Scheming in the real world? I can also do a little.

"Nope, I don't know anything at all~"

Whistling and pretending to be oblivious, Kushida said cheerfully before turning her gaze toward Kamuro, who had been trying her best to act invisible since a moment ago: "So, Kamuro-san, would you like to come up and sing for a bit?"

"Eh?! Me?!"

Chapter 56: Holy crap, why are you huddled up over there?

This karaoke session brought joy to all the guests; at the very least, Hoya Chukai was having a great time.

These guys had wanted to see him make a fool of himself, but he was, after all, a little prince of love songs, and he even knew quite a few Japanese tracks.

Who could blame him? He'd had an otaku roommate in his past life who constantly played anime songs in the dorm, so he'd picked up how to hum quite a few of them.

"Mmm, as expected, eating hot pot here after singing is truly a pleasure."

Eating hot pot in the summer and ice cream in the winter might seem like a death wish to outsiders, but trying it yourself is a genuine delight.

It was an even greater pleasure to eat hot pot in an air-conditioned room or a popsicle beside a heater.

"That's why I said, let's eat and drink well this time and enjoy ourselves to the fullest~"

Everyone had chosen an all-you-can-eat hot pot place; after all, neither having someone treat them nor splitting the bill evenly was particularly suitable. There were many girls and few guys present, and since the girls didn't have huge appetites, splitting the bill evenly might leave them at a disadvantage.

Who could blame him when there were so many troublesome women in this group? Hoya Chukai didn't want to ruin the mood, so he simply suggested going for all-you-can-eat. That way, everyone could just pick whatever they wanted to eat.

"Nom nom~ Mmm, indeed, the meat here is very authentic. Eating all-you-can-eat here is a total steal."

Hoya Chukai nodded in agreement from the side. Although the buffet here was a little pricey, everyone was a "little rich kid" who had received their 100,000 points not long ago, so they could naturally afford it.

"Come on, cheers~"

"Cheers~"

Everyone was drinking fruit wine with a low alcohol content. The drink wasn't very strong, so there was no risk of anyone suddenly getting drunk from a delayed kick.

Eating and drinking, everyone was having a great time. Hoya Chukai chatted away while eating the meat from the pot.

However, even with fruit wine at only 4% alcohol, a few girls' faces turned bright red after drinking a bit too much, especially Karuizawa, who had even leaned against Hoya Chukai.

"Chukai-kun~"

Wait a second, why have you started calling me Chukai-kun too?

Hoya Chukai couldn't help but glance sideways. If Ichinose called him Chukai-kun, it could be attributed to their close relationship, but he and Karuizawa weren't that close, were they?

"Does Chukai-kun have a girlfriend?"

"A girlfriend? Nope."

Hoya Chukai answered truthfully, but his response made Sato, who was sitting not far away, scoff: "What do you mean 'no'? You're already acting like a player and still claiming you don't have a girlfriend."

"What the hell? When did I become a player?"

"Then why are you always flirting with Kushida for no reason?"

"When did I flirt with her?"

"Oh, don't deny it. We all saw it clearly, right, Kushida?"

Perhaps she was truly a bit tipsy, but Sato's mouth had started to run loose, and she even dared to tease Kushida.

Meanwhile, Matsushita was giggling beside them, looking exactly like an audience member shipping a couple... wait, where did this couple come from for you to ship? Why is everyone here more abnormal than the last?

"What are you all doing... I'm speechless."

Perhaps Hoya Chukai finally understood what it was like to be surrounded by so many girls; once they got a little comfortable, their gossip was truly relentless.

"Look at you, flirting with Kushida, being all ambiguous with Kamuro-san from Class A, having a thing with Ichinose-san, and even being close with Ryuen from your own Class C. And you still say you aren't a player?"

"Hey! There's a problem with what you're saying. There aren't that many relationships at all."

They had only known each other for less than five days; where would a player come from? It wasn't like a month or two had passed. You have to be responsible for what you say.

"Eh, eh, eh, don't mind her, don't mind her. Sato is drunk and talking nonsense."

Matsushita realized that what she was saying might be inappropriate and quickly told her to stop. Didn't she see that Ichinose and Kamuro had also turned red?

Even Shiranami, who was next to Ichinose, was pouting and glaring at Hoya Chukai, making him look like some kind of big villain.

The honest Albert really wanted to retort just like he had at the karaoke bar, but when Sato mentioned the strange relationship between Hoya Chukai and Ryuen at the end, he fell into silence.

After all, he had seen Ryuen wearing revealing casual clothes in Hoya Chukai's room that day, and even a straight-laced guy like him thought they might have an improper relationship.

In the end, the commotion concluded with Sato and Hoya Chukai trading barbs. As a result, Hoya Chukai still hadn't cleared his name.

He still couldn't figure out why Ichinose and Kamuro couldn't refute it like Kushida did.

Perhaps they knew Sato was just talking nonsense and didn't care? Or perhaps they didn't care about such talk at all?

No, it was just that they knew the more you explain these things, the more suspicious it looks; not saying anything makes it easier to move on. After all, whether someone is a girlfriend or not is something observant people can clearly see.

On the contrary, Kushida, who had her own ideas, was desperately objecting, looking exactly like a guilty woman.

It could only be said that Hoya Chukai didn't understand their minds. He was busy wondering when he had become so close to Kamuro and Ichinose, while ignoring Kushida's very strange reaction.

Perhaps the alcohol had numbed his brain, making him even more confused than he already was.

"Keys, keys."

Searching his pockets for his room key, Hoya Chukai walked through the hallway alone.

Everyone had entered the dormitory together, but the building was massive, and since they didn't live in the same units, it was only natural for them to go their separate ways.

Unlocking his door, Hoya Chukai let out a yawn, tossed his keys aside, and flipped on the light to check the state of his room.

Hmm, it's a bit messy. There are a few beer bottles on the table—looks like they were only half-finished? There's also a fair amount of trash on the floor; it seems like whoever was here has already left?

Fine, I'll just take a quick shower and get to sleep. As for this disaster... I'll deal with it tomorrow. It's the weekend, after all~

Walking into his room in the dark, Hoya Chukai grabbed a change of clothes from the closet and headed straight for the bathroom.

Having had a bit too much to drink, he didn't notice the strange, raised lump on his bed; it looked as if someone had curled themselves into a ball and was lying there.

After a quick shower, he checked the time—it was nine in the evening. Feeling a heaviness in his head, he decided against reading for a while and opted to just go to sleep.

Turning off the light, he felt his way to the bed in the dark. He reached out to grab his blanket, but after fumbling around for a moment without finding it, he rubbed his eyes and turned the light back on to see where he'd left it.

And now, he finally saw the strange thing on his bed: his blanket was wrapped around something, though he couldn't tell what.

"Huh? I'm pretty sure I folded my blanket this morning?"

Hoya Chukai, feeling puzzled, pulled the blanket back directly, and the moment he did, he sobered up instantly.

Underneath his blanket, Ryuen Shoko was curled up tight.

No, wait, why is she in my bed?!

Chapter 57: Taking Care of a Feverish Ryuen

Setting aside the question of why Ryuen Shoko was in his bed, the startled Hoya Chukai realized that her condition was definitely not right.

She was curled up like a kitten, her cheeks flushed a deep red.

This looks like... a fever?

Filled with doubt, Hoya Chukai reached out to touch her forehead. It was burning hot.

Great, she really does have a fever.

So, the reason she was acting so strange today was because she was sick? That can't be right, can it? She can actually get sick? With that body of hers?

Only then did it dawn on Hoya Chukai that Ryuen Shoko wasn't wearing any clothes. Her bright red lingerie did nothing to cover her skin, which was flushed with heat. From her collarbone down to her toes, she was so exposed that Hoya Chukai didn't know where to look.

No, forget looking—I need to get her fever down, fast.

He jumped off the bed immediately and began searching his refrigerator for ice cubes and a thermometer.

He did keep some ice on hand, usually meant for cooling down drinks, but now, it would serve perfectly as an ice pack.

Returning to the room, Hoya Chukai felt a headache coming on just looking at the curled-up Ryuen Shoko; this position definitely wouldn't do.

Taking a deep breath, he touched Ryuen Shoko's body to shift her into a lying position. Even though he seemed to have good luck with women, he was still a pure, inexperienced guy, and just performing this one action made his heart race and his throat go dry.

No matter what kind of madwoman Ryuen Shoko usually was, right now she was just a delicate girl. Much like a silent Zhou Jie, she had an extraordinary impact on Hoya Chukai.

"Hoo, she's a patient right now. Yeah, a patient. Don't forget her true nature; you can't be like this."

He quickly slapped his face hard, forcing himself to calm down. Hoya Chukai placed the ice pack on her forehead, tucked the thermometer under her arm, and covered her with the blanket.

Once that was done, he wasn't about to call it a night; he went to the kitchen to prepare fever medication.

He always kept a variety of useful medicines in his bag. The fact that he'd had medicine for Ryuen Shoko that day was a result of his habit of carrying supplies.

At home, he naturally kept a larger stock. He had fever reducers on hand, so after preparing the medicine and a cup of hot water, he returned to the bedroom, watching Ryuen Shoko, who was sleeping so soundly she was practically unconscious.

Feeding her the medicine was another chore. Hoya Chukai placed the pill into her slightly parted lips and then slowly helped her drink the warm water.

Feeding her mouth-to-mouth was out of the question. For one, he wasn't the type to take advantage of someone, and for another... he knew what Ryuen Shoko was like normally; if he did anything out of line, she'd kick him to death once she recovered.

Confirming that she had indeed swallowed the medicine, Hoya Chukai finally let out a sigh of relief. He placed the cup, still containing half the warm water, on the nightstand and decided to make do on the sofa for the night.

I just hope she doesn't kill me tomorrow.

He picked up Ryuen Shoko's school uniform from the floor and tossed it into the washing machine. Yawning, he picked up his usual copy of A Brief History of Time to read.

But this time, he couldn't focus at all; no matter how he looked at it, he felt restless. He tortured the book until the washing machine chimed to signal the end of the cycle, then he put the poor book down, hung her clothes up to dry, and went back to check her temperature.

Hmm, the temperature had dropped slightly, so it seemed there wasn't any major problem. Although she was still running a fever, it wasn't life-threatening anymore, so he grabbed a coat and went to sleep on the sofa.

It had been a long, exhausting day, and he was truly sleepy.

The sofa wasn't comfortable. Even though the furniture in this academy was quite nice, it wasn't very wide, making it difficult to get a good night's rest.

Hoya Chukai yawned and checked the time: five in the morning.

Forget it, I'm done sleeping.

Stretching his stiff body, he walked back into the bedroom to check on Ryuen Shoko's temperature again.

After measuring her temperature for the third time and seeing that it had indeed gone down, he finally felt at ease.

The next step was to prepare some breakfast for her. Since the fever had broken, she should be waking up soon.

Rock sugar and pear soup was a good choice for a feverish patient; Hoya Chukai remembered his mother loved making it for him whenever he caught a cold as a child. He chopped the pears into pieces, put them into the sugar water, and started boiling them, then started a second pot.

She needed to eat something substantial for breakfast; the pear soup wouldn't be enough. He made a pot of mung bean soup, and once both were ready, he carried a bowl of each back to the bedroom.

Ryuen Shoko was still lying in bed, looking like nothing more than a delicate young girl. Looking at her like this, Hoya Chukai sighed softly and gently nudged her: "Hey, wake up. Eat something before you go back to sleep."

"Hmm?"

Letting out a soft moan, Ryuen Shoko lacked her usual domineering aura. Her eyes opened with a hazy look, and it seemed she still didn't quite understand what had happened.

"Eat some rock sugar pear before you go back to sleep. Come on, sit up first."

Propping the pillows against the headboard, Hoya Chukai nudged her so she could sit up in bed. Her fever seemed to have subsided quite a bit now; at the very least, she was capable of some normal reactions.

"Open up, ah~"

"Ah..."

He fed her the rock sugar pear spoonful by spoonful, occasionally setting the small bowl aside to wipe away the syrup leaking from the corners of her mouth with a towel, before picking the bowl back up to continue feeding her.

Even though he was serving a beautiful girl, this kind of task was truly time-consuming and exhausting. Being a caregiver was no easy feat; it had taken nearly twenty minutes just to get Ryuen Shoko to finish a bowl of rock sugar pear only slightly larger than a fist. Fortunately, the mung bean soup that followed wouldn't be nearly as much trouble. Simply drinking soup didn't require her to chew, and in her current weakened state, chewing was an arduous task.

Hoya Chukai even had to cut the pear into softer pieces just for her.

"Alright, go back to sleep for a while. You'll be better once you sweat it out a bit more."

Removing the ice pack that had already melted into water, he laid Ryuen Shoko back down on the bed before heading off to clean the empty bowl, make his own breakfast, and begin his Saturday.

He never would have imagined that the very first weekend after school started would begin with taking care of someone.

When Ryuen Shoko, lying on the bed, woke up again, it was already two in the afternoon. Although her body was still a bit weak, her spirits had recovered somewhat.

"Ugh..."

Clutching her head, Ryuen Shoko sat on the bed, adjusting to her frail condition. At that moment, Hoya Chukai, who was reading a book nearby, couldn't help but look up: "Yo, you're awake?"

Chapter 58: You're This Sick and You Still Dare to Drink, You're Truly Brave

"Yo your big head... tsk, I feel terrible."

How should he put it? With her voice raspy and her usual temperament gone, Ryuen Shoko just looked like a fragile little girl.

Seeing her in this state, Hoya Chukai couldn't help but chuckle: "Since you're awake, let's get you something to eat."

"I... mm..."