In a practical education, scheming against people? I can also do a little.

Although he didn't know how Ibuki had managed to provoke Ryuen Shoko within a mere hour, Hoya Chukai offered a silent moment of mourning for her in his heart before he began to consider who else he could ask for help.

Hmm... Ichinose?

She seemed like the most reliable option.

"Then I'll call someone else."

Beep, beep, beep~ "Hello, Chukai-kun, what's up?"

"Ichinose, where are you right now?"

"Me? I'm out at the shopping district with some friends. Is something the matter?"

"Ah, it's nothing. Go ahead and enjoy yourself. I'll ask someone else. Really, it's not a big deal, don't worry about it."

Well, it looks like Ichinose is indeed quite busy.

A kind-hearted girl is a busy girl, after all; being a "central air conditioner" for everyone isn't as easy as it looks.

So, who should he ask instead?

Chapter 60: Come to my room, it's urgent!

In the end, Hoya Chukai thought of someone who would definitely have time, might not be in the dorms, and whom Ryuen Shoko wouldn't be so resistant toward.

Shiina Hiyori.

After deciding on a plan, Hoya Chukai chose to dial Shiina Hiyori's number.

Beep, beep, beep... Click.

The other party had rejected the call.

He wasn't surprised that she hung up; she was likely at the library right now.

Is something the matter, Hoya-kun?

Shiina Hiyori chose to reply to Hoya Chukai via text.

Hoya Chukai typed back, Shiina-san, I need your help. Come to my room quickly, it's urgent.

He couldn't explain the details clearly over the phone, so he decided to just have her come over first.

What he didn't know was that after seeing Hoya Chukai mention an emergency while in the library, Shiina Hiyori hurriedly packed up the books she was holding, grabbed her bag, and began running toward the dorms with her small legs.

She even forgot the rule about not running inside the library.

"Hmm? Why is it so noisy?"

The Librarian, an elderly man, watched Shiina Hiyori dash away and furrowed his brows slightly.

"Isn't this little girl usually quite well-behaved? She must have some sort of emergency... Oh well, I'll talk to her next time."

Under normal circumstances, he would have stopped the person causing a disturbance and scolded them, but seeing Shiina Hiyori's state, he assumed it must be urgent and decided to let it slide.

"Hey, you over there, keep it down."

It was another busy day for the Librarian~

"Huff, huff, Hoya-kun, what's the emergency?"

Five minutes later, a breathless Shiina Hiyori arrived at the door of Hoya Chukai's room, looking as if she had truly run with all her might.

Seeing her arrive so quickly, Hoya Chukai breathed a sigh of relief: "Thank goodness, Shiina-san, you're here. Come in quickly, the Boss needs your help."

"The Boss? What happened to Ryuen-san?"

Shiina Hiyori was the only one in the class who didn't call Ryuen Shoko "Boss," referring to her as Ryuen-san instead. Ryuen Shoko's attitude toward her was also quite strange.

It was almost like... she was looking out for her?

That was why Hoya Chukai naturally wanted to ask her to resolve this issue; perhaps it might even help foster a better relationship between the girls?

Shiina Hiyori, a girl with a beautiful heart, naturally wouldn't gossip about anything; she would simply keep the memory of Ryuen Shoko's disheveled state silently to herself.

"Eh~ How did Ryuen-san end up like this?"

After Hoya Chukai explained the situation in a few sentences, Shiina Hiyori knocked on the bathroom door: "Ryuen-san, may I come in?"

"Damn it, Hoya Chukai, why did you call her over?"

Ryuen Shoko's cursing voice came from behind the door.

"Boss, if you won't let me in, I have to find someone reliable to take care of you, right? Or should I just leave you in the bathroom? That doesn't seem right either, does it?"

As Hoya Chukai spoke, he helplessly said to Shiina Hiyori: "I'll leave it to you, Shiina-san... Oh crap, I forgot about the porridge I was cooking!"

The pressure cooker in the kitchen began to whistle, and he knew the porridge was ready; if he didn't tend to it now, it might overcook.

Watching Hoya Chukai rush away, Shiina Hiyori's expression was somewhat subtle.

How should she put it? So this is what Hoya-kun is like; he actually seems quite considerate.

Alright, no point in dwelling on those messy thoughts. Shiina Hiyori said, "Excuse me," and pushed the door open to enter the bathroom and assess the situation.

"Ah! Ryuen-san, why are you..."

"Shh."

Seeing Ryuen Shoko lying on the floor in such an unseemly state, nearly naked, Shiina Hiyori hurriedly helped her up.

"The floor is so cold. If you're not feeling well, Ryuen-san, you shouldn't be doing this. Come, let me handle it."

Once she was placed back onto the toilet, Ryuen Shoko leaned back and closed her eyes.

It's over, everything is over.

Ibuki Mio, you just wait. Once I recover, I'm going to make you pay.

At this moment, she was so furious she could barely breathe.

Not only had she embarrassed herself in front of Hoya Chukai, but she had also humiliated herself in front of Shiina Hiyori.

How could she have imagined that she would accidentally step on her own underwear, which she had dropped on the floor, trip, and be unable to get back up?

This was exactly why she had absolutely refused to let Hoya Chukai inside; it wouldn't have just been embarrassing, he would have seen everything.

Although she wasn't particularly concerned about her skin being seen, she still cared about her private areas.

What if that pervert suddenly got a surge of lust and took advantage of the situation? She could settle the score later, but wouldn't she be the one suffering the loss?

"By the way, Ryuen-san, would you like to take a bath? I feel like this isn't good for you."

Well, after falling on the floor for so long, she naturally wasn't very clean. If she could take a bath, that would be for the best.

"No."

But Ryuen Shoko chose to say no with great intensity.

"Are you sure? If you put your clothes back on like this, you'll just get them dirty."

"I said, no."

"Knock, knock, knock."

The bathroom door was knocked on again, and Hoya Chukai's voice came from outside: "Shiina-san, don't listen to whatever the boss says. Just do what you think is best; I'll take responsibility if anything happens."

You'll take responsibility? You'll take responsibility for nothing!

Ryuen Shoko was cursing this bastard to death in her heart.

"Also, I left the porridge on the table. You haven't eaten either, right? I'm going downstairs to buy some things, and I'll bring you some food while I'm at it. What would you like to eat?"

"Anything is fine."

"Then I'll just buy whatever. Also, I left a spare key on the table next to the door. If you need it, just go grab it."

Hoya Chukai left the room as he spoke, leaving Shiina Hiyori to resolve the situation with Ryuen Shoko.

"Well then, Ryuen-san, let's have a nice bath~"

"I already told you I'm not washing."

Without her strength, Ryuen's combat power was currently on par with Shiina's, but for some reason, despite saying she wouldn't bathe, she didn't show any signs of resistance.

Hmm... maybe she really didn't have the strength? Or maybe she was simply too embarrassed to be bathed by someone else?

Since she had to help with the bath, Shiina decided she might as well take one herself. Otherwise, bathing Ryuen Shoko would just end up getting her soaked, so bathing together was the best option.

"Ryuen-san, please wait patiently for me~"

Shiina took the key and went back to her own room to get a change of clothes, leaving Ryuen Shoko sitting on the toilet alone.

"Damn it, this is the worst."

Looking at the ceiling, Ryuen Shoko couldn't help but curse.

"Ah! So tired. No, walking is so difficult."

Hoya Chukai might have overestimated himself.

After buying the food, he realized he didn't have a free hand to carry the quilt, so he had to place it on his shoulder and clamp it with one arm.

But the problem was, he also had the bedsheets and the duvet cover, resulting in him being in a frantic mess.

"Hoya-san? Do you need some help?"

At this moment, having someone willing to lend a hand was truly a blessing.

Chapter 61: Ayanokoji, how did you end up like this?

"But why are you here?"

"Me? Just passing by. I was just thinking of coming to buy something to eat; there are many things here I haven't tried before."

The person Hoya Chukai encountered was none other than Ayanokoji Kiyohime.

Perhaps it was because her gender had changed? She had actually developed a liking for various small snacks, just like many other girls.

Every time, she would buy a little bit to taste.

"You look more and more like a young lady from some noble family now, not having eaten these commoner snacks."

Looking at the candy in her hand, Hoya Chukai knew that this was clearly the kind of snack elementary school students loved most. The kind sold in small convenience stores—cheap, tasty, and sweet. It was a variety children were very fond of.

"Is that so? Perhaps."

Ayanokoji Kiyohime's reputation in Class D had undergone an unprecedented change in just five days. Initially, she had the image of a cold person who didn't want to talk to anyone, but gradually, at some point, she had transformed into a naive and ignorant little princess.

After all, her demeanor truly carried the air of a young lady of high status, and her innocence and lack of common sense regarding many things clearly revealed her unfamiliarity with the lives of ordinary people.

She didn't even know whether her score in the sit-and-reach test during physical education class was considered good or not.

Well, a sit-and-reach of 20cm—this level of physical flexibility made everyone feel that it was quite... impressive.

Scoring standards vary by location, but Ayanokoji Kiyohime's score was a perfect one. This was a method Hoya Chukai had taught her: don't ask for the average, but rather find someone you perceive to be at an average level, ask them what their score is, and then adjust your own value slightly based on that—that is the best choice.

It was just a pity that the person she asked was Sakura Airi, a girl who looked quite ordinary (except for her chest) and who completely refreshed Ayanokoji Kiyohime's perception of her.

Her sit-and-reach score was also perfect, even one centimeter higher than Ayanokoji's. Because she had studied dance in the past, her body was very flexible.

As for Ayanokoji... although it was a perfect score, everyone felt it was perfectly fine; after all, it seemed understandable that a delicate and frail young lady would have such high physical flexibility, right?

"Haha, didn't I tell you to ask a few more people? I'm sure you know about experimental error, right?"

"I just didn't expect the first girl I asked to be her, otherwise I would have asked a few more."

It was also Ayanokoji's bad luck that she happened to be the first one called upon, which was why she had tried it that way.

As a result, she discovered that the performance of most girls was around 10cm, and there were even some with poor physical fitness who were at one or two centimeters.

The boys' side was even more miserable; some of the boys were even in the negative numbers.

"Alright, alright, just be more careful next time... By the way, since you're already here, have some rock sugar pear soup that I brewed."

Pushing open the door to his dormitory, Hoya Chukai invited Ayanokoji to be his guest.

After all, she had helped him bring back his bed sheets and covers, so it was only right to treat her to something to drink.

"Then I shall intrude."

As expected, she had never had rock sugar pear soup before; it seemed her physical health had always been quite good.

After taking the rock sugar pear soup out of the refrigerator and pouring it into a glass, Hoya Chukai handed it to her to taste: "It might be a bit cold, so if you're not used to it, drink it slowly."

"Okay, thank you."

Ayanokoji Kiyohime held the glass with both hands and slowly sipped the rock sugar pear soup inside.