Soon.
Time passed.
Before anyone knew it, it was mid-April.
One day after classes.
After Prince Ganlongdao returned to his dorm.
The little group went their separate ways. Ishizaki and the others headed home, while the girls seized the rare chance to get together.
At that moment.
In a corner of the Palette Cafe, a popular spot with girls.
Shiho Manabe looked at her three closest friends. She glanced around furtively, then covered her pretty face with one hand and lowered her voice.
"Morofuji, Yamashita, Nanami, there's something I want to tell you."
"Huh? What is it?"
Saki Yamashita looked puzzled. "You're being so mysterious. That's not like you at all, Shiho."
"Shh! Keep your voice down."
Shiho Manabe pressed a finger to her lips to signal for silence, then hurriedly glanced around. Only after making sure no one was paying attention did she whisper:
"Actually... I'm planning to confess to Prince Brother. What do you think?"
At that.
The three of them froze.
Their inner gossip fiends instantly came alive.
They hurriedly leaned toward Shiho Manabe.
"What happened? Tell us, tell us! Shiho, do you like Prince Brother? When did that happen?"
"It was around the time classes started..."
"That soon?"
"Mm."
Shiho Manabe looked around and muttered under her breath.
"He's tall and handsome, exactly my type. And Ishizaki and the others call him Ganlongdao, so his family must be pretty well-off, too. What girl wouldn't like him?"
"That's it?"
Rika Morofuji said timidly.
Those all sounded like superficial reasons.
His looks and his family's financial situation? That seemed a little shallow.
"Uh... the main reason is..."
At that, Shiho Manabe's pretty face turned bright red, and she looked embarrassed.
"Remember when we went to karaoke that time? When Prince Brother put his arm around me, my heart started beating so fast, and I felt so warm."
"That was when I knew he was the one for me!"
"Wow~"
Saki Yamashita and Rika Morofuji's eyes sparkled.
Now that was more like it.
That was the kind of romance they'd imagined.
"But..." Nanami Yabu hesitated. "Shiho, isn't this a little too soon? You've only known each other for half a month."
"Uh..."
At that, Shiho Manabe's face turned even redder, like a hot iron. She looked embarrassed.
"Um... promise you won't laugh first."
"Hm?"
The three exchanged glances, then nodded.
"Don't worry. No matter how funny it is, we won't laugh!"
"Actually..."
Shiho Manabe found it hard to say, but gritted her teeth and forced out a few words.
"I've never dated anyone before. This will be my first time..."
"Oh... I see..."
Saki Yamashita and the others exchanged glances, their own faces turning red.
They'd thought Shiho Manabe had something truly embarrassing to confess, but it turned out to be that.
Still.
They could understand.
On Sakurajima,
not having dated anyone by university was indeed pretty embarrassing.
Actually.
They didn't have much experience either.
But it seemed like everyone around them had already been through it, so Saki Yamashita and the others could only pretend they were experienced, too, and do their best to avoid the subject.
"Still, I'm a little surprised."
Rika Morofuji looked at Shiho Manabe, who was dressed to the nines.
Her long, slender legs were on display, and she'd shortened the pleated skirt she'd just bought. One button at her chest was undone, revealing a glimpse of pale skin.
And Rika Morofuji knew that.
When Shiho Manabe was around Prince Ganlongdao, she'd undo two buttons on purpose.
"I thought you'd already done it, Shiho."
"Well..."
Shiho Manabe looked a little embarrassed.
"A few guys pursued me in high school, but they were all too ordinary, and some of them gave me the ick, so I turned them all down."
"So..."
As she spoke,
Shiho Manabe quickly brought the conversation back around, growing shy like a young woman in love.
"Now that I'm in university, I want to have a sweet romance, too. It'd be best if we ended up getting married~"
"In that case..."
Rika Morofuji and the others nodded. "That makes sense."
They'd finally become university students, and they were free from their parents' restrictions.
Any girl with a normal outlook on life.
Probably hoped to find a handsome, rich boyfriend and have a passionate romance, right?
"You know."
Shiho Manabe looked a little embarrassed.
"Prince Brother is tall and handsome, and he's got such a great personality. He's gentle and domineering—he's just so cool. If I don't make a move soon, what if someone else snatches him up?"
Just thinking about it.
Shiho Manabe wore a lovestruck expression.
No matter where Prince Ganlongdao went, everyone else gave him a wide berth.
He was strong and domineering, and he had so many underlings.
He made her feel so safe!
Across from her.
Rika Morofuji rolled her eyes. She couldn't understand what was so great about that kind of personality.
Prince Ganlongdao was indeed tall and handsome, but her mother had told her that only honest, trustworthy boys with a sense of responsibility were worth spending your life with.
In the eyes of other people.
His personality might seem selfish and awful.
But to a gal like Shiho Manabe, Prince Ganlongdao couldn't have been cooler.
"All right."
Although they felt it was a little unfortunate, Saki Yamashita and the others didn't object.
"Since you've made up your mind, Shiho, of course we'll support you. Is there anything you need us to help with?"
"No, your support is enough~"
Shiho Manabe sounded them out. "So, do you think Prince Brother will say yes?"
"Of course."
"You're so pretty, Shiho."
"And you've been spending the most time with him lately. Prince Brother has no reason to turn you down, right?"
The three exchanged glances and agreed.
At least.
They weren't lying about that.
Prince Ganlongdao was outstanding, but Shiho Manabe was no slouch either.
Even at this university,
Shiho Manabe was attractive enough to rank among the best, and she had a wonderful personality, too.
That was right.
In the three girls' eyes.
Shiho Manabe had a wonderful personality!
She was generous, loyal, and always willing to help. Whenever upperclassmen tried to hit on them, Shiho Manabe would chase those pests away for them.
Especially for Rika Morofuji.
She was introverted, and found it hard to fit in with the class.
If Shiho Manabe hadn't noticed how awkward she felt, Rika Morofuji was sure she might never have fit in—and might even have been bullied.
Because of that.
The three of them thought very highly of Shiho Manabe.
Perhaps Shiho Manabe simply wanted a few underlings and liked showing off her status, but that didn't change the fact that her forceful personality had helped them a lot.
When they heard that Shiho Manabe wanted to confess to Prince Ganlongdao,
all three sincerely wished her well.
The next day.
In front of the university shoe lockers.
Looking at the love letter in his shoe locker, Prince Ganlongdao raised an eyebrow.
Since it was a love letter,
there was no reason not to go!
Before you continue