Classroom of the Elite, but It's a Diary Style

"Good afternoon." The NPC with long, silver-gray hair suddenly rose from her original spot and sat down beside Asakusa Toru as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Asakusa Toru: "?"

He had expected her to say something more, but after sitting down, she didn't utter a single word, simply continuing to slowly flip through the light novel in her hands.

...It was the worst one he had ever written.

RE: Lickdog Reincarnation

An otherworld story written in a fit of raw emotion, relying entirely on the fragments of memory in his head and a few borrowed names and settings.

It failed to capture any of the original work's merits; instead, due to his own frustrations, he had excessively amplified its flaws, resulting in a... trashy work with zero quality.

If not for his previous track record and his insistence on publishing it, his editor wouldn't have been so blinded as to let this book go to print.

But facts proved that trash is just trash.

No matter how good the foundation or the setting, if the writing is bad, nothing can save it.

And so, after finishing the Sanctuary arc, the book was cleanly and decisively axed.

He truly hadn't expected such a piece of garbage to be collected by this crappy school's library, let alone held in the hands of Shiina Hiyori, who was reading it page by page.

He had clearly hidden it away, so how could she have dug it out?!

"Rustle..." The sound of pages turning echoed in his ears, and Asakusa Toru felt inexplicably uncomfortable.

What kind of impression would she have after reading it?

How would she evaluate this story?

Would she even finish it?

As the creator of the content, even though he was just copying ideas from the masterpieces of his past life, achieving a one-hundred-percent recreation was something only someone with a photographic memory could do.

Someone like him, who could only be considered a reader in his daily life, could only borrow the excellent frameworks of others to output a new story that was at least a tier below the original.

But even so, he occasionally cared.

Did the content he wrote have any way of conveying even half the charm of the original work? Would the readers actually acknowledge this story?

Even for this emotional outburst of a work.

Time ticked away, and he couldn't focus on the mystery novel he had grabbed at random; every time he tried to immerse himself in reading, his gaze would drift away to check if the girl had finished yet.

Tch, I remember you liking mystery novels, right? Why are you reading my trash?

Maybe I should find a way to take the book out of the library; at worst, I'll just pay a fine.

Or should I just tear it up? Why keep a dark history like this around?

I shouldn't have let my emotions get the better of me when I wrote this.

Chaotic thoughts crisscrossed in his mind until, finally, the girl before him let out a long breath.

"Phew..." The pages had reached the end before he knew it.

Gently closing the book, Shiina Hiyori revealed a satisfied smile.

Asakusa Toru expected her to finally say something to him, but she didn't.

She simply stood up slowly, placed the book back on the shelf where it belonged, giving it a bit of display space, then returned lightly to his side and took out her terminal.

Miss Shiina Hiyori showed him her contact information.

"..." Asakusa Toru looked up, meeting Shiina Hiyori's gentle smile. He hesitated for a moment before pulling out his own terminal and adding the contact info she displayed.

...Why aren't you saying anything?

Looking at the name Asakusa Toru appearing in her lonely friend list, Shiina Hiyori wore a satisfied expression.

Putting away her terminal, she began to pack up her things in a straightforward manner.

"..." It looked like she was leaving.

I should go too.

Although he had no idea what she was thinking, it seemed she had no intention of continuing to read his trashy work.

...Or rather, she had already finished it.

He sighed silently. With no intention of continuing the novel he couldn't focus on, Asakusa Toru stood up, returned the book he was holding to its place, and then walked over to the spot where Shiina Hiyori had just returned his trashy work.

He reached out, took the book down, and shoved it back into the corner.

Don't look at it, anyone.

After confirming that the book couldn't be found unless someone specifically looked for it, Asakusa Toru turned around, satisfied, and prepared to leave the library.

However, the moment he stepped out of the library, the NPC behind him followed him out.

"Good afternoon, Asakusa-kun." Shiina Hiyori had her hands behind her back, a faint smile on her face.

Asakusa Toru paused for a moment, then continued walking toward the dormitory as if nothing had happened, responding casually:

"You've already greeted me once."

"But Asakusa-kun hasn't responded to me yet," she said.

"Well then, good afternoon, Shiina-san." Asakusa Toru gave her the greeting she wanted quite casually.

As expected, he still wasn't quite used to the atmosphere inside the library.

The moment he stepped out of the library doors, he felt much better.

"Why did you sit next to me?" Glancing at Shiina, who was following beside him, Asakusa Toru asked offhandedly.

Up until now, the only connection he had with Shiina Hiyori was giving her a voice recorder on the first day of school, right?

He couldn't figure out why she was sticking close to him.

Shiina Hiyori tilted her head and said very gently, "Because, I want to get to know Asakusa-kun?"

"I'm curious why Asakusa-kun was interested in that book."

Chapter 48 Resurrection!

"...Because, it's a trashy book?"

"I actually think it's a good book," Shiina Hiyori said. "You can feel very intense emotions from it."

"But it's a pity that there probably won't be a sequel."

Asakusa Toru: "..."

There is a sequel, of course there is a sequel, but that sequel is no longer a story written by me, but a story performed by some guy who died and returned in another world.

At the end of the day, the only reason he wrote that trashy book was because last year, after he went to tear down a missing person poster and cursed someone out in front of their parents, he saw the complex, unspeakable, and lingering expressions on the faces of the Natsuki couple at the police station. He felt so annoyed that he went back and wielded his pen to churn it out.

Unfortunately, a book written while overcome with emotion isn't necessarily a masterpiece; it could just as easily be trash.

"...There's nothing to be a pity about, anyway." Asakusa Toru looked away. "Compared to that, why didn't you speak earlier?"

Shiina Hiyori blinked and said quite matter-of-factly, "Because we were in the library."

"In the library, one must remain quiet."

This was the most ordinary of principles.

It was a pity that there were always people who wouldn't follow it.

The girl's words were very gentle, and the girl's thinking was very ordinary.

In this Advanced Nurturing school packed with freaks, Shiina Hiyori radiated an unexpectedly comforting aura.

"Even if you get close to me, I won't lend you money, you know."

For some reason, Asakusa Toru suddenly felt that he couldn't quite handle 'normal people' like Hiyori.

Facing the freaks, he could provoke them without mercy, say all sorts of nonsensical things without restraint, and watch them jump around with the mindset of someone watching a show.

But facing a normal person like this...

Forget it, why think so much.

Seriously, what are you being so pretentious for, you idiot? Can't you be more free? Can't you be more unrestrained?

A beautiful girl is taking the initiative to get closer to you, and you're not happy about it?

After scolding himself in his heart, Asakusa Toru quickly shook off his melodramatic mood.

He thought that he was probably being affected by his dark history; just thinking about the emotions he felt when writing that thing made him feel awkward, to the point where he wanted to rush into the other world and drag Natsuki Subaru out to slap him twice.

Sigh, when will the Diary finally give me Magnetic Rotation?

With chaotic thoughts overflowing in his mind, Asakusa Toru walked back to the dormitory alongside Shiina Hiyori.

That's right, the Advanced Nurturing dormitories are co-ed.

Although they aren't on the same floor, they are in the same building.

Pretty impressive, right? He thought it was pretty impressive too.

Are they really not afraid of causing a life in a vocational school?

What is this, is Japan's birth rate so low that high school students need to work harder?

"Ding—" A crisp sound rang out as the elevator arrived at the first floor.

Asakusa Toru gently pressed the button for the fifth floor, then watched as Shiina pressed the button for her own floor.

Well, although boys and girls live in the same dormitory building at Advanced Nurturing, there is still some division.

Boys are on the relatively lower floors, while girls are all assigned to higher floors.

Therefore, he would reach his destination one step before Shiina.

"Ding—" The crisp sound rang out again, and the elevator doors slowly opened.

Stepping out of the elevator, Shiina Hiyori, who was behind him, waved her hand gently:

"See you tomorrow, Asakusa-kun."

"Ah, yeah, see you tomorrow." Subconsciously, Asakusa Toru replied casually.

And so, the elevator doors closed once more.

"...Wait a second, I'm not in the same class as her, am I?" Asakusa Toru suddenly thought of this question.

In other words... did she mean that we should meet at the library again tomorrow?

Damn it, I fell for her trap.

April 11th, received a long-term daily quest from the library's resident NPC: padding the Diary.

April 12th, heard complaints from the NPC relayed from Ryuen. Ryuen suspects he was the one who leaked information to Class D and is demanding repayment. He guessed correctly, but there's no reward. Back to padding the Diary.

April 13th, the plot index has been stuck at E for a long time, which is annoying. Went to the White Room to touch some legs—Amazawa's legs. They are very healthy and strong; as expected of someone from the White Room. It was a great stress reliever. I described the sensation of her thighs in the Diary, but for some reason, I received a D rating instead.

April 14th, touched legs.

April 15th, touched legs.

April 16th, I can't keep wasting time touching legs. My White Room membership card is only valid for one year. Besides the scheduled daily training, I need to add extra sessions. If I waste all my time touching legs, won't I fail to graduate?!

April 17th, touched legs.

April 18th, had enough. Not touching them anymore. Come to think of it, if I max out my physical strength and experience, I should be able to do more than just touch legs. For the sake of a better goal: training!

April 20th, heard that the Masterpiece from the Black Room skipped class to harass Class A. If my guess is right, he must have taken money from Ryuen. He's probably aiming for the end of the month when Ryuen is almost out of cash. Compared to the vague evaluations from a trashy person like Chabashira, the Masterpiece probably thinks cold, hard cash is better. I hope he doesn't regret it next month.

April 21st, quiz, and then, the Masterpiece started getting chummy with Class C.

April 22nd, Sunday, went to the cinema with Ichinose and discovered that Ibuki Mio was at the same screening. Very well, no need to think about it—it's definitely a trash movie.

April 23rd, the movie I watched yesterday was indeed trash. Why does this crappy school cinema schedule so many bad films?

April 24th, I feel like I'm getting used to the plot index being at E. Even though everything I post is useless, who knows? Maybe?

April 25th, I have a premonition that a day with a high index is coming soon—the 30th!

April 26th, I can reach her waist now.