My stepmother's burden is my ex-girlfriend.

Page 204

"Working part-time? The student council president works part-time? And he's also the student council president?"

"Yes, yes, she says she's learning social experience. I really admire how strict she is with herself."

My goodness... that's an intimidating amount of energy. And yet, their grades have consistently been at the top of the grade. It just makes me think their basic human abilities are so lacking.

"...Maybe I should try getting a part-time job..."

Asuhain, who had been curiously looking around at the store's decor, muttered something to herself. Hearing her say that made me feel like I should take on some challenges too.

She spoke very softly, but Xingbian, a senior student with sharp ears, heard her and said:

"I advise you not to follow that example. Her problem stems from having too much ability and nowhere to vent it."

"Does the senior mean I can't be like Senior Hong?"

Hearing Asahi Yeyuan's indignant reply, Hoshibe, while scrolling through his phone with his large hand, said:

"At least don't even think about pushing yourself to the point of ruining your health. If you really want to emulate her, the key is to do things one step at a time. If you try to do everything at once, you'll end up doing nothing well."

"...Thank you for your advice, senior."

"Oh! I got an SR!"

The content of his speech made a lot of sense, but talking while playing a game was... well, look, even Asuha-in gave Hoshibe-senpai a glare.

As they were chatting, the door to the staff break room opened.

"Sorry for the wait."

When President Hong appeared, she had already changed into a waitress uniform.

The combination of a knee-length skirt and a white apron, although quite different from the president's usual style, suits her petite and feminine figure perfectly.

"Oh—" I clapped my hands quietly.

"It suits you perfectly, President."

"Thank you. This outfit is also very popular with the store's regular customers."

She seemed a little smug. She looked a bit childish, so cute.

This reminds me of the military-style Gothic Lolita girl from the project briefing; she looked incredibly cute in it...

"Senior, you..."

"Um?"

"Could it be that you actually really enjoy cosplay?"

The president immediately revealed a bold smile and said:

"Being able to enjoy fashion more than men is a privilege of being born a woman. Don't you think so?"

"Uh... well, okay, you're right."

It seems she really likes it.

President Hong carried the drinks on a tray and placed them in front of us one by one.

"We can serve light snacks, so please feel free to order. It's on me today."

"Thank you, senior!"

President Kurenai nodded, and dressed as a waitress, went to the next table. Huh? What was she doing there? Just as she was wondering... she noticed that Haba-senpai seemed to be sitting alone at that table. She hadn't noticed him at all...

Even though it was a semi-open four-person seating area, the student council president deliberately sat next to Haba-senpai. Haba-senpai leaned forward to avoid her, and the student council president seized the opportunity to close the distance.

Seeing this, Asuhain, who was sitting next to me, leaned over to see what was going on.

"Wait, wait a minute... Asuka-in-san?"

Even after I tried to dissuade them, Mingri Yeyuan still looked at the senior students sitting side by side with a surprised expression and said:

"...Are Kurenai-senpai and Haba-senpai...very close?"

The question went straight to the heart of the matter.

We're more than just close; we're so intimate that the student council president even flirted with an upperclassman in an empty classroom! But I absolutely can't tell Asuhain-san, who hates boys and is a fan of the student council president, about this. Huh? What should I do? Should I try to cover it up? Or is it better to end it now and tell her the truth...?

"That's not surprising, because they've been in the same class since first grade—"

While I was still hesitating, Senior Sister Ya Shuang said this while drinking strawberry au lait with a straw.

"It was Suzuri who saw Ah-jo's talent, and it was she who brought him into the student council... but he still looked unremarkable, so Suzuri took special care of him."

"I see, so that's how it is..."

Senior Sister Ya Shuang winked at me and secretly gave me a knowing look. Thank you for saving me, Senior! And Senior, you winked so well!

Senior Xingbian continued scrolling through his phone and said:

"Rather than giving special treatment, Red is clearly targeting Yubaba—ugh!"

"Sorry, senior~♪ I accidentally bumped into you with my elbow~♪"

"No way! This is definitely a deliberate act!"

"Who told you to grow up to be so big? Blame your own bad luck for being so great!♪"

Ignoring Senior Asahi's elbows that kept bumping and nudging Senior Hoshino's side, Asahi still stared at Senior Haba's head with a suspicious look.

Mizuto Irito: The thing that shines at its own end

In the quiet, cramped private room, only the sound of pages turning could be heard.

Beside me, Higashito Isana sat on the padded mat in a sporty sitting posture, engrossed in reading a comic book with a serious expression. Of course, she wasn't holding down her skirt, so her underwear would be clearly visible from the front, but I couldn't see it from next to her, and besides, she didn't change her posture even after I reminded her, so I decided to ignore it.

From the large number of manga that Isana brought in, I picked out some older works with fewer volumes to read. Because this work, which can be described as a nostalgic classic, is rarely seen in bookstores, I thought that if I didn't take this opportunity, I probably wouldn't be able to see it again.

Classic works that have survived to this day are, of course, enduring because they are engaging, and they are filled with elements that transcend genre and influence later generations, making them truly fascinating. After finishing the book, I put the entire set back on the shelf and grabbed a drink from the bar. It's impolite to monopolize a borrowed book for an extended period.

And so, when I returned to the private room, I found Izana had started up her tablet on her lap.

"What are you doing?"

As I asked, I held a glass of apple juice with a straw to Izana's lips; she didn't take her eyes off the tablet and took a sip of the juice.

"Pfft...no, I just happened to see a pretty good composition, so..."

"Composition?"

Isana held a stylus in her right hand and an open comic book in her left. Looking closer, it seemed Isana was sketching a panel from the comic book onto the tablet.

"Cartoonists are really amazing. They have to be able to draw all kinds of compositions. I really don't know what their brains are made of."

"No... I think it's pretty impressive that you can start copying as soon as you think of it. Do you usually do this?"

"I've always drawn illustrations from light novels for fun... but recently, I've started to seriously practice my drawing skills."

"Why did this idea suddenly come to you?"

"Because you praised me, Mizuto-kun."

Did I praise her?

"Mizuto-kun might have just been saying it casually, but when you said that I even came up with the composition myself and that I drew it very well... I realized that I was actually incredibly happy inside. I later found that I often thought back to that casual remark of yours... So I thought that since that's the case, I might as well practice more seriously. Although the idea was very simple, that's how I felt."

Isana smiled, but did not stop writing.

"Later, I don't know why, I just found that I was really happy when I was drawing."

Even I don't remember saying that. It must have really just been a casual remark, something I hadn't thought about much.

However, this one sentence may have opened a door in Isana's heart. Although I had known for a long time that this guy clearly possessed some kind of talent... it was still an indescribable shock to see it so clearly right in front of me.

I was genuinely surprised, genuinely happy... and genuinely envious of her.

Izana found something that belonged only to her.

Unlike last time, she looks radiant and beautiful now, while I feel almost ashamed of myself.

...I have no ideals. I have no self to strive for. Although Isana said that I can still like others, that's not enough to change my emptiness.

But... if I have made such a huge contribution to her glory, perhaps it means that there is still some meaning to it.

My existence here and now has meaning.

I sat down next to Isana, who was engrossed in her drawing, and gently leaned my shoulder against hers.

"If you want more praise from me, just say the word."

"No, insincere praise would only reduce my motivation."

"You're such a difficult person to please."

Irito Mizuto: Patience is my duty

'──...Ha, ah...ah...! ──'

Ok?

A sound came from somewhere, making me turn my head.

Did I hear wrong...? It shouldn't be... right? Just now, I definitely heard a suggestive cry coming from somewhere...

"Ah...no, ahh!"

"Whoosh!"

The sound became clearer than before, startling Izana, who was focused on sketching, and she straightened her back.

We looked at each other in bewilderment.

"(Hey, who's that voice...)"

"(I...I think so too...you heard it too, right!)"

We naturally lowered our voices when we spoke.

We probably don't need to confirm; we all know what's going on. We know the source of the sound and what it means.

We all turned around and looked back at each other without prior arrangement.

"Ah, no..."

Behind us, there was only a cold wall.

No... there are other spaces behind that wall.

And next door, there's that two-person private room.

Listening closely, one could almost hear rustling sounds. Considering all these factors, logically speaking, one could only conclude that something like that was happening behind that wall.

"(Eh...whoosh...! Next door, next door...!)"

"(Calm down, please.)"

"(They, they are—doing that, right! Completely, entirely...love, love—)"

"(Didn't you hear me tell you to calm down!)"

"(Mmm-mmm-mmm!)"

I quickly reached out and covered Isana's mouth.

"(Calm down and think about it... Yes, I've heard of people doing that kind of thing in comic book cafes, but it's not that easy to run into someone like that. Anyway, it's probably something like watching porn.)"

"(That's true...that's right. How could it be so easy to meet someone like that?)"

"—Mmm…ha…ah…—"

"(Mizuto-kun... for an adult film, this moaning seems too understated, too realistic.)"

How would I know so much? I'd rather ask you how you know!

As the faint, low-key moan that Izana had mentioned echoed in the room, Izana gently pulled away my hand that was covering her mouth, her face flushed, her gaze wandering around, her eyes flickering.

"(Mizuto-kun... this is a bit...)"

"(ah.)"

That's when I realized I was standing too close to her.

Without thinking, I grabbed Isana's shoulders, and my knees, which were kneeling on the cushion, burrowed under her thighs as she sat in a sports-like position. I'm afraid that if I just exerted a little force with my hand on her shoulders, I could easily push Isana over.

Not only that, Isana also hunched her shoulders and looked up at me, making the atmosphere even more awkward. The shouts coming from next door forced my thoughts in that direction, compelling me to focus on Isana's chest rising and falling rhythmically—

"(...gaze...)"