Sakura

Qiuyue sighed, walked up to the three of them, and greeted them naturally.

"What a coincidence, you guys here to get something fixed too?"

"Huh? Qiuyue-kun, yes, we're here to accompany Sakura-san to get her camera repaired."

Kushida was still diligently playing her role. Sakura looked confused, her social anxiety flaring up again as she shuffled a little to the side. She had probably only just heard Qiuyue's name from Kushida.

"What kind of camera? Let me see."

Qiuyue was putting on a great show of being an overly familiar person, picking up the warranty card and reading the camera model on it.

"It's this one. I can fix it."

"Huh?"

Qiuyue's words gave all three of them a slight surprise, while Qiuyue casually swept his gaze over the form Sakura had filled out.

Qiuyue: (Only filled in the name, huh. Good thing too, the contact info only has the first three digits. But still, a creep like you doesn't even deserve to know her name.)

"Of course, I've actually studied it. At least this model, I know how to fix. So Sakura-san, I can help you out. It'll be a good chance for me to brush up."

Qiuyue said this, drawing their attention, and silently thanked the Pickpocket Talent he'd drawn. In that single instant, the form had already slipped into his pocket.

"Hey, hey, hey, this camera is really hard to fix. Don't push yourself. Better leave it to professionals like us."

The creep started to panic a little, trying to stop Qiuyue, completely oblivious that the form on the table was already gone. He had missed his one and only chance in life to learn his idol's real name.

"It's fine. If it were the newest model, I wouldn't be able to, but I do know a little about this type. Besides, the damage to her camera isn't that serious."

Qiuyue looked mockingly at the creep, who thought he was hiding so well.

"Impressive, Qiuyue-kun. But I think it's better to leave this to the repair staff, since there's a warranty card. Still, it's not my camera being fixed, so it's up to Sakura-san. Right, Sakura-san?"

Kushida said this, a seemingly reasonable speech that amounted to nothing.

Sakura had already made up her mind when she heard Qiuyue offer to fix it, but her social anxiety kept her from taking that step.

Qiuyue: (Sakura probably doesn't want to get near that creep anymore. Or maybe she's afraid of me?)

(Sigh... The most effective way to deal with this kind of personality is to just be a little forceful.)

Qiuyue directly picked up the warranty card and camera from the table, then turned to Sakura and said:

"Sakura-san, since you're not saying anything, I'll take that as a yes. Don't worry, I can probably fix it in about three days. I'll bring it straight to you then."

"...Mm... Thank you."

Sakura's head was bowed deeply, her face slightly flushed.

"Well, if there's nothing else, I'll be going."

"Wait, Qiuyue-kun. Since we happened to run into each other here, want to hang out a bit?"

"Um... Thank you for today... and... Qiuyue... Qiuyue-kun too, thank you."

Sakura said this, bowing from her seat, her two big assets pressing against the table.

"It's nothing. I was in the wrong too, since it was because of me that Sakura-san's camera broke. It wasn't any trouble at all. I was happy to help."

"No, I wanted to practice and review some old techniques. I should be thanking you."

Qiuyue replied.

Qiuyue: (You ask why I'm here? You'd have to ask the Pink-Haired Schemer. I was about to leave, but she grabbed my hand and dragged me along.)

(What? You want to know when I learned to fix cameras? My previous life, from my college dorm leader. He was a camera nut, and I picked up a thing or two from him.)

(Even if it were a model I couldn't fix, isn't there the Chairman, a master of getting things done? Give it to him, and it's done in a day.)

"Yeah, I should be thanking Sakura-san. Not only did you not get mad at me for breaking your camera, but you even asked me to come with you to get it fixed. Sakura-san is really a kind person. And Sakura-san, if it's okay with you, could you talk to us normally? We're all classmates."

Ayanokoji, who had been silent for half a chapter, also spoke up: "Come to think of it, you've been using honorifics the whole time."

"...Uh... Mm... I understand... I'll try."

"Don't push yourself."

"It's... it's fine."

"Mm."

"Sorry, I'm going to the restroom."

Kushida said this, got up, and left.

Qiuyue watched as Kushida left, and Sakura looked like she wanted to say something but held back.

Qiuyue: (Well, well. This part of the plot hasn't changed either? No, it has changed, hasn't it?)

(Originally, she only said this when she was alone with Ayanokoji. She's still hesitating about Sudo's matter. She wants to help, but she's scared. And now I'm here.)

(At this moment, the therapy master Ayanokoji made his entrance. I'll leave this chance to earn goodwill to you. As a supporting character, it's time for me to step aside for the protagonist.)

"I've got things to do, so I'll take the camera. See you, Ayanokoji-kun, Sakura-san."

After parting ways with Ayanokoji and Sakura.

Room 415.

Qiuyue was holding the newly bought tools, trying to repair the camera. After a long while.

"Haa... not as complicated as I thought. Maybe I can even fix it early. I'll rest for now and continue tomorrow."

Qiuyue stretched, picked up the keys on the desk, unlocked the drawer, and took out his phone. What he saw on it left him somewhat stunned.

"Who? Contacting me? The messages on this phone—Hirata? Ryuen? Ichinose? Or Katsuragi and Sakayanagi?

Whoever it is, I'll know at a glance."

Yet, when he opened the phone, Qiuyue felt a chill run down his spine.

[You there?]

"None of them! Who is this? How did they message me?

No, calm down. Think carefully. Finding out who it is comes first."

Without hesitation, Qiuyue went to his computer and began operating. His Hacker Talent made him increasingly proficient, and the other party hadn't bothered to hide themselves, so he tracked them down quickly.

"Hideo Sotomura? That's... Class D's 'Professor'? What's going on?"

No longer hesitating, Qiuyue sent a message.

[Speak.]

"No matter how many doubts I have, I can't lose face."

The other party replied instantly.

[Bro, you're finally online. Please, I'm begging you, I'm in a bind. I saved your contact info from Hirata's computer. You've gotta have some points, right? Lend me some, please, I'm begging you.]

[Why should I lend you?]

[I'll give you stuff from my cloud drive, want it? All kinds of support materials are in there.]

"...Six..."

Qiuyue was about to reply "no need," but after a moment's thought, he deleted it.

"No, Advanced Nurturing doesn't raise useless people. This chubby kid should be pretty slick with computers. That was the case in the original story too, which is why he was recruited here.

Isn't this a free tool? Maybe I should have him..."

[I can give you some points, but you'll have to do something for me.]

[Thanks, big shot. I'll cheer for you, big shot. As long as I can do it, just say the word.]

Qiuyue pocketed his phone and headed out again, but this time he wore a mask and a cap.

Emulating the three visits to the thatched cottage, Qiuyue also made three trips to the repair shop. He found that creep and secretly snapped a photo of him.

Then he sent it to Sotomura.

[Image.]

[This guy, a staff member at the school's repair shop. Find a way to hack into his computer and phone, gather some stuff from inside, and send it to me.]

[Gather what kind of stuff?]

[You'll know once you hack in.]

"Yare yare, solving Sakura's problem is now just a thought away. I'll deal with it later, to avoid the butterfly effect getting worse."

Early morning.

Qiuyue, as usual, went downstairs to head to the classroom, ready to start another day as an NPC.

As he descended, he spotted two familiar figures.

One was a girl with beautiful pink, long curly hair, wearing the school uniform with calf-length socks. Her thighs were plump and full—they'd surely make a comfortable lap pillow. Her figure was slightly chubby without looking fat; even from the back, it was clear she was a stunning beauty.

The male beside her was none other than Ayanokoji, whom Qiuyue knew all too well.