He Wanted to Check Her Credentials

"You can't have them.

"And you're not allowed to, either."

Nakano Ichika pressed her lips together and fell silent.

Nakano Nino was still looking perfectly at ease. "Next time I have some free time, I'll stop by your club. The plan he put together today really caught my interest."

Great.

Nino was a liability now.

Nakano Ichika was on her guard.

That evening, Fushimi Makoto went to Matsukaze Mayu's house.

He'd planned to keep the beautiful teacher company, chat with her, and watch some TV together.

But as they watched, he remembered the feelings Nakano Ichika had stirred up in him earlier, and his mood shifted.

Matsukaze Mayu had known him for some time. And since the two of them had even bathed together, she knew perfectly well how attractive her body was to Fushimi Makoto.

So when their eyes met by chance, they both understood what the other was thinking.

Fushimi Makoto didn't even have time to say anything before Matsukaze Mayu blushed. Her gaze was shy yet alluring as she slowly raised a hand and swept her hair back.

That wasn't a hint.

It was an outright invitation.

So when Yukino sent him a "Good night" message, Fushimi Makoto was too busy to reply.

Saturday came around.

Fushimi Makoto was at home getting ready for the club's afternoon activities when Utaha and Yumiko called him one after the other.

Utaha wanted to meet up, saying she had something important to discuss.

Yumiko wanted him to take photos with her, saying she'd found a great place to visit.

Fushimi Makoto couldn't be in two places at once, so there was no way he could meet them both at the same time.

So he decided to have his cake and eat it too!

At nine thirty that morning, he met Utaha at a dessert shop.

The black-stockinged senior was dressed as usual. But she was beautiful to begin with and didn't need to dress up; her school uniform paired with black stockings was more than enough to show off her figure.

As Fushimi Makoto took his seat, he noticed several male customers in the shop sighing.

"Your charm really is something, Senpai."

He picked up the menu and offered the heartfelt compliment.

Utaha smiled. "Thank you for the compliment."

She'd noticed the male customers sneaking glances at her, but she was used to that sort of attention and didn't pay it any mind.

"Go ahead and order first. It's my treat today," she said.

Fushimi Makoto knew she wanted to ask him for advice again, so he didn't stand on ceremony.

After ordering drinks and something to eat, he asked, "What did you want to meet me about, Senpai?"

"Two things."

Utaha seemed to want to get straight to the point. She leaned her curvy body forward slightly, bringing her beautiful face closer. "First, a classmate told me that there have been rumors about us going around school lately. And I suspect they'll only get worse with time."

Fushimi Makoto nodded. "I heard about it from Hayama."

"Hayato Hayama, the first-year?" Utaha clearly knew of him, too. She continued, "I asked you here because I wanted to discuss how we could put an end to these baseless rumors."

"Put an end to them?" Fushimi Makoto found the phrasing interesting.

Utaha smiled faintly. "I don't like this sort of thing, especially since we're friends. I still have a lot to learn from you, so I don't want something this trivial to affect our relationship."

"Then you shouldn't put an end to the rumors. You should let them keep spreading," Fushimi Makoto suggested.

"Why?" Utaha looked surprised.

And honestly, that little expression looked strangely alluring on her.

Admiring her captivating expression, Fushimi Makoto explained, "The best way to deal with a rumor is to start an even more attention-grabbing one. If you try to nip it in the bud, it'll only backfire. People will get even more curious and want to pry."

Utaha considered this. "You have a point. But then we'd need to find something that would actually grab everyone's attention."

Fushimi Makoto raised an index finger and smiled, looking just like a certain reaction image. "I have a plan."

Utaha raised an eyebrow. "Let's hear it."

Chapter 49: He Wanted to Check Her Credentials

Fushimi Makoto didn't really care about rumors like this. After all, he was determined to win over beautiful girls, and there would certainly be plenty of gossip about him in the future.

But since Kasumigaoka Utaha had brought it up today, he could offer a solution while he was at it.

During one of his past time loops, he'd happened to discover that the principal had competed in a Kanto-region marathon when he was young and had done reasonably well.

Fushimi Makoto had talked about it with the principal before, and realized that the man actually wanted to brag about it but was too proud to bring it up himself.

Too much time had passed since then, and nobody mentioned that proud chapter of the principal's life anymore.

That was the new rumor Fushimi Makoto had in mind.

Utaha looked surprised when she heard him out. "So the principal used to be so impressive? I've never heard anyone mention it."

Fushimi Makoto smiled. "The principal's getting on in years, and he has to deal with so many students every day. Unless he can set aside his pride and bring it up himself, he'll just have to wait for someone else to start talking about it."

Utaha immediately understood. "So he's a tsundere? That's interesting."

She continued, "But don't you think this topic might not be enough to distract everyone?"

"That's why we'll need to give it a little push. The principal's actual result wasn't all that remarkable, but we can deliberately leave that part vague when we spread the news. I looked it up online, and quite a few of the people who competed alongside him went on to win championships."

Fushimi Makoto gave her his answer.

Utaha was clever and quickly picked up where he left off. "That makes sense. Once everyone gets curious, we can spread the story while mentioning those champions. That'll indirectly show how competitive the principal's race was."

As she finished speaking, she seemed to think of something and mused, "By the way, do you think we could get some online influencers to help? A topic that appears in short videos and one that only circulates around school are on completely different scales."

Fushimi Makoto gave her a thumbs-up. "As expected of you, Senpai. You even guessed what I was planning next."

Utaha couldn't help laughing. "It just happened to occur to me."

Then she gazed at Fushimi Makoto's face and asked, seemingly casually, "You're pretty good at this, aren't you?"

"Not really. It just occurred to me."

"Is that so?"

It just occurred to him?

Unless he'd had similar experiences before, or often dealt with this sort of thing, how could it have just occurred to him?

Utaha didn't believe Fushimi Makoto, but she tactfully didn't press him.

From his easygoing charm, to the way they seemed to click as if they'd known each other for years, to how much she'd learned from him—

Even Utaha had to admit she was very interested in Fushimi Makoto.

In some ways, she was a little like Yukino.

But the difference was that Yukino had realized early on that Fushimi Makoto was a womanizer, and that so many beautiful girls surrounded him. That was why she'd said, "Only an idiot would date you."

Utaha, on the other hand, didn't care about any of that.

She wanted to improve.

Improve by leaps and bounds.

Especially after finding a boy she clicked with perfectly, one who could help her keep improving. She was even less willing to let him go.

Possessiveness wasn't limited to romantic relationships. Friends could feel possessive of each other, too.

Once they'd finished discussing the first matter, the second thing Utaha wanted to talk about was much simpler.

"I've run into a few more problems lately. If you're free, I'd like to ask you for advice."

As she spoke, a charming smile appeared on Utaha's face. "Of course, you can ask for a reward. If it's something I can do, I'll agree to it."

Clearly, she knew she couldn't just keep taking without giving anything in return.

"We can talk about the reward later."

Fushimi Makoto sounded unconcerned, but inwardly, he thought, I'm very interested in your legs in those black stockings.

But now wasn't the time.

He glanced at the time on his phone. Yumiko would probably message him soon.

He'd arranged to meet Yumiko when he left home earlier, and she'd said she needed to take a bath first.

When a girl went out of her way to shower and get dressed up before meeting a guy, that was what they called dressing to please someone she liked.

Fushimi Makoto wanted to get a reward from Yumiko, and today offered a perfect opportunity.

With Yumiko's little-queen personality, she'd surely be at a disadvantage against someone as sharp and formidable as Utaha.

When that happened, Fushimi Makoto could step in as Captain Dragonfly.

"You have plans today?"

Utaha was sharp. She'd noticed him checking the time.

"Actually, you're not the only one who asked to meet me today. Someone else invited me to take photos with her," Fushimi Makoto said.

Utaha nodded, her delicate chin dipping. "I see. Has another girl been won over by your photography skills?"

"Won over?" Fushimi Makoto asked, feigning confusion.

Utaha replied calmly, "I don't know many people at school, but I do know girls our age like taking photos. Even if they don't post them on social media, they still take selfies in private or snap pictures at scenic spots."

"That's true." Fushimi Makoto nodded.

Utaha suddenly gave him a playful smile. "I haven't seen your photography, but Ichika and the others had quite a reaction that day. I'm guessing you're very good."

Fushimi Makoto asked on purpose, "Want to give it a try, Senpai?"

"No."

Utaha refused without hesitation, her smile unchanged. "I'm not interested in that sort of thing. Besides, I'm long past the stage of getting absorbed in pretty pictures."

Fushimi Makoto said with feigned regret, "What a shame."

"A shame?"

Utaha looked him in the eyes, her playful smile growing more pronounced. "Could it be that you've wanted to take my picture for a long time?"

Taking pictures wouldn't be enough.

What he really wanted was to check her credentials.

Fushimi Makoto gave the all-purpose answer. "You should say that you have the looks to make a great photo, Senpai."

"Thank you."

Utaha thanked him, then casually tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

The gesture made her look a little alluring.

"If you want me to be your temporary model, I'm willing. You've helped me so much, while I haven't done anything for you," she said.

"So you mean we'd be trading favors?"

"I'd rather call it a reward, but you can think of it that way."

"Then forget it."

Utaha hadn't expected Fushimi Makoto to turn her down so quickly.

She couldn't help looking surprised. "Forget it?"

Fushimi Makoto replied seriously, "Photography has never been a joke to me. Whether I'm taking pictures of Ichika and the others or anyone else, I always do my best. You could put it this way: this is the one thing I refuse to treat carelessly."