School dismissal time arrived.
Those in the going-home club hurried home, and those with club activities went to their clubs.
Only the two deskmates remained in the classroom.
"It's time, Izumi."
Nishikino Maki said first.
"Okay, you take the front, and I'll take the back."
Izumi Chihiro made a casual arrangement.
Nishikino Maki had no objections and began to move.
Although she was a young lady, such simple cleaning didn't make her flustered, and she quickly finished the work.
"Goodbye."
Uttering two cold words, Nishikino Maki walked out of the classroom with her handbag.
Izumi Chihiro watched the direction she went, knowing in his heart that the girl was off to play the piano again.
He shook his head and smiled at this.
He had always wanted to help her change her mind before, but now he understood that perhaps it wasn't the right time yet. Maybe only when those fated people appeared would she truly change.
As a detached bystander, he could only do so much.
…
By the roadside, withered leaves drifted down from the trees, forming a desolate beauty.
Izumi Chihiro slowly walked home, occasionally looking up to admire the scenery by the road.
Actually, it was just ordinary scenery, but because of his mood, it seemed so vibrant.
That's right, he had been in a very good mood recently.
His touch was hot, sales were steadily increasing, and his family was harmonious. Such times always made one wish they would slow down a bit.
"Ni-san, why are you standing by the roadside in a daze?"
Suddenly, Sagiri appeared from behind him and tugged at his waist.
"Nothing, I just suddenly felt a bit melancholic about autumn."
He answered casually.
"Melancholic about autumn? Is there something bad about autumn?"
Sagiri tilted her head.
"If you don't understand, read more books."
Izumi Chihiro patted her head, "Alright, let's go home."
"Oh."
Sagiri still looked a bit confused as she followed behind him.
Truly inexplicable, Ni-san!
Perhaps this is just a writer's quirk.
… …
Back home, Izumi Chihiro had nothing to do, so he sat on the sofa, watching an anime with his sister.
Just then, his phone vibrated.
He opened it and saw that it was a message from Eriri, a long one, like an essay.
[Look, look! ?]
[It shows 'read' on my end! Don't pretend you didn't see it! Otherwise… you know what I mean?!]
Two more urgent messages immediately followed.
"What is it? Let me see."
Izumi Chihiro also felt a bit curious, so he scrolled the chat to the very top and started reading from the beginning.
He wasn't surprised at first, but then he was shocked.
His brows quickly furrowed.
At first, the names Izumi Saikou and Senju Muramasa appeared before his eyes. The opening introduced the process of their acquaintance, from strangers to drinking from the same bottle, until one evening, at a writer's gathering, Senju Muramasa got Izumi Saikou drunk and then took him to a room…
"Ah!???"
Izumi Chihiro was utterly bewildered.
What on earth did I just read?! Isn't this that kind of story?! And the protagonists are him and Senju Muramasa, what is all this?!
The person who wrote it didn't even know Senju Muramasa was a girl…
By the way, why am I the weaker one, and Senju Muramasa is the stronger one? Is it because of our achievements?
No, no, there are too many things to complain about!
After reading it, Izumi Chihiro fell silent.
[Who wrote this?! Damn it!]
He rarely swore, but he did this time.
[Hahaha! Isn't this interesting? What's wrong, are you angry? Old Thief, you finally got what's coming to you~]
Clearly, Eriri was very satisfied with his reaction, and her messages were full of triumph.
[I'm not angry.]
[Hehe, I don't believe you!]
[Believe it or not, I want to ask who wrote this? This kind of article is simply inexplicable because it's actually completely impossible.]
[Want revenge? She's your fan, you know, can you really bear to? Besides, everyone loves this kind of thing! If you seek revenge, your reputation will plummet immediately!]
[I'm not that childish, I just genuinely want to know who it is. If you don't want to say, then don't. I can just search for it myself.]
[Alright, alright, can't I just tell you? It was written by someone named Mafuyu-chan on her personal blog. I stumbled upon it by accident.]
[I see.]
… …
"Too bad I didn't get to see Chihiro's expression in person, otherwise, it would have been even more interesting than when I first saw that doujinshi!"
The girl sighed.
The conversation between them ended. Eriri had had enough fun, so she stopped pestering him, turned off her phone, and prepared to continue drawing.
"Wait, did I just miss something?"
Just as she was about to act, her brows suddenly furrowed. She pursed her lips and thought for a moment.
Suddenly, a thought flashed.
"That's right, Chihiro just said 'completely impossible,' does he mean…?"
Eriri reopened her phone, scrolled through the chat history, then looked up, her eyes gleaming.
"Chihiro knows Senju Muramasa's true identity? Could it be that Senju Muramasa is actually a woman! That's why it's impossible!"
She realized she had discovered a somewhat useless secret.
Her childhood friend now seemed to have a network of connections she didn't know about.
Thinking of this, a surge of resentment suddenly welled up within her.
So, the girl took a screenshot of the two curses she had just uttered and posted them on her Twitter.
"Everyone, I've avenged you! Look at Old Thief's exasperated expression, it's truly hilarious…"
Her earlier unrestrained mockery of Chihiro, once readers and fans imagined themselves in her shoes, instantly brought a sense of satisfaction.
"That felt good, that felt good!"
"Hahahaha, he swore! Old Thief must have been triggered! So this is Old Thief's weak spot, I used to think he had a defense like a turtle."
"It feels so good to put myself in her shoes! Thank you, Kashiwagi Eri-sensei!"
"Kashiwagi Eri-sensei is indeed on our side, support sensei's righteous attack!"
"I really like a quote from Kashiwagi Eri-sensei… Izumi Old Thief, you're finally getting what you deserve, aren't you?"
"Kashiwagi Eri-sensei, could you please ask the Izumi Old Thief a question for me… Does he truly feel no guilt at all? Our senior died so tragically! And Sayaka… Beware of vengeful spirits seeking retribution!"
"Leave an address, we'll send razor blades, and Kashiwagi Eri-sensei can pass them on to the Izumi Old Thief!"
"Just asking on behalf of others, when will the 'white album' that you two collaborated on be released? I can't wait any longer."