"Are you still keeping these things?"
"Of course. When I'm old, I can at least take them out and reminisce about my youthful days."
"You're not going to read them?"
"No. It'd be awkward if I run into them later. I'll read them another time."
Sato gathered up all the letters on the desk and stored them away, then looked at Isshiki Iroha.
"By the way, you bought a new phone?"
"Mm!"
Isshiki Iroha nodded and took out her newly purchased white smartphone.
Sato accepted it and looked it over a few times. To him, the design looked pretty low-end, but in this era, a phone like this was still considered innovative enough to deserve labels like fashionable and trendy.
After looking at Isshiki Iroha's phone, Sato glanced around the classroom.
It seemed that more than half the students had already switched to smartphones. The 3G era had truly arrived.
Only…
Sato opened the interface and swiped around a few times. There were only a few mini-games and apps installed. The available products were still very limited.
"Hey! What are you doing?!"
Isshiki Iroha suddenly cried out and snatched her phone back angrily.
"Don't go snooping around!"
Sato could not help laughing.
"What? Is there some dark secret hidden in there? I was only looking at the interface, that should be fine, right?"
"This is a girl's phone, of course you can't just go through it!"
"And besides… don't you already have a phone? How different could the interface be?"
Isshiki Iroha puffed out her cheeks and gestured toward the phone on Sato's desk.
I'm not looking at the phone itself, I'm doing market research!
Sato did not bother explaining and instead asked thoughtfully:
"Hey, Little Iroha, do you like reading light novels and manga?"
"Of course I do! Why?"
"Then what do you think about reading novels and manga on a phone?"
"Huh? Is that possible?"
Isshiki Iroha looked genuinely surprised.
"Of course."
"Is there an app for that? Why haven't I seen one before?"
Isshiki Iroha lowered her head and curiously searched through her app store, then looked back up at Sato in confusion.
"Maybe because your app store doesn't have it."
Sato casually brushed it off, then sank into thought after fooling Isshiki Iroha.
It looked like the timing was finally right. The company could probably release the website's mobile app now.
Back during the previous semester, he had already commissioned Akasaka Ryuuunosuke to develop apps based on Android and iOS systems. After a period of testing, he had sent Ryuuunosuke feedback on several issues along with some new ideas.
Later, after the company was established, he had also provided Ryuuunosuke with more art resources.
The new app had already been sent back a few days ago, but because it included a manga section, they had not released it yet. The manga content on the website was still in preparation, and releasing it too early would expose the site's plans.
"Looks like I need to hurry them along."
Sato muttered to himself.
…
The impact of this incident turned out to be far greater than Sato had imagined. However, under the Hero Association's handling, the person who filmed the video had already apologized publicly, claiming it was secretly recorded footage from a movie crew filming near his house.
Although the influence still remained, at least it had been confined to the realm of "movie filming," and the spread had been restricted.
But…
There were still a few people who firmly believed it.
No, rather than believed, it would be more accurate to say they stubbornly upheld the truth!
On the way to the Light Music Club, Sato was stopped by the chuunibyou members of the Far East Magic Napping Society.
"What are you two trying to do?"
Sato asked helplessly as he looked at the two little girls blocking his path.
With his height, Takanashi Rikka and Dekomori Sanae really did look like little kids in front of him. Even standing up straight together, the tops of their heads barely reached his chin.
"Servant, have you recovered your powers?"
Takanashi Rikka looked at him with deep, restrained eyes and a calm expression, as if she had expected this all along.
If Sato did not know that Takanashi Rikka was genuinely just an ordinary person, he might actually have believed her!
This girl's chuunibyou syndrome was terminal.
Beside her, Dekomori Sanae also looked full of anticipation as she excitedly asked Sato:
"Can Sanae recover her powers like you too, death?"
Sato took a deep breath and rubbed Dekomori Sanae's little head.
"Wake up already. You're just an ordinary little brat!"
"Hah?! What are you talking about?!"
Dekomori Sanae angrily slapped away the hand messing with her hair, glared fiercely at him, then jumped backward and swung the weighted ends of her blonde twin tails around while striking a pose with sharp eyes.
"I am the mighty Mjolnir Hammer Master, death!"
Whoosh, whoosh!
Under Dekomori Sanae's swings, the golden twin tails sliced through the air audibly. Faced with her proud expression, Sato remained perfectly calm.
Suddenly, he reached out and grabbed one of her swinging twin tails.
"What exactly do you have stuffed in here?"
He had been curious about this for a long time.
Sato squeezed the bulging pouch at the end of Dekomori Sanae's twin tail. Judging by the feel of it, it seemed somewhat like grains of rice?
"You evil corrupted villain! Let go of me!"
Dekomori Sanae tried to resist, but Sato simply held her head in place with one hand. She immediately felt a trembling deep in her soul, goosebumps spreading all over her body.
Instantly, the fierce expression on her little face collapsed. Waving her arms and legs tearfully, she cried to Takanashi Rikka for help.
"Waaah… Master, save me! The demon lord has captured me!"
"Do not panic. I shall save you at once!"
Takanashi Rikka spoke calmly as she looked at Sato, then suddenly raised the little parasol in her hand and snapped it open with a flourish.
The next instant, she charged toward Sato, swinging the opened parasol straight at his face.
Sato instinctively released Dekomori Sanae's hair and grabbed the exposed tip of the parasol instead. Very quickly, he felt the hand holding the handle let go, and the sound of footsteps echoed down the hallway.
He lowered the parasol.
The hallway was already completely empty.
Sato: "…"
His expression became rather strange.
Did I just… get styled on by a pair of chuunibyou girls?