"Taishi mentioned before that you only started becoming a delinquent after entering your second year of high school."
You're the delinquent!
"Of course, from Taishi's perspective, that's certainly correct. But from your perspective, that's not the case."
What do you know?
"For you, the point in time when you really started working was probably when Taishi entered his third year of middle school, wasn't it?"
Could he have really guessed it?
Watching Kawasaki Saki's emotional curve shift from anger to annoyance and finally to bewildered uncertainty, Mori Shinra was basically certain of his conjecture.
"Taishi, you started attending cram school when you entered your third year of middle school, right?"
Hearing this, Kawasaki Saki's pupils constricted. Her previously held-high head unknowingly lowered, and her hands tightly clenched the hem of her skirt, her thoughts a mystery.
"Yes, that's right," Taishi nodded.
"I see. So she was working to raise money for her brother's tuition," Yuigahama said, feeling she understood everything.
Yukinoshita, however, had a different opinion. "No, the timing doesn't add up. Kawasaki Taishi started cram school in early April, and Kawasaki-san had only just started working around that time. This means Taishi's tuition was already covered. So, rather than raising money for him, it's more likely she was raising money for her own tuition."
Hikigaya nodded. "Indeed. If one wants to go to university, the second year of high school is the time to start preparing for university entrance exams and signing up for summer cram school sessions."
Shinra delivered the final blow. "Taishi told me that you used to be very serious and very gentle to him. Perhaps it's precisely because of this that you made such a decision?"
As his voice fell, Kawasaki Saki's tense shoulders relaxed, and she looked up as if a burden had been lifted. She patted her brother, whose guilt was practically written all over his face.
"Don't overthink it. It's because of this that you don't need to know."
"B-but..."
"No buts. Let me make one thing clear: even so, I will not quit my job. After all, I want to go to university too, but at the same time, I don't want you, or Mom and Dad, to be burdened because of it."
Her voice was not loud, but it was exceptionally firm. Everyone present could feel the unchangeable will within it.
Of course, will is will. In Mori Shinra's Emotion Perception, she was almost completely enveloped by a gray 'melancholy'.
She probably knew very well that being a bartender was not a long-term solution. Although the pay was good, working late nights and having an irregular schedule made her drowsy and unable to concentrate in class. In the long run, not only would it affect her grades, but her health might also collapse because of it.
At that point, forget about getting into university; the money she earned probably wouldn't even be enough for medical bills.
"In the end, what makes you think that besides working part-time, there are no other ways to earn money?" Shinra said, opening his school bag and taking out a stack of paper documents. He placed them on the table and pushed them towards her.
"This is..."
She subconsciously picked up the documents, and after a glance, she couldn't help but read out the large, bolded words at the top.
"Chiba Municipal Sobu High School Scholarship Evaluation Criteria."
"Take a look. Although the scholarship doesn't pay as much as being a bartender, it has the advantage of being stress-free. If it's still not enough, you can get another part-time job during your free time. That should be more than enough for summer cram school fees, right?"
"This..."
Shinra glanced at the trembling Wish Request on her head and continued, "If you're worried you can't get the scholarship, you might as well seek help from our Service Club. Although we can't directly handle the review teachers for you, we can help raise your grades to a level where you can get it."
Hearing this, Kawasaki Saki was a little tempted, yet also hesitant. "Won't that be too much trouble for you all?"
"It's no trouble at all. Isn't that what the Service Club was established for? By the way, the teacher in charge of the initial scholarship review is our homeroom teacher, Hiratsuka Shizuka-sensei. She's also the faculty advisor for the Service Club."
"If you ask us for help, she'll know about this too. And with her personality, I imagine she won't just stand by and do nothing..."
His words were like a demon's whisper, tempting the cornered girl to make a wish to him.
"It's clearly a good thing, but the way you say it makes it sound like we're pulling strings," Yukinoshita said, resting her forehead in her hand. But she had to admit, he did have a point.
With Hiratsuka's personality, even if Kawasaki Saki couldn't get the scholarship in the end, she would probably find some other way to get her into the summer cram school.
And to be honest, the scholarship at Sobu High wasn't actually that hard to get. To put it bluntly, if you couldn't even do that, you might as well forget about university and just get a job.
As long as Kawasaki Saki showed the same determination she had for working late nights, a mere scholarship would certainly not be able to stop her.
"Then I'll be counting on you," she said, having made up her mind. She made her request with sincere earnestness.
As her voice fell, in Mori Shinra's vision, the blue exclamation mark finally transformed into a stream of light and was engraved onto his quest log.
Kawasaki Saki's wish—Get da☆ze!~
Seeing the matter resolved perfectly, Yuigahama cheered and dragged the others to the drink bar. Just as Shinra was also getting up to get a cup of happy water to celebrate the newly acquired request, Kawasaki Saki called out to him.
The girl, as if not knowing how to face him, turned her face to the side, tucked a strand of her light blue hair behind her ear, her nimble eyes occasionally glancing at his face. After pursing her red lips, she spoke in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz. "Um... thank you."
"Hmm? What did you say?"
Although the surroundings were noisy, Shinra could actually hear her thanks. Even if he couldn't, he could feel the 'gratitude' emanating from her. But he still deliberately pretended not to have heard.
For no other reason than to be able to admire her current expression for a little longer.
IJustWantToSeeThatExpressionOfYours.jpg
The poor girl had no idea of his mischievousness and really thought he hadn't heard what she said. She repeated herself, raising her voice slightly.
"I said, thank you."
Shinra smacked his lips as if savoring something and said to her, "You're welcome. But I still prefer your old rebellious look. How about you bring it back?"
Kawasaki Saki's expression remained blank. Under the table, the fist that had been relaxed was clenched tight again.
I really, really want to punch this guy!