Just one second before the bell rang to signal the start of class, Bai Qiu slipped into the room through the back door, composed as ever, and sat down in his seat.
He let out a quiet breath of relief.
On the podium, Hiratsuka Shizuka was already there.
She gave him a brief glance but said nothing.
Cutting it close, yes—but technically still on time.
Bai Qiu looked up, feeling a sense of fate. Oh, so it's Kokugo class today.
Good thing I made it back in time.
See, Shizuka-chan, I'm a good student.
However, that faint smile and his gaze—which he thought looked earnest—appeared, to Hiratsuka's eyes, as a bold provocation.
Her hand clenched into a fist. Heh. You've got guts, kid…
"Xiao Qiu, where did you go play?"Hirasawa Yui asked curiously beside him.
Bai Qiu replied without looking at her. "Pay attention in class."
"Come on, tell me~!"
Yui shook his arm with both hands.
"We're in class right now, Yui!"Bai Qiu whispered, a faint chill of dread crawling up his spine.
"What's wrong with talking in class?"Yui blinked, clearly unaware of the terrifying nature of Teacher Hiratsuka.
"Bai Qiu-kun," Hiratsuka's stern voice rang out, "please answer this question. What emotion does the underlined sentence express for the heroine?"
He froze.
So… you nearly arrived late, gave me that look, and now you're flirting with a girl in my class?Fine. Let's see how you handle this.
In an instant, everyone turned to look at Bai Qiu.
In the front row, Manabe Kazuha turned around and covered her face helplessly after seeing Yui's little movement.
These two… seriously.
Yui quickly pulled back her hands in a panic, feeling a rush of relief.
Thank goodness she didn't call me.
"…"Bai Qiu stood up, shooting Yui a glare. You're still laughing? You got me into this mess!
Fortunately, this wasn't enough to stump him.
With his 5.3 vision, even from the very back row, he quickly located the underlined sentence on the digital display.
After a brief pause, he began to speak—confidently and logically.
To her surprise, Hiratsuka nodded inwardly. His answer… wasn't bad.
So she decided not to press him any further.
From the corner of her eye, Takamatsu Akari thought in admiration, Bai Qiu-kun is amazing… She herself could never understand other people's emotions that well.
When he sat down, Bai Qiu shot Yui a sharp glare.
Yui pretended to be clueless, putting on her cutest innocent face.
…
The afternoon passed quickly.
By 3:30 p.m., school was over.
The "Go-Home Club" members, Hirasawa Yui and Bai Qiu, headed home together.
On the way, Bai Qiu kept lecturing her like a motivational speaker, trying to convince her to join a club.
Don't stay stagnant forever, Yui!
…
Meanwhile, Gotou Hitori waited until no one was paying attention before strapping on her guitar and leaving the school at lightning speed.
Only a fading pink silhouette was left behind.
Soon, she was seated in the train heading home.
Gotou Hitori lived outside the prefecture—in Kanagawa, south of Tokyo.
She'd chosen a high school far from home, in a place where no one knew her, to bury her "black history" and start anew.
Even though commuting one way took two whole hours, she still made that choice.
Today, Gotou Hitori had spent the entire afternoon in sheer euphoria.
Her feelings couldn't even be described anymore.
Joy? Excitement? Bliss? Anticipation?
No—ecstasy!
Hahaha! The Rock Queen Gotou Hitori has arrived!
She was so eager to get home—to brag, to share her happiness with her parents and her little sister, Futari.
So today, she didn't plan to go kill time in the park near school.
Normally, she'd sit there for one or two hours after class so her family wouldn't think she had nothing to do.
But not today.
Bai Qiu-kun is such a good person!
He didn't just agree to form a band with her—he even became her friend and added her on LINE!
Someone like her… actually made a friend. Actually joined a band.
It felt like a dream.
In the train, the Gotou Hitori who normally sat trembling in her seat was now smiling like a lovestruck idiot.
Every few moments, she'd let out a weird "hehe" sound.
Combined with her pink bangs that hung over her eyes, this made the nearby passengers glance her way, then quietly edge away.
Don't get involved with weird people.
Gotou Hitori held her phone tightly, eyes locked on the LINE screen.
There were only three contacts.
All visible at a glance.
Dad. Mom.And… Bai Qiu.
Futari was still too young to have a phone.
…
After parting ways with Yui, Bai Qiu headed into a large supermarket.
Time to restock on supplies.
In short—food.
He cooked for himself occasionally, but most days he ate out or bought ready-made meals.
He went straight to the food section and began to pick through the shelves.
Kobe Wagyu instant noodles, abalone and seaweed instant noodles, goji pork bone soup instant noodles, shrimp bisque instant noodles…
Ordinary instant noodles could easily cause malnutrition.
But premium instant noodles?
That shouldn't be a problem, right?
So Bai Qiu reasoned.
Still, one couldn't live on noodles alone.
He picked up a high-end bento and some drinks as well.
After paying, he left the store.
And soon stood before a luxury apartment tower.
In Japan, high-end apartments were no small expense.
Usually, only people with money lived in places like this.
Bai Qiu lived alone.
His parents, much like Yui's, had been busy working overseas since his middle school days.
So he was free—and had rented this place for himself.
Each floor had only two units.
Fresh air, beautiful surroundings, and of course, a high rent.
But that wasn't a problem for Bai Qiu.
He had earned quite a bit from writing several light novels before.Even though he wasn't actively writing now, he still had enough savings—and occasional royalty payments trickling in.
He used facial recognition to enter the glass doors.
Waited for the elevator.Stepped in.Pressed the button.
Forty-fifth floor.
Ding.
When the doors opened, Bai Qiu froze.
What the hell…?
There were piles of containers and boxes stacked all over the hallway.
And his door was completely blocked.
He scratched his head.
Did he… forget about some massive delivery?
Or—had he been evicted for unpaid rent?
Impossible. He'd paid six months in advance.
Besides, who would dump all this stuff right in front of someone's door?
Now he was stuck outside.
Call building management?
Even a luxury apartment's staff might just tell him to handle it himself.
And by the time someone actually came, it'd be nighttime already.
Bai Qiu sighed.He didn't have much faith in property management.
Maybe he should just go crash at Yui's place for the night.
As he was thinking that, a loud thud! echoed through the hallway, followed by a startled cry from a girl.
He turned his head toward the sound.
The door of the neighboring unit was slightly ajar.
He approached carefully and saw—various items scattered across the floor, and a girl in a teal uniform sitting dazedly on the ground.
In an instant, he understood why the hallway was full of boxes.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
The girl turned around reflexively, wincing in pain, eyes watery.
"I'm from the apartment next door," Bai Qiu quickly added, just in case she thought he was a burglar.
"Next… door?" she stammered, panicking. "Ah! I'm so sorry! I just moved in today—I'll move all my stuff right away!"
Still flustered, she tried to stand.
The moving company had arrived early—and even worse, they'd dropped all her boxes in front of Bai Qiu's door.
So she'd decided to carry them in herself.
But once she started, she realized just how heavy—and numerous—they were.
"It's fine," Bai Qiu said, waving his hand.
"Here, you might need this."
He handed her a bandage, nodding toward her pale forearm.
A faint bruise and a smear of blood—probably from the fall.
"Thank you…" she murmured, accepting it automatically.
Then she noticed the design printed on it—a tiny cartoon penguin.
Her pupils shrank slightly.