Tanaka Masao's life had become an exercise of monotony.
Each day was a copy of the last: sweating through a strict diet under the supervision of a beautiful girl, sharing lunch with the said beautiful girl, walking home from school by her side, studying together, and then escorting her all the way to her doorstep…
'Ah, yes,' Masao lamented internally, 'this existence is truly unbearable. To be perpetually shadowed by a lovely girl—who could possibly envy me? No one in their right mind would wish to trade places with me. I must shoulder this burden alone.'
—
—
(A mysterious narrator's voice chimes in from nowhere in particular.)
But let us avert our gaze from Tanaka Masao's unparalleled suffering and turn our attention to Tokyo's prestigious Shuchi'in Academy.
As Japan's premier institution for the elite, Shuchi'in's Student Council is in a league of its own.
There's the Council President, Shirogane Miyuki, who clawed his way to the top of the class rankings in a school full of prodigies.
The Vice-President, Shinomiya Kaguya, scion of the formidable Shinomiya financial empire.
The Secretary, Fujiwara Chika, born into a dynasty of political power.
And then...there's the otaku, Ishigami.
(Ishigami Yu: "Hey, what's with the lukewarm introduction? Sure, my family's just middle-class—we only own one factory—but is it too much to ask for my full name?")
Within the Student Council room, a silent, hard-fought battle had just reached its conclusion.
Shinomiya Kaguya stood victorious.
Her prize? A homemade lunch box, prepared by President Shirogane himself.
To be clear, every member of the student council had received one.
But that detail was irrelevant to Kaguya Shinomiya. The singular, glorious fact was that she held in her hands a meal crafted by the President.
Outwardly, Kaguya was the epitome of nonchalance, as if the bento were a mere trifle.
Inwardly, she was soaring.
'Patience,' she commanded herself. 'If you eat it immediately, you'll seem overeager. That would be tantamount to a confession! Start with my own lunch. Play it cool.'
Meanwhile, Fujiwara Chika and Ishigami Yu had no such tactical considerations. They attacked their lunches with gusto.
Chika's eyes fluttered shut in bliss. "President, Your cooking is as delicious as ever. You're wasting your talent here—you should be a chef."
Ishigami took a bite and nodded in fervent agreement. "Seriously, this is amazing. President, marry me. I'd be happy to be a household man."
Shirogane offered a wry smile at the joke. "Ishigami, I'd prefer you face life with a bit more ambition. "
"Hard pass."
While Shirogane maintained the facade of a casual conversation, his entire focus was locked onto Kaguya.
'Shinomiya, what's your game?' he agonized. 'Is this a strategic delay, or does she find it beneath her? Ah, the suspense is killing me! Just take a bite already!'
Completely oblivious to the psychological warfare, Fujiwara Chika was engrossed in her own meal.
The President had gifted each of them two sausages, expertly carved into adorable octopus shapes.
Chika adored them, but she was down to her last one. Her gaze drifted to Kaguya's untouched bento.
'It makes sense,' Chika reasoned. 'Someone of Kaguya-chan's refined palate probably can't stand simple sausages. She only took it to be polite.'
A memory surfaced of her recent ramen outing with Masao.
'I know what to do!' She thought to herself.
Spearing her final octopus sausage, Chika turned to Kaguya. "Hey, Kaguya-chan, do you want a sausage?"
Kaguya stared at the offered sausage octopus, and her heart did a cartwheel.
Just seconds ago, she had been spiraling over Chika's comment—"Your cooking is as delicious as ever." How many secret tasting sessions had there been? Their friendship was clearly a sham.
But now…
'Fujiwara! My one and only, truest friend!'
Despite the internal fireworks, Kaguya's face remained a marble mask of indifference.
"No, thank you. You may have it, Fujiwara-san." 'I cannot show my hand. The first to show desire loses the battle.'
"Don't mind if I do!" Chika happily stabbed an octopus sausage from Kaguya's bento box. 'A win-win! I get more food, and I helped Kaguya-chan out. I'm a genius.'
Kaguya: "?!"
Shirogane: "?!"
Ishigami Yu, seeing what he thought was a brilliant social maneuver, decided to replicate it.
"Fujiwara-senpai, do you want a tamagoyaki?"
"Yes, You read my mind!" Chika beamed, swiftly claiming the fluffy egg roll from Ishigami's box.
Shirogane had provided two sausages and one tamagoyaki per person, with everyone sharing parts of their own lunches in return.
Ishigami Yu: "?!"
'Wait, that wasn't the script! I mimicked her move perfectly! Why is the outcome reversed?!'
The cognitive dissonance finally snapped Kaguya back to reality.
Her crimson eyes narrowed, shimmering with a pain so intense it seemed they might morph into the legendary Sharingan at any moment. A chilling aura of malice enveloped her. She was looking at a dead woman walking.
'Fujiwara Chika... My trust was misplaced. Your gluttony knows no bounds. A creature of pure instinct, lazily leeching off others. A domesticated animal in human clothing! A parasite! All your nutrition goes to your chest, leaving your brain a barren wasteland! You are utterly contemptible. I will never forgive this. If you choked this very second, I would not lift a finger to save you.'
A montage of her past with Chika flashed before her eyes.
'Farewell, Fujiwara Chika. Our friendship is over.'
In the court of Kaguya's mind, Chika had been found guilty and sentenced to oblivion.
Ishigami Yu, a young man whose survival instincts were finely tuned, especially around Kaguya Shinomiya, felt the murderous intent wash over him.
'Normally, when she looks at Fujiwara-senpai like livestock, the prognosis is about two months. But this... this is different. This is an immediate death sentence. Has the Vice-President finally snapped… I want to go home.'
Ishigami hugged himself, trembling silently in his chair. But he was a mere spectator to the main event.
Just as the oppressive silence became unbearable, the socially oblivious Fujiwara Chika cheerfully held up a piece of tamagoyaki with her chopsticks, bringing it to Kaguya's lips.
"Here you go, Kaguya-chan! Say 'ah~'!"
"Aah~" Kaguya's mouth opened in pure reflex.
Chika smiled, bright and warm. "See? It's good, isn't it?"
Her logic was impeccable: 'Kaguya-chan should experience the President's cooking, but the "common" sausage was beneath her. The elegant tamagoyaki was a far more suitable offering. And thanks to Ishigami-kun, she had one to spare.'
The taste of the sweet, soft egg roll worked its magic, instantly purging the vengeful spirit from Kaguya and restoring the serene, high-born beauty.
"Let's all enjoy the President's cooking together," Chika said warmly.
Kaguya looked at Chika, her eyes now soft with gratitude. A sausage for a tamagoyaki… It was a fair trade. More than that, it gave her a dignified reason to partake.
'Fujiwara Chika... you are, and always will be, my dearest friend.'
"Yes," Kaguya agreed softly.
Ishigami could only watch, bewildered.
'How? How did she do it? She completely neutralized the Vice-President's killing intent in an instant. It's like she used a purification spell on a final boss. Is Fujiwara-senpai secretly a Saintess?'
Shirogane Miyuki: 'She liked it! Shinomiya enjoyed my cooking! Victory is within my grasp! The path to her confession is now clear!'
Today's Victor: [Tanaka Masao]
Masao: "I was barely even in this scene! How is it my victory?"
"Yukinoshita-san, it's time to head home."
_____
_______
Show your support with Power Stones guys!
[email protected]/Raven_scroll (30+ Advance Chapters)