Kuroha Akira and the Class Rep agreed to go together on Saturday to purchase the necessary costumes and props.
Friday was already booked for visiting Takanashi Mirai, so Saturday was the only free day left. They had to buy all the props in advance, since construction would start next week on regular school days.
Kuroha Akira also invited Fujiyoshi Michio to join them. But the glasses-wearing boy was surprisingly perceptive—he decisively found an excuse and politely declined.
Even though Kuroha Akira had explained that he wasn't dating the Class Rep, Fujiyoshi Michio could still see that Asato Hitomi's attitude toward Kuroha Akira was uniquely different. In other words, it was very likely a one-sided pursuit situation at this point.
Earlier, Fujiyoshi Michio and the rest of the class shared the same view—they found this whole thing unbelievable. But after spending more than a month with Kuroha Akira, Fujiyoshi realized that it wasn't strange at all for him to be favored by the Class Rep. He'd even go so far as to say Kuroha Akira was the most suitable person for her.
Why? Because Fujiyoshi discovered that Kuroha Akira was exceptionally easygoing. Very amiable. A little lazy. Never put on a sour face. Even someone like himself—a background character—could interact with him completely naturally.
They could talk about anything. No need to carefully choose topics. No fear of stepping on landmines. Just free-flowing conversation. Chatting with Kuroha Akira was genuinely enjoyable.
This was because Kuroha Akira always listened carefully to what the other person was saying, then gave interesting feedback—usually in the form of sharp tsukkomi (wisecracking). As a veteran netizen who'd spent over a decade on online forums in his past life, his tsukkomi skills were both profound and cutting. Even when he threw in memes that people in this world didn't fully understand, just watching his tsukkomi expression had a strong comedic impact.
People naturally open up when facing someone willing to listen, especially when that person responds well. They talk more and more enthusiastically. Even introverts become more willing to share their hearts.
It's like manzai comedy. With an excellent straight man, the other performer gets the urge to keep going, to keep expressing.
In fact, this "listener mode" was something Kuroha Akira had unconsciously developed after transmigrating. Because this world had subtle differences from his previous one, he wanted to understand it as much as possible and integrate into local life quickly. So when chatting, he listened more carefully than before, actively extracting useful information.
For example, just moments ago, Fujiyoshi Michio couldn't help but spill the beans about Nishimura-senpai secretly smoking in the clubroom—even though Nishimura-senpai had specifically warned him not to tell anyone. But Fujiyoshi was confident that telling Kuroha Akira was fine. He wouldn't spread it around like those loudmouths in the News Club.
Moreover, Kuroha Akira had a particularly good temper. Fujiyoshi couldn't think of anything that would make him angry—unless someone deliberately insulted his family or crossed a serious line. In normal interactions, making him lose his cool was nearly impossible.
This was also because Kuroha Akira hated trouble. He always felt it wasn't worth arguing too much with these kids. As long as they didn't actively provoke him, he generally couldn't be bothered to deal with them.
Now, imagine there was a girl who would listen carefully to you, keep your secrets, never get angry, had a sharp wit, would talk about all your interests, and even play games with you… you'd definitely want to date her, right? She'd be the dream partner!
Unfortunately… Kuroha Akira was a man.
But this also explained why Asato Hitomi was so fond of him.
For someone like Kuroha Akira—a versatile and useful conversationalist—he was a more effective sedative than any mental health medication for people under high mental stress. They'd definitely want to keep him by their side.
Although Asato Hitomi always wore a smile, that smile was like a mask—it created distance, and sometimes even looked frightening. Her mental stress load was probably quite high.
Fujiyoshi Michio could become friends with Kuroha Akira and the naturally gregarious Sumitomo Ryota, but he could never get along naturally with Asato Hitomi. There was always a wall between them.
This time was no different. Fujiyoshi Michio keenly sensed that if he actually went along, he'd not only be a third wheel—he might even get silently resented by the Class Rep. So after coming up with a clumsy excuse, he headed home first.
Kuroha Akira was a bit surprised to see him leave in such a hurry.
Why'd he run off as soon as the Class Rep arrived? Weren't we just talking fine? And I already explained my relationship with the Class Rep, didn't I?
He shouldn't be misunderstanding… Is he trying to help me out? But I never said I wanted to capture the Class Rep…
Kuroha Akira had just wanted to rope in more people so he wouldn't have to do all the hard labor himself. A little relaxation time.
But Fujiyoshi Michio had still bolted. Their bro-bond wasn't quite there yet. They'd need to chat more in the future.
Asato Hitomi's smile deepened. How good at reading the room, Fujiyoshi-kun. I'll assign you some easier tasks later.
This also served another purpose—preventing others from thinking she only favored Kuroha Akira. Asato Hitomi had noticed her own popularity declining.
According to her mother's teachings, you can't make everyone submit. There will always be a few troublemakers who like to sing counter-melodies. Normally, they couldn't cause much trouble. But when negative voices appeared, this group became a volume amplifier.
The solution was simple: directly bribe the bandwagoners and take control of public opinion.
High school was a microcosm of society—and also Asato Hitomi's social experiment. She observed people's reactions, tried to read their hearts, and attempted to guide their behavior.
Of course, the person Asato Hitomi cared about most was still Kuroha Akira.
What she most wanted to understand was his heart.
"Speaking of which, Akira-kun, did you not sleep well last night?"
"You could say it was pretty rough…"
"Did someone disturb you?"
"Uh…"
I was disturbed. Severely disturbed!
But could he tell the Class Rep about that? Being hugged by a beautiful girl all night, enduring such torment that he barely slept a wink… How could he possibly say that out loud!
However, Kuroha Akira's sleepless night wasn't wasted. He'd also thought of some coping strategies for the future.
Namely: make Shinomiya Shion expend more energy during the day, then have her go to bed first at night. Once she couldn't help but fall asleep, he wouldn't have to serve as her hug pillow.
The problem was how to make her expend that energy. Aside from increasing her morning training, there didn't seem to be any particularly good methods.
So he needed to arrange new "activities" for her starting now.
For example… inviting her to visit Hibiya High School's Cultural Festival.