured by the thought, her usual sunny energy returned in full.
While they talked, Mio caught fragments of conversations around the room—classmates discussing Comiket. She wondered if she should wear some kind of disguise tomorrow. Getting spotted by a classmate at the venue would be barely a step down from full social annihilation.
The conversation didn't last long. Hiratsuka Shizuka, their homeroom and guidance teacher, walked in.
The dark circles under Hiratsuka-sensei's eyes told the whole story—she'd clearly been burning the midnight oil lately, probably buried under stacks of exams to grade.
She cleared her throat twice. When the room had quieted, she began: "As the final homeroom session of the semester, I don't have much to say that I haven't already said. Repeating it now would just be wasting your time."
"I'll remind you: don't forget your winter holiday assignments. And there will be a short quiz when we come back next semester—I trust you all know what happens if your scores fall short." She smiled pleasantly and cracked her knuckles. The threat radiated off her like heat.
"In short—stay safe, and enjoy your break. Lord knows I intend to enjoy mine."
As soon as homeroom ended, Mio fell into step beside Hiratsuka-sensei. "Sensei, want to come over tonight?"
"Yes."
Not even a pause. She'd been chained to exam grading for days—no home-cooked meals, barely any alcohol. Now that the work was finally done, she was absolutely celebrating.
"Then it's settled~ I'll be home waiting for you~"
The moment the words left her mouth, Hiratsuka-sensei flicked her lightly on the head. "Hmph. A few days apart and you're already flirting."
"Ehehe~"
Mio stuck out her tongue and slipped out of the classroom.
She was just mentally mapping out where to head next when a familiar silhouette caught her eye.
Curves in all the right places. A refined, captivating face. Long legs encased in black stockings. Who else could it be but Kasumigaoka Utaha?
Wait—why is Kasumigaoka-senpai here?
She had no idea, but the moment she registered who it was, Mio spun on her heel and broke into a run without a second thought.
Utaha watched her fleeing back with an arched brow. Last time too, and now again.
Why did this white-haired little kouhai bolt at the sight of her like she'd seen a ghost?
It was faintly irritating.
She pulled out the student ID she'd been carrying—the one that belonged to Mio. She'd originally intended to turn it in to lost-and-found, but after Mio's first escape, she'd found herself wanting to return it in person. Partly to find out why this girl kept running.
She couldn't figure it out. They barely knew each other. She was, by any reasonable standard, quite attractive. Think as she might, no satisfying explanation presented itself.
It's not like I'm going to eat her.
Meanwhile, Mio—having put enough distance between herself and Utaha—finally let out a quiet breath once she confirmed she wasn't being followed.
That brief glimpse had been enough to catch the subtle shift in Utaha's expression. Unless she was wrong, Utaha had come specifically looking for her.
But why?
Mio had gone out of her way to avoid Utaha—steering clear of the rooftop, giving her classroom a wide berth, mentally marking both as no-go zones.
And yet, with zero connection between them, Utaha had come to her. That hadn't been part of any plan Mio had made.
What made her head hurt more was the follow-through problem: even if she escaped today, what happened when school resumed and Utaha came knocking again?
Mio briefly entertained the idea of transferring schools.
...Yeah, no.
After a short rest, she headed downstairs toward the school gates, scanning every corner with careful eyes, half-expecting Utaha to materialize from some unexpected angle.
Apparently she'd been worried for nothing. She made it all the way to the gate without any sign of Utaha. It seemed like she'd already left.
Mio let her shoulders drop—and then a cool, unhurried voice spoke right behind her.
"My, my. You look awfully scared of me, Shirai-kouhai."
"Wah!"
Mio startled so hard she lost control of her voice, drawing curious looks from nearby students.
She turned stiffly—and found Utaha standing right there, at some point having appeared directly behind her, watching with quiet composure.
At the same moment, a familiar chime rang through Mio's mind: "Congratulations, Host. You've made contact with Kasumigaoka Utaha. The Kasumigaoka Utaha quest line has been unlocked. You may check her conquest rating on your system panel at any time."
The system's voice dripped with gleeful satisfaction.
Mio bit back the urge to say something rude and instead turned to face Utaha with her best composed expression. "Were you looking for me, Senpai?"
"I'm standing right in front of you. Who else would I be looking for?"
"Then... is there something I can help you with, Senpai?" Mio asked carefully.
"This belongs to you, doesn't it?" Utaha held up Mio's student ID, dangling it slightly between two fingers.
Mio blinked. She'd noticed the ID was missing a while ago, but had simply gotten a replacement issued rather than worrying about the lost one. The last thing she'd expected was for Utaha to have picked it up.
Fine, she found it. But why not just drop it at lost-and-found? Why bring it here in person?!
This is so not like her.
Despite the internal commentary, Mio arranged her face into a sweet smile. "That is mine. I can't believe it was Senpai who found it—thank you so much."
She reached out to take it back—and Utaha pulled her hand away.
Tilting her head with a look of studied curiosity, Utaha said, "Before I return it—can I ask you one question?"
"...Sure."
"Why do you always run when you see me?"
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