I'll Just Shout That Honami Ichinose Knocked Someone Down and Is Trying to Run Away

"... Yes, if nothing unexpected happens, it will be around that time." Kushida Kikyo nodded slightly.

Asakusa Toru's expression looked somewhat surprised, but not entirely unexpected.

After a moment's thought, Kushida Kikyo came up with a possibility.

"When did the Hoshinomiya tell you about this?" she asked, looking up.

"Back when we were reviewing for the midterms, right?" he said.

Upon hearing this, Kushida Kikyo scoffed:

"A leopard can't change its spots."

Why are they only telling Class D the news now, even though other classes have already been notified?

If there were Akito in other classes... no, if it were Sakayanagi Arisu, she would have already realized that the schedule for the Special Exam had been decided and preparations had begun during the midterm exams.

So that's why the Diary was so confident in telling them he knew everything about the next Special Exam?

"... I plan to take that little wimp along to exercise for a while." After a brief silence, she added, "Horikita Suzune will come along too."

"If the Special Exam really is a survival challenge on a desert island, Airi's physical fitness will be a huge disadvantage."

Asakusa Toru nodded in deep agreement:

"She really should start exercising."

Sakura Airi's physical condition is terrible; she gets out of breath after running just a few steps with a weight on, so she rarely chooses to be on top.

They are completely in a passive position, basically at the mercy of others.

And yet she managed to escape in no time.

If you really want to take your idol as your future goal, then you should start exercising now.

Nighttime activities cannot be considered exercise.

"Do you want me to come with you?" he asked.

Kushida Kikyo shook her head:

"... No, forget it."

She was indeed a little tempted. After all, the feeling of having Horikita Suzune by her side was definitely completely different from having Asakusa Toru by her side; at least the emotional experience would be completely different.

But she felt that having Asakusa Toru train with her would have two problems. First, training with a boy would cause a commotion; dealing with questions from girls or hostility from other men would be difficult. Second...

When you start exercising, don't let it turn into exercising in a different sense.

Kushida Kikyo had no doubt about Sakura Airi's conviction in rejecting him, nor did she doubt the other thoughts that would arise in her mind when she noticed the various little details about Sakura Airi.

Therefore, if the real purpose is to exercise, then you definitely shouldn't get close to Asakusa Toru.

Nighttime exercise is too physically demanding and can significantly impact your regular workout routine.

"You'll be directing on your own these next few days."

Quite naturally, Kushida Kikyo uttered the 'return of the favor' she had been longing to say for a long time.

After all, someone had previously said something as cold as, "You can deduct it yourself."

This is not an overreaction at all.

Chapter 180 I shouted that Ichinose Honami had knocked someone down and was trying to run away.

July 8.

Saturday.

Today is a very special day.

That's right, it's the 100th day since Asakusa Toru started keeping a diary.

Clearly, this day is quite memorable.

With less than a month left until the final exams and the Uninhabited Island Special Exam, and with Miss Kikyo having already deduced the content of the Special Exam and relayed it to him, Asakusa Toru to focus on today's main Special Exam than to wait until the last day before boarding the ship to leak the questions.

But it was the day before he had planned to write in his diary at the exact time of his 100th day.

On Friday, as he opened his personal shoe locker after school to change his indoor shoes, Asakusa Toru found a letter instead...

A cute love letter with adorable heart stickers?

The handwriting was neat and easily recognizable, and the words were brief yet clearly conveyed the meaning of a 'confession'.

And... the invitation that fell at the end of the love letter.

I've recently realized my own feelings for someone.

'I feel this is a courage I had to muster.'

I'd like to ask you to meet me at the back of the stadium at 4 PM tomorrow.

The 'tomorrow' I wrote down yesterday refers to 4 PM today.

Time wasn't actually that tight, and Asakusa Toru had thought many times about whether to just confront her directly and question her.

But after thinking about it, he finally gave up and decided to wait patiently for the invitation.

This love letter was quite unexpected for Asakusa Toru, yet at the same time it felt somewhat reasonable to him.

After all, the little mascot's somewhat subtle behavior was actually a sign of something.

Indeed, this love letter was undoubtedly written by Shiranami Chihiro.

The handwriting is exactly the same as the one I saw at the library study session, and the heart-shaped stickers are quite Shiranami Chihiro's personal style.

Even the content of the confession felt subtly familiar.

... This love letter should have been given to Ichinose Honami.

If the story unfolds as expected, Archangel Ichinose will use her irresistible charm to influence every student in Class B, and the one most captivated by this charm is none other than the mascot Shiranami Chihiro.

She would muster her courage, disregard societal norms, and resolutely launch a confession towards Ichinose Honami.

The time... is around the beginning of July.

Unexpectedly, in the blink of an eye, just as she had written in her diary, Shiranami Chihiro turned her attention to her.

Asakusa Toru: "..."

I don't think I did anything particularly special, did I?

The content of the Behavioral Norms Exam, which was made public to everyone, was said by Ichinose Honami. Ichinose Honami was the class leader, and the reason why everyone was united was not because of him, but because of Honami's affability.

To explain what he did to Shiranami Chihiro.

They only interact and get to know each other occasionally during regular Ichinose Group meetings...

These are just things that ordinary friends would do.

At the very beginning, he and Shiranami Chihiro were a little distant, maintaining a certain distance from each other. It wasn't until they spent a considerable amount of time alone together during the midterm exam study session that they were able to overcome this distance and become friends.

How did you come to like me?

How did things escalate to the point of confessing one's feelings?

Surely they couldn't have really been captivated by the Affinity Aura?

Asakusa Toru baffled.

But the truth is, the love letter was in his shoe cabinet, while Ichinose Honami's shoe cabinet was empty.

... Is it possible that it was put in the wrong place?

She actually meant to put it in Ichinose's closet, but accidentally put it in her own closet...

How could that be?

Last month, he was taken out on a date ostensibly to choose a gift for Honami's birthday.

Moreover, because he couldn't choose a suitable gift, he was dragged out several times during that month.

He's not so oblivious as to not notice anything.

But why?

It wasn't love at first sight; after all, their initial interactions were quite distant.

It's hard to say whether feelings developed over time; he definitely spent most of his time playing with Little Kikyo.

Aside from tutoring sessions, is there anything particularly special that would make the other person like me?

Asakusa Toru didn't quite understand, but since he hadn't chosen to approach him beforehand, he had to accept the invitation today.

"... Anyway, thank you in advance."

Standing up, Asakusa Toru first thanked the girl in front of him, then took out his terminal to pay the bill.

"Ah, no need to thank me, no need to thank me at all. On the contrary, I should be apologizing for not being able to help." Slightly flustered, Ichinose Honami and tried to get up.

The two were currently in the café that was most popular with students in Advanced Nurturing.

Palette.

When in doubt, just head to Palette for something to eat; it's a very popular cafe.

Here, Asakusa Toru Ichinose Honami, without his partner's knowledge, sought Honami Ichinose's opinion as an outsider.

... Although the moment Asakusa Toru asked the question, he remembered that although Ichinose Honami in front of him looked like someone everyone loved, she had never actually been confessed to.

Perhaps because her radiance was too dazzling, it seemed that no one dared to confess their feelings to her.

It's easy to imagine how powerful Shiranami Chihiro's attacks are.

The bill was paid quickly. Turning his head to look back, Asakusa Toru immediately saw Ichinose Honami, who was standing up and looking a little awkward as she adjusted her skirt.

Sunlight streamed through the café's glass windows, casting a soft halo around her long, flowing hair.

Nice.

No matter how he thought about it, there was no way he could accept Shiranami Chihiro's confession.

There are many reasons to be concerned, and many things to consider.

Whether it's the influence of his official girlfriend or the words he inadvertently wrote in his Diary, the impact of his relationship with Shiranami Chihiro will be far greater than imagined.

Not to mention the stares from everyone else in the class, the resentment from Kushida Kikyo and Sakura Airi alone would overwhelm her.

After a few days of training, she turned around and found her house had been robbed. Knowing how stingy Little Kikyo is, she's bound to cause a huge uproar.

She wouldn't allow someone to get involved unless she brought them in herself.

Sakura didn't dare to object, but the feeling of curling up and exuding a cowardly aura was the most unbearable.

... Women's problems are secondary; it's just a matter of a few minutes of cold war anyway. As long as love is present, it doesn't matter even if you're married.

The fundamental problem is that, not long ago, he wrote about Shiranami Chihiro in his diary as part of his Diary.

It's not a big deal to complain about her confessing to Ichinose; after all, everyone makes mistakes, and it's reasonable for something unexpected to happen. There's always a way to gloss over it.

However, he also added a rather unnecessary sentence, "Who knows, maybe the little mascot will fall in love with me instead."

Now things are really messed up; the person he confessed to has really changed. What should he do?

Could someone have actually figured something out?

... The only saving grace was that he didn't remember when Shiranami Chihiro confessed to Ichinose Honami, so he didn't write down the time and place of the confession in his Diary.

I just mentioned that such a thing happened.

Therefore, as long as it doesn't develop into a real relationship, and as long as he and Shiranami Chihiro, as the parties involved, don't actively tell everyone about it,

Then no one will know that this ever happened.

"Anyway, I'll go back and tell my friend to think it over some more." Asakusa Toru said to Ichinose, seeing that it was almost time.

When discussing it with Ichinose, he naturally used the excuse of "I have a friend".

... Although I feel I might not be able to hide it from anyone, the Archangel Ichinose will understand and treat it as something that is truly just between friends.

"Okay, please tell your friend I'm doing my best." With a gentle smile, Ichinose Honami watched Asakusa Toru leave.