Time quickly rolled around to evening. School was already out for the day. Inside the art room, with the final scratch of her pencil on paper, the blonde twin-tailed girl sitting in front of the easel finally relaxed. She looked at the lifelike portrait she had drawn—so vivid and detailed—and her delicate face lit up with joy.
"All done! Yuki-kun! Come take a look." She called out to Yuki, who was still sitting by the window.
Thud. The dull sound of a book closing echoed through the room.
"Alright." Yuki nodded, put the book aside, and walked over to her.
During lunch break, he had posed as a model for Eriri. But that time hadn't been enough for her to finish, so they had agreed to meet after school and continue in the art room. Now, an hour after classes ended, they had wrapped up right as the after-school club activities were finishing.
Yuki stood beside her. Eriri quickly got up and moved aside to let him see. As he drew closer, she unconsciously leaned toward him, her thoughts drifting from the painting to him. Her eyes shimmered as she gazed at his profile with a hint of admiration.
This guy... no matter how you look at him, he's just so handsome. No matter how perfectly I draw him, it'll never compare to the real thing, she mused to herself.
The closer she got, the more she could catch the faint masculine scent coming from him. It made her cheeks warm and her breath quicken.
"Not bad. This is a lot better than the last one. Looks like you've improved a lot, Eriri." Yuki nodded, praising her.
But when he turned to look at her, she wasn't looking at the painting—she was staring at him with a slightly dazed expression. And she had gotten much closer without either of them noticing. The moment Eriri saw him turn, she jolted in surprise. She quickly snapped out of it and subtly put some distance between them.
"Uh... hm. Hmph! That's only natural!" She tilted her head up with pride, slipping back into her tsundere persona.
"Heh. Eriri, you sure are confident." Seeing her proud, stubborn attitude, Yuki couldn't help but smile.
"So, since you're so good at drawing, do you plan to pursue it as a career? A fine artist? An illustrator? Or a manga artist?"
Gulp. The moment Yuki asked, Eriri's heart sank. Especially the words "illustrator" or "manga artist"—those made her heart race.
The first two were fine... why did he bring up illustrators and manga artists? Does he know... about me?! A terrifying thought crossed her mind. No, that's impossible. It can't be. I'm just being paranoid.
She quickly dismissed the idea. She was overthinking it. There was no way Yuki knew she was an illustrator—and not just any illustrator, but one who drew adult comics. She forced herself to calm down and spoke flatly.
"Drawing is just a hobby. I don't plan on making it my career." She crossed her arms, tilted her head, and glanced at him with one eye open and the other half-closed. "Besides, being an illustrator or manga artist is something that only works if you understand otaku culture, right? I don't know anything about that."
She quickly distanced herself from any association with otaku culture, projecting the image of someone completely unfamiliar with it.
Yuki's eye twitched slightly. If he hadn't already seen through her, he might have almost believed her. But he knew better—this tsundere blonde was a hardcore otaku at heart. Honestly, in the whole class, no one understood otaku culture better than she did—not even Marin Kitagawa.
"I think you're being too biased against otaku culture, Eriri." He didn't expose her. If she wanted to keep up the act, he'd play along.
"Bias?!" Her heart skipped a beat, and a flicker of surprise crossed her eyes.
"Of course. Liking anime and manga is just a personal hobby. There's no need to judge people for it," Yuki nodded, his expression calm. "There are so many people on Earth, and every place has its own culture. Differences exist whether you look at a whole country or just a small neighborhood. It's unrealistic to expect everyone to follow the same mainstream culture. The existence of other niche cultures is only natural."
"Otaku culture is part of this country's identity. Just look at Akihabara. So there's no need for prejudice. As long as someone isn't doing anything illegal or immoral, there's no reason to judge. Getting back to the topic of illustrators—in this country, being an illustrator is actually a pretty solid career." Yuki looked at her with a faint smile. "Someone with your skill, Eriri, is more than qualified."
His words made Eriri's heart tremble slightly. Her eyes shimmered as she looked at him with newfound surprise. What surprised her most was that Yuki wasn't someone who looked down on or disliked otaku culture. To her, that was huge.
She had always worried—what if, one day, her true nature as a hardcore otaku was exposed? How would Yuki react? If he turned out to be like the people she'd encountered as a child—those who scorned otaku culture—then what would she do? How could she continue being around him? Especially now, with the special feelings and fantasies she had about him. Hearing him speak this way put her mind at ease.
"So... Yuki-kun doesn't dislike otaku culture?!" With a hint of hesitation, she tested the waters, wanting to confirm her assumption.
"Why would I dislike it? Did you forget that I've talked with Marin about anime and manga before? I'm something of a fan myself, you know." Yuki shrugged, looking completely at ease.
He understood why Eriri was asking. She wanted to be absolutely sure of his stance. After all, the blonde tsundere had her reasons for hiding this side of herself.
In the original story, Eriri and Tomoya Aki were once isolated and ridiculed by their classmates for discussing otaku interests. From then on, she distanced herself from him and began hiding her love for anime and manga. In this world, however, Tomoya Aki didn't exist. She never went through that specific trauma.
Yet she was still hiding her true self—and the reason was a bit sad, honestly. It went back to when she was a child. She once saw a classmate who liked otaku culture get bullied and ostracized by everyone else. Witnessing that, fear took root in her heart. She worried that the same thing might happen to her. So Eriri began hiding her true identity as a hardcore otaku. In front of others, she played the part of a polished, elegant princess.
Different circumstances, same outcome. It was a little disheartening.