Early Bonus, Enjoy.
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On the way.
Perhaps sensing that her own mindset was getting a bit strange, Megumi wanted to change the atmosphere.
"Speaking of which, Kitagawa-san took the day off today."
Even though she had an incredibly low presence and was constantly ignored, Megumi still knew exactly who her classmates were. Marin Kitagawa was always the one hyping up the mood. With her absent today, the atmosphere around the gyaru clique was noticeably duller.
"Yeah. That was my doing," Kai replied instantly, without a second thought.
"?"
Megumi, who had been planning to keep the conversation going, completely froze.
'What do you mean, your doing?' She looked up at him in bewilderment.
"It's exactly what you're thinking. Well, we played a little too hard last night. Marin can barely walk right now, so naturally, she couldn't come to school."
Since she already knew he was a scumbag, Kai didn't even bother trying to hide it. Besides, who said having a playboy persona meant you couldn't successfully conquer heroines?
"..."
"Just to clarify... in your eyes, you do realize I'm a girl, right?"
"Of course. Didn't I just say? You're an incredibly cute girl, Megumi-chan."
"Then..."
Even though she had no friends, this was still Japan. The societal atmosphere was what it was, and Megumi had at least a basic understanding of 'that' kind of stuff. At the very least, her theoretical knowledge was sufficient.
Hearing Kai say that, Megumi could clearly picture the scene in her head.
She hastily shook her head to clear the thought.
"Haha, I just feel like there's no need to hide anything from you, Megumi-chan. So... are you going to hate me because of this?"
Saying that, Kai suddenly stopped walking, leaned in slightly, and closed the distance between them.
"You're too close."
She averted her gaze unnaturally.
"You haven't answered my question, Megumi-chan."
"I... I don't hate you."
It was so bizarre. By all logic, she should absolutely despise a scumbag like him, yet deep down, Megumi simply couldn't bring herself to hate Kai.
————————————————————
"Yo!"
Soon enough, they arrived at the Service Club.
Kai smiled and casually greeted Yukino Yukinoshita and Hitori Gotoh.
"..."
Perhaps because she was pure-hearted and slightly airheaded, Hitori acted the exact same as always. The moment she saw Kai, her eyes lit up with unconcealable joy.
Yukino, on the other hand...
The gaze she directed at Kai was noticeably laced with complex emotions. Perhaps she simply didn't know what attitude to adopt when facing him anymore.
After all, she was the elite young lady of the Yukinoshita family.
Yukino knew perfectly well just how high the social status of a truly capable Jujutsu Sorcerer or Onmyoji could be in the hidden echelons of society.
It was like assuming you were all just ordinary high school students, only for someone to casually reveal they were a top-tier billionaire heir. Feeling a bit overwhelmed and unsure of how to act was a normal reaction.
"What's wrong? Did you miss me so much overnight that you don't even know what to say anymore, Little Yukino?"
Yukino's inner turmoil was practically written all over her face. There was no way Kai couldn't see right through it. He smoothly took a seat next to her and teased her with a grin.
"Your skin is as thick as ever..."
For some inexplicable reason, that simple, shameless joke instantly lifted the heavy weight off Yukino's chest.
That's right.
He was still the exact same Kai. He hadn't changed at all—she was just overthinking things.
Realizing this, Yukino's inner tension finally relaxed.
"Did Kitagawa-san not come with you?"
Yesterday, in her sheer excitement to join the Service Club, Marin Kitagawa had filled out the club entry form right then and there.
Yukino had assumed she would show up with Kai today.
"She wasn't feeling well, so she took the day off!"
"I see."
Yukino nodded, a look of perfect understanding crossing her face.
It made sense. Marin was the one who had directly encountered that terrifying paranormal entity. Being in shock and feeling physically unwell the next day was a completely natural reaction.
Kai didn't bother clarifying the actual reason for Marin's physical condition.
Some things he could state bluntly to Megumi Kato, but dealing with someone else obviously required an entirely different strategy.
"Speaking of which, doesn't an official club need at least five members to be established?"
The only reason Yukino had managed to set up the Service Club with so few people was purely because she had pulled strings with Hiratsuka-sensei.
"?"
Yukino looked at him in confusion. Why is he suddenly bringing this up out of nowhere?
"So, I went ahead and recruited a new member for our Service Club."
"A new member?"
Yukino subconsciously furrowed her brows.
The dynamic in the club was currently perfect. She really didn't want a random stranger coming in and ruining the established atmosphere.
"Not just anyone has the qualifications to join the Service Club."
"Saying that right to someone's face is a bit rude, don't you think?"
"??"
Kai didn't explain. He simply smiled, turned his head, and looked at Megumi Kato, who had walked in right beside him.
"What do you think, Megumi-chan?"
"..."
Being completely ignored was entirely within Megumi's expectations.
It had been exactly like this her entire life, after all.
"I don't recall ever agreeing to join this club, did I?"
"!!!"
Someone's there??
Hearing that flat, deadpan voice suddenly speak up, let alone Yukino, even Hitori Gotoh nearly jumped out of her skin.
They finally noticed Megumi Kato standing right next to Kai.
"Why didn't we see her this entire time??" Hitori asked in a trembling, terrified whisper.
"I-Is it a Cursed Spirit?"
"A Cursed Spirit?"
Megumi tilted her head in confusion. It definitely didn't sound like a compliment.
"I have no idea what you guys are talking about, but I'm sorry to disappoint. I'm just a normal human being. I just have a very low presence, so people tend to ignore me."
"Low presence?"
Well, their entire worldview had already been violently shattered yesterday.
While the concept of having a presence so low it bordered on literal invisibility sounded absurd, it was still vastly less absurd than a literal Cursed Spirit manifesting in the room.
Yukino shot Kai a highly questioning look.
"Well, it's exactly what you just saw."
He shrugged.
Kai briefly explained Megumi Kato's unique predicament. "Because she gets ignored so often, Megumi-chan hasn't been able to make any friends. She doesn't even have anyone to talk to between classes. So, I figured I'd bring her here so we could all be friends."
"..."
First it was Hitori Gotoh with her crippling social anxiety, and now it was Megumi Kato with her complete lack of presence.
As expected, Kai truly is a deeply kind person...
She just didn't quite understand why every single person Kai "helped" happened to be a girl—and an incredibly cute one at that.
An inexplicable twinge of discomfort flashed through Yukino's chest, but her overall mood had still softened considerably.
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