As Yuki spoke, Eriri watched his expression intently, nervous and serious. Seeing how earnest he looked—and that he didn't seem to be lying—the weight finally lifted from her chest. She let out a long, quiet sigh of relief, and a smile crept onto her face.
"That's great!" She got a little carried away and cheered. But quickly realizing how excited she'd been, she reined it in. "Ahem. What I mean is... it's great that Yuki-kun isn't the kind of shallow person who judges others. I was just testing you, you know. I don't actually have any bias against otaku culture." She cleared her throat and slipped back into her tsundere act.
Yuki just shrugged. No wonder this blonde twintail is such a lovable loser. Still acting tsundere at a time like this. He chuckled to himself, then turned the conversation back to the painting.
Since it was Eriri's work, he let her decide what to do with it. She carefully packed the drawing into a storage case, making sure not to leave a single crease. After putting it away, she noticed Yuki watching her and blushed.
"I'm just being careful with it. It'd be a waste of your time as my model if I let it get damaged. It's not like I plan to keep it as a treasure or anything. It's just for reference. Don't get the wrong idea!" She went out of her way to explain.
Yuki's mouth twitched. He hadn't even asked. Her over-explaining just made her look guilty. And the way her eyes kept darting around? Classic sign of a guilty conscience. What could he say? Classic Eriri.
After packing up, the two left the art room. They walked out of the school building and onto the path leading to the main gate. It was nearly dusk. The sun had begun to sink below the horizon, painting the world in shades of gold, as if the ground were carpeted in amber. Other students were also on the path—members of various clubs heading home after their activities.
Walking together, Yuki and Eriri drew quite a few glances. Some thought they made a perfect couple—a handsome guy and a beautiful girl. Others recognized Eriri. They looked surprised, but not confused. Earlier that day, news had spread across the school that Eriri, one of the campus beauties, had a boyfriend. Some hadn't believed it at first—it was all just hearsay. But now, with the evidence right in front of them, they knew it wasn't a rumor.
They whispered among themselves, and some even snapped photos to share in their group chats. Though their voices were low, Yuki could hear every word. His mouth twitched again. Apparently, the rumor about him and Eriri had already spread so far that eight out of ten students knew about it. Figures. Gossip is always what people care about most. Eating up drama is just human nature.
Yuki didn't react to any of it. He let them talk. He continued chatting with Eriri as they walked out of the school gate.
Meanwhile, inside the school building. In the staff office, Mafuyu Kirisu finally finished the day's paperwork. She saved her files, shut down her computer, and stretched. Her graceful figure would have been a sight to behold—if anyone had been there to see it. But the office was empty. Turning to look at the vacant room, she sighed and shook her head.
"Working late again. Sigh." Mafuyu Kirisu let out a tired breath. Staying late without realizing it wasn't new to her. She often sat in the office and worked until this hour. Even when her colleagues chatted about after-work mixers or where to grab a nice dinner, it never distracted her. That was just how focused she was when working—completely absorbed in the task.
But leaving this late meant she wouldn't have time to cook. From school to her apartment, the train ride took about thirty minutes. By the time she got home, it would be too dark. If she spent more time making dinner, she'd probably be too hungry to function.
"Oh well. I'll just grab a discounted bento from the supermarket and heat it up." She was used to this kind of life, and she already had a practical solution. She quickly packed her things, grabbed her bag, and left the office.
As she walked out, she checked her phone and noticed a message mentioning her in the teachers' group chat. She opened it while walking. It was from a teacher in another class. The message was short—basically saying that there was a rumor going around the school about a student in Kiryu's own class, Sawamura Eriri, having a boyfriend. A photo was attached as evidence, and the teachers had started gossiping about it.
Since no school administrators were in this group chat, the conversations ranged from work-related topics to gossip about campus rumors. Things like a teacher dating a student, or two teachers having an affair.
Even though Kirisu wasn't interested in gossip, she had to admit that sometimes, these chats gave her useful information about her students. Now that it involved one of her own students, she couldn't ignore it.
She frowned slightly and opened the attached photo. Zooming in, her expression shifted to surprise. The photo only showed the backs of two people. But the signature blonde twin tails were unmistakable—that was definitely Eriri. As for the person beside her, Kiryu had a strong guess.
With that tall stature and perfectly built frame, who else could it be but Yuki? Realizing it was him, she felt a surge of anger. She had already labeled Yuki as a player because of the Lala situation. Now, it seemed he had set his sights on Eriri too. It made her feel like he was trying to prey on innocent girls. How could she not take this seriously?
Right then and there, she decided—tomorrow, she was going to call Yuki into her office and have a serious talk with him.