Stalker

Afterward, the two changed into clothes of different styles. At Shiina's suggestion, they even took wedding photos.

"Youyan, may I call you that?" Shiina went on the offensive.

"If anything, I've wanted to call you by your given name for a long time, Hiyori," Lezheng replied.

"Then does this count as us having been husband and wife for a day?"

"We've even taken wedding photos. Are you going to back out, Hiyori?"

Lezheng reached out and took Shiina's hand. She returned his grip, and the two sat on the sofa with their fingers interlaced, waiting for the shop to develop their photos.

After a little over ten minutes, a staff member approached with two sets of photos packaged in envelopes.

"Here are your photos. Please rest assured that our shop won't keep any copies," the staff member specifically emphasized.

This was because, back when Lezheng was still a first-year, a repair shop employee had used the personal information left by a girl in Class D named Sakura Airi to do something bad. Ever since that incident, the school had forbidden all shops from retaining copies of customers' personal information, with violators sent straight to the police station.

"Lezheng, I'm craving egg fried rice," Shiina said on the way back, brushing her fingers against his palm.

"I just bought ingredients yesterday, as it happens. But I've learned a new dish recently. Want to try it?"

"Thank you for the meal, then."

Outside Room 321, Lezheng took out his key and opened the door.

"Hiyori, go inside and wait for me a moment."

"Do you need me to notify Ryuen?" Shiina rose onto her toes and looked behind them.

"It's fine. I'll be back soon." Once Shiina had entered, Lezheng closed the door from outside.

Lezheng leaned against the wall between the two elevator doors, waiting for his prey to take the bait.

Ding.

The elevator doors opened, and a petite purple-haired girl stepped out.

Amasawa had been following them for ages and had finally waited until they returned to the dorm. First, she checked which floor their elevator stopped on, then quickly entered the one on the other side. But just as she stepped out of the elevator, a voice came from above her head.

"Amasawa Ichika, what business do you have following me?"

She abruptly turned her head and discovered Lezheng leaning against the wall, seemingly waiting for her.

"Ah... Lezheng, I just wanted to get to know you better," Amasawa said, looking "startled."

"That doesn't mean you need to follow me." Lezheng was somewhat exasperated.

"Sorry. I'll leave right away."

Only after watching Amasawa enter the elevator and waiting a few minutes did Lezheng turn and head back to his room. As soon as he entered, Shiina's gaze locked onto him, and he told her what had just happened.

"Looking at it that way, I really do have a lot of rivals. Ichinose, Karuizawa, Yamamura... Now I have to add Amasawa from the year below, and those are just the ones I know about." Shiina counted them on her fingers.

"That just shows you all have good taste, Hiyori. Hehe." Lezheng poured the cracked eggs into a bowl.

A month passed quickly, and Hosen was finally "released after serving his sentence," which also meant that Class 1-D would once again be ruled through violence.

Each first-year class now had a single leader, which was considerably better than Class A's three-way split back then.

The leader of Class 1-A was Osamu Takahashi, with Kyo Ishigami as his deputy. Class B's leader was Takuya Yagami. Class C's leader was Utsunomiya Riku, with Tsubaki Sakurako as his deputy. Class D's leader was Kazuomi Housen, with Nanase Tsubasa as his deputy.

Of course, that was only how things stood on the surface. Only those involved knew what was actually going on behind the scenes.

Because Lezheng had earned full marks in the special exam, Karuizawa had finally found another reason to approach him openly.

"Hey, hey... Lezheng, I can't solve this problem. Teach me, please?"

Ever since Karuizawa had announced their relationship, her attitude toward Lezheng in private had grown increasingly "brazen," shifting from her initial nervousness to a somewhat coy haughtiness.

"Let me see. For this problem, you should..." Lezheng glanced at the question and began explaining.

"Lezheng, I see you eating egg fried rice every day. You'll miss out on nutrients like that. Ta-da... This is a lunch I specially learned how to make. I made an extra portion, so you can have it." Karuizawa took a golden-yellow box out of her schoolbag.

"Your mind really does jump around, but thank you anyway." Lezheng accepted it and put it in his schoolbag.

The sharp-eyed Karuizawa noticed that there were already two lunch boxes in Lezheng's bag, one pink and one white.

Damn it, I've got competition in this area too? I wonder if my amateur cooking will suit Lezheng's tastes.

Yes, Karuizawa was searching for her own unique way to win him over, because she too had noticed the increasing number of girls around Lezheng. Sweet, cute girls were everywhere, and with no particular talents of her own, she could only try a different approach.

"Lezheng, Karuizawa, what a coincidence." Ichinose appeared.

Since they had taken the initiative to announce their relationship, the two no longer met only in Lezheng's room. Running into acquaintances was normal.

"Have a seat. Would you like something to drink?" Lezheng asked.

"A glass of juice, thank you. Are you two studying?" Ichinose sat down on Lezheng's other side.

"Yes. Kei has some study problems she can't figure out."

"Let me see."

Rather than standing up, Ichinose leaned straight over against Lezheng, pressing her entire voluptuous body onto him.

That's not fair! Why does she get both a cute face and an outrageously good figure?! Karuizawa lowered her head and looked at herself.

"This one." Lezheng pointed to a question in the homework.

"Lezheng, could you explain it again? I'd like to hear your method too."

So Lezheng explained it again.

"Your method is easier to understand. Oh, since I happened to run into you, could you teach me how to tie a Mizuhiki knot?" Ichinose took out cords in several colors.

"I've just finished helping Kei with her question, too. Watch, I'll demonstrate." Lezheng picked up a cord at random and slowly wove it once.

"Hmm... I don't think I understood. How about you hold my hands and demonstrate it for me?"

Lezheng blinked and looked down at Ichinose. Her eyes held a clear gaze. Right, she's Ichinose. What bad intentions could an angel possibly have? So Lezheng reached both arms around her and earnestly began explaining from the first step.

Enclosed in his arms, Ichinose leaned back a little, a faint blush spreading across her face.

Karuizawa stared blankly at the sight of the two weaving in each other's arms, an inexplicable irritation rising within her.

"I want to learn too, Lezh... Cousin, could you teach me like that afterward too?"

"Sure, but before that, make sure you understand the problem from earlier," Lezheng replied, looking up.

Not far from Lezheng's table, Amasawa watched the three interacting with great interest, occasionally sipping the coffee in her hand. Over the past month, she had followed Lezheng every few days. Although he discovered her every time and mildly scolded her, she never tired of it.

(I'm considering whether to change some of the deserted-island survival rules.)