"Everyone! I'll reintroduce myself. I'm Miyazawa Yu, you can call me Yu! These are Iori, Kohei, and Moto, in order. Nice to meet you all!"
He wasted no time. Since he had decided to help Yamamoto leave the ranks of wizards, Miyazawa Yu was going to give it his all!
The effect of him introducing himself first was excellent. Inspired by him, the girls also happily agreed to be called by their first names.
"Ah, you can just call me Kanako."
"Everyone calls me Kiyoko!"
Perfect! Seeing Keiko Suzuki's interest, Miyazawa Yu quickly kicked Yamamoto under the table, telling him to be more proactive!
"Ah! Um, you can call, call me Shinichiro!"
"Then you can call me—"
Receiving the signal, Shinichiro Yamamoto looked at Keiko Suzuki with a hopeful expression. But just as she was about to speak, Aina Yoshiwara suddenly interjected.
"Wait, wait a minute!"
"Huh? What's wrong, Yoshiwara?"
Looking over in confusion, Iori Kitahara had a bad feeling for some reason.
"Um... how should I put this, but changing to first names right after meeting, won't people in the club misunderstand things..."
Shyly poking her fingers together, Aina Yoshiwara's face was flushed as she turned her head away, looking embarrassed about something.
Seeing this, Iori froze in place, clenching his fists, wanting to punch this "Cakey" with twin tails who was ruining the mood!
"B-but... if Iori really wants to call me by my first name, it's not like it's a no..."
"Dream on, you 'Cakey' idiot!"
"Hey! Kitahara, your beer bottle seems to be empty again! You're drinking with such gusto! Have another one!"
Miyazawa Yu grabbed a beer bottle and stuffed it into Iori's mouth. He then hooked his arm around Iori's neck and dragged him away, whispering angrily, "Did you forget your job?! How can you say something like that to a girl?!"
"Sorry..."
Right! It's all for the sake of a brother. How can I just ruin the mood?!
Looking at the pink aura around Yamamoto, Iori Kitahara's mouth opened and closed a few times. Finally, a tear of frustration and blood flowed from his eyes. He pressed his hand to his heart and bowed to Aina Yoshiwara.
"It's... I, who was too shameless and insisted on calling you Aina!!"
Well said, my hero!!!
Moved to the point of a complete blur, Miyazawa Yu raised both fists and cheered silently, leaving Kaya Mizuki dumbfounded.
This guy wasn't this lively in high school. What happened? It's like he's a completely different person in college!
"...Is that so?"
Aina Yoshiwara lowered her head and fidgeted with her fingers. Although she was happy to hear Iori say that, it wasn't... enough!
"Um... Iori."
"What is it? (crying voice)"
"I... I couldn't hear you clearly just now! Could you say it again?"
The cheering on his face froze. Miyazawa Yu looked back at Aina Yoshiwara in disbelief. What kind of cruel woman could come up with such a wicked punishment?!
Iori was already dying of shame after saying it once, and she had the nerve to ask him to say it again with that heavy makeup on! Wasn't she trying to kill Iori?!
"I can't take it anymore!!"
"Iori! Don't give up!"
"Hey, 'Cakey'! Do you have any conscience?!"
Aina Yoshiwara was speechless as she looked at the chaotic group of boys and the accusing look Yu was giving her. She wanted to say, What is wrong with these guys?! Don't they have any gratitude for her, the organizer of this mixer?!
"Excuse me! Your salad ramen has arrived!"
Thankfully, just before the situation got out of control, the waiter brought the food to the table, which temporarily diverted the girls' attention.
"Huh? What is salad ramen?"
"Aina, you don't know? I heard it's a popular salad in Hokkaido!"
"Oh! Can I take a picture?"
Seeing that the girls were all called over by Kanako to take pictures, Miyazawa Yu patted Iori on the back to comfort him. Then, Kaya Mizuki pulled him over.
"What do you think? The cake Kanako-chan made for my birthday last time. It's so pretty, isn't it?"
Smiling, Kaya Mizuki took out her phone to show him. She hugged Kanako proudly and said, "It's good to have a younger sister. She's so much more thoughtful than my ungrateful little brother!"
"Well~ If you could, please don't point me out... Also, is Kanako your sister?"
He was shocked. Miyazawa Yu tilted his head and stared at the beautiful girl in the photo for a long time. He found it hard to believe that she and the "Cakey" sitting in front of him were the same person.
And he only knew that Kaya was friends with Aina's friends. It was a coincidence that the two were also sisters.
"Oh!? Could this girl be..."
"She's a beauty!"
Miyazawa Yu didn't have to turn his head to know that the other four scoundrels had gathered behind him.
The contrast between the beautiful girl and the "Cakey" had obviously shocked them, but besides the shock...
"How is that possible!"
"I know! How is that possible, how is that possible!"
Iori Kitahara and Hajime Nojima exchanged glances, put their arms around each other's shoulders, and walked back to their seats. They then both pointed their chopsticks at Kanako Iida at the same time.
"Kanako-san, do you like taking pictures?"
"Yeah, but I also really like watching movies."
"What a coincidence, I also watch movies! What kind do you like?"
"..."
What a pair of scumbags. Miyazawa Yu gave Iori and Hajime Nojima an extremely low rating, his face a mask of darkness.
They saw a single picture of her face and changed their minds so quickly.
And since they could both point their chopsticks at the same person, what was the point of the secret code?!
"Ah~ I think I just watched a movie called Love's Image!"
"Is that so! You guys wait a minute—"
Miyazawa Yu's eyes were filled with contempt as he watched Shinichiro Yamamoto also point his chopsticks at Kanako.
The three of them scrambled to get her attention, completely confusing Kanako, who could only wave her hands helplessly.
"Sigh... Kohei, you're the only normal one here."
Letting out a sigh, Miyazawa Yu could only find solace in Kohei, who also had a look of contempt on his face.
If an innocent soul like him were to hang out with trash like Iori, he would be corrupted. It was better to be a pure 2D otaku with a slightly cleaner mind.
"It can't be helped. They're just boring 3D people. We're not on the same wavelength."
"Oh! You're on fire!"
Although it was perverted to bring a magical girl manga book to a mixer, Miyazawa Yu decided to forgive Kohei. It was too demanding to expect more from trash!
However, what he didn't expect was that not long after he praised Kohei...
The latter's expression suddenly became serious in a flash of a moment. He took Kaya's phone from the table and continuously zoomed in on a picture. Finally, he stopped at a DVD cover in the background.
"Is that... Dissolving! Magical Girl Rarako's DVD?"
Leaning in to take a look, Miyazawa Yu looked at Kohei, who had tears in his eyes, and tentatively asked, "I remember your otaku T-shirts all have Rarako on them, right?"
"Of course! Rarako is the magical girl who changed my life!"
With tears welling up, Kohei Imamura's body stiffly turned towards Kanako—
Could it, could it be a fellow fan?! And she's a girl! She must be an angel!
How could he resist such a fatal temptation?! How could he have the strength to resist?!
"Kohei! Calm down! Don't lose yourself!"
"No! I just found my true self, Yu! Do you believe in love at first sight?!"
"Bleh! Do you call that love?! You're just after her body! You're a scumbag!"
Miyazawa Yu frantically shook Kohei's shoulders, trying to bring back his "justice partner."
However, the latter, whose mind was already clouded by the thought of a fellow fan, couldn't hear the noise. He lifted a tuft of his blond hair and sighed heavily.
"Whatever, a single dog like you wouldn't understand love. I won't be able to drink with you guys as often in the future..."
"Why are you acting so tragic?! Please save some face in front of your friends! I'm begging you!"
With the worst assumption already in his mind, Miyazawa Yu could only pray that reality wouldn't be so cruel.
Unfortunately, Murphy's Law also held a prominent position in this other world. With a look of despair, he watched as Kohei Imamura stood up and blocked all his rivals.
"I say... how about we go to my room later?"
"Huh?"
The ones who were stunned were not only Kanako Iida but also Miyazawa Yu—What kind of aggressive language is that?! He's asking to go to her place right away. If that's not being after someone's body, what is?!
It's over! I'll never be able to hold my head high in front of Kaya again!
He could imagine that no matter what he said, she could just retort with, "Your friend harassed my sister!"
"Um... I'm going to the bathroom!"
"Ah! I'll go too..."
"Add me in!"
Blushing to the extreme, Kanako Iida used going to the bathroom as an excuse to get some fresh air.
The other girls followed suit. As Kaya Mizuki closed the door, she gave Miyazawa Yu a meaningful look.