After class, the group quickly met Utahime and Mei Mei, who had just returned.
"Hello everyone, I'm Iori Utahime, a second-year. Please take care of me from now on."
"I'm Mei Mei. Please take care of me."
Utahime, wearing a miko outfit and showing a gentle smile, tried to present herself as a reliable senior. Thinking about her kohais calling her "senpai" and relying on her made her smile even brighter.
However, life always delivers a critical blow from unexpected places.
Satoru, already over 1.8 meters tall and not yet at his peak height of over 1.9 meters, stood before Utahime.
His tall frame completely dwarfed her.
He hooked a finger to his sunglasses, revealing the Six Eyes.
"Th-that, you're Gojo-kun, right? Is there something you need?"
Don't panic, don't panic. It must just be a little joke from a cute kohai.
"You…"
Satoru's voice came from directly above Utahime.
"What is it, Gojo-kun?"
"So weak."
Crack.
Utahime seemed to hear something break.
"Satoru, don't bully senpai."
"But she really is weak."
Satoru turned his gaze to Mei Mei.
"This senpai, on the other hand, looks really strong."
He looked intrigued.
Crack.
Utahime heard something shatter again.
"Oh my, thank you for the compliment, Gojo-kun."
Mei Mei replied with a smile.
Indeed, only a beautiful woman's squinting smile can look charming.
Suguru's squinting smile always came off a little too... suggestive.
"I'm Geto Suguru. Please take care of me, senpai."
"Ah, yes, please take care of me too."
Utahime glanced at Suguru, whose smile felt strangely pleasant, and finally felt a little comforted.
Someone who smiles that gently couldn't be doing it on purpose… right?
But Utahime was still too naive. She would soon witness just how naturally annoying Suguru could be.
Amid laughter and introductions (Utahime: What about me?), the group completed their greetings.
Grumble.
"Eichi, it's dinner time."
Artoria patted her flat stomach.
"It really is."
Eichi glanced at his phone. It was already past five.
"What's for dinner tonight?"
"I don't know. Emiya is on a mission. He's not at school today."
"I see. Then let's go out to eat. What do you all want?"
Satoru made a suggestion.
"How about hot pot? Let's invite Medea too."
"Sushi?"
"Sukiyaki."
"Barbecue."
…Eventually, they settled on a barbecue restaurant.
Pshh—
The sound of a can being opened.
Shoko opened a can of beer.
"If Yaga-sensei finds out, we'll get a lecture."
Eichi, who was devouring food with Artoria in elegant yet terrifying synchronicity, reminded her.
"It's fine. By the time we get back, Yaga-sensei will already be asleep. Don't let his looks fool you. He's really into health and wellness."
Gulp, gulp.
Having Reverse Cursed Technique is great. She could indulge in both smoking and drinking without worry.
"Utahime-senpai, do you want some too?"
Seeing Utahime's surprised expression, Shoko offered.
"Mm, thank you."
Utahime subconsciously accepted the bottle.
She had come to understand something. These first-year juniors each had extraordinary abilities.
Thinking of this, she gloomily raised her glass.
The atmosphere quickly turned lively.
"Satoru, that dumpling is mine. Mine!"
Suguru looked speechlessly at Satoru, who had snatched the dumpling when he wasn't paying attention.
"Don't be stingy. Here, take this vegetable. Ah, don't steal from my bowl!"
The two engaged in a fierce chopstick battle.
The atmosphere between the two girls sitting nearby was much more peaceful.
"So, Medea-san will be coming to the school as a teacher next year, right?"
Mei Mei kept her elegant, captivating smile.
"That's right."
Medea, dressed in a tailored suit, returned the smile.
"Really? What a shame. We already have teachers in our year, so we won't be able to attend your classes."
Mei Mei showed a regretful expression.
"Oh, no. If you have any questions, you're always welcome to come find me, Mei Mei."
"Really? Thank you so much, Medea-sensei."
Mei Mei placed her hands together in thanks.
"No need to be so formal. Speaking of which, I saw a lot of crows on the road earlier. Are those your shikigami, Mei Mei?"
Medea's gaze drifted toward the window, where several crows perched on a nearby utility pole.
"How impressive. You noticed that so quickly?"
Mei Mei's eyes opened slightly, her squint no longer part of her usual polite smile. She was genuinely surprised.
"I just happen to know a thing or two about shikigami."
Medea smiled and nodded, satisfied with Mei Mei's reaction.
"But my Technique, Black Bird Manipulation, isn't particularly helpful in direct combat. It's mainly useful for searching and disruption."
Mei Mei looked slightly troubled.
Before developing Kamikaze, a move that sacrifices crows for a powerful single-use attack, she had relied mostly on Body Refining and cursed tools in battle.
Her crows were support units.
"Have you ever thought about training your own shikigami?"
"Which type of crow consumes the least cursed energy? Which type can carry the most cursed energy…"
Medea's questions made Mei Mei pause in thought.
Mei Mei was the type to constantly seek improvement.
If her technique wasn't helpful, she'd train her physical strength.
If her physical strength hit a bottleneck, she'd return to refining her technique.
If that wasn't enough, she'd seek other methods.
So from this moment on, Mei Mei began to value Medea, someone who could potentially help her grow stronger.
Meanwhile, at the far end of the table, two people had formed the "complaints" group.
Bang!
"So what were they thinking, trying to rush me into marriage like that?!"
Utahime slammed her wine glass on the table, face full of indignation.
"They even said, 'With your excellent talent, you should have several children with those equally talented young masters to pass on their techniques.' Why don't those guys go do it themselves?"
I mean, they probably want to, but those young masters don't want them.
"Alright, alright, calm down."
Shoko gently patted Utahime's back, picking up a tissue to wipe her mouth.
"You're the only one who's good to me, Shoko."
Utahime threw her arms around Shoko, burying her face in her shoulder.
"Mm-hmm, don't cry."
Utahime-senpai's alcohol tolerance is average.
The heavy drinker Shoko commented internally.
"Ah, already drunk? That's so lame."
"You shut up, you scumbag Gojo!"
"This, is it good?"
Ignoring the raging Utahime, Satoru turned his attention to the beer.
"Wanna try?"
Shoko handed him a chilled bottle.
"Ah, thanks."
Pshh.
Satoru pulled the tab and imitated Shoko, chugging a whole bottle in one go.
Burp~
After just one can, his face started to flush.
"Could it be…"
Eichi suddenly remembered something.
Satoru had terrible alcohol tolerance.
Sure enough, shortly after finishing the can, Satoru collapsed into Suguru's arms.
Suguru: Should I take this chance to mess with him...? A hundred prank ideas flashed through his mind.
"Phew, at least he just has poor alcohol tolerance. He doesn't go wild when drunk."
So, alcohol was Satoru's weakness.
"Hahaha, scumbag Gojo is so lame."
However… looking at Satoru now, passed out in Suguru's arms, then at Utahime, who was still muttering "serves him right"...
Eichi thought Utahime had found her countermeasure.
Every time Satoru pissed her off, she could challenge him.
As long as he didn't cheat or back out, Utahime could beat him in drinking for the rest of her life.
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)