"Huh?" Everyone was startled by Yui Yuigahama's words.
"Because Little Luo and Little Yukino both speak so directly. I think it's really cool."
"Are you serious? I think my words are pretty harsh." Yukino Yukinoshita took a step back. "Also, what kind of nickname is Little Yukino?"
"Yeah, Dumpling, explain what Little Luo means too." Luo Yu also raised an issue with his own nickname.
"Their words really are harsh, but I can tell they're sincere. Unlike me, who only knows how to cater to other people." Yui Yuigahama explained.
"You still haven't explained the nicknames Little Luo and Little Yukino." Luo Yu reminded Yui Yuigahama.
"Doesn't calling you that make us seem closer? Besides, Little Luo, haven't you been calling me Dumpling this whole time?"
There was nothing he could say.
"But we still need to figure out how to solve Yuigahama's problem. At this rate, we probably won't be able to fulfill her request." Yukino Yukinoshita said with a headache.
"Say, why are you making tasty cookies?" Hachiman Hikigaya asked as he swallowed one of Luo Yu's cookies.
Yukino Yukinoshita asked in return, "What are you trying to say?"
"This is something that happened to a friend of a friend."
Next, Hachiman Hikigaya told everyone in the home economics room about his dark past.
"Wait a moment, this personal experience of yours..." Yukino Yukinoshita interrupted.
"You idiot! I said it was a friend of a friend!" Hachiman Hikigaya panicked.
"It was a friend."
"Mm-hmm, a friend. How pitiful."
The girls all offered their own remarks.
To the still-stubborn Hachiman Hikigaya, Yukino Yukinoshita obediently asked, "Then what lesson does it teach us?"
"This shows that boys are all pretty simple, right, Hikigaya?" Luo Yu said at just the right moment.
"Luo Yu's right." Hachiman Hikigaya scratched his head and continued, "If you talk to him, he'll misunderstand. If you tell him that you made these cookies for him yourself, he'll be very happy. So it doesn't matter whether they taste good or not. As long as he sees your effort, you can move his heart."
"Then were you moved, Little Hachiman?" Yui Yuigahama suddenly asked.
"Yeah, I was shaken up pretty badly. Also, don't call me a shut-in."
"Oh~ Boys are all so simple." Ritsu Tainaka nudged Luo Yu's waist with her elbow. "Luo Yu, have you ever had a moment that simple too?"
Luo Yu gave her a dangerous smile. "Take a guess?"
"Never mind, I won't ask." Seeing Luo Yu's expression, Ritsu Tainaka promptly stopped being curious.
"So, Dumpling, what do you plan to do?" Luo Yu stopped paying attention to that live-wire and asked Yui Yuigahama.
"I'll still do it my own way. Thank you, Little Yukino, Little Luo. And everyone from the Light Music Club too. I'm really sorry for wasting everyone's time today."
"It's fine, it's fine. We didn't really help much anyway."
Inside the clubroom.
The Light Music Club was carrying out its primary daily activity: drinking tea.
Yukino Yukinoshita suddenly spoke up.
"Was it really okay to handle Yuigahama's request that way?"
"What is it?" Hachiman Hikigaya asked.
"I think that if someone wants to improve themselves, they should try to challenge their limits as much as possible. That would be better for Yuigahama."
"But that was Dumpling's own choice. Yukinoshita, we have no right to make decisions for someone else." Luo Yu joined the conversation.
"Effort will not betray you, but it may betray your dreams. Effort will not necessarily make dreams come true, but as long as you have tried, at least you will have a reason to comfort yourself."
"Yahallo!" Yui Yuigahama pushed open the door and greeted everyone.
Everyone looked at her, but no one responded.
"Huh? It doesn't look like I'm very welcome?"
"Come in and sit down first, Dumpling."
Luo Yu moved over a chair and had Yui Yuigahama come in and sit down.
"Please." As always, Lady Tsumugi Kotobuki prepared tea for the guest.
"Thank you." Yui Yuigahama thanked her politely.
"So, what brings you here, Dumpling?"
"This is a token of thanks for earlier. I made cookies for all of you."
Yui Yuigahama then handed out cookies to everyone. Afterward, she very naturally began chatting with the girls.
Eiri
The weekend.
"Kazuma, you called us over so early just to make us stand here and wait in line with you?"
Looking at the long line in front of him, Luo Yu doubted whether he should have gone out today.
"Don't put it like that, Luo Yu. Look, Kazuto isn't complaining either. Besides, don't you want to get Flame Chasers Volume Two as soon as possible?"
Honestly, no. Though he wanted to say that, seeing Satou Kazuma's expectant gaze, Luo Yu ultimately could not bring himself to say it.
"Actually, I'm looking forward to it too." Kirigaya Kazuto said embarrassedly.
"Fine. Since Kazuto doesn't mind either, I'll line up with you guys." Luo Yu sighed. This was a father's indulgence toward his sons.
Time slowly passed.
At last, the three of them entered the bookstore.
"Luo Yu, Kazuto. Let's go buy Flame Chasers right away." Satou Kazuma suggested.
"You and Kazuto go ahead. I'll see if there are any other books I'm interested in."
With that, Luo Yu headed toward the innermost bookshelf.
After circling the shelf a few times, Luo Yu found several light novels that suited his taste. One of them was called "Golden Season." Luo Yu had once read its previous work, "Silver Season," and he had been immediately drawn in at the time. Unfortunately, he had been busy grinding experience for various skills back then, so after finishing "Silver Season," he had not paid any further attention to it. He had not expected to find its sequel here today.
Titles like "Silver Season" and "Golden Season" felt familiar to Luo Yu. Although he possessed the absolute memory of LV6, he would not deliberately recall such things. Only when he saw something distinctive would he actively seek out those memories.
Bang! While Luo Yu was lost in thought, a petite body crashed into him.
"Sorry, are you okay?" Luo Yu extended his right hand toward the girl he had knocked to the ground.
"I'm fine, I'm fine. I just wasn't watching where I was going." The girl took Luo Yu's hand and stood up.
But when she got a clear look at Luo Yu's face, her expression turned utterly shocked.
"You're Luo Yu?"
"You know me?" Luo Yu looked at the blonde girl before him in confusion.
"You don't recognize me? I'm Eiri." The blonde girl removed her glasses as she spoke to Luo Yu.
Damn, it really is Eiri. But when did I ever know Eiri? Luo Yu began searching through his memories. Let me see... Scene after scene flashed rapidly through his mind.
Found it! It was an art classroom, where a group of children were seriously drawing. Luo Yu and Eiri had been among them.
So he had known Eiri for a long time already. He simply had not noticed back then.
"So it's Eiri. Long time no see." Having remembered everything, Luo Yu spoke to Eiri.
"Long time no see." Eiri suddenly recalled something and said, "Oh, right. I heard from Uncle Luo that you ran away from home during your first year of middle school."
"It wasn't really running away from home." Luo Yu recalled the strange expressions on his parents' faces after he had made that decision. "I just came out to live on my own. I still keep in touch with my family."
"Then where do you live now? Oh, right, what high school do you attend now?"
"I'm a student at Private Integrated High School."
"No way! I go to Private Integrated High School too. We're actually at the same school, yet we haven't run into each other even once after all this time."
Luo Yu thought about his daily life. Well, he was either in the classroom or the Light Music Club's clubroom. "Probably because I don't show my face around much."
"Forget it." Eiri did not pursue the matter. "Have you joined a club, then? Do you want to join the art club?"
"Sorry, I've already joined the Light Music Club."
"The Light Music Club? Seriously? You don't draw anymore? Your talent was obviously so good." Eiri was astonished. The other party's talent had clearly far surpassed hers, yet he had joined the Light Music Club instead.
"Of course I'm still drawing." Luo Yu knew why Eiri was asking. Looking at Painting LV5 on his panel, he said, "But joining the Light Music Club hasn't affected my drawing, has it?"
"Oh, right, Eiri. Did you come to the bookstore to buy something?" Seeing that the girl's hands were empty, Luo Yu decided to remind her.
"Oh no! I got so caught up talking to you that I forgot to buy my book. Wait here for me. I'll go buy it first, then come back and keep talking with you."
With that, Eiri hurriedly ran off.
After the girl left, Luo Yu remained where he was and opened "Golden Season" to begin reading.
Before long, Eiri returned, holding a copy of "Flame Chasers."
"Listen, Luo Yu. You know Teacher Meng Yu, right? This is Teacher Meng Yu's new book. If you haven't read it, I recommend buying a copy too." Eiri enthusiastically promoted it to Luo Yu.
"I know. So, Eiri, what do you think of 'Flame Chasers'?"
"Me? I don't know what other people think, but I like it quite a lot. Especially the illustrations in the first volume. Oh, right, Luo Yu, you saw them too, didn't you?"
"Saw what?"
"The illustrations! The illustrations drawn by Prometheus! The first time I saw them, I thought I was seeing things. How are those illustrations? They're clearly works of art! Prometheus is really incredible. If only I could get to know Prometheus, then I could learn to draw from him."
Sorry, but you already know the artist Prometheus. Looking at the increasingly excited girl before him, Luo Yu felt that now was not a good time to reveal his identity.
Beep beep.
Luo Yu took out his phone and saw a message from Kirigaya Kazuto:
Luo Yu, where did you go? Kazuma and I have already bought our books. We're outside the bookstore entrance now, so hurry over.
"Eiri, my friends just sent me a message. They want me to go over right away. Let's stop here for today. We can talk again when we get the chance."
"Got it. Give me your phone number first, or how am I supposed to contact you next time?" Eiri called out to Luo Yu, who was preparing to leave.
"Almost forgot. 10721114514... Actually, let's just add each other on Penguin Account. See you next time."
"See you."
"Kazuto, Kazuma, sorry I'm late. I ran into someone I knew and talked with her for a while. Let's go."
After adding Eiri as a friend on Penguin Account, Luo Yu headed straight toward Satou Kazuma and Kirigaya Kazuto.
"Someone you knew? A guy or a girl?" Satou Kazuma asked curiously.
Kirigaya Kazuto also showed a curious expression.
"A girl. So what?" Luo Yu looked unconcerned.
"Damn it! Luo Yu, just how many girls do you know? It's one thing for the Light Music Club to be full of cute girls, but why can you casually run into a girl you know just from coming out to buy a book?" Satou Kazuma's expression was extremely exaggerated. "I want to meet cute girls too!"
What should we do? Kirigaya Kazuto asked Luo Yu with his eyes.
Let him go crazy for a while. Luo Yu answered with his eyes.
Still, Luo Yu interrupted Satou Kazuma's fit.
"It's getting late, Kazuma. Hurry up and catch up."
"Oh, coming."
The three of them then chatted and laughed as they set off down the road home.
Flame Chasers Volume Two
Before you continue