Horikita Suzune

Entrance ceremonies are boring, no matter where they are held.

Standing in formation within the gymnasium, listening to some middle-aged man—be it the principal or someone else—drone on, Hoshino scanned his surroundings in sheer boredom.

The first-year level consisted of four classes: A, B, C, and D, with forty students each. Hoshino had considered trying to spot Arisu in the Class A ranks, but with Class B and Class C standing in between, it was difficult to see anyone from Class A.

Judging purely by appearance, there was one student in Class C who possessed a strong presence; he had dark skin, stood well over 1.9 meters tall, and was built like a small mountain. One look at his complexion told you he was definitely not purely from Sakura Country, and even if he were mixed-race, he clearly inherited more from his foreign side—though, of course, he could also be an international student.

Speaking of international students, there was one in Class D as well: a girl from Huaxia named Wang Meiyu. She was petite and had a childish voice, making one wonder if she was truly a high school student.

However, people from Huaxia were generally quite intelligent and skilled at studying; it was possible that most of the class couldn't even match her academic ability.

Hoshino didn't put much stock in academic ability, as he was confident that he wouldn't lose to any of his peers in exams.

His primary thought regarding Wang Meiyu was: So, not all girls from Huaxia have those bun hairstyles after all.

The entrance ceremony concluded before Hoshino knew it, lost in his own wandering thoughts.

Next was free time.

Although he could have gone straight back to the dorms, Hoshino decided to wander around the campus first.

This Advanced Nurturing High School was built on an artificial island. The campus grounds were incredibly vast, and while students were not allowed to leave during their enrollment, the school provided numerous facilities in return, such as karaoke bars, movie theaters, and cafes, effectively forming a complete commercial district.

For the sake of his future school life, it was necessary to familiarize himself with these facilities first.

"Hoshino-kun."

Just then, someone addressed him.

"You are... Sato-san and... Shinohara-san?"

He feigned a bit of uncertainty as he called out the two girls' names, and they looked quite pleased.

"Hoshino-kun remembered my name."

"That's a relief. I was worried I might get the names wrong, which would have been so rude."

Sato Maya and Shinohara Satsuki were both girls from Class D. Now, just after the start of the term, the two were already acting as a pair, and the fact that they were approaching boys like this suggested they were either highly proactive and social, or perhaps they were just simple-minded and hadn't considered anything else. Judging by the situation, Hoshino guessed the latter.

"Um, Shinohara-san and I were thinking of going to the shopping mall later. Does Hoshino-kun have any plans? Would you like to come with us?"

"Well, I was planning on heading back to the dorms..."

Upon hearing Hoshino's words, Sato's expression visibly slumped, while Shinohara's remained largely unchanged.

I see, that's obvious enough.

"However, since you two invited me, if you don't mind, please let me accompany you. I do think it's necessary to purchase some daily necessities."

"Really?"

Sato's expression brightened instantly.

What a simple, easy-to-read person. So simple that one can't help but wonder if there's a trap hidden within.

However, at this point, just as school had begun, the possibility of someone setting a trap for a classmate whose name they could barely remember was infinitesimal.

The three of them walked toward the shopping mall together. Hoshino walked on the left, with Sato in the middle and Shinohara on the right.

Chatting with them didn't require much brainpower; he just had to go along with whatever they said. At first, Sato did most of the talking, but later on, Shinohara opened up as well.

Near the shopping mall, they encountered an unexpected group.

It was a cluster of Class D students, with Hirata and Kushida clearly at the center. The others included boys named Ike and Yamauchi, as well as girls named Karuizawa and Mori.

The process by which this group formed was easy to see.

Upon bumping into Hoshino and the others, the two parties exchanged a few brief pleasantries and smoothly merged into one group. Hoshino was able to slip away from the girls' side, but Ike and Yamauchi immediately latched onto him.

"Hey! I'm saying, you... that..."

"...Hoshino. Hoshino Akira."

If you're going to talk to someone, at least remember their name first, would you?

"Hoshino, what's the situation? You've got two girls with you!"

"We're just here to buy daily necessities. We're classmates, so this is perfectly normal, isn't it?"

"That's not normal at all, is it?"

Ike seemed completely unable to accept it.

"No, Hoshino is right. Back in middle school, there were plenty of times I went out with two or three girls."

Yamauchi said with a serious face, as if he had just thought of it.

Hoshino recalled what he had said during his self-introduction—claiming he had reached the national tournament in table tennis in elementary school and was the number four ace pitcher for his middle school baseball team—and nearly laughed out loud.

After Hoshino's explanation, Ike and Yamauchi seemed to accept his situation of being with the girls. Naturally, their focus then shifted to Hirata, who had been trapped among the girls from the very beginning.

Hoshino didn't join their discussion; he silently distanced himself from them and turned toward a less crowded aisle.

"You are..."

Standing in front of a shelf stocked with kitchenware was a black-haired girl—the very same girl who had left early without participating in the self-introductions. Hearing Hoshino's voice, she glanced coldly in his direction, then turned back as if she hadn't seen him at all.

"Uh, we're classmates, aren't we? Isn't it a bit much to pretend you don't see me?"

"Being classmates doesn't mean anything. I don't know you, and I have no intention of getting involved with you."

The girl's voice was crisp and pleasant, but as she spoke, she continued picking out kitchenware without even glancing in his direction. Her attitude was quite rude.

"As classmates, whether you like it or not, we're already involved, aren't we?"

"Classmates or whatever, that sort of thing doesn't matter. Or are you going to stand there and spout some nonsense about how classmates should move forward together? How foolish."

"I have no intention of saying anything like that, but I also don't want to be treated like an idiot."

Hoshino said this as he walked over to her side. The girl shot him a sharp look.

"What? Don't glare at me like that; I want to buy kitchenware too."

She made no effort to hide her disgust as she clicked her tongue, then stopped looking at him. It seemed that while she was a solitary person who didn't want to get involved with others, she wasn't rude enough to forbid people from coming near her.

"You've certainly picked out a lot of kitchenware. Are you the type who likes to cook for yourself?"

"Prying into other people's business so casually is quite rude, you know."

"I just glanced at what was in your basket. Don't go pinning such big labels on me."

Generally, no one would consider the items in a shopping basket to be private.

"By the way, you left before the self-introductions earlier, didn't you?"

"Because I judged that such a thing held no benefit for me, and there was no need to participate."

"Don't say that. Getting to know your classmates isn't a bad thing, is it?"

"When the need arises, I will naturally get to know them. What I rejected was merely the inefficiency of self-introductions."

It seemed she was the type who only maintained the bare minimum of social circles.

In Hoshino's view, this was a personal choice, neither worthy of approval nor criticism.

"Fine, I think I have a rough idea of your personality. I'll be blunt: I want to know your name."

Hearing Hoshino's words, the girl's delicate brows furrowed, and she looked over with displeasure.

"I thought you wouldn't use such a forceful way of speaking."

"I don't consider this forceful. Besides, I judged that you're more accustomed to this kind of direct communication."

"While I do hate beating around the bush, hearing you say it like that is still annoying."

"You are very magnanimous."

"...My name is Horikita Suzune."

Although there was a pause, she still gave her name.

"My name is—"

"Hoshino Akira-kun, right? I heard it during the self-introductions earlier."

"It seems self-introductions aren't entirely useless after all."

"Hoshino Akira: arrogant, self-righteous, thick-skinned, and glib. That's about the impression I have."

"I'm sorry for leaving such a poor impression on you."

"You don't look like you're reflecting at all."

"Well, I am thick-skinned, after all."

Horikita let out a sharp "Hmph," then picked up her basket and turned to walk away.

For now, he decided not to follow her.