Chapter 210: No Way I'm Agreeing to That!
Hey! You've got to be kidding me! Once was bad enough, but a second time!? Do you all think I'm that easy to mess with!?
Kouya glared across the table at the fallen angel.
Gabriel kept eating her lunch lazily, eyes half-lidded, her expression saying everything: "What are you looking at? Look again and I'll punch you."
Kouya shifted his gaze toward Vigne.
Vigne lowered her eyes, keeping a perfectly calm expression as she said in a serious tone, "Kouya-kun, it's rude to look around while you're eating."
Then he turned to Satania.
Satania had just stuffed the last bite of her rice ball into her mouth. She blinked up at him, her face completely blank except for two grains of rice stuck to the corner of her lips.
"Meow meow meow?"
"..."
'Yeah, there's no way it's that red-haired idiot.'
Kouya snorted and went back to his food. As he ate, his hand brushed against Raphiel's arm. The next moment, pain shot through his foot.
'Got you this time!'
'Let's see you get away now!'
The instant the culprit tried to pull their foot back, Kouya snapped his legs together, trapping it between them.
Then, with lightning-fast reflexes, he reached down and grabbed the offender's ankle.
It was slender—just enough to fit in his hand. Even through the soft layer of stockings, he could feel the smooth warmth of her skin against his palm.
And then—
Vigne's face suddenly turned bright red. Her eyes widened, her breath caught, and even her ears turned pink. She bit her lip and glared at him, mouthing silently:
"Let go!"
Kouya froze.
'Wait—she was the one kicking me!?'
'I thought for sure it was the lazy angel, but it was actually her!?'
For a moment, Vigne looked so embarrassed she could've sunk through the floor. Kouya decided to spare her the torment and quickly let go.
'It was just a foot grab, what's the big deal? It's not like it's the first time I've touched her!'
...
The rest of lunch passed in awkward silence. No one said a word as they cleaned up and headed back to class.
Back in the classroom, Vigne walked straight to her desk, dropped the completed club application in front of Kouya, and without a word, sat down.
Kouya looked around—Gabriel was already in her natural habitat, sprawled across her desk like a dead fish, and Satania was snickering at something in her head.
With a helpless sigh, he grabbed the paper and headed to the teacher's office.
At the door, he peeked in. 'No Shizuka.' Instead, the bald homeroom teacher told him she was probably in the smoking room at the end of the second-floor hallway.
When Kouya pushed the door open, the smell of cigarettes filled the air. Inside, Shizuka was sitting with one leg crossed over the other, exhaling smoke lazily, looking every bit like she belonged in a noir movie.
"Yo, you came." She glanced up with a lazy smile.
"I need your signature." Kouya waved the club form in his hand.
"Not bad, you actually finished this fast. I knew I had a good eye for talent."
'You had nothing to do with it! It was all Vigne's work!'
She took the paper and skimmed through it. "Hmm... Coffee Club. Dedicated to helping students discover the beauty of blended coffee... Sounds kind of like a Tea Ceremony Club. Not bad."
'Sorry, that whole mission statement was Vigne's idea too.'
"This can be approved." She nodded and signed off. "To be honest, I was half-expecting you to come up with something like 'Kouya's Harem Club' or maybe the 'Carnivorous Boys and Herbivore Girls Petting Society.'"
Kouya's face darkened instantly.
'The first one's bad enough—but what is that second one!? Who would even name a club that!? You'd be branded a pervert and end up on a campus blacklist for life!'
"Being your advisor isn't a problem," Shizuka said, flicking the ash off her cigarette. She pulled a pen from her pocket and signed the bottom of the form. "But you'll need the student council's approval to get a club room. Go handle that yourselves."
'Hey, come on! You can't just dump everything on us like that! You're supposed to be the supervising teacher!'
She exhaled a long, smoky sigh. "Alright, that's that. You can go now." She waved her hand lazily, clearly dismissing him.
Afternoon sunlight streamed through the window, washing over her figure. The soft glow traced the curve of her long legs in black stockings and glimmered off her dark hair. Shizuka Kawaii was effortlessly beautiful—elegant, dangerous, and annoyingly confident.
"Maybe you should smoke less," Kouya said as he reached the door. "That's probably why you can't find a boyfriend."
Her relaxed expression froze. Then, slowly, a red aura of pure fury flared around her. "Boy, are you trying to die?"
Bang!
Kouya slammed the door shut and bolted before she could explode.
...
As he neared the classroom, a familiar figure appeared by the hallway window—a black-haired girl with straight bangs and a quiet, refined air. Her cheeks were faintly pink as she turned to him.
"Kouya-kun... can I talk to you for a second?"
'Probably about the cat youkai, huh?'
"Sure." He nodded.
They walked to a quiet corner of the corridor.
Machiko clasped her hands together nervously. "Kouya-kun, that little cat... is she alright? She's such a sweet thing. She didn't cause you any trouble, did she?"
'Trouble? Oh, just a bit. Like drinking sake and then peeing in the shoebox! And if that wasn't enough, she even tried to cover it with my underwear!'
"I left her with a friend this morning," Kouya replied. "If you want to see her, you can come by this weekend."
"I see..." Machiko hesitated, her voice barely above a whisper.
Kouya thought for a second, then pulled out his phone and showed her a photo of the shrine maiden holding the little cat.
Seeing the picture, Machiko finally relaxed. She smiled softly and bowed slightly. "Thank you, Kouya-kun. If there's ever anything I can help you with, please let me know."
Kouya raised an eyebrow. "Actually, there is something you can help with."
"Eh?" Her eyes widened.
'That was just supposed to be a polite offer! Like saying, "Let's grab lunch sometime"—you're not actually supposed to follow up on it!'
"W-what is it?" she asked cautiously.
"It's nothing big," Kouya said casually. "You just have to use your mouth a bit."
"U-u-use... my mouth!?" Machiko's voice jumped an octave, her black hair trembling as she went pale. "W-with my mouth!? That's... that's way too much!"
'What kind of request is that!? I just thanked him for taking care of a cat, and now he wants that kind of favor!?'
Kouya frowned. "What's wrong with you?" He had no idea why she suddenly looked like a terrified rabbit.
"If you're free, we can do it now," he said matter-of-factly.
"NO!" Machiko shook her head violently, tears forming at the corners of her eyes. "P-please don't make me!"
Kouya frowned. "You're just the most suitable person for this, so I'm asking you, that's all..."
'T-That kind of thing has a "suitable" person?'
'No, no, no!'
'There's no way that could ever be suitable!'
'I-I'll be torn apart for sure!'
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