Kushida Kikyou sat back down on the chair opposite Shikime Natsu and raised her head to look at him.
"That... really, thank you so much, Natsu!"
She clasped her hands together, her tone filled with gratitude.
"This advice really helps me out a lot!"
Although deep down she felt incredibly repulsed by Shikime Natsu's theory about "normal people," and even felt that this was practically a disguised mockery of her current situation.
But...
Shikime Natsu had indeed shared some "real dry goods" (substantial advice) with her.
As the "Little Angel who knows gratitude," she naturally had to thank him properly.
After all, face-saving projects were her specialty.
"It doesn't matter."
Shikime Natsu smiled and waved his hand.
"It's good if I can help Kushida-san."
"Mhm-hmm! I'm really very grateful!"
Kushida Kikyou nodded vigorously, then turned her head to look at Ichinose Honami sitting beside her, the smile on her face remaining sweet.
"Of course, I also have to thank Ichinose-san for her help!"
"? I-I actually didn't help with anything..."
Ichinose Honami waved her hand somewhat embarrassedly, a trace of shyness on her face.
"This is all Shiki-san's credit; I didn't help with anything."
So you know that, too.
Looking at Ichinose Honami's embarrassed appearance, Kushida Kikyou rolled her eyes mercilessly in her heart.
Aside from acting as a sounding board, you really didn't do anything.
But forget it. For the sake of you still having a little utilization value, I won't bicker with you.
Through those words from Shikime Natsu just now, Kushida Kikyou had completely understood.
To become the ruler of a weird class like Class D, relying solely on being "gentle and considerate" and "being a goody two-shoes" was absolutely not enough.
The most core key was still benefits!
Only by bringing tangible benefits to that group of profit-seeking guys would they take her seriously.
But.
The second point Shikime Natsu mentioned—"The people in the class must first be normal people."
This point made Kushida Kikyou feel it was simply harder than ascending to the heavens.
Wanting to turn that group of idiots in the class into normal people—even if a god came, they probably couldn't do it, right?!
Why...
Kushida Kikyou roared silently in her heart.
Why are other classes full of normal people, but my class just has to be full of these monsters and freaks?!
However, complaints were just complaints; reality still had to be faced.
Since she couldn't change the fact that her "teammates are pigs," she could only put effort into the aspect of "benefits."
And to bring benefits to Class D...
Kushida Kikyou's gaze fell on Shikime Natsu again, her eyes becoming somewhat complex.
Undoubtedly, if she wanted to obtain huge benefits, she still had to rely on this man in front of her.
The "Past Exam Questions Incident" this time was the best proof.
If not for those past exam questions provided by Shikime Natsu, it would have been impossible for her to farm such a high wave of reputation in Class D within a short time.
But...
This man was really not easy to use.
One had to know, even that self-righteous stinky woman Horikita Suzune had stumbled an unknown number of times at Shikime Natsu's hands and was played around like a fiddle.
And...
The moment she thought of that inexplicable request Shikime Natsu made before, telling her to grow her hair long.
A strong sense of dissatisfaction and nausea surged in Kushida Kikyou's heart.
Why grow long hair?
That stinky woman Horikita Suzune has long hair!
Making me have the same hairstyle as that disgusting woman—just thinking about it makes me want to vomit!
Kushida Kikyou calculated silently in her heart.
Although she was very unhappy, in order to stabilize her position in Class D and even further control the class, she had to think of a way to squeeze more value out of Shikime Natsu.
As for that stinky woman...
Kushida Kikyou recalled the situation she had observed these days, and the corners of her mouth hooked up into an imperceptible cold sneer.
Although Horikita Suzune might also receive Shikime Natsu's help, given that woman's personality, which was as smelly and hard as a rock, she wanted to get the sincere help of a nasty guy like Shikime Natsu?
Heh, simply a fool's dream!
Watching that woman hitting walls everywhere like a headless fly was simply her greatest source of joy these past few days.
Truly stupid to death.
Thinking of this, Kushida Kikyou's mood improved slightly.
She turned her head to glance at Ichinose Honami beside her again.
Kushida Kikyou narrowed her eyes slightly.
This woman too. Clearly looking like a fool, yet she seems to be quite well-received by Shikime Natsu.
Could it be... does this guy, Shikime Natsu, just like this kind of stupid woman whose brain doesn't work very well?
Kushida Kikyou tilted her head, her smile radiant and charming.
"By the way, Ichinose-san."
"Do you have anything else you want to chat with Natsu about?"
"?"
Hearing Kushida Kikyou's words, Ichinose Honami snapped back to reality and froze for a moment.
Originally...
Originally, she did have some words she wanted to say to Shikime Natsu.
She even wanted to muster up the courage to ask that question hidden at the bottom of her heart.
But...
Because of Kushida Kikyou's perfectly timed interruption just now, that courage she had built up with great difficulty had long since vanished into thin air.
And... now, in front of Kushida Kikyou, she simply had no way to speak up. She couldn't just directly ask Kushida Kikyou to leave so she could chat with Shikime Natsu alone, right?
Some words, once that moment is missed, might never be spoken again.
Thus, Ichinose Honami could only shake her head somewhat regretfully and force out a smile.
"N-No, I don't..."
"Since there's nothing else..."
Kushida Kikyou immediately took over the conversation and stood up from the chair with swift movements.
"Then it's about time to go back. After all, it's not good to keep disturbing Natsu's rest."
She looked at Shikime Natsu, bowed slightly, and spoke politely.
"Really, thank you so much for Natsu's hospitality today!"
"Whether it was that delicious dessert or those suggestions just now, I benefited a lot!"
Speaking of this, she seemed to remember something. She clenched her small fist in a 'fighting' gesture, her tone playful and full of energy.
"Right! I heard that in the upcoming midterms, Natsu is going to have a showdown with Nagumo-senpai?"
"Although Nagumo-senpai is the Student Council Vice President and looks very amazing, I believe Natsu definitely won't lose!"
"I will always be cheering for Natsu! You must win!"
Looking at her appearance full of energy, Shikime Natsu smiled and nodded.
"Then I'll take your auspicious words."
"I should go back too."
Seeing Kushida Kikyou get up, Ichinose Honami had no choice but to stand up as well.
She glanced at Shikime Natsu, her eyes holding a trace of reluctance.
"That... Shikime-san, goodbye."
"Looking forward to seeing you next time."
"Mhm, goodbye."
Shikime Natsu stood up, saw the two beautiful girls to the door, and then watched them leave.
The room returned to silence once more.
Shikime Natsu walked back to the bedside and sat down, his gaze falling on the book lying quietly on the bedside table.
That was the book Shiina Hiyori had given to Shikime Natsu last time. It was a novel written personally by Shiina Hiyori's father. For the young girl, this book could be said to be quite precious.
Moreover... this book was not available in the school. If one were to commission someone from the library to specially purchase it, it would probably be a not-so-small expense.
Shikime Natsu reached out and picked up the book, his fingertips gently stroking the cover.
As early as the first day he got this book, he had already used his photographic memory ability to memorize every word, every sentence, and even every punctuation mark inside by heart.
For him, the content of this book no longer held any secrets.
But.
\ This didn't stop him from occasionally picking it up to flip through it.
After all...
This was a book Shiina Hiyori valued, and it was also a sentiment she cherished extremely.
If he just tossed it aside to gather dust because he had already memorized the content, that would inevitably be letting down that literary girl's sincere heart too much.
Besides, every time he flipped through it, he seemed to be able to feel the girl's quiet aura between the lines.
Anyway, regarding other books, Shikime Natsu could memorize all the content after a 'quantum speed reading'. Instead of reading other books, it was better to read this book containing the girl's sentiments. No matter how you put it, it was a gift from the girl to him. Plus, with the ability of "finding a house of gold within books" (gaining skills from reading), it could be considered a harvest.
Spending over two hours, Shikime Natsu finished reading this book again. Putting the book back in its original place, Shikime Natsu decided he wanted to give Shiina Hiyori a return gift. It just so happened that he had obtained the "Painting Master" ability from Shiraishi Asuka this morning, so...
...he would make bookmarks for Shiina Hiyori.
Shikime Natsu went to the general store and purchased the corresponding materials. Returning to his dormitory, he placed several blank bookmarks on the table.
Since he was customizing bookmarks for Shiina Hiyori... then... what kind of bookmarks would be better to customize?
Should he draw the girl's image in Chibi style and make it into a bookmark?
Or say...
Shikime Natsu decided. He would make the characters from Shiina Hiyori's book into bookmarks. The characters inside basically all had physical descriptions. Shikime Natsu pondered over which characters the girl might like, and then produced five character illustrations and five landscape illustration bookmarks.
Finally... one more bookmark of the girl holding a book and reading.
When Shikime Natsu finished, his phone suddenly rang. Someone had sent him a message.
Shikime Natsu picked up the phone to take a look.
A new message was displayed on the screen.
[Shiina Hiyori: Shikime-san, may I ask if you have eaten dinner?]
Looking at this message, Shikime Natsu raised an eyebrow. He had just prepared a gift for Shiina Hiyori, and Shiina Hiyori sent him a message. Was this also fate?
[Shiina Hiyori: Then... if it's convenient, could I invite Shikime-san to come to my room for a moment?]
Although Shiina Hiyori didn't explicitly say what it was for, one could guess from the first sentence of her inquiry.
There was a high probability she was inviting him to eat, right?
Thinking of that girl who was always quietly reading, the corners of Shikime Natsu's mouth hooked up into a gentle arc.
[Shikime Natsu: Okay, I'm coming over now.]
[Shiina Hiyori: This is my room number: XXX.]
Mhm, I can count this as knowing another beautiful girl's room number. Really nice. Besides collecting CGs, collecting beautiful girls' room numbers is also quite nice.
Shikime Natsu simply tidied up his clothes and placed the bookmarks neatly into a box. Although he used good pens, Shikime Natsu couldn't confirm if the colors would mix if the bookmarks were jumbled together, so he placed the eleven bookmarks down perfectly.
Then he headed towards Shiina Hiyori's room. To avoid unnecessary trouble, Shikime Natsu activated "Presence Concealment" until he reached the door of Shiina Hiyori's room before deactivating it.
[Shikime Natsu: I've arrived.]
Not long after.
With a click.
The door was gently opened a crack.
A delicate little face peered out from the crack in the door. After seeing Shikime Natsu standing at the door, those light purple eyes instantly lit up.
"Good afternoon, Natsu."
Shiina Hiyori's voice was very soft, carrying a trace of shyness and joy that couldn't be concealed.
She opened the door, turned her body sideways, and made a gesture of invitation.
"Please come in."
"Excuse the intrusion."
Shikime Natsu smiled faintly and slipped into the room.
As the door gently closed, that unique faint fragrance belonging to the literary girl came rushing over.
Shikime Natsu briefly sized up Shiina Hiyori's room.
This was his first time entering Shiina Hiyori's private space.
There weren't too many garish decorations, nor were there any cute plush toys.
The most eye-catching thing was the entire row of bookshelves against the wall, densely packed with all kinds of books.
The desk was tidied very neatly. On it lay a few books currently being read and an open notebook, with a fountain pen beside them.
The whole room gave people a gentle feeling, just like Shiina Hiyori herself.
It really has the style of a literary girl.
Seeing Shikime Natsu sizing up her room, Shiina Hiyori pinched the hem of her skirt somewhat nervously, a faint blush appearing on her face.
Although before Shikime Natsu arrived, she had specially tidied up the room and put away some personal items.
But...
Letting a boy into her room for the first time, she was ultimately still a bit apprehensive in her heart.
"Hiyori's room is very clean, and there are so many books. It looks very warm."
Shikime Natsu smiled and praised.
Hearing this praise, Shiina Hiyori heaved a sigh of relief, and the smile on her face became more natural.
"Actually... presumptuously inviting Natsu over today was mainly to express my gratitude."
"Previously, Natsu has always been patiently teaching me how to cook. Although I'm very clumsy, Natsu has never disliked me."
"So... I wanted to invite Natsu to taste my handiwork."
Speaking of this, she lowered her head somewhat embarrassedly, her voice becoming smaller and smaller.
"Which is to say... I wanted to let Natsu inspect my learning results."
"Then I look forward to Hiyori's cooking. By the way, Hiyori, I also have something I plan to give you."
Shikime Natsu handed the box to the space in front of Shiina Hiyori.
"This is...?"
"These are bookmarks I made personally. Though they aren't as precious as that book you gave me, Hiyori."
Shikime Natsu spoke with a smile.
"No... not at all. I like this gift Natsu gave me very much. I'm very happy."
Shiina Hiyori opened the box Shikime Natsu handed over and picked up one of the bookmarks. Almost the moment she saw the character on this bookmark, Shiina Hiyori could recognize it was a character from her father's book. Clearly, before this, there was only text and no illustrations, but the moment she saw this character, Shiina Hiyori could instantly connect the character with the specific person in her father's book.
And... clearly it was just a character on a bookmark, yet it expressed all the characteristics of that person very well.
Gently holding the bookmark, Shiina Hiyori's eyes were gentle. Shikime Natsu really properly read my father's book, and... he even gave me such a wonderful gift.
[Exquisite Bookmark (Shiina Hiyori): When carrying this bookmark, one's thinking ability will be imperceptibly improved. Only effective for the character Shiina Hiyori.]
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