Absolutely No Personal Grudges

"Hello there, Ichinose." Sawahara greeted the newcomer with a smile. Why were there so many acquaintances around today?

It had already been two weeks since the "Acquaintance Anniversary" had passed.

"Are you here for a fortune-telling session too, Sawahara-kun?" The speaker was Amikura Mako, a friend of Ichinose. Along with her were two other girls, Tsube Hitomi and Shiranami Chihiro.

Hearing Amikura Mako's question, Sawahara fell into thought. If he said he was here to maintain order, he wouldn't be able to leave until they finished their fortune-telling. After all, he had promised Manabu Horikita that he would uphold the Student Council's good image; if he slacked off early, his reputation would be ruined. But standing here watching them the whole time would be incredibly boring...

"Yeah, but I didn't expect that the fortune-telling required pairs. It's a real shame." Sawahara sighed, putting on the appearance of someone who had no choice but to leave since he was alone. This way, he could leave naturally without damaging the Student Council's image.

However, Sawahara clearly forgot one thing: the girls in front of him were from Class B...

"Then why don't you just go with Honami, Sawahara-kun?" Amikura suggested upon hearing Sawahara's words. Tsube Hitomi nodded in agreement, though Shiranami Chihiro seemed to have a different opinion.

"..." Sawahara fell silent for a moment. Students from Class B really were... "Is that really okay?"

After all, since the fortune-telling was done in pairs, if four people came together and one was left out, wouldn't the other person be unable to participate as well?

"Actually, I'm not really interested in fortune-telling," Tsube Hitomi said. She truly had no interest in such things and had only come because Ichinose had asked for her help. But it seemed her help wouldn't be needed after all.

"Besides, it's almost the end of the month and I don't have many points left, so I'll leave it to you to accompany Honami, Sawahara-kun."

As she spoke, Tsube Hitomi pressed her palms together and winked at Sawahara.

Ah, once things reached this point, it was impossible to refuse. After all, the other party was acting entirely out of kindness... As expected, lies were a mistake no matter when they were told.

Sighing inwardly and taking the result of this lie as a lesson, Sawahara turned to look at Ichinose.

"Is that alright, Ichinose?"

"Mm." Ichinose nodded and agreed.

As they went to line up, Amikura Mako pulled Shiranami Chihiro to the back, looking as if she were creating an opportunity for him and Ichinose to be alone.

"Ichinose, you didn't actually come here for the fortune-telling, did you?" Sawahara had already noticed something from the behavior of the four girls from Class B.

"Mm." Ichinose's earlobes turned slightly red. Since he couldn't let the people behind them hear, Sawahara had to lean in close to her ear to whisper.

"Actually, it's because of Shiranami-san."

"She still hasn't given up after being rejected last time?" Sawahara had already guessed the reason.

"Ahahaha, it's just as you guessed earlier, Sawahara-kun."

Sawahara had said before that it was never easy for someone to give up on their feelings.

"I heard that a very accurate fortune-teller had arrived, and Chihiro-chan has been wanting to get a reading ever since."

A look of slight distress appeared on Ichinose's face.

Needless to say, she was definitely planning to have her fortune told regarding her relationship with Ichinose. Humans were creatures skilled at convincing themselves; just like someone on a diet who sees a video promoting food might tell themselves that eating a little bit doesn't matter, that it's basically zero calories... and then the diet fails.

Clearly, if the fortune-teller said anything about the romance eventually having a good outcome, that girl would definitely launch another offensive against Ichinose.

To avoid this situation, Ichinose had specifically brought her two friends along to help.

"Sorry, Sawahara-kun, I've caused you trouble." Ichinose looked apologetic.

"It's nothing." Sawahara shook his head. If he hadn't lied in the first place, it wouldn't have come to this; any trouble was self-inflicted.

"By the way, are you free in a couple of days, Sawahara-kun?" Ichinose asked.

"I'm afraid I don't have much time. Why?" Sawahara remembered that in two days, it would be his turn to go to the pool to maintain order again.

"My classmates are planning to go swimming together, and I was hoping to invite you along," Ichinose said with a hint of regret.

"I see." Sawahara nodded. "Oh, by the way, I heard from the President that you'll be able to officially join the Student Council next semester. Congratulations."

"Thank you, but I'm still not as good as you, Sawahara-kun. You were already a member of the Student Council last semester."

"It was just a stroke of luck. Are you interested in getting a head start on Student Council work, Ichinose?"

Watching Ichinose and Sawahara chatting and laughing ahead, Shiranami Chihiro, who was trailing behind, felt her eyes burning with jealousy. To make matters worse, Amikura was whispering things that made her feel even more miserable.

"As expected, Honami-chan really likes Sawahara-kun. They're almost leaning against each other."

"No matter how many times I see it, I think those two are a perfect match."

"I wouldn't be surprised if they announced they were officially dating at any moment."

Lies don't hurt people; the truth is the sharp blade. It was precisely because she felt the same way that Shiranami felt even more pained.

Amikura looked at Chihiro's expression, which was on the verge of tears, and felt terrible herself. But she knew that a short pain was better than a long one; rather than letting Chihiro continue to sink into this hopeless crush, a clean break was the better choice.

The wait in line took about ten minutes, and it was finally the turn of the pair, Ichinose and Sawahara.

When Takizawa-san, who was waiting for customers, saw Sawahara, she froze for a moment. Then, a somewhat frightening smile appeared on her face, and her right hand tapped the table in the air without making a sound.

Sawahara watched Takizawa's hand movements and quickly deciphered the message she wanted to convey.

'You wouldn't want the young lady next to you to know that you came here to get your fortune told with another girl earlier, would you?'

"..." The corner of Sawahara's mouth twitched. The way of Heaven is a cycle; who does the Heavens ever spare?

He, who usually liked to threaten others in this way, was now being threatened himself. For a moment, he felt as if he understood the frustrated feelings that Manabu Horikita, Horikita Suzune, Tachibana-senpai, and the others must have felt at the time.

Under Takizawa-san's extortion, Sawahara ordered the most expensive set meal, which was completely useless.

"You want me to change the divination results for the next group? I'm sorry, student, but I have professional ethics."

Afterward, Ichinose successfully bribed this highly professional fortune-teller with ten thousand points, and the other party guaranteed they would absolutely not give the short-haired girl in the next group any positive hints regarding her love life.

At the same time, the fortune-teller gave this prediction regarding Ichinose's own love life.

Your romance will be incredibly difficult; one wrong step could lead to the end of this relationship, yet this romance is also incredibly simple; as long as you keep persisting, it will eventually bear fruit.

In the end, Sawahara only heard from Ichinose that Shiranami Chihiro had cried very bitterly after returning home that day.

The next day, because an unknown member of the Student Council anonymously reported to the school that this divination event posed safety risks and was suspected of spreading feudal superstition.

And so, this divination event was hastily brought to an end the very next day.