Masao had just stepped through the door of his home with Yukinoshita, when his phone buzzed in his pocket.
[Chika]: What are you up to, Masao-kouhai?
A small smile touched his lips. He typed back a reply.
[Masao]: Fujiwara Senpai, we should stop talking.
[Chika]: Huh? What's this, Masao-kun? Are you already tired of your senpai? š„
[Masao]: It's because I need to study. I don't want my homework to get the wrong idea. š
[Chika]: Hmph, really now! What "wrong idea" could homework possibly get? If you need to study, you should just say so!
[Masao]: Hehe, this way it seems like I'm taking my studies more seriously.
[Chika]: You bad kouhai! Always toying with my feelings!
[Masao]: Fujiwara Senpai, saying things like that could be misunderstood.
[Chika]: Misunderstood? What misunderstanding? I'm just stating the facts! Don't tell me you dare to act but not take responsibility, Masao-kouhai?
[Masao]: Senpai, I was wrong. Please, don't say any more.
[Chika]: Good, you should know you were wrong. No more teasing me from now on. Since you've apologized so sincerely, I've decided to give you a little reward.
[Masao]: A reward? What is it?
He stared at the screen, a hopeful thought springing to mind, 'Could it be a cute selfie?'
He was destined for disappointment. While Fujiwara Chika projected a bubbly, outgoing image, she was, at her core, a surprisingly pure and innocent girl.
[Chika]: I'll help you study! You can ask me anything you don't understand!
Masao blinked. That wasā¦ not what he'd expected.
[Masao]: Thank you for the offer, but that won't be necessary.
[Chika]: Why? Aren't you going to study, Masao-kouhai?
[Masao]: I am. I'm studying with a friend. If there's anything I don't get, I can ask them.
[Chika]: Are they better than me? Let me tell you, my grades are top-tier!
[Masao]: They're the top student in our grade.
On the other side of the country, Fujiwara Chika read the message and pouted, her cheeks puffing out in dissatisfaction.
"Top of the grade, so what?" she muttered, a sting of competitive pride flaring within her.
Her fingers flew across the screen with renewed vigor.
[Chika]: Well then, Masao-kouhai, you'd better study hard. I need to study, too.
[Masao]: You too, Fujiwara Senpai. Hit the books.
The moment the chat ended, Chika tossed her phone onto the sofa. The more she replayed the conversation, the more it needled her.
"Just because they're the top student doesn't automatically make them a better tutor than me! No, I have to show him how wrong his choice was today. I'll make him regret it!"
ā
Meanwhile, in the Student Council room, the other three members had been quietly observing Fujiwara's animated texting performance.
Her rapidly shifting expressionsāfrom glee to indignation to a poutāwere far too conspicuous to ignore.
Shirogane Miyuki, the Council President, pinched his chin, a thoughtful frown on his face. "Fujiwara's always been expressive, but why are her mood swings so intense today? Did something happen?"
Ishigami Yu, who had been observing the scene over the top of his phone, didn't look up.
"She's been fully engaged with her phone, typing with intense focus. The emotional correlation is too high to be a coincidence." He finally lowered his device, his voice dry.
"My conclusion is that Fujiwara-senpai is likely engaged in a netorare." He paused, correcting himself. "I mean, a net-romance. An online relationship."
"An online relationship?!" Shirogane gasped, his voice jumping an octave.
He immediately clapped a hand over his mouth, shooting a wary glance at Fujiwara.
Seeing she was still completely absorbed, muttering something about "top students," he sighed in relief.
"You're sure about that, Ishigami?" he asked in a hushed tone.
"Based on my observational expertise, I'd say I'm eighty percent confident," Ishigami stated with an air of unshakable authority.
Shirogane looked genuinely surprised. "You have experience in this field, Ishigami?"
"Learned it from dating sims."
"From that?!" the President exclaimed, before quickly reining in his volume.
He wanted to dismiss it, but he had to admit, games were often grounded in real-world psychology. And his own gut told him that Fujiwara's demeanor was differentāsofter, more private, yet intensely focused.
"I suppose you might have a point," Shirogane conceded.
Ishigami wore a faint, "told-you-so" smirk.
"But Fujiwara... she's playing with such advanced techniques?" Shirogane murmured, a little shocked. While he was still stuck in his endless dance with Shinomiya, Fujiwara had already ventured into the elusive world of digital romance. A concerned look crossed his face.
"I've heard online relationships can be risky. Do you think she might get scammed?"
Ishigami waved a dismissive hand.
"President, you worry too much. Fujiwara-senpai might be a bit airheaded at times, but she's not someone who's easily fooled. And let's not forget her family background. Anyone trying to mess with her would be signing their own social death warrant."
Shirogane nodded slowly. Ishigami was right; there was probably nothing to worry about.
Yet, he couldn't help but feel a flicker ofā¦ interest. A dangerous, hopeful thought sprouted in his mind.
'If Iā¦ if I tried this net-romance thing... could it be the key to getting Shinomiya to finally confess to me?'
Although the two boys were speaking in low tones, Shinomiya Kaguya, the Vice-President, had been listening with rapt attention, her sharp hearing missing not a single syllable.
'An online relationship?' she thought, her heart giving an unexpected lurch. 'So Fujiwara-san has already mastered such an advanced, indirect romantic technique? A method that bypasses all the awkwardness of face-to-face confrontationā¦ I must learn it.'
Driven by a scholar's thirst for knowledge, Kaguya quietly slid into the seat next to Fujiwara, hoping to observe her chat logs and decipher her methodology.
But just as she sat down, Fujiwara stuffed her phone away with a final, resolute huff.
"What's so great about being top of the class, anyway?" she grumbled to herself.
Before Kaguya could process this new data point, Fujiwara suddenly latched onto her arm, her previous frustration replaced by a brilliant, beaming smile.
"Hey, Shinomiya-chan! You're so smart! Could you do me a huge favor?"
Kaguya tried to subtly retrieve her arm, but Fujiwara's grip was like a vice.
Resigned, she asked, "What is it?"
"Could you pleeeease help me study?" Fujiwara pleaded, her eyes wide and shining. "Midterms are coming up, and there's still a mountain of things I don't understand!"
That single wordā"study"āseemed to suck all the air from the room, casting a sudden, heavy silence over the Student Council.
It was a forbidden topic.
To maintain their flawless, genius personas, both Shinomiya Kaguya and Shirogane Miyuki adhered to an unspoken rule: they never, ever studied in front of each other at school.
Their grueling, all-night study sessions were a secret war fought strictly within the walls of their own homes. Consequently, the hours spent together in the Council room, pretending nonchalance and effortless superiority, were a special kind of tortureāa silent battle of nerves where the first to crack would lose everything.
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