"Ayanokoji, Ayanokoji...?"
Meari saw Ayanokoji in a daze and waved her hand in front of him, pouting discontentedly, "I know Miss Anna is beautiful, but you can't stare like that, can you?"
"No, I just think that name is very special..." Ayanokoji Kiyotaka coughed lightly and asked the same question as Meari, "Miss Anna, are you of mixed heritage?"
"Yes, my mother is Russian."
Indeed, just like in the anime's setting... Her mother might really be named Sophia.
After confirming this, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka actually calmed down.
He even had a system, so the sudden appearance of an anime character wasn't a big deal, was it? Perhaps there were other anime characters in this world that he hadn't seen?
Keep calm, keep calm... Just treat her as an ordinary person.
"Meari, how did you meet this Miss Anna?"
Hearing Ayanokoji's question, Meari did not hide the fact that she lost to Ririka in gambling and truthfully recounted how she met Ririka.
Her gambling skills are even higher than Meari's, which is unexpected... Ayanokoji Kiyotaka couldn't help but look at Anna Kinomiya with higher regard.
"Miss Anna has been resting at home for a long time due to health reasons, and she only started school a few days ago.
She's completely unfamiliar with the school, so I took her around the school this afternoon."
Meari said, looking at Ayanokoji with some regret, "If I had known you were in the Kendo Club, I would have gone in to see when I passed by there with Miss Anna."
Meari passed by the Kendo Club while showing Ririka around the school this afternoon, but the Kendo Club door was closed, and she thought no one was inside.
If she had known Ayanokoji was there, she would have knocked on the door and gone straight in.
—Fortunately, she didn't.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka felt as if he had escaped from a tiger's mouth and let out a long sigh of relief.
It was a good thing he hadn't told Meari and the others in advance that he was going to the Kendo Club.
If they had burst in while he was fighting Ikishima Midari, it would have been a huge mess.
Ayanokoji secretly reminded himself that since he had tried out this new scene at the Kendo Club, he should not do any dangerous things there next time.
Even if Ikishima Midari still wanted to try it there, he couldn't agree to her.
This time she said she wanted to be in the Kendo Club, next time she would say she wanted to be in the School Building, and the time after that, perhaps for excitement, she would incite him to go to a cemetery—
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka didn't want to be the couple with Ikishima Midari who knocked over a statue in a cemetery and summoned zombies to destroy the earth.
"Alright everyone, no more chitchat!"
Togakushi Yukimi checked the time and urged, "We should go prepare for work, guests will be arriving soon."
Yesterday, Togakushi Yukimi just received the "bonus" Ayanokoji gave her, and now she is very enthusiastic about work.
Hanatemari Kazura nodded, and Meari also wanted to nod, but she looked at Ririka beside her and hesitated.
She was about to speak but was stopped by Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, who preempted her, "Don't forget our agreement; you can't skip work today."
"I know..." Meari nodded helplessly.
Meari turned to Ririka and said apologetically, "Sorry, Anna, I have to go to work now, so how about we stop here for today?
I'll send you back, and I'll show you around the school tomorrow?"
Meari originally wanted to continue showing Anna around the campus, but since Ayanokoji said so, she could only let her go back first.
However, to Meari's surprise, Anna Kinomiya, perhaps reluctant to leave her, shook her head and asked, "Meari, I don't want to leave, can I stay here and wait for you?
Thank you so much for your help today; I'd like to treat you to dinner tonight..."
After spending the day together, Meari already considered Anna a friend and was very happy with her sentiment.
"You can, but..." Meari looked hesitantly at Ayanokoji.
After all, Ayanokoji was the one in charge.
"Don't look at me; of course, I don't mind her staying here."
Ayanokoji certainly wouldn't refuse to have a beautiful girl stay here, especially since this girl was "Anna Kinomiya," a character who walked out of the two-dimensional world.
Ayanokoji was very interested in her and would be delighted if she stayed.
"Then Miss Anna, you can stay here and wait for me.
If you get bored, you can leave anytime; you don't have to wait for me."
Meari came to Ayanokoji's side and whispered worriedly, "Ayanokoji, please don't flirt with her just because she's pretty..."
Meari was originally very confident in Ayanokoji's character, but Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's popularity with women seemed ridiculously high; even Miharu Taki Sakura, an important figure in the Student Council and Zenshoukai, favored him.
Coupled with Ayanokoji's dazed expression when he saw Anna just now, Meari found it hard to leave with peace of mind.
She had finally made a new friend, and she didn't want to inexplicably acquire another "love rival," which is why she couldn't help but remind Ayanokoji.
Ayanokoji was dumbfounded.
What kind of person did Meari take him for? Was he the kind of person who would flirt with a girl just because she looked good?
"You don't need to say anything more; you should go busy yourself first." Ayanokoji Kiyotaka speechlessly flicked Meari's forehead.
Togakushi Yukimi and Hanatemari Kazura left the Cooking Room first, and Meari, looking worried, still followed them to work next door.
Kurume Laiwei, as Ayanokoji's designated bartender, had gone to the adjacent room to help out only because Meari was absent for the past two days.
Now that Meari was back, she naturally remained in the Cooking Room.
Kurume Laiwei was also curious about this young lady.
She mixed a non-alcoholic refreshing cocktail at the bar, came to the table where Ririka was sitting, sat down, and started chatting with her.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka did not join them, but sat in the corner of the room, reading a book while occasionally glancing at "Anna Kinomiya."
Ayanokoji noticed that even with Kurume, whom she had just met, Anna Kinomiya could talk animatedly with a smile on her face, speaking very politely, with every word sounding pleasant to the ear.
However, while chatting with Kurume, Anna seemed very conscious of him, occasionally turning her head to look at him, and their eyes even met.
When she noticed that Ayanokoji was also looking up at her, she instantly became nervous, and her voice stammered slightly.
This made Ayanokoji curious.
She should not be averse to interacting with others, so why did she get nervous when she looked at him?
Could it be that she had little contact with men and was not used to chatting with them? Or was it that he was reading behind her, making her uncomfortable? Or perhaps, in her eyes, he was a very special person, and she cared about him...
The third conjecture was dismissed the moment it appeared in Ayanokoji's mind.
No, no, don't be so self-important; he had only met her for the first time, how could she possibly care about him?
Just read, don't overthink it.
Ayanokoji thought this, no longer observing Ririka's movements, and began to focus on his book.
He now reads books whenever he has nothing to do.
These books are all treasures from Togakushi Yukimi's library, and each one is highly readable.
In addition to some classics that Ayanokoji had in his previous life, this world also produced many excellent works that were no less inferior to them.
Ayanokoji read with great relish and quickly became immersed in the book.
When Ririka turned to look at Ayanokoji again, she found that he was no longer looking at her and felt a little lost.
—Kiyotaka used to hate reading when he was a child.
He would always deliberately lean on the table and watch her without blinking while she was reading.
Now, does reading seem more interesting to him than watching her?
Ayanokoji read his book, and Ririka and Kurume chatted idly.
Half of the club activity time quickly passed.
Suddenly, a seemingly arrogant female voice sounded from outside the door.
"Saotome Meari, come out quickly! I'm here to challenge you!"
-------------------------------
I've already uploaded 70 chapters of this story on Patreon!
If you enjoy it, come check out the latest chapters in advance.
Here's the link:
[patreon.com/Greyhounds]
Thank you so much for your support!!
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"