Chapter 41

"If he drops out, will you lead Class D up the ranks?"

"Heh..."

Nangong Cheng laughed.

Sure enough, he should never try to guess what a woman was thinking, much less underestimate how fiercely she could cling to a goal.

"Chabashira-sensei, you really... only ever think about yourself."

What If Ichinose Honami's Best Friend Finds Out About Her Mom Act?

Nangong Cheng left.

He had neither agreed nor refused.

Click.

Sae Chabashira lit a slim cigarette and took a drag, trying to hide how she felt.

But Chie Hoshinomiya, Sae Chabashira's devoted admirer, could tell that she was fairly pleased with how the conversation had gone. That put Hoshinomiya in a bad mood.

Looks like I'll have to get Honami to try harder.

No... Class D has plenty of pretty girls. Honami alone might not be enough. I should see if anyone else in my class would be a good fit.

With that thought, she left the office.

After lunch break, Nangong Cheng saw Horikita Suzune walk into the classroom with Kikyo Kushida and Karuizawa Kei.

Surprisingly, the three of them looked fairly comfortable together.

Of course, that was mostly because Kikyo Kushida was such a good actress. She could force a smile even when dealing with someone as unbelievably fake as Haruki Yamauchi.

Besides, his work on Horikita Suzune was finally showing results, so this outcome was hardly unexpected.

"At lunch, I talked with Kushida and Karuizawa about tutoring. They said they wanted to get everyone together tonight so I could meet the other girls first."

Horikita Suzune explained as soon as she sat down.

Nangong Cheng raised an eyebrow.

"I told you to handle it however you see fit. I'm only checking the final result."

"...I mean, they'd like you to come too. They want to thank you for what you did today, so they asked me to invite you."

Invite him?

Nangong Cheng glanced at Kikyo Kushida and Karuizawa Kei. They were chatting with their groups, perhaps already talking about the gathering.

"It's a girls' get-together. It'd be a little awkward for me to show up."

"They don't mind, so why do you?"

"All right. What time?"

"About seven. I already made plans with Shiina yesterday, and we'll need time for dinner... I'll message you later."

Nangong Cheng nodded.

He had no real reason to object. He could even use the opportunity to see whether he could assign a few tasks.

But if all the girls were going...

It would be hard on Sakura Airi.

"Tell them Airi isn't going. You can say I'm going in her place... Oh, and Hasebe doesn't need to come either if she's staying with Airi."

"...Okay."

Nearby, Haruka Hasebe was whispering with Sakura Airi. Hearing Nangong Cheng make such a high-handed decision, she couldn't resist teasing the girl who blushed so easily.

"Nangong really dotes on you, Airi."

"N-no, he doesn't..."

"You're saying that with your face bright red!"

"Ugh..."

Nangong Cheng noticed, but he had enough tact not to interrupt.

With Haruka Hasebe helping look after Sakura Airi, he had some attention to spare for other people.

Before long, classes were over.

Horikita Suzune was the first to leave the classroom.

Kikyo Kushida and Karuizawa Kei said goodbye to him with their respective groups, telling him they looked forward to the gathering that evening. Then they left to get ready.

[Task assigned: Invite Haruka Hasebe to stay overnight in your room tonight.]

[Task reward: 100 Points]

[Penalty for failure: Stay overnight in Nangong Cheng's room]

"Airi, I'm heading out."

"Call me if you need anything, okay?"

"Mm..."

After leaving her a task, Nangong Cheng departed.

He didn't go anywhere else. He didn't even plan to use Horikita Suzune's new friendship with a fellow book lover as an excuse to make an impression on Shiina Hiyori.

He went straight back to the dorm.

At around five, Ichinose Honami came over to make dinner.

From where Nangong Cheng stood, though, he could tell something was off with her today.

"Ichinose Mom, don't keep it bottled up. Is there anything you can't tell me, given how close we are?"

"Ahaha..."

Ichinose Honami laughed awkwardly.

After a moment's hesitation, she seemed to search for the right words. "Well... I heard you hit someone in class today, Nangong?"

"I did. Has Ichinose Mom lost her good opinion of me?"

Ichinose Honami waved her hands hurriedly. "No! I know you stepped in for the girls in your class. You didn't hit him for no reason."

Nangong Cheng was only teasing Ichinose Honami.

He knew a girl with her almost painfully gentle nature would never blame him. Even if he had hit someone on purpose, she would probably defend him by saying something like, "I'm sure you had your reasons, Nangong."

"So what did Ichinose Mom want to say?"

"Hoshinomiya-sensei must have told you about it, right? She was there when it happened."

Ichinose Honami was never very good at hiding her feelings. And with Nangong Cheng, she was usually the one reacting to him.

Remembering what Hoshinomiya-sensei had told her, she bit her lip and asked, "I-it's just... What exactly is your relationship with that girl named Sakura?"

"Oh, we're pretty good friends."

Nangong Cheng gave her a meaningful smile, his tone just as suggestive. "Does Ichinose Mom care that much about it?"

"N-no!"

"I was just asking because... because a girl in my class seems interested in you! I only wanted to find out for her!"

Ichinose Honami knew her excuse was painfully transparent. Nangong Cheng would definitely see through it.

But it was all she could bring herself to say.

"Oh? Then I'd like to meet her."

"You know me, Ichinose Mom. I can't resist pretty, cute girls—especially the gentle, motherly type."

"..."

Ichinose Honami fell silent and turned into the kitchen.

Nangong Cheng whistled.

Chie Hoshinomiya really can't wait, can she? All I did was hint that I'd lead Class D up the ranks.

Does she need to send a girl my way this quickly?

Just how much does she hate Sae Chabashira?

"For Advanced Nurturing to have both of you pairs of star-crossed lovebirds at once... I have to hand it to the school. It really knows how to pick its students."

The other pair Nangong Cheng meant was Kikyo Kushida and Horikita Suzune. Those two were caught in their own love-hate story.

With his help, Horikita Suzune was finally about to cooperate with Kikyo Kushida for the first time. He wondered what sort of stunt that little schemer would pull.

But he already had a stunt of his own planned for tonight. Once he assigned that task...

Heh heh heh.

"I'll get going. Take your time eating."

Ichinose Honami soon had dinner ready, but she didn't stay to eat with him tonight. Instead, she fled in a hurry.

Wasn't that as good as admitting something was up?

Still, Nangong Cheng couldn't quite tell what Ichinose Honami was thinking. Before she fell head over heels, she was a complicated person.

Every bit as difficult to deal with as Kikyo Kushida.

"Well, dinner first."

Meanwhile, after leaving Nangong Cheng's room, Ichinose Honami ran into the very person she hadn't wanted to see.

"Honami-chan..."

Standing directly in front of her was her friend—

Amikura Mako.

Star-Crossed Lovebirds Sing a Love Song

At around 6:40 that evening, in a private room at KTV.

Horikita Suzune took punctuality seriously. She never allowed herself to be late, so she had arrived well ahead of time.

Kikyo Kushida and Karuizawa Kei were there early too, along with their respective groups.

"Horikita, you're here."

Kikyo Kushida smiled sweetly.

The gathering that night might have seemed to be about Horikita Suzune, but its real guest of honor was Nangong Cheng.

Without Nangong Cheng giving the word, why would they obediently cooperate with Horikita Suzune? Horikita herself simply hadn't realized that yet.

After all, it wasn't as if Horikita Suzune was the only person who could help with tutoring.

"Mm. Nangong should be on his way."

Horikita Suzune looked around at the girls in the room, who had dressed up a little too carefully, and frowned without meaning to.

"Even if you want to thank him, isn't this a bit much?"

Anyone who didn't know better would think they were here for dates, not a get-together.

Kikyo Kushida's smile grew brighter.

"Horikita, maybe you don't understand... Girls dress up for one of two reasons—either for themselves or for men."