My stepmother's burden is my ex-girlfriend.

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I still can't believe it's real. I can't imagine myself leading the student council after the seniors leave...

"And we also need to recruit new members."

Chairman Hong rested his elbows on the table and began to speak.

"Past student council members have always prioritized nominees from current members. Of course, even if you two each nominate one, it won't reach the required number, so we must recruit volunteers no matter what. Do you see any suitable juniors?"

"……not yet."

I shook my head awkwardly.

I have absolutely no idea what kind of people I want to recruit into the student union.

The student next to him, Asuhain, also shook his head.

"I haven't found anyone yet. I might look among the executive committee members of the cultural festival to see if there are any outstanding individuals."

"Don't be too rigid in your thinking, that's okay. When I chose Lanlan, I basically picked her based on her looks too~"

Senior Sister Ya Shuang spoke so nonchalantly, but I couldn't help but worry.

After entering the second grade, I seemed to only enjoy the present and never seriously consider the future. It was as if I had suddenly lost my way, and I had no confidence in my future.

Although last year, senior student Yuba didn't recommend anyone, and there was no rule that members had to nominate a junior... is it really okay to use this as an excuse to continue maintaining the status quo? My strict side raises a question.

"Let's not talk about that now, Riri. Have you decided who you want to be the next student council president?"

Senior Sister Ya Shuang casually posed a question to the president, and I stiffened slightly.

"At this time last year, it was almost certain that Suzune Riri would be the one chosen, right?"

"I'm an exception. Neither you nor your father-in-law wanted this at the time, right?"

"Who wants to compete with you? Besides, I'm not really interested in being the student council president."

"I want to be one."

Asuhain-kun said firmly.

"I also want to be like Chairman Hong."

...Asuka-in-law has always admired President Kurenai.

She said that she joined the student council because of the president's influence.

She must have an extraordinary obsession with the student council president position...

Chairman Hong gave a meaningful smile and looked directly at me.

"Hey, Yui-kun, what about you? Would you be interested in becoming the student council president?"

"……I……"

"If Irito-san wants to be one, I will fully support her."

When Asuhain suddenly leaned over and said that, I was so startled that I leaned back, feeling very confused.

"You...you wanted to become the president yourself, didn't you?"

"That's a different matter. Things are inherently unpredictable."

It seems that Asuha-in-kun already knows exactly what he wants to do.

Unlike me... I'm far inferior.

"It's alright, take your time to think about it. I'll also observe your performance at the cultural festival and consider this matter carefully."

"I will live up to the chairman's expectations."

"And 'I will never fail you'... Lanlan, you don't sound like a high school girl at all."

And so, our student council of five is about to come to an end.

Listening to this thought-provoking conversation about future development, I recalled what my cousin Yuanxiang had said to me when I returned from the countryside:

—By the way, Yui, do you remember what I said to you in the bathroom last year?

--Huh?

I tried to recall, confused, and then said somewhat hesitantly:

—So, after making love, there's also...that?

--No, no, it's not that... By the way, what are your thoughts?

--No, I don't know...!

--Hehehe. Actually, you don't even need to ask to know.

They're messing with me again...!

Cousin Yuanxiang smiled gently, but then her expression turned slightly serious.

—Back then, I told you that "that moment" would definitely come. It was the moment when you had to know what you wanted and give yourselves a clear answer.

--Huh...

These words still linger in a corner of my mind.

That's why I was even more surprised.

—Has that "moment" not arrived yet?

We have already chosen to reconcile.

So I thought the matter was over.

We thought we had moved beyond "that moment" and made the right choice.

--Ah--Did you think I was talking about...something more spiritual?

--Isn't that right?

--No, no, that's not right. I was talking about something entirely on a physical level—or rather, a natural development.

Natural development?

—In my judgment, "that moment" shouldn't be far off. When "that moment" arrives, you and your cousin Mizuto will both be forced to re-examine your relationship—I apologize if this scares you. It shouldn't be a bad thing, so don't be too afraid. Just thinking that we seem to have talked about this topic makes me happy—

I don't yet know what "that moment" my cousin Yuanxiang was referring to.

All I know is that one day we will seriously consider things between us.

Half of my high school life has passed.

A mountain of future options is slowly coming to me.

What choice would I make?

What will be the goal?

I don't know the answer yet.

Higashito Isana ◆ Self

The hellish summer vacation is over.

Unlike simply venting personal preferences, this illustration work required a lot of adaptation. I racked my brains to find solutions to various problems and finally submitted the work at the end of August—this year can be said to be the summer vacation I have had the least rest in my life.

However, I found the whole process quite interesting afterward. And the VTuber who assigned the case to me seemed very satisfied.

Then all I have to do is coast through the new semester at school, figure out what to do with the royalties I get, and that'll be fine. I was almost ready to try out an LCD drawing tablet, but my friend Shuitou said I should stick to a traditional one, saying LCDs make me sit badly and hurt my back. I understand what he means, but don't you think using an LCD drawing tablet gives you a real illustrator vibe?

Little did I know that this carefree mood would only last for a few days.

"Izana, have you read DM?"

"...I saw it."

My account received a DM.

The message came from a publishing house.

While I was busy completing daily tasks in the mobile game, drawing whenever I felt like it, or cuddling with my friend Shuidou, the world was rapidly moving forward.

Regardless of whether I'm still in high school.

They won't wait until I graduate.

I must decide what kind of person I want to become in the future.

Volume Twelve: There Is Only One Man - Epilogue

"Teacher, I really admire your courage to show something like this to a high school girl."

With her frizzy hair, which was even worse than the humidity of June, An Ye gave me a look that had lost its sparkle.

"Which part?" I tilted my head in confusion at first, then a possibility occurred to me. "...Oh, you mean the Love Hotel scene?"

"Don't you feel any shame, guilt, or immorality?"

"No, it's nothing. You should see similar descriptions in the general literature you read."

"That's completely different from watching eleven episodes and then suddenly the character starts moaning during sex!"

Regarding my relationship with her—Du Ruoan Ye—let's just consider her the girl next door for now. That's how the character is set up.

What I'm about to discuss isn't the setting, but simply the fact: her aesthetic sense regarding novels is absolutely on par with professional writers or editors. For me, she has now become my second—no, my zeroth—editor.

"Won't they get criticized for writing this scene only in the twelfth episode? It made me automatically imagine Ms. Ikumi Hasegawa's voice matching those lines in my head!"

"It's precisely because it's already the twelfth episode that we need to tell this kind of story."

"What do you mean?"

"I guess cross-media productions probably won't use such a late-stage plot, so I'm looking for content that can't be presented in other media."

"...Your personality is really awful."

"Perhaps you could say that I've become more mature and experienced as a writer."

"Now I understand. No wonder you used a narrative trick you weren't familiar with."

"I've been practicing lately." I grinned. "Maybe you're not a girl, but a guy."

"...If you were to use the same formulaic article you wrote for 'Tier 1 Sisters' this time, you would have already included the phrase 'Me and Her' in the article."

"You're really smart. Interested in being a detective?"

"I'd consider it if there's no sex scene."

"I can assure you it won't drag on to episode eleven."

"I think it's been canceled in half, with zero episodes remaining."

She was even stricter than the regular editor, which made me smile wryly.

Volume Twelve: Only One Man (Illustration)

Volume Thirteen, Four Years Later / A Work Call on a Certain Day

The online translation is from the Kingdom of Light

Image source: Youxia

Translation: Zilean

Proofread by: Zilean

The children's room was exactly the same as in high school, with only the quiet sound of a pen sliding across the touchpad. Probably. Because I was wearing headphones, I couldn't actually hear it either.

What I heard was the working voice from the other end of the call app, and her sharp yet stern voice.

"Teacher, how did you become an illustrator?"

Faced with this question during a brief moment of free time in a work call, I glanced at the call app interface on the secondary screen. Since it wasn't a video call, I couldn't see the face; only the blonde girl's image was visible on the screen.

I tilted my head.

"Why are you suddenly asking this?"

"Because it's intriguing, isn't it? Suddenly appearing out of nowhere, becoming an instant popular artist, now a hot commodity in the eyes of everyone. They won't even show their face, very mysterious indeed."

"I just don't like going out... I'm still living in my hometown."