Next Target, 400PS!
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Basking in her friends' support, Hitori Gotou was thrilled. Her mind was already swimming with fantasies of becoming an overnight sensation. The more she thought about it, the happier she got.
"Hehe~" She eventually broke into a goofy, foolish giggle.
The other girls just shook their heads. They had known Hitori long enough to understand her quirks, so her spacing out didn't surprise them in the least.
Instead, they started asking about her bandmates. Knowing Hitori's gullible nature, they genuinely worried she might have been scammed or tricked into something shady.
"They're all girls?"
Hearing that the entire band was female put their minds at ease. Either way, they were going to watch the gig. They would see exactly what kind of crowd she was running with then.
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The next day.
When Kai walked into the classroom, he immediately noticed it looked much emptier than usual.
"Hmm? Where's Hayama and the guys?" Kai finally realized what was missing. Hayato Hayama, who was always early, had an empty desk.
It wasn't just Hayama. Kakeru Tobe, Yamato, and Ooka—the entire popular clique—were nowhere to be seen. Aside from Kai, only the girls from the popular group were present.
"Who knows?" Yumiko Miura shrugged, not caring in the slightest. She hadn't paid attention to Hayama in a long time. She didn't care about those guys and hadn't even bothered sending a text to check on them.
Seeing Kai take his seat, Yumiko dragged her chair over and sat right next to him.
Yui Yuigahama glanced left and right. It still felt a bit weird, but she didn't say anything. Having already experienced this yesterday, her tolerance for the situation had noticeably increased.
"I heard they went with Tobe to meet his online girlfriend!" Hina Ebina's voice suddenly drifted over from behind them. She pushed up her glasses, looking like a wise sage who knew all the secrets.
"Hina? When did you get here?" Yumiko blinked in surprise.
'I've been here the whole time...' Hina felt a bit speechless. Ever since Kai entered the picture, Yumiko only had eyes for him, completely ignoring everyone else.
In a high school culture dictated by cliques, getting marginalized meant you were about to be ostracized. While Hina knew Yumiko wasn't the type to do that on purpose, she didn't want to end up as the odd one out.
'Am I going to have to join them?' Her gaze swept over Yumiko and Yui before finally landing on Kai's face. Honestly, it wasn't like she'd be losing out on the deal.
"Hmm?" Kai clearly noticed her staring. He turned his head and gave Hina a curious glance.
"Ahem!" Realizing she was caught, Hina quickly cleared her throat and looked away.
Kai didn't push it, his eyes turning thoughtful. He hadn't paid much attention to Hina before, but there was no denying she was a genuine beauty too.
Strictly speaking, anime heroines were rarely ugly. She just didn't talk much and kept a low profile, so Kai hadn't focused on her. Plus, with so many heroines surrounding him, he genuinely lacked the time.
"They all went to meet Tobe's online girlfriend?" Yumiko looked bewildered. Meeting an online date with a whole entourage? That was a new one.
"Tobe probably just didn't have the guts to go alone," Hina said calmly, shrugging. It wasn't common, but it wasn't exactly shocking either.
"Tsk!"
Yumiko clicked her tongue. "I didn't realize Tobe was such a coward!" He always acted so loud and outgoing. She thought he had some backbone, but he turned out to be a wimp.
"Thank goodness I never pushed you to date him, Hina!" If she had actually set Hina up with a guy like that, she would have ruined her friend's life.
"..." Hina just shook her head and stayed quiet. She never had any special feelings for Tobe in the first place. Plus, her personality was completely different from Yui's.
Even if Yumiko had tried playing matchmaker, Hina knew she never would have ended up with a guy like Tobe.
"Still!" Yumiko's curiosity peaked. "If they went to meet an online date, why are they all late? Class is about to start."
"Maybe they took the day off!" Yui chimed in.
Hina looked at Yumiko curiously. "Should we call and check on them?" After all, they were technically friends.
"No way!" Yumiko waved her hand, rejecting the idea instantly. "They aren't kids. What could possibly happen to them? I don't have time for that!"
Are you kidding? She'd rather spend that time pressing herself against Kai than calling some guys.
"..." Hina stayed silent and nodded. She glanced at Yui sitting on the other side of Kai, still seemingly oblivious, and let out a helpless sigh.
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Soon enough, the bell rang.
Shizuka Hiratsuka walked into the classroom with her textbooks and immediately noticed the empty seats left by Hayama and his crew.
"Hmm?" She frowned. She hadn't received a single call about them taking sick leave this morning.
"Wait here a moment!" Dropping her books on the podium, Shizuka pulled out her phone and stepped into the hallway. As a responsible teacher, she needed to find out why her students were missing and make sure they hadn't gotten into an accident.
A short while later, she pocketed her phone and walked back in. "Hayato Hayama and the others called in sick today. Let's start the lesson."
"By the way, the weather has been getting colder lately, so make sure you stay warm. Keep an eye on the temperature when you go out so you don't catch a cold!" Reading between the lines, it sounded like Hayama and his friends had caught a cold while hanging out together.
"Tsk. So that's what happened!" Yumiko scoffed softly. She thought it was something serious.
The rest of the class didn't pay it much mind either. Catching a cold and skipping school was a totally normal occurrence for students. If anything, some of them were jealous they weren't the ones sick at home right now.
Kai didn't care about the news either. Why would he waste his time thinking about a bunch of guys when he had beautiful heroines surrounding him?
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After school.
Kai didn't head straight home. He made a quick phone call, walked out the school gates, and headed in a different direction. Just then, a sleek, expensive luxury car pulled up right next to him.
The window rolled down, revealing Eriri's clearly annoyed face. "Why didn't you wait for me?"
Today was the day he was invited to the Sawamura estate. Eriri had waited in her classroom for ages, but Kai never showed up. She had to ask around just to find out he had already left the building.
She immediately ordered her driver to follow his route, finally catching up to him a fair distance from the school.
"Why didn't you wait for me?" she repeated, her tone carrying a clear trace of hurt. Did this guy really hate walking with her that much?
"Hmm?" Seeing Eriri pouting so pitifully, Kai couldn't help but laugh. "I was just doing it for your own good!"
"Huh?" Eriri blinked in surprise, not expecting that answer.
Kai shrugged and answered smoothly. "You're the school's famous rich heiress and the ace of the Art Club. Rumors are already spreading that I'm a massive player. If you walk out of school with me, aren't you worried it'll ruin your pristine reputation?"
People had definitely noticed him hanging out with various girls, and the "playboy" label was already making its rounds. Not that Kai cared in the slightest. Why would he value the opinions of random mob characters who couldn't even trigger system quests?
"They don't know anything!" Eriri shot back without a moment's hesitation, clearly taking his side.
As far as she was concerned, Kai's interactions with those girls had to be related to Cursed Spirits. They must have run into trouble, and Kai was just stepping in to save them. After all, in Eriri's eyes, Kai was just a kind-hearted guy who loved helping people.
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