Some Special Gifts

As Leo and Utaha Kasumigaoka talked, the entire Class 3-C grew noticeably quieter.

Every student present, male and female alike, couldn't help straining to hear what the two were saying.

There was no helping it. From any angle, the two of them were celebrities at Sobu High.

Thanks to his outstanding looks and presence, Leo had been judged the most popular boy at Sobu High since his first year. He had ranked first on the girls' "Most Wanted Boyfriend" list for three consecutive years. Hayama Hayato, currently in second place, had only half as many votes as Leo. It was safe to say that Leo was far ahead of the competition.

Utaha Kasumigaoka, meanwhile, was one of the four most admired girls at Sobu High.

At Sobu High, there were four high mountain flowers recognized by both the students and teachers.

Everyone at the school referred to these four high mountain flowers by the names of the four seasons: spring, summer, autumn, and winter.

The first high mountain flower was a girl currently enrolled in Class 1-A, named Mahiru Shiina. Her exquisite looks and gentle, capable nature had caused a sensation on her very first day of school, making her a celebrity at Sobu High. The students and teachers called her Angel, and she was Sobu High's "Spring Flower."

The second high mountain flower was a girl currently enrolled in Class 2-G, named Eriri Spencer Sawamura. She was exceptionally talented at drawing and the star of the school's Art Club. Though she acted like a pampered young lady, she was kind and popular throughout the school. She was Sobu High's "Summer Flower."

The third high mountain flower was Utaha Kasumigaoka, currently enrolled in Class 3-C. She was a Literary Girl with a rare literary talent, capable of writing scripts for the Drama Club. She was also a promising light novel author. Quiet and graceful, she possessed an extraordinary presence and beauty. She was Sobu High's "Autumn Flower."

The fourth high mountain flower was naturally Yukino Yukinoshita, currently enrolled in Class 2-J. An honor student who had held the top spot in her class since she started school, she was a beautiful girl blessed with both looks and intelligence. Since she was exceedingly cold toward both people and situations, she was Sobu High's "Winter Flower."

These four school beauties were all impeccable in their looks, presence, grades, talent, and even family backgrounds. They were truly high mountain flowers—beautiful from afar, but not to be touched.

Sobu High had also established a Support Group for each of the four high mountain flowers. Utaha Kasumigaoka's Support Group was the largest.

The reason was simple. Utaha was a third-year student, while the other three high mountain flowers were all underclassmen. Some of the older boys wouldn't "lower themselves" to become fans of younger girls. At least, they thought it would be embarrassing. That was why Utaha had the most supporters in the whole school.

Incidentally, Yukino Yukinoshita's Support Group was the smallest. She was always cold and was extremely bad at socializing. She often treated others with cutting remarks and had no qualms about speaking her mind or correcting people when they were wrong. As a result, she had driven away quite a few people. Only those who were into that sort of thing chose to join her Support Group and become her rabid fans...

Now, the most popular boy among the girls and the most popular girl among the boys were chatting together. It was bound to attract attention in every sense, making people watch them without even realizing it.

Leo and Utaha had naturally noticed, but they were both used to it, so they continued talking as if nobody else were there.

"I'm here to demand an update, Kasumigaoka." Leo wore a serious expression. "When is volume two of Koi no Metronome coming out? I've been waiting for months. If you don't update soon, I'm going to mail you a box of razor blades."

Utaha rolled her eyes almost imperceptibly.

"Have you actually been reading novels lately?" Utaha asked with a faint, knowing smile. "I heard that someone's been keeping an eye on the Service Club recently. At lunchtime, he even went to their clubroom. I wonder what he was talking about in there?"

"So you know about that?" Leo smiled. "Looks like I'm getting a lot of attention from you, senpai."

"Of course I'm keeping an eye on you. You were the first person at this school to figure out that I was a light novel author, then spread the news everywhere. You're the culprit who made my fans pester me for ages, Devil-kun." Utaha spoke calmly. "And how many times have I told you? We're in the same year. I'm not your senpai. Why do you always like calling me that?"

"Don't mind it. I just accidentally brought some habits I can't explain to other people along with me." Leo waved a hand. "Besides, you're always calling me Devil-kun, aren't you?"

"Who do you think started that?" Utaha turned her gaze back to the book in her hands and spoke without looking up. "Wasn't it because some narcissist with too much charm ran up to me of his own accord and declared that he was a devil?"

That was right. Leo had once confessed his identity to Utaha.

Their conversation at the time had gone like this...

"Senpai, I want to read volume two of Koi no Metronome."

"Don't call me senpai. Volume two isn't out yet."

"Then please write it for me right now. Otherwise, I'll curse you."

"You? Curse me?"

"That's right. Because I'm a devil."

"...If you're trying to be funny, could you do it somewhere else?"

And so, asking for an update became Leo's standard way of starting a conversation with Utaha. Ever since then, Utaha had called him "Devil-kun."

Leo knew that the nickname was just a teasing way for her to get back at him for constantly demanding an update. She hadn't taken his confession seriously at all.

How could the famous "Autumn Flower" of Sobu High ever guess that the confession she found so embarrassing and chuunibyou-like—and teased him about as if it were a shameful bit of history—was actually true?

The truth was often revealed in the little things people said and did without thinking, but nobody ever noticed.

"Anyway, I want to read volume two of Koi no Metronome. I really can't wait any longer." Leo sounded almost unreasonable. "Could that rumor going around online actually be true? Is Koi no Metronome really about to get canceled because you can't finish the second volume?"

Utaha fell silent.

"No way. No way!" Leo exclaimed dramatically. "It's really getting canceled? My youth is over!"

"You're so annoying, Devil-kun." Utaha frowned. "I'll write volume two. I absolutely won't let Koi no Metronome get canceled."

That was what she said, but lately, Utaha had been feeling rather discouraged.

She had written the contents of the second volume several times already, but every draft had failed to get past her editor, leaving her stuck and unable to finish it.

The first volume of Koi no Metronome had sold very well when it was released. As a result, her editor kept rejecting the second volume because it wasn't as good as the first. There were now no signs of a reprint, and rumors that the series was going to be canceled had started to spread.

This left Utaha very troubled and even more frustrated.

Naturally, Utaha wasn't going to talk about any of that in front of Leo.

She didn't want the "fan" who was always demanding updates to look down on her. More than that, she found herself reluctant to see disappointment in his eyes.

Though she didn't say it outright, the fact that the boy most popular with the girls at Sobu High was so absorbed in her work still made Utaha feel secretly pleased.

That was why she didn't want to disappoint Leo.

"Then I'll look forward to the good news."

Looking at Utaha, Leo suddenly smiled, as if he could see straight through her troubles and frustration.

"Since you're working so hard, senpai, I'll give you a rather special gift."

Leo took a piece of old-fashioned parchment, about the size of his palm, out of his pocket.

"This is a very effective charm. When you're troubled, it might be able to help you."

As he spoke, Leo slipped the parchment into Utaha's hand, then stood up and returned to his seat.

"This is a charm?"

Utaha was a little taken aback. She looked at the parchment in her hand, with its magic circle drawn on it, pressed her lips together, then put it away.

Watching this from the side, Leo smiled faintly, turned his gaze to the front of the classroom, and looked toward the teacher's desk.

The bell rang, and the teacher walked in to begin class...

Before they knew it, the day's classes were over.

As the sun sank and the evening glow appeared, the number of people at Sobu High gradually dwindled, and the campus slowly fell silent.

On the school building's rooftop, Leo was lying down, hands behind his head and legs crossed, basking in the evening sun with a laid-back air.

"Hm?"

Suddenly, Leo opened his eyes, and an astonishing glint flashed through them.

"What's this...?"

He stood up and went to the railing. His gaze shot toward the school gates, as sharp as a torch.

No—he was looking much farther away.

"They've made their move already?"

As if he'd learned something, Leo's lips curled into a cold smile.

The next moment, Leo vanished without a trace.

Time rewound to a few minutes earlier...

At the station some distance from Sobu High, Yukino Yukinoshita slowly stepped out and headed toward an apartment building.

As the Second Young Lady of the Yukinoshita Family, Yukino should have been living in a mansion and been driven to and from school in a private car. But because of her family, she was currently renting a place on her own, and she took the train to school instead of a private car. Nobody would have guessed that this was the life of the Second Young Lady of the Yukinoshita Family, a prestigious family from Chiba Prefecture.

At that moment, Yukino was still brooding over what had happened that day.

"What good is something like this supposed to do for me?"

Holding the parchment with the magic circle drawn on it, Yukino had reached the limit of her patience.

"That charlatan. I don't need help from something like this."

She was about to throw the parchment away.

"Step..."

Just then, a deliberately loud footstep reached her ears.