The classmate who was supposed to be on cleaning duty today—Hashimoto—was most definitely off sneaking away to meet her boyfriend for a date. She had asked a few of the boys to cover for her.
Hashimoto was fairly pretty. Though a bit pretentious, her cuteness and pleasant voice made her difficult to refuse—if she acted a little coy, there was no shortage of guys willing to help.
But the girl was a little too blunt.
When those boys asked, "Why can't you do your duty today?", it was more of a casual conversation starter—after all, chances to talk to a pretty girl didn't come by often.
Then Hashimoto flatly said, "I'm going on a date with my boyfriend, so I want you to cover my duty."
If she didn't have a boyfriend, maybe some guys would've used this as a chance to get closer and said yes.
But knowing she had a boyfriend, and was skipping duty just to go out with him, and still wanted someone else to clean for her?
Who do you think you are?
Of course, they couldn't say that aloud—they were classmates, after all. So with forced smiles, they changed the subject:
"Ah, sorry, I just remembered I've got something after school. Maybe ask someone else?"
Hashimoto then went to a few of the girls, but none of them wanted to help either.
Unwilling to let cleaning duty ruin her date plans, she chose to take the risk and snuck off without doing anything—not even wiping the blackboard.
Ironically, this ended up being a stroke of luck for Iroha Isshiki, giving her a perfect excuse.
...
After Aimi left, Iroha suddenly realized something.
What if Senpai was actually here to pick up Aimi—not me?
That thought made Iroha smile wryly. She couldn't quite understand why her heart had leapt with hope earlier when she saw Kotomi outside the wall.
Why did I just assume she came for me?
So why exactly had Kotomi come all the way to Chiba City Private Middle School?
Maybe it was better to just ask directly—she didn't want to be embarrassingly mistaken.
Just as she reached for her phone to message Kotomi, her phone buzzed.
She tilted her head, curious, then unlocked the screen and opened the message.
It was from Kotomi.
[Iroha, aren't you coming down yet? I've been standing outside the wall watching you for a while now.]
That single message confirmed it—Kotomi was here to see her.
Joy bloomed in Iroha's heart, her lips curling upward in a smile she couldn't contain. Her fingers quickly tapped out a reply:
[I'm coming right now! Hehe~ I actually saw you earlier too, Senpai. I just wasn't sure if you came for Aimi or for me.]
[If possible, I'd visit both of you, haha. Just kidding—this visit is for you. I promised to give you a first-print limited edition of Sword Art Online Volume 1, didn't I?]
Reading Kotomi's reply, Iroha couldn't help but laugh out loud.
But unlike her usual devilish grin—the kind that made Kotomi instantly wary of mischief—
This smile was different.
A smile that, if one wasn't careful, would pull you in—and never let you go.
Instead of replying by text, Iroha called Kotomi directly.
As soon as the call connected, she spoke with a smile and a teasing tone:
"You haven't messaged me in so long, Senpai… I thought you forgot all about our promise. I've been crying alone under the covers every night because of it…"
"Dummy, how could I possibly forget our promise? I've been waiting for you outside the school wall. I wanted to come inside, but the gatekeeper wouldn't let me."
"Is Aimi with you, Senpai?"
Kotomi blinked and glanced around. Aimi? She didn't see her anywhere. She had assumed Aimi, like Iroha, was still inside the classroom.
Where was Aimi?
—Aimi, at that moment, was walking home alone, her head down, playing on her phone. She was already almost at the front door of their house.
Because the spot where Kotomi was waiting was some distance from the school's main gate, and Aimi didn't look to the side as she exited, the sisters—despite being less than 100 meters apart—had perfectly missed each other.
"That girl always walks with her head buried in her phone. She probably walked right past the gate without even noticing me," Kotomi said with a helpless smile.
Iroha Isshiki could relate:
"So Aimi acts like that around you too, Senpai? There've been so many times she's just totally absorbed in whatever gal game she's playing on her phone that she doesn't even notice me. I've taken the opportunity to scare her a few times—and it works every time!"
After speaking, Iroha stood up and looked out the window toward Kotomi outside.
As if they were synced in some invisible way, the moment Iroha looked out, Kotomi also looked up, their gazes meeting. Kotomi gave her a gentle smile.
"I'll give her a little talking-to later. And stop chatting with me—get down here already. I know you saw me."
"Okay~ I'm flying to you now, Senpai!" Iroha replied cheerfully and grabbed her bag, quickly leaving the classroom.
As for the classroom cleaning Hashimoto skipped?
That was her problem.
If she had the nerve to skip out, then Iroha had no reason to clean up after her.
Besides, not long ago, Hashimoto had been one of the ringleaders who tried to isolate her. It hadn't been super obvious, but that didn't mean Iroha hadn't noticed.
Though Iroha appeared carefree and laid-back, she was actually very perceptive.
Being sensitive might sound like a virtue, but for Iroha, it was painful. It meant slowly discovering that the classmates she had once considered friends were gossiping behind her back, gradually excluding her.
The truth hadn't come with a sense of satisfaction—just a lingering bitterness.
No wonder detective novels often say: "Knowing the truth can be painfully complicated."
Still, being able to see people's true faces in time was a blessing in disguise. After the incident, Iroha cut off contact with those who had tried to isolate her. Even if they tried to greet her now, she would completely ignore them.
She had originally thought about wiping the blackboard for Hashimoto, but now?
Definitely not.
After Iroha left, the classroom remained untouched. Even someone casually walking past would be able to tell that today's cleaning duty had been completely ignored.
Good luck, Hashimoto.
Iroha jogged down the stairs. As she reached Kotomi, she nearly tripped and fell, but Kotomi's reflexes were quick—she caught her just in time.
"Careful there. Were you that excited to see me? I literally watched you trip over your own feet," Kotomi said with a half-joking smile as she steadied Iroha.
The setting sun slowly descended beyond the horizon, its golden veil casting a gentle glow over the faces of passersby.
"Wow, even though I saw the Volume 1 cover of Sword Art Online on the Dengeki Bunko website, actually holding it in my hands feels completely different. Especially seeing your pen name printed on a real book cover—it makes me want to say a thousand things."
Iroha held up the first volume with both hands, her eyes sparkling like a girl who had just received her most cherished, perfect candy.
The two of them walked shoulder to shoulder down the street, as if embodying a metaphor. The sunset stretched their shadows long behind them—two parallel lines with no intersection, now crossing at a single point and merging into one, their fused shadow extending endlessly.
"Is it a thousand words about how much you adore me?" Kotomi joked casually.
Ever since she'd experienced the full force of Iroha's little-devil personality, Kotomi had never held back when spending time with her. She knew that if she ever let her guard down, this small demon—who would no doubt be a classic villainess if she ever got isekai'd into a novel—would absolutely never pass up an opportunity to tease her.
For all Kotomi knew, even though everything seemed calm and lovely now, Iroha was secretly scheming something mischievous beneath that sweet smile.
Iroha's petite ears twitched, and she gave Kotomi a sidelong glance, replying with a sly look:
"Why can't it be a thousand words about proposing to you?"
Whoa!
The moment those words hit her ears, Kotomi nearly tripped over her own feet and tumbled dramatically. Thankfully, the coordination honed by her unmatched woman-of-all-skills constitution saved her just in time.
Falling flat on her face in front of someone who'd soon be her underclassman? As a senpai, Kotomi just couldn't allow that.
"Senpai, that sudden recovery just now was so cool~" Iroha said with mock admiration.
I wasn't performing for you, okay...
Trying to hide her embarrassment, Kotomi rubbed her nose and replied:
"Well, I wouldn't want to make a fool of myself in front of a girl who's going to be my underclassman in six months."
Iroha blinked in surprise, then broke into a mischievous smile:
"Ara~ Did I just hear that right? Senpai finally admitted I'll be her underclassman? Hehe~ Didn't you used to say 'let's wait until you get into Sobu High School first'?
Come to think of it, Senpai, haven't you noticed your attitude toward me has been changing a lot lately? So much that I can't even list it all. Maybe... you really are falling for me."
Kotomi's cheeks turned pink at Iroha's stream of teasing, and just as she was about to retort—
"Ah! Thank you, romantic-bonding Dragon Love Bell! Senpai must be in love with me!" Iroha shouted playfully.
Kotomi glanced at the cheerful, ever-chatty Iroha—who seemed incapable of staying quiet even for a second—and yet, found herself feeling... relaxed.
Was it a calm kind of peace? Definitely not.
Since they'd left the middle school gates, Iroha had been chattering away like a little sparrow. Not even a moment of rest.
And yet, strangely enough, everything Iroha talked about just happened to be things Kotomi found interesting—and what's more, Iroha always gave her a perfect opening to continue the conversation effortlessly.
Arisu Sakayanagi could also always bring up topics that Kotomi found interesting—but when it came to someone who could pick up any conversation on a whim, regardless of context, and keep it flowing naturally, Iroha Isshiki was truly one of a kind.
Maybe that's where this sense of ease between them came from.
However… listening to Iroha's current banter, Kotomi's cheeks flushed a little. This little devil really had no filter! Saying stuff like "Senpai, you must be in love with me" right to her face...
At first, Kotomi would blush and argue back, but she later discovered that the more she resisted, the more excited Iroha became!
So she started pretending she didn't hear anything and just ignored her, changing the subject on purpose.
Only… the blush on her face completely betrayed her.
"I've always been curious, Senpai. Why did you choose the pen name 'Izumi Ki'? Do you really like trees that much?" Iroha gently ran her fingers across the book cover, her touch soft and thoughtful.
Kotomi shook her head. "Would you believe me if I said I just picked it at random?"
"Senpai, I don't believe anything you say—unless you look me in the eye and say 'I love you.' That, I'll believe." Iroha smiled cheekily.
Kotomi acted like she didn't hear that either and continued:
"Hehehe… Honestly, I don't really remember why I chose that name. Maybe it just popped into my head at the time. A lot of creators pick names that way. There's usually not some deep, profound meaning—just something random that stuck. But once you get famous, readers love to overanalyze your pen name."
Then she added with a grin:
"Actually, I originally considered using 'Half-Circle' as my pen name."
"Half-Circle?" Iroha tilted her head in confusion.
Kotomi didn't reply right away, but she knew if she didn't explain, the little devil would absolutely pester her about it. So she raised her hand and gestured a semicircle shape with her fingers:
"A half-circle kind of looks like a sliced watermelon, doesn't it? And watermelon is delicious—I love it. If a story's setting only gets fleshed out halfway, maybe it'll feel like a perfectly sliced watermelon to readers. Interesting and refreshing, but with a lingering sweetness."
"So were you planning to only half-develop the setting in Sword Art Online?"
"Probably not. But more importantly—I won't include depressing content in my stories."
"Whether I'm writing novels or drawing manga, the goal is to make money. Since I chose to go the commercial route, I won't act pretentious or pander to shallow, fake-deep 'literary' nonsense filled with empty angst."
"I have only one goal: create stories that make readers happy when they come home after a long day—and then make a whole lot of money doing it."
Kotomi said it bluntly, without shame.
Iroha snapped her fingers and exclaimed, "I love that about you, Senpai!"
"You've said that like ten times already."
"Hehe~"
Suddenly, Kotomi remembered the photo she had tucked inside the book. She turned to Iroha and said:
"Oh right, Iroha—the paperback includes a one-of-a-kind bonus gift just for you."
Iroha's eyes lit up. She flipped open the book and quickly found the photo tucked between the pages.
She took it out and stared at it, her gaze quietly savoring every detail. The way she examined it so thoroughly made Kotomi blush with embarrassment.
If I'd known she'd look at it like that, I would've waited until we got to her house before telling her!
After quietly admiring the photo for a long time, Iroha carefully put it away, the smile on her face softening with tenderness beyond her usual mischief:
"Senpai, this one-of-a-kind, just-for-me special bonus… I love it. I'm going to treasure it forever."
Her words hit Kotomi just right, making her laugh bashfully: "Treasure it forever? Isn't that a bit much?"
"Not at all!"
"Yes, yes, you're right. Oh—looks like we're here."
What had once seemed like a long walk now felt like it had passed in a heartbeat. Before she knew it, they had arrived at the Isshiki household.
"Senpai, come have dinner at my place tonight. Aunt Kume is home early and said she wants to make dinner for me and Dad. She's planning to make celery and pork dumplings wrapped in egg."
Kotomi perked up.
Dumplings were one of her absolute favorite foods.
Boiled, pan-fried, steamed—she loved them all! Of course, for steamed dumplings, she preferred lamb or donkey meat fillings, while pan-fried or boiled dumplings had to be filled with meat.
She'd never had egg-wrapped dumplings before, but it sounded like a variation of omurice—definitely worth a try.
If it were vegetarian or had pickled cabbage, though, she'd pass.
"Boiled dumplings, huh… If I had a choice, I'd go with pan-fried. Pan-fried dumplings with fried noodles, pork-and-egg fried rice, or pork-and-egg stir-fried pancakes."
"No problem—we can just fry them after they're boiled."
Iroha had grown up eating boiled dumplings, but if Kotomi liked pan-fried, she didn't mind switching. In truth, she'd never really liked boiled dumplings; she'd just gotten used to them.
Back when her dad was often away and her mother—well, Yuuha—rarely cooked, she was usually left home alone. Cheap, filling, and easy to make, frozen dumplings from the convenience store had been her go-to.
Her mother had never made her dumplings from scratch.
Kotomi glanced at Iroha, then stopped walking—they had reached her front door. She couldn't really go inside, could she? She knew her own appetite well, and if she ate freely, Kumi Motokawa, who was cooking tonight, would probably be overwhelmed.
"I'll definitely come over for a meal sometime. But I won't impose tonight—I've got to get ready for my trip to Kyoto tomorrow."
"Once you get to Kyoto, Senpai, don't go falling head over heels for every pretty girl you see, okay?"
"Pfft, what kind of woman do you think I am?!"
Kotomi retorted with full, righteous indignation.
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