"Ugh..." Hoshino let out a long yawn, clutching his schoolbag as he waited wearily for the dorm elevator.
The night before, Hoshino had stumbled across a game that looked pretty good. Its promotional images were gorgeous, and the characters and maps seemed right up his alley. But once he started playing, he realized it was incredibly boring, and everything was completely different from what the advertisements had promised. He played until late into the night before finally uninstalling it.
Good grief! Why did these people always have to advertise so dishonestly? Hoshino grumbled inwardly.
"Ding..." The elevator doors slowly opened with a crisp chime.
Hoshino was about to step inside when he froze. Several familiar faces came into view.
Horikita, Ayanokoji, and Kushida—how had the three of them ended up together? If he remembered right, Horikita seemed to dislike Kushida. Hoshino was a little confused.
"Good morning, Hoshino!" Kushida greeted him first, full of energy.
"...Good morning."
"Good morning, Hoshino!"
"Yeah, morning, Ayanokoji!"
As he spoke, Hoshino stepped into the elevator.
He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but the atmosphere between the three of them felt a little strange.
As the elevator descended, Hoshino noticed that Horikita seemed to be avoiding his gaze without even realizing it. He'd been thinking of striking up a conversation, but now he wasn't sure what to say. Kushida and Ayanokoji, on the other hand, were chatting happily. Maybe it was just his imagination, but Ayanokoji seemed a little wary of Kushida?
Then again, that made sense. Ayanokoji had discovered Kushida's biggest secret, after all!
Lost in thought, Hoshino barely noticed the elevator reach the first floor. The doors slid open, and he followed the crowd outside.
"Good morning, Kushida! Oh! And good morning, Hoshino!"
Hoshino had been about to head off on his own, but the lively voice stopped him. It was Ichinose from Class B.
"Good morning, Ichinose!" Kushida replied as Ichinose stepped out of another elevator.
"Morning!" Hoshino gave her a small nod.
"By the way, did you get any points today?" After exchanging greetings, Ichinose asked with a troubled expression.
"...No." Hoshino glanced at Kushida, who looked puzzled, and answered.
"Huh?" Kushida pulled out her phone and began checking it, confusion written all over her face.
"Oh, right! Hoshino, you're on the Student Council, aren't you? Any idea what's going on?"
"...I have a few guesses. We'll probably get the details at the class meeting."
"Yeah! You're probably right!" Ichinose sounded disappointed.
After checking her phone, Kushida looked at the two of them in confusion.
It had been two or three days since they'd planted the camera in the club building. If Ryuen was going to make a move, it would have to be sometime in the next few days! But Hoshino had no idea what was actually happening. He hadn't heard anything when he left the Student Council Room the day before, either.
Could he have guessed wrong?
First-Year Class Points Class A 1013 points Class B 660 points Class C 600 points Class D 82 points
What had Ryuen done? That was an absurd number of points to gain! He'd already earned more than a hundred points, hadn't he? And Hoshino couldn't remember any event last month that would have earned a class extra points.
To be honest, Hoshino was stunned. Ryuen was way too good at this!
"The school system has encountered a problem, so the first-year points will be distributed later..." Chabashira-sensei announced at the class meeting without expression, giving Hoshino a meaningful look.
"..." Sensing her gaze, Hoshino looked at Chabashira-sensei in confusion, but she casually turned her eyes away.
What did I have to do with this? Hoshino was exasperated, wanting to complain inwardly.
The classroom erupted into an uproar.
Hoshino didn't believe Chabashira-sensei, of course. If the system was down, why would only the first-years' points be delayed? That was ridiculous. It was probably because they hadn't had time to deal with whatever Ryuen had done. After all, it had happened last month, and it affected not only Class Points but also the distribution of individual points.
Still, it had gotten this serious? Being targeted by Ryuen really was a pain. Hoshino suddenly felt a little sorry for any class that caught Ryuen's attention.
After giving a brief announcement, Chabashira-sensei began the lesson in earnest...
"Bzz, bzz..." Hoshino's phone suddenly vibrated.
Ichinose? What did she want? Hoshino checked his phone...
After hastily taking care of the Student Council's business, Hoshino hurried out of the Student Council Room.
Outside the gym.
The setting sun cast its glow across the campus. In the distance, he could see several sports clubs training.
Following the directions on his phone, Hoshino made his way to a corner outside the gym. A few obstacles enclosed the area on all sides, making it a fairly secluded spot.
"Huh? Ichinose, what did you want to see me about?" Turning the corner, he spotted a girl with golden-pink hair standing quietly. She seemed a little uneasy.
"Sorry for calling you out of the blue, Hoshino!" Ichinose's voice was subdued.
"No, it's fine. What's up?" Though puzzled, Hoshino stepped a little closer.
"..." A hint of awkwardness appeared on Ichinose's face. She seemed a little embarrassed, too. "...A confession... I think someone's going to confess to me here!"
Out of nowhere, Ichinose raised her voice. Her eyes squeezed shut with embarrassment, and her hands fidgeted nervously.
"...Huh?... What?... Uh, I'll be going!" Stunned, Hoshino lost his train of thought for a moment, then spun around to leave before he could even begin to process what she'd said.
What was going on? Hoshino was thoroughly confused.
Someone was going to confess to her? Why had she called him over for that?
Did she want him to help her figure out what to do?
Hoshino had never been through anything like this himself. And what was he supposed to do while someone confessed to her?
"Wait! Hoshino! There's something... I want to ask you for help with!" Seeing him about to leave, Ichinose hurriedly called out.
"...Uh, what is it?" Hoshino stopped reluctantly and turned around stiffly.
"...I don't really understand this sort of thing. Yesterday, I found this in my shoe locker, but I don't want to start anything with that person. How can I turn them down without hurting them..." Ichinose looked troubled as she slowly took out a pink love letter. "So I want you to pretend to be my boyfriend, and then... Please!"
"..." After hearing Ichinose out, Hoshino more or less understood the situation. Still, what a "rich person's" problem! How could he put it? It was so "youthful."
"Come to think of it, we've only met a few times. Is it really okay to come to me about something like this?" Hoshino didn't answer her request. Instead, he wondered why Ichinose had come to him.
"...Well, because you're on the Student Council, and Hoshinomiya-sensei also..." Ichinose's voice gradually faded until Hoshino could barely make out what she was saying.
Hoshinomiya-sensei, huh? He did owe her a favor, so he didn't mind helping. But this sort of thing...
"...You should talk to the person and be honest. You don't want to hurt them? Once you've decided you don't like them, there's no way to reject them without hurting them, is there? If you twist the truth, do you really think they'll feel better? You're just lying to yourself! Giving yourself an excuse so you can feel justified about it?..." Hoshino's voice turned stern.
The fact that she was being rejected wouldn't change. Hoshino couldn't understand why Ichinose thought that finding a fake boyfriend would make it easier for the other person to accept. Was she trying to imply that she wasn't turning them down because she didn't like them? That was just an excuse!
In Hoshino's eyes, anyone who could summon the courage to confess was truly impressive. At the very least, their honest feelings deserved more than a brush-off. Hoshino didn't want to fake something like that.
Before you continue